danieruau

Like I said in my last post, I watched this with subtitles, so I may have missed something, but I don't specifically recall Yoo having said that comment about beating up someone who is gay. Not excusing what he said, but I would want to go back and see it in context. I don't deny that people may find things offensive even if there was no intention to be offensive, but there is also a world of difference between someone saying a lyric to a song and someone using that same word pejoratively. I follow the line that offence is taken, not given.

I don't recall Yoo's comment about Han Yang's sexuality, so I'm not going to make comment on it, but I don't think the issues between Han Yang and Yoo were so clear cut. Most of the other cellmate's tolerated Han Yang's bad behaviour (stealing, saying insulting things, invading personal space), but maybe Yoo didn't want to put up with it and that's okay. I think there's a lot more nuance to all the characters and to portray any of their interactions as so superficial is a disservice to the makers of this show. I think this is the first Korean series I ever watched and I loved it. It was an amazing balance of humour and emotion and if there was a homophobic character I would like to think they would have used it as an educating moment for both the character and the viewer. I don't think they would have let him get away with it, without there being some recourse. Also, many of the characters you would have expected to be homophobic in this series weren't, and I still believe Han Yang's sexuality wasn't that much of a big deal. Maybe the other prisoners expected him to have a female partner, and were surprised that he had a male partner, but I didn't perceive a change in their attitudes. There were plenty of reasons to dislike Han Yang, but I don't think his sexuality would have been high on the list.

No problem. To begin with, I had no idea there was even a suggestion that Yoo was homophobic until I came on here. Watching a show with subtitles (as I don't speak Korean) sometimes makes it difficult to pick up everything and the nuance of the words. Having said that I find it very difficult to believe they would make Yoo explicitly homphobic. His character is meant to be sympathetic and you want him to win his chance for a retrial. If they made him someone you were supposed to dislike or have a negative opinion of, then why would you care either way if he had a retrial or not or was wrongfully convicted in the first place. This is a show that I may rewatch at some stage, so maybe watching it again may change my opinion, but based on one viewing my opinion still stands.

In relation to the portrayal of characters, I'm old enough to remember shows that had both stereotypically gay characters, as well as characters whose purpose was to fulfil some sort of diversity quota, but have no other substance. They were simply the *gay* character and the producers could pat themselves on the back for it. I don't think any of the characters in Prison Playbook were so superficial. I think Han Yang had some real depth and wasn't the *gay* character, but a character that happened to be gay. He had family issues, he had a drug addiction, he had a caring partner, he was in prison, and on top of that he just happened to be gay. If anything, I think the show may have sanitised the experience of someone who is gay in prison. I think he would have faced a far more difficult time and if Yoo was the only resistance he faced regarding his sexuality, then he would have been very lucky. To be honest, I thought that Min Chul and Jean Valjean (?) were a couple, but they had a father/son relationship or maybe it was more complex than that.

As for general portrayal, I think that any marginalised group should expect that as they get more representation that these characters may indeed include negative portrayals. Yes, in the past the villains may have been gay characters, but I would rather see a villain who happens to be gay, rather than a gay villain. There's a big difference.

I don't deny that some may find it upsetting or homophobic, but my contention is that it was interpreted as such, but maybe not intended as such. Just because a character is gay and someone says something negative to them or has a negative reaction (excluding overt homophobic remarks or actions), doesn't automatically make that character homophobic. Han Yang was annoying and if Yoo reacted to him being annoying wasn't explicitly because he was homophobic, it might be for the simple fact that he's annoying. Are you saying that because some people who may be triggered by seeing a gay man threatened under any circumstances and for any actions is grounds for calling a character homophobic? So Han Yang gets a free pass to do anything he likes because he's gay wether or not what he does is related to his sexuality at all? I think the problem is that a lot of people want representation from marginalised groups, but don't want the characters to be portrayed in a negative light. And I don't mean negative for their marginalised characteristics, but negative in any way.

From the previews I saw of this I had pretty high hopes, but based on the first episode I'm pretty underwhelmed. It felt like entry-level BL, with two characters who inexplicably (to me) hate one another, but somehow manage to fall in love. There's not much depth to the story and I felt the first episode limped along without any flow. Even the preview for the second episode looks confusing. Just hope it gets better and it was only a case of Tuesdayitis to begin with.

The heart transplant would never have taken place like that. Transplants require months of screening and tests to see if someone is even suitable. You wouldn't turn up at hospital with a newly discovered condition and be given a transplant immediately even if one was available or your parents could bribe the officials.

Yes, the second season always introduces infidelity or some strain on their relationship, like tensions with parents or work. Everyone seems to be supportive of their relationship and there's nowhere to really go that wouldn't feel like a contrived scenario or unnecessary extension. As much as it will break my heart to see this series end, I would prefer to have a happy ending with these characters, rather than a disappointing second series.

I think Phupa may have started out of obligation or duty to look after Tian but then developed feelings for him. He's very dedicated to his work, so he's probably confused as to his own motives.

How long did we wait for this series to air and now we only have one episode to go. Such a beautiful and sensitive story that has shown the dedication and effort of everyone involved.

Hopefully we see more series that have one strong couple (or potential couple) rather than a dozen secondary couples and tertiary characters. 10 episodes almost doesn't feel enough, but at the same time I've been ultimately disappointed by series that have had more episodes but with endless filler and nonsense.

I'm preparing myself for an emotional ride for the last episode, if the latest was anything to go by.

This isn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but is fun enough to keep watching. I think the fact that I'm not entirely sure where it's going is keeping me interested. The jabs at the BL industry are well done, although the irony of a BL making fun of BL isn't lost on me either. The pacing might be a little slow in places but I'm definitely sticking with it.

This was a sweet little series. It went some way in making up for what was missing from Why R U? Jimmy and Tommy have some real chemistry onscreen (and off :p). It would be great to see some of the other characters/couples get a similar series because we were shortchanged with the original because of the virus.

I just watched the first episode and not sure how I feel about this. Thought it would be a standard hospital drama, but the magic thing is a bit cringe. I find Tantawan thoroughly unlikeable and if she's like this throughout I'm really going to struggle.

It's another one of those shows where the couple has a toxic relationship but rather than face reality and break up, we're made to believe that they should probably be together.

Will stick it out for the other characters in the meantime, but this will definitely be one of my filler shows if it keeps going like this.

I watched it all on YouTube. The channel was Special Camp.

I wasn't sure about this before I started watching it, but I really enjoyed it. Great to see Max and Tul in some different roles. Maybe we are starting to see the maturing of the BL genre with series that have a worthwhile storyline, rather than just the standard high school/university tropes. Would love to see something else with M/Dr Oat and Tat/Sorawit too. :)

I skimmed through the comments before watching the first episode and wasn't expecting much, but I think it's off to an okay start. Not the standard university BL, but enough to keep it interesting.

Update: So, I finished it and it does get better. It's not an amazing series, but it does have its moments. Still feel it was flat in parts and awkward at times, but finishes in a good place.

I'm five episodes in and I'm really struggling. It's not a bad series as such, just feels flat or like it's missing something. It's good to see Peak and Mean in different roles. I find the characters of Dao and Yok irritating though. I'll get there eventually, but I'm not racing through the episodes so that's a sign I'm not exactly enjoying it.

Doesn't look like it. I think the scriptwriters were distracted by trying to work Viva Plus into scenes rather than maintain any continuity of story.

What a mess. I seriously think we've just been trolled into watching a twelve-part Viva Plus advertisement. The last few episodes have been especially bad. I thought it was actually pretty decent to begin with, but I don't know if they just lost interest or ran out of ideas, but I ended up feeling nothing. So many scenes filled with nonsense, storylines that didn't seem to go anywhere, too many cast members I couldn't care less about. Such a shame.

I wish him good luck with that because he must be running some pretty shady agency. If you ensured your actors appear in decent shows then they might not attract so much criticism.

Ugh. What the hell has happened to this series? It started out so well and now it's gone to the dogs. Episode 10 was a trainwreck and now episode 11 was that plus more.

The Wayu/Thanu/Phai triangle doesn't make sense anymore. I couldn't care less about the drama with Tong and Pok. They seem to have abandoned everything with Jack and Koh. And half the other things that were going on previously have just been tossed. This was mainly about Mark and Kit with some of the other stories thrown in, but in the last two episodes we've hardly seen them. This has been such a massive letdown and I'm not all that fussed that we only have one more episode to go. Gen Y? Gen ZZZZZZZ.

I was originally looking forward to this series because I was happy to see Khaotung get a main role and the story looked reasonable. It started out well and seemed like it was going to be decent, but somewhere along the way it lost it. The cast was good, but mostly wasted. The final episode was rushed and felt like an unsatisfying conclusion.

I think the problem is that they know BL is popular and consequently churn it out. There are some excellent series, but a lot of duds too.