Based on the synopsis, Ben and Jim will not end up together. So, here's my theory: Olan is actually also a Jim.
All three names, Ben, Jim and Olan are nicknames and based on Filipino naming customs Olan can be a Roland, Nolan or whatever, he can also be a Roland James or something, a lot of Filipinos have 2 first names, so he can be also a "Jim" he could have been called Jimmy or Jim as a kid.
I have a genuine question. Why is it when a character is confused of their sexuality. When they say things "I'm…
I know he's just confused and struggles with it but he is trying to fight it thus, the label "internal homophobia".
In ep 1, Mando told himself: I'm not gonna let this happen because if my father finds out he would flip out if I turn out to be gay. (The internal homophobia is a result of pressure from a family member)
In his dream sequence he told Barry: I may have very long hair but I'm a man. (Implying he's straight or thinks he is).
Mando told his neighbor: As soon as I get a girlfriend, you'd be the first one to know (pressure from society).
Not seen in the episode but Mando's friend said: You're still doubting him he (Mando) already told us he's straight. (Peer pressure).
Mando upon waking up from the dream scene which includes a hot guy and a kiss, calls it a nightmare (bad) instead of a dream (good) since the dream scene contains a lot of gayness (gay princess with a gay prince...) Waking up, he said: No, no, no I'm not gay.
The reason for the label is because he is fighting it, there's a resistance against it, there's a constant attempt to live a heteronormative life, implying being gay himself is bad, but others around him it's ok. His friend is gay, the theatre teacher is gay, Barry is gay. Being surrounded by gay people is ok but being gay himself is not.
That's why it's internal homophobia and it was a result of a lot of input from external factors.
So, Mando based on his dreams, has this internal homophobia not because of him being inherently homophobic but…
And his Mom leaving them for a lesbian lover. Making Mando struggle in the acceptance of sexuality of his own plus the pressures of the society he's in. Now it has been very well explained in the first two episodes.
And that twist in the end, this is a very well written series indeed.
So, Mando based on his dreams, has this internal homophobia not because of him being inherently homophobic but because of circumstances in his life, like growing up in a single-parent household... Spoiler...
So I caved and saw the first episode and can I just say Alex Diaz is freaking HOT like omg....I’m a huge Kokoy…
It's the same director as the director of Fuccbois and The Longest One Night Stand ever, so I'm not gonna be surprised if there's another naked Kokoy with all his pubic glory. ;)
There's always somethin about penultimate episodes and pain. In a lot of series, not just exclusive to BLs, the penultimate episode is the most painful.
If Ben and Jim will be together until finale I'm gonna be kinda disappointed because the chemistry between Ben and Olan is so strong. But then again with millions of views on the first 3 episodes, they can start a 2nd season and there's need for some rewrite of the plot line.
After all the "x" in the title has never been explained. Was it And? Ben and Jim, their love story.
By? (A 4x4 truck) meaning Ben by Jim is a book written by Jim about his bestfriend who fell in love with him titled "Ben" authored by Jim Alcantara.
Was it On? (3x3 Basketball is 3 on 3 Basketball) meaning Ben on Jim because Ben was madly in love with Jim, he's so on to him.
Was it Versus? (Brazil x Portugal next game; versus is abbreviated as x in Portuguese and in some games) meaning it will end up in a fight, Ben versus Jim as a prequel to an actual love story between Ben and Olan.
I hope it means ex as in former like ex-boyfriend, ex-lover etc. Meaning they will date but eventually break up. Ben and Olan falls in love. Still a happy-ending finale. They both move on, and then Jim will find another guy in the 2nd season, preferrably Yves.
If so, twitterverse would explode as there's a huge PhilJie shipper fan base due to A Soldier's Heart bl subplot.
I doubt Ben and Jim will stay friends at the end. There's reason why it's called Ben x Jim lolJim has feelings…
I hope the x in the title means "ex" as in ex-lover or ex-boyfriend. I wish they'd break up in the penultimate episode and Ben will date Olan in the finale.
It can still have a happy ending like they'd promise to each other they'd stay as bestfriends and wish each other good luck with their own separate love life.
Ok, best BL series from the Phillipines hands down. The bugget and being able to be shot normal really makes a…
So this is what gonna happen when Filipinos finally get out of the lockdown. Sooner or later we will be treated with BL series with a different flavor of new or twisted tropes.
I didn't know Jerome and Teejay were that popular...
They are mainstream actors with a bunch of movies and series under their belt. Teejay Marquez even had a movie in Indonesia before and was a member of F4 Indonesia.
All three names, Ben, Jim and Olan are nicknames and based on Filipino naming customs Olan can be a Roland, Nolan or whatever, he can also be a Roland James or something, a lot of Filipinos have 2 first names, so he can be also a "Jim" he could have been called Jimmy or Jim as a kid.
Hopefully...
In ep 1, Mando told himself: I'm not gonna let this happen because if my father finds out he would flip out if I turn out to be gay. (The internal homophobia is a result of pressure from a family member)
In his dream sequence he told Barry: I may have very long hair but I'm a man. (Implying he's straight or thinks he is).
Mando told his neighbor: As soon as I get a girlfriend, you'd be the first one to know (pressure from society).
Not seen in the episode but Mando's friend said: You're still doubting him he (Mando) already told us he's straight. (Peer pressure).
Mando upon waking up from the dream scene which includes a hot guy and a kiss, calls it a nightmare (bad) instead of a dream (good) since the dream scene contains a lot of gayness (gay princess with a gay prince...) Waking up, he said: No, no, no I'm not gay.
The reason for the label is because he is fighting it, there's a resistance against it, there's a constant attempt to live a heteronormative life, implying being gay himself is bad, but others around him it's ok. His friend is gay, the theatre teacher is gay, Barry is gay. Being surrounded by gay people is ok but being gay himself is not.
That's why
it's internal homophobia and it was a result of a lot of input from external factors.
And that twist in the end, this is a very well written series indeed.
I thought it was just the two of them in the entire series.
I also like it that focus will be just on the two of them, as there's no other people in the cast anyway. This turned out to be cuter than I expected.
After all the "x" in the title has never been explained. Was it And? Ben and Jim, their love story.
By? (A 4x4 truck) meaning Ben by Jim is a book written by Jim about his bestfriend who fell in love with him titled "Ben" authored by Jim Alcantara.
Was it On? (3x3 Basketball is 3 on 3 Basketball) meaning Ben on Jim because Ben was madly in love with Jim, he's so on to him.
Was it Versus? (Brazil x Portugal next game; versus is abbreviated as x in Portuguese and in some games) meaning it will end up in a fight, Ben versus Jim as a prequel to an actual love story between Ben and Olan.
I hope it means ex as in former like ex-boyfriend, ex-lover etc. Meaning they will date but eventually break up. Ben and Olan falls in love. Still a happy-ending finale. They both move on, and then Jim will find another guy in the 2nd season, preferrably Yves.
If so, twitterverse would explode as there's a huge PhilJie shipper fan base due to A Soldier's Heart bl subplot.
It can still have a happy ending like they'd promise to each other they'd stay as bestfriends and wish each other good luck with their own separate love life.
They can still title it the same with a subtitle:
Ben x Jim
Bestfriends' Lovers
Season 2
Somethin' like that.
A strong episode imo, but why does big-budget Filipino BL series cast a lot of characters?