Characters
There were a lot of characters, and all were well-developed, which made them feel complex and realistic. It was often difficult to figure them out and predict their actions, which made them more engaging. Jua, Juri and Hyeran were side characters that left an impression—no clichés found here. Hyeran was so observant and unfazed. Although Juri didn’t get much screentime, she became more interesting as the story progressed, even though I initially thought she was just an annoying character.
Juri was similar to Seonghwa in her ambivalence and I guess that's why they got on so well as friends. Even she'd had enough by the end though.
I did like Hanmi at first—she was sharp, snarky and clever—but toward the end of the story, she kind of faded into the background, and it felt like she started relying on deus ex machina (just a bit). I liked that she was a cool female lead: honourable, morally grey and hot-headed. A lone wolf turned social butterfly, she hid her true feelings from those closest to her to protect them. She was an atypical heroine for a female demographic manhwa, which I always love. But people (including side characters and extras) did obsess over Hanmi a bit too much. It was a bit of a reverse harem, but it was executed so well that it didn’t feel like one.
Seonghwa was by far my favourite character and definitely the saving grace of this manhwa—the perfect sociopath. Super charismatic, calculating, and very, very fun. His schemes were so interesting and kept me guessing. I loved his manipulative genius and scary charm—how he could use that constantly cheerful façade to his advantage and take a punch with a smile. (I do admit that I had a blast fangirling over Seonghwa...) Honestly, Seonghwa is the reason I kept reading past the halfway point.
It was especially fun to see him bested by Hanmi, anything for that checkmated face.
Relationships
The character interactions were often light-hearted, despite some darker undertones. Not every relationship was easily defined or clear-cut, and some were very complicated, which felt more realistic than typical setups. Friendships and non-romantic relationships were quite nicely done (both bromance and womance were present here). I don't think I liked the romantic relationships as much though.
I thought Ginny x Yuen was womance at first, but it turned out to be shoujo ai. It turned out to be the healthiest romantic relationship depicted in the whole manhwa.
Gun and Hanmi were pretty cute at first and reversed gender roles are always fun, but their relationship turned out to be quite superficial.
Hanmi seemed to be supressing herself for Gun because he wouldn't be able to handle the real her. He just couldn't support her the way she needed, and it looked like she had gained yet another burden on her shoulders by having to take care of him. Since Gun was way too sweet and innocent for Hanmi, it also felt like Hanmi had more maternal feelings for him than romantic ones. They were drawn to each other namely because both already had someone more important than any romantic interest could ever be (their brothers).
A side note on Gun and Jua: I don’t think their relationship was incestuous per se; I believe the non-consensual kiss was primarily used for shock value, stemming from Jua's inferiority complex toward Gun and Seonghwa’s manipulation. It’s also refreshing to see a non-romantic relationship being the most important relationship for characters.
The twisted dynamic between Seonghwa and Hanmi was a major highlight, and I loved how intense their relationship was, masked by their (perhaps somewhat superficial) comedic interactions. Their psychological game of cat and mouse was what really created the suspense in the latter half. It was tough to get into both their heads since both of them were so good at hiding their true feelings.
Both were intellectual equals, and they had gravitated toward each other because they were kids who’d had to grow up fast. As Juri mentioned, life was particularly harsh on Seonghwa, especially given the implication that he and his mother were escaping domestic violence when he was growing up. While I’m glad Seonghwa and Hanmi didn’t end up together (because that would’ve been tragic for Hanmi—if she were a different kind of girl, I might have hoped for it), the AU gave me a little glimpse into what could’ve been, which made me feel oddly wistful (Seonghwa got his happily ever after—though I can't admit that he deserved it—at the expense of Hanmi's happiness). Still, despite the toxicity, their chemistry was far superior to Hanmi x Junhyuk...
Honestly, I never saw the final ML as someone Hanmi would end up with, but near the middle, I didn’t really care (Seonghwa was the main reason I kept going, loool).
Since Gun was too bland for Hanmi and Seonghwa was too cruel, Junhyuk logically ended up being the middle ground, though that was really by process of elimination, imo. I think the development of Hanmi x Junhyuk could’ve been executed better—it left me with mixed feelings. His connection with Hanmi felt underwhelming compared to the intensity of her interactions with Seonghwa (and even the earlier cuteness of Hanmi x Gun, tbh). But I guess he was grounded and gave Hanmi space to be her morally grey self. Honestly, I never fully felt the relationship between him and Hanmi develop the way other relationships (be they platonic or romantic) did; the shift away from the brother-sister dynamic felt really sudden, and the supposed signs were so subtle that I doubted them. Although I'm not a fan of incest, I don't really consider romantic relationships between cousins incest due to my culture, but their interactions still felt more like siblings than anything else and this dynamic barely changes. Junhyuk just kept pulling away from Hanmi because he didn't want her to hate him for his feelings, and then tried coming onto her at awkward moments. Anyways, perhaps Junhyuk's musing—"Perhaps what I loved wasn't you, but instead the idea of being in love with someone I couldn't be with"—was meant to capture the complexity of their relationship from his perspective. I still don't really feel that Hanmi loved Junhyuk romantically, even if that's what the author is going for. I'd agree that she was in denial about his feelings about her because she'd hate him to leave her in case things went wrong. Well, I guess the justification is that their emotional growth over the time-skip gave them the independence they needed to make their relationship healthier by the end. Tbh, I didn't really care for Hanmi x Junhyuk, I much preferred Hyeran x Junhyuk over them.
Pacing and Plot
The plot was very unpredictable and character-driven (mostly by Seonghwa in the latter half), but the pacing of the story was a bit uneven. The first two seasons were alright—nothing mind-blowing—but I guess I liked the characters enough (Hanmi, Gun, Jua) and was a bit intrigued by the glimpses into Hanmi's past. There were quite a few moments where I ended up taking a break for like a month because the story dragged and I got distracted. After Seonghwa made his grand entrance, things really picked things up and the plot became pretty gripping so I binged like mad, but then the chapters after the climax were underwhelming (near the end of the manhwa).
Humour
The humour was something I quite liked. The light-hearted moments, composed mostly of comedic facial expressions and absurd character interactions, drove the comedy, balancing out some of the darker themes.
Overall
In the end, I didn’t expect to have as much fun with this manhwa as I did. Although the pacing was very slow at first and the whole manhwa could have been shorter (it felt so long at times), the characterisation, comedy and (eventual) suspense kept me going. The Seonghwa vs. Hanmi arc was the best part of the whole story. Once Seonghwa came in and started stirring things up, everything just flew by. The ending was quite lacklustre compared to the intensity of the previous seasons, but I guess it was doable.
Age Rating and Trigger Warnings
All scenes were pretty PG. Although, it is listed as suitable for all ages, I'd say it is 13+, due to the following trigger warnings:
Bullying, Drugs, (Non-consensual) Kissing, Swear Words, Violence.
(-55)
(+34)
