jpny01

"Not as good as Amore" is about level with "better than the Holocaust, but worse than COVID. I'll watch Ep 4 of BBL, but unless it picks up in several regards, that's it for me.

I thought I would have My Engineer just because of the title, but it had a satirical edge that made it entertaining.

I think it's not cute, but at least normal for a 20-year old to not want to be apart from a new bf for 12 weeks. My bigger problem (besides the fact that it would be more interesting to date a carboard box than Solo) is that he knowingly put Gui's life at risk without informing him and allowing him to make his own decision. That Gui's answer when finally told was "Sure, why not? If you kept secret that your father is a mafia lord who wants to kill me, there can't be anything else i don't know, right?"

I only watch Oxgygen because Kao in the cutoffs and tank top and Kao shirtless.

How about putting his life in danger without giving him a choice by informing him? Is that OK?

This is something different for sure - I'm so tired of the usual formula. This is the rare Thai BL where I love the main couple most.

I like Oil too - but I'm head over heels for Tan - he's so beautiful. This is a strange series in the best way.

I'm not sure I can make it through another episode. Is Ep 4 actually good, or just better than Ep 3? Mussolini was better than Hitler, but I still wouldn't vote for him.

You reflect my opinion exactly. The problem with Solo is that you can desribe his expression as flat in a novel because you are reading his thoughts and feelings. In a visual medium, it's a total failure and limits him to the charisma of a cardboard box. It's a pity because the actor is cute and charming when he's not in Oxygen.

Dr Petch is OK for me, because he's totally clueless and doesn't mean to be such a dick to Perth. But Khim... When Petch thought she was going to kill herself, I missed most of the dialog because I was chanting "Jump! Jump! Jump!" Maybe she could land on Gui and Solo and leave all the air time to PhuKao. OK, that's too mean. If She landed on Solo, Kao would be sad so I would never want that. She could just land on Gui and then Solo wouldn't have a story anymore and it would have the same effect.

The actor playing Kao is amazing - he's really expressive and talented, and let's say it, hot as f@#$. When he took his shirt off... Good God. My blood-pressure was already reaching dangerous levels in the beach scenes, let alone seeing him shirtless. And so cute, and that smile... Anyway, it takes some skill to play a comic side-character but also give him depth and gravitas.

Phu is really handsome too, and the actor is playing a difficult role - he has to show his feelings very subtly because he's a stoic character - and he does it brilliantly. Even though he wasn't very nice at first, you could tell from the beginning that he had already fallen for Kao - the bunny makeup, but also the expression in his eyes when he finished it. That's what happens when you put good actors in important roles.

I've been surprised by the actor playing Khem - he's actually very expressive and I find myself caring. He's the only thing keeping from skipping all the Khim/Petch scenes (instead I play them on 2X and slow it when Khem is on).

If I were to guess, I'd say Dr. Perth will end up with Khem and Petch with Khim.

Phu went back for it while Kao was sleeping. Is what he says, covering for the continuity team...

I didn't notice that he was Jet on In Between - he was barely in it. I agree, Jim didn't do much for me. Although Ben didn't either because he was rude to the delivery boy for no reason. I'm hoping the main pair are more appealing next ep! The production quality is good, so I'm optimistic.

Well, Asian-looking. Teejay must have a lot of White too, although judging by interviews with him they "whitified" him for this show because he has black hair. Same with Cooper in My Engineer - he looks way more Asian au naturel. BL in general, but particularly Thai BL, has a bias for lighter skin. I don't know if that's because of the Korean craze or some sort of relic of imperialism, or the "rich people don't labor in the sun" thing, but it's weird. And in the USA it's the opposite. Nobody wants to look pale. Obama raised a huge amount of money with a surtax on tanning salons. Now it's spray tans, which is worse because it makes people look orange.

The editing needed to be tightened. Every scene was a little too long and it dragged down the energy a bit. Like the last scene when Ben was pining at the window, or when he was selling stuff. But it was certainly competent technically. Nothing really exciting either though.

I don't find Teejay all that attractive, but then I'm into Asian guys (like Tine is 10 times more attractive than Sarawat to me). He's certainly not hard on the eyes , but I thought the delivery guy was the most attractive of the three, especially when he smiled. I'm also shallow though, so I may change my mind when Ben takes off his shirt.

Edit: I think I was awat from my screen for a few second at the beginning, and I like him much better now. :) I also liked it when he messed up his hair.

That would have been better if it weren't in the trailer.

I think there's no happy ending for Ben & Jim, but they more or less announced from the battlements that Ben & Delivery Boy are the endgame. Which is fine with me!

I agree with all this! Except I'm not sure the actor conveyed who Jim is, or at least the writing didn't. Looking forward to Leo, because the actor is sexy as f#$%.

That didn't excite me. Every scene was just a little too long, the Ben actor was better than average for a BL, but not very charismatic - and it's hard to get a feeling for his character unless we're meant to dislike him, because mission accomplished if that's the case. If he's going to be an entitled brat, then they should commit to it (e.g. Judah in Quaranthings), but he was strangely rude to the delivery guy and talked down to him, but then was otherwise normal.

Being rude to service people is an instant X for me. These are usually underprivileged people working hard to support their families who never had the advantages people like Ben obviously have, plus the nature of their jobs make them unable to stand up for themselves.

In any case I was way more interested in th delivery boy than Ben or Jim. Or finding out what Jim's nanny knows.

Every gay boy in BL has the same female friend - she must be tired running between shows. It's getting old.

I'll watch the second ep, but unless the two leads are exciting together or at least take their shirts off this might have to be a miss.

Ben took 8 years to get through college which should make him 26. The actor is 27. There's ageism, but you're taking it to a whole 'nutha level.

Thanks for the recommendation. I've seen ads for Gay OK but not watched it. 8.1 is very low. By comparison Oxygen is at 8.6. It's a formulaic BL drama.

The trans character is only there for comic relief. Hopefully her role will become more substantial, but so far she just inappropriately touches people. Aiden says "that's the problem with you - you think all straight people are homophobic", and as he's responding to Danny expressing surprise that Aiden is not homophobic, that means Aiden identifies as straight - or is being deliberately deceptive, which makes no sense in the context of that scene.

I am not saying this to insult you, because I think your faith in humanity is truly lovely, but your comment about LGBTQ actors not being willing to act in anything with homo- or transphobia is perhaps a bit naive. LGBTQ actors have been acting in LGBTQ-phobic productions forever. Unfortunately, one's values are often discarded to collect a paycheck. And some of these actors most likely can't afford to be too choosey. Also, in a conservative society with limited depictions of LGBTQ characters, having LGBTQ characters at all may seem better than nothing.

Where I am (California), the T and Q has only recently been viewed as equally legitimate, even within the LGBTQ community - so it may be some gay actors in some cultures aren't living within a context that fully perceives transphobia for what it is - and so it's perhaps our responsibility to point it out.

If a trans character is outrageous, predatory, and serves no purpose other than to be "comical", that's transphobic, like Madam Curacha (so far). She can be a comic character, but must have agency and be important to the plot (like Jennie in The Shipper) in order not to be transphobic.

These are all good points. I think the very short run time of the series is limiting - I wish they could have made it longer so they could explore all this a little slower. The reason I love shows like this is that the characters are flawed and complex - but seeing as it's rated 8.1, which is extremely low, BL audiences seem to prefer their Prince Charming/Damsel in Distress formulaic shows.