Synopsis
A grim reaper decides to spend time with his next victim, Ren Ohba, for a few days before she is scheduled to die. Ren, the student council president at her school, speaks harshly to her subordinates for the sake of performing her job efficiently. The grim reaper, however, can read her mind and knows that, in her head, Ren secretly has many kind things to say. After a first encounter, he possesses Ren and forces her to vocalize her inner thoughts, so that others will know how much their student council president actually cares for them before it is too late. When she realizes that she is not in control of her own speech, he leaves her body and formally reintroduces himself. Since he has no name to go with his title, Ren calls him Ai.
Ren threatens him with a weapon for violating her privacy, but rather than flinch away, Ai welcomes her to try killing him. He reveals that not only is his job boring, but it also reinforces his loneliness; after all, no one is happy to receive a visit from a grim reaper. Out of compassion, Ren promises to always stay by Ai's side and be the person he can talk to, though she does not understand that his presence means her death is imminent.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Includes the one-shot "0.3 Byou Lunch (0.3η§Lunch)" originally published on Dec 15, 2007.
I decided to read this manga because I knew that it was short, and I wasn't ready to emotionally prepared to invest in something a manga that had 20+ chapters. All I wanted was a quick, light-hearted read. Well, I was half wrong and half right. Sarashi Asobi only has 7 chapters. Now, normally I'd be crying and complaining about how I wished the mangaka drew more chapters, but I think 7 chapters is enough for this story. Every chapter did a good job at developing the plot, building up tension, and leading to the end. I am satisfied with how the manga turned out.Story (8/10):
To be honest, I was expecting SA to be some quirky shoujo about a grim reaper falling in love with a human. And to an extent, it IS that, but it's also something much more than that. The manga isn't as shallow as it seems -- it actually goes deep into the purpose of humans and the concept of death. And although there were some cheesy bits, I was surprised at the more meaningful parts.
SA also has its share of comical, touching, and WTF! scenes. It's a mixture of everything.
Art (9/10):
OH MY GOD dat art tho. OKAY, let's be real here, the art that's displayed here on MAL isn't that attractive. But don't be fooled. The art is actually drop dead gorgeous. The artwork really reminds me of Horimiya and Kamisama Hajimemashita.
Character (9/10):
I am so, so, so x 100,000 glad that the heroine wasn't some crybaby, stereotypical shoujo girl. Nope, our heroine is fierce, badass, funny, and cute all at the same time. I never got sick of her character.
