solipsism5

I really enjoyed it. It really had a very simple plot that was non-problematic. I'm tired of seeing stupid plots that are totally inconsistent and that don't support the narrative - which seems to be virtually every BL out there. The leads were very attractive and their acting was competent enough. I think that's enough to put it near my top tier [just slightly below]. It just didn't have enough content to get higher up, but I thought it was still very touching and romantic.

That was some far-fetched junk. It was an episode where I was anticipating the commercials to provide the intellectual content. I was noticing, though, that Leo looks even hotter when he's angry, and he looks borderline ugly when he's doing that ugly cry. What's with the shaky hand crying? Someone should have edited that part out - even his ugly crying was better than that. Leon looked particularly handsome in his suit, and I was relishing my few seconds of him and Pob this episode.

A conversation with Mamie regarding her new novel, Don’t Say No Part 2, Return of the Repressed Slut – A sophisticated examination of an old Freudian theory.
[Mamie is in no way related to Mame, the writer of wacky BL novels and screenplays]

Solipsism5: Skimming through this manuscript here, Mamie, I just want to discuss this part where Fiat’s in bed with three men at the same time and Leo walks in on him. Leo goes into a berserk rage and cuts off all Fiat’s limbs with a chainsaw. I must say that really doesn’t fit his character. Leo’s kind of like a Buddha/Jesus figure, but a lot wimpier, and I feel maybe he should just slap Fiat in the face as a rebuke, though even that maybe pushing it for this tender kitten-like character.

Mamie: What’s wrong with that? What are you, chicken? Don’t worry, he’s going to sew all the limbs back on and they’re gonna get back together.

Solipsism5: That’s not even close to being medically possible! Don’t do this Mamie. If you print this there’ll be nothing left of your reputation [is there anything left?].

Mamie: I’ve already sent it to my publisher. Stop being such a crybaby.

Weeks later, millions of copies of Don’t Say No, Part 2 have been sold and Mamie’s on top of the Bl charts.

Meeting at an enchanting soiree at Mamie’s mansion:

Solipsism5: I must say you’ve far exceeded my expectations. Is it possible for me to get the movie and series rights? I’ll have to finance this through three shell companies out of the Cayman Islands – I can’t be associated with this, but I would love to work with a literary genius like yourself. Let’s donate some of the proceeds to an orphanage.

Mamie: Why the hell would I want to do that?

Solipsism5: Well we could visit sometime and when you see all those doe’y, innocent eyes, it will be like looking at some rich fields of wheat for all your depraved ideas.

Mamie: Hey, who are you calling depraved? Well, I guess you’re just calling a spade a spade, but it wasn’t nice.

Solipsism5: Oh, I’m so sorry Mamie, I’m getting a little tipsy. Just forget it, we’ll have champagne and a money bath at my place. Would you prefer euros or dollars?

Mamie: I’m feeling in the mood for pesos this time…

[The Solipsism5 depicted here is not at all related to the Solipsism5 who wrote this post. I don’t even know who I am – can someone please tell me?]

I love this. I think the acting is great and the leads are just super handsome. I can't say there is much of a plot but the romantic tension is off the charts - I couldn't stop watching this. I think I enjoyed every minute of this, including the comical scenes at the beginning when they were hiring the part-timer. It's a little unrealistic that Seo Hae Won could learn his job in one day - several decades ago I worked as a chef, and there is just no way that could happen unless he went to culinary school, but this is a minor point. I've seen a lot more implausible plots. I must say that when I see a new Korean BL I always think to myself "I'm probably going to like this," and for Thai BL's it's like, "I'm probably going to hate this but I’m gonna get through this because of the cute boys."[yeah, I know, I'm superficial]. The only cringey thing for me is when they're feeling up Seo Hae Won's hair - I'm like, "Dude, stop acting like a creepy pervert," but it was kind of sensual too, lol.

Sure, that would be great. I'll send you an e-mail sometime. Have a great week!

Thank you for the kind words. I love what you've said here. I'm a big lover of Jane Austen, and I love the wonderful restraint and the subtle romanticism in this which is far more moving to me than a lot of phony kisses and skinship. The show hits me in all the right ways and touches on virtually everything I really love, like food and art and architecture -the beautiful Buddhist temple was one of the best visual highlights I've ever seen in a BL - maybe the most. I like romance like this and I would prefer if more BL's were similar to this. It just feels so real for me and so touching. I really look forward to it every week and I play it in the background all the time because it is just a soothing backdrop to anything I might be doing.

Well said! It is still in my top tier, and I still don't know what we're comparing this show to. Even if some other BL's have a fast developing plot, it's like one written by a child, for the most part. I agree about the acting - it is wonderfully restrained and I fully felt the poignancy of Nuna's brilliant acting in episode 7.
I'm writing more for some people that are half-way between the two camps. I've seen them on many boards and I'm surprised how some are just so repetitive with the same criticism - I expected them to be more nuanced. I'm going to forgive them, anyway. You'll never find me being this critical of virtually any BL - I grade them on a very gentle scale. You'll find me saying nothing but praise for this series which is doing far more than our normal BL's.

You are not allowed to defend Top Secret Together, lol. How can I ever recover those 15 hours I wasted on it? Couldn't they at least have gotten Phob a phone? Did he have the Black Death strain of COVID? I would have scraped together my pennies and waited several months to finish it, but it went south before the COVID problem completely decimated it.

Can Bite Me avoid the last trope, the sharp objects of death? I certainly hope so. I'm rooting for that and a plot that you can be at least marginally satisfied with.

I like the development of the story and everything and it felt like a competently executed short drama, but I really wanted to see a BL, especially with two of my favorite actors. I must say that Boom actually became an actor in this show - he just seemed like a handsome robot in Make It Right. I was really not expecting that. I think this whole series is targeted towards a weird demographic - is this for teenage girls that like straight, lesbian, and BL dramas? If you watch only the BL ones only the Prem / Boun one could be satisfying at all. The Earth / Saint one suffers from having a fractured and bland story with some nice BL kissing, and the Boom / Peak one from the opposite - a good story with no romance at all.

The overall connection of the different stories is very fragmentary or non-existent. I think it's just a strange concept that doesn't come together and the seven disjointed shorts are also of varying quality. I have no idea who thought this was a good idea, but I guess you always have many strange concepts pitched to producers that have no idea what they're doing.

I'm still enjoying it and I guess it might not be because of any great merit it possesses but perhaps some personal preferences - I do love the food shots and the very placid feel of the show. I like that there are no distracting tropes and that most of the cinematography is much better than average. I'm not sure about the plots of most BL's being more developed - I haven't done a statistical analysis on it, but it certainly feels like most BL's have virtually no plot. Just considering the major productions that have just finished or that are going on currently - Don't Say No, Fish Upon the Sky, and Lovely Writer, the plots are rather rudimentary [don't even get me started on Top Secret Together]. I mentioned Late Spring up there by Uzo which doesn't seem to move at all - but shame on me mentioning it in the same breath as this show. I don't know, it's just a matter of personal preference in the end, and I'm not at all critical of anyone that dislikes it for the very valid points you make above.

I thought I would put out something about why I like this series without attacking anyone that doesn’t like it.

But, first, I would like to address a lot of criticisms of this series and why I feel most of the arguments don’t make any sense to me.

1. I don’t feel Mark Siwat is a bad actor. I’ve seen him in enough series and believe that he’s fully capable of speaking quickly and expressing himself. I feel that his character is what the director wanted him to portray. I do feel the director could have had him express more with his eyes or with some gestures, but I feel that is a minor issue, overall. He does have Mark stay very consistent with his character, and directs Mark in a subtle way, at times, like how Mark looks very demurely at Aue in the temple.
2. The director is actually quite talented. He is also the screenwriter for this drama. He could have moved the pace along faster in certain scenes but he’s done so much with other aspects of the show. The attention to detail, the inclusion of ideas from history to art to the culinary craft has been just way beyond anything in most any other BL. The plot supports the drama, and he’s avoided all the pernicious tropes that are redolent in virtually all the other BL’s.
3. All the other actors portray their characters vividly and with exceptional competence. I feel only a few of the student friends of Aek are rather wooden and in need of some development. I don’t feel they speak slowly, and that criticism is most accurately leveled at Mark Siwat’s character.
4. The pacing is slower than what is found in BL’s but is common in a lot of other dramas including some of the great classics like Uzo’s Late Spring. This is not common in BL’s but I find that it is not necessary to have this paced like every other BL – I find that idea to be an artifact of some kind of group-think, rather than a valid argument.
5. The plot development is no faster or slower than most other BL’s and I find this argument to be misplaced. If you take a typical BL like Love by Chance, there is virtually no plot at all. The whole plot can be summarized in a couple of sentences, so I find the expectation of some intricate plot for this series to be unrealistic and a little overbearing (tbh).
6. There have been many calls to cut various scenes that are thought to be unnecessary. I would rather wait till the end of the series to see if this is accurate or not. You might have a point there, but I feel confident the director has put those scenes in there for a reason. As an example, the scene at the club I believe was the perfect contrast to the idyllic scenes in the countryside. Some scenes could be more for flavor or aesthetics than to move the plot along, and that is my opinion as to what many of those scenes represent.

I want to emphasize that I like to have diverse opinions and do not judge anyone for not liking this show. I do think, though, that a lot of you are being too hasty in criticizing it. For me, personally, it is not in the league of ITSAY, but ITSAY is beyond anything else in BL [imo], but this show has many wonderful qualities that place it in the top tier of BL’s. When I watch it, I feel a wonderful sense of tranquility and peacefulness. I think it has a unique aspect to it that makes it exceptional even if it’s artistic merits don’t rise to the level of the best cinematic experiences. I feel some of you expect it to be far better than what it is, and can’t enjoy what it actually does do well. I enjoy BL’s in general and when someone does something so exceptional as with this show, I really enjoy it at a much higher level and feel compelled to defend it.

I thought I put on the sarcasm pretty heavy - I think Mame has just got to be one of the silliest writers in some ways but she does have a lot of good ideas. Her execution of her plots is just bizarre a lot of times with this being a typical case.

This is better than that last episode with all that psychobabble, where Fiat cried for like 40 minutes straight. I'm not sure exactly what happened there because I fell asleep, but something really transformative occurred, apparently, because Fiat seems to be cured from the deep mind-control that his insane mother had over him. I think it had something to do with that collage that appeared at the end of last episode, but whatever it was, I trust Mame implicitly with her deep insights into the human condition. Everyone could sense the new Fiat without a word being spoken and years of animosity just melted away. Even the young niece forgave him, but that might have been because of the pretty dress Fiat was wearing - now who could stay mad at someone dressed like that?

The scenes with Pob and Leon were just magical, though. I must say that there was just a light moment of jealousy like when Pete got jealous over Champoo in Love by Chance, but the only one really jealous was myself, because I really wish I could have everything Pob has. I wish I could have been in that scene with Leon hugging me - please hug me tighter Leon, I'm not feeling the sincerity yet...But I do love the writing for these two and the shots of their love-making were so expressive and touching. It makes the whole series really worthwhile.

I'm a he, but it's not interest in history per se, but rather the importance of having details to create your cinematic landscape. I didn't say this show was a masterpiece [I'm not sure if you're referring to me here], but I definitely think it’sdoing a lot more than your typical BL, and I don't mind other people's opinions at all. It is definitely good to have a diversity of ideas. Even if I don't agree with the general criticism of the show, I can agree on a lot of the more technical issues like some you've pointed out here.

Just another fantastic episode! I love how they dwell on the temple again and how the guide explains to Aue and Aek that the temple is a fusion of Burmese and Thai styles since it was built during the Burmese occupation of the Nan province. I've never seen a BL even attempt to explain the history of Thailand let alone a minor province. Even today, the Thai's dislike the Burmese for sacking their capital of Ayutthaya and leading away most of the population into slavery. This occurred during that time, and the Nan province played its own part in the struggle for independence from Burma.

The wonderful shots of the rural scenery, especially the river were stunning. This is one of the more underpopulated regions of Thailand and its natural beauty was highlighted so well. Very, very authentic. Notice the little pictures of the artist and his lady cropping up every once in a while all over town - in Nan province it's on T-shirts and in a lot of the memorabilia in the tourist shops. It's just amazing how much they worked on the details in this show.

I think I liked the looks of affection that Aek gives Aue at the temple and elsewhere. They were just subtle looks but you can tell how much he likes him and that was well done by Mark Siwat in this episode – he kept it in his heart just like the artist Pu Marn. I'm also glad that Aue never really was in a relationship with Chef Eve, and that we’re not going into the gay for the one guy trope, either.

This show is just really one of my favorite BL’s ever. I will just have to agree to disagree with anyone that doesn’t like it for its slow-pacing. Perhaps it could be improved a little bit by speeding things up here and there but I think it’s just a minor issue – I certainly don’t feel it’s that critical and the plot is moving forward enough. The plot is also very logical and supports the narrative very effectively.

It was an ok ending. It could have been a lot better without the atrocious lip-synching at the end - sometimes he wasn't even moving his lips at all. It had to be one of the worst lip-synching's I've seen in any drama ever and really distracted me from what should have been a heart-rending finale. And what happens to Mario? It seems like there is just no end to the sloppy editing and story-telling in this series, but I give it high marks for great acting by the mom (Jung Ae Yun), and Yoon Oh (Choi Jae Hyun) and whoever played Mr. Yu [not cited on MDL]. It could have been a lot better with a better screenwriter. The thing with the ghosts could actually have been innovative because we don't see ghosts eating and wearing new clothes - they just never took the time to explain the mechanism by which the ghosts do this. I still enjoyed the series, but can't imagine why it was put together in such a haphazard way. It's like no one read the script and they were on a tight schedule so they never had the chance to change anything.

I must admit it's hard to choose - they're both a 10 for me, but the setting for the breakfast scene was much more heart-warming. I couldn't mention them all - my post was already getting too long. This episode was really sensational for me, especially the scenes from the Buddhist temple.

I am in BL Nirvana :)

I think they believe they are making a perceptive comment when they say this drama is slow-paced. I find it the worst kind of insult to say you should play a series at 2x speed. Are they going to fast forward through the scenes in the art gallery, or the buddhist temple? Someone like Chiha above thinks you should cut out half the show apparently. They also don't perceive that the last two episodes have a lot more going on and the pace has picked up considerably. In this episode, Aue makes Aek pretty mad and they basically break-off from their relationship, and the competition has been nixed. Aue has a breakdown and asks his mother for advice, then he stalks Aek back to his hometown where he gradually wins back his favor after several rebuffs, and finally Aek agrees to go back to the competition and their relationship seems to have been mended as well. I think that is enough action for one episode and there were several changes of scenery, going from Bangkok to Nan province, from an art gallery to a Buddhist temple. Which parts in this last episode do these guys want to cut out? I think they just repeat the same stupid lines without really analyzing anything.

And I really don't know what people are comparing this show to. The other BL's, except for a tiny few, don't even come close.

I didn’t have any growing up, either. Maybe sloppy writing there, but I was assuming that was the cause of their mental issues but there were probably more contributing factors.