"It's better to cum in the sink, then to sink in the cum." - Master Oogway
Chapters 1 through 23 of Onani Master Kurosawa delivers a funny, yet mature story of an anti-social, sex pest juvenile who, after learning to respect those around him, accepts the consequences of what he's done. Having read those 23 chapters, it makes what happens in the remainder of the story all the more baffling, as the author seemingly does everything in their power to undermine their own messages.
I'll start with what the series does well, assuming you've at least read the synopsis.
The premise of a guy who enacts "White Justice"
...
by cumming on his female classmate's belongings may seem off-putting or even distasteful, but what makes it work is that any joke is made at the expense of Kurosawa, and not the people he victimizes. The comedy is derived from Kurosawa's self-perception as a criminal mastermind, often parodying Light from Death Note. The gravitas of Kurosawa's inner monologue is contrasted against the juvenile nature of his actions to great effect.
The artwork may seem crude and unfinished, but is still effective at conveying the emotions of the characters, as well as portraying Kurosawa as a Light clone. And unlike other crudely put together manga, the paneling and page composition is very solid.
But what truly elevates the series is Kurosawa's character arc, and a dramatic tonal shift that occurs midway through the story. Circumstances lead to Kurosawa developing genuine friendships which sway him away from his narcissistic way of thinking and his delinquent acts. This makes it all the more upsetting when Kurosawa eventually regresses to his former behaviour, which is when the series starts taking itself seriously. Kurosawa's sexual deeds are no longer comedic acts of justice, but rather a result of his mental anguish. The scene where Takigawa finds her belongings caked in semen is played completely straight. The violation deeply affects her, and as days go by her cheerful presence begins to fade.
This all culminates when Kurosawa owns up to what he's done in front of his class. Even though no one suspects him and he has everything to lose, Kurosawa takes accountability because he's grown as a person. It's a horrifically anxiety-inducing, but satisfying conclusion to his arc, and the complete lack of self-pity he displays puts every Youtuber apology video to shame.
But there's 8 chapters left. And it's in the manga's handling of the other characters where the series completely shits the bed, fumbles the bag, cums in the sink, sinks in the cum, etc, etc.
The first eyebrow-raising moment is when Takigawa is feeling guilty that she can't forgive Kurosawa. It's fine that she forgives him in the end, the problem is that her guilt for not forgiving him isn't presented as irrational, and the manga treats this dilemma as if Kurosawa is owed an apology, which is just completely backwards. Making a good apology does not in turn entitle him to forgiveness from the person he's wronged, and Sugawa has every right to cut him out of her life completely.
But that's a nit-pick compared to how the manga """redeems""" Sugawa. At this point in the story the manga suddenly wants you to like Sugawa, so Kurosawa can have a girlfriend. So what does Sugawa do to gain the audience's approval, after she's been shown relentlessly bullying another female lead? Well first there's a scene where Kitahara is being bullied by someone else this time, and Sugawa looks at it disapprovingly (What, were you expecting her to intervene? She's not Jesus Christ people, settle down). And secondly she decides she's going to apologize to Kitahara, but only if she happens to be at a specific social gathering. I'm not kidding, nor is this commentary on how women dodge accountability. This is just how the manga tries to endear you to her character. You'd think a story about owning up to your wrongdoings no matter the consequences, would hold its cast to a higher standard, and yet Sugawa will only apologize to someone she's abused if they put in effort on their part to make it more convenient. It undermines what the series set out to do with Kurosawa.
But The manga's biggest fuck up is it's handling of Kitahara. After Kurosawa is reformed, Kitahara's mental health starts spiraling, and to resolve this, Kurosawa begs her to go to the class reunion party until she caves in. The manga treats this as the silver bullet solution to Kitahara's spiraling mental health, as if spending more time with her abusers, and people complicit in her abuse, is going to make her not want to kill herself. The premise of this resolution is completely asinine, but what makes it a truly abysmal ending is that the class reunion happens off-page. We don't see Kitahara coming out of her shell, or a confession that Kurosawa's cum pranks were revenge for Kitahara, or confirmation that anyone cares about her. We don't even see Sugawa's apology. For all I know none of it ever happens. All we get is a time skip and the implication that she's presently fine. It's a complete slap in the face to anyone who was invested in her growth and wanted to see her heal.
The manga instead, dedicates its last chapter to what is essentially filler. Having one of Kurosawa's victims not only forgive him, but end being his tsundere girlfriend contributes nothing to his character or the manga's core themes. Part of Kurosawa's character arc is learning that just because his crush doesn't feel the same way, it doesn't mean your friendship with them isn't valuable, and he should respect her choices. So why explicitly state that he gets a girlfriend in the end?
To conclude, what the latter part of Onani Master Kurosawa misunderstands is that changing as a person, or recovering from mental trauma, takes time and effort and personal action. Which is confusing, because beforehand it went to such great lengths to portray realistic personal growth. I have never been left feeling so unsatisfied by a series I thought I was going to end up loving. Hence why my score is straight down to middle. If you've ever had to deal with severe bullying, then I imagine reading this would be deeply aggravating. But to anyone else, I'd say this is a worthwhile read despite having the worst ending ever conceived.
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Sep 17, 2023
Onanie Master Kurosawa
(Manga)
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"It's better to cum in the sink, then to sink in the cum." - Master Oogway
Chapters 1 through 23 of Onani Master Kurosawa delivers a funny, yet mature story of an anti-social, sex pest juvenile who, after learning to respect those around him, accepts the consequences of what he's done. Having read those 23 chapters, it makes what happens in the remainder of the story all the more baffling, as the author seemingly does everything in their power to undermine their own messages. I'll start with what the series does well, assuming you've at least read the synopsis. The premise of a guy who enacts "White Justice" ... |
