Story - 4, started off decent and went downhillĪrt - 8, falls into the “pretty” categoryĬharacter - 4, some side characters are amusing but the lack of dimension really shows in the main charactersĮnjoyment - 4, poor plot and characters ruined my enjoyment despite the art Tldr: read it if you are just looking for a smutty josei/shoujo manga with no real substance in terms of plot
Overall a very entertaining and fulfilling read. It stands on its own the pride and hard work of the mangaka. This is definitely not a manga with cheap smut (which was the initial impression I got judging the cover) and shallow story development. Well at least for me, I was pretty entertained throughout the chapters and not once did I consider dropping the manga. Within josei-romance genre, Hapi Mari has done a decently good job that satisfies readers into buying the story. Like what previous reviewers have pointed out, the artwork on the manga cover definitely doesn’t do justice to the artwork and the appearances of the characters inside. Although readers won’t be able to find gorgeous bishonens with dreamy eyes here, the artwork is fine enough to not deter readers from the series. The characters are decently drawn with a pleasing level of attractiveness.
Mangahere hapu mari series#
The characters are by no means perfect and yet they still portray that level of maturity that is simply relatable.Ĭoupled with the issues they face in life (and when I mean issues, they are SERIOUS-PRACTICAL –I-MEAN-REAL-SH*T-ISSUES and not your high school child-like conflicts), these makes the series one that strike a balance between being entertaining and sensible at the same time. Despite that, I have no complaints with the shedding off of her tough girl image – I believe it is the mangaka’s way of sending the message that even the strongest woman becomes the most susceptible when it comes to love.Īs well as the saying of opposite attracts goes, when these two people from different worlds meet, it creates a chemistry that bounds them together. But as the story progresses, she becomes more and more vulnerable and often relies on Hokuto to save her from distress. The heroine, Chiwa, whisked in with that strong tough girl image who doesn’t tolerate nonsense from guys. As the story develops, his flaws amplified but yet at the same time, he builds up that warm compassionate side of him and breaks that cold exterior because of influences from the heroine.
Here in Hapi Mari, the hero, Hokuto, is one ego-centric character who despite all the glamour and success, is a guy with many flaws and a dark past. It’s nothing you get from shoujo titles where the hero goes beyond being an impossible romantic and does things to protect the heroine that readers know will never happen in reality. What I like about this series is the sensible practical approach the characters take when faced with issues and conflicts. As the story goes, what turns out to be a superficial marriage-on-paper pact evolves into something that ties the main characters together beyond ways they could ever imagine. What make it appealing is how the characters, from diverse upbringings and backgrounds search for ways to balance that chemical equation to keep the marriage going. Within the context of Hapi Mari, conflicts are often made intricate because of differences in values, priorities and statuses between the couple. Yet it is though these bits and parcels of encounters that the main characters know each other better, establish and strengthen that romantic connection that was absent at the beginning. with small bickering, huge fights, jealousy over an ex-flame, making up and then fights and making up again. The mangaka adopts a realistic approach towards illustrating the challenges young couples struggle with in today’s society. The series starts off with an overused plot: poor-girl-marries-rich-stranger-to-pay-off-father’s-debts and whether there could be true love in a marriage that was built upon a monetary mutually beneficial arrangement.ĭespite the cliched plot and smutty moments (which to my surprise wasn’t that overwhelming), the story itself actually has depth and I was somewhat amazed at how the concept of marriage is exemplified here. The saying ‘never judge a book (manga) by its cover’ is like a spot-on adage when it comes to Hapi Mari.
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