Honglou Meng

Lol. Believe it or not, KinnPorsche was my first BL! And I was so confused as to why the whole show was unbelievably bad, and yet, I couldn't stop watching, and cheering it on! I also couldn't understand how a man -- admittedly handsome -- who couldn't even keep his shirt buttoned could somehow be the head of a big mafia gang. But hey, if it meant seeing more of his body...

I doubt I would finish KP if I watched it now. But back then, it was my gateway drug. Thanks for the laugh!

Yeah, I don't know what's going on. I feel like something's wrong with me for not liking this show, but the whole tone of it was so miserable and oppressive that I couldn't continue. Perhaps it's in part because my own life has been so miserable of late, and I just wanted an escape. But then, even objectively, I couldn't see what was so original about it.

True, it's far from being as bad as Takara. But I could at least breeze through Takara because it was so utterly original in how bad it was, and how non-existent its script. (Plus, it had Iwase Yoji.) Here, there was potential for something truly subversive and exciting, yet the tone of the whole enterprise made it feel as if falling in love were an onerous duty.

Anyway, I started watching Eternal Butler this morning. True, it's not remotely good or original. But it's at least fun. And the guys in it act like they're really into each other, and not sealing their lips air-tight as if they might catch the plague. For now, I'll take that.

Oh, thank you! But I hope I didn't ruin it for you!

Well, I didn't go past Ep. 4, and reading your review, I don't want to. So, thank you for putting in the work for the rest of us!

Do you think the reason for lack of physical love was that the actors are both so young, and that, willing though they were, people would be outraged, especially online, if they showed greater intimacy? I also read that there was a considerable backlash after they showed intimacy in the original Love Sick. But yes, your larger point stands. I fear a moral prurience is creeping into BLs these days, and even Thai BL may not be immune.

Just wanted to give you a quick update: I dropped Miseinen and updated that review. Couldn't go on. I fear it might incur the wrath of many here, including people I respect, but alas...

Thanks! I thought I'd signal my return to the US (and this site) with a portrait of one of my favourite authors. :)

I can't watch anything on my phone either. Hell, I don't even like texting on my phone! I use my laptop. Yet, people like Soderbergh manage to make good films with it, so more power to them! It's nice to hear someone mention Kurosawa. The only name of the same calibre that springs to mind is Hsou Hsiao Hsien, but he's stopped making films. I've heard nothing but wonderful things about All We Imagine As Light -- and I look forward to seeing that, whenever it is released.

The only reason I want to try and finish Miseinen is that quite a few of my friends here seem to like it. However, the atrocious kissing (at least so far) and the plastic surgery on one of the leads are too hard to ignore. We shall see.

Awww... glad to hear you're back. I've missed you too!

What are you watching these days? Any recommendations? I've been out of the loop since late-November.

You might not remember me. We befriended each other last autumn. I go by B., but changed my name here to Honglou Meng. I'm the one who writes amusing non-reviews on this website, and used to battle in the comments against gay erasure, especially from the sexual moralists.

And yes,"toxic" is the word, useless as it has, along with the word "trauma", become. In fact, it was after someone gently suggested I kill myself for daring to call out someone's homophobia, that I stopped frequenting the comments section. Talking to people through my reviews, I decided, was enough for me.

I had noticed your absence, and when I didn't have a reply from you to my last few messages -- which, I hasten to add, did not bother me in the least -- I thought you must be taking a break from this website for whatever reason. I hope it wasn't anything grave, that you're still happy sailing away in the riverboat with your partner, and that your engagement here proves pleasant and amusing.

I was mostly caught off-guard by the sexual frankness of the show. After the revolting car crash that was the remake of Love In The Air, and the soon-to-become-legendary like-a-cat-from-a-bowl-of-milk face-licking in it, I was so happy to see a human kiss in JBL.

P. S. I mostly avoid the comments section these days, and have been away from MDL due to a family crisis, but I was so pleased to come across your name and comment that I thought I ought to reply. Hope you're well!

I've gotten through a lot of shows -- esp. Thai ones -- through that way. Never Japanese or Korean. With Taiwanese BLs, I just tend to skip scenes. I should patent this method.

The iPhone movies are not for me -- with the notable exceptions of Unsane and Tangerine, but then, they were not "vertical". But I know a lot of people like Match Play, so perhaps I should give it a go. However, I can't even bring myself to finish Miseinen at the moment... So, perhaps we just need a break?

You know, I don't remember. It was many weeks ago, and I think I was still in the US then. A quick browse suggests the first or the third row, but I will have to get back to you, preferably after finishing the show.

Thank you! ❤️

I think I have my husband to thank for making me realise this: but humour is at its most wonderful and most therapeutic when life is at its most tragic.

Yeah, the 'bay-bee' grated with a lot of people. But since I watched it at 1.5x or something, I just thought of it as background music. Couldn't do it another time, though!

What are you watching these days?

Hi Selbee! Happy new year to you too. How have you been? Yes, I've been a bit silent of late, because of one grave family crisis after another. But things seem to be settling down, and I should be getting back to my old routines soon.

You'll have to thank dramaguzzler for the review, who provided the spur. I'm afraid it isn't one of my best, but it did provide a welcome distraction from the horrors of real life!

I sat through GameBoys purely for Kokoy de Santos. Only he can make me suffer through the word "Baby" a thousand times without wanting to throw a shoe at my screen. I found it charming enough, if slight.

Lol. I know. I don't do myself any favours by rating shows the way I do. But then, I don't know how to rate things on a scale!

I'm glad you enjoyed the review. It was a welcome distraction, and it heartens me that you loved it enough to ask for more. Feel free to ask away. If I can, I will!

Just feel compelled to add that I liked GSP more than the review might suggest. I just needed to get some things out of the system, and to correct the unwarranted hype around the show.

Ask, and ye shall receive:

https://kisskh.at/profile/sasameyuki1950/reviews/417504

I am deeply sorry.

Ah, someone after my own heart... I haven't seen Dangerous Romance, and from what you say, I don't want to.

I'm very sorry to hear of your own troubles with your family. I sympathise with the toll it takes on you, and it has taken a considerable toll on me, but, I don't think we ought to get used to it. If we do, it begins to look like Stockholm Syndrome. Luckily, I have my husband, who is there to remind me of what's important in life, and, believe it or not, a couple of people here have helped too, if only by checking in! So, if you have a friend or a spouse, real or virtual, hold on to them, for they might be prepared to tell you a truth that we ourselves might not!

Consider your request for Gaya sa Pelikula accepted. I have already seen it, but will do so again. I just need to find the right angle/format with which to approach it. :)

Not at all! It's very sweet. In fact, I hadn't logged on to MDL for a few days, and it was wonderful to open up to this.

I want to put up more reviews, and I hope I will soon. But due to one grave familial crisis after another, I have had to leave BL land for a bit. Do tell me: do you have any BL shows you want me to take a look at and review? What are you watching these days?

On your last paragraph, many is the argument I have had on the matter, and it is one of the reasons I no longer go on the comments section of MDL. Not to mention, the reason I was banned from the Reddit BL group, even though I am a gay man, and the mods are both straight women. (Isn't the suppression of gay voices by straight people the definition of homophobia?) The last time I checked, when people lamented the absence of intimate moments in a straight drama, no one asked anyone to "go and watch porn", or say "not everything is about sex." It is in the fact that they specifically object to this in the context of gay couples, and then praise chaste, sexless BL dramas as being "cute", "romantic", "authentic", and "realistic", that the true homophobia of the sentiment, as well as of the love for such abominations as 2Gether, comes through. And, forgive me, if as an actor you accept a gay role, but then are uncomfortable being intimate with a same-sex partner, don't take it. It's homophobic, unprofessional, and betrays the trust of the audience. Why even bother? Deep breath. Rant over. Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.

Yes! Thai BL in particular is now oversaturated to the point where it's depleting the oxygen from all BL. (It's like the green algae in the pond which suffocate everything else in it.) Please give us something new!

Thank you. That means a lot! Yes, I was new to MDL when I wrote this review. And this comment really got to me. Though this is nothing compared to what I got for Love In The Big City!