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This Is Almost A Guilty Pleasure!
No matter how hard I tried, however, I simply could not dislike this series. Perhaps I became enamored with the two main protagonists’ love story and conveniently then ignored the rest of it. Honestly, this could have been a great series and to some extent, it showed promise. But then there was always something that made it crash and burn. This series is unnecessarily complicated when it did not need to be. It would have worked softly, gently as a BL and GL simply at the Sky Valley Resort. There are too many characters acting like buffoons with no sense of direction or purpose. I know this series has received poor reviews and honestly, I understand the sentiment. However, I liked it. It is an adult-themed series which was refreshing. It is an LGBTQIA+ series and not a BL/GL (as in a standard defining way) since this deals with more adult situations and adult sexual circumstances. That part I appreciated as most BLs tend to gloss over that sex, especially more lustful expressions, is part of developing a (BL) relationship. They made that a major focus in their relationship, which is so accurate and honest in the augmentation of a new relationship.Was this review helpful to you?
A Gentle & Genteel Romantic BL
Undoubtedly, this series is one of the warmest and most genuine stories to come out of Japan in a long time. And unique. Not only in its storytelling, but in its overall presentation. And, for once, it was not afraid to show affection. They kissed - frequently. More importantly, it looked like it was authentic and genuine. How refreshing. This is an intensely beautiful love story concentrating more on their weakness and how that helps them see each other’s strengths. What makes it so meaningful is that they were not afraid to show the other what hurts. At the same time, they always take fulfillment in the most basic of human experiences as a joyful pleasure. Eating is not just functional; it is a celebration of the two being together. Sleeping together is the joy of holding each other and being in the presence of one another; not just carnal pleasures. They make being together – a gratifying celebration on so many different levels. And they made the simple act of kissing feel sensual. Without wanting to sound trite, they redefine the term soulmates not in any metaphysical sense but simply as life companions.This is a great series! You can read my full review of this awesome saga at BLBliss.com.
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It tells an LGBTQIA+ Story Brilliantly
The beauty of series like these, especially coming from the Philippines, is that they not only evoke a story with intensity, they bind it with a background history as to why. In other words, it explains how things are the way they are. More importantly, you get to feel that why and also be entertained. That is what gives them uniqueness and depth. For those of us who are not Filipino/Filipina, the characters are generally over-the-top with singularity and distinctiveness. So, we see clearly what has come about. It is far from formulaic. One of the best for this year!Was this review helpful to you?
Good Series But Poorly Titled
This story, series, and production would not have worked without the two main characters. While I truly detest the concept of ‘shipping’, these two have such remarkable chemistry together that I was mesmerized by both. They captured me from the beginning. They played right to the camera as if it was not there. They were natural, real, genuine, honest, and projected a close physical connection to one another rarely seen for me in Thai BLs of late. When they say they ‘loved’ each other, I believed it because they made me believe it. That is rare for two actors so young and frankly with not much acting experience to portray with such depthness the meaning and sincerity of the abstraction of ‘love’. The secondary couple, however, is disappointing and written with standard clichés .Was this review helpful to you?
A soulful BL and GL
The discourse about whether this series is a BL or not is asinine. Of course it is. Male-male love does not have to be consummated to be a BL; it merely has to be perceived. At its core, this series is that. Most assuredly, it is a love story of unrequited love. In addition, this series is certainly a GL. More overt but never fully realized.The story is a deeply reflective, pensive at times, coming-of-age narration of four inquisitive high schoolers. Each is hiding an inner secret not atypical of individuals of their age. But for all, it seems crushing and perhaps overwhelming. That is the burden of youth they must carry - until their next quest.
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Quirky And Very Entertaining!
I loved this series! It is funny, cute, creative, and has a warmth about it that is rare especially for a South Korean BL series. Plus, I found the acting surprisingly and sublimely effective. Perhaps because of the quirky, if not weird, ambience about this series. Somehow, it all worked! This whole series is filled with singular and peculiar individuals. Perhaps that is what absorbed me into this series. It also has an exceptional screenplay and its acting is topnotch. One of my favorites for this year.Was this review helpful to you?
An Exceptional & Phenomenal Series!
It is contradictory, oxymoronic, yet completely genuine in its absurdity. If you seek answers to questions from and about this series, you will not find them. Is this a Theater of the Absurd performance? Perhaps so. All I know is that it is brilliant, a mastery of cinematic artistry, and one of the finest acted series I have seen this year. In order to appreciate this series, you must suspend your idealized notions about BLs and all comforts about conformity or logic, and simply go with what is presented to you. This is a remarkably fervent series to watch. The acting goes deep emotionally without ever explaining why, however. Everything about this series is pure artistry. This is an exceptional BL series with no answers and no real point. It is what it is. You will get it, or you will not. One of the best series in 2024. Completely under the radar but should not be.Was this review helpful to you?
Ten Worlds Wouldn't Help Here
Frankly, it is irrelevant how many worlds this series had; even a half a dozen more would not have helped. It is just awful. I am sorry to say that as I so wanted to like this drama. However, this is again going to be one of those series that if you are a fan of the two leads (which I really am), you will perhaps enjoy this series. I tried, but for me the whole thing fell apart at the beginning – from the banal screenplay to production issues to vapid acting. All of it was just plain mediocre to subpar. The storyline was a good one, initially. I love transcendental legends, and this had all the earmarks of a great fantasy. his series was not well produced. The translations sometimes were hard to follow the actions and felt awkward. There were a lot of major glitches in the editing itself.Was this review helpful to you?
An Astonishingly Touching Series!
This is a monumentally touching series that intensely affects you in ways long after you have finished the series. When you watch it, you know you are being moved but its extent does not fully grasp your inner thoughts until you have had a chance to contemplate what the story is fully about. In essence, you keep rewinding the series over-and-over in your head until its full meaning grabs you. And then, perhaps just with me, I suddenly burst into tears over its power and significance. There is something haunting about the lives of the two men that become intertwined, partly by design and partly serendipitously. This is a great series. Although the series is short in duration, it does have some very intense momentsWas this review helpful to you?
The Story Shattered
Watching this series is like wrapping yourself up in a warm cozy blanket on a cold winter’s night as you are reading a romantic allegory. While the sensation is comforting, the fable still provides you with enough stimulation to keep you awake. But you suddenly realize that you reach a part in the story where one of two possible endings can happen. Either a fairytale one or a tragic one. While I certainly love a fairytale ending (and these two guys deserved one), I was preparing myself for a tragic one as the series did seem a bit dark overall. Unfortunately, I got neither one. And I threw off my warm blanket and started to cry with disappointment. While the story is strikingly enthralling for three-fourths of the way, it suddenly crashes literally and figuratively. It could have had either a fairytale ending or a tragic one. Instead, it went very weird in an odd way, and I felt in a cringeworthy way.Was this review helpful to you?
Good Story But Lacked Credence
There is honestly so much to unpack here in this short series that goes way beyond the plot or story. Reality and fiction merge together to make this series unique. As the abstract states, this series is based on a ‘true story’. Perhaps a more apt description might be closer to a docudrama. We just get to a minimal level of feeling something for them as a couple, and then the series is over. That is too bad. The emotional connections to their characters simply do not go deep enough to make them believable. This production company, overall, has created some solid and wholesome productions in the past. This is not a bad series, but it needed so much more effort. It just feels incomplete and awkward.Was this review helpful to you?
Apotheosis!
Constancy, consistency, and comedic. The three best words to describe this triumvirate of OSSAN’S LOVE, which is one of the best, if not the best BL series and franchises out there. It classically defines and shapes what this genre is all about. Perhaps not to a core of current fans who are zealots of the plethora of BLs with gorgeous young men in stories, that, for the most part, are forgettable and whose ‘love for one another’ is defined by the amount of ‘shipping performances’ they do together. This season and the ones before it are the true pioneers of what BL storytelling is all about and how to carry on with a narrative that remains as fresh and original as the first one. And as poignant.I laughed and I cried. A lot in this season. But most of the time I simply sat there and watched as if I was reading a good book. It gives you that kind of a feeling.
I shall be devastated if this is the last season. I want and need more. They are family. Their last words were, “We are family.” Nothing can be more earnest as this defines and expresses and shows every form of a family imaginable. This franchise is exemplary and, dare I say, an apotheosis in every sense of that word. You will find no better defining example of what a BL is or ought to be than in any of these series and especially in this latest season. Humor, poignancy, charm, affinity, love, and most of all human warmth. What a ride it has been. Please tell me it is not over yet!
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Distastefully Cringy and Creepy
There is something distastefully creepy and cringy about this series and I frankly did not find it even a bit romantic in any way. In fact, I found it rather sad and pathetic. This series says more about a disconnect from reality than about the advancement of AI. The acting in this series is flat and stilted and monotone, not just by the robot but by the human. At times, it was hard to tell who really was the robot. In a real sense, I wish I had not watched this series. It made me feel uncomfortable and apprehensive about the future.You can read my full review of this series at BLBliss.com
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Magnificent! A real gem
Magnificent! This was the first word that came into my mind after watching this short charming and beautifully done BL. It is obviously patterned off the South Korean model and it works! I simply do not understand the negative criticisms of this series. It is well acted, storytelling is engaging, and it is such a delicate love story that I think people mistook that delicacy for lameness. To be brutally honest, the only people who see it that way are not gay or those who have forgotten what it was like to struggle with acceptance. The intensity of its credence for each of us who had to face that is wildly different individually. Each persons’ journey is unique and soulful. This is a classic BL with such soft, gentle whispers that it almost glides under the radar unnoticed. But this is a beautifully done and very touching series that because of its delicacy, is mischaracterized. There is some fine acting here capturing all the various emotions of coming out, of being jilted, and suffering from an unrequited love. You can read my full review of this wonderful series at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
Awesome Love Story But......
This is a stunningly beautiful production with a love story that is so entrancingly told that I honestly did not see two men in love but simply two individuals in love. It really was a love story that transcends genders and epochs. This is a romance that begins between two mythical Hindu/Buddhist deities named Garuda and Naga long ago. Throughout the ages, each continue to be drawn to each other in a way we would call destiny. Had the saga simply stayed with the journey of Phaya and Tharn, this would have been an apotheosis. But unfortunately, it became unwieldy and got so lost in the development of subplots, specifically involving a troupe of them becoming police officers, and solving a crime, that the love story almost took a back seat. And frankly all of that was so superficial and unnecessary to really what was in essence an alluring love rhapsody. The story of who they were is so much more important than what they were but unfortunately the production got so bogged down in the storytelling that the love came in sporadic waves, thus in a sense diminishing the emotional impact of their bond considerably.Was this review helpful to you?
