Absolutely adorable and authentically hilarious! This book is such a sweet and well-written story about college students exploring romance and what gender and sexuality mean to them. I was rooting for these characters the entire time as they tried to discover who they are and how to be confident in their own skin. This also had me cracking up. Some of the conversations between the characters had me laughing out loud. A cute and comedic story about desserts, romance, and other sweet things. I am waiting very impatiently for the next volume!

This was so much fun?

Do not get me wrong, I love Manga and i do know that often the feminist part of myself has
to hide under a blanket..
But not here.

This was entertaining and thouhtfull and over all just a good time.

I'm looking forward to get to know all the characters even more!

This read was a very pleasant surprise!

I really wasn't sure what to make of this - I was a bit worried that I would be going to find some of it a bit problematic, but instead it really surprised me.

This story explores gender identity in a really good way, and exploring the concepts of cross-dressing (or dressing as a different gender) and being transgender separately.

I really liked how our main characters each had their own reasons for cross-dressing and it explained it in a way that really made you understand their point of view and sympathise with them.

There were no jokes at the expense of our main characters' choices and identities, which I found really refreshing. The editor's note at the end explaining the use of pronouns was really interesting to read, and it was clear that care was put into not only this story but the translation to ensure it is representative.

I did find it a little confusing at first, since three of the main characters seemed very similar in appearance, so kept getting them confused, but once I got to understand their characters a bit more, it was easier to tell them apart.

I actually really loved reading this, and I'm actually really excited to continue the story and keep reading!

This is a really pleasant read, with some lovable characters that taught me a little bit about gender expression. A really sweet read.

Rated 4.75 (rounded up to 5)

This was a very interesting and different read for me. Cross-dressing is a concept that I have seen a few other times as side details in other manga but I've never actually read a manga where it was the focal point of the story, and it was really cool to see that take center stage. It definitely started off a bit rocky but a little bit in it really found its groove and I was having a good time. We got to cover a lot of territory with these characters in this opening volume (maybe combined first 2 volumes I wasn't really sure how it was being packaged) we go all the way from them being nearly online friends who decided to start meeting up all the way to close friends who share about their lives and are maybe interested in deepening that connection. Which is another thing I really liked about this story, it is so intrinsically and explicitly queer. There is a canon explicitly stated trans character and all cross-dressers ( yes multiple) are very fluid in their gender presentations and it is just chill. I'd definitely recommend checking this one out.

This is a really cute and wholesome story about a group of online friends who meet up to eat and enjoy sweets together, but each has their own unusual relationship with their identity and gender presentation. It takes place in modern-day Japan, but involves a group of young adults that have been raised with certain societal views and misconceptions about queer identities and culture that occasionally show in the way they talk about each other (most notably, there are a few flippant remarks/jokes regarding the transgender woman in their group that would be regarded as transphobic but are not directly called out in the text). There is an acknowledgement of this towards the END of the text, but there is no warning at the beginning that I feel would be prudent to include.

Overall though, I greatly enjoy the way each of these people explore and think about gender, gender presentation, sexuality, and queerness through these casual conversations that happen in a safe environment where they can all be honest and comfortable while still retaining a lighthearted tone and their shared connection of loving sweets. I will definitely read future volumes!

This new offering from Kurano has romance manga elements, but I Cross-Dressed for the IRL Meetup covers a lot more ground than just relationships. The central character is “Cocoa,” a regular attendee of all-girl meetups at dessert cafés. But Cocoa has a secret: she’s a man—and an up-and-coming actor, at that! He adopts his Cocoa persona so he can escape from his public-facing professional side. As he contemplates telling the truth to “Opera,” a girl from the meet-up he has a crush on, he finds out that she’s also cross-dressing! From there, the group of four friends open up about their respective gender identities, confronting their complicated feelings for each other and how they wish to be viewed by the world around them.

As explained in the translator’s note, I Cross-Dressed for the IRL Meetup is not a bastion of perfection when it comes to discussions of gender identity. However, exploring these issues (or in fact any issue) in depth and honestly will not be tidy and academic. Cocoa, Opera, and their friends confront the messiness of who we are, who we love, and how we express ourselves, and sometimes that involves making mistakes and assumptions. The imperfections are a feature, not a bug, and make for a story that’s equally funny and thought-provoking.

I Crossed-Dressed for the IRL Meetup 
-Volume 2 tentative release Nov 19 
-Volume 3 tentative release end of January 

I really had fun reading this series to the point I could not put it down until I was finished. It’s a fun read where you can’t help but love all four characters of the group. They all are handling their own type of obstacle and even though all their secrets get revealed the individuals don’t turn their back on each other and continue to enjoy their meet-ups. Two of the individuals actually go to the same school, which makes it so one doesn't reveal their true identity, but I think as the series progresses that will change. The characters also vary in age, which I think is a good detail especially with this type of group where they met online. 

Volume 1 is a bit longer as it contains the Japanese volumes 1 and 2. So far I have only found release dates for the next two volumes, but I am looking forward to continuing it. 

The main character is Cocoa, is an actor who lacks self confidence, who likes to crossdress and joins a monthly meet up with others who also love sweets. One of the individuals he gains interest in, Opera; however, one day his secret is revealed. Afterwards the group slowly learns about each other's secrets.  Even after this though, they continue to meet to enjoy sweets, learn more about each other, and basically support each other in some way.

As a reader you know that Cocoa isn't what 'she' seems to be. Cocoa is the alter-ego of a man when he dresses up as a woman, and he's quite good at it. Cocoa originally starts going to the café meets for the desserts, but it quickly evolves to her going in hopes of seeing Opera, another member of the group of four sweets lovers. But Opera isn't what she seems either. Opera is also a man.

So this is my first official LBGTQ+ manga that includes cross-dressing, trans, and self-declared femboy characters. I usually stick to the gay and lesbian love stories (My love mix up for example), and this was an interesting read for more than just the story. As crass as it sounds it can be broken down to basically a two cross dressers, one trans woman and a self described femboy for to a café for sweet treats. Hopes for developing further relationships occur, but I don't think it does the book justice for all the relevant issues it casually addresses.

Cocoa hopes to get to know Opera better and even goes so far as to ask her to teach her how to be more feminine. Opera is amazingly good at make up, finding flattering clothing, and keeping up appearances. Cocoa wants her to teach her how to be just as good (aka, little things like not leaving the toilet seat up in a gender neutral washroom). But the manga doesn't just cover their adventures, it also covers a bit of the other two as well..

The book dives into the why of it for Opera and Cocoa. Cocoa is actually a decently famous male stage actor. In his normal day life, Satoshi (aka Cocoa), is viewed as extremely attractive and 'masculine,' meaning he doesn't love sweets, etc. He also can't float through a crowd unnoticed very well. After dressing as a woman at work, he starts playing with the idea of going out as a woman in order to feel more comfortable. Opera started cross dressing while still in school. His friends begged him (they went to an all male school) and Opera decided to give it a go, only to find his friends liked it and so did he.

The manga itself feels very episodic, with each chapter covering some different point in time. While it's mostly day to day occurrences for the 4 it covers some interesting things that most of us may not always think about. For example, gender neutral washrooms. They only go to places with gender neutral bathrooms so they don't have to make decisions like whether or not to go into the men's washroom dressed as a woman. Other things like facial hair, fake breasts, being outed in public, transgender issues, pronoun use, and bisexuality are touched upon throughout the book.

But it can't all be heavy, so the author applies a bit of comic relief to keeps things light occasionally.

Conclusion?

Educational for anyone not overly familiar with these types of things. Again, goes over things like washrooms, facial hair, pronoun use, etc. The art is pretty with a more classic manga style feel to it. The characters are interesting and I did find myself wondering how things will turn out for these people. Can't wait to read the next one!

Just to get this out of the way, I found an Editor's Note at the end of my ARC of "I Cross-Dressed for the IRL Meetup" which indicates that the publisher's editorial team is taking the subject matter seriously. This manga is light-hearted but does not use cross-dressing as a gag or a punchline, showing that the author is also respectfully portraying cross-dressing in their work. The titular IRL meetup group became friends after meeting online and visiting dessert shops together. They've tried other similar meetup groups, but this is the only one wherein they really got along well with the others. The cross-dressing happens for multiple reasons that they do get into, but overall I see this premise as a critique of gender expectations and how sweets/desserts have been considered a "feminine" thing in Japan (case in point: Men's Pocky). I had fun reading this but now I want desserts and have "Boys & Girls" by Blur stuck in my head.

"Thank you NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

A group of online friends share a fondness for sweet treats and start meeting up once a month at various cafes and places that sell cake. Initially, they all present as women, but it is quickly revealed that two are men who cross-dress, for various reasons, one is a femme boy who likes wearing women’s clothing, and one is a trans woman.

This 2-volumes-in-1 story addresses gender identity and gender expression, in a cute little story that contains lots of cake! Throughout, you find out the reasons why the various characters choose to present themselves in the ways that they do, and I quickly grew fond of all of them. I definitely would love the opportunity to read more of their story, as I feel like there could definitely be at least one romantic relationship brewing in the group! "

I went into this manga with low expectations because of how Japanese media tends to treat transgender people, and it ended up being SUCH a pleasant surprise. It treats gender identity and gender presentation that strays from the norm with respect, and the characters and scenarios are so lovable and fun. Light-hearted and fun stories about exploring gender and transness are so scarce in the anime and manga world, and this one was just a delight. I have already recommended this manga to a couple people, and will continue to do so.

When I first started reading I Cross-Dressed for the IRL Meetup I wasn't sure how tactfully queer identities where going to be addressed, if they were addressed at all. Luckily, I need not have worried, as this manga showcases a wide range of experiences and identities and does so in a delicate manner. The stories fall into a vignette style and are very slice-of-life, however there is character growth and progression throughout. I did struggle to tell the four main characters apart, however by the end I started to get the hang of it. A very cute comedy series that fits in well with other cross-dressing/gender-queer manga.

**reviewed from uncorrected eARC via netgalley

shonen romantic comedy manga (volume 1 includes the first two issues of the series). I found this very confusing at first (I would have trouble keeping track of 4 new names/hairstyles IRL, and even more so in a manga where characters also have alternate identities and all the pretty faces have the same aesthetic), but when there were only two characters outside of the group meetups it got easier, and once it gets going it's cute! Plus there are some helpful refresher cues sprinkled throughout to help readers keep track of who is who and who knows what.
Cocoa-San becomes fast friends (and maybe more than friends?) with the cute girl he's had his eye on, Opera-San. Their shared love for sweet desserts provide a basis for meeting up together outside the group and there are plenty of embarrassing (and super cute) moments that follow.

The characters are sweet and the set up provides a welcome gender-bending escape--I was unable to find much info about the author/artist Kurano so can't vouch for queer representation, but there is a helpful editor's note at the end about gender presentations and the gender spectrum, and the content is enjoyable nonetheless.

I would like to thank NetGallery and Kodansha Comics for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.
This was a lightheaded story about a group of 4 people that meet up to eat sweets. This has lgbt+ characters but never real life dramas. Easy to read and never stressful.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC.

This was such a cute manga! I wasn’t sure what to expect with the title, but I’m glad this ended up being good. I really loved how this manga focused on gender identity. I’m interested in reading more of this series.

This story follows a guy who cross-dresses to meet up with a group of girls to eat sweets. The Funny thing is they all have the same secret, which comes out through the story. I think the funniest part of this story is the girl in the background who keeps overhearing them as they reveal their secrets. Would be interesting in seeing where this story goes.

This was a super fun and cute manga 1st volume and i cannot wait to read the rest of the series, Learning about Cocoa and why she cross dresses and her 'real' identity aswell as learning about Opera-san, Lemon-san and Taro-San was also super fun.

While this story is about Cross dressing there is also Trans representation in the story line which was nice to see.

3.5 stars

Not really my cup of tea. (I know I like to go into things without preconceived notions, but sometimes I feel like I should have read the blurb more completely.)

The art was decent, but I did have problems differentiating the characters for more than half the book. (All of volume 1 basically.)

There wasn't much in the way of plot. I like character growth to happen within a story rather than the growth being the story.

**Review of *I Crossdressed for the IRL Meetup***

*I Crossdressed for the IRL Meetup* is a delightful and heartwarming manga that expertly navigates themes of identity, friendship, and love in a refreshing and engaging way. This charming story, encompassing volumes 1 and 2, follows Cocoa—actually Satoshi—a young man who cross-dresses to fit into an all-girls meetup centered around sweets and desserts.

From the outset, the manga captures the tension and excitement of online interactions and the challenges that come with presenting oneself authentically. Cocoa’s initial motivations for joining the group are simple: a love for delicious treats and a desire for connection. However, as the story unfolds, it evolves into a rich exploration of gender nonconformity and self-acceptance.

The friendships Cocoa forms with the other girls in the group are beautifully illustrated, showcasing the warmth and camaraderie that blossom over shared desserts and laughter. Each character is well-developed, and the dynamics among them create a relatable and inviting atmosphere. The pivotal moment when Opera discovers Cocoa’s secret leads to a surprising twist that deepens the plot, revealing Opera’s own hidden identity and mutual feelings. Their relationship becomes a tender exploration of attraction that transcends traditional gender norms.

The art style is vibrant and expressive, perfectly complementing the lighthearted tone of the story while also capturing the deeper emotional moments. The dessert cafes are depicted with such charm that readers can almost taste the sweets themselves!

What truly stands out about *I Crossdressed for the IRL Meetup* is its celebration of authenticity and the courage it takes to be oneself. The manga balances comedy and heartfelt moments with finesse, making it an enjoyable read for those who appreciate stories about self-discovery and acceptance.

Overall, this manga is a sweet treat that will resonate with anyone who has ever felt like an outsider. It’s a joyful reminder that love and friendship can flourish in the most unexpected places, and that being true to oneself is the most delicious journey of all. A must-read for fans of lighthearted romantic comedies and anyone curious about the beautiful complexities of identity!

A fun and pleasant manga about four friends who cross dress but don't know it to begin with. It was cute and easy to make your way through, though I'd agree with the other reviews that say there isn't really much more to it than that, but sometimes you don't need anything more than a book that makes you smile and lets you while away a gentle hour or two.