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Keep in mind this is just my humble opinion

fantastic art and twisted story by Harada again so be warned!

Content Warnings: pysical and sexual assault, rape, stalking, manipulating, gaslighting, psychological and emotional abuse, bullying

This is PSYCHOLOGICAL!!! Maybe even horror.

If you came here for fluffy romance, leave now! You have been warned.
...
It's Harada, like... prepare for anything and everything. They are something else!

This can be described as one downward spiral with a little spark of hope at the end, and then you go "noooooo" before the final page.

If you've been looking for a dark, trainwreck of a relationship with some twists, this is it.

I suggest you go in without spoilers cause it's the best way to read it!

That is if you can handle the above!!!! It is graphic.


((((Spoilers)))) CW!!!!!

If you want spoilers, look no further i gotchyu

It's so much better if you go in without them, though.

Again, that's if you can 100% handle the content warnings.

I already knew Harada from a few djs they drew. So when I saw their new original manga, I went in expecting it to have some dark element already. BOY I was in for a ride.

When I read this the first time, admittedly younger than I should have been, I literally could not stop, stayed up all night, and couldn't sleep once i finished it.

I wish i could erase it from my memory and read it again.

Dear god, the twist. The striking panels with Harada's gorgeous art. So many scenes burned into my mind cause of how disturbing and/or pretty they were.

UGH they know how to keep you reading. UGGHH THEY KNOW HOW TO DRAW!! THE FACIAL EXPRESSIONS I'M CRAZY OVER THE FACES LIKE SO MUCH IS CONVEYED THROUGH THE TINIEST MICRO EXPRESSIONS I'M SICK

I don't know how Harada does it but I would buy an artbook if they had one.

Please, read it without spoilers if you have any interest in it.

Okay real spoilers start now.

They write Fukusuke so well.

He lulled me into a false sense of "oh he's just a jerk character *eye roll*"

Then he unmasks.

He's so manipulative and I feel so bad for Shou cause he just does not figure it out until the end, but even then Shou doesn't fully trust his own judgment and GOES BACK.

Follows two hairdressers in a salon, mostly Fukusuke.

Fukusuke, a popular high-end stylist, has known Shoukichi, a stylist good at the technical side, but bad at the people-side, for awhile.

They worked at a salon together when they were still new and in school. Shou got dismissed because nobody liked him. Fuku was able to stay because clients really liked him.

Shoukichi didn't know Fukusuke existed until he popped up at his work as a new hire. He'd forgotten all about their time as students.

Fukusuke's so backhanded, then he's genuine, then he mean again. Poor Shou is so confused.

Lots of thing happen. Fukusuke is an ass towards Shoukichi, but without Fukusuke the salon would just be doing average.

Shoukichi puts up with it cause he has to and doesn't want to make a fuss for his boss who he highly admires.

My only complaint is Harada jumping right in with Fuku assaulting Shou.

Fukusuke says he was drunk, asleep, and mistook him for a porn actor. Shou's so bad at social skills and people he just kinda shrugs it off. Kinda.

After that scene, it does become more gradual. Little things Fukusuke does here and there to keeps Shou confused about his true intentions.

Over time it does ramp up again, be warned.

People wonder how abusive relationships start. Well, this is one way. Fuku is able to paint himself as a caring companion when Shou starts to deal with a stalker.

And when the stalker appears, Fuku comes to his rescue.

((((Spoilers end))))

That's all in the first Volume. There's more that happens in Volume 1, but that's all I dare say.

There's only two volumes, but two is all that's needed for this one.

I'm not spoiling the second manga. Just know it is not good for Shou.

In my personal opinion, the first volume is better and more interesting than the second.
You can read the other reviews if you want an idea as to why.

Though overall, this is one of my favorites. Definitely solidified that dark psychological (horror?) Manga is my bread and butter. It's like watching a car crash you just can't look away from.

Content warnings for this: gore, incest in one scene, sex, death


ZOMBIESSSSSS I love zombies

It was slow to start and i was going to drpp it, but i heard good things about it and I kept with it. It has fine.

It was interesting to see the twists and turns this manga gave zombies and how different Japan might deal with an apocalypse.

((((Spoilers)))) CWs
...
There's little to no looting, zombies follow their routines they had when they were alive. The protag gas a gun out of sheer luck by being in a sport.

I'll just mention a scene here that moght make people uncofmrtable. He befriends a teen girl Hiromi as the apocolypse first starts.

Their relationship was giving me more father/daughter vibes than anything. Their relationship was sweet with how they interacted and trusted each other.

Then BOOM she has a crush on him and they sleep together.

Another scene near the end has two siblings sleep together as the older one wanted the younger one to protect Hideo and the younger one would only do it if they slept together.

Wasn't what I expected, but I guess that's what the story called for.

There's a lot that happens and the zombies keep mutating into scarier, bigger things. There's a few chapters with the zombies Point of View which was interesting.

((((Spoilers end))))

If you like zombies, it's an interesting read.

The ending was CRAP though!!!! Like, it was bleak, but hopeful and I wanted something so much more than what I got. Left me disappointed that the journey stopped there.

Fuck it gunna review all the manga I've read now

Content warnings I rember for this one: gore, death, rape, Robahata Motomu is his own warning, nudity, sex

Started off strong and I agree with others that it tapered off in the end, but overall it was very good

Artsyle is implacable (seriously, the way this artists draws people is gorgeous and I pray they draw for more manga), great fights, backgrounds, character designs, cool powers, interesting and strong premise, etc

Highly recommend it for the journey.

... (((Spoilers))) cw: rape, a couple people who die

Frogs fall out of the sky and infrect people, turning them into monsters or giving them powers. That's here the story starts.

It follows Jagasaki as the life he thought he wanted falls apart and he tries to figure himself out.

There's a character called Roba I originaly liked cause he seemed nice. BOY I was wrong. His hobby was revealed and he got powers. His power was making girls sleep with him against their will, aka rape.

Well, he had an aphrodisiac tounge that left the women he assaulted addicted to him.

One character he assaults is able to kill him.

If it wasn't for Roba I'd be recommending it to anybody who likes gory fight scenes and cool powers :')

Also rip bug duo. I felt so bad for them. They deserved to live a happy life together :'(

((((Spoilers end)))))

Overall, if you can handle the above, it all happens before the 1/3 waypoint. I cannot remember if there are any more scenes like that after the 1/3rd.

Honestly, anything that happened after Roba wasn't on the same calibur as him (in my opinion) and I forgot about it cause he was... a lot.

I love the art so damn much and the story was fun to read.

Lmao I hope my friends don't see this (LMAOOOO TURNS OUT THEY DID UHHMMM DON'T THINK LESS OF ME PLEASE I REALLY LIKE HOW THEY WRITE THEIR PSYCHOLOGICAL MESSED UP STOREIS AND AND THEIR ART OKAY JUST PUTTING IT OUT THERE HORRIBLE PHSYCOLOGICAL SHIT IS MY JAM I'M SORRRYYY). Happy Kuso Life deserves more reviews though.

Content Warnings: Rape, rape played as a joke

If that's something that triggers you, might be best to skip this one.
I'm very familiar with a lot of Harada's works, so I knew what to expect.

Happy Kuso Life follows two men who are an absolute comedic duo when together. There ... have been so many times where I actually laughed out loud with tears in my eyes. Kasuya and Kazuya are so perfect when together I recommend it just for their interactions alone.

Harada knows how to draw, that's for sure. The way they draw facial expressions, for comedic purposes or h-scene purposes, are so delicious I have to take a moment to stare respectfully at their art. I aspire to be at their level someday.

I rated it a 10 simply because I have never laughed as hard as i did when reading two characters interact more. Harada is so bizarre with their story telling and comedy that i cannot help but love these volumes.

I read Happy Kuso Life maybe once every year since I first found it when i was 18 and still get brought to tears from laughing.

THAT BEING SAID!!!!

Is it really Harada without one fucked up element?

Not the Harada I know and love. Though in all fairness they do have like two very nice and happy ones.

(Spoilers)

For this one, the black haired character is tormented by his perpetrator who raped him repeatedly in high school. It is played off as a joke, but it is NOT a joke to poor Kazuya.

Ryo, the perpetrator, is dumb as a sack of bricks and stupidly in love with Kazuya. He thought they were dating in highschool, so he did not realize he was raping Kazuya.

He plans on getting Kazuya to love him back as he's confused why Kazuya avoids him like the plague. Kazuya is terrified of him. For good reason. Poor guy does everything in his power to avoid Ryo, but is forced to be near him as later he gets a job where they work together.

All of this is played for laughs.

(Spoilers end)

Overall, it is difficult to trigger me or make me feel uneasy when it comes to heavy subjects. So, if you don't care and want a funny story with top-tier comedy (in my opinion) give it a read.

If rape does bother you, best leave it be and read somethings else NOT by Harada. 99% Harada's stories are fucked up so CONTENT WARNING!!!! As far as i'm aware it's mostly in the first volume as a flashback, but there are a few scenes were he's assaulted by Ryo later.