Manga Review | Saving Life
Let me start off by saying one odd fact about myself: I’m not a huge fan of ecchi. I don’t hate it by any means (as a guy, it’s kinda hard to hate something like that), but I never really gravitate towards ecchi shows if I can help it. In fact, I am quite stoic about fanservice in general. Ecchi shows generally don’t have that much of a plot to them, instead relying on comedy to carry them through, which, not gonna lie, doesn’t always work.
So when I was tasked to review the first volume of Saving Life, I was initially pessimistic about it. Just from the description, I entered the manga with wariness. Sure, the premise looked interesting and I can see the potential for a good comedy in it, but in general I wasn’t expecting much.
I guess I was kinda right?
What’s up everyone! Ken here, from thebuttonsmashers.com Anime&Manga Reviews, and without further ado, let’s head straight into an odd take on the riches-to-rags story with a little sprinkling of ecchi: Saving Life.
Story & Characters:
Haruhiko was a rich man’s son, and with any rich man’s son, he grew up pampered. But when he can’t take any more of his father’s tyrannical behavior, he strikes out on his own, determined to make his own way in the world.
But that’s definitely easier said than done. Going from super-rich to super-poor is tough on any man (let alone one still in high school!), and it’s going to take more hard work than Haruhiko imagined just to make ends meet. He’s doing his best and trying to keep up his spirits, but living on bean sprouts and bread crusts is enough to get any man down.
Fortunately, he’s got his sexy classmates and his own personal (and very hot) maid to help him out!
Essentially, the story follows Haruhiko and his constant quest to save money and live better (kinda) with the very limited amount of money he has, all while being a high-school student. Not only does he have to deal with faulty appliances and high rent prices, but he is also apparently swimming in debt from when was living a rich-man’s life.
On top of that, working part-time is also stressful, as he also needs to keep up with his studies.
ON TOP OF THAT, every now and then, unexpected things, and people, happen that causes him to pinch pennies even more than usual.
This guy is just down on his luck, but he finds all of these better than having to stay with his tyrannical overlord of a father and follow his every whim.
Oh, and he also has his own harem, so it’s not that bad.
The manga does give a rather realistic approach to the struggles of having to move out from home and rely on pretty much yourself. It’s a struggle that a lot of students especially have, which kinda hits close to home, but in a comedic fashion. A lot of the comedy stems from our hero’s attempts at saving up and making sure that he’s living an affordable life as much as he can, and for the most part, a lot of it is rather funny and even relatable to some degree.
Saving Life relies on its comedy to carry itself, and surprisingly, I found myself rather amused by some of the situations that the main protagonist finds himself in relation to his budgeting tactics. However, a lot of the ecchi situations didn’t really appeal to me and I found them very intrusive in what could have been some nice comedy involving a man’s attempt at being efficient.
To be fair, there wasn’t as much ecchi in the manga as I thought there would be, but there are still the regular tropes that are present in the genre. And that’s the weakest point of the manga so far: a lot of things are too generic. From the main protagonist to the female heroines, everyone just seemed like cookie-cutter tier tropes for me. They don’t necessarily have any other trait that stood out to me, and I felt like they were kinda just there for the heck of it.
There are redeeming qualities to the main protagonist, despite his bland personality. I appreciate how the writer didn’t make him a whinny child; he actually takes responsibilities for his actions, and not once did he complain about his situation. He represents the common struggling man, keeping up with his duties and working hard to get through, but never wavering despite his troubles; he just finds another way or keeps persevering. It’s quite admirable.
Too bad the rest of the cast is kinda forgettable, but, oh well.
Art:
In terms of the art style, it’s fairly generic. Nothing exceptional really stands out. Character designs were fairly simplistic and the backgrounds and settings are nothing to speak of to be honest, which really plays with my feelings towards the manga: it’s plain, it’s simple, it’s average.
I’m not one to judge, uh, “ecchi” art, but as far as I can tell, it’s nothing too special and is, again, fairly generic.
Afterword:
So, all in all, what did I think of this manga?
Well…..it could be worse?
For what it was, it was an amusing read. The setting was simple enough, there were some nice comedy here and there, and the overall dilemma of the main character was actually pretty relatable, it kinda hurts.
Everything else however was rather generic, from the fanservice, to the setting, to the character tropes, to their designs, and even some of thehumour. It’s not a bad read and it can provide you with some entertainment, but all in all, there are much better things you can do with your time.
Still, for what it is, there are worse things you can read, and Saving Life might still be something that you can get some laughs out of. Go try it and see what you think, it might just be up your alley.
If this review has piqued your interest in the manga, then you can pick up either a physical copy from your local bookstore or a digital copy from Viz Media’s website. You can download their digital app and legally read manga with official translations on the go wherever you are.
As per usual, leave a comment down below pertaining to your thoughts on this review, on the manga itself, or if you would like me to review anything. And, speaking of liking, give the review a thumbs-up if you enjoyed it and follow me on twitter @tbs_ken for updates and general shitposting, if you feel like doing so.
