Masochist that Doesn’t Want to Submit to a Sadist
Sections:
About
Tags
Warnings
Synopsis
Review
Results
About:
Author(s)
Artist(s)
Platform(s)/Publisher(s)
Media Type(s) Available:
Length:
Color(s) of Comic:
Work Type:
Tags:
Tropes
Genres
Relationships
Jobs/Professions
Settings
Unique Character Types
Specific Acts
Explicitness
Additional Content
Warning:
This review will contain spoilers for the manga and anime series Sugar & Mustard. While the manga may vary slightly from all other forms of media, it may have similar story elements and could be considered spoilers.
Content Warning: There may be references to BDSM, dubcon, PTSD, mentions of incest (not between the main couple), manipulation, and violence, as they appear in the manga.
Synopsis:
Masachika should be a hot commodity, but his own preferences keep him on the market. As a male masochist (or an M, for short), Masachika is a rarity. The problem is, Masachika doesn’t want your average sadist (or S, for short). He wants an S that he can control, which goes against every natural instinct an S has. So, Masachika is on the hunt, possibly for a partner that doesn’t even exist.
That is, until his bartender friend introduces Masachika to Seiji.
Seiji is an S, but with a limited number of Ms out there, it isn’t totally uncommon for switching to occur. So, Seiji played as an M with his last partner. Seiji is also a college student with little experience. Seiji might just be the perfect partner for Masachika to mold into his ideal S. But even an inexperienced S like Seiji has instincts, and he may not be able to hold himself back.
Review:
Admittedly, the art didn’t speak to me initially. The faces are very narrow, and with Seiji’s fluffy, straightened hairstyle, he was giving unnattractive mushroom to me some of the time. Thankfully, that isn’t an issue all of the time. Inconsistent, but not bad. It is also pretty expressive, which I like, and I am all for contrasting designs: Masachika being the much more expressive, extroverted, and brighter one, while Seiji is the cold prince. It isn’t all that unique, but it is nice, and sometimes that is enough.
Now, before we dive into the story, I do want to talk about the setting. This is ultimately a biokink title (yay). However, it was a bit hit-or-miss there for me for a while. In a lot of these biokink titles, there is some time taken to explain the structure of the world. In this, however, the most we get is a note about a law having been passed that requires matching between sadists and masochists. Also, the fact that it is masochists and sadists vs subs and doms is rather unique for this. It didn’t feel as biological as most biokink titles do, which was both confusing and disappointing.
However, I was excited by the prospect of more unique kinks being represented, as masochism and sadism suggest much more humiliating or violent play. Unfortunately, it is not only pretty tame, but some of the sex scenes aren’t even really shown all that much. This is explicit, don’t get me wrong, but there are some moments that are censored almost like they were in a softcore title, which was weird in a biokink title like this. There is your standard bondage and threats of possible exhibitionism, but other than the sounding scene, there isn’t much that I would call unique in this title. They might as well have just been called doms and subs, as there wasn’t much in the way of sadomasochism here.
Even if the BDSM wasn’t all that unique or interesting, I was hoping that the story itself would be good, but this, unfortunately, misses on that front, too. Transitions between scenes? None to be found. This thing feels very choppy, and Masachika’s indecisiveness about the type of sadist he wants doesn’t feel like a deeper character trait, but like the creator couldn’t figure out how to transition from a man who didn’t want to be dominated to one who did. This also suffers from the final act’s ex appearance that I have grown to really despise. This was a tough one to read, which is really unfortunate.
Results:
I was so looking forward to this title. I love biokink works, and seeing that it was taking it from a unique angle got my hopes up in ways that it just didn’t meet. It had a ton of potential, but it seemed like it couldn’t decide if it really wanted to be a true biokink story or not, and that resulted in weak BDSM scenes. Add in the really choppy pacing and the shoehorning of the ex in at the end, and this was just a disappointment. I will say, this does have some pretty panels during the sex scenes, but even for a degenerate like me, that couldn’t save this one.
Have you read Sugar & Mustard? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!
