I have read a lot of mangas. And a lot of yaoi. All of them were different, all of them were interesting at some point. But I must admit, this particular manga just blew me off ( without any bad pan of words ).
Sure, it has its ups and downs : there are things I didn't like at all.
For example, I didn't like how they had already met before, because this is so cliché from yaoi mangas and appart from this, this manga is all but cliché. Couldn't they just meet now and fall in love ? Though there was some funny things : the awe look on Mookyul face when Ewon admitted it was him, his resentment, the scene in itself, and how it smoothly integrates in the story.
But what I like about this manga, it is that it is not perfect. I'm used to yaoi where the characters fall in love and nothing can tear them apart, and I like it, I really do : but you have to admit that is is unrealistic ( I know that yaoi is, at its core, a very unrealistic and fantasmatical genre ), and you might have some difficulties to get wrapped in the stories and to be engrossed by the characters, because you cannot identify to them ( not that I identify with TC's bishos, huhu ).
I mean, just something very basic : in this manga, the characters are gay. That is new. I don't know if you actually noticed this, but usually, yaoi characters live in worlds ( ? ) where being gay is considered as the most normal and accepted thing. I don't say that it's not normal ( or why would I read yaoi ? ) : I say that most people actually think that way, and we very rarely get to see it in mangas ( apart from, for example, Koisuru Bokun, which is a great manga too in a realistic and funny kind of way ).
Do you remember this scene where one of Mookyul's gangsters actually pulls Ewon off because he's touched his shoulder ? Or the one where he blinked at a heterosexual and received nothing but a slightly put-off look in return ? Or the one where he said that he was gay to the hostesses, just before Mookyul bit him out of his drunk biten fetish ? ( earning this hilarious answer « Are all the men on earth gay or something like that ? » )
I liked that.
I also liked the art, of course, but who doesn't ? Beautifully done, mostly faces, gorgeous bishonens ( hey, this is yaoi still ), hilarious chibis ( which is not always the case, far from it ).
And the humor. Really, it is not often that you get to see really hilarious manga, with jokes that doesn't fall flat and aren't always dirty ones.
And the uke. Although the former situation is quite similar to the one of Okane Ga Nai, Ewon is completely different Okane Ga Nai's one ( whose name I can't remember at the time ) : he is strong-willed, used to be a seme ( ! ), won't let Mookyul have everything he wants, and, although he can be sentimental and cry, doesn't spend his time weeping. Of course, the sex remains slightly unconsensual ( at least from the outside ), but you know that he loves Mookyul, no matter what. And Mookyul being at sex-hungry beast adds to his hilarious side. What's more, Ewon, if you look closer, is the tough one : Mookyul is a gangster, yes, we get it. But who always refuses to be romantic ? Who has issues with being Mookyul's lover ? Who fears that this unrequited love will crush him down to pieces ? Who sets the rules, most of the time ? Yes. Him. And that is a huge step in yaoi. It is actually quite realistic as well : most gay people will try to be both "sides" ( top and bottom ) and won't stick to only one position.
And that stresses another point : cheating. I was very shocked with the comment named
"i was struck by all the positive responses"
.
So, here is my answer :
You got it all wrong. Although this clearly is cheating ( and cheating exists ), here is the thing : Mookyul's relationship with Ewon, and his relationship with the old man are different. Very different. What he feels for Ewon is love, affection, desire, whatever you may call it.And what he feels for the old man is gratitude and respect. If he sleeps with him, it is clearly out of respect. Remember that the old man ( and he is a pervert, not Mookyul ) took him in when he was alone and poor, making him one of the wealthier man in Seoul. How could he not be grateful ? That doesn't mean he enjoys having sex with him : that means he has very low self-esteem, and thinks his body is the only thing he can give the old man as a feedback for what he did for him. You also have to remember that we get to know, as one point, that this relationship is going on since Mookyul was a kid : that is child abuse. And it is not easy for him to say "Stop.". Because that woul be ungrateful, plus he has been used to this for a long time : it is almost normal for him. When you are young, if an adult doesn't say to you that incest is a bad thing, how are you supposed to know ? That explains his reaction when Ewon complains to him : he doesn't understand what the fuss is about, and jokes about Ewon's jealousy. However, Ewon sees it as it is : incest. And he isn't okay with it, which is normal. But you can't even be sure that Mookyul finally understand that this relationship is wrong : he breaks it off for Ewon, that's all we get to know.
You're saying [quote]"what he did was cruel he knew hed never leave the old man why involve anyone else??? why tell ewon he loves him and tell him he is not sleeping with the old man when its a lie?" [/quote]: because he may be amazing, he is not perfect. He is deeply in love with Ewon, he can't control it, neither can you when you're in love with someone, neither can anyone else. Besides, he is stuggling to escape the old man's grip : it is not easy, because he feels that he owes him something ( which can be considered as true ) and is doesn't want to leave having taken from the old man but not giving him anything in return. You have to remember that the sense of respect is very present in Asian countries : the old man is his "master". But he also wants to lead an free life with Ewon, and stop being a loan shark, and stop sleeping with the old man : it is an inner struggle. You say that he doesn't intent to leave the old man : he does. He says that when he's thirty he'll be three : that was the deal. Therefore, considering what I said before, it is normal that he feels like he can wait a few more time. For him, it is all the better : he doesn't owe the old man anyhing anymore, he can love Ewon and doesn't have to sleep with the old man anymore.
You also say that he is cruel : that may be how you are feeling it, but Mookyul obsviously doesn't feel the same way. It's always the same thing : he does not see the situation the same way we do.
Then : why is he saying that he isn't sleeping with the old man ? Because he feels inside him that it is wrong, and seeing Ewon's response to it, he knows that it would sparkle a fight, and, later, relationship troubles ( their relationship is already unsteady ). What he wants the less is to fight with Ewon, and lose him.
[quote]"ewon has to be pure, but he gets to sleep with an old man?"[/quote] That's true, it's not logical. However, jealousy rarely is. Besides, that's one of the things that make Mookyul and interesting and torn character.
What I think is, you didn't understand this story, that's all.
The characters are human. So new ! They aren't perfect, they have fears, doubts, defaults, they sometimes are wrong and often fight, they aren't always right, and sometimes they get pissed at each other. Yes. And they actually develop, which is rare. At the end of the manga, you can actually say that they have delt with issues of their own and improved as characters and as persons. ( That is the answer to the comment saying Ewon is a cheater. Yes, he is. )
Then, secondary characters are to die for. The scary bear, Mookyul's men, the old man, Moon ( you may or may not like him - I don't, personnally -, but he is interesting ), Jiho ( the parody uke. I like his personality, I like his hair, I like everything about him. Another character that turns from cliché to human being. ), and all the others I can't name right now ... beautiful crew. That changes from mangas where you only have the two lovers without any background of any sort.
Another thing I liked, it's the soft yaoi. I have read a lot of yaoi, and I like smut, I really do, but sometimes I get bored with it. I mean, most of the times it feels like they are humiliated or raped and I don't feel comfortable with it at all. I wish you could have sex that is wished by the two characters and enjoyed by them ( that's why I like Junjou Romantica - though the sex scenes in the manga can be quite hardcore -, and Koisuru Bokun - because each one is different, new, and brings something new to the protagonist's relationship ). Of course, in here, as I said before, Ewon most of the time doesn't want it ( or at least pretend not to ), but he doesn't run around whining. And you don't get to see EVERYTHING, thank God. Is suggestion so bad ? To me, I think it is far more sensual, and erotic. Pornography doesn't entice me ( well, fact is there is a pornographic dojinshi, but it is so funny while being crude ... I couldn't help but laugh. )
Still, I was distubed by two things : first one is, when Ewon faints while they have rough sex. Didn't like it at all, it ... yeah, it disturbed me. Second one is : how Ewon always calls Mookyul "boss" while doing it. That's very cliché, makes me think of student/teacher relationship that are a huge fantasy often drawn in yaoi manga. That would be all.
What's more, I prefered the first four volumes. I'm glad it continued, but I would have been okay with it staying four-volumes long because the first four had this something the last two don't have. It's okay, though. I think it lacks the flirty touch, or maybe it is that I don't like the old man too much.
I think that I must have forgotten something but it doesn't matter. All in all, Totally Captivated is and stays my best manga ever. I can't understand why it is so unknown ( maybe because it's Korean ). I love everything about it, from the plot to the chapter names ( "My first chocolate had a frightening taste", "Do you want to live in Seoul or to be burried in Seoul ?" are the ones that really struck me, especially the first one ).
Wow, very long comment.
Just one thing to remember : give it a try. You won't regret it.
Oh, and, sorry for the language mistakes : I'm actually French ( didn't decide, though ), so there may be a few mistakes, I apologize about that.
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