Rae_Egan
Las Vegas
This review may contain spoilers
Trigger Warnings Everywhere!
Please be aware this show and review contain trigger warnings about sexual assault, abuse, and homophobia.
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STORY:
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When talking to most BL fans who have been around for a while they will praise TharnType as a BL classic. To most it is. Why? I have no idea.
The basic premise of the story is Type is a college freshmen in the Sports department and he finds out that his new roommate Tharn is gay. Type then lets us know he hates all gay people because he was kidnapped and molested as a child. Okay logical. Should he hate an entire population of people because of one person who was evil? Of course not, but one can't choose their trauma responses so I give him the benefit of the doubt. He then proceeds to make Tharn's life a living hell to get him to leave the dorm. To be honest the first few episodes are terrible. Type is not a good person. He is so homophobic that as someone who is LGBTQ I wanted to go into the screen and smack him so hard for the things he did and said.
As the show progresses it seems that out of nowhere about half way through the show Type throws his entire homophobic agenda out the window and falls for Tharn. Yay this is good the show should be better? Wrong! Now instead of dealing with his homophobic attitude we are left with a man child who whines and complains until he gets his way. He manipulates Tharn so many times into doing what he wants and how he wants it that I almost and I mean almost feel bad for Tharn. I will get more into my problems with Tharn in the next section.
Overall the show is a horrible representation of the BL genre. It promotes unhealthy mindsets towards people in the community. Romanticizes sexual assault and bullying and wraps it up in this package of because the men are hot and have chemistry it's okay.
If you want a better representation of what it looks like to be a sexual assault survivor and enter a relationship go watch Love In The Air starting at episode 8 for Pai and Sky story.
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ACTING/CAST
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Mew as Tharn - Overall I thought Mew did a good job at playing Tharn. Other than the blaringly obvious fact he was in his mid-twenties playing a teenager his performance was spot on. I did feel heartbroken for him near the end of the series as Lhong's plans started to unfold and he found out the truth about what his "friend" had been doing behind his back.
However, the character of Tharn is one I can't wrap my head around. Why is this extremely handsome, insanely rich, music major so tied up on his roommate Type? In 12 episodes he never once tells the audience what it is that attracted him to Type in the first place. Why did he put up with Type's homophobic, controlling, manipulative, and honestly abusive self when he could have had so much more as a character? Furthermore, why did he come to Type's defense in front of the school after Type went viral for making homophobic remarks?
Now while it may seem like Tharn is a victim of the story he is nowhere near the good guy people make him out to be. On more than one occasion he forced himself upon Type by kissing him, giving him a blowjob, and trying to have sex with him in public against Type's wishes. How is this the foundation a happy relationship is built on. To be honest if he wasn't an adamant top I would have shipped him with his brother's best friend. At least he loved and cared for Tharn.
Gulf as Type - I hate Type as a character so much! What he does at the beginning of the show is horrible. I get it he was sexually assaulted as a child by a gay man so he holds certain prejudices. However, at some point you have to learn to let them go. I only say this as a victim of sexual assault myself. For the longest time I couldn't be alone in a room with a guy without having a panic attack but I worked through it and now I'm okay. Also I am ashamed of his parents for not getting him help at a younger age.
Putting aside his homophobic rhetoric, I would love to say he redeems himself but he doesn't. He all the sudden is okay with Tharn being gay and the show turns into this whole thing about "I'm not gay but my boyfriend is." I'm so sick of BL shows showing the "straight" guy who is only gay for one man. That is not how the LGBTQ community is.
Type is also extremely abusive towards Tharn emotionally and verbally. He is constantly telling him that he hates him and while some find it endearing I couldn't be with someone who is constantly telling me I'm worthless. He also is incredibly jealous to the point of violence. He does what he wants when he wants to and if Tharn has a problem with it then he can honestly get over it. If I met someone like that in real life I would have run the other way.
Kokliang as Tar - What can I say about Tar other than I feel so bad for him. So many people talk about how annoying Tar is and how horrible he is for what he did to Tharn. However, I look at things from his perspective. He was happily in love with Tharn and then was sexually assaulted by a group of men. Of course he shut down. Of course he broke up with Tharn. Who can blame him. The depressive obsession he has with Tharn is natural to me. He still loves Tharn but is stuck in this constant loop of what happened to him. The show doesn't dictate how much time is passed but based on context clues I think it's been less than a year since he and Tharn broke up. If that is true of course he is still navigating through his trauma. If we were to have met him 3 years or more after the breakup then I could see maybe people's point of view.
Mild as Techno - This was the saving grace of the show for me. Techno was the character that gave us some much needed comic relief. He tried his best to be a supportive best friend to Type but wasn't afraid to call him out on his bullshit either.
Kaownah as Lhong - To say I hate a character is really strong for me. But, I hate Lhong! How the hell did he not end up in jail by the end of the show. Not only did he try to kill Type....but he also hired the men who assaulted Tar. How could Tharn and Type let Lhong go with him simply dropping out of school? You are letting a sociopath free to roam the streets. You know he's going to latch onto someone else soon and so the same thing again. The last couple of episodes were hard to watch for me as his evil deeds were revealed.
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RELATIONSHIPS
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Tharn x Type - Oh lord I could go on for hours about these two. Their chemistry while amazing was the only thing about this couple. Unlike many early BL's (which is strange to say since this was released in 2019) the couple actually kissed each other. For many this was the KinnPorshe of early BL. I digress though....I wrote a lot about their relationship above so I'm not going to rehash it out. If you want to watch two hot men make out for six episodes you will enjoy it. If you are looking for a good, healthy, representation of a relationship please move on.
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REWATCH VALUE
============================================
I would love to say I haven't rewatched this show but I have a few times. I kept thinking if I watch it again it won't be so bad! However, each time it only gets worse. For those of you who rank this in your top 10 I appreciate your candor. For me this is a hard pass now. I doubt I will rewatch this again.
============================================
STORY:
============================================
When talking to most BL fans who have been around for a while they will praise TharnType as a BL classic. To most it is. Why? I have no idea.
The basic premise of the story is Type is a college freshmen in the Sports department and he finds out that his new roommate Tharn is gay. Type then lets us know he hates all gay people because he was kidnapped and molested as a child. Okay logical. Should he hate an entire population of people because of one person who was evil? Of course not, but one can't choose their trauma responses so I give him the benefit of the doubt. He then proceeds to make Tharn's life a living hell to get him to leave the dorm. To be honest the first few episodes are terrible. Type is not a good person. He is so homophobic that as someone who is LGBTQ I wanted to go into the screen and smack him so hard for the things he did and said.
As the show progresses it seems that out of nowhere about half way through the show Type throws his entire homophobic agenda out the window and falls for Tharn. Yay this is good the show should be better? Wrong! Now instead of dealing with his homophobic attitude we are left with a man child who whines and complains until he gets his way. He manipulates Tharn so many times into doing what he wants and how he wants it that I almost and I mean almost feel bad for Tharn. I will get more into my problems with Tharn in the next section.
Overall the show is a horrible representation of the BL genre. It promotes unhealthy mindsets towards people in the community. Romanticizes sexual assault and bullying and wraps it up in this package of because the men are hot and have chemistry it's okay.
If you want a better representation of what it looks like to be a sexual assault survivor and enter a relationship go watch Love In The Air starting at episode 8 for Pai and Sky story.
============================================
ACTING/CAST
============================================
Mew as Tharn - Overall I thought Mew did a good job at playing Tharn. Other than the blaringly obvious fact he was in his mid-twenties playing a teenager his performance was spot on. I did feel heartbroken for him near the end of the series as Lhong's plans started to unfold and he found out the truth about what his "friend" had been doing behind his back.
However, the character of Tharn is one I can't wrap my head around. Why is this extremely handsome, insanely rich, music major so tied up on his roommate Type? In 12 episodes he never once tells the audience what it is that attracted him to Type in the first place. Why did he put up with Type's homophobic, controlling, manipulative, and honestly abusive self when he could have had so much more as a character? Furthermore, why did he come to Type's defense in front of the school after Type went viral for making homophobic remarks?
Now while it may seem like Tharn is a victim of the story he is nowhere near the good guy people make him out to be. On more than one occasion he forced himself upon Type by kissing him, giving him a blowjob, and trying to have sex with him in public against Type's wishes. How is this the foundation a happy relationship is built on. To be honest if he wasn't an adamant top I would have shipped him with his brother's best friend. At least he loved and cared for Tharn.
Gulf as Type - I hate Type as a character so much! What he does at the beginning of the show is horrible. I get it he was sexually assaulted as a child by a gay man so he holds certain prejudices. However, at some point you have to learn to let them go. I only say this as a victim of sexual assault myself. For the longest time I couldn't be alone in a room with a guy without having a panic attack but I worked through it and now I'm okay. Also I am ashamed of his parents for not getting him help at a younger age.
Putting aside his homophobic rhetoric, I would love to say he redeems himself but he doesn't. He all the sudden is okay with Tharn being gay and the show turns into this whole thing about "I'm not gay but my boyfriend is." I'm so sick of BL shows showing the "straight" guy who is only gay for one man. That is not how the LGBTQ community is.
Type is also extremely abusive towards Tharn emotionally and verbally. He is constantly telling him that he hates him and while some find it endearing I couldn't be with someone who is constantly telling me I'm worthless. He also is incredibly jealous to the point of violence. He does what he wants when he wants to and if Tharn has a problem with it then he can honestly get over it. If I met someone like that in real life I would have run the other way.
Kokliang as Tar - What can I say about Tar other than I feel so bad for him. So many people talk about how annoying Tar is and how horrible he is for what he did to Tharn. However, I look at things from his perspective. He was happily in love with Tharn and then was sexually assaulted by a group of men. Of course he shut down. Of course he broke up with Tharn. Who can blame him. The depressive obsession he has with Tharn is natural to me. He still loves Tharn but is stuck in this constant loop of what happened to him. The show doesn't dictate how much time is passed but based on context clues I think it's been less than a year since he and Tharn broke up. If that is true of course he is still navigating through his trauma. If we were to have met him 3 years or more after the breakup then I could see maybe people's point of view.
Mild as Techno - This was the saving grace of the show for me. Techno was the character that gave us some much needed comic relief. He tried his best to be a supportive best friend to Type but wasn't afraid to call him out on his bullshit either.
Kaownah as Lhong - To say I hate a character is really strong for me. But, I hate Lhong! How the hell did he not end up in jail by the end of the show. Not only did he try to kill Type....but he also hired the men who assaulted Tar. How could Tharn and Type let Lhong go with him simply dropping out of school? You are letting a sociopath free to roam the streets. You know he's going to latch onto someone else soon and so the same thing again. The last couple of episodes were hard to watch for me as his evil deeds were revealed.
============================================
RELATIONSHIPS
============================================
Tharn x Type - Oh lord I could go on for hours about these two. Their chemistry while amazing was the only thing about this couple. Unlike many early BL's (which is strange to say since this was released in 2019) the couple actually kissed each other. For many this was the KinnPorshe of early BL. I digress though....I wrote a lot about their relationship above so I'm not going to rehash it out. If you want to watch two hot men make out for six episodes you will enjoy it. If you are looking for a good, healthy, representation of a relationship please move on.
============================================
REWATCH VALUE
============================================
I would love to say I haven't rewatched this show but I have a few times. I kept thinking if I watch it again it won't be so bad! However, each time it only gets worse. For those of you who rank this in your top 10 I appreciate your candor. For me this is a hard pass now. I doubt I will rewatch this again.
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