5+ years later... does it hold up?
After 2gether's 5th year anniversary, I felt the urge to not only rewatch the immensely popular BL series for the first time in a while, but I also wanted to give a review.... as objectively as I can. Throughout 2021 and 2022, 2gether was a comfort series for me. The easy, light-hearted nature of the series was the biggest draw for me when I initially watched in the beginning of 2021. It was the first BL series that I watched, and I was blown away to see something so contrived with nearly every romantic trope in existence, but between two guys. For me, it was as if almost every m/m fanfiction that I've read in my adolescence was written into the script. It was something that truly felt revolutionary to me.
The BL genre has progressed so much since the year that this series dropped; from production value to less sanitized storytelling. Despite how much I enjoy this series, I can't help but feel the censorship. The only two BrightWin kisses here are mid-sentence surprises and mainly non-consensual. And while I'm on the topic, consent is a lingering theme in the background of this series that could've been handled more gracefully. I won't dwell because anything done here without consent isn't nearly as egregious as some non-consensual acts from many other series produced around the same time (TharnType, I'm looking at you).
2gether falls victim to lazy contrivances for the convenience of drama. Simple communication, peripheral vision, and the ability to read body language would have saved our romantic leads from most of the trouble coming their way. It's nothing that you aren't already used to from Asian television but always so much more noticeable after the first viewing. However, none of the drama or third-party obstacles that our leads endure last longer than a single episode, until the final two episodes. As I've previously mentioned, this series is very light-hearted and I am very appreciative of a show where two previously straight-identifying young adult men find love with each other without the existential dread of queer realization. The first 10-ish minutes of episode 10 if a great example of that. Shortly after Tine and Sarawat decide to officially give their relationship a try, Tine is faced with the struggle of coming out to his friends. For a while, I thought the episode was going to be about how they navigate their relationship in secret; but that didn't even last for the entirety of the first 10 minutes of the episode before Sarawat exposed their relationship publicly. To no objection.
Many may look at that as a narrative flaw but after having nearly all of queer representation on TV from the west be founded on queer existential dread, it was refreshing to see a story where a gay relationship was outed, and everyone was supportive. And by episode 10, it's no surprise that Tine's friends were supportive, so it doesn't feel forced or rushed. With only 4 episodes left, I appreciate not wasting time on the drama of coming out.
Another thing that has bugged me about the public discourse of this series is that no one ever mentions how comical it actually is. There are many BL "romcoms" that I can name but can't think of any jokes or funny scenarios from the show on the top of my head. That's not the case here. For all its flaws, from the subpar production value, the censoring, the acting (which I personally think is fine, apart from Bright's crying scenes), etc, no one could ever say that 2gether isn't funny. I genuinely think it's one of the objectively funniest romcom BLs in existence, and that's even in comparison to many of them made today.
And maybe I'm leaning completely into subjectivity here, but I also think that BrightWin have great chemistry. Over the years, one of the most common criticisms of this show is that the romance feels more like a "straight bromance". Personally, I think they have good romantic chemistry and I'm certain that if the narrative didn't intentionally romanticize their interactions, less people would feel the opposite. To that critique, I say be your own judge. For me, the longing glances and reddening cheeks do it for me.
With 5 years of separation, I'm happy to finally view this series with a somewhat more objective lens. It's hard to watch 2gether now and think that I'd ever recommend it without a disclaimer. Yes, it's censored. It's very much of its time. But it's not bad at all. And I'd still argue that it's a good choice for your first BL.
The BL genre has progressed so much since the year that this series dropped; from production value to less sanitized storytelling. Despite how much I enjoy this series, I can't help but feel the censorship. The only two BrightWin kisses here are mid-sentence surprises and mainly non-consensual. And while I'm on the topic, consent is a lingering theme in the background of this series that could've been handled more gracefully. I won't dwell because anything done here without consent isn't nearly as egregious as some non-consensual acts from many other series produced around the same time (TharnType, I'm looking at you).
2gether falls victim to lazy contrivances for the convenience of drama. Simple communication, peripheral vision, and the ability to read body language would have saved our romantic leads from most of the trouble coming their way. It's nothing that you aren't already used to from Asian television but always so much more noticeable after the first viewing. However, none of the drama or third-party obstacles that our leads endure last longer than a single episode, until the final two episodes. As I've previously mentioned, this series is very light-hearted and I am very appreciative of a show where two previously straight-identifying young adult men find love with each other without the existential dread of queer realization. The first 10-ish minutes of episode 10 if a great example of that. Shortly after Tine and Sarawat decide to officially give their relationship a try, Tine is faced with the struggle of coming out to his friends. For a while, I thought the episode was going to be about how they navigate their relationship in secret; but that didn't even last for the entirety of the first 10 minutes of the episode before Sarawat exposed their relationship publicly. To no objection.
Many may look at that as a narrative flaw but after having nearly all of queer representation on TV from the west be founded on queer existential dread, it was refreshing to see a story where a gay relationship was outed, and everyone was supportive. And by episode 10, it's no surprise that Tine's friends were supportive, so it doesn't feel forced or rushed. With only 4 episodes left, I appreciate not wasting time on the drama of coming out.
Another thing that has bugged me about the public discourse of this series is that no one ever mentions how comical it actually is. There are many BL "romcoms" that I can name but can't think of any jokes or funny scenarios from the show on the top of my head. That's not the case here. For all its flaws, from the subpar production value, the censoring, the acting (which I personally think is fine, apart from Bright's crying scenes), etc, no one could ever say that 2gether isn't funny. I genuinely think it's one of the objectively funniest romcom BLs in existence, and that's even in comparison to many of them made today.
And maybe I'm leaning completely into subjectivity here, but I also think that BrightWin have great chemistry. Over the years, one of the most common criticisms of this show is that the romance feels more like a "straight bromance". Personally, I think they have good romantic chemistry and I'm certain that if the narrative didn't intentionally romanticize their interactions, less people would feel the opposite. To that critique, I say be your own judge. For me, the longing glances and reddening cheeks do it for me.
With 5 years of separation, I'm happy to finally view this series with a somewhat more objective lens. It's hard to watch 2gether now and think that I'd ever recommend it without a disclaimer. Yes, it's censored. It's very much of its time. But it's not bad at all. And I'd still argue that it's a good choice for your first BL.
Was this review helpful to you?
