Kai

I'm not sure it’s just awkwardness. Feels more like they’re not willing to show the real stuff - real emotion, real heat, any of it.
Wouldn’t be surprised if they had it in the contract that NC scenes stay as far from realism as humanly possible to protect their privacy.
And the screenwriter & director probably thought they cooked with whatever this “solution” was 🤡 They didn’t.

Exactly how it's written lol

Much as I hate the NC scenes in this one, I’ll give them one excuse - barely an excuse, to be clear, since they’re actors and acting is literally their job🙄

If Z&NN really are a couple (which I think they claim they are?), then yeah, I kinda get it. Doing semi-explicit NC scenes with your actual partner on camera...that's gotta feel weird. Especially for Asians. Same thing happened with Yoon and Ton, their NC scenes were trash (but so was the whole show, let’s be honest), and that generally tends to happen to most BL ships with dating rumors. Or they cap their NCs at PG13.

Think about it - would you wanna basically lowkey have sex on camera with your real boyfriend for everybody to see (the crew - ppl who you know, the audience)? Unless you’re into voyeurism, hard pass 💀

You don't even know how right you are💀

You’re not wrong…
Or you could just smarten up a bit and watch it for what it is - cute, but totally unrealistic, full-on brainrot 💀

Lol didn’t mean to drop my whole relationship status in here. Kinda felt weird after, not gonna lie.
Just wanted to say it comes from experience.
But hey, you know what they say - nothing worth having comes easy.
Can vouch for that 😏

As a gay guy too, I feel ya.
But as someone who’s been in a solid relationship for a few years now (kinda boring, I know lol, but when I choose, I don’t play 😏), let me tell you straight (pun not intended lol💀): "perfect love” isn't a thing.

It's exactly this unrealistic representation of love that some shows feed you that sneaks in, makes you believe it exists, and screws with your head. You start chasing it, obviously fail, get wrecked… and then run right back to the same fantasy that got you stuck in the first place. Rinse, repeat - it's a vicious loop. Simply put, a trap.

Go find a real dude. One who’s not perfect. It's gonna be hard sometimes, but real.
That’s where the good shit is 😁

If that's ur escapism, no judgment.

But I’ve seen actual dudes straight up messed up after their first time. They deadass thought something was wrong with them cuz it didn’t look or feel like the bullshit they’d been fed. Shit like that gets in your head. Ppl start wondering if they even liked the person. And those were GUYS. Think what it might do to girls lol

Everyone loves to drag toxic characters in BL for “promoting bad behavior,” which, yeah, valid. But this wtf overly aesthetic & unrealistic NC fantasy shit? Same damage, just sneakier. It rewires your expectations without you even noticing. Makes kids think that’s what intimacy’s supposed to look like. And i can damn assure you that it does not. Especially not in gay sex. Even at its most romantic, it’s still messy, awkward, and raw. Same goes for straight sex, if I’m trusting my buddies.

Not trying to kill the vibe, but shit’s not that pretty. And that’s fine 😏 We like not pretty 💀

VPN is the best legal way. Well gray zone, but still. Trust me, I visit SK a lot.

The chemistry is chemistrying 100%...
BUT
That story is straight-up middle school fujoshi brainrot, with extra frosting 💀 Feels like a Wattpad fever dream dipped in corn syrup with events that make you go 🙄 Dumb af.

And that last NC scene. Bro 😭😭😭 That’s not sex, that’s a hallucination. Y'all...good luck walking away from that without developing completely unrealistic expectations lol
It puts the I in I need to lie down 💀🤡

Not gonna lie, I really can’t stand Xia Zefang. Even knowing he’s in his grandson’s body, the way he acts is just off. The whole story feels weird af

It was cute. Finally, a new Korean BL that felt *somewhat* worth my time.

Drag me if you want, but I’m gonna say it as I see it 😏

I know it’s subjective, but Yeom Min Hyeok… sorry my guy, I’m not buying it. Not the look, not the acting, not the chemistry. You literally hurt my eyes.
And to be clear: the chemistry wasn’t chemistrying. At all.
Choi Jae Hyeok was great in his role, and the rest of the cast held it down, but BL is a two-player game. One person showing up isn’t enough.

Also, props for the more open skinship, but those kisses were dead fish at best. You could feel the contractual obligation lol 🙄

This is the only show this year so far that I'm really excited for.

I’m not your usual dating show guy, but it’s basically tradition at this point that my bf and I watch all the gay ones. It’s cultural. It’s scientific. It’s legally binding 💀
So, fair warning: the rest of this post is in positively cringey “we” voice. Strap in, lol

First off, let’s get one thing straight (pun not intended lol) - this isn’t a dating show. It’s a “find your next ship” talent showcase wearing a dating show wig. But hey, they signed the waiver, so we’re respectfully throwing in our unsolicited two cents.

Also, PSA:
Most of their MDL profile pics are a crime.
Like, actively working against them. Half these guys look way better on screen. You just wouldn’t know it from the haunted passport photos they’re stuck with.

The ones with actual BL lead potential, in no particular order: Shark, Kong, Beam, Joong, Tino… and maaaybe Pond if we squint and he stops trying so hard.
Chang u r a great choice for best friend roles 😬, sorry not sorry my dude...
The rest - forgettable. Great chat, I’m sure, but zero lead energy.

As for pairings:
We’re team SharkKong, but SharkJoong works too. Totally different vibes, but both land.
SharkKong gives “boyfriends who own a condo & pay taxes together while communicating via eye contact” energy.
SharkJoong, on the other hand, gives textbook P’/Nong vibes -Joong’s already halfway in love, and Shark’s pretending not to notice, but the blush says otherwise. Man giggles like he forgot he’s team Kong when Joong flirts with him.
Either way, we’re good.
SharkPond - chemistry’s just not chemistrying at this point.
ChangKong - Chang, my dude… no. Game over. Thanks for playing.
BeamKong could lowkey work if Shark’s out of the picture. It doesn’t offend us. Beam has the visuals - he just needs someone who doesn’t fumble next to him, and so far, Kong’s the only viable option. Sadly for him, big chance this ship might not sail.
Tino is lowkey a star. Charismatic, camera loves him. But his potential pairing with Chang...meh, even Chang looks unsure. They might just make it work, but right now it feels like Tino’s light’s getting dimmed even if he himself looks smitten.

That’s the report. We’ll keep watching - for science, of course 🤡
And because we’re hot, judgmental, and clearly very qualified lol 💀😌

Have you ever knowingly chosen to watch a series that scored 5 out of 10 at MDL?💀

7.8 isn't perhaps super low, but among BLs 7 IS the average. And when some other repetitive shows I literally have to fast forward through to survive the boredom & cringe (in case I make a mistake of taking them up) get scored above 8, it is low in comparison.

For me Songmin's (or Peach's, if u prefer his Thai nickname) sad eyes strike the most in ep 9, when his dad visits Sun's gym. Oh, and ep 8...you'll know when when you see it 😉

At the end of the day, it’s still a BL, so yeah, there are a few cringey tropes hanging around. But it’s way more tolerable than the usual fresh-from-the-fanfic fluffboys.

And agreed, we need more BLs & GLs that aren’t a fangirl's wet fantasy, but actually reflect real queer lives & struggles.
Still, worth giving it a shot. There’s even a GL subplot if that sweetens the deal.

The rating’s low because the majority of BL viewers want fantasy, not reality. They’re here for sanitized gay romance: emotionally pure boys with flawless jawlines (and clearly labeled as tops and bottoms lol), who fall in love like it’s a fairy tale, after glancing at each other once, and spend ten episodes pining in morally acceptable ways.

What they don’t want is anything that looks remotely real - imperfect characters making difficult decisions, emotional mess, and - heavens forbid - sexual rawness.

This series is more like a regular show with gay characters than a cotton candy BL, and that shatters the sugar-coated illusion. Turns out, when gay men behave like human beings instead of someone’s fanfiction comfort character, some people get uncomfortable 🙄

I feel ya. The majority of shows this year are boring and dumb af. So far, I only really liked The Heart Killers, but it started airing deep in 2024, so can't truly count it.

All that I'm talking about IS the issue. People who supposedly identify as LGBTQ+ and share harmful and inaccurate information ARE the issue.

Sexual orientation isn't something that's open to interpretation. It can be fluid, yes, but it doesn't depend on ur POV. It's opinions such as yours that hurt the LGBTQ+ community. One can't be "gay for one person", because that's ur take on the situation. That's fangirl fantasy. Same as one can't "turn gay". Saying or believing things could work out like this is harmful to the community and misguiding for the rest of the society.

In one of your earlier comments you even said "perhaps in China it works differently". Honestly...I don't even want to say how that sounds, except for condescending.