Life | Manga - MyAnimeList.net

Ayumu Shiiba has always struggled when it comes to her grades but decides to study even harder so that she can go to Nishidate High School with her best friend, Yuuko Shinozuka. When the results of the entrance exams came out, it turns out that Ayumu herself passed, but unfortunately, Shinozuka did not. Consequently, Shinozuka reveals everything she had felt about Ayumu—nothing but resentment.

Depressed that her closest friend has now deserted her, Ayumu finds a way to make her temporarily forget the loneliness: self-injury. As a result, she chooses to be alone and quickly becomes an outcast at her new school, refusing to socialize with anyone. Yet when her classmate Manami Anzai suddenly befriends her, Ayumu's world seems to brighten—but little does she know that something more horrible would start coming her way.

Life is the story of a certain girl's isolation, a tale filled with despair and persecution enough to bring any person to the brink of insanity. However, only the strongest will find the light at the end of the tunnel, no matter how impossible the odds may seem.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Life won the 30th Kodansha Manga Award in the Shoujo category in 2006.

The first nine volumes of the series were published in English by Tokyopop from April 11, 2006, to June 10, 2008, before the license was dropped. The manga was republished digitally in English by Kodansha USA from March 7, 2023 to November 5, 2024.

The manga was adapted into a live-action TV drama that aired from June 30, 2007, to September 15, 2007.

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Characters

Hatori, Miki

Main

Shiiba, Ayumu

Main

Anzai, Manami

Main

Sonoda, Yuuki

Supporting

Hirose, Nodoka

Supporting

Sako, Katsumi

Supporting

Shinozuka, Yuuko

Supporting

Hiraoka, Masako

Supporting

Toda, Wakae

Supporting

Reviews

Aug 22, 2024

LuxuriousHeart

Recommended

This anime was a great read, and I definitely recommend it. The emotional rollercoaster that this story takes you on will have you binge reading this series very fast. Seriously, I think I binged this series within 3 days.

Premise: the story is about a girl, named Ayumu, who passed the exams and got into a good school. Unfortunately, she had to leave a friend behind which made her insecure. Ayumu wants to fit in, and she'll deal with a lot to do so, which leads us into the main plot: the bullying. Ayumu gets bullied because the HBIC thought that ... Ayumu and her boyfriend were fooling around behind her back.

Art: the art perfectly switches to capture the emotions of a situation. They capture the tone. The art gets very light and whimsical when it's portraying a cheerful situation. It has great lighting when portraying something wholesome and romantic. It gets gritty and grungy when portraying depression, horror, and even dangerous situations. The author is able to switch through both art styles and change it up. Legit... Some panels look like they're from a wholesome slice of life school manga, some art so romantic and picturesque, and others look like they're straight from a horror manga or an action manga.

Characters: the biggest strength of the series are the characters and how they contrast and develop. You have the characters who foil each other. Ayumu is a foil to Hatori. Ayumu is the insecure girl who wants to fit in and is afraid of being alone. You see the panels of her anxiety and insecurity. She even blames herself and tries to make up with her "friends" when they isolate her. She doesn't have the strength to stand up for others, much less herself. This is contrasted with Hatori who really doesn't care how others think of her. Hatori is fine with being alone. She doesn't even care what others say about her. She's who Ayumu wants to emulate, and who Ayumu admires. Then you have Manami and Katsumi, as foils. Both of them are terrible people, but one has a dad that spoils them and the other has an abusive dad. It shows that too much of anything is bad. Spoiling a kid rotten and letting them get away with everything creates a monster, since they never face consequences for their actions. Abusing a kid and pressuring them leads them to displace their anger, and they might even become perpetrators of abuse. You have two teachers: one actually cares and the other is apathetic.

These different characters allow a beautiful narrative to be told, and for great character development. They allow for interesting dynamics and actions within the manga. Some of them are so insane that they're like characters from a horror story. Some characters are relatable and make you sympathize with them. Some characters are weak and have others stand up for them, while other characters have grit and put up a great fight (and even win). Seriously, some chapters are absolutely epic 10/10 chapters.

With that said, this manga did have a few issues that kept it from being a 10/10. Sometimes the MC was too forgiving, which is... No. This is personally why I like Vitamin a bit more, since she had no fucks to give for her bullies. Even with that flaw, I still recommend you read this series. It's going to take you on a ride, and you won't put this one down.

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Feb 25, 2024

lunarmao

Recommended

The story is about a girl who is bullied with so many insane characters. I didn't have any doubt giving this manga a 10/10 rating.

The most appealing factor of this manga is it's story since it's unique and interesting. It even has notes on the psychologists. The main character relies on other people's thoughts about her too much that she can't do anything without getting stressed about getting disliked. It captures her anxiety, fear of not fitting in, self hatred well. In one of the first chapters, she asks herself, wouldn't it be better to be alone instead of being friends with people that will ...

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Jul 3, 2009

Bluesander

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (14/80 eps)

Story: 6/10
UNBELIEVABLE. This story is harsh. The mangaka must've enjoyed tormenting her characters, especially Ayumu. This story is harsh and sadistic to the point where the plot is almost unbelievable. I didn't cry for her nor did I pity her. The story is just that unbelievable. Still, I like the way that the mangaka didn't
provide a hero for Ayumu. Most shoujo fantasies have heroes, it's overrated.

Art: 8/10
The art isn't bad. I'll give this manga that much. The mangaka's drawing style really fits the plot, so if you must read this manga, you will enjoy that fact. The drawings are probably the only part ...

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Poll: Life Chapter 70 Discussion Stark700 - Dec 9, 2014	13 replies	by rodmanii »» Aug 22, 2024 1:53 PM
Poll: Life Chapter 32 Discussion LoonyLimbo - Apr 11, 2012	16 replies	by rodmanii »» Aug 22, 2024 1:52 PM
Poll: Life Chapter 80 Discussion Hirieoshi - Aug 18, 2013	18 replies	by LuxuriousHeart »» Aug 22, 2024 12:27 AM
Poll: Life Chapter 79 Discussion Stark700 - Dec 9, 2014	4 replies	by LuxuriousHeart »» Aug 22, 2024 12:13 AM
Poll: Life Chapter 77 Discussion Stark700 - Dec 9, 2014	3 replies	by LuxuriousHeart »» Aug 22, 2024 12:04 AM

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