GayinYourArea

pyramid game, beyond evil, prison playbook, navillera, etc, are non-romantic dramas. comparing bl dramas to non-romantic dramas is an unfair apples-to-oranges comparison. bl is a subset of romance focusing on romantic relationships between two men. non-romantic dramas get to explore a wide variety of themes and stories not centered around romantic relationships

mainstream dramas have a long history and a large money-hungry industry behind them. bl dramas are relatively new. the censorship and backlash they faced/face limited their growth and variety. time will help. in the future, bl will merge with a wide variety of themes and stories. growth and variety won't be possible when you're encouraging actors to abandon the bl genre

the actors working across various genres of thriller, comedy, slice-of-life, etc, predominantly play "straight" roles. the repetition of "straight" roles does not constitute true diversity. it fails to represent the breadth of human experiences and relationships

i'm a gay person, and i believe the production of bl is relegated to lower budgets due to a confluence of factors, not the least of which is people's discomfort with seeing non-straight relationships on screen. budgetary limitations are not an intrinsic characteristic of the bl genre. they are a byproduct of societal attitudes and biases

it's unlikely that mainstream media will experience an uptick in featuring gay romance as a central narrative device. to make gay-centered stories mainstream and secure high budgets, we should focus on normalizing and promoting bl, the genre dedicated to gay stories. with the normalization of bl, the demand for varied stories and roles within the genre will grow

i heard he was discharged on december 9, 2023

the prevalence of actors playing "straight" roles and rarely exploring diverse gay or non-romantic roles contradicts the claim that "actors don't want to keep doing the same kinds of roles over and over again"

actors are comfortable with playing similar roles, as long as the roles align with the dominant "straight" narrative. they are not avoiding repetition. they are reflecting societal biases

i can wait forever, maybe even longer. i'd scrap the whole thing and put a bl or gl in its place if i could

what a letdown. i was wishing upon a star for more of jae chan in the bl genre. guess i'll have to settle for rewatching "semantic error" again

it's a "straight" drama, on paper, but with enough glances/moments between the male leads, our shipping hearts and minds can effortlessly transform them into a bl couple

where there's a will, there's a way

"parasyte: the great" would have been a fitting title for this exceptional korean adaptation. it takes everything its japanese predecessor tried to be and cranked it up a notch, no, make it ten notches! no more rolling our eyes at clingy, annoying women throwing themselves at izumi shinichi's feet. the focus was on humanity's parasitic behavior and the trials and tribulations of a "mutant"

i was doubled over in laughter, reaching for tissues to dab at tears, and breathing a sigh of relief that "romance" didn't slither its way in and muck everything up again. tears were shed when won seok betrayed cheol min and soo in lost her father figure. ms. heidi's kind words to soo in, reassuring her that she wasn't cursed and giving her room to heal; joon kyung's trust in soo in and ms. heidi; and kang woo's role as an older brother figure to soo in dried my tears and restored my hope in the story

aww, you're right about language barriers being tricky!

i apologize for the mix-up/misunderstanding on my end, i get what you were saying. we are on the same page now

the issue is not so much about the realism of having multiple gay couples, but rather the lack of depth and development in the relationships and characters. the short story would have been better served by focusing on fewer relationships and characters, and exploring them in more depth. words that capture your criticism would be "superficial," "underdeveloped" or "one-dimensional"

labeling an all-gay story as "stupid" because it deviates from societal norms is a disservice to its significance. a fictional world where everyone is gay, where gay love is the norm, challenges the assumptions people make about sexuality. it's an escape from the constraints of society and an opportunity for creative exploration

"I don't like that every couple in a BL has to be BL couple... How stupid is that?"

it's not stupid. most "straight" stories don't feature a non-straight couple. expecting bls to feature a non-bl couple is stupid

what's next, complaining that every character in a superhero story has superpowers? that a horror is too scary? or that a musical has too much singing?

bl is and should be about reveling in the power and beauty of emotional connections between men. the greater the number of gay relationships, the richer and merrier the story

internalized homophobia is a form of homophobia. homophobia is defined as a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards gay people and relationships. a gay person internalizing the negative attitudes towards their sexuality falls under the definition of homophobia

the drama depicted instances of homophobia through the characters' struggles with self-acceptance and societal expectations. se jin, tae yi and joo ha used "dirty," "creepy" or "disgusting" to refer to displays of affection between two men. homophobic undertones were present

tae yi touching se heon without his "consent" was a violation of personal boundaries, and his redemption arc was rushed. i agree that it wasn't outright sexual assault, though. thank you for sharing your in-depth analysis of the characters and themes

homophobia, patriarchy and sexual assault are global issues. the drama did a commendable job in depicting them, but the runtime proved insufficient to fully address and resolve these issues. substituting some music-focused scenes with character-driven storylines would have given us an insight into the complex emotions of se jin, tae yi and joo ha. they should have shown more signs of remorse and self-reflection after hurting the boys they love

"She tells him that she loves him"

did you mean, "he tells him that he loves him?"

se jin: tae joon always seemed depressed. i wanted to make him smile. the pull i felt towards him was difficult to ignore (episode 8, 2:40)
se jin: i'm not that kind of person, okay? i'm not into guys, it's disgusting (episode 8, 5:39)

tae joon was at the edge of a cliff. he met se jin and found a lifeline in him; a source of meaning and purpose that could pull him back from the edge. sharing his feelings, he was met with disdain. se jin labeled tae joon's feelings as "disgusting" and pushed him off the cliff, into the depths of despair. what's disgusting is the unaddressed internalized homophobia displayed by se jin, tae yi and joo ha. "it's dirty/creepy/disgusting" or "am i a girl to you?" is not an appropriate, constructive method of handling someone’s feelings

used to? women are always subject to male harassment, physical and psychological. "straight" kdramas present 1) an unrealistic version of "straight" dynamics wherein women don't encounter immediate harassment, or 2) a more realistic dynamic wherein women encounter harassment, but do so through a romanticized lens. they normalize undesirable male behavior, misinterpreting the actions of overly possessive, jealous male leads as "protective" and "loving"

the emergence of a new issue doesn't mean that the previous issues have vanished or been replaced

episodes 3 and 4 might have been released in korea earlier

i'm enjoying this adaptation so far. jin kwon (se heon) punching pillows out of frustration and awkwardly landing on top of ho geun (tae yi) in the "haunted" practice room was adorable

jung ha (joo ha) should understand that ho geun (tae yi) isn't responsible for his sister's behavior. his sister's obsession with someone who doesn't want to reciprocate her "feelings" comes across as unsettling. giving her a girlfriend and a gl subplot would have been a better choice

i hope jung ha (joo ha) develops feelings for han gyeom (do yoon) and ceases his unkind behavior toward him and his "boy friend" ho geun (tae yi)

on a side note, has anyone else noticed that there's a resemblance between jung ha (joo ha) and lee jun ho?: https://imgur.com/a/VjocFJ8

he could snag first place in a lee jun ho look-alike contest, no costume needed!

celebrities are public property, we pay their rent, bills and taxes with our attention. we do own their lives

thank you! people are desperately trying to pair the high school girls up with a guy, even if the guy is an adult or an older convenience store employee. talk about grasping at straws, or should i say, grasping at snacks behind the cash register?

soo ji and ja eun's chemistry deserves a second season. i can imagine them starting a new chapter together, settling into their shared home, and savoring the simple pleasures of domestic life; the cozy nights spent cooking dinner, the intimate evenings with a cup of tea over candlelight, and the city strolls hand in hand