The SA could very well be used later on (next chapter type of later) to set up conflict between them. Ideum is obviously letting this go and egging Jaeyi on because he's desperate for affection, and I'm guessing Jaeyi did this bc he doesn't know how to be affectionate otherwise. Their feelings are growing but their communication and trauma/insecurity is restricting that growth until it damages their relationship.
Basically my argument here is that just bc they portray SA doesn't mean it's just gonna be fetishized and let go. Are my hopes for that particularly high in a very sex-centered yaoi manhwa about finding inspiration for smut fiction? No. But hey, it's an option.
the argument you present is why I'm not against portrayals of SA/rape, but I wish they were more thoughtfully done more often for that reason. your idea would be a great and worthwhile bit of relationship and character development and a nice development of a story theme. unfortunately, the chance of that seems pretty low, but it would be a very pleasant surprise if it played out that way (and give me a reason to return to this).
idk why more creators don't do more fleshing out characters and their relationships/dynamics with their sex scenes beyond just "this guy tops/bottoms/is kinky/here's this play/etc." and using them as primarily fanservice and relationship milestones. so many missed opportunities. in the context of a story, how people have sex and what they do in the midst of it can show a lot! and especially with these instances where there's some level of misconduct or iffy behavior, even if it's not a dealbreaker for the characters, that can still be a conflict or a moment of tension that contributes to how the relationship develops overall.
Yeaaa, as I said my hopes aren't all that high either. With that said this is not something that creators have the time to flush out, I feel. There is a whole industry behind all these manhwas being published after all.
I think there is an argument to be made here about how publishers and the whole yaoi industry, if you can call it that, thrive on these very tailored yet at the same time sloppy presentations of gay couples in a fictional setting and limit the writers with deadlines and rather rigid expectations. Part of those presentations IS disregard of abuse in favor of fetishization, delivering sexual fantasy instead of a deeper human analysis.
It may also be simple inspiration and a lack of regard for the human experience, but I'd like to think that most people who write and draw these stories would actually love to consider making a theme of what you said, but simply lack the time, commitment and incentive to make it happen.
I blame it on bureaucracy and this obsession to optimally advertise everything. But handwaved SA/rape in yaoi has become a big topic, and to me it sometimes feels like it's used to sow discourse in forums and comment threads to promote and push the content, since engagement is everything nowadays.
unless you really want to hear it, don't get me started! I've got a rant somewhere about exactly that lol(re: rape as a shortcut/catalyst in stories and the economic incentives and working conditions that make it so prevalent in bl). to a degree, I'm sympathetic because it's not entirely up to creators to write what they want, how they want to, and they may not have the level of editorial support in developing stories I might expect for other things. they have to cater to their publisher and "the market". but there is some amount of their own tastes and interests that comes through their work, so creators aren't entirely off the hook for what's trending either.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who's been thinking that this wave of shocking/edgy rape-filled titles is making use of noise marketing and the allure of edge to promote themselves. it wouldn't grate on me as much if it didn't feel like it was suffocating storytelling variety and depth for the bl category in general. even if I put money towards what I want to see more of (and I do!), how can I signal my desire for more of that to the market/publishers if there's not much of it being produced for me to support? the numbers simply aren't in favor of that, because of how "cheap" it is to produce and consume the stories that simplistically rely on rape and fanservice.
anyways, all of that is why I don't let up on questioning and being critical of how and why sa/rape shows up in stories, because one angle of change is showing that there's an audience for other things beyond "the usual".
We ought to write a paper on this.
Simple and obvious theory: Hyunmook is more than just your average corrupted.
Thing is I don't think it's as simple as his body being weird on the inside, his corruption seems to have seeped into his mind and soul, and/or whatever is giving him or making his powers.
His sane side is convinced that he can't stay purified - after what he went through and how he's reverted several times already his doubt is more than reasonable - but it could also be a thing where he has become something of a core or amplifier for the abyss itself, so he's justifiably suspicious of ever truly being 100% cured.
It would explain why the monsters don't want to get near him unless he invades their territory, and why he has bonus corruption related powers - perhaps those powers are all about twisting/influencing the structure of the abyss, at least.
I'm also a big fan of how openly Hyukmoon is basically admitting that he's dtf via corrupted self. Either my guy used to be a fiend for ass or his grabby hands have convinced him of the treasure that lies below.
The last part really got me it might be his deepest desire to fuck that ass, especially with such entity as ukeful as yohan. I mean if I were him, that ass isn't safe the moment we meet
The second, pink leash on the cover kinda told us before the story did huh
And that's why I FEAR he's gonna stick around longer than I'm comfortable with
I'm clocking all the ppl calling Jaeyi ugly: You read all 1001 yaoi smut manhwa available on this site in the span of 1 month max, terminal X/twitter user and/or stalker of south-korean drama whether kpop or others, and likely never touched another human being outside your immidiate family/close friend circle.
Some weidos really see one face that doesn't adhere to the amalgamation that is the same default sigma jawed ML of exactly 3 hair/eye color variations and blow a gasket like that shit ever mattered
They love to self insert I swear. And preach!!!
I do want to kick Astana's balls until his liquid descendants evaporate, but if ML is gonna torture/kill him in front of the queen or smth I think that's where I'm out.
I think I'd be pretty satisfied if he spent the rest of his life as a monk far into the boonies, bc yk that alone would destroy his entire ego... Maybe make him an eunuch, but that's about where I draw the line. He's still young so at least give him a chance to survive the punishment and live to regret his actions ykwim-
I know exactly what you mean . Ngl I feel some pity for astana look his mother was muniplitive abd his father was a dead beat his entire life he was treated like something made out of glass so...... Idk he was never fully able to mature . My point feels even wrong to but anyway ╮(￣▽￣)╭
I get where you’re coming from. Thinking back to his childhood, it’s really sad to consider the different direction his life could have gone if things had been different. It’s unfortunate that his parents weren’t better examples for him. Sad to see him now, looking so hopeless and lost.
Yeah, I think it'd be a pity if he never realizes his mistakes. What difference does a punishment make if the sinner doesn't know his sins? At least Lavini got what she deserved but not Astana. He's still a foolish, egotistical brat.
Yk what grinds my gears about all these manhwa protagonists going to these "barbaric", fetishized, vaguely arabic lands? It's always about this caricature of a culture. Look how much they love battle stuff, omg they show so much more skin omgggg (and probably all have skin cancer bc tf is this belly dancer ass temu outfit supposed to protect these "warriors" from)! They all literally look the same too, wouldn't you know. Like whoever insisted on this shit grabbed those foremost braincells steeped in ignorance and internalized racism and just ran with it.
Creativitiy is dead. And I think its lack here clearly shows that this manhwa doesn't stand out on its own.
Ppl are over-hyping it because of the visuals and the fast pace. Imo it's way too early to tell if this is gonna be good or not. It's skipping a bit too much over some facts for my liking. Like if this is an alternative dimension then why should she or Garen be all that confident in predicting events and their knowledge of other people? I've got more questions, and hopefully they'll be answered in time but I fear this might be the kinda thing where it's mentioned twice if we get lucky and forgotten about.
I understand what you mean but it's a fantasy story. The clothes never make any sense
Yea, so do this genre some justice and do literally anything creative with the clothes
I totally agree on that. Like please
RIGHTT this trope is most often seen in fantasy manhwa with a female protagonist for some reason. Aside from the clothing their always described as barbarians.Which is also very contradicting of them cuz their always depicted along side with gold and riches but somehow their barbarians??? Like huh how their rich they just have different skin color and traditions and clothing appropriate for their climate. The mc's are always praised by them for their beauty cuz shes white its so annoying to see
Yea, that's the white saviour complex.
Some people might go out of their way and say that the barbarian thing isn't something the MCs endorsed or said directly, but when you consider how one caricature-like they've been described and portrayed until now, it's just so lazy and as mentioned steeped in racist ideation.
People who don't know racism won't recognize this.
The plot died with Rashta, a fact that is proven right by the comment section. Barely anyone still gives a shit about what Navier is up to without the schadenfreude of seeing Rashta be a dumb clown and eat shit. That's why it's so funny to me that people are arguing about what could've been. The author, or at least this adaptation, fails to give Rashta as a character any credible depth. She gets like 2? or so moments where she is bestowed the ability to self-reflect and one of those moments is right before she bites the dust. Everything in between, the other 100-whatever or so chapters she is nothing but a dumb whore for the audience to have emotions at alongside the ex husband.
It would've been great if she was ever written to be this consequence of a broken and exploitative system, how maybe if Navier made other choices she could've prevented her downfall, but the way I see it she's a cardboard cutout with too much implied substance for an overcooked, selfindulgent manhwa to handle. Womp, womp.
Is this gonna be a thing where he approached Jin from the start, knowing he was a cop? I can imagine that he misunderstood their first encounter and commited to falling into this percieved honey trap, to keep the cop away from the actual crime business.
But we also don't know shit about Hui-Jae, so he could be keeping homeboy close on purpose (at first anyway). Maybe it's got something to do with the foundation business and the disappearance of Jin's coworker.
Like i needed anymore confirmation that Kloff is kaka af
I don't understand how you can consciously make such a pos the only love interest. At this point Aeroc is gonna be reborn as an asexual mountain monk in his 4th life bc he has to start dodging whatever malevolent force is responsible for shoving fucking Kloff of all men at his face.
The brother 100% has a complex where he always needs to one-up Jaeyi in some way to feel satisfied with his oh so successful life. Could also be a thing where he's curious what his brother's been up to bc of cut contact, but his vibe's been too thirsty for good intentions.
exactly what I've been thinking :( I feel like it has something to do with his health condition before that made him feel like all attention is on him so he can leverage that