I'm afraid I disagree. I think that the one thing that has continued to remain consistent has been Suu's goal: to leave Rahan. The variant of this goal has been to leave Rahan with Nadan, but now that Nadan is "dead," Suu will have to leave without him. But everything from the very first episode, when Suu was working for the consort to raise money for his departure, up until the current events, that goal has stayed the same. He's had a few setbacks, such as his own imprisonment and Nadan's accused crimes, so I'd say, if there is anything that continues to change within this story, it has been the multitude of obstacles that Suu faces in order to achieve this goal.
I will say that there has been layers of politics that hazes motives, especially the prince's and the consort's, but I'd say the overarching problem has been consistent and obvious.
Now, in my case I stopped reading King's maker because the plot started to seem like it got too muddled. I wonder if I should read it again?
King's maker is a heck of a lot more fluid than this story. I think the issues in its pacing came from the fact that the sex scenes were actually removed and... since they've been uploaded as their own thing on Mangago now, I think they were really important. There's ACTUALLY character development in those.
But hey, it's fine to disagree about my opinion on Shuu. Fair point that his goal has always been to leave, but I guess my feelings about it stem more from "leave and go where? with who? when? and then what?" and the answers to those questions keep changing and sometimes it feels like he has no intention to leave at all.
Maybe I wouldn't feel that way if the author didn't drag this whole thing out. I feel like we've been treading water for dozens of chapters.
^^^
In King's Maker, the characters are reliable, but also predictable. We know who the hero is immediately, we trust their judgement, we enjoy the hero's journey through their story.
Here, the author tells the story of the anti-hero. The characters are not predictable. They do not have all the common attributes of what we know as a 'hero.' To me, the stories with anti-heroes have always been my favorite for their layers and the unpredictable approach to the story, though to each their own.
You seemed a bit concerned with why Suu wants to leave Rahan, and I think the answer is rather simplistic instead of there being a very large, complex reason. Rahan is, in many ways, set up like a prison. It's dry. The only way out is through this desert. It's foreboding. To 'leave Rahan' is to achieve freedom. The author hasn't truly eluded to what lies beyond Rahan, and I can only guess that this is because we are limited to the eyes of our character, and what out character knows, and he doesn't remember much past the desert. Maybe if the writer were to write more about it, it would reveal too much about Suu's past, which has mostly remained a folded mystery for most of the story. Still, to Suu, leaving Rahan means freedom.
To say that the story 'drags on' is a pretty bold statement and I would for that to be unpacked. Again, I disagree. I think that the story building and set up events has been truly skillful and original. I can't think of another story truly like it, other than the author's other works.
That's fine. I wasn't trying to argue, just trying to express how I feel about it. I think I'd rather have predictable characters + an unpredictable environment (which is what King's Maker is for me), instead of unpredictable characters + unpredictable environment which is what this story is for me. I really don't want to argue, this is just my opinion based on my experience reading this since day one.
oh no of course not! I wasn't trying to start an argument, just a conversation. I see a lot of people come into the story and get somewhat confused, so I always attempt to give a helping hand.
but you really hit the nail on the head when it came to a political smoke screen and morally gray characters, and everyone being a toxic pairing for Suu, so I just thought I would engage in your thoughts.
I'm sorry that you momentarily have decided to give up on the story. I hope you come back and give it a reread at some point. happy reading~
Damn, I am only now reading your comment. I agree completely. I have also been arguing this through and through. Suu's goal has never changed. He has always wanted to leave Rahan. He had to be smart and find ways to survive while he collects money to leave Rahan. The issue I also have is equating Suu's misdeeds with the crown prince and consort's evil. Suu is a victim of circumstance. A former slave who learnt early that to survive it's kill or be killed. Remember that chapter where he said he realized he had to abandon Nadan for a while and only meet him secretly after seeing how evil the consort was?
The story is also nicely layered and the characters complex. It's an incredible journey without saints but way too often, we are shown how oppressive the system is and how dispensable the lives of anyone that is not royal is.
I'll come back when it's done I think, yeah. I do think that like, maybe reading this week to week is hurting my experience since it's making the comic feel artificially longer? Like if I read the whole thing in one sitting would I still think it feels long? I dunno. Maybe not. A break might make me appreciate it more.
I am glad people like it though. I definitely adore morally gray everything, so I do want to like this. Will come back when it's done or close to it and read to catch up to see if my opinion changes. ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶
Suu keeps trying to come up with clever plans to achieve his goals but his goals keep changing. I think what annoys me about this story (not Suu himself or the characters) is that the actual conflict is extremely muddled in a fog of political drama that feels more like a smoke screen than it does an actual problem.
I still like Jin. I think his brand of cruelty is interesting and calculated whereas Sahara has a "devil may care" attitude. Neither are "good," both toxic for Suu in their own ways but I honestly think Suu is most toxic for himself.
At its core, this story is really just... an exacerbated series of people refusing to properly communicate or commit... and while I like complex morally gray characters where no one is right or good, I just... feel myself losing interest in this with every chapter. I keep waiting for the real conflict to come up instead of all these tiny little ones. It feels like so much is happening yet nothing changes or moves.
I dunno I'm just frustrated. Might come back and read when it's completed because it's just not enjoyable right now. Would much rather re-read King's Maker.