Hey Kelisot! Just a heads up -- I moved this thread to Research so you may get better, more in-depth answers ^^
I want to preface this by saying I have never been in a poly romance so I do not speak from experience in that aspect.
However, like any other relationship, two things are super duper important: communication and consent.
All parties should be on the same page and agree to everything on said page.
Poly romances also come in a lot of different shapes and flavors. Not everyone in a three-way poly relationship are in a relationship with each other. For example, in your M/M/F example, M-1 could be in a relationship with only M-2, M-2 could be in a relationship with M-1 and F, and F could be in a relationship with only M-2. Any of them could also be in relationships with other people as well, not connected to this tri-shape.
Poly romances are not open relationships. Those are two different things. While an open relationship may be a part of the poly umbrella, it is not the same and/or interchangeable. I won't go into the differences here since this is an adult subject, but I encourage you to explore the differences on your own.
There are some unique opportunities presented by poly relationships and unique challenges. With multiple romantic partners, one may be able to express their love language in different ways to different partners, and receive different wants and fulfillments from different partners. On the opposite spectrum, one may have more difficulty expressing their individuality and individual needs in a poly relationship, or may have difficulty finding opportunities for personal space and social battery recharging.
A final note: a lot of media don't yet understand poly relationships and often portray them negatively because of that lack of understanding. That includes being seen as fetishizing or manipulating or keeping secrets. Poly relationships are much more than that and shouldn't be used as a plot device to push negative stereotypes.
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