Despite loving BL, Yaoi and all the smut, one of the other things I love about the genre (and, i guess, manga/manhwa/manhua/webtoons in general) are the heart-wrenchingly beautiful chibi, child and baby designs. Think of any childhood flashback and half of the emotional resonance with the story comes from the deadly cuteness of those big heads and bigger beautifully designed eyes, so carefully rendered with top-class artistry.
This mangaka has brought us two increasingly attractive main characters... So, WHY, OH WHY was such a non-descript baby design, with literal dots for eyes, green-lit??? She is at the heart of the story, and even performs some critically-timed baby noises. Yet they expect us to warm to it just because the characters say she is cute?
She is not, and its super-distracting and doubly annoying as a tragically missed golden opportunity to raise the emotional appeal of this already wonderful story. If the mangaka wasn't confident in proper baby design, they really should have chosen to tell a different story altogether!
Does anybody know why the mangaka, or at least the editor, who really should have known better, made this terrible creative choice? Even choosing to keep the kid's eyes closed would have worked better, since its a common supporting character design detail.
But, its like they launched the story having forgotten to finish (or have) the damned baby meeting!
They didn't even use a "get out of jail free" option like, once she was named, her features would miraculously resolve to fit it. No, instead, they named a blob the most spectacular object in the Heavens! Is there no irony in their workplace?????
Its a crying shame....
Why does a baby have to be "beautiful" for her personality to appeal to you? She's a cute kid and just a baby, those exaggerated character designs for babies in manga are so overused it was a relief to see an actual baby being treated as such and still being a fashion icon.
She's obviously not gonna fashion full eyelashes and huge creepy doll eyes bc babies aren't like that, it's unnecessary.
She's a baby. Beauty standards or pretty art style is not needed to adore her. She's doing her best. The way she is and how she's drawn captures what we see in her. She's an adorable fluff. Don't go shoving your standards on her. We all love her. She is the best.
If you READ my post and not leapt to judge the content, I'm expressing my OPINION and ASKING A QUESTION to try to understand the artistic choice, because my understanding was that there was a convention to these things, which I happen to enjoy on children, but DISLIKE on female and Omega characters. I love the cat-like slant of many a seme character, I guess depicting predator, vs the doe-like impression of their prey.
I asked, (and thought I was being funny... But, oh well), because I had not seen this choice before! I could write to the artist and bring attention to mangago, but that would be stuoid and self-defeating, so i thought I'd ask the community...
I am non-white and am sincerely aware of cultural misappropriation and the beauty standards of others being brutally imposed and enforced on MY people most of all.
I actually avoided manga and anime for YEARS, because I assumed the use of big eyes was a reflection of cultural self-rejection of (what I believe to be) the beautiful sultry single/monolid! It upset me on behalf of the bearers. Then, I realised that denying myself access to such obviously beloved media like manga and anime in ignorance was a personal contradiction. So, I ACTUALLY ASKED THE QUESTION, did the research, only to feel rather stupid.
It had been a conscious choice by the pioneers of manga, particularly Osamu "God of Manga" Tezuka (Astroboy [1952], Dororo, Buddha), to highlight facial expressions based on his love of and influence by Walt Disney characters Mickey Mouse and Betty Boop, and other pioneers of the genre. Others then continued the choice, turning it into a trend and then a marker of the genre as it was adapted to the Japanese style. Not only does shape and colour of individual eyes helps artists distinguish characters without the huge effort of reproducing countless other details, and as the widely held "windows to the soul", help express emotions without the work burden of drawing body language and poses, whilst "making the characters more relatable".
They can also distract from animation or background flaws!
Much earlier, since World War I, Yumeji Takahashi and Katsuji Matsumoto had used the convention in kawaii character illustrations, to POORER reception as vulgar.I
1990s realist mangaka attempted to modify characters, drawing smaller eyes... to POOR reception, as "lifeless"-seeming characters.
"Babies have big eyes, so humans tend to like big eyes..."
( https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/how-disney-influenced-a-distinctive-trait-of-anime-characters-2134208/; https://anime.stackexchange.com/questions/4748/why-do-anime-manga-characters-have-big-eyes; https://skdesu.com/en/big-eyes-anime-manga/; and so on...)
Babies and young children have proportionally larger eyes compared to their heads than do adults, so their eyes appear bigger in relation to their facial features ( https://birthworks.org/do-human-eyes-remain-the-same-size-from-birth-to-death-by-cathy-daub-cce-cd-bwi/)
SO...
A more intelligent and less rude response would have been that Korean manhwa does NOT generally follow the big eye convention seen in manga.
HOWEVER, it seems that Korean manhwa DOES tend to emphasise more realistic character proportions, and DOES tend to focus on facial features.... PARTICULARLY THE EYES (fact-checked https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhwa). You could have given me examples of other manhwa where this style was used.
And who exactly is shoving personal ideals on whom, when you actually end your post with "WE ALL love her." without providing the results of your poll/survey of EVERYONE who reads this story, or actually agrees with YOU!I
You haven't answered the question of why the artist chose this style.
Good grief!
I just don't even know where to start with this!
I asked a question, which youve failed to answer, and have expressed an opinion, just as I did, based on inaccurate information.
My understanding was that there WAS a convention to these things, which I happen to enjoy on children, but DISLIKE on female and Omega characters. I love the cat-like slant of many a seme character, I guess depicting predator, vs the doe-like impression of their prey.
I asked, (and thought I was being funny... But, oh well), because I had not seen this choice before! I could write to the artist and bring attention to mangago, but that would be stuoid and self-defeating, so i thought I'd ask the community... Silly me!
I am non-white and am sincerely aware of cultural misappropriation and the beauty standards of others being brutally imposed and enforced on MY people most of all.
I actually avoided manga and anime for YEARS, because I assumed the use of big eyes was a reflection of cultural self-rejection of (what I believe to be) the beautiful sultry single/monolid! It upset me on behalf of the bearers. Then, I realised that denying myself access to such obviously beloved media like manga and anime in ignorance was a personal contradiction. So, I ACTUALLY ASKED THE QUESTION, did the research, only to feel rather stupid.
It had been a conscious choice by the pioneers of manga, particularly Osamu "God of Manga" Tezuka (Astroboy [1952], Dororo, Buddha), to highlight facial expressions based on his love of and influence by Walt Disney characters Mickey Mouse and Betty Boop, and other pioneers of the genre. Others then continued the choice, turning it into a trend and then a marker of the genre as it was adapted to the Japanese style. Not only does shape and colour of individual eyes helps artists distinguish characters without the huge effort of reproducing countless other details, and as the widely held "windows to the soul", help express emotions without the work burden of drawing body language and poses, whilst "making the characters more relatable".
They can also distract from animation or background flaws!
Much earlier, since World War I, Yumeji Takahashi and Katsuji Matsumoto had used the convention in kawaii character illustrations, to POORER reception as vulgar.I
1990s realist mangaka attempted to modify characters, drawing smaller eyes... to POOR reception, as "lifeless"-seeming characters.
"Babies have big eyes, so humans tend to like big eyes..."
( https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/how-disney-influenced-a-distinctive-trait-of-anime-characters-2134208/; https://anime.stackexchange.com/questions/4748/why-do-anime-manga-characters-have-big-eyes; https://skdesu.com/en/big-eyes-anime-manga/; and so on...)
Babies and young children ACTUALLY DO have proportionally larger eyes compared to their heads than do adults, so their eyes ACTUALLY DO appear bigger in relation to their facial features ( https://birthworks.org/do-human-eyes-remain-the-same-size-from-birth-to-death-by-cathy-daub-cce-cd-bwi/)
SO...
A more intelligent, more factual response would have been that Korean manhwa does NOT generally follow the big eye convention seen in manga.
HOWEVER, it seems that Korean manhwa DOES tend to emphasise more realistic character proportions, and DOES tend to focus on facial features.... PARTICULARLY THE EYES (fact-checked https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhwa). You could have given me examples of other manhwa where this style was used.
Oh, there are 13 thumb downs and counting, admittedly out-numbering 2 thumbs up, at time of writing.But you didn't even think to hit me with that.
All these citations you're showing are just bases for character design, not unbreakable rules (I would know bc I'm an animation student).
As I told you before, she's a baby and her character design is meant to be simple bc the focus of her whole being is her personality. Her eyebrows and her clothes are the main point of interest visually, her face is not meant to be exaggerated but simple and fun to contrast with her parents.
You refuse to see the point and say I didn't answer your question, but my first answer was just simple and direct.
At the end of the day people perceive characters differently, I'm not going to tell you what to feel about the baby I can just explain why she's designed like that.
.... On another level!
I really don't think I've ever had such a feast for the eyes and soul in a webtoon, which seriously rivals the colourful splendour of Chinese manhua (like Heaven Official's Blessing). The added bonus of Mary Jane is the realism and grit that artist, G. Wagen, uniquely and skillfully infuses into each beautiful frame, unlike the manhua, which generally retain the dream-like fantasy feel. Either way, it says something for the quality of the story-telling that the outstanding art does NOT distract, but synergises into something "more". You might also be tempted to double your chapter reading time in order to simply go back and savour the art again, genitalia and all! Gorgeous!
As for Mary Jane, the story? Superb! Disturbing, engaging, funny at times, and satisfying to enotionally invest in convincingly human central characters, as well as the plot and its twists and divots. Congratulations! Now, bring on the finale and eternal side stories (as I really dont want this to end.... Like, EVER!!!
For what HAVE TO BE the CUTEST CHIBIS EVER CREATED!!!!
OMG!! I could seriously bask in their super sweet gwiyeopda for hours! And they are SO expressive! Artist Zoelgu is amazing.
Chibis for their own series!!!
They not only create some of the most visually stunning worlds, and MCs so serenely beautiful, that by the time you realise youve become totally engrossed in the stories.... Such deeply engaging, emotionally challenging and ultimately satisfying stories of love, loyalty and commitment - completely irresistable. This is going to be right up there with Taming the Tiger, Smyrna & Capri and Tale of the Yellow Dragon.... I can FEEL it..... And (YAY!!!) No distracting lightsabers in this one! Thank you, Gods!
The only criticism I've read which is approaching any accuracy is that the author is failing Woo Won.
But still, you guys need to chill, lay off my sweet Woo Won, and start reading this story PROPERLY from chapter one!
Seo-an was a gibbering mess and a shut-in who suffered frequent panic attacks outside and around people. It was WOO WON WHO HEALED HIM so that he could "do so much" in these later chapters!!
Woo Won braved the rain to give Seo-an an umbrella, when he saw him stranded. THAT'S how they ACTUALLY first met - even the author forgot, FFS!! Woo Won calmed a panicking Seo-an on multiple occasions and became his anchor of safety, his rock of reliability, through the hand woven bracelet that Seo-an STILL uses as his calming touchstone! Woo Won has accepted Seo-an completely, without judgment or a desire to "fix" him, change him, or otherwise meddle.
On the other hand, from the point where Seo-an recognised the delivery man as his rainy day saviour, he has done nothing but manipulate him (HOW many pizzas did SA order to get WW to come back???) SA not only seduced a straight man, he has criticised, yelled at, and lashed out at WW in an effort to "fix" him, change him and meddle!
SA has done nothing to get to know WW, despite the evidence of a hard life and WW's obvious low self-esteem. It is only in chapter 90 that it occurs to SA that WW's past might have been more damaging than his own, because all he's seen is debt (rich people think all poor people have that though), and the trauma of the accident.
Seo-an has fallen into the trap of becoming exactly what has hurt / is hurting him - a manipulative family who won't allow others the autonomy to make decisions!!
The author has taken TOO LONG to reveal just how terrifying Woo Won's home circumstances were, and it's been too disjointed. The introduction of the father was too sudden and poorly handled, such that WW's long history of suffering abuse is still being revealed in chapter 89, having been drip fed to us, mainly through the criticism of others (friends, exes and co-workers) and his extreme self-denial and tortured self-judgment!!
The author depicted Woo Won unsympathetically from the start, presenting him as an airhead ditz. But Woo Won was NUMB, withdrawn and isolating himself in a subconscious attempt to protect himself from the harsh life which has wounded him deeply. Even his mother has contributed - checking out from motherhood for a few days to find herself, leaving her kid in that emotional hell, only to think that an apology would be enough to erase the enormous damage inflicted. It wasnt... He was a kid in an emotionally and physically abusive home, which was also filthy. WW's mother held the key to his release and sat on it, as so many abused mothers do.
I actually expected WW to condemn SA's outburst as sounding just like WW's father! How could SA complain about NOT being WW's top priority when WW just said he was - thats why he went where he went, doing what he did and WHY!
Every word out of Seo-an's mouth is to manipulate and control WW - even to WW's emotional separation, he responds, "I cant wait too long..." , ie bugger however much WWs hurting or how much time WW needs to recover, SA won't wait too long!
That said, i do believe their love is genuine - men in love will do anything for that person, and theyve both proven that. But Seo-an needs to have more confidence in WW's love and just stop with the scheming.
All of this is to say that MY HEART BREAKS FOR WOO WON, and I think y'all have missed the bigger picture, because the author/editor have been remiss with WW's character and story.
Yeah, they've each got their own faults but I feel like Woo Won's difficulty in asking others for help is starting to feel disproportionate to how much Seo An is accommodating Woo Won's behavior.
Sorry I couldn't get past the way Seo-An's name is shortened, I kept seeing SA and kept bothering myself with it it's hilarious but still read it though, and YES you're spot on
It was so obvious someone was behind all the sudden changes in fortune. BUT, I was hoping it would at least have been Jinwoo, because Wuyeon had genuine feelings for him first. This ending simply crushed all of his achievements which led to believing he could live without "sir" ie, shot him straight back to powerless square one. Its too sad!
What was the point of this story?? Unless based on a true story or case file, I'd rather authors didnt bring YAOI down. This doesnt even happen to actual Stockholm Syndrome sufferers post-treatmnet, OR they remain in treatment and separated from the object!!
Shotacon is bad enough (and the fact that outside of Bara, most ukes look like children, despite their age, or seem to be drawn more childlike as the sexual relationship hots up..., But i'd rather paedos read manga harmlessly than ruined actual childrens' lives).
And the gaping plot holes!I
What the heck was the paranoid delusion of the threesome about?
Where the heck did JH suddenly run off to after that?
Why wasnt Wuyeon taken straight to hospital, rather than back to JW's place? Forensics would have incriminated JH, long time!
After a 3 month hospitalisation, why the heck didnt a nurse or doctor notice the psyhiatric and psychological damage to the boy??? I breathe a sigh of relief, as i thought THAT was where this was going, which then led to....
Why wasnt JH locked up in a mental prison??
Where the heck is JW while this little reunion was happening?
Such wonderful artwork, terrible story!
the fact you thought yaoi would have an accurate depiction of stockholm syndrome is stupidly funny here. yaoi isn’t about accuracy lmao
... with 2 epilogue episodes, at https://yaoimangaonline.com/painter-of-the-night-by-byeonduck-eng/
But be prepared to live thru how all the dire warnings Baek Na-Kyum receives play out....
Have your tissues and antacids ready as you back and but-wrench your way they this absolute masterpiece of art and story.
I just wish it was uncensored.....
You are a saint thx u
Love this!
But the first conception is still a mystery. It's obvious when their first meeting was, and the chairman's name was mentioned in regards to Seonu's pre-natal care. So, there MUST BE a story untold there!
Spill, please...
I need to know!
It's just like how it explained. He was a whore in the business that the ML's brothers owned. The ML wanted a baby, well his family, to carry on his name and business. They did the needle thing to get the MC pregnant, and once it took, the MC started to live with the ML because the MC needed the ML pheromones to make the baby nice and healthy. It was just pure luck that the ML feel in love with the MC at first sight. (The ML and MC didn't have sex to form the first baby, it was done by doctors, which people do today, like my older sister.)
Artificial insemination
I read somewhere that Beom's father is one of Seonu client. Is it true?
Naw, Beam's father just picked a top guy from Beam's brother's brothel. Since the MC is a dominant omega, it made him more expensive and better.
we are going through the roots of the relationship with them, not just, "8-10 years later... " with their roots shown in cold flashbacks.
You're right, the heat from the slow burn, the pain, the joy...its all super intense and really, really well written.
The only criticism I have is that Yujae was so tight-feely and over-affectionate when they were younger, I'm not entirely convinced that either Yujae himself or Hanjun would really be THAT hard to convince of Yujae's true feelings. Because in the earlier chapters, I was sure Yujae was the pining one....
That said, can't wait for S3!!!
I've just re-read the story, uninterrupted, from chapters 1 to 101 - no annoying breaks or hiatuses, and.... I get it! !!!