The One Review: Two Identical Twins, One Modeling World, Zero Simple Answers About Identity

She looks exactly like the twin he lost. He knows she isn't her. That doesn't solve anything.

Quick Take

• A ten-volume Taiwanese manhwa set in the fashion and modeling world, built around a romance complicated by resemblance, grief, and the question of whether you can love someone for who they are rather than who they remind you of
• The modeling setting is rendered with visual detail; the emotional core is the relationship's central question of identity and choice
• Complete and widely available through CMX

Who Is This Manga For?

• Romance readers who want emotional stakes beyond standard school romance
• Fans of fashion/modeling settings in manga and manhwa
• People who enjoy stories about grief's effect on relationships
• Anyone who wants a complete ten-volume drama

Content Warnings & Age Rating

Age Rating: T (Teen) Content Warnings: Themes of loss and grief, modeling industry dynamics, romantic tension

Standard romance content.

Yu's Rating

Category	Score
Story Depth	★★★★☆
Art Style	★★★★☆
Character Development	★★★★☆
Accessibility for Non-Japanese Readers	★★★★☆
Reread Value	★★★☆☆

Story Overview

Lele is an ordinary girl who falls for Eros, one of the most famous male models in the world. Pursuing him leads her into the modeling industry itself — and into the complication that she is the physical double of Angus, Eros's twin brother who died.

The series tracks Lele's career as she develops from a nobody into a genuine model, and the romance between her and Eros against the shadow of the twin whose death still defines him. The central question is whether Eros is drawn to Lele for who she is or because of the resemblance — and whether Lele can accept a relationship where the answer might be complicated.

Nicky Lee handles both the industry setting and the emotional material with more honesty than the premise might suggest. The modeling world is shown as competitive and demanding rather than glamorous without substance, and the grief element gives the romance genuine weight.

Characters

Lele — An ordinary girl whose ordinariness is the series' initial comedic element and whose development into a professional is the series' primary arc. Her insistence on understanding her relationship clearly is her defining character trait.

Eros — A character defined by what he won't allow himself to feel. His development is about accepting that the resemblance and the reality can coexist without one canceling the other.

Art Style

Nicky Lee's art is clean and expressive — strong character design with particular attention to the fashion elements that the modeling setting requires. The twin visual element is handled consistently. The art developed noticeably across ten volumes.

Cultural Context

The One is Taiwanese manhwa, part of the Chinese-language comics tradition distinct from both Japanese manga and Korean manhwa, though all three are often grouped together in the English-language market. The fashion industry setting draws on the global modeling world rather than a specifically East Asian context, which gives the series wider accessibility than culturally specific settings.

What I Love About It

The scenes where Lele directly addresses the resemblance — refusing to ignore it, refusing to be made to feel it's something she should apologize for — are the series at its most interesting. Her directness is unusual in a romantic setup that would usually encourage the audience to overlook the complication.

What English-Speaking Fans Say

Appreciated for the emotional honesty and the modeling setting. The twin-resemblance premise is considered either a meaningful complication or a frustrating obstacle depending on the reader. The ten-volume length is generally considered appropriate.

Memorable Scene ⚠️ Spoiler Warning

The chapter where Eros explicitly tells Lele that he knows she isn't Angus — and she asks him to prove it by describing the specific ways she is different — is the conversation that the series had been building toward and the moment where the relationship becomes something that can move forward.

Similar Manga

Title	Its Approach	How The One Differs
Absolute Boyfriend	Romance with complicated emotional premise	Absolute Boyfriend is supernatural; The One is grounded in industry setting
Paradise Kiss	Fashion world romance with emotional weight	Paradise Kiss is more artistic; The One focuses more on grief and identity
Nana	Industry setting with complex relationships	Nana is music-focused and more dramatic; The One is more straightforwardly romantic

Reading Order / Where to Start

Volume 1, straight through.

Official English Translation Status

CMX published all 10 volumes in English. CMX's closure under DC/Wildstorm affects availability.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• The twin-resemblance premise creates genuine emotional complexity
• The modeling setting is rendered with detail
• Lele's directness makes her an unusually active romantic protagonist
• Complete and properly resolved

Cons

• CMX closure affects physical availability
• Some readers find the grief premise more obstacle than depth
• The industry setting may not appeal to readers wanting fantasy romance
• The emotional payoff requires patience with the complication

Is The One Worth Reading?

For romance readers who want emotional stakes alongside the romance — yes. The premise is more interesting than it sounds.

Format Comparison

Format	Pros	Cons
Physical	Complete 10-volume CMX set	CMX closure; availability varies
Digital	More accessible	Limited platforms
Omnibus	No omnibus	—

Where to Buy

Read the first volume. If it doesn't hook you, put it down. It'll hook you.

Start with Volume 1 →

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