John Master

The first paragraphs sums up every issue so very well.

I do not think this actor ever worked for GMMTV. Me Mind, maybe.

You are absolutely correct about the fish kisses. I have simply resolved never to let lame kisses influence my reviews. That statement reflects more about my overarching philosophy of writing reviews than about my reaction to the series under discussion. Dead fish kisses are common enough in Korean and Japanese TV series, that I have concluded that some cultural factor is at work. Something I, as an outsider, cannot evaluate. To analyze the portrayal of intimacy through lens of western TV's kissing benchmarks (where the actors go at it) therefore strikes me as counter-productive. (Though when actors commit to the physicality of the intimacy, a review might be positively influenced--because that's a bonus.)

So as a reviewer, I just pretend I didn't see it. As a viewer, not so much. These lip presses are so jarring they rip me right out of the moment. Only in two cases would I use a review to call a series or its actors out for this flaw. One, where the series sets itself up for an expectation of verisimilitude by including many (or prolonged) NC scenes. Two, when the actors cannot conceal their disgust/discomfort. Neither of those exceptions applies here. But disappointing as fish kisses are, I think we get those bad kisses because of some cultural hang up that supersedes these actors or this series. That's why they recur so much. And because they recur so frequently, I don't factor that into my assessment.

I also don't begrudge you the privilege of calling them out for it! Someone should.

Your comments on directors aren't wrong.* But in the spirit of "control what you can control," the actors failed to control their area of responsibility. So I will stand by my point.

*--An old axiom declares that film is a director's medium; television, a writer's. In TV, the director is hired to realize the vision of a writer within the parameters allowed by the studio financing the work. Casting may or may not have happened before they are hired. In short, a TV director is more likely to be a cog in the wheel than the person powering the wheel. Film directors, by comparison, are generally accorded more latitude to achieve their own "artistic vision." (This is why film directors get described as "auteurs" while TV directors are usually anonymous.)

Having not read the book first, almost none of the things that bothered you bothered me--or at least not to the same degree. With one exception. I also did not think the actors managed to portray the concept "these two characters are into each other." That isn't on the script or the director. That's on the actors.

I was unaware of S2 for that show. It would be difficult for them to be worse. Well, that's unfair. It was not a bad show, per se. Just wasn't an especially good one, either. Watch, enjoy, forget. So it seems to me the potential for growth exceeds the potential for regression.

I'll never understand why you put such effort into reviewing Special Episodes. The last paragraph sums up every last one of them, and the last sentence explains why they exist. Special Eps are not "bonus episodes" in the sense that they finish a story. The storytelling concludes in the finale. Special Eps usually just offer a bit of bonus time with the the characters.

Or, in this case, with the characters-within-the-characters. Now, that, I agree, was an odd choice. The fictional series did not even factor into S2 (not after e 1 anyway), and I don't even recall from S1 what the storyline for those characters even was. So, yes, it would have made far more sense to see Sakuma and Yamakase interact, extending their arcs from S2 a tiny bit.

One other note....the finale seemed to float the possibility, but circling back to the UK subplot certainly suggests someone in the Writer's Room is thinking about the Big Arc a potential S3 might follow.

Sometimes when you watch an e 1, it is impossible to recognize which things are important when they get said because you dont know the story yet. Then, if you rewatch later, you have an "ah ha" moment and realize it was all explained from the start after all. Not so with that quote. As a sequel about an established couple, anyone should have known the director spoke of Daydream, but the meta meaning referred to Akasaka itself. I ought to have written it down when I saw it!

The most underrated achievement we viewers should credit to this series?

No turtles were harmed in the making of this production.

That quote you cited in the first paragraph caught my attention when I watched e 1, and I knew it had to be deliberately self-referential. But I then promptly forgot all about it. My own review even has a statement to the effect that all seasons 2 face an inherent difficulty because "the chase" is more interesting to the viewer than watching a couple work to sustain an ongoing relationship. Courtship trumps established couple! How perfect that quote would have been to illustrate my point. Nice catch.

Having mentioned "Double" (2022) above, I am adding the link to my review of that series. It is very underappreciated as a series. Perhaps because it does not have a strong enough BL element to draw in that fandom. But it is a very well-written and well-acted series. And just like the two seasons on Akasaka, it explores the dynamic between actors trying to navigate their personal relationship against their career aspirations. Thematically, these series fit well together.

https://kisskh.at/profile/8984637/review/224739

That thought occurred to me while writing my own review. The depth and fury in the current mood is startling. Not so much that it exists. But that what had been a quiet undercurrent is out in the open.

I think the long-term legal implications of al three siblings dying never dawned on the writers at all, which is why that permutation never came up. Because they didnt think through their own plot. Oh wait. Younsaid they were lazy. We pretty much agree here.

There is so much here to complain about, I am afraid if I start it will never end. I do want to point out a further absurdity from the finale. Namely, Pheem's goal to have nothing further to do with Thanavej. Near as I can figure, Than now owns it. We presume both siblings died without a will or heirs, which means their shares fall to Pheem. As the spouse of Pheem, Than inherits. Out of all the things that bugged me, that is the one i wanted to point out.

Philosophical Question: Does it count as a triangle when one person occupies two sides of the geometry?

My problem is that i read so much sci-fi as a kid that my brain associates the word with outer space aliens--the context where i learned it. I forget that it applies to earthbound species also. Likely the reason i missed the chance to use it here. And, really, how often do we get a chance to discuss xenophobia? Damn!

I wish i had remembered the word "xenophobia" exists when i wrote my review. My review nibbled all around the conceptual edges of xenophobia but without naming it. Oh well.

It is certainly valid to point out that "the pride era" is still in the process of catching on in many places. So that the "mid-20th century" timetable i reference applies most clearly to North America and western Europe. Those conditions may still aplly in many places in the present (including specifics pockets of North America and western Eurpe).

Three years later, one wonders if you ever followed up with these series? My money is on "Lynn got distracted by shiny new baubles instead."

I think this review advises the most sensible way to approach this series. Don't take it too seriously. Embrace the silliness. And appreciate the overt inclusion of an out and proud portrayal of a femme gay male.