i do think that you are right, and that is a big issue that comes from the western way of thinking, is that "everyone must think this way too" kind of attitude, when i first watched this show, my first thought was never that she was trans, but just a masculine looking girly girl.
Attariq
2021-08-02 02:28:56 +0000 UTC
Momoe is not trans she is just a girl with masculine features who ended up developing some sort of complex around that and had to push herself into this "manly style" because of societal pressure & stereotypes.
I find it quite interesting & ironic that a lot of western viewers directly assumed that she's trans just because she looks boyish.
A girl can be masculine without being trans.
Just in case some people still want to deny that, this is from the interview of the scriptwriter that was included in the BD :
"Q: What do you think of Momoe Sawaki?
A: She is a girl who can be close to the audience's point of view. In addition to that, Momoe acts as a lubricant for Ai, Neiru, and Rika, who have a difficult time forming friendships on their own. In fact, there are such groups of four, aren't there? The first thing I wanted to do was to create a character that didn't overlap with the other five, and since Rika has a tomboyish personality, I decided to include a girl who is visually masculine but girly on the inside. She was a bit fed up with being wooed by girls because of her appearance."