AthenaTheStorierX

There really is a lot of silence. I wouldn't mind so much with nicer music (which they do well in some parts, but just completely lack in others).

It looks like this is the official site of the filmmakers as they work on production: https://www.tumblbug.com/spring_not_fall

Hehe. Everytime I see her with the other girl at the bar I try to manifest it. They'd be so cute. But there's something about her conversations with Yuki that make me think its just a ghost ship.

No actor wants to be known as the SUV driver lol

Lol. The SUV phenomenon omg. I kinda want someone to put a compilation together and make it look like all the events are happening in the same drive (because it's always a hit and run too). Which also makes me want a BL cop or satire/parody drama where they arrest/pull-over a white SUV driver. Even if it's just in the background.

Lol, i thought it was Yuki.

Look, if you're gonna use an over-used plot, you have to compensate for it somewhere else. Compelling characters. A new character. A new dynamic. Cinematography. A new way of telling the story. Something.

There's just so much of a relationship that you miss out on when there's a closet involved. Not only are you missing the casual relationship stuff you would do in public (not even just PDA which many people aren't fond of, but also dates and conversations, etc), you're also missing the ability to openly talk about your relationship with others. Not to mention the constant pressure of making sure you aren't found out.

Even if you do start out keeping it a secret, it is simply not sustainable to do it forever. There are too many fears, doubts, insecurities, and unfulfilled wants that tend to fester.

I suppose it's possible. After all, that is pretty similar to what was done in Be Loved In House, and this is the same director. It would also explain why I didn't think she had a crush on Li Gong, but rather Yuki.

But right now it feels like a cardboard cut out of the same trope we've been seeing for years. So even if they are going that route, they could've foreshadowed it better imo. And unnecessary. But here's to hoping i guess.

Well Be Loved In House is a BL remake of Just You. So the ex was pretty much already a part of the story - they just changed the ex's motivation. Probably so he wouldn't be as much of a villain character.

It's a good call.

Fr. We see that thing happen in other genres frequently - where the person who sacrificed their relationship out of fear or a sense of inadequacy gets left behind while the other person moves on. But I can't recall seeing it in any BLs - despite the fact that it is a reality in queer relationships. If you aren't willing to stand up with and for each other against prejudices, you get left behind.

Their dynamic was pretty much the same when they were "just friends" and when they were dating. Except Ze Shou was more touchy-feely when they were dating. And they exchanged roses everyday. But other than that, pretty much the same. Which can happen with some friends-to-lovers dynamics. I think it's usually meant to show that there wasn't really any other alternative, they were already basically a couple.

It can also be written as a point of conflict as well. How do we fall out of our old dynamic as friends and into a new one as a couple? Why doesn't this feel any different? Are we truly a couple now? etc etc etc.

1.) We were led to believe that Nikita has known the MCs for years. She had long since pieced together Li Gong's feelings for Ze Shou and knows that he's been in love with him for even longer than that. Just because they're broken up does not mean that he's over it or ready to move on. The blind dates situation is clearly just to put on a show of moving on.

2.) I'm willing to bet that Li Gong told her WHY they broke up and that's why we didn't see that conversation. Plus Li Gong trusts her and needs someone else to talk to. So she would definitely know on another level that Li Gong is not in any way, shape, or form ready to move on.

3.) We have come to understand Nikita as being a proud, independent woman who would rather see her loved ones happy than to disrupt the peace. She likes to keep her distance and observe, so she knows alot of how relationships work, despite not being in one herself. Yet...? We're expected to believe that it's in character for her to basically throw herself at a guy fresh off a break-up, and who she knows isn't ready or willing for another relationship, begging for a chance to make him like her...? And that's all dependent on him being bi/pan as well (which I don't think he is).

I was really hoping and rooting for the reason they rushed certain plot points to be because they were gonna do something new…. I’m now disappointed. This solidly put this drama in middle of the pack status.

Also, i thought Nikita liked Yuki…? But either way, her actions this episode are very out of character. I hate it when stories can’t keep their characterizations consistent. And even if we used her excuse of “changing for the one she likes” yada yada, common sense clearly says its very very bad timing.

That's my interpretation as well. Ze Shou has liked him for a long time as well. Several of the clues were there since the first episode (i can and have went into detail with it). Ze Shou was just in denial about it because he doesn't trust love (because of his mother situation and the resultant abandonment issues) and was scared of losing Li Gong (a common concern in any friends-to-lovers story).

Granted, him accepting the feelings was a bit rushed. But I'm currently looking at it as a good thing - because that means we're getting away from the "the end goal of this story is getting together" story structure and moving towards the other things that come up as conflicts and obstacles AFTER getting into a relationship.

The second couple is simply one of those love-at-first-sight couples that we've moved away from the past many years. But, as we can see, there's a lot of getting to know each other, accepting each other, and communicating that needs to happen if they ever want it to work.

And this is all on rocky ground not only because of pacing (as someone else has pointed out), but also because it's pretty much an all newbie cast. They haven't quite mastered the nonverbals or stage presence needed for the nuance yet.

The date here on MDL i believe is for domestic audiences. The international air date is actually tomorrow.

Officially, it premiers on gagaoolala at 12a/0h EST Friday with full subs and on Viki with varied levels of subs (but they're usually fully up by the end of the day). The episodes will then go on unofficial streaming the day after (such as dailymotion, etc.).

Absolutely. The conflation of fiction and reality and is MAJOR problem right now. And I really wish I could say it's just kids doing it.

But either way, the fact is, it's such a major problem that many of us have been seeing for so many years, that some topics have become sensitive (for and against) as a result. Bedroom dynamics. Portrayal of violence/toxicity. Actor age gaps. Stereotypes. Tropes/Clichés. And the list goes on.

Now I'm not saying that people should stop talking about it (this particular topic especially). But I can't really fault the people who speak out against it. When you see that kind of toxicity over a long period of time, you get really tired.

I don't really care one way or another on this topic. As someone on the acespec, bedroom positions is at the bottom of things I think about usually. But also because I'm acespec, and the amount of time I've spent trying to understand allos, I'm familiar with how important this topic is for some/most people.

I get both sides personally.
It is fiction. And it’s perfectly acceptable to speculate about what happens off-screen to help build the story in our head. And certainly, in queer relationships top and bottom dynamics matter. And since fiction is often used as a way to experience different events than are found in our real lives, or to feel represented on screen - top and bottom dynamics may be a relevant tidbit to queer people.

The problem though, is the culture that this question has inspired at times. BL fans that will ask real people (especially strangers) the question because it’s seen as acceptable in fictional spaces. It’s none of their business and it’s invasive. And can be quite fetishizing (which i think the lgbtq+ community can largely agree is a pretty big problem with queer media fandoms). And then there are aggressive fans who will literally attack other fans bc they disagree on who is top/bottom (Bad Buddy comes to mind). Or will get mad and attack the creators because the story didn’t follow the dynamic they expected based on stereotypes (My Beautiful Man comes to mind). Or the people who couldnt care less about the story, the characters, or the messages - and are solely present for the skinship and intimacy (Kinnporsche comes to mind).

Well said. I definitely agree.