#ch 198

[lloydfrontera]

Though he didn't particularly want it, Javier grabbed one coconut with the intent to put something in his stomach and have a taste for politeness' sake. Then he put his mouth to the straw and slurped. One sip. Two sips. Three sips. He slurped and slurped again. Before he knew it, the coconut was empty. "Hey, you finished it in one chug." “...” Lloyd giggled at him. It was only when Javier saw Lloyd's face what he had done. But it was too late. "You want one more?" “...” "No?" said Lloyd as he looked at the fruit. "Then I'll have-" "Give it to me, Master Lloyd." Thwack! Javier Asrahan, the historical hero of The Knight of Blood and Iron. He, too, helplessly was a young man in his 20s who couldn't resist the taste of coke he experienced for the first time in the coconut juice in front of him.

he's just... a little guy......

[plague-of-insomnia]

Ch 198: That Butler, Telegram

“An English Christmas Garden”

The newest chapter is out in Japan and is 19 pages without the cover, so it’s fairly meaty. I have not had the spoons to read all of it yet, but the gist is this—

Finny is feeling guilty and worried about what happened with the circus troupe (his involvement in their deaths), Doll, and Snake. That night, he tries to sneak out of his room to explore and is immediately caught by the four main dogs: Theo, Artie, Oliver, and Maybelle, and warned to be quiet and come with them under pain of death.

Very curious as to what happens next and how the cover and mistletoe, and telegrams fit in…

I will update later if I am able to do a translation. We probably won’t get the official English until Monday, so I should have time if my health cooperates. Thanks for understanding 💕

I forgot to put this originally, but it would be really nice if people would not steal from these posts without any credit, or I won’t bother making them anymore. Thanks.

[every-orochimaru]

[onepieceanimals]

[imberlae]

[sunflowercider]

I am at a loss for words. I cant believe the webtoon robbed us of lloyd happily shoving fruit onto javier because he wanted to see javier enjoy the rare tasty drink. What the fuck thats so cute.

[every-monkey-d-luffy]

[every-chopper]

[akutagawa-daily]

Akutagawa daily 198/★

[paper-materialz]

Colored manga panel from Jujutsu Kaisen ch 198

[zombiesama]

^his Escape B4 outfit^

[crowning-art]

TGCF SPOILERS

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AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH IS THIS A JOKE!!!?! I"M REALLY OUT HERE UGLY CRYING OVER A BAMBOO HAT???!!!

I ThoUGHT ALL THE EMOTIONAL PARTS WERE DONE!!!! DOWNFWJNWNFLWFNLW

Damn, this part wjnwkjfnwlfn, I think this paragraph speaks for itself

“You aren’t the God of Misfortune, but they would rather believe that you are, unwilling to believe you aren’t,” White No-Face said. “Once upon a time, you defied the heavens and created rain for Yong'an, yet now they won’t even donate a cup of water to you. To pierce you with a hundred swords might have been done out of desperation, but now, they’re not even willing to do something simple like helping you pull out a sword; they all found the task too difficult.

I know I already put my reaction up there for this scene but it deserves a second reaction:

The rain seemed to have stopped.

No.

The rain didn’t stop. It was something that was placed over his head, helping him block off that pouring rain!

Xie Lian whipped his head up to look, and saw someone crouched before him, pressing that bamboo hat that was on his own head on Xie Lian’s head.

…It was that man who was just cussing loudly at him!

IT WAS AN ACTION OF ONE SMALL INSIGNIFICANT MAN, ONE WHOSE NAME WE WILL NEVER KNOW AND HE DID AN ACT THAT WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR CENTURIES T-T IT WAS THE ACT OF A MAN WHO CHOSE TO PUT ASIDE DIFFERENCES TO HELP A FELLOW PERSON! IT WAS THE ACT OF GIVING UP YOUR OWN PERSONAL COMFORT TO PROVIDE COMFORT TO SOMEONE ELSE! IT WAS SUCH A FORGETTABLE ACT THAT SAVED MILLIONS OF LIVES NOT JUST NOW, BUT IN THE FUTURE! IT WAS SO SMALL YET SO LARGE THAT NO ONE PERSON COULD CONTAIN THE MAGNANIMITY OF THIS ACT I CANT IM ACC CRYING FROM THIS I CANT FONWOFINOQFNOEF

IT TOOK JUST ONE PERSON TO BRING HIM BACK! ONE PERSON OH M GOD I CaNt I cant my heart is so overwhelmed rn It's like suddenly the initial stabbing scene doesn't matter anymore, yknow?! There is still kindness left in this cruel ugly world, it's like no matter how harsh the land, there will always be a small white flower growing even when there is no water or light I CANT WJNWJNCWLNCLKW

“I SAID FUCK YOU!!! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, TO DARE TALK TO ME LIKE THIS?? I AM THE CROWN PRINCE!!!”

Upon his face, two lines of tears were already streaming down from his eyes.

One person. Just one.

Really.

Just one person was enough!

INCOHERET SCREAMING

Under the rain, Xie Lian was holding that sword up, and he said darkly, “As long as you use this sword to pierce me, you won’t be affected by the Human Face Disease.”

I. AM. LOSING. MY. MIND

'MY DREAM IS TO SAVE THE COMMON PEOPLE' IWBIWUBCC HE DIDN'T FORGET HIS DREAM I AM FULL ON SOBBING OFHWHFWIHFWHFW

Xie Lian had his back turned to him. “If a day isn’t enough, then let it take a month; if a month won’t do then two months, three months! If I can’t save ten thousand, then I’ll save a thousand; if I can’t save a thousand then I’ll save a hundred, TEN, EVEN IF IT’S ONLY ONE!!!”

AND IT IS THE SAME PEOPLE SHOWING HIM KINDESS SNJSSJSJ OH MY GOOOOODDD

Xie Lian didn’t receive the excruciating pain he anticipated, but instead there was a loud and clear, “YOU CAN’T!!”

“…”

He whipped his head over to look. The one who knocked that black sword down was actually that little water merchant!

Ok I am obsessed with this random old woman lol

The wife of that little merchant kept elbowing him, but when she heard that she instantly exploded, yelling with her face red, “MOTHERFUCKING BULLSHIT, WHO’S SHORTCHANGING?? COME THE HELL OUT AND SAY THIS TO MY FACE!”

ahh so he chose banishment of his own will the second time. I dunno why baby boi was so ashamed of his shackles. He should have worn them with pride. Honestly, knowing how they came about, I don't think any crown he could ever wear would be compared to the beauty of these shackles T-T

Also it's super cute how he's helping build Mu Qing and Feng xin's temples, like an act of paying them back all they did in the past. And also love how he's trying to get their followers to get along (foreshadowing him matchmaking them in the future mayhaps?)

My heart cracked a little (not that it wasn't already cracked enough lol)

Jun Wu looked at him intently, and after a long while, he said, “Xianle has grown up.” This should’ve been something Xie Lian heard from his elders. Unfortunately, his father and mother had no more chances to say it.

wait Jun Wu killed White-No face in FRONT of Xie Lian....what in the heck is going on?!?!?!?! I am the edge of my seat!!

THE WHOLE HUA CHENG SCENE WHAT THE HELL I CANT IT"S LIKE CAN THESE TWO CALM DOWN!!!!! IF YOUR DREAM IS TO SAVE THE COMMON PEOPLE MY DREAM IS ONLY YOU AND HE LIVED UP TO IT I WILL CRY I CAN'T PLZ COME BACK HUA CHENG I AM BROKEN BEYOND WORDS

He said to it, “I hope we shall meet again.”

Even after he had gone into the distance, that tiny, little red flower was still dancing in the wind.

The white flower and the red flower T-T

IT WAS ALWAYS ONE PERSON THAT HE NEEDED TO BELIEVE IN HIM AS WELL AND THAT ONE PERSON AS BEEN WITH HIM ALL ALONG I AM CRYING BDUFJDJDJFJFJFJFJJDJFJFJFJ I CANT FJCJCJJVJFKFKD PLZ DJDJXJJDJDJD THEY ARE EVERYTHING TO ME

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i did not expect the last 3 chapters to be so wild, but damn....book 4 was wild. I feel like a war veteran coming out of a long drawn out battle....that I finally won...after losing so many people. I am fundamentally changed as a human, god this was insane

....and there's still book 5 left (immense dread)

[every-orochimaru]

[psychewritesbs]

Chapter 198: Sakurajima Colony—JJK is about enlightened Buddhist Monks?; no JJK is about sexy shirtless men; Unpopular opinion: two wrongs don’t make a right; So is she going to kick Naoya’s ass after all?

Happy JJK-Sunday!

Am I the only one who had lost track of the chapter number?

Anyways... the art in this chapter was beautiful! My favorite panels below the cut.

JJK is about enlightened Buddhist Monks?

I’m really curious about the hand mudra Naoya is doing. I’m curious about its meaning... especially given the text in the panel:

Naoya’s persistence finally blooms

The actual name of his domain expansion sounds so symbolic too.

Also love the pupil behind Naoya. I’m not sure it means anything in the grander scheme of things, but, not only does it look artistically appealing, I also love the idea that there’s an all-seeing-eye in Naoya’s domain. There’s something so creepy and sinister about it.

Gege knows his cosmic horror!

Which kind of reminds me that when I first read this chapter the first thing that came to mind is that jjk feels like a story/metaphor about Buddhist Monks using their psychic powers to exorcise curses, and some of them achieve “enlightenment”--they transcend their ego minds.

Considering Heian saw the rise of two esoteric branches of Buddhism--Shingon and Tendai, I have to wonder which clans belonged to which school. I can’t help but wonder about the implications of men in positions of power utilizing their psychic abilities to control the masses.

No, JJK is about sexy shirtless men

Bahaha. 

Anyways. 

Beautiful panel! It was one of my favorites in the chapter. I love that Gege wants to drive home that Naoya is/was good-looking despite his rotten core. I also love that he morphed from that ugly cursed spirit shape into his human self at will. 

It goes back to the idea that he bloomed like a pretty little flower.

Which reminds me... is it possible to consider a problematic character to be interesting AND to know that he is, indeed, problematic?

Is it?

Ah, I hate the word problematic. It’s so short-sighted and it throws the baby out with the bathwater.

I’ll figure a better word to use next time.

Unpopular opinion: two wrongs don’t make a right

I get it.

I really do.

Mai and Maki had a fucked up upbringing. They were seen as nothing more than slaves.

Not to mention that the Zenin clan was the epitome of fucked-up-family-and-interpersonal-dynamics.com because of #the patriarchy.

But... unpopular opinion af: Two wrongs don’t make a right.

Maki destroying and murdering everyone in the Zenin clan was not a victory, it was a tragedy. 

I get the whole idea behind bringing down the patriarchy and it certainly makes a lot of sense but...

To me, the whole thing looks like it is a power up girl-boss moment, but in reality I have to wonder if it was more about Mai dragging Maki and the whole Zenin clan down with her.

Can I just say that the way I personally interpret the panel above is that Mai looked “evil” (for lack of a better word)?

That smug look on her face is so... self-affirming? Like she got exactly what she wanted from Maki.

And in order to understand why this panel felt “wrong” to me, I took a little trip down memory lane. More specifically chapters 42 and 149.

As per usual, Gege is able to deliver just the right amount of details to bring a character to life.

In Mai’s case, we learn that she’s weak-minded and has always resented Maki’s strength (more specifically her mental strength).

But I think the most important detail about Mai is that she is the kind of person who drags others down with her.

Since she is weak-minded, instead of seeking to grow to better herself (growth mindset), she seeks to bring others down to her level to feel better about herself.

Mai is truly the definition of a mean girl.

And I have to admit that I love Maki’s answer to Mai: 

In chapter 149 Mai tells Best Dad of the Year contender, Ougi (I think that’s her dad’s name), about her virtuous nature just as he is about to throw his daughters into a pit full of cursed spirits.

So yeah, this girl clearly isn’t interested in anyone’s well-being but her own.

Considering Maki’s personality is such a stark contrast to Mai’s, I wonder if this is part of the curse of being born a twin in the jjk-scheme of things. 

And that’s how we end up in that pit full of cursed spirits...

And how Mai, fully aware of the curse that it is to be born a twin, sacrifices herself “for Maki’s sake”. 

But is it really for Maki’s sake?

Or because she knows that the only way to drag everyone down with her is by having Maki avenge her since she’s weak and Maki is strong?

The problem is that in asking Maki to destroy everything, she’s also inadvertently dragging Maki down with her. 

Maki who only wanted to create a safe space for Mai in the Zenin clan went and destroyed everything because Mai left her with these last words--a curse?

And Maki obliges...

I know I am in the minority interpreting the events in this way, but this doesn’t make me happy for Maki and I have to wonder whether she feels the weight of the burden of what she did--she basically killed innocent women and children for Mai’s sake. 

EDIT: OK, after re-reading the appropriate panel, I am not sure that I can say with confidence that she killed “innocent” women and children. What I can say is that she killed upwards of 36 people that day. Gender and age are unconfirmed.

I know she wanted to create a safe space for Mai, but was this really the best way to go about it?

And all because Mai was a mean girl who couldn’t stand the thought of being left behind. Mai wanted nothing but to drag everyone down with her into the hell of her own creation.

Which is interesting given the innuendo about Naoya and Mai doing adult things together... like... you know... their taxes. 

I think it’s safe to assume that she was abused and that she was at a disadvantage in the dynamic with Naoya for multiple reasons, one of them being her gender and another her age. But Mai is such a toxic character that I would not be surprised to learn that she found some sort of twisted satisfaction in a toxic dynamic with a man like Naoya.

The parallels to Toji are also very interesting because even though Toji too was heartbroken and was abused by the Zenin, Toji chose not to destroy the clan even though he could have done it.

Two wrongs don’t make a right.

Two wrongs don’t make a right is an interesting trope that is actually present as a theme in a lot of anime and manga. From Gundam to Attack on Titan, the trope usually finds a resolution somewhere in the middle, so I am curious to see how Gege will unravel this storyline.

So is she going to kick Naoya’s ass after all?

Another panel I loved!

Also, I know her hair is short because it was burned but... right now she has the same hairstyle as Mai. Symbolic much?

Ah! Anyways...

Credit where it’s due: @justafrenchlondoner​ is the one who’s been feeding me ideas about Maki’s tragedy. She’s also my voice of reason when I want to get annoyed because it feels predictable that Maki is going to defeat Naoya again. 

If anyone read this, thank you for reading and happy JJK-Sunday!

[coffeewithmytea]

Ch.198 hot take

[SPOILERS BELOW]

The kids are kidnapping Finny so he can help them rescue Ginny... it'll turn out they're all on the same side :D

I'm getting reminded of Ciel & Sebastian's grand midnight escape plan in the Germany arc, which involved kidnapping / rescuing Sieglinde.

Excited to see where this goes next!

There's definitely going to be some kind of Snake vs. Doll showdown....

[chifuya]

( I read the translations before the chapter came out and still got upset lol )

Chigiri appreciate post 😌 (even if it was for a brief moment )

Love it when Reo unleashes

My boy Nagi was in the zone til effin isagi came and wrecked it.