But the fact that Sangwoo is killed by some random old woman is kinda... a little unimpressed I think :'> And when he was muttering Bum's name, I don't think that we know for sure Sangwoo is actually recognizing Bum for who he is. It could be for other reasons as well. But putting aside all that I've mentioned, you're right. It IS like karma, even though it feels kinda a little unfair for Sangwoo since he didn't have to be all messed up like that and turned into a murderer if it wasn't for his insane mother in the first place. To be killed just like how his mother wanted to kill him when he was just a baby, Koogi really had it all planed out :'> As for Bum I can't agree with you more. He's always needed something to rely on, even before he met Sangwoo. He can't find any purposes in life and can't move on if he doesn't have someone or something he cares for, or to be exact, OBSESSES with. And in the end, things didn't work out and Bum died while chasing his never- really- there love. I still really like this manhwa and it is still on my top ten Bl list. Really like your explanation btw (づ￣ ³￣)づ
I partially agree about Sangwoo but i stronly disagree about Bum.
How are some hallucinations his fault? He struggled all his life with a mental illness ( BPD, but he has clearly several issues as well) he couldn't control, plus an unbelievable dose of bad luck ( the only person who cared for him was a serial killer). I don't mean he is not responsible of anything, but most of the things happened to him weren't his fault. It's true that he followed an illusion but he needed a closure and he could have moved on. Plus i also disagree with @norimak_1999, Bum was, in a way, a fighter. He managed to escape his lifetime abuser (the uncle) and managed to enter university despite the difficulties he faced. And he did it all alone. Stalking is bad but despite the abuse of all kind he suffered all his life, he never meant to hurt anyone: the uncle, the sergeant at the military, his classmates, sangwoo himself.
It's unfair he was too broken to realize that he deserved better than following that illusion of love.
All in all, I loved the ending, I too think it's good and i am satisfied with it, but i think that saying that the only solution for mentally ill people like Bum is death in my opinion it's wrong.
I don't know... I mean, i was kinda disapointed about that end, but after reading all this comments I feel a bit less let down.
but I'm not sure about Sangwoo's death, it's true that it was an emotional painful death, but he kept repeating that his mother told him, he'd died the most painful death and i think that his actual death put him out of his misery and... i don't think that he deserved it. for all the horrible thinks he did i would have prefered for him to remain alive, unable to survive on his own, depending on bum to take care of him, an for Bum that would have been a bliss, to have his love unable to get away from him but would also be terribly unsatisfactory because he would have to be the one taking care of sangwoo. it would have been a suitable punishment for their sins.
But that is what Koogi decided, and i respect it. also as I said before, thaks to all your comments I feel less disapointed, and can appreciate the poetic karma in the end the story was given.
I guess we both have different opinion about Bum then :'>
First of all, the fact that he tried to commit suicide numerous times but always failed, always tried to find a target to obsessed with and stalked them, and then finally ended up in demise while chasing an illusion just proves that he is not much of a fighter to me :'>
Secondly, I just want to clarify that I'm not blaming Bum for running away. I didn't know if I sounded like I was blaming him but I wasn't. Most people would become insecure and timid like Bum if they were to meet the same situations. I mean, being r*ped by his uncle, not just anybody but his own UNCLE?!? That's the WORST thing of that could have ever happened to a person's life. Not only that but being isolated and bullied by his friends. His life is just as shitty as Sangwoo's.
I mean, trying suicide in his situation is understandable, he was alone, mentally ill and he lived 24/7 with his rapist and abuser and the grandma who taught him it was his fault. But he also managed to enter university (it's really hard to do so in Korea) and he escaped from the uncle, plus he attempted escape from sangwoo. And despite everything, he didn't want to hurt anyone and always cherished the rare acts of kindness he received. He wouldn't have obsessed with Sangwoo if he didn't save him from rape at the military.
And once again, how are the hallucinations his fault? He is severely mentally ill, his situation is bigger than himself, i think it's too harsh judging him without taking it in consideration. Bum really wanted to move on, but he was so conflicted because he cared for Sangwoo. Not having the chance for a closure is terrible for anyone and ESPECIALLY for him
KILLING STALKING ENDING IS ACTUALLY GOOD.
Ignoring some plot holes, the last chapter was actually a good thematic closure:
• Sangwoo
What is interesting about sangwoo's ending is that his death is a poetic irony. Sangwoo did exactly what his mother did to him : showing Bum how he slept with Jeun, killing her and make him feel guilty about it, going to the forest together to bury the corpse and so on. And in all this mess, Bum wasn’t even accepted for who he was. In the last author’s note, someone asked if Sangwoo loved Bum, she simply said that the answer is in the last chapter, she pointed out the fact that Sangwoo was calling Bum’s name during his last moment. At the end he did recognize Bum for who he is, and he was killed with a pillow just after that, just like his mom tried to do when he was younger. It’s like he was betrayed and killed a second time by an important person (cause I suppose he didn’t see who killed him), which is very sad and pitiful... His past just repeated itself and destroyed him.
It’s sad. It’s horrible. It’s karma.
• Yoonbum
What makes YoonBum’s death completely valid is that, again, he get in trouble because of his own fault.
From the first chapter, we know that YoonBum’s reason to live is Sangwoo; he was his new obsession, the guy who “saved” him when no one cared. And what happened when YoonBum tried get close to his hero? He put himself in a big, obscure mess. The Sangwoo that YoonBum “loved” so much was a monster, an illusion, and how did he die in the end? Pursuing the illusion of a dead man.
Just like the start, YoonBum again fallen for an illusion and again did pay the price.
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They both lived in the same house and they shared a « relationship », but it’s impressive to see how they actually lived in two different worlds and psychologically speaking they had nothing to do with each other. Both of their lives just ended miserably.. and to me they had no future together since their mental illnesses made it impossible. Sigh... their death was the only solution to finally free them from their problems.
The end of Killing Stalking is good. Not perfect, a little clichê, but good enough.
P.s: Killing Stalking is a psychological horror thriller not a romcon.