It's cute. I'm liking it so far. But far too many moments where Gene is lost in his own reverie and it takes waaaaay too long for people to snap him out of it. Far too many GULPS, too. I noticed (and hated) the sound effects, then came here and saw all the comments. Welcome to the club, I guess. They are just a bit too hokey and juvenile for me, especially since this has adults (not school boys) as the MC. But enjoying both the MC and Tum and Mork. A fun little piece of fluff.
Yes, but this is not BL. It's not about one specific romance. It's about the breadth of the gay experience in Taiwan in the 70s. It's dark and complicated and beautiful.
I watched the movie version. I fell for it. The music angle was fresh and the score was so strong. Those two elements alone had me hooked. The boys are drop dead gorgeous, stop the movie and stare at images gorgeous. Sang Yi is adorable. So innocent and naive. I was rooting for him on all fronts. Loved the multiple meet cute moments. When Sang Yi is playing piano in the park and the boys lock eyes, look away and then back and In Soo smiles I melted. There were flaws. Lots of stories that did not have the time to be fully realized. Sang Yi doesn’t really struggle with his spy mission and it doesn’t come back to harm him. Min Seongs unrequited love was given short shrift. Even the boys relationship. Why doesn’t In Soo stay the night after the kiss? Why does he leave a seeming suicide note when that’s not his intent? Will they ever talk about their feelings? Cuz sometimes a montage ain’t enough. But all in all gorgeous fluff that I could watch over and over.
A nice effort, especially given all the production problems they faced. Got better over time, but still lacked polish from top to bottom (no pun), script to editing. You know there are issues when a series starts at 8 eps, then adds a finale... then adds a surprise "final" finale. Lots to admire, but even more to improve upon. I hope it was a good learning experience for the entire team and they can come back with something even better next time. I can sense something fresh coming. Good luck, guys!
3 episodes in and I wish there were better quality videos. It's all slightly blurry, a copy of a copy of a copy,…
Just finished. Blown away. Exquisite. A beautiful piece of true Art. Every episode its own movie.
So rich and complex. All of the characters were layered and real, and each of their individual stories were fascinating, insightful, profound, and mostly heartbreaking.
I loved seeing the breadth of the gay experience in that time period and place - and how the stories all came together in unexpected ways. Some gorgeous dialogue that makes me want to read the novel.
The friendship between not only the boys, but the whole extended circle was so tender. (Those guys can roller skate! 3 scenes filled with lots of dialogue all on the roll. Impressive!)
A-Qing is such a pure loving character who grows in such a realistic fashion, never allowing his circumstances to diminish his hope. I would adopt him too. All of them, actually.
I will watch this again and again. Even a single episode... just to spend time with this group of friends. 10+/10
Ultra low budget and amateur in many regards. A good cast of newbies who seem more than up to the task, and I'm sure will improve with time. Interesting start to these stories that has me curious where it will lead. The trans characters are all portrayed with a natural respect (at least by the creators and actors, although not by the homophobic characters who are meant to be their antagonists).
The fall-into-a-kiss almost ruined it, but I guess its the whole theme of the series (if we are to believe the MDL synopsis). The other tropes are also irritating, but for some reason BL writers must think the audience wants them, or they would not rehash them over and over. I found the shower scene gratuitous and unnecessary and verging on inappropriate- and I like so see skin... just when the story calls for it.
Interested to see where it all goes. Good luck to all involved.
So far, this is just dreamy. Mix is fantastic. every time he looks at Chief his eyes say, “ you know you want me. I know you want me too.” Best role for Earth so far, although his loud sighs are getting distracting. These two seem REALLY. Into each other (in the show... I don’t believe any of the fan service coupling). More so than many other very popular BL couples. I’m in love with all the side characters as well. Glad we have so much more to come.
Are they going to turn Longtae into the 3rd of the love triangle? He does look super cute with Tian.
3 episodes in and I wish there were better quality videos. It's all slightly blurry, a copy of a copy of a copy, probably. I'm sure the pristine film looks gorgeous. I'm shocked this is 20 episodes. How much is going to happen to this poor kid? I love the slow pace, the realism, the pain, the heartache. This is not BL. It's plain Drama. And high quality drama at that. I'm going to savor this slowly. It's so easy to forget how far we've come in the past 15 years. Glad I found this one.
Why do you feel it was marred by its theatrical style? I thought that was an interesting feature, and it was certainly…
It's not that it didn't work... I just don't think they did it WELL. It went from somewhat realistic in the first episode or two to highly staged (but to the point where it felt constricted), lots of monologues instead of a conversation between two people falling in love. Maybe if I had seen it on stage instead of filmed it would have worked better for me. But it ended up not feeling real at all, just the ramblings of a screenwriter trying to make a point - rather than letting the characters naturally let that point come through.
Yes, I hate the tired tropes too, and I'm all for new types of stories (and yes, please don't kiss unless you're going to actually kiss) - but this had plenty of cliches as well. The smart student being partnered with the brute for a shared school project (Hello Stranger... every thai BL in history).
Don't get me wrong, there were some great moments. I loved the Mom. I appreciate the Kelly story. Icing lube! And like I said... Benjo!!! I'll watch his career with great interest. Just too uneven for me in the end. Make sense?
A short little "music video" (it's not really, but it feels like that) about love at first sight. Mostly dialogue free, so no character development, just a peek into how two boys meet. Fine for what it is. Drei looks adorable.
Eh. Weak script, poor direction, no real story. Platitudes like, "You can't love anyone til you love yourself."... yet no evidence that Vince did NOT love himself. Too much voice over and telling not showing - especially when it comes to the evolution of Sid/Vince's relationship. Montages do not a boyfriend make. Sound quality poor. Acting weak from the newbies, but better direction might have helped them. Slightly better than the sequel, but only because it's shorter and they have less time/story to mess it up. Sorry guys, not a fan.
Not very satisfying on any level. Script is weak/repetitive, The important moments are left to voice-over rather than letting us witness them. Direction is minimal, editing is poor. Here's a tip Editor... when you need 2 takes to finish a scene - maybe put another angle/shot in between so we don't see the jarring edit from the same locked down camera angle.
Acting is amateur, but these guys are all young, so I guess I'll cut them some slack. Was the lighting bad to mask the poor acting, or did you NOT want us to see their faces/emotions in those night/beach scenes?
I've slapped someone ONCE in my entire life, but these guys slap with abandon! You go, bakla!
I didn't believe any of what they said to each other, so I didn't feel any of the emotions (except for maybe green-hair who made me feel her pain).
I like the two leads. Ely can cry like the best of them. But this show was a mess.
Direction/editing seem to be done by the blind... maybe that's where they got the idea for Gabriel's affliction. I know productions are hard these days but what's with the breakfast in the rain? They have tables in the house. Or when the entire cast comes into the bedroom, only to stand around silently, and then turn around and leave. What? Just dumbfounding choices.
I will say the scar make-up was wonderfully gross. Almost as gross as Tita Jaclyn's make-up. If she can afford plastic surgeons and eye transplants, you'd think she could get a professional make-over.
How did the dubbing get WORSE? Was that even the doctor's voice at all? It sounded like it was coming through a Darth Vader filter or something.
Don't need a S2. Won't watch if it comes, but I'll keep an eye out for Ely, Gerome and Benj.
1 
So rich and complex. All of the characters were layered and real, and each of their individual stories were fascinating, insightful, profound, and mostly heartbreaking.
I loved seeing the breadth of the gay experience in that time period and place - and how the stories all came together in unexpected ways. Some gorgeous dialogue that makes me want to read the novel.
The friendship between not only the boys, but the whole extended circle was so tender. (Those guys can roller skate! 3 scenes filled with lots of dialogue all on the roll. Impressive!)
A-Qing is such a pure loving character who grows in such a realistic fashion, never allowing his circumstances to diminish his hope. I would adopt him too. All of them, actually.
I will watch this again and again. Even a single episode... just to spend time with this group of friends. 10+/10
The fall-into-a-kiss almost ruined it, but I guess its the whole theme of the series (if we are to believe the MDL synopsis). The other tropes are also irritating, but for some reason BL writers must think the audience wants them, or they would not rehash them over and over. I found the shower scene gratuitous and unnecessary and verging on inappropriate- and I like so see skin... just when the story calls for it.
Interested to see where it all goes. Good luck to all involved.
Are they going to turn Longtae into the 3rd of the love triangle? He does look super cute with Tian.
Yes, I hate the tired tropes too, and I'm all for new types of stories (and yes, please don't kiss unless you're going to actually kiss) - but this had plenty of cliches as well. The smart student being partnered with the brute for a shared school project (Hello Stranger... every thai BL in history).
Don't get me wrong, there were some great moments. I loved the Mom. I appreciate the Kelly story. Icing lube! And like I said... Benjo!!! I'll watch his career with great interest. Just too uneven for me in the end. Make sense?
Acting is amateur, but these guys are all young, so I guess I'll cut them some slack. Was the lighting bad to mask the poor acting, or did you NOT want us to see their faces/emotions in those night/beach scenes?
I've slapped someone ONCE in my entire life, but these guys slap with abandon! You go, bakla!
I didn't believe any of what they said to each other, so I didn't feel any of the emotions (except for maybe green-hair who made me feel her pain).
45 minutes of "meh".
Direction/editing seem to be done by the blind... maybe that's where they got the idea for Gabriel's affliction. I know productions are hard these days but what's with the breakfast in the rain? They have tables in the house. Or when the entire cast comes into the bedroom, only to stand around silently, and then turn around and leave. What? Just dumbfounding choices.
I will say the scar make-up was wonderfully gross. Almost as gross as Tita Jaclyn's make-up. If she can afford plastic surgeons and eye transplants, you'd think she could get a professional make-over.
How did the dubbing get WORSE? Was that even the doctor's voice at all? It sounded like it was coming through a Darth Vader filter or something.
Don't need a S2. Won't watch if it comes, but I'll keep an eye out for Ely, Gerome and Benj.