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The Love Did Set
Indeed, there is much to unpack in this series. Unfortunately, rather than trying to deal with it with any cornerstone to reality, they choose to deal with it in the make-believe world of BL. One can guess what the direction is going to be and indeed you would be correct. It is your standard use of tropey storylines. The story tries too hard to cover too much and fails in almost all of it. Through all of this, redemption does happen. While there are certainly redemptive arcs in the storyline, to get there requires twisted logic and implausible plot twists. Plus, the angry rich father who then ‘sees the light’ and/or rejected mother who begs for forgiveness routines are getting way over used and are now officially trite. Each one of those redemption arcs required and should have had a whole episode in and of itself. Regrettably, there is also no serious screen chemistry between the protagonists although they ‘look’ good together. One cannot act out sincerity; it must be felt. It needs to come out of the screen and grab you. Unfortunately, those two lacked a passion in their relationship. They only went through courting motions.Was this review helpful to you?
Thoughtful, Abusive, Sadomasochistic
The is an astonishingly well-thought-out series. A bit weird, however, in its cryptic approach but entertaining from the beginning to its end. I felt manipulated but in a good way and interestingly I was not sure where the story was taking me. Therefore, I also found so much of it intellectually stimulating with a hint of kinkiness. It is hard to dislike this series, really. My only concern about it was its odd obtuseness; it felt at times flirting with abusiveness – like both protagonists were playing games with each other’s emotions, which heightened their veiled sadomasochistic tendencies toward each other. While I have nothing against algolagnia being explored in sexual behaviors as long as both parties agree to its rules and both are equal partners, in a few instances within this story, I was just not sure full consent was the case. The story became a gray zone of morality.You can read my full review of this interesting series at BLBliss.com.
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A Man Who Defies the World of BL Final
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Outlived Its Humor
While this franchise started out on an innovative note, it ended on a bromidic tone. It got stale, redundant and formulaic. However, its worst sin is its travesty became unfunny because none of it was visionary anymore. The format, style, and execution had been done ad nauseum previously, so the expectations were the same. It also became rather evident from a physical standpoint that the actors were getting too ‘old’ to play young college students or high school students. Some of them are now in their 30’s. They looked too spurious and heavily made-up. To be sure, this story is a lot more of the same. A few more BL tropey ‘flags’ that trigger Bl developments were introduced. Just like he did in all the other seasons. This time, honestly, I did not find any of it even funny or humorous. It felt old and came across as the usual modus operandi. Even his parents seemed relegated to a more tertiary role. And his brother was, well, just his brother. It was all more-of-the-same. Everyone looked – tired and ready to move on.Was this review helpful to you?
Me and Chanuk and Tailah!
This series tries just a bit too hard and, in that process, expanded the story way beyond credibility. Too bad because its sentiment was good, even if it was not feasible or realistic. While it is another in a long line of soul swapping sagas, the machination got confounding and unnecessarily convoluted. I wish just for once the story went for rich to poor rather than the usual poor to rich. Nonetheless, we are forced to enter yet again into a world that most of us only dream/fantasize about. A world that is opulent and full of issues only the wealthy can relate to. But perhaps that is the purpose and fantasy of BLs. There is nothing wrong with this series, honestly. It is entertaining to be sure. On the other hand, there is nothing much right about it either. The love story is unrelatable to most people who watch this series. The story itself is implausible. It is a comedy for sure with some funny parts but is so overdrawn. What made this series jump out and be noticed is the outstanding performances that Pan Bhumintr as Chanuk and Jeng Chotipat as Tailah did not just in acting but also stealing the interest of the series main theme.Was this review helpful to you?
Almost That Summer
This is a series where you must believe that everything that could go right, does. It is filled with fairy-tale Edenic bliss. Surprisingly, a lot of it works and if they had tightened up the story and made it more plausible, it would have been a great melodrama. Instead, it simply ended up just another good drama, but merely becoming an addition to a long-line of throw-away BLs that have a cookie-cutter premise having a wildly Pollyanna ending. It is not bad; just disappointing. One must really suspend one’s perspectives with this story. The story itself was surprisingly strong most of the time. It is hard to sustain an ‘amnesia’ theme, and this tended to get a bit long-in-the-tooth, as the expression goes. This story was presented way too simplistically and hurriedly to be fully believable or acceptable. Yet, it did make for a cute story. It is an entertaining series to be sure with a stronger than usual BL component than your run-of-the-mill trite Thai BL story.Was this review helpful to you?
The Story of Bi Hyeong: Enchanted Master of the Goblin
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:The Story Of Flatness
This is such a cute, entertaining series which is hard to dislike. While it is pleasant, it ought to be more than that. Forlornly, it just is not. My issue and problem with these series is that nothing new is introduced. The characters are endlessly boring and stereotypical. Just once, I just wish something fresh, creative, or original would happen with these stories. While the mythos did make an attempt to change it up a bit by creating a conflict between ‘goblins’ and ‘foxes’, I honestly did not know what the conflict was in the first place and why it needed to continue to the present day. So, the tension-factor was missing. Perhaps it was just me, but I got lost in the story. I know nothing about goblin/fox folklore and so my references to any connecting points between them were nil. I am just not familiar with the myths. Overall, this is simply another ‘canned’ BL no different than the last standard trite one I saw. Now, if I can just remember the name of that one.Was this review helpful to you?
A Mess & Not a Hot One
Confusion. I just did not get this series. Perhaps had I known this was composed of snippets of movies/series, I might have appreciated it more. I assumed it was a stand-alone series. Not having seen any of the previous references, I was at a loss as to the subtle references. Frankly, trying to make an anthology out of several movies/series is a fool’s errand and those of us trying to watch this are engaging in a fool’s task. Having said that, the account as presented does have some merit, and I found several subplots it was trying to emphasize, noteworthy. The rest of it merely became fluff and was perfunctory. Frankly, I am just not sure why these ‘Bls’ continue to be made. Give it a rest. Just make the stories doramas. The substories were surprisingly interesting from what I could glean. You destroyed the messages by not making them meaningful to the content for which the story was intended to display. Shame. Shame. Shame. You can read the full review of this at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
A Bunch Of Endearing Human Warmth!
It has charm, wit, sweetness in all the right spots, and a bunch of endearing human warmth. While not overly saccharine, it is also not traumatizing. Curiously pensive and reflective, it has all the elements of a most believable love story told in soft, subtle gentle tones that simply make you feel good all over. There are two love stories, actually. Both are surprisingly compelling. While the various protagonists are interconnected, their individual love stories take very different paths to fruition. Both end up being (well, more-or-less) plausible and credible sequences. Summarily, this is an excellent production, and I thoroughly enjoyed this drama. It blended a lot of great beliefs into an amazing narrative – humor, pathos, honesty, passion, joy, disappointment, redemption, covered with a heaping supply of love, and then smothered all of it even more with an undiminished commitment to one another.Was this review helpful to you?
Is it magical?
Fantasy BLs are a difficult genre to make believable. Not just because one must feign being in love with someone with whom one is not but must also convince us that some sort of magic or fantasy is part of the scheme. Additionally, it must be a major part of the theme, short of overwhelming the storyline, without also making the whole premise look ridiculous. Overall, this series does a very good job of making the story not just conceivable but also relatable. There are some very strong acting performances by the main leads that help pull this story together rather well. I do wish the story had stuck to the development of human interactions rather than trying to introduce an element of a murder mystery into the storyline. For me, this story tried to cover too much within their relationship in a choppy fashion, intertwined into an awful murder mystery theme. You can read my full review at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
The Storyline is Getting Wearisome
This is a sweet journey if you are drawn to sweet genteel cliché ‘friends-to-lovers’ romance narratives. All the characters are sweet. The story is sweet. The outcome is sweet. But be forewarned. You might slip into a diabetic coma from watching this rather short series because of all the sweetness that is pumped into your blood from this saccharin novella. However, I cannot say that it is not mildly entertaining, for it is. Curiously because of the symmetry between the actors. While there is nothing in this series you have not seen in other similar versions before, perhaps done much better and deeper than here, there is still enough hitherto to grab your attention.You can read the full review at BLBliss.com.
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A Red String That Is Soulful Indeed
Being a Westerner, I am completely drawn to the metaphysical construct of soul-transference prevalent in Eastern cultures. Especially if you throw in the mythology of the Red String of Fate. There is something so mesmerizing about the concept of two souls being bound forever via an invisible red string. The intensity of that symbolism is mystical for those of us from the West and I am compelled by its underlying intensity. Evocatively, I can think of no more intimate way to attach to someone you love, truly love, than by tying a red string around their wrist along with yours. Not only is that figurative, but it is also so romantic and shows a deep sense of commitment to a relationship. This series had all of that. Perhaps not in an intense way, and seemingly more peripheral than serious, but nonetheless, it remained its central theme. Read the full review at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
Sink The Hermoso Screams The Director!
The best way to describe this series is to define it in terms of a psychological disorder. It is schizophrenic. It has all the symptoms of this condition. It is befuddling, full of mood swings, capricious, shows severe personality changes, weird periods of agitation with obvious emotional disorders as well, and psychological instability throughout. I could go on, but you get the point. It is not tethered to thinking, operating, or behaving clearly. The story is an incoherent mess yet sometimes just a whole lot of fun to watch. It was entertaining for some time but then lost its direction in the end as it did not seem to know how to conclude the story. This series started out so promising. And I enjoyed a goodly portion of it. The screenplay and directing did them all wrong. You can read the full review at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
Great Acting With An Implausible & Sick Story!
Yet again, this is another example of a potentially good BL series that went awry. There is a lot of good acting in this series. The issue is, it was wasted in a noxious story. I want to cry over the content (or lack thereof) that is being used to construct BL stories. While I know there ought to be no topics off limits, I do wish more positive representations of ‘Boys Love’ could be portrayed. Or at least ones that are not always so pessimistic in nature and content and/or surrounded by such ugly and negative dimensions. Generally speaking, Korean BL tend to be dark and broody; this one was exceptionally morose and despairing, sprinkled with a mixture of odd personas that sometimes worked. And sometimes not.This is good acting wasted on a silly and sick story. You can't find better story ideas?
You can read the full review of this well acted but implausible story at BLBliss.com.
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Zero Chemistry But Compellingly Entertaining
I absolutely enjoyed this series and if you asked me seriously why, I am completely at a loss to comprehensively answer that. The plot is ridiculously contrived. The story itself is all over the map. Even if one could attempt to summarize, it might sound illogical and laughable. Yet, I valued its warmth, its positive relationship to the rural lifestyle, its spotlight on idealism, and most of all its unwavering path to taking the high road to bends in the road when it came to the moral compass. It is simply a fun story to watch that is ginormously entertaining with a steady sense of humor that never is completely off the wall but occasionally is tongue-in-cheek yet remains relatable enough that we see the humor presented in down-to-earth fashion. I may have overrated this series, but sometimes the likability factor outweighs all its negativity. This series simply has charm, fun, and astonishing entertainment. So, for a few precious hours, we can drift away into a make-believe BL world where all will be well. Sometimes, we just need that feeling. I just loved watching the shenanigans of the characters in this series. They made me smile!Was this review helpful to you?
This Deserves a Red Envelope!
Sometimes, remakes are disappointing or miss the point of the original, but this version is everything that was, while adding a Thai flair to substantiate its own genesis. Therefore, this stands out as truly unique. Essentially a comedy, but do not let that define how this movie should be classified. To be sure, some parts of it are funny, even quite humorous. But it is not all that. If you are also expecting the story to be a BL, you are also going to be somewhat disappointed. It is not. Yet, it is a gay mythos that will, by the end, cause you to laugh, force you to think about death, and possibly make you cry. You might even sob as there are many astonishingly poignant moments in this movie. Parts of you could also make you angry because it shows how easy it is for an unscrupulous character to take advantage and use someone’s gullibilities of decency, love, and trust for personal gain. As the saying goes, however, karma will be proven to be a ….One of the best adaption of a previous movie from Taiwan that is also exceptional. But this one has a cute Thai flair to it!
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