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In recent years, a type of story called “withdrawal flow” has gradually become popular in Japanese online novels and light novels. This type of work usually revolves around a protagonist who is not valued by the team, and the protagonist gradually demonstrates their true value after being expelled, while the original team often falls into difficulties after losing the protagonist. Although this setting is quite dramatic, the reason for leaving the team is often not reasonable, which also triggered many readers’ roast.
In response to this, Japanese writer “Tsukishima” expressed his own views, believing that the core of the withdrawal genre works is not the legitimacy of the reasons for withdrawal, but rather to evoke emotional resonance and a sense of revenge among readers.
The essence of withdrawal flow: Unreasonable reasons for withdrawal are the only reasons for satisfaction
Yue ノみんと “is a writer who specializes in writing works about quitting teams. He has published articles online discussing the reasons for quitting teams in such works. He stated that many readers have criticized the main characters in these works for not having reasonable reasons to leave the team, believing that there should be more legitimate reasons to drive the plot forward. But he retorted that the charm of the withdrawal flow lies in the unreasonable withdrawal plot. The protagonist is innocently driven away, and the reader feels aggrieved for him. This sense of unfairness deepens the protagonist’s pleasure of revenge and can also make the reader more involved in the protagonist’s counterattack.
For example, his publication last year, “The Growth Revolution of the Strongest Fu and the Sorcerer,” is a typical withdrawal work, in which the protagonist gradually grows after being expelled by the team and ultimately achieves his own success.
And the upcoming new work “Ashikaga no Uta”, which will be released in November this year, also follows the path of retiring from the team, with the protagonist being expelled by the Medical Association and instead shining in the commercial field.
Netizens‘ roast: discussion on reasonable reasons for leaving the team
Moon’s views have sparked a lot of discussion among netizens. Some people support his view that withdrawing from the team does not require too much pursuit of rationality, as long as the story is straightforward. But many netizens have also discussed whether the reasons for leaving the team are legitimate.
Some netizens have suggested that if the protagonist does not demonstrate sufficient value in the team and is considered “useless” and expelled, this is actually a reasonable reason for leaving the team. For example, a netizen mentioned, “Even if the protagonist awakens later or possesses powerful abilities, it is understandable for the team to choose to expel him if he behaves incompetent at the time
This viewpoint holds that if the protagonist is not understood by the team or does not meet the standards, it should be a reasonable reason for expulsion.
Another group of netizens expressed that sometimes the reasons for quitting the team are too outrageous and difficult to accept. For example, some netizens roast that some protagonists were pushed out by the team just because they worked too hard. This setting is really puzzling.
The Charm of Retribution: The Ending of the Villain Character
Although the reasons for leaving the team in many works are not reasonable enough, the fate of the team after leaving is often the focus of readers’ attention.
Some works arrange for the original team to collapse after losing the protagonist, facing various difficulties that cannot be solved, and ultimately having to acknowledge the importance of the protagonist. This type of plot can enhance the protagonist’s sense of revenge and make readers feel relieved.
However, some netizens have also mentioned that if the protagonist did not perform well at the beginning and being expelled was reasonable, then it would be unfair for the original team to suffer misfortune in the future. This setting can easily make readers feel disgusted with the story and believe that the author’s values deviate from common sense.
Balancing the Revenge and Rationality of Retribution Flow
The core of the withdrawal stream works lies in the protagonist’s counterattack and revenge, which can trigger emotional resonance among readers, especially when the protagonist is treated unfairly, readers will look forward to the protagonist’s strong return.
However, the rationality of the reasons for leaving the team is still worth discussing. Although an unreasonable withdrawal plot can lead to more dramatic conflicts, overly far fetched settings may weaken the credibility of the story. Therefore, finding a balance between the sense of satisfaction and rationality is the key to the success of retiring works.
Regardless of the reasons for quitting the team, the genre of quitting novels still occupies an important position in Japanese light novels and online novels, attracting a large number of readers’ love. And readers will continue to seek their own enjoyment between rationality and emotional resonance for this type of work.