Book Review: The Way of the Househusband, Vol 8 by Kousuke Oono

 

The Way of the Househusband, Vol 8     

Author: Kousuke Oono

Publisher: Viz Media

American release date: August 16, 2022

Format/Genre/Length: Paperback/Manga/Comedy/168 pages

Overall Personal Rating: ★★★★★

 

Sales at Torajiro’s crepe truck have plummeted, and the reason is Koharu, his sister.  She’s opened a rival truck called Lovely Donuts, which is taking Torajiro’s customers. What’s a guy to do but call on the only man who can save him…Tatsu?

Tatsu and Miku awake to find a winter wonderland just outside their door. But it’s the condensation that has Tatsu’s knickers in a twist! While Miku goes to work, Tatsu heads to the store to stock up in case things get worse. He runs across some men who are under orders from their boss to clear the area outside of his office, but they are having a tough time of it. Tatsu berates them for having the wrong equipment and sets them straight.

 Tatsu, Miku, and Masa get together for movie night. The only question is what to watch. Seems that everyone has different ideas and tastes.

Miku’s coworker persuades her to adopt his hamster, but since they have Gin, that doesn’t seem practical, so they try to present him to Masa as a gift. But Masa barely has enough for him to subsist on, let alone a pet. Tatsu’s old boss is also a no-go because of Pinky. While Tatsu tries to figure out what to do, the cops think they’ve finally caught him doing something illegal.

Miku is supposed to go golfing with a client, but she’s never golfed before. Tatsu tells her she’s in good hands with him and he’ll show her the ropes! He takes her golfing, but she finds the rules as he explains them to her probably don’t apply to her.

Tatsu and Miku run into Tora and Koharu. The crepe man claims to have a very hot product to show them, but he can’t do it there. So they arrange to meet on the mountain over the weekend. The product turns out to be a riverside tent sauna! Sounds like fun, right?

Tatsu and Masa and some of the guys head to the mountain to search for bamboo shoots. Tatsu reminds them that since it’s the boss’ mountain, he will need a cut of their haul too.  But when circumstances deal them a blow, and they’re left with almost nothing, how do they explain that to the boss?

Tatsu takes Miku and Masa to his favorite Chinese restaurant, which he says has a secret menu. The chef proudly shows them his newest dish, a Sichuan super spicy hot pot. Anyone who can finish it will get the dish for free. Of course the three of them are game! But can they do it?

Tatsu attends a crime prevention class, and he is most eager to assist the officer in charge with her demonstrations.

Tatsu is back and he’s in fine form with another round of hilarious hijinx! These stories never get old, and I love Tatsu so much! I hope this series runs for a long time to come. Look for bonus stories, one about zombies and the other an episode of Policure! If you don’t know what Policure is, you need to go back and start reading the series again lol