About:
Warning:
There will be spoilers for the manhwa series My Bias Is Showing?!.
Trigger Warning: There may be references to manipulation, violence, assault, perceived cheating, blood, gossiping, devastating motorcycle accidents, excessive drinking, secretly taking photos of someone while changing, and obsession, as it appears in the manhwa.
Synopsis:
Aejoon is a superfan of K-pop idol group A-One. More specifically, he is a stan for member Siyeol. Siyeol is his bias, and Aejoon shows his love and devotion for his favorite idol through his bedroom, which is decorated from wall to wall with Siyeol merch. Unfortunately, that's as far as his expression can go. As a teacher, Aejoon feels he can't be his true fanboy self in public without risking his professional image. Thankfully, while his students discuss K-pop occasionally, his coworkers don't seem to know a thing about it, making it easy to blend in with his colleagues.
His two worlds are set to collide, though, when it turns out his school has been chosen to be the set for an upcoming variety show starring none other than Siyeol. Aejoon is simultaneously overjoyed and horrified. He's not confident that he can continue to hide his fanboy nature when faced with the idol he loves above all others. Unfortunately for Aejoon, Siyeol intends to draw that love and devotion out of him, but not for the reason Aejoon might assume.
Siyeol is in love with the former leader of A-One, Jooha, but Jooha has been in a relationship with Kyusung, leaving Siyeol without a chance. That is until Jooha confesses that he thinks Kyusung is seeing someone else on the side. Siyeol is furious, and in passing, he sees Kyusung on a video call with none other than Aejoon on the screen. With the identity of Kyusung's paramour, Siyeol is determined to get revenge for his unrequited love, Jooha. What Siyeol doesn't realize is that Aejoon and Kyusung are cousins, and Aejoon ends up being much more attractive to Siyeol than he ever could have imagined. Will this relationship based on a lie survive? Or is it destined to fall apart?
Review:
This art is super cute. It's not the most consistent in the world, but having read other work with eol (formerly cereal) as the artist (Pleasure Principle), you can see their distinct style, and I especially love being able to see how they have grown as an artist. I highly encourage anyone to read things, even if the art isn't your favorite, because it's so fun watching the artists grow as they release more and more work. eol (formerly cereal) has always been a very talented artist, but it's clear from Pleasure Principle to this that they are only going to get better, and that's so exciting to see. For specific critiques on character designs, I love how average Aejoon is. He's still super cute but distinctly average, especially when compared to Siyeol, who oozes idol vibes. The ability to make such drastically different designs to emphasize their social gap is masterful. I love it.
Unfortunately, the basis of the narrative is all based on a misunderstanding, which I know some people aren't a fan of. This one didn't bother me, but I do think it's worth bringing up for those who might be turned off by this focusing on a misunderstanding. It's an interesting take on the misunderstanding trope with Siyeol approaching Aejoon under the pretense that he is trying to lure him away from Kyusung to hurt Kyusung. The mental leaps it took to get to that point are impressive, but I can still appreciate that it is a refreshing take. It's hilarious in its absurdity.
However, it has the unfortunate side effect of making Siyeol look like a total ass. However, I have to admit, I kind of like it. It made me cackle out loud a couple of times just because of how ridiculous he was with his eventual jealousy and posturing against Kyusung, all without realizing he was rivaling Aejoon's cousin. It doesn't make him any less of an ass, but I love that it leads to Aejoon really putting him in his place. There's nothing better than seeing a cocky, hot top get knocked down a few pegs. I also have to mention the tears in the curtain scene. I died. If you know, you know. If you don't, I implore you to give this a read for that panel alone. It's pitifully hilarious. I love it.
Now, before I close off, I want to talk about the couple that started this whole thing: Jooha and Kyusung. We see almost nothing of them, which is so sad since they are so integral to the plot. We do get glimpses of them, but not enough to be satisfying (at least for me). Jooha is so adorable and really gives off that idol energy, while Kyusung is so much more reserved and very un-idol-like, even though they are both entertainers. I desperately wanted to see more of their relationship, and I particularly wanted to see how it was affected by the accident. There were just so many hints and mentions of these two, but we never get to see them in action. It left me wanting more, and I secretly hope we'll one day get a spin-off of these two because I think their relationship could be just as interesting, if not more so, than Aejoon and Siyeol.
Results:
This is very cute and super fun. It's not perfect by any means, but it's just so heartrending and funny it's impossible not to like. I think you'd be doing yourself a disservice if you don't give this a shot. It's fluffy, sexy, and romantic. It's a comfort read, for sure.
Have you read My Bias Is Showing?!? If so, what do you think? Do you agree with my assessment? Do you not? Let me know, and comment below!