I could not have put it better. What adds to it for me as well is that within the stories the age gaps are mentioned at questionable as well. So it is also lot like the age gap is fine within the stories which just makes me question the decision even more. I do love the writing and the conflicts but there is always the part that doesn’t fully let me enjoy it and get into it
I can't take the age gap for real. Mostly because they don't act like that have such an gap and they don't look like it. So I'm just thinking "that's a crazy number" and ignore it.
In other pairings it's not so easy to ignore like the one with the minor and the school doctor. That just feels very wrong.
I feel you, I also want to add that sometimes I don't feel her couples have that much chemistry to make up for the age gap, like, Katsumi and his BF, barely anyone who read Jackass liked them, they have nothing in common and it was more (and looks like still is) just Katsumi insisting on romancing his crusty ass, and I get the same feeling from Hosaka, he just looked at a minor and decided he wants to be his lover and proceed to stick to him like glue until he became a legal adult to make more sexual advances and get jelous at the idea of him finding someone else, jesus christ, really???
I liked the part when Hosaka "showed his true self" but still, is not like, they know each other deeply or anything, and I don't really find it interesting.
Yeah, I get what you mean, when the relationship doesn’t have enough chemistry or meaningful connection to balance out the age gap, it just ends up feeling forced or uncomfortable.
With Katsumi and his BF in Jackass, I also never really saw the compatibility beyond Katsumi pushing for it.
And with Hosaka, the whole “wait until they’re legal” dynamic makes it worse, because instead of showing a natural build-up of mutual feelings, its like possessiveness over a literal child who didn’t even get a chance to explore other relationships and his sexuality.
Even when they have moments like Hosaka “showing his true self,” it still doesn’t feel like they know each other on a deeper level it’s just surface affection layered over a problematic foundation.
That’s why, for me, the age gap in these cases isn’t just a “number I can ignore,” it’s tied to how the story frames their interactions, and when it’s written like this, it’s hard to see it as romantic at all....sucks because scarlet berikos art is so peak but stories tend to lack ┗( T﹏T )┛
Unpopular opinion: It seems like Scarlet Beriko has a thing for significant age gaps in her works, this series the "Redeem" series plus several other of her stories. Mind you I buy her works and I absolutely love the art, storytelling, and plot development, but man the age gaps are a bit much, particularly where one of the characters is borderline a minor. It feels uncomfortable to enjoy it, and then the seme is depicted as somewhat a pedo (what kinda 39 yr old is attracted to a 19 yr old bruh plus he had his eyes on him when he was even younger ewww) . I just feel like a lot of her stories would be sooo much more enjoyable if the age gaps were smaller — it wouldn’t take anything away from the plot; in fact, it would probably enhance the reading experience.