Pinoy BL Series

I think it’s a testament to how realistic this series is. Not all family members will accept having a queer in their family. While we’ve progressed the last couple of years (e.g. we now have a Reproductive Health Law, so technically different birth control mechanisms are now allowed), there are still a lot of work to be done. Catholic Christian conservatism is still very influential in our country. We got Catholic Christianity from 333 years of Spanish colonialism. Trivia: we’re one of only two states in the world without a divorce law. The other state? Vatican City. Lol. We can’t even pass a divorce law, what more a marriage equality or same sex marriage law. So, the struggle continues.

Man, I can relate to this! And sometimes you have this delusion that you’ll be the one to help him with his struggle. Well, you can’t. It really has to come from him.

Episode 2 was fast paced. Relationships started to take shape on this episode, not only between Aiden and Danny but also between Jamie and Josh and between Rico and a fan. Screenplay was less cringy compared to last week’s episode. There were some good lines including Aiden and Danny’s conversation about the latter’s sexual orientation and the Philippine music industry. Interestingly, both Arkin and Gus were part of boy bands in real life. Also, like Danny, Gus had to hide his sexual orientation from the public out of fear that disclosure of such information will ruin his career. It’s only recently that he came out. He’s actually in a relationship with Louie. Gus seemed to be a perfect fit for the role of Danny. In terms of acting, both Gus and Arkin were generally ok. By the way, is it part of Arkin’s contract to have a shower scene every episode? Lol. Job, Luise, and those who portrayed the fans had awkward moments but were largely watchable. Production design, cinematography, and editing, especially with regards to scene transitions, need improvement. Overall, while there were some issues, there were also things to like about this episode.

That's fine! All preferences are valid! Lol!

I guess we have an entirely different view of what art forms like BL series should generate from its audience.

Yes, there's a spinoff, there's a second season but those shouldn't give this season an excuse to end terribly.

The growing chemistry between Aki and Miko carried Episode 9. The scenes with Ace and Sky together were cute and hot, sweet and spicy. The sexy scenes were good. I also liked Miko's scene with Sky's mother. How I wish all mothers are like her! In the Philippines, I would think that she's a rarity. Sky's conversation with his mother and later on with Ace, also showed that he didn't just wake up liking a guy like Ace. He has always had that feeling. At least that issue's settled. But outside the scenes with Ace and Sky together, it's been quite problematic. Yes, it's campy with fantasy sequences, but even campy narratives need some degree of believability. The entire Moira narrative was just lousy writing that suffered from poor directing. Moira's still that one-dimensional character who stole a lovely dog from a stupidly guarded rich man's mansion. And Shanice was barely watchable in her scenes with her acting. Production design, cinematography, and editing were generally ok. With three episodes (or is it five episodes?) left, I just hope they're able to resolve the loose ends of this series.

Yes, he's in relationship with Louie Gabarda who plays Rico.

GagaOOlala, but you'll need subscription. They will also release via Youtube (Starcast Entertainment) but 1 week delayed. Episode 1 will be on Youtube tonight (Saturday), 10PM (Philippine Time).

I agree with both of you. I really don't like all those fillers, recaps, and repeated scenes. I remember I was commenting on those early on but by Episode 5, I just got tired repeating myself, lol. I've learned to tolerate all those unnecessary fillers, recaps, and scenes. And yes, they could have condensed the series to 8 episodes but I also understand their need to earn with more episodes, more videos, and more views. In Between has endearing couples and I like the friendship of the Boom Harot gang so overall, I still like this series.

Thanks! But I’m not always positive, lol. I just love this series so I really try to be positive at the same time objective. Ian’s actually a theater actor while Pao, the real newbie, was a cheerleader. They’re both good. I’ve no doubt they’ll do better in succeeding episodes.

What a heartbreaking episode! Episode 5: Soap was a really good, but very sad, episode. The plot/storyline, focused on Judah and Rocky's self-discoveries, progressed on this episode. While at times both Judah and Rocky were annoying -- Judah with his arrogance and his disrespect for Rocky's privacy (by taking and posting Rocky's picture and going through his phone messages without permission) and Rocky with his internalized homophobia -- I still can't help it but emphatize and symphatize with both characters. Because of the solid character backgrounds laid out on the previous episodes, I totally get it why they are the way they are. On the last three episodes, I expect to witness their character developments. Screenplay was beautiful. While a bit idealistic and naive, this line was still perfect: "It's 2020. Gender is fluid. Homophobia is so outdated." I also liked their exchanges during the last scene when Rocky was avoiding to directly respond to Judah's questions. Those exchanges showed that they don't see eye to eye about a lot of things but they also care deeply for each other. Acting was generally on point. I was impressed with Kyo. He was really good on this episode. I felt miserable seeing Judah sad. Production value was generally ok. With five episodes released, Quaranthings has proven that it's a top-tier Filipino (Pinoy) boys' love (BL) series. With three episodes left, I hope the series finish strong.

That would be great!

Episode 2 was a good episode. There was a slight drop from the excitement and fun of last week's pilot episode but it was still enjoyable. The story moved along on this episode with some revelations about Vlad's past relationship. Karl also got himself a part-time job. But there were some scenes that were a bit dragging. While the fantasy sequence and dream sequence were alright, I hope they don't overuse them in future episodes. There were good dialogues, particularly the dinner scene, and there were funny lines, specifically the opening scene with the hilarious Adrienne and the post-dinner scene with shirtless Ian (who, with or without shirt, is gorgeous!), but there were also chessy lines, notably the closing scene. Acting was generally ok but Ian needs to enunciate better (which didn't really take away much from his good deep voice) and Pao needs to tone down a bit to avoid overacting (he's still cute though!). But these were just minor issues. Both were far better than newbie actors of other Filipino (Pinoy) boys' love (BL) series, so they did just fine. Production value was still very good. Music was also very good. All in all, I still enjoyed this episode.

Episode 13: Bunyag was a good episode that sets up next week's finale. Being a non-linear narrative, the sequence of events on In Between may be confusing at times but one of the objectives of such style is for the audience to realize that things are not always as they seem. This was exemplified on this episode. A lot of things were revealed by showing what actually happened. Ri's not a bad guy after all. He's part of Tau's elaborate plan to surprise Otep on their monthsary. There are still some loose ends like Ri's true feelings, Nin-Makisig meet up, and Bianx-Jet relationship status, all of which I'm hoping will be resolved on next week's finale, although I'm a bit doubtful. I would love to have a happy ending with all the loose ends settled but because there's a Pangs spin-off series and an In Between second season, I expect that not all issues will be worked out. But at the very least, I hope we get a really grand celebration next week!

2 so far: BenXJim & Boys' Lockdown :)

Earlier timeslot, 7PM (Manila Time) every Sunday on the AsterisK Digital Entertainment Youtube channel :)

They’re probably just late. Come back after a few days :)

While Episode 8: In Between/Qualithing/It's My Day [apparently each part of an episode now has its own title; these titles were in homage to other ongoing Filipino (Pinoy) boys' love (BL) series, namely, In Between, Quaranthings: The Series, and My Day] was characterized by plot holes and time jumps, it did move the main storyline forward. There were a number of developments on this episode including the baby being born, Jimmy's jealousy of Wil over Joey, Wil's character background and future (having a cheating father, getting someone pregnant, and his mother sending his friend over and allowing him to stay in the Philippines), and of course, Joey finally saying yes to Wil. The only thing that didn't progress was Nuan's love for Joey. With all the time jumps, you'd hope he would have moved on by now. But no, they just had to drag that storyline. The generally protracted pace of this episode was not amusing at all. Dialogues were so long, they became stale. And they affected the acting because most of the time, they took out the audience's emotional attachment to the characters and the scenes. Cases in point, Nuan and Jimmy's crying moments. They were good (even though Drei had an ugly cry) but because the lines were so long, the scenes became tiresome. The only thing that excited me on this episode was the JoWil kiss. While nowhere near the most dramatic, heartfelt, and well-acted kiss of Cairo and Gavreel (Gameboys) and the most intense and passionate kiss of Ace and Sky (My Day), the JoWil kiss was nevertheless good. It was a sweet and tender kiss. Overall, minus the irritating pace and the wearisome screenplay and scenes, this was still a good episode given the main storyline progression, JoWil kiss, and the change of location/set.

Episode 7: Oh My Trio! did little to stop this series' regression. The plot/storyline was still a mess with an entire melodramatic musical number inserted on this episode. Screenplay was tolerable though and acting was watchable at least. But production value was at its lowest. Artistic choices especially with regard to the split-screen shots were generally off. The OST "Ayoko Na Sayo" (I Don't Want You Anymore) by Bry Aquino was ok but it didn't seem to fit the scenes of this episode. Overall, the continuing wait for an improved episode is still very much on.