Ethingan's manga / #Twisted(9)

LOVE the character development and redemption! It's quite a chilling and twisted story at times but also emotional and heartwarming. Taehwa and another dude are real bastards in the beginning and treats poor Minjae horribly, but the way they grow and try to make up for it is gold. Love redemption arcs. The storytelling is superb! Also, please support the author and read on Tapas. You even get free chapters for free!!

Underrated psychological gem! Some people dislike this for being too messed up or for fetishising rape and mental illness. I agree that it is messed up but I think one of the reasons people think it's worse than all other yaoi out there with rape is that here they don't sugar coat it. It is portrayed just as horrible as it really is. I think this is a way more respectful way of addressing serious topics than to have someone rape, abuse, humiliate etc. someone else, without ever properly apologising or regret, and the other one just forgives it like it's nothing and it's all portrayed as being romantic. These stories have very subtle storytelling while still portraying what is happening in a very frank manner. It feels like it has some deeper meaning and it really makes you reflect. Very psychological and emotional. Especially the last story. 1:st story: kinda meh, guy develops a choking fetish 2:nd story: Scary and messed up. A guy with DID who doesn't remember parts of his life: His other identity is violent and abusive and he can suddenly wake up, seemingly in the middle of abusing his partner. I actually liked this one. Some people say it fetishises mental illness, which I can agree with to some extent but I actually like this psychological and serious narrative. In some other stories with DID, everything is sunshine and roses, the DID is romanticised and misrepresented. I think that is way worse. However, here it really portrays how scary it can be to have DID and not knowing what the other identity does or when you will disappear. Seke mc. 3:rd story: probably the least messed up one. It was okay. 4:th story: Beautiful subtle storytelling. The meaning behind it is horrible. I had to reread it in order to fully grasp what happened and as I understood more and more I got more and more horrified. This story still haunts me. I feel so incredibly sad for the mc. A boy escapes from trauma by twisting his mind. A psychological masterpiece.

Terrible, bad guys were forgiven way too easily, no redemption at all, seme is a rapist and an abuser. Even by BL standards the seme is extremely toxic and cruel. And yet the uke falls in love with him. Hate this trope. Okay if the seme properly apologises, feels guilty and redeems themselves but this is just absolute garbage. Mostly the uke being raped, beaten, manipulated, humiliated, sexually pleasing other people. The seme gave bj only once in ch. 37 but also the reverse.

Frighteningly realistic portrayal of rape and the trauma that follows. Very emotional and tragic. Quite old as well which can be seen in the art style. I kinda like it but it may take a while to get used to. Not sure I liked the insanity theme going on with the (supernatural) dreams and visions where they both share the same dream etc. but I guess it did add a layer to the ptsd. I also thought their conversations felt a bit unnatural sometimes, where they often bring up old myths, poetry, classical literature etc. as I don't think that's how young people talk (at least not me and my friends but maybe I'm just uncultured lol). But even so I have to admit it all does give the manga a special feel, as if the whole manga is some poetry lulling you into a seemingly sweet lullaby, even though it's an insane nightmare instead. Or something like that, can't really describe it lol. The characters were complicated and hard to understand at times, but I mean we all are, so I like it better than simplistic, boring, one-dimensional characters. Overall it's a one-of-a-kind, thought provoking manga that really affects you. Some mangas you have forgotten the next day, but this manga I read years ago and it still sticks with me.

Obsessed seme chasing (and kinda threatening) uke to be with him Actually really liked it. Unfortunately too short to get any real depth. The ending was both satisfying and sad. One of the few stories where the the uke takes it into his own hands to not let himself be controlled or imprisoned by the seme. That being said I didn't actually hate the seme. Likeable, interesting characters. Beautiful art! Though I wouldn't recommend it in real life, this kind of obsessive love makes for a good story!

I like how dares to do the unconventional. Seme is a former prostitute with tough life. Uke takes care of him but at the same time he's not mentally stable and mistakes him for someone else. Happy ending though. Cute but serious story. Likeable characters. Note to self: 7.5! both kinda more good