beta
to be frank. i enjoy this work a lot and this mangaka’s other works too. but, but it gives off so much white saviour vibes. like i know lin che’s home environment was bad and there wasn’t much chance to find other chinese people that could mentor him or be a friend to him but how is that in china town there were no other children and there were no women at all especially when lin che was left to wander off on his own for a majority of the time and portraying other chinese people as like all bad and scummy? china town was about community about relying on each other.
and then just so elliot could come in save the day because lin che is powerless now he needs elliot’s help no matter what. lin che has no one to depend on except elliot. like i know i find it sad and realistic that lin che has to shrug off his chinese heritage to even gain power and position in the mafia, i find it sad that no matter what he does he will still be seen as an other first and foremost (as seen by elliot’s white friend immediately pointing out his (rumoured) (!!) mixed heritage to elliot himself), and i find it sad that elliot no matter what lin che does will always get things easier. cause it’s a historical manga, cause it’s mirrored in society as a white person having more privilege. but elliot losing something, striking out, then lin che having to appease his guilt, having to give up his last funds/security so that elliot can be repaid just for taking care of lin che, then having more of the emotional burden to reconcil with elliot and getting found out because of elliot’s outburst… i’m sorry but it’s icky to me. it feels like lin che’s trauma was all mad for lin che to save elliot from the big bad chinese dad, to feel safe from the horrors of the chinese people, to have lin che assimilate with elliot himself feeling so insulated, and it all culminates because it’s because of elliot’s outburst that lin che is in this dire situation right now. cause they burst out of the house and found because of it and lin che is going to bear heavier consequences than elliot.
fuck i’m sorry if this is incoherent but another commenter pointed out how weird it is that a japanese author is writing this so strangely and i cant stop thinking about this