The story was super cute and I really enjoyed it. The characters were relatable and the semi-love triangle didn’t feel forced. The artwork was also good.

Fun, lighthearted boys' love! The main character is supremely dense, which is funny, but does mean the book moves a little slower than I would've preferred. I'd definitely read a second volume, though!

3.5 stars. What a lovely start to a manga!

It was amusing to see the two characters playing the game and chatting online right next to each other but not noticing the link. I was worried this bit would go on for too long, as so many manga rely on keeping the miscommunication going to extend their story, but it resolved really quickly which was great. The story then switches to a new kind of mix up, and the comedy keeps changing and developing.

The art captures the personalities of Hashimoto and Shirase really well, showing the more flustered aspects of A-san and the cool vibe of U.M.A.-san both in and out of game. I liked the two different styles and thought it added a nice contrast to the story.

Overall this is a sweet co-workers/online friends to lovers story that is funny and very cute. The ending makes me want to immediately pick up volume 2, so I'll be continuing the story for sure.

This was a short and incredibly sweet manga, the art was well done and the story overall was easy to follow.
The main characters are somewhat oblivious and although we got romance toward the end it felt like a long time coming for less payout than I’d want.

I usually enjoy more adult manga and novels but this was cute for what it was and I had a fun time reading along.

Recommended: yes!
for a sweet and silly story about unexpected friendships, gaming and connections, lots of laughter and smiles

Thoughts:
This story had several things that drew me in just from the basic premise. People who end up getting to know each other in a different context or without realizing who they are and developing a better understanding of each other will always warm my heart. But add in those awkward moments once they realize and have to merge their two images of each other in their minds and it's definitely going to make me laugh, too! This one also had an unexpected bonus of miscommunications that I actually -LOVE- where people are having a conversation with two very different ideas of what is being discussed. This made me cackle so many times and I absolutely loved it.

Our main character is surprisingly but sweetly naive. It's done in a lovable and realistic way, rather than in a way that makes the character feel too childish or like he's just a submissive fetish mirror for the older partner in the story. I appreciated how pure he was, both because it led to some of those double-conversations that made me laugh, but also because it just made me happy to think those people do exist. Hopefully, anyway.

If you are also a pure and naive soul, some of the jokes in this might miss you because it's definitely a lot of relying on winks and euphemisms and such to imply naughty things, more than outright saying them. So this might not make as much sense for younger teens or people in general who don't get sex euphemisms. Otherwise, you'll probably chuckle along as well. It was also nice for this to be set in a world where no one batted and eye or commented when guys were interested in other guys. It was just a non-event, and I loved that.

The art was great in here too. Sometimes with styles like this I have a hard time following actions, transitions, etc because it can be so sketchy but this made it easy to track where we were at all times in the story. The expressions were great as well, and added emotions that amplified the humor even more. One issue I had was with some of the characters looking very similar in early panels, where I would get confused thinking someone was talking to themselves, or trying to figure out which of the two was saying what line. That got better as I got more familiar with them, but it did slow me up a bit at first.

And the dialogue, y'all. Let's not forget about that because it was great. There was gamer speak, as expected when it focuses on bonding through gaming, but it was usually explained so folks not familiar with it will still understand. As a gamer who knew these terms and references I found this a little dull but I understand why it's done to not exclude folks from the jokes. The way gaming aspects like alt characters, gacha, and guild meetups were implemented echoed a lot of conversations and experiences I've had in real life, which is always nice to have a mirror of.

The ending felt pretty tidy, like the story could reasonably end there. I hope it doesn't because I'm really enjoying the play between the characters and would love to spend more time with them. Overall I definitely recommend this for a sweet and silly story about unexpected friendships, gaming as a way to connect with others, and funny miscommunications.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for a free advanced copy. This is my honest review!

*Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss!* is a Yaoi/BL manga that kept me guessing with the will they/wont they, slow-burning, romance. The story features adult main characters, which is always refreshing especially in a more innocent (no spice) BL. There's also a hint of a love triangle to keep things interesting. 👀

The title is pretty clear about the premise, some guys are friends online in a video game, not realizing they work together as Boss/Employee.
The main tropes for these guys are your typical popular, assertive senpai (boss) and an adorable, super clueless, cinnamon roll (employee). While I love the cute, oblivious character, I wished the senpai had realized his feelings sooner, but maybe I just live for romantic tension and a blushing babygirl. 😅

The manga is on the longer side, which means the will-they-won’t-they tension takes its sweet time to develop. However, the buildup is worth it, and now I can’t wait for Volume 2, set to release in August.

If you enjoy well-crafted character dynamics that keep you guessing, and a slow-burn romance, *Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss!* is definitely worth checking out.

love this! read on line ages ago and I'm so happy to see the author get a print run. I wouldn't recommend this to people who dislike the miscommunication trope but since I don't mind it, this was a delight. I liked that they showed a high schooler having a crush but not ending up with the older guy. super excited that this will be multiple volumes because I only thought it'd be one.

What a fun story! It started slow but when I realized I wanted to have volume two in my hands. It is a much longer manga than usual, it has 320 pages. But believe me, the chapters fly by and you are completely hooked.

Something that did not convince me much is a certain relationship that there is with a high school student (but it is not a reciprocated relationship).

Taking this detail away, the story is enjoyable, fun, crazy and I love that it includes things from video games. A great combination that makes Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss! be a recommendable story.

Thank you Kodansha Comics for the ARC I read on NetGallley in exchange for an honest review.

An adorably cute modern love story.

While the title kinda gives the game away, it honestly doesn't matter as the chemistry between the characters is excellent.

The online personas vs Real life people is capture in a believable way, right down to how people are so much more confident online.

I loved all the misunderstandings and sudden relisations by each of the three protagonists. It adds an amusing edge to this already delightfully funny modern romance.

Trying to stay up on new manga coming out, this was a really fun last minute read. I might have mentioned it before, but I am a pretty avid videogame player—it’s actually part of my normie job—so I’m always extremely excited when I find a narrative that centres around that. In terms of shounen-ai (anime and manga that feature m/m romantic relationships), this was a really sweet low-spice option that perfectly captures the obliviousness of someone used to interacting through a screen.
Story-wise, Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss! is pretty much what it says. Hashimoto is a recent graduate working an office job under a demanding boss, Shirase. In his spare time he plays an online game alongside a few internet friends, Salted Salmon and U.M.A, to whom he confesses all the highs and lows of trying his best but failing to impress Shirase. U.M.A, in turn, talks often about a co-worker he thinks has potential, but lacks skill who he doesn’t know how to properly motivate. A chance real-life encounter reveals the truth, unbeknownst to either they were in fact talking to each other all along.
I really enjoyed the relationship progression in this. It moves from enemies to friends and then to lovers, but neither Hashimoto or Shirase are particularly good at communicating or picking up on signals. Normally miscommunication isn’t my thing, but instead of acting as an obstacle in this story, it felt more like a means for the pair to get closer to one another and build trust as they worked through those misunderstandings. The result is something incredibly cute and very funny.
Personally, I would thoroughly recommend this as a quick, feel-good read.

I wanted to read this for a while! I actually forgot it was BL, which is a bonus, but it would be cute and good as a platonic comic as well!

What do you do when you find out your bff in-game is your hard to deal with boss? (You date him! Just kidding, that is like way after they're friends first.) This manga is rife with miscommunications but in a comedy-style and all of them get worked out sooner or later anyway so it's not the BIG STRESS of the miscommunication trope in some romances since it's mostly meant for laughs (usually with one party figuring out what's up while the other is clueless). A cute manga for fans of friendship and online games and little gay stories and oblivious but here for it love interests. Enjoyable!

Thank you Kodansha and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for review!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this story.
SPOILERS TO FOLLOW

THIS WAS SUCH A CUTE STORY AND I WANT MORE OF IT AHHHH!!! Shirase and Hashimoto are so damn cute together and it was really fun watching them fall for one another. Hashimoto is just like me though COMPLETELY CLUELESS so all the misunderstandings in this volume. felt on a personal level lol. Kumada was a really great character too. I was glad to see that all three of them were friends in-game and offline. I'm hoping there's more volumes of this that will be published and that this isn't the only one because I really enjoyed it and I want to read more of their story!

A cute G rated, slice of life, BL. Highlights the miscommunication trope, two men after the same guy, hapless MMC. Sweet book, fast read, no spice.

A super cute read about two gaming pals who meet IRL and find out they're actually Boss/Employee. *Gasp!* It ultimately presents little in the way of angst or drama. Instead we get to see them slowly start to spend more time together as they game their way into love. There are tons of misunderstandings but they're not important and don't lead to real hurt so it says fun and cute the whole time. Hashimoto is SO blissfully unaware and oblivious to how much people like him. Two people ask him out and he doesn't immediately realize either time. It's amazingly dense. But when it comes to Shirase, he realizes quickly and literally runs to clarify. Their trial dating is fun as well, it's never easy to shift a dynamic from friends to more. I enjoyed the minor uncertainty and awkwardness there.

Hashimoto hates his boss. But in his free time, he loves playing an online game with friends. It just so happens that his best online friend is the boss that he hates. After a meet and greet from Hell, the two men forge a friendship and improve their work relationship as well. Pretty soon, things take a turn again when they realize that they can be so much more.

I don't normally go for BL manga, but this was quite good. I love the characters and the art. It was funny and sweet. Just so good. I may actually continue this series.

-- 2/5 Stars -- ★★☆☆☆

Trigger Warnings for Turns out my Online Friend is my Real-Life Boss 1: Quid Pro Quo, age gap

Turns out my Online Friend is my Real-Life Boss 1​ is the first volume in the Online Friend series by Nmura. In this volume we follow Hashimoto and his boss, Shirase. Based only from the title, it's pretty safe to say that Shirase ends up being Hashimoto's online friend for almost a year.

First let me say, Nmura is an absolutely fantastic artist. The design of each of the characters in this manga are stunning. That being said, the story has been hashed again and again in other novels and relies so heavily on a completely unaware protagonist. Hashimoto was so sweet, but it was such a stretch to believe that he was that unaware of both Shirase and Kumataros' feelings.

Overall, Turns out my Online Friend is my Real-Life Boss 1 is a very pretty manga. The story just wasn't there for me. Special thanks to NetGalley, Nmura, and Kodansha Comics for access to a digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

A fun silly little BL Manga with a classic painfully oblivious MC. It has pretty illustrations and clear writing. It was an enjoyable read.

I really enjoyed this manga. The premise is very interesting and is literally in the title - what if your online friend turned out to be your real life boss.

And the execution is actually very good. I'm not an expert at manga, but the drawings were cute, and I didn't have trouble following the story.

As for the plot, I would like to see more implications of them working together in the second half. I think the story should focus more on this than on the weird love triangle.

There's a lot of miscommunication and characters being oblivious as a plot device, but I didn't mind it.

Overall, it's a nicely written and drawn manga with a lot of funny and cute moments. Great for a quick read.

One of my best manga reads.
It is a fun boss-employee romance with a love triangle, 100% recommended

"Turns Out My Online Friend is My Real-Life Boss!" is a sweet and simple BL manga. The plot utilizes common tropes such as misunderstandings and miscommunications, as well as hidden identities. The art is nice and clean, and the ending is quite sweet. I do feel it had a slow pace, and a bit of an anti-climatic ending in terms of their relationship progress (spoilers: the kiss at the end is only implied, not seen by the reader). However, I would still recommend this manga to readers looking for a more wholesome experience.