- #1
The female characters aren't written as love interests (except for one actress who seems to be a hopeless romantic and a nameless character that Shin had a crush on in his past life) but it also comes with caveat of the unfortunate reality of idols: territorial fans.
The way Space fans rejected an up and coming actress for doing her job in a competition when she was paired with Shin was vile.
Shin can't even interact with female coworker unless they're far apart in age or appeared completely uninterested.
The author seem to jump between pity at idols being seen as exclusive to fans and never addressing the core reason why said fans turn into obsessed stalkers.
They'll blame the individual but not the fact idols themselves sell that fantasy to their audience and push that it's the idol's duty to remain celibate.
There's no distinct between public and private, intertwining reality with an idealized image.
At least it's acknowledged that idols are humans who also have love lives but the premise is still seen as a betrayal to fans on par with criminal charges.
The only idols seen dating are ones who have multiple partners and messy love lives.
The way Shin scolded his member for being caught in a dating scandal felt excessive, especially since they were six years active and popular by that point.
Even until the end with their contract renewal, the dating ban was never said to be lifted.
Reading idol novels while carrying this cognitive dissonance can drive a normal person crazy.
[collapse]After a certain point however, the idol group activities end up pushed in the background as the members occasionally reunite to record songs and do concerts plus fan meetings while everyone is carving their own niche in the Showbiz industry.So it's more or less focused on Lee Shin the idol actor.