Jibug

Yes!!!! Exactly this!!! In that scene, you can feel Sugiki's assertive energy in the way he forces Suzuki into position. And it's all done through minimal movements, by pulling Suzuki on his toes, making him arch his back, keeping his arms elevated. The subtly of the acting is what really struck me. And you have Sugiki standing there watching him struggle to hold this stance alone. But, what also stood out to me is the moment Sugiki steps into the lead position, you can see the instantaneous relief that Suzuki experiences when having him there as support. And I totally agree, you can see the darkness from Sugiki in this scene which is especially apparent when they start to dance. It's like Sugiki becomes the puppet master commanding his partner to move and Suzuki has no choice but to obey cause if he wants to maintain that difficult stance throughout the dance, he has to relinquish his autonomy to him and give his body over to the grim reaper. Ugh that scene was soooooo good!!!! And with a masterful performance with the leads you have these background characters that tarnished it for me. The most stereotypical background actors that didnt need to be there.

Yeah it feels like they are forcing and adopting European aesthetic for aesthetic's sake without really considering its implication on it's story and the confusing history it's trying to build for Emmaly. I mean the thing that determines the next in line...fencing...is European rooted. Given his father's history of abuse, I didn't understand why Ramil would risk messing with Khanin for a plan he would obviously get caught for on the bike ride. Even if his dad hinted st making a move with discretion. Ramil is the last known person to interact with Khanin if anything bad happened. I feel like there are other more deceptive ways to eliminate a competitor for the throne that doesnt immediately implicate him as a suspect. You would think he would be more careful knowing that his missteps could result in punishment for Pay as a byproduct of his failure.

You said it exactly! THE MULTI-LINGUAL KHANIN. I was thrown. I almost left the show there, but thought I needed to give it more of a chance. But, I just couldn't hold out long enough just so I could get to the cute scenes between the two when so many things leading up doesnt make sense. I'll inevitability wait for fan edits just so I can skip all the inconsistencies and get spoiled on the cute parts lol.

Yes!!! Exactly my thoughts!!! I'm actually shocked to get a comment agreeing because there is such an overwhelming majority who loved the show. It felt like I was alone on this too. And to have actresses like Namtan and Film who are undoubtedly talented, GMMTV could've produced something so special. Same with you, I really had to force myself to watch these episodes. I have actually fallen asleep to these episodes several times. I was that disengaged and had to go back to replay it. And I actuallu do like slower moving stories if done skillfully, but the pacing is so weird. They spend so much time on mundane moments which I can get behind if it adds more to their character. But, Ive seen dramas with a shorter run time, have more emotional impact then what ive seen in this show and its because they make every minute of the show count including all the still and silent moments because those matter too. Especially when they are using precious time they dont have to make the silence breathe.
They arent using their time wisely in this show. Because of that, they run out of time on the crucial information to the story, so they have to find ways to info dump it all to move the plot along and set up the twists so it plays out. They couldn't balance it well. So I definitely agree the pacing was off.

Lol I knew there was another office setting situation that commented on it and totally forgot about that though its been a while since I watched Bed Friend.

Oh wow! This one slipped off of my radar which I cant believe because of all the people casted in the show. I will definitely check it out. It's such an interesting premise.

How I found out about this is so convoluted and it was simply cause A Tale of A Thousand Stars was delayed and I wanted to know why. Lol. Then I saw some serious news about the reason for the delays is during the pro-democracy riots in Thailand at that time and they used inflatable yellow ducks in the protest. Since the thai king was born on the day of the week that is yellow (the king's color), the protestors utilized that color to protest the monarchy with yellow inflatable ducks and also umbrellas to mock royal parasols but also to block water cannons shot at the crowd used to deter the protestors. I only remember seeing auspicious colors mentioned in one Thai BL off of my memories called The Promise, who coordinated their outfits for work to match the color for that day but other than that yeah I dont see it mentioned much.

It's all good. I also like hearing different opinions and sides. Oom's perspective was almost entirely told in flashbacks and dropped last minute all in one episode before the finale. I think they took the easy route of storytelling when they did this. When we first get her backstory in flashbacks its only revealed to us... the audience...and Ai isnt there to hear it. When Ai hears a bit of it in that climatic scene in ep. 11, the show pauses Oom's emotional dialogue and cuts to play the flashback and returns back to the present-day dialogue. When the flashbacks came on, it took me out of the world and the emotions immediately, constantly reminding me I'm watching a series with edited backstories played out. Flashbacks can be done well. But, I think it was relied upon too heavily. This isn't just the case with Oom's backstory. They do this all the time including flashbacks with Ai, May's backstory, and her friends. It is like a constant reminder that I was watching a series instead of being in the moment with their experience and emotions. Frankly, I think they should've started the story's timeline earlier with us seeing most of the drama played out in real time rather than relying on flashbacks but that would've required a longer episode count.

And by development I was looking for it established along the way and not relying purely on flashbacks. Its doable even with Oom in a coma. We get a little bit of it in the beginning when Ai interacts with Oom's room, her belongings, and her environment and sees a ring. Part of Oom's story comes from that ring when May remarks on it. Its instances like that for moments to develop a character's story. Even though Oom is in a coma they could still develop her and her grandma's story through their present day surroundings and other people who care for them. I wanted the show to make more of an effort to invest in that for both the family and romantic drama along the way instead of info dropping it all at the end. I also found it confusing that in all that the time Oom spent loving May, we don't see more of a hesitation and questioning of May trying to figure out who she loves. That seemed off to me, but I digress.

Agreed. I was looking for a love story in all aspects. A friends and family love story and a romantic one. Had they taken the time to develop the family drama more than they did, I think there would've been more of an impact with Oom declaring that ultimatum and asking Ai to choose between family and romantic love. With an ultimatum like that, you can't just have a strong romance story. It requires a strong family drama as well to make her decision that much harder. Spending time developing both sides would've made that climatic scene come off as more impactful for me and sympathetic to both May and Oom. I just couldnt get emotionally invested and I realize it's just my opinion. It didnt surprise me to see so many comments online villanizing Oom for doing that cause I think it was a lost opportunity to develop her perspective and develop that sibling/family drama since Oom knows it's an unfair ask, but a desperate ask.

I agree that the friends needed to be there for May's secret to remain one, I just wished it was developed more. If there was more emotional weight developed with her friends, the show couldn't have gotten away with Ai not getting angry with May. But, they were able to overlook that since we don't get much time to know her friends anyway and the time constraints of the show.

I do think that both actresses are really good. I just couldnt get into the story, but I would watch them again in something else.

This is also another reason why I have a problem with age gap. All 3 of them were happy living this life. But the person who breaks this way of life and changes it, is Eiji. As soon as he dyes his hair, changes his clothes, and quits his passion job, what does Makki do? Makki goes to the convenience store and picks up a cigarette, which is very symbolic of adulthood and his weird reoccurring dream of smoking and being alone gets realized. The amount of times I hear parents say...you can have your fun now, but it's time to grow up and face reality to operate in the real world... even though it's a flawed world at that. Despite the age gap not being so far apart. They are in different stages in life. Eiji is the oldest and has pressure to conform to expectations of him. When he makes his decision to change, he says something on the lines of ....my dad let me have this. "I'm afraid to ask for more than this to keep my balance." His decision breaks that childlike wonder they had about life and love and the illusion wears off and he is the one that shatters it. The other 2 (Makki and Mieko) are just starting out. I think in the same episode or shortly after they celebrate entrance into school. Eiji gifts both of them the robes, which when they wear it looks like graduation gowns. Because of Eiji, those 2 very quickly grow up. Like making a decision to have a child together. When Mieko is pregnant, you see hear and Makki studying for an exam and discussing her taking a break from school.

Also, I don't know what went down between Eiji/Meiko and Eiji's parents. But what was interesting about the scene is that they were looking at Meiko for approval. And when she gave the okay, the sister brought Eiji's parents in. So whatever the disagreement was, it was moreso with Meiko. I imagined she guilted them for making their son live in this situation. If I remember correctly, the parents bowed to her first in apology then to their son. Regardless of the order, they pissed her off.

Also, that plan where they went to the beach for the "let's get pregnant" trip. I think they were trying to back out because of how scared she was. At least that's how it came off to me. Especially since she is not comfortable with physical touch at all. So her saying "no turning back" is her communicating her final decision. At least that's how it came off to me because after she said that she didn't move. She stood there frozen. The first person who initiated was Makki. He turned off the lights and walked to the bed first and the others followed after. But, I can see why you were mad because of the insistence. I didn't think of it that way because I interpreted it as her trying to vocalize her choice that won't change.

Also same here! I don't often get comments on my reviews. So it's nice to see this discussion. It also helps me because it makes me think through it a bit more. I've only watched this drama once, but I had to go back and skim through to find quotes for these replies since I want to be accurate. So, it might as well be a second viewing kind of. I was skimming through because I had to jog my memory of this drama since it's been a while since I first watched it.

No matter how much Mieko wants them to be a family (all three of them), it could never happen the way they want it to. Japan is not built to support a multi-parent household. When she goes in for an ultrasound, they ask for 1 partner to join her to see the baby. Eiji cannot legally marry Makki in Japan since gay marriage is not recognized and he will never be tied to the family unit until that law changes. But Eiji is able to legally put Mieko on his family registry when she is pregnant, so that he can be her emergency contact and care for her under the law. I do think you are right in that Makki was upset because they lied about the dates regarding her pregnancy which implies that Mieko and Eiji had sex without his awareness. But, I think the real reason Makki separated himself from them is because this family they want is impossible. This semblance of family they are trying so hard to remain intact could not work in reality in Japan. He is missing key moments in life because of this and it pains him. The shared moment between Eiji and Mieko seeing their baby for the first time on ultrasound. He isn’t part of that experience. He is being left out and he cannot live like this. He even tells Mieko, that he has absolutely nothing. He has nothing to give, while she can give a child. You might think…well he could’ve asked to go into the doctors office too. But, this is a situation they’ll run into always. Only 1 person in the delivery room to see the birth of the child for instance. Only 1 primary gets to be the emergency contact and make medical decisions. Only 1 gets to be legally tied.

But it’s deeply sad the other way around too. Mieko doesn’t want marriage. Doesn’t want a relationship. She says “how did I turn out to be this kind of woman?” “For the first time in my life, I knew what it means to be a woman.” She says this when she offers to birth their child for them. She feels like she has a use in the family unit because she can birth a life. Which is very sad to me because she doesn’t see her own value other than that. I remember in an earlier scene when she cried in the bathtub with Eiji’s sister. She cried when she was called cute, and responded with…if I am cute why did my dad leave me? There is a value in prettiness and attractiveness. She learns early on there is a value to men’s desire for sex that she doesn’t want. In order to make people stay in her life, she feels like she needs a tangible value like a child that ties her to a family. Afterall, the only care her mother gives her is leaving money in a jar everyday, which Mieko picks up in the morning. It’s a value exchange. As I mentioned, that one sex scene is very much a transaction between all 3.

I don’t doubt that Eiji loves Makki and was deeply affected by their reunion. In fact, I hate that Eiji is living a false life. Also, I believe Mieko is okay with Eiji having a relationship with Makki if he desires it. She says that multiple times to him. When you said this in your last post, that if she really wanted to bring them back them together couldn’t she say that “this isn't right. We need to figure something out that includes you two together as a couple?" I don’t think she could ever have the audacity to say that because she knows Makki would never go for it. Makki will have trouble with it because of what I mentioned above. It pains him to see Mieko and Eiji as a family unit he can never be a part of. The system doesn’t support it. And Eiji will always be tied to Mieko because he will never leave his child. After their reunion, when they are about to leave, Eiji and Mieko bicker because Eiji can’t find the keys. Makki reacts by saying “You guys look like a married couple now. Something just feels right.” Which makes me really sad when he says that.
You said that Eiji cannot keep living this lie and it’s a matter of time before he implodes. You believe he will make the decision to live his life truthfully. But what does that look like in practice? He can’t leave Mieko and his child. I mean he can, but I know he won’t. First off, he absolutely adores his child. I don’t think he would ever divorce her. Japan doesn’t have joint custody. Given his family background, his stable job, and his family’s wealth, and the fact that he doesn’t come from a single mother household like Mieko, he would likely have sole custody of that child. He would never take that child away from her legally. Especially when she agreed to have this child for him and Makki. I don’t think he would. You might say…he doesn’t need a divorce and can find a man to fall in love with while Mieko being part of his family registry. He is legally bound to her and will that man be okay with that if Makki couldn’t? It’s deeply complicated. As much as I would like to see Eiji give into his true love and passion, he’s stuck. Going back to Macbeth, the show is marked as a tragedy from the start.

I'm not dismissing her part in all this because she does manipulate her situation to benefit her goal in keeping everyone together. She should be responsible for the things that she did. I just don't think that it's inherently rooted out of nefarious reasons but out of fear because she feels Makki slipping away. Even lies to him saying that her daughter is biologically his. I do think there is a failure of her not being able to reckon with being ace and not knowing how she can have a family while being ace in Japan.

I don't have the same hatred for Meiko because I think her actions are fueled from fear and desperation. She finally found a family and she is so scared to lose it. She is so scared of change. That scene with her talking off her shirt and staring at herself in the mirror in only her bra and pants stuck out to me. In that scene she says to herself how much she has grown...it intensely effects her especially since I think she is on the ace spec. She notices in her reflection that she is seen by those around her as a sexual being. As a woman. It makes her feel like crying when people call her cute and feminine. She becomes hyper-fixated on her appearance. Even goes into cosmetology. With her being ace, and also with the changes to her body, she is super aware of how her interactions with the opposite sex is view by everyone else. She wishes it wasn't like that. Why do people have to assume? Everyone in school constantly asks her if she is dating Makki. And she finds comfort with his friendship because when she is with him and also with Eiji, she doesn't feel pressured to be sexual or romantic. But, that doesn't mean she doesn't know what she is doing. I don't think she is innocent. She acts on that desperation and I do think she has a level of selfishness. She wants to keep her family unit together with all 3 of them and will do anything to keep that from changing.

When Makki, Meiko, and daughter walk together on their path in the last scene, the camera points to their shadows cast behind them before panning up to their bodies walking on path. What bothers me is that I haven’t seen any character display an ounce of dissent (no matter how small it is) from these normative roles or reject their societal and filial duties. They follow the path. They either give into it or become despondent or just accept the way that it is and move through life just to sustain themselves. While it does happen in life, I just wanted to see the show do more. It’s not that I was looking for a happy ending, cause I would’ve been fine if they all went their separate ways because it would mean that they reject the path laid out. From the outside looking in on the last scene, it looks like a hetero family walking into the sunlight.

So characters like Eiji gives in and plays his part in the “idealized” family. Makki who from the beginning has this weird reoccurring dream of being alone in an unknown white apartment and smoking. Strange to him because he doesn’t smoke. He hears a knock on the door, but no one is there when he answers in the dream. Years later he ends up taking that role in that dream and it becomes reality as soon as he starts picking up a cigarette and fulfills that role like an act in life. He becomes a smoker who is alone in an apartment waiting for nothing. Nothing Makki does is with intent. He is passive and he falls into life as it comes and just ends up being tossed into these relationships. When Makki’s new partner (Asato) has a conversation with his relative about their grandpa, the conversation turns to this….that “everything has to come to an end. Even though he isn’t a good grandpa, it doesn’t change the fact that he raised us. If we accept him now, we’d also be saving ourselves.” Toward the end of the show you see Asato still caring for his abusive grandpa who has dementia and Asato continues the act while his grandpa spits random verbal attacks. Filial piety is strong and so pervasive in culture and religion that it gets in the way of individualism. It is still maintained by the end of the show.

I agree that Eiji crying over the bathrobe confirms he still loves him. But, what next? Based on what the show implies I don’t think he would ever put himself before anyone. I don’t think he will do anything about it because as you say he is too good-hearted. I think he would cry and tuck that robe away in a compartmentalized drawer. The reason why I think like this is because of the quote they set in the beginning of the show. When Eiji is trying to understand his sexuality in the beginning, he goes out to bars and struggles and runs into an employee who recites a line from Macbeth, which sets the tone for the show.
“Life's but a walking shadow; a poor player, that struts and frets his hour upon the stage, and then is heard no more: it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
And that is pervasive throughout the show. Characters living as shadows playing an act on stage where life is filled with noise, but ultimately it is all meaningless so what’s the point is what is implied.

Eiji saying he loves Mieko in a straight way bothers me because that doesn’t get dismantled by the end of the show and the status quo is maintained by the end. As you mentioned, while this does happen in life (gay men can lie about their sexuality), I’d like to see the alternative in media. So, the ending didn’t quite sit well with me. It’s just my opinion. You can disagree that’s fine.

To me Mieko reads as a character on the ace spectrum. When we first meet her, she gets hit by her boyfriend because she refused his sexual advances. She never liked him from the start. She just went with it because it was the thing to do and admits to Makki that she’s not really good at stuff like that being touched and getting all mushy. When her classmate Sakaki gets excited that she’s spending the night with her boyfriend for the first time, Mieko tells her that she doesn’t really understand the feeling of wanting to do something like that with someone. She says she doesn’t get it. Throughout the show she wonders if it’s weird to feel this way. When she hangs out with Makki and Eiji at their home, it hits her…the changing dynamic of their relationship…when she goes to get blankets for them and the camera shows a close-up of a used condom wrapper in the trash can. When she sees them together she says they both have their own world just the two of them. A place I can’t get to. If this is called lonely, I am not. In fact, I feel like I found what I wanted. With them, she’s able to express her love in her own way that is a different from those around her and isn’t sexual or romantic in nature. She has a family in them when she didn’t have one growing up. She is afraid of that changing and is willing to do anything out of desperation to keep all 3 of them together. Offers to birth a child. When she does have sex with them, it is transactional. To me she reads as ace, but you can certainly disagree.