Handsome Must Die

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Handsome Must Die is an incredibly rapidly-paced manga that jumps through jokes at breakneck (literally, there is a lot of head removal here) speed and never really calms down until everything is all said and done.

The plot is absolutely insane and takes absolutely no shame in how bizarre and unusual it is. Every time you think it can't get weirder, it manages to one-up itself. This is both a benefit and a detriment: While being able to blast through jokes is great, if they aren't landing well with the reader, then it can quickly alienate them, which means that this is a very make it ... or break it series. As usual for gag manga, I suggest giving the series three chapters to see if its sense of humor lands with you, and if it doesn't, consider moving on. The quality of the humor also swings around randomly, with a few chapters being devoted solely to one of the guys (who has mommy issues) sexually assaulting the main character over and over again, which isn't really a particularly funny joke the first time because of how uncomfortable he is as a character, and definitely isn't funnier the eighth time. If this is a poor topic for you I would also suggest skipping this manga.

Another thing to keep in mind with this manga is that the characters are given limited development due to it being both short and gag-focused, but you do get a good handle on each of their weird roles in the story in the small time they have. This is fine and is handled perfectly alright, but if you're looking for a series to get heavily and deeply attached to the characters, this may not be it.

The art is alright. The style itself is visually distinct enough to make it stand out from other series, but the quality is a bit like the humor in that it can randomly dip. Details sometimes end up being a bit lacking. The character designs are nice and all stand out from each other in appealing ways that also easily convey the point of each character.

All in all, it's one that has decent value if its sense of humor resonates with its reader! It's also surprisingly well-received in Japan, and the author still posts about the manga, so be sure to give that a peek if you end up enjoying it.

Inukai is a national treasure, by the way. Best dog boy.