setyoonbumfree

[setyoonbumfree]

Told ya so.  

[setyoonbumfree]

A Brief Intro to KS, Madness, Ethical Readership (and Me)

I first became acquainted with Koogi’s manhwa Killing Stalking in early 2017, when I stumbled upon this now-immensely popular music video– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYAxMW65RcM

The MV sparked my interest in the comic, which I have been hooked on ever since.  Due to Koogi’s beautiful drawing and engaging storyline, I consider this my favorite manga.  It’s a volatile, disturbing mix of tragedy, violence, mystery, suspense, pornography, and romance that makes me feel horny and horrified at the same time.

For those of you who have never read KS before, or for readers who need a refresher, here’s a brief summary of its plot: Yoon Bum, the protagonist, is a scrawny, boyish-looking 28 year old* whose parents died in his childhood.  An only child, he was placed under the care of his paternal uncle who beat and raped him since young.  This constant abuse shatters Bum’s self-worth, causing him to grow up isolated and starved for affection.  In his youth, Bum had aborted romances with two women: a prostitute (?, see chpt 25) and a classmate**.  In college, Bum becomes infatuated with a student: Sangwoo, a handsome 24 year old* stud with a tantalizingly ripped physique. However, the shy and unassertive Bum lacks the courage to approach Sangwoo and his affection remains one-sided for a long time. 

Unbeknownst to Bum, Sangwoo is a psychopath: a misogynistic, homophobic serial killer who murdered his parents.  Also an only child, Woo is an extrovert whose emotional deficiencies fuel his urge to dominate others.  Haunted by some unknown childhood trauma, Sangwoo gets a high out of murdering young women: he lures them to his house where he (probably) rapes them, maims their legs, and tortures them in his basement for several days before dismembering them.  Sangwoo’s abusive father is his only male victim to date.

One day, Bum breaks into Sangwoo’s house in an attempt to get closer to his crush only to discover he has entered a house of horrors.  Sangwoo discovers Bum poking around in the basement and maims Bum’s legs to prevent him from escaping.  From then on, Bum becomes his prisoner and (sex) slave.  As the story progresses, Woo exploits Bum’s emotional frailties, and the twisted relationship between these broken individuals descends further into sex, violence, and madness.  Though initially disgusted by the idea of gay sex, Woo warms to the idea after growing closer to Bum, and later uses sex as a tool to fulfill his fantasies of domination and to subjugate Bum rather than to express love.  In contrast, Bum undergoes several dramatic transformations: from a captive he becomes Woo’s live-in maid, then his accomplice in crime, and eventually, his lover.  

Their twisted, Stockholm syndrome-like devotion to each other, their love–if I can even call it that–is one born of their mutual frailties: Woo realizes that Bum is the only person crazy enough to still love him despite his horrific crimes, and can’t bear to kill him.  In contrast, Bum, in his lust and desperation for affection, helplessly clings to Woo, whose violent and demeaning sexual overtures he mistakes for expressions of true love.  Bum’s naivety, lust, and inferiority complex cloud his judgment: despite having the opportunity to turn Woo (and by necessity, himself) over to the cops, he willingly stays with Woo and lavishes him with sexual favors because he thinks they’re in a loving relationship.  Tragically, he fails to see that he’s little more than Woo’s submissive sex slave and punching bag.  He reminds me of a battered girlfriend who lacks the willpower to leave her abusive boyfriend because she’s been brainwashed to think she doesn’t deserve anyone better.

While some readers may romanticize their affection because it “looks cute/hot”, I do not ship the couple. Though I guiltily admit that I find their sex scenes arousing, I honestly believe Bum deserves better (Seungbae perhaps? XD).  

My blog’s name reflects my sincere wish for Koogi to give her story a happy ending: for Bum to be free of his chronic loneliness, helplessness, angst, and–most importantly–to be free of Woo.  Bum can only be truly free when he first realizes the misguidedness of his love for Woo, which is the root of his mental imprisonment.  Call me old-fashioned, but I believe in justice: the wicked should be punished, the innocent protected.  Woo deserves the death penalty, or lifelong imprisonment in an asylum.  While I believe Bum should pay for his crime, I also believe he deserves someone who truly respects and cares for him, and I hope he finds redemption and love in the end.

While I feel reluctant to foist a single “right” interpretation on a work as complex as KS, I would like to suggest the following: though we are reading fiction, we have an ethical responsibility not to idealize Bum and Woo’s relationship, or to allow ourselves to let Woo off the hook on account of his good looks.  Koogi’s genius is to have created a charming villain (similar to John Milton’s Satan, or Frank Underwood from House of Cards): an antagonist so seductive, so impressively herculean that our inhibitions are disarmed and we hesitate to condemn him.  We’re almost rooting for him to escape justice–that’s in large part due to the seductive power of Koogi’s drawing and writing, if you ask me.  But if we allow ourselves to let our mental defenses down, we confuse a villain for a hero; we let Woo manipulate us as he has the rest of the world, and we commit the same mistake Bum has made–we fall for a madman.

This blog is my homage to Koogi’s masterpiece, and a cathartic diary that allows me to clarify my thoughts on the story’s complexities.  Time permitting, I will post on ideas, symbols, themes, or patterns in KS that I find especially striking.  Readers are welcome to send me questions or comments.

I’m currently a Literature major in university; I live in Asia, and like Bum–I’m a guy, which means I’m a rarity in terms of this manga’s readership.  I think that most of its readers are (young) girls, which is typical of yaoi.  In my conservative country, I cannot openly discuss subjects relating to same-sex love, much less a manga as explicit as this one.  As I do not have any friends who read this manga, I hope to exchange my views with fellow readers in the Tumblr community.

A few disclaimers: I’m not an expert on the fandom community or its lingo, so please be patient with me if I’m slow on the uptake.  Also, I’m still learning how to use Tumblr, so I will need some trial and error to learn the finer points of tagging/reblogging/posting/replying.

As I feel similar in certain respects to Bum, I shall sign off my first post, and all future ones, with the initials of the character I feel so much pity and empathy for.

        –YB

*I have guesstimated their ages.

** Because of this, I consider Bum bisexual, just like Woo, who was initially heterosexual before Bum “converted” him.