What's a red flag you can forgive in a fictional character but would never tolerate in real life?
- Thread starter Pancito
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amyrzuki869
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- Nov 8, 2024
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tsundere, yandere, possessiveness, overprotective, jealousy and so on.
- Aug 31, 2014
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I can think of a few
- A jealous clingy guy. Man they are insecure as FAAAAAA and I really really regret dating one. They are good in gaslighting.
- Avoid funny snarky guys, they are are nightmare to date. You cannot fix their mean guy energy and they wont hesitate to kill you.
- Jan 21, 2026
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Honestly i like it when they're a character is really attached to you but in real life you're COOKED
- Aug 31, 2014
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This thread was really timely because I just finished watching this YT video. Otome guys should just stay in media form because IRL guys are more scarier.
- Jan 21, 2026
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OMG EVELYNS PSYCHO EXThis thread was really timely because I just finished watching this YT video. Otome guys should just stay in media form because IRL guys are more scarier.
but seriously dude men are scareee in real life like half of them are so weird and fked in the head. Yeah, id rather be in a relationship with a fake character rather than a real man, just to be safe, LOL!
- May 14, 2026
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No kidding.
Makes me remember overhearing 1 bro talk.
A guy was complaining about a girl he himself proposed to, she agreed, got excited, started coming up with names for their child, and then he dumped her because of it.
To me her reaction was totally normal but every one of them said horrible things about her and were emotionally supporting the guy saying what a "freak" she was.
Like why?
- Jan 21, 2026
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That is so fuggin ridiculous dude, what!!? That man did the girl a favor because who in the world wants to date someone like HIM?!!. What a asshole, man that is just sad..hope she's doing more better than his btchass.
- Jan 28, 2026
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Since I know they are fictional characters, there isn't really anything I find particularly unacceptable—at least, nothing comes to mind right now. If we were talking about real life, though, the biggest deal-breaker would probably be the other person being a living male; honestly, I don't think I could accept anyone in reality.
- Feb 24, 2026
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And remember the fact that if you wanted to work as his maid, you would risk losing your job that same day for doing exactly what he hired you for: cleaning and organizing his things ಠಗಠ
- May 14, 2026
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lol which is perfect!
you can slack off 24/7 and still get paid a fortune!
- Feb 24, 2026
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I'm already quite selective about love interests in otome games, so much so that the only red flag I'd overlook is Yang, lol (okay, there's Kanato too, but the guys from Diabolik Lovers don't even count since that game is out of the ordinary and everyone there is awful, and that's part of the game's charm – to see "how much you can handle his heart?" as it says in the status menu, lol). So I think anything involving a red flag would make me distance myself immediately in real life, lol. One thing I can think of that I find okay in an otome game, even cute, but that I wouldn't like in real life, is excessive pampering and overprotectiveness. Those types of love interests who always want to make decisions for the MC or whose love language is spending money on overly expensive things. It's not that spending money on your loved one is bad, but I think when it's excessive it ends up seeming like you're trying to buy affection. One example I remember giving me that feeling was in Neon Clash. Sodyk in a certain part of the game where he takes Kroa to a clothing store, makes her try on clothes she didn't choose, and then immediately wants to buy an outfit. At the time, it just reinforced the idea that he was trying to buy her or manipulate her with those gestures. I personally wasn't impressed or happy with that scene. It would have been nice if Kroa had the freedom to choose what she wanted and pay for it herself. All I know is that I clicked the "decline" option and I don't regret it (even though it led me to a bad ending since my affection for this man was practically nonexistent, lol, I think I really have a beef with this man, I really don't like him :p). Another one I can think of is Longli from Otome Daoshi (I'm still playing this game after months lol, it seems endless but it's my fault for neglecting it and focusing on other games like Cyberpunk 2077 which I'm replaying, Where the Winds Meet which I ended up having to start from scratch because I couldn't link my Steam account to the PS5, and Paranormasight XD). There's a little thing he did that already upset me, but I'll ignore it and not mention it because it's a spoiler lol, but what annoyed me the most, along with his attitude, was him starting to not let the protagonist help him even after she proved she was a great partner he could count on. Luckily, this only lasts for one chapter, so I think Longli is okay and pretty good so far, up to the chapter I'm on :) My point is that taking control and deciding everything for someone, even spoiling them, even with good intentions of protecting and showing affection, if done excessively or incorrectly, can end up taking away someone's freedom or ability to grow on their own, and they end up losing the opportunity to evolve. In games, those gestures are fine, but in real life, it sounds like a horrible "bad ending" lol
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- Feb 24, 2026
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You would get paid yes, with a kick in the butt and an unexpected death, since in one of his bad endings he sends Ceres away because of that, which leads to her dying in the middle of the street lol
- May 14, 2026
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- Feb 24, 2026
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For real, lol, it's the first bad ending you can get on his route, and it was the first one I got only because, besides that scoundrel hiring her to be his maid, I wanted Ceres to organize his things and make everything nice so he could do his crazy research and thus gain affection points! Guess I was too delulu, and my reward was seeing a brutal death lol. I still hold a tiny, little grudge to this day, but his luck is that I like him and his good ending to actually be mad and hate him XD
" ones.
- Feb 20, 2026
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Using a sad and tragic backstory as a free pass for their red flag behavior
- May 14, 2026
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lol this must be why I didn't see it, I didn't want Ceres to clean for him so I didn't and was surprised seeing his face when he liked that choice XD
Just like Dahut cleaning for Scien on a daily basis until he had enough at the start of that route lol
That's a tough question. If the story isn't good, even in fiction, that's pretty much unforgivable to me. But if the story is great, I can forgive almost anything.
In real life? Being a man.
In real life? Being a man.
- Nov 26, 2025
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I don't know what this character archetype is called, but they're presented as super cold and cruel toward the protagonist — and yet the protagonist ends up developing some kind of Stockholm syndrome for them anyway. Then later we get a tragic backstory, but honestly, that would never justify their behavior in real life.
- Jan 5, 2025
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A huge appeal of these characters for me is that they're fictional so if I'm being honest I can stomach whatever LOL if the story's interesting enough for me then I'm game. I'm not interested in being in a relationship in real life at all but anything that can even hint to being a red flag is a no from me.
In otome, I'm more or less okay with LI keeping the MC in a certain place—for example, to protect her (like in
or
. But in real life, that's a huge red flag that you should avoid!
Piofiore no Banshou
7'scarlet