I'm currently watching Hannibal lol and a lot of people tell me I'll hate him in the beginning but will eventually like him. But I doubt it. I'm scared of that man, he's too good of a manipulator
You are so right in your analysis of these characters. because I feel like the author has been going around in circles with their character development for a good fifty chapters. i'll be quite honest. I checked out about 10 chapters ago. Because even though the plot has been progressing the characters have it. And that's such a disappointment to me. At this point I am just kind of skimming through this BL. and I have labeled it black flag BL "slop".
You are so right in your analysis of these characters. because I feel like the author has been going around in circles with their character development for a good fifty chapters. i'll be quite honest. I checked out about 10 chapters ago. Because even though the plot has been progressing the characters haven't. And that's such a disappointment to me. At this point I am just kind of skimming through this BL. and I have labeled it black flag BL "slop".
Sorry in advance it's gonna be long but I've been thinking about this and i need to share those thoughts
Shin Haebeom's character could've been written way better. I think he belongs to the "I'm a monster that's seeking companionship and a partner in crime" category. Which contains characters like Hannibal and Lestat... the reason those guys are characters that you want to explore and see in your fiction is because they're very competent manipulators. Like the mind games and the patience and the overall approach to their target is very interesting to watch and because they're such patient predators their behavior isn't repulsive at first and you get charmed alongside the victim and somewhere along the way you don't know how to feel about their feelings because it could be perceived as true affection but in such a monstrous cruel way. This guy should've been like that.
His character chose to go undercover, forfeited all his humanity and is miserable everyday just to reach his goal and get his revenge. So he is introduced to us as a cold, calculating, patient predator. He's been so successful in his political games and manipulation tactics that he's reached that high up in the rankings of this dictatorship that usually wouldn't allow outsiders in it's ranks. But when it comes to Ryujin, the person that he needs for his plans to succeed, he becomes so impulsive and emotional(since anger is an emotion) to the point that all that cold cruelty and repressed anger just becomes the tantrums of a shitty abuser... and it just doesn't work... like does he genuinely think that beating someone up, insulting them daily and stripping them off their personality and confidence is somehow gonna help in this war against the powerful??? Because it would absolutely do the opposite...
And that other guy(the trash friend that killed Hyunwoo) is so unnecessary... he doesn't make sense to me either. Like if you lost everything to this dictatorship to the point that now you're working for it undercover to be able to overthrow it from the inside, why are you enjoying the privileges that comes with the position and going on power trips???... like killing an innocent protester for no goddamn reason and riding around in a luxurious sports car having fun... at least Haebeom is genuinely miserable in his personal life... and Haebeom's character being supportive of that guy doesn't make much sense either specially now because that shit ruined his chances of coaxing Ryujin and is continuing to do so?
I also just wish Ryujin could've kept some of his badass qualities. He could still be a somewhat weak minded person that can't handle violence. that's a key part of his character and the struggle of his personality clashing with the anger in his heart is important to the story but he is being erased in the course of the story instead of becoming more angry or more daring... his character could've had a corruption arc, slowly loosing his empathy and moral values in pursuit of his revenge but the way Haebeom and his group are acting is actually pushing him away from that plot line... like how do you expect the guy to cooperate and change while you're actively bullying and abusing him in the most trashy way possible after killing his best friend for NO GODDAMN REASON!!! I'm still annoyed about that it was so unnecessary...
Anyways sorry for the rant. I'm still interested in where the plot will go but I just couldn't stop thinking about how much better it would've been if some things were different.