I don't think anyone reasonable is saying that criticizing the backlash automatically means you're defending racism. The issue is that much of the backlash itself included racist rhetoric, and that's what people criticized.
Whether you call it a white savior trope or not, the framing fits. The white protagonist being centered, while the enslaved characters only existing to validating him, and they aren't even drawn with faces.
As for the research, we know because Jaxx admitted it. They said they focused too much on the relationship between the characters and didn't give the setting the sensitivity it deserved.
I'm not trying to catch hands, but if you opened a manhwa and found a romance in Auschwitz between a Nazi soldier and a Jewish prisoner, then ended with the prisoner saying, "I'm your humble subhuman," you'd probably find that concerning too or at least I'd hope so.
That's just my opinion...
Slavery and colonization are among the greatest atrocities in human history. I know manhwas love their drama, but these aren't topics you can just use as emotional backdrop for a romance without handling them with real care and research:(
Where's the racist rhetoric? Please tell me and provide the proof, drawing background characters as background characters, wow so racist.
This- "Whether you call it a white savior trope or not, the framing fits. The white protagonist being centered, while the enslaved characters only existing to validating him, and they aren't even drawn with faces." Instead of saying it, prove it.
Yes Jaxx admitted it, but was it because of pressure or simply because you never gave them a chance to explore such themes making them doubt their ability to portray their work in turn ending it before it began.
And for the record be realistic, no one's making a BL about nazi's unless you're mentally unwell. Guess what? We had actual complexities during and in post civil war history. Not everyone came out of the war evil, not everyone was good. Many were exposed by the war of the atrocities slaves were going through. I implore you to pick up a history book or a biography/ memoir of the time. The amazing things you can learn simply by consuming history, great right?
I unlocked you, so think critically
Bruh, "think critically"? Jesus, are you really that desperate to consume this kind of yaoi?
The racist rhetoric isn't coming from the manhwa itself, it's coming from this comment section and elsewhere. That's what I was referring to.
Also, "prove it to you"? I'm explaining the trope. The proof is in the manhwa itself.
We also had "complexities" during the Nazi era. That doesn't suddenly make an oppressor × oppressed romance appropriate.
History is always complex. Nobody is denying that, and nobody is saying stories set during slavery or the Civil War can't exist. But that doesn't mean every dynamic created by that history is appropriate to romanticize. Those are two completely different arguments.
I'm really not trying to offend, but there were countless ways to tell a Civil War story without having a formerly enslaved man sassily say, "I'm your humble slave." That's incredibly tone-deaf.
I'm not saying you can never write about the Civil War or slavery. You absolutely can. Just maybe don't make your romance center on a white man and a barely Indigenous-looking former enslaved man saying "I'm your humble slave " to his former master?
You're basically saying, authors can't write nor attempt to write about these specific times in history because their so sensitive. Well I argue against that. Because that's just plain gate keeping and censorship. We live in a time where the world is far more favorable than the past. We learn to not repeat said past, and many parts of the world already portray their version of history as content in various forms of media already. By simply saying one specific author can't do history on this specific time, you're just gate keeping history preventing them from learning and consuming said history. If it was a problematic author I would've agreed, but this was a good author who has good story writing abilities. From 1 ch you're making all these assumptions and getting sensitive saying people shouldn't write about specific times, you say the civil was so terrible and yes it was but you also refuse to acknowledge that there were actually good white people also in the Civil War who advocated end slavery. You only see one side of history that fuels your argument disregarding the co.plete truth of history. I hate censorship and the world already write about different periods in their own versions, why should this author be excluded? If you don't understand any of what I've been saying, then I suppose you performative as hell
You know colored couples exist right?
We didn't learn shit, bro. Just look at these comments. People are defending lynching, using slurs, praising colonization, and telling minorities to "get over it."
Also, criticism isn't censorship. Saying, "This story handled a sensitive topic poorly," isn't the same as saying, "No one should ever write about it." You're treating criticism as if it's an attempt to ban art, when criticism is literally part of engaging with media.
Nobody is saying authors can't write about the Civil War, and no one is gatekeeping. It's not unreasonable to expect some care and sensitivity when using one of the darkest periods in history as the backdrop for a romance.
Seriously, imagine a romance between a Korean comfort woman and a Japanese imperial soldier where her first line is, "I'm your humble whore." Most people would immediately recognize how tone-deaf and offensive that would be.
Who even thinks that's a good premise for a romance?
See your argument would work if we had more info on the story. I get what you're saying, but we didn't know if Ezra was just playful, sarcastic, or if he was just messed up in that way. We will never know because it was canceled. Do we know if he knew his tribe? Would we know if he'd been raised by slaves? We don't know simply because the manhwa was canceled. I agree criticism is great but let's be realistic, the hate jaxx got was horrible, this comic wasn't that bad and people canceled it before giving it a chance. The radical BL purists one and by winning these authors probably won't even attempt something like this again. So tell me something I don't know
Okay you called someone “subhuman swine.” I’m not engaging with you anymore. Geez.
Omg, it's like as if they weren't being intellectual but run away I guess
Where is calling someone “subhuman swine” ever okay just because people are frustrated with how sensitive topics are handled?
Even if Ezra meant it playfully or sarcastically, it still reads as tone-deaf. People are reacting to what’s actually on the page, not hypothetical future developments.
And “we didn’t get to see where it goes” cuts both ways, you can’t expect readers to ignore a controversial setup on the promise it might improve later, especially when the author has said they didn’t deeply research the historical context.
Criticism isn’t cancellation. Pointing out why something feels insensitive is normal media discussion. Harassment isn’t okay, but neither is framing all criticism as a “hate mob.”
On the broader point, this isn’t new territory, these settings have a long history of being mishandled in fiction, which is why people react strongly. Not out of purity, but because they’ve seen how often it goes wrong.
That’s my last response, good day/good night.
You're so performative, I hope you actually do your research because I can argue and debate about the civil war all day. It's 1 ch that was released and in 1 ch the author was harrased and sent death threats by these types of self rightous mobs. I'm not gonna be kind to these people when they think bullying someone who tried something is ok. I wont especially be kind to people who only take parts of history as if that was the whole truth of it. We all know how terrible slavery was, but thats literally all you focus on, you act as if that's literally the complete story. It was 1 ch, and an incomplete story, get Over yourself when the rest of the world already writes their interpretations, as either fact or fiction. No one was downplaying the first chapter and the fact that you refuse to see that tells me you aren't reading with the intent of understanding.
Are you fucking slow or something? So Jaxx is literally admitting there wasn’t enough proof? How much proof can you ask for when there’s only one chapter to read? You’re under the post—go fucking read it again.I’d also love to address your third paragraph, where you, a clearly uninformed child, have no understanding of just how horrific slavery was for Black people. I really implore you to open a history book—or better yet, take a fucking look around—because people like you continue to minimize its impact while undermining just how traumatic and devastating it truly was.You speak so lightly about slavery, yet you lose your mind when someone mentions a BL involving Nazis. What makes that so outrageous, but not this? Is it because it doesn’t involve people who look like you? Because white people were the ones in power, so you just don’t care? In your previous post, you called us inhumane, yet you’re doing exactly what you accused us of. White racism didn’t disappear hundreds of years ago. There are still millions of racist people today, hate groups like the KKK still exist, and some communities still have reputations or histories tied to exclusion and discrimination. That’s exactly why we have to call out books that trivialize slavery before they become another excuse to make Black suffering seem like a joke instead of something that deserves to be taken seriously.If I wanted to be as insensitive as you, I could point out that Holocaust survivors and their families received financial reparations after World War II, so by your logic they should just “get over it,” right? Maybe someone should make a BL romanticizing that too. Of course that would be disgusting—and that’s exactly my point.Black Americans endured centuries of slavery, followed by decades of legalized segregation, racial terrorism, lynchings, and systemic discrimination. The effects of that history are still felt today.Also, the current administration has supported policies that have led to the removal or restriction of some books and educational materials about race, slavery, and diversity in certain schools and federal institutions. While it’s not accurate to say President Trump personally signed a law removing “over 60 slave books,” there have been efforts to limit or reshape how topics like slavery and systemic racism are taught in some places. So yes, people are going to take this seriously. History has been challenged, rewritten, and censored before, and many people are concerned about it happening again. Feel free to fact-check everything I said
God you sound so radical, if you read what I've been saying and actually understand it then we can talk. But if you're just gonna be pulling shit out of your mouth and imagine the worst things I've been saying then ill just block you and you can do the same.
Not only did I read everything you said, but I responded accordingly. I even told you to fact-check me, which just makes me realize you honestly have no rebuttal to anything I said. You had so much energy for everyone else because they were throwing hate comments your way. I did the same, except I also gave you the history lesson you love telling other people to go learn.I countered every stupid point you made, and this is all you’ve got? Lol. I expected better. But sure, go ahead and block me. Just please think more carefully about what you say in future conversations on this topic, and try not to speak on things you don’t obviously understand. You fucking abomination
God you sound so proud of yourself. I didn't fact check you because what you were saying was so out of nowhere it was just gibberish from my point of view. But hey lemme go over every thing; nazis are evil. They did evil things and committed genocide. The civil war? It was the war started by the south to keep slaves. The union states fought to unionize the country, but through this union soliders were exposed to the horror of slavery and in turn became advocates for slavery; here's a list of what they've done; Historian Chandra Manning's research shows that many white Northern soldiers, who initially fought only to "preserve the Union," became fierce abolitionists after marching into the South. Encountering the horrific physical realities of plantations and seeing escaped slaves (referred to as "contrabands") flee to Union camps completely transformed their worldviews. They began writing letters home refusing to act as "slave catchers" and demanding total emancipation
-Many white officers took commands specifically to fight slavery. Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, commander of the all-Black 54th Massachusetts Infantry, was a staunch abolitionist who died alongside his men fighting for Black liberation
‐ David Hunter famously organized the first regiments of former slaves in South Carolina well before the Emancipation Proclamation officially allowed it.
- John Brown and His Raiders: Before the Civil War formally began, radical abolitionist John Brown led a raid on Harpers Ferry to spark a slave revolt. Brown did not just pity enslaved people; he lived among them, ate with them, and treated them as social equals. His provisional army included free Black men and escaped slaves like Shields Green and Dangerfield Newby. They lived as close-knit comrades and died fighting side-by-side.
-Charles Nelson Golding and the "Contrabands": Many Union diaries record profound personal relationships. White soldiers frequently befriended the escaped slaves who worked as cooks, teamsters, or laborers in their camps. Soldiers shared their rations, taught escaped slaves how to read and write in secret, and protected them from Southern slave-catchers who entered Union camps looking to reclaim "property"
I can go deeper and deeper because I know my history and am proud of it stuuupppiiiidddddd. And you're right such radical groups targeting blacks still run rampant and we still advocate against these people, there's a reason why they categorized as HATE GROUPS and are in jail. But this one series had nothing to do with that. Instead of getting angry over an Unfinished chapter why don't you actually follow what you preach
Hi cinnamontoast gun gun bitch ass just blocked me but I see they are still responding under your post. Could you please relay this message for me because they thought they ate that. <3
“ Follow what you preach, lol. This whole paragraph legitimately did not counter a single thing I just said. You just sat here and gave me four fun facts about slavery being abolished and a paragraph explaining what genocide is.Do you have some kind of disorder, like ADHD or autism? I genuinely don’t think you understood what either I or even you were talking about. In a previous message, you told somebody to “touch grass,” so I assumed you actually do. Because if you stepped foot outside, it would take you less than 30 minutes to see that racism still exists.You said the KKK was in jail. I skimmed this before reading it all and had a great laugh. The KKK is not in jail, lol. There are a plethora of KKK members still walking free today.Did you research anything before you typed this, or did you ask ChatGPT to rebut my argument and then copy and paste it?You also brought up three white men that I did a little research on. I’m not saying every white man back then was racist, and I think that was the point you were trying to make—or maybe you’re just trying to be funny. I guess what I’m trying to understand is how any of that correlates with what I just said.To help make my point clearer, I gave you a couple of surface-level facts about slavery because you seemed to be insinuating that slavery wasn’t as severe as genocide. You do understand that the Holocaust lasted about 12 years, while the slavery of people of color lasted for over 200 years, right? And that’s not even talking about how people of color were treated after it was “abolished.” Did you forget about Jim Crow, segregation, and the discrimination that still exists today in 2026?Do you have any understanding of what happened to people of color during those 200-plus years? Hitler was bound to die eventually, and the regime would have fallen regardless because it was centered around one man. One man and an army of soldiers.Almost 89% of white people looked at people of color as if they were nothing more than dogs and proceeded to treat them that way.I’m not going to sit here and debate whether the Holocaust was worse than slavery because you and I both know where I stand on that.I take it the information you’re going off of comes from watching The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, because that’s honestly what it’s giving. You probably cried watching that movie and made it your entire understanding of the subject, so now you feel as if you’re educated enough to speak on it—but you’re not.Not only can you not stay on topic at all, but you also failed to look into both sides. You said I was speaking gibberish, as if my writing was all over the place, but you and I both know you’re deflecting. The only counterargument you’ve managed to make is that I’m supposedly talking about nothing and that my grammar is incorrect.You’re a joke, really. Lol.”
The fact that the author and IncestSupporterSnowbunnySlayer are on our side really should be a wake up call for some of y'all.
Fucking real and these mfs are still romanticizing slavery as if they would enjoy it if they were one in that place
Genuinely how can some of you say, "My people were genocided, brutalized, and colonized, and I’d still be totally fine with a hot, steamy yaoi about them with their oppressors!" Omfg not a single thought at all.
I bet half the people whining this shit have as much as melanin in their skin as an A4 sheet of paper. Or have slept through social studies classes.
If the people on your side are saying things like "be glad your country got colonized," "we need to bring back lynching," throwing around racial slurs, or literally have Hitler pfps, please take that as a sign to step back for a minute and reflect.
Again, when fiction reinforces stereotypes, shows the author's lack of understanding of the topic, and attracts people who use it to justify racist views, it's no longer "just fiction."
Slavery isn't just another historical setting. It's one of the darkest moments in human history, and its legacy is still affecting millions of people today. That's exactly why it's important to portray it with care. If you're going to use it as the backdrop for a romance, you have a responsibility to understand what you're drawing from instead of reducing it to tropes or aesthetic.
People act like fiction and reality are completely separate, but they're not. Stories can and have shaped how people understand history, who they empathize with, and what they see as normal. That's why propaganda works. That's why stereotypes persist. And that's why media has always been studied as something that influences culture. When harmful narratives get repeated often enough, they stop being "just fiction" and start affecting how people think and talk about real groups of people.
Props to Jaxx for acknowledging their mistakes and apologizing. Hopefully they don't end up walking back that apology because of that crowd.
We should not give them the benefit of the doubt.
She apologised because westerners cancelled her works which means more cancelled works in the future, aka less money since their chapters are more expensive in English speaking countries.
We need to cancel them so they understand the gravity of their actions
Idk, maybe I'm a little naive, but I don't think it was done out of genuine malice. I think it came from ignorance. The author probably wanted to write a cowboy romance and picked this time period because it added drama and angst, without really understanding that slavery and colonization aren't settings you can just gloss over in favor of smut. If you're choosing one of the darkest periods in history as your setting, that's the responsibility that comes with it.
That said, they're also a grown ass adult, so I'm not going to baby them either. They made a poor creative decision, people criticized it, and to their credit, they listened and apologized instead of doubling down. That's more than a lot of creators do.
She could have written it with out the slavery part , you know like Brooke mountain something like that
True... Brokeback mountain save me... Save me Brokeback mountain...
Yes
Some people keep saying it’s just fiction but that really doesn’t hold up imo. Fiction isn’t separate from reality. When you’re dealing with real historical trauma, the way it’s framed can totally shape how people understand it, especially if they don’t already know much about the topic (you can literally see that happening in some of the comments here). That’s why discussion matters. Dismissing every critique as “not that deep” just shuts down any real engagement with something serious in exchange of a cheap, badly written story.
What is bothering people isn’t this fiction existing, it’s when something takes a topic like slavery and flattens it into a trope heavy romance with things like the white savior setup and backgrounded enslaved characters. At that point it’s not just a neutral story choice, it’s a very specific, and honestly pretty careless way of handling history.
It's just fiction doesn’t magically cancel that out. Media can reinforce stereotypes, twist understanding of real events, and make harmful ideas feel normal if they’re repeated enough. That’s why people push back, not because they think fiction about said topic shouldn't exist, but because basic awareness of what you’re depicting matters alot.
Honestly, some of y'all really act like slavery was just white people being big meanies instead of a system built on extreme brutality and dehumanization.
They. Ate. Humans. And made them into leather for shoes and clothing.
And used our hair to fill in fortune such as chairs
Song of the Wasteland?? More like Song of the South rightguys
Omg
holleringgggg
No cause I literally thought this
No literally
Thank goodness this got canceled, and credit to Jaxx for apologizing. If anyone's looking for better cowboy BLs, I'd recommend Dead or Alive, Falling Sheep, and Dogs at the Graveside.
thank you for not being racist. i cant believe im thanking someone for the bare fucking minimum but everyone is being so racist for no reason.
I was genuinely appalled by some of the comments here. While I don't believe Jaxx had malicious intentions, the work still reads as incredibly tone-deaf, and the white savior trope is hard to ignore...
Agreed! I'm glad she understood the severity of the situation. Hopefully this will still be release in the future but with some tweaks. I could really need some more cowboy BLs!
They're so cute, but I can't shake this feeling of melancholy and sadness because they keep talking about mortality.