Snake Man’s Reincarnation Love Story
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Warning:
There will be spoilers for the manhwa series In Cold Love.
Content Warning: There may be references to excessive drinking, death, beastiality (human shifted into animal during intercourse), memory loss, power imbalance, gossiping, dubcon, being orphaned, adoption, homomisia, overwork, invasion of privacy, attempted breaking and entering, police, plague, blood, violence, animal death, religion, chronic injury, mentions of enslavement, child abuse, implied alcoholism, child abandonment, pregnancy (not between the main couple), miscarriage, slight raising-your-lover trope, mind control, self hatred, car accidents, manipulation, confinement, BDSM, vore, mentions of suicide, gore, and suicidal ideation, as they do appear in the manhwa.
Synopsis:
Work is in shambles, but not because of any hard-to-please client or never-ending project. Chaewool’s office life has been turned on its head because the manager of his team has suddenly passed away. Though he was somewhat aloof, he was generally beloved by everyone, and by none more than Chaewool. Though he keeps a stoic front among his coworkers, especially during their mourning dinner together, when he leaves, he breaks down right in the middle of the sidewalk. Everything feels like it’s falling apart.
But then, Chaeheon, the dead boss, suddenly appears before Chaewool.
Chaewool is stunned. But before he can even begin to question the very much alive Chaeheon before him, Chaeheon suddenly morphs into a snake. Bewildered and still emotional, Chaewool scoops up the snake and takes it home. Once there, he’s not sure what the next best move is and whether or not what he saw was real or a manifestation of his mourning. Thankfully, some of his questions are answered when the snake shifts back again into Chaeheon. This Chaeheon is very much real, but he can’t speak and doesn’t seem to remember Chaewool at all. It’s weird and confusing, but there is some relief in the fact that Chaeheon is alive.
So, Chaewool starts taking care of his snake-shifting, amnesiac boss, but over time, he learns that his connection with this snake man might be deeper than even he is capable of remembering.
Review:
The art in this is beyond rough. It is sketchy and terribly inconsistent. However, as with most titles, that’s not to say there aren’t pretty panels. During the flashbacks, during the sexy time, in particular, there are very simple but pretty panels. I think because they lack so much detail, they look better than the usual panels, which is interesting since more detail is often associated with “better” art. Chaewool often looks the nicest and the cutest, especially in later episodes, but Chaeheon never quite looks right to me, which is unfortunate. I also must mention that the English translation from Lezhin is 100% uncensored, and the penises are actually pretty. It’s a strange detail, but one that I personally find very important.
While I don’t like the art, the story in this is surprisingly good. Admittedly, I wasn’t expecting much. A friend of mine shared some screenshots in my BL Discord, and I was going in expecting lots of mindless, beastly smut. That’s not a bad thing by any means, as some of my favorite titles are almost entirely smut with no substance (Bane of My Existence comes to mind). And sure, while there is oodles of smut, there is actually a ton more heart. If narrative is more important to you in your sexy BL, then this is a massive win on that front.
This is told in a frame-style story, with an outer story set in the modern world and a flashback, historical story told within the dreams of our main characters. I adore how the contemporary story hints at the eventual flashback, with Chaeheon maintaining muscle memory when relearning to write after he’s lost his memory, just like he did during the historical time period. Or when Chaewool is compelled to kiss Chaeheon on the forehead, just like he was compelled to do in the historical time period. These are very small details, but they leave a huge, heartrending impact on me, and they show how carefully crafted the narrative is. You can tell the author took the time to map all of these things out to create a cohesive and well-told narrative, and I love it.
I do think it is important to specify there is a scene where Chaeheon is entirely in big snake form, like no human aspects to him at all, and he has some sexy time with Chaewool. As someone who gets the ick when beastmen are too beastly (like in Mr. Wolf Is Violently Smothering Me with Love), this was a bit much for me, and I imagine others might be turned off by it, too. There is only one scene like this, and it is in the very last set of side stories, so if you’re desperate to avoid it but still want to read this, then that is entirely feasible, and you won’t be missing much. Also, to be clear, I am not here to ‘yuck’ anyone’s ‘yum,’ so if this is something you are into in your fictional BL, live your truth. My reviews are to help guide people either to what they love or away from what they might hate, and I am not here to judge either way.
Results:
I have to admit, I love this. The art isn’t perfect by any means, and usually, for someone as picky as me, that can be a death sentence for a title as far as my reading list is concerned. Add in the more beastly scene and the raising my lover trope, and this usually wouldn’t be my cup of tea. However, the overall narrative is just too good. An amazing story can make up for anything, and that is certainly the case here. If you’re not a fan of some of these elements, that’s understandable, but I have to say that you will be missing out on an otherwise wonderful story (also, the double penetration with Chaeheon is a huge bonus). This ended up being a surprising fave, and I highly recommend it.
Have you read In Cold Love? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!
