etoks21

YES!!! I'm glad someone else caught that. In my own comment above I mentioned how remarkable a feat of characterization it is for an actor to step out of a car and in one second onscreen, establish that the character has grown, changed, and strengthened to a powerful degree. He simply took over, and all the drunks did as he told them. lol I loved that.

China is Communist in name only. It is entirely capitalistic and unquestionably a dictatorship. It is home to some of the wealthiest Oligarchs on the planet.

I disagree entirely about Yuan not having "self-respect" in regard to taking care of Qian. He has simply been open and honest about who he loves and cares about. Caring for someone, and expressing that feeling in actions, does not automatically carry a sense of debasement to the caregiver. Qian didn't abuse or insult Yuan; Yuan wasn't being a codependent weakling, but Qianwas oblivious to the degree to which he was reliant on Yuan.

Yuan's care-giving was beautifully selfless in that while, in his heart, of course he WANTED something in return, he did not make of it a DEMAND, or requirement for his affection and care, which was freely, and joyfully given.

How in the world is any of that indicative of a lack of self-respect?

As strong as Qian has been as a provider and stable base for Yuan and Lili, it is Yuan who is the emotionally/psychologically stronger one, and always has been. While Qian wrestled with his denial and internalized homophobia, Yuan had simply accepted himself as he grew up, for who he is. In this homophobic world, that takes guts. Although Taiwan is probably the most gay-friendly Asian country.

ooooooooooooohhhh...Taiwan also has gay marriage! Wedding bells for Y & Q by episode 12?!

Episode 7: Another WOW. One of the best BLs from any country in the last two years.

Kurt Huang brings a remarkable, yet subtle, gentleness to the character of Yuan in everything he does. And when he got out of the taxi, it was apparent on first sight that he had changed and grown. An actor who can convey such a thing in a split-second of body language on screen is talented indeed. His struggle, earlier in the episode on the phone with Qian, to prevent himself from saying all that so badly wanted out, brought me to tears. Then...the text from Qian...I broke.

Sorry, not buying Lili as a world-famous model...not one bit. She's adorable, sweet and funny, but she is not global superstar model material. But whatever...

Chris Chiu is excellent as Qian, a suppressed but solid rock at the center of the story. I can't wait to see what episode 8 brings us. There is a LOT of time left for major shit to go down either way. I'd be more worried about Qian's "ailment," but San Pang apparently knows all about it and isn't planning funerals, so maybe it's something chronic but not fatal. However, as I said, there is a LOT of time left.

Bravo to the makers of Unknown! Thank you for a lovely BL to look forward to every week, though I'd be happier if you'd dumped all the eps at once.

I agree with you that celebs should be random people, but there will always be somewhat of an interest in entertainers' lives, almost anywhere we live. It's human nature. A thousand years ago, Roman gladiators were celebrities. Well-known artists of the Renaissance were celebrities.

But as you say, it's entirely a matter of toxicity and proportion. Koreans, for many reasons, and this is a GENERAL statement, regard their celebs with an insanely disproportional level of possessiveness and judgment, a toxic af combination. Add social media and you have suicides right and left.

lol To me, it's just that there is so much BL crap being put out, especially from Thailand but more and more from JP and Korea, that there's not much to like. However, just lately, there's been a string of good-to-great BLs out of JP and Taiwan, so that's nice to see.

Check out my Top 30 Lists on my profile page. I promise you, there have been a LOT of BLs I like, but most of them were made during or before 2022.

Here's my simple take: "Congratulating" a celeb "couple" because they are supposedly dating legitimizes the idea, which is fucked up, that such a relationship is any of the public's business in the first place. If the public is justified in congratulating such an alleged couple, then they're justified later in condemning one of them later for any alleged behavior the public doesn't like. Or they're justified in making it their business and dragging one if there are accusations of "cheating," or any other number of ways of sticking the public's nose where it doesn't belong.

"Congratulations!" leads to "so-and-so cheated on so-and-so and flirted with a waitress at a club while drunk, so they must be canceled," etc.

It shouldn't be hard to understand that, especially in Korea, where such online and press abuse has led to numerous celebrity suicides, this commonly accepted habit of intruding into entertainers' private lives has got to stop.

Finally, yes, these actors' agencies, not the actors themselves "confirmed" the relationship, which means the whole thing smells fishy . Why not a comment from the actors themselves? Or better yet, NO comment?

Asians don't get it, because they've been brainwashed by it always being the case, but it is nothing short of bizarre for an agency or production company to be putting out press releases about their people's private lives. The only press release they should be putting out is "The private lives of these actors are nobody's business but theirs. Please refrain from harassing them and stfu." This "please smile on their relationship as they continue to grow"-type shit is a big part of the problem.

Another fucked-up Korean entertainment convention is that who the performer's agency is seems more important that who the performer is. I'm hoping eventually, Korea can get to the American model, where the agency works for the actor/performer, not the other way around.

This is a silly, goofy, low-budget...thing with a heart of gold and I love it. :D

Just finished my fourth watch, at least. Makes me laugh and cry every time. I just think of it as a really high-budget community theatre production and I'm good.

For what it is, which is nothing more than it's trying to be: 8.5/10

Episode 4: WOWZA. Did Senpai just bottom?

Senpai's puppy-dog eyes! TWICE.

More shower scenes, please. :)

Both leads are very good actors. I like that each is handsome, and not in a pretty-boy way. The direction is excellent, as well.
Don't understand why we got dead fish kisses on the bridge, sandwiched between very sensual love scenes...for a moment I feared I had been transported inside an old Thai BL.
I dig the way Akihiro dresses. Sort of "Hip Preppy." Traditional American/English old-school, with a touch of sass.

The young actors playing the MCs in high school are doing a great job too.

This is a quality show. I'm enjoying it immensely.

Why not withhold judgment until seeing how this plays out? All they did was exchange business cards. ;) What, you want two episodes of hearts, flowers, and fluff?

Episode 3: I think I just witnessed one of the hottest J-BL sex scenes ever presented. I feel honored...and horny.

Mild Spoilers:

I wish, just once, a BL character we know from episode 1 is the "top," who is in pursuit of a reluctant lover, would offer to bottom just for the sake of his beloved's pleasure, and as a sign of his affection and willingness to do whatever it takes. As smokin' as this scene was, it was also predictable.

And no, I don't care how it was in the source material. Anything can be rewritten. And no, I don't care that "the Japanese ALWAYS follow the source material to the letter...blah blah blah." It doesn't have to be that way. Think of how surprising and hot it would have been for Senpai to offer up his booty to Akihiro. But all that aside...WOW. :D

Another thing about this show that smolders is Takamatsu Aloha as Yuto, the bitch secretary from Hell. Yuto may be a vicious snake, but an extremely handsome one. Put that dude in a suit and change up the hair and you've got feature film leading man material. Unfortunately, and for the good of this drama, whoever is dressing him should be shot. The huuuuuuuuuuuuge, oversized sweat pants/coat-sweatshirt/turtleneck/layers-on-layers look in Jap/Korean BLs needs to be permanently trashed. ugh

Finally, excellent move on Akihiro's part to get what he got from Senpai and then leave in the morning with very clean, clear, business-like boundaries set. Senpai was expecting him to go all mushy after the nasty, but Akihiro didn't fall for it. Nice.

kisskh.co

Wow, this one really snuck up on me.

Without thinking much about it, I stopped watching after episode 2 but didn't take it off my Currently Watching list. Then, today I thought to give it a shot and each sequence in 3, 4, and 5 drew me further into the story. I am not a Fluff Fan, but this one came close enough to having some realistic emotion and a touch of heat that I could bear it. I teared up multiple times in the three final episodes. If only more people were willing to say "I don't know..." a lot more often, we'd all be a lot happier. Ryuji wasn't sure, so he told Amane that after the confession and it was...OK.

I thought it a tad odd that they stayed out of touch entirely thru Summer break, as there had been no agreement to do so. However, that turned out to be the best possible thing for Ryuji. I suspect he had feelings for Amane almost from the beginning, but the post-confession space and time allowed him to come to understand where his heart already was.

Their slight awkwardness and good humor after the talk on the beach during the fireworks, in taking the physical steps we saw without nervous giggles, was SO real for me. The actress who played Ryuji's mom broke me when he asked her if she missed his deceased father. She didn't exactly tear up, but the look in her eyes said everything and I was a mess.

Oh...and even I, who loves angst and despair and tragedy, enjoyed a this story, which has some angst but no cliche moment concerning a misunderstood action with a girl seen out of context, or any of that silliness; though I was sure that's what was going to happen when Amane went to surprise Ryuji at the restaurant.

So...bravo. This was a nice little surprise.

8/10

" If I understand correctly, they are re-editing in order to minimize his presence?" That's the thing though, this article, as poorly written as it is, does not actually say that. To me, they seem to be saying there is no way to edit out such a prominent, lead character because he is integral to the story, but then says post-production edits will proceed...wth does that self-contradictory statement mean?

I don't get why Netflix is letting a tiny minority of Puritanical netizens in Korea determine the content of their films? The rest of the sane world wishes the best for Yoo and want to see this movie. At worst, why not just edit it for Korean subscribers and let the rest of us see the real thing?

here we go again: NO, he did not take drugs, you cretin. All his tests came back negative. You're a horrible person.

"Actor Yoo Ah In will inevitably appear because he is a major character who shapes the story. To minimize disruption of the flow of the work, the director, writer, and production team conducted ample discussions to proceed with re-editing [the drama] in the later stages of production."

I'm hoping this means it is impossible to edit out YAI and still have a movie, so any cuts will be minimal. Which seems kind of pointless, and thus, begs the question: why edit him out at all? I would be amazed but not surprised to find that Netflix is prepared to lose millions of $$$ on a project for the sake of a few self-righteous Puritans in South Korea.

A lot of self-righteous MDLers DO care, that's the sick part. Anyway, it sounds from this press release that YAI will remain prominent in the film, as his character is central to the story. I bet Netflix has had it up to here with Korea's hyper-cancel culture affecting its plans to release projects.

No one here in the U.S. gives a shit about YAI's personal problems; in fact, those of us who know and appreciate Yoo's work are pulling for him to come all the way back. If indeed, he has a drug problem, and that has not been established, then treatment, not punishment is the sensible response.

Korea needs to get its act together on this. Companies like NF are going to take their millions of production $$$ elsewhere if they have to worry about not being able to air shows after the fact every time crazy people on the web get a bug up their ass about the private life of one of their stars.

Koreans regularly cancel performers for absurd transgressions such as having the nerve to date someone, being accused of an extramarital affair, texting a bar hostess, touching the leg of one of your friends who is drunkenly dancing on the table in a bar, being accused of grade-school bullying, etc. Korea makes all my favorite movies, but this juvenile, hysterical cancel culture, which just took LSK from us, has been freaking me out from the time I discovered what it was, years ago. After each suicide, I ask myself if watching Korean films is contributing to the cycle.

Like many others, I have been worried about Yoo's mental/emotional state for many months, concerned he may choose LSK's route to peace. I hope he has lots of love and personal support around him to prevent that.

Hey Yoo, my man! Escape Korea and all that bullshit and come to America! Hollywood and the film/drama-watching public adores you and doesn't judge you. If you've got a problem, we have the best treatment centers in the world, and you can give Seoul the finger and get right to work on your next project. Your talent is too precious to waste and let's face it: Now that it's gone this far, this "scandal," Korean media and MDL's favorite word, will follow you forever in your native land. Every news article from here on out to the end of time, will rehash your "scandal." Here, we'll cheer your recovery and look forward to seeing you win your first Oscar!

Robert Downey Jr., who just won Academy Award, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Screen Actors Guild prizes for his Best Supporting Actor performance in "Oppenhemier," experienced drug and legal problems years ago, but such was his talent and determination that the public never stopped pulling for him to recover and succeed. The American public's mature, sensible attitude in this regard is one of the few things I'm proud of about this place.

So come on, Yoo, never forget many millions of people around the globe are wishing you the best. Keep your head up, leave Seoul in the rear-view mirror, and come to America!

Among the best political-themed films I have ever seen. The only notable flaw was the awful age makeup on LSK near the end.

Highly recommended.

9.5/10 (The half point is for that makeup.)

I get what you say about Kyung Gu's lack of charisma, but to me he seemed perfect for this role. Just as perfect as LSK was for his role. But hell, LSK was perfect for every role he played.

I LIKE long comments! I like reading and, unlike many MDLers...thinking.

I always get a laugh after writing a maybe four-paragraph reply to someone who's been trashing me and they respond with "I ain't reading all that!" hahaha...imbeciles. One idiot a few days ago wrote me a four-paragraph response to my one-sentence remark mocking his refusal to read my original four-paragraph comment. lol

MORONS