#there's not enough awkwardness in thai bl

[pharawee]

I already love My Dear Gangster Oppa so much. It's exactly the kind of show I need right now 🥰

[misspoetree]

Somebody save them 😭

[theheightofdishonor]

GL Recs Masterlist

I've watched a couple hundred gls now and so I thought i'd put it to good use and help other people find some. There's not enough gl rec lists anyway

First things first, I'll like to direct you to https://mydramalist.com/list/1xrpwdW3 which is a gl rec list on mdl with more than 200+ titles + links. It's an EXCELLENT resource, kept up to date and even tracks upcoming titles.

Now for stuff that I've watched and thought are decent. I'll link all of these to their mdl page and the links to watch the show can usually be found in the comments. If you're new to gl, be warned that a lot of these are pretty short, ranging from 1-30 minutes.

1 in 10,000 (2018) Korea. This is a soulmates piece told in 3 parts following two girls through different parts of their lives. I think this got more confusing as it went on but I really liked Act I and I think it's worth watching. It's beautiful and angsty and a bit artsy. I'm pretty sure it has a happy ending but don't quote me on that.

Afraid of (2019) Korea. A short film about a girl struggling with her sexuality. Yeah, I know, there's a THOUSAND of these but I do like this one. It's beautifully shot and there's a lot of heart.

Am I the only one with butterflies? (2018) Korea. A girl blogs about falling in love with the manager at her new job. I like part ii better than part one but it's just cute and the pining is very similar to het kdramas.

Anonymous high school girl (2022) Korea. A low stakes love triangle. Good chemistry, low budget, awful kisses.

The Beauty of the Law (2023) China- If you're not familar with chinese gls, I think it's certainly something to get used to. This is like in the top 1% of the category. It's an ad for Adolph Shampoo and i'm going to let you know that they're going to appear often on this list because they make excellent gls. It's a historical about a female unlicensed lawyer trying to help a woman escape her abusive marriage. Makes great points about gender imbalances and women's historical lack of legal rights in China. (f you like this one, Sheng Wei, one of the actresses stars in 50%+ of all chinese gls, check her out)

Beguine (2018) Thailand - It's if the school dancing scene in My School President was a 30 minute sequence with two girls. No plot but adorable.

Cat in the eastern palace (2020) China - Watch this just to have the surreal experience of seeing like 3 whole cdrama arcs which normally take 20ish eps executed in a 7 minute timeframe. Also because it stars laoji who's in the other 50% of chinese gls. As for plot, it's about a cat spirit and a girl pretending to be the crown prince.

Clasper (2021) Thailand - And they were roommates! I liked the production, the dialogue and the acting was pretty decent.

Couple of Mirrors*** (2021) China- Wait to watch this because it will ruin you for everything else. This is like typical thai bl length, like 12 45~min episodes. It's a historical mystery about a wealthy woman who finds out about her husband's affair with her bff and the photographer she enlists to help her. If you watch one thing out of China, watch this.

Dear My Girlfriend (2021) Korea - A group project ft love triangle. It´s pretty classic. A girl starts dating someone who likes her only to realize she might instead be in love with her best friend. The editing is cute. It's a touch angsty as love triangles are and pretty well done.

Dear Uranus (2021) Taiwan. Another school love triangle. Does feature an adorkable female character, you know a bit awkward, a bit cutesy, if you hate this archetype, ignore this one. Personally I think the chemistry for the lead couple was lacking (genuinely shocking considering taiwan tends to be great at this) but both the love interests are hot and I am not immune to hot women

The Demonic lord and the virtuous cultivator (2021) China - Avoid this if you don't like toxic yuri. I personally love it so this is 10/10 for me. Orphan gets taken in by a benevolent benefactor who turns out to be her parents' killer and eventually....you know what go watch it.

Encore Martha (2021) Taiwan. One of the few gls about older women. A tomboy reunites with her first love. This one's only available on gagaoolala so you'll either need a subscription or sometimes they promote it for free. If you can find it though, it's worth a watch.

Family Plan (2016) Korea. This is a bit of an odd one to describe. The first half is two high school girls who are dating. And then the second half is their relationship as adults where they marry guys and use it to have a kid that they raise as theirs. I liked how this examined how two gay people would go about their relationship in in a world where they can't freely be with each other.

Favorite Girl (2022) Thailand. Very standard plot about a girl suffering from a breakup and her roommate but something about it stuck out to me.

Five steps to accept farewell (2016) Korea. Warning for unhappy ending. This is all pure angst, a 9 minute snapshot into a breakup. I like how it's done and the messiness of the situation.

Fragrance of the first flower (2021) Taiwan. A beautifully shot, beautifully acted, slightly too short show about two ex-lovers reuniting ft. all the angst about living in a homophobic society. It stayed in my head for weeks after I first watched it.

Girls Blood** (2014) Japan. A movie about 4 "girls" in an underground fight club. warnings for rape, trauma, domestic assault. One of the main characters is a trans man. There are sex scenes. It's very queer and I highly recommend.

Girls Love** (2016) China. Pre-censorship China had some very wonderful queer work and one of them was this movie It's about a girl who falls in love with her hot butch roommate ft all the tropes AND we get to see them function in a relationship instead of the movie ending when they get together. Warning for both characters being forcibly outed at the end. (nothing bad really happens to them after though). Also do NOT watch the sequel. If you go to mdl, everyone else will also tell you not to watch the sequel and I foolishly did not listen to those people because I liked these girls so much and I suffered for my mistake.

The Girls on Rela (2016) China. It's an anthology of short, I wouldn't say stories, more like moments, sponsored by a lesbian dating app. Each one's really short but the acting and scripts are all pretty good.

The Girls on Rela Season 2** (2016) China. This is sponsored by the same company but it's a totally different format. It's one long show about two girls cohabiting. Pretty well executed if a bit slow.

Graduation, Present + Propose (2021) Korea. A short about a high school girl giving a graduation present to her crush. What it does it does well. It's pretty.

The Handmaiden (2016) Korea. Historical set movie about a conman and thief girl who plot to steal a heiress’s fortune. I make it sound boring but that's only because it's a pretty popular movie and everything to be said about it has already been said.

Happy to have you here (2021) Thailand. Two friends have a sleepover and figure out their feelings. This is definitely in the top 20% for this trope, even though they rushed just a tad into the kiss.

Hello, spring is coming (2019) Korea. I'll let you read the synopsis for this one. What you need to know is that it's pretty, well acted, has good chemistry and is as brightly colored as a lollipop. It's a bit disorienting, parts of it doesn't make a lot of sense but it's a fun time.

I broke up because of you (2023) Korea- A bartender and their client catches feelings for each other. The dynamic is nice, the kiss less so but it can be forgiven.

I’m her weapon (2022) China- It's kinky, it's angsty, it's 3 minutes long and still fits in a separation arc. I would pay money for an extended version.

Kanojo no Kuchidzuke Kansensuru Libido (2022) Japan - two girls fall in love in a hospital. I like the tone of this one.

The L Bang** (2015) China- Another Rela production. It's a 4 episode comedy about a bunch of lesbians + (1) gay man who live in the same apartment complex. It's got queer friendship, queer acceptance and queer love. It's just wonderful. It feels like 2000s American sitcoms but queer and Chinese.

Led Astray by Love (2022) China- Fairly long for a cgl. A girl gets transported to a manhwa and falls in love with the ruler. Sunshine/grumpy. This baby is 52 minutes long and covers like the same amount of plot as word of honor does in 30 something episodes.

Legend of Yunze (2021) China - A human and a half demon vanquish demons from a village. It has a second season and a special that I haven't watched yet.

The Lost World** [Xia Ye Zhi Dao Feng De Tian] (2023) China - After watching as much cgl as I have, I was shocked to see Laoji in a modern piece. This is a college setting running-into-a-childhood-friend trope. The pacing and chemistry are both pretty good. It's one of my favorites from her.

Love in the Tinder Age** (2019) Korea- A black comedy about a bullied lesbian's failed suicide attempt ft psychics, ghosts and a teacher/student relationship. It's not really a gl because the main character doesn't get a romance BUT it's really fun so you should watch it anyway.

Love of Secret** (2022) Thailand- More of a slice of life than a love story but it's cute and fluffy and the main character very much is in a relationship. The actual plot is about a med student who's hiding both her relationship with her best friend and her dreams to be an idol. I found it positively charming.

Lover’s Concerto** (2002) Korea- Calling this a gl is a stretch. It's more just queer? The girls were most likely in love but they don't end up together and the movie itself doesn't really have a happy ending. I did find it beautiful though.

Mayfly angel (2024) Korea- Classic discovers-feelings-for-bestie-after-a-breakup plot. Warning that this is angsty and they don't end up together. But I found it realistic and I liked that they felt like two real people. Take that how you will.

Miss shen and the woman warlord (2023) China- a woman cross-dresses as another young woman's fiance and they fall in love. Despite how i describe it, there's a decent amount of plot and some political commentary.

More or less than 75 celsius (2019) Korea- A tea master and her supervisor fall in love. It's sparse and short but cute.

My Dear (2021) Thailand. A drunk girl confesses to her friend and luckily for her, it's mutual. It's 5 minutes long but it uses its time well and the acting is nice. It feels a bit like gmmtv's confessions. If you like it, the production company ShakeShoulder makes TONS of gl shorts and i'd recommend checking them out.

No distance left to run  (2022) Hong Kong. a 15 minute short film about how fame causes issues in a pop star's relationship. Unhappy ending. The song's a bop though and it's well done.

Nü er hong** (2023) China. I forgot to mention but this one, the legend of yunze and the lost world are all produced by the same studio. They do a lot of fairly long chinese gls. The story is about these two beings from an alien world who crash land on earth and are hunted. One is a healer and the other is a killer, they're in love, the killer goes insane so her lover kills her. Unbeknownst to them, they're immortal so the killer wakes up with no memories 200 years later. The pacing is better than some of their earlier stuff but it's not quite perfect here yet. It is one of my favorites from the studio though and it ends happily.

Our relationship ended before it began (2022) Korea. A barista falls in love with her manager at a coffee shop ft gender roles, miscommunication and the classic "cool one picks on the nice one to show affection" trope.

Pyramid Game** (2024) Korea. This is more gl adjacent like Devil Judge and Beyond Evil. There is a secondary gl couple that's more explicitly canon though. If you've watched other kdramas about school bullying, this is pretty similar except it's an all-girls school and everyone is so gay. It's got so much heart and is one of my favorite shows of the year.

Really, Lily? (2019) Korea. A 6 minute short about two girls who visit a cafe and beats up two men who were making homophobic remarks about them. It's surprisingly comedic and the coloring is bright to match. Features a pretty decent kiss. Watching it, I wished it was longer but what's there is still good.

Secret of us (2024) Thailand. The only longform thai gl that i've liked enough to finish. It's about an idol who comes back to win over her doctor ex. It falters from ep 6 onwards but until then, the show is really good at showing the emotional thought processes of the characters and the way they construct the story is compelling, even though I don't even like second chance romances.

Shackles (2023) China. Another one from the Chinese shampoo ad. The pairing itself is not my favorite but it's so cool that this is basically a warning against nuclear pollution AND features chinese mythology that's used in the brand's marketing. Like a 3 in 1. It's so interesting.

She Makes My heart flutter (2022) Korea. Baby lesbian finds out her aunt runs a lesbian bar and starts working there. It's so goddamn cute but it has this weird relationship with homophobia where everyone in the show is apparently 100% ok with queerness but a lot of the aunt's actions is so driven by her being a queer person in an unaccepting society. A bit like how Moonlight Chicken deals with Jin and Li Ming's different attitudes towards being queer except they don't dwell on why the aunt is the way she is or what she's been through. Anyways, it's worth a watch.

Sleep with me (2022) Philippines. A 6 episode series about two girls who are disabled in different ways fall in love. One of them can only sleep during the day and the other is in a wheelchair and the show does a pretty decent job at showing how these disabilities affect their lives and their relationship

Soshite, Yuriko wa Hitori ni Natta** (2020) Japan. If you follow me, you may have seen me talk about this show earlier this year because I found it and promptly fell in love. It's not quite gl but Mizuki's actions are all driven by the fact that she's in love with Yuriko. It's queerer than you would expect, less queer than you might want. It's a supernatural-adjacent school horror about a girl who's new school has a weird thing where every year, a girl named Yuriko becomes "Yuriko sama" and rules the school while everyone else in that year with the same name mysteriously dies. Yuriko's best friend Mizuki plots to make the sweet innocent Yuriko the newest Yuriko-sama to save her life. It's weird, there's plot holes everywhere by the end, it definitely vilifies it's gays and the ending is weak but it's such a compelling watch.

Stand-in love (2023) Philippines. 2 best friends have a ‘stand in’ relationship where the straight one helps the lesbian one learn how to court someone but they end up falling in love with each other. Like 20 min long and I love it.

Ti Shen** [The substitute] (2017) Taiwan. The mdl synopsis can describe the plot better than I can but it's a romance between an idol and a normal girl that's split into two parts. The first half is about them meeting in high school, the second is when they reunite later on a movie set where one of them is the other's stunt double. I think the first part could've been a bit longer but it's a great movie.

Transit Girls (2015) Japan. Stepsisters. Happy ending though and it's fairly long. I liked this mostly because I like Japan's moody stuff. I also liked how they handled the male love interest.

Truth or Dare (2022) Korea. A 10 minute short about two girls who like each other playing truth or dare. It does a great job at building tension and revealing things without saying it.

Tsukuritai Onna to Tabetai Onna** (2022) Japan. A woman who loves to cook comes to an arrangement with her neighbor who loves to eat. Japan does food-centered dramas better than everyone else and this is no exception. The romance itself is slow and you watch how their dynamic changes through this and the season two that came out this year.

The Twelve flower gods: Camelia (2020) China. A xianxia romance about a girl falling in love with a flower but it's a minute twenty so I promise you're not watching for the plot. You're watching to witness the ridiculous amount of innuendos that they manage to fit in under two minutes.

Twin souls of destiny (2023) China. Xianxia romance between two elves, one who is made from the memories of the other's past life. I want someone else to watch this so we can discuss whether or not this is selfcest. The color combination is interesting because I very rarely see lovers in red and purple. The time travel is confusing but it's a good time and laoji is in it.

Until Rainbow Dawn** (2018) Japan. Movie about two deaf girls falling in love ft homophobic parents. The director is a deaf lesbian herself so the movie does a wonderful job in how it depicts deafness and their relationship. It's really well done

When the light pours (2022) Korea. A girl's boyfriend wants her to sing him a song so she enrolls in guitar lessons and ends up falling in love with her teacher. The girls don't get together and I really wish they had! So if you watch this, don't watch the ending and pretend that they did end up together.

[respectthepetty]

Pride Petty Watch (SOTUS) 4.5/5

I'm almost done watching my second blacklisted shows (Love in the Air and The Untamed are the others), but what was only supposed to be a five part rewatch for my former sworn enemy SOTUS has magically turned into six because the last half of this show is AMAZING! I suffered through four other parts to be here in this glorious moment (first, second, third, fourth), so what was supposed to be the fifth and final part is now two parts since I'm saving the finale for its own post.

I'm so fucking hype! LET'S GO!

The picture on Arthits vanity is of The Beatles and their song "HELP!" but I feel that image is speaking directly to me and Arthit because this queer crisis is hurting us both, and I need this boy to kiss another boy RIGHT NOW!

She dated Bright?! BRIGHT?! You know what? It makes sense. I would've done it to.

This awkward tension at the wedding is fucking delicious. Can't even stand next to each other without making it everyone's problem.

The fact that I forgot everything about this show even though this second half is doing everything I love is very telling of the fallout of the Krist bullshit. I'm not elaborating on that drama because if you know, you know, and if you try to gaslight me saying it never happened or try to defend him in retrospect, you can miss me with that bullshit, but in a way, I'm glad I forgot this show because I'm sitting here in 2024 losing my shit over Arthit grabbing Kong to stop him from walking away.

And making small talk about colors to keep Kong standing there because Arthit just needs Kong near him but can't sort his feelings out long enough to understand why he needs him. This is my special brand of drug.

And this is why confessions change things. Arthit can't just be nice to Kong anymore because it will give Kong hope. They can't be like before. Arthit can't have a friend because Kong doesn't want to be just friends. I am seated, sat, and sitted for this pink moment!

AND NOW WE ARE GETTING THE BRIDGE SCENE! Arthit is saying how awful he is and can't understand why Kong would like him, but baby, he likes you BECAUSE YOU ARE AWFUL! He likes that you yell at him. He likes that you push him around. He likes that you drink pink milk. HE LIKES YOU BECAUSE YOU'RE YOU!

Can he accept you?! Kong is the smartest boy in his class and possibly the school, and he wants to fuck you so badly that he looks stupid! So can he accept you?! BITCH, ALL HE WANTS IS YOU! HE IS LIVING AND BREATHING FOR YOU! HE DOES NOT EXIST IF YOU AREN'T TELLING HIM TO EXIST! KISS HIM ALREADY!

That Krist fallout involving kisses is popping back up to attack me and the show is trying to sell this kiss as something big with this background music (MUTE!), but I'm going to give it a pass because, in this moment, it works. Kong is surprised. The kiss is quick. Arthit is still reserved. I can work with this kiss under these conditions.

This entire sequence is saving the kiss moment. Kong is a puppy trying to play, and Arthit is not having it. My GIF is shitty, but the dynamic is elite!

And now Kong is fully embracing his BDE, and everyone in their friend group should know what's up because if I can feel the tension from my screen eight years later, they had to have felt the shift in the air in that hallway.

Kong drinking pink milk. Arthit trying iced coffee. Kong giving Arthit his heart. AND NOW ARTHIT IS GIVING HIS HEART TO KONG. My hair is shining. My skin is glowing. My immune system is thriving!

Yes, he did! It's their kink and they are embracing it. LET THEM LIVE!

Homophobe-to-homo Arthit understood this eight years ago, and some of y'all are still struggling with this today. Sorry I didn't recognize your evolution, King.

Singto and these damn eyes of his! This man can act, and I feel bad for his acting partners because they look weak in comparison to him, which is why He's Coming to Me is my number one Thai BL. Ohm and Singto were breaking my heart with just one glance, and here in this moment, Singto is telling me that Kong felt that icy shift from Arthit when he mentioned kids. The United States had barely implemented marriage equality the year before this, and now I'm in my feels all because Singto can fucking act.

And now that string bracelet is right there between them with Arthit saying Kong could take it off because IT'S DIRTY (break their bond because it's something bad), and Kong saying Arthit was the one who tied it (brought them together), and I NEED A DRINK BECAUSE I'M IN MY FEELINGS over eyes, marriage equality, and string bracelets.

I know I just wrote Singto can act, which implies Krist can't (and it's partially true and why I dislike him - I wrote what I wrote!), but Krist acting out Arthit's uncomfortableness when Prae sees them together is sitting in my throat in a way that makes me want to explode. He keeps shuffling back, crossing his arms, and looking away, until Prae asks if they came together, and even though Kong just said they were on a date, and even though Arthit was so happy about that, he immediately says NO and that they just randomly bumped into each other, and every queer in the audience is ready to breakdown over the trauma of our youth.

This episode is beating my ass on a Sunday while I was just trying to enjoy my tea. The barrier between them during this meal. The stunted conversation. All of it hurts, but what gets me the most is Arthit didn't switch his meal with Kong's. He didn't berate Kong for his 'baby food' choices. If Kong wasn't in pain before, he is definitely in it now because if there is one thing that Kong needs in this moment is reassurance that Arthit cares about him even if it's through punishment, yet Arthit is giving him nothing. Poor little masochist is really going through it at this table.

The way Arthit yelled at Kong to not touch him! This is so good. The second half of this show did not need to go so hard especially after that lackluster first half, yet here it is, giving me everything and more.

ARTHIT IS IN PINK! He is pink and telling his best friend that he likes a guy but doesn't want to ruin that guy's life because Kong is smart and handsome and could be with anybody, but Knot said what every BL boy needs to be reminded of is that Kong wouldn't be happy with anyone else but Arthit. Arthit cannot sacrifice himself when that would make neither of them happy. Arthit is exactly what Kong needs. Now go punish him so he knows you care.

Unlike Bright's casual use of "fag," this "queerbag" feels right. It's from one queer to another and it shows me that Arthit has accepted himself as a queer. Am I getting emotional over a man screaming "queerbag"? Yes.

Kong wrote Arthit a love letter where he states that he is disobedient, self-absorbed, and teases Arthit to the point that it stresses Arthit out, but only Arthit makes him happy, and the kink is staring me directly in my eyes. It is breathing down my neck. It is reaching into my soul. It is touching the deepest part of my heart, and I am in love with this!

The face that Kong (Singto) made when Arthit untied the string was the perfect way to punish this disobedient boy because two seconds later Arthit replaced it with matching bracelets and declared them as boyfriends in front of all his friends and God, and that's how you treat a masochist. That's the thrill you gotta give them. It's pain then pleasure.

I LOVE THIS FUCKING SHOW!

I love it so much that I'm excusing Kong's "I don't like men" because it feels right that he doesn't like men, only Arthit. Once again, watching this from a kinky lens has changed the way I view this plot. Before, I saw it as a BL and this felt like a cop-out, but now it makes sense that he doesn't like anyone. He only likes the one person who reprimands him and rewards him.

He is a dog, and I mean that with all the affection in my entire body.

Much better kiss. The first kiss was a test. The second kiss was a promise.

The smile after the kiss and the way Arthit scrunches up his body to be smaller because he is shy. My heart is exploding. I'm dying. I'm dead. I've died. Deceased.

I did not remember that Arthit spoke to Kong when he was applying to schools and convinced him to stick with engineering. This is so Thai BL of them, but I have no energy to complain about it because Arthit finding his home and queerness in a safe place and giving that to Kong is what I'm taking away from this.

Now to the finale and my final thoughts.

[iamfujoshiwe]

VegasPete Rambling

I usually only read Japanese Manga. I even filtered my search to strictly show only Japanese Manga. And out of nowhere I have this urge to try watching Live Action BL Drama I filtered them to Japanese too. But to be honest I'm not fond of Japanese BL Drama. Well maybe my taste is just different from others (I only watched a few of them so who knows). Sometimes the acting is weird. I guess a good comedy/gag in manga is just not translated well enough in live action.

Aaannndd in the middle of searching BL Drama I discovered the fckn "KINNPORSCHE THE SERIES". I saw them a few times on tumblr. Some gifs. Some fangirling posts. I was sceptic about Thai BL. I didn't even know Thai BL exist until now. But I decided to give it a try anyway. And boy do I fell hard. HARD!!! It altered the chemistry in my brain!! KPTS had aired two years ago and I just found it now???? Have I live in the cave all my life????

From ep 1 I immediately fell in love. The acting, the character's chemistry, and everything is so amazing. I didn't sense any awkward acting/dialogue I usually saw in Japanese BL Drama (No offense really, it was just me). I literally stopped reading all my followed BL/Non BL Manga and and even stopped reading the new ones too.

All the time my mind just screaming "WHAT A FINE MAN" everytime Porsche appeared. But for real Apo is soooooo good looking.

And when Kinn appeared I just got distracted by his chest. Sir, buttons exist for a reason you know. What grudge do you have with them? (Not that I mind of course). Mile is born to play Kinn.

Then I met VegasPete couple. Let me tell you, when I have obsesssion I really do obsess them to oblivion. Having tunnel vision about them. VegasPete takes the cake.

At first I have this thought: Every actor in KPTS is so good looking so why this vegas character is… not as good looking as them? (Yeah I want to kill my past self for that).

I have this funny feeling about thai actor's voice. Maybe because Thai language is a foreign language to me. I don't hear them often, as opposed to english and japanese (and my main language of course). That's one of the reason why I filtered my search to just Japanese BL Drama. But Vegas' voice OMG. I adore his voice so much. And Bible speaking english is just * CHEF'S KISS * I melted everytime I listen to his voice. BIBLE SPEAKING ENGLISH IS A GIFT TO HUMANITY!! AND THAT HUMANITY IS ME!!!

When VegasPete plot took off, my focus immediately shift to them (I am sorry Kinn and Porsche). I can't count how many times I rewatched their scenes.

I definitely have to include Pete's cry in Yok's bar (when he met vegas after he had ran away from safehouse) and swimming pool (after Vegas got shot). Such a raw emotion. 100 point for Build! I come to love him because his crying voice lol.

Vegas and Pete easily become my favorites. So naturally I have to search for their actor right? And thus began my search for Bible and Build…..

ONLY FOR MY HEART TO BE CRUSHED! MY SHIP HAD SUNK ALREADY!

Build's scandal on his old socmed post? His scandal with Poi? I don't really mind. But Build talking bad about Bible? Yeah my heart couldn't take it. It's in pieces (In a way I'm glad because when all the chaos took place I haven't entered the fandom yet so I never encounter their fan's toxicity). But I respect their decision to go their own way. I know it's not healthy for them to continue working together. So yeah I am sad but their mental health is more important.

Soooooo now I'm still deep in VegasPete swamp (with occasional breaking down when I remember BibleBuild). I choose to sink in VegasPete fanfictions on ao3. And woah there are soooo many amazing author there. Their fics are spectacular! I can't thank them enough for doing God's work creating those holy VegasPete fics.

Oh and anyway I read VegasPete novel too. But I don't like it…. their character are too different from the show. Honestly fanfictions are waaay better…. KinnPorsche novel too. One chapter and I was like nope, I couldn't bring myself to read further. End of story.

And that's why as of now I still can't read manga or watch any other BL Drama. Damn VegasPete! (Affectionate). My waiting list are Not Me The Series and Last Twilight. I hope I'll collect enough braincell soon so I can start watching them. There are so many BL and Non BL manga I haven't continue reading.

[mephistopheleswasrobbed]

My two cents on the Ossan's Love Thailand pilot trailer

Disclaimer: 1) I have watched the original Ossan's Love (S1, LoD, Returns; AU Season and specials are on my list) and liked it a lot. 2) I am an EarthMix fan so I might be slightly biased.

Overall my reaction to the pilot trailer was one of relief. While I definitely noticed some areas for improvement, all in all I am now more hopeful than ever that GMMTV will do this justice.

What I really liked: - Krit Shahkrit seems like a very solid choice for the Boss. I have not previously seen him in anything but what we saw of him in the trailer has me sold. He is younger than he could have been, they are playing it a little safe here possibly, but the age difference is still big/noticable enough that I don't mind at all. - The choice to make Mo a long-time friend of Heng instead of a recent new colleague feels appropriate. Mo moving in with Heng after barely knowing each other might have not worked in a Thai context. (Also EM chemistry is too strong to sell them previously not knowing each other without the excuse of love at first sight they had in ATOTS and MLC) - They actually let Earth be funny in a BL! - On a more serious note, most of the comedic moments landed right on point for me. (The scene where Heng tries to hold Mo back by his collar as he runs away is what fully cemented it for me that this will work) Earth is a great (but severely underutilised) comedic actor and Earth and Mix as a duo have great comedic chemistry. - Earth being the younger one in a potential romantic relationship is a breath of fresh air. He's got good chemistry with P'Krit. I don't think this will actually happen (GMMTV will prob play it safe) but I could see them going for more of an actual conflict in regards to whom Heng will fall for unlike the original where it was pretty clear from the beginning that Haruta had only platonic feelings for Kurosawa. - Earth is doing great with the awkward moments. He is clearly not an actor who is afraid of being the idiot and that's very important for this character.

What I think needs to be imroved: - They need to decide how much they want Earth to imitate Tanaka Kei's style of physical comedy and then stick with it throughout. This felt a little inconsistent to me in the pilot trailer. - Mix needs to get a little more confident when facing off agains P'Krit. His performance felt the weakest in these scenes and I'm pretty sure that's because he wasn't yet completely comfortable getting in this veteran actor's face. I have no doubts that this will get better if Mix gets the chance to practice a little more with P'Krit. (I'm assuming there was not much prep work done before filming the pilot trailer because Mix was quite busy finishing his degree in recent months) Leave the respect for your elders at home, Mix!

Other thoughts: - I hope they move Mo's initial confession back into the shower. Haruta's nakedness really added to the scene in the original and Earth is no stranger to taking his shirt off for the camera so I don't see why they would have to change this. (My hope is that they changed it for the pilot trailer because they didn't want to waste time covering up Earth's tattoo(s), they could potentially seem out of character for Heng) - It seems Choko got replaced with a daughter. That's a shame. I liked her a lot in the original and I felt that she and her relationship with Maro were an important part of the story, especially on the thematic side. I'm willing to see where they go with this, though. - Thor as Ten who I'm assuming is the thai Takegawa is also a bit younger than the original, we didn't see much of him in the pilot trailer so I'm reserving judgement on this decision. - Kapook who, I'm assuming is taking the role of Chizu (though it seems that some of her advisory function might move over to Mo on account of him also being Heng's long-time friend) felt like a perfect fit - Champ has at this point become an EarthMix staple. MLC being the only of their shows he wasn't in. I'm here for it. We haven't seen much of him but I'm sure he can do Teppei justice. - The accidental hand touch while hanging up posters was not convincing. I'm reminded of the slightly awkward hand-interlocking as Jim and Wen stood in front of the soon to close diner. (Am I the only one who notices that every time I see that scene?) - I wonder if they will actually change the wedding scene to have Mo interrupt or if this was done to make the pilot trailer more concise. It would be a shame to loose this classic example of a JBL run. (They did the run in CMT, they should do it in OL!) - If I remember correctly the forhead kiss was in the original as well, but it also works as a cute call back to the atots airport scene.

TL;DR: Earth can do comedy, I'm glad he gets to finally show this in a BL. EM chemistry is chemistrying as usual, this time with more crack energy. Issues I had were probably mostly caused by limited prep time and limited shooting time for the pilot trailer. I think it's gonna be good and that makes me happy.

[tellywoodtrash]

My dad's been in hospital since last one month, we went through literal hell n only now things are looking a bit better TT, thus I thought of you sis..how are and how's your cat doing??any new fav itv drama?or are you still in love with Thai bls(as an AO3 reader I TOTALLY understand you)??I watched only one Pak drama named 'rah-e-junoon' recently only cause of The beautiful Danish Taimoor😍 it's not bad specially he with his love n obsession makes me wana SIGHHHHH😩😩😩 dreamily..also HAVE YOU SEEN JUNAID KHAN IN 'MAHARAJ' (not the Sethupati one) MOVIE??his n Sarvari's reels are everywhere and they are so Wattpad coded... reminding me of those period couples in novels😍😍 he's so dreamy..6'2" tall, nerdy, kinda awkward and has this soft boy vibes going on and did I tell you he kinda looks like Henry Cavill??and Rami Malek??😩😩 life hell ho jaye par tharak na jaye🤤 now tell me how everything is going on your end✨

Hi Darling,

I hope your dad is feeling better, and you are taking care of yourself too, friend! (Caretaker burnout is reallllllll and I am sending you all the strength and healing vibes 🤗🤗🤗)

ITV seems to be a closed chapter for me; the rapidly progressing degeneration of that genre is just notttttt inspiring any confidence (or interest.) The wholeass industry needs a major major shakeup. Same with Bollywood, nothing's really pulling me anymore. Laapataa Ladies (which I still haven't watched yet) is LITERALLY THE ONLY MOVIE calling my name in all of the 2024 releases. Junaid seems like a promising nepo kid; the Cavill vibes are definitely there. Let's hope that he picks good scripts and doesn't fall down the usual wormhole.

Things that I have been watching and enjoying in the past few weeks:

The Acolyte: I literally know/care nothing about the Star Wars universe, but Manny Jacinto. Enough said. I need to rewatch coz god his character has me going awooooooooga like a fuckin' cartoon wolf. I am obsessed.

Abbott Elementary: Giving B99-ish (but much more mellow.)

Modern Family: Just a rewatch (during my mealtimes)

Late Night with Seth Meyers/Last Week Tonight/The Daily Show for US election shitshow in palatable doses

Meet You at the Blossom: A chinese BL which is fulllllllllllly delivering on the toxic romance from the Tellywood of yore

This Love Doesn't Have Long Beans: A thai BL that is again, giving v Tellywood romcom vibes (Gul Khan types), with not one, BUT TWO WHOLE ENEMIES TO LOVERS couples. Noice.

Love Sea: Ridiculously high heat/good chemistry; one half of couple is the greenest fuckin flag in the history of human existence.

My Love Mix Up (Thailand): My cutest lil kuchupuchu babies. I wanna put them in my pocket and squishhhhhhhh them allllll like a goddamn stress ball. Wholesome wholesome lil show that makes me feel warm and sunshiney inside.

4 Minutes: No real idea what's really going on here with the time skips and background crimes and shit, plus this show feels like an anxiety attack in audiovisual form, BUT I'm here for Bible Wichapas giving me morally-grey himbo with hilarious (to me) gay panic.

So yeah...... That's what I've been up to! Hope you and yours keep well, lovely. <33333333 And yes, keep that tharak flag flying high!!!!!!!!

[bengiyo]

Step By Step Ep 10 Stray Thoughts

Last week on HR Violations, Jeng made his feelings plain to Pat, and Pat was not prepared for one more emotional blow. Jeng had a complete emotional breakdown in a standpoint bit of acting from Man Trisanu. We spent much of the week unpacking exactly what happened with Pat, and determined that he’s just 25, tired, and overwhelmed. Ae had her baby, and nothing made sense from a practical standpoint. Jeng broke all of us with “It makes sense to me,” and now we’re supposed to just stroll back into this.

I still approve of Jeng doing the responsible thing and keeping his distance from Pat.

I love Chot so much. I am loving this new trend in BL about shows encouraging people to respect the feelings people are expressing, and reminding characters (and viewers) that I takes a lot of courage to express them. It’s still okay to reject people, but treat people kindly. Love Chot making the overall situation plain for Pat and confused viewers.

“It’s been eight years already. I’m used to it,” feels like a subtle commentary on BL itself. Chot has not been able to live his live a openly as he’d like with his boyfriend because the family wouldn’t approve. Coincidentally, that’s the same amount of time we’ve been in the current era of Thai BL. For all the money and interest that’s been poured into BL, lived queer experiences still face daily struggles.

 A carrot cake? Pat, please do better.

I see. The show is going to make me cry about Chot. It’s time to write an essay about Step By Step.

“It’s alright. I own this place.” Sir!!!

My man just trashed his own kitchen to get it in.

Smitten looks good on Pat.

He let me hit so I can follow back on Insta

These two have lost all composure. Hooking up in the company parking lot!

Chot is trying to cover for these two, but they are being unfortunately way too obvious.

I’m having complicated reactions to the homelessness scene. Feels like the show wants to quickly shine a lens on an issue important to the filmmakers, but it feels awkward as hell.

Hey, it looks like the Fjord project went well.

Okay, Pat’s dad is funny. I like his specific beef with Jeng. Still, I kinda hoped he’d ask harder questions like, “How is this supposed to work if you’re still his boss?”

They keep going to this one shot when they go to the bedroom that’s clearly from the closet and using Dutch angles. This feels intentionally designed to make me uneasy.

Oh they're using P' and Nong now.

Ben has a happy trail. Let me pause and collect myself.

WHERE IS THE BABY??

Did they give the hets a camera angle kiss??

Oh nevermind it was meant to cut to Pat and Jeng as a potential future.

Now you know Ae was aiming for Pat with that bouquet. She is messy like that.

Wait, so Jaab is seeing someone else now?? I'm not sure what I'm supposed to get from Jaab and Jen.

Okay, we found the baby.

I like that Beam and Ae didn't touch each other, if I'm reading this right. Glad we can put this to bed.

Oh, I don't like Jeng promoting Pat into his position. That's not good for either of them.

Suddenly, a glow up for Ying?

Whoa, was not expecting this EXTREME GEN X ENERGY from Ying in Pat's corner.

"Haven't I been strong enough?" is a whole mood.

Yet another instance of BL reminding us that they both have dicks.

"I want to be happy with you." Oh, Jeng. I am also lonely in my 30s. I get it. I really do. But, my man, you cannot put this on Pat.

Pat's resignation was inevitable. Jeng, who's normally so controlled, definitely lost all composure this episode.

I'm not jumping directly into the discourse here, but I will say clearly that I am only watching through Gaga. Do not send me comments, asks, or messages about episodes only available legally through WeTV fast track. I don't subscribe to spoiler culture, but please don't be rude.

As for this episode, I feel a bit muddled. I'm going to spend some time thinking about core themes and seeing what this show actually wants to explore.

[squeakygeeky]

Language Learning Check-In: June

Assuming I keep up with this I guess I'll make this a monthly thing. I've loved languages for a long time, but this was the first time in a while where I felt like it was my main hobby. I'm currently very into the idea of 'comprehensible input' which is where things are simplified enough and with enough context that you can understand what's going on, even if you can't understand most of the words, and you naturally start picking up both grammar and vocabulary from exposure. I finally quit Duolingo cold turkey.

Thai: I started seriously studying Thai at the end of last month, starting with learning the alphabet and then immediately abandoning that to do pure listening comprehension only. I've been averaging 2hrs a day, a pace I can probably stick to for the next two months since I can watch videos during work, but not after that. This is not counting time spent watching BL since in that case I'm focusing mainly on reading subtitles, although I'm sure it helps a little. The videos I'm watching have the format of two teachers asking each other basic questions ('Is this a fruit? Do you like to eat this?') with lots of repetition, hand gestures, and doodles to illustrate.

I feel like I've been learning so much but all I can quantify is the hours spent since it's not like I'm making vocab lists or taking tests, I'm just absorbing like a sponge. My favorite part is that it's pretty chill to be a sponge so it's still possible when I'm tired, and until this past week or so I was struggling a lot with my energy levels. I don't really have any fun language facts to share other than that sky blue is its own distinct color category, there's no overall blue in Thai.

Spanish: I'm actually part of an insanely multilingual friend group now and there are a lot of Spanish speakers. This includes the friend I've been calling 'Kdrama Friend' who is actually a Spaniard, although her mother tongue is Catalan, not Castilian. Then there's my Guatemalan neighbor of the Mysterious Doormat Beverage (left on my doormat, not consisting of doormats), and a few other women. Kdrama Friend can translate (and so can some of the others, they mostly speak more English than I speak Spanish) but it's a lot less awkward when she doesn't have to. I do struggle to follow group conversations a lot of times though, so I've been meaning to seriously work on my conversational skills and now I've actually started.

It's easier than with Thai in the sense that I don't have to have visual input, I can understand intermediate to advanced podcasts like the Duolingo podcast and even native podcasts, but it's harder in the sense that I don't feel any progress since my level was already pretty high and I'm just picking up the occasional new word. We'll see how I do at tomorrow's baby shower. To be honest I think a lot of my problems with conversation are more psychological than linguistic and exist even when I'm speaking English, I can just cope better then.

I found a podcast on fashion history which I was able to follow because I'm actually really interested in that. It's the whole comprehensible input thing, I know perfectly well what a toile is and have used them, but someone at my Spanish level who didn't know how to sew clothes might have been lost.

Working on Spanish doesn't feel that exciting but it's useful and important to me for heritage reasons. If you've ever read the Josefina American Girl books, that's exactly one side of my family and my grandma grew up speaking Spanish, but my dad's Spanish is almost nonexistent and I just learned in school.

Vietnamese: You all know I love this language and I've wanted to learn it for a while, but there aren't great resources for it and while I can absolutely pick up certain words and phrases, it still kind of...doesn't sound like a language a lot of the time. Thai already feels more understandable. I think the alphabet similarity is actually hurting me because if I look at a word the way it would sound with English pronunciation interferes too much, and there aren't any videos simple enough to feel comprehensible without any translation. So this is on the back burner.

Korean: Dropped for now, although I did find some comprehensible input videos in case I decide to try learning it later.

My problem is that I now want to learn all the languages, right now, and that is not how it works. Anyway, feel free to ask me about languages any time.

[thefreeblog]

Well in the first episode, we got to know that Pat and Jeng do like each other as a crush or you know like generally how single people are always looking lmao. And in the next they are colleagues, working together a lot and yet we don't see any awkwardness or the hint of previous crushing in the workplace. They are working. And man I can't thank the directors enough for this.

Is this the indication of Thai workplace BL growing up and stop pleasing the audiences with unnecessary non existent workplace flirting. Even Taiwan can't avoid that.

Well done! Bravo! Hallelujah!!

I am so excited and invested!

[gillianthecat]

Bees in my head, there are so many bees in my head today 🐝🐝🐝🐝🐝

Anyway, I watched the first two episodes of Unintentional Love Story. Which I quite liked! And I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next. It's humorous and tropey but still with depth. I love the sunshine boy (I can't remember anyone's name yet) and how he is both genuinely sunshiny, and simultaneously using that charm out of desperation. The actor is bring wonderful nuance to the role. I'm less sure about the ceramicist, there's an awkwardness to him that I can't tell if it's the character or the actor, but I'm willing to wait and see. And I quite like the character, so even if his actor isn't up to the level of the other one, i don't think it will ruin the show for me.

I also like that he's a ceramicist! I'm getting a little tired of so many of the creative/artist characters being chefs. (Although there have been some writers too.) Part of it is a me thing about my own issues, but also variety is nice! I loved the scene at the kiln—it gave us a glimpse of the ceramicist being more relaxed and himself, plus sunshine's heart pot! 😻

I literally knew nothing about this going in besides @heretherebedork's screenshots of that loom (which was indeed an amazing loom, even better than I expected), which always makes for an interesting time at the beginning as I figure out what the tone and direction of the story are going to be. The beginning felt quite rapid fire, getting the characters into place to set the story in motion, realism be damned, but I don't mind the contrivance of the premise. I love an ethical dilemma derailed by falling for someone.

This series somehow feels more leisurely and expansive than most Korean BL that I've seen? More like a Thai BL, or a bigger budget mainstream (het) Kdrama. I think a big part of that feeling is that we're getting TWO! whole couples (I'm assuming). And I love all four characters already. Two variations on enemies to lovers! And all four of them seem like compelling people. Even the older ceramicist seems interesting enough. I only hate the smarmy senior colleague.

I haven't even checked how many episodes there are, so maybe it is a short series after all, but so far it doesn't feel cramped and truncated. Thirty minutes seems to be about the dividing line between a full episode and a condensed one, and these fall just on the long enough side.

Anyways I may write more about what I love about these characters later, after I look up their names. This was actually supposed to be a really short post just to note that I watched it, but then I got carried away.

Because I meant to talk about the bees in my head and how I'm mentally jumping all over the place right now, and how my wildly fluctuating attention span led me to read a post about Death Note, and then decide I needed to go watch it. Which I did. And, shh, confession time: this is the very first anime I've ever intentionally watched. I've seen bits and pieces of stuff, and been in the room with my nephews as the watched Pokémon and Naruto, but I've never deliberately sought it out. Am I getting kicked off of Tumblr for this?

The post that got me looking was poking fun at people who talk about the age gap between the two shipped characters being problematic when it's least troubling thing about them, and I was like, hmm... I'm kinda intrigued. One Netflix renewal later (I needed it anyway to watch The Glory season two) and here I am.

I'm intrigued so far? I may or may not share my thoughts on it later, but I will probably watch more episodes.

[namtanlovesfilm]

gmmtv randomized shipping wheel pt.3

here's part 3 folks, this time I included 15 couples bc I can't stop spinning the wheel lol :') as always I put the 100+ gmmtv actors on a virtual spinning wheel & used it to create brand new random ships!

this time I decided to only include one ship per actor in each part, because the wheel loves putting pond & mix with everyone lmao, so I will include their other ships in part 4 & 5 lol. the pairings are presented in order still, though!

NAMTAN X AUN

hmmm... my first instinct is to say "I don't see it", but actually I could see them being one of those random gmmtv side couples they scrapped together, and I'm sure they'd do a good enough job bc they're both good actors. 3/10

JAN X NA

I... don't see it at all lol, but in a way a ship with these two would remind me of jan's ship with an older guy in the upcoming loveless society, so... it's not egregious to think about either. as a side side ship, I wouldn't mind them. 4/10

MARC X POND

lmaooooo, I ain't mad at this but also don't see it at all :') marc & pond are both pretty boys I love and they're both good enough actors, so they'd probably make it work, but when I try imagining it... it looks a bit awkward innit 💀 4/10

MIX X PEPPER

now THAT is random af :'))) I honestly don't know what to say bc for one we've never seen mix in another pairing than earthmix (unless you count him being cute with phuwin in futs), and pepper is still a very new actor who hasn't gotten a pairing yet either, so I can't picture them together. I guess visually they would look kinda good, but I can't imagine what their acting would be like, 5/10

GEMINI X LUKE

bro 💀 call CPS 💀 so first let's address the age gap, gemini is a baby & luke is almost 10 years older than him, which... hasn't kept some bl pairings to be formed before (*cough* maxnat *cough*), but I find very fucking awkward 😬 moreover, I can't even imagine them having chemistry or good acting together, I just can't 😭 1/10

WIN X KAY

this wheel really is putting win with the most random people lol! I don't know how to feel about this pairing at all tbh... I feel like they could potentially be good, but also I don't really see it, probably bc win is so far removed from normal thai actors now I can't imagine him with anyone lol. I do hope kay does bl one day though bc he was great in good old days! 2/10

SEA X WHITE

nah 💀 love white but I've recently realized I can't imagine him being paired with anyone, but then once he is he usually does a good job? for example he slayed untwo in tol but I would have never imagined him with earth prior to that. with sea it's even more crazy to imagine bc I've never even seen them interact, so I just can't see it at all... 1/10

GUN X LOOKJUN

white & namo??? now THAT would have been a not me twist 😂 I'm gonna be honest, I'm sure they would do a good enough job simply bc they literally had a little flirty moment in the three gentlebros where they did look cute together! but overall without this moment I don't really see them together, so I'll give them a 4/10

BOOM X SING

the random wheel really is random af lmao 😂 I don't see it simply bc I've never seen these two even interact before, so while I'm sure they'd do a good job if paired, I literally can't even picture it :'))) 2/10

PRIM X OFF

so since these two have done the spirited away x loewe campaign together we all know they do look great together, but let's be for real, the 13 year age gap is way too big & kinda awkward if they were to be a ship, so........ 3/10

EARTH X OHM PAWAT

I think this is another ship that might be a lot of people's wet dream lol. separating my feelings about ohm, I think on paper this could be a great ship, but tbh I just don't see it still, maybe they could play brothers, but I think lovers is too weird to me lol. 5/10

TAY X LEE

omg this ghost ship brings me a couple of years back! in case some of you don't know, tay & lee were very close in 2019-2020 (they still are close but we don't see them together as much) and people were shipping them hard bc they're just so sweet together! 7/10 I think they'd be so cute <3

FOURTH X JOONG

I was gonna point out the age gap bc I thought joong was way older, but tell me why he's a 2001?? 💀 it's still an awkward age gap imo bc fourth is so young, and even without that I just don't really see it tbh, 3/10

NEW X DRAKE

hmmm... my first ever thai crush & one of my current ones... yeah I can't see it lol, I think the masculine energy would be too much, and bc they're both physically quite similar I just can't picture it. 2/10

FORCE X GREAT

ooh, I'm not mad at that but I can't see it either lol. honestly I think they'd do a great job bc they're both solid actors, and I think they would look very good together, but since I've never seen them interact I can't say I can fully picture it either lol. 4/10

LOVE X CHIMON

the wheel wheeled so hard it ended up giving us a real ship again :'))) the chimonlove ship feels like AGES ago but they were really cute haha!

part 1 | part 2

[mikuni14]

I just read your post about Unintentional Love story/bed friend. I agree to an extent. I always felt something was wrong and I couldn’t enjoy fully both Bed Friend and ULS even though they are not bad but I couldn’t find the reason until I read your post. I definitely have a harder time with BF because as you said it’s very repetitive, so much that it’s annoying : Uea find himself in danger or is being flirted, King come to save him or is jealous, they have sex. I feel it’s basically only that, NetJames chemistry save the show because if they were awkward, everything would just be painful to watch. I think most Thai BL that are currently airing are good on the papers but the execution is just the worst, which is a shame.

About ULS, I completely join you when you say ULS is a story we already watch a thousand time and there is absolutely no surprise : the character has a mission and have to deceive for that but along the way that character fall in love with the most deceived or the only deceived, give up the plan but each time the confession is interrupted by something and at the end, the truth comes out in the worst possible way with the deceived character being furious. I don’t know if you watched but it’s the exact same plot to a Kdrama called Coffee Prince that was released in 2007. Now I would say something differ in ULS with the original plot we all know is that Taejoon left and was miserable because of society standards and consumerism while he found happiness in something that goes against society standards (a same sex relationship). I think this part is very interesting and add layers to the drama. I find people harsh with Taejoon and Wonyoung, I seen them say they think they are boring, the actors are awkward with each other’s, they are barely interacting intimately. I don’t agree because I, who tend to notice and feel awkward when the actors are uncomfortable don’t feel like it. What I feel is that Gongchan has to play an uncomfortable Wonyoung, now I am not sure why : Is it because he realise for the first time that he is same sex attracted and doesn’t know what to do ? Because he feel guilty about the plan and not telling the man he loves ?

About the skinship, if you compare to any recent Thai BL or even Our Dating Sim then yes, it’s a little lacking but honestly the hugs that we have between those two characters are enough, they are so heart warming and lovely. For me, the most important is that you can understand that the characters are in love and that’s exactly what I felt with TJ x WY. Personally I am not one who is comfortable with BL skipping kissing or intimacy because I feel it could be due to censorship and I hate that, there are already BL who get an adaptation and remove all BL contents and I think it’s absolutely scandalous but I don’t think the lack of intimacy in ULS is due to censorship. And now about the boring argument, yes they are not the most thrilling couple ever but they are so chill and comfortable. Sorry, it’s a bit longer than what I expected but your post made me have a lot to say.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts 😘 Bed Friend is still a very good show and I like a lot of things about it, for example I liked the fact that Uea just quit because that's rare. However, in the last episode (I don't know if you watched), the series followed the usual pattern, i.e. King saved/helped Uea and all work - related problems were dealt quickly and efficiently, because it's Him, a Strong and Resourceful Seme. On the one hand, I like it because I believe that victims should have support and help from family/friends/other students at school/coworkers at work - and in Bed Friend not only did King come to his aid, his colleagues in his office also rushed to help him. On the other hand, I like stories where the victims get a chance to take action, to scream out their pain and fear, to get bloody revenge. I contradict myself a bit and I bounce between things I like, that are mutually exclusive and I know it. I don't know how to explain it properly, but it's kind of complicated. I firmly believe that Uea has the right to walk away to keep himself safe, for the sake of his mental health, to give up the fight, especially since when he fights, he is accused of probably wanting "it" anyway, or of exaggerating his issues. I just... like to see victims of abuse going berserk, paying their abuses back with interest, like in The Last of Us or The Glory series. I want to give Uea agency, but at the same time I also want his friends to stand by his side and even fight on his behalf, because that's the right thing to do. Heh, contradicting myself again 🙄 Anyway, it seems that the repetition of Uea's torture is over, so I suppose it will be better from now on 😉

Oh, this ULS trope is used all the time, even featured quite recently on my beloved To Sir, With Love (although it didn't bother me then, probably because I'm obsessed with the show and I'm just plain biased). In ULS, it doesn't bother me that much either, but I admit that I wish someone would break this old and overused pattern someday.

For me, ML from ULS are not boring, but looking at their physical contact, I have the impression that they act out scenes from het dramas. Like the way TaeJoon puts his hand on WooYoung's neck is a gesture that I know from het dramas, not from BL series, and it can be noticeable to viewers, even unconsciously and therefore weird. Actually their story IS very much het K-drama, when you think about it 🤔

Regarding skinship, my stance is clear: either the actors are comfortable with each other and that shows through kissing and physical contact, or they're not and then I don't want to see any kissing or touching. The thing that ALWAYS turns me off even from the most lovely couple is the feeling that the actors are forcing themselves into physical contact. I will not comment that in 2023 an actor is unable to perform physical love with an actor of the same sex and why such an actor is hired, it's a separate issue. I focus on whether or not an already casted actor can play being also sexually attracted to a person of the same sex. That's why I want to watch intimacy at the level of KinnPorsche or Ghost Host Ghost House, or the lack of it like in Kabe Koji (which I still enjoyed). Dead-fish kisses, or awkwardness in physical contact is unacceptable unless it's based on the story - for example, fear of intimacy, inexperience, trauma etc. But apart from that, I love watching a romance where you CAN SEE that the lovers want each other, that they can't keep their hands off each other, with scenes like staring at lips when I know the're thinking about kissing, that they want to kiss and touch, that they love everything about the other person including the BODY. Like it was in Secret Crush On You, or in History 2: Crossing the Line. I love these kind of romances 😍 I don't know, maybe for many viewers TaeJoon and WooYoung are boring because they are very vanilla and their characters are rather gentle, withdrawn and introverted. But their relationship is very turbulent, a lot of things are going on with them and the're experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions. For me, neither this series nor the couple are boring 😚

[my-boys-love-boys]

I just finished rewatching 2 Moons (the first season only), which has no legitimate way for fans to watch the show as far as I can tell. Motive Village is really trying to make it disappear. Like, we're going to forget you fucked over an entire cast, twice...

But seriously, 2 Moons was a pioneer Thai BL, and I love it. Is it good? Not really. It has a lot of issues. Some of the chemistry was way off, the writing wasn't great, and a lot of awkward beats. But they were trying, and I am thankful for that.

Also, I can't get over how baby face everyone is! When Kimmon first appeared on screen, I actually shrieked, OMG, HE'S SO BABY! My roommate was not pleased. He already has to deal with enough of my bullshit.

Anyway, I don't know what my point is. I wish we'd gotten the complete series with the original cast (though I could have lived without God). Really, they should have just replaced God and moved on. But the world was given KimCop, and I can live with that.

[purposelynana]

What Did I Watch: #27

As a matter of fact, the only reason I watched New Life Begins because Bai Jingting looked incredibly hot in period costume. *play shallow by lady gaga*. I kept seeing someone familiar on his face. I was pretty sure, somehow we met in the past. Or previous lives. Who the fuck knows.

New Life Begins didn't give something new. Every trope that you can think of appeared. It's not like I wasn't happy about it, I kinda glad it didn't end up like *cough*Love Like Galaxy*cough*. I have enough of makjang and stupid women characters who doesn't give any depth to the story. Thankfully, New Life Begins isn't like that and I'm grateful to reporting that it does actually fucking smart. The women in this are just *chef's kiss*.

But yeah at some point I just oh my god, it really takes 40 episodes eh?

Well I have this one unpopular opinion. Until We Meet Again isn't particularly stand the test of time. Perhaps, it is a good series to start your journey into BL's realm. But personally, it doesn't have re-watch value per se. The premise is engaging and somehow back in the day I could finish 17 episode without having the feeling to gouge my eyes. And now after so many years, I already formed a reason that yes, it's way too long, too much filler and awkward acting (definitely not talking about Fluke and Earth, they were on different class).

Moreover comes Between Us, a spin-off from UWMA, focused on Win and Team during the events on UWMA. It's not a bad idea because personally I love the book it based on. I rather have slightly uncomfortable feelings, because well can it stand the test of time and not make my toes curl while watching it?

Let's just say that my toes definitely curled on certain parts. But I'm happily reporting that it maintained the core from the novel. The hurt-comfort agenda is so strong with this one. It nourished your emotion somehow. Like the feelings you get after visiting your psychiatrist. Relieved. Feasibly happen since Win and Team are one of the most relatable characters that ever grace Thai BL. No red strings bullshit, just some hard realities we face as a human being.

Well what happen in Between Us certainly couldn't occur in my life. Even though I called them the most relatable, I felt not really being represented by either Win or Team. Because I'm not engaging in the practice of friends with benefits or one night stand. Sure as hell I'm not into swimming or any other sport clubs. In addition, there's no way any of my friends would let me stay overnight just because I had an episode. (I used to have episodes during my college years, my friends only gave words of encouragement, yeah nice.)

But then I saw one little gif in this very app.

Dude, for so many years we convinced that love prevails all. No. Love alone wouldn't fucking save us. Instead it's us who make the effort to save love. sometimes I kinda wish romcom doesn't blatantly shameless and throw some 'I love you' then the relationship suddenly work out. Real life doesn't work like that. 'I love you' never solve anything. In fact, I consider people that easily saying 'I love you' is a fucking red flag.

The only thing that bother me quite a bit. The title. Taiwan and their attempt for make everything cringe. But don't let bad title hinder you to check out this masterpiece on writing. I wish it sticks to its healthy communication, no noble idiocy crap and keep showing us how is it to love someone maturely.

[shanastoryteller]

Heyo! So it seems like you've watched a bunch of K-dramas and I was wondering if you have any recommendations for a first one to watch for someone who's never watched any Korean shows, let alone many dramas either? I know this is vague and of course tastes vary, but does anything come to mind? Not sure if it's a common sub-genre, but bonus if they aren't super dark and grim. Thanks so much, love your writing!

i love foreign dramas! most of what i watch is from korea and china, but i've watched a few really good ones from thailand and japan too

some of these exist multiple places, but if it's possible to watch it on viki, that's my recommendation. their translations tend to be the best

business proposal (korea, netflix) is a really good intro to kdramas and covers a lot of common tropes, plus the main and secondary couples have FANTASTIC chemistry, which can be rare. a woman pretends to be her rich friend on a blind date, but it ends up being with the ceo of her company and identity shenanigans and hijinks ensue. if you like this one, you'll also really like what's wrong with secretary kim? (korea, viki) but i'd watch this one first because it's a little bit less wacky

the romance of tiger and rose (china, viki) is extremely cute and stars zhao lusi, who i love. a scriptwriter gets trapped in her own alternate historical drama script as a character that she kills off in episode three and has to try and change the story to ensure her own survival and falls in love along the way. it's meta enough that it gives you a good sense for the vibe of historical/fantasy chinese dramas. the acting can be a little meh from some characters in this one, but the leads are all great and respective emotional support characters for the male and female lead are hysterical

word of honor (china, viki) is i think a digestible-ish intro to the wuxia genre, but honestly you just kind of have to jump into wuxia and trust you'll figure out the tropes and world basics as you go. a dying former leader of an assassination organization gets stalked by an unhinged serial killer who's also an excellent cook. they fall in love an adopt a son. the ending here isn't fully happy as some beloved characters die

mr. queen (korea, viki) is one of my absolute favorites and straightforward enough that i don't think the politics are too confusing for someone going in with no background in historical korean culture and politics. a male chef drowns and ends up in the body of queen cheorin, the main wife of the king from the late 1800s, and is determined to return home and NOT fall in love with the king. it's unintentionally very queer and the acting and plot is really a plus here.

bad buddy (thailand, youtube) is a bl drama that is about the sons of neighbors who hate each other going from eternal rivals to boyfriends. it's cute and the chemistry pops off. thai dramas are top tier for non censored queer content, but be prepared for some awkward dialogue and a lot of product placement. the chemistry of the leads tends to make up for this. a tale of 1000 stars (thailand, youtube) is one of the worst offenders of this, but the leads carried that show on the power of their vibes and sexual tension alone. kinnporsche (thailand, dramacool) is the best thai drama i've watched, but i would not describe it as light.

crash landing on you (korea, netflix) is another favorite, but you do need to just disassociate a bit from the fact that it takes place in north korea. a successful girlboss ceo is paragliding, gets caught in a storm, and ends up north korea. a military official finds her and after some light threatening agrees to try and get her back to korea instead of turning her in or killing her, but to pull this off she has to pose as his fiance. the relationships in this one are so good, and it's a happy ending for our main, but it takes some trials and our secondary couple does NOT end happily ever after.

i'm currently going feral over love like the galaxy (china, viki), but i think it's better appreciated after consuming another historical chinese dramas so you have socio-political-trope context for what's happening

goblin (korea, viki), untamed (china, viki), and nirvana in fire (china, viki) are some of my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE shows but i think opening with them would be a mistake and you'll miss a lot nuance going in cold