A somewhat underrated, rather beautiful show
I've currently binge-watched 3 dramas (and counting :?) over my one-week holiday and this has been my favourite.I'm quite drawn by dramas with a sense of loss to them (is it a tendency towards emotional catharsis? emotional masochism? God knows) and indeed, this drama has quite a lot of that present, so if you're not the kind of person who likes to face a sense of loss or an awareness of the impermanence of love and life (something which plagues this drama) then maybe this is not the one for you.
There are, as other reviewers point out, some situations which practically do not make sense and anomalies which I overlooked. Without saying too much, it does appear that certain things are left unresolved or unclear in the plot, as question marks of sorts which may irk some of you. Yet also, there are a couple of unpredictable plot twists - something I liked about this series.
I particularly enjoyed seeing both Thai actors and Korean actors in this drama. As someone who has watched both Thai and Korean BLs it was really nice to see the two worlds, and languages combine. I believe the acting was reasonably good too, and although people often find side plots a nuisance, in my opinion they added value to the drama and made it feel more well-rounded.
There are better series than this out there. But this drama was touching, and that's why I recommend it.
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Ordinary, but cute
At first glance, or rather for the first few glances, I decided to skip this because of the rating and because I'm not really much of a foodie. Nevertheless, upon actually watching this I decided that it was mildly enjoyable - most of that being due to the set, the OST, the visuals, and the chemistry between the main two characters which is generally cute and wholesome. I'd definitely recommend this for fans of Playlist Global because the vibes of the OST and set are reminiscent of Twenty Twenty and Love Playlist to some extent.This drama isn't exactly that original - for me it certainly does not match the likes of other BL dramas (i.e. Colour Rush), but I have to admit it was quite refreshing. (If you're looking for comedy, look elsewhere though.)
In essence, this drama isn't the brightest star in the BL universe, but if you like a simple, slice-of-life city romance without many cringy moments, this drama is the one for you :)
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This review may contain spoilers
Watch for the tension, not for the plot (trigger warning: sexual harrassment)
This film was not a waste of my time, because I felt like it lit a spark in me that I have not seen for a long time (possibly because I took a break from films and dramas that are like these).I would recommend this if you simply need a mere tick-in-the-box for "enemies to lovers" or even "Dance BL". Also if you like one character being like ice or snow, and the other being like fire or sunshine. That said, there are a few options that are far better. I suppose this film is a manga adaptation, so I don't even think I can blame the directors for everything that I am about to complain about.
The love shown in this film does remind me of this quote from another Japanese film, Happyend, which states, "You can say important things without words". A lot of the development of this relationship seems to be like that - without words. But in a way that seems to be almost unhealthy. The avoidant character Shinya Sugiki shows hardly any signs of true character growth. It appears that what drives his character growth is a quote about dance I find to be rather cringy - "love is what makes [dance] whole". Honestly, it seems like whatever minimal character development happens for him is pinned on this quote. Shinya Sugiki is actually a fascinating character in general, though. A lot of dichotomies. Like being self-sacrificing and also a control freak.
DON'T GET ME STARTED on the amount of boundary violations and questionable things this promotes (nothing new to BL). Stuff like Shinya Sugiki pushing his genitals against Shinya Suzuki at the start and he never even apologises for it. SEXUAL HARASSMENT HELLO? And then Shinya Suzuki literally forcing himself on Shinya Sugiki after Sugiki pushes him away. CONSENT WHERE?!!!
Cultural misrepresentation is there of The UK to some extent (I live here and it's not all old white men and women - but I suppose the ballroom scene might be like that still). But primarily of Latin American culture. The idea that Latin American dance and culture is simply "sexual" - i.e. how Suzuki describes it - is a stereotype. The British (in my eyes partly represented somehow by Sugiki) are not that cold either, although we certainly have plenty of courteous avoidants if you look in the right places, like for instance my former taste in men.
The plot makes no sense whatsoever, like how does calling someone lame then suddenly result in a surge in romantic closeness (I suppose I can see why perhaps because its like maybe the character who was called lame was like "He's the only one who sees me and will call me out for my mess"). But the reason why Sugiki keeps pulling away emotionally and physically is never made that clear, although of course self-image issues do play a role. You know what, I should give this film a bit more credit because there is at least some reasoning behind the push-and-pull dynamic. Like Sugiki talks about how he sort of became the "grim reaper", i.e. how while he wanted to replace the person in power during ballroom dances and become like a more chivalrous and warm version, he inevitably (as humans do) enjoyed being in power, and we can sort of see this leaking into his life in general.
Also, the women are sort of just supporting characters. Although they have distinct personalities, nothing about their background or story is well-developed. So if you are a fan of having side character women who actually have their own story (I know not all of you are), then this is not the film for you.
Anyway, that's it. In sum, watch for the steaminess and the aesthetics (I'll leave complaining about the smoking aesthetic for another day), but keep a critical mind and separate this romance and the cultural depictions from reality as much as you can. Or maybe that's what I need to do with my pattern of being drawn to avoidants in the past.
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The best among the BLs I've watched so far
I've tried to keep this review as vague as possible to not spoil you all.I've watched about 5 BL dramas so far and that probably means I don't have a grand amount of experience of what does and does not makes things click, but from what I can tell this one is an excellent choice. Kudos to the original manhwa creator. I would be whipped for a free English version of said manhwa, because this plotline is unique indeed. In terms of BL I'm more used to ordinary life type romances, so this drama's concept of Monos and Probes is reminiscent of vaguely dystopian/sci-fi books that I've read in the past. Such a concept is one I quickly fell in love with.
Obviously if any of you reading this are colour blind, I wouldn't recommend this drama :/ Besides that, there are minor setbacks. The music and the visuals gets semi-irritating during Choi Yoon Woo's first experiences of colour, although perhaps it's meant to reflect how overwhelming it is for him. As in some other BL dramas that I've watched, perhaps because the episodes are so short, some aspects of the side plot remain unexplored. Yet even the side plot itself warrants praise for being atypical (the Grandfather you will hear of is an instance of this).
As for the acting I'd say both do a good job - there's some more profound expression from Yoo Jun's (the character Choi Yeon Woo's ) side. That could be put down to his acting experience being much greater than Heo Hyun Jun (character Go Yoo Han) though. Unlike some other series that I've encountered, I haven't silently begged for a less stone-like facial expression from either of the characters. Their emotions are pretty clear, even if sometimes it's all in their eyes.
In terms of the romance, I'm not sure if it's love or dependence but I'll take it as love. Either way the dependence adds to the intensity of the relationship, and there's a hell of a lot of romantic tension which really grips your heart. Although some of the plot is unsurprisingly unrealistic, the romance isn't. I sort of appreciate how this BL doesn't start with a forced kiss or a oh-no-I've-fallen-into-a-strangely-sexual-position thing. The skinship is subtle and beautiful and definitely adds to the chemistry between the two leads.
Anyway, I probably sound too neutral and critical. In reality I'm very, very, very whipped for this drama. Go watch it :)
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