1
10
1
chiha
This review may contain spoilers
There's lots to love here, some parts are just wrong but there's love too
I am really conflicted about how to rate this show. History4: Close to you delivers perfectly on sound, aesthetics, acting, pacing and script but it is riddled with flaws for the secondary storyline. This review is filled with spoilers because reviews are were I unload all my thoughts so be forewarned.
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[8/10]
❛HIStory4: Close to You❜ is focussed on two couples, Teng Muren and Xiao Licheng; Ye Xingsi and Fu Yongjie.
To win the love of his childhood crush, Xiao Licheng, now 30, tries all he can to get close to Muifang but to no avail. When he learns that she is a bl fan, he tries to join the bl fanclub which now comprises of Muifang, her friend and Licheng. To win her affection, Xiao Licheng pretends to be in a relationship with Teng Muren.
Xiao Licheng, Teng Muren and Ye Xingsi are in the 'iron triangle's. They are best friends. While Ye Xingsi is a director at Muse Weddings, Xiao Licheng and Teng Muren are heads of the sales department 1 and 2 respectively. They are constantly at heads with each other to reach the monthly target and make more sales than the other.
Honestly when I first read the plot my immediate thought was that 'pretend relationship' and 'fujoshi' isn't a good combination (as was taught to me by Oxygen). I thought it was going to be toxic as hell but nope. Muifang is actually a really sweet girl, she is a fujoshi but she isn't one of those ignorant asshole people commonly represented in dramas who go around taking pictures of two men and posting on social media.
She has been firm about her stance regarding her feelings for Xiao Licheng and she genuinely wants to help him win Teng Muren's love. When Xiao Licheng confesses that he had been pretending to be gay but is now actually in love with Teng Muren, she acts like a true friend and helps him.
Xiao Licheng was a character I've often met in real life. He's gay/bi/pan, closeted to himself and if he goes to a gay bar it's just to party and not because he's actually gay ;) it might sound like a trope but I've actually met people like him who're always so touchy with that one friend they have feelings for. I pretty much loved how he just went: hey, wait a second, I'm having wet dreams for my friend and hey, I have feelings for him. He's not bothered that his friend is gay and he doesn't have internal homophobia. I love his character.
But I was really hoping that we were over this 'im not gay I like you' thing. Didnywe have out and proud freewheeling bisexual Tang Yi in History 3: Trapped :[ why can't we have that again. Why is it so hard to wrap our minds around the fact that bisexuality and pansexuality exists?
Also, I'm getting a tad bit tired about Thai body type classifications. It seems all the lean and thin guys have to be bottoms, while the seemingly 'manly' men are tops. The History series is particularly leaning into this. Can we not have this trope anymore?
Now coming to the problematic couple. I don't want to elaborate much on Yongjie and Xingsi. Xingsi is an adorable guy and the only one in the trio who has a functional brain (Muren has one braincell and a half and Licheng has none whatsoever). He's really mature about everything and insecure about coming out to his father.
I really didn't understand why Yongjie had to go to all those lengths just to 'get him'. I didn't find it romantic at all. Of course I can understand that people have different benchmarks for what classidlfies as romantic but I found his approach really problematic: he gets his brother drunk, the brother whomm he loves, and proceeds to kiss him and have sex with him with the sole purpose that Xingsi will become his boyfriend.
The most ironical part about this story is that the vice president of Muse Weddings did the exact same thing to Teng Muren (he drugged Muren and tried to assault him) which was considered rape but somehow Yongjie doing it to Xingsi was supposed to be romantic?
Also, Yongjie says that if we're truly in love then we're okay with just being together without dating. So why does he keep forcing himself on Xingsi? He says he'll kiss Xingsi when Xingsi is awake. So why does he practically rape him when he was unconscious? Also, his mother–i wasn't sure whether I was supposed to be laughing or crying–his mother is convinced that her son is a complete asshole and she knew he was going to take advantage of Xingsi. When Yongjie comes back from the beach trip (after the assault), she asks him whether he got to spend time with Xingsi and says that he shouldn't have done such a mean thing to Xingsi. Mean thing? Lady we're talking lifetime jail for rape, not school kids stealing pencils.
Xingsi's reaction was so beautifully shown that I thought they were taking some right directions here but nope. There was no way to justify Yongjie's behavior (also, punching Muren–really?) This isn't love, this is obsession. All obsessions are unhealthy bit while being obsessed with cephalopods is an interesting hobby, being obsessed with a person to the point that you rape them is–JAIL. And he's supposed to be Xingsi's best choice because why–he helped him come out in front of his father?
That's not the message we need. Get a job, confess to your parents, of they don't accept you then throw money in their face and leave. Be happy with your partner. Live. You don't need to live up to someone else's expectations.
To end on a positive note, watch this show for Licheng and Muren. The way they're cheesy, romantic and just together makes my heart mushy. They're cute in a mature way. Licheng saying "You're mine" and Muren just gives that classic smirk and goes "I'm yours" is just wholesome (and the nickname is TengTeng? Like cute is this cute or what?)
Sometimes I really wondered whether the drama had two separate directors and scriptwriters...
Story rating:
10 for Licheng and Muren
2 for Yongjie
8 for Xingsi for being a wonderful person and for being brave
Overall (for plot)= 6.5 (extra .5 for Muifang bc I have a crush on her).
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[9/10]
Splendidly acted. Lin Chiawei as Yongjie and An Jungpeng as Xingsi saved the graces of the secondary couple by their acting (I can't decide whether Lin Chiawei was supposed to act like that but he's actually killing it ;)
Charles Tu brings Licheng to life. I found his acting to be the best in the show–he can go from flirtatious playboy to having that hurt kicked-in-the-gut look in just a second and bounce back to his signature high-spirited and careless demeanor just as soon. He also manages the lovestruck puppy look well.
Anson Chen has wonderful control over his nasal musculature–like with a simple twitch of his eyebrows or his nose he can convey absolute disdain or amused or the occasionally happy emotions.
I'd watch the show for the acting alone.
═══◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤ ◢◤ ◢◤═ᴄɪɴᴇᴍᴀᴛᴏɢʀᴀᴘʜʏ▷|
[10/10]
❛Close to You❜ is so aesthetically pleasing. I can't pinpoint exactly what it is about this show but the camerawork and everything is splendid. A lot of thought seems to have been put into the costumes and fashion of their characters. The style is distinct for each of them.
Also, I cannot get over the OST and even while bingeing on one episode after another I repeated the OST twice for each episode (that's like 40 times plus all the times I simply listened to the OST for the fun of it). It sounds really mature and suits the show.
═══◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤ ◢◤ ◢◤═ʀᴇᴡᴀᴛᴄʜ ᴠᴀʟᴜᴇ↺
[9/10]
❛Close to You❜ is a show I can easily see myself rewatching, once I get around to rewatching it, I can bump the rewatch value to a 10/10.
Should you watch the show?
For me, ❛Close to You❜ is hit or miss. The secondary couple seems to have completely ruined the entire show for many people and at some points I was tempted to just look for a cut of Xiao Licheng and Teng Muren but I really loved Ye Xingsi and I skipped through most of their parts post episode 10.
Taiwan has been truly delivering on bl shows with quality content and distinctive storylines (albeit with a liberal side service of tropes) so I'd you're looking for something different from the general university themed stories then CTY could be the one for you.
Overall rating is 5.0/10
═══◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤ ◢◤ ◢◤═ᴘʟᴏᴛʟɪɴᴇ✏
[8/10]
❛HIStory4: Close to You❜ is focussed on two couples, Teng Muren and Xiao Licheng; Ye Xingsi and Fu Yongjie.
To win the love of his childhood crush, Xiao Licheng, now 30, tries all he can to get close to Muifang but to no avail. When he learns that she is a bl fan, he tries to join the bl fanclub which now comprises of Muifang, her friend and Licheng. To win her affection, Xiao Licheng pretends to be in a relationship with Teng Muren.
Xiao Licheng, Teng Muren and Ye Xingsi are in the 'iron triangle's. They are best friends. While Ye Xingsi is a director at Muse Weddings, Xiao Licheng and Teng Muren are heads of the sales department 1 and 2 respectively. They are constantly at heads with each other to reach the monthly target and make more sales than the other.
Honestly when I first read the plot my immediate thought was that 'pretend relationship' and 'fujoshi' isn't a good combination (as was taught to me by Oxygen). I thought it was going to be toxic as hell but nope. Muifang is actually a really sweet girl, she is a fujoshi but she isn't one of those ignorant asshole people commonly represented in dramas who go around taking pictures of two men and posting on social media.
She has been firm about her stance regarding her feelings for Xiao Licheng and she genuinely wants to help him win Teng Muren's love. When Xiao Licheng confesses that he had been pretending to be gay but is now actually in love with Teng Muren, she acts like a true friend and helps him.
Xiao Licheng was a character I've often met in real life. He's gay/bi/pan, closeted to himself and if he goes to a gay bar it's just to party and not because he's actually gay ;) it might sound like a trope but I've actually met people like him who're always so touchy with that one friend they have feelings for. I pretty much loved how he just went: hey, wait a second, I'm having wet dreams for my friend and hey, I have feelings for him. He's not bothered that his friend is gay and he doesn't have internal homophobia. I love his character.
But I was really hoping that we were over this 'im not gay I like you' thing. Didnywe have out and proud freewheeling bisexual Tang Yi in History 3: Trapped :[ why can't we have that again. Why is it so hard to wrap our minds around the fact that bisexuality and pansexuality exists?
Also, I'm getting a tad bit tired about Thai body type classifications. It seems all the lean and thin guys have to be bottoms, while the seemingly 'manly' men are tops. The History series is particularly leaning into this. Can we not have this trope anymore?
Now coming to the problematic couple. I don't want to elaborate much on Yongjie and Xingsi. Xingsi is an adorable guy and the only one in the trio who has a functional brain (Muren has one braincell and a half and Licheng has none whatsoever). He's really mature about everything and insecure about coming out to his father.
I really didn't understand why Yongjie had to go to all those lengths just to 'get him'. I didn't find it romantic at all. Of course I can understand that people have different benchmarks for what classidlfies as romantic but I found his approach really problematic: he gets his brother drunk, the brother whomm he loves, and proceeds to kiss him and have sex with him with the sole purpose that Xingsi will become his boyfriend.
The most ironical part about this story is that the vice president of Muse Weddings did the exact same thing to Teng Muren (he drugged Muren and tried to assault him) which was considered rape but somehow Yongjie doing it to Xingsi was supposed to be romantic?
Also, Yongjie says that if we're truly in love then we're okay with just being together without dating. So why does he keep forcing himself on Xingsi? He says he'll kiss Xingsi when Xingsi is awake. So why does he practically rape him when he was unconscious? Also, his mother–i wasn't sure whether I was supposed to be laughing or crying–his mother is convinced that her son is a complete asshole and she knew he was going to take advantage of Xingsi. When Yongjie comes back from the beach trip (after the assault), she asks him whether he got to spend time with Xingsi and says that he shouldn't have done such a mean thing to Xingsi. Mean thing? Lady we're talking lifetime jail for rape, not school kids stealing pencils.
Xingsi's reaction was so beautifully shown that I thought they were taking some right directions here but nope. There was no way to justify Yongjie's behavior (also, punching Muren–really?) This isn't love, this is obsession. All obsessions are unhealthy bit while being obsessed with cephalopods is an interesting hobby, being obsessed with a person to the point that you rape them is–JAIL. And he's supposed to be Xingsi's best choice because why–he helped him come out in front of his father?
That's not the message we need. Get a job, confess to your parents, of they don't accept you then throw money in their face and leave. Be happy with your partner. Live. You don't need to live up to someone else's expectations.
To end on a positive note, watch this show for Licheng and Muren. The way they're cheesy, romantic and just together makes my heart mushy. They're cute in a mature way. Licheng saying "You're mine" and Muren just gives that classic smirk and goes "I'm yours" is just wholesome (and the nickname is TengTeng? Like cute is this cute or what?)
Sometimes I really wondered whether the drama had two separate directors and scriptwriters...
Story rating:
10 for Licheng and Muren
2 for Yongjie
8 for Xingsi for being a wonderful person and for being brave
Overall (for plot)= 6.5 (extra .5 for Muifang bc I have a crush on her).
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[9/10]
Splendidly acted. Lin Chiawei as Yongjie and An Jungpeng as Xingsi saved the graces of the secondary couple by their acting (I can't decide whether Lin Chiawei was supposed to act like that but he's actually killing it ;)
Charles Tu brings Licheng to life. I found his acting to be the best in the show–he can go from flirtatious playboy to having that hurt kicked-in-the-gut look in just a second and bounce back to his signature high-spirited and careless demeanor just as soon. He also manages the lovestruck puppy look well.
Anson Chen has wonderful control over his nasal musculature–like with a simple twitch of his eyebrows or his nose he can convey absolute disdain or amused or the occasionally happy emotions.
I'd watch the show for the acting alone.
═══◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤ ◢◤ ◢◤═ᴄɪɴᴇᴍᴀᴛᴏɢʀᴀᴘʜʏ▷|
[10/10]
❛Close to You❜ is so aesthetically pleasing. I can't pinpoint exactly what it is about this show but the camerawork and everything is splendid. A lot of thought seems to have been put into the costumes and fashion of their characters. The style is distinct for each of them.
Also, I cannot get over the OST and even while bingeing on one episode after another I repeated the OST twice for each episode (that's like 40 times plus all the times I simply listened to the OST for the fun of it). It sounds really mature and suits the show.
═══◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤◢◤ ◢◤ ◢◤═ʀᴇᴡᴀᴛᴄʜ ᴠᴀʟᴜᴇ↺
[9/10]
❛Close to You❜ is a show I can easily see myself rewatching, once I get around to rewatching it, I can bump the rewatch value to a 10/10.
Should you watch the show?
For me, ❛Close to You❜ is hit or miss. The secondary couple seems to have completely ruined the entire show for many people and at some points I was tempted to just look for a cut of Xiao Licheng and Teng Muren but I really loved Ye Xingsi and I skipped through most of their parts post episode 10.
Taiwan has been truly delivering on bl shows with quality content and distinctive storylines (albeit with a liberal side service of tropes) so I'd you're looking for something different from the general university themed stories then CTY could be the one for you.
Overall rating is 5.0/10
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