4
10
1
2
too slow paced for me
Overall: I skimmed several episodes (5 and 6 were okay) but it was too slow for me and then I skimmed the final episode and am happy I didn't watch all episodes (not a fan of the ending) 12 episodes about 45 minutes each. Watching on GagaOOLalaContent Warnings: non con picture taking, harassment, manhandling, fight scene, manipulation (potentially more)
What I Liked
- clear premise
- how Kiao actually felt like he was from the past and not knowing several things like cell phones
- the other characters' reactions felt fairly realistic with the situation
- addressed transphobia/homophobia in a natural way (Kiao was using an older term)
- character friendships
- how the adults resemble the actors who play their younger selves
- neutral, there are comedy sound effects
Room For Improvement
- was really slow, scenes dragged on too long, a lot of unnecessary stuff
- set up for the 'gay for you' trope
- the plot, especially towards the end
- that ending
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School Trip: Joined a Group I’m Not Close To
1 people found this review helpful
a warm fluffy blanket
Overall: a sweet series that I could re-watch many times. Based on the book "Shugakuryoko de Nakayokunai Group ni Hairimashita" by Kakuregi Uzura which I haven't read and am reviewing the series on its own merits. 10 episodes about 20 minutes each. Aired on https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/5924/school-trip-joined-a-group-im-not-close-to-2025 (not available in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong or Macau).What I Liked
- how a character was laser-focused on another character but he wasn't oppressive or creepy
- supportive friends
- honest communication, especially towards the end of episode 8
- cute and caring moments
Room For Improvement
- the awkwardness/obliviousness was a bit too much at times in the beginning
- continuity error, they were supposed to be soaking wet and the next second they looked totally dry
- nonsense: I don't think women would be screaming and waiting in a long line to take a picture with non-celebrities, he couldn't see at all without his glasses and suddenly he could see fine, 1 sip is not going to make a person tipsy/want to throw up
- (neutral) voicing inner thoughts
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not a fluffy BL
Overall: centered on an established couple and it was not a fluffy type plot. I watched this 22 min short movie on Flying Penguin's YouTube channel with membership https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p81bh_UQUow&t=584s&ab_channel=%EB%82%A0%EC%9C%BC%EB%8A%94%ED%8E%AD%EA%B7%84flyingpenguin and then later watched it on Shortime - 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)What I Liked
- good kissing/intimacy
- camerawork with going wider and making the guy look smaller
Room For Improvement
- too dim, needed more light on actors' faces
- they didn't translate texts
- perhaps in part due to the non-translated texts, I wasn't 100% sure what was going on
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jarring tonal shifts
Overall: the series didn't work as a romcom and it didn't work as a supernatural thriller. Adapted from the book "Nai Khrai Wa JJ Mai Thuk Kan" by My feline10> episodes about 40 minutes each. Airing on GMMTV's YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLszepnkojZI4HRwD1wzag844Ig0ZGT_Pl&si=xYCTDHhz8MsyjvGp (everywhere except Thailand)Content Warnings: bullying, punch, , manipulation/lying, death (it's complicated), attempted suicide (it's complicated), past: punch/hits, bullying, unwanted outing
Note: if you aren't into bickering/bullying start at 4/1, then skip 5/1 and 5/2 and watch from there.
What I Liked
- sweet moments
- tried something different
Room For Improvement
- unless I mixed up who was who in the flashbacks, the bullying felt more one sided
- the comedy sound effects didn't make things funny and did not work well with the serious visions repeatedly shown
- a character not talking to a character or his mom for multiple episodes
- did not like either character in the side couple, they each needed to work on their insecurities
- explaining the world building in the final episode was too late
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This review may contain spoilers
better starting at episode 4
Overall: I wasn't into the first 3 episodes, but I liked it starting at episode 4 (though eps 8-10 are skippable). 16 episodes about 18 minutes each. Aired on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdbLLu0Vl6Gg (not available in Japan, Korea or Taiwan) and GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/8163/blue-lips-2026-e01 (not available in Japan or Korea).Content Warnings: past murder, drugging, violence, mental health struggles, death, grief, past molestation & mentioned in the present
Watch Suggestions (to focus more on the m/m relationship and remove content warnings)
- start episode 1 at 5:50
- skip episode 2
- episode 3 watch 4:30-9:50
- episode 4 start at 9:50
- watch episodes 5 and 6
- episode 7 watch 5:45-15:35
- skip episodes 8 , 9 and 10 (poor communication trope)
- watch episode 10 and end it at 11:45 or continue to hear the background with his sister/his life
- episode 11 watch beginning to 16:30 (illness is discussed)
- episode 12 watch 12 min-14:40 and 20-end
- episode 13 watch 5-end
- skip episode 14
- episode 15 watch 11:40-end
- episode 16 watch beginning-17:30 and 22:30-end
What I Liked
- a different type of job
- the blue hair guy's style
- visuals
- steamy part in episode 3 4:30-9:50
- not cliche female character (gave him some medical info on what could be happening)
- the sister had some boss moments
Room For Improvement
- it needed more sweet relationship develepment/moments with the two guys and less focus on other plot points/cliches
- the terrible not matching of lips to the lyrics during the singing portions
- comedy sound effects/comedy style
- one character smoked like a chimney in the first few episodes and it was not attractive
- episodes 8 and 9 were the cliches of jumped to conclusions, refused to communicate and ghosted
- the cat was abandoned???
- I wish they cut out the poor communication and gave the mafia guy a romantic interest
- disappointed he got rid of the blue hair and it was implied to be more acceptable, also the other guy got a different job
- they lobbed in a major plot in the finale that was not resolved, with no guarantee of a second season
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want to see the actors in something else
Overall: Tutor & Yim deserved better. 10 episodes about 40 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/7399/chermchey-2026-e01Content Warnings: intimate partner violence (not between the leads), violence/punches, blood, episode 4 4:40-7 a flashing light
What I Like
- Tutor & Yim
- caring moments
- color grading
- that he said he was willing to try in episode 2
Room For Improvement
- no idea why they went with an over the top comedy but the sound effects were terrible and it didn't work as a comedy (the color grading made it seem like it would be dramatic)
- constantly cutting out before NC scenes when we all know Tutor and Yim would be amazing
- the bottle hit was a bit much in ep 1
- when a character said he was hit by his then boyfriend the response was "why didn't you fight back"
- a character told his boyfriend not to wear low cut shirts or short shorts
- cringey wand thing
- did not care at all about the ex boyfriend and his new love interest plot
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This review may contain spoilers
hurt & healing
Overall: I had mixed feelings about this series. Adapted from manga series "Therapy Game" by Hinohara Meguru which I haven't read and I reviewed the series based on its own merits. 9 episodes about 20 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/5935/therapy-game-2025 (not available in Japan or South Korea).Content Warnings: held against will, manipulation, trauma; past death, murder, manipulation, child abuse
What I Liked
- easy to understand premise
- caring moments
- a character stood up to his friend
- supportive people (friends, siblings, ex girlfriend)
Room For Improvement
- started with a flash forward
- nonsense stuff: his friends just left him when he was super drunk, a cliche in episode 1, a person couldn't get out of a necklace that had a magnetic clasp/looked very easy to break, all those candles and magically they have what they need in a 10 year abandoned house
- really wish therapy with a licensed professional was at least discussed if not shown
- in real life, Minato would be so exhausting, I'm not 100% convinced these two will stay happy together
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solid coming of age/romance story
Overall: unique premise with stellar acting. 6 episodes about an hour each. Aired on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/7716/ticket-to-heaven-2026-e01 (in US, UK, Germany, France) ; Viki https://www.viki.com/tv/41493c-ticket-to-heaven#episodes ; YouTube https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLszepnkojZI7uWKLBqfRqXvmH3uACl2iw&si=FTX9_Ypgk6M-RZ8E(available in most countries in Africa and Southeast Asia (not Thailand))
Content Warnings: homophobia, bullying, (past homophobia, child abuse/violence and murder in defense can skip episode 4 57:40-60min), past death
What I Liked
- acting
- premise/setting
- cinematography (and how people looked like real people instead of dolls)
- a trans character who was not a stereotypical comedy relief character
Room For Improvement
- the Catholic Church had done and continues to do a lot of harm to many people, this was very glossed over
- didn't address the unfairness of his mom's prison sentence
- at times it was slow but then in the finale we rocketed past things
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what in the episode 10 and after was that?!!!
Overall: I was willing to overlook a few things and rate this an 8.5, but episodes 10, 11 and 12 brought the rating down. 12 episodes about 23 minutes each. Aired on GTV English Drama YT channel (first 3 episodes are free) Love After Addiction https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLop44oNqUSC_cbIapv1-bC7OQadLMPF74&si=XGKJjdfdt6eTXSlA and GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/6236/love-after-addiction-2026-e01 (not in Japan or Korea)Contend Warnings: past (drugging, non con touching/sexual assault?, manipulation, bullying); current (cyber bullying, mental health struggles, bullying, blood, manipulation, punches, non con picture taking/sharing/unwanted outing)
Watch Suggestions
- watch episodes 1-9
- episode 10 watch beginning-2:20
- episode 11 watch 19:15-20:15
- episode 12 watch 7:50-10 and 24:30-end
What I Liked
- chemistry (they had an ease with each other which is understandable since they worked together before in Addicted)
- vistas/setting
- I did laugh a few times
- a safe word was mentioned
Room For Improvement
- started with an exposition dump
- a few times they cut very quickly back and forth between two images and it was not pleasant to watch
- episode 4 director's rap was cringey
- the one guy in the side couple gave me whiplash, they needed to develop those characters/relationship more
- the reveal in episode 10 made my stomach drop (in a bad way), everything a character did before felt fake
- a character apologized to his dad for not becoming a corporate drone and working his passion project on a beautiful island??!!
- another character apologized for his sexual orientation?!!!!!
- time jump though I'm happy it wasn't longer
- new characters were tossed into episode 11, in episode 12 I get the 2 characters were they were alluding to but it felt awkward, the final episodes were all over the place
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I lost braincells watching this
Overall: it's not even so bad it's enjoyable. 10 episodes about 22 minutes each. Aired on iQIYI https://www.iq.com/play/sin-and-love-episode-1-lzocq6bde8?lang=en_us ; SEEKMedia YouTube members (right now episode 1 is highlights/significantly shorter than iQIYI) https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwfmKArt9EtUEr7VZwG_0TSuR3JbbxjrW&si=7KKdLHPE0iKyqDSf and Heavenly (S. Korea)Content Warnings: punches, coercion, choking, slaps, beaten up, blood, kidnapping, non con video recording, non con kissng, drugging, manipulation
What I Liked
- the general idea
- that there was a plan in episode 8 and it was a decent lie
Room For Improvement
- the kissing is painful to watch
- don't really know what is happening
- belt was not sexy, this production does not understand what sexy is
- I normally don't take off points for low budget, but this is their 3rd production and they could easily improve some things
- so much nonsense stuff starting with a pilot/police officer/security guy all in 1
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soap opera-y vertical micro BL series
Overall: it was decently entertaining and I liked one of the MLs. Aired on the app ShortMax.App Info - this series takes about a week to watch for free. Episodes 1-7 are free and then I could watch 5 episodes with ads. The daily check in, watching 6 more ads got me about 4 more episodes a day (so 9 episodes each day and 62 paid episodes). Some of the other apps only take 2-3 days but it wasn't as bad as Please Teach Me which took me 13 days to watch for free.
Content Warnings: attempted murder, past suicide, trauma, kidnapping, violence, drugging, slaps, non con touching, manhandling, non con photo taking/posting, choke, manipulation
What I Liked
- a main character stood up for himself/decided to get what he wanted
- good kissing
- caring moments
Room For Improvement
- the cliche wannabe fiancee character
- did both teacher/student and boss/employee tropes
- voice overs
- bad crying
- 3 kidnappings in 2 hours runtime, 1 guy was slapped by 5 different people
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This review may contain spoilers
needed more focus on the main leads
Overall: too much time spent on the dad and the cliche female character, I gave this an indie bump for the rating. 6 episodes about 5 minutes each. Aired on Lovememory YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwW9ZsuS2FnaW9PRqot0U_yIyMdzmHw96&si=9rOJwr-2MhMVF1YV The channel membership has longer episodes, likely with more kissing.Content Warnings: past death, past child abuse, alcoholism, death off screen
What I Liked
- idol trainee character
- easy to understand set up
- episode 1 sweet flashback
- the music
- some good kissing
- good they communicated right away in ep 4
Room For Improvement
- noble idiot trope
- music with lyrics was too loud when characters were speaking
- an actor switched partway thru and they needed an on screen video explanation before the start of that episode
- cliche female character
- nervous that a character did something right after his dad re-appeared, it made me nervous about the future
- didn't like a character saying what he thought the dad felt and how the dad went to a good place
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mildly infuriating (watch suggestions)
Overall: one thing I've loved about Strongberry's shorts is how they managed to tell complete stories in short run times. I think this series should have been a tight 6 instead of a meandering plot points/characters. 12 episodes about 15 minutes each. Aired on Strongberry's YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNd7BhdAz80qWw5TVGLUlVThCJPKyvJ6X&si=iz35RIq3BEz5I4H3 Later aired on GagaOOLalahttps://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/6102/sweetheart-service-2025 Strongberry also made the series Long Time No See (sometimes combined into movie format), Choco Milk Shake and Blossom Campus as well as numerous short movies (my favorites include: A First Love Story, Some More, My Pistachio and As If You Whisper).Content Warning: manipulation
Watch Suggestions
- read the summary and skip episode 1
- episode 2 watch 10:20-end
- episode 3 watch beginning to 5:35 and could watch 12:15-15:40
- episode 4 watch beginning-1 and 14-end
- watch episodes 5 & 6
- stop episode 7 at 17:50
- episode 8 watch 4:30-5:30
- skip episodes 9-11
- episode 12 watch 5-end
What I Liked
- chuckled a few times
- visuals
- easy to understand premise
- good kissing
Room For Improvement
- the flash forward as a hook for episode 1
- slow pacing, first 2 episodes were set up, the main leads had barely any screentime for 3 episodes towards the end
- wish it had been Yooha's idea instead of him being coerced into it in episode 2
- noble idiot trope, didn't communicate
- it was really odd with a third character who seemed to have more chemistry with a lead, and then that made it challenging to ship the second couple (almost felt like he was sad and accepted second best)
- the second half of the finale was anticlimactic, what was the point of showing him shopping (and I'm confused what the gift meant as it seemed much too premature unless it's something else)
- too much blur filter
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This review may contain spoilers
gorgeous setting
Overall: gorgeous visuals/costuming and a unique setting/plot. 8 episodes about 45 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/7095/journey-with-you-2026-e01 and episode 1 is available at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLl2tYmXaN6qtMaKOjmFzqWBPKIHuNaREVContent Warnings: a ton of murders, suicide, torture, blood, violence, manipulation, coercion, drugging, I might be forgetting some more
Watch Suggestions (to take most content warnings out)
- skip episode 1
- episode 2 start at 15:30
- watch episodes 3, 4 and 5
- episode 6 end at 44 min
- episode 7 watch 42:30-end
- episode 8 watch beginning to 7:45, 10:50-17:50 and 48:25-end
What I Liked
- costuming/setting
- unique plot
- chemistry
- intimacy
Room For Improvement
- there were a ton of characters/plot introduced and it was a bit confusing, but I figured out the main characters/plot fairly quickly
- that mom looked like a sibling
- some characters were kind of stupid to believe other things, knowing how dangerous their situation was, the emperor was stupid since he seemed to have 7 sons (at least 2 of which had died) and also didn't seem to realize how dangerous his situation was (the prince accurately called this out in episode 7)
- the writers could have been a bit more clear at the end of episode 8 (spoiler for the ending in my comment)
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This review may contain spoilers
Devoted Boy and Traumatized Boy
Overall: it was okay, wish they had changed a few aspects, I gave this an indie bump. 8 episodes about 22 minutes each. Aired on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGhgHW5zMDP9SFi2t7RbI-ItEK57Q5-o2Content Warnings: past death, past bullying, past rape (skip episode 7 5m45s to 14min), past & present mental health struggles, sexual assault, punch
What I Liked
- a character cleared up the miscommunication in episode 3
- caring moments
- singing voice
- a trash character received consequences
Room For Improvement
- the timeline didn't make sense, characters looked like they were 10 in the past but a character lost touch right away for events that happened 4 years later???
- the CEO dude was hot and cold
- terrible that he didn't stop (especially when he knew his past) when a singer said he didn't want to
- the 'love heals all trauma' trope
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