La voie du tablier - Tome 14

極主夫道 [Gokushufudō] #14

by Kousuke Oono

龍の亡き兄貴分、竹山。義理人情に厚く喧嘩最強だった彼が命を落とした、衝撃のワケとは――……。強面の丁寧な暮らしが垣間見える、アットホーム任侠コメディ第14巻！

Genres: Manga, Comedy, Humor, Graphic Novels, Comics, Slice Of Life, Seinen

160 pages, Paperback

First published May 9, 2024

About the author

Japanese mangaka. Aka おおのこうすけ (Ōno Kōsuke) creator of Gokushufudou.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, you know, this has a bunch of cackle-worthy moments, so there you go. The mangaka seems to have decided that the best way to stay fresh and funny is to basically go utterly insane. And, shockingly, it works.

Okay, I could do without its newfound love of making pussy jokes in relation to cats, which gives the series its lone point of commonality with stalwart British classic Are You Being Served?. That latter series is over 40 years old, however, so it can get away with a joke so wheezy it needs an inhaler. Here? Less effective.

And there are more than a few chapters that end in my least favourite way - they just sputter to a stop without really finishing on a punchline. That’s a chronic series problem, however, so not much to be done by this point.

There’s still so much funny stuff that it by and large overcomes its limitations, in some cases quite admirably. The series has, obviously, been quite absurd up to this point, yet abandons all pretensions of normalcy here. Let’s just hit a bunch of the good stuff and call it a day.

There is a hike with a bunch of kids that starts off normally and then gets increasingly more ridiculous until it’s a wonder there are any survivors left by the end. The reward for getting out into nature is classic ‘not reading the room’ and the clap back at the end makes for one story with a strong denouement.

My absolute favourite story is more dialogue driven than usual and involves an antique shop that has lots of priceless artifacts. Or so it’s said. There’s something about the endless repetition of the con going on here that tickled me just right.

There’s also an extended shakedown over playing cards, lots of cat-related injury, and the series makes its best drug addiction analogy ever in the bonus pages, a perfect callback to a story about either societal decay or tooth decay, depending on what part you’re listening to.

It’s really, really good work, frankly. If you’re a series diehard then this should be an automatic five stars because it is truly that strong. I don’t think I can give anything so frivolous five stars (even the best gag manga have some inkling of a plot), but I understand how it gets there for others.

4.5 stars - I will give it a real solid recommend, however, and it’s a double win if you’re a cat lover. Being this good after this long with such a thin premise is a remarkable feat and I appreciate its efforts.

[Lauren Stoolfire · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love this series. My favorite segments in this volume are Tatsu visiting his old boss's grave, Tora's hike with the kids, the boxing lesson with the neighborhood ladies, and Tatsu and Masa having to watch the gangster's baby. I can't wait until volume 15.

[Lisa ₊⁺✧ · Rating 5 out of 5]

The German Version and Translation is just Chef‘s Kiss 🤌🏼

[Kelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

catch me rolling around with the cats in their foster home too~

[Kenny Ketner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing how consistently good this series is

[Ernesto Juárez · Rating 5 out of 5]

un poco más sobre el pasado de nuestro protagonista, creo es el número que menos se ha centrado en él

[Mariah · Rating 5 out of 5]

All caught up until the new volume this month on the 20th 😎

[DJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing to write home about in this volume; it was good.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

You’d think after this long the same gag would get stale but this series continues to be fun! I think it’s helped by a robust cast of supporting characters - including some animals too (Tatsu’s former Yakuza associate even got a cat in this one).

I like seeing the stories of the supporting cast even more than just Tatsu’s regular brand of intenseness about minor things these days. I did like him having a baby randomly dropped on him so another guy could go commit a hit though. 😂 I hope that guy and his baby return in the future!

I also really enjoyed a bit of backstory into Tatsu’s Yakuza life (sad to know that his boss died… and from a junk-food induced cavity of all things. 🥲).

[Breanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to the publisher for the DRC!

These volumes are always such a treat. Love seeing the neighborhood with Tatsu as we encounter a cat adoption (and accompanying cat-atsu), struggle for limited edition merch, roast sweet potatoes, meet the ghost of the old boss (go to the dentist, folks), go antique shopping/selling, and go hiking with the kids and crepes. The whole volume was cute as always, and I especially loved the sweet potato roasting that brought together so many of the characters that we've encountered thus far over the story.

[Shaunesay]

I need a Tatsu in my life to take care of my house and cook for me! This series is so much fun, I love how Tatsu attacks all things of the home with the same seriousness as his past Yakuza activities. It's also hilarious to me when the other still active Yakuza end up doing whatever he says during some kind of emergency, in this case changing a baby's diaper. This was such a fun idea for a series, and has endless possibilities!

[Alicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh how I love this one! With several scenes at a cemetery (of which I just visited my first Japanese cemetery on a visit), I couldn't love these scenes more and the continued hijinks of Tatsu, the former yakuza and his Policure-loving wife.

The story includes some shadowboxing workouts, a cat with a behavior problem, a baby, and of course, a little food.

[Kastie Pavlik · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cat fight! (⁠≧⁠▽⁠≦⁠)

It's volume 14. You know what you're in for by now, although there's less of Tatsu teaching or tending to the house in this one. It's more like short adventures with Tatsu and more Yakuza encounters than usual.

The antique store is the highlight for me. It was just a look! (⁠>⁠▽⁠<⁠)ゞ

Also, damn his boss was 🔥. (⁠人⁠*⁠´⁠∀⁠｀⁠)⁠｡⁠*ﾟ⁠+♡

[Vilma Diaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series continues to be ridiculous. But in the best way. The manga consists of several short chapters, each chapter containing its own storyline. A lot of the time we have repeat characters, and they enhance the story, but there isn’t any real continuity to worry about. I laughed out loud more than once. I’m looking forward to the next volume.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hah ;W; wir lernen Tatsu verstorbenen Big Bro kennen, und des is voll süß - und dämlich :D weil irgendwie alle Yakuza wegen irgendwas ultra dummen gestorben sind ey. Ehrlich.
Aber generell würd ich ultra gerne mal wissen, wie Tatsu vorher war UND vorallem, wie er seine Ehefrau kennen gelernt hat - dazu gabs nur einen Minibackflash irgendwo in der Serie

[Anthony Wendel · Rating 3 out of 5]

With so many volumes of a comedy series you are going to experience a few which don’t always leave you gasping for air. Yes I had a light or two from this volume but the previous one was much more entertaining. Still, there is a great moment involving trading card collecting that was particularly amusing.

[Gretchen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the publisher for this free eARC! All opinions are my own.

Tatsu helps a friend adopt a cat, cleans his former boss's grave, visits an antique store, tries boxercise, watches a baby, trades collectable trading cards, and cooks some sweet potatoes.

[Ikayuro · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't think this manga is going to finish any time soon, and honestly, I'm just fine with that. These little short stories continue to be light-hearted, and I love every new character that gets introduced!

[Fugo Feedback · Rating 4 out of 5]

La historia del gimnasio me hizo reír mucho, pero la historia del bebé me hizo reír demasiado.

[Diogo Muller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another very good volume with some amazing gags.

[Kristel (hungryandhappy)]

The cat, omg HAHAHAHAHA

[Carrie McConn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tatsu is still #1, even in volume 14.

[Patricia Q · Rating 5 out of 5]

This volume is lots of fun!

[Ylenia Damiani · Rating 5 out of 5]

They..have… a kid!!!🥹🩷
(And so glad this one came out on my birthday month!)

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

I live for the way Kousuke Oono draws cats 😸

[Paulo Sousa · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Whether you're cooking for yourself or others, the important thing is to cook with love. If you think of cooking as a chore, it'll turn into exactly that."

[Singe · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

[Emma Demopoulos · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Good, but not one of my favorites of the series

[Gabby · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I generally love this series, this volume seems like it was struggling a little.