The Summer You Kissed Me

One Drunken Kiss, One Forbidden Summer, and Two Beautiful Boys Who Were Meant to Fall in Love!

I watched the 57 minute movie version of The Summer You Kissed Me on GagaOOLala instead of watching the individual five episodes, and honestly, I am so glad I did because I absolutely cannot stand waiting every week for the next episode!

This was such a cute, adorable and surprisingly charming little BL. Wang Chen Rui as Gao Ran, an art student, immediately caught my attention from the opening scene where he is naked and drawing himself while looking into a mirror. Drawing yourself is already difficult enough, but doing it while staring at your own reflection takes some serious skill. And yes, his body definitely made that opening scene even more memorable!

Then Gao Ran meets Chen Zihan as Mosua, and their first interaction instantly turns into clashes, bickering and playful arguments. Their chemistry was so much fun to watch. For Gao Ran, it was basically love at first sight, and I absolutely loved how openly flirtatious and dirty minded he was whenever Mosua was around. It gave his character so much personality and added a really fun charm to their dynamic.

One of my favourite moments was when Gao Ran described Mosua as white and cute like a lychee and then basically said he could not wait to peel his lychee. 😂 That was an absolutely wild line to say, but somehow it perfectly suited Gao Ran!

Then they meet again at a bar, things get complicated, and they end up kissing. It was a drunken kiss, but the chemistry between them was intense and surprisingly passionate. What made it even more interesting was that this was both of their first time experiencing something like this with another man. They were clearly confused about their feelings and what the kiss actually meant to them.

Luckily, Mosua's flight gets cancelled, giving them another chance to see each other. I really enjoyed how the story eventually moved beyond the idea of a one night stand. Their confession towards the end was genuinely adorable because they realised they did not just want that one moment. They wanted each other.

"Can you only kiss me and only me?" 🥹

That line perfectly captured what they were feeling.

Overall, The Summer You Kissed Me is extremely short, but sometimes a short and sweet story is exactly what you need. It is light, cute, romantic and thankfully non toxic, with two gorgeous leads who have great chemistry. I really hope these two actors get the opportunity to lead a full length BL drama together because I would 100% be watching.

If you like good looking boys, love at first sight, rivals to lovers, a one night stand turning into something more, cute romance and a very flirty male lead, definitely put this on your watch list.

Another short but sweet Chinese BL that proves China can still surprise us with something this cute.

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Pretty Faces, Paper-Thin Plot

The Summer You Kissed Me is a short Chinese BL miniseries with five episodes, each running only about ten to fifteen minutes — which is, frankly, far too short.

That brevity creates its own problem. When you're waiting an entire week for a new episode, but the episode itself is over almost as soon as it begins, anticipation builds much faster than the story ever can. The possibility of disappointment is practically built into the format.
Honestly, the whole thing feels a bit like a cheap romance novel. You know exactly what you're getting.

Both leads are undeniably attractive, and the series knows it. But if you're looking for a complex plot or deep character development, there's really not much here. The story is simple, predictable, and more interested in creating a mood than telling a particularly memorable narrative.

Then again, sometimes that's exactly what you want. A world to disappear into for an hour or so. Nothing complicated, nothing emotionally exhausting, just enough romance to keep you invested before it's all over again.

And if I'm being completely honest about my own weakness: I usually can't stand the whole “I'm not into men, but you're the exception” trope.

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The movie is better than the series

What happens when a lychee encounters a durian? You get a recipe for a sweet and pungent little movie.

Originally a five-episode series that was condensed into an hour-long movie, I can understand why viewers who watched the original version may have disliked it. Something inevitably gets lost when five episodes are squeezed together, especially continuity and character development. But as a short movie, I actually think the story flows much better. It’s a small-budget production, but the right actors with good chemistry can make all the difference.

From the get-go, we’re introduced to Gao Ran’s beauty and personality. So the question becomes: would you rather have fruit in your room or a naked man? 😂 Didi, our confused and introverted older virgin, discovers the joys of sex but, because of his insecurities, is constantly looking for something safe and familiar. There’s no long, drawn-out drama here, just a chance encounter, a little confusion, attraction, and what happens afterward.

Don’t take this “what-if” movie too seriously. It’s essentially a sitcom and rom-com rolled into one, and that’s exactly what makes it entertaining. It’s short, light, silly, and sweet enough to be worth a rewatch.

Wang Chen Rui has so far mostly appeared in BL productions as he continues to develop his acting skills. I’m hoping he gets better scripts that allow him to show what he can really do because there’s definitely talent there. We already know he has the hot body. Now let’s give the man a script worthy of it. 😂

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