1
ariel alba
Until recently, romantic relationships tended to last longer. The members of a couple tried to bring the relationship to a happy conclusion and fought to be with someone they loved.
But somehow, the emergence of dating apps into our lives causes people, when faced with loneliness, disconnection and discouragement, to leave their lover and look for another partner online. "Why put in the effort to make what I have work, when there are so many fish in the sea?" is a reality many face.
The idea of reflecting the feelings of many people (queer or not) who experience this situation comes from director HJ Habac.
'Meet Me Outside', the Filipino series from the creators of the fabulous 'Gaya Sa Pelíkula' and 'Marahuyo Project', blames the lack of romance on the thousands of human beings who prefer not to want to make the effort to commit because "it is much more easy to pick up your cell phone and connect with someone else to hang out".
With a script by Juan Miguel Severo ('Gaya Sa Peíkula', 'Dear Karl', 'Heaven's Waiting') and newcomer Jesse Rey Baban, we see the birth of a love relationship within the entire range of possible relationships in the dating world virtual, as well as the imposition that surrounds those first dates in which we try to give a better version of ourselves.
I find the creativity of the people behind the camera very striking when designing the opening credits as text message notifications. And in this sense, Mark Vince Gregorio also contributes in editing and photography.
The plot revolves around James, a rich young influencer from Manila with thousands of followers on social media, who has just suffered a tough breakup. However, upon arriving at the La Estreas resort, located in Rizal, his life will change when he decides to leave his wounded heart behind and get back into the game of the dating universe. In this case, he establishes a connection both in the digital world and in the real world, with Dale, a hotel worker, who for some time has had a secret crush on the idol he follows on social networks.
Here Kaloy Tingcungco and Genesis Redido, who play James and Dale, respectively, prove themselves again as actors, after their respective debuts in series precisely with LGBT+ themes, since the first is known for playing Martin Ilagan, a secondary character in 'Boys' Lockdown', from 2020, while Redido gave life to Joseph "Otep" Malaya, in the drama 'In Between', starring him alongside Migs Villasis, also from the same year.
'Meet Me Outside' is better written and performed by its two leads, a department in which they did not excel in their respective acting debuts.
The audience will get to know the characters as they talk in a friendly manner, which is pleasant to see as they feel as if they were two real characters. It seems very genuine to me, as I feel like a connection was forming in a world where, no matter how connected we may seem, we are often very far apart.
In this way, we can get to know that Dale is a humble local, breadwinner of the family economy, very clingy and playful in sexual and romantic matters, who considers that physical contact is his main language in love, so it would be difficult to get involved in a long distance relationship.
On the other hand, we will learn that James had an open relationship with his partner, but his ex-boyfriend violates the only rule of the agreement: falling in love with the other boy, the reason for the recent breakup.
While Jame wanted to see the face of the person he's talking to, Dale thinks that the guy on the other end of the line is only interested in proposing sex. However, Dale has never established a relationship with a guest because he considers it inappropriate due to his status as a hotel worker, in addition to the fact that the visitor is only on vacation, and would eventually leave in a few days.
And despite acknowledging that relationships are difficult to maintain with someone you meet online, since everything moves so quickly, Dale and James meet, talk, and establish a loving connection. As James assures us, he and Dale are taking risks and hoping their romance works.
The viewer will find convincing in Episode 2's use of Tchaikovsky's "Waltz of the Flowers" to represent the nervousness, the hesitation, the growing tension between the two protagonists as they interact via text messages via the dating app gay.
The structure of shorter episodes than usual for this type of series makes the show work, giving it a certain charm and keeping everything at a really good pace. However, this undermines the possibility of better developing the characters and conflicts.
'Meet Me Outside' also shows that kisses and erotic scenes are not necessary to show great chemistry between the two protagonists.
The soundtrack, in which you can hear the songs "Pavement" and "Danger", composed by April Hernandez and performed by TheSunManager, as well as "Silent Night", a traditional song, and "Pahintulo", by Shirebound & Busking, It fulfills its function of emotionally reinforcing and underlining the tones during various specific moments of the series.
So, dear reader, I invite you to watch 'Meet Me Outside'.
But somehow, the emergence of dating apps into our lives causes people, when faced with loneliness, disconnection and discouragement, to leave their lover and look for another partner online. "Why put in the effort to make what I have work, when there are so many fish in the sea?" is a reality many face.
The idea of reflecting the feelings of many people (queer or not) who experience this situation comes from director HJ Habac.
'Meet Me Outside', the Filipino series from the creators of the fabulous 'Gaya Sa Pelíkula' and 'Marahuyo Project', blames the lack of romance on the thousands of human beings who prefer not to want to make the effort to commit because "it is much more easy to pick up your cell phone and connect with someone else to hang out".
With a script by Juan Miguel Severo ('Gaya Sa Peíkula', 'Dear Karl', 'Heaven's Waiting') and newcomer Jesse Rey Baban, we see the birth of a love relationship within the entire range of possible relationships in the dating world virtual, as well as the imposition that surrounds those first dates in which we try to give a better version of ourselves.
I find the creativity of the people behind the camera very striking when designing the opening credits as text message notifications. And in this sense, Mark Vince Gregorio also contributes in editing and photography.
The plot revolves around James, a rich young influencer from Manila with thousands of followers on social media, who has just suffered a tough breakup. However, upon arriving at the La Estreas resort, located in Rizal, his life will change when he decides to leave his wounded heart behind and get back into the game of the dating universe. In this case, he establishes a connection both in the digital world and in the real world, with Dale, a hotel worker, who for some time has had a secret crush on the idol he follows on social networks.
Here Kaloy Tingcungco and Genesis Redido, who play James and Dale, respectively, prove themselves again as actors, after their respective debuts in series precisely with LGBT+ themes, since the first is known for playing Martin Ilagan, a secondary character in 'Boys' Lockdown', from 2020, while Redido gave life to Joseph "Otep" Malaya, in the drama 'In Between', starring him alongside Migs Villasis, also from the same year.
'Meet Me Outside' is better written and performed by its two leads, a department in which they did not excel in their respective acting debuts.
The audience will get to know the characters as they talk in a friendly manner, which is pleasant to see as they feel as if they were two real characters. It seems very genuine to me, as I feel like a connection was forming in a world where, no matter how connected we may seem, we are often very far apart.
In this way, we can get to know that Dale is a humble local, breadwinner of the family economy, very clingy and playful in sexual and romantic matters, who considers that physical contact is his main language in love, so it would be difficult to get involved in a long distance relationship.
On the other hand, we will learn that James had an open relationship with his partner, but his ex-boyfriend violates the only rule of the agreement: falling in love with the other boy, the reason for the recent breakup.
While Jame wanted to see the face of the person he's talking to, Dale thinks that the guy on the other end of the line is only interested in proposing sex. However, Dale has never established a relationship with a guest because he considers it inappropriate due to his status as a hotel worker, in addition to the fact that the visitor is only on vacation, and would eventually leave in a few days.
And despite acknowledging that relationships are difficult to maintain with someone you meet online, since everything moves so quickly, Dale and James meet, talk, and establish a loving connection. As James assures us, he and Dale are taking risks and hoping their romance works.
The viewer will find convincing in Episode 2's use of Tchaikovsky's "Waltz of the Flowers" to represent the nervousness, the hesitation, the growing tension between the two protagonists as they interact via text messages via the dating app gay.
The structure of shorter episodes than usual for this type of series makes the show work, giving it a certain charm and keeping everything at a really good pace. However, this undermines the possibility of better developing the characters and conflicts.
'Meet Me Outside' also shows that kisses and erotic scenes are not necessary to show great chemistry between the two protagonists.
The soundtrack, in which you can hear the songs "Pavement" and "Danger", composed by April Hernandez and performed by TheSunManager, as well as "Silent Night", a traditional song, and "Pahintulo", by Shirebound & Busking, It fulfills its function of emotionally reinforcing and underlining the tones during various specific moments of the series.
So, dear reader, I invite you to watch 'Meet Me Outside'.
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