#THAI BL (ish) SERIES

[gunsatthaphan]

"what are you thinking?"

[pharawee]

Pon Thanapon as JEFF and Sailub Hemmawich as ALAN —PIT BABE THE SERIES · Episode 2

[bl-bam-beyond]

Meet The Singer & The Drunkard

Sand (KANAPHAN PUITRAKUL aka FIRST) runs into Ray (THANAWAT RATANAKITPAISAN aka KHAOTUNG) a lot. The writing is on the wall for them. Though it seems Ray likes his friend Mew. Call them Main Couple #1

Meet The Bookish Bespectacled Virgin & The Playboy Stud

Top (JIRATCHAPONG SRISANG aka FORCE) is a hookup type it seems but something in Mew (KASIDET PLOOKPHOL aka BOOK) makes Top want to stop playing the field and become more settled. He's already publicly asked Mew to be his boyfriend. Call then Main Couple #2

Meet The Hookup Guy and The Phone Repair Guy

Boston (TRAI NIMTAWAT aka NEO) want no entanglements though it appears he hooked up with Top and may want another go or two but Top is into Mew only...thus far. But Nick (PAKIN KUNAANUWIT aka MARK) wants Boston as a boyfriend but Boston is the one and done type. Sounds like heartache for the phone guy. Seems like a Side Couple or Uncouple.

ONLY FRIENDS (2023, THAILAND)

Episode 1 Saturday August 12

The Couples, The Uncouples, The Wannabe Couples and The Hookups and of course the ONLY FRIENDS

@pose4photoml @lutawolf

[shall-we-go-far-away]

Okay, here are my - still very unorganized - thoughts about ep. 7:

Mew and Ray?? eeeehh noooo.. Ray totally is Mew's rebound or even worse just a piece in Mew's revenge plot and Ray is absolutely eating it up I just feel like they're gonna drag each other to hell but maybe they need it to realize they don't need each other in a romantic way (especially Ray)

and them dressing up as Harley Quinn and the Joker in the next ep?? no thanks, that's so tacky I hate it

I'm still so genuinely surprised we got Ray and Mew together now because I was expecting this never ending unrequited crush thing to just keep on going I didn't think they would actually get together (I honestly don't even want to call it being together because it feels so wrong)

I actually - for just a moment - felt a little sympathy for Boston and Top??

more so for Top, because yes what they did surely wasn't okay, but Top hasn't been a total asshole the entire time compared to Boston and he seemed to be genuinely trying to get Mew back

Nick broke me, I pity him because he lowers his worth so much, he's so desperate for love it's upsetting -> saying he doesn't need Boston to love him just not hate him (also his sad crying face oh god)

Ray's situation really sucks ass on all levels and I keep switching between feeling sorry for him and wanting to punch him like.. my guy he's got no mom, his dad doesn't love him or - the typical dad in drama problem - he doesn't know how to show it, his friends apparently only like him again because they realized what he was trying to do, still no one but Sand cares about his alcoholism and him in general and that's the one person Ray pushes away by now "dating" Mew

idk, I was kinda expecting to like "evil Mew" more than I did in the end, I enjoyed how different Book was able to make him look with just a few facial expressions like that was pretty cool but everything else was a little meh, I don't even know why because his little shenanigans and plotting against Top and Boston were fun but it just didn't quite get to me

Sand and Ray really had 5 seconds of fluff right before everything crashed and burned

also Ray asking Sand to shave him when there was literally nothing to shave anywhere in sight?? had a little laugh at that also the shaving was looking very fake, like the razor wasn't even touching his face.. well it was a nice scene nonetheless

also kinda lost it when Mew straight up burned this piece of paper in the MIDDLE of his apartment like you must've been very sure about nothing catching on fire

also those weird zooms they did on Top and Boston throughout the episode?? that looked a little funny

[chibipandaao3]

Question

I just started watching Not Me with my friend — we are on episode 3 or 4, so don’t spoil too much. Though I know the general story lol

Do people really ship Yok and Dan? Because, and I know they haven’t really been in the same scene much yet, but I see nothing. I can’t see chemistry or anything like that.

At all.

Nothing remotely interesting or shippable with those two.

And it’s not being bias towards KhaoFirst either — because I’d ship First with just about anyone, that man can make chemistry happen out of thin air.

But I can’t see it with Yok and Dan — does it ever exist in the show? Lol

[madeinjapan-thailand-blbambeyond]

MCF: MADE IN THAILAND

RACHATA HAMPANONT

[Nickname: JAM]

THANAPAT KAWILA

[Nickname: FILM]

[sidecouplesupremacy-blbambeyond]

ONLY FRIENDS (2023, THAILAND)

Episode 5

Boston (TRAI NIMTAWAT aka NEO) is a player but an honest player to a degree as he hasn't told Mew about his hookup with Mew's boyfriend.

However he is clear with Nick (PAKIN KUNAANUWIT aka MARK) that he has other hookups. But proclaims he's all about safe sex. (which this series isn't proving as things happen so fast no one has time to get a condom much less open it and put it on but I digress..)

A toxic friend with benefits in which someone is sure to get hurt and that person is not Boston.

@pose4photoml @lutawolf

[kissablelips-desireslure-vol1]

LAWS OF ATTRACTION (2023)

RACHATA HAMPANONT (as Tinn)

&

THANAPAT KAWILA (as Charn)

[absolutebl]

This Week In BL - I’m pleased with what’s airing, but conflicted about what’s ended & getting started

Aug 2023 Wk 1

Being a highly subjective assessment of one tiny corner of the interwebs. Organized by which ones (in each category) I’m enjoying most.

Ongoing Series - Thai

Laws of Attraction (Sat iQIYI) 4 of 8 - Omg the way the bodyguard (handler?) looks at the rich kid. Gah. I see why @heretherebedork​ loves these 2. But I really hate him (not the handler, the kid). Fun fight scene. I love lawyer babygirl SO MUCH. HE WILL BE MY 2023 FAV CHARACTER. I’M CALLING IT. This ep, Srs? You’re killing me. Suits! Pussycat bows! And then... The Public Claiming!!!!! One of my favorite tropes! And openly flirting? Boys. I’m getting spoiled. Wait… is that…? NO SINGING. Ah well, Thai BL giveth and Thai BL taketh away. 

Hidden Agenda that isn’t hidden (Sun GMMTV YouTube) ep 4 of 10 - I like the script for this. It feels like the conversations they have are very honest to a uni experience. It’s comfortable and breezy. I did not expect the kiss. Bit early in the arc. There is either going to be a lot of backend drama, or a long domestic honeymoon period. (Bet you can guess which one I vote for.) 

Low Frequency (Sat iQIYI) ep 5 of 8 - It’s moving along in a Ghost Host kinda way (minus the killer chemistry). I’m not mad about it, I don’t think I'll remember it tho. 

Be Mine Super Star (Mon Viki) ep 5 of 12 - My ambivalent relationship with this drama continues. Cohabitation trope. Punn is basically a huge puppy trying to spoil/cuddle/fuck his pretty kitty prince. It is what it is. Meanwhile, I just want more of Big Daddy & the Hot Doc. (Also the name of my burlesque show.) Why does Kevin have more chemistry with Ashi in a 1 min long scene than Punn has had… ever? Is this nascent bad boy effect or nascent 2nd lead syndrome I’m feeling? (Meanwhile Ben! Hi! Long time no see!) 

Be My Favorite (Fri YouTube) ep 11 of 12 - Whatever. Trash(ish) watch here. 

Dinosaur Love (Sun iQIYI) ep 6 of 8 eps - Aw pretty baby is unhappy his bf got injured. But also very blushing maiden. This is profoundly NOT GOOD. 

Wedding Plan (Weds YT & iQIYI) ep 3 of 7 - I have decided that Lom’s theme song is BigBang’s Monster. Listen. You’ll see what I mean. Also BigBang = also very problematic but banging. What I’m saying is, I wanna punch Lom so bad, I went slightly bonkers. Water sports are addressed. A trash watch is happening!

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Jun & Jun (Korea Thurs Viki) 3 of 8 - How DARE they make me love this show so much? I feel personally attacked. The smell thing! Gah. The way they automatically go informal in private. The flirting. The language. The suits, the EVERYTHING. It’s embarrassing how much I rewatch the final bits of each ep. 

Stay By My Side (Taiwan Fri Gaga) 6 of 10 eps - I adore this ridiculous show. (I just realized that the actor playing Jiang Chi played Ray’s evil 2-timing bf in About Youth). Baby boy is quite clueless. Sweet dreams tho. I love them both so much. The washing his jersey scene was so fucking cute. Couple’s numbers, couple’s keychains, bridal towel, kisses. Thank you Taiwan for NOT activating blushing maiden. However, confident gay/confused bisexual is a go. And we got us some justifiable angst. Sigh. I’m so happy. 

Sing My Crush AKA Follow The Wind (Korea Weds iQIYI) 1-2 of 8 eps - supposed to have released in the first half of 2022 this is a adaption of Myung’s webtoon, from the director of My Sweet Dear, and Love Tractor’s production house, basically Korea does About Youth. It’s sweet (the singing bits are easy to skip) and very much a story of young first love but less stiff than KBL’s usual high school fare (kinda Taiwan feeling). I like it but that very imprecision in production makes me concerned for an HEA, especially with such a low MDL rating. 

Tokyo in April is... AKA Shigatsu no Tokyo wa (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 8fin  - Rough final episode, but it does end happily. Fortunately, I had some warning for my personal triggers, but this is Japan and they did go dark. Full review below. 

Minato's Laundromat Season 2 AKA Minato Shouji Coin Laundry Season 2 (Japan Thu Gaga) 5 of 12 eps - Shin is so cute and proud and boldly out. I love him. Movement in the relationship with both couples, even if it’s movement into arguments and misunderstanding. I suppose we got 12 eps they need to do... something.  

Stay Still (Hong Kong Tues YouTube) 1 of 5 eps - It’s confusing. And… not good? Some flashbacks some present day? 

It’s airing but ...

Stay With Me ... NO I WILL NOT! And you can’t make me.

Review: Tokyo in April is... AKA Shigatsu no Tokyo wa

I had to chew on this for a while but here’s where I ended up. 

Two young men with a shared tragic past reunite and fall in love all over again, but the past will not stop hunting them. Based on a manga, this office set reunion romance is GREAT… damn it. It’s Japan in full on soft focus which means it gets emo, abusive, and chewy. These two characters are giving parts of their souls away in a desperate attempt to shape themselves to the expectations they have of each other. 

Japan gave us the Bed Friends that Thailand could never even imagine. But here’s the thing: I don’t enjoy my BL this heavy and cutting. I know that for The 8th Sense crowd this is peak BL and I can’t argue with the fact that the romantic devotion, domesticity, script, and acting IS all on point. It’s just not my personal preference for that point to be so damn sharp. I appreciate that this being 2023 I have the luxury of consistent quality (especially from Japan) and thus the ability to say… 

I acknowledge that this SHOULD get a 9/10 but I can’t emotionally go higher than 8/10 

RECOMMENDED BUT KNOW WHAT KIND OF BL THIS IS AND TRIGGER WARNINGS LIKE CRAZY 

Japan = sticking to its lanes like their BL is on rails. 

Next Week Looks Like This:

Starting: 

8/11 Love Class Season 2 (Korea Fri Viki) 10 eps 

8/12 My Personal Weatherman AKA Taikan Yoho (Japan Sat Gaga) 8 eps 

Still Coming August 2023

8/19 Love in Translation (Thai Sat One31) ? eps - Two strangers start working in a cafe together.

8/19 I Feel You Linger in the Air (Thai Sat Gaga) 12 eps - The time travel historical romance many of us have been waiting for. 

8/20 My Universe series (Thai Sun iQIYI) 24 episodes - This is sampler pack BL, 12 pairs, each pair gets 2 eps, not sure on the order they’ll drop. Known couples include EarthBank from Destiny Seeker and KaownahTurbo from Love Stage!!!, mostly fresh faces otherwise. Jane to direct several.

8/22 Kisseki: Dear to Me formerly known as Miracle (Taiwan Tues ????) 13 eps - From screenwriter Lin Pei Yu (We Best Love, H3: Trapped) features a student doctor forced to take care of a gangster. I love the premise and like the writer, Viki or Gaga will get this one.  

8/24 Man Suang (Thailand movie, domestic cinema release) - historical drama about Thai burlesque with KP’s MileApo. Tong is in this one too?

8/? Why R U? (Korean remake) is supposed to be out this month, filming started in sept 22. I find everything about this hilarious. I mean if Korea remakes it, we lose all the sexy and then... would we have a story at all? No we would not. Not even for six short eps. It’d be like one of those mesh shopping bags.

Oh yeah, Only Friends is coming. 

2023 forthcoming BL master post (see comments, some are inaccurate, NOT KEPT UPDATED)

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

Hidden Agenda. I love them. 

Public claiming with the waist grab maneuver! A true hero. 

But I think we can all agree that THIS is the hero all love triangles deserve. (both Laws) 

(Last week) 

[monsamborabutterfly]

What are some bl/gl moments that truly made you cringe or gave you second hand embarrassment?

I truly love and adore bls/gls but my list is long to be honest😂 most times I'm even a little fond of these moments and some I'll talk about are part of some of my all time fave Thai series. This really is all in good fun lol

1) he is an icon and I LOVE him but oh boy this scene was something for sure

2) oooh man I love me some lita but this scene gave me so much secondhand embarrassment I almost had to skip🙈

3) another payurain moment. Look anyone who knows me even a little knows that singing scenes in bls in general are my villain origin story but this one....uuh this one really takes the cake! Probs to BossNeoul for making it through that fr

4) I know I know it was supposed to be all hot and sexy but wtf even was that??

5) yup last but not least there is a gl too. First things first I totally fell in love with Faye and Yoko and would love to see them in another series!! I also really liked blank in the second season but aneung acting overly teenager-ish whenever she didn't like something and her parents acting like she was five for 99% of the show made me cringe so hard

This could be much longer honestly but add yours if you want! I'm curious!!!

[waitmyturtles]

Alright, happy Monday! As previously promised during my review of A Tale of Thousand Stars: in preparation for the eventual release of Moonlight Chicken, I would love to share in a long manifesto my love, my passion, the GOSPEL, for what I think may be the unsung hero and character of that show, without even seeing an episode -- the actual dish of Hainanese chicken rice itself, which is known as khao man gai in Thailand.

(LONG POST! TL;DR: this post is going to contain a quick explanation of why it is SO BOMB that there’s a THAI BL that focuses ON THIS DISH, a description of the dish itself, a diasporic history of Hainanese chicken rice, links to a few recipes, and a list of places where I’ve had Hainanese chicken rice in the States.)

Borrowing a photo from Mark Wiens! Let’s get started.

Girl, why exactly are you going off on all this?

Why, oh why, you may ask -- why should Mama Turtles wax POETIC about the seemingly simple dish of chicken rice? The simple name of the dish belies a deeply cultural symbol of so much -- of the roles that particular dishes play in Southeast Asian cultures, of how such a dish can be so difficult to make AND to relate to, and at least most importantly to me, how immigration and diasporas created the complicated and diverse foodways and cultural fabrics that we see in this part of the world. 

(For the record, I’m part Malaysian, and have spent significant time of my adult life in Malaysia and Singapore. While these areas are not Thailand specifically, there’s tons of shared food preparation, culture, and appreciation from Thailand, down south to Penang and the Malay Peninsula, and down to Singapore.)

Why is khao man gai such a big deal vis à vis Moonlight Chicken?

Before I talk about the details of the dish itself, I want to set the context of why is it SO MOTHERBLEEPING LOVELY that there’s a Thai BL (with our DARLING Earth and Mix starring in it, with the DARLING First and Khao in supporting roles) that is ostensibly centered on a man making khao man gai. This is deeply heart-warming, soul-settling, feel-good shiz to me, and I think that a lot of Thai BL fujoshis who are obsessed with food, like me, would feel the same way. 

Hainanese chicken rice/khao man gai is made of the most humble of ingredients -- chicken, rice, water, salt. 

The fact that there would be a queer series centered around a queer man making khao man gai and selling it to others -- it means that a dish that is totally, utterly accessible to EVERY SINGLE PERSON in a country is being centered in a show focused on queer relationships....the kinds of relationships that should also be accessible to EVERY SINGLE PERSON who wants this kind of a relationship in an Asian country. 

This will make even more sense as I continue writing about the dish, but suffice to say, while it’s complicated to make, Hainanese chicken rice is about the most egalitarian food there is -- and the freedom to love whoever you want should also be as egalitarian as that. 

What is Hainanese chicken rice/khao man gai, and what is the big bleeping deal about it?

Before I jump to Wikipedia, maybe I should have Earth himself explain the dish.

That last screenshot is truth.

Obviously, the easiest place to find a background on this dish is Wikipedia, and what I actually didn’t know before starting to type this up is that khao man gai literally means “chicken oily rice,” which totally sums up this dish. While it seems simple, it’s a very rich and filling dish, but also healthy-ish, because you’re still eating chicken, which is not the richest or fattiest of meats.

The dish consists of rice that’s first been sautéed with aromatics like ginger and garlic, and (in many, but not all cases) also sautéed with rendered chicken fat. (If you’re from the East Coast of the States or are part of a Jewish community, you’ll know this ingredient as schmaltz.)

That fatty sautéed rice is then steamed in chicken broth, ideally in chicken broth that you yourself made while you were boiling the chicken that you’ll use in your khao man gai. As far as that chicken goes, you’ve cleaned it, prepped it, maybe you rubbed salt on it to get rid of any impurities on the skin, and boiled it until it’s cooked, but not overcooked. If you’re in Thailand, you might just let it cool; if you’re in Malaysia or Singapore, or elsewhere in Asia, you might give that baby a dip in ice water after it’s done cooking, to tighten up the skin and give the skin a jellied texture that is beloved by many. You also might rub some sesame oil on your chicken after the boiling process, which is done in some, but not all, places.

You also might go wild and serve your rice not just with the boiled chicken, but also with roasted chicken, or fried chicken, or a combo of boiled/roasted/fried chicken. You ALSO might WILD OUT MORE and ALSO serve your chicken rice with, say, crispy siu yuk, which I’ve had, and like.... ooooommmmfffffgggg. It sends shivers down my spine, it’s so good.

You’ve also made the broth perfectly with aromatics, and possibly simmered either daikon or winter melon in the broth to serve alongside the composed dish of chicken and rice.

AND, you definitely best have made some side sauces. Garlic-ginger-vinegar sauce, maybe, or ginger-scallion oil, or red chili sauce, or all of them. In Thailand, a sauce that features taucu, or fermented yellow soybeans, seems to be an absolute must -- and it is goddamn pure heaven to put on your khao man gai. If you’re in Malaysia, a small dish of vinegared chili, known as chili padi, is a must must. Depending on where you’re eating this in Asia, you’ll put a bottle of dark soy sauce on the table for drizzling over all your rice, but -- you might not always see that at every place where you’re eating chicken rice.

In OTHER WORDS: this dish is a bit of a beast to make. The simple LOOK of the dish -- white chicken on top of white rice, with some sliced cucumbers to the side, and a bowl of broth next to it -- is totally disingenuous to the work you need to put in to make it taste great. Your broth, for instance, might be made by boiling chicken after chicken after chicken in it. That broth gets more concentrated and powerful over time as you’re putting in more and more aromatics in it. Your store is defined by your broth; by how perfectly each grain of rice is individually coated in a sheen of chicken fat, salt, and other seasonings; by your one-of-a-kind sauces that hit and accompany the chicken and the rice perfectly, and most importantly, by how all these components come together. If your soup, chicken, rice, and sauces are ALL PERFECTLY MADE, then you’ve hit paydirt, my friends. 

It’s VERY RARE to find a shop that does all these components perfectly, or at least at the same level of tastiness. 

Alright, so I get that this dish can be a motherfucker to make. But why is it such a big deal, culturally? Why would a Thai BL be focused on a guy making this dish?

So for this part, I first want to say that I think it’s very important for a Western audience to understand that this dish is deeply loved in MANY countries in Asia and Southeast Asia. I’ve eaten this dish with groups of Westerners in SE Asia -- actually exclusively white folks, now that I think about it -- and to a tee, I’ve heard complaints by them that this dish is boring and they can’t see what the big deal is about it.

I mean, American pork chops can be fine, or they can be boring, too. 

The fact that chicken rice spans multiple countries and foodways should tell a Western audience that there are qualities about it, as I listed above, that are far beyond the sum of its parts. For instance -- the way to get each GRAIN of rice coated in fat and flavor takes years of experience. Y’all, I still can’t get perfect rice in my rice cooker, and I’ve been making rice for my family for more than 10 years. These things take time to perfect, and not everything one eats in Asia is going to be bombastic, like, say, Taiwanese stinky tofu or a gorgeous omakase at a high-end sushi bar.

Part of the reason why this dish is so beloved is because it IS very ubiquitous from the China-to-Southeast-Asia diaspora. I can mostly speak for Malaysia (I apologize for not knowing more about immigration patterns in Thailand), but MUCH of the fabric of Malaysian cuisine comes from specifically regional immigrant diasporas, namely from the area of China that is now known as Fujian, but that’s not a hard and fast historical rule. Well-known populations from this area in China that settled in Malaysia include the Hakka and Hokkien populations (you may have seen Hakka mee or Hokkien mee on Malaysian restaurant menus), and they also include the Hainanese population, which brought a style of boiling chicken in broth to the areas where the population settled -- which include Thailand and Malaysia, and eventually Singapore, as Hainanese descendants moved farther south down the Malay peninsula. 

(By the way, if you’re ever curious, you need to read up on populations that were literally created after the first waves of Chinese immigration to Southeast Asia. The well-known Peranakan population in Malaysia, for instance, was literally created through interracial marriage of Chinese immigrants to native Malay populations, and a deeply important culture, including foodways, were born out of those marriages and population growth. It’s fascinating history in a world that often seems so hyperfocused on far right movements wanting “racial purity.” What cultural beauty comes out of populations and diasporas meeting each other and creating new cultures together.)

Back to the discussion: as Malaysian cultures and populations developed over time due in part to the influence of Chinese immigration through Southeast Asia, so, we assume, the same was happening in Thailand. (We can see deeply the effect of the influence of Chinese culture in a show like Big Dragon, which was centered around the telling of Chinese Buddhist myths through a Thai lens.) And as these immigrant populations from China traversed the Thai-Malay peninsula, their food habits stuck and were adopted by the native Southeast Asian populations. It’s no wonder that chicken rice became as beloved and ubiquitous as it did -- in part because rice is a staple food across the whole region, in part because it’s such a comforting dish (like congee, like juk, like okayu porridge), and in part because the individual ingredients themselves are humble and easy to find for your everyday home cook.

I want to just quickly touch upon the point of rice as a staple food. It seems so super obvious to us Asians, but especially for fans of QL that may not be Asian and/or may not have rice as a central and everyday food -- to make a dish like chicken rice perfectly, to have it center on the particular way in which you PREP and COOK the rice, for the rice to be all oily and salty and chicken-y -- the dichotomy of how humble rice is with how GLORIOUSLY TASTY and filling the final result of chicken rice is, can really move you. There are thousands of other rice preparations out there that are just as beloved as chicken rice -- from the Malaysian nasi lemak (literally “fat rice,” or rice cooked in coconut milk and served with delicious accompaniments) to Indian biriyani, to Japanese takikomi gohan or tamago kake gohan, to Korean bibimbap or gyeran bap -- you get the point. Dishes that center on rice are just beloved. They just are, because rice is so fundamentally egalitarian and important to our everyday way of being and eating. 

AND, the way in which you EAT chicken rice -- by mixing up the accompaniments throughout the eating process, dolling up each bite of rice with a different sauce, having a sip of soup, taking a bit of meat -- that whole process of making each bite taste different allows you to have a whirlwind experience of eating with, again, very humble ingredients that end up being far more than the sum of their rice-meat-and-veg parts.

And so. When Chinese populations were immigrating throughout Southeast Asia, they brought with them, and adapted over time, a style of making rice with chicken and fat that, again, seemed so simple, but was so full of a kind of quiet and comforting flavor, that it HAD to be adapted by every country and population in which the Chinese immigrants had settled. The love for rice in the whole region was going to lead to a guaranteed adaptation of this dish for generations to cook and enjoy. 

Finally, regarding Moonlight Chicken once more -- without having seen an episode yet, I want to offer some conjecture that I think (or hope) that the plot reflects the simple-but-complicated nature of the dish of khao man gai with whatever happens in the love triangles of Earth, Mix, First, and Khao. There might very well be love parallels that what seems to be simple is actually a beast to make, both in food and in relationships.

And regarding a cultural love for rice dishes, and the fact that this dish and a khao man gai establishment is at the heart of this show: it fills me up with so much comforting happiness that a khao man gai joint is what’s being used to center a theme of where people go to kick off the show. If you know of a great khao man gai joint -- you go to it, people flock to it. The trailer shows drunk people stumbling around. If you’re drunk and hungry, you want to go to a place that gives you comfort, right? That might be a McDonald’s, a taco truck, a diner, a 24-hour Korean restaurant (ugh, anju at 2 am while you’re nursing your eventual hangover...memories). 

Khao man gai IS COMFORT, and IS comfort food. Earth’s character providing that comfort...I’m just saying, there HAS to be parallels between khao man gai and the storyline of Moonlight Chicken. THERE MUST BE. Let a girl dream!

Damn, girl. You went OFF. Take some Altoids. Give us some recipes!

Yes, this is definitely a manifesto of manifestos of an amazing dish.

These recipes mark the cultural landscape of this dish. I’ll note where the recipe comes from. I encourage you to review these recipes and check out the small-and-large differences in how this dish is made, depending on where in Asia the recipe is centered. (For instance, many of these recipes call for that ice bath that I mentioned earlier; that’s not ubiquitous in Thailand.)

Also, I want to note that as far as the side soup goes, I’ve only seen that Thai preparations of khao man gai GUARANTEE the soup on the side. I’ve seen some places in Singapore offer the side soup, but not all. The addition of daikon or winter melon to the soup, in Thai preparations, gives me the shivers, it is so good. So if/when you’re making this at home, keep in mind that you can choose to serve the broth/soup on the side.

Two last notes -- this coming from me, a mom and busy home cook. I sometimes do a very bastardized version of this dish for my kids, where I poach chicken in aromatics, but I don’t sauté the rice beforehand -- I just chuck the rice in my rice cooker with my poaching liquid. When I do this, I always freeze a half-quart to a quart of broth. Then, when I make the dish again, I take out that frozen broth, add it to my pot with my new chicken and water, and start poaching again. Having that base of previous broth really DOES help make my future chicken and soups taste that much richer. 

AND -- while I have daikon available in my supermarket (thank you, big cities!), I often use turnips as the veg that I serve with the broth. I LOVE turnips in soup, y’all! Turnips in chicken soup are oniony without being overwhelming, and I love how translucent and creamy they get. They totally hold the flavor of broth beautifully. Next time you’re making soup, don’t leave the turnips behind, they’re great! (Oh, and also, a tip I learned from the Kinou Nani Tabeta mangas -- I also use leeks as an aromatic in my soup, along with garlic and ginger. Leeks are AMAZING in soup! They can help take away any gaminess you might get from poaching chicken or other meat.)

Okay, recipes!

The Woks of Life (China)

Food 52 (Thailand)

Mark Wiens (Thailand)

Rasa Malaysia (Malaysia)

Adam Liaw (Singapore-ish recipe, note the use of sesame oil for rubbing on the chicken after the ice bath -- not all recipes call for this)

Kwokspots (maybe we can call this a ubiquitously Asian recipe? I actually just love this dude on IG, I’m gonna hype up his recipe)

Um, this is a lot. Where can I order this dish?

In my post about A Tale of Thousand Stars, I referenced Eim Khao Man Gai in Elmhurst, Queens, NY (see footnote below). I unfortunately only know places to eat Hainanese chicken rice/khao man gai in either NY or SoCal, but I ENCOURAGE you to please seek it out wherever you live. 

Over the years, even while I’ve lived thousands of miles away from New York, Eim Khao Man Gai is my restaurant par excellence for khao man gai. It’s all they serve, and they do it SO well. Eim Khao Man Gai also does their chicken three ways -- steamed, roasted, and/or crispy. You guys, it’s just heavenly, and their side sauces are to die for.

In SoCal, Savoy Kitchen was the first place I heard of that specialized in chicken rice, and it’s incredible here. As well, I love Side Chick at the Westfield Santa Anita mall in Arcadia. I’ve eaten a bunch at Ipoh Kopitiam in Alhambra, but I haven’t tried their Singapore-style Hainan chicken rice yet -- it looks amazing, and many reviews say that it’s currently best version in the San Gabriel Valley. 

Back to New York for a second -- if you’re looking for a place more local to you that isn’t in Queens, just look at Yelp. If I lived in NYC now, I would be in tears with how much more available this dish has gotten over the years.

Wherever you are in the States -- the Bay Area, Texas, anywhere where there are significant Asian populations -- or wherever you are in the world, please seek out Hainanese chicken rice/khao man gai.  Again, it may not LOOK exciting on the menu. But you’ll get a taste for the kind of comfort food that really hits home for so many of us Asians.

Holy shit. You must be exhausted!

WOW WOW WOW, y’all. If you’ve gotten THIS FAR -- bless you! Thanks for going on this road with me. Please make, buy, and/or eat Hainanese chicken rice/khao man gai. Appreciate the differences of the dish from each of the cultures that you’re eating it from. Please give big hugs to GMMTV for focusing a BL on this most humble, beautiful, delicious, soul-satisfying dish. I’m hoping for all the food/love parallels. I’m dying to see Mix just snarf on a big plate of khao man gai to kick the series off.

Moonlight Chicken is gonna be SO GREAT! And chicken rice is just the best dish ever. Please enjoy it!

* * *

If you have the energy to read a little further, one more urge from your devoted food mom here. @secretsfromwholecloth​ noted in a comment on my ATOTS review that ae and aer friend had actually hit up Eim Khao Man Gai, which was SO RAD to read. If you have never visited NYC before, and you’re plotting your itinerary of the usual tourist stops -- I beg you to please save at least an afternoon to hop on the 7 train and head out to Queens. Queens has some of THE BEST RESTAURANTS in NYC. From Indian and Tibetan in Jackson Heights, to Thai and Filipino food in Elmhurst and Woodside, to Greek in Astoria, to Korean in Bayside and Flushing, and the monolith that is Flushing’s Chinatown -- Queens is the happiest and fucking coolest diverse place in the world. Don’t be afraid to leave Manhattan for an afternoon or even a whole day. Eat everything during the day, hit up Flushing Meadows Corona Park for some exercise, check out the Queens Museum and the awesome Noguchi Museum, unwind at a cocktail bar in Long Island City or Sunnyside at night. Queens is totally the unsung best borough in NYC, one of the most diverse counties in the States, and I’ll stand up for Queens County every minute of my life over Manhattan.

[porridgefeast]

ITSAY/IPYTM thoughts

In three parts because that's how I wrote it.

Oh-aew in a shirt which seems like the most meta English t-shirt text ever in Thai BL(ish) world (and there have been many others) but also seems like something Oh-aew would somehow own.

Part 1

I wasn’t assuming I’d have a ton to say about I Told Sunset About You. I wasn’t even planning on starting it at the particular moment I did, I just had it in mind I’d do so soonish. But wow, this drama hit me like a ton of bricks.

I tend to enjoy it when there’s a small gesture or moment onscreen that brings me back to uncertain romantic moments of young adulthood. Oddly enough, it’s often how someone leans (not kabedon-ish looming fwiw)—make of that what you will. (There’s this one moment in Between Us that hit me with something I can only describe as the world’s hardest pang.) But yikes, having so many... I guess first love feelings come up so hard and fast is really unusual and compelling, but almost too powerful for a sensitive creature such as myself. It’s certainly beautiful in an important way I think art is meant to be beautiful. But it’s less uncomplicatedly enjoyable than some things.

I don’t always have to identify with one character over another, even if one character is positioned as the protagonist of a story. I don’t always identify with anybody, though certain stories will pull me in in that way. But man, ITSAY gives me vertigo. Teh’s paradoxical mixture of obvious feeling and self-conscious reserve might normally make it so I’d be seeing things firmly from his perspective, but instead I whip back and forth between Teh and Oh in a borderline-painful way. I guess I just want so badly for them not to hurt each other.

Billkin’s left eyebrow jiggles like even Teh’s face is fidgeting nervously. At the point I’m currently at in the series, it feels like this kid is going to explode leaving only a fine mist. PP Krit is so still as Oh that it’s at least momentarily tempting to perceive him as solid, confident. But his steadiness is one of watching and waiting SO intently.

I feel like I could write an essay about the blinking alone, much less the overall category of looking. I don’t especially want to write it, but it’s there.

About midway through episode 2 I found myself kind of relieved to confirm there are only five episodes. I wanted to hurry through those most acute push & pull moments. But here I am at the beginning of episode 4 and it feels like it’s been a dang eternity.

Part 2

Back again after ending ITSAY and getting 4 1/2 episodes into IPYTM. I’m not writing about this show because I decided to do so, but because I don’t seem to have a choice. Not that I wouldn’t choose to do so, it’s just moot.

I think I’ve finally put into possibly inadequate words a thing Billkin does a lot as Teh. Sometimes his face just kind of goes... offline. He’s telegraphing despair while his face settles into a stiff mask. I find it a lot more true to life than what many actors do in similar scenes, but also very relatable in a way that’s painful! Again, in an art way. In a way that puts into practice the fact that we don’t only watch and read stories to pass time but because they help us understand ourselves. But part of me is annoyed, like a kid who’s been told to get in the car only to find they’re being taken someplace totally unforeseen and unappealing.

I find myself not wanting to explain what PP Krit is doing as much, but not because what he’s doing is less carefully crafted, certainly not because it’s less affecting. I said earlier that I was bouncing back and forth between identifying with each of them but not long after that first note of mine I stopped being able to identify with Teh very much. It might be a stretch to relate the events of this show too much to an experience of my own, but I was probably the Oh-aew in my first serious relationship, which was a very long one that was completely tied up with my entire college experience and a long first stage of adulthood.

I don’t judge Teh too harshly, but he just seems SO young. Like, younger than I may ever have been. Part of what makes this show good at what it does is that I don’t quite know what’s going on with him a lot of the time. There’s certainly a part of me that wants someone to explain what goes on in his head, but the ambiguity works for this show’s narrative style.

Maybe this will become more apparent, but am I supposed to have a strong conviction as to what Jai’s deal has been? Because that guy seems determined to give some of the most intense mixed signals I’ve ever witnessed. I feel like the director was going okay in this shot you’re in love with Teh. Okay now in this scene you feel like Teh’s kinda gross.

Honestly Teh is super gross! Billkin is a cute kid and Teh has many endearing qualities but he is a MESS. About half the time (well, half the time we see him onscreen, who knows what he does during time-jumps) the kid is barfing feelings like No-face from Spirited Away after he’s eaten nearly everybody who works at the spirit bathhouse.

I strongly suspect these characters and performances would bring up different things for people other than myself. This show is taking my personal buttons and stomping on them; presumably for others it stomps on slightly different or even opposite buttons, and for others it might trigger very little whatsoever of their own personal baggage.

Well, back to it I suppose.

Part 3

I feel less urgency now that I’ve reached the end point of the two series. Which is good for me but it means I have less to say at this point.

I’m very curious as to how a rewatch of these two series would feel to me. At first I thought a rewatch might be great—often that way I can relax and appreciate things more, since I’m not distracted by suspense as much. But I could just as easily wind up dreading certain moments. So many public scenes, yall. So much shame being experienced!

I would like to take a short moment to appreciate Hoon. His mom-pleasing powers may have complicated things for Teh, but it was such a relief to me that he was a sweetheart and a good brother.

I’m glad there’s a happy ending but I’m relieved Oh-aew got several chances to be resentful. (Not that I would have been unhappy with some less-than-happy endings. Too happy an ending would have been odd tonally anyway for this show.) I’m pretty sure I laughed out loud when Oh-aew was like but this time if you have a problem can you tell me and we can talk about it?

I was so glad Tarn got a little cameo at the end. It felt like giving her her due. Recognizing how that moment made me feel makes me realize how much I appreciate Tarn having interiority and agency as a character.

In other news, maybe I’m now one step closer to being able to see Na Naphat onscreen without immediately thinking of him as Tawan from Kinnporsche. And usually saying “f*cking Tawan!” in my head. It hasn’t happened yet, but I hope to get there. I’m sorry Na Naphat, I guess that performance was almost too good.

[mejomonster]

Some of my favorite (recent-ish) Thai bl were:

Bad Buddy: if I'm going to recommend any coming of age romcom college set bl it's this one. The way it uses so many staple tropes in a fresh way, Ohm and Nanon are great actors and really bring a whole other level of energy, the actual conflict in the story is very realistic and heavy and a real topic I think a lot of young adults deal with regarding their families and expectations. So it's mostly romantic comedy, but the heavy moments resonate so that it doesn't really feel unrealistic. It's very high brightness overly kind of fantastical rather than real in presentation and tropes used (quite common in fluff bl like 2gether and My School President and Theory of Love etc), but the chemistry of the leads feels executed very realistically and again the actual delivery of tropes and conflicts feels very grounded in a way. Highly recommended to most peoples tastes tbh (and special mention to My School President, while it was a little Too fluffy for my tastes, it also did a balance of romcom and a grounded heart to the conflicts which I think is part of why it had such big appeal, along with really solid leads that are going to be bringing a lot to any project they work on in the future)

Never Let Me Go: THE action bl as of recently. Gave me everything I could ask, from the leads in The Gifted Graduation bringing their acting game with roles that let them truly show off what they can do, to a high body count of murders and action scenes, mafia sons falling in love with people oh so different from them, a batman esque lead, rich boy falls for poor bodyguard whipping boy trope but also Not quite because the show Really wants to comment on class issues and inequality and makes sure the audience gets the point (a core issue in the relationship is how to be equals given who they are), and a reference to the quote about soulmates that Xena Warrior Princess also uses. It also has Chimon. It's also aesthetically pleasing af. Idk what to tell you, I love when Jojo directs something and this Gave me WAY more than I thought I could get. I'm happy to say that in the post Not Me world we are seeing more action romance bls, not just romcom/fluff ones (though there's always plenty of those too). I personally am eagerly hoping this trend continues and we keep getting at least a few action romance bls a year like this one, Kinnporshe, Manner of Death, Not Me. I've started Laws of Attraction and that's looking similarly promising. (And while I highly recommend Not Me the series, one of my top shows PERIOD... I'm only listing newer shows than that right now).

The Eclipse: this show was exactly what I'd hope it would deliver, and more frankly (because I was hoping for at minimum the Blacklist quality and at max dream hopes The Gifted quality). Well it delivered closer to The Gifted. Politically heavy, really well done in that regard from the overt to the subtle, amazing entire ensemble cast (even the side actors are strong actors that have been in other things), Khaotung and First are both particularly amazing (Khaotung impresses me no matter what role he's given frankly). Aesthetically it's exactly what you'd hope if your hopes like mine were The Gifted but only real evil people no mutants, and explicitly gayer. If you perhaps are willing to have a high school setting, but very much do Not want fluff dominant story and instead a tense mystery with at least half the characters already out and proud queer people (but still some of the cute romance tropes executed a bit less fluffily) then this may be your jam.

Moonlight Chicken: if you'd like multigenerational queer stories, centering on a family slice of life realism piece, this show is <3. The second main pairing is the same actors from My School President and I think they really shine here where the romance relies less on tropes and the dialogue is more realistic so the intensity of scenes really leans on actors. I love their characters in this and they stole the show for me. The first main pairing is messy and adult, with adult problems (like actual ones not just romantic drama: like raising a nephew, running a store, working for a company that's destroying your lovers neighborhood). But also not actually that messy, I'd say in terms of messy it's for the most part wholesome and soft. If you liked 1000 Stars (I did) then this shows realistic slice of life feel will be comfortable and homey, and the amount of skinship in this show is less conservative for even more of a cozy natural feeling.

And the one I'm most anticipating coming out: Only Friends. Khaotung and First lead it, so I'm basically certain the main story will be absolute gold (since I eat up every role they play their acting is just <3 like dude I watched the Shipper for First okay and 5555 Never too Late for Khaotung which was an Amazing show btw). Now.. Only Friends is directed by Jojo (yay for me) and in theory it IS going to be as messy as it looks (and it looks at least as messy as Friendzone). So if Moonlight Chicken is too fluffy and tame for you, then you might want this show on your radar. I think it is slated for August but I'm not sure as I try not to get too hype for things until theyre out so I avoid most news.

[blnewsforum-by-blbambeyond]

2023 BL SERIES by the Month...AUGUST

8-1-2023 STAY STILL

A Hong Kong BL Series (Tuesdays)

Available: Jupiter YouTube Channel

Note: An Episode 0 is available to watch now

8-2-2023 SING MY CRUSH

A South Korean BL Series (Wednesdays)

Available: IQIYI (in selected regions)

8-3-2023 THE NEW EMPLOYEE: THE MOVIE

A South Korean BL Movie Version (Thursdays)

Available: Rakuten Viki (in selected regions)

No International Released Announced although Viki has it as "Coming Soon"

8-10-2023 TAIKAN YOHO aka MY PERSONAL WEATHERMAN

A Japanese BL Series (Thursdays)

Available: Gagaoolala (has it in there Coming Soon) Think Rakuten Viki will also carry it as it replaces SHIGATSU NO TOKYO WA...which was available on both Gaga and Viki

8-11-2023 LOVE CLASS Season 2

A South Korean BL Series (Fridays)

Available: Rakuten Viki (in selected regions)

8-12-2023 ONLY FRIENDS

A Thai BL (ish) Series (Saturdays)

Available: GMMTV YouTube Channel

8-18-2023 I FEEL YOU LINGER IN THE AIR

A Thai BL Series (Fridays)

Available: Gagaoolala (in selected regions?)

Not Available on Gagaoolala in my regions..also available on YYDS Entertainment YouTube Channel & YOUKU English YouTube Channel (cut version)

8-18-2023 DANGEROUS ROMANCE

A Thai BL Series (Fridays)

Available: GMMTV YouTube Channel

(Replacing BE MY FAVORITE, I'm already missing Gawin 🥹😥😢😭😭)

8-19-2023 LOVE IN TRANSLATION

A Thai BL Series (Saturdays)

Available: No International Released Announced....yet.

Note: Premiere Moved From August 5, 2023

8-20-2023 MY UNIVERSE

A Thai BL Series (Sundays)

Available: IQIYI

8-22-2023 KISEKI: DEAR TO ME

A Taiwanese BL Series (Tuesdays)

Available: Gagaoolala

8-24-2023 WHY RU? Korean Remake

A South Korean BL Series (Thursdays)

Available: IQIYI

8-24-2023 MAN SUANG

A Thai Movie featuring KINNPORSCHE leads APO (PORSCHE) MILE (KINN) & TONG (TANKHUN)

Available: uncertain perhaps IQIYI

8-27-2023 CRAZY HANDSOME RICH

A Thai BL (Rom-Com) (Sundays)

Available: Gagaoolala

Note: Another Series Starring Lee Long Shi and Frank Thanatsaran from Love Syndrome III

Also in August:

8-3-2023 HEARTSTOPPER

Available: NETFLIX

8-11-2023 RED WHITE & ROYAL BLUE

Available: Amazon Prime

@pose4photoml

[airenyah]

it's so funny bc in 2023 whenever i was watching a series that had background music that suddenly had me sit up and go "wait this sounds extremely familiar???? do i know this???? have i heard this before????" i would shazam it and note it down on my thdrama music list

and now that i've started to systematically (ish) shazam my way through specific thai bls i sometimes end up in this situation where i go to add a specific piece of music to my list only to realize that i've already got it on there bc i heard it in a random episode of some other show a few months ago

and every single time this happens i end up going ohhhhhh!! suddenly it makes so much SENSE why i would feel the need to shazam this back when i was watching the other show

[ablazenqueen]

Do you know any thai BL dramas with sad ending?

I love questions so much, especially rec requests (assuming this is one?), because they make me feel helpful and I get to ramble about shows that I love, but Anon, you asked this question to the worst possible person because I avoid sad endings like the plague 🤣

That said, this is actually a fascinating question! Because I’ve watched so many Thai BLs at this point and I don’t think a single one of them had a truly completely sad ending?? I can think of a small handful of JBLs and Taiwanese BLs and Pinoy BL that have sad endings, but not really Thai BLs? Even Thai lakorns, non-BLs, are more likely to have sad endings. It’s part of the reason I tend to enjoy BLs from Thailand more than anywhere else, I can usually trust they’ll have a happy ending.

However…

Thai BLs With Sad(ish) Endings (in no particular order):

(I won’t spoil the endings themselves, but I think just saying that the endings are sad is a spoiler of sorts so a warning for that. Another warning that I wouldn’t actually recommend half of these shows, mostly because I’m not a fan of sad/ambiguous endings.)

1. The Best Story

- The only Thai BL I could think of that 100% has a sad ending.

2. He’s Coming To Me

- This is a ghost romance and, in classic ghost romance fashion, the ending is… Well, it isn’t exactly sad, but it’s ambiguous. The only show on this list that I actively recommend.

3. Something In My Room

- Another ghost romance with a kinda-but-not-quite sad ending. This one isn’t ambiguous like He’s Coming To Me, it’s a very definitive ending, but whether it’s sad or happy is a matter of perspective.

4. Dear Doctor, I’m Coming For Soul

- A Doctor and a Grim Reaper fall in love. Noticing a pattern here? Thailand tends to prefer happy endings, but seems to struggle when one of the leads is dead and/or supernatural. This is also an ambiguously sad/happy ending.

5. 7 Project

- I’ll be real with you, I didn’t finish this one, so maybe the ending is all sunshine and rainbows. However, I’m putting it on this list because of the kind of show it is. It’s in the style of Y-Destiny, wherein we follow two different leads every two episodes, and all of the two ep mini-series that I watched had sad and ambiguous endings.

6. My Only 12%

- This is a happy ending for the romance, specifically, but the last two episodes deal with unresolvable angst and suffering unrelated to the couple. It’s very sad.

Aaaaaand that’s all I could think of! Hope that helps, Anon! Whether you use it as a list of what to watch or what to avoid 🤣

I could probably make a more extensive list of just general BL with sad endings so lemme know if you’re interested in that!