3
Weird, Funny, Then Fell From Earth
Honestly, I do not know WHAT this series was. It is just weird and completely off-the-rails. Had they continued with its original thread, which I think was humor (tongue-in-cheek specifically), then this would have been an outstanding if not memorable series. Instead, it lost its way towards the end as if it was not sure how it wanted to conclude. At that point, it ruined its tenacity and mojo, and it fell from Earth. The production of this series is so unique and different that words are hard to describe it. Where it unraveled is that it tried to do too much and so your attention could not focus on any one thing. You can read my full review of this unique series at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
Intriguing/Fascinating Until the End...
This series has so much going for it. Acting is superb. Screenplay is surprisingly strong and sharp. The cinematography is captivating and succinct, given that this series is not very long. Yet, I had such mixed feelings about this series. Perhaps it was because it goes so deep into the despair and sickness of three-way love connections. With each knowing how the other felt about one another, the outcome was bound to lead to toxicity and bitterness and a heaping amount of resentment. I loved the story but found myself experiencing revulsion in some of its more disconcerting parts. One has to be intrigued, perhaps even mesmerized, by its premise, but at the same time perplexed by how sick, twisted, and convoluted a love can get. Especially when that love is not projected outwardly but only inwardly. I must have what I want at any cost no matter what I have to pay to get it. That is both sad and sick.Was this review helpful to you?
A Cute Gay Soap-Opera
This is romantic imagery at its best. I thoroughly enjoyed this series and did not see it as bad as some comments about this series have stated. While I am hardly one to dispute another person’s opinion of a series, this one, I think, was misunderstood. It is a gay soap-opera, not meant to be deep or intense. I loved it because it is not pretentious in any way. What you see is literally what you get. A stardust between two guys who found each other at exactly the right time in their lives. Will it work out? Will it last? Who knows, but it sure was a fun romp. The story itself is congenial, entertaining, and enjoyable. Nothing more and does not pretend to be anything but that.Was this review helpful to you?
The Performers Deserved Better
I hate to be so brutally honest, but this is one of the worst BLs of 2024. Literally, everything about this series, except perhaps the acting, was uninspiring. Although the young performers did a ‘yeoman’s job’ in trying to keep this shipwreck afloat, they alone could not salvage this complete mess from sinking. Honestly, to say otherwise, is living in a fantasyland and not dealing with any sense of reality. It is a tepid story with a fragmental screenplay, ineptly directed, disjointly executed, and undoubtedly should never have been (re)made. The only plus about this series literally is that they had the appropriate aged actors and actresses for the roles. They were young, attractive, innocent in real life, and tried their best to make sense of a story that was essentially senseless. Full disclosure, I did not watch the first ‘Love Sick’, so this was all ‘new’ to me. Thus, I cannot compare it to the original. Besides, this is a stand-alone production and ought to be judged on its own merits or faults.Was this review helpful to you?
All Show, No Substance
Frankly, this movie, turned into a BL mini-series, presented better than it actually was. Well-acted and certainly well-crafted but it says absolutely nothing. Yet, it looks so good in the process. I kept waiting for a ‘punch line’ but it never came. These kinds of movies/series are so exasperating to watch and I for one am frankly getting tired of hiding a non-existent story under false and artificial melodrama nonsense. Certainly, this series will pull at your heartstrings but perhaps because I am old and cynical, I saw right through this ruse. Flatly this series said nothing. At least nothing of substance and again reinforced the stereotypical thinking that gay people from an early age really do not want to be gay, or will hide it for as long as they can, or are ashamed of what they are, or lack the courage to be who they are, or are terrified of their own feelings, or, or, or…. All perhaps well meaning but sending a wrong message.Was this review helpful to you?
First Note of Love But Flat Story
Conceptually, this series ‘sounds’ like a winner. A budding singing duo composed of two likeable brothers. Tragically, one of them dies on the way to a concert site. The other one becomes lost in his own malaise for 5 years. All of that sounds like a great connection story but the sequence of events for them were choppy and insufferably boring. Their relationship looked and felt creepy to me. Even though both were adults, it still felt off. Honestly, I never bought their relationship. Honestly, I was unmoved by this series. I felt little from it. A few good scenes to be sure but nothing sustainable. There was way too much reliance on flashbacks.Was this review helpful to you?
More Horror than BL but Fabulous!
To be sure, this series was far from perfect, but it so grabbed my attention from the beginning and never lost it. Of course, the story got a little wonky, way too unnecessarily complicated, and so deep into the weeds in detail that I thought I would love my mind trying to figure out who was doing what to whom. But overall, what a ride! This story is a classic story of haves against have-nots. The privileged against the disadvantaged. It is a story about a group of ‘friends’ who take advantage of one particular individual whose skills are something they lack but want. They bully, cajole, and manipulate him into thinking he could become one of ‘them’; but, of course, he never will. The ending is stunningly creative and unexpected and had a feel that we were watching a version of a Grand Guignol theater. Perhaps, that is why I loved it so much. This is well-crafted, remarkably well-acted, with a bit too much detail in places, exceptionally dark perhaps too much so, yet overall so fascinating, gripping and captivating. One of the best BLs for 2024 with a frightfully deep doleful story.If you want to read my full review, please go to BLBliss.com. I have other reviews there as well.
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Adult AND Smart
This is a surprisingly and shockingly smart, articulate, and very well-done BL with loads of moral precepts that I was not expecting. In other words, I loved this series through and through. It is very adult-like and tackles some sensitive issues in a vailed way that you have to peel away like an onion. The screenplay is very impressive. Sure, it has its weak moments, but they are few and far between and do not deflect from its core message. I cannot say that the characters were all happy in this series, but they made their circumstances work. In other words, they took lemons and made lemonade out of it. This is indeed a very adult series and not your typical BL Pablum fed premise. It presents its story squarely to you. Still a bit sanitized but nonetheless more realistic and honest than a lot of other BLs out there.Was this review helpful to you?
It Is Really A Beautiful Story
It is told very well with both storylines and great acting. I was impressed with how engrossed I became in their quest and in the lives of the two main characters. This series had all the earmarks of being just another Thai BL series but this one took itself more seriously and worked very hard to project a moral arc to it with an outcome that was painful, real, and incredibly honest. This is also one of the few Thai BLs of late that had serious conversations about relationships and how impactful they are to one another and what the consequences of falling in love can be.Was this review helpful to you?
Still One of the Best
I am sure that there will be some out there that disagree with my assessment. No matter what, this is a great summary of the two series and it helps us see them way into the future. There is just SOMEHING about these two that will forever be enduring and hold a special place in my head (not heart). They for me, define BL. They have done more to advance the whole genre of BL and undoubtedly introduced millions to this form of art. I am without question one of those. I think in a sense this puts to rest 2GETHER as an entity. They will always be 2GETHER even 30, 40, 50 years from now. They have embraced it and accepted it. A fitting tribute to what has changed the direction of BLs.I, for one, look forward to what they will do in the future either individually or as a couple. Their mark is indelible and kudos for embracing it.
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Too Pedestrian
This was a slightly entertaining BL series with nothing specular about it EXCEPT it did have a bit of a creative ending to it that was fun to watch and added something different to this rather mundane series. The ending give it a bit more creativity and I was pleasantly surprised by it and it was not expected. It is not that they all are not deliciously handsome; they are, It just that this was not enough to make it that entertaining. It is good; just not great for me. However, the scene between the mother and son is worth noting and is superbly done. Sorry, I found it rather ordinary in story with an occasional twist and turn.Was this review helpful to you?
Close To Perfection
This is a stunning and brilliant romance story between two men in the most obtuse way imaginable. Yet, it accomplished what it set out to do. And that was to tell a story of two men in the world of Martial Arts during the time of Imperial China, that love is possible and that soulmates are real. It is a breathtaking journey of intrigue, love, and power sprinkled with the wonderment of martial arts skills within the splendor of the natural beauty of China. I was so engrossed in this story that I felt like I was also flying through the trees! Yes, it is long and a bit convulsed but none of that matters. It is a story of two men destined to be together and by each other. They indeed complimented and supplemented each other as well as completed one another. There frankly is nothing more romantic than that.Read my full review of this epic series at BLBliss.com.
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A Gritty BL Story of Lust
This story is a gritty, raw, no-nonsense life about a novelist who has hit rock bottom and is living on past laurels. It is profoundly depressing yet incredibly intoxicating to watch. It delves into the more animalistic nature of sexuality with littlie to no pretense of actual love. It is a story of sexual hunger and to taste what the forbid fruit was like in the Garden of Eden. It is neither good or bad but simply just there. In all its sensuousness. Please read my full review of this story at BLBliss.com.Was this review helpful to you?
One of the Best HIStory Series
This is by far, the best of the HIStory series. It is a stunningly superb series told in soft, even tones and with such great care and compassion that I did not want it to end. While, this is a complex story, it is told more intellectual reasoning to stabilize emotional misgivings. A rather brilliant way to storytelling. It is so extremely well-acted with such a great story line that moves along with such energy but never seems forced. It is just there and grows slowly before our eyes. You can see the intensity of feelings develop and, changes the other persons involved. There is also such great chemistry between the actors with the kissing and love making neither feeling constrained nor rehearsed. They seem natural and were displayed with tenderness and in a real sense, a feeling of love.Was this review helpful to you?
Romantic and Sensuous
One other thing this series has going for it is its ROMANCE. They were NOT afraid to show it and it is quite beautiful, honestly. It is hot and steamy. The screen play and directing for the most part is well done. The story flowed well. (With some of the BL series filmed during the pandemic, this is not always the case). There is no question that this quiet series is one of the finest out there not only for its great romantic story and intense love scenes but for its superb acting. And this is the irony. I am so sorry, but I did not ‘feel’ the connection between Tutor and Fighter. They beautifully showed the emotions, but I never quite felt the connection between them. If you would like to read my full review of this series, please go to ppbongi.medium.com. It is free and you can leave comments.Was this review helpful to you?
