I was really disappointed by this series. The characters outside of Sora didn't get much growth that felt sincere and not rushed. Tsugu finally drops the mask and reveals her true feelings about her loneliness, aversion to change, and her parents' divorce, but it just gets brushed aside. Yuushin gets shoehorned redemption as well (ain't no way I'm cheesing with someone who drove me to the point of suicide; we can be cordial, but that's it!).

Perhaps, a lot of the pacing and flat development issues are due to the length of the story. But as it is, The Golden Sheep is beautiful to look at and easy to consume but very shallow.

Also, no thank you to the “let men cheat. don’t break up a happy home” propaganda. The story really tried to slide in that Yuushin’s mom was strong for staying with a man who groomed a high schooler. >.> Iyanla Vanzant voice "NOT ON MY WATCH!"

Really liked that Sora’s future changed. yeah, he was good at manga, but he decided to pursue cooking instead.

The oneshot included at the end was depressing and strange. I’ll say it’s refreshing to initially see grace given to a teen mother, but for this situation, it seemed really inappropriate. And a bit like Stockholm syndrome. ( )

This review covers “Love Letter”, the short story found in the second half of “The Golden Sheep” v3. The review for “The Golden Sheep” trilogy can be found under the v1 listing.

**SPOILER ALERT**

“Love Letter” is DARK and creative. This yet-to-be-born soul, depicted as a cute, little, Casper-like ghost in the manga, falls in love with his mommy before he was ever born. He chose her, despite knowing she’s a 17 years old runaway. ‘God’ and those at the ‘Birth Office’ discouraged his choice – “It’s clear to see it’s not a very favorable environment to grow up in.” Alas, he was insistent that she was the one. He, without saying it out loud, had boundless love to give. As ‘God’ puts it, “Some people like to start their games on the most difficult setting. I admire the brave.” This little soul stays by her side via different forms, watches out for her, and shows her life is worth living.

This shoujo manga could be very triggering given its dark theme. Ozaki chooses to depict and view this tale from a positive light. The little soul never grew up enough to become angry or upset. His memories and viewpoints are positive and joyful. She was forever his loving mom, despite her actions. His mom needed saving, and he stayed by her side, however way it may take. Unconditional love and redemption dominate these 60-ish pages. There are also mentions of social media, in a ‘who are we to judge when we are not directly involved’ kind of way. What an intriguing tale in so few pages, a manga no less.

eBook from the library ( )