I think this is probably one of the most personally resonant anime I have ever watched, in the absolute most depressing way possible, and I don't think I could ever recommend it to anyone.

I think this story has, by complete accident, made an extremely deep, nuanced depiction of the cycle of abuse, and the kind of impacts it can have on its' victims. This was a very oddly therapeutic and cathartic thing to watch, however it is also one of very few pieces of fiction I have ever experienced that were able to so quickly trigger a state of psychological instability within me. I should clarify that I do not think this anime is particularly amazing, or well-written, there's a reason why I said earlier that this story made a great depiction of abuse "by complete accident", this is an extremely flawed anime in ways that make the more well-depicted instances of it's themes feel entirely coincidental. I've seen this story labeled as "toxic yuri", or a story about a "yandere protagonist", or as just something along a similar vein as an anime like Mirai Nikki, I do not think any of those labels are fitting at all from my perspective, however at the same time I absolutely see why so many view this with those lenses, this story is a complete mess after all, even in ways that work in it's favor.

Every character in this story is an extremely disturbed, broken person, who is trying to cope with their trauma in various ways that all only cause further harm to those around them, and even themselves. There is a lot of exaggeration to every character in this show, which is simultaneously the area where it's biggest issues lie, but also where it ironically gives its' most displays of abuse victims. It's pretty easy to view characters like Taiyou as a horrible, shameless, offensive depiction of a sexual assault victim, or Satou's teacher as a creepy stereotype of Japanese teachers, and I won't even argue that, I agree, this anime fumbles a lot in favor of creating tension and shock value. Even the characters that I wouldn't consider as completely sickeningly portrayed are still taken to the absolute limits of believability, but it works, it shows the absolute depths of what even seemingly mild trauma can do to a person without support; and it wraps it all together by strangely humanizing the perpetrators of that abusive cycle.

It's not especially common in real life that abuse takes the form of extreme physical violence, or murder like so much fiction shows it as; it's often a lot more subtle in the real world, to the point where even the abusers often don't realize they're doing harm. I wouldn't necessarily say any of the abuse in this show is "subtle", at least from an audience perspective, but in some cases I can at least see why the abusers don't notice the harm they're causing. The best example of this, and who I would consider to be the best written character of this story (final episode notwithstanding), would be Satou's aunt. She is arguably the origin point of the entire story, the source of Satou's demented interpretation of love, her primary abuser; and yet, from the first time we see her, she's so clearly a victim of the same kind of abuse she's inspired, a completely broken woman with a warped sense of love. Not treated as an irredeemable villain, nor as someone to feel pity for; just, a person, a person who has suffered horribly and has inflicted that same suffering on those around her. She only knows what she's experienced in life, and only knows how to give to others what she's experienced, she isn't a complete unknowable monster, she's just a horrible, miserable woman who's actions have furthered an even greater chain of abuse and death.

I cannot by any means call this show a masterpiece, and I can't even in good conscience say that it handles it's themes extraordinarily well. I can however say that it very directly tackles the theme of the cycle of abuse in one of the most well-done, interesting ways I have ever seen in anime, whether intentional or not.

Final note: while I was watching this show I found this write-up on it and it helped me process my thoughts a lot about this anime. It's written very well and says a lot more that I couldn't even hope to touch on, so please if you got any value out of this review, go read it as well.