I was surprised that Episode 11 (rated 8.7 as of this writing) was rated so low compared to Episodes 1-10. While I can agree that it was a notch lower than Episode 10 (rated 9.5), I don't think Episode 1 (rated 9.1) was better than Episode 11. The problem was that people were judging Episode 11 with Episode 10 as the standard which I think wasn't really fair. But now that Episode 12: Jealousy in the Air has been released, I think very few will disagree that this episode is among Gameboys' best episodes. It continued to have a clear grasp of its context. The effects of the pandemic on relationships are real. It also remained true to its ability to make its audience experience a roller coaster of emotions. I got excited, I laughed, I got annoyed, I cried. The cute and sweet moments between Cai and Gav were really nice. Wes and Gav taking off their shirts was funny (Gav's sexier!!!). Wes was really irritating! I've long forgiven Terrence so Wes now infuriates me more. And that virtual shower scene was sexy and tastefully done. But the best parts of this episode were its two most dramatic scenes. One was tender while the other one was tension-filled. Both were really realistic and relatable. Kokoy was really good when Gav cried while having dinner with Cai. I choked up watching Kokoy's eyes. And of course the back and forth between Gav and Cai during the last scene was outstanding. I cried because that scene really reminded me of fights I've had in the past that ended my previous relationships. By a mile, Elijah and Gav's performance is the best acting by a duo in a boys' love (BL) series! You don't really see such range in acting from both lead actors in a BL series. I've seen around 100 BL series (Thai, Taiwanese, Filipino, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Korean). Oftentimes, one of the actors was really good but the other was just so-so. A lot of times, both actors were just easy on the eyes. But with Elijah as Cai and Kokoy as Gav, we got two high-caliber actors who are also easy on the eyes! By the way, congrats to Elijah for another Best Actor nomination (for the movie Kalel, 15) from the highly prestigious Gawad Urian (Urian Awards). The only thing I didn't like is the fact that there's only one episode left! I know there's a Gameboys The Movie but I'm really hoping for a happy ending next week. Cai and Gav deserves to be happy, and so do we.
Episode 2 didn't really improve on the pilot episode. The plot/storyline lacked complexity. The screenplay was underwhelming. Acting was poor. Joe was tentative with unnecessary hand movements while Daniela was too scripted and stiff. Graphics was dull and editing still needs a lot of improvement. I just hope Episode 3 is better than this episode.
Episode 6 was better than last week's episode. While it might be confusing why Zag, who was running after Zig since day one, was not ready for Zig's confession, I do understand why Zag's scared not only for himself but for Zig. He raised real-life concerns that a lot of people (especially queer) can relate. And I love the last lines from Zig: "I know trusting someone is really hard... but... promise... leaving you is not... it's none of my choices... You're that place I would always want to go back to... even if the road is ZigZag... so... do you trust me?" The chemistry between Kelly and Kristoffer was good. I haven't said much about the series' background music and the OST but they really contribute to what I like about this series. In this episode, they're in sync with what the scenes called for. There are still four episodes left. I hope ZigZag end up together. They both deserve to be happy.
Wil was scheming while Kenji was a bit creepy (dude, you've only met Joey and you're already asking him about his love life?). I'm really Team JoNuan. Based on the trailer for the next part, Nuan will be heart-broken and he'll be crying. I just hope they don't turn him into a bad guy.
According to World-of-BL (via Twitter): "I've received official confirmation that Amore will run for 30 episodes, each with 3 parts, making 90 parts in total.
If they continue with the current schedule, the final episode will be on Wednesday 3rd March 2021."
Everything thing you said is on point! You're right, Nuan has been the only non-manipulator so far, but he's also…
I think Nuan is less persistent because he lacks confidence. He may think he doesn't stand a chance compared to Wil and the other guys. I really hope they don't make him a bad person with a dark secret in the end.
I remain hopeful for this series. It has a clear idea of what it's all about which makes its plot/storyline promising. Episode 3: Oh My Daddy still exhibited the same technical and substantive problems as previous episodes. Audio and editing were still poor. Queer characters were still depicted as one-dimensional while female characters were portrayed not only as vain, but also whorish. Add Jimmy and his gang's hegemonic and toxic masculinity and we have an almost complete set of problematic gender representations in this episode. But the good thing about this series, with 30 episodes, we can still hope that its future episodes will give queer characters their own storyline and treat women more fairly. Hegemonic and toxic masculinity in this episode were also countered by the hybrid and inclusive masculinity of the other lead cast members particularly Joey and Nuan. I reiterate again why I'm Team JoNuan. Out of the four boys (Jimmy, Wil, Nuan, and Kenji), Nuan is the only one who hasn't done anything problematic or shady. He's also a working student representing a lot of students struggling financially. I just hope they don't do him bad on this series. While not super funny, screenplay in this episode was cute enough to make you smile from time to time. Acting and chemistry of the lead cast members were also good. My only other issue was casting Buknoy. Why was she even included in this series? Her acting in this episode was barely tolerable! Anyway, I'm hoping for continued improvements in the next episodes!
Oh My Sexual's narrative style got really old really fast. While it was interesting and intriguing during its pilot episode, such documentary-experimental narrative style easily became tiresome especially since the plot/storyline didn't seem to go anywhere on Episode 2: Oh My Neil! Yes, we got to know about one of the main characters, Neil, but the plot/storyline didn't really move much. Screenplay was not exciting enough. Being a black or dark comedy, dialogues were not funny. At some point exaggerations in acting also became exhausting. The technicals of production in terms of audio and visuals improved though. Overall, the cast and crew need to find ways to make this series interesting if they want the audience to stick around.
It was a struggle getting through Episode 6: Xtruggle is Real. The story has become rather silly and the screenplay has become so circuitous. The lines were so long and repetitive. And some dialogues were really corny. Acting was cringy as well. Even with all the monotonous crying, none of the characters could command any empathy. There were apologies for the revelation last week but they all end up doing the same thing again this week! At this point, I don't even care who end up with who. I just want this series to say something more sensible and significant other than its current thoughtless storyline.
Unexpected is yet another do-it-yourself (DIY) Filipino (Pinoy) boys' love (BL) series. With the current BL craze in the Philippines, there's a proliferation of low-budget Pinoy BL series such as Unexpected. Like the Pinoy BL series Safe Haven, Unexpected suffers from very weak plot, performance, and production. Basing from Episode 1, the plot/storyline seemed very shallow. The screenplay required refinement to make it more natural. The script lacked gender sensitivity as well. Even the series description referred to having a bisexual chat mate as unfortunate. I can only wish that the cast and crew have undergone a Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression (SOGIE) workshop before doing this Pinoy BL series. While Norman has his own charms and his acting was tolerable, the support cast needs to really improve their performance. They were generally unnatural with pointless hand movements and unnecessary vocal intonations. Editing also needs a lot of improvement. There were lengthy scenes that could have been shortened to make the scenes more compact. Even the English subtitles require editing. Indeed, the increase in the production of Pinoy BL series contributes to the normalization of same-sex relationships in Philippine society. While the efforts to produce more Pinoy BL series are laudable, producers should also strive for quality production. That's really the main challenge for a low-budget Pinoy BL series such as Unexpected. I hope Unexpected progress in succeeding episodes.
While there were some improvements compared to the pilot episode, Episode 2: Quitters are Losers was still replete with weaknesses in plot, performance, and production. It's good that we got to know more about Dave and the difficulty of finding work was highlighted in this episode making this series a bit more realistic. But Terrence was still depicted as a one-dimensional character. The screenplay as well as the acting were still unnatural. Audio was clearer in this episode although there were still some distracting noises. Visuals were generally uneven. While editing was better, it needs to be smoother. Scene transitions were just too abrupt. All in all, this series still needs a lot of improvements.
Tweet from Elmer Gatchalian (Creative Consultant of Gameboys): #GameboysEp11 is basically the adulting phase of #GameboysTheSeries. It's setting up the stage for bigger and bolder things so yes, we hope you stick around.
Is it bad to hope Cai doesn't move with his family? I totally respect and understand why Cai is choosing to move.…
I think that's possible. Or Gav can also move to Bukidnon. With Ash (writer), I don't really know what to expect or hope for, lol. But the thing is, there's Gameboys The Movie so I don't think we'll get the happy ending we want by Episode 13. Maybe in the movie, if there are no more international travel restrictions, they'll travel around the world (places where Cai's Dad wanted to go) and get married in Taiwan. And then we'll have Season 2 about their married life, lol!
If they continue with the current schedule, the final episode will be on Wednesday 3rd March 2021."