Until the End

[Sordini]

Spoiler

100% would not recommend reading this if you're here for your inner-justice. Stories like From Nightmare To Love are what you're looking for - immediately introduced support beams for the traumatized FL, early disdain against the person who caused the trauma, many signs of recovering, wholesome romance. While some of these elements exist in the story, it will take a long time to develop. If you want immediately remedies, do not read.

All of the people here mentioning hentai on a serious webtoon are disgusting. Im not saying hentai is bad, but you guys have become disillusioned by it.

Hentai is made to be jacked off to. Even if it covers dark topics like rape, gore, and drugs, in the end, it's just enough for you to think, hey, I guess I can still fap to it. This story is nothing like those. It's one of the worst things I've ever read. Basically, it's really well written.

Rape is a real issue that exists in the real world, not just hentai. This webtoon covers many of the horrific issues surrounding rape that exists today. Blackmail? Check. Disgusting comments attacking the victim? Check. Victims turning on other victims? Check. The confidence in the perpetrator in him not getting caught is disturbingly well done, and his introduction was shocking - as it should have been.

It's true that there are some trademark unrealistic manga parts. Like the classmate who happened to be studying PTSD and saved her from being hit by a truck. The fact that the FL is an idol with perfect grades. But that's the case with every manga, and for the scarcity of those moments here, I'd say it does a good job of keeping it realistic.

Genuinely, what is wrong with some people? Half of the reason why people hate hentai watchers is because they're blissfully unaware of there being actual psychological issues regarding sex.

"This is the exact plot of a hentai"

Wow, it's almost as if hentai mimics real life. The difference is that hentai will fetishize it so you can jack off, while this story is meant to raise awareness on the issue. Stop getting your take on the real world from porn.

"Still a little hard to take seriously"

Exactly what I'm saying. You've been completely numbed by rape hentai. You see rape, but since it isn't as good and wholesome as hentai, you don't care anymore.

"Most hentai had better writing, and this one tries to be a 'serious' webtoon?"

Get help. Talk to people who know about this issue. Learn how hard it is to deal with rape as a victim or as a friend of a victim. If you don't understand that this webtoon covers the issue seriously enough for it to get an award, you clearly have no idea what you're talking about.

"Then you bring in a rapist. Without any explanation."

As if people in real life have any idea that they're going to be raped. We already know that the rapist in this story is close to the FL. Hey, did you know that a majority of rape (at LEAST 70%) is done by people you know? This isn't some fat bastard stalking a girl down the street and raping her in an alleyway. Or some random senior you never met before pulling you into an empty classroom.

I repeat. HENTAI IS MADE TO BE JACKED OFF TO.

I'm sorry you couldn't get your fill from this manga. If you want to jack off, or at least feel somewhat excited, why don't you look for something else instead of commenting on a beautifully written, award winning psychological trauma webtoon?

For the record, I never comment. But reading these comments have made me so disgusted I had to say something.

Please, if you don't want to look like an insensitive, ignorant degenerate, learn more about this issue from a realistic standpoint, and not hentai. You're part of the reason why there are victims today still suffering from their trauma and are unable to get help. Disparaging comments, downplaying the rape, blaming the victim, all of these stop people who need help from getting help.

Mod Note: Please use spoiler tags when talking about chapter-specific or future events.

 

[AngryFerret]

Spoiler

@Sordini

First, cool off. This manga was good but in a couple of the last chapters nosedived at an extremely quick pace in terms of writing. The cartoonish evil genius that's evil just because he is bored, parents that personality did 180 in the length of one chapter. Crazy stupid action scenes and I could enumerate much more stupid author's decisions. It actually does a disservice to the topic.

Right now I indeed read better hentai that did a better job in presenting what is here than this manga.

Mod Note: Please use spoiler tags when talking about chapter-specific or future events.

 

[evandark]

Spoiler

@RedHimiko18, @Sordini, to me, having a serious topic, is not an excuse for bad writing.

My point is that the (back)story of the characters makes no sense, when viewed in a serious light. And with the plot being about rape, and trauma, its hard to view it in anything but a serious light.

What school would hire a guy like this, without doing any background checks? The "supposedly" loving parents don't seem to care at all that their girl has arrived home much later, without any explanation. Said girl cannot confess, that she was raped, to those parents that "supposedly" care about her, because... ? Things happen because the author needs them to happen, and not because it follows logically from the events and characters. There are many obvious plot holes, that the author just ignores.

The first chapter is like a light shoujo manga. Its silly and doesn't take itself seriously. Since it does not take itself seriously it does not need to explain how and why this random teenage girl is an idol, and how and why is the bad guy can work at school. Its fine, even common, for light mangas to have an unrealistic setting. But from the second chapter on, the story goes full dark and gritty, but the setting remains just as unrealistic as it was.

Now, that's where a better writer would start to fill in the gaps, by adding to the backstory of the characters the darker details, that simply didn't fit the mood of the first chapter, while also making sure that he left enough clues in the first chapter, that these darker tones don't feel like an afterthought. Even then, the tone difference would be very jarring and hard to pull off successfully.

You can't just write about rape and expect to have a guaranteed win (except in Thailand, it seems), your still need to earn that (with an interesting story, believable characters, and good writing in general).

Mod Note: Please use spoiler tags when talking about chapter-specific or future events.

 

[RedHimiko18]

@evandark Okay why would the first chapter need to tell the audience how she became an

Spoiler

idol

? Not all mangas do that. Heck famous mangas like say One Piece for example took soooo many chapters to even tell the full backstories of the main characters like say Luffy or Sanji.

You do know that this kind of thing happens in real life and yes those people in charge of the

Spoiler

rapists

DO do background checks. It's what makes events like this so sinister in that a perfectly normal, well behaved, individual is capable of

Spoiler

rape

. They can be someone with no criminal record, no mental health issues, a seemingly normal person comes in,

Spoiler

teaches kids,

and then

Spoiler

rapes them

. It can happen ANYHERE in RL and HAS happened anywhere in RL.

Just type in

Spoiler

teacher rapist

in a search engine and you will see what I mean. Heck serial killers like Ted Bundy were able to get away with murder for so long BECAUSE they looked normal and acted normal. Which this

Spoiler

teacher

did and was in the beginning. A little sociopathy, but that's not entirely evil, considering sociopaths aren't all bad people. Just different like bipolars or DID.

So you wanted the beginning of the manga to be all nosedive into the

Spoiler

rape horror

? You do know that stuff doesn't even happen in horror movies right (not even the really bad ones start out like that)? They start out all happy and pretty to then completely shock/horrify you when the killer/rapist/monster comes into the picture. It's called building the moment and obviously you are not appreciating that.

Did you have a perfectly normal childhood or something? I'm glad if you did but it means then I can understand why you are not getting how hard it is to

Spoiler

confess to her parents that she was raped. She has neglectful parents. Not in a seriously "we hate you and don't want you" kinda way but in a "we're so busy we're forgetting to take care of you responsibly" kinda way. I mean she has a housekeeper to make sure she wakes up, is fed breakfast/lunch/dinner, clothed, goes to school, etc. Her parents are barely there, even when she was sick!

Spoiler

They're not evil people, just have been too neglectful because of their work, which has made her develop a complex of being a "good" child who doesn't bother them with her troubles. So when it came time for her to tell her parents she was raped, she couldn't do it because that fear, that psychological pressure to be a "good girl" stopped her from doing it. It's like trying to breath when you are drowning or through a panic attack. Not easy to do at all.

 

[RedHimiko18]

@AngryFerret

Spoiler

Personally I kinda think the teacher is a little bit sociopathy from the latest chapters descriptions of him. So that might be why it seemed like he did a 180. But that's just my personal opinion.

Also it seemed like we only got the surface of the parents until the latest chapters. You like they were background characters who didn't matter and maybe would be killed off first in a horror movie (or like a red in Star Trek). But again personal feelings on that.

 

[evandark]

Spoiler

@RedHimiko18 I don't think I'm getting through you.

Yes, rapist can be normal people, yes It can be hard to confess being raped, yes I had a mostly normal childhood. But none of that has anything to do with my arguments, or why the writing is bad!!!

a perfectly normal, well behaved, individual is capable of rape

What about it? The guy is not normal looking. He looks and acts like a stereotypical hooligan, rapist.

So you wanted the beginning of the manga to be all nosedive into the rape horror?

No, there are more to realistic characters than horror. But there is this thing called "tonal consistency". Take your own advice, and google it sometimes.

She has neglectful parents.

Pure speculation. There is nothing in that chapter, that even hint to that. Its just your mind trying to fill in plot-holes for you.

And when I tell you that this story is not realistic, and frankly very amateurish, I don't mean that rape doesn't happen. But that the way it happens in this story is not believable. If she were just a normal innocent high school girl, then it would be more realistic. But in an effort to make it more dramatic, the author made her into an idol. Without actually considering what that would mean for the story.

A few corrections:
- Yes, rape is often committed by those close by. In a trust-sense, meaning close friends, family, trusted neighbours, teachers. It does not include random janitors nearby. That's not what they mean.
- Yes, not all idols are sexually harassed, but many of them have sexual relations, and in general they are more mature, as their job requires them to interact with adults on more of an equal ground. It requires a high degree of independence, except in cases where the parents manage her whole career (which is not the case here). So her being this weak and stupid begs the question: how in the world, is she able to manage herself as an idol???

Mod Note: Please use spoiler tags when talking about chapter-specific or future events.

 

[Tamerlane]

If you thought 13 reasons why, you'll love this manga



If you have critical thinking skills, you will not.

 

[jojosaurous]

Must read until the end.

Seriously hits home with psychological theme.

Spoiler

PTSD, victim blaming, shaming, social pressure after rape happens in real life. Personally I think the Webtoon clearly conveys this.

In the end, MC leaves us with the note that if you ever experience assault, don't feel guilty and blame yourself. Seek help from someone you trust. Go to a doctor. The only person to blame is the perpetrator. Not the victim.

 

[kekyoin]

For what it is, its great.

However, as @Tamerlane said, some things in this manga just plain dont make sense, especially in the second half.

 

[LaconicKibitz]

BLUF: 8/10 Webtoon, fast read and worth it if you enjoy psychological manga.

Until the End nails the psychological ramifications of rape. It explores PTSD, victim blaming, and has a fantastic portrayal of the social media reactions surrounding such a topic. I am not the most knowledge regarding rape, but in my opinion, this webtoon's depiction is laudable. The scenes are dark, confusing, and above all, terrifying. For better or worse, it immerses the reader into the mindset of the victim. In addition, the webtoon explores the how rape effects people differently and how each victim deals with it is unique. More importantly, the story also spends time in informing the readers of how to move on and act in such situations. If this webtoon's goal was to spread awareness of sexual violence, then I believe it accomplished its goal.

However, that doesn't mean this story doesn't have its faults. My primary complaint is that some of the plot points and characters served no purpose in the overarching narrative or in the message the author was trying to send. There are a couple points where the solution to the problem feels contrived or over-dramatic. Some characters appear, do act out some melodrama, and then leave for the rest of the story. They're basically Chekhov's Guns that remain unfired and while it's not a cardinal sin, it begs the question why they were there in the first place.

In conclusion, Until the End spreads awareness of sexual assault by portraying it in a respectful and realistic manner, focusing not just on the initial act, but the trauma and stress afterwards that affects not only the victim, but the people around them. However, outside that main point, the webtoon does not have much technical narrative substance as several plot points and character could have been removed without affecting the main plot of the story.

 

[EG0611]

Spoiler

I personally don't like happy endings. They are unrealistic like fairy tales. However in this serie I am glad it has reached to happy ending.

 

[cache_bag]

@LaconicKibitz

Yeah, I agree. It's commendable how it treats the core subject matter well. PTSD, and the other ramifications of rape. Though I wish it covered the victime blaming, the "she wanted it anyway" part more, as it would've been a good conflict to cover. However, it was all so rushed by that point, as compared to the first parts that really took its time.

On the other hand. It really fails narratively on many key aspects, which is sad considering it's what's keeping this from being really good.

 

[RedHimiko18]

@evandark

Spoiler

You think the teacher looks like a hooligan? Seriously? Wow that okay that explains so much. Thank you for that clarification.

So you think that her parents not being around, her being woken up by a nanny, her being sick as a child and her parents not being there or even checking up on her because they are too busy working is not neglectful in any way, than I would really like to know what your definition of neglectful. Since, to me, that's neglectful.

In Western society it may not be normal for a girl to be a high schooler and an idol but in Eastern countries it's more common. I mean why do you think a lot of mangas, webtoons, manhua, etc. HAVE high school idols? It's because it's more common than say the US or England or France or Spain or Italy, etc.

And what's wrong with her being an idol and a high schooler and getting raped? Seriously how is that not believable? Is it because of the culture behind Western idols where most of them seem to act like, well, promiscuously? If that is so, if you really are stuck on that because of Western ideals of idols, than yeah I can believe on why you don't like the webtoon and call it amateurish. It's sad but I can understand it.

 

[goatking]

This is kinda fucked but also not that good either.

 

[CatrACAB]

I can agree that the stuff with the brothers was poorly written, and as it is, unnecessary. Irin's interaction with the plot also could've been better, and Theo could've been used in the story better, especially if they are going to

Spoiler

have him show up at the end, a year later, as Saimai's boyfriend

. Most of the other things seemed well done to me though. The parents and the anxieties the MC has surrounding them are definitely realistic, people who say otherwise don't know what they're talking about. And, complaining about how the character has good grades and is an idol is kinda dumb seeing as that's what propels like half of the story. It's not tacked on in a weird Mary Sue way, rather it and its repercussions are dealt with.