I thought Killing and Stalking - although intense and not everyone's cup of tea - was very well done. I thought it was a gripping, phenomenal story that dove into the depths of the mind of a serial killer. In the end I was sympathetic to Sangwoo's story because he had had such a tragic childhood. Everything was told in layers, and the tragedy of it all wasn't revealed in its fullest until near the end. It was a roller coaster and I enjoyed it. In addition the author talked about different things that they added as symbols throughout and the fact that his mother's shoes were always in the front doorway and interacting with the scene as the different situations unfolded gave me chills (especially the fire scene).
a.) I don't think anyone should feel bad about liking Killing and Stalking because it was amazing. I think you're saying don't sexualize it but the way it's worded it seems to also indicate that you think people should stop reading it.
b.) Yaoi, in rough terms, is a story about a sexual relationship between two men. I think that is not off the mark when describing Killing and Stalking. It doesn't fall under a romantic relationship per se - but it is an intense relationship that isn't necessarily limited to sex.
c.) I also don't think we should jump to "don't sexualize" and instead stop to ask why. This isn't a phenomena limited to this one webtoon. I have watched a handful of shows about serial killers and it is not uncommon for serial killers to have fans that send love letters in prison, etc. It seems to be some existing facet of human nature.
I think there is a tendency to believe that there is acceptable and unacceptable with human behavior when instead I think we just don't understand the actual mechanics. Think of it this way - there is always a reason a child acts poorly, but we somehow stop empathizing once that child becomes an adult. We instead attribute morals to our decisions. Then the discussion about behavior becomes not about why someone did something but if it was right or wrong. I think this obfuscates understanding and unnecessarily stereotypes people as degenerates.
His life was the punishment. It's not as simple as "he's a bad guy, did he get punished". The amazing thing about Killing and Stalking is that he is an awful human being, but you get to understand how he became that way so that by the end.. I felt sad when he died. Not because I thought he deserves to live and continue killing people... but because he was such a pitiful person.
Exactly. But I can also understand how it is easy to jump to trying to romanticize it because that was one of the themes it played with. Here are a couple of messed up kids who were emulating the messed up relationships they had seen growing up. It was essentially a romance of horrors that only was able to exist because Bum had been raped and bullied all of his life. It's hard to call it a romance at all but it's the parallels that are intriguing to question.
People needs to stop sexualizing Killing Stalking. I admit that I read it but I dont want to finish it and never will. I might sound like a Karen to you. I cant stop you from reading it or sexualize it but you can stop yourself. I know its to feed your minds but know limit. Thanks so much for listening