Haunted House (manga)

Plot

Haunted House consists of one-shot chapters connected by the teenage protagonist, Sabato Obiga—his first name refers to Sabbath. In each, he attempts to find and keep a girlfriend, whom his gothic family inevitably frightens away. His family is made up of his father, who works at a bank; his mother, a reader of poetry; twin sisters Lisa and Misa, both of whom create voodoo dolls; and their black cat. In Haunted House, Mitsukazu Mihara continued her use of death-themed material—also seen in her other manga The Embalmer and R.I.P.: Requiem in Phonybrian.

Release

Written and illustrated by Mitsukazu Mihara, Haunted House was published in Japan by Shodensha on October 8, 2002 (). Tokyopop licensed it for an English-language release in North America—along with four of her other works: The Embalmer, Beautiful People, IC in a Sunflower and R.I.P.: Requiem in Phonybrian—and released it on October 10, 2006 ().

Reception

Critical reaction to Haunted House was mixed. Critics drew comparisons between the manga and the Addams Family. The Comic Book Bin's Leroy Douresseaux felt that her elaborate art partially helped to counterbalance the morbid material, and rated the manga 5/10. While enjoying the occasional "cute and mildly amusing moments", Ryan Huston of MangaLife felt that the gothic stock elements, repetitive plot and "lackluster" art hurt the volume. Conversely, Katherine Dacey praised the "elegant, stylized character designs" and enjoyable story, though she commented that the "moral is delivered a little too neatly". Another reviewer greatly enjoyed the comedy aspect of Haunted House, though wrote that "it was an acquired taste".

References

References

1. "Manga+Comics: Mitsukazu Mihara: Haunted House". [[Tokyopop]].
2. "Haunted House". [[Shodensha]].
3. (July 26, 2005). "Mitsukazu Mihara Titles Confirmed at Tokyopop". [[Anime News Network]].
4. (10 October 2006). "Amazon.com: Mitsukazu Mihara: Haunted House". TokyoPop.
5. Douresseaux, Leroy. (October 30, 2006). "Haunted House". The Comic Book Bin.
6. Huston, Ryan. "Haunted House Review". MangaLife.
7. Dacey, Katherine. (October 29, 2009). "Short Takes: Haunted House, Mermaid Saga, and School Zone". The Manga Critic.
8. Connie. (October 4, 2009). "Haunted House". Slightly Biased Manga.