This was a hard manga for me to read through. Seeing Jeremy fall victim to the horrible abuse that his new stepfather does to him is guranteed to bring up the feeling of disgust and hatred in all of us. Though it may sound negative, this is a praise to the series. The story is able to depict such sensitive topics in a way that feels real and sincere, in comparison to other stories that might romanticize abuse.
Jeremy is a kind son at heart that only wishes the the best for his mother, who is a lot happier with her new remarriage. This means that he couldn’t just leave or open up about the abuse he is enduring even if he so desperately wishes it to end. He knows that there will be grave consequences and the people he loves will get hurt if he rebels against the abuse. There is a lot of layers that is present in this problem and it shows how complex the situation truly is. This made me become a lot more invested in the manga and wonder how Jeremy will survive this seemingly inescapable hell.
The misfortune Jeremy faced wasn’t just when the abuse was taking place, but a long time after the incident as well. He has been greatly effected by the abuse and is now not capable of feeling or doing things the same way he used to. When something so bad happens for a long period, there is no doubt that the person can be pushed to the edge. The story shows how extreme these negative feelings can become, which really stood out to me personally because I get to see and observe a side to a story that I think rarely gets presented well in stories.
I must say that even though I usually hate the shoujo art style, the art in this manga was very stunning. The art gives off the feeling of “confusion” which honestly fits the story well as Jeremy and the people around him are seen to be confused and stumped about the situation a lot of the times. It gives the characters more sense of humanity as the situation Jeremy and the others find themselves in is uncommon, resulting in a long time to fully process the things that are happening right in front of them. It also gives of the feeling of being pretty at times which really helps with the theme of people never truly knowing what others are going through despite outward appearances.
There was a part of the story that was very frustrating to read though, which was the second half of the story. I have somewhat of a love-hate relationship with this manga. The easiest way to describe my feelings towards the story is that it had felt like a masterpiece turned into disappointment.
A lot of the moments between Jeremy and his stepbrother, Ian, felt so forced and out of touch from reality later on. What once felt like a telling of the horrible effects abuse can do to a person now became an oddly weird romance drama. A lot of the things that happened later on felt like it was there just to add on to the length of the manga, rather to add substance. The characters did a lot of immature and confusing decisions that wasn’t present in the first half of the story. Most of the time it had turned the blame onto the victim instead of the perpetrator. It felt like the story had gone back against the very purpose of the first half, which was to show the mortifying reality without any romanticization. The main reason I loved this manga in the first place had vanished.
Zankoku na Kami ga Shihai Suru is a story about the effect of sexual abuse on the mental health and the journey towards recovery. Everyone can heal from their wounds at some point in their life and enjoy the beauty of loving others and oneself. Even though I disliked the second half of the story, this manga will always have a special place in my heart for how well executed the first half was.
