BL Compilations

interesting premise with a plot/pacing issue

Overall: I liked the premise but the pacing needed to be changed a bit. Based on the webtoon of the same name by Nabit and Eol. 10 episodes approximately 22 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala in in Taiwan, Macau, Hong Kong, Southeast Asia and Europe (not UK, Spain, Portugal) https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/5692/my-bias-is-showing-2025-e01 ; iQIYI https://www.iq.com/album/my-bias-is-showing-2025-1vmsvoj3pt9?lang=en_us ; Heavenly in South Korea https://heavenly.tv/detail/973 and more.

Content Warnings: manipulation

Watch Suggestions (to get rid of angst)
- watch episodes 1-6
- episode watch 7 beginning-8
- skip episode 8
- episode 9 watch 23:25-end
- start episode 10 at 4 minutes (unless you want a 4 minute recap)

What I Liked
- premise
- visuals
- sweet moments
- mystery
- chuckled in episode 2 with him hiding holding the ball
- solid ending

Room For Improvement
- for most of the 6 episodes a character did not have genuine feelings for the other, the reveal happened at the end of episode 7 which left only 3 episodes for a redemption arc and happily every after, the writers needed the reveal to be in episode 4 or 5 instead of 7
- episode 1 was backstory/set up
- neutral on comedy sound effects
- can't remember what happened when drunk cliche
- crap apology though he did finally work on it after a month
- noble idiot cliche
- the line "how about I lock you up in my house for the rest of my life" came across as creepy instead of funny as they intended it to be

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Close Friend season 2 was okay

Overall: we have a continuation of my least favorite plot combined with my most favorite plot from season 1. I thought the first episode was a solid start, but it fell into some cliched writing/characters.

Content Warnings: something related to the 1st season with Jedi and Ray, non con (photos/posting, live streaming), dub con kissing turned consensual

What I Liked
- nice recaps of the stories from season 1
- integrated the two stories well
- was happy to see 2 established couples
- the cute moments
- the funny moments like when Ray was describing the real Jedi
- happy we saw a morning kiss between Ray & Jedi
- the friendship between Ray & Typhoon
- that Jedi fought for his relationship
- good production value
- enjoyed the behind the scenes clips

Room For Improvement
- Ray really needed a hobby or a job, he felt like a very immature character and it was difficult for me to root for their relationship
- Typhoon's lack of agency was disappointing when he didn't want to go home, also thought the plotline with the parents could have been done better
- not into the Jedi/Ray revelation about season 1
- that vanishing effect in episode 5 felt like they were ghosts
- odd scene with Typhoon and Pierce working out but sounding like something else, the mom opens the door and then is shocked that they are...actually working out???

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Swing and a miss, best episode is #6

Overall, this series was a major miss. Storylines were cliched and the 4 Queer ones were serious/depressing. I really disliked how characters crossed over into different episodes but the timeline wasn't correct, it made it even more disjointed. It would have been better if no characters were in the other episodes and then they could put the episodes in whatever order they wanted. I averaged the scores and it ended up at 7/10, but this might be generous. 

Episode 1 - "Would You Be My Love" (re-named to "Bullying & More Bullying") 8/10
Well this was a rough way to start the series. Personally I would have started with a fluffier episode but...yeah. I really hope this kind of bullying doesn't exist but I'm sure it does. Ozone could have fired a couple of comebacks at least about how close the 2 goons were... The actor is 17 and I would have preferred he was 18, but the physical affection was 1 kissing scene so it doesn't bother me that much. Both main actors did a good job (as usual Earth is a pro at crying). I dislike ghosting/refusing to communicate with someone and it felt a bit slow. Content warning: bullying

Episode 2  - "Rhythm's Heart" 8.5/10
This was a nice m/f romance plot. It was great to see Yacht play a non-comedic role. Pimdao's dad was amazing. Didn't like Wawa ignoring Pimdao's no answer.

(content warning - I'm going to use a word related to non-con)
Episode 3  "Remember" (re-named to "Hot Mess") 4/10 (all 4 points are for Samantha's acting, lol, the mom was great too)
What a hot mess. I'm not even really sure what actually happened. Sounds like Jaidee purposefully got Tac drunk to sleep with him (so that's rape), then took a picture and texts it to Tac to break them up (he mentions blackmail too). Tac for some reason can't say in 5 seconds "she got me super drunk, raped me and blackmailed me" or text that and instead says "let me explain" and "I'm sorry" a bunch of times. I think he even initially denied it was him...Then 1 year later (so strange, it should have been a few months, why would Jaidee wait that long to flirt with Proud...) Jaidee & Proud become friends then more, but then everything hits the fan and Proud refuses to let anyone actually explain what is going on. Add in a slap, grabs, shoves and vandalism (was that Tac and the flat tire???), and a cliffhanger/unresolved ending, uggggghhh. It was also inconsistent characterization because both Jaidee & his friend Rhythm talked about Tac being a player, but yet he claims that Proud is the love of his life, wth? Also Tac thought there was a relationship between Proud & Jaidee and didn't want to interfere and let Proud be happy.... be happy with the person who raped and blackmailed him???!!!! Proud shouldn't be with either of them. In my alternate version of this episode, Proud's scummy boyfriend did cheat on her (not drunkenly, not with Jaidee), they break up, then later Proud and Jaidee fall in love and live happily ever after.

Episode 4: "Once Upon A Time" (re-named to "Awfully Angsty") 6.5/10
Ugggghhhhhhh. For me to be happy with the ending (post credits) they needed to do two things which they didn't do 1. They needed to set up/flesh out Balloon/Mek's relationship, shown the good parts of it so that I wanted to root for them to make it work despite their flaws and 2. They needed to show character growth/change so their relationship would work, i.e. a very public kiss at the airport initiated by Balloon and Mek communicating better. Neither was done so I was not satisfied post credits. The female character part should have totally been cut and then they could have done the above two things. Here's more of what I didn't like:
- overused plot point that both sons are attracted to men
- overused plot point of a homophobic father yelling at his son
- Balloon just letting his dad tear into his brother Ozone and secretly listening in, Balloon's a senior in college not a middle schooler, seriously grow a pair and help out your younger brother
- Balloon cry shaming Ozone "you're a grownup now, why are you still crying like a baby" He's crying because his/your dad is a homophobic jerk and you didn't help him out!
- Balloon saying that orphan Mek will never understand. That was such a low blow. There are things you say to a partner that even saying sorry is not enough, it destroys the relationship and that is either one of those things or very close.
- Balloon having a heart to heart with Ozone but still starting off as "a friend of mine..."
- Ozone incorrectly apologizes for their dad being a homophobic jerk (Ozone says he's sorry for putting Balloon in this position)
- both Mek & Balloon say that they are always honest with one another when it is shown that neither of them is ever honest with the other person...
- non-logic, why does no-one ask Balloon why he's wearing a ring on a necklace? If my friend or sibling was wearing one, I'd be like - what's up with the ring, who are you dating? Also, there is no flashback scene when they exchange rings which would have been nice to include.
- that was 53 seconds before the credits of 2 people standing very close, staring at each other and not saying a word... almost a whole minute of...nothing...

Episode 5:  "Breakup Zone" (re-named to "Will You Be My Love") 8/10
Well that kiss was terrible, but I like friends to lovers stories.

Episode 6: "VS Love" (re-named to "Justice For All") 9/10
Overall this is my favorite episode with a focus on justice and also a protagonist who isn't stupid (yes, cell phones can take pictures and record audio/video!). I would say this is very light BL in that the romance is not very obvious but towards the end you can tell that they are more than platonic friends. Content warning for a couple of fight scenes/intimidation.

Episode 7: "50% My Puppy Love" (re-named to "Stalker Love") 6/10
So we have the typical and annoying love at first sight without talking to the person/getting to know them at all. Almost all of the score is because of Perth.
What I didn't like:
- I'm hoping it was the subtitles but his friend said "she's cute, she's interesting and she belongs in my collection" which yuck. People are not objects that you collect.
- The stalker behavior (that takes place over a semester/year): drawing her picture, stalking her on social media, pinning a photo of her up on the wall, getting her snacks for a prolonged time without writing his name...
- the fact that he only got mad that his friend was a player when it involved a girl he liked, he didn't care before that
- the absolutely cliched lack of communication, jumping to stupid conclusions and ghosting friendsIn the end she was also a stalker without a single spine bone, so I guess it's a match made in heaven.

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terrible communication with a cute ending

Overall: you could watch the last episode and miss nothing. 4 episodes about 8 minutes each. Aired on TrueFilm's YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkQFxcEhORR2LQiOmunSeaw8orsZt6G2s&si=7RVLh5cA__KzeeHM

Content Warning: non con kiss (sleeping)

What I Liked
- visuals
- focused on the leads
- supportive friend
- episode 4 was a good ending

Overall
- nonsense "plan"
- more nonsense, 1 shot and a guy needed to go to the hospital?, in episode 3 a character looked completely drunk and then was suddenly sober?, the other guy had some gulps of alcohol and 2 minutes later was completely drunk? do the writers not understand how alcohol works???

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doesn't pull its punches (watch suggestions)

Overall: bring a box of tissues. Note that the series has triggering content. The timings are if you want to focus on the m/m love story. 8 episodes about 42 minutes each. Airing on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/8006/when-light-fades-2026-e01 (not available in Thailand, Philippines, Myanmar, Hong Kong, Macau, Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan or Korea)⠀

Content Warnings: graphic murders including murder of a child, blood, past murder & blood, kidnapping, self harm

Watch Suggestions (to focus on the romance)
- I need to re-watch episodes 1 & 2 tba
- episode 3 watch 3 8:30-9:30, 22:10-23:25, 32-34, 38-39:30, 42-end
- episode 4 watch 5-8:10, 14-16:15, 24-26, 37-40:50
- episode 5 watch, 21:15-28:05, 34:30-49:30, 51:30-53:15
- episode 6 watch 10:35-13:30, 26:30-31:20
- skip episode 7
- watch episode 8 to get a wrap up of the whole plot but there are content warnings, watch 41:40-43:40
and 51:30-end to focus on the romance

What I Liked
- unique historical setting
- that it portrayed revolution more realistically related to the violence aspect
- forest vistas
- the protect mode from the sun was cute, caring moments
- an evil character got his cummepence

Room For Improvement
- the start was brutal and then it was "comedy" sound effects, I deducted a half point for the useless comedy sound effects
- odd camera angles
- camera blocked/closed mouth kissing

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it would have been better with a few plot tweaks

Overall: several writing choices annoyed me. 30 short episodes (vertical series). Aired on GagaOOLala

Content Warnings: stalking, non con picture taking/sharing, manipulation, coercion

What I Liked
- visuals
- initial premise
- sweet moments
- initially a character said he wouldn't do a cliche

Room For Improvement
- cliche evil female character
- the police should have been called
- that a character listened to her
- the twist at the end was disappointing, he must have known how much stress the other guy was under
- the series didn't showcase their height difference like it could have

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drama filled historical vertical series

Overall: note that my content warnings and the series itself have some pretty heavy scenes. I haven't read the original manhwa of the same name and reviewed this live action series on its own. Aired on the Lezhin Snack app (total run time about 2 hours)

Content Warnings: past (murders, blood spatter shown, homophobia, coercion); current (murders, gang rape? (not sure if it already happened and was happening again or it hadn't happened the first time), dub/non con sex, non con kissing, punches, beginning sexual assault, drugging, kidnapping, blood)

What I Liked
- historical setting
- the ending in the past (see spoiler comment)
- the caring moments that were shown

Room For Improvement
- didn't always feel the chemistry, the one lead felt like a kicked puppy
- needed more time to develop their relationship

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three "friends"

Overall: the focus on this is more about the bonds/tests of friendship and the fantasy aspect. Check my spoiler comment for how this ends. 50 episodes, 1-8 are free. Aired on the Shortime app and iQIYI app. My Shortime invite link is My invite link is https://playground.shortime.app/en/invite/NKNIWI - the code is NKNIWI (those are all capital letters, that's the capital letter i) which will give you a bonus.

Content Warnings: homophobia, unwanted public outing

What I Liked
- non cliche love triangle/supportive friend

Room For Improvement
- cliche evil ex
- wanted a bit more scenes with the ending couple
- the unhoused character had dirt/grease smudges on his face

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better towards the end

Overall: it was messy but not the fun kind of messy until towards the end. 45 minutes total. Aired partially free on SecretofUs YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7BSona1dmx7Nwy2nRWBcWBhXAr4TAiUT&si=BNGqxc7yI1HJczyA and GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/7334/black-out-2026

Content Warnings: non con touching/attempted kissing, vomiting, non con touching/restrained against will

You could just start this at 34 minutes. The beginning relates to cheating and being so drunk that characters didn't remember what happened. Good visuals with a lackluster story. They could have done something unique at the end, but left it on a cliffhanger.

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a player and a nerd

Overall: seems to be a remake of the Frame & Book couple from Make It Right. Though I like the original couple, it's 9 years later so I expected some updates. Aired on GagaOOLala app. 20 short episodes.

Content Warnings: non/dub con sex/turned consensual???, non con video recording/sharing/outing

What I Liked
- I'd like to see the actors in something else
- easy to understand premise
- player/nerd dynamic

Room For Improvement
- for their first time Book unbuttoning his own shirt but then they followed it up with him saying "no" and "stop" which was obviously ignored, the second time Flame coerced him when it was a problem of his own making
- I blinked and they were boyfriends after a scene where Book conveyed that was never going to happen
- fed into the stereotype of bisexual people as players
- ended on a cliffhanger
- comedy sound effects didn't make things funny

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heart was in a good place

Overall: this series had a good heart, but there were way too many couples, characters and plots to do them justice. Note, this series and my review have some potentially very triggering words/themes. 8 episodes about 45 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala (not in Japan or Thailand) https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/6294/love-like-a-bike-2026

Content Warnings: past death, past child abuse/molestation/rape implied, past fights/blood, trauma, illness, threatened violence, punches, kidnapping

Watch Suggestions (to take out most of the content warnings, though there might be flashbacks that I missed)
- watch episodes 1 & 2 (there might be flashbacks in here)
- episode 3 skip 32-37:30
- start episode 4 at 4:30
- episode 5 skip 26:45-31:10
- episode 6 watch 14:30 to the end
- episode 7 watch 6:10-23 and 34-42:25
- episode 8 skip 20-23 and 26:30-29

What I Liked
- seeing several actors I haven't seen in awhile
- oceanside setting of Pattaya
- showed therapy and group therapy*
- supportive brothers & mom
- P'Man
- a character said "I can stop" and waited for the other person to say "no don't stop" before continuing, also morning check in
- stuck with the bike theme

Room For Improvement
- way too many couples (3 m/m and 1 f/f) and plot threads for 8 episodes
- there were several nonsense plot things i.e. how two people flew that far in episode 1 for an accidental kiss, how his friends don't know that about him, a stranger who was angry becomes suddenly nice after seeing a news story, going from punches to kisses and doing it on what appeared to be a public beach
- *appreciated he wasn't his therapist (though the therapist shouldn't have talked to him at all about her patient) and he recognized the ethics of it, it was a love heals trauma trope imo
- why weren't the police called in episode 7
- wish a terrible character had had consequences in a different way as the way it's presented could lead to viewers victim blaming

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vertical series with a unique premise

Overall: they could have removed the abuse stuff and had more relationship development. 51 episodes about 2 minutes each. Airing on Shortime and Vigloo. My referral code for Shortime is https://playground.shortime.en/invite/NKNIWI (all letters) and it should get you a bonus.

Content Warnings: bullying, past (near suicide, grooming, minor/non minor relationship, student/teacher relationship, abuse), punches, manhandling, choking, non con recording

What I Liked
- leads had good chemistry
- I was nervous with the premise but the switching actually worked out okay
- a character did have consequences

Room For Improvement
- episodes 30-39 were skippable, did not need all the abuse stuff
- that he let the other body get beat up that much

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