Arclei:
Yas queen, give us nothing!!
Come on, the males of p much every species are going all out to look good and impress their ladies and human men don't even do the bare minimum!!! BRUH
Part of the reason I genuinely feel like I was supposed to be a bird, but something went wrong.
It's funny how people (sadly, mostly other women) have tried to villainize me for this yet get excited when they see men in a decent suit (bare minimum, but "effort" for most men). I almost want to be like, "Aha! So you're acknowledging you do have eyes, and like looking at nice things just like men do." Humans in general are visual creatures, the thousands of years of branding and brainwashing to insist that only men are visual creatures was effective.
Love that for her, tho! Such a cute scene
It was adorable! He tries to act shy, then throws himself at her right after.
I think Wu Tian Hao outfits should've been possible?
That would've worked. He's always dressed well—especially in his supernatural dramas. Honestly, whoever did the costumes for Alluring Night should be booked and busy.
This is such a fun idea!! I already worked on it some, I'll post my picks once I'm done 💖💖
I've been working on mine too! Can't wait to see yours!
Hot Young Bloods
This is one of those movies I was dying to see in the height of my Lee Jong Suk obsession, but couldn't find anywhere online at the time. Now I'm glad, even though I would've probably been grateful for the RR scraps back then. This movie gives me the same vibes as Our Times if Our Times was done poorly.
I do love that if a Korean movie/drama leans RR or is vaguely RR, my baby Lee Jong Suk is almost always at the scene of the crime LOL. Same thing with his upcoming drama Remarried Empress. One day I want him to be brave and just fully commit.
An RR version of Flower of Evil is said to air on the 31st of July! FL is an assassin hiding her identity from her journalist husband!
Looks promising, but it's a kdrama so I'm not holding my breath 😂
I'm excited because it's Gong Hyo Jin, but also wary because of the ML and it being Korean. The drama might end up being egal, but maybe they'll surprise us and give us another Love Scout or that older lady assassin movie you watched.
Also, I wish Chinese dramas gave us clear release dates like this instead of keeping us guessing for months, sometimes years T . T I mean, they gotta be able to estimate when the CCP finishes checking it.
Zhao Wu Nian
I remember you showing me the teaser!!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Chen He Yi in a possible RR and it's a main role??? I asked and C-drama Land may just deliver.
has some nice stills, but I have the suspicion that it won't commit, haha
We've been hurt so many times... T . T It looks adorable though.
but she's delivering some solid crazy eyes!
Okay, she's giving us a little something!
And y'all, I think we might finally be getting a weak, mistreated ML in a full-length.
I hope he's not a secret prince or elite guard.
I'm excited for it though, especially since it's from an actual RR novel.
murderbee:
Unfortunately, this one has been on hold for a while, and I don't think it's coming out anytime soon, if at all. The ML, Zi Yu, played a main lead in a Chinese BL series called Revenged Love in 2025 (it was pretty huge, i'm not sure if you would have heard of it or not), and since then he's been soft-banned/being watched so his projects are in a little danger.
I wonder how long he'll be soft-banned. The CCP is no joke, man. They'll getcha even if you film overseas, and don't air it in China. It makes me wonder why so many BL production companies and actors are still willing to take the risk. I guess it ends up being worth it even with the threat of a ban.
Junntsuki:
I consume a lot of RR content in the form of the webnovels (hoping to see more visual media)
Welcome!!! <3 It's so nice to have you, and wow thank you for these amazing recommendations!
I've been dying to get my hands on some solid RR webnovels, but have a hard time finding them on novelupdates, novelfull, webnovel...etc. Do you have any good recommendations? My preferences are modern-day office or school settings, but I'm open to fantasy and historical (if it's not too politic-heavy).
A Noble Romance (2025)
I enjoyed this for what it was. It did have some good RR moments. A Nice Day to Be A Bird and Live or Love? sound promising too.
Jin-Xia CP is back
The ultimate RR couple!!! They got me into solid RR dramas with Zhang Gong Zhu Zai Shang! <3 Hopefully 《蛊色撩人》will be RR, but have you checked out some of the behind the scenes footage? I am wary 😭. I pray that I am wrong.
I watched a drama called Obsessed recently, and it was sooooo good, so I wanted to share. It's egal with heavy RR-leanings, and the FL's in control the entire time despite how the cover makes things look. The directing's good for a vertical, and so is the dialogue because the FL has some amazing one-liners and catchphrases. There's even a little focus on female solidarity, which I always love to see.
The plot is the usual: my boyfriend cheated on me, so I'm gonna get even and sleep with his uncle, but it's done in an extremely refreshing and interesting way with some of the most satisfying RR scenes I've ever seen. I mean...
We rarely get MLs seated on counters, tied up...
DM me for a link.
Hi hi, I am ecstatic to find my people! I've been lurking around for some time and exploring MDL, but haven't gotten around to commenting.
Hello, hello and welcome to the club! Hope you enjoy your stay with us! 🎐✨
First things first, thank you Arclei so much for making this group, I can see all the hard work that went into organizing it! I also noticed that you added the GB/4i tag <3 there's great stuff in the community.
Thank you so much for the kind words! Nice to see someone recognize the GB/4i thing!! Glad to see it pop up more!
My pet peeve is when they bait-and-switch or reverse the dynamic back to heteronormativity (I'm glad a lot of ppl seem to agree? XD)
AYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY, my people!!! Bait and switch is my #1 most-hated trope, regardless of RR, but ESPECIALLY in RR!!!! AAAAAAA gets my blood boiling!!!
For FLs: immediate turn off if the FL is a jiao qi (trophy wife), I love FLs in/with power, FLs who can dom, protect and pamper their partners. For MLs: disabled, hurt, low self-esteem ML, ren fu (househusbands) and nan-mama ("male mommies"), and the scholarly-gentlemanly types. It's hard to find good RR that hits the spot, so sometimes that means compromising quality story for the kinks & dynamics, or compromising a good plot for not so perfect RR.
Wait, for the men, those are the ones you do like, right? AHahaha, those are some of my absolute favorite kinda MLs!!! Especially the mommies and the shy scholars!!! 😩 But also, hell yeah disabled/hurt ML appreciation!!!
I know the feeling of having to usually pick either quality OR role reversal. It sucks, but that's in the position we're in... Fortunately, the trope is gaining some more popularity so we're getting better representation and we also have our fair share of good quality RR media, too. Even if it isn't in abundance 😌
What are some of your favorite dramas? Or RR media in general?
(I attached some screenshots bc I get hooked into shows via visual content, but I can take them down if they're too spoilery)
ahahaha, I'm the same!!! I always be posting screenshots and GIFS!!
Thanks for all the reccs!! Feel free to also send them to Ree's list so she can add them to the ARRchive! https://kisskh.at/list/74KzbNr3
A Nice Day to Be a Bird (2024)
I knew I recognized my pookie Lin Zehui!!! He really loves doing RR!!
Jin-Xia CP is back, Miao Jiang youth ML x alluring older woman FL
The way my JAW DROPPED when I saw this!!!!! My parents are finally back from getting the milk??? This is so exciting, can't believe it's already been 3 years since DLX- how aren't they releasing at least 1 drama per year together? Diabolical!
I also peeked at the BTS scenes tho and it doesn't look promising for us, gang 😭 I'm hoping I'm wrong, but temper expectations
potatocouch:
Part of the reason I genuinely feel like I was supposed to be a bird, but something went wrong.
You and I are very bird-coded, bestie
It's funny how people (sadly, mostly other women) have tried to villainize me for this yet get excited when they see men in a decent suit (bare minimum, but "effort" for most men). I almost want to be like, "Aha! So you're acknowledging you do have eyes, and like looking at nice things just like men do." Humans in general are visual creatures, the thousands of years of branding and brainwashing to insist that only men are visual creatures was effective.
People who say women aren't visual creatures have NEVEEEEEEEEEERRRR been in a comment section full of women salivating over a beautiful man. I SWEAR. I've seen some of the vilest comments from women xD
That would've worked. He's always dressed well—especially in his supernatural dramas. Honestly, whoever did the costumes for Alluring Night should be booked and busy.
I kept on thinking of his styling in AN too 😩 He looked scrumptious! Hire that stylist for everythiiiing
I do love that if a Korean movie/drama leans RR or is vaguely RR, my baby Lee Jong Suk is almost always at the scene of the crime LOL. Same thing with his upcoming drama Remarried Empress. One day I want him to be brave and just fully commit.
Which titles? I only know of Big Mouth where he was somewhat babygirl (losercore) coded and then this one where... he's the exact same now that I think about it 🤣🤣🤣 This man is so fine, why does he keep playing losers???? He NEEDS to commit to a solid RR project already ffs
I'm excited because it's Gong Hyo Jin, but also wary because of the ML and it being Korean. The drama might end up being egal, but maybe they'll surprise us and give us another Love Scout or that older lady assassin movie you watched.
Now that they released a poster I'm a lot less optimistic about it, which is saying something because I already expected little xD Hoping to be positively surprised, but it's not looking too promising
Also, I wish Chinese dramas gave us clear release dates like this instead of keeping us guessing for months, sometimes years T . T I mean, they gotta be able to estimate when the CCP finishes checking it.
China likes to keep people on their toes... waiting for 7 years and then it drops this afternoon when you have plans :) Are you also thinking of Coming to Myself?
I hope he's not a secret prince or elite guard.
I'm excited for it though, especially since it's from an actual RR novel.
Never say never but I think they're actually gonna keep him a scholar at LEAST. He'll probably rise through the ranks and already had an unhinged crazy moment in the trailer, so they might steer him in some kinda way- we'll see.
...
We rarely get MLs seated on counters, tied up...
This scene still lingers in my mind... So, so, SO yummy!!! MLs never get to sit on counters 😩 It's such a waste! Also he kept reminding me of someone and I now realized it's Leo Wu 😂 Esp in the 4th image
Ladies on Top
A drama that is evidence that being on top =/= femdom and that femdom =/= role reversal
Okay so I watched this drama... prepared myself to get super excited about finally getting something even remotely similar to Love and Leashes, and it started out quite nice with two leads that know they don't fit the status quo and want to be in a role reversal relationship (FL is more self-aware about this than ML), but despite such a scrumptious synopsis and set-up, I started to feel odd about it pretty quickly... FL was too meek and cutesy uwu girl, the metaphors and jokes were cutting all of the tension, the direction it was taking it was... safe... too safe.
But then it actually fully ruins itself after the mid point and the leads (spoilers ig...) realize that after being very sure about their dislike, bordering on disgust of traditional gender roles... that they're fine performing said gender roles and having the opposite gender roles performed on them.... as long as its with each other 😬😬😬 To say this made me feel sick is a tremendous understatement.
Yes... they do switch in the bedroom. They take turns "doing" each other and the drama treats ML being the "receiver" a lot better than any piece of media I've ever seen, but that's about it, though. After the midpoint, ML starts shifting into a trad role where he starts fighting (admittedly, in a softboy kinda way) FL for who tops and wants to be on top and dominate and FL? She giggles and lets him do that and then sometimes they switch and she doms him 💀 Kudos for explicit consent, ig. As for outside the bedroom? Heavily trad-leaning egalitarian. FL never pursues ML, she never woos him, never protects him, never gets jealous, nothing... and ML? He's soft and he cooks? Is that really role reversal tho? ML definitely felt more RR than she did. He's soft-spoken and shy... and she's also soft-spoken and shy... and also cutesy and uwu-girl, which does not really scream RR to me as much as it's just... egalitarian.
It's called "Ladies on Top", but it should be called "Should we Switch Sometimes?" Has a better ring to it and is more true to what we got anyway.
The main arc of ep 3 is their date being crashed by another guy who wants to date FL, and ML proceeding to compete with him for the entire episode for who gets to be with FL (💀), while FL is just... fine with it or blissfully unaware? Like, for people that claimed to hate the performative traditional gender roles, they sure are fine with this... The entire drama felt like two 15-year-olds figuring out they can do something other than the status quo... Like, genuinely, they acted more like children than the actual teens in the show 😬
AND DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE METAPHORS FOR THEIR BEDROOM STUFF- I'm fresh out of a graphic steamy BL and am admittedly EXTRA salty that I never get to see proper RR bedroom activities. But this is so poorly done even your average highly censored cdrama has more tension!!! Whenever the moment threatens to be steamy and intimate... boom, cut to a ridiculously unfunny gag (it was amusing the first two times... but it got SO old). It had like 2 or maybe 3 decently steamy moments? And to think that their bedroom life is literally the ENTIRE plot of the drama... How do you fumble it this bad? Hey Johnny, give me a pizza with nothing!
I just can't fucking believe that in 2026.... AFTER Love and Leashes, He's Expecting, Colorful Love, and Goukon ni Ittara Onna ga Inakatta Hanashi, this is how Japan handles an RR femdom romance. How did it somehow get worse? I'm... at a loss, besties. How can they do extremely tasteful and heartfelt mpreg, but fumble this??!?!??!
Idk chiefs... A role reversal romantic sex comedy that's neither romantic, nor sexy, nor comedic, nor role reversal, nor femdom, and also tremendously shallow and lacking in depth. I, really, really wanted to love this drama, I mean, come on, it's me, but I'm only disappointed. It would've been fine had they not hammered home the fact that the leads hate the status quo and wanna do something different. Like it could've been a cute egalitarian rom about two people figuring out they like equality and to switch. But NOOOOOOOOOOOOO, you just HAD to bait me. (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻
My detailed complains in my review: https://kisskh.at/profile/Arclei/review/583000
I recently made a compilation of FLs manhandling MLs! I posted it on Reddit, here it is: FLs manhandling MLs in dramas
OMG I LOVE THIIIISSSS!!!! You have some real bangers in there!! I'm so happy to see Secrets of the Shadow Sect included! That FL loves to manhandle!
Can't wait for part 2!!! Feel free to also make a thread with these in the group (https://kisskh.at/g/role-reversal/discussions) so it's not lost in this chat and we can quickly find them again!
People who say women aren't visual creatures have NEVEEEEEEEEEERRRR been in a comment section full of women salivating over a beautiful man. I SWEAR. I've seen some of the vilest comments from women xD
That's what's baffling! Some of these same women salivating over beautiful men in comment sections convince themselves they're not allowed to have expectations in real life??? They'll gush over male celebs and influencers who groom themselves, but as soon as you start talking about dating it's: ahem, appearance actually doesn't matter at all. Women are able to look beyond that, so it's okay that my boyfriend hasn't bathed in four days, and when he does he uses dish soap on his face. It's like when you start talking about men IRL a copium switch gets flipped. It happens a lot, and it makes me so sad. I can pinpoint the moment the societal conditioning hijacks their brain. And I'm not saying looks are all that matter. Personality is a huge part of compatibility, but men going through life not being expected to put adequate effort into dress and grooming has always boggled my mind, so it was cathartic to see a C-drama (and a vertical no less) call attention to it.
This man is so fine, why does he keep playing losers????
Half of it is typecasting and the other half is: he might relate to these losers on a subconscious level hahaha. Which works for me because I tend to love his characters. In addition to Big Mouth (I wouldn't call his character from Remarried Empress a loser bbg. I read a big chunk of the webtoon, and he's more of a male green tea, but who knows? The screenwriter might give him a loser bbg spin since it's LJS) he also gives loser bbg in Pinocchio, While You Were Sleeping (big loser vibes), and a little in Law and the City from the two episodes I watched.
Now that they released a poster I'm a lot less optimistic about it
Are you talking about the one of her cooking like a good housewife with what looks like a sniper rifle strapped to her back? Why did that make you less optimistic?
Are you also thinking of Coming to Myself?
...and Shadows of Desire, Tigers Sniff the Rose, and even Sweetest Rebellion.
All full-length historicals I'm willing to brave because they look RR, for Daniel's bow mouth, or both. But I can't even mentally prepare because none of them have release dates (at least on MDL).
This scene still lingers in my mind... So, so, SO yummy!!! MLs never get to sit on counters 😩 It's such a waste! Also he kept reminding me of someone and I now realized it's Leo Wu 😂 Esp in the 4th image
I've gone back and watched this scene so many times T . T Be still, my RR heart.
OMG HE DOES LOOK LIKE LEO WU! HAHAHAHA. But softer. Leo Wu has an intense aura, even when he's playing kind characters.
I recently made a compilation of FLs manhandling MLs! I posted it on Reddit, here it is: FLs manhandling MLs in dramas
Nice compilation, murderbee! That first scene from You Have My Heart is making me wonder if I should give it a try despite not generally liking supernatural stuff. You also included one of my favorite scenes from IOTNBO!! <3
Ugh, I dropped Glory, but the scenes you chose make me want to pick it back up. I'm so weak when it comes to RR content 😂 It's the only thing that makes me go back and forth with myself after I've already made a decision.
Anyway, can't wait for part 2 of your video.
Ladies on Top
We'll discuss this later. I still can't believe how crappy it ended up being. This is the cruelest bait and switch I've ever seen.
Not sure if anyone's already posted about "Love in Sync", so:
Summary: An emotional transference romance that unfolds as a woman who denies empathy and a man who bears the burden of empathy come to share each other’s emotions.
Cha Eun Hwan, a man who bears others' emotions excessively. He is a psychological counseling expert who has gained widespread popularity for his unique counseling methods. However, after becoming entangled in an unexpected incident, his everyday life and emotional balance begin to unravel. As he falls into despair, a figure connected to his past appears, bringing changes to both his life and his emotions.
Yoo Ji An, a former girl group member who was once called the “Nation’s Idol” and enjoyed explosive popularity, is now working as an actress. Having lived her life suppressing her emotions under her mother’s strict control since childhood, Ji An faces a crisis due to controversy over her acting skills, stemming from her lack of empathy. She then meets Cha Eun Hwan, a psychological counseling expert, and unexpectedly experiences “emotional transference.” Through this experience, she begins to rediscover her lost emotions and grow as a person.
The premise is very RR. It’s quite literally the “I can fix her” trope, and the leads' dynamic even reminds me of It's Okay to Not Be Okay, but I'm a bit wary after watching the trailer. It feels like they're going to take this extremely RR idea and make it egal or even possibly trad with slight RR leanings (shuddering). I'm not sure yet, but I figured it should be on our radar just in case. I'm gonna give it a try and report back.
Now that they released a poster I'm a lot less optimistic about it, which is saying something because I already expected little xD
OH SNAP, I JUST REALIZED SOMETHING!! Not only is Gong Hyo Jin the lead, but the drama's written by Kim Eun Hee! She wrote one of my fav dramas of all time "Signal", and I enjoyed her dramas "Sign" and "Ghost". She also wrote Kingdom, which even non-K-drama fans loved (I didn't watch cause it looked scary LOL).
I'm still not optimistic about the RR because she mostly writes in the action and thriller/horror genres, and doesn't tend to build up the romantic relationships in them (if they're present at all), but I'm surprised and tickled this is her newest project. If she can at least hit egal or egal with RR leanings, and the story's really good, she might get me. (She's also writing Iseop's Wish, the drama where Lee Jong Suk plays another losercore ML. The lady is diversifying! Is that what you were talking about earlier instead of Remarried Empress?)
But then it actually fully ruins itself after the mid point and the leads (spoilers ig...)
Yeah I completely dropped Ladies on Top. I actually read the manga it was adapted from (Is It Wrong To Get Done By A Girl?) before it came out, and when I saw the synopsis I was like that's very familiar...
But yeah the manga and the drama were both pretty trad-leaning egalitarian unfortunately.
Nice compilation, murderbee! That first scene from You Have My Heart is making me wonder if I should give it a try despite not generally liking supernatural stuff. You also included one of my favorite scenes from IOTNBO!! <3
Thanks! You should definitely try You Have My Heart, it is one of the most RR titles I've watched this year. And both scenes from IOTNBO are my favs as well!
I recently made a compilation of FLs manhandling MLs! I posted it on Reddit, here it is: FLs manhandling MLs in dramas
OMG I LOVE THIIIISSSS!!!! You have some real bangers in there!! I'm so happy to see Secrets of the Shadow Sect included! That FL loves to manhandle!
Can't wait for part 2!!! Feel free to also make a thread with these in the group (https://kisskh.at/g/role-reversal/discussions) so it's not lost in this chat and we can quickly find them again!
Yeah, I knew digging through Secrets of... would give me some great RR scenes lmao
I've made the thread!
I've been dying to get my hands on some solid RR webnovels, but have a hard time finding them on novelupdates, novelfull, webnovel...etc. Do you have any good recommendations? My preferences are modern-day office or school settings, but I'm open to fantasy and historical (if it's not too politic-heavy).
Hmm, tbh ABO (Female Alpha x Male Omega) is probably the biggest trope in GB. There's a jjwxc writer called 龚心文 who is a lot of people's gateway intto GB. But I will search and see what good modern day titles exists! I'm also interested in reading more modern day stuff, even if more egalitarian than RR.
https://www.novelupdates.com/nauthor/%E9%BE%9A%E5%BF%83%E6%96%87
GB lists/recs by Novelupdates users:
https://www.novelupdates.com/viewlist/128170/
https://www.novelupdatesforum.com/threads/gb-fourth-love-novels.153699/
A Nice Day to Be A Bird and Live or Love? sound promising too.
I personally like Flora Dai Yan Ni (the actress). Wish she could do more RR, dig into her RR side :3
We rarely get MLs seated on counters, tied up...
Looking like a treat fr! This shall be my bedtime watch hhh.
Wait, for the men, those are the ones you do like, right? AHahaha, those are some of my absolute favorite kinda MLs!!! Especially the mommies and the shy scholars!!! 😩 But also, hell yeah disabled/hurt ML appreciation!!!
I know the feeling of having to usually pick either quality OR role reversal. It sucks, but that's in the position we're in... Fortunately, the trope is gaining some more popularity so we're getting better representation and we also have our fair share of good quality RR media, too. Even if it isn't in abundance 😌
What are some of your favorite dramas? Or RR media in general?
I don't really have favourites, but I can say that I really liked Love and Leashes, The Glory (Chen Duling & Xin Yunlai) and Glory (Gulinazha & Hou Minghao).
I am looking forward to Zhou Keyu's upcoming historicals that is radiating RR energy. Xin Yunlai is acting as 'half' a eunuch in Ming Dynasty Adventures, and I absolutely love that, at least we have a real eunuch ML at some point in the story, because castration & physical/symbolic loss of phallic prowess hhhh.
《蛊色撩人》——I'm crying, my RR ship is sinking? That kinda sucks considering they slayed RR, aiya.
But then it actually fully ruins itself after the mid point and the leads (spoilers ig...) realize that after being very sure about their dislike, bordering on disgust of traditional gender roles... that they're fine performing said gender roles and having the opposite gender roles performed on them.... as long as its with each other 😬😬😬 To say this made me feel sick is a tremendous understatement.
Yes... they do switch in the bedroom. They take turns "doing" each other and the drama treats ML being the "receiver" a lot better than any piece of media I've ever seen, but that's about it, though. After the midpoint, ML starts shifting into a trad role where he starts fighting (admittedly, in a softboy kinda way) FL for who tops and wants to be on top and dominate and FL? She giggles and lets him do that and then sometimes they switch and she doms him 💀 Kudos for explicit consent, ig. As for outside the bedroom? Heavily trad-leaning egalitarian. FL never pursues ML, she never woos him, never protects him, never gets jealous, nothing... and ML? He's soft and he cooks? Is that really role reversal tho? ML definitely felt more RR than she did. He's soft-spoken and shy... and she's also soft-spoken and shy... and also cutesy and uwu-girl, which does not really scream RR to me as much as it's just... egalitarian.
The switch is also a subcategory in GB/4i, one that I try to avoid 🫠🫠 Sounds like kinkplay rather than RR proper. I'm just generally dubious about jdramas delivering good RR because they're such a traditional society despite coming up with the most wild and perverted stuff hhh.
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Recently came out, vshort《将军在上，王爷妻管严》(lit. General on Top, His Highness is Henpecked). I was hoping this would be a promising RR, but after seeing some clips it looks more egalitarian. Sometimes the title says FL on top but it's just a bait 🫠🫠
