Destiny Lovers is a very particular manga. Not only is it the fact that it is a two-part work, starting with desuraba, which was published between February 2018 and April 2020, with 112 chapters; and continuing with Destiny Lovers, which has been published since April 2020. Something that definitely stands out is the fact that it is a work illustrated by Kai Tomohiro.
And who is Kai Tomohiro? Well, he is a successful hentai artist who has created popular works such as “Hikoukai Sub Plan (Private Sub Plan) (387790)“; “Lost 2 Hours (473254)“; “Trick or Cheat? (338005)“; and “Into the Pit (144121)“; to mention a few. None of the previous works covers theNETorare (NTR) genre, so for the followers of Destiny Lovers it was a complete surprise to include it in this work.
To get some context, let’s review the synopsis:
- «A long time ago, Kosuke Fujishiro promised his love to his childhood friend, Sayaka-chan. But her promise to reserve his first sexual experience for her takes an unexpected turn when he is suddenly kidnapped and thrown into a secret prison run by beautiful and terrifying women dressed in fetish clothing. His seductive kidnappers claim to have a higher purpose, but they only seek one thing: Kosuke’s virginity, and they are willing to employ every perversion at their disposal. Who are these women and why are they trying to break Kosuke’s promise to Sayaka-chan? In this erotic thriller about fear and desire, a man is about to face a sexual challenge like no other.»
At the end of the first manga, Sayaka-chan is kidnapped by Washio Suguru to become part of his harem, an “NTR Ending”, so to speak, since he kisses her and takes her away. However, things changed in the second manga. There, Kosuke and his resistance group infiltrate the institution in order to rescue Sayaka-chan. When she finally finds her, she does not recognize Kosuke, and it is revealed that he had been the subject of an experiment to increase her physical potential in exchange for her memories and emotions. Kosuke was happy to see her but sad that she was no longer a virgin, but then he learned that she had never had sex and that, to the readers’ relief, the “NTR Ending” had been fake.
However, recent developments in the manga have once again taken a netarare (NTR) route with rape included, which has unleashed criticism from readers towards the creative members. Although Kai Tomohiro is only the illustrator and is not in charge of the story, an interview he offered a couple of months ago to the publisher does not help him much. Kodanshawhich publishes the manga in question.
- «The climax of the series is about to begin, and I’m not going to give it a bad ending! I hope you believe these words and read on to find out what happens next. Stay tuned!», he commented at the end of the interview.
Noting that the series would not have a “bad ending,” but including a development of infidelity in the romantic relationship of the two protagonists has left a bad taste in fans’ mouths. This caused that when the author shared the news of a new chapter, his social networks were flooded with criticism:
- «I’m not a fan of romance stories, but including rape themes in a serialized manga, I feel like I understand the criticism you’re getting right now.».
- «Well, I guess it doesn’t matter what happens anymore, I just hope this ends as soon as possible.».
- «You said you won’t give a bad ending to the story, but you’re adding NTR, you make me sick.».
- «I still don’t understand why the title is “Destiny Lovers” after this chapter, I don’t understand the point. Why make the main theme about a long-standing couple and throw it all away with NTR? Was that “destiny”?».
- «Kai-sensei, I have been reading “Destiny Lovers” for quite some time now, and I must say that the recent development of the story is disappointing.».
- «Isn’t this the first serialized manga to bring in a rape NTR so directly? In this era where criticism is severe, I think this definitely changes the paradigm».
- «I see that you have allowed yourself to be intimidated by the sick people who enjoy NTR, your work stopped being good a long time ago».
- «You are a disgrace to the manga industry and you only know how to say “it’s the publisher’s fault.” You let yourself be influenced by third parties, I really expected more from you and your work, but all I see is that you are just mediocre with a shitty ending like most mangas nowadays».
- «The Japanese are sick and many like NTR, so much so that it turns them on. Maybe that’s why they feel like failures and are taking their own lives every day.».
- «I have a question, is this close to being finalized? I just read the most recent chapter and I honestly don’t understand why you included NTR when everything was going towards an acceptable ending».
- «Your “happy ending” statement will haunt you your entire life. You know well that “Destiny Lovers” was not a work that NTR fit into in any way. It’s disappointing that you want to make this your “selling point”, without caring about the fact that you have betrayed your readers.».
- «I’m not going to read this shit anymore, goodbye».
- «I’m sorry, but I don’t understand the minds of NTR-loving Japanese people. Are they animals that think with their dicks?».
- «They seem to have had too much nuclear waste in their drinking water, do they really enjoy being fooled that much? Thinking from the point of view of third parties, what is interesting about being forced to watch how your loved one is raped? Is this the happy ending you were talking about so much?».
Of course, The author has not remained silent in the face of criticism and, in fact, has responded to some of them with comments like:
- (After informing that I would report a comment): «This comment is not a personal attack against me, but contains derogatory comments directed at Japanese people with specific preferences. Therefore, it is not a question of whether or not I can bear such comments; I cannot ignore discriminatory comments in the context of my work».
- «In general, I am open to any comments and have not transferred responsibility to the editorial team. The recent comment said: “If you really want to influence the direction of the work, the most effective way is to give your opinion to the editorial team.” I understand that you may have those feelings, and it can even lead to disappointment in some cases. However, it is simply a matter of not overlooking it when necessary. I hope you understand and take it into account.».
- «In the Japanese publishing industry, apart from a few exceptionally talented authors, there is no unilateral decision-making process. Discussions with the assigned editor, power dynamics, and social factors can lead to changes in content, and it is not uncommon for content to deviate from the original vision. Of course, I have also approved the current plot, but please understand that not everything has been done solely based on my will».
Fountain: Official Twitter Account
We thank “Snyck” for proposing the idea for this article.
