quirky - BL adjacent

Overall: this has a type of exaggerated humor like in Ossan's Love. This isn't my favorite type of humor, but others might enjoy it. Watched on GagaOOLala. Two episodes about 23 minutes each.

Content Warnings: head smack

What I Liked
- the dream with the licking a lime off of him
- interested to hear the history of some drinks and recipes
- fyi the nosebleed is referencing anime when a character gets excited and has a nosebleed

Room For Improvement
- that personality tells you a person's sexual position
- I just didn't find the humor that funny

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Overall: there were some good plot points in this, but they were obscured by several things. Watched on GagaOOLala.

Content Warnings: death off screen, dub/non con sex (leaning towards non con based on how she addresses him towards the end), fight/slap, past suicide attempt, alcoholism, mental health struggles, defamation?, manipulation

What I Liked
- this does address several realistic issues/struggles that were relevant when this movie was made and are still relevant today (including judgy doctors/people about a woman's past reproductive choices)

Room For Improvement
- it felt that Asako was having a midlife crisis which is a terrible reason to have a child. I didn't like that she didn't just have a one night stand or use a sperm bank. She does explain/show that she wants the feeling of family which she wouldn't get if she did the other options (but this makes me see her character as selfish, not someone I want to route for). I think they could have altered Asako and the plot a bit where I would be happy with their decision (so if the guys had wanted it to start with)
- that part before the final scene came out of nowhere and was so bizarre, I don't understand the reason for it, to show that you should appreciate every moment?
- unlikable characters (and too many), they could have easily cut out some characters especially that female co-worker, it added nothing to the story
- too long, it dragged and cutting out some side characters would have helped move things along

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a countryside slice of life

Overall: this is a nice slice of life story set in the countryside. Now available on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/2623/restart-after-coming-back-home-2020

Content Warnings: non con kiss (sleeping)

What I Liked
- the countryside setting
- felt realistic, people trying to figure things out
- I generally don't like a carefree happy golucky personality with a reserved/sullen one but there is character growth and more than what first meets the eye

Room For Improvement
- it did feel a bit slow in places
- the non con kiss
- lack of communication (though they did have some good conversations at the end)

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try not to read too much before watching

Overall: what a wild ride this was. I enjoyed the twists and turns as we went and liked how it was difficult to predict the ending. It's best if you don't read too much about the plot beforehand and I'm going to keep my review on the more vague side (other than the content warnings). If AIS Play ever gives it a permanent official international release (instead of the 2 hour watch window), I'll bump it up to 9.

Content Warnings: attempted murder, murder, attempted suicide, suicide, blood, violence, spying, manipulation

What I Liked
- good way to start a series and get the viewers' attention
- funny and cute moments along with the serious, mystery and action moments
- a new take on an existing sci fi idea
- Tan & Bun cameo

Room For Improvement
- some nonsense medical things, also the medical definitions went by too fast to read
- other nonsense things but I don't want to list and give things away
- the ending was rushed and confusing, they needed a bit more time to explain things in a logical way

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bingeable BL series

Overall: this is a small production that uses video calls/tech and is reminiscent of Gameboys in the premise. Watched on YouTube.

Content Warnings: manipulation

What I Liked
- the cute moments
- I adored the information that was brought up in the final episode as this is something commonplace that is almost never discussed in series/movies
- closing credits

Room For Improvement
- (similar to Gameboys), I'm not a fan of a really aggressive pursuit of a very reluctant stranger, it comes across as harassment instead of romantic (for me at least)
- the cliche 'agree to anything'
- there was something that I didn't like throughout but if I talk about it then it will be a spoiler, things made sense in the end
- the ending was rather abrupt, I could see them doing a second season

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now I want to re-watch the series!

Overall: the behind the scenes was cute, funny and informative - it makes me want to go and re-watch the entire series. I really hope the two leads can be leads again in another BL, they are really supportive of one another which is great to see. (and I'm still holding out hope for a MODC 2, I'll take any ridiculous soap opera plot device)

Content Warnings: none

What I Liked
- how many takes they did for kissing scenes, lol!
- gave some additional information about scenes
- got to see actors joking with one another
- make sure to watch to the very very end

Room For Improvement
- it might have gotten more views/made more interest in the series if they had broken them up and showed them on YouTube after each episode aired

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a more realistic BL featuring an age gap

Overall: I would have given this an 8 but I took off .5 for the choking and .5 for being too choppy (for the free YouTube version). Watched on YouTube.

Content Warnings: sexual assault, rape? (not shown), drugging, manhandling/physical violence

What I Liked
- good supportive ex girlfriend
- discussion around HIV
- he did at least apologize for the physical violence*
- live action series with large age gaps are not that common and this age gap did not bother me (26 and 40)
- the main actors did a good job

Room For Improvement
- *I saw red flags in episode 4 with the physical violence/controlling behavior
- choppy, some series do the shorter free vs. longer paid versions well like KinnPorsche but this and Something In My Room did not do this well and it ends up hurting the plot/flow
- time jump of 5 years, the main character went from despair to living his best life and it was jarring
- the intro was confusing as I was not sure if those were flash forwards or flash backs

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Just watch the 2nd part of Country Boy 2

Overall: This is a sweet and tame BL. I'd give the first part a 7 and the second part a 9 - so average it to 8. I think you could easily skip the first part. Watched on YouTube.

Content Warnings: none

What I Liked
- the theme song but it played over and over again
- a sweet story (the 2nd part)
- finally some clear signs that this is romantic and not a bromance/friend situation at the end of the 2nd part

Room For Improvement
- the whole first part was not enjoyable. The uncle was a jerk for no reason. And it was so odd that Nabdao basically ignored Keptawan until the day before Keptawan left... The first part made me think that they weren't even friends let alone potential boyfriends.

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Short follow up to The Novelist

Overall: This is an 11 minute continuation of the story from The Novelist (aka Pornographer). Watched on Viki.

Content Warnings: none

What I Liked: (very minor spoilers)
- some sweet moments like the head on the shoulder at the end
- communication about the letters
- that kiss is no dead fish lip press haha
- the car seemed to match the pale pink of the cherry blossoms
- the ending song
- (neutral) they used the same music that is in The Novelist which is either a nice call back or recycling to save money...

Room For Improvement:
- the kick from the sister was unnecessary
- the intro music doesn't match the vibe of the show

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Short & Sweet

Overall: a 20 minute movie about a mom visiting her son who is hiding something from her. Make sure to watch carefully during the closing credits until the very end. Watched on Gagaoolala.

Content Warnings: none

What I Liked
- I thought it was funny how the mom started cleaning right when she arrived as I totally relate to this
- that the mom was not stupid

Room For Improvement
- it might have been neat for the mom to realize things when she went to the coffee shop but not say anything, just smile and drink her beverage or lay in wait to see who showed up after she left, but I was okay with how it played out (watch all of the closing credits!)

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Road trip story with four guys

Overall: Three friends (and one potential hook up) go on a road trip. I'm grading this on a curve as it's from 2008, low budget and addressed a couple important topics. Watched on gagaoolala.

Content warnings: homophobia (internal & external), a transphobic comment

What I Liked
- that they addressed the topics of HIV, jobs/poverty and homophobia
- the intro song which is played throughout was fun to listen to
- favorite line "change is the most permanent thing in this world"

Room For Improvement
- it appears that Michael got closure but the way he went about it was bad
- I think they could have cut some scenes out or made them shorter and then developed the characters and their relationships with one another more
- the subs had some errors/I didn't understand a few things
- the night scenes were too dark and it was difficult to see

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Plot is a vehicle for NSFW scenes

Overall: An interesting premise, but it ends up feeling like just a way to show explicit NSFW scenes. Watched on gagaoolala. It's only an hour and 10 minutes so it's not a huge time investment if you like watching steamy scenes. 

Content warnings: there are very five sexually explicit scenes, 1 dub con

What I Liked
- I liked the sister and wish we could have seen more development of her/their relationship
- the overall premise is interesting, it just needed to be delved into more instead of NSFW scenes
- the color grading, how in the past it was more grey scale. It can be difficult for me to tell when flashbacks happen, but it was very clear in this short(er) movie. 
- that ending scene seems pretty unrealistic but I quite liked it

Room For Improvement
- I wish there was more development/explanation of what was happening with the protagonist's romantic relationship. We mostly get ghosting/ignoring and then just a little at the end. There is an apology, but for what? What happened between them?
- odd, why is the protagonist sleeping in the living room of his parents' house - aren't there at least two bedrooms?
- odd, why wouldn't the protagonist push for the name of the movie where he is named after a character? He just drops it, I'd want to know the movie if it were me...

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A treasure hunt story with zero adventure

Overall: I was expecting either a Lord of the Flies situation or a bunch of guys going at it but didn't really get either. If you want a Lord of the Flies darker vibe maybe try Dangerous Drugs of Sex, The Shortest Distance trilogy or Double Mints. And if you want steamy scenes, look somewhere else like: My Rosy Life - His Rosy Passion, Sweet Curse, The Day Began Yesterday...

Content Warnings: 1 fight, 1 instance of blackmail/manipulation, a couple of very brief full frontal shots mostly dimly lit, mention of something that happened off screen

What I Liked
- ummmm, a bunch of shirtless guys on a beach with some nice tattoos
- the base idea of finding treasure is fun (but this is definitely not The Goonies)
- I actually liked the note at the beginning that said all the actors were over the age of 18 and participated voluntarily

Room For Improvement
- it was odd that they started the story with the group of five. They should have started off with Archie telling the story. When it flashed to his boyfriend in the present, I had no idea what was going on.
- many instances of things that make no sense/are unrealistic. Why does a group going on an adventure bring five plates, spoons, a guitar but no water/little food? How on earth would they have built that structure - with what tools/rope? Archie saying he got them food and they were starving when a previous scene showed them happily eating cooked fish is another example.
- they also shared 1 brain cell. Burning your shirt to do something that you can just wait to do in the morning makes no sense.
- the subtitle towards the end should have been "off" not "on" and that seems really extreme. Also odd that they didn't show that part, Archie just stated it.

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A family centered story

Overall: this centers on Artemisia, a woman with a queer son, a daughter studying/living abroad who then returns with a surprise and a bigoted, penny-pinching mother

Content Warnings: the grandma is very bigoted but it is not shown in a positive way

What I Liked
- the m/m had an actual realistic conversation about thoughts on planning a trip together and whether or not to come out
- the kiddo is super cute
- showing challenges and working through them (Artemisia)
- the mom hanging up that underwear to dry was hilarious

Room For Improvement
- the boyfriend coming over unannounced felt like an ambush and was forcing the son to do something he wasn't yet ready for
- the ending feels a bit abrupt or too open ended, though you can infer what is happening with the son and his boyfriend and I liked the tai chi (I think that's what it is)

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Confusing, low budget BL

Content Warnings: attempted suicide (maybe? like most things in this series, I'm not sure about it)

Overall: I slogged through this series so I could write a review since there were none. I had originally dropped this after the first episode. This was a very confusing, messy, unrealistic plot but the last 2 episodes were better than the first 3.

What I Liked
- the music was decent to good
- the scenic shots were nice
- episodes 4 & 5 have a better production value, still could use mics though

Room For Improvement
- the plot was a disaster, some of it kind of gets explained in episodes 4 or 5, but not all of it is explained and that's too late, also what guest house has only 1 bed?
- the point where Marcus, Yuhan & Drake are together for the first time made zero sense as Marcus was totally angry at the wrong person at that point
- in ep 1 many characters were introduced in quick succession and then it switched between them so I was unsure of who was who
- there was actually more chemistry/relationship development between 2 guys who did not end up together which is so odd
- very low budget, the image loses focus, no tripod, no mics, poor lighting, background noise, wind sounds, etc, also strange pacing or spending time on insignificant things
- I never wondered why we don't get close up shots of people's feet in movies/series until I saw several of those in this one and thought 'yeah, that's gross to look at'
- very novice actors
- fake kiss due to camera angle

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