Shigeshoushi

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Alternative Titles

Japanese: 死化粧師

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Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: 7

Chapters: 42

Status: Finished

Published: May 8, 2002 to Apr 8, 2013

Genres: Drama, Romance

Theme: Psychological

Demographic: Josei

Serialization: Feel Young

Authors: Mihara, Mitsukazu (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 8.07¹ (scored by 3,948 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #778²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #1447

Members: 16,414

Favorites: 358

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8.07

Ranked #778Popularity #1447Members 16,414

MangaFeel YoungMihara, Mitsukazu (Story & Art)

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Volumes: /7

Chapters: /42

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Synopsis

Shinjuurou Mamiya works as an embalmer—a profession seen as "unclean" by Japanese society due to religious traditions and lack of demand for the service. Driven by his passion to preserve the dignity of the deceased, he has resigned himself to the outcast lifestyle that comes with his job. Though his clientele is lacking, he is exceptionally skilled. Shinjuurou does not shy away from opportunities to show off his ability to transform a corpse into a state that makes a loved one believe they are just sleeping peacefully.

Shigeshoushi explores the delicate psychological relationships between life, death, loss, and mourning. With each embalming, Shinjuurou brings the inner beauty of the deceased back to life to give their loved ones a chance to properly say goodbye.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Shigeshoushi was published in English as The Embalmer by Tokyopop in four volumes from August 8, 2006 to August 1, 2007, before the license was dropped and the publisher went defunct. It has also been published in Polish by Hanami from 2008 to 2013.

The manga was given a live-action drama adaptation that ran from October 5, 2007 to December 21, 2007 on TV Tokyo, Aichi Television Broadcasting, and TVQ Kyushu.

More characters
Characters

Mamiya, Shinjuurou

Main

Natsui, Azuki

Main

Kobayashi, Renji

Supporting

Koyuki, Shouko

Supporting

Dudley

Supporting

Tsubaki

Supporting

Urara, Akihiro

Supporting

Yamane, Saya

Supporting

Mamiya, Nozomi

Supporting

Wildberry, Tina

Supporting

Reviews

Mar 3, 2014

Rei-chii

Recommended

Being in a country where embalming is a practice, I could probably relate to the thought where "the family members would want the deceased to look how he/she usually was when he/she's still alive"

Before I go straight to my review, let me just tell you something to further prove my point. Just recently, my grandfather died. He died of an illness so he was really thin when he died. After the embalming process, my grandfather looked more fat (not totally but the healthy kindof fat) than he was when he died. He didn't look like he died of an illness and he does look like ...

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Apr 12, 2020

abystoma2

Recommended

The Embalmer is one of those titles that really prove how full of various and unusual themes the medium of manga is. Really, where else would you find a fiction about non-Egyptian embalming?

Now, embalming isn't really something most of the readers would relate to. I too had my doubts about how someone could make a series based around it entertaining or meaningful, especially considering I didn't see any meaning even in the act of embalming itself. Lo and behold, it actually is good. The manga takes the readers doubt and responds to them. It explains and defends the utility of the profession of embalmer ... really well through the whole story and is perfectly capable of changing your opinion of it. This is very important thing to do, as without the reader understanding the meaning of embalming, the whole manga would have much lesser impact, and I commend the author for getting it right.

The second instance of the author answering my doubts as a reader was within the first few chapters. At the beginning, this manga didn't look that great and most importantly, the episodical format of the chapters seemed to have the same formula for all of them - a character is introduced, they die somehow and the protagonist gets to do their job while some part of the deceased's life is explored. Which is nice and all, but it gets repetitive quickly. However, it was exactly the chapter that I was starting to get bored and complaining about the repetitiveness that this formulaic cycle was broken. The progress of the chapter went different than expected, in a good way, and it was also around this point where a more consistent plot started to show through the chapters. It really shows a great writing skill when the author is able to pinpoint the reader's doubt like this and answers them.

The protagonist has his flaws and one of the main point of the story is confronting them, which I have to appreciate, especially in this era of mary sue MCs. The minor characters too have their own personalities, even if some of them appear only for a short time. Unlike some other titles, none of the characters here feels like a cardboard cut-out of the person.

The art feels kinda... Tokyopop-ish. Yes I know, Tokyopop is just an English licensor, and yet the art feels exactly like something they would typically pick up for a release. It might feel kind of... dated, if that's even the fitting expression, but you'll get used to it quickly and it's certainly not a bad art. It's just your typical early 00's manga vibe.

Overall, it's an interesting read with an unusual theme and with a satisfying story conclusion. Certainly worth picking up.

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Sep 9, 2024

darkpixelftw

Not Recommended

TL:DR
An interesting and little-covered concept but repetitive with unlikeable re-occuring characters. Do not recommend.

Description
Shinjuurou Mamiya works as an embalmer—a profession seen as "unclean" by Japanese society due to religious traditions and lack of demand for the service. Driven by his passion to preserve the dignity of the deceased, he has resigned himself to the outcast lifestyle that comes with his job. Though his clientele is lacking, he is exceptionally skilled. Shinjuurou does not shy away from opportunities to show off his ability to transform a corpse into a state that makes a loved one believe they are just sleeping peacefully.

Shigeshoushi explores the delicate psychological ...

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Poll: Shigeshoushi Chapter 42 Discussion Hannah_Ana - Jul 27, 2014	5 replies	by TitanInsane »» Jul 15, 2022 11:43 PM
Poll: Shigeshoushi Chapter 41 Discussion Stark700 - Jan 31, 2016	0 replies	by Stark700 »» Jan 31, 2016 6:13 PM
Poll: Shigeshoushi Chapter 11 Discussion __veni - Aug 10, 2011	2 replies	by mayqueen »» Nov 28, 2015 10:35 PM
Volume 3 Mirorin - Apr 25, 2015	0 replies	by Mirorin »» Apr 25, 2015 12:20 PM
Poll: The Embalmer Chapter 33 Discussion Naruleach - Oct 14, 2010	0 replies	by Naruleach »» Oct 14, 2010 2:32 AM

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