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Reviews tagging 'Self harm'
The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System: Ren Zha Fanpai Zijiu Xitong (Novel) Vol. 3 by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
4 reviews
michaelceraburrito's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
remember guys the main character is NOT gay
Content Warnings
Moderate: Self harm, Violence, and Sexual content
teagstime's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is definitely one of my favorite books of all time— I read this Scum Villain unofficial translation back in January 2021 and have been obsessed with it for over a year now. It’s just a wonderful, hilarious, tragic story.
Shen Yuan/Qingqiu is a brilliant unreliable narrator. Pretty much everything he thinks is undermined by his actions (e.g. insisting he thinks of everyone as simply characters in a novel, yet grows to care for them and constantly puts himself in danger for the sake of others)(albeit he still does have many problems recognizing their agency as living people, but that’s another story lmaoo). Any time this man denies having an emotion, which is often, he’s probably having TOO MANY— but we would be none the wiser! Because he’s so good at disassociating from his own body and feelings, he Also thinks he’s telling the truth! It’s concerning! I wanna k word this man so bad (affectionate)His whole personality is another bag of worms altogether. The casual and blatant disregard for his own life? The way he locks up every emotion and vulnerability from everyone else SO HARD he even locks them away from himself? SQQ I'm gonna force you into a therapy session I swear to god
Luo Binghe is also just. So good. This is a man who truly has All The Trauma… The ‘hurt/no comfort’ tag embodied. I feel like he gets misunderstood by a lot of people, which is incredibly upsetting to me, because he is so interesting and tragic and great??Yes, he gets a little unhinged post-abyss, but wouldn’t you? If the first person to ever show you kindness & love suddenly condemns you as the worst kind of evil and throws you into a literal hellscape after stabbing you in the chest??? Sorry to Shen Qingqiu but I would also go a little crazy wondering why! He’s calculated and terrifying and all-encompassing, and he decided to give his entire heart & soul to 1 (one) person and act a complete fool around him forever. King shit fr… Like seriously I care about this funky lil crybaby so much. I have kept it short here on purpose because this review would be 2x longer if I ranted about how much I love Luo Binghe rn… He gives me ALL the feelings. Shoutout SQQ bc I’m also having Binghe brainworms 24/7!
I think this novel also has a really neat relationship w its tropes, because mxtx wrote SVSSS as a commentary on harem/stallion novels and many of the plot devices they- and other things in the romance genre- tend to use, as well as things like transmigration stories, internet trolls/redditor-type dudebros, and male power fantasies in general! There are so many takes and subversions in this book that I just ! Care about so much !! And find so interesting to think about !! For example, with Luo Binghe’s power as the protagonist: unlike your typical male action hero / Shonen protag, he gets severely punished for powering up.Yeah, sure, he gets a cool demon sword that can cut open dimensional rifts. At the cost of the security in his most important relationship, with his special person. You’re now gonna feel insecure of your place forever and constantly fear being abandoned. On top of that, he has to deal with mental instability and bouts of becoming mind-controlled by said demonic sword— Like Xin Mo is literally poisoning his mind !! It will make you the strongest, but you will lose your sanity, leading to a horrible, slow death— and you’ll get to unknowingly hurt/kill the people you care about on your way out!! Because your sense of autonomy and comfort in your own skin is now forfeit! SURPRISE !! :)
Another aspect I really love (which I’ve seen some hate/uncertainty toward) is Bingqiu’s relationship itself— I guess I can understand if there’s tropes that aren’t your thing, or if there’s dynamics in their relationship you find toxic or unhealthy. However ! Concerning the toxicity/unhealthy parts of their relationship… a lot of it stems from mxtx’s commentary on harem tropes and male power fantasies? Those stories are damaging and gratuitous and horrifying, especially for the love interests, who are often just there to be put in traumatizing situations and papapa’d better… And the all-powerful male protag is often just.. overbearing and entitled and arrogant and creepy. No relationship’s gonna come out of that kind of environment unscathed!
Imo the tragic & horrible parts of their relationship just make the ending so much better?
Despite all the ways Bingqiu miscommunicate & hurt each other over the course of the novel, they really do love each other. Just because things aren’t resolutely tied up with a bow at the end doesn’t mean they don’t! It just makes it more real and heartwarming to me. These are people who have misunderstood one another constantly, who have made mistakes and hurt the one they love… and they have to live with it. No do-overs. And they make the conscious decision to be together despite it all! I think it ends with a really heartwarming feeling, like!! They have a lot of work to do to be able to move forward after all this trauma and heartache, but they’re going to try and make it work! Because they are in love! And they want each other to be happy! It’s so sweet!! Even though Bingqiu are quite literally soulmates, relationships are never going to be easy— esp one with as much baggage as this— and the novel ends with them still having all these issues, but ! They’re going to try to face them ! And learn from their mistakes, together!!! That’s LOVE baby!!!
Anyway! Christ,, , I did not mean to make this a novel on its own OTL I could and would keep talking, but… I will cut myself off lmaooo
TLDR; I care this book a lot
Shen Yuan/Qingqiu is a brilliant unreliable narrator. Pretty much everything he thinks is undermined by his actions (e.g. insisting he thinks of everyone as simply characters in a novel, yet grows to care for them and constantly puts himself in danger for the sake of others)(albeit he still does have many problems recognizing their agency as living people, but that’s another story lmaoo). Any time this man denies having an emotion, which is often, he’s probably having TOO MANY— but we would be none the wiser! Because he’s so good at disassociating from his own body and feelings, he Also thinks he’s telling the truth! It’s concerning! I wanna k word this man so bad (affectionate)
Luo Binghe is also just. So good. This is a man who truly has All The Trauma… The ‘hurt/no comfort’ tag embodied. I feel like he gets misunderstood by a lot of people, which is incredibly upsetting to me, because he is so interesting and tragic and great??
I think this novel also has a really neat relationship w its tropes, because mxtx wrote SVSSS as a commentary on harem/stallion novels and many of the plot devices they- and other things in the romance genre- tend to use, as well as things like transmigration stories, internet trolls/redditor-type dudebros, and male power fantasies in general! There are so many takes and subversions in this book that I just ! Care about so much !! And find so interesting to think about !! For example, with Luo Binghe’s power as the protagonist: unlike your typical male action hero / Shonen protag, he gets severely punished for powering up.
Another aspect I really love (which I’ve seen some hate/uncertainty toward) is Bingqiu’s relationship itself— I guess I can understand if there’s tropes that aren’t your thing, or if there’s dynamics in their relationship you find toxic or unhealthy. However ! Concerning the toxicity/unhealthy parts of their relationship… a lot of it stems from mxtx’s commentary on harem tropes and male power fantasies? Those stories are damaging and gratuitous and horrifying, especially for the love interests, who are often just there to be put in traumatizing situations and papapa’d better… And the all-powerful male protag is often just.. overbearing and entitled and arrogant and creepy. No relationship’s gonna come out of that kind of environment unscathed!
Imo the tragic & horrible parts of their relationship just make the ending so much better?
Anyway! Christ,, , I did not mean to make this a novel on its own OTL I could and would keep talking, but… I will cut myself off lmaooo
TLDR; I care this book a lot
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Death, Sexual content, Grief, Self harm, and Body horror
Moderate: Rape, Torture, and Kidnapping
mdride's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse
nitzanschwarz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Vo.3 Arcs: Begins right where vol.2 ends, with SQQ imprisoned by LBH to the end of the main story
SPOILERS AHEAD - NOT MARKED (entire review is very spoilery)
B 84%| Quite Good!
Many answers are given in this installment as the finale to the “main story”, but now I really need vol. 4 to come out ASAP because there was barely any fluff in this and that’s criminal.
A note: MXTX’s novels are always fun reads that suck you in. SVSSS is, especially, humorous, and I definitely recommend picking up this series. However, I have a lot of things I’m a bit iffy about with this volume and this review is going to be mostly me grumbling about those – so if you’re a die-hard fan that doesn’t care to hear any negative commentary (which is totally fair btw), please don’t read further.
<(_ _*)> 谢谢啦~
Plot Conclusion
The setup of Scum Villain has always promised us that Shen Qingqiu will need to fill in some of the plot holes from the original work, and in this finale (of the main plot) we finally get to tie up most of the loose ends. Was much of it predictable? Yes, very. I don’t think anyone can ever say MXTX is super subtle, especially since she loves giving characters meaningful names. However, that didn’t really detract from my enjoyment, and I was even surprised by the reveal of who the final boss was. Maybe I should’ve expected it to be Binghe, but for some reason, I didn’t
It was, though, a bit weird to realize many of those plot solutions were never really shared with anyone else. Shen Qingqiu was blamed for the sower incident, for killing his adoptive family, for killing the Huan Hua Palace’s disciples, and for being the student of some villainous person who’s never really discussed in depth. While we watched him find out the real culprits, no one else did, nor does it ever say that Shen Qingqiu or anyone else explained to anyone—it’s always “I’ll tell you later”. So how is he absolved from all these “crimes”?
Not to mention, there are some new plot holes to contend with. Most are rather dumb, but I’m a dumb woman who is easily amused by the fact a book grumbling about plot holes has plot holes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Did Without a Cure get cured with Shen Qingqiu’s death? Because they hyped the “cure” (i.e. sex with Binghe) so much it seemed odd that upon Shen Qingqiu’s return to his original body it just poofed out of existence. But then, that seems to be a trend, because even the Ties That Bind thing (or however it was called) vanished despite Zhuzhi-lang missing a few healing sessions. And what about original Shen Qingqiu’s “master” who was apparently some kind of psycho but is never even explained?....
Original Shen Qingqiu’s Backstory
It was not bad enough. There! I said it! Was it surprising that he was abused in that “adoptive” household of his? Heck no. Does it excuses slaughtering all the men in the house, then later betraying all his sect brothers in the original timeline? Not really, especially when we see zero indication that anyone else was in on the abuse. In fact, it appears brother dearest specifically hid it behind closed doors and even pretended to favor him, to the point of betrothing him to his sister!
Side Characters Deserve Better
Honestly, there were a couple of really upsetting deaths in this series, not because they happened, but because of how they were treated. Gongyi died off-page, as a random afterthought, in the last volume, but it’s in this volume that we found out why he died and it’s… so anticlimactic? It’s barely a consideration, it’s so… pointless. Then there is Gongyi’s murderer, Zhuzhi-lang, who was well-meaning but misguided, loyal to the bone, and he just… died. Poof. I had to do a double take when one of the characters says “take his bones” because I was like WHAT. These characters deserved better than some off-page death with barely any consequence or mention.
Romance
Oh boy, how do I get into this one… I am not on board. Like, this relationship makes me capital letter Uncomfertable, even though I really wanted to love it. But… Binghe literally assaulted Shen Qingqiu. He wants Shen Qingqiu isolated from anyone else, to the point that internally smiling toward someone else—not even actually smiling, just Binghe perceiving Shizun to smile on the inside—is considered an offense. He physically hurts Shen Qingqiu. And at the end of the day, Shen Qingqiu is so guilt-ridden over the mental injuries he has given Binghe (separation anxiety and abandonment issues), that he decides to leave with him, leave the things he loves and the people he cares for… all to keep the psyche of Binghe sane.
Like, idk. To me, this is a highly unhealthy relationship. And this book didn’t really do a good job at convincing me this was mostly due to Xin Mo driving Binghe crazy. Hopefully, Vol.4 will give us an insight into what a “sane Luo Binghe” is as a partner that will offset these honestly highly problematic behaviors of his and prove that he is the right partner for Shizun, because right now I don’t see it. Right now, it feels abusive.
And it literally pains me to say this, because I am such an unabashedly huge fan of MXTX’s other two couples and I wanted to love it as much as I love WangXian or HuaLian.
Final judgment on this couple is reserved until Vol. 4.
SEX
It exists in this novel. It's graphic, but It’s not sexy, it’s not pleasant, it’s not exciting, so don’t expect any of that. Just a little warning, if you’ve chosen to read my spoilery review.
Where Are the Soft Bingqiu Illustrations??
There are soft moments in this book. Kisses and hugs and smiles exchanged between our main couple, and yes, they’re all tinged with a sense of desperation and obsession, but they’re there. But did we get illustrations of these? NO! Is it too much to ask for one or two sweet illustrations? (இ﹏இ`｡)
That being said, that specific illustration on page 37 may or may not have gotten me pregnant ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Not Enough Mobei-jun and Shan Qinghua
Honestly, a part of me thinks a much more pleasant novel to follow would’ve been about this weak ass bitch of an author tittering around in the demon world as Mobei-jun’s underlining who for some (inexplicable) reason gets really good treatment, and is just always next to the general…but the general says nothing about it aside for occasionally throwing him around and everyone is super confused but don’t dare say something about it…
Yeah, I want this novel. I hope there are some extras on these extras.
Story and Setting –18/20
Characters –18/20
Relationships –15/20
Translation – 15/20
Reading Experience –18/20
Final Score: 84
SPOILERS AHEAD - NOT MARKED (entire review is very spoilery)
B 84%| Quite Good!
Many answers are given in this installment as the finale to the “main story”, but now I really need vol. 4 to come out ASAP because there was barely any fluff in this and that’s criminal.
A note: MXTX’s novels are always fun reads that suck you in. SVSSS is, especially, humorous, and I definitely recommend picking up this series. However, I have a lot of things I’m a bit iffy about with this volume and this review is going to be mostly me grumbling about those – so if you’re a die-hard fan that doesn’t care to hear any negative commentary (which is totally fair btw), please don’t read further.
<(_ _*)> 谢谢啦~
Plot Conclusion
The setup of Scum Villain has always promised us that Shen Qingqiu will need to fill in some of the plot holes from the original work, and in this finale (of the main plot) we finally get to tie up most of the loose ends. Was much of it predictable? Yes, very. I don’t think anyone can ever say MXTX is super subtle, especially since she loves giving characters meaningful names. However, that didn’t really detract from my enjoyment, and I was even surprised by the reveal of who the final boss was. Maybe I should’ve expected it to be Binghe, but for some reason, I didn’t
It was, though, a bit weird to realize many of those plot solutions were never really shared with anyone else. Shen Qingqiu was blamed for the sower incident, for killing his adoptive family, for killing the Huan Hua Palace’s disciples, and for being the student of some villainous person who’s never really discussed in depth. While we watched him find out the real culprits, no one else did, nor does it ever say that Shen Qingqiu or anyone else explained to anyone—it’s always “I’ll tell you later”. So how is he absolved from all these “crimes”?
Not to mention, there are some new plot holes to contend with. Most are rather dumb, but I’m a dumb woman who is easily amused by the fact a book grumbling about plot holes has plot holes ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Did Without a Cure get cured with Shen Qingqiu’s death? Because they hyped the “cure” (i.e. sex with Binghe) so much it seemed odd that upon Shen Qingqiu’s return to his original body it just poofed out of existence. But then, that seems to be a trend, because even the Ties That Bind thing (or however it was called) vanished despite Zhuzhi-lang missing a few healing sessions. And what about original Shen Qingqiu’s “master” who was apparently some kind of psycho but is never even explained?....
Original Shen Qingqiu’s Backstory
It was not bad enough. There! I said it! Was it surprising that he was abused in that “adoptive” household of his? Heck no. Does it excuses slaughtering all the men in the house, then later betraying all his sect brothers in the original timeline? Not really, especially when we see zero indication that anyone else was in on the abuse. In fact, it appears brother dearest specifically hid it behind closed doors and even pretended to favor him, to the point of betrothing him to his sister!
Side Characters Deserve Better
Honestly, there were a couple of really upsetting deaths in this series, not because they happened, but because of how they were treated. Gongyi died off-page, as a random afterthought, in the last volume, but it’s in this volume that we found out why he died and it’s… so anticlimactic? It’s barely a consideration, it’s so… pointless. Then there is Gongyi’s murderer, Zhuzhi-lang, who was well-meaning but misguided, loyal to the bone, and he just… died. Poof. I had to do a double take when one of the characters says “take his bones” because I was like WHAT. These characters deserved better than some off-page death with barely any consequence or mention.
Romance
Oh boy, how do I get into this one… I am not on board. Like, this relationship makes me capital letter Uncomfertable, even though I really wanted to love it. But… Binghe literally assaulted Shen Qingqiu. He wants Shen Qingqiu isolated from anyone else, to the point that internally smiling toward someone else—not even actually smiling, just Binghe perceiving Shizun to smile on the inside—is considered an offense. He physically hurts Shen Qingqiu. And at the end of the day, Shen Qingqiu is so guilt-ridden over the mental injuries he has given Binghe (separation anxiety and abandonment issues), that he decides to leave with him, leave the things he loves and the people he cares for… all to keep the psyche of Binghe sane.
Like, idk. To me, this is a highly unhealthy relationship. And this book didn’t really do a good job at convincing me this was mostly due to Xin Mo driving Binghe crazy. Hopefully, Vol.4 will give us an insight into what a “sane Luo Binghe” is as a partner that will offset these honestly highly problematic behaviors of his and prove that he is the right partner for Shizun, because right now I don’t see it. Right now, it feels abusive.
And it literally pains me to say this, because I am such an unabashedly huge fan of MXTX’s other two couples and I wanted to love it as much as I love WangXian or HuaLian.
Final judgment on this couple is reserved until Vol. 4.
SEX
It exists in this novel. It's graphic, but It’s not sexy, it’s not pleasant, it’s not exciting, so don’t expect any of that. Just a little warning, if you’ve chosen to read my spoilery review.
Where Are the Soft Bingqiu Illustrations??
There are soft moments in this book. Kisses and hugs and smiles exchanged between our main couple, and yes, they’re all tinged with a sense of desperation and obsession, but they’re there. But did we get illustrations of these? NO! Is it too much to ask for one or two sweet illustrations? (இ﹏இ`｡)
That being said, that specific illustration on page 37 may or may not have gotten me pregnant ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Not Enough Mobei-jun and Shan Qinghua
Honestly, a part of me thinks a much more pleasant novel to follow would’ve been about this weak ass bitch of an author tittering around in the demon world as Mobei-jun’s underlining who for some (inexplicable) reason gets really good treatment, and is just always next to the general…but the general says nothing about it aside for occasionally throwing him around and everyone is super confused but don’t dare say something about it…
Yeah, I want this novel. I hope there are some extras on these extras.
Story and Setting –18/20
Characters –18/20
Relationships –15/20
Translation – 15/20
Reading Experience –18/20
Final Score: 84
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Self harm, and Mental illness
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