This is an unusual story for BL. The smut is tasteful, the seme is non-toxic, the uke an absolute spoilt brat, and the laziest art in the story is so beautifully colored, I’m not sure it’s fair to even call it lazy.

I first read this via scanlations, and as scanlations go, these were pretty decent. Good enough that the charm of this story shone through, and melded itself with the eye popping art. I really feel I must gush profusely about the art, I really, really enjoy it. The artist’s sense of humor and the irreverence with which they treat their characters makes the story funnier.

The softness of lines, don’t detract one jot from the beauty of the coloring, the use of a largely soft palette, and clever use of pops of colors, it is absolutely one of my favorite aspects of reading this story. BL has so many terrific stories, and so much lazy artwork that when you come across someone whose art style resonates and is gorgeous, it can quickly become the only thing worth talking about in the story. That’s not true here.

The story is not just well plotted out, and delightfully witty, it is howlingly hilarious and with some poignant moments. There is no deep, emotional mining per se, so no exceptional angst, so it’s a soothing read from beginning to end. Wooyoung is easily among my favourite ukes. Ever.

Such a fucking brat… but you absolutely cannot hate on him for it. He wraps everyone around his finger, and I mean everyone, but everyone adores him for it. And so do I. So will you. Even Kyungju’s initial coolness act, lasted a mere chapter or two in the face of Wooyoung’s adorb factor.

In no time flat, he was simpin’ with the best. And Kyungju is #GreenFlagSeme all the way.

The majority of the story covers the actual building and development of the relationship between these two, and the many obstacles they overcome along the way. It doesn’t mire itself in will they or won’t they for forty fucking chapters. They fall pretty fast for each other, and spend the bulk of the story navigating the relationship and the changes it brings. And it is the sweetness of their love for each other (and the comedic drama) that makes this such a wonderful read.

I finally got to read the official translation, and the difference really was like chalk and cheese. If it was possible to enjoy this more because of the care in the translation, I would buy it twice. Alas… If you’ve read this via scanlations only, believe me, it’s so much more delicious in the official translation. And delicious it is despite the lack of lightsabers.

I saw the creator’s note, where she said they opted to draw the scenes in a way that allowed the smut to be smutty, without triggering censorship (since they was gonna censor the peen anyway), and while I wouldn’t trust every creator to do it well, this one does it exceptionally. All the smut is tasteful, but quite erotic… the story is sexy without it’s sole focus being how fast can the main characters get naked and screw.

The main characters also benefit from a delightful crew of supporting characters. It’s hard to pick favorites, but Wooyoung’s father and brother Jooyoung, are high on my list. As is, the hilarious Mr Byun (Kyungju’s secretary) and his pre-written resignation letter. This is why it is an anomaly in BL for me.

It has all the right notes, and the art is unusual and eye catching, and the smut tasteful, and the story heartwarming. Although the main story is over, we’re currently reading the side story telling of the relationship between Jooyoung (Wooyoung’s older, doting, adoring wrapped around Woojung’s pinky brother) and Eugene (Genie), a private investigator hired by Woojung’s family. We saw bits of this story play itself out during the main story’s arc, but now we’re getting all the back fill.

And it’s decidedly not as fluffy as the main story. While it’s listed under “How to Snag an Alpha”, it’s titled “How to Snag an Omega”. It’s darker, both in visual color palette, narrative tone and maturity. And there are lightsabers! However, there is none of Woojung’s cuteness and none of Kyungju’s unabashed simpin (at least not yet) from Jooyoung. Genie’s dominant Omega traits, his general toughness, shrewd calculations, and slightly questionable morals, make for a different kind of story, but no less engaging.

Jooyoung has already proven himself a sweetheart, so it’s interesting watching the relationship between him and Genie develop. Since we know how the story plays itself out, this side story is more about how they get there… which considering the focus of the main story’s arc, grounded as it was in relationship growth, kinda fits.

At any rate, I’m enjoying the side stories also. It’s so high up on my comfort reads list, it’s among my go tos. I laugh every time like it’s the first time I’m reading it and I’m yet to get tired of rereading it. Definitely do it, and definitely do the official translations. So much freaking funny good.

Don’t skip this one.