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星守る犬
4
1
Finished
Jul 22, 2008 to Jan 20, 2009
8.3/10
Average Review Score
88%
Recommend It
8
Reviews Worldwide
At 125 pages this is a very short but sweet manga. It is a beautifully told story seen through the eyes of a loyal dog, Happie. Don't be misled by the happy looking cover, the book packs an emotional punch and is extremely moving, one of the few books to get me teary eyed. The book is actually in two parts, the longer piece being Stargazing Dog and Sunflowers, the short story which follows, acts as a sort of epilogue. I can't really go into much detail as it would spoil the story but it ties it up nicely making it a perfectly combined pair ofstories which examines the relationship between man and dog in the modern world from two different perspectives. I can't recommend this highly enough to anyone interested in a touching but enjoyable drama along the lines of some of Jiro Taniguchi's work.
Although abandoned as a puppy, Happy now finds himself fit as a fiddle in the care of Miku's family. He plays with the youngster, goes on walks with the effusive Father, and munches on yummy food prepared by Mother. As such, there is no doubt that he is having the time of his life. Unfortunately, when Father develops a chronic disease, the strong familial bonds in the household slowly deteriorate. Little by little, the family grows more disjointed—until there is no one but Happy and Father left. Unable to earn a living in his condition, Father resolves himself and his dog to one aim: to travel to the far south. There may come ups and downs in their adventures, but Happy will always remain man's best friend. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
This story is truly one of the best works I have ever read. It manages to bring forth a sweet bitter feeling that reminds you life never goes the way you want it too, but that doesn't mean you can't change the world for the better along the way. The story is a simple tale of a man going south with his dog. He's given up on life so he just gets in his car and starts driving. He has a faint idea of where he's going, but he just wants his problems to be over. His brings his last companion, his dog, with him onhis journey. Thankfully, we see that the mans life was not in vain. We see that his existence lead to a boy finally being able to feel love and family. Please read this manga if you want to think about life. Please read this manga if you have the time. Please read this manga if you're troubled. Please read this manga if you're sad. Please read this manga. P.S. Sorry if this one is a little short, i'm honestly too emotional to give a in-depth review.
It's an incredibly touching, bitter-sweet and heartbreaking experience in such a short work. It's a manga that you can easily read in 1h and totally worth your time.. but prepare your tissues. An anthology about dogs and their broken owners. You can clearly see the strong and loyal bond that the dad and his dog develop since the first day they met to the end of their journey.. There are no many characters and they don´t have much developed but there´s not really a thing to point out when it cames to a very short manga. The dad, it was a very well written character, but he's not acharacter you can expect to fit into the "perfect main character" stereotype, like everyone else, he has his flaws. And despite everything is falling appart, he's always try to do the best he can. The art was very simple yet good, the emotions were on point and the scenary is very beautiful. If you have a dog, i can assure you that the first thing you´re going to do after read this is to give him so much love. Unfortunally, I could´t do that.. I highly recommeed it.
English is NOT my native language Hoshi mamoru inu is a Japanese term used to describe a person who wants something impossible to have. This meaning comes from the dog that gazes up at the sky, as if it wishes the stars. In the end, we are all dogs, desiring something we can't have, unsatisfied with what we have. With 125 pages long, Hoshi Mamoru Inu is a manga about an old man that lives a very simple life. After certain events, the man found himself with a car, a dog and a few bucks. It's a very simple story, with high emotional values. The secondpart of the manga is where it lost me, since I honestly couldn't care about the characters anymore when their story is told by another point of view, I would rather that the manga developed the main story until the end instead of ending it very early, that would result in an even more emotionally-packed manga. Scores: Story: 6 Art: 7 Character: 5 (second MC is bad) Enjoyment: 8 Overall: 6.5/10 I would definately recommend this manga for those who are interested in a very enjoyable, quick read, a drama that will make you cry in a few pages.
Stargazing Dog – Spoiler Free – Recommended TLDR Story – 6,5/10 – 6,5 x 0.275 = 1,7875 Art – 7,5/10 – 7,5 x 0.2 = 1,5 Characters – 6/10 – 6 x 0.225 = 1,35 Enjoyment – 8/10 – 8 x 0.3 = 2,4 Total: 7,0375 -> 7 Story – 6,5/10 Stargazing Dog is a story by Takashi Murakami. We follow the life and death of the main character – Happy, a dog. But don’t let his name deceive you: the story is anything but happy. It is divided into two segments: 1) the first, called Stargazing Dog, follows Happy’s life and subsequent death; 2) the second one, called Sunflowers, serves as anepilogue to the whole story. The first part of the story is much more emotional than the second one, with themes such as frailty of the human condition, regret, divorce, and pet loyalty – in this case, dogs. However, the second part is uninteresting and lighter compared to the first one – we are suddenly met with characters that we have no affinity for and don’t care about. The fact that we already know what is going to happen in the beginning also removes some of the suspense that the manga could have had, making the ending less impactful. The story is the definition of short but sweet, and the manga's length is justified in the overall scheme of things. There are some unanswered questions in the plot, namely, what happened to the Mother and the daughter. This is, nevertheless, comprehensible since the story focuses on the fate of Happy and Daddy. Art – 7,5/10 The art is sketchy and minimalistic, but fits the story's overall tone quite well. There is a good fluency of the panels and characters are easy to tell apart. There wasn’t much originality regarding page composition, but it is easily readable from beginning to end. Characters – 6/10 Characters aren’t important in Stargazing Dog, as the story mostly focuses on Happy and his owner, Daddy. The dog fits the typical role associated with dogs: loyal, friendly, and cute. On the other hand, Daddy plays the role of a beaten-by-life character who only has his dog and not much else. There are also characters in the second part of Stargazing Dog, but, in all due honesty, they are void of any characteristics and only serve to further advance the tear-busting agenda that Stargazing Dog has from the get-go. Enjoyment – 8/10 To be able to successfully pack a punch in such a short story is not an ordinary feat, although the second part is way less interesting than the main one. This is a very quick read that is definitely worth the little time it requires: it, thus, deserves a recommendation.