Happy World

Oomura Takeshi is no stranger to bad luck. Three days ago, though, his misfortunes seem to be piling up. He gets chased by dogs, seen his house burn down... and dies from a fatal concussion. "Fourteen years of life... my life was too short."

Luckily, Heaven seems to think so too: upon dying he meets an angel called Elle who immediately resurrects him. Elle explains that Takeshi's father had passed down his role to his son -- essentially, Takeshi is now the holder of all the bad luck in the world, and Elle was sent to become his guardian angel. Whoop-dee-doo.

Of course, Takeshi wants to refuse, so he seizes the opportunity to pass the curse to someone else. Except his curse is going to affect an innocent little girl, so he decides to accept it himself. Elle acknowledges his acceptance and then transforms into a human, after which she explains that she has to be near Takeshi 24/7 so she can supply him with good luck. Takeshi isn't particularly happy with this arrangement.

A manga by Takeshita Kenjirou, Happy World is a weird mix of Ecchi, Magical Girlfriend, Supernatural Horror and School Comedy. Though the tone shifts often, and it manages to incorporate some very thoughtful pieces on parenthood and life in general.


 * Art Evolution: Quite a bit. For comparison, here's Takeshi and Elle as seen in chapter 1. Here they are again in chapter 59.
 * Beta Couple: Maruyama and Kusakabe.
 * Brother-Sister Incest: The explanation Takeshi uses to explain Elle's connection to him is that she's his step-sister. Cut to Takeshi exclaiming loudly to her in a classroom "We should make a baby." And they actually go halfway through the act before realizing that they're not emotionally ready for it.
 * Cerebus Syndrome
 * Continuity Creep
 * Death Is Cheap: Elle resurrects Takeshi day in and day out.
 * Enfant Terrible: Hikaru's little sister Michiru is a child genius who spends all of her time torturing her older sister. (and we don't mean sibling rivalry we mean like CIA torture). Takeshi ends up taking her place because he can be resurrected.
 * Half-Human Hybrid:
 * : Any angel that wants to get promoted has to accept.
 * Horny Devils: Isra explains that demons draw nourishment from humans by draining their "genki". It's never explicitly stated what "genki" refers to, but it's heavily implied to be sexual energy or like since the humans are rendered naked after being fed on and both Elle and Isra become flustered when Takeshi asks them what genki is.
 * Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Maruyama and Kusakabe.
 * Ill Girl: Yuria Kusakabe.
 * Infant Immortality:
 * The Legions of Hell: Demons are scary.
 * Lovable Sex Maniac: Takeshi's cousin Motoko, one of the increasingly common female versions.
 * Luke, I Am Your Father:
 * Made of Iron: Due to his bad luck, Takeshi is able to take a punch to the face without flinching.
 * Magical Girlfriend: Elle
 * Mood Whiplash: There is nothing "Happy" about showing a smiling innocent girl, and have the next panel reveal her empty shirt now riddled with bullet holes. And then there's the part about what happened to 's mother...
 * Not So Harmless:
 * One-Gender Race: Angels.
 * Parental Abandonment: One of the various ways in which Takeshi is unlucky.
 * Reincarnation:
 * Tournament Arc: A demon convinces the Hikaru's father and sister to kidnap Takeshi in order to force Elle, Hikaru, Sanae and Motoko to fight in one of these to get him back.
 * Triangle Relations: Elle wants Takeshi's child. Hikaru wants to marry him. When he suggests that those goals aren't mutually incompatible, they don't take it well.
 * Truly Single Parent: The angels, and they can each only have one child.
 * Unlucky Childhood Friend: Hikaru Hoshino
 * Shout-Out: In chapter 35, Hikaru dresses like a Kunoichi and dons a Konohagakure headband.
 * Shout-Out: In chapter 35, Hikaru dresses like a Kunoichi and dons a Konohagakure headband.