What do you guys think the next big BL drama genre trend/theme/trope will beSaygo:
I've been trying to figure out why I prefer BL series when my drama-orientation is pretty thoroughly pan-dramatical. What I keep coming back to is the way mainstream series tend to lean into the addictive nature of stress to attract and keep viewers. Also they're competing with a gazillion close variations of the stories so they need to add more and more twists to carve out some claim to originality, like a soap opera which has been upping the stakes for decades. BL has that too, but it's more like a hundred so the twists don't need to be as outlandish. Yet.
There's so much BL being made these days I'm worried these competition pressures will set in and BL as a whole will adopt some of the problems plaguing more mainstream dramas, especially with the interest in maturing the genre. I hope this doesn't happen but it seems inevitable.
I'm through ep 4 of Only Friends and I wasn't expecting to find so much boundary setting, emphasis on consent and criticism of the many red flag behaviours, both in the dialogue and implicitly through seeing the other person's pain. I suppose all will be excused eventually but I have some hope they won't be swept under the carpet as completely as in some series. The hookup culture and mess will be easier to replicate though so I agree with you we'll likely get a spate of that and even if it eventually reduces it's part of the landscape now. Consequences for toxic behaviours (like breaking the couple up) seems too much to hope for, especially with so many fans saying lol but he's cute. I'll tire of it quickly but I'll be in the minority.
What's the current big mainstream het trend/theme/trope in Asian drama? If it was UK and European, I'd say the next BL trend would be depressed police detectives investigating serial murders in gloomy weather. Not sure that would work in Thailand ;-)
There's so much BL being made these days I'm worried these competition pressuresElisheva:
Although one can indeed see some trends, I still see a lot of variety among current BLs - in genre, style and themes, not to mention quality.
Perhaps one reason you like BLs is that many focus on the "feel good" factor, complete with guaranteed happy ending. In fact, this is, for me, a defining difference between BL and traditional gay cinema, which often focuses on the heavier, unhappier or grittier side of life. In other words: Fairy tale romance vs. hard reality.
I read the novel of "Middleman's Love" (Thailand, 2023) earlier this year. Then the casting issues happened, so "Bed Friend" (Thailand, 2023) was released first meaning the novels were released out of order.Chun Mo Rionnag:
I had been waiting to watch "Bed Friend" until after "Middleman's Love" for exactly that reason, but I've now decided to quickly watch "Bed Friend" before continuing with "Middleman's Love" - and so far, "Bed Friend" seems to be better (albeit not brilliant).
Jade is more like a clown in this than the adorably oblivious middleman
Exactly! What were the director and writer thinking? Are they trying to ruin the story?
Unfortunately, the conclusion of "Mr Cinderella 2" (Vietnam, 2023) left me with more questions than answers. Even so, it seems 02 Production are getting better at producing BL series as time goes on.
What do you guys think the next big BL drama genre trend/theme/trope will be or hope to see?
Are referring to the Thai-BL trends given the trope phases you described? Personally, I'm not really invested as other countries continue to serve up unique ideas. I'm honestly at the point where one Thai-BL looks and feels very much like any other Thai-BL.
The thriller genre? Hmm, they've made attempts earlier this year but none really seemed to grab the audiences. As to the supernatural BL genre, it seems to be going strong with the second half of "Shadow" (Thailand, 2023) still to air, and we've got vampires on the horizon.
Hasn't the gangster phase all but passed with only the one adaptation of a Korean manhwa left?.
I'm honestly at the point where one Thai-BL looks and feels very much like any other Thai-BL.
While many follow a certain formula (and business model), there are some notable exceptions which are qualitatively different - to take a familiar example: "I Told Sunset About You" / "I Promised You The Moon". One that I'm almost done watching right now that I've not heard anyone mention: "180 Degree Longitude Passes Through Us" (on Gagaoolala). I'll post more as soon as I'm done - but for now I'll just say that it's likewise serious drama with a real story and intelligent dialogue and psychological depth, no product placements, no silliness or silly noises. Anyways: Yay for Thailand, such a nice country and people! And they might even get marriage equality soon!
