Samisphere's Profile - Reviews

Last OnlineJan 10, 4:21 AM
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JoinedJan 5, 2020

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MAL×entine

20th Anniversary

A Bookworm's Haven

You Should Read This Manga

My MALentine Story

May 30, 2025

Girl Under Trial (Manga) add

Mixed Feelings

Spoiler

I stumbled upon this manhwa through a random YouTube recommendation, and I gotta to say, it was quite a ride.

At first, I really didn’t like it. The main character, Gaeul, is incredibly unlikeable. She’s narcissistic, emotionally distant, and seems to lack basic empathy. But this nature of hers is what makes this story so compelling.

When Gaeul discovers a classmate’s dead body, instead of doing what a normal person would do—like calling the police—she manipulates the only other witness (possibly the killer) into kissing her and pretending to date. This manipulative, self-serving side of her shows up again and again. Every time you think she’s ... on the brink of a redemption arc, she does something even worse. And that's exactly what makes her character seem so real in a sense. Characters as morally complex and irredeemable as Gaeul are rare in this genre, at least from what I've seen, and her flaws end up being one of the most refreshing things about the story.

Her character arc is full of growth, even though that's not what you'd notice while reading the story. As the story progresses, she slowly starts getting SOME growth to her character but then crushes your expectations by doing something even worse. Despite all that bs, at the end of the story she actually gets her redemption arc. She doesn’t suddenly turn into a saint, and that makes her growth feel more believable. She’s still someone who won't lift a finger for someone she doesn’t relate to—like Yunhye or Yeondu—but she deeply cares for those she loves and is willing to go to great lengths for them.

The rest of the cast isn’t much better, morally speaking. Taeseok, Yuhyeon, Gaeul’s friends—they’re all flawed and selfish in their own ways. I especially didn’t like Taeseok. His presence felt unnecessary, and his character arc was rushed. Honestly, the manhwa could’ve benefitted from fewer love interests. While the romantic subplots help develop the characters and their chemistry, it often felt like a distraction from the main storyline. Watching Gaeul and Taeseok two-time each other was more frustrating than engaging. Taeseok never apologizing to Yeondu also pissed me off.

Yunhye’s character stood out to me, especially as a queer person. There was a lot of potential there, but unfortunately, her arc wasn’t fleshed out enough. Some of her scenes—especially the forced make-out ones—felt a little out of character and unnecessary. That said, the parallels between what Gaeul did to Yunhyeong and what later happened to Yunhye were unsettlingly effective. There’s a strong theme of karma throughout the story. The things these characters do come back to haunt them—whether it’s Gaeul, Yunhyeong, or Hyomin.

Speaking of Yunhyeong—his story is just heartbreaking. The way he was abused by Jang Hanna, and how he endured it for the sake of a better life, was brutal to read. His emotional and mental unraveling mirrors Gaeul’s in some ways, and his character development felt raw and authentic. I don’t think he deserved what happened to him, but I do think both he and Gaeul needed to face consequences. Their decision to turn themselves in was a necessary and powerful ending.

In the end, I’m still not sure exactly how I feel about this manhwa. It’s not an easy read, and I wouldn’t call it “enjoyable” in the traditional sense. But if you’re into character-driven stories that explore darker, more morally ambiguous themes—and you're okay sitting with a bit of discomfort—this one might be worth your time. It definitely left me thinking long after I finished.

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Jun 14, 2021

Houkago Hokenshitsu (Manga) add

Not Recommended

Preliminary (10/39 chp)

Houkago Hokenshitsu is very underdeveloped for a manga about an intersex character. You can tell that not a lot of research was made into this; filled with VERY bad representation for women and lgbt people that it made my blood boil to continue this. The idea for the plot was very interesting, but the Characterization and the really bad representation just couldn't do it for me. Plus, there's something very unsettling about the setting of the manga that I can't just exactly point through. It didn't feel like it was taking place in the real world and just felt, creepy.

Sou and Kureha were VERY annoying ...

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Jun 12, 2021

Kin no Hitsuji (Manga) add

Recommended

The boxer guy didn’t just assault his friend and take advantage of her feelings and got away with it easily without it being mentioned in the story later on at all.

Tsugu is the only character in the entire manga that I actually liked, She’s very energetic and bright and a really cute character overall. The baker boy was pretty okay, the other two are the only ones I have problems with. The glasses girl didn’t have any personality whatsoever, and we pretty much weren’t really able to see much of her character. The boxer guy, well, I dislike everything about him. He had no growth ...

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