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A Love Story Full of Yearning & Longing
Sometimes beauty is born out of tragedy, out of a broken place that doesn’t seem capable of growing something beautiful.And yet, even roses have thorns.
The Taiwanese BL Unknown, adapted from the web novel Da Ge by Priest, is a stunning example of a relationship built from a broken place. Starring Chris Chiu (Wei Qian) and Kurt Huang (Wei Zhiyuan), it delves deeply into a story about two boys who don’t belong anywhere but whose hearts seek a home and family in each other’s brokenness.
And it succeeds.
From the moment a young Yuan follows Qian from the darkness surrounding him in the streets to the warmth of Qian’s home, Unknown becomes a story about finding light in a period of darkness. It’s a concept that threads well throughout the series; from youth to adulthood, strangers to brothers to lovers, light and darkness balance each other, intertwine, and then become one. It’s a transformative experience that grips the soul and doesn’t let go.
Read the complete article here-
https://the-bl-xpress.com/2024/04/23/unknown-series-review-ep-3-to-12/
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Perfect!!!
Qian and Yuan, they maybe brothers due to circumstances nut yuan like Qian because he saved him from life on streets or how well he was with him, idk wtv but themmmm were so perfect.....I HATED THE PART WHEN QIAN SENT YUAN AWAY and then regretted every single day after that, Qian wiping his room and keeping it tidy for him.... I mean he harbours deep issues, his bloody brain and headaches, his past w his mom and the time he worked in a gang to survive and all.
ANY SHORTCOMMINGS CAN BE OVERLOOKED W THE LAST TWO EPISODES, the hot steamy sex and the want the need the love and EVERYTHING WAS SO PERFECTTTTTTTTT.
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Controversial, But Hear Me Out
Well don’t know where to start with this one, but I will say this BL is a little controversial since it can be viewed in different ways depending on the person. I have a very “in the middle” opinion with this show so I will state what I think like if I’m writing an informative essay… kinda lol.Some may state that this BL is considered incest while others will state otherwise. But as of now let’s focus on the first opinion.
Is this incest?
Well considering they’re not blood related, no it’s not incest but other factors play a major part into why this could be seen as incest. Other people have mentioned how the fact that since Qian raised Yuan since a very young age that he should not have those sorts of feelings towards Yuan. I read a review saying that it’s understandable that Yuan had those feelings considering his rough past and also him being young and taken care of by Qian could possibly confuse him and make him have feelings for Qian. But Qian reciprocating those feelings is just plainly wrong because for one he’s old enough to understand what’s right and wrong. And two he basically saw Yuan grow so you would guess they would only have a family relationship and feelings towards eachother. Now, this is something that I am confused about, though liking an adopted or non-blood-related person is very possible mostly if they’re adopted already while you’re in your teens or so. But if you’re growing up with them since little I would assume you would only see them as a family member. Like this is what I would see it as but if my family adopted someone when I was very young and I grew up with them I would never have such romantic feelings towards them since once again, I grew up with them and will only see them as a sibling. I’ve also never understood how in some shows best friends that grew up together also start having feelings with eachother because to me if we grow up together I will see you more as a family rather than a friend that could possibly turn into something romantic. You know? Now having a best friend that you grew up with since very young and having an adopted person that you grew up with are very different things because, one is adopted lol so that automatically makes you related to them. But it’s still something that seems to play a similar role to me because once again, if we grow up together, you’re family to me and I will see you as such. It’s not the same as meeting someone who was adopted by your family when you’re, let’s say 15 and they’re 15 too, and by the time you’re a bit older you realize you have feelings for that person because once again you met that person at a pretty mature age and didn’t technically grow up together.
Anyway, that’s all I have to say about that opinion. I side with both opinions being stated for this show. Because once again it’s controversial. But let’s talk about the second opinion and come to a conclusion.
Is it not incest?
Morally speaking it is, realistically speaking from DNA and so on. No, it’s not. No matter what anyone thinks they’re not blood related. So is it not incest? Before I keep going let’s search up what incest is. And from a quick search it states “ Incest is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity, and sometimes those related by affinity, adoption, or lineage”. Therefore based on this definition what they did is incest since he’s adopted by Qian. But once again they’re not blood related. Since I can remember the word incest has mainly been used when actual blood related members of a family have a romantic relationship between themselves. Though when someone dates their stepbrother or stepsister it’s a little bit more normalized but by some it’s also considered incest. There’s a lot of shows/movies about stepsiblings catching feelings for eachother, but back to the age thing most of the times this is portrayed, the stepsiblings meet when they’re in their late teens and don’t necessarily grow up together. So it’s not as controversial. Cause it’s like a friend of yours or your crush suddenly becoming your stepsibling cause your parent and their parent decided to be together.
Ok that’s all I can think of to say for both sides, ngl trying to write out about this not being incest was a little hard because the way this BL is portrayed is very much incest coded.
But to conclude, this BL is gonna be seen differently by many different people depending on their own personal views and opinions. I myself will admit that I’m in the middle about this show, although I do see why it’s seen as incest I can also accept why it’s not. Yes, it’s more to the incest side because of different factors such as age gap, the fact Yuan was adopted by Qian, the fact that he was very young when he was adopted by Qian, and the fact that Qian played a father, mother and older brother role for both Lili and Yuan throughout the years, and not only until Yuan confessed his feelings did Qian suddenly start having those feelings for him as well which leads me to think that before Yuan showed signs of liking Qian and also confessed, Qian had no such feelings for Yuan. And that thought makes it a bit weird but also not? Once again, controversial as fuck. Very complex to actually put a label on it as either incest or not incest. At the end of the day, they were both kids when they met eachother, there was an age gap but possibly no bigger than 7 years, but still they were kids when they met. They both had hard lives and tough pasts. A lot of trauma and no therapy or anything that could’ve emotionally helped them. Even Qian would have nightmares about his mother, therefore he isn’t mentally stable to make more mature reasonable decisions such as not dating your adopted brother. Both need therapy and need help mentally, and the fact that they liked eachother isn’t 100% their fault, most likely not their fault at all. For one you can’t control your feelings, and second they’re both not mentally stable to possibly understand how weird it actually is. And the fact that everyone else accepted it so easy didn’t help this case either. Because in reality this probably wouldn’t have been so easily accepted by people mostly coming from a gay relationship. But that’s just how this show turned out to be and we must accept it as it is. Overall I will admit it was a good show, the acting was good, the story was decent, and everything else was good too. It’s just a little controversial but that shouldn’t be something you let ruin your watching experience, mostly when you consider the other factors as to why things turned out the way they were. Was it a little unrealitc in some parts? Yes. But this whole show is a little unrealistic and controversial all over. But also realistic and relatable in certain parts.
Final thoughts
Have an open mind when you watch this show, your opinion is valid whether you think this is incest or not, or both. It’s up to you to let this show be a certain experience for you wether that be a bad, good or both. But let’s not lie, the chemistry was good, and so was the acting, casting, and directing.
Overall: 8.8/10
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A rollercoaster of emotions in the best way possible.
I was looking forward to this series, and it did not disappoint. Everything in this story works. I laughed, I cried, and I was filled with horror and light. It was great. It's such a great balance of story.It was very realistic, and it never seemed stupid or unreal.
Rewatch: yes, I will watch it repeatedly because this is a series with everything in it.
All the Actors are very good, and I hope we see them again in other great productions.
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Award-worthy acting
Unknown showcases the craft of acting with a cast that embodies their characters completely, and attention to detail behind the scenes.I understand people's problems with the plotline but dramas are dramatic so I can ignore the faults in favour of the execution (cracks are how the light gets in). I happily paid for the express package, something I hadn't considered for any other drama.
Chris Chiu and Kurt Huang are amazing in front of and behind the scenes, and their commitment to the roles is evident in how seriously they embodied Qian and Yuan.
The whole cast felt "real" and the little moments were so good. Attention to detail in the lived in look of their house and bookcases full of internet programming books etc added verisimilitude.
I sincerely hope that Unknown gives the cast and crew awards and recognition. Both Chris and Kurt (especially Chris) deserve high profile roles off the back of this.
I hope that Qian and Yuan will cameo in a future BL series, it would be nice to see them further into their relationship. I think a second series would probably devalue this series though.
Despite its flaws, Unknown is an easy 10/10 for me.
Pros:
The acting
Commitment of cast and crew
Set dressing
Beautifully shot
Songs
Behind the scenes content
邱宇辰 Qiu Yuchen (Chris Chiu)
黃宏軒 Huang Hongxuan (Kurt Huang)
Cons:
Romance with "father figure".
Sister sidelined to the point she almost doesn't exist.
Editing that has children in flashback during an NC scene. Just no. (Watch the SP11 version instead of original).
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The cracks are where the light comes in
This show is a quiet, sincere masterpiece well-deserving of the love audiences have shown it.I didn't know if I was going to like this show when I started watching it, in fact I was fairly skeptical of the whole "forbidden love" angle.
But what I thought was going to be the biggest hurdle the show would have to overcome, in fact turned out to be its greatest strength.
Rather than being titillating and reveling in the taboo, this story is slow and introspective. Instead of focusing on romance, it prioritises exploring the inner lives of the characters, their complicated circumstances, emotions, and relationships.
We see the characters on their own almost as much as we see them interacting with one another, and when they are together found family and loving people by choice are very strongly thematised.
Paradoxically, this makes the show almost devastatingly romantic and touching. It doesn't make any grand, general statements, it simply explores, in great detail, the relationship between two people who are absolutely indispensable to one another and why that connection turns romantic. How, for these two specific people, a love like this can and does work.
Another completely unexpected highlight of the series is its understated humour which not only balances perfectly with the more serious tone the story strikes overall, but which is also often so clever or unexpected it made me laugh out loud several times.
Add to that the spectacular performances from the entire cast, excellent writing, beautiful and highly effective cinematography and editing, and a simple yet lovely soundtrack and it's clear why this series is so cherished by its viewers.
It's not entirely without its flaws, for example I would have loved to see Qian experience more character development in regards to his extreme protectiveness over his sister and how, intentionally or not, this ties into general misogynistic patterns of behaviour. Some of the gang sub-plots could also have been more fleshed out.
On the whole though these issues aren't nearly enough to diminish my high opinion of this show and certainly won't dissuade me from recommending it to others.
If you like slow, thoughtful, highly character-driven slice-of-life stories which, in their own way, highlight how in the end what it all comes down to is love, love, and love again, then this one is for you.
If you enjoy stories that explore the shifting and often blurry lines between different kinds of love, or that ask what it *really* means to form a family with someone, then this one is most definitely for you.
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The beauty when unrequited love for decades turns mutual
This drama is filled with all kinds of human emotions. This is probably the best BL series of Taiwan. the actors are the cream on the top.The hard life Wei Qian has gone through to raise this family and Wei Yuan's secret love and support to Qian really moved me into tears. The story was well written in every aspect.
The trauma of wei qian being abused by his mother still lingers, like how can a mom be like that? still Wei Qian pulled himself together to give an awesome life to LIlli and his adopted brother from street, Wei zhiyuan. As days goes on Wei Zhiyuan slwoly develop his love for Qian from his childhood, loving him secretly and taking care of him no matter what. It was really tiring for Yuan to love his brother but he didn't give up until his brother accepts it.
At the beginning Qian was hostile toward this love but gradually when yuan was sent abroad to study, Qian understood how important Yuan was to him in his life and gradually fell in love with him. Woahhh the last 2 eps was really good and it wasn't really enough for me. The emotions were well executed by the actors.
I love them. I love how Yuan loved his brother. i loved how Qian was responsible in everything. as a whole it was a beautiful love story.
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Such a different and amazing bl series
The dynamics of this relationship are so different from what we normally get, there are a few series where one person struggles to accept the others feelings but this is for completely different reasons and is portrayed really well.The comedy was done perfectly with the script and the way the actors portrayed it, it’s such a series series but still somehow is so entertaining to watch so it never gets boring.
Towards the end there were so many times I had to pause because it was funny or shocking, especially with Yuan's flirting, he has very good game and it was fun to watch him be smug whilst Qian tries to process it.
The acting is by far one of the best bits, the actors have such great chemistry, this is said in so many of their interviews, it creates that connection that the characters have since they have known each other for ages.
Will definitely rewatch, there are so many feelings with each of the characters and once you know everything more and more makes sense.
The only problem is the pacing, it worked great but maybe some more focussed points on Qian’s developed feelings and more of their relationship when they are finally together. I wouldn’t say it’s rushed but just done in a different style. Then as many say about the nc scene, it is a let down, it’s not just about nc but I feel like if the montage wasn’t there, the emotions could have been shown better.
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Ge to Gege ?
April 24, 2024Unknown has definitely been one of the well-written Taiwanese Bls in the last few years.
Yup, I said it. I think Taiwan was going through a slump of BLs in terms of their production and such. As I dropped a lot of the released BLs over the past few years.
The reason why I could not give this series a solid 10/10 is just that I could not really feel settle or fully feel comfortable regarding the leads. I know that they aren't blood related at all and by any means, they are basically strangers who just happened to become a family. Or like raised together as a parent/son? Older brother/younger brother ... See even saying this whole sentence, it already kind of makes me feel unsettled. I guess that's my only critique of this fictional show. I do know that there are many many series with this type of plot synopsis but still, I think that is for sure the reason why it just doesn't seem like a 10/10 drama for me.
Now in terms of all the positive aspects of this show:
- It is well-written. Both leads are written well, for their background, their motivation to succeed in time. In terms of accepting themselves given how society perceives them.
- This also goes to the supporting leads as well. Each of them are developed and there might be a few jagged scenes here and there. Regardless, it was not something that was so distracting and can go unnoticeable.
- The ending was amazing, it encompasses the vulnerability, yet steamingly hot and mature scenes. It was absolutely beautiful and I love it.
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This "Unknown" gem, now is found!
Bl dramas that are amazingly good are really hard to come by, and this is ine of them!The story is about family(biological & found), friendship and love. All are portrayd with an exceptional and heart-warming way!!!
It's a drama that gets you through a rollercoaster of emotions. You're gonna laugh, cry, anticipate, be excited, be depressed and for us that watched it when was airing, we were also left with a cliff-hanger every week waiting for a new ep!!
It isn't a rushed drama but it doesn't leave you with a rushed ending, like most slow-burn dramas do.!!
The cast did an exceptional job portraying the characters and all the emotions throughout the drama.
Whoever picked the cast did an amazing job and has my respect, honestly!!!
Everything was 10/10 in this drama!!
The cast, the music, the direction, the screen-writing!!
So don't miss out on this masterpiece and go watch it, if you haven't already!
You won't regret it!!
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Unknown will remain a masterpiece! There is no going back after this series! Rated no # 1 BL !
No coming back from this series. THIS WAS FIRE ! ??It sunk in way too deep in our hearts,❤?and filled our souls! They took us into 'another whole level' - a leave that could not be compared to any other BL. This series left an unforgettable - heavy impact on fans. It's beyond words, to describe what we are feeling. Honestly, the story that was written, created, and acted was in such a perfect way that, they left the audience in awe???. This story will remain a masterpiece❣and, will be talked about for a long time. I sincerely hope we will see more of Qian and Yuan ( Chris and Kurt) soon as fans are stuck on them, and finding it rather difficult to move on. The NC scenes were done so effortlessly because they were super comfortable with each other, and had total freedom, so they had a natural flow, and that was executed in such a perfect way. Thank you so much for releasing 'Unknown' It will remain classic forever!?Was this review helpful to you?
This series is really worth watching
This series focuses on brothers who have a lot of drama. The meeting, which was initially just a form of concern, made Yuan, his younger brother, fall in love with his older brother. Xian, the older sibling, who initially didn't know, slowly felt lonely when his younger sibling wasn't by his side. Then when he almost lost his younger brother because of that "strange game". The climax was when he first endured his younger brother's departure and began to accept his younger brother's love.This series really gives me both happiness and sadness. I can even feel it on both sides. Thanks to the good acting from the two actors, I managed to watch this series until the end. Thank you for presenting a very good series. Amazing
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