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Could have been so much more...
Now, in general, I really wanted to like this show. Gangster BL drama hello?? sign me up. however, it did not live up to expectations... at all.It started out quite well with the story building and Xia Liu Yi's introduction was the coolest. And we have some great scenes like.. Chu San getting a hard on when they're hiding from the gangsters ;) And Xia Liu Yi becoming the gang leader after the death of his sister. So the show has had it's moments, but that's it. From start to finish they were just circling around each other, which can be great, but there is a line like hello.
Somehow their most passionate kiss ended up being a dream in like episode 4??? And why did Chu San say he had a disorder that made him more womanish/childish? That was one of the many things that felt so unnecessary, like Chu San's confession in ep 9, which felt rushed and unnatural, like it was put into the storyline to quicken things up. And when Xia Liu Yi was going so crazy finding Chu San in the last episode I just didn't really believe it, because it feels like their relationship hasn't has a chance to grow at all. Like I wanted to see some development between them, some more explored feelings, something. I think that's also the reason why i loved the second couple so much more, because there was that push/pull factor that made them interesting to watch. But I will say, the ending where Chu San taught the gangsters how to make money was quite funny.
So all in all, this show had huge potential to be something great, but it fell flat quite quickly and was overall just frustrating.
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Authentic queer story with flaws - but a must watch nonetheless
Beautiful story and cinematography - the opening was really touching and a great start to the show.The show was set to explore religious guilt and teenage love, and I did think that was greatly portrayed. However, it is around episode 5 and 6 that they kind of drop the show on the floor. Tanrak spends all of his relationship with Barth being scared of being found out, and Father and Kongdech are kind of hostile towards him when they do find out. But then we get a long time skip to the future, where they are both suddenly okay with it and they're all hugging?? It wasn't at all satisfying and it felt rushed and fake.
Of course I want happy endings to queer shows - but with an authentic, realistic story like this I would have liked to see more how they got to the happy ending. It seemed as soon as their relationship properly started, the story ended. I would've liked to see more of what made Kongdech change his mind, along with Father. Maybe the show would've worked out if the timeline was longer, instead of huge jumps in episode 1 and 6 between past and future, or if it was switching between past and future every episode.
Because to me it seemed like what the show said was "gay marriage is legal, which means everyone is accepting and okay with it now," which I don't think was their intention, but it made it feel less authentic nonetheless. And also some of the scripting was badly done, and they were often overexplaining what they were doing, though many shows have unfortunately started doing that now.
Despite its flaws, though, I do think this show is worth watching. Gemini and Fourth are such good actors and carry the roles so well. The building of their relationship is well done and Tanrak saying "I am not Gods favourite son either," before their first kiss was one of the best scenes in TV that I've seen lately. Happy christian queer stories are needed, and I am happy that this show has been made and released!
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First of all, I loved the overall premise: Searching for what dancing means to him and how it has affected him in past/present/future and exploring himself through dance. It gave the viewer a bit more personal look into him, while also being interested in hearing the stories and information from the other dancers that he worked with. It was interesting to me that despite being a dancer for so many years, he is still as passionate as ever to learn the new sides of dancing.
While many shows today focus on the same specific kind of camera frames and dull lighting, it is so refreshing to see this. The editing was really good; I wish to see more shows edited in this kind of fun, explorative way, with coloured text, flashes, patterns and colours. The editing helped show what his creative vision was and how dancing makes him feel. It was interesting and a good binge watch, I can definitely recommend.
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