vanwarren

Just a heads up, there is indeed an 11th episode that's been released for those who don't know.

No worries: we're both BL fans, so there's no ill will intended. In regard to Hirakawa's mother, one could argue that as a parent, it was her job to reassure her child that she's a safe space for him to confide in her no matter what. In a roundabout way, her actions (or lack thereof) played a role in Hirakawa having that specific mentality since she seemingly failed to provide that reassurance for him as a child. Also, this may be a bit of a reach on my end, but I feel as though a parent would've been able to put two-and-two together after seeing that their child no longer comes to their house bruised and bloody AFTER their father passes away (because if I'm not mistaken, it was implied that he's visited her in a battered state more than once). It just didn't sit well with me watching her wrongfully assume that his bruises came from school altercations. If that were truly the case, one would assume that the new school that he transferred to would've contacted her about how troublesome her son was (since at that point she was his only living parent). Point being, while it's possible that he and his mother repaired their relationship during the time jump, his mother is still trash in my opinion.

I remember Hirakawa saying something to the effect of enduring the abuse from his father in order to protect his mother from it in the earlier episodes of the series (I can't remember which episode in particular, so I'll have to rewatch). Either way, the fact that he knew that he wouldn't be able to live with his mother after his father died because she has a "new family" pretty much confirms that his mother is still trash.

This, and "Life: Love on the Line" are my favorite Japanese BLs in recent memory. Everything from the writing to the acting, to the production was perfection in my opinion. Now that I got that out of the way, NETHER of Hirakawa's parents ain't sh*t. His father was obviously terrible and abusive, but the fact that his mother just ran from the abuse to start a secondary family without even trying to protect her CHILD makes her even worse than the father in my opinion. While Minase's parents weren't physically abusive, I feel as though they were borderline negligent; especially since there were many scenes/episodes where Minase would be home alone. Thankfully, that borderline negligence helped create the space for Minase and Hirakawa's romance to blossom. Hirakawa fell first, but as the series progressed, it was clear that Minase fell harder. Minase completely broke when Hirakawa distanced himself from him (although Hirakawa's reasoning seemed relatively valid given the trauma he'd endured throughout his life) to the point where he started smoking the same brand of cigarettes just to retain the memory of Hirakawa. Minase had already loved Hirakawa as is (as evident by his confession in the final episode). Although their relationship can be considered to be the product of a "trauma bond," I'm glad that both Minase and Hirakawa were able to find solace in each other.

To be honest, I don't know how I feel about this episode (episode 4). Since Luo Bu Shi was drugged, wouldn't have been considered r*pe if Ever 4 were human since Luo Bu Shi technically wouldn't have been able to consent due to being drugged? What makes it even more uncomfortable is the fact that he didn't even feel or remember being topped.

I'm really not understanding the cousin. If all he truly wanted was to take control of the company, why is he being so antagonistic toward Zi Xiang when Zi Xiang is more than willing to relinquish control of the company in order to be with Shao Peng? Nat is acting more like a jealous/toxic ex-boyfriend than he is a family member that wants to run a company. Although Shu He's "redemption arc" seemed a bit rushed, I'm just glad that she's finally leaving Zi Xiang and Shao Peng alone so they can be happy together. I wish the relationship between Johnathan and Xin Jia would've been developed more so they could feel more like a genuine side couple. Shao Peng's father is low-key the funniest character in this series. Having him be an overprotective father makes sense seeing as how Shao Peng is an overprotective boyfriend. I really hope that Zi Xiang and Shao Peng get to have their happy ending (hopefully the Yu Xi Gu cameo from the previous episode isn't foreshadowing)

*SIDE NOTE*

Johnathan is more of a "brother" to Zi Xiang than Nat will ever be. I hope that Zi Xiang realizes this in the final episode. His love for Shao Peng gave him the courage to want to confront his father; so hopefully he'll also have the courage to stand up to his "brother/cousin."

I'm thinking that they're actually not (which to me is a bit disappointing) since neither of them can actually see the Mole Goddess in her true form. It would've been a nice twist though.

This series proved that a large budget isn't necessary to produce a quality BL with a unique plot. This series would've been a 10/10 for me had the intro to the series not implied that both Jodd and Jeng were also animals that became humans when there was no noticeable reference to that being the case in the series (I feel like that would've been an interesting twist to have other students that were originally animals outside of Junior and Sun). Although episode 9 was filled with angst, I did enjoy the fact that Junior finally stood up to the guy who's essentially his father in order to save Sun. I do wish that the final episode went a bit deeper into how Sun was nursed back to health after being shot as opposed to simply allowing the viewer(s) to assume that Nat and Ton took care of him for five months. Overall, this was surprisingly one of the better BLs of 2024. I hope Ben and Jay get more chances to work together in different series. For this to be both of their first leading roles, their chemistry is insane.

It's most likely because of what happens in episode 9.

Had Bison done his due diligence and finished checking the security footage, this episode would've ended in the first 15 minutes. I feel bad for Fadel because he was more reluctant to open his heart to someone in fear of something like this happening. Although a part of me feels a bit bad for Style (to a certain extent) because he's technically not the police informant, his initial intentions for pursuing Fadel weren't pure in the slightest. Toying with someone's emotions in exchange for a luxury car is nasty work.

Zi Xiang fell first (LITERALLY and figuratively), but it's clear that Shao Peng fell harder. Thinking about it, it's not too surprising that Shao Peng is incredibly protective of Zi Xiang and just wants to devour him no matter who's around (his dad was on the other side of his bedroom door, and Shao Peng couldn't have cared less 🤣). After realizing that love is obtainable for him in the form of Zi Xiang (coupled with the fear of possibly losing him after his accident), Shao Peng wants to hold onto it as long as he possibly can; so, him being an overprotective boyfriend tracks. Aside from altering the length of the episodes (because I feel like they could benefit from having an extra 15-20 minutes), and the way that the women outside of Shao Peng's mother are written in this series, the one thing that would make this a 10/10 series for me is if the relationship between Johnathan and Xin Jia had been a bit more developed by this point in the series. Although they're the "side couple," they're also credited as main characters; and should be treated/written as such.

*SIDE NOTE*

The Yu Xi Gu cameo made me happy (yes I still call him Yu Xi Gu after all these years).

I'm glad I waited to binge watch this series (because waiting every week for new episodes of a BL series can be torture). As an introvert, the character of Ryoma resonated with me to a certain extent. I was a bit worried that this would have a sad ending because of the suicide disclaimers, but I'm glad that wasn't the case. I'm kinda hoping for a Season 2 where Haruto is studying for his bar exam so he can get the justice for his mother that he's been seeking.

I like how unserious this episode in particular was by having the actors acknowledge the number of episodes in the series coupled with the fact that they're actors in this series (it almost felt like a "4th wall" moment). For this to be their first leading roles, both Jay and Ben are doing a phenomenal job portraying their respective characters. I'm also enjoying the unofficial side couple of Jodd and Jeng. I do wonder if and/or when Jodd and Jeng will reveal that they have more in common with Junior and Sun than they may think (if you know, you know). The only thing I would add to this series is previews for the next episode(s). Also, I really hope this isn't the last we see of Porshe and Arm in this series.

*SIDE NOTE*

Junior using catnip on Sun took me out. 🤣🤣🤣

Same name as the series.

Kant wasn't very intelligent in this episode. What would make him think that the house of professional hitmen WOULDN'T be wired with cameras? As someone who hasn't read the novel, I don't see how this series can end well for any of the main characters; but it'll be interesting to see how everything plays out. Hopefully GMMTV doesn't do the thing that GMMTV does with a lot of their BLs and keeps it interesting beyond the 8th or 9th episode (because BLs like "Wandee Goodday" and "Kidnap" started out strong, but lost steam around the 8th or 9th episode).

Before I get into my thoughts on this episode (episode 10), I just want to say that I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy that this series is still airing on Christmas day. Now that I got that out of the way, I've said this before, and I'll keep saying it until something changes; with the exception of Shao Peng's mother, I DETEST how the women in this series are written. It's rather sad to see Jessica continue to pursue a man who flat-out told her MORE THAN ONCE that he has feelings for someone else who isn't her. Also, I don't understand why Shu He seems jealous of Zi Xiang's bond with Shao Peng since (to my knowledge) Shao Peng views her almost as a sister/friend (she rubbed me the wrong way after snapping at Shao Peng when HE saved HER from getting r*ped despite his disability). As much as I'm enjoying the budding relationship between Zi Xiang and Shao Peng, I do wish that the relationship between Johnathan and Xin Jia is given more time to truly develop. Despite the fact that they're the "side couple," they are technically credited as "main characters" also; so hopefully they're treated as such in the remaining episodes. The way Johnathan subtly protected Xin Jia when he was being harassed coupled with the fact that he waited over three hours for Xin Jia to be done with his shift just proves how hard Johnathan fell for him. Johnathan is well aware that he can have his pick of ANY man (especially since he turned down SEVEN guys while he was at the bar), but he only has eyes for Xin Jia.

*SIDE NOTE*

When I saw the size of Shao Peng's bed, I couldn't help but laugh since Shao Peng is about 9'0" tall.

Okay, why am I JUST now catching that? It's literally in the intro!

This series proves that you don't necessarily need a large budget to produce a quality BL series. This episode almost felt like the standard "cursed episode" of a BL series with everything that happened at the end. It's clear that Sun cares for Junior despite the fact that he tries to deny it at times. Literally everything he's done since meeting Junior has been to protect Junior. From suppressing his animalistic instinct to hunt/eat smaller animals (Junior) to only tapping into his strength of a panther ONLY to protect Junior when he's in physical danger. I also enjoy the unofficial side couple of Jodd and Jeng (I think everyone needs friends like them). I can't help but wonder how Jodd and Jeng will react when the seemingly find out that Sun and Junior aren't actually humans (based on the final scene from this episode). In the end, this may be a reach, but I kinda hope that Ton and Nat end up adopting Junior and Sun since they've expressed wanting to have children.

Overall, while this isn't a bad series, as of right now, I don't really see how this can end well for Bison and Fadel since their feelings are now involved (which Fadel himself said would blind them from being able to properly do their jobs). Fadel and Style are the more intriguing "couple" in my opinion. In a weird way, despite the fact that both Bison and Fadel are hitmen, I find myself empathizing with them to a certain extent; especially after finding out what happened to their birth parents.

*SIDE NOTE*

I'm glad that Bison and Kant dealt with that pedophile at Babe's school.

Once again, while I'm enjoying this series, the episodes NEED to be longer. Now that I got that out of the way, I like how this episode seemed to strengthen the bond between Zi Xiang and Shao Peng. I also noticed that this was the first episode showing Zi Xiang sleeping in a bed as opposed to curling up in a closet. I feel as though Shao Peng's mother suspected something developing between Zi Xiang and her son beyond a boss/employee relationship for a while. It's honestly a bit irritating how the women in this series outside of Shao Peng's mother are written. There's approximately 8 billion people that exist in the world; leave these two men alone. The ending of this episode has me nervous for the events of the next episode.