Red Flag
These works feature a love interest that is overall problematic and cruel to their partner. This does include characters that start as red flags and become green flags due to regret.
Manhwa Review | The Warehouse by Killa+Whale
High School Friends Turned Lovers Turned Enemies Turns Into Confinement
Manga Review | Aggressive Sex with an Angelic Smile by Io Kaziwara
Manhwa Review | Stage of the Dark Souls by Guacamole
Title: Stage of the Dark Souls
Mihael is a devil that lives among humans. Though he shouldn’t, he ends up falling in love with a particular human, a man named Adonel Schravant. He is particularly in love with his stunning soul, which Mihael desperately wants for himself. Unfortunately, no matter how hard he tries, Adonel is always being swept away by other humans. Unwilling to share Adonel anymore, Mihael goes to the clergy and tells them that Adonel’s family is practicing pagan worship, which leads to their execution. Alone and desperate, Adonel is ripe for the picking, so Mihael makes him an offer he knows Adonel can’t refuse: Mihael will tie himself to the Schravant line, granting them all of his powers. In exchange, once the Schravant has fallen in love with Mihael and willingly given his soul, Mihael will take it, and they will be bound for eternity.
So Mihael lives in Adonel’s shadow, helping rebuild the fallen Schravant name. All the while, Adonel has a child, despite Mihael’s hate over it, and grows to a ripe old age. Finally, at the end of Adonel’s life, Mihael broaches the subject of Adonel handing over his soul. Only then does Adonel reveal that he never loved Mihael and would not give up his soul, meaning Mihael would remain tied to the Schravant bloodline until he can convince another descendent to fall in love with him and willingly give their soul to him. Mihael is devastated but far from willing to give up.
Three hundred years later, after the death of the head of the Schravant conglomerate, Mihael finds his two sons: the firstborn, Evan, and the second, Victor. Mihael has been watching over the family all this time, biding his time and waiting for the ideal soul. Finally, after all this time, Mihael has found it. Two of them, in fact, and he isn’t willing to give either of them up. One way or another, he will make them fall for him and then take their souls, but not until he destroys them from the inside out.
Manhwa Review | One-way Romance by TESIK
Title: One-way Romance
Jae-hwan is a reporter. A broke reporter, more specifically, having lost all of his money in the stocks. Looking for a huge scoop to score a huge payday, he turns his attention to the upper crust. More specifically, he focuses on Hong Kong mogul and CEO Heo Chung. He’s gotten a tip from a colleague that Heo Chung is going to be at a rooftop party, and Jae-hwan is determined to go and schmooze with Heo Chung, hoping to unearth some juicy gossip at least but to also expose his company’s ties to the mafia.
Unfortunately, Jae-hwan isn’t the only one looking to hang out with the hot-shot CEO. Every time Jae-hwan tries to get close, a whole gaggle of people surrounds Heo Chung, making it impossible for Jae-hwan to get in to talk to him. Add to the problem that he’s been ensnared by a beautiful woman, buying round after round of drinks, and this mission has become impossible if it wasn’t already. Sloshed, Jae-hwan’s sense of decorum has gone out the window, and he decides to just go for it. He grabs two glasses of wine and makes his way over to Heo Chung, but he, unfortunately, bumps into someone else the media has kept their eye on: Liu Yuan, leader of the Hong Kong mafia group 13.
Jae-hwan spills all of the wine on Liu Yuan just before passing out. When he wakes up, he finds himself chained and in bed, with Liu Yuan explaining that he owes him around $90,000 for the ruined clothes. It goes without saying that Jae-hwan has gotten much more than he ever bargained for. Not only will he probably not get the scoop and subsequent payday he was hoping for, but there’s a chance he doesn’t make it out of this with his life, either.
Manhwa Review | Wonna Do It?! by Cho Sangduck
Title: Wonna Do It?!
Won is going to a gay bar, but not because he’s gay. One of his gay friends has been harassed by another patron, one that many refer to as “wacko” due to his aggressive attempts at seduction and his strange eyes. Won is going as a sort of bodyguard, though he hopes to maybe pick up any women hanging around there, too. That quickly goes out the window when he meets the person he is supposed to guard against: Hong Yun.
Unfortunately for Won, Hong Yun’s attention goes from the friend he was meant to protect to Won himself. Yun wants to bed Won, and he refuses to take no for an answer. Won would love nothing more than to just leave the bar and never look back, but he made a promise to his friend that he intends to keep. Yun takes full advantage, talking Won into drink after drink until Won blacks out.
Much to his horror, by the time Won comes to, he’s in bed with none other than Yun. Won has no intention of going along with Yun and intends to leave, but Won is much stronger than Yun. What’s worse is Yun’s way with words, which tear down Won until he can’t help but prove Yun wrong, even if that means playing right into Yun’s hands.
Manhwa Review | Placebo – Short Story Edition by Cuke Soap
Title: Placebo - Short Story Edition
Woo-yeon and Woo-jin are step-brothers and have been since they were young. For the same length of time, they have also had a vitriolic relationship, with Woo-yeon vehemently bullying and mocking Woo-jin any chance he gets. This never dissuaded Woo-jin, who stayed right by Woo-yeon’s side, no matter how cruel he might be. Woo-yeon revels in Woo-jin’s loyalty, taking every opportunity to pick on Woo-jin.
Woo-yeon doesn’t realize that Woo-jin has developed the power of hypnosis and has been using his power to control and dominate Woo-yeon. When Woo-jin finally holds the reins, Woo-yeon will receive every ounce of punishment he has earned over the years. But it isn’t in private. It will be in front of the two people he would never want to be seen by: their parents.