Yamada Tarō Monogatari



Yamada Tarō Monogatari (山田太郎ものがたり, literally, Yamada Tarō Story) is a Japanese manga series created by Ai Morinaga. The manga series, published by Kadokawa Shoten, ran for a total of fourteen volumes. It has been adapted into a 15 episode Chinese serial drama and a 10 episode Japanese serial drama starring Ninomiya Kazunari and Sakurai Sho of Arashi.

Yamada Taro is smart, athletic, and very handsome. He seems perfect on the outside, but he's actually dirt poor due to his mother's reckless spending habits and his always-gone father. Although never once does he admit it, everyone at school thinks he is a very humble rich boy because of his good looks. However, at home, he must care for his six younger siblings, who share a one-bedroom place with him and his mother.


 * Abusive Parents - Taro's parents sure neglect their kids.
 * Alpha Bitch - Suguira's sister. She is especially manipulative and sadistic towards him.
 * Amazingly Embarrassing Parents - Takako's parents, who are overweight and extremely thick skinned. Takako is extremely scared at the thought that she might eventually look and act like them.
 * Annoying Younger Siblings - Taro's six younger brothers and sisters.
 * Berserk Button - Don't take or waste food or money in front of Taro. He will kick your ass.
 * Big Eater - Taro and his family are. The only thing on their mind is always food.
 * Bishie Sparkle - Taro has this happen to him. A lot.
 * Bishonen - Taro, which is a large reason why everyone thinks he's Prince Charming. Also Suguira, who initially views Taro as a rival of beauty.
 * Broke Episode - Every chapter is a Broke Episode for Taro.
 * Chew Toy - Suguira - seriously, his suffering is the source of much laughs.
 * Chick Magnet - Taro has pretty much all the girls in love with him.
 * Dog Food Diet - Due to being so poor, Taro's family normally doesn't eat very good food...
 * Engagement Challenge - Mimura's grandfather secretly gives Taro a bunch of challenges to try to split him up from Mimura. Eventually, the grandfather concedes, only to find out that Taro is a man.
 * Even the Guys Want Him - Not only is Taro a big Chick Magnet, he even manages to make Suguira fall for him.
 * Fairest of Them All - This is the reason why Suguira initially views Taro as his rival.
 * Gold Digger - Takako sort of fits this trope, as it's initially her life goal to marry a noble prince and live a peaceful, refined life. Later, though,.
 * Heterosexual Life Partners - Taro and Mimura. Mimura always sticks with Taro because he's never bored when he's with him.
 * Ho Yay - Mimura always being alongside Taro, even going so far as to introduce Taro to his family and make his grandfather think that Taro is his lover. They hug a lot, too. And then there's Suguira's canonical crush on Taro...
 * Loving a Shadow - Takako, after realizing Taro is actually poor and a lot like her thrifty parents, thinks her feelings for him were this..
 * Miser Advisor - Taro to his family, doing everything he can to help them save money for meals.
 * Mushroom Samba - Taro is given a bag of "flour" from a rich classmate, and uses it to cook pancakes for his family. Later, it is revealed that the huge bag of flour was actually narcotics made from magic mushrooms. However, due to being so poor and starved, Taro and his family managed to digest it with no problems.
 * Nosebleed - Suguira has nosebleeds every time he's overwhelmed by Taro's Bishie Sparkles.
 * Oblivious to Love - Taro, who generally doesn't even notice that someone likes him. Many times, this leads to him saying things that people misinterpret as his returning their affection.
 * Parental Marriage Veto - Mimura's grandfather, who thinks that Taro (while crossdressing) is Mimura's girlfriend, and is completely against their "relationship" because Taro is built like a... well, a man. He tries desperately to find fault in Taro, but in the end, is unable to spot any part of Taro as not being a Yamato Nadeshiko, and finally accepts him. Until he finds out that Taro is a man.
 * Perpetual Poverty - Let's just say that no matter how much money Taro manages to get, it'll be gone by the next chapter due to his mother spending it.
 * Prince Charming - Most people view Taro as being this.
 * Rooftop Confrontation - In the TV version (can't vouch for the manga here) Sugiura confronts Taro on the rooftop in an early episode.
 * Sacred First Kiss - Taro takes Suguira's sister's first kiss. To put it in her own thoughts: "My most precious first kiss was actually in front of the bathroom, traded for a banana..."
 * Shrouded in Myth - Everyone in Taro's school makes up stories and rumors about how rich he is.
 * Sparkling Stream of Tears - Happens quite a bit to Takako.
 * Sprouting Ears - Taro has this happen to him sometimes.
 * Status Quo Is God - How Taro's mom keeps spending any money he manages to get, keeping them poor.
 * Through His Stomach - Generally how people manage to get Taro to think well of them. If they bring him food, many times he'll hug or show some sort of affection for them, allowing them to misunderstand and think he returns their feelings.
 * Unknown Rival - Suguira initially has a very one-sided rivalry with Taro (who was completely oblivious).
 * Wholesome Crossdresser - Taro is forced to wear a maid outfit in order to work for Mimura's family (since his family is only looking for a female maid).
 * Wife Husbandry
 * Yamato Nadeshiko - Taro is shown, while crossdressing, to actually make a perfect one (except that he's built a bit too much like a man).
 * Yaoi Fangirl - Chuusai, Suguira's friend. She seems to love the idea of pairing Taro with Suguira (including her imagining them together naked), and even passionately tells Suguira that she'll support him.
 * You Didn't Ask - Taro's general response and attitude when people find out he's actually really poor.