ハッピーシュガーライフ 10

Happy Sugar Life #10

by Tomiyaki Kagisora, 鍵空とみやき

これが、真実の愛。

ひとりぼっちが、ふたりになって。
温もりを知って、甘さを知って。
私たちだけが憶えてる、
鳥籠で生まれたこの気持ちは、
きっと嘘じゃなかったよ。
私はそう確信できたよ。

騙しても犯しても奪っても殺してもいいと思えたよ。

幻のように甘い、戦慄の純愛サイコホラー第10巻。
第9巻と同時発売で、遂に完結です。

Genres: Manga, Horror, Graphic Novels Comics, Comics

199 pages, Paperback

First published July 22, 2019

About the author

AKA 鍵空とみやき

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was never going to be a story with a happy ending. I'm not quite sure how I feel about its finale; not entirely sold on it for certain. But it also makes the series' themes stand out starkly - how children are betrayed by adults, how "love" is the ultimate prize (and not in a romantic or sexual sense), and how very, very easy it is to fall off the edge of the world into an abyss from which there is no return.

There is very little that is happy or sweet here. I think that's ultimately the point.

CW for suicide and self-harm.

[Cassie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This ending is so SAD. But probably a necessary way to end things. What a wild ride

[★ray's bookshelf★ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nah for me it was such a fucking ending

[Sam (superblomper) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bro this series is so efffed.....five stars

[Kayli Marcum]

Damn

[Michael Sorbello · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a review of the entire series!

Raised by a severely disturbed aunt with a twisted definition of 'love', Satou Matsuzaka tries to find a sense of belonging in the world by giving up her body to every guy she meets in hopes of receiving true love from them. After countless unfulfilling sexual encounters, Satou believes she has discovered true love from an abandoned little girl named Shio she found on the street one day. Leaving her life of sexual deviancy behind, Satou 'kidnaps' the little girl and raises her as if she were her real mother. The two girls have been hurt and abandoned all their life, but they find a warped sense of comfort and affection in each other's companionship. Shio has no idea what type of person Satou truly is, however. Does she genuinely love her, or is she being emotionally groomed as an object by an unstable predator that's capable of murder?

This series begins with a lot of subversive shocks. The bubbly cute girl is a deranged murderer. The popular girl at work is an obsessive stalker. The strong-headed female employer is abusing her underage male staff. The lovable school teacher is sexually blackmailing his female students. The handsome classmate only has eyes for a homeless little girl. Everyone is putting up a happy, sugary facade while being utterly rotten and twisted on the inside. Such is the nature of this manga. It shows that people are rarely what they seem to be in public and how different they are behind the privacy of closed doors. It's depressing and even scary at times.

Happy Sugar Life plays around with a lot of great subversive horror elements, making you believe something is bubbly and cute at first glance but then showing you it's actually extremely toxic and unstable. The series has interesting themes, but it is often dragged down from being drawn out way too long, going in circles and dialogue that feels a bit immature given the disturbing subject matter. If the narrative was a bit tighter, maybe 3 or 4 volumes instead of 10, it would've been more impactful and gotten the message through much more effectively. It repeated itself too many times, some chapters felt like identical clones of each other that were made just to pad out the length.

A good series overall, but it has some glaring weaknesses that prevent it from being as good as it could've been.

***

If you're looking for some dark ambient music for reading horror, dark fantasy and other books like this one, then be sure to check out my YouTube Channel called Nightmarish Compositions: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPs...

[Alasblancas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es retorcido a morir. Por un lado tu cabeza te preguntará ¿qué hago leyendo esto?, a la vez de que no podrás parar de leer. Personajes oscuros, rotos, retorcidos y la inocencia de una niña que parece que la necesiten para sentirse perdonados, queridos, puros...

Personajes que te asquean, que los odias, que los temes pero también les compadeces a medida que les conoces con sus lacras a cuestas. Es el reflejo de diferentes consecuencias en la búsqueda desesperada de ser amado. El final no podría haber sido otro mejor. Si te va lo retorcido y psicológico, no te lo pierdas.

[James]

I wanted to write a review after reading the whole series and I quite enjoyed it. The story is definitely creepy and delves into disturbing topics, but it is done in a way that it kept me invested enough to keep reading. I love how the plot is structured in a way to make you think it's going one way, only to turn into a different direction, leaving the reader back at square one. I also liked the ending and how it sort of left off at an ambiguous point so the reader could come to their own conclusion.

[layla ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"If you love someone...
...you want to eat sweets with them.
You want to bathe with them.
You want to hold them. To kiss them.
You want to be with them tomorrow and the next day.
Isn't that how everybody feels?

Does it exist...
...in this world?
Love...
...that's not...
...arrogant?"
You'll do anything for your loved ones, even if it's just a little violent, right?
i'm usually not into romance, but this one is a keeper. i know people don't read lesbian mangas as well, but this was is honestly just so good, and underrated at its least. i really loved this show, and i've only got some parts of the manga. happy sugar life, a show produced 5 years ago, 2018, is one of satou mastuzaka, and her lover, shio kobe. satou may seem like a sweet, normal, beautiful high school girl, but satou is a yandere for shio, who shio is just a sweet and innocent girl who doesn't know about the dangers of the world. that's why satou is so overprotective. she wants to protect her lover. but people keep getting in the way, espiecally (older) men that are masochists, perverts, and the people in the same grade(s) as satou. but satou won't let that happen, won't she?
honestly, this was just crazy. that last chapter was literally so messed up
for what????
but satou is literally the best girl
recap;
happy sugar life is one of my favorite anime series. the plot, storyline, characters, setting, everything. down to the last perfection of the manga/series, i loved this one the most. i don't know if it's because of the violence and the tension, or maybe just satouu? satou is one of my favorite girls. it's funny how a high-school girl can be so violent. and just because of an 8 year old girl? that's what i find very amusing. they aren't even related in any way. satou has never felt any type of love, until she met shio, a small girl with dark blue hair with ponytails that makes her character even cuter, bright cat eyes the same as her brother that shine bright, and a sailor outfit. what's more than that? who's cuter? nothing but a dark web of lies and deep deception that lays down to its final chapter. the mystery, suspense, plotting, anticipation, prolepsis, down to the last bone is honestly just insane. but i find it very interesting. espiecally satou's character. her character design and everything about her is just very... decieving. the way she manipulates, the gaslighting, is all a part of her character, and how she acts for her loved one. her aunt never loved her, she sexually abused her when she was just a little child, she lost her parents at that time, and just wanted to learn what 'love' was; something she never had experienced before. shio made that change. that day, shio's mother hit her for letting go of her hand when they were outside. shio begged and begged her mom all day and for months, and just once, she let shio go outside. shio was lost in thought, and was scared, and let go of her mother's hand. she looked for her for hours, and when she finally found her, shio's mother threw her, and when she didn't listen, she slapped her; a big, red, hand print across her cheek. her mother noticed how she was acting. the monster that she had just become. shio's father was an absusive, drunk, monster of a father. and even to his son, shio's brother; asahi. shio was all asahi had left, and he just wanted his sweet little sister back. but satou took it away from him when she found her in the alleyway. satou had never experienced true love, but there was something about shio that stood out to her. was it her capviating, blue shiny cat eyes? or maybe her navy blue hair in curly pigtails? the sailor uniform? or was it shio's inability to not learn love, like every other 8 year old did?
i guess we'll never know.
the ending of this got me BAWLING (inside mentally)
because satou protecting shio when they *JUMPED* off that building was literally so hsjshghjsiuhnij man. . . in the hospital, shio wants to kill herself. she promised satou in the past that they'll both be reborn, die together, laugh together, joke with eachother, smile with each other, eat chocolates and sweets....
WHAHGHJAUGWHJHAHHHAHAHHA
literally going to make me cry inside again.
but shio didn't die at the end. asahi thought satou (reborned) as shio, but she didn't. asashi saw satou in shio, which i found interesting. in the anime, it showed that shio looked like satou. not like hair, face, and body wise, like eyes wise. satou had those beautiful pink eyes, but there was always something off about them. like she was hiding something. something that nobody should know. something that should have died with her. her murders. her confessions to other people. (su) (almost everybody) everything she sacrficed for this little girl. just because she's never experienced love before. she decided to cross that line of expectancy. in this ending, i would have probably never predicted anything of this sort. but what did i expect from this type of manga series/anime? i don't know. all i'm saying is that tomiyaki kagisora is a great manga writer, her work is amazing,
i know i'm kinda 6 years late but it's okay fr
but i just loved this series and manga altogether.
for me, this was definitely a 10/10.

[E The Creepy Girl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review for the whole series:

This was a really interesting story. I quite enjoyed it, despite it feeling a little off. There were a few things I could get nitpick-y about, like how people are implied to be murdered but then they show up, maybe I just read it too fast but there was two times where I was really confused, but just went with it.

There’s a whole lot of generational trauma in this book, from all parties. I hate that this is the second book/series I have said this about, but everyone in this book needs therapy. Everyone. I wish it had a slightly more sinister tone. I wanted to get that same sickening, stomach churning anxiety feeling I got when reading Killing Stalking or The Flowers of Evil. This story was just washed out enough to avoid that feeling, which sucks for me, because that feeling makes me know a series is damn good.

Besides that, I didn’t really like how up to interpretation Shio’s age was. Sometimes I saw her as 4-6, sometimes I saw her as 10-12, I really couldn’t tell. On top of that, why is a child talking about dying like that? Broke my heart. Though, that was the point I’m sure. Also, why did everyone see her as so pure and joy giving? I just don’t get it, did she have some allure or magical power? I don’t know, it was just so weird. Pretty sure puppies can give you the same feeling, and you don’t have to hold them captive from their families or obsess over them to the point where their face is all over your walls.

Don’t get me wrong; there were some really dark moments, but not nearly enough darkness for me. It felt like it teetered on the edge for me, I just wanted something to go a step further, but it never did. I think it needed that extra oomph, because that would’ve made it really stellar. But of course, this wouldn’t always appeal to everyone so maybe it was a good decision to keep it a little watered down.

The ending though, oh boy, I knew it wouldn’t end well but I didn’t think it would end like that. Very good, very satisfactory. Though, I don’t really understand why we were letting a child make their own life decisions, a la, Shio’s statements towards the end, and that kinda stunned me out of the moment, just saying “why the hell is no one telling her otherwise?” Let me tell you, if I let little me, or even teenage me, make my decisions for me, I would be probably dead. I’m sure many of you would be too.

Despite all these nitpicks I had, I have to commend this story for staying contained. I see a lot of manga stories go kinda crazy and add characters, settings, situations, etc that make the story lose a lot of the original charm that made me start reading it in the beginning. So that was a positive. Even though I said I didn’t get my beloved sick stomach feeling like I do from some of my other favorite series, I still think the story and horror of it were very solid. There were a lot of things that were very nuanced. A lot of finesse and care went into this series and I can appreciate that. Besides that, I enjoyed how unique the story was, and how externally the books seem so cutesy and innocent. Judging the book by the cover and title, you would never know how dark this story got.

Overall, I really liked it. I think it’s a very decent intro to dark manga stories, and stayed contained, and didn’t seem too trope-y. If you’re looking for an intro into psychological or dark fiction manga, this is a great intro.

3.5 stars, not my favorite but very good.

[Autumncandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Happy Sugar Life is a story of Satou Matsuzaka, a psychopath, who falls for a little girl named Shio Kube (whose age is either 8 or 6) and does everything she can to "protect her sugar life". The story relies on Satou being a cute female for viewers sympathies to cheer on her love story with a Satou.

And, they honestly did a spectacular job. So amazing, that it's honestly disappointing how people try to say that Satou isn't a pedophile because she's 16 and she never sexually assaults Shio(unless you count kissing her like I did).

Anyways, Satou attempts to run away with Shio because she doesn't want Shio's brother to take Shio back home. They planned to leave via airport but, Shio's brother catches up to them. Btw, Satou's aunt set the whole apartment building on fire.

Shio and Satou jumps off the burning building, Satou realises that she wants Shio to live on and saves her, and Shio becomes a sociopath. Not kidding. She feels no empathy for anyone anymore, wears a blank, empty expression on her face, and her therapist is afraid of her(a redditor dug around the internet and found a small story about a therapist after the events of HSL and translated it). Shio then goes on to (pressumbly) kidnap a boy or girl who most likely looks like Satou. I don't know the rest because there's another untranslated after story that has Shio in her teens and meets a girl who looks like Satou.

[Nick Pell · Rating 5 out of 5]

While the beginning of this series started kinda rocky, from like volume 4 on it had me hooked. The things which really stood out is how well it developed the characters and showed how complex they were. Satou really benefited from this. She had some screws loose, but the backstory they gave helped make sense of her obsession with finding love and coveting it once she found it in Shio, making me actually kind of root for her by the end. Her Auntie was interesting too, having her own idea of love, but I think also genuinely caring for Satou in her own way. And then the whole backstory of Shio's mother was incredibly well done, showing the terrible situation she and her children went through while giving more context to Asahi's search for his sister. The ending reveal of Shio surviving the fall but her personality totally changing was a bit strange though. I've heard there's some stuff put out which serves as an epilogue to the main story so that'd be cool to see translated and released at some point. But overall, a tonally disturbing series which has enough heart mixed in to give it a sweetness all its own.

[avary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Years ago I actually watched the anime and I don’t think I fully grasped anything that happened, and recently I was reminded of the series and decided to read it this time! Pleasantly surprised the depth both in characters and emotional understanding is very well written and gives perspectives that I felt were lost incredibly in the anime. In no way am I saying any character is justifiable or that it’s morally sound what anyone does but being able to see each moment something happens that shapes a part of that character is very cool subject matter aside! The ending as well I felt was perfect for the kind of story being told and for everything that happened previously it allows you to perfectly see nurture v. nature unfold in “real time”

[Pip · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars for the ending volume, solid 4/5 stars for the entire series. The beginning of the series is a little rough with the pacing and the nonstop onslaught of villainous characters. The manga settles really well by the midway point and it's a page turner all the way to the end. There's quite a few misdirections throughout and not all is as it seems, so the twists and turns keep you on your feet.

Overall, it's a Japanese nightmare version of Romeo and Juliet, with very cute characters doing very heinous things. The Japanese have definitely cornered the market on the psychological-horror-mindfuck genre this fits into, so if you're into that, definitely give this one a shot.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Final volume, full series review


Woooooow. So Happy Sugar Life is ultimately about love and what love is supposed to look like. Family doesn't automatically mean love. Loving everyone doesn't mean loving anyone. Love involves communication and authenticity. And above all love is not forced, but chosen. 

Happy Sugar Life gives a problematic pair and asks us to decide if that's what love in its purest form looks like by then comparing that to the worst people ever. A damaged young woman and damaged young girl come together to build something safe. 

I don't know how I feel about a lolicon situation but definitely an interesting story to ponder.

[Hailey Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This entire series is a wild ride. It's difficult to pick a side, and to fully digest everything that happens in the manga. Overall a good piece, with a well made ending. I don't think any other end would suffice or do as well as this one. This is a not so black and white series, and the uncomfortable tension in every panel is great. I would only recommend this to those who could enjoy a more twisted and open point of view.

[Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

that shit was fucking buckwild i regret reading it all in one sitting but damn

[Kaitlyn June · Rating 5 out of 5]

Satous happy end ... Shios devastating end to to the we "sugar life"...
Perfect
Poignant
Precious

[JestersRaven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really sad ending but fitting for this type of story

[Nini · Rating 5 out of 5]

amen

[Rose Blocher · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series is fucked omg

[Misty · Rating 5 out of 5]

THAT ENDING THOUGH.. WHATTTTTTT

[M Myosotis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why am I crying??? I shouldn't be crying??? Why does this hurt so much.

[Delta M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

great and complex series

[rowan · Rating 3 out of 5]

My boy Asahi deserves so much better

[layla ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, what??? (I like this show and I'm not insane)
(yes I am)
I hate Shio. Why didn't you go with your 𝘰𝘸𝘯 brother? Yeah, yeah. I understand her childhood, but I mostly feel bad for her mother. When we first started getting the flashbacks, this was around episode 3 in the anime, and manga 2 in the manga series. Shio felt weird, and had some sort of trauma because Satou wasn't there. She headed for the door, (beset with worry. . .Shio was led gently by the hand. . . of a long-haired phantom woman.) her mother, dw. We soon get another flashback, of Shio giving a small flower to her mother. Shio's mother didn't like that she went outside, and scolded her. We soon find out that Asahi was the product of r!pe, and an accident. Shio was also hit, and abused. Shio let go of her mother's hand, because she wanted to make her mother happy. Being a young child, she wouldn't understand a product of what could happen to her. In the anime, it showed that when she let go of her mother's hand, a truck came. No, she's alive. In the next few frames, it showed Shio getting thrown (back in the house, through the door.) Her mother was scolding her. Shio tried to plead, but ended up getting slapped straight across the face. Shio fell back, (anime theory, she's a young child.) Her mother held up her hand. She thought that she was turning into that monster, that demon. (Husband, Asahi's and Shio's father) She soon took Shio's hand, and led her outside in the pouring rain. The words that she debilrately said, were; "I don't need you anymore." In episode 12, we find out by Asahi that she actually said; "You don't need me anymore." Because, she felt like she was turning into that monster. Back to the present, she decides to go with Satou. Only a little bit do I respect that. She doesn't want to be caged up (Which I don't understand, because she couldn't go outside, and stayed in an apartment for almost a year, but she did stay inside her whole life after that,) and then decides to DIE with Satou. Imagine manipulating a child to think dying is better than a happier life....God, Shio? (I take my anger out on the characters)

Mitsuboshi is a whole different story, in the first episode, or second, we find out that the manager used his body. He gets PSTD, and cannot be around older women. He soon gets a job at Satou's older job, and was touched on the shoulder by the manager, where he almost has a panic attack, and so then Satou takes him to the break room. After she did, they discussed how they're doing, blah blah. Mitsuboshi annouced that he had a new crush, and he was sorry, because he just liked Satou. Satou laughed it off, and left him on his own. He soon takes out a flyer of Shio...God, this manga and show is literally based on p3do's... (Dw, I love this show sm) In some episode later, he finds Shio, takes her to the park, to get 𝙥𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙛𝙞𝙚𝙙? I didn't understand, but I had a great laugh when he got punched once and got knocked out cold. Shio gets flashbacks, screams, Asahi was there, went after her, Satou went yandere mode, blinded the two guys (Said in a news report, when Shouko and Satou were together) ok, okay, whatever. Mitsuboshi also sees Satou carrying away Shio, and that's when he knows. He got manipulated by almost everyone in the show, mostly by Satou (best girl) BY A SOCK LMAOOOOO (No but seriously I cannot get pass that part without laughing my guts out) blah, Shouko comes over because he didn't go back to work, Mitsuboshi scares the heebeejushb out of her, she runs, Mitsuboshi is seen with Asahi after he knocked Mitsuboshi out, Mitsuboshi was sent to get Shio, but got kidnapped by Satou's Aunt (There's something wrong with her but her voice and character design is cute like all the other characters so I fortunately like her) and then he tries to get Shio but fails and then at the end of the show (I have no idea how this boy survived) but he's okay but he thinks Shio is dead. Idk what's wrong with this character

Asahi just needs a big hug, seriously. (I'm too lazy to write but after Sumire he's my favorite 😃 just joking Shouko's the best)
And Shouko, the only sane person in the manga, and in the show, needs to get with Asahi (you can't convince me that she's dead)
AND NO, SATOU DOESN'T GET A REVIEW
(I love her)

[L. Rambit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Partially to fill the "manga" prompt in the 2024 genre challenge, but mostly because I actually wanted to finish the series, I read the last three volumes of Happy Sugar Life. It's just as twisted as the start of the series. Our serial-killing, child-kidnapping pedophile of a protagonist struggles to keep her relationship with 8-year-old Shio a secret, evading the police and Shio's biological family with arson and attempted murder-suicide. (And yes, annoying person who messaged me on Tumblr: A teenager can be diagnosed as a pedophile if they primarily or exclusively show attraction towards pre-pubescent children. Thanks for arguing semantics with me, though!) I don't know if I "enjoyed" this series, but it certainly... Happened. It didn't succeeded as a horror series, though. It felt too far-fetched and ridiculous to ever truly be scary.

[Dalton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not crying

I did not think this manga would get any kind of emotional reaction from me at all. Now I've finished it and I'm got the moisture in my eyes going wild.