Yozakura-san Chi no Daisakusen
Mission: Yozakura Family

Edit

What would you like to edit?

SynopsisBackgroundAlternative TitlesPictureChapters/VolumesPublishing DatesRelationsTypeExternal Links  

Criminally underrated!!!

There are very few manga out there that blend genres as well as this one: Captivating narrative, Hilarious comedy, Unique characters, Vivid art style, Great character growth, and an amazing Finale!. Honestly it´s PEAK Shounen-romance

It embarresses me to say that I was putting off reading this manga for so long when my close friend recommended it to me. Simply due to the fact that it just wasn´t calling to me, however I couldn´t have been more wrong. What may look like a childish artstyle upon first glance, actually has such a serious tone as it progresses. It reminds me of HunterxHunter, since a lot ... of the people misdjudged it simply because of how it looked.

The story is so well-written! At the beginning, it’s very comedically action-packed, but as it gets into the whole premise of the series. There are a lot romantic developments and moments of growth between Taiyo and Mutsumi. The best way to describe it is like eating a teaspoon full of sugar. Honestly, their relationship is so sweet and wholesome. There is no "will they, won´t they filler" but intead get together at the beginning and grow together throught the series.

The thing that surprised me the most was how dark the manga can get. What I mean by that is how it doesn’t hesitate to show or tell tragic backstories and moments.

The best way I can describe the characters, especially the Yozakura family, is a dysfunctional family. Honestly, the whole family dynamic is hilarious and complement each other really well, each of them has their own aesthetic, personalities, and unique quirks. Ranging from a siscon overprotective older brother to a laid-back NEET younger sister. My special favourite is Kyoichirou, mostly because of his backstory, which influenced him to be the way that he is.

The character development is on another level compared to other mangas, and you will see that as the story progresses as each character has their own personal growth and epic moments in the series.

The art style is simply amazing. The action sequences are top-tier crisp and intricate. And when you see a closed eyed character open their eyes for the first time, YOU KNOW shit is about to go down real fast. Add that with the characters comedic expressions makes the light hearted moments all the more memorable and funny.

Overall, I haven’t been this happy and sad to finish a manga. With a great finale, it leaves plenty of story to tell for a sequel.
Honestly, it sets the standard for what a modern shounen should be!. This is proof that you can have a straight foward, wholesome couple while still being interesting since chapter 1. I hope more mangakas follow suit.

Gondaria sensei Thank you for this masterpiece!.

How I rank (This is just my opinion):

(Inspired by Huang-Teizan)
10 - Bendicion de Dios
9 - Now, this is Peak!!
8 - Bingeworthy!
7 - Good
6 - Enjoyable
5 - Either Echii or just enough to get by
4 - I´m just here to know how it ends.
3 - Don´t bother
2 - "Are you related to Rent a Girlfriend?"
1 - My head doesn´t explode because it can´t.
0 - "Even a Hentai has a better story than you!"

Honestly I don't know who wrote the synopsis for this manga. The setting of the manga is just about the only thing in here that's right.

So to start things off, this is now one of my favorite manga. It's got good laughs and a decent amount of romance that fits perfectly. The action and art in this manga are also pretty great, albeit pretty typical of a shonen manga.

The manga is not about the male protagonist trying to save the female protagonist from her family. It's not that simple. This manga has an actual plot, although it does take a few dozen chapters to ... really get introduced. Additionally it's not like her family is absolutely terrible and needs to be saved. The family members are all very important and are really about the only consistent characters in the story. Each member of the family cares very deeply for each other, Mutsumi(fem. protag.)included.

All in all this manga has been a great read for me so far, so don't be dissuaded by the boring synopsis that makes this comedic, romantic and action packed manga seem like some repetitive Slice-of-life.

The manga as a whole isn't incredible but doesn't try to be. All in all, it's somewhat generic but still enjoyable.

---

The story starts off as something interesting albeit with a lot of exposition, but nothing impossible to understand. A guy forcing himself into a world of spies, interacting with his new family, and becoming stronger to keep his loved ones safe.
It does slowly start to get into ridiculousness, nothing the manga shy away from, with technology and such in a way, almost complete sci-fi. It does keep you more engaged and seems more fun that way, but I wished it still kept the spy element ... in play, which does especially with our male protagonist.

It does get even more absurd as these shonen-type mangas get with their powers, suddenly straying away from regular spies into superpowers which I find personally, a lazy way to a fun concept. I really think the superpowers were unnecessary, and without spoiling it, isn't all too impressive.

The manga also goes into similar to episodic stories, where you don't really see them completely connecting, but more so for character development and interactions. They're not useless but don't hold too much bearing to the heavy part of the story, making the story smooth itself into the dramatic parts rather than jump straight into it (which it rarely does, but does happen).

---

Art is enjoyable and fun to look at, it does tend to hop around a lot with changing from serious to cutesy, but doesn't make it a complete mess, which is nice. Enjoyable action scenes, does well with incorporating with their cutesy/chibi style but knows when to take itself seriously, no complaints here, really. Doesn't do anything all too amazing or revolutionary, but is still distinctive.

---

For characters, they surprisingly do it well.
We get a decently few chapters, slowly uncovering each character and dwelling deeper into their backstory, as not just a quirk of personality and nothing else, but do have their own fears and worries. The story also mainly focuses on their family, making it something I personally find cute, basically them protecting each other, worrying about another in their own way.
Albeit does get dumbed down afterward by its "comedic timing", which I find it less endearing and more so annoying after a while, basically making something dramatic into a 1900s show with "OhH yOu..!"
Again though, I need to preface that the characters aren't completely one-dimensional, even though they do have the same traits as early to late chapters, you do see them evolve in some ways.

Our female lead plays into the damsel in distress role all too often, even if they sometimes show her of being self-responsible and "strong" at times, so if the damsel in distress is an annoyance for you, this won't really change. It is definitely better done but doesn't stray away from some generic points. I personally like it though there's no romance conflict, so you won't see our male protagonist basically risking his life whilst a third wheel's going on.

The male protagonist I also enjoy. He's not shonen-level stupid. He does complain at times, but is very reasonable and tries to solve it himself without burdening his family/friends. He does protect our female lead to a ridiculous degree, but from his standpoint is also very reasonable, as she's basically always hunted, 24/7. Despite the protectiveness, he also serves as a way to see how different the spy world is, almost like a self-insert protagonist, but actually has a personality of his own.

---

Overall, I still enjoy reading this, but thinking from a critical standpoint, I can definitely see people that have read/seen far too many shounen shows/manga, they won't be impressed with the story. They might be interested in the characters and interactions, which is the most fun or the theme.
It's not an amazing manga that will change your perspective in any way, but it's still a fun read that I can recommend to some.