Hitsuji no Uta
Lament of the Lamb

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I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this manga. I'm actually not that fond of horror or depressing series, but I picked it up because in a recc it mentioned vampires.

I'm not quite sure how to review this, to be honest. There's just something about the story that draws you in and doesn't let you go until the end. I think the story is fabulous; it keeps a nice steady pace throughout the volumes, never speeding up to the point where you find yourself at a loss as to what's going on, or lagging too much and causing disinterest.

The art is beautiful. Not ... your typical shoujo or shounen styles; more like something out of an older horror book. It's absolutely lovely. Chizuna looks almost like a painted doll in some of the frames; like something that doesn't quite belong where she is.

The character development is also quite good for a seven volume manga. Granted, they start out as pretty interesting characters, but as you read further you end up pulling back even more layers and discovering how complex they really are.

As for enjoyment value, I was completely enthralled for the entire series. It was positively delightful, keeping you interested and wondering about what was going to happen next. I'll probably re-read the story several times within the next few months or so.

Overall, the story was a delightful ride. In fact, I enjoyed it so much that I am probably going to go and purchase the books now, since I would enjoy having a hard copy of this. If you are a fan of psychological conditions and bittersweet endings, I would totally recommend it to you.





Some extra side notes:

When I mentioned vampires, it's not in the literal sense. The two main characters, Kazuna and Chizuna, have a type of disease that makes them crave blood to the point where they can become violent. Hence the label 'vampire'. So if you're looking for something that actually does have 'I-have-a-legion-of-bats, can't-go-out-in-the-day, let-me-suck-your-blood' vampires, this probably isn't for you.

There is some light incest in this manga. The only thing that physically happens is some kissing, but if that thing seriously squicks you out, then maybe you should avoid this. If it helps, you might also want to know that while they are related to eachother, they haven't been in contact since they were really young, so they are basically strangers.

If you have finished the 46th chapter, and you like the way that the story ended there, then DO NOT READ THE 47TH CHAPTER. I honestly wish I hadn't read the 47th chapter, because now it has me slightly miffed at the series. There's an author's note in the back of the Tokyopop versions that explains why the 47th chapter is like it is, but I honestly think that you should just stop with the 46th. It has a good ending.

Quite honestly, I was surprised by how much this manga drew me in. I find that it's usually only the very good, but little-known manga that have this kind of pull on people. Anything that I write probably won't do Hitsuji no Uta justice, but I'll try anyways.

The characters are extremly dynamic, and in a good way. Throughout the story, they change, mature, move forward, backwards, and forward once more. There is also nothing that is completely certain in this manga; it seems to lack the usual stereotypes and absolute courses of action that most manga are riddled with (not that ... they're bad, but something completely without them is somewhat refreshing). I'm not really that much of a fan of happily ever after, but this mixes tragedy and the happy ending together in a way that is satisfying for fans of both types.

I just picked it on a whim because I had read Toume Kei's Kurogane twice through, but the art wowed me all the same. It keeps the same darkness, but adds an extra sophistication by using cleaner lines.

Everything about this manga just overwhelms me; I really have trouble describing it. It's like one of those great finds at the bottom of the junk pile. When you're sick of reading mainstream like Naruto or Bleach, and have a taste for darker, more sophisticated manga, this won't dissapoint.

Hitsuji no Uta provides a pretty good psychological drama about a cursed family and their struggles with a few key interpersonal relationships. Most of the main cast can be melodramatic (the painter being the most egregious) but the sister carries well enough by being the most interesting and complex character out of the bunch. The art isn't bad either, it suits the tone of the story very well and doesn't intrude on the experience.

The main issue is that the entirety of this manga becomes meaningless because the author decided to reset everything with the final chapter. Think of something akin to watching a movie ... and at the post credit scene the main character wakes up and realizes everything was a dream all along. All of the character development, growth, and emotions that were built up over the series were just thrown out the window.

If the final chapter didn't exist, I would say this manga is about a 6, with some interesting (albeit over the top) characters and developments. However, with the last chapter making everything that led up to it redundant, I would've rather never read this manga in the first place.