ABO Desire (2025)

Not bad, but Not good

Not bad, but not good.
I have mixed feelings. For the first time in my life, I wanted the main couple not to get together. Hua, this is a BLACK FLAG!
There was real potential for this series, but all these situations where Hua, who is an enigma, made Alfie pregnant... For me, it's too much.
Plus, that jump forward in time three years later, where we don't get a happy ending for Shen Wen Lang and Gao Tu... Damn, that was so disappointing!
So.. I enjoyed watching it, but I watched it out of curiosity to see what would happen next and how the story would unfold, rather than for pleasure.

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~ never ending passion & desire ~

ABO LIVING UP TO IT'S NAME JUST WATCHING FILLS UP MY DESIRE GAUGE , definitely one of those shows most would probably need to read up on the whole alpha , beta & omega verse to get a better understanding but even so once you start watching & get into it I feel it becomes easier to understand anyway as you start to get the whole concept better. I was interested from the beginning but definitely the more episodes I watched the harder it was to put my phone down for sure , I really fell for the characters & their stories routing for them all the way. Eliots acting & how attractive he is has me on the floor , worth the watch ! please give it a try if you haven't🔥🩷

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Hua Yong - My brilliant maniac

To be extremely honest, the only thing that made me finish this series was Eliot's character - Hua Yong. I don't know why, but for me he was the most complex character. Eliot played him brilliantly. And I think his visuals helped a lot too.

Mr. Sheng was just Mr. Sheng. A perfect S Class Alpha and beautiful enough to be Hua Yong's nymph.
I liked him a lot in the last few episodes. He accepted Hua's nature very well and I really liked him when he was getting all worked up under his partner's attention.

Unfortunately, I wasn't one of the people who went crazy for the second couple. Yes, I think it was unfair that they didn't get more screen time in the final episode, but I can't say I was heartbroken over it.

I couldn't stand Shen Wenlang. In the novel, he was okay. In the series? I wanted him as far away from Guo Tu as possible.
I don't care that he had feelings for GT and did nice things for him in secret, that mouth of his brought up some incredible traumas in me. I know exactly what it's like to live with someone like Wenlang, and believe me when I tell you he's a narcissist. I don't care about your trauma as long as you're an adult and you do absolutely nothing to heal.
What does it matter that you have feelings for me and that you want the best for me when you do everything you can to make me feel miserable around you? Okay, he didn't know GT was an omega, so he didn't know he was repeatedly insulting him, but let's not forget how many times he related it to GT being poor. I don't think a friend would do that. We're no longer in kindergarten when adults told us, "Yes, he's pulling your hair because he likes you." It's bullying, Shen Wenlang.
I skipped his scenes of suffering in the last episode. They were pathetic and poorly acted. I'm sorry. I found no satisfaction in his regrets.

And Gao Tu, well, another miserable character like all miserable characters. I can understand why he stole everyone's hearts. But...
He chose to stand next to a man who hated his race, his smell, who constantly insulted him, who never showed any signs of having romantic feelings for him. He chose to torment himself emotionally and physically for a man who insulted him every time he opened his mouth. Good job, GT.
I can't say I felt sorry for him. Maybe at first. But he did it with his own hand. Until the end.

He should have shut SW up a long time ago and told him to his face that he was an omega. He would have had nothing to lose. Only years of torment.

And to be completely honest, I skipped through first few episodes, because the story bored me terribly. Too many unnecessary details, too many repetitive scenes. It only started to get interesting when Mr. Shen found out that Hua Yong is not a defenseless omega.

Well, well, well, that was it.

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ABO Desire Deep Dive Diatribe

As I type this, it has been a few days since the final episode of Desire aired and I have... a lot, to say.

Frankly, I should have done a trash watch from the start. But it took 5 episodes for me to realize what a dumpster fire phenomena this was, and by then it was too late. Live and let burn. As a result, I must write a whole thesis on the following formula aka the design of this damn show:

psychotic obsession + delicious toxicity
- chronic neglect of side dish
/ by the sheer madness of this show existing at all

Up top confession?

I loved this Very Silly Show in the worst possible way. And I do mean worst. It really was like watching fanfic brought to life.

Good fic but still... rough in places, in need of a solid edit past, littered with forgotten threads, dropped characters, tired tropes, and weak development.

* The main pair is a work of gd art.
* The filming quality is solid.
* The wardrobe department is unhinged and has issues with shirts (absent or awful, only 2 options).
* Generally, most of the acting had a lot in common with vintage sleds: cold, hard, wooden, and stiff, but still somehow a fun ride.

For what it was (remarkable) and that it existed at all (unprecedented) and how much I enjoyed the experience (despite myself), I went outside of my comfort zone when rating this darn thing. I admit, Desire is an 8/10 show, but I personally am compelled to give it a 9/10 on pure entertainment value.

And without question Desire is an icon of our BL times. 2025 will forever be remembered as the year China put mpreg on our screens.

And now, your actual review of this show:

Close on the herculean strides of Revenged Love, China continued its historic 2025 run on the international BL market with the first true ABO mpreg piece.

There is some semblance of story = about a boy who falls in love with an alpha (top of food chain) right before he manifests as an enigma (secret extra-special tippy-top of food chain) and then obsessively stalks/courts the object of his devotion though means both fair and foul (mostly foul) for the next decade. Why so secretive and manipulative? No reason, just Hua Yong being Hua Yong.

This show focuses on Hua Yong, a perfect sociopath ult babygirl, being a violent, unchecked, conniving, psychotic monster so pretty he will hurt your teeth, intent on possessing, owning, and sexing-up one increasingly confused alpha. (I know honey, we were all confused, it's okay, you're safe. No one else is. But you are.)

And when our little psycho wins? We likey! (So does the alpha.) Somehow everyone, including the audience, has also become toxic trash along with Hua Yong. Fun fun.

There is actual on screen kissing (yes, from China, no it's not very good) combined with some of the world's hottest shirt suspenders and some the world's ugliest shirts.

The end.

That's the whole show.

Oh... there is a nod at an intriguing side couple who ended up being mere set dressing.

And there is also actual ON SCREEN mpreg. Twice.

Plus China aired this by distributing through Hong Kong to a Taiwanese platform and if that isn't How Dare levels of malarkey I don't know what is.

Wild times we live in.

And I haven't even gotten to the Cpop boy group component.

What can I really say about this show?

This show would have been sublimely f'd up and utterly ridiculous even without the ABO trappings, but the world-building actually added to my enjoyment (and I am not an omegaverse stan).

However, there is a ton of Basil Exposition to wade through during the first 3-5 episodes (not unlike this review). If you are not familiar with omegaverse or dystopian alt-reality info-dumping... it's going to tax you eternal.

If utter fascination with Hua Yong gliding sveltely down marble stairs and primly torturing all the wettest-eyed omegas can't hold you through the opening episodes, don't bother with this show. I liked our sweetie Alpha Sheng but it's Hua Yong who rules (and drives) this show. Hua Yong = the most beautiful little obsessive stalker pouty ruthless gremlin ever to swish around in silk pyjamas. If you don't find him riveting from the moment he wades through that pool in the opening scene, you're not gonna like Desire.

If you decide to risk it, please know that this show is very very gorgeous, unbelievably toxic, and completely NUTS. This is the CBL KinnPorsche no one thought to ask for. Only this is KP stripped of all grit, sanitized within an inch of it's life, made larger and icier and very very precise.

All your triggers will be hit with this, we are in dark territory: stalking, obsession, possession, threat, blackmail, dubious consent, and more. There is a large dose of willful misunderstanding, plus a hand being torn off, and (for some labubull reason) stuffed teddybears are adhered to perfectly innocent shirts (that did not deserve such treatment). (Look, that shirt was a trigger for me. And then they had to go and do it again, outside of the flashback. In the future! LIKE THEY STAYED IN FASHION FOR YEARS. Untenable.)

And yet.

I adored Desire for the wild ride and tried not to get bogged down with the details.

And yet.

Here I am typing away... tunneling into the details.

The point is… that it exists at all. Desire is very meta. It is it's own mpreg. Most of us spend most of the time it was airing staring at it in wonder and thinking “How were you born? How do you even exist?”

So putting aside how I felt about it, I am going to talk about why Desire is, against all odds, actually important and crazy in the history of BL. As the self proclaimed most bonkers pundit chronicler of BL's abject nonsense, I feel compelled to make a statement. And also, I need a post to point people at when they ask me about this damn show in the future.

Me explaining Desire to a non-BL non-Ao3 friend.
Friend’s eyes getting bigger and bigger and bigger.
(I actually had to go into everything I am about to cover in this post. It took me half and hour of excited flappy hands.)
Eventually the friend says, “I think I must watch this.”
Me, “Oh no! It’s not good, it’s just a miracle of the modern age.”

[large section redacted that details the history of omegaverse and China's very checkered relationship with BL right up until this moments. If you wanna read it, I put it in full plus images on tumblr. Just search my handle and the title of this review). MDL is China owned, I didn't think it wise to put the reality of the situation here. Plus... word use is more authentic on tumblr.

Notes, Tips, & Tricks

I watched this show on both Gaga and Viki. I think Viki has better subs that better translated the ABO worldbuild into English. But there are strengths and weaknesses to both platforms' respective subs.

The first few eps really do have massive amounts of info dumping. But after that it's "manipulation as a love language" all day every day... and night.
The secretary core/beta assistants are a hoot. I want an Upstairs Downstairs of them dealing with their idiot bosses. It kinda feels like they’re the true masterminds of all relationships. They must be having vicarious fun with all of these hormone-crazed whack-doodle power-hungry (or utterly disempowered) alphas. Just the betas shuffling paperwork, making coffee, and kvetching about what dumbarses their superiors are. I watch it.
It’s hilarious how little work CEOs in Asian dramas actually do. There’s a lot of walking around in suits, playing on phones, passing each other clipboards, and occasionally flipping though a file.
Of course Gao Tu (the omega disguising himself as a beta) is my favorite character. I’ve always been a fan of cross dressing. Don't get too attached tho, his story arc doesn't get much resolution.
Be warned: Shen Wen Lang (his clueless alpha) will never gain a clue or a brain cell. The actor will never be any less uncomfortably stiff. And there will be no kissing for them.
But that said, Shen Wen Lang and Hua Yong's worstie relationship is pretty darn excellent. Lots of fun to watch that one.
Sit back and enjoy Hua Yong's lies. He is so darn pretty, who cares if evil? He can do whatever he wants. Also, do not apply logic, it will never make sense, because he is certifiably insane. No sense or sanity in that pretty little brain. He has 2 brain cells that know only 2 things: manipulation and Sheng Shao You.
At the start, Desire does not feel unhinged, it feels quite tailored and controlled. I prefer my CBL a bit more like Revenged Love (the Taiwanese side) with crunchy edges. At first this show feels more KBL-esk. Don't worry, all the edges will get very very fried. (But the kitchen stays white and immaculate.)
Beware Episode 9 for it is toxic and full of pheromone marks flaring, plus all the rutting dub con (and worse) one could ever desire. *big sigh* Everyone got all messed up by this episode. Over this episode. Because of this episode. The characters in this episode.
From ep 9 on, I pretty much spent every ep kicking my feet, flailing about, and squealing. I love the main couple and their were warped little power dynamic. So damn kinky. Oh the glorious toxicity of it all.

Us = crying screaming puking our guts out. The mpreg boys = pale milk-water maidens delicately coughing into sinks and lying decorously in bed pining for the fjords. Their husbands = clutching pearls.

The final episode was lackluster. At the last gasp they gave us our little gay families but they ultimately misused the excellent side pair.

I too was a bit disgruntled that Desire let us down in the 11th hour.

BUT read the diatribe I just wrote above.

I forgive it its sins.

I kinda feel like I have to.

My goodness gracious, what a glorious ride it was.

Ultimately do I recommend it?

Well YES, but with approximately 4000 words of reservations.

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Story and black flag main character pulled me in

By how much I enjoyed following the show: 10/10
Objective genre based rating: 7/10

I write this review from a certain perspective: started the show without knowing the book, after ep5 I read the book and so I can't help but mourn the missed out potential, even though the book wasn't the greatest ever piece of literature.

Positive aspects of the drama:
Hua Yong character and the actor for this one, story and couple dynamic of main couple, acting of 3 of 4 main characters, some songs of the ost, world building and the strangely also the business talks (very subjective)

Negative points:
Directing
Editing (abysmal)
Pacing and order of scenes and therefore storytelling negatively impacted
Lighting (so damn bright every time, unprofessional and cheap)
Production design partly bad, although they got the expensive high class setting but too many indoor scenes and too few locations so it felt repetitive
Laughable action scenes


Changes from book IP which caused much hate:
SSYs character being less of an asshole than in the book so many viewers couldn't understand why HY was pulling all his manipulative shitty moves up to ep 9

Also changes which reduced enjoyment for me:
Making HY less violent (to himself, to others and to SSY in assault scene ep 9)
Omitting 3 years of Gao Tu's life and his struggles and his new found friends/family

Overall this is an acquired taste, if you're hooked than it's worth watching to the end and very enjoyable.

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First PROPER Omegaverse show

As someone who has watched PitBabe and was thoroughly disappointed, I expected a show like this to emerge sheerly out of distaste. The fact they were able to complete a whole show involving very accurate extended lore is invigorating. As a watcher who knows the basics of ABO presentation, Enigma entering the fray (cue Smash Ult. track) and introduce it to the world audience is cool to witness. I had a great fascination going in.
That being said, this show is engaging in developing an understanding and living in this world that is also new to the concept. It is inviting to a serious plot and hooks you every episode, making you wonder will happen next. And that is a good start for a concept with such notoriety and potential...but would have faired better with more time, particularly for pregnancy arcs and Gao Tu and Shen Wenlang. I enjoyed getting to witness all of Sheng Shaoyou and Hua Yong's in their twisted and lighthearted(?) glory onscreen, however, I really would have loved more emphasis on the toll pregnancy took on Shaoyou AND Gao Tu. I'm not crazed about MPreg, but for intriguing me as a viewer with a complication in the last episode makes it feel not as important as it should be. Especially with how quickly they time jumped to "yay kids" and show ended.
Speaking of, I feel more a loss at the lack of Gao Tu and Shen Wenlang. On some days, I found a desire to read the novel and see how it ended for them, only to find they were less in the main story than in the show amd covered more in bonus content. Which is unfortunate and somewhat infuriating, as their storyline is very compelling to work with. Whether you know the genre or not, you can’t tell me an omega hiding his identity and a pregnancy for the love of a dumbass alpha isn't a draw to come back every week. But it didn't seem so to the writers, sadly, and somewhat ignores this to fuel how crazy Hua Yong is for Sheng Shaoyou. (Not that there is anything wrong witu that.)
Did I dislike this show overall? NO.
I enjoyed the story of Hua Yong and his crazed obsession with Sheng Shaoyou. Eliot Huang did fantastic with playing both omega and enigma, adding to his range and character. Though he is potentially the most exciting character of the cast in question, he made fan out of me with his performance alone. The plot dancing around Hua Yong trying to "woo" Sheng Shaoyou did keep my attention and it was fun to see the two stretch the dynamic of two high class individuals (in more ways than one) pursue each other.
In short, come for the concept, stay in hopes Gao Tu gets respect (always), and live for the crazy that is Hua Yong. A decent start to the future of this genre and many more shows to come.
I rate it a 7.5/10 overall.

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For China, it's pretty fire

I finished binging everything in like 2 days, and I've waited for this show since the pilot trailer. So, it's been about like 3 years or so since I first heard about ABO Desire, and as I waited for the show to finish airing (for the months that it aired for) I read the novel.

From the novel, it was pretty close to the show, which is exactly what I expected because NongJian sisters wrote the book and oversaw the show. The screenwriting is pretty okay (because there are scenes that could've totally been cut), the acting and cast was literally amazing, and I find myself listening to half the OST. I'd definitely go back to rewatch it again because I've literally been dying for an ABO themed show (I know PitBabe was one, but it was more abt powers than it was abt actual ABO).

I liked the obsessed trope because no one can truly top the crazy brain of Hua Yong, he's planned and he's planned WELL to capture his Alpha and no one can ever tell me otherwise. Xing's acting was so good, especially with the duality he had whenever he looks at someone else vs when he looks at Shaoyu. Qiu's micro expressions were everything, like when he was in the hospital and found out he was pregnant - it was so funny but so good I was fawning for 3 minutes straight. For Heng's first ever debut role, he did so well, especially the way his eyes gloss over with pain and trying to cover it with anger for Gao Tu's resignation is just so heartbreakingly good. And then there's also Peien! I just felt so bad for his character the whole time, and he had made his voice sound so small and shaky when he called Gao Qing to tell her to pack her bags.

The characters are not meant to be liked, and actually are pretty morally gray (minus Hua Yong, that guy's fully black flag), but I've fallen for them completely! Gao Tu who had told many lies, I still can't not feel terrible whenever he was on screen, Wenlang who was lied never felt love from his parents which had lead him to acting the way he does is honestly the worst thing ever. Because people who haven't read the novel won't know his pain. Hua Yong has never felt love before he met Shaoyu which got him into doing the craziest sht in the world, and Shaoyu who had slept with many Omegas (with questionable taste for the ones "untouched".) was burdened by an entire family line and his own father. Holyyyy like this show was just full of sadness and pain. But it was also so sweet I can't get enough.

And - of course, everyone must be talking about the LangTu ship (Shen Wenlang and Gao Tu), honestly, I had to dock a point for that. I'm a fan of both couples, and so I didn't find much of a problem with their screentime, considering how their story starts after the timeline of the novel and into the three years after Peanut was born. But their reunion could've had more. I honestly had low expectations, but I really didn't expect them to give LangTu like 30 seconds for their 3 year reunion.

As I'm writing this, there are no extras that have been out, and have been rumors of extras and director cuts. So I'm really hoping that LangTu gets one because otherwise I'd really be upset. In the novel, they weren't shown much of a resolution either, but honestly, I can't hate too much because they ARE a side couple.

I hope for their next 3 shows together (rumored to have 3 more shows, 2 modern and 1 historical with one already rumored to be next: Tenacious Illness) that Jiang Heng and Li Peien will get a better side couple role or even a main couple with Huang Xing and Qiu Dingjie. Or even better - if they were to both be mains.

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We LOVE PREGNANT MEN

I love that this show really dove into all the ABO stuff. I think if you're going to do an ABO show you have to really go for it, and this show definitely did.

I think the four main characters were really interesting. I loved them all for different reasons and the actors killed it. I loved seeing Wenlang's growth throughout the series! I wish Hua Yong could've had some kind of character development, but he didn't and some people never change, so I guess it's okay.

My only complaint is the ending. I wish we got more from Gao Tu and Wenlang. I wish we got to see them have an actual conversation about everything. I wanted them to end up together but even if they didn't it would've been nice for them to get more screentime towards the end. It just felt unsatisfying. I also thought the time jump was abrupt and made it so certain things were skipped over that shouldn't have been. They're ending just felt like the creators didn't care about it anymore towards the end.

This show was missing baby bumps. Wanted to see them with actual baby bellies.

I really liked this series though! Definitely different and very interesting! Can't wait to see the actors in things in the future!

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First omegaverse drama, yet boring plot. Justice for Gao Tu!

PROS: An actual omegaverse tv show, this is for the history books! Hilarious dialogue here and there, likeable characters, okay acting (can't blame them, the scenario isn't the best quality-wise). The second pairing of the show is much more interesting than the main one, and I only continued watching to see what would happen with them.

CONS: Boring scenario, to say the least. Hua Yong's enigma manipulations were intriguing to watch and I was very into Gao Tu's character (this man was suffering every single episode_ but, other than that, nothing really happens. The main couple is not that interesting, even though Sheng Shaoyou is very likeable as a person. Very obviously based on a fanfiction-like novel. Not enough attention to the second couple!

PLOT COMMENTARY: Gao Tu and Shen Wenlang were carrying this show on their limited screen time backs and yet they were not able to have a fulfilling ending or, at least, ONE proper conversation in the entire series.

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