Chrysmas
United States
I'm an ally
I jumped into this drama expecting the most compelling story of all time. The reviews on here are mostly all 10's, and I was ready for the binge monster to kick in....instead I got a cute story, decent acting (considering their ages and experience I was not expecting Oscar-winning performances but they carried their own in my honest opinion) and a social lesson on the struggles on loving as a gay person in the Philippines
Here is why I did not rate it a 10...
I did not see a problem with the pacing, but there was an issue with the story-telling for me. Just like in Nirvana in Fire, there was more explaining than acting going on. That could be because of the budget, but Karl's story was central to his decision making that a few more scenes with his family could have made a difference in perception. Also, Vlad's story was explained away as well. There is nothing wrong with story-telling but the direction has to pull the viewer in to actually feel the story.
I agree that the chemistry between the two was actually pretty good, but one of the characters ( I won't spoil) was just coming into their sexual identity and the moves he made were incongruent with how he was handling his newfound self...again I feel that this was a direction issue. Many of their scenes together were long music montages, and though I am a firm believer that you do not need dialogue to convey a message...the music montages were a bit too much.
The ending was rushed...and it was obvious...they could have cut out the walking face-time scene with the two girls and expanded on the ending a bit more...I hate rushed endings with a passion...it could make or break an entire drama.
General Thoughts on BL: I enjoy BL stories and am glad to see them moving in the direction to portray realistic situations that the LGBTQ+ community face...however, I also enjoy BL stories that ignore the social struggles and just tell a story of two people falling in love (solving mysteries, crime, mind-reading, vampires...whatever that is interesting) without worrying about said issues. I know some people thought this story was a bit too preachy...I actually enjoyed the lesson in this drama because it showed two different sides of the story.
The for-female-enjoyment BL stories were okay to watch but some people believe they could be problematic and I agree. Most people in my generation grew up with a Cinderella complex (look it up) and the millions of stories about a damsel of distress were reinforcing the idea that women need to be taken care of and saved...not being able to take care of themselves. So GSP was refreshing because they did not add toxicity to their story...creating a safe space for a gay story to thrive and can actually be relatable to a gay audience.
Here is why I did not rate it a 10...
I did not see a problem with the pacing, but there was an issue with the story-telling for me. Just like in Nirvana in Fire, there was more explaining than acting going on. That could be because of the budget, but Karl's story was central to his decision making that a few more scenes with his family could have made a difference in perception. Also, Vlad's story was explained away as well. There is nothing wrong with story-telling but the direction has to pull the viewer in to actually feel the story.
I agree that the chemistry between the two was actually pretty good, but one of the characters ( I won't spoil) was just coming into their sexual identity and the moves he made were incongruent with how he was handling his newfound self...again I feel that this was a direction issue. Many of their scenes together were long music montages, and though I am a firm believer that you do not need dialogue to convey a message...the music montages were a bit too much.
The ending was rushed...and it was obvious...they could have cut out the walking face-time scene with the two girls and expanded on the ending a bit more...I hate rushed endings with a passion...it could make or break an entire drama.
General Thoughts on BL: I enjoy BL stories and am glad to see them moving in the direction to portray realistic situations that the LGBTQ+ community face...however, I also enjoy BL stories that ignore the social struggles and just tell a story of two people falling in love (solving mysteries, crime, mind-reading, vampires...whatever that is interesting) without worrying about said issues. I know some people thought this story was a bit too preachy...I actually enjoyed the lesson in this drama because it showed two different sides of the story.
The for-female-enjoyment BL stories were okay to watch but some people believe they could be problematic and I agree. Most people in my generation grew up with a Cinderella complex (look it up) and the millions of stories about a damsel of distress were reinforcing the idea that women need to be taken care of and saved...not being able to take care of themselves. So GSP was refreshing because they did not add toxicity to their story...creating a safe space for a gay story to thrive and can actually be relatable to a gay audience.
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