Pinoy BL Series

Weeks ago when I asked the producers how many episodes, they said 30 episodes. They did not mention about how many parts per episode so I would still think that the series still have 29 episodes left. But will all the confusion with the release of the pilot episode especially regarding airing schedule and the number of parts per episode, I will not be surprised if things suddenly change.

August 16 during FanCon (you need to register and pay PhP99) but regular airing is August 19.

There were a lot of confusion with the release of the pilot episode of Amore especially regarding airing schedule and the number of parts per episode. The initial release of the first part of Episode 1: First Sem, supposedly Part 1 of 2, was behind schedule last Friday, then immediately after its airing, it was taken down both on Facebook and Youtube, only to be posted again hours later as Part 1 of 3 with unclear release schedule for Part 2 of 3 and Part 3 of 3. Part 2 of 3 aired on schedule last Sunday. Part 3 of 3 was supposed to be released this Friday but it aired today, two days ahead of schedule. Another reason for the first part to be taken down was its issues with editing. A weird “Media Offline” was shown in between the last two scenes of the first part when it was first uploaded that were edited out with the reupload. While the second and third parts didn’t have the same problem, they still suffered from very poor editing. To say that the launch of the series was problematic is an understatement. The plot/storyline of Amore, said to be based on a true story, was interesting though. There were unrealistic scenes like Madam Tusha forgetting about her nephew and there were unnecessary and unnatural dialogues that used purist Tagalog (Filipinos nowadays don’t talk that way anymore). Acting was quite uneven among the cast members. Erwin, Drei, Jules, Ivan, and Petite were alright, not outstanding, but were generally ok during the pilot episode. Erwin’s Joey was endearing enough that’s why it was believable that the boys like him. But the rest of the support cast needs improvement on their acting. The portrayals of women and gays were problematic in the pilot episode. Based on the credits, the cast members also include controversial vlogger Buknoy who has been called out for being elitist (search #BuknoyBasura to get an idea about the controversy). Frankly, I don’t understand why she’s continuously given a platform. In terms of production value, even with plenty of people working on the series (check out the credits), Amore was below average. Audio was really bad. There were times when they seem to be speaking from their graves. Camera work and lighting were patchy. And as already mentioned, editing was very poor. With all these, will I stick around for the next episode? Just for the interesting plot/storyline, my curiosity on who Joey end up with, and in support of the series’ budding actors, I think I will.

We get a behind the scenes special episode called #StrangersNoMore tonight at 8:30 PM (Manila Time) :) #HelloStrangerFinale on August 16 (advanced screening during FanCon) and August 19 (regular airing).

I have TFC but unfortunately not all iWant productions are on TFC :(

Kelly Fontanilla's Youtube Channel :)

Yes! It's a cute MV especially the last scenes :)

Gameboys came out with merchandise last night (Cai and Gav Engravable Necklace, Engravable Braided Leatherette Bracelet & Endearment Bracelet) and they're all sold out!

I got really bored with Episode 4: Three-Ang-Gulo (Trianggulo). Kumusta Bro? had become tiresome already. It didn't help that in this episode, Berdy vs. Thirdean wasn't exciting enough. Neither was the Super Fan Girlie reveal compelling. The plot/storyline was just too simple to pique my interest. The screenplay sounded repetitive. Acting performance and chemistry among the actors were at its lowest. Low energy all around! I'm seriously considering dropping this live and interactive series. Maybe I'll just wait for its full narrative series? But if the plot/storyline is the same, I don't see why I should watch the full narrative series as well. Let's see how I would feel next week.

Talk about character development! I liked the fact that Des apologized to Mark Lee for what she did. Pressuring someone to declare their gender identity or sexual preference and in the process, forcing them to out themselves is never acceptable. Making assumptions based on stereotypes is also never good. It's admirable that Des realized she's wrong and apologized for her mistake. While gestures like these may look small, they actually make a difference for a lot of LGBTQ+ teens. She even gave him condoms and a vibrator, lol! Episode 2: Callationship was all about rationalizing why young people like Henry and Mark Lee use a dating app such as the fictional Findr. The conversations between Henry and Mark Lee were cute but needed some editing (there were dead air). There were some shirtless scenes (alluding to some sort of sex, lol) but I felt awkward watching them because the actors seemed too young, lol! There was a product placement for baked sushi that I'm still not used to for Pinoy boys' love (BL) series. The cliffhanger for next week (possible meet-up) was also ok. Altogether, this was a good episode.

Episode 1 didn't suck! Lol! That's a relief since I was very hopeful about this series especially after they released their official trailer. In terms of production, it was at least at par with Gameboys and Hello Stranger (maybe even better since My Day didn't have to navigate through the pandemic during much of their shooting). Budget-wise, it's almost akin to a Filipino drama series (teleserye). Expensive-looking set designs, product placements, and the long list of people in the credits illustrated just how well-funded this series is. Although formulaic, the plot/storyline was still interesting enough. Some dialogues though didn't sound natural. Miko's acting performance was generally ok. The same can be said of all those who portrayed members of Sky's family. Aki needs improvement though. There were times when he appeared too eager (scenes with Miko) and there were times when his acting was totally flat (scenes with Leilani Kate). The other support cast also need improvement. I didn't like the stereotypical depiction of the bitchy girlfriend and the comic relief effeminate gays -- I'm so tired of such characterizations! There was also some sort of colorism when Ken and Jam promoted and used whitening products. Chukchuk's adorable! Aki and Sky's chemistry needs work. Both are very handsome, obviously. I'm just not yet convinced they complement each other. But we'll see in the next episodes. Audio quality was uneven. The OSTs especially "Hindi Ako Bibitaw" by Paul Ramirez were ok. Overall, the series looked promising.

With In Between, I've learned to tolerate all the unnecessary fillers. There were a lot to like in Episode 5: Magbalik. Otep admitting to his mother Sandra that he "loved a person who is also a man," while not as powerful as Cairo admitting to his mother Leila that he's "gay," was still a beautiful scene. Sandra also said "Love is a complex thing. And we are allowed to love who we want to love." How I wish all mothers are like Leila and Sandra! Genesis' acting was also good in this episode. Of course, the kissing scene was one of the major highlights of this episode. I guess my only issue with this episode was that it still subscribed to the usual boys' love (BL) internalized homophobia and queerness denial as exemplified by Tau's response to Nin when the latter said "I cannot believe that you actually like boys." To which Tau said, "Not exactly. It's just Otep. Otep is different." But overall, I still liked this episode and I'm excited to know more about Makisig who was shown during the post-credits.

While this series lacked a lot in terms of quality of production and performance, I still found it very watchable. Episode 3 had cute and funny dialogues. I found the banter between Zag and Zig comical. I was also amused with the awkwardness of the conversation with Zebbie -- maybe because I'm able to relate with Zag? While I don't think I'm effeminate like Zag (so I guess it's less obvious, lol), I was at the receiving end of those types of confessions and proposals in the past. Like Zag, I just wanted to say "Girl, I don't think I'm into girls!" Lol. That scene really made me laugh. Will Zebbie get in the way of the budding (at least in Zag's mind) ZigZag relationship? I'll definitely watch the next episodes to find out.

Happy birthday Tony!

I really enjoyed Kokoy's vlog, it was really fun :) Elijah, Adrianna & Kyle were there & we saw how the crew worked on the meeting and post-credit scenes of Episode 10 :) Watch it on Kokoy de Santos' YT Channel :)

Episode 1: First Sem (Part 1 of 2) is already out via the Star Image Artist Management Facebook Page and the Star Image Digital Network Youtube Channel. Episode 1: First Sem (Part 2 of 2) will air this coming Sunday (5PM Manila Time).

Kyle has #BlogaLIVE at 6:30 PM & Kokoy has #AskKokoy at 8 PM as well :)

Congrats Elijah Canlas for winning Best Actor for the movie "KALEL, 15" at the Asian Film Festival (2020) in Rome, Italy!

Congrats Elijah Canlas for winning Best Actor for the movie "KALEL, 15" at the Asian Film Festival (2020) in Rome, Italy!

Tony's the biggest Filipino actor to venture into BL this year so I hope they at least give him a couple of nice scenes in the Finale for him to really shine. He deserves it. Yes, fingers crossed, they don't mess up Crystal in the Finale. Junjun is cute as hell. I'm also enjoying his tweets. Lol!