Now, to be honest, choosing to make this review as spoiler-free as possible really limits my possibilities. However, I wanted to bring more attention to this great manhwa and motivate people to give it a try, so I hope I can convince you! Why is it so hard to talk about Pigpen without spoiling? The reason for that lies in the way the story is arranged.
The narrative structure of this webtoon is simply incredible. It starts off as a rather underwhelming horror story, however as it feeds you small bits of information here and there it keeps you wondering about the grand schemes behind everything. As the story progresses, the truth only gets unveiled very slowly, bit by bit. Whenever you think you finally grasp what’s going on, yet another turn will make you fall from your chair and ruin all your theories. Alone, those little pieces won’t lead you to the bigger picture, they will deceive you, giving you a false sense of finally understanding what’s going - just so yet another surprising twist changes everything. You might get answers to some of your questions… though ultimately, you’ll be left completely shocked and even more confused than before. There's always at least one piece missing in the puzzle, something that doesn’t make sense no matter how you turn it. As a result, you’re very involved in the story as you’re dying to finally find out what the truth is. In a way, it’s similar to the narrative design of Attack on Titan, where one also never holds all information and keeps wondering about the central mysteries. The crucial difference here is: In AoT it usually is clear questions “What’s outside the walls?” or “What are Titans?” etc. However, in Pigpen it’s not always something one can point fingers at, but rather something that just seems off, that you can’t figure out no matter how hard you try.
The indistinguishability of reality and illusion is a very common motive in Pigpen. The way this complex element was handled really showcases the author’s exceptional talent.
#### Actual Spoiler! Spoiler, click to view Jin-Hyeok’s hallucinations which lead him to commit murder, the reality that it was all just in his mind, the perception of his victims and of the two families (and how they overlap in his mind, as he is trying to cope with his guilt) are some examples for this. This motive doesn’t just apply to the characters inside the webtoon, but also to the reader – even for us, or especially for us, it’s very hard to tell what actually did happen in the real world and what was “just” in Jin-Hyeok’s mind. While it might get confusing at times, I very much enjoyed this uncertainty as another part of the unknown, the open questions.
Now, I can imagine that this type of experience might not be for everyone, but personally I love a story that can keep me wondering all throughout. Additionally, this makes it incredibly rewarding when eventually all those little pieces of information methodically come together to form the bigger picture, allowing one to discover enlightenment. Finally, everything makes sense - one will notice the insane foreshadowing and understand why everything happened the way it did.
The extraordinary narrative isn’t the only thing Pigpen has going for it – in the later stages, as a result of the twists and developments of the story, this manhwa has a highly psychological focus. I can’t go into detail without spoiling, however this aspect is at least on par with, if not even better than the one I discussed in the first part of this review. The perplexing mental struggles of Pigpen’s characters are portrayed in a superb manner. It feels like you are inside their mind, as if you are experiencing everything from their point of view. Memory loss and hallucinations are common occurrences that make the manhwa feel more realistic – the reader doesn’t know more than the characters themselves.
Pigpen also touches upon interesting topics such as identity crisis, guilt, revenge, and atonement which are mostly relevant in the final stages. These themes are well-executed, adequately handled, and lead to a satisfactory, thematically fitting conclusion that sends out a great message. While some questions are left open – and intentionally so, corresponding to the ending’s message – all the mysteries mentioned earlier are lifted, and finally, one can see the bigger picture in full clarity, making one appreciate this amazing work.
What also deserves mentioning is the wonderful art of Pigpen. It really helps create a sinister, mysterious atmosphere and portrays psychological struggles magnificently. Facial expressions are drawn skillfully and often add an element of visual horror. The art also features visual metaphors and symbolism.
Overall, I highly recommend Pigpen if you enjoy Thriller/Horror stories featuring a psychological element . As you might guess from the summary: the reason why I started this webtoon in first place is because of the author, Carnby Kim, the creator of “Bastard”. So, if you enjoyed that manhwa, it’d be your best bet to give this work a try. And having read both pieces, in my opinion, Pigpen blows Bastard out of the water.
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#### Thanks to my man @Jaekoi for proofreading and providing some tips, you were a great help <3
## This is my first review, so any feedback is appreciated!
I’m also more than happy to discuss this great manhwa, so feel free to leave me a message :)
