Pinoy BL Series

Our languages & names are products of our complicated history: 333 years of Spanish colonialism & 48 years of US colonialism (we were also under Japan for 3 years during World World II). But our core culture is Austronesian so we also share a lot of similar words with Indonesia & Malaysia. We also have a lot of Chinese-Filipinos. If you check out the surnames of the cast, at least 2 (Darwin & Karissa) have Chinese origins. They’re both Filipinos but I’m sure they have some Chinese ancestry.

The plot/storyline of 90 Days progressed on Episode 2: Virtual Bonding with information about Greg's past relationship with Patrick and the introduction of the supporting cast members. But while 90 Days made headway on its plot/storyline, there was also an obvious drop in the quality of performance and production. Because of the whining screenplay, the lead actors tended to overact. This was especially true for Aejhay who needs to tone down his delivery of lines. All the supporting cast members need improvement on their acting. Their performance appeared really scripted. It didn't help that some of the dialogues were preachy and didn't seemed natural. In terms of production, audio was mostly uneven on this episode. And I agree with other commenters, something has to be done with the actors' unnatural make-up because it distracts more than enhances the visuals of this series. All in all, 90 Days needs to improve on the next episodes. I hope they get to the HIV aspect of the plot/storyline soon. I'm really interested on how they'll handle such sensitive topic.

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 :)