#Viki Mealings

[oconswrld]

König x Confident!Reader

How about a reader with a loud, confident, and charming personality, and König with his social anxiety, and awkwardness?

(!Warnings! Smut, fluff, mentions of choking (as a kink), face sitting, and possibly, König having a thing for Reader's laugh, daydreaming ab sex, and other silly little things!!.. tihihi. They/them for the reader, and i also don't think i really specified their body)

Gosh, their laugh. Their loud, obnoxious, and over-the-top laugh! It makes his dick harden, his pants tent, and his heart skip a beat out of anxiety. It makes him hold his hands in such tight fists, you'd think he's trying to break oxygen atoms. Is he pathetic for being so turned on for someone having fun? Maybe, he is. But he's always been pathetic.

They're making jokes for the whole of KorTac. Horangi is leaning into their side, playing along with every single joke that König could never play along with. God, every damn team mate looks at them like they hung the moon, and the stars in the sky, but.. wait.. Why are their eyes on König, the same exact way everyone is looking at them like?

Those pretty, pretty eyes tracing up his body, so slowly, so excruciatingly, it's delicious on his tongue, like he could taste the way their mouth would be like from simply a look. They're sucking every bit of his aura up, like it's their first meal, and they're damn enjoying it. That idiotic smile on their lips, with those teeth showing for everyone to see..

But what's not for everyone to see, is the way they look under him. The way they moan, and whine when he hits that spot inside them. The way they speak, so so filthy to König isn't for the ears of the crowds. Those same exact eyes that are trailing over him at this moment looking down at him when he has his tongue buried inside of them, and they're perched on his face. That same exact mouth that's up-turned, and making jokes right now, singing praises, and moans for him the moment he dips his cock into their wetness.

"Ain't that right, Colonel?" They say, snapping him out of his day dream. He just rolls his eyes, acting stoic as if his stomach wasn't bouling with arousal. As if he wasn't imagining their taste seconds ago, the image in his mind making him lick over his lips under that damned mask. Oh fuck..

His cock is hard in his cargo pants, fighting to be let free, preferably near them. He crosses his legs as best as he can, trying to hide it, but you won't believe, it's quite hard to hide a boner when your dick already shows through your pants when you're soft.

"He's not even listening" Horangi says, making the team laugh in sync, wide smiles, and harmonic chuckles.

He needs a god damn cold shower.. God..

(Cause Viki finally got motivation!! Enjoy, babes xoxo)

[guzhufuren]

Japan 🇯🇵 A Guide to Some of the Best Queer Asian Shows

Full list here.

1. Cherry Magic!   mind reading; secret crush; office setting

By still being a vіrgin at 30, Adachi gains a magical power – the ability to read other people's minds by touching them. At first, he’s overwhelmed by his new ability, and it’s not proving to be helpful to him. But that all changes when he accidentally touches their office’s most perfect guy Kurosawa, who he learns has romantic feelings for him.

WeTV (Cherry Magic) & no international streaming of Cherry Magic The Movie is available to my knowledge, so watch on bilibili or KissKH

2. Kieta Hatsukoi (My Love Mix-Up!)   misunderstanding; high school setting

Aoki has a crush on Hashimoto, the girl in the seat next to him in class. But he despairs when he borrows her eraser and sees she's written the name of another boy — Ida — on it. To make matters more confusing, Ida sees Aoki holding that very eraser and thinks Aoki has a crush on him!

Viki

3. Our Dining Table food; child character

Salaryman Yutaka finds it difficult to share meals with other people. However, his life starts to change when one day, his cooking attracts the attention of a young boy named Tane and his older brother Minoru. The two brothers are impressed by Yutaka's cooking skill and invite him to their house to cook together. Yutaka's dreary life begins to change, and soon he finds himself looking forward to the meals he shares with the Ueda siblings together, as well as developing a taste for romantic feelings.

GagaOOLala

4. She Loves to Cook and She Loves to Eat wlw; neighbours; self-discovery; food

Nomoto loves to cook, but tends to make too much food and has no one to share it with. Luckily for her, turns out her neighbor Kasuga has a big enough appetite for the both of them.

No international streaming available, translated to english by Furritsubs, S1 & S2, watching instructions provided, please support translator on kofi.

5. Takara-kun to Amagi-kun high school setting; relationship exploration

Takara is a good-looking popular guy in class, while Amagi is a simple but bright and pure fellow classmate. The two begin to date in secret after Amagi's blurted out confession.

Viki or GagaOOLala

6. Old Fashion Cupcake! age gap; boss/assistant; self-discovery; office setting; food

At 39, Nozue realizes that by letting himself be carried away by his daily life, he ended up locking himself into his routine. It is Togawa, his 29-year-old subordinate, who shakes up his habits by offering him one day to go snack on pastries in an establishment more popular with girls. From one snack to the next, Nozue feels rejuvenated... But is it really the effect of these delicacies or rather that of emerging feelings?

Viki or GagaOOLala

7. Love is Better the Second Time Around second chances; adult romance

An associate university professor and an editor in their thirties, who promised to elope together back in high school but didn't because of a misunderstanding, find each other again after a magazine column ties them together.

GagaOOLala

8. Mr. Unlucky Has No Choice But to Kiss! lucky guy/unlucky guy; university setting

College student Fukuhara has bad luck that causes problems everywhere he goes. One day, Shinomiya, a student with super good luck, helps him out. Now, in order to divide the luck between them, Fukuhara needs to be with Shinomiya all the time.

Viki or GagaOOLala

9. Perfect Propose childhood friends to lovers; roommates

Hirokuni Watari, a cog in the corporate machine, faints on the street one day and ends up meeting Kai Fukaya, a childhood friend he hasn't seen in 12 years. With Kai having no place to stay, he ends up staying with Hirokuni and making home-cooked meals for him to soothe his exhaustion.

GagaOOLala

10. Two People Who Can't Fall in Love (Koisenu Futari) aromantism; asexuality; self-exploration

Sakuko finds it difficult to live in a society which operates under the assumption that people will fall in love with each other. She meets supermarket employee Takahashi and ends up living with him under one roof because of their similar values towards romance.

No international streaming available, watching instructions provided here.

11. I Cannot Reach You best friends to lovers; secret crush

Long time friends and total opposites, Yamato and Kakeru always stick together. When the reserved Yamato admits his feelings, can everything change?

Netflix

12. I Want to See Only You best friends to lovers; coming of age

In the final summer of high school, childhood best friends Sakura and Yuma must start thinking about college and their futures. That is, until Sakura confesses to Yuma with a kiss.

No international streaming available, translated to english by Furritsubs, watching instructions provided, please support translator on kofi.

13. A Man Who Defies the World of BL breaking the 4th wall; comedy; university setting

It suddenly dawns on Mob that he lives in a BL world! So he must turn down any hot guys who approach him.

Viki or GagaOOLala (S1) & Viki or GagaOOLala (S2)

14. My Personal Weatherman roommates; under-negotiated kink

Yoh is a struggling ero-manga artist living with his Mizuki Segasaki, a popular weather forecaster. Yoh believes their arrangement comes with Segasaki providing for him in exchange for housework and sex. Segasaki always has sex with Yoh before the day when the rain season will be over, which results in Yoh being sexually frustrated whenever Segasaki predicts sunny weather for the next day.

GagaOOLala or Viki or Apple TV

---

You can watch some shows for free by setting VPN to Japan. In other cases I recommend paying for subscriptions to show appreciation and support of content in order to get more of it in the future, but if you can’t, watch on KissKH (better quality), Dramacool or get files from MkvDrama. Enjoy!  🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

[nothinghappned]

something something about how it's basically canon that dongsik let joowon hide away in nam sangbae's house after the rain scene, for almost a week! i know there was a scene in the script where they are there together (?), but that got cut from the actual show.

but, we have this dialogue happening between jaeyi, jihoon and jihwa after, indicating that 1) joowon hasn't been home & he's probably not answering his phone. 2) dongsik knows he's okay and most probably knows where he is.

and after that, when jw and ds are eating, jw tells ds that he's going back to seoul

and something something about how much dongsik cares about joowon

we have this thing dongsik says to his mother, but to me it really feels like he's thinking about joowon, - (the subs are different on viki, "more people can't get hurt, right? they can't be ruined like me.") - which immediately gets followed by his mother telling him to eat well/don't skip meals, aka to take care of himself. something that then dongsik text to joowon right after

[gingersnaptaff]

9. 13, 18, 19 and 23 for the end of year ask game!!! (also pls go drink some water <3)

Water has been drunk! 🫡🫡🫡

9. Best month for you this year?

Either May or October cuz I hung out with two beloved uni buds. In May I went to Manchester to see Sleeping At Last with Viki, and then went back to her house for a few days, and then, in October, Dan came to visit me and we went around Harlech before I went to see him in Birmingham.

13. How was your birthday this year?

Pretty good! I baked two cakes and ate pasta!

18. A memorable meal this year?

Had a really nice seafood chowder which was lovely!

19. What’re you excited about for next year?

ARTHURIAN KNIGHT'S QUEST ROAD TRIP. Dan - aforementioned uni bud - and I are doing a road trip that he conceived after I was very sad about my book so WHOOP. CANNOT WAIT.

23. If you could send a message to yourself back on the first day of the year, what would it be?

I know ur gonna be super duper depressed about how things are going and that you haven't written anything of note but don't fret, it does get better. You will make tumblr friends and go travelling and obsess about the random shit you did when you were twelve and being bullied.

And it WILL BE OKAY.

[absolutebl]

Top 10 Cozy BLs!

Our Dating Sim made me realize we have a new sub genre of BLs happening right now: the cozy BL. 

I decided to invent/identify/name this new BL category because... I can. I crowd sourced (here in the hellhole) opinions of how to define it and what should go on it. The collective brainstormed and elected the following qualifications: 

low angst 

low stakes 

high domesticity 

a central relationship that is more cute than anything else

extra points for found family

AKA BLs that make you feel happy and comfortable. 

These BLs leave you feeling warm and safe, like a hot water bottle. I will list them in order of my personal preference when in the mood for “cozy.”

1. Our Dating Sim 

(Korea, Viki) 

Did I create this list for this show? Yes I did. It defines this category. It is a very low stakes, high domesticity, extremely warm and gentle second chance at love office romance. 

This is a fuzzy blanket of a story that perfectly suited KBL’s short-length tendencies. The pacing is... muuuuuah... chef’s kiss. 

2. Seven Days 

(Japan, grey in 2 parts Seven Days: Monday - Thursday | Seven Days - Friday - Sunday) 

 Popular first year Seiryo has a policy of going out with any girl who asks… for one week. On a lark, third year Yuzuru tests to see if that policy also applies to boys. Seiryo agrees that it does. Along the way they accidentally fall in love. Possibly my favorite BL of all time. It’s very gentle with us and its characters while still having that Japanese emo edge to it. 

A master class in quite yet riveting cinema. 

What, you doubted me? OF COURSE it’s on the list

3. My School President

(Thailand, YouTube)

GMMTV gave us a classic high school set Thai BL with tropes like messy boys singing their feelings that made this one Love Sick for the modern age with all the gentle sweetness and pining ache, but none of the dated damaging tropes or issues. Yes, we’ve seen it all before, but I still ADORED this, and that’s partly what makes it so comforting. Who let my BL be this wholesome and funny? 

4. See You After Quarantine?

(Taiwan, Viki) 

Be you never expected lockdown to be comforting? This under appreciated gem is Taiwan’s answer to Gameboys and is just as charming and adorable yet still as quintessentially Taiwanese as one might hope. It features a Japanese love interest and the cutest most confused disaster gay. Slow burn because the two have almost no actual screen time together and yet manage some truly amazing chemistry plus sweetly caring and earnest. Honestly how does Taiwan do it?

5. Ingredients 

(Thailand, YouTube) 

At the time (during lockdown) many of us referred to this as our “emotional support grocery store advertisement.” If all you want is two soft boys being domestic, cooking together, cuddling on the couch, cat sitting, and babysitting - just put this on and be comfy.

6. What Did You Eat Yesterday?

(Japan, grey) 

Basically the grown up version of Ingredients. Emotionally repressed, grumpy, salary man shows his hair dresser husband his love by cooking amazing meals. That’s it, that’s the whole show. There some queer fam drama, and blood-fam coming out drama, but mostly is husbands cooking and eating together and it’s great. Is it BL? Not really. Do we care? Not really. 

7. The New Employee

(Korea, Viki) 

This one is queer comfort, explicitly. If you aren’t queer you might not find it as warm and engaging. A near pitch perfect office BL with conflict derived from that setting. Also featuring found family and a lesbian bestie. Sweet & innocent (and out) Seung Hyun scores the office internship of his dreams. On his first day at work he gets into it with his cool reserved (and also v gay) boss. 

As you do. 

But things get romantic pretty darn quickly. 

As you gay. 

8. En of Love: Tossera & Future the series

(Thailand, YouTube) 

Tossera = Younger boy wants to court older boy and does and… that’s it. No really that’s the WHOLE STORY. There is actually no angst, drama, or, indeed plot. But are they the softest bois ever to BL as a main couple? Yes, yes they are.

Future is... exactly the same thing. 

Are we mad about it? 

Nope. 

9. Oxygen 

(Thailand, YouTube) 

Softest seme in the universe sings his affection to the older boy at the cafe. Let the slow burn courting commence. Oxygen uses every BL trope in the playbook for one of the gentlest lowest angst BLs ever made. It’s a hyung romance (younger boy courts older boy) but very very earnest about it. Am I biased? Sure. This is probably one of my biggest comfort watches. 

10. Our Dining Table 

(Japan, Gaga)

Lonely salaryman and talented cook gets accidentally adopted by a college kid and his little brother. It’s a quiet cozy little parable of found family alleviating loneliness. Possibly too slow for some but definitely high up there for me with the best of what Japan can do (like Restart After Come Back Home), it’s only flaw (if I dare say such a thing) is that it is not really “romantic.” Lovely & sweet but the romance beats are being used to build a family relationship, not just couple intimacy, it’s OK with me, but not totally BL.

For me one of the hallmarks of cozy BL is that as a chronic rewatcher I find myself starting to rewatch these ones even as they are still airing. Oxygen was an icon of this (also my first watch-along and the reason I realized I really had a passion for BL)

Shorts

Summerdaze - Singapore & Korea, YouTube

The 8.2 Second Rule - Japan, YouTube 

A First Love Story - Korea, YouTube 

Some More - Korea, Gaga 

Quite a few other Strongberry offerings.

More like this?

Top 10 Most Romantic BLs for Valentine’s Day

Top 20 Softest Couples in BL

Top 10 Cutest BLs

Fluffy Sweet Soft Thai BL

10 BLs Best Enjoyed with Hot Tea & a Roaring Fire

MOAR RECS?

From the blog comments. If I agree I gave it a description. 

Boys Lockdown (YouTube) - actually on this list because it go so many votes by everyone else, I haven’t watched it. 

My Ride (GaGa) - Thai BL grew up with this pulp - a truly lovely and special little show featuring the extremely rare pairing of sunshine/sunshine AKA a cinnamon roll couple. Mature explorations of relationships using one of the softest, sweetest and most innocent friends to lovers vehicles. Kindly, overworked doctor meets broken-hearted motorcycle taxi driver in an “other side of the tracks” slow burn romance. The support cast is excellent, making for great friendship groups and family dynamics. With honest queer rep that adds to, but doesn’t impede the story, and genuine conversation about the nature of class, wealth, and classism, not to mention communication, honesty, and respect for boundaries, you can’t go wrong with this show. In other news, I am a sucker for a single dimple. Full review.

Takara-kun to Amagi-kun (Viki & Gaga) - yes, high school angst but so sweet about it. Review here.

2 Moons 3 Ambassador (grey) - I love this odd little pulp, it’s oddly satisfying for all it’s awkward cheese-fest. Maybe that is why I like it. Review here.

21 Days Theory (YouTube) 

About Youth (Gaga) - A truly lovely little coming of age high school BL with a classic YA low drama but high angst and an earnest depth. Full review here.

Ai no Kotodama (Gaga) 

Be Loved In House: I Do (Viki) 

Cherry Blossoms After Winter (Viki warning dub con) - it’s here because a lot of people (like me) love it, but there are objections. Review here.

Cherry Magic (Japan, indie subbed) AKA Doutei dato Mahoutsukai ni narerurashii - the sweetest, fluffiest, most charming bit of adorable ever, full of found family and pastry and serious slapstick, the characters are utter spazzes, but so cute about it. Still that aspect makes me a little tense so I don’t find it as cozy as others do.  

Craving You (Viki) 

Destiny Seeker (grey) - see 2 Moons Ambassador 

DNA Says Love You (Gaga) - particularly the last few episodes. 

La Cuisine (GaGa) - sweet and kind of pure show, and like Thai desserts perhaps requires too much patience for a layperson. Because of the pacing and the focus on the bad girl character, I did dock it. But if you like stuff in the Oxygen vein, then this show is for you, and far better than most Thai BL pulps. That said, I suspect that I enjoyed it more than many would. Full review. 

Meet Me Outside (Gaga) 

Meow Ears Up (Gaga) 

Mr. Heart (Viki) 

Mr. Unlucky has no Choice but to Kiss (Viki) 

Nitiman (Thailand YouTube) - This Thai BL pulp had sympathetic characters, a solid tsundere uke redemption arc, and a fantastic pining seme who yearned without bullying, grooming, or gaslighting. Plus when they were together, they were ridiculously soft. But it also had a realistic portrayal of university life, bisexual awakening, and friendship groups. Ending is okay but a victim of lockdown.

Old Fashion Cupcake (Viki) 

Ocean Likes Me (Viki) 

Roommates of 304 (Viki) 

Wish You (Korea - Netflix or Viki, you want the movie version) AKA Wish You: Your Melody in My Heart - low stakes high pining romance about a pianist who falls in love with a busker who is on his way to being the next big idol.

There was quite a lively discussion coming up with this list, since everyone defines cozy differently but I am not alone in my top 10 choices, these mostly got the most votes. 

(source)

[waitmyturtles]

SPOILERS AND ANALYSIS FOR THE EIGHTH SENSE, EPISODES 9 and 10. TURN AWAY IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN IT YET! LONG POST!

MY HEART. IS. SO. FULL. 

Episode 9 almost (ALMOST!) reached Bad-Buddy-episode-10-level for me. That was a hell of an episode. 

And I am so thrilled, SO FREAKING THRILLED, to have been proven wrong about my theories as to whether or not episode 6 was “real” to the series. It was very real, and clearly so meaningful and contributive to Jae Won (as well, of course, to Ji Hyun), that... it sent Jae Won running, literally.

One more passing thought before I dig into the meal: 

I haven’t dug into this at ALL yet, but I think there might purposefully be a lot of similarities between The Eighth Sense and Where Your Eyes Linger, which (I think this is accurate, but PLEASE correct me if I’m wrong) was one of the first non-Strongberry Big KBLs to come out. I went back to Viki to make sure to confirm this, but Jung Seo In -- the restaurant ahjumma and Ji Hyun’s boss in T8S -- also plays a restaurant proprietor in Where Your Eyes Linger, and actually asks Han Tae Joo and Kang Gook “who’s top and who’s bottom” when she first meets them in WYEL (a little squick but she made it cute for that time). The promo picture for WYEL on Viki is of the two leads lying on the floor with their heads touching.... a different orientation, but a lot of the same feeling, as the opening of episode 10 of T8S. And, finally: Han Tae Joo of WYEL and Jae Won of T8S are both “the chairman’s son.” They are both sons in need of care.

That’s enough for a comparison for now to WYEL, because I haven’t spent enough time digging into it, but I’ll return to Ji Hyun’s ahjumma in a second, because she’s a badassssssss. Anyway:

Episode 9: What can I say. As with Bad Buddy episode 10, I’m struggling to get words down. I love a ride to a gorgeous union. 

And Jae Won, HONEY, Y’ALL TOOK ME ON A HELL OF A RIDE. DUUUUUUUUUUUUDDDDDDDDDDDEEEEEE. DUDE. I wanna be friends with you!

We learned some things. Ji Hyun brings light into Jae Won’s life. When we saw Jae Won with Eun Ji -- it was always in darkness (except for surf club earlier in the series, but Ji Hyun was there with Jae Won). jae Won eats with Eun Ji in a pojangmacha at night. He sits with Eun Ji in a dark library. He walks with Eun Ji on dark streets. She tries to kiss him in the nighttime. 

Ji Hyun sees that -- and something twists inside of Jae Won.

Then we get Jae Won and Eun Ji in the dark library. And, JEEEEZUS. WHOA! UM! I. did. not. expect. the. long. game. to. be. played. LIKE. THAT.

Motherfucker played a LONG-ASS, I’M A NAVY VETERAN, I CHASED AFTER YOU, I SAW YOU WITH ANOTHER GUY, I WAITED FOR YOU, I WAITED UNTIL MORNING, I SAW YOU WERE STILL WITH HIM, I SAW YOU WALKING OUT OF THE MOTEL WITH HIM, I SAW THAT, I CAME BACK, YOU TOOK ADVANTAGE OF MY FEAR ABOUT JI HYUN AND THE ACCIDENT, AND I REVENGE-DATED YOU, KINDA GAME, HEADSHAKE, SHRUG, I’M LOOKING AT MY NAILS, PSH.

BRO. WHAT. THE. EFF. 

I want a Cardi B song about this shit. Dude, you played that better than ANY female character in a K-drama that I have EVER seen, my man! You actually WENT AND DATED HER, LIKE KINDA LITERALLY-BUT-MAYBE-YOUR-HEART-WASN’T-ACTUALLY-INTO-IT-SO-MAYBE-IT-WAS-FOR-THE-ASSIGNMENT-DEALIE??? Good lord. 

Like, can that become a K-drama/KBL trope? Hot DAMN. ANYWAY. (Actually, one more reference to this for episode 10, but enough of the all caps, ha.)

You know what that means, right? While all that was going on, Jae Won’s heart WASN’T with Eun Ji. He was processing his stuff with Ji Hyun on his own, and with his therapist (once more, lol, @emotionallychargedtowel, take me to your analysis! I gotta know what you thought about the therapist calling Jae Won selfish!). 

Jae Won said it himself. He’s rooted in depression. He’s rooted in guilt about his brother’s death. He’s rooted in guilt over Ji Hyun’s accident. I will posit that episode 6 still felt like a “dream,” likely because of meds, likely because of Jae Won’s headstate. It was a “real” moment for the series but for where Jae Won’s head was at, he was likely battling a depressive episode with the continued, chronic guilt of his life. So things seemed fuzzy and jumpy -- because they were fuzzy and jumpy for Jae Won. 

(Whenever I try to describe these states to people, I try to think of relative moments... like being at work with four hours of sleep. Driving while your contact lens has something in it. You’re fuzzily in and out of reality. Jae Won’s depression is deeper than that. But I try to relate to it somehow with those metaphors.)

So the therapist does her own thing by calling Jae Won “selfish” for rooting in his pain. How we choose to judge her behavior is whatever -- it still gives me the jibbles, and I lean towards the utterly wonderful @emotionallychargedtowel for better analysis about therapy than me.

But, as we very clearly saw -- Jae Won’s breakthrough came through the restaurant ahjumma. Remember: she represents a break from tradition, as I said last week. She’s done with the bullshit of living by the rules of others.

She sees university students in and out, everyday, eating samgyupsal and drinking their sorrows away. She sees former students coming back to say hi. 

She’s been around the block, and has seen people get around the block themselves. She knows the advice that she’s giving to Jae Won. Unlike the therapist, she’s not gonna make Jae Won feel bad about himself. She’s just going to feed him and HELP HIM.

LET GO OF IT ALL, HONEY. GO AND GET YOUR MAN. 

And Jae Won finally let go. He went to the water. He took us with him to a flashback to the sea, to the light, where he’s the happiest. He took us to where he’s the freest that he can be.

And Ji Hyun called him back to Ji Hyun’s side. Called Jae Won back through music, and Jae Won heard him, and ran to Ji Hyun, and they embraced -- and it was perfect. 

I’m gonna be that auntie when I grow up.

Episode 10: There are a couple of side discussions with friends that I want to refer to, but let me say first that I have zero issues with this light, lovely conclusion. I am a SLAVE for K-drama tropes, and I didn’t mind that this episode had a few. This series did so beautifully to NOT hew to tropes, and to create a new paradigm of filmmaking in KBLs, that I was TOTALLY FINE with seeing some sweet tropey behavior -- the drinking, the partying, the dancing, the dance music. The love games. The heads leaning on shoulders. Coffees in cans. Let me give you my jacket. 

Friends @shortpplfedup and @lurkingshan and @wen-kexing-apologist: I’m okay with the forgiveness to Tae Hyung and Eun Ji. Because. 

I think Jae Won’s being a little shady, come awn. I think he popped his umbrella open. Just a little. Ji Hyun ADMITTED to being sassy, but I think Jae Won knew he was being just a little bitty-bit shady, and I’m gonna let the man have his. He’s a game-player. 

Eun Ji HAD TO ADMIT that she got her ass handed to her. And Ji Hyun and Jae Won both knew she’d have a hard time, internally. I’m fine with her being calm about it. She knew she fucked up the game, hard, when she got her ass caught cheating. We know she’s lame, she knows she’s lame, let’s live and move on.

I thought Jae Won’s read on Tae Hyung was great. Tae Hyung IS someone who wears his heart on his sleeve, however misguided it is. Humans are not perfect. Jae Won wants to be with honest people. (That’s why he dumped Eun Ji’s ass and handed her the receipts. He can forgive her, but he certainly AIN’T going out with her again.)

As Bed Friend ended with happy moment after happy moment -- I believe the filmmakers knew exactly what they were giving us with this finale. How we came to SUCH a happy ending just boggles me, but it was a loving and a sweet one. GO YOON WON AND JOON PYO. COME AWN. GO GO GO. (And go Bit Na! Reject that motherfucker. AND AE RI! GURL! I’m gonna miss you, nothing slides by you.)

And I want to refer back to something about the therapist conversation in episode 9 that got concluded in episode 10. I think it’s really important to note that BOTH Ji Hyun AND Jae Won took care OF EACH OTHER in these last two episodes.

Jae Won was rotting in guilt over not being able to TAKE CARE OF JI HYUN during the accident. Jae Won arguably got Ji Hyun in trouble. 

Ji Hyun, upon his recovery, TAKES CARE OF Jae Won. Ji Hyun handled the disciplinary committee. He gives Jae Won a disposable camera and encourages Jae Won’s photography. He continues to send Jae Won text messages, songs. Sending messages of hope and light and love. I’m still here, Jae Won, I haven’t left. Jae Won’s brother might not be here. Ji Hyun never left. 

What shocked Jae Won out of his stasis was the ahjumma’s words. I think Jae Won realized at that moment that -- AS AHJUMMA WAS SAYING ALL ALONG -- THAT JAE WON WAS OVERTHINKING THINGS. Once Jae Won could 

SEE. THE. LIGHT.

he was able to take off, and finally go back to Ji Hyun, in whole. 

(I think we know why the therapist’s office was dark. Jae Won couldn’t see the light in there. 

His light comes from Ji Hyun and the water.)

It’s a rarity, but I’m putting this on my short MUST WATCH list. This BLEW away any filmmaking expectations I previously had about KBLs. This was SINGULAR, groundbreaking, the actors ATE their roles, ATE THEM -- and it was utterly fulfilling.

PHENOMENAL SHOW. I’m going to miss this one TREMENDOUSLY. 

[winterswhumpblr]

When we were young

Hua Biao played by Neo Hou

One of the best drama’s I watched in 2022. The found family in this show is insane. Every single one of the main characters go through a lot, but I’ve only focused on Hua Biao.

Watch on Viki

01: classmates find out he was kicked from his old school, told he doesn’t belong at the school, arm bitten, in pain,

02: in a fight, wins, manipulated into fighting again, concern for him, hands treated at hospital {flashback: in a fight, bleeding hands} sad upbringing revealed,

03: pushed, almost falls into a nail in the wall, saved, fakes stomach ache, volunteers to take the punishment of his classmates, forced to run 100 laps, tired, sweaty, getting yelled at by principal, helps whole class cheat, gets caught, reprimanded,

04: pranked, panicked, explosion in his home, part of the roof is missing, cleaning up, asking his friend not to tell other people about it, sad, letting his grandma blame him,

05: sleeping, friend finds out secret, mentions of the wounds he’s collected from fixing the roof, falls through roof, sad, unable to buy hearing aids

06: concern for someone,

07: receives the punishment for something his friends did, covered in bruises, doesn’t want to remove his shirt during a basketball game, forcibly gets it removed, anxious, concern for him, teacher pokes bruise, makes up a fake illness as to why he has bruises in the first place, tells his friend the truth,

08: stumbling, exhausted, rushing, sweaty, gets to class late, forced to hold basin of water over head as punishment, rained on, faints, concern for him, dizzy, blurry vision, ears ringing, mentions of him having a slight fever, whining, scared of getting injection, tricked into to taking it <comedic>, concern for him, disoriented, saying the fever fogged his brain,

09: feeling lightheaded, hiding it, paler than usual, light headed, faints, concern for him, malnourished from barely eating and making one meal last multiple, concern for him, being fussed over, friends make him meals and put them in containers so he can eat at home, concern for someone, searching for his granny,

10: {continuation of last episode: search for granny, finds her, concern for someone}worried and anxious, headmaster finds out the truth about tutoring, upset, says he did it because he needs money, asks to be removed as class monitor,

11: love interests family feed him meals, tricked into eating more, separated from friends, concern for someone

12: showing off latest award to parents’ pictures, friends come over to help honour the parents on their anniversary, concern for someone, running, fighting someone, cuts hand, runs after criminal, helps police catch them,

13: jealous, threatened, distracted, sad, can’t find his grandma, worried, running around looking for her, found her, yelling, upset, protecting her, makes a deal, needs money, has three days to get a large sum of money, upset, sad

14: friends help him come up with the money, gives it to contractor, plan goes awry, protecting his friends, glass hits his forehead, teacher found them, yelled at, running away, hiding from security, sleeping in the classroom overnight,

15: nothing

16: worried about someone, sad, keeps hiding a gift he got the love interest, missed his timing multiple times, sad, pretending to sleep, dismissing love interest, wanting to be left alone,

17: helping a friend out, staying with them, getting food for them, trying to coerce them to eat, making sure they’re okay, staying with them, upset, lost his necklace, looking for it, relieved, mentions of what happened to his parents and the importance of his necklace, sleeping,

18: concern for someone, sad, finds out his granny has Alzheimer’s, crying, pretending he’s fine, sad

19: concern for someone, carrying granny on his back, running to the hospital, sad

20: Talks about what his life has been like, applies ointment to granny’s burn, concern for someone, running away, hiding,

21: granny forgets he told her where he was going, police called, scolded, concern for him, sad, concern for someone, concern for him, plan goes wrong, running away,

22: Itchy, tired, concern for someone, hiding his job, being followed, tired, out of breath, covered in dirt from his job, worried, frustrated, upset, confession to love interest, concern for him, exhausted, granny mistakes him for his father, pretends to be his father for her, sad, calming his granny down, friends find out about his job, help him clean, feet being treated, groaning, love interest finds out about his granny’s Alzheimer’s

23: friends help him do his job, let him keep the money, grateful, wants to buy a massage machine to stimulate his gran’s memory, sad, granny forgets him in front of love interest, mistakes him for his dad, emotional, concern for someone, rushing to the hospital, worried

24: looking visibly down, granny doesn’t recognize him, thunder storm, power goes off, calming grandma down, concerned, frantic, rushing to check on grandma, running in the rain to buy a flashlight, grandma doesn’t recognize him, wooden stick held against him, worried, sad, emotional, crying, being slapped repeatedly by grandma, crying, being told to leave his home, upset, walking alone in the rain, sitting alone getting drenched, upset, crying, yelling, being comforted by love interest, sobbing for his grandma, friends are there for him, friends help him with his grandma, hears grandma crying, comforting her, crying silently, says goodbye to his friends/love interest, chooses to not go to college and instead stay with his grandma and travel until she completely loses her memories, sobbing

[bengiyo]

Our Dining Table Ep 4 Stray Thoughts

Last week, I felt my heart grow three times when we saw the moment Minoru fell completely for Yutaka. We watched Yutaka connect with a coworker to learn a new skill so he could keep his promise to Tane to make a bento, which called back to the eggs scene in his the movie for me. We also got to see their plans for Tane go awry again and force them to adapt. I'm in love with this show and everyone in it.

I am once again begging the Japanese distributors to give better files to Gaga and Viki. The artifacts and ghosting are so distracting.

Yutaka being adopted adds an unexpected layer to this. Has he felt out of place in family dynamics his entire life?

I think Yukata made the bento picture his lock screen image. Beautiful.

I usually don't enjoy this heavy use of flashback, but I understand that we're seeing Yutaka think about how he feels included and welcome in the Ueda house.

Damn, Minoru has it bad. He had to turn completely around at Yutaka saying he was happy to see him.

I like how everyone eats in a way that doesn't feel performative. They look like they're genuinely enjoying food.

YES! LET'S MAKE CURRY!

I wonder if Inukai and co. learned more about food on this show. Nishijima talked about improving the food he made for his family after playing as Shiro.

Sweet potatoes in curry? I don't normally like sweet potatoes that much, but I'm curious.

I'm impressed with Inukai and Iijima. That was a really smooth single take walking through the food mart with Maeyama. They are working really well with this young actor to create a strong group dynamic.

Ah, Yutaka's older brother has no idea about how Yukata feels.

So Yutaka's older brother didn't want him around and they didn't even teach him how to eat these fancy meals. This is awful.

I like them having Tane peel the onions. I think it's important to get kids comfortable with food prep early so they can share in the joy of making something good together.

Now we're putting chocolate in curry??

I do love that you have to pay closer attention to body language and facial expressions in Japanese shows. You can appreciate the intricacies of the performances that way.

I don't know how often Minoru gets praise for his cooking, but he seems genuinely touched.

Damn, they didn't save any curry for the dad.

Hey, they also have Tane helping clean up.

Aw Papa Ueda meant that Yukata was welcome, but he doesn't have any positive experiences with that.

I feel bad for Minoru too. He likes Yutaka, but doesn't know him well enough yet to cheer him up.

Iijima is doing so much with his eyes and mouth. I'm obsessed.

Well, despite the sadness of this episode, it looks like we're back cooking together next week! Chin up, folks!

[the-astromeners-bakery]

Interview log: Carol Grelitia

>Start log<

Viki: Hello loyal listeners! I’m Viki Vale here with Gothams too news! If you remember last time, I went all out about how the RPG game ‘New hero’s of tomorrow’ is sweeping over Gotham and becoming a huge success. Well, today I’m here with the games sole creator, Carol Grelitia! How are you today Carol?

Carol: Well, I’m honored to be here Viki. I honestly never thought a game I created just as a fun hobby would gain so much traction.

Viki: Well, it has and you’re here right now. So tell us Carol, what inspired you to make this game?

Carol: It’s not really a big or complicated story. We have a lot of vigilantes all across the globes, especially here in the US, and they inspire a lot of people. I know many people want to be like them, but don’t have the ability to be. I’m not talking about powers either, I mean our very own Batman ain’t got no powers. I’m taking about the training it requires to be a hero.

Viki: So, you made this game so people could experience what it’s like to be a hero without the risk?

Carol: Practically.

Viki: Now, do you kind if we get into some more personal questions submitted by the fans?

Carol: Oh, of course not Viki.

Viki: Alright! First question, submitted by user ‘Nightwings thighs’- am I reading this right? … Anyways, Mr. Nightwings thighs asks ‘What is your nationality?’ And gives the follow up question of ‘What languages can you speak?’

Carol: Well, it’s a simple. I’m Swedish/French on my pops side and Russian/Australian in my mums. As for what languages I can speak, I can speak fluent Russian, French, Swedish, and Spanish, and am currently attempting to learn Gaelic.

Viki: Ladies and gentlemen we seem to have a quad-lingual with us today! Moving on, the next question comes from user ‘The_Mitochondria_Is_Ur_Mom’- *Viki does a double take*… Ehm, Ms. Mitochondria asked ‘What’s your sexuality and are you in a relationship?’

Carol: Well, I haven’t really used labels before, but I would call myself pansexual as I really don’t care what gender my lover is. I also identify as Demi-romantic. I need to know someone well before i develop feelings for them. I am also polyamorous and- *blushes*- Currently taken by my two loving partners, who I won’t name for the sake of their privacy.

Viki: Well, it sure seems like you are very lucky. Carols lovers, if you’re listening, feel free to leave a question reveling yourself, if you want to that is, for our next interview!

Carol: N-next interview?

Viki: Of course, there still so many questions, but sadly we only have enough time for one more question.

Carol: Alright. Im ok with that.

Viki: Good! Now, for our last question, submitted by the user ‘BatBurger enjoyer’ asks us ‘What is Carols opinion on the new Batfam BatBurger meal toys?’

*Carol laughs to herself*

Carol: Oh, I think their just swell. I’m actually on a quest to collect all of them. So far I’ve gotten two Red Robin’s, six Batman’s, four Signals, and 2 Azerals.

Viki: That makes two of us. Sadly, we’re now out of time, but we look foreword to seeing you next week! To all listeners, make sure to head to our Website at WWW.Gotham Daily.Com/Inbox to send in questions for our next interview with Ms. Carol here! Speaking of Carol, got any ending thoughts?

Carol: Well, I just wanna say that I’m happy to anyone that’s listening, and I hope you all have great nights! I’ll see you next time.

Viki: You heard the lady! We’ll see you all next week. This is Viki Vale, signing off!

>End log<

( @arkhampsychologist @gotham-its-seven-in-the-morning @gothamstudent @gotham-bitch @christelgothamite @scarecrowspawn @hannahhook7744 )

[brother-genitivi]

YOUR TURN. tell me about aydın's baba 🔫

Vikie <3 how can I say no

His real name is İsmet Çağlayan. He had multiple siblings, though only two of his sisters lived in Wayhaven. The rest of his very, very large family lives in Turkey (his birthplace).

He's the kinda person to go with his heart rather than his head. A little impulsive. Would've made an excellent diplomat (a quality he he shares with his son).

He was always kind and respectful, but also believed that respect must be earnt. Reyhan was the first person he met that he respected from the moment they met.

Rook was a hopeless romantic. He always brought Reyhan her favourite flowers, made her favourite meals, took her on walks (especially when she spent too much time working and not having fun). He was a confident flirt. The quality of his flirting, though? No comment.

His initial reaction to finding out his wife was pregnant was fear. Not because he didn't want children, but he worked himself into an anxious tizzy worrying about how smooth the pregnancy would be for Reyhan, and about being ready, being the right father etc. Pretty normal fears. Once he got past that, he was very excited! He was determined to be the best father ever, and had he been given the chance, he would've been.

He nicknamed Aydın his little frog. One of Aydın's tattoos is a frog for this reason.

He was so excited to watch his kid grow up. He thought a lot about teaching Aydın Turkish as well as other languages. Rook wanted to witness all of his firsts, to be there for him, to watch him become the person he needs to be.

Everything he did came from a place of love. He embodied safety and comfort. If you want good advice, he's the person to go to. He didn't judge, just listened.

Aydın feels weird about missing him. He didn't know his father - how can you miss a complete stranger? And as he heard more about Rook, about how similar they were, it almost felt like grieving himself. But Aydın does grieve him. What he could've been. The life they could've had. And he grieves a mother who does not exist; one who has always been there for him, and could be there for him with his father still alive.

He thinks things would be very different if Rook was there.

[pwrn51]

Resilience and Hope: Inspiring Stories of Strength

Episode # 19 In this episode of State of Current Affairs, hosts Lillian Cauldwell and Viki Esther Chang from Singapore share two heartwarming stories that shine a light amid the current gloom and doom. The first story features an eleven-year-old girl from Thailand who wakes up every morning at 3 a.m. to help her mother sell box meals. This effort supports their family expenses, pays for her…

[talltalestogo]

ALICE BROCK, WHOSE RESTAURANT SERVED AS THE INSPIRATION FOR ARLO GUTHRIE’S “ALICE’s RESTAURANT”, DIES

By Clay Risen

Alice Brock, whose eatery in western Massachusetts was immortalized as the place where “you can get anything you want” in Arlo Guthrie’s 1967 antiwar song “Alice’s Restaurant,” died on Thursday in Wellfleet, Mass. — just a week before Thanksgiving, the holiday during which the rambling story at the center of the song takes place. She was 83.

Viki Merrick, a longtime friend, said she died in a hospice from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Ever since Mr. Guthrie released the song, officially called “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree,” in 1967, it has been a staple of classic-rock stations every late November, not to mention car trip singalongs on the way to visit family for Thanksgiving dinner.

Ms. Brock’s restaurant, the Back Room, does not feature much in the song itself. Over the course of a little more than 18 minutes, Mr. Guthrie — doing more talking than singing — recounts a visit that he and a friend, Rick Robbins, paid to Ms. Brock and her husband, Ray Brock, for Thanksgiving dinner.

A shaggy-dog story ensues: Mr. Guthrie and Mr. Robbins take trash to the city dump, but, finding it closed, leave it in a ravine instead. The next morning, the police arrest them for littering, and Ms. Brock has to bail them out.

That night she cooks them all a big meal, and the following day they appear in court, where the judge fines them $50. Later, Mr. Guthrie is ordered to an Army induction center, where he is able to avoid the draft because of his criminal record.

Ms. Brock helped write the first part of the song, up until the trial.

“We were sitting around after dinner and wrote half the song,” she told the writer C.A. Sanders, “and the other half, the draft part, Arlo wrote.”

Mr. Guthrie first performed the song at the 1967 Newport Folk Festival, and it was the title track of his first album, released that fall, with its sardonic line “You want to know if I’m moral enough join the Army, burn women, kids, houses and villages after bein’ a litterbug.”

It became an unofficial anthem of the antiwar movement.

The song made Ms. Brock famous, too, even though by the time it appeared she had shut down her restaurant. It was an unwanted fame, she said, at least at first.

“I was very uncomfortable because public figures are not really treated with much respect,” she told WAMC Northeast Public Radio in 2014. “They really aren’t. Once your name is in the paper, people feel that they can go, ‘Oh, are you Alice? Turn around,’ like they want to see my behind or something.”

Through the 1970s, Ms. Brock tried her hand at other restaurants. After closing the last one, in 1979, she moved to Provincetown, Mass., at the tip of Cape Cod, where she took up odd jobs to support her new career as a painter.

And over time she came to accept the lot that fame had cast her.

“I resented it for a long time,” she told WAMC. “But I’ve come to realize now that people are just delighted when they hear my name, so how can I complain?”

Alice May Pelkey was born on Feb. 28, 1941, in Brooklyn, though she liked to tell people that she had been conceived in Provincetown. Her mother, Mary (Dubrovski) Pelkey, worked in real estate, and her father, Joe, was a printmaker.

She attended Sarah Lawrence College but left during her sophomore year, later citing her support for “unpopular political causes.” She moved to Manhattan’s Lower East Side, where she met Ray Brock, an architect and sculptor.

They married in 1962, and the next year they moved to Stockbridge, Mass. They both worked at the Stockbridge School, a private institution — he as an art teacher, she as a librarian — where they befriended Mr. Guthrie, a student there and the son of the folk singer Woody Guthrie.

Ms. Brock opened the Back Room at the urging of her mother, who also helped the couple acquire a deconsecrated Episcopal church, which they turned into their home and which is also part of the story told in “Alice’s Restaurant.”

In 1968, the director Arthur Penn made a film based on the song, with Ms. Brock played by Pat Quinn. (Ms. Brock served as a consultant and had a cameo.) Coincidentally, a scene in which the screen versions of the Brocks get married was filmed on the same day their divorce became official.

She closed the Back Room in 1967 and sold the church in 1971. Mr. Guthrie bought it in 1991 to house his archives and a community action center. By then she had moved to Provincetown, where she tried to put her fame behind her in favor of the tight-knit community she found on the Cape, which she considered her “chosen family.”

Over the last decade, Ms. Brock struggled with financial and health issues, and a friend set up a GoFundMe site for her — a situation highlighted in a 2020 feature on the NPR program “Morning Edition.” Fans of the song quickly opened their wallets, and within a few days they had raised more than $170,000.

[martinmynster]

yk i always hated viki but i bit my tongue when it was announced that litbc would air on that cursed platform. so today i log in my dusty account, i get the pass, i dont complain even ONCE, i get my meal ready, i sit down and press play 😊................

guess who can't fucking watch the show bc this website sucks penis and balls AND a little bit of hole when it feels like it??????????

[mint-moon25]

CALLED - FIFTH - THIRD - BANK -

BLOCKED - VIKI.com - FREE APP -

TWICE - SO - SENT - ME - CODE -

2 - UNBLOCK - BY - EMAIL - AND -

15 MIN - 2 - WAIT - 2 - REFRESH -

COMPLAINED - ONLY - KNOWS -

AMAZON - THERE"s - WALMART -

DISNEY + - GOES - THRU - I - DO -

NEED - AS - PARTIALLY - BLIND -

VIKI - APP - NOT - TELLING YOU -

AUTO GOES - 2 - NEXT EPISODE -

CHINESE - 1, 000 - EPISODES AT -

30 MIN - 2 - WAKE UP - 2 - MORE -

THAN - 1 YR - SAME MASTERCARD

A - LITTLE - UNDERSTANDING -

THEY - ALSO - HAVE - BUS - PC -

APRIL - FOOLS - SSI - PENDING -

WRONG - ABOVE - SAYS - TRUE -

AVAILABLE - AMAZON - VIKI -

DISNEY+ - FIRST SHARED IF -

ONE - MEAL - 12P - (12 - 6P) -

18 HRS - FASTING - REMOVES -

TOXIC - POISON - FR - WRONG -

FOODS - BUT - ENERGY FROM -

STORED - FAT - LOTS OF THAT -

WHEN - U - EAT - NOT - WHAT -

U - EAT - 12 P - 5 STEAKS - OR -

5 DOUBLE - BURGERS ABOVE -

AMOUNT - AVAILABLE - AND -

DR JERRY SAVELLE - 2023 -

YEAR - OF THE - MAXIMUM -

THE - HIGHEST - LEVEL XO -

ATTAINABLE - SO - $300 -

TOMORROW - ABOVE IS -

AVAILABLE - DR JERRY SAVELLE

'HEY - THAT's - THE - FAVOR - OF

GOD' - SSI EARLY - 4 - BIRTHDAYS

CHRISTMAS - NEW YEAR's - TRUE

THANKSGIVING - 04 JULY - STUFF

LADIES - 'SPLURGE' - 'AVAILABLE'

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - It’s My Birthday!

April 2023 Wk 4

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Step By Step (Thai Tues WeTV & Gaga) ep 2 of 10 (MDL says 12, but Gaga says 10) - Baby made a friend! Yay. I hope they stay friends. Up looks so good. Also, drama with exes! Excellent. This is awful grown up for a BL, esp a pulp. I think it may be more just a gay office romance than BL, but I love it no matter what. 

La Pluie (Sat iQIYI) ep 1 of 10 - I love it. Strange premise to get at the fated mates trope but it stars one of my top picks to get his own BL. Been waiting since TT2 for this boy to feature. Tai is cute. It’s good. Except the singing. But we can’t have it all. 

Our Skyy 2 (Star in My Mind) eps 3-4 - Dao is THE MOST SPOILED. But clearly Kluen prefers it that way. This was cute, but frankly a little bit boring. Kluen is clearly Thai for whipped. 8/10 

Future (Thai Sun YouTube & Gaga) ep 5 of 6 - they added an additional ep because, why not? It’s a soap not a story, it doesn’t matter. MOAR softness for usssss! Drama llama boys continue to be overdramatic to the point of melodramatic to the point of ludicrous-dramatic. 

Pastsenger (Thai Weds Gaga) ep 8 of 12 eps - This is not as good as My Engineer but Marc makes for a much better pair with Cooper. It’s still not great but hey… and then HE PICKED UP A GUITAR. NOOOOOO!!!!!

A Boss and a Babe (Fri YouTube) ep 9 of 12 - Is that a character in a GMMTV show actually trying to communicate? Say it isn’t so! Did you notice in order to calm Cher down Gun dropped to pom to put them on a more equal footing? Sweet. Cher is a tiny idiot for taking the blame for some random other coworker. Why? Omg this show. 

The Promise (Thai Weds YT & WeTV) ep 6 of 10 - So it was a real serious total kiss kiss with both very drunk. And that’s why he ran? Sigh. This show sucks. How can we root for this couple especially when the faen fatal (Boss) is THAT HOT and so sweet. (To be fair I can’t decide if I want Boss or his outfits more). Phu should just not come back, who needs him? So they really are going to just keep drawing this one premise out the whole show? 

Tin Tam Jai (Tues Gaga & iQIYI) ep 9 of 10 - yawn 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Our Dining Table AKA Bokura no Shokutaku (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 4 of 10 - They are cutest EVER - charming and awkward and sweet. I love the way the state of the food is used as an illustration for the state of the emotions of the characters. The loneliness of heating up a solitary meal bought from a convenience store in the microwave. The joy of memory of shared meals. What a lovely show.  

The Eighth Sense (Korea Weds Viki) eps 9-10fin - To be honest, I was dreading this one. JH is such a first-time love bebe. I liked how realistic everybody’s behavior was to the university age bracket. We even got some proper boyfriends phase which is too damn cute for words. I do not think that JW should have made up with his evil friend. I love the way JW’s shoulders relax the moment he sees JH. This was really good show... 

One of the longest BLs Korea has given us and (like Blueming) it feels more atmospheric gay coming of age romance than strictly BL. It’s got a bit of an age gap, country boy/city boy, stellar acting, complex characters, and leads with good chemistry and tension. It’s a bit chewy and sticky and less perfect than most KBLs (do I detect a touch of Taiwan?). This one deployed BL tropes (messy eater, shoulder sleep, protective seme, there’s even some hyung-slinging) but front loaded them, with tons angst driving the 2nd half. This isn’t in the KBL bubble, there’s sharp edges and lots of triggers. For a BL the darkness of the content left me feeling unsettled but it did have a glorious ending and that counts for a lot. 9/10 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Happy Merry Ending (Korea Thurs Gaga) eps 1-2 of 8 - No shade (ha!) but I do think Leo would have been better in the role of the singer (SJ) but I’m okay with Dongwon. JH is a nice flirty bit of sunshine. SJ is clearly the most anxiety-riddled socially awkward broken baby evers. I’m not sure about this kinda angst, it’s not really my thing especially on the back of The Eighth Sense. Look, I’ve never been one for a fixer-upper. We shall see, I guess? This is the beauty of KBL, so short most of the time that it’s low commitment no matter my reservations. 

My Story (Pinoy Sat YouTube) ep 3 of 10 - it’s fine I guess? 

Naked Dinner AKA Zenra Meshi (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 3 of 12 - I guess the fetish matches are finding each other? How v Japan. Of course I like the conversation about names and protocols. 

It’s Airing But ...

Love Syndrome (Thai Sat WeTV) stopped at ep 2 of 12 - I’m just not into any aspect of it (except Lee Long Shi and I can watch him in Tin Tem Jai) - saving to binge if the end is solid.

Venus in the Sky (Sat YouTube) pilot/tester?) 0 of 10 - not entirely sure what’s up with this one distribution-wise, but the pilot was classic university-set pulp. I hope it happens because the leads are cute with good chemsitry and I thought it was fun. However, this pilot holds together as its own little short too.

Make a Wish (Thai Weds ?) stars Fluke Natouch (OhmFluke UWMA etc...) & Judo (The Miracle Of Teddy Bear) in a medical-fantasy. About a doctor who sees ghosts and a deity who resides in a Bodhi tree that earns merits whenever he fulfills a wish, based on a y-novel by Sammon (Manner of Death, Triage). Same as above.

Stormy Honeymoon (Vietnam) - I’m tired of these characters 

In Case You Missed It

Star Hunter dropped all their trailers for 2023 on their YT channel. Bit late in the year IMHO. Nothing really stuck out.

Big Dragon the movie = more of the same

True Moon = yet another loosely disguised attempt at the 2 Moons franchise?

Flirt Milk = standard pulp fodder, but they are cute

Acadex = The Eclipse + Destiny Seeker + Harry Potter 4 + The CW, as a movie that may not be BL 

Sunset Vibes = Big Dragon pair as a one night stand but “uh-oh he’s my boss!” I’m game. Maybe it’ll have a better story? Maybe it will have a plot? Maybe... oh who am I kidding. It’ll be high heat and that’s about all we can hope for. 

City of Stars AKA Fueangnakorn = An actor falls in love with a programmer and the narrative intends to “explore the ramifications of being public figure in the social network era who must endure critics, bullying, and defamation.” Looks like another Lovely Writer/Call It What You Want sort of thing.

The biggest shocker is how few they fielded of their original BL stable.

ALSO:

Love Senior = SOTUS but make it GL (I’m not mad about this one, it’s about flipping time. But it’s GL so I won’t track it, although I will watch it.)

Next Week Looks Like This:

Coming in May 2023:

5/1 House of Stars (Thai iQIYI) - An LGBTQ actor in love with an actor from another company, plus other wanna be stars all trapped in a doom house together. 

5/4 Love Mate (Korea Viki) 8 eps- Office romance between a team leader and a new employee who agree to date for 3 months to find true love, from the makers of Our Dating Sim.

5/18 - Starstruck (Korea ????) - A boy has had a crush on his childhood friend for a long time. Stars Zuho (Kpop SF9 - noted Good Egg) opposite rookie actor Kim In Sung (as the one with the crush). 

5/27 The Luminous Solution (Thai ????) 10 eps - Thana is having trouble at work and in his relationship. He can't seem to catch a break. So he makes a wish to change everything. But every wish has a price.

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED)

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

I do like a tie (or nametag) grab kiss. (Boss & Babe) 

Our Skyy 2 SIMM ep summing it all up and reviewing itself.

Future the series, I like this reverse claiming thing. So cute. 

The boyfriends eps are the BEST eps. The Eighth Sense. 

I WANT BOSS’S OUTFITS. 

My favorite, “there is only one bed but we slept together on the floor anyway.” (The Promise) 

Now that is a claim that MUST be proved. 

Loves the little babies with their killer communication style. 

What do I always say about a BL that reviews itself? All from Destiny Seeker. (I’m getting caught up, I’ll post a review of the series when I’m done.)

(last week)

Current Kpop earworm? UO’s Restart 

[initiallyno]

West Word Poetry 

at the Dancing Dog Cafe, 42 Albert Street Footscray, 

Sunday 22nd April, 2pm 

Open Mic & Feature poet Viki Mealings

ALL WELCOME