I agree (though, I did notice the art change and did not like it). I started reading this because I wanted to see how the ML would deal with his ability and grow even stronger through hardships. The beginning of the story was good, but it kept going downhill after. It's more of a slice of life manwha about students being friends than a good action story with character development. I'm really thinking of dropping it. It feels just bland now
Yeah, it feels more like a school manga than an action one, with a side of (to me) forced romance. Now it seems that the bank stuff felt like it was thrown there, out of nowhere and then forgotten, like a spoiler of things that won't happen in 30 chapters. The first season was good, we found out why he was afraid of himself, we saw what he could do, and we saw he wanted to protect people, but the second one was lost and bland.
Yeah I felt like the story or at least narration is becoming weaker and all over the place with plot points.
I agree with you on him beating Pest because he was S rank and hiding his doubts so I was excited to see him change his ideology and proudly proclaim to the new guy that Souls don't have ranks yet he could only beat him with his partially awakened Edeya.
I feel like the point was missed, growing strong and following your ideology while still acknowledging you're in fact stronger for having an S rank Edeya would be the way to go.
I hope this story gets better from here on with Pest making a reappearance.
Also I absolutely hate the forceful romance part in this, Goblin is kinda creepy imo while Mc is rejecting her advances, Idk but either make it official, give up or make it an interesting conflict...not this weird middleground..
I don't like the "romance" either. The author's trying to push too soon. I don't dislike her as a character, but her suddenly having feelings for the ML is weird. I also think that ML's development was unrealistic considering his past. He hates this murderous part of himself, but just because his friend told him "Your edeya doesn't define you", he changes in five seconds and decides to show how strong he is (he has way more chemistry with his beefy friend that with the girl honestly). I wanted more inner struggle
I think the "message " from the author is about classism, and it's alright I agree that there shouldn't be, but this classism is about survival in a battle, and an ideology without flexibility in these cases is almost never done right (at least I don't remember if there was). There is clearly a line between sticking to your ideals and naivete, and it's like the author is jumping from one to the other throughout the story.
I have dropped other action mangas where the authors draw romance like that, where the girl believes that if she is forceful and pulls people into her cause then the ML is going to fall in love with her and there is a clear line between going for it and being forceful, and it seems that she has been going into the forceful since the ML has said enough times that he doesn't see her romantically.
Not gonna lie, thought this was going to be Shounen Ai, and I would have followed it since there is more chemistry between them than with the girl. The inner struggle would have been chefs kiss since he did murder someone so young, even if they were abussing him it wasn't something that you forget so easily. Especially because they where disappointed that he was "weak" to begin with, before he murdered them.
Yeah it's difficult to portray and that might be the reason why it's going back and forth, I don't mind having an inner struggle about classism and I really love the premise of the story. The second season is so far a bit disappointing but I hope it goes back to exploring those ideals and recognizing that even having the belief to not let Edeya rank souls is a privilege of the strong ones.
Honestly I wouldn't have an issue with female ML being forward and taking the initiative but after the MC repeatedly rejects her advances it only feels weird especially being played for comedy in this.
I don't dislike her, she has her good sides but whenever she forcefully teases him it comes off as harassment if anything
I absolutely agree on the first part but I do think the Mc already had the belief of there not being ranks to souls and the encouragement of his friend only solidified that. Especially with his own story, I felt like they had good character development, with the initial meeting, him joining the HT and the their talks and training camp...my god their chemistry, wasted opportunity lol
It is definitely a privilege of the strong ones since they are the ones who would win no matter the fight, and the weak would be done without a fight.
I don't mind her being forward, either. Sometimes, in a relationship, you have to be the one who takes a step forward no matter the gender (? I don't know if it's the word that's used in this question).
Yeah, I think that there is a difference between being forward and just repeatedly forcing someone to accept your feelings (especially calling someone your boyfriend when he already said no).
I do like her, and the new struggle she has gives her a new dimension to her character. I think she is having a struggle that's instrumental to the story where she realizes she was strong, but she was lacking in some areas.
I was so disappointed when I saw that it wasn't shounen ai. It's sad how authors never want to at least drop hints that two male characters could be together at the end off page, even though the romance would be believable and realistic. Naruto is a clear example of that (Sasuke & Sakura? Please, there was nothing believable there).
I agree, it would have been perfect. MC's "split" personality should have been portrayed differently later on
I don't disagree with you, but I think that it was too sudden. Even if he doesn't seem like it, the MC is an optimistic person. It's normal that he ended up believing his friend, but the way it happened, in two seconds flat, was a little weird.
I know, it's such a shame! His friend literally said thinking about the MC "You're so lovable".
Well in the teachers lounge at the start of the story he already got visibly disappointed how his teacher did believe there were leagues to souls and Edeya defining everything.
Then the horrid experience at the bank and how he hated his murderous side even more so the eye opening push to fight for his belief by his friend seemed reasonable.
Although I guess it could've been established more in depth, the setup was great tho, from them forming the friendship up to accepting the Mc because they've made a similar experience in the past.
It might have been a bit rushed but it was necessary to drive the story along so I don't mind.
Yup tbh I prefer Shounen Ai in Action focused Manhwa, it's a nice bit of "fanservice" while not taking away from the overall story.
Yeah now that Mc is even meeting the family head, I think we're going even deeper into her character arc.
Since she's such an important character, it's nice to see her past & future unfold, revealing her inner struggles.
It's gonna tie her closer to the Mc too since they share a mindset. Even more of a reason why the forceful advances should've been toned down or the Mc at least being shy but not opposed to them.
The expression you used was correct btw and I know what you mean!
Their friendship is definitely one of the best parts of this story. They really have a positive influence on each other. That's why the two of them work so well together.
Same. Outright yaoi would have been forced just like the actual straight romance, and it would have been weird. Shounen ai is just right in stories like this
YES I feel like his whole charcater arc was done so well while goblin fell short on development except for her fight at the bank and their interaction on the roof.
Otherwise I only remember her constantly calling herself Mc's fiance.
Maybe it's also the break between the seasons, now it seems to focus on her but it's been about a year since the last season so a lot of reading flow is lost.
I really wish they gave her more normal interaction like for the friend and Mc.
What I like most about Shonen Ai is that there's always a focus on the development of the story instead of showing Intimacy as a "cheap" way to drive the plot forward (nothing against smut but most stories forget there's supposed to be a story too *cough* Jinx *cough*).
And yeah it really does work best for these kind of stories, it adds a bit of spice but doesn't take away from anything.
I like how we all agree that Shounen Ai would have been better. Both of you even went in depth about why, and I couldn't have put it better. I would love to see a Shounen Ai in an Action Manhwa, but I haven't found the one yet.
Ikr?
I only know 2 which are "A trace of the wonder" and "Death Delayed for a Short Time Because of the Will".
The first one is a bit more explicit but does have really good action! It focuses on their relationship after a certain point tho, lots of trauma. The novel is 18+ which the Manhwa isn't.
Similar with the second but it's newer so there's more action as of now.
If you don't know them yet, hope you enjoy :)
Thank you
Honestly, that’s why I read queer books. It’s amazing when there’s a complicated and action-packed plot with a side romance that doesn’t take over the whole story. I hope we’ll see these kinds of stories in the future
Not to hate, and I would like to discuss opinions.
To tell you the truth, I didn't notice that the art changed, maybe because i just read the new chapters and never reread. The story, however, I feel that the story has dragged on too much in certain areas but lacks in others. For example, I think it has dragged on long enough about the different soul ranks and showing how strong the ML is, but it lacks in developing the conflict about the ranks and in truly showing how strong the ML is. It has gone into the told (everyone speaks about the ranks), but the showing, in my opinion, has gone into a direction that has become a little repetitive. I was expecting him to show the school what he believed in but also for the other guys at the bank to show up again and for us to see how strong the ML is compared to those guys. As for the romance for me, it doesn't exist in this story since he is not even interested, it does seem like they will force it a bit when he suddenly wakes up and realizes he loves her, after such a long road denial.
Maybe I was expecting his point of view to change a little because those ranks are about fighting for your life in a serious situation, and sometimes what you can do in a real fight changes from an ideology to realism. In the bank, he could take care of everyone because he is strong, and his real rank is an S, not because he worked hard (otherwise, the girl could have taken care of them).