Elfkin
USA
This review may contain spoilers
This was so much FUN!
I fell in love with this show and it's going to sound like I hated it. But I didn't.
We're used to college themed BL's where an Engineer and some snarky or innocent "bottom" fall in love. That would be Mark/Kit. But the two main leads in this, Wayu and Thanu, are both very sweet, soft boi's. And neither of them are Engineers! Thank fuck!
In the web-series the drama was adapted from, Wayu and Mark are the center around which most things revolve. That's true in the drama as well, but Season 1 of Gen Y also goes way past where the web book left off-- which began as a sort of fan-fic based on 2 Moons. The author understandably didn't like Phana's character and set out to build a world where Wayo had options. She of course knocked the edges off by renaming the main characters and adding in original ones. Wayo became Wayu. Ming became Mark. Phana became Pharawee.
Mark and Wayu aren't really that much like Ming and Wayo. Mark isn't just an exuberant playboy with Teflon sensibilities. He's loyal. He can be hurt. He gets angry. He's fierce at times, tender at others. And while Wayo was defensive and closed off and couldn't easily express himself--Wayu is a people person who communicates well, is kind and open, and has big, BIG balls. Coming through the other side of a brutal breakup still having faith in love takes big, big balls. Standing up to Padbok when Wayu knew Padbok was probably going to kick his ass? Big, big balls. And yes, getting back in the saddle and trying another relationship after being literally abandoned took big, BIIiiggg balls. People rag on his crying in some of the other reviews. But crying doesn't mean weakness. Emotional vulnerability doesn't mean weakness. Real grieving takes time.
But Kit is still Kit. Still kind of stuck up. Still reactionary. Still very cross. Still not a pleasant person to date. The upside to this version of Kit is his relationship with Wayu. He's very sweet and soft for Wayu. For every moment when he gives Mark hell, he's caring for Wayu. So at least that adds dimension to the character and gives Copter something to run with. He's still not a character I much like. If I was Mark I'd have given up and chased after someone who acted like they actually wanted to be in a relationship.
Thanu, or as I like to call him--Captain Eyebrows--is handsome, tall, intense, kind and good-natured. Which naturally means he was doomed to struggle. He started out attracted to a boy he only saw in passing and didn't get to actually meet until Thanu was already falling in love with Wayu. He finally meets Phai and quickly becomes the textbook definition of fucked. Shared visions? Really!? Some may criticize that he avoided Wayu to take time to choose which boy he really should be with. And yes ghosting Wayu was a dick move, considering Wayu's past. But I think Thanu was trying to avoid hurting Wayu. Which made the choice stupid, not malicious. If that had been going on when I was in college, I'd have needed a trip to Tahiti, my metric weight in Rum and a complete social media blackout to handle it. So I'm good with Thanu. He picked Wayu. Plus, he's got a Mustang. How can I not love that?
Sab. While Wayu is somewhat of an ideal--cute, nice, polite, socially adept and genuine, Sab is snoopy to a prurient degree, he teases his cousin Wayu, he's meddlesome, hyperbolic and manipulative. In other words, he's perfect as Wayu's polar opposite. And they cast an actor that legitimately looks like he's related to Wayu! Love it!
I think Phai was supposed to be sweet and interesting. I wouldn't know. He has two expressions--'eyebrow up' and 'eyebrow down'. I've seen smooth river rocks with more personality.
In fact, except for Sandee and Sab, most of the support cast is forgettable. But Sandee? Wow, bro. Disney villain much? Though he's going to get out of baby bad-boi jail later on, because some of the fucked up stuff he does is due to being in love with Phai (and crazy) and the rest because he's deeply, deeply maladjusted (and crazy). For now he's as interesting as the support cast gets.
I didn't like Koh, who was insufferable. Or Pok and Tong who were hugely toxic? Padbok... Bro, you don't strangle someone because they're your frenemy's study-buddy. Klui and Kalae. Uh... Who? Jack was probably best of the rest, but even he made my eyes roll. Manhandling someone because they're smol is NOT cool, Jack. And I know I should probably care about the characters from the media arts faculty, but I don't. As for Pha... He was there for 30 seconds. I've got nothin' except Dayum. So, so tall.
As I said in the opening, I sound like I hated this show. But I loved it! Because Thanu/Wayu made it all worthwhile. In any given BL about 70% of it needs reworked or thrown out. It's that golden 30% you love a BL for. And that 30% is Thanu and Wayu.
We're used to college themed BL's where an Engineer and some snarky or innocent "bottom" fall in love. That would be Mark/Kit. But the two main leads in this, Wayu and Thanu, are both very sweet, soft boi's. And neither of them are Engineers! Thank fuck!
In the web-series the drama was adapted from, Wayu and Mark are the center around which most things revolve. That's true in the drama as well, but Season 1 of Gen Y also goes way past where the web book left off-- which began as a sort of fan-fic based on 2 Moons. The author understandably didn't like Phana's character and set out to build a world where Wayo had options. She of course knocked the edges off by renaming the main characters and adding in original ones. Wayo became Wayu. Ming became Mark. Phana became Pharawee.
Mark and Wayu aren't really that much like Ming and Wayo. Mark isn't just an exuberant playboy with Teflon sensibilities. He's loyal. He can be hurt. He gets angry. He's fierce at times, tender at others. And while Wayo was defensive and closed off and couldn't easily express himself--Wayu is a people person who communicates well, is kind and open, and has big, BIG balls. Coming through the other side of a brutal breakup still having faith in love takes big, big balls. Standing up to Padbok when Wayu knew Padbok was probably going to kick his ass? Big, big balls. And yes, getting back in the saddle and trying another relationship after being literally abandoned took big, BIIiiggg balls. People rag on his crying in some of the other reviews. But crying doesn't mean weakness. Emotional vulnerability doesn't mean weakness. Real grieving takes time.
But Kit is still Kit. Still kind of stuck up. Still reactionary. Still very cross. Still not a pleasant person to date. The upside to this version of Kit is his relationship with Wayu. He's very sweet and soft for Wayu. For every moment when he gives Mark hell, he's caring for Wayu. So at least that adds dimension to the character and gives Copter something to run with. He's still not a character I much like. If I was Mark I'd have given up and chased after someone who acted like they actually wanted to be in a relationship.
Thanu, or as I like to call him--Captain Eyebrows--is handsome, tall, intense, kind and good-natured. Which naturally means he was doomed to struggle. He started out attracted to a boy he only saw in passing and didn't get to actually meet until Thanu was already falling in love with Wayu. He finally meets Phai and quickly becomes the textbook definition of fucked. Shared visions? Really!? Some may criticize that he avoided Wayu to take time to choose which boy he really should be with. And yes ghosting Wayu was a dick move, considering Wayu's past. But I think Thanu was trying to avoid hurting Wayu. Which made the choice stupid, not malicious. If that had been going on when I was in college, I'd have needed a trip to Tahiti, my metric weight in Rum and a complete social media blackout to handle it. So I'm good with Thanu. He picked Wayu. Plus, he's got a Mustang. How can I not love that?
Sab. While Wayu is somewhat of an ideal--cute, nice, polite, socially adept and genuine, Sab is snoopy to a prurient degree, he teases his cousin Wayu, he's meddlesome, hyperbolic and manipulative. In other words, he's perfect as Wayu's polar opposite. And they cast an actor that legitimately looks like he's related to Wayu! Love it!
I think Phai was supposed to be sweet and interesting. I wouldn't know. He has two expressions--'eyebrow up' and 'eyebrow down'. I've seen smooth river rocks with more personality.
In fact, except for Sandee and Sab, most of the support cast is forgettable. But Sandee? Wow, bro. Disney villain much? Though he's going to get out of baby bad-boi jail later on, because some of the fucked up stuff he does is due to being in love with Phai (and crazy) and the rest because he's deeply, deeply maladjusted (and crazy). For now he's as interesting as the support cast gets.
I didn't like Koh, who was insufferable. Or Pok and Tong who were hugely toxic? Padbok... Bro, you don't strangle someone because they're your frenemy's study-buddy. Klui and Kalae. Uh... Who? Jack was probably best of the rest, but even he made my eyes roll. Manhandling someone because they're smol is NOT cool, Jack. And I know I should probably care about the characters from the media arts faculty, but I don't. As for Pha... He was there for 30 seconds. I've got nothin' except Dayum. So, so tall.
As I said in the opening, I sound like I hated this show. But I loved it! Because Thanu/Wayu made it all worthwhile. In any given BL about 70% of it needs reworked or thrown out. It's that golden 30% you love a BL for. And that 30% is Thanu and Wayu.
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