Volume 3 is more of the same – seeing how Tatsu reacts in everyday situations and how others react to his reputation as The Immortal Dragon. It still brings a chuckle or two (or three). In this volume, Tatsu dresses up as Father Christmas, takes on insects, shows off his cooking skills and meets another ex-yakuza, who has a new job that is just as unlikely. We see a bit of more of the other characters too, which helps to keep things fresh. ( )

The farther into this series I read, the more the humor falls flat for me. The jokes get kinda repetitive over time. I do still enjoy all of the chapters that feature their pets. I love the way Kousuke draws animals, especially cats. ( )

Nobody:

Masa: Hold up, lemme google it real quick

The single joke in this manga -- a former yakuza tough guy is now a doting househusband -- has been stretched about as thin as possible now, and the creator doesn't seem much interested in developing the cast as actual characters beyond their initial quirks.

It should be time to stop, but I am intrigued by the introduction of the widow of a yakuza boss who now works in a grocery store. I have a sad feeling that too will be run into the ground by next volume. ( )

In this volume, Tatsu attempts to deal with a cockroach, volunteers to be Santa, tries to help his wife relax after a long day at work, takes on a part-time job, bakes bread, and more. He meets a few other people from his yakuza past, including a yakuza boss's widow who's trying to live a normal life but having trouble adjusting her behavior and mindset (so, basically the female version of Tatsu).

This volume was a relief after the previous one, with better jokes and more chapters showing Tatsu interacting with his wife. Also, Oono's depictions of children were much better this time around - no distractingly "off" facial features, and their stunned/mesmerized expressions were amusing and made me think of the students in Azumanga Daioh watching Yukari-sensei doing or saying yet another weird or stupid thing.

This time around I actually liked almost all of the chapters. The one exception was maybe the weird AU bonus in which Tatsu was a teacher and all the other characters were his students, but even that one wasn't too bad.

My favorite moments in the chapters were the various tough guys enjoying cute/pretty things (like cute cafe foods and dog sweaters), as well as the chapter in which Tatsu went on-stage during the Policure show because his wife wanted to do it but couldn't bring herself to volunteer.

The energy and humor in this volume was great, but considering the previous volume, I'm not sure whether this means that the author has finally found their groove in this series or whether this was just a fluke. I think it'd be worth continuing this series, but I'll probably do it via interlibrary loan requests rather than purchases.

Extras:

Includes a recipe for fluffy omelet rice, as depicted in the manga. Sadly, there is no corresponding recipe for the bear-shaped bread.

(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.) ( )