 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | DIGITAL MANGA PUBLISHING | | | ▪ | AUTHOR / ART: | | SOUYA HIMAWARI | | | ▪ | FORMAT: | | JAPANESE / B&W | | | ▪ | PAGES: | | 178 | | | ▪ | RATING: | | YA | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 05/13/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 05/09/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | RACHEL BENTHAM |
Yukiharu (aka Haru) is all alone in the cruel world when his grandfather, the only family he’s ever known, passes away suddenly. Except that wasn’t Haru’s only family after all. It seems he has a large brood of brothers living in a rundown shack fighting to make ends meet, with no supervision, no discipline and a serious lack of hygiene. At first Haru couldn’t be happier to learn he’s not alone after all, but when he finds out one brother sells his body to get cash, another may be involved with a gang, and that he has a next door neighbor who seems to like to hug Haru every time they meet, Haru realizes there’s a lot more to happiness than just family ties. It’s an unforgettable family reunion in the quirky yaoi comedy Happiness Recommended. The manga is very much in a vein with the same kind of boisterous comedies as Princess Princess and Our Kingdom, though nothing as explicit as Our Kingdom. Happiness Recommended is energetic, fun, bittersweet at times, but warm hearted overall with a good dose of humor. Coming from money prior to the death of his grandfather, it is quite an adjustment for Haru to suddenly live in squalor. That his brothers seem uncaring whether he stays or not is hard on his lonely heart, but Makoto, the next door neighbor is always there to be a shoulder to lean on whether Haru feels comfortable with it or not. But as events unfold, and Haru discovers the truth behind what is really going on with his family, he finds new purpose in his determination to get them all on the straight and narrow and protect the siblings he never knew he had. It will be a lot of work, but for the herd working and earnest Haru, it will be a battle he’s determined to win. The yaoi content is certainly there with his relationship with Makoto, particularly when Makoto explains to him why he hugs him so often and what happened when they were both wee toddlers. There’s another brother who is gay in the family and his lover is an added source of comedy in his interactions with both Haru and Makoto. There's a bit of violence during a street gang scuffle. Overall however the story is a bit of drama and a lot of fun as Haru acclimatizes to his new life, his ‘new’ family, and his new love. It’s a fun, appealing art style. It’s both competent and energetic. The manga also includes two bonus stories. The first sees a sarcastic writer of erotica stuck with a caretaker after a mishap on a rainy day. Love might just bloom between the jaded writer and the earnest friend. The final bonus story is a continuation of Happiness Recommended that is hilarious, showing Haru’s life with his family and new school with Makoto as his constant shadow. It’s a fun inside look at his life now and serves as a high spirited epilogue to the main story. Also be sure to take off the dust jacket to find a story excerpt on the actual cover of the book to enjoy.
IN SUMMARY:
Fans of Princess, Princess and Our Kingdom don’t want to miss out on the energetic comedy and warm hearted fun of Happiness Recommended.
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