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I almost hate it
Most characters suck and I almost dropped this drama so many times. The main couple is so toxic because of Pete who is aggressive, possessive, violent and selfish. His boyfriend Kao is the sweetest thing in the world and keep putting up with this bullshit 'cause he is too good to say no in many situations with many people. If anyone say Kao did anything wrong this person has to rewatch it, 'cause he just wanted to help his family without being accused of being unfaithful all the time. The secondary couple is a little more interesting but Sun is the most annoying person, so controlling and unreasonable with Mork. Mork is super cool and he is actually the only reason I watched all of the episodes. The straight couple is cute too but nothing too amazing. What I liked about this show was Mork and Pete's dad. That's all.Was this review helpful to you?
Long way to go until I finally got to watch it, kinda worth it tho
So I have some kind of tic which made it impossible for me to watch this without having seen its two preceding series (kiss me and kiss me again) while those two were absolute torture this one was actually extremely enjoyable.I do recommend at least skipping through ‘kiss me again’ and watching the scenes with the main couple of this series. Otherwise you may find it hard to warm up to them at first. (I tried watching Dark Blue kiss first but got extremely confused because I didn’t know anyone and just didn’t really feel any connection to the main couple, watching kiss me again solved that)
I absolutely loved both actors and their chemistry in all three parts but especially in this one. I actually kind of like how we didn’t have to go through the whole relationship building progress for both couples, because one of them was already existing from before. So we got one new couple that I also really really loved, that works on building their relationship and their new found feelings for each other , and one existing couple working on their relationship, still growing together etc.
The main thing that bothered me with this series is the inconsistency in the characters as compared to kiss me again.
In the preceding series, the couple had already come out to their friends, here they were still keeping it a secret, one of them was quite the good photographer the other one was terrible, here they just switched, and the one who couldn’t take one good picture was suddenly a passionate photographer. I also don’t know where the swimming thing suddenly came from, but well I guess all of this was necessary to make it a good story.
Apart from this inconsistency with the preceding series, I don’t really have much to be bothered about. There were some annoying parts, were communication would have been the cure to all problems. But I mean that’s nothing new right. Apart from that this was absolutely beautiful, cute and I very much enjoyed watching.
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Split Personality
Weird title, I know, but this BL left the strangest impression on me. It’s like there were two different writers, with two different agendas, each pulling the show in opposite directions. Apologies, as this is going to be a long one!Story
Unlike a lot of BLs, that are more “slice of life,” Dark Blue Kiss actually had somewhat of a plotline for both couples, moving their stories forward. Not much, mind you. What got me was the forward-thinking moments juxtaposed by backward-thinking moments. It’s like there was one writer who was really progressive, perhaps a member of the LGBTQ community who wanted to actually address important issues pertaining to sexuality within a BL. And then there was another writer who was nothing but a BL fangirl who wanted to fill the show full of awful tropes. It was confusing. On the one hand, we had the fear of coming out, how being closeted can put pressure and tension on a relationship, a real discussion concerning what it’s like to be a gay man (we’re still allergic to the word “gay” for some reason, though they got pretty close here) in Thai society, the experiences of a young gay man living with a very homophobic father and how that can in turn affect his psyche, and female characters that weren’t there as plot devices—this was all great writing. For all that BLs should be about the LGBTQ community, it’s rare to see a show that actually tackles the above situations without making them contrived for the sake of just getting a couple together. This was evident when Kao finally came out to his mother, and it was “I like men,” not just, “I like Pete.” That’s a mature moment where he’s acknowledging his sexuality, not just his current relationship, as though the two are mutually exclusive. Similarly, with Sun’s ex-girlfriend, we get to see Sun as a gay man. In a genre where “I don’t like men, I just like X” is so common, it was nice to see some real representation.
Unfortunately, we weren’t without downsides. This is where it seemed like some secondary writer came along and just started tossing in all the awful BL stereotypes they could think of, and it really brought the show down. I’ll list just the few that jump out immediately: Intense jealousy that overrode any sense of empathy, a secondary character unrealistically bent on destroying the main couple, a bizarre inability to communicate simple concepts to one another that led to major conflict, the insistence on labeling one part of an mm couple the husband and the other the wife, so much lying for no real reason, and characters acting in an unreasonable manner for nothing but the sake of drama. Pete’s jealousy was so toxic and so over the top, and the worst part was he was never called out on it, making it seem like the show’s saying it’s fine or even loving to act like you possess and control the person you are dating. It was pushed to the point where he had absolutely no empathy for Kao’s living situation, and none for Non, a kid (a minor) with a crappy homelife, clearly suffering psychological abuse. Non was wrong in what he did, but he was so comically wrong at the end it just wasn’t believable, which is too bad because the show at first did a good job building empathy for him, but then ruined it by making him do something so bad I just rolled my eyes and went, “yeah, sure he did.” This was nothing but justification for Pete’s jealousy with a “see, he was right,” moment. Kao was no innocent party. All he needed to do was sit down with Pete and really explain why he needed to tutor Non, and then explain to Non that he wasn’t interested in him. Choosing to lie, deceive, and ignore what was an obvious attraction to him was just ridiculous—nothing in his character suggests that he would act this way, and so it all came across as contrived for the sake of the plot. Sun and Mork were also constantly unable to communicate in an effective manner, leading to so many unnecessary spats. Who runs into a hospital and starts yelling at someone who just got the crap kicked out of them? No one, that’s who. Sure, Sun was uptight, but that just pushed the bounds of believability. Who gets into a punch out outside of a club and then instantly gets over it and has sex because their younger brother scolded them? Again, no one. Sun at least somewhat acknowledges the error of his ways, but before he does that I don’t see why Mork was willing to sit down with him. This was all drama for the sake of drama, instantly resolved drama at that, when their relationship had been building nicely on its own. Fighting a lot is not a sign of loving each other more—that is not a healthy mindset. And, of course, we couldn’t escape the husband/wife label. The obsession this genre has with forcing heteronormativity upon a homosexual couple. At least this seemed to mainly be side characters using these terms, and not the main couples, but I’d love to see a BL where no one uses these terms to refer to two men. Or, where one of the men does not want to be referred to as a wife, since he isn’t a woman. This just fosters the idea that in an mm couple, one of the men is ultimately just a replacement or stand-in for a woman, instead of acknowledging the differences between straight and gay couples. People try to play it off as a joke, but I find it toxic. Sun actually had a nice moment at the end when he asked who wanted to be top and who wanted to be bottom that night—and wouldn’t it have been nice for a show to actually present this as a conversation, and not just each part of the couple instantly getting cast in one role or the other for who knows what reason. Versatility is much more common in relationships, as opposed to simple hook-ups where people state their preferences up front. For BLs to never show this is crazy, and of course, Sun’s words are then taken as a joke. Once again, a tale of two writers.
These two above paragraphs combined just made for some confusing messages, which is why it seemed like two different people were pushing the story in two different directions. When you compare the difference between an honest conversation about sexuality to the “I hope you never stop being possessive conversation,” the difference is clear, and it’s not good. I prefer the mature, realistic story in the first paragraph to the BL stereotype-laden story of the second.
Acting/Characterization; Intimacy/Heat Level
The casting of the two main couples was really good. Both sets of men were evenly matched from a physical standpoint, and therefore went really well together. Neither came across looking like the big, strong dominant one with their docile partner. This is a personal preference, where I like characters that are on equal footing with one another. Of course, they don’t always need to be the same size for that to be the case, but I find when there’s a big disparity in looks or size, it’s really easy for writers to fall back on bad stereotypes. Plus, (for a more shallow opinion) these actors just looked aesthetically pleasing together.
I liked both Pete & Kao’s respective parents, though, in liking them, it does make me wonder why Kao ever thought his mother wouldn’t accept him. She was clearly a loving, supportive woman. Moreover, all the female characters had actual personalities, beyond being either an evil roadblock for the couples, or some stupid self-insert fangirl for the couples. That was a refreshing change of pace.
There was one side character in the friend group who’s whole role, character, and acting style was to yell every single line. I muted him.
Until Non’s story unraveled at the end, I thought he was well characterized as a kid suffering the physiological abuse of a homophobic father, who clearly suspects his son is gay. He was meant to be the villain, for sure, but the actor portrayed him so well (until whoever wrote the last part of the plot screwed him over) that it was impossible to dislike him. He seemed like such a real person.
This was a rare show in which I liked both couples, and both felt like they got appropriate screen time. Although, I found Pete & Kao to be the weaker of the two, for all the reasons outlined above. Possessiveness and jealousy are not good character traits, neither is lying—they are things you list as reasons you left your ex. I understood Pete’s obvious frustration with Kao’s inability to come out, but that doesn’t give him the right to control Kao, who seemed unable to stand up for himself. They had a lot of nice moments too, and it was clear they loved one another. Had their story simply been about coming out, it would have been a lot better. Their intimacy/heat level was really low, as it was undermined by a lot of what was happening in their story. For a couple that had been together so long, that seemed odd. At least it was implied that they were intimate, as you’d expect. What kisses were seen were real, although, in my opinion, the actor playing Kao kisses very strangely. Can’t put my finger on why.
Sun & Mork had a different dynamic, as this was the story of them getting together. It was nice to watch them grow together and come to understand one another through shared experiences, and then fall for each other. There was no love at first sight, or anything like that. Again, the intimacy/ heat seen here was quite tame. They had a few closed mouth kisses, but they got progressively better in those scenes. And there was a least one mature moment. I also liked that neither character was rich. It seems to be a thing in BLs, where one half of the couple needs to be rich and the other poor. It came across as very sweet and genuine when Sun wanted to help Mork out financially, even though neither of them had much money. It wasn’t just a rich kid trying to throw money at a poor kid, like Pete & Kao, to make their problems go away. I’d love to see a series with Sun & Mork as the main couple. There was a lot of good material to build from here.
Well, that was a book that I just wrote, but this show gave me all the thoughts! There’s more I could comment on, but I’ll leave it at that and hope the good parts of this show are what stands out to the viewers, and what more production companies aspire to create.
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Beautiful... Do watch it out.... Its a binge watch drama.... I wish to watch these couples in another and mature sequel...But there are suggestions to these BL dramas story writers/producer/director
If actors are not comfortable kissing, they should not show kiss between the couple. PeteKao chemistry is there but kiss seems forcibly done, they would touch lips and just stop. Love can be showcase without forcible kisses.
Then another things, these BL dramas should more showcase reality of lgbtq com in society.
But still would say, you would love this drama, worth watching...
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I fucking love this series
I recently entered the world of bl series, and I can't get enough of it.But this series is superb, the storyline, acting, the feelings. Everything was on point.
I get that some say Pete was too possessive and jealous. Well that's one of the many traits that made me love it.
Maybe it's because I love possessive partner😂.
There were some episodes I so wished this actors were real life couples 🙂.
They tried.
I haven't seen the prequels. But I don't mind..
Though I would have loved to see what happened to non.
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It was too short :(
I didn't want this drama to come to an end. Everything from the cast to the acting, story line and music...superb!A great continuation from Kiss Me Again. The storyline just flowed.
I'm also happy everyone got a happy ending.
I will never tire saying Pete is really great at portraying his emotions. Be it when he is angry, happy, tired and jealous. All this can be seen from his facial expressions and eyes. Great acting here. These two (Pete & Kao) have the greatest chemistry. They do not have a lot of kissing scenes (I'm insatiable), but the few scenes are really hot.
It's true when they say a parent knows their kid likes and I'm happy in this drama, the parents were okay with their relationship and stood up for their kids. The friends also made it fun to watch and June continues to be my favorite.
Oh, how much I dislike Non. This goes to show he was able to play his role really well and he's cute. I love his lips <3.
I'm happy that finally Sun and Mork got a happy ending. They have great chemistry and always making it hard for Rain to sleep in peace.
This is a great drama, but watch Kiss Me Again first to see who Tay & Kao's relationship came to be.
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A Solid BL
This is a show that got so much better as it went on, and by the end I was fully invested and flying through episodes. It's not my favorite drama I've watched, and not my favorite BL either, but it's a really solid show that I would definitely recommend to others.I will admit, it took me a while to really get into the show and care about the characters. I'd only watched the Pete/Kao compilation of Kiss Me Again before watching this show— and while I do think that's the best choice if you're truly uninterested in the plots of Kiss: the Series and Kiss Me Again, it does lead to a little bit of a rough beginning in DBK. You don't know or care about the characters the same way you would if you'd already committed two series' worth of your time to them. Still, I did eventually grow to love all the characters and really enjoy watching their story.
I liked both of the BL plots a lot! I did enjoy Sun and Mork's plot line more, but that's probably because I tend to enjoy the "falling in love" stories over the "conflicts within the relationship" stories. Sun and Mork's story felt very coffeeshop AU in the best way.
My main complaint about this show was the superfluous addition of Rain and Manow's plot line. They're billed as main characters, yet their story is minuscule in comparison to the PeteKao and SunMork plots. The writers should have either committed more time to developing their story or cut it completely. It was really unneeded. I liked both of the characters fine, and I really enjoyed both Pluem and Ployphach's performances, but they were just really unnecessary.
Overall, I would recommend this to anyone looking for a solid BL to try!
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Most of the BL have typical story which is focused only on the leads and their surrounding. But this drama just changed my perspective towards everything.The writers have focused on a very important topic which most of the people face in real life, to come out to their parents and confess about your boyfriend being a boy yourself. The scene where Kao confronts his mother about the whole fiasco is the best. I really loved New's acting there. His expressions were on point.
Pete's character had a good development. He was a jealous, possessive, hot-headed guy but gradually started understanding other's situation. I can understand why he was so insecure about his relationship with Kao. Being in a relationship for 3 years with only 2 to 3 knowing about it, is really difficult. But I never blamed Kao for it. He had his own reasons and was trying to balance his personal and professional life. Pete Kao both were right on their side.
I think we all have Non in our lives, who always tests our patience and its our duty to battle it out with a victory(AJ did a fabulous job. He made me hate him even after having such a cute face!!!). SunMork are one of those side couples which I enjoyed watching. They were cute and I loved Mork's face whenever Sun used to flirt with him. RainManow, our straight couple really flattered me throughout. Supporting cast did a pretty good job(My favourite are Pete's Dad and Kao's Mom. Everyone needs such parents).
Coming to chemistry between couples, everyone did an amazing job but TayNew were on fire. Being friends for more than 7 years in real life did wonders onscreen. They were so natural, whenever PeteKao used to tease each other, I could see TayNew in them. I wish they have more dramas together.
Music could have been more better in some situation but it was overall nice. I just hope there are more such BL where they focus on family perspective without much drama.
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Mork and Sun's story kept me hooked compared to the main couple's because their acting was on par. I'm not saying that Tawan is not good, in fact, he nailed the role, he usually overshadows New in every scene, he was believable and an amazing actor. I was more drawn to him than New. New's acting was underwhelming and dry that their scenes didn't work on me unlike Mork and Sun's.
I base my opinions on the acting and the story, even if the story isn't good as long as the acting is great, I'd still watch it.
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The story starts quite interesting by watching the relationships between the characters. PeteKao are cute and everything. You can describe Pete as the possessive boyfriend, aka confident gay while Kao is the usual shy and "fluffy" character. SunMork have a love and hate relationship, which might be kind of a turn-off, but somehow, it's interesting to watch how they learn to care about one another.
I love how Pete and Kao's parents are so supportive. Oh, and also Rain and Manow.
I think a lot of people disliked Non, but I believe that he didn't do anything wrong even though he was immature. He liked someone, and also, if it seemed that the person was in a relationship, no one confirmed it to him, so why not shoot the shot?
As the drama continued the story, the episodes started to grow heavy, and the story became flat. We see how Pete and Kao's relationship "breaks down" because of Non and Kao's insecurity of coming out. Still, I don't think the conflict was sophisticated enough to run for 12 episodes. The reason why I continued this series was mainly because of SunMork. Although their relationship was rushed and lacked a bit of "story," I believe that watching their story wasn't as heavy as PeteKao's storyline.
Also, the plot addressed different and vital topics under the theme of sexuality and growing up, which made me stay. We see how Kao is insecure and scared about the possibility that he won't be accepted as he is by his mother and everyone else around him. We also see how parenting plays a role in children by watching Non's behavior. Even though I said that Non didn't do anything wrong, we also have to say that his behavior wasn't the best while trying to win Kao's heart. This is mainly because he didn't have anyone to tell him what is right and wrong.
Now the question is, should you watch it? I don't think it's a complete waste of time as I enjoyed the second couple and the other characters. I also believe that the topics addressed in the story are important and worth to give it a watch.
However, if you are here because PeteKao, then these 12 episodes won't be that entertaining to watch.
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This is as good as everyone says!
I can't believe I binged this for 12 hours straight, but also... yes I can.This was so good I couldn't hit pause! The way this series absolutely captured my heart, broke it, and put it back together is insane.
As a spice lover, I almost didn't notice the fact the leads only kissed once (I think) so they did an amazing job selling the romance with little physical intimacy! (Though it is implied to have happened a lot off screen making it cheeky and funny)
Non being an angsty high schooler made a great villain. I thoroughly hated him. His immaturity and age showed quite well!
I loved both main couples, Rain and his love interest didn't interest me at all tbh. But Sun and Mork omg. Amazing!! Ofc Kao and Pete were epic.
I actually haven't seen any of the prequels and had no issue understanding and falling in love with this cast and the plot. Well done!
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