ShanTeaTime

Birth Of One Of My Favorite TV Characters, But Confused Face O_O

Okay so "Tale of the Nine-Tailed" was actually a really fun show to watch with others. My dad really got into it and I enjoyed watching it with him over quarantine. I think the series came out at the perfect time because more people streamed it due to being home. However, that also means that more people were invested and therefore pissed at the ending choices like I was. I'll dive into those at the end.

The actors all did a really good job. Each character was distinct, likeable in their own ways (even the Imugi) and layered af. I liked all of the characters, however I had my favorites. Lee Tae Ri as the Imugi was really good, super solid villain and even though he was hella evil I was kinda sad to see him be defeated. Hwang Hee as Shin Joo (Yeon's bff) was so wholesome and hilarious. I'm not gonna lie, I shipped him and Yeon a lot more than Yeon and Ji Ah half the time lol. Their relationship was so sweet! Yeon I actually liked better at the beginning of the series when there was an air of mystery to him. He became too good by the end because of "love" and whatever. So he went down on my list, but still very good character portrayal. But...now we get to THE BEST CHARACTER!!! Lee Rang played by the beautiful Kim Bum. My god this man was perfection. I love these types of characters. Sarcastic, whitty, gorgeous and edgy. I also love the brother arch in series, so seeing him and Yeon interact were honestly the best scenes. Both in acting and story telling. I want an entire series just about Rang because he deserves it! He became one of my favorite characters of television officially.

So the entire plot of TOTNT is wayyyy too convoluted for me to go over. It's got to many twists and turns that honestly it gets confusing sometimes to keep up. Especially once Ji Ah's parents are safe and the Imugi becomes a human form. It's a show you can't multi task during or you'll get lost. I enjoyed the effects in it and the filming quality. But that's Seoul for you, its a beautiful place. There's not much I can say about each plot point because again there are SO MANY, but I would say the whole reincarnation aspect didn't make much sense. It felt just random, like some people come back as exactly the same and others children again? (cough cough the Rang BS at the end). There should've been more variation I think. Also I didn't care as much about finding Ji Ah's parents, so once that ended I was way more invested because we had a solid villain to work off of. However, now we get into the ending. Ooh boy...

That ending was trash, I think we can all agree on that. I saw the twitter discussions and people were pretty unhappy as was I. One of the things I said to my dad while watching was "if they kill off Rang I stop watching" and I meant it. They set him up to be the best character, with the best storyline and a redemption arch. Which was all great, until the did the ever so stereotypical thing of "self-sacrificing himself" for his brother. NO, absolutely not! Listen I get the character loves Yeon more than anything but honestly 100% I would've rather Yeon stayed dead. Have him be the hero like they were setting him up to be anyway. That entire Ji Ah writing out Yeons story and Rang finally having a family was pretty good! I didn't hate it, so why kill off my favorite characters and many others favorite with zero need for it?! I hate the whole "self-sacrificial" storyline placed onto characters who have a redemption arch. It makes the point of all that character development useless. So when that happened I literally stopped watching and just read what happens after that because I didn't care I was so pissed. Then there's of course a wedding (big shock) between Yeon and Ji Ah, little baby boy Blacky is sad because his adopted dad died (f*** you show) and Yeon may still be a fox (HUH?). It was just poorly done and a sad attempt for the ending of a show that was trying to be different. But then they ended it with a predictable trash ending. I would say watch the show until Imugi and Yeon go down, then turn it off and pretend their aren't episodes left.

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Production Value On Point As Well As Everything Else

I don't want to go too much into this series, because honestly knowing as little as possible is the optimal way to watch it. Just go in expecting some fantastic cinematography and set designing, that clearly had some production budget to back it up even if the show only really shows few filming locations. As well as really well done musical score, thought provoking dialogue and scenes acted out by stellar actors in the series (our main 2, so freaking good). The series felt like a more indie-ish project done by an up and coming talented artsy film student, it's probably not the case but that's the vibes it gave me which I love. Like I could see "The Novelist" getting awards in festivals if people actually took the time to sit down and watch it for what it is. Which is basically a layered character study. Rather than classify it as "BL" which it definitely isn't ya'll, trust me. Just because a series has a "gay couple/romance arch" in it doesn't mean it's immediately "BL" material (like for example, "Call Me By Your Name" is not a BL film). That's more its own genre (which is totally valid in its own right of course) and that's why I would just say LGBTQ related content instead for this.

It's funny because as much as I really really enjoyed this series, I don't think I'll be watching it again any time soon (though I have seen it twice already haha). Strictly because it is so emotionally draining (even if the ending is emotionally fulfilling) in some ways because of Kijima's character and how he functions, as well as having to follow around and see how badly Kuzumi has it for him. Let's just say its highly ironic how the two's relationship could very well be something written about in one of Kijima's novels to an extent. However, it's not lighthearted, it's actually quite sad all the way around. Yet also very erotic. There's a lot of very graphic sexual wordplay discussed within this (obviously since Kijima writes pornographic novels) and pretty graphic scenes as well. Nothing too crazy, but done in ways where it can be alarming so I need to prepare myself for them lol. I do really suggest watching this series though, at least once since it is incredibly well done! Though watching it for a second time, you will see some clever hints and clues to the plot and characters that you wouldn't see the first time around.

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SOTUS S Is Superior Fight Me

Yep as predicted, I liked this season much more than the first! First off, our main actors look a lot better in this season. I don't know if it was the hairstyling and makeup done in the first season, but this one was vastly better especially for Arthit. They looked great! Anyways, right off the bat Kongpob and Arthit are way more coupley than the first season ever showed. Which says a lot because there still isn't a whole lot of that until the latter half of the show.

It's 3 years in and Arthit is still struggling with affection. I understand that PDA can be difficult though, so both sides are valid. Kongpob does have the patience of a saint though I swear, he is best boy and I love him so much. He's also a much better orientation leader than Arthit ever was, a lot kinder in nature. We see a lot of that world again, but unlike the first season this goes back and forth between hazing and Art's new job. So it's A LOT more balanced and interesting to watch! Amongst that we get Arthit missing college while getting into the workforce, which is very relatable. That was a nice touch.

Random question. Was Off in the first season of SOTUS? Lol because I cannot remember him being in that season for the life of me. I know my mans Green (Gun) wasn't as Cherry, whom btw was my favorite character besides Kongpob and I'm totally not biased. He was so funny and I wanted more and more of him! Now amongst the cute scenes we get (like the beach kiss, skipping studying to "chill" in rooms, etc) I got kind of frustrated with Arthit. It felt very blamey to me how he treated Kongpob throughout the show by getting mad even though most of the time it wasn't his fault at all what was going on. I personally would put up with none of that nonsense, but he does have massive change at the end with his big confession scene so I give it a pass. Also his mannerisms throughout the show were hella cute, so I couldn't stay mad at him for too long.

Final thoughts include, poor Bonus needed a better life man than that tiny freaking tank he was stuck in. Also I saw a comment somewhere saying that Singto and Krist are the "forefathers of BL" and this made me bust a lung. The end.

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Should've Been Called Bronze Blood

So with this series, at first it felt like there was no wasted time which I liked! When you have an 8 episode series, you kind of have to rush things a little bit. We had moments at the beginning that really felt like they would pay off. But alas, they really didn't. This series became very stale very fast, and without our side couple Pitch & Bank I would've probably stopped watching.

Positives first. Gun is wayyyy better in this than in LBC. This character suits him (for the most part)! The chemistry is sweet and some the moments are well done . Mostly between Pitch and Bank though. Which I was not expecting at all! They felt so out of nowhere but then I ended up really liking them. They stole the show basically! Both girls in this irritated me, but they really weren't given much to work with to be likable. The storyline with the dad I could care less about. The Reveal about the gold blood was kind of cool, I didn't know that that existed. But it is very rare!I liked that Sky is taking an actual initiative now because he doesn't want Sun getting continuously hurt. That's some character growth! I also really liked Boat's song in this. He has such a nice voice! Gun's was good too, but I kinda wish they hadn't overplayed the crap out of both of them.

Now onto the negatives. Again, our main couple fell flat by the end. Especially when we find out that the dad doesn't approve. And then they have to wait six years to be together basically. Wtf even was that!? I hate that in storylines, ain't nobody got time to wait around like that! Like c'mon dude lets be at least a little realistic. The chemistry between Sky and Sun dwindled out to basically nothing by the end. Which is a shame, especially since none of their "cute moments" felt cute lol. Like the kissing was so bad! Again Pitch and Bank were superior in every regard. I'm sure most will forget about this series in about a month, probably less. Watch for the Pitch Bank stuff if anything, but its not a lot lol.

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For A Series Called "Oxygen" It Didn't Take Away My Breath Once

Don't get me wrong this is a cute series starting off, but even right of the bat it's kind of slow. Then it got even slower and holy crap it was dragginggggg at parts. It put me in this dream-like state whenever I watched it, which sometimes was nice because it's a pretty chill show but other times I almost fell asleep. Solo and Gui were really all I cared about in this, their relationship and their storylines respectively. The actors didn't give me many major chemistry vibes, but they were okay. Solo (played by Nut) was actually the most interesting character throughout. If he wasn't in this I would've dropped the series pretty quickly, he also was the best actor when it came to emotional scenes. Though he was stiff during most of the rest. Kao and Phu were...huh? I honestly don't understand what the point was with them. Just to fill up space I guess? But literally nothing ever happens and it was super cringe. I'm sure some fans will love the cutesy (kinda aegyo) stuff for them, but it's not my style. I need more than fluff to like characters and couples.

Khim and the doctor I absolutely hated. That storyline was so stupid with her kinda trying to force a sexuality on him and then him falling for her? Wtf was that about? Then everyone was falling for him and he kept lying to get her. Dumb, really dumb. I literally ended up skipping all of their scenes I couldn't stand it. So like I said before, it didn't feel like much was ever happening in the show so I didn't understand it. Then all of a sudden why is Solo's dad literally the godfather? What the hell is going on with locking your child away with no food. Literally go to jail. By the end the dad didn't even get in trouble for doing any of that. He literally was gifted a new adopted child? Who the hell would give this man another kid to terrorize and psychologically damage!? What even did this show want to be?

So basically for me the only saving graces of this show were; Solo's storyline, a few scenes between him and Gui that were cute, the big Mama stuff was pretty interesting with the kids and the theme song of the show. That's about it. I would skip this one, or skip around it HEAVILY to certain scenes worth watching.

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Could Barely Get Through This One

Holy crap this series was slowwww and its only 4 episodes which is really bad. First of all the 2 main actors I didn't buy at all. There was zero chemistry between them, unless I missed something? The story was boring as hell, nothing is really happening besides cheating, drunk cheating and passive aggressive conversations. This mini series needed something, ANYTHING to spice it up and it just never got there. I know its only 4 episodes but I would say watch any other series besides this one. It's rare that I ever get so uninterested in a drama to the point where I pretty much drop it completely. The only positive thing I can say about it is I appreciate that we didn't have to sit through another "but I'm not gay!" plot point.

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Stubborn Or Stupid?

I knew nothing of this show going in. I just knew a friend of mine was watching it and I wanted to ultimately see what people were talking about. So I can say with certainty the novel sounds far better than whatever this was. The entire concept of friends with benefits isn’t new, the “being a teacher” towards someone younger who isn’t as experienced sexually as you…new but huh? These 2 definitely weren’t even friends for this entire show and even by the end I don’t think they really should’ve been endgame with the amount of crap Sorn pulled. Even Boat the actor doesn’t like Sorn’s character which says a lot! I also found Jun’s character incredibly annoying for most of this show and the chemistry just wasn’t really there between the 2. There’s more chemistry between the actors when outside of the show! The side couples also apparently don’t exist in the novel, which I can understand with how random they felt placed into this plot. I just didn’t see much in this show worth really watching, including the spice which often felt awkward.

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SUN-Y Twists

So I feel like many aren't aware that this is a spinoff of Max and Nat's characters from Y-Destiny which came out years ago. Which I did see and enjoyed! I don't think its required to watch it prior to this show, but it helps establish a little bit more with Sun and Nuea's characters. Either way, this show was interesting. It definitely flipped the script on a lot of BL tropes which I enjoyed and I could tell Max specifically was having so much fun with this role. Both of them played each other pretty damn well and it was fun to watch! Though the plot was a bit repetitive at times, the show didn't stretch its length too far and I enjoyed these 2 in a series I enjoyed more than 'Naughty Babe' which was rough lol.

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Prince or the Pauper? Up for You to Decide!

People are rating this show so low and its really kinda baffling to me. Since I've seen wayyyy worse execution of plots in BL's than this, but yet the reviews are higher? Maybe its because the budget and hype were higher? Not really sure, but here are my thoughts. This would've been a 9 or higher star rating if the show would've been 10-12 eps, it just went on too long after that. Zee and Nunew never disappoint, but I expect that from them at this point. The sets and everything involved with costuming were indeed elaborate. The side stories were pretty good, although the third secret prince (forgot his name lol) side story was completely unnecessary and could've cut the show time down nicely. Like we could've had the pollution from the mines storyline without that kid and the prince playing into it, and have just a barely kiss at the end. Like huh? One thing that bothered me was the lack of content warnings with this one, seeing as there's so much blatant abuse on screen and trauma. So beware of that. Overall, solid show with a story that was too drawn out.

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This Is The End....Of My Sanity

This was really weird. Like really really weird. I didn't care so much for the plot overall, minus the rekindling of our couples relationship. I think Ritsu was wrong for not taking Masumi's feelings seriously and I think Masumi was wrong for assuming their relationship was exclusive without talking about it at all. So seeing them discuss it finally years later and come back together was nice.

The spicy scenes are definitely very spicy, but also some were awkward. It's hard to explain without graphic detail or seeing the show lol. Either way, I would say watch this but only if you're down for some mind-boggling plot devices and frustrations leading to sexy times.

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A Paradox Of Feelings Attached To This

So I'm a big fan of the manga this BL series is based off of. Do I think they followed the manga closely? Yes and no. There's definitely a lot more animosity between our two leads in the manga than in this, but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing. Also this storytelling is much faster than in the manga. It takes the entire first volume for them to even admit feelings and get together, let alone be intimate. So I enjoyed seeing more from them as a couple in this.

Our leads are pretty solid and had good chemistry. I enjoyed the multiple storylines going on with different cases. However, this desperately needs a season 2 I just don't know if that's going to happen. They ended it in a way where it could go either way. In the manga, the second volume goes into meetings each others families which didn't happen in this show. I want to see that stuff! Not just getting together, but the reality of being together.

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The Eclipse Of A Fantastic Show

This show was very interesting. Basically the school is super oppressive and now kids are getting hurt from this supposed curse. There's also hierarchies between the students, homophobia and love stories thrown into the mix. The story started off really strong. When its revealed, I honestly didn't expect Akk to be the one doing all the curse things. Good twist and the explanation makes sense and it's sad. Poor kid has the entire crap schools reputation on his shoulders, I thought the eclipse was going to be more than just a legend associated thing and a social media account. That was kinda dissapointing but again the twist of Khua running the account was cool. However, the twist I hated was that the one teacher was ENGAGED TO THE UNCLE. What? Why? That's so dumb. Thai BL's multiple times have tried to throw in the, this person seems like a bad guy but actually had some random tragic gay love story too many times for it to be even remotely shocking anymore. It's just kinda lazy writing tbh. Also the protests started getting really repetitive in this and I wanted it to end.

Our actors are good in this. I never ever thought I'd see Khaotung as this bad boy pursuer in a show lol. I've just seen him as side characters or in awful Tonhonchonlatee. So this was a breath of fresh air for him I'm sure! First is great in this, but I knew that from tiktok's obsession with him. Khan being "Bruce Wayne" lmao, sure why not. Overall I wanted much more from this series, but its aight.

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A Cute Piece of Pie, But A Hot Mess Of A Show

This show I had zero expectations for. I gotta admit I am not a huge fan of Zee. I saw him in "Why R U" and did not like his character or acting at all. I think he pushes it too far with these roles. This one however was a lot more suitable for him. NuNew also did a great job in his role, though his character frustrated me often in this. Like boo just be yourself! Though their relationship was rocky, it was also entertaining and hot! So I let it slide because I was engaged in it. Nat and Max I saw in "Y-Destiny" and liked them there. So I was excited to see them again, though it wasn't everything I could've hoped for. Their relationship was veryyyy slow paced, but cute once it got going. Our third couple I could've cared less about and skipped through their scenes after awhile. I wish series didn't push for the third couple so much. It's too much on the plot and unnecessary. The only time that 3 couples worked seamlessly was in UWMA.

The humor in this is spot on. I really had a few good laughs! The plot though kinda disheveled was fun and I hope to see these two main characters in another series. I guess there's a sequel happening so that's cool! I just don't want anymore family drama please. That was frustratingggg. The plot wasn't executed the best but overall watching this was a good time.

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You're My Fire, The One Desire, Believe When I Say, That This Show Isn't All Bad

Ya'll on here better get the reference of my title for this review XD

This show was okay. Not great, but not terrible. The lighting choices in this show were actually really cool. Scenes are lit up with fluorescent pink lighting in some shots and its well done. Not overly quirky feeling or dumb. It's also just shot really nicely compared to other BL's that are super stiff shots over and over again. I didn't mind the main couple Tupfah and Torn. They were cute albeit kinda cliche. We saw the best friends to lover trope done perfectly in ITSAY, we don't really need it again.

I could tell things were going south for them when Torn started going behind Fah's back. That is a big relationship no no and honestly Fah could've been more upset with him. Dude was an overworked angel for a lot of this show. Though he did start to neglect Torn and others around him. I liked the showing of the "pressure to perform" in a sport. It's pretty realistic and you just can't let something like that change who you are as a person. Like it was starting to do with Torn, along with his being frustrated with the relationship situation. Speaking of sports, I liked the basketball scenes in this. Though I could see if you don't like or care about the sport those scenes were probably too long for you. Fair enough. Though I have to ask one thing.Why is there crowd cheers during the important game of the show with zero people in the stands? That was hella weird XD

Moving along. The side couples I didn't really care for. Aii and Saen were okay. First their relationship was Saen having unrequited love that turned into a hook up. Then once they actually got together, Aii makes it long distance thing? Just wasn't very necessary, however... this wasn't as bad as the third couple Dome and Vee. They were the worst in my opinion! With the girl drama, the lack of scenes and engaging dialogue. To the awkward thigh/leg rubbing that was like a poorly made version of ITSAY's scene lol. Like why did we need that? We didn't need a third couple but often they are added in to fill in some gaps. Though arguably, they could use that gap time to literally flesh out the other couples more! The only series I can think of off the top of my head that pulled of 3 couples was UMWA. But one couple was dead and technically a part of the main couple soooo... though in LBC season 1 I did like 3 couples too. Mostly though it doesn't work.

Watch this series though. You might have to scrub through a couples scenes but power through it you'll probably enjoy some aspects of it!

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