Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
The cover art for “Happiness” Volume 4 by Shuzo Oshimi is the most chaotic so far. It’s jarringly colorful and looks like it was made with crayons, with lots of spirals in the corners, which makes it look like a childish manga version of “Andy Warhol meets Junji Ito.” I am a little gullible when it comes to pretty book covers, so if this had been on the cover of the first volume, I doubt I would have picked it. But like they say about covers, don’t let it mislead you. This volume is the bloodiest yet in the horror manga series. It’s filled to the brim with disturbing images and events that surpass all the blood and gore in the last one.
Recap of “Happiness” Volume 3: After protagonist Makoto rescues his classmate Yuki from a water tank where he was left to die, Yuki is hospitalized and begins to experience painful bodily distortions. Makoto seeks out Nora, the girl who bit him, and begs her to make him human again. When she suggests they run away together, a dejected Makoto goes back home, only to be gagged and kidnapped by men who masquerade as police officers but seem to be part of some shady organization that hunts down vampires. Yuki, however, comes to Makoto’s rescue this time, and the two boys manage to escape to safety. Yuki confesses he murdered his mother for blood. Volume three ends with Makoto bringing Yuki to Nora, but whether the vampire girl will help them or kill them is left for the next edition.
“Happiness” Volume 4 introduces a new character called Sakurane, who for the first time uses the term “vampire” in the manga series. Not like we needed Sakurane’s validation, but it sure feels good to finally see a character use the word in the series. Sakurane runs into Goshi, the sweet young student who is looking to help Makoto and Yuki but doesn’t know how to, so Sakurane offers to assist her.
Except for the um-impressive cover art, Shuzo Oshimi’s illustrations are fantastic, eerily capturing the creepy, bloody experiences of Makoto and Yuki. While Makoto is under Nora’s spell, Yuki escapes her clutches and rushes off to find his girlfriend Shiraishi. With his thirst for blood spiraling out of control, there’s significant tension over what he’d do next or who he’d kill next. So, plenty of deaths take place in this edition too.
Amid all the macabre deaths, loss, and betrayal, Makoto continues to be surprisingly human in his behavior and even convinces Nora to come to an unlikely agreement with him, a sort of unofficial pact. But unlike the title of this horror manga series, happiness isn’t something Makoto can aspire for, so things don’t get any better for him. Readers are left with a cliffhanger that could mean only more bodies in the future. “Happiness” sure has gotten dark, disturbing, and deranged in the right amounts for horror fans!
Rating: 4 on 5.
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