I almost gave up on this story because I was so upset by how Jiho was treated. And I don't mean the reader's reaction, but the story itself. Like--When we finally got moments of real growth and happiness for a character who had been severely mistreated by all the adults in his life, connecting with someone willing to love him completely (even if it was from a place of idolatry)... It was perfect, because we weren't just reading a young love story, but also the development of two characters who came from different backgrounds and yet fell in love. But noooooo, Jiho had to suffer the consequences of being a damn victim of grooming (wtf!), be shamed for it, and then be r4ped by another damn man who explicitly wanted to hurt him for years. That shit pissed me off; I thought we had lost the plot so badly. And then, when Yujun reappeared, I was so fucking worried that the author would turn him into a monster and justify it by saying, “Oh, he was hurt and felt betrayed. That's why he did it.” I'm not kidding. I was THAT worried about that scenario, because I'd seen many stories do that before. But... I have to say... I'm not angry about what's happening now. Yes, the pace of the story is still fast and many things haven't been developed or even acknowledged, but right now... I'm not mad, like at all. It makes sense for both of them. So... High hopes! (please please let Jiho be happy)
Nah this author just likes to make her characters (and readers) go through it before she gives them a bittersweet ending. She's a real emotional sadist. This is highest praise of course.
Let me have hope, I beg you...
you said everything so well! i also was disappointed by the same things.. jiho deserves to be genuinely happy too.. </3
Right now, I don't care about the love triangle because it's pretty obvious to me that Jo is going to be endgame, and that's fine. It's the logical choice. With that being said, OH MY GOD, I LOVE how the relationship between TJ and Yeongwoo is written, even though they're not meant to be together! Their scars and traumas bind them together to such an extent that their pain is used as a condition for staying together, and they both see it that way! While Yeongwoo fears having to wait for Taejoon again instead of being free together, Taejoon fears that this very freedom will cause Yeongwoo to leave him. Without the violence, does he have anything to guarantee that he'll stay? And the same time, he is so manipulative with his own fear that he, in the end, is hurting Yeongwoo once again. It's (at the moment) an endless cycle of pain. DAMN, IT'S SO GOOD. That's why it stresses me out when they're not the focus of the story, because there's no other dynamic where the feelings are so strongly contradictory to their narratives and the plot in general. Fuck, that's cinema. At least for me. So, so, so GOOD!
yes!! theres so much more to this story than whats on the surface and im glad someone else caught on to all the innuendos. i feel like to read this manhwa and become distracted by the “love triangle” is harmful and doesnt do much for the reader.
It's really not as good as you're making it out to be. Maybe it seems that way if you're a newer reader but as someone who's been here from the beginning? the storyline is a dumpster fire. The writers spent years dancing between the love interests. one minute the yeon is with jo blushing and carrying on about being in love with him and then he's screwing TJ THAT SAME CHAPTER. There's nothing cinematic or romantic about choosing a guy who would rather break every thing in your body and keep you tied to them in so much debt you have to sell your body.
The only reason the writers even made the switch to jo being the love interest after favoring TJ the entire storyline? Is because of the backlash they were receiving from the readers.
I never said this was cinematic let alone romantic lol? I find their relationship intriguing because of its chaotic and toxic nature, and since it’s central to the story, it’s hard not to analyze the author’s intentions with TJ and Ian's relationship. If the narrative addresses violence both inside and outside relationships, I try to see things from the characters’ perspectives, even when their actions are questionable but..... I also understand your point.
I’ve also expressed dissatisfaction about the characters’ uncertainty, I think the shifting perspectives actually show their growth, especially in the last chapter. It's not best thing but this kind of tension is common in love triangles, though I see it as a weakness of the genre rather than this specific story. Here, it works better because it highlights Yeongwoo’s struggle between what he wants, what he has, and what he might lose. At least in my opinion tho. It’s not perfect... but it’s handled better than in many similar stories.
I don't know much about this story beyond the updates, soooo I just hope the author stays true to their idea despite the criticism. And yeah... I don't have much to say about that. And, in my opinion, there has never been a moment were I was like: "Yeeeeeeah it's obvious that TJ is going to win" -->> "Oh woah why Jo is being favorite all of the sudden?" despite TJ having the strongest relationship (in terms of feelings) with Yeongwoo. Season 2 was basically the ending of their relationship, at least on how they know it and none of it happened because. Basically, I can't demand a perfect and correct solution from characters who haven't reached that point yet. But I agree with you on one thing. If this problem continues for most of the third season with no signs of real progress, then yes, I'll say you were right.
Thanks!! I'm also enjoying more the characters than the actual love triangle lmaooo
Oh, I did say it was cinema... HAHA sorry, it's a meme lmaooo I forgot about it. I just wanted to lighten up the comment, it was not that deep
Don't bother with this person, first of all that whole backlash stuff isn't real. TJ fans started harassing Jo fans on platforms like Twitter and TikTok and just started making up shit when they feel like things aren't going their way. This is just another made up excuse they've come up with now that all their narratives and "proofs" that Tjian is end game are starting to crumble.
Just think, if they new that the author was going to make Jo end game because of backlash, why bother to continue reading and why as far as last week, before this latest chapter, they were making mosts saying Tjian is going to be endgame ?
You were being fun and positive in the comments but this person is bitter and trying to rain on your parade
Exactly!! I despite TJ but he is an extremely well written character, and his relationship with Ian (no matter how much i hate it) is qo well managed
Yall need stop spreading that lie. tj never been favored because most, if not all, the scenes with him have shown how horrible he is rather than showing the good. It was never a switch up. Plus there's more tj stans than Jo stans how can the author favor a switch up when this so called backlash didn't even make a dent. She's getting more backlash from tj stans and doesn't even care. The author never cared about the fandom cries.
I know, I know, I know... They kiss, muah muah men kissing blah blah blah grown men kissing I GET IT But can we talk about how Eunsan is NOT a reliable narrator? Cause, isn't it crazy how the majority of us had a bad impression of Ian at the beginning of the story? Literally, these chapters were meeting Ian besides Eunsan's thoughts and expectations of him! He literally believed that Ian was a womanizer, but he doesn't even know how to kiss lmfaoooooooo
Hmm, I'm not sure what to think about this haha I think we've reached that point in every love triangle where indecision, jealousy, and selfishness won't allow any character to improve anytime soon. These last chapters felt crazy to me.
I LOVE REAL YEARNING lmao Like- The "old" Doumeki and this "new" version of him have always been sooo down bad Yashiro, to the point of being more than okay with the idea of dying for him (reason why he has been "abandoned" in the first place). Yashiro is such a special person for Doumeki because being with him straight-up made him feel alive again. Protecting Yashiro gave him purpose, not because it was his "job" but because he saw him as someone beautiful. Someone worth it! Even if the entire relationship has changed (alongside Doumeki), while doubt and resentment twist their path of reconciliation, it's a FACT that to this day, he will give his life for Yashiro. That's yearner at its finest.
The author was itching to screw up their characters so badly I CAN SEE THAT OH MY FUCKING GAD!!!! WHY?????????? We had a PLOT. We had a PLOT. There was a STORYLINE. What the fuck is this??!!!
Woah haha every chapter felt like rage bait and the worst part is that I kept falling for it
I know it sounds so obvious at first, but isn't it insane how everything that happens here is for or because of Yeongwoon? Like, duh- He is the main character, shouldn't he be the one moving the plot? Yeah? It's still amazing to me that because he is objectively such a good person, Yeongwoon causes so much disruption around him since everyone is so shitty that they don't know how to deal with that fact lmfao
LMAO, its sad that Yeongwoon's goodness is Seo-In's salvation but Yeongwoon's own curse
Woah you wrote that so well I legit gasped
LOLL tyty im blushing
Thank you for summarizing my comment so well, literally couldn't have said it better lmao
That's a successful ragebait if I say so myself oml Bro was getting beaten and he kept going lmfaooooo