BradBluddy16

Rom-Coms (and we have, maybe unwittingly, been lead to believe this is a rom-com so far) do follow a certain formula, and are still hard to do well. The BL landscape is littered with examples where the producers had the formula, but still couldn’t get the ingredients right. Why shouldn’t Rom-coms, when done well, be as highly rated as the more innovative shows?

SeaKeen did promise us something dark last year, so I guess we shouldn’t be surprised to see this series morphing into a tense K-drama. Damn you New Siwaj for lulling us to sleep with your Perfect-10-Lined smokescreen. Put on your seatbelts everyone; we may be in for a bumpy ride.

The deep kissing elephant in the room? 💋

I know we were all hoping for OhmNanon-level kissing; with all the Bad Buddy allusions we were almost set-up for a rooftop moment. But if Bad Buddy taught us anything, it is that that level of passion between the CPs does not necessarily lead to a sustainable working relationship. I say, if the chemistry is there let the BL boys have their fish kisses, if it allows our favourite ships to have some longevity. Besides, we know an NC scene is coming and SeaKeen killed it in their bed scene-stopped-short in Only Boo.

It is surprising a BL Rom-com can pull out so many Bad Buddy references and not have it take away from any of its power. But, then again, why not? For a generation of us, Bad Buddy changed our entire emotional circuitry. It’s like referencing sacred texts.

Agree that 12% was the bomb, but dude has been on an upward trajectory ever since Wabi Sabi dissolved their management arm; Perfect Ten Liners, eps 9 through 24, and Fourever You’s JohanNorth segments were peak campus romance. And, if we could all scrub our minds and watch UWMA for the first time, we’d see the red thread tied to Head 2 Head’s intoxicating mix of romantic longing and supernatural tension starts there.

Because it was released during the period of high anticipation between MSP and My Love Mix Up, when GemFot madness was at its peak, Only Boo! appeared with little fanfare, and even less investor’s money. Compared to MSP’s brilliant first two episodes, Only Boo!’s start seemed a little frivolous, even crack, and for those not immediately smitten by Keen’s effortless charisma and Sea’s dulcet tones, the temptation to abort was compelling. But for those who stayed, the realization soon dawned that something special was happening, the series was going deeper, and the chemistry between the two young leads was electric. In the end, Only Boo! blows the sponsor-bloated My Love Mix Up out of the water, and arguably, with less filler, has more rewatch value than MSP. Please don’t sleep on Only Boo!

I had such high expectations for this series. My favourite ship + my sometimes favourite director (Perfect 10 Liners, UWMA) + my favourite trope + my favourite BL singer (“Louder” refuses to ever leave my Top 10). Somehow it has managed to exceed those expectations and then some. That Ep 3 ending…c’mon!

Destiny Seeker

C’mon. Let’s keep it a safe space, everyone.
Truth is, Keen has been a scene eating star since as early as the Project Alpha live mall group performances; “Can I Call You Mine” is epic. Where he has arguably seen some improvement is in his detail work. Acting constantly miffed isn’t easy, and it takes a subtle amount of voice modulation (not to mention, humility) to play a Siwaj’ uke. So far, Keen is knocking it out of the park.

I half expected Ink to appear under those white pillars and call out their “lovey-dovey” behaviour. I’m still living, though.

I was a little disappointed with the change at first, but now I get that they are serving us a bit of Potae and Payos from Only Boo!. It was a wise decision to make Van likeable from the get-go; my one quibble with Only Boo! is that Potae was such a difficult character, with none of the requisite charm to make a believable Casanova. Van oozes charisma; it is easy to imagine people falling for him, against their better judgment, including Farm.

Is it only me, or is anyone else getting KeenSea vibes? When did Sea find his baby girl singing voice? Despite his stature, Sea’s glow-up is giving classic Uke; all pastel softness and 100% Keen admiration. I guess we should have read the signs; the shrimp is mounting the otter on Nong Nooong.

Five things I’m looking forward to with Head 2 Head:
1. Keen getting ahold of a Boy Sompob OST and crushing it
2. New Siwaj returning to a supernatural love story that doesn’t include vampires
3. Sea being unshackled and given a more playful character to sink his paws into (meow meow meow)
4. With New Siwaj being a master of the tasteful (but not demure) NC scene, SeaKeen will finally get to 2nd base.
5. Keen, miles from that buzzed-cut, awkwardly gyrating teenager from his Project Alpha debut, will rightfully become the new Crown Prince of BL (at least, until Fourth gets his bangs back, and Ticket to Heaven changes the universe as we know it)

Given a good script and a school setting, New Siwaj can certainly make magic happen (UWMA, P10L, My Only 12%) and SeaKeen, thus far, have achieved only straight A’s in chemistry. We love an enemies to lovers trope done right (Destiny Seeker, anyone?); Jinn flipping J the double bird augurs well. Let’s pray these elements, when forged together, create alchemy.
Sadhu.

Ooh girl, early BL was the Wild West, literally, where the sound of horses was almost as common as unwanted sexual advances. You can see how far we’ve come when a compact, layered series about competitive math nerds can create “fin” without resorting to anything base or gratuitous; and a racing horse is just a racing horse. 🐎

And, as hard as they tried to train us to recontextualize that old favourite, we still immediately jump to “endowment gag” when we hear it. Half a decade of Pavlovian BL associations are hard to unlearn.

In the spirit of Gaya Sa Pelikula, I hope this show is not tainted by the behaviour of one individual. SeaKeen are killing it in MuTeLuv, and they, and Only Boo!, should be given a chance to receive the recognition they deserve. A number of people, contributed to the greatness of this series, not to mention Sea and boy-wonder Keen, and all the supporting cast and crew (shout out Milk), as well as those who contributed to the fantastic OSTs. The shadow of GeminiFourth loomed over this series (unfair comparisons to MSP; My Love Mix Up’s loud and investor-stealing marketing ramp up; Sea’s not yet Gemini-level acting skills, at least initially). With Ticket to Heaven still a distant pipe dream, and Head 2 Head on the horizon with a renewed and prodigious New Siwaj at the helm, there is a perfect opportunity for SeaKeen to move into the spotlight. สู้ๆ

Not so surprising that you like P10L. There is definitely a red thread linking this series back to UWMA. Not only is it directed by a revamped (pun intended) New Siwaj, but the feel and characterizations echo that BL classic (UWMA), minus the supernatural elements. I would even argue that YothaGun are an update on DeanPharm, while the other two couples share echoes of WinTeam. The romances hit just as hard, despite not being bolstered by a reincarnation theme, while the surrounding universe remains light and joyful. Balancing those two elements is New Siwaj’s true gift, when he hits his sweet spot, as he does here.

I love that there is so much disagreement on whether YothaGun or FaifaWine had the best arc. The truth is that everyone wins, as there were at least 2 top tier BLs back loaded into one series.
There does seem to be a consensus that the ArcArm arc came in at third place. Force and Book do their best to animate their one-dimensional characters, and they get thrown a lovable assortment of friends, but one can’t help but wonder if their OF/Peaceful-Property-displayed skills would be better utilized elsewhere. At least, once the other arcs roll around, they get to relax, and their characters’ one-dimensional-ness becomes their charm.