And, btw, I think Kento came to realize the manager did it. The change the manager notices. The "finish me off," and the sudden starteled moment (close-up of Kento's startled face), and then his tears as he's lying on the bed. He probably suspects it was manager, but he has no choice but to rely on him. He has no one else and he can't go outside.
Nice analysis and very thorough. I really enjoyed reading it.
Thanks!
*slow clap* Man that is well thought out and incisive. Kudos to you man. I thought it could be him but I could never put it the way you did
Oh, and I forgot the bandages relating to the apple slices. Notice that both the apple is sliced by manager (making ribbons) and it suggests the skin is sliced by the manager, because we hear Kento say he smells now of apples and has apple pieces on him. Kento = the apple that's cut by the manager.
Very welcome! And thanks.
My dear, you should be a detective! Your analysis of this short, and for some, confusing story was phenomenal. I was expecting an entirely different type of story when I read this the first time, but because of your outstanding analysis, I read it again with fresh eyes. Thank you for taking the time to write out what you saw and how you interpreted it. It made a disappointing manga, for me, take on a whole new life.
It's surprisingly good, isn't it? :D And Welcome.
Hey. I read it againespecially the parts you've pointed out and I've noticed that on page 17, upper lestmost panel, the one showing kento's eyes then the one below it Kento was surprised, I think that was the time when Kento realized the manager was the attacker.
When the manager told Kento that the "attacker" didn't cut his neck because his hair was long, Kento thought the manager did it that's why he was shocked, but then, again, he can't do anything about that now, can he?
Mind... blown!!!
Wish I had your brain so I can understand some of confusing mangas I've read
I love this. Thank you so much!
LONG ANALYSIS: Okay, just to have it in one place, why I interpret this as the manager doing the stabbing. This has to do with the double meanings of many things (including the title.) Kento--the name--means "healthy" or "rising up." This is ironic, in fact, the reverse, as he is now unhealthy and falling down (losing popularity, losing fame, losing money, losing connections.) The idea of reading the positive-seeming as the negative is hinted at by bot the double meaning of the title and of Kento's name.
First: the title--could it also be read as "Knife TO You"--with the "ni" as to, rather than "in"? If so, then the narrator (manager) is admitting he's the knife to the model, cutting him physically and cutting him off from the rest of the adoring world, so he has him to himself. Knife TO You. Knife in You. One is an act. One is a person. And both are related to the manager, imo. (This story only has two principals, so the model is YOU and the manager is KNIFE.)
Second: page 11 --I don't think it's mere coincidence that the first image upper right is the manager holding the knife aggressively in that manner, before it just comes to peel the apple. (the weapon in hand, then we see him cutting...again, hints/clues that seem benign on first reading, but less so on repeated ones.) Kento says: What are you planning to use that on? (this seems lighthearted, but there is also something there, a question asked and we ask ourselves, too.)
Third: page 12--something is going on, we don't get everything with the President on the phone, but he yells "homo" at the manager about mixing private/public. It probably has something to do with manager seeking the breaking of the contract and taking over obligations for Kento, while also quitting the talent agency. Then the fiance walks by and we see this guy who has been very calm, poised, slam his fist on the wall. (ie, he's able to lose control and get mad)
Fourth: page 15--he laughs after Kento says he broke up with the fiance. We are to assume it's because of the apple, but it's also likely he's pleased the last obstacle is out of the way: Kento was severed from agency, severed from public eye, not severed from his woman. "At least this was the last one." It is supposed to refer to the applels he was eating, but the deeper reading is this is the last connection he had to the non-manager/outside world. It's been cut by the "knife" (manager) just like the apple was cut by the manager.
Fifth: page 17: also very important for catching clues: Manager's hand reaches up to move kento's chin and says the reason his neck was miraculously spared damage (the hair). How would the manager know what the assailant/attacker intended? He's the attacker. Why was the neck spared (later on, we learn the manager loved Kento's neck on first sight. He spared the part of Kento he adored.) He says, "Looking at you from my point of view..." and we realize that the point of view of the manager is the point of view of the attacker.
Sixth: page 21..the last panel there is very somber. Kento is sprawled, the way he might have been the night of the attack. Manager is kneeling (looming) over him, with his hand in a position like one holding a knife. The way the ribbon of bandage is flowing out of his hand looks like spilling blood. He's a dark figure in an otherwise pale composition. I think this is very important.
Seventh: page 23: "All right. Finish me off." "Before that moment, it was just a normal day." These two phrases are weighted with meaning. Kento here means finish removing the bandages. But it has a darker implication. He is saying this to manager--who I believe wielded the knife that could have killed Kento. And clearly, it was not a normal day for either Kento or the Manager. The manager, out of jealousy likely, just went nuts and took advantage of Kento's wild night schedule to follow him. He knew the things he did, where he went.
Eight: page 26, very key page: We are told from the manager's POV: "I did it. I acted on impulse." "I hope he won't be in pain afterward." This is referring superficially to the sex act of penetration, but I believe it clearly is the manager referring to the incident where he lost his mind (snapped) and penetrated with a knife (sex substitute, his desire to possess Kento taking over violently). "I did it. I acted on the impulse of the moment." This is the page where we are told how he first really loved his neck. (He didn't stab the neck he loved, remember? left it uninjured) "Ever since that time, I've been going mad." That's not a throwaway line.
Nine: page 27: "It's his fault I"ve gone crazy." Who takes on a staggering debt? A person who both loves the injured, desires him like "mad," and who has caused the injury. Love and guilt, both.
The manager IS the knife.