Friend Cross-Dresses and Pretends to Be a Mistress
About:
Warning:
There will be spoilers for the manhwa series Subordination.
Content Warning: There may be references to gossiping, mentions of treason, mentions of capital punishment, corruption, dubcon, kidnapping, violence, attempted sexual assault, blood, mentions of torture, and manipulation, as they do appear in the manhwa.
Synopsis:
Do-hwa’s life is in shambles. Unfortunately, his family has been accused of treason, a charge that is wrongfully leveled against them. After helping his family escape, he intends to turn himself in and fight the accusations as the eldest son of the family. Before he can, though, fellow noble family heir and childhood friend Sung-mook comes along and helps sneak him out of Do-hwa’s family compound back to his own. The two try to devise a plan to uncover who started all of this while also keeping Do-hwa safe.
While Sung-mook would prefer to hide Do-hwa away completely to ensure his safety, the next best thing is to ask him to pretend to be his mistress and dress him up as a woman. But the workers around the compound talk, and when rumors spread that Sung-mook’s new lover isn’t giving him much loving, the only way to keep their scheme going is to take their fake relationship to the next level. Sung-mook, admittedly, is taking advantage, having loved Do-hwa from the time they first met.
But their trysts and unrequited romance are the least of their worries, as Do-hwa’s enemies steadily close in.
Review:
I’m a sucker for kang pu con‘s art. The Housekeeper’s Load is a perfect example of how their art evolved, from being very inconsistent and flat to what it is now, which is much more consistent and dynamic. However, while I adore the art style toward the end of The Housekeeper’s Load, this takes that style to the extreme. While their other work feels drawn and natural, this sort of feels like these are posed 3D models. Particularly, Do-hwa’s long hair, when down, looks stiff and board-straight when it should be naturally falling into various poses. The hands are also definitely in classic yaoi-hand territory, and most of their wrists look broken and unnaturally contorted. It’s unfortunate, especially because some panels really evoke that beautiful and fun kang pu con-style, but those are few among the other, stiffer, and awkward panels. It’s painful to see.
Story-wise, however, this is fun. For being only nine episodes, there is only so much one could expect, and I’d say it achieves everything it tries to do. The foundation of the story is surprisingly reasonable. With these historical plot lines, we often see a large number of workers moving around the compound, and their gossip is usually integral to the plot. I like that this was used to help push the relationship forward, as Sung-mook was happy enough to have Do-hwa with him pretending to be his lover. It’s not entirely innocent, of course, as Sung-mook definitely takes advantage of this situation, and their first intimate night has dubcon vibes to it, but it was a much more plausible transition than I would have expected from such a short story.
As for the overall plot, which is the treason plot, that is certainly not the focus here. The relationship between Sung-mook and Do-hwa is at the center of everything, while the treason scheme is just the foundation that sets us up for the romance and smut. All of that is very superficial, as the investigation is conveyed to us through the nightly conversations our two leads have in the evening. The historical setting is required for the relationship plot to work, but it’s not the best depiction of a historical and political intrigue story. If you’re hoping for more than smut and love, this is not the story for you.
Unfortunately, the ending is a bit disappointing. Of course, everything is resolved politically, and the two can return to their designated roles, but they confess that they want to continue being together. It’s very sweet and lovey-dovey, especially when paired alongside the flashbacks of their childhood together. However, it ends pretty suddenly. I would have loved to see what their lives looked like after they returned to their rightful positions, and I hate that we never see what happened to Do-hwa’s sister, whom we see at the very beginning and then never again. I always end up wanting more from these shorts, so this doesn’t surprise me, but it doesn’t make me want for more less.
Results:
This was cute. It’s a super short, smutty morsel that is a lot of bang for your buck. There isn’t much story to be had here, but it’s hard to expect a ton of story in something so short. I did have a small issue with the ending, but my main issue was with the art. I love this artist, but this wasn’t a great showing for them. Please check out kang pu con’s other work and don’t be dissuaded by this one if you have similar preferences to mine.
Have you read Subordination? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!