ksk79

@ADark "the director kinda recreated popular scenes from her previous work" Why, assuming you’re a BL fan, don’t you like scenes that imitate her supposedly successful styles from past works?

@KSM4 I appreciate the feedback. As I read the comments, I find myself questioning what the “magical” elements in a BL series are that are attracting its target audience from a film production perspective. (I am obviously not the audience for this, but I am extremely interested as one who worked in the film industry). This was actually executed by a female director who has previous "success" in this genre. Personally, most BL tropes and visuals fail to engage my sensory perception; in fact, many evoke aversion and apprehension.

Producing a synopsis is tedious and unnecessary because we don’t know to what extent the adaptation deviates to appeal to non–East Asian viewers who are BL fans. The series obviously follows a different objective than that of the novel. It's perhaps similar to the series 'Feel what you feel,' which was radically adapted from the web novel. Those of us who had read and reread the novel saw that the series did not present it in its entirety.

@Truth Hurts I am also thinking of that, too. It looks like the adaptation is going that direction.

@joopis, I was startled too to see Romaji. I took Japanese for over 2 years progressing from Hirakana to Katakana, and then some Kanji. The Kanji part was where I stopped because I begged my father to let my siblings and me study Japanese because its scripts looked simpler than Mandarin!

It was Hong Kong Cantonese-dialect gay movie directed by an openly gay director and was released in 1998. A death occur because of deeply ingrained homophobia of the character. Other gay characters in the creative work did live on. 'Happy Together' was another Cantonese-dialect gay movie released a year earlier; here, no one dies; naturally, the ending did not fit the expected BL trope. Most gay viewers, I think, are satisfied with the ending considering the situation.

@stolenart Thanks for the info. Really appeared in BL before? And I thought this medium template was stolen from Thai evening melodramas, many of which according to media planners, are deployed to get particular viewers to their screen devices. It makes sense though since I discover the premises of BL for its particular audience.

@hansel714 Thank you for sharing that interesting fact! Although I had frequently visited Bangkok and L.A.'s Yaohan, I wasn't aware of the fictional drama associated with it.

@Jackie_the_ripper. I appreciate the humor! I am fascinated by how the BL creative team has transformed visual segments, bits, or parts of a BL novel into a profitable product. Although I personally respond negatively to BL elements, I am very curious about the crafting process that leads to a successful and marketable item.

@Jackie_the_ripper Thanks for the response. I didn’t realize it was also used in other cultures. I just remember this theme from evening Thai TV dramas during my high school days, even though I never actually watched the genre. In my work with a few media planners for the Thai audience, I recall several referring to this type of entertainment content with these characteristics. The curious question is whether the new generation of viewers now dislikes this drama template, or if it’s just a few people here on this platform.

@YogyYogii Thanks for the advance reveal as I am currently reading this novel primarily of the accurate Chinese social class differences portrayal.

I noticed an interesting similarity between this BL adaptation and the classic Thai heterosexual melodramas featuring a male lead and a very docile female lead. This formula must have been so popular with Thai audiences that it’s been reused often over the years. This BL follows that same pattern. Thai viewers, do you recall this successful drama template being repeated on Thai television for the past 3–4 decades?
Based on some comments below, I think some viewers do not enjoy this "classic" template anymore.

While I do not know but want to know the actual situation as to why this supposedly "disguised as a Bromance" is a grade or more better and more interesting than the many other Chinese BL productions not subject to its government censorship, I, as a consumer, will choose this any day.

Don’t forget that many people in a modern society endure situations or jobs they don’t enjoy just to earn money. (I am still traumatized from the death curse a 17-year-old teenage boy had made to me when I served him and his peers for a salary). So far, a significant sum of money has already been given to Xiao Fan’s family twice as of this 4th episode, and there will be more according to the novel. I’m not sure exactly what “traumatically sad way” means to you, but for me, Lu Qing not ending up with Wen Xi is a tragedy. My view comes from having read the novel.

Thank you for understanding. I enjoy reading your comments. Please keep them coming with more details as to what you like or dislike in the BL adaptation.

I remind myself that Xiaofan, the character in the novel, and the singer/actor in the series who tries to act the modified screenplay character are to be evaluated as different entities. Another actor/dancer who plays this character will bring out different reactions from its BL viewers. For example, some Chinese-speaking BL series have two seasons with 2 different actors playing the same character in the screenplay version for each season.

Thanks for the advance information. From a few other BL series I occasionally watch to find their original novel titles to read, I’ve found that their novel counterparts are often more captivating. When adapted into BL series, especially the Chinese and Korean ones, the limited time on screen means the production teams focus mainly on only the intense BL elements, from the original or new ones added, to interest their viewing fans. Reading the original BL novels from which they’re based has been surprisingly more entertaining for me as an East Asian gay man.

As an East Asian gay viewer who enjoys series that explore East Asian culture, I feel that this adaptation falls short compared to the novel, which aligns more with my preferences. The portrayal of causing "financial setbacks" and the request for favors should not have been so overt, as they might alienate BL fan viewers. But if the novel had been adapted into a gay genre series specifically for Chinese audiences or the Chinese diaspora, Fanfan's actions could have led to different outcomes.

I concur but still find it interesting to see how people in the BL universe behave in this adapted BL series.

@Sara Rafiey, what you mentioned is true if this were to have happened in Europe or North America, both of which have different sets of values and norms from those practiced in East Asia and Southeast Asia. This PRC medical drama will have many, if not most, viewers from East Asia and the Chinese diasporas nodding their heads.