>>281657410
>I just kept thinking how the kid was a lost cause
I see. Well, agree to disagree then. I don't remember how I felt when I read it the 1st time versus my 5th, but I see it as him going through a rollercoaster that eventually gets easier to move on and move up in life. It feels very true to life, as progress is rarely ever linear. Jeremy falling behind at times was accompanied by him getting back up and overall improving his situation. I mean, he was prostituting himself, impoverished and malnourished, while refusing to get help beforehand. Him moving on to getting counselling and taking control over his sexuality, while also having a healthier relationship with food is a big step up. I don't call this a lost cause imo.

And maybe it's because I read it to the end, but it's hard to see the work as simply misery porn. It showed the depths of depravity, but it also showed a lot of humanity over the course of the manga too. Again, it still doesn't portray humanity as sunshine and rainbows, but it doesn't make you completely lose hope.