Hayate no Gotoku! (Hayate the Combat Butler)

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Japanese: ハヤテのごとく!

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Type: Manga

Volumes: 52

Chapters: 570

Status: Finished

Published: Oct 6, 2004 to Apr 12, 2017

Genres: Action, Comedy, Romance

Themes: Harem, Parody

Demographic: Shounen

Serialization: Shounen Sunday

Authors: Hata, Kenjirou (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 7.84¹ (scored by 14,244 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #1227²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #608

Members: 33,064

Favorites: 1,913

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7.84

Ranked #1227Popularity #608Members 33,064

MangaShounen SundayHata, Kenjirou (Story & Art)

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Volumes: /52

Chapters: /570

Hayate the Combat Butler

Vol. 1
$6.99

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Synopsis

Misfortunes abound in the life of 16-year-old Hayate Ayasaki. Even though he is underage, he spends most of his time working part-time jobs to make money to support his extravagant parents. As if that wasn't hard enough, his parents disappear without a trace one day, leaving him behind with a debt of almost 150 million yen. As a result, he finds himself being chased by debt collectors.

Running for his life, he stops in a park, believing that he is safe. Contemplating his jobless future, he decides to kidnap a wealthy child for ransom. And thus, when he sees a rich-looking blonde girl, he attempts to capture her. However, she too is kidnapped before Hayate can even try!

Hayate then saves her, and as a reward, he requests a job, and the girl makes him her butler, revealing herself to be the daughter of a wealthy family. Even with a job, his misfortune remains; Hayate will have to go through many nasty predicaments, all the while burdened by his lousy luck.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Hayate no Gotoku! has been published in English as Hayate the Combat Butler by VIZ Media under the Shonen Sunday imprint since November 14, 2006.

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Characters

Ayasaki, Hayate

Main

Sanzenin, Nagi

Main

Maria

Main

Katsura, Hinagiku

Supporting

Tennousu, Athena

Supporting

Saginomiya, Isumi

Supporting

Nishizawa, Ayumu

Supporting

Segawa, Izumi

Supporting

Suirenji, Ruka

Supporting

Aizawa, Sakuya

Supporting

Reviews

Jul 9, 2021

_hehe_

Recommended

For a long 570 chapters of a series, my enjoyment has been maintained entirely throughout. Every day, I wake up and the most exciting event for me is reading my daily 2 volumes of Hayate the Combat Butler. This 2-volumes-a-day rule was actually a rule past-me enforced on present-me so I wouldn't binge until 5 am and kill the rest of my life.

What did I look so forward to? Firstly, the cuteness of the romance comedy element. Almost every character is well-crafted. My heart goes doki doki when Hina blushes upon Hayate's dense kindness, or when Ruka so explicitly shows her love. The exception ... is of course the characters who solely contribute to the overarching plot (Hisui) with very shallow motives and character, or the gag characters (Kotetsu). Even characters like Chiharu, who don't particularly have an important role, I still love because she is so full of kindness and laughter. What more could fulfill the heart of a romance-deprived teenage boy? (Right, fan-service, too) [Characters 10] [Art 10]

To be honest, I don't really follow the "main" story of this manga. During my reading, I even tried to do research on what the fuck was going on with "King Jewels" and other stuff. I was still confused in the end but at least I understood it more. Even though the whole story is revolved around a supernatural power and its associations, my enjoyment came from following along, not really understanding everything, but still appreciating the astonishing art and touching stories. I do admit that some of the chapters are seriously filler, but when this series gets intense, it sure fucking does. The drama and comedy aspects of the series I both equally like. As a result, I was very disappointed by the end of the series because the whole story felt like a journey. Reading it felt like I was living another exuberant and colourful life beyond mine. It wasn't easy to handle the truth that this manga had to be wrapped up for the good of the readers. [Story 8] [Enjoyment 8]

Finally, I would like to share that this series had some seriously motivational moments. There was a chapter I remember so clearly because of Izumi. She was explaining how a weed is not particularly interesting to anyone, but it grows and struggles against the nutrient-deficient soil and scorching sun, only to die. But, its nutrients contribute to the growth of other plants. Thus, even she lacks the abilities others do, her efforts will not be in vain. Perhaps I just don't think about life very much, but I loved that scene. Now you see why the characters can be so interesting, they all have a meaningful story, even if it is just a small one.

I would only recommend this series to people who have time, and even better, time-management skills. It sure is a journey, so enjoy every moment of it.

This is my first review, I hope you're proud of me!

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Jan 23, 2021

sushiisawesome

Recommended

It's difficult to talk about someone's own happiness and what that means relative to their financial wealth. People often say that money can't buy happiness, and yet this saying betrays just how utterly miserable being poverty-stricken can be - everything from personal relationships to material belongings to familial security can be taken away from you, with a reality that what little you have can be stolen at any second. Hayate Ayasaki lives one such life where he works day in day out, sacrifices any and all connections he may form with others in order to have a better future away from his parents, only for ... his parents to inevitably walk all over him and take whatever material belongings he has for their own egotistical reasons. This culminates in his parents quite literally selling him off to the yakuza for 150 million yen.

It takes a chance encounter with a girl who mistakes his kindness in saving her from kidnappers and giving her a jacket for a confession to finally turn his life around - with the seemingly minor and swept under the rug inconvenience that ironically he himself was planning to kidnap her out of desperation. This introduction sets the stage for a long, long, long semi-episodic romcom about Hayate paying back his savior in Nagi, who paid his entire debt in exchange for him being her butler.

Hayate has clear issues in how it structures its narrative and comedy. The series is often very tongue-in-cheek about lampshading events before they happen, yet this can often feel somewhat like it's a parody of itself even in instances when the narrative takes itself seriously. The comedy - while incredibly funny even if certain gags overstay their welcome - takes up a sizable chunk of the middle of the manga and this can make it difficult for readers to go through this entire behemoth of a manga they may not even find comedic. Kenjiro Hata's values are occasionally reflected through Hayate himself, chastising this or that female character for being a woman and not behaving accordingly (this gets fades away as the manga goes on before disappearing entirely near the end). The antagonists are rather onenote and serve their purpose without doing anything more - there is one noteworthy exception in the manga's first half, but the finale in particular, while definitely thematically fitting, suffers from this. There's a fair amount of fanservice - this doesn't bother me, but I can see why it bothers others. And, obviously, 52 volumes is an absurd amount to read for what is essentially a romcom parody that only occasionally takes itself seriously.

What there is for a narrative is a story about abandoning material comfort in order to connect with others, and how all the material gains in the world won't mean anything without a drive to succeed, a passion to embrace and people to love. Nagi herself epitomizes this, being deeply in love with manga and desiring to be a manga author for much of the manga, yet there's many instances where it's clear that her life is a lonely one minus Maria, who she literally sleeps next to in order for that emptiness to fade away. Several excellently written foils to Hayate exist in Hinagaku and Ruka, who both were abandoned by their parents and suffered considerably because of it - the former being saved by her sister and thus grew to have a functioning life later on, albeit one where she still occasionally shows scars of her old life, and the latter due to working for her parents' sake to be an idol, only to be abandoned later on.

More examples can be given via the side cast - Wataru and Saki struggling to manage a store together yet finding comfort in each other's presence despite the former being left behind, Maria's abandonment issues that come to surface later on in the manga, Athena being isolated and alone for so long despite her desire to reconnect with Hayate or Ayumu taking Hayate for granted before slowly but surely realizing that her chance to be with him has come and passed. This struggle to find connection with other members of the cast is at the center of Hayate - both in its largely comedic content, and its more serious moments - and without the more funny moments over the course of the series that involve the cast literally goofing off together, the series would simply not work.

The last quarter of the manga and especially the last few volumes is where somehow over a dozen character arcs discussing these themes are flawlessly wrapped up. The manga ramps up its story to 11, it goes absolutely bonkers with its villains and there's a damsel in distress arc and yet the manga was careful enough in building up to this moment that this somehow manages to work out insanely well. More than anything, the ending wraps up the series with the characters in many cases having less materially than where they started, yet somehow this is portrayed positively rather than negatively, since the characters find happiness in each other rather regardless of distance, lifestyle or occupation. This is a message that has aged insanely well considering our current economic situation, unfortunately, and I believe that it is one that would resonate with many a reader in these troubled times.

Do I recommend Hayate? I would, but with the nuance of approaching the story (when the narrative focuses on it) for what it's trying to tell, and understanding that its flaws are as part of the experience as its highs. When the manga ends, much of the less than ideal moments across the series or the long stretches of comedy become fond memories of a more nostalgic time - yet it's those precise moments that make the ending all the more powerful and memorable. Otherwise then I'd completely understand why someone wouldn't be into this series - the comedy isn't for everyone and the middle of the manga takes quite a while to get through.

Aside from that...I can't recommend this series highly enough, even with all its numerous flaws.

Thank you for reading.

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Sep 7, 2025

AeroLMS

Mixed Feelings

About a decade ago, I watched this anime on Animax and thought it was a hidden gem that deserved praise. And a decade later from that time, I decided to put this on a bucket list and read the manga after being reminded that this series exists while (currently) grinding my hours away reading other works as pastime.

Reading the manga felt like eating a weird flavored junk food while growing towards craving it as you eat more. There are far better foods out there for you to try, yet eating this junk food seems to be much more enjoyable. The series is too complicated to ... review in simpler words but to put it bluntly, the manga is trashy but in a good way. The humor used by the mangaka felt like you had to be a young Japanese adult native living the Otaku life to truly get the references casually being thrown around as fourth wall breaks. Basically, you had to be on the know or pretend to be within it to truly enjoy the series. Even the mangaka was self-aware on how inconsistent, incoherent, and trashy the manga was given that it broke a lot of writing taboos, yet the series' way of not taking itself seriously while also dishing out a few tidbits that's contributing to the main plot through the characters' dynamics is what's enjoyable about this piece of work.

Rating this objectively, it's safe to say that literary-wise, it's one of the worst you'll ever see on this medium. What's only saving this from being unironically garbage is that it is actually self-aware on how trashy it is also making sure not to take itself seriously (that being it's a gag manga). The manga wasn't good nor was it consistent, the artstyle felt clunky during the first few volumes before finally being refined (the later chapters finally nailed the artstyle's unique and polished qualities), the serious arcs and the filler chapters were oddly inserted in-between and lastly, plotlines and characters are not being brought to justice with the way they are randomly being introduced and forgotten as chapters progress.

So to answer the question, did I enjoy the manga? Yes. Reading the series was like giving myself a sweet treat after eating healthy food non-stop with the pacing I did of only reading Hayate the Combat Butler when I'm not in the mood to read more serious stuff. I can imagine the appeal of getting to wait weekly just to read this stuff is what allowed Hayate the Combat Butler to be published for over a decade despite its trashy writing.

Would I recommend this to most people? No (Mixed Feelings). This series I can tell isn't beginner-friendly, nor is it Westerner-friendly with its randomly placed late 2000's Otaku humor and inconsistent writing of alternating serious arcs and filler chapters. Unless I can tell the person is actually open towards reading anything without being turned off or bored easily, I would strongly not recommend this.

Despite the sentiment, I thought it would be fair to objectively rate this a 7 out of 10. Think of it as getting to eat a 10 out of 10 junk food or candy where in its own category it would dominate, but comparing it with more solid, more culturally nuanced, and more nutritious foods would deflate its value lower.

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Question about Sanzenin Nagi's quote about working in Hayate the Combat Butler Teckmeister - Oct 19, 2025	0 replies	by Teckmeister »» Oct 19, 2025 11:13 PM
Poll: Hayate no Gotoku! Chapter 517 Discussion Stark700 - Jan 31, 2016	6 replies	by TheLostLight »» Feb 15, 2024 10:37 PM
Poll: Hayate no Gotoku! Chapter 569 Discussion Icedout15 - Apr 5, 2018	3 replies	by a2dfjk1 »» Feb 13, 2024 5:35 PM
Poll: Hayate no Gotoku! Chapter 568 (Final Chapter) Discussion ( 1 2 ) Ishkoten - Apr 9, 2017	77 replies	by a2dfjk1 »» Feb 13, 2024 4:30 PM
Poll: Hayate no Gotoku! Chapter 567 Discussion Ishkoten - Apr 6, 2017	8 replies	by a2dfjk1 »» Feb 13, 2024 3:18 AM

Hayate no Gotoku!
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