frayed-at-the-seams

[frayed-at-the-seams]

YinWar will be switching in Jack & Joker, and we all cheered!

I'm not even exaggerating when I say these two have been going against industry standards since the very beggining, when they took the piss out of fanservice so hard that they became known for capsizing their own ship, and now they'll further deviate from the BL fixed pair norm and reverse roles as a way to tackle certain queer topics. Just last year @poetry-protest-pornography and I were talking about YinWar having both the willingness and the range to pull off something like this since they weren't held back by any company, and of course these men will deliver given that they have the luxury of doing whatever the hell they want as independent artists and producers of their own series. Dreams do come true!

[Eng trans.] Yin: I mean, people, let's say fans, will focus on "YinWar". By definition, "Yin" is the top in terms of roles, right? Y: So, I listened to the writers' ideas. They said that they intentionally reflected this issue, and that, in reality, it's not something fixed that way. Yin/Seoul: It switches. Y: Right. S: So it can be WarYin or YinWar. Y: Right. War: They wanted to convey that it's a matter of preference, and that it's much broader than that. It's broader than we think. The fact that two men should have fixed [sex] roles, only that way, or that people can only have one specific preference, it's not true. It's very flexible. It's something normal. Y: If people intend to be open-minded, we really have to be open-minded in the sense that they wanted to convey. After listening to it, it's brilliant. It's right. It feels like how it should be.

[frayed-at-the-seams]

Why isn’t Joker taking off his shirt? With the wounds it seems that it would be the easiest option.

Is he hiding something? Another tattoo? What does he not want Jack to see?

I’m suspicious.

[frayed-at-the-seams]

Time of Fever VS Unintentional Love Story

The Issues I had with the Plot and Characterisation.

(Will include spoilers for both dramas).

While both dramas were written by the same person, they each have different directors and as such, they have very different feels.

With Time of Fever being the prequel drama to Unintentional Love Story’s second couple, Donghee and Hotae. The short series/movie has many things that differ from the second drama. Some of which make sense and some which don’t.

These are my thoughts on the similarities and differences.

Plot line

While in Unintentional Love Story (which will be referred to from here on as ULS to save me typing too much) Donghee and Hotae are the second couple and therefore get much less screen time compared to the main couple, the viewers are still shown snapshots to their backstory that make their tangled and messy relationship have some sort of sense on screen.

In ULS we are introduced to Hotae by Donghee. It is clear from the get go that the pair have a tangled relationship.

As the show goes on we a granted glimpses of their past to explain why they have such a tangled relationship. It is show than Donghee was abused and kicked out of the house by his father. We are also informed that Hotae’s house is where he would go for refuge. His friendship with the slightly younger man having persisted through childhood. Donghee calls Hotae’s mother ‘Auntie’ in a way far more familiar than the other locals. Even without Time of Fever we know that they are closer than their first meeting would have us believe.

Yet despite the moments we are shown, it is unclear what happened between them to cause the rift between them. We know that something happened, probably something romantic that crossed the lines of their friendship, yet it is unclear in ULS and the pair do not have enough screen time to explore it further.

This is where Time Of Fever comes in, I assume.

Here Time Of Fever confuses the plot points we are already given.

The only way I can think of Time of Fever (TOF) matching the backstory scenes shown in ULS is if there is a time gap.

In the beginning of TOF Hotae is at his father’s funeral. The death of his father being the cause of his and his mother’s return to the sea side town they left two years before, and back to their old house. The same old house where Donghee seems to have been living in by himself for a while now. It is unclear precisely how long.

The fact that he is staying in Hotae’s childhood bedroom, with their belongings mixed together before Hotae has even moved back yet gives them a level of closeness beyond what was shown in their flashbacks in ULS.

The only way I can think of both shows fitting together is if the flashbacks in ULS were set when they were 15/16 and before Hotae moved to Seoul for two years. It would explain their closeness and also fit in Hotae’s absence and the affect is has on Donghee (which I will expand on later).

If Donghee was abused through most of his teen life for being gay and then kicked out of his home before Hotae moved away, then it must have been around his mid teens.

That means he was probably living in Hotae’s empty childhood bedroom for around two years by himself.

Which is just tragic to think about.

I can guess that Donghee had feelings for Hotae before he moved as well. Both shows mention them being childhood friends.

Then Hotae moves back and the events of TOF happen. Donghee’s feelings grow too much and he flees to Seoul, only to return years later. Hotae left behind with a broken heart and a bitterness at being abandoned. That would explain some of their troubles in ULS, especially if Donghee has only recently set up his coffee shop and Hotae was still adjusting to having him close. It would also explain the keepsakes of memories from their teens together that Donghee keeps in his cafe in ULS, which were not even mentioned or touched upon in TOF. (I wanted to see the part where Hotae wins him the watch again).

While both plots can fit together, they don’t fit together well. There are plot holes left unexplained and changes within the characters that do not make sense. That leads me onto the next section.

Characters

In the beginning of ULS Hotae is abrupt, almost angry with Donghee. We later discover that this is due to jealousy over Donghee’s friendship with Wonyoung. Once this is discovered he warms up and takes on almost a puppy-like devotion to Donghee, following him around like he is the light to his inner moth.

Hotae has this charming boyishness to him. He is impulsive, stubborn and a bit of a bad boy. He has tattoos and his relationships always seem to end with his girlfriends smacking him with their bags.

Between the two shows, his personality in fact does not change. He is the same in his twenties as he was in his teens. In fact, TOF portrays his start into serial dating very well. He dates out of a need to try and smother feelings for Donghee. He does not actively pursue these girls, in fact he drops them the second he has the chance to spend time with Donghee, but he goes along with their confessions and dates almost like a way to pass the time. He does not really care about them but more out of a need to conform. To maybe figure out within himself why he yearns for Donghee so bad.

TOF also explains why his character hasn’t changed. He felt abandoned by Donghee, someone he loved, less than a year since his dad died and he had to move again. While not as prevalent as the romantic main plot, TOF does a wonderful job of subtly building up this sense drowning within Hotae. Despite his cheerful persona he portrays to Donghee and his mother, the moments without Donghee are sullen and almost drained. He only smiles with Donghee.

He is a teenager, probably only around 17/18 who has had to deal with a lot of life changes very quickly. This is especially visible in the scene where he cries when he doesn’t win his first swimming match since he moved back. He is cheered up by Donghee and the plot moves on but his internal struggle with change is brought up again in episode 6. There he ruins the art room where he and Donghee would spend time. He destroys the room out of grief for being left behind and exclaims that he won’t change.

So he doesn’t and by the time we get to ULS he is still motor the same. With a few more tattoos and a motorbike, and a few part time jobs. Yet he didn’t go to college and he failed his last year of high school, which would have happened after Donghee left. He stays in the same seaside town and does what he has always done.

It is only with Donghee back in his life that we start to see him open up again. The more Donghee allows him back into his life, the more Hotae begins to change. He begins to learn Spanish and he grows to be friends with Wonyoung. This is a rather large change because in TOF it is clear that he has no close friends other than Donghee and in ULS it is unclear whether he had any friends prior to the start of the plot.

So when it comes to Hotae, TOF only expands on the character first portrayed in ULS. The viewers are given more of an understanding of his trauma and how much his love for Donghee drives him.

(It makes me want to give him a hug).

However, with Donghee TOF was not as clear.

In ULS Donghee is introduced as sassy, fiercely independent, stubborn and kindhearted. He seems to be the clingy, slightly annoying friend who would have your back in a heartbeat, judging by how he interacts with Taejoon. They have a banter that has a familiarity that must have taken years to achieve. (Especially with such a guarded introvert as Taejoon). It is truly a shame that we do not know the backstory of their friendship.

While Donghee is comedic yet a loveable friend character to the main couple in ULS, he is different with Hotae. He is also rude, bickering with him and pushing him away like a feral cat hissing and stretching at any sign of someone coming close. In ULS he avoids Hotae’s flirting and affection like it is the plague, actively cursing him out and telling him off.

So why in TOF is he so quiet?

That was the part that confused me the most. He went from apparently being a wallflower in TOF, who only studied and pined over Hotae, to an independent and confidant gay man in ULS. As a teen it seems he was filled with internalised homophobia and fear over his feelings for Hotae. So much so that he runs away to university in Seoul.

So what changed??

In the flashbacks in ULS, which I theorised earlier as happening before TOF canon, he is shown to be as confidant and verbally abrasive at any sign of affection as a teenager as he was as an adult. He talks back, he wrestles with Hotae and he plays around with him.

Yet in TOF he is quiet. He does nothing more than study and he barely touches Hotae first.

The only explanation I can guess to his abrupt character change would be due to the trauma of his abuse and the fear of his feelings for Hotae.

It would make sense if he retreated into himself when Hotae moved away. Two years can be a long time and that can explain why Hotae does not comment much on Donghee’s character change when he moves back. Other than a comment or two about how Donghee doesn’t smile anymore, he doesn’t seem to notice how Donghee seems to be too silent and submissive.

I can only theorise that his time at university allowed Donghee to connect with other lgbt people and deal with his internal homophobia and self hatred. That the years between TOF and ULS allowed him to grow up and return to the personality he had before.

Because if my plot theory is wrong then his characters in TOF and ULS seem more like two different people than the same person.

When Hotae kisses him in TOF Donghee avoids him for days and make him sleep on the couch. He barely says anything.

Yet when Hotae merely gets in his personal space in ULS, Donghee smacks his arm or pushes him away with a curse and a scolding.

It seems too much of an abrupt character change to me. I really hope my headcanon is right and that Donghee managed to regain some of his behaviours before he was abused. That would be happier, that he managed to rediscover himself despite the trauma.

Either way, I still love him.

I love both dramas and their dynamics in both.

If you have read this far then I apologise for rambling on for so long.

I love these dramas for both their differences and their similarities. I just wish the plots added up a bit more. Instead of answering my questions Time Of Fever only seemed to give me more.

I love Donghee and Hotae and I really need to see them have a happy ending. (Wishing for a third drama where they actually get together. ULS ended hopefully for them but I need more).

Feel free to comment if you agree with any other things I have noticed or theorised.

[frayed-at-the-seams]

Favourite BLs with age gaps (4+ years).

Here’s some of my favourite bl dramas where the age gap between the couple is 4 or more years. I chose 4 or more years because there is always a different feel to those who are 4 or more years older. There’s a lot that can be done.

Anyway, here it is. Enjoy.

- Minato Shouji coin laundry.

This is one of my top favourite shows ever. It’s a comfort show for me, although I recall the age gap of characters being 9 years put me off at first. Still, I tried the show and I am so glad I did.

The main plot of this show is the age gap. The issues between the characters stem from the age gap. With Shin being 17 when they meet and Minato being 27. I felt that the drama handled the age gap very well.

With the character of Minato, he does not feel creepy for being with a teenager. His character finds Shin attractive and that is where it stops. He is very strict about nothing happening between them while Shin is underage despite all the flirting and seducing Shin tries. Minato absolutely refuses to see Shin in a sexual or romantic way until he is of age despite all the other characters choosing to see their relationship as romantic. Minato continues to treat Shin almost like a younger brother despite it all, even when he gets flustered.

I was very glad to find a show where despite being attracted to a younger person, the character kept to their morals and waited until the person was 18+. Even when Shin has turned 18, minato waits until he has graduated high school.

While I would normally hate a drama with such a big age gap for the usual sexualisation of a teenager, this show didn’t do that. Whenever it started to lean in that direction, minato shuts it down.

Even so the dynamics between the characters was gold and there was a real growth and development for them. (Less so in season2 but we don’t need to talk about that). Shin learned that although he wanted Minato, he grew to respect the boundaries Minato set. While Minato learned to let Shin dictate what he felt comfortable with while also maintaining though boundaries. Throughout all of this the show maintained a light and almost puppy love atmosphere, perhaps to offset such a large agar gap.

I won’t lie and say that there’s not negatives to this show. Such a large age gap between characters itself is problematic. But despite my initial misgivings I really loved this show. The ages and dynamics work well with their characters and the actors did a great job.

Available on Bilibili and KissKH.

- Old Fashion Cupcake

Despite this show only having five episodes, it has a unique atmosphere and really works well in terms of pacing and storyline. It is a comfort show with a simple but engaging plot and it explores a story normally overlooked in BL.

This show is about 39 Nozue who is a boss of a team in a company that he has been working in for over ten years. He is feeling his age and getting stuck into a rut. This frightens him as it is affecting his mental health. When lamenting about how carefree a couple of teenagers look to his coworker, Togawa, he mentions how he’s feeling. Togawa suggests doing things that teenage girls would do (basically as a metaphor of breaking out of their comfort zones and trying new things). This leads them to a series of dates with a lot of desserts and eventually to love.

This story was so enchanting and sweet. While the characters worked so well together. The fact that both were independent adults meant that the age gap never really came into play other than when Nozue was joking about his age. The antagonist being more Nozue’s fear of leaving his comfort zone than their age gap and work dynamics. Also, they had such great chemistry that you forget about all the negatives.

Available on KissKH and Viki.

- The Eighth Sense.

Another all time fave drama of mine.

This drama was beautiful. With a unique and indie filming style and story telling you got a real sense of the characters and the cinematic style really worked.

While the age gap between Jihyun (20) and Jaewon (24-26) being a minimum of about four years (they never explicitly state it but it is said that Jaewon is around four or more years older) the drama revolves around Jaewon’s mental health and how it affects him. The characters grow through their own personal growths and it is only with these changes that they can be together. Jihyun learns to find his confidence and grows to be a self assured young man who knows what he wants, while Jaewon learns to know when to be a people pleaser and when to set boundaries and fight for what he wants too.

The way mental health was portrayed in this drama was the part that drew me in the most. It was glorified, or brought in for just some angst before being forgotten. It was a real and persistent problem to Jaewon and despite going to therapy, he had bad days and good. It fuelled decisions that he may not have made if he wasn’t feeling so self destructive and low. Even with the happy ending of the drama, his bad mental health does not go away. It remains something that he still deal with but with far more support and in a less toxic environment. It was a realistic portrayal of how things like trauma and depression can follow someone. It may not hang over their heads like a looming storm, but they persist like an annoying strand of hair. You may not notice it at first, then something can remind you and all of a sudden it’s there.

This portrayal of mental health and its effect on a character was raw. The romance interwoven between it was sweet and lovely to watch. This show really captures the viewer, though due to its unique style some may say that it feel disjointed.

Still, this show is unique.

Available on Viki and KissKH.

- Love Tractor.

A city boy goes to a countryside village to clear up his grandfather’s will and meet a young man who falls head one heals for him.

This drama is very cute and has a real ‘back to basics’ atmosphere. SeonYul (27 if I remember correctly) is a city boy through and through. At first this return to the countryside and all its old fashioned ways disgusts him, yet as time passes he begins to love the community and the peace it brings him. While YeChan (20-23 if I recall) is utterly smitten with this new face and takes great joy in helping him learn countryside life.

Is the plot complicated? No. Are there cliche tropes? Yes. Is YeChan a bit of a himbo? Definitely. (He’s more than just a himbo but he has his moments and we love him for it).

Either way this drama is cute and wholesome with two guys falling in love in the countryside. The age gap is barely ever mentioned other than a few stray comments. It’s not much of a plot point and doesn’t pose a problem between the characters.

In all, while simple, this drama was refreshing and an easy watch.

Available on KissKH and Bilibili.

- History 2: Right or Wrong.

Where Shi Yi Jie, a divorced teacher in his thirties with an eight year old daughter meets Fei Sheng Zhe, a college student in his early twenties. What starts as a simple child care job for Sheng Zhe becomes more as he slowly rebuilds and joins the little family.

I am not going to lie, at first this age gap and the power dynamics put me off. Yi Jie is a teacher at Sheng Zhe’s college, while not his lecturer for long (for one class which Sheng Zhe only had for a semester) the power dynamics that are involved put me off. Yet when I started watching this drama I found that despite Yi Jie being the older one, Sheng Zhe is the one who takes the lead in everything. Yi Jie is a bit of a wreck of a man before Sheng Zhe turns up.

He’s a workaholic with bad habits who often misjudges time and is late to collect his daughter. As the drama progresses Sheng Zhe convinces Yi Jie to take better care of himself and enables the father and daughter to bond more. What could have been a toxic mess turns into a wholesome found family with the pair raising the daughter together.

Any age gap toxicity was made null simply by their characters. Sheng Zhe being mature enough to handle the issues that could arise and Yi Jie allowing him to take the lead.

It is a sweet drama that does not shy away from the difficulties of maintaining a job while being a single parent with a messy divorce. Another great show by History.

Available on Viki or on Bilibili.

- History 3: Make Our Days Count (Second couple).

While the main couple of this show are both the same age. The second couple, Sun Bo (18) and Zhi Gang (26-30 though his age is never explicitly stated) have an age gap of around 8-10 years.

Again, much like other shows the romance between this pairing is mostly pursued by the younger.

Sun Bo works at his cousin’s gym part time where he develops a crush on regular and small time business owner and openly gay man Zhi Gang. He doggedly pursues the older, to which Zhi Gang refuses due to age gap issues. As a character, he is jaded by his past relationships and does not believe that a young man still in high school would want him. Eventually Sun Bo wears him down and they get together. (But not without a sex scene in the gym first. Which definitely surprised me on the first watch). However, despite all the angst between them, while the main couple end in tragedy (I still cry) these two make it into a lasting and healthy relationship. In history 4; Close to You (set around five years after MODC) they even make a cameo and get married.

For a couple that had the potential to be toxic and unhealthy, they actually surprised me and I grew to love their dynamic. Sun Bo is all enthusiasm and ‘follow your heart’ while Zhi Gang is a bit too restrained. He has experienced the downsides and consequences that following your heart can lead, especially when it comes to gay relationships and homophobia. The plot follows Sun Bo as he encourages Zhi Gang to take a chance on him.

Despite my misgivings it was lovely to see this couple get together and develop as characters. I loved both couples in this show and both couples made me cry at various points.

Available on Viki and KissKH.

- You Make Me Dance.

This drama, though short is sweet and adorable. There is a movie version of it available as well.

The plot covers Song Shi On (20-23), a university student studying contemporary dance, who is in debt. He has no family to depend on and no friends. Jin Hong Seok (27-30) works as a debt collector and has to go and collect money from Shi On. Instead of collecting money, he instead helps Shi On practise for an audition where he can get paid the money to repay his debt. While doing this, they fall in love.

Despite the age gap and power dynamics that could come to play in this show, the romance is equal and actually very sweet. It is two people, one who gave up on their dream and one who is fighting for his, bonding and living together. It’s a very short drama but ultimately about finding kindred spirits and the age gap doesn’t pose a problem. It’s actually very easy to forget the age gap between them as each of the character’s experiences mean that they are almost on equal footing.

Wholesome and sweet.

Available on Viki and KissKH.

These are all I can think of so far. May add to this list later. Hope you enjoy.

[frayed-at-the-seams]

My top BL dramas with sex scenes.

Basically my fave sex scenes and why.

- Unknown.

Starting slow. Real slow burn found family drama but when they get together, the scenes are sexy. It’s all about consent, it’s between two people who love each other and it’s a real build up of what has been years of pining. Not a full sex scene, it almost gets there, but what we see is amazing.

The couple itself is really sweet and the plot is well paced and slow burn is burning. The drama as a whole was great and I loved how the characters grew and developed.

However, drama has violence, child homelessness, drug addiction, child abuse, gang violence, and kidnapping.

Available on Viki or KissKH.

- Blueming.

This drama was lovely. With a real lovely slow burn romance that builds to an artistically filmed sex scene. While you don’t see much, just silhouette, you know what they’re doing. It’s intimate and so loving and more of an art scene than just sex. That’s one of the things I love about this drama. There is a real sense of intimacy and love between the characters. If you want to film a sex scene that doesn’t detract from the plot, then this is how you do it. It fit so well and was so visually aesthetic that it was my favourite part of the drama.

Available on KissKH and Bilibili.

- The Eighth sense.

Another beautifully shot scene. This one was intimate and fun and loving. The two characters laughing and just enjoying being by themselves without any pressures. It establishes a real bond and love between them that persists through later struggles in the show.

The scene is filmed beautifully too. The camera placement and cinematography makes it more than just a sex scene. It ties it all in with the character development and the plot, giving it a real intimate and unique feel to it.

One of my fave shows of all time.

Available on Viki, and KissKH.

- Between Us.

The side story to Until We Meet Again but about the second couple from that show, Between is about Win and Team. The drama is more about overcoming ptsd and trauma with love and support. There is one sex scene that fades to black before the proper scene but there’s enough shown that I have included it in this list.

The filming of this drama was engaging and worked with the characters. The plot focused more on the developing relationship of the characters and their own personal growth in response to their relationship than it did on any physical aspect to it. It is a wholesome drama that can be watched without having watched the first drama.

I have rewatched this a few times.

Available on YouTube and Bilibili.

- Love in the air.

This drama is split in two. The first half is the main couple, a typical top and sub bottom type. The second half is a Dom bottom with a pleaser top. Both couples’ chemistry is on fire and their scenes are very sexy. (I was so surprised by their scenes the first time I watched it. I was not expecting them to be so explicit).

But other than the scenes the drama itself deals with some good character development. Especially with the second couple where it explores a character with SA trauma and his subsequent trust issues.

For a drama that at first looks seems cliche and full of tropes (which it is) it actually explores them while also making some of it quite easy to watch. It doesn’t lessen the darkness of some scenes but it doesn’t overly explore it either. The viewers know what goes on without having to see the scenes in full detail. I liked this style of filming though a few of the sex scenes were no necessary to the plot.

Available on Viki, YouTube (but censored) and KissKH.

- Only Friends.

I am building up to the messy dramas slowly.

This drama though. This one is for the ones who love soap operas. There’s cheating, betrayal, sex in weird places, recording and taping without consent, alcohol and drug abuse, fist fights, and manipulation.

Basically a group of friends get caught in the messiest drama ever. There’s lots of sex and lots of character development, not always for the better. There’s three main ‘couples’ and they are all involved with each other in a messy way.

Let’s just say that watching this weekly was like watching a bit of a train wreck and seeing who are the survivors.

Well acted, very well filmed but chaotic as hell. It will make you laugh, make you angry and might even make you cry.

In all of it the lesbians are the least dramatic characters.

Available on KissKH and Bilibili.

- 4 Minutes.

If you thought the drama above was messy, this was worse but in a different way.

This drama has you second guessing everything. With a complicated slightly sci-fi plot line, the sex scenes as used more to show power and influence and control between characters than they are to show romance.

There’s so much going on with the viewer guessing character motivations and plots that the sex scenes get pushed to the side quickly. They’re there, and very explicit (especially the first one) but plot wise they are nothing more than a basic shock or display factor.

Either way, those actors did a good job. I had trouble watching them cause they felt too explicit.

Also especially here for Bible having a bottom era.

The show was well filmed too, even if I was confused by everything half the time.

Despite the confusion and the ending with way too many unanswered questions, I did really enjoy the show and the sex scenes did make sense in the plot. They were also filmed really well and I loved the lighting.

Available on KissKH.

- Kinnporsche.

Came out before 4minutes but with Bible playing a top character this time (the duality of this man). This show I both love and hate. Open ending, too many side plots that weren’t explained, lots of unanswered questions. Every relationship was toxic in some way. Anyway, I loved it. Great lighting, well filmed and stylised. Amazing acting.

Though the sex scenes, especially between Kinn and Porsche, were too frequent and in too many weird places. (They’re exhibitionists. You gather that after the first time). They were well done scenes.

However, this drama is not for the faint of heart. There’s dubious consent, freaky kinks, kidnapping, bdsm (between Vegas and Pete and there was no communication during it but it was such a well filmed scene), manipulation, violence, death, torture, kidnapping, and abuse.

This drama was definitely for the depraved. (Me and others like me).

We’re never going to get a season 2 and I am so sad about that.

Available on Viki, and KissKH.

Here you go you depraved souls. I mostly watch dramas for the plot. I can’t help it when dramas like KP happen to have sex as their plot.

Oh well.

Enjoy.

[frayed-at-the-seams]

My top ten bl dramas (with kissing scenes but no sex scenes)

Not in any particular order.

Sometimes I want a romance but I don’t need the sex scenes. Sometimes I just like the kissing and the plot. So here are my top ten.

- 2G ether. Season 1&2.

A adorable fake dating story with entertaining side couples and a well written plot. It is an easy watch with a comedic story line. Any problems in season 1 and any questions left unanswered are covered in season 2. The main couple have great chemistry and the side couples seem to match it well.

It is one of my favourites because it is such a chill drama to watch and rewatch. It is one I tend to go for when I’m tired or needing serotonin.

Available with English subtitles on YouTube.

- Minato Shouji coin laundry. Season 1.

A romantic comedy with a strangers to lovers trope. The plot revolves around a 17 yr old in love with a 27 yr old man. That put me off at first but the age gap is really well covered. The whole plot revolves around the age gap and how it affects them. It is both light hearted while dealing with the honest dynamic of their relationship. Both characters go through a wholesome journey of development, with Shin growing more mature and Akira learning to let himself be loved.

There is hints of a side couple but those characters go through development rather than have their relationship end romantically, which I really enjoyed.

The dialogue is very well written and the actors have really good chemistry together. Despite the age gap, it became one of my favourites in a very short amount of time. It is all so well done and they handled the dynamic wonderfully.

Though I did not like season 2 cause the writing was terrible. Still acted well but bad plot writing.

Available on Bilibili or dramacool.

- We Best Love, N1 for you & Fighting Mr second.

Ignoring the two different titles, this is season 1 and 2 of the same drama.

It is a enemies to lover dynamic in season 1 with a enemies to lovers dynamic once again in season 2.

While the plot is overly dramatic at times and cliche, it is very well acted and the actors really work with their lines and make the cliche parts fit so well. They have amazing chemistry (especially in season 2) and I love their dynamics. The side couples don’t get much screen time but they fit very well with the plot and the dynamics of the main characters.

When it comes to pure chemistry, this couple is one of my all time favourites. They speak so much with their actions. It’s a drama that will entertain throughout. I didn’t get bored at all.

Available on Bilibili and Dramacool.

- Semantic Error.

Another Enemies to lovers trope between two opposing characters. Opposites attract between a digital media student and a computing student. The plot is well paced and the actors spark off each other very well. The character development is explored well and the filming style adds such a tension and uniqueness to the scenes. One of the reasons why it is a favourite is how the filming style works with the characters and highlights their personalities. Everything just flows.

There are no side couples in this drama however the side characters are well portrayed and fully dimensional. I enjoyed how each character’s dynamics worked with those around them.

Available on Viki or Bilibili.

- Sotus The series.

A real slow burn between a new student and his head hazer. Although the hazing put me off at first the show went to explain all viewpoints really well. It explained why the Hazers continued the tradition of hazing as well as the students who were experiencing it. The relationship is a real slow burn but it’s done so well and scenes had me laughing and crying.

It includes other lgbt side characters and a straight side couple who are cute and go through their own personal growth.

An old bl (2016) but a good one. It was one of my first ones and I will never get over it.

Available on KissKH, Bilibili and YouTube.

- Takara’s Treasure.

A more recently released drama, this show was so wholesome and cute. It dealt with a character’s journey as he joins a university in Tokyo after living in a small town his whole life. His slow burn relationship with his senior is very cute and green flag.

I sort of wish that there were more kiss scenes but I did enjoy the ones we go.

Available on KissKH and Bilibili.

- Love for Love’s sake.

Another more recent drama. This one had me sobbing and giggling. For what seemed to be an intriguing plot about a boy seemingly playing out a video game where the goal is to make another boy happy turned into a really deep portrayal of depression and the loneliness of being lgbt. The romance and the relationships as they develop in this drama was all well paced and wholesome. The main character is iconic and he fights for what he wants which is great to watch. The drama itself was very well filmed. The cinematography didn’t distract too much from the plot but also made itself known and memorable. The pace was good though it could have done with maybe another episode towards the end, but with the time they had the pacing was pretty good.

This drama leads itself towards theory and not all the questions are answered but that is a good thing as an ending is provided but there is still enough to make one curious.

Available on Viki and KissKH.

- Why R U? (Korean version).

While I enjoyed the original Thai version, the Korean version out paced it for me. While the Thai one had many side couples and confusing plot lines the Korean one keeps it just to two main couples. It deletes the cheating element of the second couple and made it more wholesome rather than dramatic. The first couple actually starts as enemies to lovers and their dynamic is very funny. They fight all the time and swear at each other before slowly starting to admire and appreciate each other before falling for each other. The show was well paced and very lighthearted. The cinematography wasn’t bad but could have been more fun.

Though it’s from the same books as the Thai one, it feel almost like a completely different drama. This one had me laughing much more.

Available on KissKH and Bilibili.

- Stay With Me.

This is a Chinese drama based off a pervious BL drama called Addicted Heroin. Compared to the previous adaptation, the toxicity is taken out. Stay with me is mostly found family vibes between two step brothers, who don’t know that they’re stepbrothers for a long time, and how their relationship develops from friends to family. Whether this be family in a romantic sense between them or not, the show leaves that up to the viewer.

For a Chinese bl we do get kisses on the cheeks! Although I would like them to kiss properly. The show focuses on them growing as people and not just their relationship, which I enjoyed.

However, the show does end on a sob inducing cliffhanger and there has been no news about a season 2 yet. So watch at your peril. The show itself was well paced and very well acted.

Available on Viki and KissKH.

- Unintentional Love story.

This drama is of a young man who was wrongly fired from his job finding a reclusive ceramicist. He is told that if he can get the famous artist to sign with his old company, then he will get his job back. What follows is a slow burn romance with misunderstandings and great character development. Since the characters are all adults in their late twenties to early thirties, the show has a different feel compared to a lot of other shows where the characters are teenagers or young adults. These characters are running businesses and having to deal with issues such as money problems and loans. It’s nice to see such realistic things playing a big part in a character’s motivation. Yet they still have moments fuelled by their feelings and impulses. But they grow and learn and that’s what makes this drama really wholesome and lovely to watch.

The side couple in this is left unresolved but with a hopeful note. However there is a history between them that is not fully explained. There has been a movie based on their backstory that has come out recently, yet I do not know if it resolves their relationship in the show.

One of the things I love in this show is the costumes. As the sunshine character takes on more depth and grows as a person, his clothing colour palette gets darker. While for the grumpy character who learns to open himself up again, his palette gets lighter and by the end of the show their outfits have swapped colours. That is a detail which I loved when watching.

Available on Viki or Bilibili.

Here you go. These are my top ten dramas with no sex scenes. While some of them may have making out scenes that fade to black, they are not explicit and the drama plots focus more on the storylines or the character growth.

So for anyone who doesn’t like watching sex scenes, I recommend the dramas above.

Hope you enjoy.

Feel free to ask about anymore in the comments.

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Get to know you better game!

@gosiksmallspace tagged me and I had time to spare.

Last song: The whole Sleepyhead album by Jutes. A friend introduced him to me and I’ve been low key obsessed with the album since.

Favourite colour: Viridian green. The type of dark green that’s so dark it’s almost a blue-black colour.

Currently watching: I have too many things on at the moment. But currently it’s Twinkling Watermelon, Jack & Joker, The rebound (which I’m watching with friends), Jazz for Two, and All of us are dead.

Last movie: X-Men Apocalypse. I was having a throw back moment. Mostly rewatching for Quicksilver and Nightcrawler. I have a soft spot for those two little weirdos.

Sweet/savoury/spicy: If it’s a meal- Spicy. If it’s a snack- Sweet.

Relationship status: single. Too busy trying to figure out my life to date.

Current obsession: my ships and tv shows. Literally the only things keeping me sane.

Last thing I googled: cover letter writing advice. Boring life stuff.

I don’t really have anyone to tag who’s not been tagged yet. 😅

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Watercolour A5 painting of Neil Josten and his feature in Exy Pro magazine.

There’s some mistakes but I think I managed to smooth them over.

Made for a friend’s birthday.

Hope all you Andreil lovers enjoy.

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Viking AFTG AU??

We know the Vikings travelled. So having wymack as the chieftain of the Foxes that take in a wide range of people who became Vikings. Those from all over the globe. Nicky from Spain. Dan and Matt from Northern Africa. Allison from north Europe. Renee would have joined via trade along the Silk Road. The monsters and Kevin turning up along the road.

And Neil, the son of a war lord coming tumbling into their life during a raid maybe?

Andrew wearing black leather gauntlets?

The monsters as warriors?

Just Andrew in leather and fur and carrying a huge axe??

Aaron and Allison as archers?

Them in a long boat?

The images would be great.

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Daomu Biji Watcher’s Guide, May 2024

A few new entries have been popping up lately, and I’m always hopeful new fans will stumble into the pits and never leave so I thought I’d paste up a rough map.

(Obviously the best watching order, like the best reading order of Discworld or the Aubrey-Maturin books, is ‘whatever first comes to your hand’ but for the people who don’t like that…)

tl;dr:

Daomu Biji is a series about tomb raiding. Think Indiana Jones or Lara Croft but much, much longer. The protagonist Wu Xie is deeply in love with BFF1 Zhang Qiling, a hundred-year-old cryptid, and BFF2 Wang Pangzi, who was stolen in a raid from another book series. It’s comic, tragic, horrific, zany, prone to musings on life, love, desire, attachment, and has many, many piss jokes. (‘Journey to the West but modern’ is maybe the other comparison I’d make.)

Notes:

– This guide is not talking about “quality”. All of the adaptations have their own strengths and weaknesses and tone can vary a great deal, which is to say, if one of them doesn’t suit you it’s likely something else will.

– Wacky endings, and plot threads that disappear unfinished and get picked up a long time later, are as inherent to the franchise as the piss jokes.

– It’s common for the dramas to introduce characters and subplots a lot earlier than the books do. Sometimes we’ll see a character introduced ‘for the first time’ on multiple occasions and strangely familiar scenes. I’ll try to point out the biggest continuity clashes as I go.

The Soft Entry:

There are a few movies that are entertaining as standalones but will introduce various characters and background. I would recommend:

Escape from the Monstrous Snake + Mystery/Grave of the Abyss – two monster movies featuring Hei Xiazi, a supporting character. He’s a pragmatical mercenary who’s going blind in kind of a weird way, and goofy as hell when he isn’t tiptoeing over a vast abyss of existential dread. So many fun action scenes.

Time Raiders (2015) – so there are some textual clues that late in his career Wu Xie wrote this story as a memory-jogger for an amnesiac friend. The plot is a freewheeling wild ride which doesn’t directly match any book plot but introduces some major characters and how they relate to each other. It’s colourful and fast-moving. Enjoy, enjoy.

Conjuring Curse and Misty Creed are… theoretically set late in the series even if the actors look about twelve. Both work as stand-alone adventures, though Misty Creed is maybe a little deep in the lore. Again, colourful and fast-moving.

The Chronological Order

You could honestly start with most of these – they tend to come with a ‘what has gone before’ at the start or a newbie character that things get explained to. The only one I wouldn’t start with is Heavenly Palace in the Clouds, which is lovely but also the second half of a set and things won’t make sense if you haven’t seen Lost Tomb 2 first.

Lost Tomb 1 – a highly digestible 10-12 episode version of the Seven Star Lu Palace arc, ie. Baby’s First Adventure. Introduces A-Ning, Xie Yuchen, and Huo Xiuxiu early and a couple of og characters for Wu Xie to talk to instead of monologuing to himself. The restaurant scene at the end was raided from a later arc and you’ll see it again in Ultimate Note. A book character, Da Kui, was cut which is a small problem because how he died is a minor plot point discussed in Lost Tomb 2. 

Lost Tomb 2 – covers Raging Sea, Hidden Sands (underwater tomb) and Qinling God-Tree (weird bronze tree in the mountains) plus a whole lotta side stories and original content exploring the world and foreshadowing later plots. Mooostly in continuity with Lost Tomb 1 (see Da Kui above) and made as a set with Heavenly Palace in the Clouds – they share resources and a lot of actors, and some threads begun here are finished in Heavenly Palace.

Heavenly Palace in the Clouds – covers the Mt Changbai arc, a journey up a mountain to find a very old, very grand tomb. This was made so close to Lost Tomb 2 that LT2 borrows shots from Heavenly Palace and not the other way around, which is fascinating because it pointedly contradicts the last five episodes of LT2. It also brings forward some plotlines originally from the Tamutuo and Zhang Family Old Pavilion arcs (San-shu’s past in the underwater tomb, and the Huo Family videotapes) dragging some characters on-screen and forcing them to talk about their feelings, which they would clearly rather die than do. Given those plot-tweaks and the early, deliberate continuity clash, I’m tempted to call this a Canon Parallel Universe. Got some interestingly chewy character dynamics and luverly, luverly set design.

Mystic Nine – This is a prequel about Zhang Qishan – Fo-ye – and his peers, but later dramas expect us to know who Fo-ye was so I’m sticking it here. Kinda… picaresque? Lots of action scenes and Republican-era flavour and various factions jostling for power – kinda feels like an old-school wuxia story, only set in the 1930s with all that glorious Republican-era styling. Has some unfortunate cut scenes – the details of how Fo-ye recovered at his family’s house don’t make a lot of sense in the aired version, and there are a couple of missing fights in the penultimate episode. Shrug. Still a lot of fun. Comes with four side movies about supporting characters.

Ultimate Note – Covers the Tamutuo arc (a trip through the jungle) and two-thirds of the Zhang Family Old Pavilion arc (investigating Zhang Qiling’s past is like kicking a hornet’s nest). Very, very flirty and has some zippy-zip action choreography. Politely ignores Lost Tomb 1–Heavenly Palace continuity (Xie Yuchen is, once more, introduced for the first time, now with a romantically coded friendship arc) and brings in a lot of cameos from Mystic Nine and Sand Sea, which it was filmed after. Kinda tiptoes around parts of the book plot, which I suspect would be hard for anyone to film, re: Fo-ye’s actions in the 1960s. Fair warning, this ends on a cliffhanger. This is also where the Xinyue Restaurant scene appears again – two cakes!

Tibetan Sea Flower – If Tibetan Sea Flower ever airs, it will go here.

Sand Sea – Based on the Sand Sea novel. After Tibetan Sea Flower, Wu Xie goes into a bit of a decline and makes that the world’s problem. We the audience, plus Li Cu and Liang Wan, EDIT: a lovely doctor, are pretty much dropped in media res into a number of ancient conspiracies and complicated plots coming to a head in the manner of a boil. It’s weird; it’s messy; it’s mad fun. Like Mystic Nine, has a lot of factions jostling for power and colourful jianghu characters. We will, once more, see the Xinyue Restaurant scene. Also has some side movies.

Time Raiders – The textual hints that suggest Wu Xie wrote this, suggest he wrote it around Sand Sea-era, when his life was a bit complicated. I’m putting it after Sand Sea because I believe it caps a conversation that, ah, doesn’t quite make it into the drama. But notionally this is where it should go. Ah…. at one point, someone tells a story about an ancient ruler, King Mu of Zhou, who sought immortality from the Queen of the West in Tamutuo. The longer book conversation suggests that a) King Mu of Zhou engineered a “trap” for someone like Wu Xie to fall into in the future, and b) that Iron Mask Scholar, a villain from Lost Tomb 1, was an alias that King Mu of Zhou used in the Warring States Era. Which makes some of Iron Mask Scholar’s appearances in Time Raiders… interesting.

Reunion: Sound of Providence – sometimes known as Reboot. Having peaked in badassery in Sand Sea, Wu Xie has to consider what his life is going to be now, and also, he would like to track down a missing family member. So this was tweaked to make it more accessible to new viewers (so some parts of the back-story are not mentioned or conflated for simplicity) and that mostly works but I did find watching this first and then picking up the earlier dramas a bit of a mindscrew. Zhu Yilong is, however, a powerful draw and the rest of the cast sparkles. Probably best to think of Season 1 as two short seasons jammed together, which is to say, once the Warehouse 11 arc starts there are a number of characters who won’t reappear until Season 2. It’s a fun arc even so. Season 2 ends with a badass action scene and then a big party, which I think is a great way to end a story.

Escape from the Monstrous Snake, Mystery/Grave of the Abyss, Conjuring Curse, Misty Creed – these are all theoretically set around or after Reboot-era, though they can certainly be watched as stand-alones.

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exhuma is a bisexual movie for the bisexuals by the way. if you even care

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In a universe where twelve year old Vegas meets fifteen year old Pete and they spend a few hours together. Those few hours make a lasting impact on Vegas.

It changes everything.

Here we go, my first VP fic.

All done and dusted.

I had the idea of what if they met as kids and Pete’s first loyalty is to Vegas. So this little fic came out of it.

Might expand on it later. Not sure. But I hope you enjoy.

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Why do people treat like Edwin is the main character and Charles is just there to be his "bestie" low key making him "sidekick"??? Because it's starting to feel racist.

They go through the same amount of development throughout the show. Both of them have several story lines.

Just watched an interview introducing George and Jayden as "George, who plays Edwin. Jayden, who plays Edwin's best friend Charles."

NO SHUT THE FUCK UP THEY BOTH BELONG TO EACH OTHER EQUALLY.

I love Edwin. But Charles is not his accessory. Treating Charles as anything less than equal feels low key racist.

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Kiseki: Dear To Me + text posts

bonus:

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jean: traumatised, in denial, trying to get through each day, terrified of his future-

jeremy: this is my cardboard dog barkbark von barkenstein

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tsc was a comedy actually, look:

aka Jean Moreau being salty for 350 pages

(I have so many of these, I'm 100% gonna make a part 2)

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what the fuck is "dark academia" isnt real academia dark enough do you know what some of these fuckers woudl do for funding