So my understanding of LOH after reading it over these 2 years and seeing many thoughts on socmed/mggo, is that it's a story about selfish love, and selfless love.
Like Taku for example was manipulative towards Haesoo and didn’t have great intentions when he approached Haesoo. He was planning just to use him and drop him like all his past models. But when Taku felt more deeply and showed some genuine feelings for Haesoo, I found that he was ONLY concerned with himself. He didn’t care whether Haesoo was happy or not. Haesoo was visibly losing weight and unhappy as said by his mom, but Taku didn't seem to care at all. Even when Joowon got into all that trouble, notice how he starts typing "are you okay?" and then deletes it and tells Haesoo to stop caring about Joowon, even though this is something thats clearly hurting and worrying Haesoo. And NOW IN THIS CHAPTER: when they broke up he said he hoped Haesoo has a hard time and regrets leaving him… even though Haesoo genuinely didn’t wrong him. They both decided on this relationship. Taku was the one begging to do this, knowing Haesoo loves someone else, so he has no logical reason to wish Haesoo a hard time especially after he admitted Haesoo tried his best. So yeah... his words were purely emotional and selfish. Overall yeah, I just think Taku basically showed us: “Love is selfish”
But the endgame pair of LOH showed that that love can be selfless too. Like Joowon and Haesoo locked themselves into their open relationship because they were driven into a corner by their parents. They wanted to be with each other, but they didn't want to take the responsibility of the potential losses for their relationship. Which ofc is SELFISH as theyre caring more about themselves and what they could lose, than how the other person feels.
But when they separated, the change slowly happened and it was JOOWON that changed the most. Joowon called Haesoo after their painful separation and put aside his hurt feelings and told Haesoo something like: “I’m always on your side, even as a brother or friend, I’m just all yours". He was willing to support Haesoo even if Haesoo told him he liked Taku. It shows him swallowing his own feelings and loving Haesoo without condition. Joowon then later sacrificed his public reputation and career to protect Haesoo during the bullying scandal. He told Haesoo he wanted to take responsibility, which I think made Haesoo realize a lot, and gave hs courage to admit his feelings later. Like the whole point of LOH is that for a relationship to work out, you need willingness to sometimes make sacrifices for each other. Which is what Joowon and Haesoo did in the end. The very act of them confessing to each other is a SACRIFICE because their parents dont support them and they could face consequences.
The writer once said Love or Hate is a story about why a relationship can be fulfilled, and also why it may remain unfulfilled. Both statements perfectly fit Joohae (old relationship vs new one), and I love how well thought out it is.
Some Taku stans are so salty and annoying. like if you can't accept the endgame, just leave lol. nobody forced you to read when it's been blatantly clear for SO MANY CHAPTERS that Joowon and Haesoo are meant to be together and that's the only way the story can work thematically. Love or Hate is THEIR story. Not Taku's lol. And yall are reading on an illegal site too stop acting like the author owed you something. You could just be thanking the author for giving him a happy ending, even considering how he was pretty selfish to Haesoo this chapter, being all like "I hope you have a hard time with Joowon" -- all for what? For a relationship HE BEGGED TO HAVE knowing fully that Haesoo is in love with another man, and was literally there to take advantage of Haesoo's heartbreak. Like he's lucky Haesoo is nice and wished him happiness lol
Joowon bestest sexiest character getting his man in the end, having an amazing acting career, plus actually being backed up by well written and great development over the course of the series, all while suffering 90% of the story.
Idk why all the redhead tops in BL are shit, because this man the ✧ GOLD STANDARD ✧
Honestly I’m gonna be giggling about that blurred taku face for a little while
Fitting for a chapter where he acts kinda immature and selfish, claiming Haesoo’s relationship with Joowon will be bad, and how he hopes Haesoo has a difiicult time LOL. Taku chose their r/s and repeatedly initiated & pushed it onto haesoo knowing he loves JW— but now he wants to guilt trip haesoo who actually tried his best
Honestly I’m gonna be giggling about that blurred taku face for a little while
Fitting for a chapter where he acts all immature and selfish, claiming Haesoo’s relationship with Joowon will be bad, and how he hopes Haesoo has a difiicult time LOL. Taku chose their r/s and repeatedly pushed it onto haesoo— but now he wants to guilt trip haesoo who actually tried his best
Joowon said "lets go home haesoo"
meaning theyre gonna live together now T-T IM SO HAPPY
"Lets go home Haesoo"
BRB SOBBING INTO PILLOW ╥﹏╥ <333
Taku is such a selfish prick this chapter. "I want you to have a hard time" my butt. LIKE LMAOO. He wants Haesoo to regret leaving him, but you think Haesoo is gonna regret leaving after saying this?? This is literally the kind of stuff exes say that makes me think "phew dodged a bullet there" lol
Lowkey wanted Haesoo to stop showing him remorse. But this man really went and said "well I wish you happiness". But then again, I guess bby has actual development from the first chapter when he did not give a damn about his ex.
Meanwhile Taku: "I told you I'm not a good person" hahaha, yeah sir. go and fcking change that! Main reason why Joowon was the main lead. Cause he actually changed and developed massively as a character.
TAKU BEING BLURRED SDFHSHDFHDSH LMAO PLS
loh stans are wild (both sides)
102 RAWS
JOOWON'S BODY IS SO (⊙…⊙ ) LIKE DAMN
The colour grading for joohae's sexc times are so on point. The hues are so warm, and pink, and it just looks so intimate. You can clearly see the difference in the colours between this and haesoo's sex scenes with taku. Anyway, everything is soft, and their cute banter!!! i love how haesoo said he felt awkward at first, because it had been so long for them... and then there was a line that it felt like their "first time" which is so adorable im gonna cry huhuhu. and the way they dont stop BLUSHING abksdkdsk
Haesoo quitting smoking as seen in this chapter where he tosses his pack of cigarettes is very symbolic!!
Here’s a really great thread I found on the meaning of his smoking habit, and how its connected with his relationship to Joowon: https://twitter.com/joohaes/status/1340598549944287232?s=21
Joowon’s development beats anything else character-wise in this manhwa. He will always be the bestest boy of the story
(▰˘◡˘▰) I love him
It's amazing how some ppl claim Taku was with Haesoo out of the goodness of his heart, and wanted to "save" him from an unhealthy relationship i- like what now?? Reading comprehension where???
Taku got interested in Haesoo after seeing his story about his step brother: he wanted to mess with that relationship. Taku's exhibition themes were: Loss / Love —a choice he thought Haesoo would be so *perfect* for due to his relationship with Joowon. No, it was never about Haesoo's wellbeing lol. There’s literally a scene where he implicitly tells Haesoo to think of Joowon for the photoshoot, right after their breakup, and thinks: “I knew he was hurt, but I wanted to see something more”. He wasn't trying to make Haesoo feel better, but instead he was intrigued & captivated by Haesoo’s hurt and pain over Joowon. He even admits in the end, after he grew attached to Haesoo: "From the start Haesoo only had eyes for one person. Perhaps those unwavering eyes were what I loved most” -- proving how transfixed he was by Haesoo's feelings for Joowon.
Taku says in his character interview from the start that he's "opportunistic" when it comes to relationships. Example: him comforting Haesoo crying... it parallels Taku's ex-bf being comforted by him & getting upset cause Taku is just PRETENDING. It's the same w/ Haesoo. He didn't do that with genuine feelings, but just as a "habit" like Haesoo says. Taku also said, “it felt good to see you sad” and how he knows hes selfish but its cause he likes to feel needed. So him chasing after Haesoo wasnt sincere, but self-interest & intrigue (“I wanted to see the kind of story he writes when im gone” HELLO??).
There's multiple metaphors about it too (lmaoo not me writing about the metaphors when ppl can't even get the blatant text of Taku saying MULTIPLE TIMES how he's "not a good person" and that he likes Haesoo for selfish reasons... but anyway the metaphors are interesting to me <333). First his photography: Taku always focused on the frozen images and what's within the lenses, instead of life in the present. He captured what he wanted & ignored the rest. Second: the candy. He says all relationships are the same to him: just "sugar/additives despite the different colours". He doesn’t like the taste of bitterness, only the sweetness. It ALL shows how Taku only wanted the good and superficial things in life. He selfishly liked to be needed by someone else, but without any of the burden of real feelings. It’s only through letting himself get attached to Haesoo & realizing Haesoo’s pretend love isn’t enough for him, that he describes Haesoo’s kiss as "bitter".
Honestly I know how upsetting it is to see your ship sink. But if you step back and read carefully: you realize that Yeongha literally built Taku's character to GET HEARTBROKEN and experience the bitter things in life,, because he'd been so numb to that feeling otherwise. (It makes me curious abt Taku's backstory honestly. like what made him this way??)
HAESOO N JOOWON CUDDLING AND KISSING IN THE NEW CHAPTER I CANT.
And omg the fan translations of the raws today made me smile nonstop. Joowon is so adorable and so in love with Haesoo pls T.T And the way he's smiling and laughing in the chapter!! HE IS SO CUTE PLS.
Seeing the flashbacks of the convo between him and his dad, and how much his dad messed with him was so heartbreaking ;_; so glad he can finally be happy with Haesoo now. Joowon just deserves everything. bestest boy <3
honestly when i see joowon hate in the comments at this point in the story it just makes me scratch my head. like...??? this man been self-reflecting for nearly 40 chapters, and then got into a car crash i-
I swear there are more moments of Joowon in pain (physically, mentally, etc), through these 97 chapters, more than any other character :'D I mean he...
-took a slap from haesoo's mom, just to take the heat off of haesoo
-almost got suspended and lost his acting debut for haesoo
-got yelled at by his dad after the high school fight
-abandoned by haesoo after divorce— this wasn’t haesoo’s choice but it still hurt jw
-was neglected by his dad ever since his mom died
-has the public's eyes and pressure constantly on him (it said in the story that he would literally run to haesoo for support when things got too much for him)
-told by haesoo that he never wants to see him again... when jw literally has no one else there for him except his manager lmao
-constantly chasing haesoo, calling him, telling him he misses him— only to be ignored or lied to // haesoo really believed JW was not genuine in his feelings or just wanted to hook up,, while joowon said stuff like how he just wanted to cuddle HS while sleeping pls lol
-when haesoo blames joowon/their relationship for the losses in his life + punches him T.T that part really hurt damn
-got crucified by the public and had his huge acting gig dropped just to protect haesoo
-injured his hand pretty badly with glass when taku started saying manipulative shit to him about feeling “loss"
-almost d worded in a car accident
-his whole depressing monologue: “Romance is fleeting. Reality endures. Happiness seems imaginary while sadness knows no bounds. That’s why I wanted us to stay young forever.”
-second depressing monologue: “I didn’t want to ruin things, and I was lonely. So when I felt suffocated I’d run to Haesoo."
-another depressing jw monologue: “I was too young to know that reality is different from a screenplay. No happy endings, no perfect situations."
Also... honestly I do love Haesoo in his own right, and I KNOW he had his reasons for doing some of the things he did to joowon in the story. even if they were wrong~ like umm: emotionally manipulating jw to make him jealous and angry. or you know: saying he wants joowon to suffer. multiple times. but i can't recall a real situation where joowon intentionally hurts haesoo. he was literally trying to protect him and protect their relationship, and made some mistakes along the way. he let his immaturity/arrogance blind him to notice those mistakes. As a joowonist, it hurt to see him get hurt over and over, but I am glad he had well written and BELIEVABLE character growth ╥﹏╥
Idk why some of yall open Love or Hate and expect nonsense fluff, or porn with a semi-coherent plot. Like no: this story is not your average BL with little to no depth or direction. The ppl that read the story and all they get out of it is “tHe cHarCateRs aRe tOxIc” and then get angry, dont really seem to be thinking while reading. So if you want to shut off your brain when reading ig, then Love of Hate isnt for you.
The characters presented in loh are very carefully layered. From their background to their careers. Their actions throughout the story in hindsight are honestly similar to regular ass humans (except taku at the start was kinda described to have sociopathic tendencies but whtv lol): they all exhibit selfish qualities, they show a degree of immaturity or possessiveness, or manipulation. In reality thats how ppl are. They arent downright monsters, and they arent saints. When faced with their feelings or trapped in complicated and difficult situations (like joowon and haesoo’s step sibling past), characters tend to make mistakes and act irrationally. Just like regular people do.
So yeah dont bother reading LOH if you dont want genuinely flawed characters with some ugly qualities and bad decision making that reflect real ppl.
nahhh i love this one more than the original for sure. the dialogue and writing is so much smoother. the art is gorgeous and makes you more immersed in the story. like the dramatic moments look way more dramatic, and the emotional moments hurt more and everything. yeah i love it.
no new chapter today T^T the artist isn't feeling well :(
i hope bakdam feels better soon. i'd love to see joohae being adorable and domestic and happy + flashbacks on haesoo's decision to /// RAW SPOILERS //// go abroad, and joohae's full conversation at the hospital
throughout the 1 year I read this story, I was honestly so confused. I thought: why do all the events in this story, especially the 3rd season, point to Joohae... but the very first cover art is Haesoo facing Taku and holding onto him. While Joowon's face isnt even visible, only his back?? (the back that carries the story btw)
It bothered me so much. Like it was deadass the only thing that made me think Joohae won't be endgame. That, and the poster merch from Lezhin where Taehae got a sweet picture with Taku holding Haesoo's hand and everything.... while the Joohae poster was Haesoo looking at his freaking PHONE COMPLETELY DISINTERESTED IN JOOWON. I was like "wtf?????"
ppl calling joowon "manipulative" makes me laugh. especially when actually he genuinely loved haesoo from the start and did what he thought was best for their relationship without getting their parents involved and to protect haesoo. theres no basis to say hes manipulative once you stop viewing the story through haesoo's unreliable narration, and understand joowon's thoughts and perspective. joowon did things usually with good intent and made genuine mistakes that he actually regretted and apologized for-- none of which were "toying with haesoo" LOL. as if this man didn't love the same boy for 10 whole years even after being abandoned twice by haesoo + would rather lose his career just to protect him huh
and i swear some of yall say this without any real examples or evidence, but just to defend another man in this story who was actually genuinely manipulative. especially since he decide to start his relationship with haesoo out of mere self-interest and planned to toss him aside as he's done with many of his past models.