Unrivaled Emotional Chemistry
I am pleasantly stunned by the the emotional chemistry between the two main leads. Words can't describe how thoroughly pleased I am by this bl. They have taken a very overdone trope and managed to recycle it and make it emotionally poignant and delightful. This is definitely going into my list of classic Bls. Everyone should watch this. It delivers on all fronts as far as I am concerned. It's 11/10. I have cried, laughed and felt tense with them. They had me with the 1st episode and as it progresses it somehow manages to get better and better. It's not perfect, but it certainly is beautiful and worthy of an applause. ❤️🙏🏼Was this review helpful to you?
Most delightful show
I have very low expectations and I expect lot tissue to be used. But it just beat all those like in first 10 episode I just fell series is so beautiful and spectacular cast with great use of music I love it.With a rest trend of bl being a adult more shows I felt it really said the importance of really decent show with slow pace still entertain a lot. I really felt so good and so sad that it doesn't reached its hight because it was only promoted as sad story also because it has lot of competition to compare even recent remember me felt same way but that show has well established comple fan base while here it is totally new and it was promoted as next untill we meet again not as next friendly good series.
I think in final episode it lost it's momemtom but still it felt so good even with all sad things happen made me to use lot of tissue to wipe out the tears.
Highly recommended I can't recommend this series even more than i do.
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Realistic, Nostalgic And Beautiful
My Only 12% is such a beautiful series. Everything about it: from the casting and acting to the direction, cinematography, and OST, it's just chef’s kiss. I honestly can’t believe I ignored this for so long, thinking this was just another typical high school BL full of clichés. But it’s so much more than that.The story is actually set in the mid-2000s, maybe around 2006 to 2008 since Cake uses an old desktop and they both have flip phones. That little detail made it feel really nostalgic. It took me back to a simpler time, before smartphones and social media took over.
I absolutely loved Cake and Eiw’s friendship. It’s funny, wholesome, and so relatable. They’re always teasing and messing with each other like real teenagers. Cake’s goofy and playful personality brings a lot of charm to the story, while Eiw’s shy, introverted side balances it out perfectly.
Despite their differences, their bond runs deep, and that’s what makes their relationship feel so real. Also, props to the casting, the actors actually look like teens, which adds to the authenticity.
That said, falling in love with your best friend is already confusing, but it gets even more complicated when you're the same sex. One moment you're laughing like usual, then suddenly you're overthinking whether a simple touch meant something more. You don’t want to mess up the friendship, but pretending you don’t feel anything is even harder. It’s love mixed with fear, hope, and a whole lot of silence. That’s exactly what Eiw is going through in this series. I really appreciate how the show explores this kind of story, because it’s something that actually happens in real life.
As the series progresses, we see them grow from teens into young adults. I really appreciated how naturally the story developed, it felt grounded and true to life. Even after going their separate ways for 4 years, their friendship didn’t fade.
If anything, the distance helped them grow individually and made their connection even stronger. And when Cake finally realizes his feelings for Eiw? So satisfying. 🥰
I’m usually not into friends-to-lovers plots, but this one hit different. There’s just something incredibly sweet about watching two people slowly realize their feelings through everyday moments: jokes, support, shared experiences. It’s not forced or rushed. It’s the kind of story that makes you believe that sometimes, the person meant for you has been right in front of you all along. And that’s exactly what this series captures. My Only 12% isn’t just a romance. It’s also a touching story about family, friendship, and growing up. I’m so glad I finally gave it a chance.
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This review may contain spoilers
loved it
The first two episodes were very boring and I thought it wouldn't be good. But then it surprised me a lot and I really, really loved it and it made me cry. Earth and Santa were so good actors, like when they acted as children I really believed they were in the early teens. Then there's a time jump and they are young adults and I loved the difference, the character development was amazing. I love them together, they cried beautifully and the drama was well written. What I hated was the secondary couple in which the girl is, like, finishing college and the boy is still in school... like bitch wtf??? and they try to make you feel sorry for her because that grown woman can't love a kid? seriously I skipped almost all this couple's scenes.Was this review helpful to you?
NOT believable, but worth watching for lads
Cahoot’s most prominent use in series is crying, but scenarists are overdoing it.And yes, this is mostly “nothing happens” type of series that was made for people who like the lads. SantaEarth was a big couple back in the day before the agencies switching has split them, so people have watched this just for the sake of the couple as there is not much else to the series.
I am not a turbo fan of anyone in any series, but I am watching BL for the lads in general (for stories we can go to Breaking Bad, Sopranos, Wired, Rome), so I got through this series anyway. Just seeing Santa here is bringing me pleasure.
The scenario, however, is the tired trope about, by all accounts, a straight lad that has all of a sudden turned gay (or bi) at the age that it too late for such discovery, so it is not that believable for the situation that this series has been showing.
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This review may contain spoilers
This is why SantaEarth are my favourite BL pairing
SantaEarth’s chemistry is off the charts! I adore them so much and they really shine in this series. The “i love everything about you” scene is ♾️/10! Definitely one of my favourite moments in a romance show EVER! It gave me chills.Both main characters go through beautiful emotional arcs and I cried many times over them. I especially like the timeskip, I thought it worked really well for their characters asit let both characters find themselves individually and grow as people.
However it did drag a tiny bit in the beginning but did keep my attention when the twist happened. Also, I wasn’t all too bothered about the sister and Cake’s friend relationship; I wasn’t rooting for them to be together and wouldn’t have minded if they didn’t end up together.
And sadly the last episode was disappointing. I wish it had focused on CakeEiw more as a couple, instead of focusing on See-Eiw’s family. It felt as if it took away from their entire relationship journey and Cake’s character felt forgotten about. This meant that we never got to see their relationship as a couple develop and instead were given an unnecessary conflict that had nothing to do with the original plot of the story.
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The dynamic is nice but the execution was mediocre
I really was just watching this for the SantaEarth vibe, and that was lit, but the rest was okay at best. There was a lot of them both crying, a lot of sitting in misunderstanding and unwilling to reveal things, the jealousy was low key annoying when Santa finally realized his feelings, and all the side characters felt flat as cardboard cutouts. Rather than talking about showering and laying in bed together, I feel like they could have used however many precious minutes were wasted doing that to actually tell a story with dynamic, complex characters. And I can agree w everyone else that the last two episodes didn't really add to the content as it was. It didn't show a new side of any characters, didn't change their relationships at all, and overall was just...filler? I'm disappointed bc I feel like they both could be great actors with scripts that made them come alive more.Was this review helpful to you?
A Solid and Well Acted Series
Undoubtedly, this is a solid and well acted series of a longitudinal love story. It is the screenplay that let this story fall apart a bit. Some of the finest 'parting' scenes from any BL is in this series. Also some of the most intense emotional scenes are in this series as well. But they got a bit over used, however. This was a good series but I wanted it to be great. It just never got there? Why? Well, for me it was the lack of maturity in the development of their relationship as well as the lack of a series intensity to it. These guys were soulmates; I wanted to feel that, sense that, and see that. It got close but never reached a pinnacle for me. However, it is still a very enjoyable series.You can read my full review of this series at BLBliss.com.
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Seeiw was only tolerable about 12% of the time...
This series had so much potential. It definitely had it's enjoyable moments but I found that it was overhyped.The content quality of the episodes were unevenly spread out and at times, it was really really slow paced. They spent far too much time focusing on the before rather than the after of the time jump. If they had had more episodes to work with, that would've been fine story wise but because it wasn't, it felt very uneven. There also isn't too much of an overarching story arc; it's kind of more of a slice of life.
Santa's acting was fantastic. I especially enjoyed seeing Cake's jealousy which was hilarious to watch and at other times, it felt so real and raw. Episode 11 was by far my favourite of the whole series. I am looking forward to seeing his future projects!
Unfortunately I could not stand Earth's whining while crying and there was a lot of that. IMO Earth also looked too old to play a 15 y/o prior to the flash forward. To me, he couldn't pass which was extremely distracting and I could not get over it. I mean he's like 27 so I don't think they should've tried to make him pass. (This has got to be my least favourite performance of his that I've seen, as I did enjoy his performance in Until We Meet Again. So check that out if you haven't already!)
If you don't happen to get hung up on the actor's actual age and aren't bothered by his crying style, then I think you have a solid shot of enjoying this series way more than I did!
Overall this series was decent. It was nice to see the throwback of what technology and life used to be like before technology had progressed as far as it has today and it was sweet to see how close the boys' relationship was; they had good chemistry. If you finish it, this series will pull at your heartstrings. Production wise, they seemed to have a substantial budget but this series just wasn't my cup of tea and I don't ever see myself rewatching it.
My Ratings
Before the time jump: 6.35/10 stars
After the time jump: 7.1/10 stars
Overall: 6.71/10 stars
I haven't been on this page since the finale premiered and at the time, the consensus was that everyone adored this series but that the last two episodes were meh. Omg I'm so glad to see now that I'm not the only person who didn't love this series. I thought I was the odd one out🤷🏻♀️
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A Nice Soft And Fluffy Show
I feel like reviews on this particular website are so harsh or maybe i'm just easy to please lol I quite enjoyed this show! Yes it wasn't intense and steamy like KinnPorsche or Love In The Air but with the plot being two childhood friends falling in love I wasn't really expecting much explicit scenes and I don't understand why people get mad that there isn't any just because the show ends with the characters being in university. Can gay romance not be cute and fluffy? I feel like the people complaining there's not enough explicit scenes are the ones who fetishize gay romance and only watch BL's for that kind of content rather than the actual story. Don't get me wrong I like a good steamy scene myself but I'm also not bothered if there isn't one if the chemistry is good and I enjoy the story. Of course, the show wasn't 100% perfect, I can agree that I would have liked less crying in the last two episodes. I know something serious happened but it was a bit excessive. Other than that, I thought it was a cute first love romance and I loved that they actually touched on Eiw discovering his sexuality and not just completely ignoring it or pulling the typical "I'm not gay I don't like any other men except you" bs. One review stated that Eiw didn't grow at all and was exactly the same when Cake returned but i'd have to disagree. While they did kind of reconnect and share the same bond they had as kids Eiw had more going on in his life than just following Cake around. They spent a lot of time together still but Eiw joined a club which he never would have done before, did activities for the club he joined, had other friends besides Cake and his typical crew and was a lot more out going and open with strangers. He even called Cake out for his crappy attitude instead of letting it all slide and just go on like he would have back in high school. Maybe the change was too subtle for some people but for someone who has social anxiety and has a hard time putting myself out there and likes to stay in the comfort of my two long time friends and no one else I can definitely see the growth. Overall I enjoyed this show for what it was, going in with the expectation of something simple, soft and feel good and getting just that. I would like to see the SantaEarth pairing in a new show but would love to see Earth challenege a different kind of character than the soft emotional one.Was this review helpful to you?
I thought this was a cute and happy show. I was wrong!!
I LOVED the best friends to lovers plotline. It was done so well, and the longing that Eiw felt was portrayed so well. THe dynamic between Cake and Eiw was done perfectly, and the actors had amazing chemistry.I did think that they could have sped things up a little bit. Earth cried SO much in this series, and while he's a great actor, at some point you get tired of a character constantly being upset about the situation. But honestly, it was so well done that I didn't even mind much. One of the BEST scenes addressing what it feels like to have to come out to people and not know if they will accept you or not. Many BLs don't address the internalized homophobia aspect of this, and it's done so well in this show. The time jump was seamless and perfectly placed, and helped the show a lot. I think the last two episodes should have been moved up by one so that we got a finale centered around the relationship and not external issues.
Overall a fantastic show. Definitely worth the watch!
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Great acting and interesting plot
This series is charming and all the actors are outstanding. I am really enjoying watching this series and I find myself eagerly waiting for the next episode.Usually, when I watch BLs, especially high school BLs I find myself cringing at certain parts. But with this series, I love how the friendships are portrayed in the most natural way. Santa and Earth are impressive actors and their chemistry is impeccable. The intimate scene in ep 12 is so beautiful and has to be one of my favourites ever.
I am so excited to see how this series will end and I will be back to complete my review then.
I would definitely recommend this series to anyone who wants to watch a lighthearted, cute romance.
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