This review may contain spoilers
I am team go ahead and watch this one despite a few weird twists and turns
Full disclosure, I've seen a lot of toxic (Chinese) BL, so this much softer Taiwanese entry into the genre isnt that shocking to me. But I get it. There are some weird and/or disturbing storylines. That said I watch a lot of BL, and I thought this was a good but not perfect one
The two stars down are because of some ridiculous plot lines that I had a hard time stomaching.
What I am NOT bothered by is the non-biological brothers hooking up. This is a common BL trope that isn't my go-to but also doesn’t freak me out. If that's a bridge too far you should just bail once that's revealed.
Also, I liked the chemistry, especially the second couple. I'm a sucker for the hopeless romantic who loves without fear. I'm also a sucker for "straight" guys who love who they love. The second love story is the way I want the world to work. Go with your heart.
I don't love the top/bottom fetish that many BLs and BL watchers suffer from. I didn't hate the treatment here. It's raised and discussed. I appreciate that it's not completely clear, especially for couple #2, who's who. Please, BL writers, let's create some vers couples! (Is Gameboys the only one?)
The acting was pretty good. There were a few times I felt like they weren't natural but overall I was into their portrayals.
Now, the criticism. What's up with the parents? The dad was really a good guy, but everyone lied to him assuming he would freak out. So painful to watch! And the mom was wrong for so so many things, and she never had to explain herself. I appreciate her support but damn.
The SA was rough. I get the theory that he wanted to force the coming out convo (and take the blame) but dear God man. WTF? And if you're gonna write that, deal with it better. It felt very unresolved. And SA #2 also wasn't handled very well. Fire his ass! To be clear, this isn't just me not liking what happened, it's about the writers presenting serious issues but not resoving them in a realistic way or at all.
I binged this one in about 2 days. I'm glad I watched it and the other HIStory series. (I think I have 2 left.) My favorite is H3: Trapped, but for me this was a solid albeit controversial (taboo?) entry as well.
The two stars down are because of some ridiculous plot lines that I had a hard time stomaching.
What I am NOT bothered by is the non-biological brothers hooking up. This is a common BL trope that isn't my go-to but also doesn’t freak me out. If that's a bridge too far you should just bail once that's revealed.
Also, I liked the chemistry, especially the second couple. I'm a sucker for the hopeless romantic who loves without fear. I'm also a sucker for "straight" guys who love who they love. The second love story is the way I want the world to work. Go with your heart.
I don't love the top/bottom fetish that many BLs and BL watchers suffer from. I didn't hate the treatment here. It's raised and discussed. I appreciate that it's not completely clear, especially for couple #2, who's who. Please, BL writers, let's create some vers couples! (Is Gameboys the only one?)
The acting was pretty good. There were a few times I felt like they weren't natural but overall I was into their portrayals.
Now, the criticism. What's up with the parents? The dad was really a good guy, but everyone lied to him assuming he would freak out. So painful to watch! And the mom was wrong for so so many things, and she never had to explain herself. I appreciate her support but damn.
The SA was rough. I get the theory that he wanted to force the coming out convo (and take the blame) but dear God man. WTF? And if you're gonna write that, deal with it better. It felt very unresolved. And SA #2 also wasn't handled very well. Fire his ass! To be clear, this isn't just me not liking what happened, it's about the writers presenting serious issues but not resoving them in a realistic way or at all.
I binged this one in about 2 days. I'm glad I watched it and the other HIStory series. (I think I have 2 left.) My favorite is H3: Trapped, but for me this was a solid albeit controversial (taboo?) entry as well.
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