Pigpen

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Who deserves a good ending? Who actually gets it?

Kim Carnby loves to experiment with the protagonist. From the mentally violent, and tortured "Shotgun Boy", the weak accomplice in "Bastard", the uncaring, and suicidal "Sweet Home" protagonist. He always likes to play with the audience's morality, and here it seems he looked for an extreme amount of questioning. Waking up without memories, while being surrounded by uncooperative people is terrifying, but there's always something darker, something that even after the ending I still think about.

"I don't know what's going on, and if I don't, I'll go f*cking nuts". I like stories about a mystery, but ... amnesia is one trope I hate. They don't use it other than to keep an audience confused throughout the whole run until the very, VERY end. Luckily, we don't get that here, and the amnesia has a fresh spin that, even if it isn't that new, or interesting like in the past, it makes sense why they used it. The world has a purpose, every character has a specific need to exist, every scene builds, and builds, and doesn't stop stacking jenga pieces on top of each other, and you know everything will viscerally crumble. I was stressed out of my mind just waiting for the simplest answer, or a tragic twist, as the author always makes.

From every character, it's as if taking exactly what's cliché'd about a "house in the middle of nowhere" trope, and using that against the audience. The domineering father, the cunning daughter, the mentally ill son, the creepy kid, so on, and so forth. We know this, we've known this ever since horror was popularized, but trying not to spoil, this isn't a victim's story, or a power fantasy. Having said that, not every character matters, and I would've liked more depth in other parts. There's a point when you could've cut some "tense" scenes with some of them that don't really matter. It's just more of the same "oh, we're being real tense right here" without developing anything.

The art is great, the horror faces are drawn well, and honestly, I wish I could get in depth about this one. Since it's based around a twisted narrative, I can't speak about how great the latter half is, without ruining the experience. I wish anybody reading this will give it a shot, everything is great, even if a little predictable, but it wasn't trying to hide its cards, just distract you from the truth for as long as it could. I enjoyed the questions posed, and I hated the ending, because it did exactly what it should.

8/10. Works really well, but I can only speak like a robot about the basic aspects. The story is everything here.

Just a Horror Story or Something More?

I started reading Pigpen because it came highly recommended, and I expected something more than just a typical horror story. And honestly? It delivered. This isn’t just about scares—it’s a deep psychological story that keeps you hooked until the very end.

Right from the first chapters, you’re thrown into the story and introduced to the main setting. It seems like you have a general idea of where things are going, but trust me—you don’t.

What Stood Out the Most?

First off, the storytelling. The plot never lets you get too comfortable—every few chapters, you get new clues that make you rethink everything, ... while at the same time, things only get more confusing. It keeps you engaged, making you want to piece everything together.

Also the athmosphere, The eerie, unsettling vibe is enhanced by a good art style that perfectly captures the madness unfolding around the protagonist. The sense of isolation, paranoia, and growing unease is done so well—it really pulls you into the story.

The Protagonist
Without spoiling anything, I’d say the main character is interesting and keeps you invested. However, I feel like he could have been explored on a deeper emotional level. More internal monologues and raw emotions would’ve made him more interesting.

The Side Cast
Even though the side characters aren’t incredibly deep, they’re still fascinating to observe. Their interactions with the protagonist keep you guessing—who they are, what they want, and what role they play in the bigger picture. They are normal for those type of story.

The Mystery – The Best Part
The strongest aspect of Pigpen is definitely its mystery. Every chapter drops new details, making you constantly rethink everything. And the best part? It all makes sense. The reveals are logical yet unexpected, and the way everything unfolds is really well done.

The ending, in particular, surprised me. It was handled in a way that felt satisfying and well thought out—no frustrating loose ends or disappointments.

Final Thoughts
I really enjoyed Pigpen, and I’d definitely recommend it. If you love psychological and horror storys, you’ll love this. Even if you’re more neutral towards this genre (like me), it’s still worth checking out—it keeps you engaged and thinking the whole way through.

That said, I wouldn’t rate it an 8/10. The first half pulled me in more than the second, even though the second half was crucial for the story’s resolution. I think it came down to pacing—some parts felt a bit stretched out, while others felt rushed. But despite that, it’s definitely worth reading.

Final Score: A Strong 7/10

Carnby Kim is easily one of the most famous psychological Korean manhwa authors, if not the most famous (granted, it’s not exactly a sizable community). About ten chapters into this work, I already wanted to drop it. The writing was so incredibly cliche it felt like something a child would conjure up. However, I plugged on and actually found myself quite enjoying the story following the introduction of more information about the characters. As the plot became more convoluted, I was honestly invested in what was going to happen. It was a fun read. However, near the end of the story, it felt like the ... author was attempting to hit every spot on a bingo board of basic “psychological” reveals. Twist after twist kept happening, each with just barely enough basis and hints throughout the story for me to not completely give up on reading it.

Additionally, what must be discussed is the representation of mental health. Without offering spoilers, the way the author portrayed mental health and the way it can affect others surrounding afflicted individuals I was actually surprised about. It did not victimize characters and excuse all their behavior because of a condition, but also did not turn them into villains simply because they are different, which is often the case in other media. This, however, is what I consider to be the most redeeming quality about the work. And in just about the last chapter, there was a piece of symbolism so on the nose I was narrating to myself about the stupidity of it. Again, at this point the writing felt a bit like a middle schoolers.

What truly needs to be discussed here is the ending, which is what drove such a dive in my scoring of this manhwa. If anyone has seen the Japanese live action Alice in Borderland, you know the scene near the end of the second season where Mira is “explaining” the world and you think “shut up, that can’t actually be it, right? No author who put a minute amount of work into this would actually make that the ending, right?” That’s the ending of Pigpen. So incredibly disappointing, but apparently Kim thought it was what would really get him that bingo on the board of surprising reveals. So much so that there are numerous chapters and hints throughout the manhwa explaining a needlessly convoluted ending that is just plain stupid.

Though I have mixed feelings about this work, which do lean towards the negative side, I will continue on with reading Kim’s other manhwa. Hopefully the other pieces can offer a more concise story, I definitely hope so considering their relatively astounding popularity. I certainly cannot say I have high hopes.

If you want a simple, fun read, I would recommend trying Pigpen. However, if you would like depth comparable to what I usually see from Korean psychological media, and would not like to sigh every other chapter out of disappointment that a plot reveal was seriously what just happened, I say maybe look elsewhere.