Anonymous's Favorite

//spoilers//





What a beautifully crafted scene with post-coital Joohae in the bath....everything is at it should be, the physical and emotional intimacy, comfort, playfulness and ardent love are conveyed so well! They are so joyful and relaxed, in the knowledge that they are there for each other now, and forever. Even without a full translation of the text, the facial expressions and body language really capture the mood and feelings perfectly when Joowon finally slips that elegant ring on Haesoo’s delicate finger! “Never take it off,” that is just so romantic....

Which brings me to speculate about the ending! I noticed that Haesoo isn’t wearing the ring when he is caressing and holding a sleeping Joowon, softly whispering his name. I assume this scene is after the shower, because he’s clearly wearing one of Joowon’s huge t-shirts. It could be an oversight in the illustration, but that seems unlikely considering how much thought and care went into conceiving these panels. So, I wonder if he’s going to wear the ring in his ear, because the ring doesn’t necessarily look like it closes all the way around. And, maybe this is because he has matching rings to bestow upon Joowon in a later chapter? Referring to the special gift from Spain that we haven’t seen yet and we know is not a bottle of olive oil.

Haesoo’s important visit to his mother: I’m really glad that he finally has that validation and support from her, that his feelings and happiness matter. It’s a step toward reconciliation that he deserves, even if she doesn’t (ok I still don’t like her). I noticed that she has Haesoo’s bestselling book of his “very ordinary love story” so hopefully she finally understands the depth of Joohae’s bond and feelings for each other. She needs to make amends with Joowon, too, after treating him like a monster to be scorned and reviled when he was just a young guy in love.

Just need to rant a little bit: But okay, it NEVER sat right with me how Taku stans bashed and villainized Joowon for like 2 years while he's showed continuous growth and repented for all his mistakes (mistakes he made cause he literally wanted to protect hs and keep them together lol). Everything he's been doing since like 50ish chapters ago, he's been doing to protect Haesoo and he's just been continuously losing things FOR HAESOO (his job? his dad?) without asking for anything in return or pressuring Haesoo in any way.

Meanwhile, Taku has shown little to no growth, and still admits he's a shitty person even in chapter NINETY-NINE!! But his stans that were soooo loud in bashing Joowon just refuse to acknowledge all his manipulative and toxic actions and make excuses for his behavior left and right, cause huhuhu "poor" taku. Joowon would NEVER get this kind of treatment. (Examples of his crappy actions if you dont believe me lol: http://www.mangago.zone/home/mangatopic/9517513/).

So at the end of the day, I’d say all 3 characters got what they deserved. And they all made important realizations by the end:

Haesoo's biggest obstacle was lacking personal agency. He was always caught up in what his mother wanted, what joowon's father wanted, what would be best for joowon's acting career, what was best for society... He never prioritized his OWN wishes and was miserable thinking his love for joowon was wrong. He also thought he was the only one suffering and Joowon had it easy, so he wanted Joowon to suffer too. Joowon told him "dont fall for me & i wont fall for you", so he manipulated Joowon's emotions (making him jealous/angry for his sake) because he didn't know how else to feel “loved”. Him going and telling Joowon how he feels at the hospital was the first time he truly followed his heart, and he was honest to JW without any facade or manipulation. He also apologized in his monologue realizing that he was wrong for being vindictive and wishing Joowon would suffer. He knew he didn't genuinely mean those things, because when Joowon ACTUALLY got hurt, it broke him. Also I have to add about Haesoo & Taku's relationship: Haesoo never cared much for his past flings, but he genuinely felt sorry to Taku. He actually tried his best in their r/s and felt apologetic when he couldnt return Taku's feelings, also signifying haesoo's change in that case.

Meanwhile Joowon: He actually had good intentions as a teenager, thinking that keeping their relationship undefined would "protect" what they had. This carried onto adulthood due to their taboo forever haunting him/them (as he said: he was stuck in the past). He also feared abandonment as he believed haesoo already abandoned him once after the divorce, pushing his idea that their undefined relationship was the best route and Haesoo would leave "if things got too serious". Through their separation, he realized his mistakes regardless of his intentions, and how he really hurt haesoo when he said "dont fall for me". He also knew he had become arrogant in thinking Haesoo would never leave him, just cause Haesoo kept with him for almost 10 years. So Joowon strived to take responsibility for his mistakes. And he faced his own fears realizing: he'd rather get hurt and abandoned by Haesoo than not tell Haesoo he loved him. Because love should be selfless like that. Imo Joowon had the most time of self-reflection and development in this manhwa, going from impulsive and arrogant to mature and braver with his feelings.
Also, both Haesoo and Joowon were consistently driven apart by external pressures that affected their actions (their initial taboo, their parents, joowon's career). So I don't blame the problems in their relationship solely on themselves. But at the end of the day, both of them learned that to make their relationship work: they had to set aside their personal fears/obstacles, and actually prioritize each other.

Finally Taku: he had a history of exes that he toyed around with and manipulated for his photography career and self-interest. He started seeing Haesoo with the same intentions ("i just wanted to see the story he would write when I was gone" / Leo telling Joowon how Taku uses and drops his models). He never planned to catch feelings, so him going from an emotionless robot, to getting hurt like this was the best lesson for him. He now knows you can't manipulate people's emotions and MAKE THEM love you (For instance, taku's quote: "I wanted to burrow inside that void he [jw] left in you. And then I would kick him out in any way I could" ---> he thought he could make haesoo love him, but now realized he cant). He *hopefully* learned that entering relationships with selfish/manipulative intentions, and with someone who loves someone else, is WRONG. Imo Taku had the least on screen development as he's still quite selfish in the recent chapters. His reactions feel realistic, but that doesn’t mean he's a “good” person, and he ADMITS HIMSELF that he’s not a good person in chapter 99. However he is shown to be happy with someone else in the future, so maybe him having good intentions and being less selfish is more so implied. Maybe we’ll see more of his thoughts in the last few chapters, and how he handled his new relationship differently than his relationship with Haesoo...

Anyway I think the endings for all 3 characters made sense, and I hope yall support the authors on the official site if you like their story!

Okay so this is gonna be long.

I just want to talk about Taku in the latest raws, cause I think it was a defining moment for him. Basically, Taku was quite selfish in this chapter. He got angry at his friend because she told Haesoo about Joowon’s accident. Like even if Taku hates Joowon, his reaction to his friend is OBVIOUSLY in the wrong. He knows how much Joowon means to Haesoo, and wanting to hide something like that accident from Haesoo would be terrible.

Yeongha is quite realistic in her depictions of people, and I think Taku acting like that kind of proves how Haesoo really wasn’t the one for him. Joowon was selfish too... earlier in the story. But he overcame that aspect of himself, and apologized. He was accepting and completely ready to stand down for Haesoo’s sake. Despite not getting what he wanted, he said he would always stay by Haesoo’s side in whatever way Haesoo would have him. Hypothetically speaking: if Joowon and Taku switched roles in this situation, Jowoon's current self would NOT react the same way about the accident. He would want to tell Haesoo immediately because he knows that Haesoo cares about Taku, and the fact that he wants Haesoo to be happy trumps how much he wants Haesoo for himself. Basically his love had changed from selfish to selfless over time. Taku meanwhile, is like a young Haesoo/Joowon right now. He’s so impatient with his advances onto Haesoo after only like a month or two of dating him, that it just doesnt make sense for Haesoo to end up with him.

Taku still has a lot of growing up to do and yeah he didn’t “win”, yes he didn’t end up happy in the time being... but if you ask me, he learned some of the most valuable lessons as a person because of his relationship with Haesoo. Haesoo was the first person who he actually *loved* and cared about. Him losing composure and getting angry like this in the chapter makes so much sense, because he really doesnt know how to deal with all his new emotions, and he can’t fully grasp a sense of sacrifice, or patience, or selflessness in his love. It’s a realistic portrayal. And it’s when people lose what they want (cough joowon cough), thats when they show the most growth. Him ultimately losing Haesoo should make him realize his faults and missteps with HIMSELF— and that he’ll be better for whoever he loves in the future.

I like this manhwa because i find that in most romance stories, the second lead is this flawless and perfect person, and it literally makes zero sense for the mc to end up with the crappier first lead. But in Love and Hate, ALL of the characters are flawed. Their growth is what actually matters, and it makes sense for Haesoo to be with Joowon in the end. Because A) they genuinely LOVE each other -and- B) as much as they loved each other, their relationship in the past was just... not it. Its the fact that Taku broke the cycle of their messed up relationship, and literally forced Joowon and Haesoo to change without even realizing it himself, that made them good for each other in the end. Thank you for coming to my ted talk.

The exhibition's theme deals with a very interesting topic since, in the end, it really happened: The loss of love, the breakup. These photos are the story of the end of Haesoo and Joowon, pictures that were taken by someone who got interested in their dynamic but consequently, got inundated by it since he catches feelings over time. Nonetheless, his point of view still it's just a portrayal of the descent of his model, besides it, he is just the one who tried to fill a void with another void. Someone's heart cannot be fulfilled with pretense, with selfish love.

Haesoo was introduced to a new relationship long before he understood that he was leaving 10 years of his life, almost his entire life if you think about it. Of course, he ended a toxic relationship and left a person who hurt him, but he also left a friend, a lover, and basically his partner. He trusted Joowon, he shared his dreams with him, they tried to be there... And that must hurt like hell.

Both of them haven't even thought for a moment about the idea of abandonment. Since they broke up, they have promised time and time again to see each other later on without bad feelings. To continue being of the other and that they will always be there. Haesoo and Joowon still long for them despite everything, so it hurts because it's no longer the same. It's over. The taboo has always been an impediment for them, but this time their decisions and pride were the biggest culprits. They lost.

Am I the only one who wants the original two together? (Im bad at names lmao) The photographer gives me weird vibes. It feels like he's overly selfish sometimes, and that his reasons for liking the MC are forced coincidences. The way he asked MC not to help the actor guy;;;; ugh

The actor is focusing on change. He's acknowledging his mistakes and facing the the consequences not because he needs to, but because he understands that they're the products of his mistakes. The photographer just seems to want to monopolize the MC, keep him away from the brother, not because he's worried about MC, but because hes scared he'll lose him. He doesn't want to help the MC through his issues, he just selfishly wants someone to cater to his emotional needs at his beck and call.

It feels like the actor and the MC can exist independant of each other, which makes them even stronger together, so they can support each other but won't be completely unable to function without the other.

The mc with the photographer on the other hand, just feels like trying to crush two puzzle pieces together that dont fit together. MC can live fine without the photographer, but the photographer seems so dependant on the MC. He's dragging the mc down, putting the brief relief of his fears over the mcs mental state.

Throughout all these years, Joowon has been the only one self-aware enough to know that he’s been playing a role in order to stay close to the one he loves. Even if the relationship was fucked up and toxic, he’d rather have that than lose Haesoo 100%. So he resolved to playing the bad guy in front of everyone.

To their parents he was probably the hyung who led Haesoo astray. To Haesoo he’s willing to be the jerk who led him into this messy relationship and “walks all over him”. But doing all of that kept it from becoming too real. It kept the consequences of their actions from taking them to the point of no return.

But now that Joowon has left the stage and is realizing that the role he’s been playing all these years hasn’t helped either of them, Haesoo is left all alone with no one to help shoulder the misery of their separation.

Haesoo was never willing to leave Joowon. He plays like he will and gets into meaningless relationships to convince himself that there are options outside of Joowon, but to truly leave him would be to face the depth of the love he has for him. Haesoo is always running away because he’s afraid Joowon doesn’t love him as much as he loves Joowon. Taku and Taku’s exhibition finally brought Haesoo face to face with the gravity of his relationship with Joowon.

They’ve been in love for a decade. It wasn’t just sex and it wasn’t just experimentation. They genuinely loved each other, but because of their family circumstances, they had to bury that love and disfigure it. If Haesoo convinces himself that he just fooled around with his step-brother and the sex was so good that he just kept doing it, then it would be easier to get through life. It’s easier to pretend that it’s just a messy fling, not a love that would require him to sacrifice everything.

The bitter truth is, Haesoo is deeply in love with someone he can’t be with. Joowon has been the only person who has supported Haesoo, comforted him, been with him at his best and his worst. Joowon sees Haesoo the way no one else does or is willing to. So now that Joowon has gotten off the stage, Haesoo can no longer play the part of the scorned lover or misled dongsaeng. He has to finally face himself and be honest about his true feelings for Joowon. I think he’s crying because he’s been running away from this sinking feeling of not being able to be with Joowon since Joowon told his mother “ we’re just joking around”

joowon convinced haesoo to follow his heart in choosing his career and to not force himself down the “realistic path”. it’s literally foreshadowing the ending, because guess how he’s going to decide who to be with? of course youngha is dropping hints now, we’re so close to the end

so please, if even the thought of joowon ending up with haesoo is going to make you baby rage and leave obnoxious loud comments about how you’re dropping this or scream toxicity / incest, just leave silently now. thanks

tbh in my experience with reading many love triangle stories, it’s almost always the character that’s lost hope & is essentially willing to let someone they love go if it makes them happy that “wins” in the end. from a narrative stand point, this makes sense. It’s the entire conflict. frankly, in the case of an ending where this doesn’t happen, there’d be almost no point to season three. characters like Haesoo need to go through the wringer sometimes if it’ll force them to recognize a missing piece in their life. that’s what this entire season has been about...I don’t understand how anyone could see otherwise.

and i’m not saying any names because people go batshit crazy when i do, but if you’ve seen the raws, youngha is now really drawing the divide between the two love interests. buying a ring is something they both share. but the situations, the reasons, the timing—it’s where the stark contrast shows. as their recent actions become even more polar, the ending becomes more clear, but I don’t think it’s necessarily cliche or rushed. you can be disappointed because it’s not your ship, I understand that, but to throw in arguments about a rushed ending as if it wasn’t subtly hinted at since the very beginning and all throughout is a bit much.

cite: Hirunaka No Ryuusei, Hate Mate