MAI

I've seen many people complain about about the shows lack of funding and overall promotion but is there anyone who would be willing to share the actual proof/sources with me? Don't get me wrong, I don't have a hard time believing this show had to deal with a tight budget and is also quite controversial, but it's just that, in reality, many action productions struggle with the budget, simply because it is just more expensive to film action scenes and to hire stunt actors, than to make a romantic comedy. That is not an issue that only the crew of Not Me faces. Moreover, every fan wants their favourite show to receive more funding, that's also not necessary a new complaint. I'd love to hear some actual examples and numbers. Is there any information about how much funding normal GMMTV shows receive in comparison to Not Me for instance?

Legit curious, tho, how did they manage to get this episode? Has this episode already aired in Korea? I have a Gagaoolala subscription and I can't even watch it yet? How? 😮

Imma be describing my romantic endeavours as 'tertiary lip-locking' from now on. Excuse me, kissing is for mere peasants. 💁

In all seriousness, I was also not greatly bothered by the way this kiss scene was approached. I mean, it was surely not award winning but it was believable enough to not take me out of the story. I've also seen enough shows where the actors refrain from moving their lips altogether (also in straight romances) and, as you said, this was nothing like that. I'm also not bothered by the fact that the kiss wasn't "real" because-- in the end-- none the romantic relationships depicted on screen are real. If the actors didn't actually lock lips (for whatever reason) I don't really care-- just make the thing look believable. I watch series like these for for the storyline, the emotional build-up, and the angst; if I would be in dire need of seeing two dudes kiss then there is ample pornographic material out there I could delve into instead.

Oh my god, the production/art design of this show is simply amazing! I've only watched the first episode so far but the fashion and all the little interior design details are incredibly historically accurate. I was amazed by the fact that they even got that glass Visions cookware! That stuff is real vintage and in pretty high demand amongst collectors. They did their research!

Do we know why the show was banned in the Philippines?

The movie basically plays on the feelings of angst, insecurity, and a fear of the future/the unknown that is so central to the teenage experience. This is a story about a bunch of high school students who are almost graduating and, hence, are almost entering the 'real' adult world. The absence of Kirishima is used as an entry point in showing how all of the characters struggle with a lack of guidance and feel pressure to behave in a way that is expected of them by society (like mindless zombies fighting for survival). They are looking for someone who can tell them exactly how to behave and how to live life-- and of course there is no one who can. There is no Kirishima, no ultimate authority, who can give them all the answers they need. In his absence, they'll need to figure things out on their own.
That is also why the many sports/music rehearsals function as a red thread throughout the story: the director is implying that high school life is basically the practice stage of the adult life. All the students are frantically trying to prepare themselves for the future and trying to find their place in the social hierarchy.

Great symbolism and creative storytelling, though I personally found this movie hella boring.

Basically symbolism on steroids.

Ah, I hadn't even thought about it in terms of constraints but that is legit such an interesting take on it! Now that I think of it, this is very much true in most of the shows I've watched. The secondary couple typically gets more leeway in expressing their love in ways that are less conventional, and I suppose that is also one of the reasons why, in heteronormative, mainstream media, the queer couple also usually remains the secondary couple. There are certain expectations that come with watching a romantic comedy, and the director/scriptwriter must follow at a certain set of rules/tropes for the audience to be able to recognisable something as a 'romantic comedy' (or any other genre for that matter). Divert too far from these original tropes and recognisable images and the audience will feel cheated. It is then only natural that it is in the the 'realm' of the secondary characters where the more experimental plot developments happen.

Edit: Sorry, I realised I kinda diverted from the original discussion about Cutie Pie, lol, but I just thought your comment was interesting and it made me re-evaluate the way I viewed secondary leads. Also, I'm afraid your A Boy Who Lost His Smile is a bit too culturally specific for me to understand (I had never even heard of this book and had to google it) but it sure sounds like a story you can surely interpret in endless ways.

Quite literally, in this episode...

Honestly, hearing that this is a mash of two different novels/stories makes a lot of sense now. I mean, only time will tell whether this was a good directorial decision but, for now, it explains at least why relationship between Diao and Yi is left unexplored. I guess many BL fans are already familiar with the original material, so it's less of a problem then, but for those who are new to the story this lack of information was mildly confusing. Also interesting that they took two couples with almost entirely the same dynamic to star together in a series. Usually the secondary couple functions as a bit of a breather from watching the main relationship but here the storylines almost seem identical. Curious to see what's gonna happen next week!

I read perfectly fine. That's what I was saying: to me it seems like the show doesn't know whether it wants to be a melodrama or a romantic comedy. They be playing the dramatic-crying-trump-card in the second episode whilst this presented itself as a cute, romantic comedy.

Not to be negative Nancy here but, yeah, I totally agree! This show is such a walking paradox. The comments have been overwhelmingly positive so there is clearly something that the audience likes about it but, from what I've seen so far, the whole storyline almost seems to have a bit of an identity crisis. On the one hand it attempts to be a comedy-- the acting is over-exaggerated and we have silly side-characters (like the lackey) who must offer comedic relief-- but on the other hand it is also really trying to force-feed us this melodramatic narrative with Kuae's undying yet unrequited love for his fiancé. We get a full-on sobbing scene while we don't even know why Kuae would even be interested in a guy who has supposedly given him the cold shoulder for years. We can't be emotionally invested in a couple if we have only seen a few flashbacks of them as kids. They never even seemed to be close apart from Kuae's childlike admiration.
Then there is also this strange power-dynamic between both of the couples were one of the partners doesn't just have a dominant personality but also just seems to have adopted a type of parental role. They seem overbearing and it's weird at least (and alarming at worst) to think their partners feel the need to hide their real selves from them. But then we also virtually know nothing about the side couple so who knows what's gonna happen, lol. For now it kinda feels like I missed out on some previous episodes (as if I just decided to watch a random episode of a show which has been airing for weeks) but I also weirdly see potential for this show to become a real guilty pleasure, simply because it doesn't give a shit about common sense and just immediately drops a kissing scene. They knew what they were doing there. 😂

Phenomenal. I simply have no words to describe this. Possibly one of the best screenplays I've ever seen.

"But I'm an orphan. I have no parents, no relatives. To simply put it, there is nothing that can come between my love anymore."

... Dang, if only I had known sooner that this was the key to a successful love life.

I see, thanks for explaining! ☺️

How do you know that it didn't get sufficient funding? From what I've seen the show still received sponsorships considering the product placement (the soymilk, the car, the freaking toothpaste lol), right? I do remember seeing in an interview that the action scenes were challenging to film because of limited budget but isn't that a general complaint with any show that's being made? Did Not Me receive less funding then other GMMTV shows? Isn't Gun on of the company's highest paid actors? It would be quite strange to have your award-winning actor star in one of your least funded projects.

When a commercial is better than some actual short stories, lol.

I haven't read the manwha so I can't really comment on that, tbh, but from the first episode I definitely got major tsundere vibes from Tae Sung. The dude didn't vocalise any of his thoughts and opinions but clearly has a soft spot for his adoptive brother considering that clenched fist, lol. If what you're saying is right, and the characters are indeed well-developed in the original work, then I hope the same will happen for this show. The fist episode has definitely not blown me away but we'll see.

When they said they were brothers I was like... what kinda yaoi shit did I encounter here, lol.

I don't know about this one. The production is good, acting is fine, and although the color scheme is hella cliché, this type of storyline isn't hard to mess up. But do we really need such an outdated concept yet again? The tsundere dude with the small and cute ball of sunshine is a trope all too common in BL and, so far, I haven't seen them adding anything new or unique to subvert this trope a bit. The characters are literally walking stereotypes. I'm not wholely against using tropes (also because it is sometimes just unavoidable) but I do like seeing these tropes get their own unique flavour.