EMaij

Episode 1 one was interesting, almost as good as 2 and 3.
Episodes 2 and 3 were good and gave me hope this would be a really enjoyable series.
Episodes 4 had just about enough screen time for the main couple.

Episodes 5,6, and 7 were a scene salad that needed to be watched on double speed most of the time.

I'll definitely watch the whole thing. Still hoping the show gets its groove back and won't end up resembling an endless swamp, like the original. Each episode is over an hour long, they don't have enough material for a run time like that. The main couple carries the whole show, but they don't get enough screen time. I really like the fake boyfriend trope, it's a pity the show doesn't utilize it to its full advantage.

You are missing my point.

The point was that the show chose to show the audience there are gay men in the military and that is NOT infact a neutral statement: South Korean military laws and procedures discriminate against sexual minorities, or lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) individuals, who serve in the military. Recruits are categorized based on their physical and mental health. Sexual minorities can be marked as having a “mental handicap” or “personality disorder,” which determines their status and duties as personnel. So they hide in the military. Under Military Penal Code, homosexuality acts are labelled as “sexual assault/harassment” and considered punishable by a maximum of two years in prison. This applies to consensual acts that occur outside of military facilities during off-duty hours. (wikipedia)

Yes, the bar and the kissing scene are in a gay enclave, it was basically a gay bar, of course it's a gay enclave. The point was that the show created this moment where the ML was just blending into the outside world, lots of people walking by, he was not "special" the kissing was not noteworthy it just was. I liked how they shot that scene. I liked how they told the story letting the audience notice details and make connections on their own.

I think notification issues happen when the other person has edited their reply, or deleted it.

He is the guy from episode 3 that had and alcoholic mother right? He told on himself when he said alcoholics are crafty, they construct their excuses like a Dutchman building a dyke, meaning they are skilled in avoiding their problems. That's what he himself seems to be doing too, when it comes to dancing around his own sexuality.

Our argument is about authorial intent, what the creators of the show were trying to say, not what spoilers viewers might have heard before watching the show.
Assuming the viewer doesn't know the story beforehand, while watching, the viewer is required to reevaluate their perception of the ML, because information about his HIV status is revealed out of chronological order. It's not about stigma alone, it's about the absence of anything related to being HIV positive. The beginning of the show was more carefree without the knowledge. After you find out, you go back in your mind to see if there were any causal links between his positive status and what was going on in the story. Alternatively, if being positive didn't affect his life over much, what does that say about HIV and the ML.

Nonlinear, as in information is given out of chronological order disrupting your perception, which is what happened here. You can bury vital information on purpose for effect, whether or not you agree it worked, is up to you. Fact remains, if you had known earlier that he had HIV, you would have seen the character in a different light.

I agree that you shouldn't be misleading.

Well, this show wasn't a sex education class, but I'd also be interested in hearing what you have to say.

It's nonlinear storytelling, that's the point. You are supposed to circle back and re-evaluate. That is what it adds to the viewing experience. I studied literature at university too, just saying.

This show has nice storytelling, they speak to the audience without spelling things out. There were things like they opened the show with two guys half naked in bed, and the cheater's boyfriend walked in wearing a military uniform. Being gay in the military is a really controversial issue in Korea. So they started with a statement. When the ML kissed the guy in episode 1, lots of people walked by and no one even glanced at them, two guys kissing was just a normal part of their world in that moment. Still, the ML didn't trust the world to accept him and panicked at the female friend seeing it.

So, they didn't tell the audience he had HIV, because it could have changed how we viewed the character while we were watching the early episodes. When we were told, we were supposed to think about what it meant, did it change the way see the character, and if it changed the way we see him, why? What does society think about people with HIV, what does society think about gay men with HIV? Are those thoughts valid?

Most importantly, it showed that HIV was just one aspect of his existence, it didn't define him as a person.

Are you enjoying yourself? Your profiles says you are a woman, here you say you are a straight boy and misgendered Nam Yoon Su, he is a he not a she.

Pick a topic and start a discussion on it. Nobody else did it for you, but you can do it yourself. People react to whatever is said, move the conversation away from topics you are not into, and talk about said various topics raised in the show.

Agree with your points though.

Don't be too judgmental of BL fluff! Women in straight K drama and romance don't often represent women and how women experience the world either, even when they try to go for realism, just like fluffy BLs are not serious queer drama. Most people are aware of representation being an issue, although maybe the menfolk don't ever think on women in this context much. BL comment sections have discussions on queer representation, or lack there of, all the time. All sensible people understand stories like Love in the Big City are important, they just might not be as interested in watching them as they are the fluffy stuff. Even if you prefer fluffier BL, it doesn't mean you're willfully ignorant of LGBTQ issues and the importance of queer stories.

LOL you have a point, but I confess I sometimes sulk, because it's a long standing tradition to create queer story lines filled with unhappiness, suffering and death, and I'm over it.

WTF are you even talking about. Aim looks sullen because that's how bad she feels all the time. She doesn't want the life she has, she is depressed. Her mother is vile and treats her like an object, and Aim is a kid, she doesn't yet know how to carve a better life for herself.

Aw, that sucks. Good luck on your mission 😀.

I know you said you tried everything, but could you make sense of the lyrics, and did you write long stretches of them into google? That works sometimes, if google can't find a match by listening to the song. Sorry, I don't have an answer for you.

Women will have children if and when they want to become mothers. If and when they feel they have the emotional, mental, physical and financial means to support themselves and children. If and when the fathers participate emotionally, mentally, physically and financially. If and when society is geared toward accommodating the process, women will have children with their partner, or alone, and LGBTQ people who want kids will have kids. That is what needs to happen if and when you want to raise the birth rate in any country.

You would have to actually manage to infect someone first.
How HIV spreads:
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/hiv-and-aids/causes/
Criminal cases around the world: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criminal_transmission_of_HIV

Nowdays, if the HIV positive person is on medication and has an undetectable viral load, they are not contagious. It's not that you have to tell your partner according to the law, but you can be charged with a crime if you knowingly infect a partner, meaning have unprotected sex while knowing you are contagious and end up infecting your partner.