warrenaa

The final episode was an extended essay in nostalgia, all leading up to the final moment with the red truck hurtling down the road, Shen Nan stopping but not looking back, the appendage on his necklace cracking, hearing that no one, i.e. Shi Wen, was not killed, and Shen Nan moving on. Not exactly a happy ending, but at least Shi Wen's death was avoided. Will Shen Nan attempt to get together again with Shi Wen? We'll never know.

Personally, I'm not into this idol thing in any format whether it be a reality show or a boyband, nor can I relate to these obsessed and sometimes toxic fans who feel they own these superstars and feel that if they have a real love life then it's a betrayal. It's all a bit much but I understand it. I'm just too old for all this and it's far removed from the music I enjoy which is the classical variety. Nevertheless, it is a frequent storyline in many BL dramas and here it came to the fore and was treated with compassion for those involved even though there is still some suffering. Per seemed to come out of it reasonably unscathed. As for Thame and Po, I just hope they manage to get to the end of the series without having to go through that as well. Somehow, I think they will.

Ep. 4 was released yesterday on YouTube and still doesn't appear to be over.

Quintessential Chinese silliness with a BL subtext.

Phra Aek appears to be flustered when he's around Nom Jued sometimes, maybe because he's unexpectedly falling for him. He's definitely showing signs of jealousy, especially when Nom Jued is with Korn and is somewhat devastated when he sees him give a bouquet of flowers to Korn, then to his delight, he is given one too. Despite the brusque way Phra Aek speaks to Nom Jued sometimes, he obviously cares for him. Not quite a romance yet but it's not far off.

Yes, I meant screen lock. I'll edit my comment to reflect that.

Interesting. I've never heard of phones turning off encryption automatically in certain locations and I've never seen a setting for it.

The fact that Kaori can just pick up Kazuaki's phone and scroll through it looking at messages beggars belief. I mean, these days, security is everything. How many people don't use the screen lock facilities, like drawing a figure on nine dots or using one's fingerprint to open up the phone's contents? Very few, I'd say. It's his own fault this happened but it's wrong of Kaori to do that and in any case, as she apparently hates sex what right has she to stop Kazuaki from having it? They are merely boyfriend and girlfriend. That said, it certainly adds some drama to the boys' clandestine meeting but what is more interesting is that having discovered the joy of gay sex, Kazuaki suddenly can't get enough of Sei. (When is he going to stop calling him Mr. Nakarai?) They kiss well but I'd like Sei to display more passion in future asignations.

It's made on the cheap, the actors are cute but their acting is only passable, the story is derivative, the dialogue is weak and the subs are awful.

All these kids falling for each other. On the surface, it's little more than puppy love. However, with Woo Hyun and Do Ha, despite the former's liking of the teacher, I think these two will probably develop a deeper love for each other. Certainly, Do Ha is proactively moving things along and Woo Hyun is not resisting.

It's hard to be really positive about this. The budget is low, the actors aren't bad but at 13yo they're too young to be in this sort of series and the subtitles leave much to be desired, especially its use of pronouns. You'd also think the few times they're not fighting or ignoring each other when they have decided to be boyfriends, there might be a little kiss; no such luck. Indeed, even in the only shower scene, the boy's nipples are blurred. It's all very prurient. In the course of the story, a character named Earn is mentioned numerously who one assumes is a boy (like in Love Sick 2024) but it turns out he's a girl. A regular prop is a single condom, which given the lack of anything remotely romantic happening, is there probably just for titillation. I hope Series 2 is an improvement but it isn't very likely.

I've seen some ghastly mothers in BL series over the years but in sheer awfulness no one beats Cir's mother. How she treats Cir sounds like child abuse. His back story is truly lamentable. Fortunately, he has a mind of his own and does his best to stand up to her and I'm damn sure he won't let her separate him from his beloved Phu who for the first time in his life allows him to experience real happiness. We know he's been interested in Phu for four years and inserted himself into Phu's life in unusual circumstances, then quickly became boyfriends in all but name. Their love scene in Ep. 5 sizzled and I especially liked how it finished, something we rarely see.

Yes, start watching it. Phu is cute, Cir is handsome, their chemistry is spot on (the love scene in Ep. 5 sizzled), they make a truly lovely couple and the story has its mystery, is well told and with the added entertainment from the side characters, there's a lot going for this series.

It's what you could call a 'creeper', in that it improves with each episode. I like that Nom Juet sees Phra Aek as a good guy, which fundamentally he is, and as a leading man, it's rare to have someone with facial hair but with his long hair style and hippie demeanour, it suits him. He's not bad looking either. Although it didn't progress much in the second episode, the next one looks as though things will get more interesting. This is definitely worth sticking with.

What is it with the flashing pendant hanging from Shen Nan's neck? What does it signify when it flashes?

The thing about cheating: neither of the boys are married - Nakari lives with an asexual guy and Hagiwara lives with a frigid girlfriend, so technically, if they look for sex on the side, it can't really be called cheating and if their partners find out, they're in no position to criticise or complain, so good on them. Fortuitous, serendipitous, call it what you will. They're both in the same sex-starved environment and having found each other and like each other, taking it to the next step is not that unexpected, particularly as both of them are attractive in different ways so they complement each other. Furthermore, even if one of them isn't gay, as we've seen countless times, fluid sexuality is increasingly common. The thought of releasing their pent-up sexual frustrations with each other will be as surprising for them as it will be deeply satisfying.

The drama, the writing and the acting in Ep. 10 were so on point. The characters really have depth. I'm looking forward to a more joyous Ep.11.

It's lovely to see how the two pairs, working together on their dual tasks, gradually realise their attraction to each other through looks, touches, and, in one instance, an accidental kiss. Next week can't come soon enough.

A movie I've been meaning to watch for years, it displays the dissolute and hedonistic life of a group of gay guys in Taipei. There's not much more to it than that can be easily discerned though apparently there is a plot of sorts. Can be seen on YouTube.

Rak's father's rejection was probably the fiercest I've ever seen. It seemed to come out of nowhere and it was wrong of him not to listen to Rak so it fell to other family members to bring him around. Full marks to Rak, though, for standing firm. It all paid off. Once more, they were a happy and united family. I'm satisfied with the way this section was covered. A minor point: Meunfah coming from a wealthy family was never mentioned, but it's understandable - the mercenary aspect was never a consideration, it was always the social and traditional values that were paramount, but the times they are a changing, for just this week LGBT citizens of Thailand were able to marry legally, a milestone in gay rights and the first SE Asian country to bestow them.