Hi everyone!
Wasn't sure how to title this, but basically since this is a group dedicated to trans/gnc people (and those who are questioning as well!) who also enjoy BL, I'd be curious to know if there are any BL characters you relate to, that you headcanon as trans, or think are trans-coded in some way or another. Or just what impact, if any, has BL had on your queer identity and journey ?

As a transmasc person, BL really did play a part in me starting to question my gender identity in the first place, and once I realized I was trans, it really did change my perspective on some characters and storylines. I don't think the vast majority of these were meant to be trans-coded in any way, but that's how they read to me, and I feel like I'm noticing it a lot more now.

This is probably a very obvious example, but (SPOILERS forDNA Says Love You!!!) Amber from DNA Says Love You is the most trans-coded character I've ever seen in a BL. It's been a while since I've re-watched it, so I don't exactly remember how they explain it away, but I think he is canonically intersex, right? Regardless, his story is SO trans-coded, I was convinced they would actually make him a trans man, but wasn't at all surprised when they didn't go through with it. Still, he's definitely the closest I've come to seeing a trans male character in a main role in a BL.
I really should give it a proper re-watch, since the last time I saw it, I still identified as cis, haha...If anyone else has watched this BL, I'd love to know your thoughts on it, especially when it comes to Amber!

So I was curious if anyone has had any similar experiences? I'd love to hear your guys' opinions on this :)

I was definitely too flippant with the way I brought up Amber being intersex, sorry. It's been a bit too long since I've seen the show, and what I meant to say was more so that I felt as thought the show didn't properly explore Amber's identity, and that felt a bit frustrating. That's just my personal opinion, though, and I could very well be wrong. Especially if the subs weren't very accurate.
I understand what you mean, and I didn't mean to erase Amber's canon identity. Still, his storyline feels relatable to me, and I think my own personal feelings on it and the character being canonically intersex can co-exist. It's fiction, after all, and sometimes people will interpret it differently than what was intended, and I think that's fine. But I'll definitely acknowledge that the character's canon identity is important and I shouldn't have been so dismissive about it.

I haven't seen I Am The Most Beautiful Count yet, would you recommend it? I remember when the trailer came out, but I never got around to watching it.

AmnesiacMotorcyclist:

I haven't seen I Am The Most Beautiful Count yet, would you recommend it? I remember when the trailer came out, but I never got around to watching it.

I'm not the person that you asked this question to, but yes 'I Am The Most Beautiful Count' is excellent! One of my favorites for sure. It's hilarious and super political :)

I'm transneutral, not transmasc. For me BL is a way to engage with the romance genre without having to identify with the characters. I just get really dysphoric at straight stuff because it reminds me of guys having treated me like a girl in the past. I also don't want to be reminded of anatomy I'm dysphoric over. Dysphoria caused a bunch of sex repulsion for me, or maybe those are kind of one and the same thing for me, and watching BL somehow neutralizes that somewhat. Dunno how to explain it, but it's very positive for my mental health.

Since I got top surgery, I have less dysphoria to avoid, so I enjoy GL now too. :)

As for identifying with characters... hmmm skinny guys like Gun in Burnout Syndrome do make me go 'oh he looks kinda like me' (if you squint really hard lol), but I wouldn't say I relate to them in terms of personality or life experience at all.

I relate to characters when they're having a hard time accepting themselves and being open towards others, regardless of which queer identity they happen to be. Lili from 'Marahuyo Project' comes to mind (probably because the character is intersex and that was the topic of conversation haha). The way she made me bawl my eyes out, dang. That whole show is a masterpiece.

I guess watching characters fight for or receive acceptance helps me think of my own queerness as not a big deal, not something to be ashamed of. I mean, these BL guys are out here getting shot by the mafia or traveling through time or whatever, and when after all that, they don't get accepted just for being gay, I'm like 'dude get your priorities straight, for real, just for that tiny issue?' But at the end they get their happy ending and acceptance and the world is right again. It helps me relativize I guess. BL is a source of queer stories with almost guaranteed happy endings. When I was little and watched a ton of queer YouTube shorts, they contained so much abuse and suicide and it was honestly really traumatic. BL helps me feel I could have a positive future and a place to belong in the world because my queerness isn't that big of a deal.

Anyways, I haven't seen anyone mention it yet, but 'Saneha Kap Cheevit's main character is a trans man (though played by a cis man). He is straight, but the show has a gay ace support couple, so I think it's still relevant.

Also there's supposed to be a GL with a trans main actress soon: Hak Na My Boss. Let's ignore that 'Her' will exist too.

Maybe Daisy from Secret Crush on You also deserves a mention; a trans character that has a very hard time accepting themselves, though their partner doesn't have nearly as much trouble doing so. I initially dropped that show because it was so cringe, but picking it back up was absolutely the right decision. The cringe is intentional. The message the show sends is 'you are lovable, it doesn't matter if you are cringe (Toh), overweight (Khaojao), or femme (Daisy).'

Ryn:

I'm not the person that you asked this question to, but yes 'I Am The Most Beautiful Count' is excellent! One of my favorites for sure. It's hilarious and super political :)

Thank you, I'll have to add it to my to-watch list then :) who knows when I'll actually get to it, though..maybe it's just me but I feel like there's so many BL's coming out right now, it's a bit hard to keep up. Definitely not complaining since I'm glad we're getting so many, I just wish I had the time to see them all.

I can relate to feeling dysphoric when it comes to straight romance. But I'm glad you had access to top surgery and that it's been helpful in alleviating some gender dysphoria. Unfortunately it's practically impossible to get any gender affirming surgery in my country, so that's not on the table for me right now.

Personally, BL's have been very comforting since I started watching them, although I couldn't really wrap my mind around why when I still identified as cis. After realizing I'm trans, I think they've become even more comforting at times, and yet they also sometimes serve as a reminder of something that I'm not and cannot have, if that makes sense. So it's a sort of double edged sword. But I think the comfort they bring me outweighs any negative feelings, so I really can't imagine myself not watching BL's anymore.

I see what you mean! I think that because of the sheer quantity of BL's that get produced (especially when it comes to Thai BL's) there's a good amount of diversity in the types of stories that get told, and the genres that go alongside the romance. So there's plenty of BL's with happy endings, BL's that are very lighthearted and where homophobia seemingly doesn't even exist. And I totally see the appeal. At the same time, I appreciate that there's still BL's that dive into more complex or darker topics, in a weird way those can be really comforting as well, at least for me. Seeing a character go through a painful situation that's familiar can be validating for me, so I see that side of it as well. I think in the end it's good to have a large pool of queer stories being told, that you can choose from. And it definitely helps to have stories where the queer characters are trying to solve a murder mystery or are battling ghosts or running from the mafia, because then they have much bigger problems to deal with than being queer, and that can be reassuring in a way, so I definitely see what you mean.

I haven't heard before of a lot of the shows you mentioned, so thank you for the recs :)

AmnesiacMotorcyclist:

I see what you mean about BL's often having storylines surrounding queer acceptance as a whole. Whenever I think about this, I'm reminded of a scene from Not Me (very minor spoilers ahead): where the main characters go to a pride parade. It was nice to see the community at large be acknowledged in that way.

I LOVE 'Not Me'!! That scene is SOOO good TT. Also yes I highly recommend 'If It's With You'! It's very short and simple, but it's become my main comfort series lolol

milo:

Also yes I highly recommend 'If It's With You'

I second this recommendation :)

milo:

Congrats top surgery twin!!

Thanks! Congrats to you too! And yeah that scene in Not Me made me cry haha, so good! :)

multitudebr:

Also, I'm over 50 and it's even rarer a show with older people like myself (one of the reasons I really liked shows such as Life in Smokey Blue and Chosen Home).

I've noticed the lack of older actors in BL's and it is really frustrating, especially when the show wants to tell a story with an older character but refuses to hire an actor that age. I can suspend my disbelief a lot, so that's not the issue (I can believe that this 30 yr old actor is playing a 40+ character for the sake of the story), but it does bother me that there's so much resistance to letting older actors play in these main roles. Although whether that's an issue solely with BL, or with the romance genre at large, I'm not sure.

I can't wait to watch Life In Smokey Blue, especially since one of the actors was also in my all time favorite BL which is Old Fashion Cupcake. I really recommend it, just in case you haven't seen it, since it not only has an older character, but also the whole plot revolves around discussions around age.

I haven't gotten around to seeing these yet, but both Hard Nights and Mandate have older actors/characters. Hard Nights is about a couple in their 50's and the struggles they're facing in their relationship, while Mandate is more of a political drama but it still features an older actor in a main role.

There's also Mr. Mitsuya's Planned Feeding which is a really cute show, if you're okay with a bigger age gap between the couple.

multitudebr:

I also love gentle and easygoing characters, like many of the characters played by Top and MIck in Every you every me (one of my favorite BLs), because these are traits I strive for, in opposition to my natural rebellious self that often comes off as rude and antisocial. Seeing interactions so far from my reality make my edges rounder :)

I haven't heard of Every You, Every Me before but it seems right up my alley. At least from the description, it sounds like a reincarnation/soulmates type of story and I loveee those.

As someone who has a lot of trouble with social interaction, and therefore is often perceived as either mean or awkward or weird because of it, I can really relate to this. I especially love seeing characters who are not only outgoing, but also witty and really know how to navigate a conversation. More than that, I love seeing a character who's sure of who they are, and very confident about it, no matter how much they stand out in a crowd.

multitudebr:

Seeing characters that are able to keep going despite the hardships of being queer is also a source of inspiration, but I usually swear at many families I see in shows, that oppress their kids in the name of a misguided morality they're just passing on without questioning. Being a queer parent to a queer child (a gay grown-ass man actually :D ) makes watching those a didactic experience to say the least. And it's also cathartic to see parents' acceptance, as I have seen in some shows like the queer couple that are Daotok's parents in The Sun from Another Star.

I recently started showing my mom some BL's and she's been really enjoying them, but it's also been interesting for me to see things from a parent's perspective. She often finds the families who aren't accepting of their queer kids in these shows even more frustrating than I do. But I do like these storylines because it's nice to see queer characters who get to have their happy ending despite the lack of support and acceptance from their families.

AmnesiacMotorcyclist:

I've noticed the lack of older actors in BL's and it is really frustrating, especially when the show wants to tell a story with an older character but refuses to hire an actor that age. I can suspend my disbelief a lot, so that's not the issue (I can believe that this 30 yr old actor is playing a 40+ character for the sake of the story), but it does bother me that there's so much resistance to letting older actors play in these main roles. Although whether that's an issue solely with BL, or with the romance genre at large, I'm not sure.

Exactly. It mimics reality in the way people disappear as we get older.

Ryn:

I made a list of mains over 35 in queer shows :)

Thank you for this, I'll surely check it out and the other lists you made too, I also like these tropes!

AmnesiacMotorcyclist:

I can't wait to watch Life In Smokey Blue, especially since one of the actors was also in my all time favorite BL which is Old Fashion Cupcake. I really recommend it, just in case you haven't seen it, since it not only has an older character, but also the whole plot revolves around discussions around age.

LISB is fabulous, I love it and I'm already sad it's getting to the end (only 2 more episodes). I wish I could see more shows with mature discussions like that. Although I like to see shows with people from all ages and walks of life, and there are even some with younger people and very mature conversations, we surely lack diversity in that front.

I also watched OFC, loved it, and I watched LISB because of that actor too, and he's so great in both roles :) I watched Mandate, liked it, but it's more about the politics than the queerness, which was very enlightening to show how Thailand is similar to my own country, Brazil. We actually have a running joke that Thailand is the Brazil of Asia :D

AmnesiacMotorcyclist:

There's also Mr. Mitsuya's Planned Feeding which is a really cute show, if you're okay with a bigger age gap between the couple.

I haven't watched this one yet, thanks! I'm more than ok with a bigger age gap, I usually thrive among younger people. I watched another one that has a 15-year age gap, 10 Things I Want to Do before I Turn 40, but it goes the cutesy way, which I'm not against, but many do the same and I feel it's a way to make it look less awkward for asian audiences, which I think don't like age gaps (from commentary in general).

AmnesiacMotorcyclist:

I haven't heard of Every You, Every Me before but it seems right up my alley. At least from the description, it sounds like a reincarnation/soulmates type of story and I loveee those.

As Ryn pointed out, it doesn't really go that way. It actually has a very unique plot, one of the reasons I liked it so much, but even more so because it shows the range of the actors' skills, and for me to keep recommending it everywhere.

AmnesiacMotorcyclist:

More than that, I love seeing a character who's sure of who they are, and very confident about it, no matter how much they stand out in a crowd.

EXACTLY! That's why I loved I'm the most beautiful count, and I almost quit midway because there's a bit of overacting, but in Supanut we trust and I haven't regretted watching it to the end.