solipsism5

I think we agree on most things here. There are just, I would say, a few grey areas of disagreement. I think ITSAY is just one I mostly wouldn't touch, except maybe cut out some of that overdone crying with all the snot coming out if his nose (how did he even do that?). This was mostly just a thought experiment and I will have no impact on what will happen with this series just like literary critics have no impact on rewriting Wuthering Heights. I have no problem seeing whatever they make of this series because it is very enjoyable.

Not at all, I ended it with basically let's just enjoy the show for what it is. I think this episode could have been improved but some of its flaws occur in this episode itself and some were latent coming from previous episodes.

I'm just thinking of how some of this could have been avoided. Some of my favorite series like ITSAY I wouldn't recommend any rewrites at all. This show is not perfect and that is why some people tore into it. It's still very good. For a while I was an English major in college and still read a lot of the classics. There are Western classics like Wuthering Heights that most critics will tell you have major technical flaws, but no one cares about that. They are still great works that you will be greatly rewarded by if you read them. Out of a hundred BL's only one will be as good as 1000 stars, and I enjoy a lot of the bad ones. I'm not too picky. I hope I didn't come across that way.

That's possible but I still find it to be implausible. I guess we have to just say at least they tried a little. It's still jarring for me. I see that Shu Yi suffered but it just seems to be not enough, and Gao Shi is the one that had been stalking Shu Yi for 10 years. How does he not suffer more? I think they should have just shortened the time, and a few more attempts on either side to reach out to their loved one would have solved most of the issue.

I love this series just as much as the first - some things are even better in this one. The characters seem more natural, and the new couple is very touching. I still have to detach the first series from this new one in my mind but once that's done I feel like the series is excellent. Can I just say that even if what the father did is understandable given the Asian cultural context, that it was totally not ok? I think we can all agree that we can move forward in Asia and a parent should never for reasons of race, homophobia, or class (wealth), prevent two good people from being in a relationship. I think everyone agrees on that, they are just pointing out it is still a very conservative society and this plot twist can make sense. I still don't believe it gets all the way there and it doesn't explain how blithe the two main leads are to their forced 5 year separation. It makes you wonder if they were ever really in love, but I have a feeling that future episodes will show that they are truly in love (just a guess, no spoiler alert needed), and that will make the initial scenes seem ridiculous. I've said before, in another comment. If you are really in love you will be devastated by such a long separation especially when you aren't even allowed to communicate with each other.

Well written, but being from an Asian background I still don't get it. I've gone through this experience myself. Just one question for you - is it normal if you find the love of your life to ask for their parent's approval to continue with the relationship? Assuming you even tell them "I'm gay and your son whom I dating happens to be gay as well," if they tell you they don't approve do you and your boyfriend just stop dating? I really don't believe that is the case at all. I understand the authoritarian structure of Asian society, but listening to their wise judgement only goes so far. In this case, we are not talking about being wise but about being in love - the parent might see a rotten relationship that isn't good for you, but you might not listen to them because you are not looking for wisdom here.

The second problem with the plot is the two leads should be suffering under the burden of this forced separation more. It almost seems like nothing to me by the way they're acting. If it would happen to me (all of it, the no communication for five years, not one picture, not anything), I would become frantic. Don't you at least want to know if your loved one is doing ok, because I worried about my lover being out of the house for even 1 night.

I really like this series. The amount of time they spent just building the sets, like building Tian's little hut from scratch, and working without electricity shows you they put a lot of effort into this series unlike the vast number of BL's.
I think episode 8 was a little overambitious, and a little too melodramatic and that has caused a lot of confusion. Whereas the rest of the series has been like a 10 as far as quality - this feels more like a 6 to me. One major flaw is Dr. Nam's violating a patient's privileged information and that is a serious writing blunder.

The scene with the villagers is just melodrama. If I could rewrite it I would just have Tian confess that Torfun had passed away and he had taken her heart. I wouldn't have even gone into the fact that he had some role in her death. BTW that he had some role in her death was just a contrived event - just imagine what an unbelievable coincidence it is that his friends happened to kill THAT person on that night. I would have rewritten that part of the script as well. Torfun was killed in an accident by somebody else, and then Tian gets her heart. So that reduces the dramatic impact of his revelation to the villagers, but I say so what? I hate melodrama and for a series that strives to be authentic, it is just out of place for me.

I'm pausing here just to remind everyone I still love the series, but it just has some flaws and that is what is causing the ambivalent attitude of some people here, but I am not ambivalent - you should watch this show and love the really good elements in it.

Next, Phupha should not have searched his crush's room like that. But I can understand it, perhaps, but it would cause many to think it is "out of character", and all this would require is a little explanation through a few visuals to clarify why he is acting this way, perhaps a scene where we pan in on his face after he gets the revelation about Tian and he looks like he's lost it. Ok, no direction is perfect, but this a serious violation of privacy so some attempt at an explanation would be appreciated.

Tian puts Longtae in danger without even worrying too much about it. I would maybe do a flashback to some scene reminding people of what an asshole Tian used to be to explain this. I believe this is just another oversight. In a lot of Hollywood productions everyone is forced to become a hero, so that is probably what happened here. The director just jumps into that mindframe which is just a little careless - and these kind of things happen to the best of us.

Overall, this episode is also a little rushed. More action occurs in this episode than in entire series. There are still many nice touches in here like the scene with the hornbills, and Khama's talk about the caterpillars turning into butterflies. So I think it still works for me. I just think both sides have points here, but I just hope everyone keeps watching because it is still one of the best ever. Again I greatly appreciate the overall work that was done in this series and the many moving scenes with children, and the touching scenes between the male leads. Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good when you watch this.

Oh cool, we're in the same field completely. I love a lot of this series. I'm just happy to have discovered this whole BL world because it is so empowering. There was just a huge void in gay dramas. I grew up on depressing movies like Brokeback Mountain. I love the real light BL dramas, and the long tender love scenes which we were totally missing. It was always like tales of suicide, and societal torture.

I know it's very heart-warming, right? I've seen a lot of turn arounds myself. I'm in the mental health business so I agree it is definitely possible. A lot of times it is just a temporary change and they slip back into their old ways. There is a small percentage of people that change for good. Given that it's a tv drama and far more unlikely events are expected to be taken for granted, it's no big deal for Tian to become a good guy. I think I've seen a thousand shows where the villain turns around to do something altruistic or heroic- just look at Star Wars if you need any examples. This in itself is a modern day trope. I'm just pointing out that I get just a little tired of that lack of realism. He also gets better and better, risking his life, taking on the scorn of the whole village. But it is possible. So let's leave it at that and enjoy all the other great elements of this show.

They are both wrong but everyone knows what Tian did was wrong. It is not made clear in the show that what Dr. Nam did was wrong. I take your point, though. This is a movie. Most health practitioners watching this would know this is just wrong and wouldn't follow this Dr.'s example, but maybe a receptionist would, and they have access to people's personal information as well. It's just, in general, people need to know that it is a huge problem to breach someone's private health information. This show is kind of sending the opposite message.

You are a 100% right. I work in this field and this is so totally wrong. Dr. Nam would absolutely be put on a suspension for a couple of years in the real world or lose his license. Kids, if you're watching, don't do this at home. So why are the writers so ignorant about this? I guess it's just that they thought someone should tell PhuPha about Tian, but, wow, did they pick the wrong person to do this. There are a lot of police there so maybe it would have been better to pick one of them to do the sleuthing?

This is the best series of the year for me. I really like Tian's character. In real life this would never happen, spoiled rich kids don't turn around that fast, but it's good to see even if it's as fantastical as Lord of the Rings. I think the self-flagellation he's doing with the villagers is a bit much, but that's your typical Hollywood redemption arc. I don't mind all the tropes because these tropes are new to BL, so maybe its ok?
The winning thing about this series is the scenery. Other than ITSAY we finally have a wonderful natural setting. I feel relaxed just watching the landscape, especially on top of that cliff (what's it called again?).
And you don't have my permission to have any tragedy in this series. You listening guys- just stop it! No meaningless tragedy like The Shipper (dumbest plot ever).

Kevin Hao is so cute. Thanks for the link. I understood what you mean by the Asian culture because I'm Asian as well. It helps the thin veneer of the plot device make more sense, but it doesn't get it all the way there.
I'm thinking they did this to create some drama, but when I got to this episode in the new season I was really hating it. I thought, no way can you explain this away. I would prefer a nice post-coitus kind of relationship where we are just seeing them in their new work environment rather than in school. I admit I'm being a little boring here, but if you want such a huge, jarring, emotionally devastating event in the middle of a BL series you better have a damn good reason for it.

I'm rooting for the person with Asperger's Syndrome. I find that side plot very moving. It provides such a nice contrast with the leads who are your usual self-involved 20 somethings. I mean that he has nothing but his attachment to Pei Shou - it's like all or nothing. Most of BL is about cutesy boy-love attachments but this is so desperate without the flaw of being a fatal attraction.

I'm counting on you to make sure his private parts don't get sunburned!

I know, right? I would too, lol. How much could these cheap Thai productions cost? This cupid coach feels like it would cost virtually nothing. My concept doesn't require much of a wardrobe either so there are some cost savings there.

Perhaps a new Bl with Tee on a deserted island where he never knew what clothes were? Anthropologist Pi comes to rescue him and introduce him to civilization but Tee rebels and tears off his clothes and runs naked down the street. I'm willing to help fund a plot like that and it would be so unique. 12 episodes of naked Tee is really a great concept.

This is very well done, but 5 years is too long. It's not believable given the strong attachment of the two leads. Sometimes people make mistakes but it's their own decision. In this case its more like a bet and I can only say how stupid can Gao Shi be to make a deal like that? It's immoral, immature, and draconian. I don't think the character we've seen is like that.
Nonetheless, this is mostly a good drama. Huge plot flaw, but it seems like the show is doing well to overcome that.

Definitely one of the best looking casts for the leads. You can just have Tae walk around shirtless for the whole episode and no one would complain. Wow, that sounds so superficial, lol. But the show actually has some good acting and a really unique story-line for a BL. I think as some others have said below, there are some really good elements here, including a really strong female lead, and characters that aren't stereotypical. I wish they had the budget of a GMMTV production and we we would all be raving about this series. I would still get someone with a little more acting chops than Nite 1 - I think someone just picked him for his looks. He makes the show look like a high-school production, but they really put him in a spot where he could cause the least damage so I'm not going to pick on them too much for their casting here. If he showed up in your casting room, maybe you too would be tempted to sacrifice your production values.

There is a lot of negativity about this show. It's really quite good. I just think it doesn't have super-high production values, but that is mostly because it has a low budget. I think we should all appreciate that it has a unique story-line, and it is doing very well with the low budget it's suffering under. I think the acting is fine except perhaps Nite (but I believe the director understood that and cast him in a role that requires virtually no acting ability). I think we just need to chill and enjoy the good elements of this show.