etoks21

There's a strong story and message here, buried somewhere under the horrendously bad execution. This was my second watch. I caught a lot more of what the hell was happening, and didn't hate it as much as the first time. Maybe if I watch two or three more times, I'll love it. :)

For now: 6/10

Thanks! I will check out both shows. I do like sports/politics/business. Heck, anything can be interesting if it's well-written, directed, acted, and produced. :)

Thanks for the tip. I will check out Chicago Typewriter.

My thing about these dramas is also just a personal preference. I haven't been fond of television series in general for a very long time, and the idea of locking into a 16-hour story does not appeal to me. That is a lot of time.

I love movies partly because they tell a dramatic/action-packed/comical story within 90-150 minutes, so everything is intensified. If it's a well-done film, I will be glued to my seat. If it's not, I can bail.

I have watched a few Netflix series, most recently "Black Doves," which was six one-hour episodes. I can handle that because it was spectacularly well-done, and because Keira Knightley. :D

P.S. I did watch "My Mister" from start to end because I adore Lee Sun Kyun, but it too dragged on and on. Could have been cut by a third. Preferably all of IUd's scenes. ;)

Did you know words mean things, and that the way you put them together in sentences, and then sentences in paragraphs, makes a difference as to what their meaning is? Really...it's true! Pointing out that your words continually betray your either/or mindset is not "nitpicking." It's pointing out a fact.

So, yeah, Onsens exist and have for hundreds of years, but Japanese men are desperately afraid to see each other shirtless, or...something/something. lol Got it. What the writers/director seem to have done there is to apply the ancient BL trope of the bottom as the "woman" in a gay relationship. It's women who are endlessly portrayed in Japan as shrinking, timid, shrinking violets who faint at the sight of a bare-chested man. Which leads one to wonder how on Earth they would ever allow a man to place his icky thing in their hoo-hoo. Which then leads one to wonder why you'd see that bottom=woman=weak/timid/prude trope as a positive thing in gay romance.

BTW, who's "defending BL" in this convo? Not me. More made-up nonsense.

That last, bitchy little adieu is telling.

"I’d rather have the romance highlight through emotional growth than fetish physicality."

Again, it's EITHER "emotional growth" OR "fetish physicality" with you. lol Do you read your words before posting? It does not have to be one or the other.

And what's with the "fetish" in there anyway? Including sex in a love story hardly makes a "fetish" of it. It acknowledges it as one of the most powerful driving forces humans experience, and as one of the most powerful ways to express love between two people.

We can make a "fetish" of anything. You seem to have made a fetish of sexless romance.

So, yeah, you were completely wrong about Japanese cultural modesty between men, but won't say so. Got it.

Where did I say "gay" men are horny 24/7?
I didn't. I said MEN are horny 24/7.
Your eagerness to imagine the "gay" in there reveals an eagerness to feel victimized and offended. I don't play that game.

This comment also shows an either/or mentality. I didn't "brush aside" anything. You seem to be one of those who make up stuff, then react to what you made up. That's another game I don't play.

Oh, you also made up, "porn level intimacy." I asked for no such thing. What I said, and I will repeat it, is that gay men can have romance AND intense sex. No either/or about it.

Your deep sensitivity to Japanese cultural quirks, including men feeling embarrassed in front of each other because they're shirtless, especially after a night of schtupping each other, is nonsense.
Ever hear of Japanese Sentos or Onsens? Educate yourself.

But yeah, Japanese men are terribly shy about nudity in front of each other. lol

Give me a break. What exactly is it that he did, in your mind?

What, exactly, in your mind, is it that he did to this person? I mean, precisely, physically?

Yeah, cause public humiliation, a ruined career, and personal devastation are "easy" as pie.
You got your conviction on this bit of nonsense.
Go drive some other celebrity to despair.

Thank you.

Please help. I don't understand your comment. Thank you.

Your perspective on sex is sadly twisted.
Is there some reason a couple can't grow emotionally, develop their characters, AND have great, passionate sex?
No, no there isn't, though you'd like us to think so. It's not an either/or thing...real people like sex and love, not one or the other.

I blame sex-phobic fujoshis for the de-sexualization of gay relationships, in which two men in love and supposedly having sex, reluctantly lay on top of each other like two, unmoving planks of wood. I blame the same group for stupid things like Kanade acting embarrassed to see Kosuke shirtless and in pajama bottoms, least of all the morning after knocking one off the night before.

The problem here is that some members of the audience have never HAD a tongue down their throat. And though they love watching BLs, it's only when the couple is presented as sexless Teddy bears that they are comfortable with two men loving each other.

Men are horny af 24/7. Put two gay men together, and you double that reality. Deal.

Episode 9:
Lame, predictable, and boring, which adds up to disappointing, as I had enjoyed the first few episodes.

The bit with Kanade, the morning after a night of (supposed) sex, acting embarrassed to see Kosuke shirtless with pajama bottoms on, was beyond stupid. Enough with the vestal virgin bottoms, who become MORE prudish after getting laid than before.

I'm slogging through at this point.

Tempted to watch this a second time.
I recall liking it a LOT until about the last quarter, but I can't remember what about that latter part so annoyed me. Anyone else who can remind me, feel the same?

I do remember the hilarious sex scene where the body alignments were so off that it was obvious nothing was going on under those sheets. :)

"Masterpiece." Most abused word on MDL.

MDLers love to go on and on about how shows with dark themes are "not an easy watch," and wave people away with "trigger warnings," otherwise known as spoilers.

Nice list of spoilers you got there. There's a button for that. Please use it.

"No Regret" is the second-best gay Asian feature film of all time.
While well-above average for a BL, this did NOT steal the show from NR.

I call them "delicate flowers." :)
Afraid of life in general and eager to be offended, they want a "trigger warning" for anything that might elicit strong feelings, from which they believe they are owed protection. It's all weird and somewhat disturbing. Here in the US, it began maybe 25 years ago, with college students demanding they be protected from "offensive" language. They demanded universities become "safe spaces" for them, rather than environments in which they learned to navigate the real world as adults.

Then, they moved out into the larger cauldron of business and society, and the demands kept growing and haven't stopped.

I'm always interested by women, especially gay women, who are so interested in gay men and their stories. Thank you, Adiamond, for all you do! :)