The stakes are definitely getting bigger and I absolutely love the direction this story is going in. The problem has become much bigger than Shin and Jay can truly handle on their own, and to be quite honest, I don't know if these guys will be able to win or even make it out alive. Scaling out from complex gang warfare to systematic political corruption tied to federal authority? This shit is so good. I'm really curious to see how this plot unfolds and what more we'll be able to learn about Jay.
Been wondering when the new season was coming out. So glad to see them and their chaos once more lol
This series the the epitome of a fall from grace, oof! This ending was such a nothingburger too, but at least Jo looks beautiful as always!
Now that the series is officially over, can we admit that the ending was dogshit and rushed? Doyak herself said s3 was supposed to be the longest, but it ended up the shortest. She did a 2 year timeskip instead of closing out all the story plots that dealt with Big Teddy, Jamie, TJ saying he owes Jo his life, figuring out who sent Ian's old subordinate to kill him, why TJ was arrested and what he was arrested for, the fallout of the wedding massacre, etc. All of that build up for.... a two year timeskip? Atp we gotta admit that the only reason tj is endgame is because doyak got tired of this story :/ he was never redeemed, he never said sorry... he never even said "I love you" to Ian... like, hello??? Jo, he'll be fine because he is a good person who has a great support system and will find love again, but the real loser here is Ian.... poor Ian.
They assassinated his character. All that growth and development took a nosedive when Ian somehow healed 20 years of trauma in 2, all while working his ass off to buy a house for him and TJ? What was the point of his being in chicago for Toby just to ditch her and go back to NY to settle with TJ? Even tj stans have to admit how dumb this all is. And if anything, tj fans should be even more pissed because tj never even redeemed himself and your endgame ended up becoming reheated joian nachos. Even the art looked rushed in the last two chapters. Oh brother, this series had so much potential, then it ended out to be an utter mess, even the locals are making fun of how bad it is.... I dont know if doyak just got burnt out, or if the tj stans got to her and made her undermine her own writing, but oof. Even though Im a jo and ian fan, this ending was objectively bad and tj fans should be just as pissed, but theyre probably not because they never really cared for anyone else beside tj either way. Doyak, please never pick a pen up again lol
So as I expected, Ian does end up back with his abuser what a typical way to end a love triangle BL... wish I could say I expected better, but I kind of saw this coming and was hoping doyak was a better writer than that. Oh well, onto the next story!
We still don't know what happened but in how would kissing you justify purposely stealing your friends bf? Lol
I hope we get an uncensored version at some point because I'd love to see both sets of their lips
After 20 years of bullshit and manipulation why does TJ finally want to prioritize Ian right when Ian is chosing to prioritize himself? Jo showed this man what it means to respect your partner and TJ panicked... this is so pathetic I am sorry lol. TJ had this man going through it for 20 years and only wants to make things official when HE is ready, this whole confession is still extremely selfish and I'm not buying this redemption. Ian meeting with TJ before Jo gives me hope that Jo is still endgame, but the whole idea of TJ even being a contender just feels so gross because he hasn't even properly apologized for everything he did yet to Ian to keep him close. A broken leg, prison time, debt, lying about his ptsd... this man is an abuser and has yet to face a consequence for all his actions, he does not deserve Ian at all. Ian is a former addict and I feel like TJ is yet another addiction he needs to purge himself of.
I had a feeling this would have been the source of Pyeonghwa's dysfunction, but it doesnt make it any easier to see. Man, this series is genuinely so fantastic, an extremely strong first season that has so many layers and is beautifully intentional with every panel shown. I cant wait to buy the physical copies because I have a big feeling that this series will be one of the goats when it concludes. Now I'll have to painstakingly wait for the return of this series and hope time goes by easily during that period
That man is truly a loser in love the panels matching the color of this series' physical copies and how he averts his gaze to then glance back at Ian were absolutely beautiful. It's kind of sad to see how rushed this revelation and wedding arc has been because chapters like this show how good this series can be if a bit more consideration is put into it. I do find it kind of strange that Chiwoon knows where Ian is and when hes leaving but no one can seem to find Jamie whos damn near in sniffing distance, lol. It's moments like that where the plot is so contrived that I cant ignore it, but whatever keeps the story moving I guess!
I doubt Ian will be leaving with Jo, but I dont really know what will come of this clash against all parties. My guess is Jamie tries to kill someone, likely Ian, and fails only to end up dead. I dont know who will be the one to put Jamie down, but my guess is TJ, and I doubt any of the main 3 will die because that genuinely wouldnt make narrative sense as none of our main characters feel complete yet. I can only hope that whatever happens in these coming chapters can finally put a close to this 20-year dance TJ and Ian have been doing. Don't get me wrong, TJ deserves happiness and peace, but we have yet to see him face any real consequence for all the shit hes done, from the wedding massacre to the schemes (making him serve prison time and paying a fake debt) TJ made Ian endure just to keep him trapped. Ian officially and permanently ending this entanglement with TJ feels like a genuine consequence that TJ should face, otherwise, we've just placed a pretty bow on this 2 decade-long codependent relationship and called it a happy ending.
I feel like Ian has to grow a backbone and finally leave it all behind, do I think Ian is strong enough to truly let go of TJ? No not really, because they do love each other and have history, but it feels like watching a battered woman go back to her ex because thats all she knows. I dont like the idea of Ian's "healing" culminating into returning to his abuser and that being forgiven because trauma can be used as TJs excuse. Ian has got to live the life that he has been robbed of for all these years and enjoy it without guilt anymore.
As for Jo, I honestly dont see him coming out of this unscathed, mentally or physically. Again, our main 3 still feels incomplete in their story and I feel like Jo's development can either be one of descent or one of breaking cycles. Depending on how doyak wants endgame to play out, I can see Jo losing his composure or placing trust in the person he loves and doing what he can to not only protect Ian, but to also respect their decision, even if he wasn't their final choice. That's why Jo is so compelling to me because he is such a wild card and you really cant predict what he will do next. Overall, I'm looking forward to seeing how this ends because imma be honest, this story is spinning in circles for a while now and imma need doyak to wrap it up soon lol.
The closeted man is not inherently an asshole, it's just the heteronormativity eating away at his joy
So are we supposed to applaud TJ for doing what Ian had been asking him to do for more than 10 years now??? I'm sorry but this whole wedding arc is a rushed messed. It seems obvious that TJ was going to eventually reach this point but why is it cheaply undoing really puvotal elements of his character?
His entire story has revolved around keeping money and power to keep Ian safe and in proximity, so it begs the question: when TJ realized he was losing Ian during that bathroom argument a few chapters back, why the hell didnt he run then? Or better yet, what was the point of keeping Ian in the gang for all these years if you were already planning on climbing to the top to burn it down? Could TJ have not done that while Ian went off and had a successful racing career? He just seems like a very selfish character whose actions are constantly painted as "selfless" and for Ian. In truth, TJ wanted to keep Ian in proximity no matter the means and Ian has suffered for it.
When Ian tried leaving, he ended up with a broken leg, 2 years of prison time, and a debt he never actually had to pay. But now that TJ is conveniently done with the gang, you expect me as a reader to see that and go, "great! Now let Ian drop the life he's established with Jo, Toby, and his job to run back to TJ and start fresh?" That's asinine. It's like seeing a girl make all this progress but watching her immediately revert to nothing when her shitty ex is back in town.
If doyak wants the series to end that way, then by all means. But this story is literally centered on Ian's healing journey, and for there to be any healing, he has got to move on from TJ. Now do get me wrong, I love TJ as a character, but he has always been an extremely selfish man led by his own trauma where he constantly strips Ian of any autonomy for his own future even when these decisions are for "his sake." I've said enough as this point by my god.... I'm tired of being forced believe that TJ is this changed man when he in fact has always been a contradiction: a compass for his crew even though he himself was lost, and an anchor for his men all while seeing that pressure actually cause Ian to drift further from him...
Her blatant disregard for human life and the ability to upend the lives of people in poverty is terrifying, and Incheol is slowly starting to realize that her darkness runs deep and he is but a lowly and expendable pawn to her.
Pyeonghwa's probably dealing with the same illness his mother had plus the blows he takes to the head and is struggling to pay his hospital bills, and I think that highlights how poverty remains an important part in this story. A poor, sick, woman died, had her stamp stolen, and that likely caused her home to get sold off for Rep. Lee's gentrification plan and her son to lose his home. The only thing left is that gym and Pyeonghwa is holding onto it with all his might, though we don't exactly know why yet. But my guess is bc he doesnt want Rep. Lee to win and thats all he has left of his parents.
Such a good series so far, I love how much grit this story has and cant wait to see how Incheol's loyalty begins waning from the she-devil that is Rep. Lee, lol.
This was such a nerve-wrecking chapter tbh! I'm happy to see that TJ's plan has been successful thus far, but it feels likes things are going too smoothly for him, which makes me believe that either someone (i.e., Jamie, Ian, Jo, the police, or a combination of sorts) will intervene and make a mess of things, or big boss has an unexpected failsafe that will muddy the waters for TJ. Either way, I'm still hesitant on seeing how exactly this plan will help TJ in the long run. Yes, he's collectively getting rid of enemies that seek to remove him, but he's also created a larger power vaccum in his own organization that can easily be aquired or eliminated by another org if they see fit. K35 has proven to be a weak organization that has no real loyalty between leading members, making their value and allyship questionable. K35 looks more like a somewhat unstable and hostile asset that should preferably be neutralized when finished using rather than trusted partners, making their longevity rocky if we're being realistic. Plus, we really don't know what the fallout of this massacre will be, there are claims of women and children being in attendence, though we cant fully confirm that (we see two women laying dead, but no children from what we can tell so far). Although this chapter mainly focused on TJ and the execution of his plan, I can't help but to think about how this will also affect Ian as this series is mainly his story.
I feel like TJ's actions have been selfish in one degree, which is his desire for more power in the organization. But in another aspect, he still cares for Ian and wants to keep him protected, and possibly still within proximity. This begs my question: does this plan allow for TJ to have his cake and eat it too? We've how much Ian hated being in the org and how much he wanted to escape it, with TJ being his only tether. What does this now do to Ian when this wedding massacre essentially marks TJ becoming the figurehead of the very thing Ian despises? TJ wouldn't destroy everything just to drop it all and run away with Ian because had that been the case, he would've just left with Ian long ago when they had the chance to following Jason's passing. But seeing as how TJ was groomed to be the same type of planning man that would kill his opponents for more power as Jason was, TJ is not going to let go of this now, it wouldnt make any narrative sense.
There's just so much about TJ that seems... destructive, as if he is trying to establish a home on a landmine. I also honestly don't know if he plans to seperate himself from Ian or if he plans to try to bring him back into his life in a way he feels is best, either way, everything about the wedding and the fallout within the K35 just feels very eerie. I genuinely feel like Ian is suicidal and doesn't care what happens to him at this point and will do something that will go against Big Teddy's warning in an attempt to help TJ and protect Jo from pulling himself any deeper into this world. Not to mention Jamie being the biggest thorn in this story they have yet to remove! It seems like Ian is battling multiple addictions at once: his drug addiction, his co-dependent relationship with TJ, and his crippling attachment to the guilt of his past. Ian really won't be able to heal until he is able to actually reconcile with the things hes done and have an genuine discussion with TJ that definitively establishes where they are in their own lives and what that means for their relationship. These men lack communication and emotional regulation (apart from Jo) and it is a MESS, lol
So many people in the comments complaining about what Pyeonghwa did as if it wasn't apparent from the start that their interactions were caked in corruption, coercion, and violence. Incheol is one of Rep Lee's henchmen and is actively trying to gentrify a low income area for political gain and is perfectly fine with using blackmail, violence, and coercion to get that done. Pyeonghwa is a disturbed individual who uses violence as sexual currency and is willing to play Incheol's political game because he realizes that he has more power than Incheol in this dynamic and exploits that.
These are not good people, they never were, and if yall were reading the story for the sake of understanding what was going on rather than reading it just to look at smut, then yall would've known that and wouldn't be disgusted nor surprised by this because it was ALWAYS there. There is no difference between the events in ch.21 and ch.12, you can't act surprised or disgusted now. I remember making a comment a while ago that said yall were too focused on the smut and not the actual story and A LOT of you got upset, but here we are yet again where my words are proven right. If yall want smut, then read smut, but stop thinking that every BL you read is going to be some green flag story that focuses on romance and nothing else.
Incheol is pathetic and Pyeonghwa is a fuckin freak, I love it. I feel like Incheol originally had the intention of going about this relationship with Pyeonghwa like he has with all his other schemes for the sake of Rep. Lee, with an overexertion of dominance to compensate for the fact that he moves to the beat of another person's drum. Incheol is... well... a dog. He's an obedient servant for Rep. Lee and is willing to do anything to make right by her, even if it means selling his autonomy. He tries coping with this through the corruption of his tactics, whether it be violence, blackmail, or sex. It's not the right way to go about things, but it gets the job done and Incehol is able to feel like he finally has power over someone instead of it being the other way around.
Pyeonghwa and his disturbed nature completely flips this and exploits Incheol's weak nature and propensity to use unorthodox tactics for political gain in his favor. The violent and sexual tactics that would empower Incheol and weaken the other party is now the very thing that empowers Pyeonghwa and weakens Incheol. In the midst of trying to gain power for himself, Incheol has relinquished it to another, yet again. He may have been able to rationalize this dynamic with Rep. Lee because she actually has power and influence, but he cannot grapple with the fact that this lowly young man with a violence kink living in a ghost town is holding up his legs and having his way with him because he has more power than Incheol himself. I really look forward to seeing how Incheol begins to navigate his relationship with Rep. Lee, Pyeonghwa, and himself moving forward. Idk if he'll just condition himself to be a dog for another, or begin realizing that his pursuit of power has led him to being weaker than he's ever been... Excited to see how this unfolds!!
Because we all love this trope
(BL only)
Each page has my top 10 recs for these categories:
Pg 1 ➼ lighthearted
Pg 2 ➼ dark/heavy
Pg 3 ➼ sexual tension
Pg 4 ➼ slow burn
Pg 5 and beyond ➼ mix of stories
(will periodically shuffle order as I add more ◈ last re-organized 10/07/2023)
**The more extreme/explosive relationships tagged hate to love**