HaiLuoYin

Last week I accepted that this show was not trying to be enjoyable and decided to stick with it because of my bias for MaxNat. I knew it would only get worse and of course it did.

Since the writers raced through the "plot" over the last few weeks, obviously they had no story left to tell for this week, so we got a bunch of filler. Guys playing dress up, drunk confessions that changed nothing, Phupha being pretty much an extra, the director forgetting to direct Nat in half of his scenes and the terribly paced backstory that should have happened weeks ago.

Then we got the obligatory MaxNat LONG and awkward sex scene that MUST be included in each of their series to remind viewers of exactly what they're selling. Ok fine, I get it Thai BL is pretty much just soft-core porn for audiences who are too afraid to watch actual porn, but have no problem with their "favorite" idols/actors doing porn and likely ruining their future career prospects. It boggles my mind that actor after actor has done these types of roles and gone on to have no career (except a lucky few) and yet fans who claim to love these guys keep asking for more and more sex scenes. Max and all the others deserve so much better especially from their fans and company.

The show won't get better and unfortunately, neither will Thai BL.

To be clear, I'm not against sex scenes that serve the story of a series or against actors who agree to do sex scenes in series or against anyone who chooses to do porn. But I think a good series should try to tell a coherent story and not just rely on sex scenes and kisses to keep fans entertained.

Yeah, they tried to fit in too much, but there isn't enough time to tell a full story. I really thought they'd focus more on Khram and Phupha in the other world, but the other world pretty much disappeared after 1. Oh well.

I thought it was really good. Apo's acting was amazing like always. The plot was very intense, I'll admit that I was confused more than once. But that's not a criticism, pay close attention if you decide to watch it. If you're looking for a BL, you'll be disappointed. This isn't that. But if you want a well written historical story with multiple layers and strong acting, you'll probably appreciate it.

That's wonderful. My heart can't take a sad ending for these two. They deserve happiness!

You explanation makes perfect sense. I hope that's highlighted as the story unfolds

Yes. Invisible armor for leads is pretty common in tv/movies across the world. It makes sense because the leads need to have a threat to overcome, but if they get kiiled early in a story, the show/movies ends. That's why competent writers reserve those moments for a climax once or twice in the story. But if the leads are constantly under threat, every other scene, the weight of a would be climax disappears. And feels increasingly unimportant each time a new threat comes around.

That's a reason why this show is not well written. There's nothing for the audiences to connect to because the leads face threats constantly and none of the situations feel important or impactful to the characters.

I have a feeling that in the end this will be one of the best BLs of all time or the biggest heartbreak since Grey Rainbow. Maybe both. Zhi Yuan is truly one of a kind, he's a young guy with the heart and wisdom of an 80 year old man.

I almost never have this reaction with the series, but the most interesting part for me wasn't the characters. I want to live in that apartment and I want to eat all of that delicious looking food!!! But beside that, the first episode was fine. Tanaka's green flag is so bright that I love him already. Natsukawa seems like a typical bland uke, but he's fine. I'm not connecting with his motivations and maybe that's my issue with him. Like why does it matter that he got dumped in the past? It happens, that's life.

I hope the backstory continues to be fleshed out in future episodes. I liked the kid versions of them. And I REALLY hope the side characters aren't squealing constantly.

I watched the Life series when it originally aired. I never saw the director's cut, but I watched it today based on your recommendation. I liked it more than the original and give it an 8. I thought it was very well made and the epilogue improved the story IMO.

I've seen a ton of BLs, but before I started watching BL, I'd seen decades worth of LGBTQ series/movies. I adore some of those old shows/movies, but one thing I love about BL is that these days the "make the gays suffer or die" narrative rarely exists. Personally, I've seen enough of those stories to last a lifetime and don't watch them anymore. I appreciate realness and of course, many gay people face hardships, but if I'm watching something for entertainment, I need a balance.

This is why I have not watched More Than Words and why I didn't enjoy Life very much. I wanted to slap Akira for the majority of the movie. Yes, what he experienced was super realistic and his behavior made sense for a gay man in parts of Japanese society. And highlights the importance and urgency of legalizing gay marriage and increasing acceptance of gay people and gay relationships in Japanese society. But I did love Akira's sister and brother in law and Yuki's mom, the world would be better if more LGBTQ kids got that reaction when coming out!

I think it's a great foundational movie for anyone new to JBLs or young LGBTQ people. But I'm not new or young and I'm in "been there, done that" mode. There's enough depressing/frustrating things irl, so I'll keep avoiding series/movies that are heartbreaking. But thank you for the recommendation, I love that there is so much variety in JBL so there are plenty of different types of stories to suit a wide array of preferences.

I can see where you're coming from. I get that a lot of people on here don't have a set system for how they rate things and just rate based on how much they like or connect with a series. That method is fine, but when you've seen hundreds of series like me, the "I liked it, it made me happy" style ratings don't provide much information to be used in the future. Preferences change over time. A series that gave me the feels 5 years ago, probably won't have the same impact on me today. But if I rate based production quality, acting, sound editing, editing... I can mostly trust an old rating years later.

The funny thing is 2/3 of my ratings are 6+. This shows me that thought the majority of the series I watched were above average. And that anything below 5 was truly not well made IMO. I also know some people think every series should be rated 8+. I find that odd, if every show is really good, then is any show really good? Why even have a rating system out of 10 if you only use 8, 9 and 10? The ratings usually help people who come to the site gauge whether or not they want to start a series. If Dinosaur Love has the same rating as Bad Buddy, that doesn't help anybody. Sorry for the long response, it's hard to sum up ratings in a few sentences.

I'll respond to your other question below since it will contain spoilers.

It's kind of amazing how much a few extra scenes can improve a story. I watched the series when it originally aired and thought it was ok. Everything that was lacking in the original was improved in the director's cut. I recommend watching this one and not the series.

One of the worst things about shipping culture is fans (me) sticking with bad shows, just to support a ship they love. I know no one is forcing me to watch and I only have myself to blame for staying. But part me just enjoys it because it's MaxNat.

I think putting it on hold until later is the smart move. My bias for MaxNat makes it too hard for me to stop now. But I really wish it was better.

You're right. So much has happened, but the characters feel like they're just going through each scene like robots. They show emotions, but we have little insight on who they really are or how they really feel about each other.

Tai liked one version of Khram, but when did he start falling in love with this version Khram? When did Khram stop loving Phupha and start loving Tai? How does Phupha feel? Why do they all stay in a town that's so unsafe they get kidnapped and tortured every other day? Someone said they feel like Sims, idk if it's robots, Sims or aliens, but they don't behave like real people.

I've reached the acceptance stage with this series. It won't get better, that would be impossible. Everyone is saying lines, making threats, shooting and none of it matters. The leads have invisible armor and will never get hurt, but this is basically a snuff film (show) for all the other characters. I'm not invested enough in anything that's happening for the deaths to feel even slightly important. Phupha has quickly become a useless side character and to top off this cluster f*ck they just had to add child abuse! Because why not!?!?!? The writer and editor really need to find new careers, this is pathetic.

One day Max is going to be in a good series, but that day is not today. I'll be back next week 😮‍💨

I started this when it originally aired, but didn’t finish it. I'm glad I finally did, it was great. All of the kid characters were awesome, even Jiang Jiang was likeable in the end. And the actors were all really talented.

The plot towards the end was predictable, but I don't think that's a bad thing. The story played out in a way that made sense. Part of me did wish it were a BL, but that would have kinda sad since they can't be together. And Bi Yu was wonderful so I'm ok with it not being BL. 8.5/10

I tend to focus on story and character development above all else. The technical aspects including the music were decent, but that didn't make up for what was lacking. It was weird how it kind of felt like the second plot was just starting (the mom stuff) and then it ended a few minutes later.

I gave it a 5.5. I don't rate shows like most on here. For me a 5 is truly average and I rate good, great, excellent series 6+. This felt average to me.

Same

I'm obviously the outlier on this, but this show really missed the mark for me. I usually LOVE JBLs and I'm always happy to see a second chance at love story, but with only 6 episodes, I didn't feel like they conveyed a complete/full story.

The first half was good, Takashi's seduction skills compared to Akihiro apprehensiveness to fall back into the relationship, really worked. Yuto being a constant impediment added a layer of complexity to the situation. But that all kinda disappeared for me once the family drama started.

It brought up soooo many questions and provided few answers, besides a rushed ending of basically "oh no big deal, go be happy now". For a family with such a unique issue, THAT LASTED FOR 14 YEARS, having such a generic ending felt hollow and unbelievable. Not to mention the creepy relative who seemed to only exist to cause problems in the past and present. Two more episodes that were more focused on Takashi's perspective would have improved the series overall IMO. In the end the characters and relationship lacked the depth and realistic behaviors that I'm used to in JBLs. I wouldn't recommend this or watch it again.

I'm almost positive that if this show had the exact same plot with an established ship as the main couple, the rating would be at least 7.9. It's a shame that one of the few recent Thai BLs with actual skilled actors was mostly ignored by BL audiences. But it's not really surprising since "cute" is all some fans of Thai BL want to see these days. But I hope people in Thailand watched it.

Overall, I liked the show. I knew from the 1st episode that this wasn't a show targeted at the typical BL audience. This show (like other channel 3 series) was obviously made for a more "traditional" audience. Which is probably why everything in the hospital and with Ji's parents took up so much screen time, while the second couple barely had any scenes.

Even though I personally would have preferred a more BL focused series, it's hard to ignore how series like this have helped bring LGBTQ characters to the main stream in Thailand. Knowing that gay marriage was/is in the process of being legalized while this show was airing highlights the point. Representation does matter, I hope Thailand continues to make more series like this one.