My second binge-read of the weekend came courtesy of the good folks at KUMA! Happy of the End Vol. 1 made its way into our hands a few weeks early, so of course we had to review it!

From the back of the book: "Starving, broken and homeless, Chihiro wanders into a bar where he meets the handsome Keito. They hit it off immediately and much to his surprise, Keito invites Chihiro back to a hotel! As things start to heat up, Keito suddenly beats Chihiro with an electric massager and knocks him out.

One day later, Chihiro comes to and remembers the events of the previous night. Unable to move, he watches as Keito calls up a friend and they drag him into a car. Chihiro is almost certain he's going to die... but instead finds himself in an apartment. Keito reveals that he was in search of something, but now knows that Chihiro doesn't have what he's looking for. Keito briskly tells Chihiro to "Get lost," But unfortunately for Chihiro, he doesn't have anywhere else to go..."

For English readers this feels like a reintroduction to Ogeretsu Tanaka. Thus far, Tanaka's best known to western audiences as the creator of the irreverent Yarichin Bitch Club and, to a lesser degree, the heart-warming Escape Journey, both of which are published by SuBLime. I own all of all of Tanaka's English releases thus far, as well as one in Spanish, and while I consider each one to be truly good - Happy of the End blows absolutely every single one out of the water.

In my eyes, Happy of the End is a tour de force that showcases the strength of Ogeretsu Tanaka's storytelling while boasting beautifully detailed artwork and character design. There is so much depth to this story - both in the backstories of our lead characters as well as in the tenuous bond building between them as the story progresses.

This question comes up a lot whenever a new series hits print, so let's cover censorship. Happy of the End is fully UNcensored and plenty spicy in a way that is both impactful and erotic in its delivery. This is quality spice, y'all! Warnings for those who need them - Happy of the End does contain brief mentions of suicide, mentions of (no depiction of) child abuse/exploitation, and homophobia. These instances are integral to the plot and are not gratuitous.

This is hands down the best new release of the month thus far and it would take something I can't even fathom to topple it from that spot in my mind. If you only buy one new volume of manga this month, Happy of the End should be it. It is so satisfying to see a manga of this caliber given KUMA's superior aesthetic treatment. Volume 2 is due out in March and at this point I just don't see how this story could end up anything less than a total masterpiece. Suffice it to say, I LOVED it and I doubt I'm alone in that sentiment.

While we still haven't reached the official release date, it is in stock and shipping now (a rare circumstance made possible only through KUMA's favorable policy on early arrivals!) Grab yours here!

Since it's uncensored, this one gets assigned the After Dark tag ;)

TLDR;

You NEED this!

Publisher: KUMA

Age Rating: 18+

Page Count: 240

Release Date: 1/24/2023