#it's living up there with semantic error and the eighth sense now .... like that is achievement

[jisungshotfirst]

why was love for love's sake one of the best kbls ever ....

[absolutebl]

We've had recent disappointments with the endings to series. For me, Last Twilight, Only Friends, and 23.5 stand out. While I loved the Sign to the end, there was that unexplained Tharn getting his freedom from Chalothorn, which made the very ending not quite perfect. And while I loved Century of Love all the way through, I know some folks were disappointed at the ending.

What are some QLs that you consider to have really strong endings?

OOOO what a great question!

10 BLs With the Strongest Endings

Some BLs had better endings than the rest of the show deserved, and some were saved by the ending, while still others built up to a good ending throughout. So I suspect it kinda depends on ones definition of strong. But here are mine (you'll never guess what's at the top? but...) it's in no particular order

Seven Days - no but ACTUALLY think about it. That ending is truly phenomenal. It ties everything together, gives hope for their relationship without being cheesy AND is crazy romantic, plus it brings the narrative full circle. That ending shot, the direction, the plot, the characters, and the story ALL tied in a neat little bow. It ends by indicating that something is starting for them, something familiar it's just now they are together. Fabulous.

Light On Me - on the beach, the whole friendship group, the kiss that mirrors their couple habit of cheek squiging? Peak YA BL. It reminded me of Make it Right, and that's no bad thing... for me.

Our Dating Sim - domestic boyfriends and then the pan over to all their couple photos. So exactly them.

To My Star - yeah, the sex scene, but remember this was when we finally realized that JiWoo not only liked him all along but actually desired him all along. The tsundere character breaking open for us to see the soft underbelly. Suddenly, all of his behavior made sense in retrospect. They used the final ultra romantic sex scene as a CHARACTER REVEAL. Fucking genius.

Semantic Error - the BOYFRIENDS of it all, the harken back to both the anime and the manga (with that spank bank file), the teasing and then the breaking of the forth wall. It was multiple cheeky punches out to the audience in a tiny stinger of a scene. Not to mention it had a kind of BL "ending fairy" thing that connected to them both being idols. Perfectly executed.

Love For Love's Sake - back in beach territory but wow. I mean this show starts with an ending. And it takes a lot for me to believe in the happiness of a parable about death and self worth. They managed it with this show. But that ending was killer.

My Beautiful Man - the ending made me reassess everything about the show, the story, and the characters. The ending made me love the show. It changed my mind. It BLEW my mind. I might have kinda lost my mind. In real time.

Unknown - there were struggles with this show and not everyone enjoyed the ending but I totally flipping loved it. FINALLY. You can't tell me that "you don't even know what I dream of" line doens't live in your head rent free.

Unintentional Love Story - not the ending scene so much as the whole final episode, it's so good. It brings the story together, we get multiple big realizations, sad baby, learning that baby was abused too, defending baby, baby defending himself. RINGS!

The Eighth Sense - so much peak boyfriend after so much angst. The casual language play and teasing, the stealing of the drink, just everything, and also how very very college it all is.

10 Others I just LOVE

Be Loved In House: I Do - ultra pasteurized cheese fest

Laws of Attraction - THE CAPED WEDDING OUTFITS

About Youth - rainbow kiss cheese fest

Long Time No See - BLOOD COVERED KISSES

Restart After Come Back Home - the pan around lens flare kiss and everything it MEANS

Bad Buddy - It was so CLEVER

DNA Says Love You - the claiming and then the tussle at the cafe? Gorgeous. Adorable. No notes.

Oh! Boarding House - a family gathering while the dads are holding hands behind the couch, adorable

Where Your Eyes Linger - that damn glow up

Tinted With You - perhaps... poly?

Wow... so few Thai BL. I guess this is Korea's strength in the BL sphere? Also more Japan than I expected and outsized rep for Taiwan. (I actually could have stuck a few more from Taiwan on here but they just get SO CHEESY.)

(source)

dated mid August 2024, not responsible for great endings after that date

[respectthepetty]

hi Petty! I'm not sure if you've answered this before but i was wondering what your favorite color-coded shows are. Like, as a color enthusiast, are there color-coded shows that were rly satisfying for you in how they incorporated colors into the storytelling

I love colors however I get them, so I'm going to answer your question with more recent picks later below, but I've answered some variations of this question:

Reading the (Visual) Rainbow Awards 2024

Overall Winner: Idol Factory for The Loyal Pin, The Sign, and My Marvellous Dream is You

Reading the (Visual) Rainbow Awards 2023

Overall Winner - Kiseki: Dear to Me

Top Five - Color-Coded Storytelling in BLs

Honorable Mention: Oh No! Here Comes Trouble

5) Moonlight Chicken

4) My Beautiful Man

3) My Love Mix Up

2) Semantic Error

1) Big Dragon

BLs Based Solely on Colors

Honorable Mention: Intern in My Heart

One Room Angel

Why R U? (Korea)

Secret Crush on You

Stay by My Side

Pit Babe

Bonus: Old Fashion Cupcake

Shows That Got the Colors Right

I Cannot Reach You

Destiny Seeker

Kiseki: Dear to Me

Never Let Me Go

The Eighth Sense

Dark Blue Kiss

Semantic Error

Big Dragon

Favorite Obvious Character Color Coding

Honorable Mention - Most Cheewin, Domundi, and Idol Factory shows: Y-Destiny, Secret Crush on You, Middleman's Love, You'll Never Eat Alone, Bed Friend, Cutie Pie, Naughty Babe

Destiny Seeker

I Became a Lead in a BL Drama

My Love Mix-Up

Love Tractor

The Eighth Sense

Between Us

Kiseki: Dear to Me

Pit Babe

Our Dating Sim

Top Five Color Moments of 2023

Honorable Mention: 7 Days Before Valentine

5) GAP

4) Bed Friend

3) Last Twilight

2) Moonlight Chicken

1) The Eighth Sense

Bonus: Jeff Satur x SHAUN's "Steal the Show"

Now that I've hit you with several other lists to look through, I'm going to basically give you a sneak peek into this year's running list for my Reading the (Visual) Rainbow Awards because these are some of the shows that have given me the most satisfying color coding so far.

Reading the (Visual) Rainbow Awards 2025 - Five Nominations

Honorable Mention: The Next Prince

It's not over yet, so everything could go downhill but right now, it's living up to the Domundi standard of color coding for a reason, so if it continues, the visual journey will be worth it!

Secrets Happened on the litchi Island

China came out of nowhere this past year and decided to hurt all my feelings with the color coding in this one. I was banking all my hopes on the colors telling me this one would get a happy ending, and it paid off but not without putting me through the wringer and making me cry. Therefore, I loved it.

The Boy Next World

I finally watched a MAME show live, and that chick got me! Hook, line, and sinker. This is only the third MAME show I've ever watched, and it's easily my favorite because that lighting department was working overtime showing us how much light and warmth one person can bring to someone else's dark and cold world.

When It Rains, It Pours

This will probably be my favorite show this year, and I've rewatched it almost every single week since it was released, so I have a bias, but it's also one of the best portrayals of balance in this year's grouping of shows. The colors reinforced the relationship between the characters so well, which made it even more pleasing to watch.

Secret Relationships

WTF happened with Korean BL?! Did it finally look at its het shows with all their toxic characters and decided to up the ante? This series gave me something different and showed the negatives of each color with ease, so I was rooting for all of them, yet also for none of them, and I'm still sitting here asking for a poly rainbow.

Perfect 10 Liners x Fourever You

Both shows are clumped together because Director New was behind them and his crew nailed the color coding for each show. Every character was perfectly aligned with the color they were coded as and it was delightful to witness such flawless color coding. These two are going to be the stiffest competition this year.

Bonus: Fight For You

Did you think I'd forget my favorite Black Brooder x Heavenly Human?

Never!

[luluwoofers]

Japanese BLs have me on a chokehold

With the many countries that produce BLs, there's no doubt that the way these shows are produced, lean heavily on which country the show originates from. I've watched BLs from Thailand, Korea, Taiwan..and Japan. The latter somehow always ended up creating my favourite BL of the year.

In 2022 that was "My Beautiful man", in 2023 that was "My Personal Weatherman", and in late 2024 I found "Our Youth", and it easily sneaked it's way into my top 10. With the last episode coming out on the 7th of January 2025 (so 2 days from when I'm writing this).

Now don't get me wrong, Thai BLs also have some gems, like "Kinnporsche" and "Wedding plan" (we'll ignore the sheer contrast between the two shows I just used as an example, okay?). Korean BLs also having a few that are in my top 10, such has "Semantic Error" and "The Eighth Sense", and "Kiseki: Dear to me" was also a show I enjoyed!

Now I questioned myself, as to why I gravitated towards Japanese BLs so much, and I think I figured out why.

Japanese BLs have some of the most beautiful cinematography (In my opinion), and are really good at coming up with unconventional plots, and executing them in a way that still works. For example: My personal weatherman

A show about two boys who met during College, fell in love. Who after graduation are living together, yet barely communicate while also somehow ending up sleeping together? At first I was distancing myself, because I thought that it was going to be a total mess, but I was pleasantly surprised. While Yoh and Segasaki lack so much on the communication part, and a bunch of miscommunication could've been prevented if they just TALKED, I never felt myself getting overly frustrated.

I feel like that if Thai BLs did this, it would've been exaggerated way more, and also taken way longer to get to the part where they communicate. While I feel like that Korean BLs might've been able to pull it off, the actors would have to do a huge part in the heavy lifting.

Not to mention how diverse Japanese BLs can really get, they have basically anything on the market. From very spicy to the sweetest fluffiness you could get (Takara's treasure, etc), but for the most part..I think it also just lays on the preference of the person watching.

(Please note: Just because I think that Japanese BLs come on top when it comes to shows, doesn't mean that any other country that produces these suck! Thai BLs are popular for a reason, and I've watched plenty, same goes Korean BLs, and like I said earlier, it's really just the preference!).

(Enjoy a photo of Hira and Kiyoi, and Yoh and Mizuki)

- Lulu signing off

[mousieta]

Dramas Recap - 2024

It’s the beginning of a new year and I have definitely been in a multi-year drama slump so I figured I’d do a little dramas state-of-the-union. I don’t know that I’m really up for full reviews of things I’ve watched over the last couple years but I can share a few thoughts on what I’ve seen and what I am currently watching with a list of things I intend to watch and why.

Completed Dramas

Happy Ending Romance (2022, Korea) - Continue to be mostly unfulfilled by KBL. Watched for Leo, he was great but otherwise disappointed by weak/ nonsensical writing. 1.5/10

Moonlight Chicken (2023, Thailand) - P’Aof, however, continues to not disappoint. Poignant and meaningful, only hampered by the fact I could not believe Earth was a man in his 30s/40s despite how hard he tried. 8.5/10

Semantic Error (2022, Korea) - Cute. Deserving of the hype. I am just bored that so many queer stories focus only on college/high school. 8/10

Curtain Call (2022, Korea) - Sad I disliked this one because I do so adore both Ha Ji Won and Kang Ha Neul but I really hate lying For Reasons storylines especially when they drag out tortuously to meet an episode count. 6.5/10

Taxi Driver (2021, Korea) - Really enjoyed the found family cast, disliked that it felt the creative team didn’t trust their audience so felt talked down to a lot. Minor plot holes/ inconsistencies in writing undermined what could have been a truly stellar show. Maybe I’ll get around to watching season 2. 7.5/10

The New Employee (2022, Korea) - Cute. Forgettable - in that I don’t remember anything about it now a year out. 8/10

Only Friends (2023, Thailand) - A mess of a show rendered annoying by the truly bottom tier of discourse it generated. Worth it for FirstKhao, though, despite weak and frustrating writing. 7/10

The Eighth Sense (2023, Korea) - Ok I suspend my feelings on KBLs for this show because it was actually fantastic (minorly annoying plot points notwithstanding). I found this swoony and moving. 9/10

My Sweet Mobster (2024, Korea)- One of the few standouts of the last couple years. It felt like a throwback to an early 2010s drama in a good way. Familiar and comforting but with a lovable cast and standout leads. 8/10

Love in the Big City (2024, Korea) - One of the shows where I feel the distinction between BL and Queer Media may be pedantic but relevant. Amazing and moving show full of things I crave: powerful and memorable characters with solid writing. Heartily recommend. 9/10

Good Manager (2017, Korea) - Again a bit of a throwback feel hampered a bit, imo, by uneven writing for the male lead that always fell just shy of truly good to land with me. A bit of tsundere bromance in our male leads made up for it, though. 8.5/10

Lovely Runner (2024, Korea) - Again a fantastic throwback of a show with vibes of School 2015. Loved the twists and turns of time travel and the supporting cast. The chemistry of the leads was solid. A standout in a few otherwise lackluster years. 9/10

Rewatches

Cruel City (2013, Korea) - Still, in my opinion, one of the best KDramas, hands down. A little silly with the plot convolutions but Jung Kyung Ho’s portrayal of Doctor’s Son remains raw and haunting. His dysfunctional crime family still live vibrant in my heart. 10/10

My Father is Strange (2017, Korea) - A perennial comfort watch that remains one of the best crafted shows I’ve seen with one of the best redemptions stories in all of media - and I don’t say that lightly. Full of lovable characters that basically give me 4 romcoms in one. 10/10

Completed Movies

Hidden Blade (2023, China) - Tony Leuhng and Wang Yibo? Yes, absolutely. Never rose above the sum of its parts but was riveting none-the-less 9/10

Method (2017, Korea) - The toxic old man yaoi that keeps the constitution strong. 8/10

Marry My Dead Body (2022, Taiwan) - Absolutely fantastic, excellent time had by all, with good rewatch value. The queer buddy cop comedy we all deserve. 8/10

Dropped

Reborn Rich (2022, Korea) - Just got bored and I’ve never been enough of a Song Joong Ki fangirl for him to carry a show for me.

War of Y (2022, Thailand) - Def. Understand why this is an important show for BL lovers, just struggled connecting with any of the characters enough to care about watching more.

Kokdu: Season of Deity (2023, Korea) - Really wanted to like this one because I enjoy Kim Jung Hyun and wanted him to be good coming back from his ‘scandal’. It just felt like the Wish version of better shows like Goblin or My Love from the Star.

Ameiro Paradox (2022, Japan) - Just kept forgetting to watch more episodes then gave up. Obviously just wasn’t compelled enough.

Cherry Magic (2023, Thailand) - Might have kept up with this if its production company hadn’t gone all fucky with international access. Not sure if its available now, didn’t care enough about the little I did see to bother checking.

4Minutes (2024, Thailand) - This is all down to weak writing. I found myself yelling in annoyance at the screen more than enjoying anything about it. It’s ok, Bible, I still love you.

Century of Love (2024, Thailand) - Somehow the writer just didn’t know how to make enjoyable characters despite having all the right archetypes. Found one of the male leads so one note and flat I couldn’t keep watching.

Ok now on to the things I am looking forward to watching:

Stranger Season 2 (2020, Korea) - (for itself but also because they gave Prosecutor Seo, my favorite terrible cockroach, his own show)

Adventure Behind the Bronze Door (2024, China) - My life has been distinctly lackluster since I’ve had a DMBJ vehicle in my life

A Shop for Killers (2024, Korea) - Will not lie, this is 100% because Primary did the soundtrack and I love it.

Bad and Crazy (2021, Korea) - Absolutely for Lee Dong Wook and N

Guardians of the Dafeng (2024, China) - Dylan Wang. Enough said.

Fangs of Fortune (2024, China) - I have Heard Things

Immortality - [uncontrollable sobbing]

[absolutebl]

Leaving GMMTV aside, what were youre favorite shows this year so far? I'll have more free time coming up and im way behind and out of the loop, so some recs would be appriacted, wise sage. Especially for those shows that didnt get the attention they deserved in your opinion! Thanks a lot!

Top 10 BLs of 2023 So Far

Our Dating Sim

(Korea) 10/10 Viki

If you haven't watched this, it's a must. I actually handed out a 10/10. I NEVER do that. It's a perfect short form KBL, an office set reunion romance featuring geeks that really suits 8 eps with no fluff and no chaff. Just comforting and yummy. I adored every aspect from the casting to the pristinely simple premise to the quietly smooth execution. Sure it’s low stakes, but that makes it high domesticity and extremely warm and gentle. This is a fuzzy blanket of a story - a cozy BL. It lives in my rewatch pile and you know what’s best about it? Every single episode is in that pile. There’s no skipping with this one, it might be good natured and calmly sweet but it’s tight and the pacing is excellent. Full review here.

My School President

(Thai) 9/10 YouTube

GMMTV gave us a classic high school set Thai BL with tropes like messy boys singing their feelings that made this one Love Sick for the modern age with all the gentle sweetness and pining ache, but none of the dated damaging tropes or issues. Yes, we’ve seen it all before, but I still ADORED this. And there is a lot to be said for the classics being re-executed perfectly. Who let my BL be this wholesome and funny? This show was fantastic, it’s only flaw was the singing (and that’s my baggage). My favourite GMMTV BL offering to date. And yes, I've watched them ALL.

(you said no GMMTV but I have to include it)

The Eighth Sense

(Korea) 9/10 Viki

One of the longest BLs Korea has given us and (like Blueming) it feels more atmospheric gay coming of age romance than strictly BL. It’s got a bit of an age gap, country boy/city boy, stellar acting, complex characters, and leads with great chemistry and tension. It’s a bit chewy and sticky and less perfect than most KBLs (do I detect a touch of Taiwan?) This one deployed BL tropes (messy eater, shoulder sleep, protective seme, there’s even some hyung-slinging) but front loaded them with painful backstory and tons angst drives the 2nd half. This isn’t in the KBL bubble, there’s sharp edges and lots of triggers. For a BL the darkness of the content left me feeling unsettled (which is the only reason it didn't get a perfect score) but it does have a glorious ending and that counts for a lot.

The New Employee

(Korea) 9/10 Viki

So good, SO QUEER, so soft, a near pitch perfect office BL with conflict derived from that setting. Also found family and a lesbian bestie. Sweet & innocent (and out) Seung Hyun scores the office internship of his dreams. On his first day at work he gets into it with his cool reserved (and also v gay) boss. As you do. Frankly? This is what I wanted from this new crop of office set KBLs ALL ALONG. Rainbow rice cakes forever! Directed by queer activist Kim Jho Gwang Soo (Just Friends?) partly set in the same neighbourhood as the To My Star house. Gotta love WATCHA (Semantic Error, Light on Me).

Unintentional Love Story

(Korea) 9/10 iQIYI

A boy who just lost his job due to faked corruption charges accidentally discovers his ex-boss's favorite artist, now a recluse. Evil manager offers him his job back if he can convince the artist to rejoin society. Instead, they fall in love. I found the artist a bit stiff and reserved but Gongchan (maknae of B1A4) is a fucking GIFT - he carried this show (which I do not expect from the idol element). He was luminous with extraordinarily expressive eyes, just drown in the emoting abyss. The external conflict, social tension and pressure is complex and beautifully executed, plus Korea gave us legit side dishes (NOT a love triangle, hally-fucking-luya). I’m not sure on rewatchability, and it didn’t whip me into a verbal frenzy the way some KBLs do, but it still gets a solid 9/10 for those damn eyes alone.

Destiny Seeker

(Thai) 8/10 grey

A darn near perfect pulp featuring 3 likeable tsundere/sunshine pairings with uncomplicated iterations of enemies to lovers. At least one half of each does a decent amount of pining and there’s good chemistry, classic tropes, and communication rep. It’s fun and full of linguistic jokes. Sublimely cheesy but a good rainy day offering with tons of rewatch potential. Full review here.

Make a Wish

(Thai) 8/10

PNR (from Sammon - Manner of Death & Triage) about a doctor who can see the dead and strikes a bargain with a wish-granting irreverent tree angel - naturally they fall in love. Stars Fluke Natouch opposite not-Ohm, but who cares bc Fluke has chemistry with everybody. Once again the Thai afterlife is incredibly bureaucratic but I enjoyed the premise and the unfolding of the story (it’s not predictable but v. satisfying and with nice little twist). I like that the doctor is just gay af, fag hag bestie and everything. The cast is excellent but the comedic stylings are too overblown and tonally off. It had sad parts and did make me cry but is ultimately happy with a great sex scene, good smiley kisses, and all the agency.

All the Liquors

(Korea) 8/10 Viki & Gaga

A pretty classic foodie set KBL that managed to distinguish itself from others in this category by having a particularly satisfying final episode centered around found family. Sunshine sweetie soju rep gets involved with a shy introvert chef who doesn’t drink. This has a somewhat uneven plot and ridiculous central conceit (much in the way of Tasty Florida or Behind Cut), but if you are looking for a restaurant BL with Korea’s signature softness, then this is a great option. FYI I may identify with our baby party boy hedonist more than any other BL lead ever presented.

Love Mate

(Korea) 8/10 Viki

Features a very much openly gay older uke with commitment issues and a romantic (if arrogant) younger seme with no respect for boundaries (hyung romance). Workplace harassment much? That’s BL for ya. (Also a nonBL Kdrama specialty.) So yeah it’s questionable, but so is my taste. The ultimate premise that someone badly hurt shuts themself off to romance is very similar to Happy Merry Ending or 8th Sense but this version was more about fear than abuse or trauma. For me, this made Love Mate more relatable. However, because the denouement was driven by a late addition faen fatal, the conclusion felt rushed and forced. I can, however, see myself rewatching this one, so it falls into the general rank of 2023′s KBL aka solid high standard and eminently watchable.

Bed Friend

(Thai YouTube, Gaga, iQIYI)

Office frienamies transition a flaming hot one night stand into a f-buddy relationship that is built on a puppy/cat dynamic (and kinks into it at one point). Our puppy is loyal, smitten, and protective with endlessly longing eyes, while our cat is snarky, prickly, and deeply damaged (ALL THE TRIGGERS). NetJames give lovely high-heat with excellent chemistry and tuned-in performances of surprising depth, unfortunately the story ultimately failed them. Had the show had the strength of its convictions and kept to a tighter, darker, harsher 8 eps it would have been the first high heat to earn a 10/10 from me, but once they fussed with it, it dropped to a solid 8/10. Could have been great but was overworked. Still if high heat is your thing, this one will not let you down. Full review here. (Triggers include: child abuse, attempted rape, family abuse)

(3x! 3x Tumblr ate this post. They HAVE to de bug their new editor. This never happens with the old one. Biggest bug is with the "undo" function, DO something about it!)