right like everyone’s being so dramatic? pls…. too traumatized by actual black flag mls that were projecting on Andrew
I love this and I think it's a very sensible interpretation. I wouldn't mind whether his behavior is actually possessive or just misunderstood awkwardness. I 100% agree w the hsed time forming boundaries.
However, I do think that there is a robust foundation in this story for a more neurotic rather than an awkward Andrew. He was a mayor/senator's son and knows how to "perform" friendliness and sociability in front of others. Yet at the same time he didn't receive love or protection from his parents which made him have to resort to violence ( though just empty threats) to shake off a stalker.
Anyway, another unfortunate and more meta speculation is that because "crazy" and "possessive" sells in the webtoons space, we're gonna see an Andrew crash out. Ch 45 makes it seem as though luke appreciates monopolizing Andrew's time and affection, though he recognizes and wants andrew to branch out. But he wouldn't be opposed to a more possessove andrew (this is a reach)? And then the plot with whatshisname director that dropped them on the project is still building up in the background. And that guy is just straight up violent so who knows what will happen if Andrew needs to protect who he most cherishes.
Anyway I'm ngl, I like a little possessiveness in a relationship but Im curious... How aware is Andrew about how he's perceived by others? Does he think/realize/recognize he's possessive?
Me too, a little possessiveness is cute and honestly I think a healthy amount will stay with him. His current behavior just comes off as more 'clingy' from not knowing how to handle his new dynamic with Luke. He's kinda got his head in the clouds a bit, but he's nowhere near the black flag ML's we've been seeing in some recent webtoons. Neurotic actually might be applicable.
I love stumbling on folks who analyze in the comments section.
Tangent but. I wonder if the author is making an effort to make Andrew neurodivergent/somewhere on the autism spectrum. Which would explain his masking and discomfort with social situations. Maybe not the clinginess tho lol.
I wonder if Andrew w autism is a headcanon some readers have. But then some people are also ableist and see autism as a negative trait. And idk what type of people be reading this story.
He doesnt fit the criteria perfectly, but it's also a work of fiction and it could be a romanticized version of some sort of neurodivergence. Thoughts?
Hahaha, me too! I think it also says a lot about the author's writing that we as readers can find so much to talk about.
My guess right now would be that he was designed with some degree of neurodivergence traits but is, as you mentioned, slightly romanticized. As of now, I don't think this aspect of him is going to take center stage in the plot(like it does in Rivalry) just because there is an impending danger kind of lurking in the horizon(that director that quit). I don't know if I'd quite describe him with autism just bc as of now, it seems like his behavior was mostly been shaped by his past experiences rather than a trait he was born with. Because of this, I do think he'll become a less uptight and more friendly overtime with Luke and his friends' influence.
I've seen quite a few webtoons that romanticize some form of neurodivergence, mostly as a way to explain the ML's fixation on the MC. I doubt it'l be heavily addressed or a focal point here Luke and Andrew's relationship seems like the most seamless part of the story so far. I'd guess that the author gave Andrew some 'odd quirks' more to showcase Luke's positive influence on him over time. His interaction with Malcolm kind of hinted in that direction.
There's a lot of discourse on Andrew recently so I wanted to add my 2 cents.
Based on my reading, Andrew's current 'possessiveness' is really not that bad. Rather than being excessive, unreasonable, or overbearing(which we see often in webtoons lately), it seems like Andrew is just extremely enthusiastic that he finally has someone he loves and trusts in his corner. As a result of his enthusiasm for Luke AND his lack of prior proper/positIve social experiences, Andrew is essentially a little socially stunted and is struggling to understand the boundaries and navigation of his relationship with Luke.
I'd argue that once he develops better social connections with others and feels more settled in his relationship with Luke, the 'overbearingness' would dim down. His clinginess now is just him not knowing how to handle the enthusiasm for this new dynamic with Luke.
The whole thing with the scissors and malcom, my guess is that the author put that in to highlight Andrew's awkwardness and how easy that can be misunderstood. Essentially, others like Malcom see his almost stand off-ish and clingy behavior and easily misinterpret it. Thus, Malcolm's initial reaction is something negative about the scissor incident. But rly, it's just Andrew being awkward/love-drunk, and easily misunderstood. This is in stark contrast with Luke, whose sociability makes him beloved and trusted by others.