Ending kind of felt meh. Even if he didn't want to give it a happy ending, I'm fine with that, y'know? Not everything needs to be sunshine and rainbows at the end. But that was still kind of a lameass way to do things. Oh well,
at least her old stalker probably got a prison sentence for that. I dunno much about Japanese law but something that'd be either in the range of manslaughter or maybe second degree murder, you'd imagine he's going down for that in some capacity. Also, my headcanon is going to have her haunt that doll to continue teasing Kakiguchi from beyond the veil.
Up until the last volume this was pretty solid. The quality of writing isn't up there with Sundome, but I liked how the author developed the main relationship differently from that work. I particularly liked the late development of Madoka
finding that she's more of a switch than a strict domme. Whether this was the authors intent or not, I think it nicely highlights the importance of trust in this kind of activity.
As with Sundome, I'm impressed wih the author's skill working with a theme (femdom) that doesn't do much for me IRL and presenting it in a way that is (IMO, at least) incredibly erotic.
What I didn't like: continuing a theme here, the ending. As others have said, I don't need a happy ending, that's not the issue here. The problem is that ending feels rushed and isn't satisfying, it just feels cheap. Someone else hypothesized about the series getting an early axe. That definitely seems like a possibility. I also suspect that the author didn't know how to finish the story, at least not without leaving loose ends around the teacher.
The climax of Madoka and the male lead's story really happens about three-quarters of the way through the story (the leaf/park scene).
It feels like a lot of filler after that, particularly the last volume, which is pretty bad overall. The second-to-last chapter reeks of deus ex machina, some of the worst I've read in comics, which is no small feat.
"Oh shit, I sure have written myself into a corner here... I know I'll have the cops show up for some convenient reason. Oh, and we'll disfigured the MC in an assault that really doesn't make sense given what we know about the characters involved, that way we can separate her from male MC without too much fuss."
Blaaaaaaaaaah.
To me this is a 5.5/10 rounded up to 6. I really enjoyed the first two-thirds to three-quarters it, there's some well done stuff there. The ending though... I won't say it totally ruined it for me, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.
Oh I f***ing hate the idiots in this manga. What the hell did she ever do to others? She was just trying to observe for god's sake. And why did Kakiguchi had to be like that?
On a more serious note, I remember wanting to read "Ibitsu", right after I had finished "Sundome". "Sundome" had a huge impact on the way in which I viewed myself, others and human relationships. I knew what Ibitsu meant and I knew this had to be the one I need to read. From Chapter 1, I felt that the Okada-sensei wanted to display all sorts of distorted, bizarre and contorted things. Madoka was like a personalization of all that - especially the way in which she dissociated herself from her body. She spoke as if she were living inside a doll. But with time, we see more distorted individuals - Hiroshi, Megu, the f***-face Itou... Among all of them, Kakiguchi seemed to be the only "normal" person. Yet towards the last 30 chapters, I started feeling that something about him kinda bothered me... Usually we could only see him reacting to what Madoka would say/do to him... but it was veiling something.. Now that I have read the last chapter, I think he's the most ibitsu person in Ibitsu. I don't think I'll forget Madoka. She's among the memorable characters I've met.
Everybkdy seems, to me, to be completely overlooking a few things.
kakiguchi has issues with living people.. It isnt just him being an awkward loser or pervert. Probably a trauma of some sort and I think it might be related to his grandfather's death. But the end result is that our MC's mysterious fetish is necrophilia... Which he has turned towards crafting his own perfect doll for a partner because he isn't completely insane. As for Madoka, she's obviously a very troubled kid. She's not a domme in true sense, rather, she's a sub - her deepest, most honest desire is to be broken down and then fixed. Kakiguchi fulfills that role bc he isnt a total scumbag while still being pretty perverted, and his focus on dolls simultaneously gives her the feeling that he can fix her just as well as he can fix her doll, and it also makes him seem less dangerous as a pervert because his focus in on dolls and his only real desire in her was for her shape.
As for the ending...
that wadn't rushed in my opinion, though i do wish it had turned out differently. The teacher got caught bc he fucked with a yandere and to the very end madoka was never able to be honest enough to clarify things with her friend, who fell for the deceptions of the teacher. It would have required a longer story and sufficient time for madoka and kakiguchi to become honest and open - to finish cracking open that wall - for their relationships and characters to develop some more. Unfortunately, life sucks, shit happens, and there are many occassions where you simply dont have the opportunity to do what you need to do for yourself.. Hence why you should strike while the iron is hot in matters of love and mending broken relationships caused by arguments and petty coincidences. The final bit there, with madoka getting killed and the two of thrm almost crossing paths and getting their happy ending was the exact same thing as her getting hospitalized. Shit happened outside their control. They had a realistic "it almost happened" moment, with the one side being thankfully oblivious to that regretful could-have-been instance.
What else is there.... Oh yeah
madoka's dominating acts wrren't bevause shr was a domme. That was her lashing out emotionally and sexually - thr case where a sub plays around and acts likely a brat, instigating the one they want to punish them. Kakiguchi was pretty oblivious, and hapless enough that the chance for him to actually fulfill the role of dom was rare, and it was only when madoka truly crossed the line - or deus ex machina coincidences - that he did step into the role, despite him clearly having a dark side that wants to "twist" his partner. Of course, nobody is truly limited to only the one fetish, so with their chemistry and ridiculously high sexual tensions and situations, they learned a few new aspects of their sexuality along the way.
Again, this was something that, had fate not conspired against them from so many angles, they could have developed a deeper relationship, had time to open up more and come to understand each other, and created a happy ending for themselves. But fate gave them the boot, they needed more time to develop and mature together.
Now, i wish that they had been given those chances. This story would probably be at least another three or four books long just to get to any sort of happy ending. But that wasnt the point of this story. This story was a glimpse into human nature - just a small crack in the wall. Life rarely has the chance to reach an agreeably clean ending before it gets cut off. Countless relationships fail to flourish because they dont get the opportunity to do so. Humans are fragile, and we put up powerful walls because of that, and then we're too occupied dealing with the world around us to focus on the things that matter. We're too oblivious and ignorant of each other's thoughts and feelings to communicate and develop together as best we could have.
This manga, whatever the hell anybody thinks of its contents and material, is something you all should be reading between the lines in. It'll help you understand what being human is just a little bit more, and maybe even give you the oush you need to open to one another. Because nobody wants to be yhe miserable guy reminiscing and fantasizing alone forever with just a worn out doll shaped like the one we loved most. And nobody wants to get run over by a train just when we finally got free of the shackles on us and mustered up the courage to grab an opportunity before it slips away forever.
Yeah I have to agree that the ending here was a letdown, the author sure likes his fucked up endings and I have read so much of his stuff already that it just falls flat. Sundome made a big impression on me and I was like damn that was interesting, but here it feels like he out of nowhere decided to fuck with madoka.
the ending is just really lazy in hindsight, it did manage to make me feel empty after but still, it felt like it was just there for the sake of it being a "tragedy"
Anyway pretty good story, recommended read for passing time
Man I feel so depressed after reading this. That ending man. Just fuck man. After all the hell that was the final chapters seeing it end like that is just painful.
