#lbc pete

[bl-bracket]

Round 1: Pete (Love by Chance) vs Nuer (Cutie Pie: The Series)

[Submitted Reasons Under Cut]

Pete: "He's a gentle sweetheart and out gay guy"

Nuer: "another pretty boy sent to ruin my life. his hair, his face, but especially his smile? the way he fixes you with an "innocent" stare? he's sooo cool and he has a cute mole above his lip and his hair is perfect. also when he wears those tight black t-shirts? i need to inject his gender into my veins."

[bengiyo]

Wandee Goodday Ep 5 Stray Thoughts

Last week, they executed their Business Gay Performance Plan and Ter was pressed. Wandee found himself jealous of Taem, and Kao almost choked Dee out for complicating his arrangement for no reason. Dee spent the night at the gym, and everyone there knows what's up. We got insights into Yak's relationship with his mom, and how his desire to graduate may be related to her.

I guess it's time for Dee's trauma. Are we gonna open the next episode with Kao's or Cher's?

Cheering up this kid is very sweet.

The fact that these two are actually fucking is such a relief. Most of the time it's just not believable that these guys haven't been doing it.

I had a student once who remembers everyone's birthdays. Can't believe Dee walked into this trap.

Let's talk about Yoryak knowing the exact length of time they've been together.

Golf is having fun with these cameos.

Kao! The first thing he asked about was the sex gear!

Once again this show comes through for me I'm so glad boys who read kinda femme are allowed to demand a stern dicking. Pete in LBC was the first I remember, but this is so satisfying. Cher is allowed to want sex, too. I love it because Oyei has been so down for Cher this whole time that there's no way I believed he's cheating, but I do think he has something on his mind.

I love the grandma. She said, "These annoying youths are at the home and I had to get the fuck out of there." She knew what was up and was teasing the whole time.

I really love how chill the grandmother is about Dee's sex and romantic life. She teases mildly and checks on him to make sure he's okay.

That visual effect with the line was cute.

What in the 2gether is this?

I know she not playing that guitar at 3:30 in the morning!

Why would we put the sex bunny ears on his grandma??? What in the Peter Cottontail nonsense is this???

Why are his parents buried next to a British naval officer????

Genuinely love Yoryak changing up his look. The vibe between Yoryak and Taem is so compelling.

I refuse to believe that Oyei is possibly lying.

Now why are they doing their sex personas in public like this? Is Kao taking notes?

I'm so glad that Dee and Taem don't have beef.

Okay, I suspect Inn can actually cook.

No. Flour everywhere is not sexy. This is not an easy mess to clean.

It's so gross Ter taking Kwan to the same place as Dee like this. I don't like it.

Nope, that's flour in his eye. It's over. Yeast infection ahoy.

I'm not in the mood for Ter nonsense next week.

This feels like a treading water episode. I hope we get payoff next week with both of our couples. I don't want this thing about Cher's worries to be nothing, when I suspect that Oyei is dealing with financial stress.

[absolutebl]

There was a surprising amount of sex in Be Mine Superstar! I really wasn’t expecting it…. Similarly, Love Syndrome had a LOT less sex than I was promised by the trailer…

Are there any BLs that had either many more or many less NC scenes than you were expecting before you started watching them?

BLs that exceeded (or underperformed) sexy expectations

Interesting question. So far, not that many Thai BLs. But I think that's just because I pay attention to the pairs and the actors in Thai stuff, and you sort of get a feel for what they will (and won't) take on. So in your examples: I know JaFirst did high heat so I expected the producers to lean into that advantage as part of BMSS because, frankly, it didn't have much else going for it.

I haven't watched Love Syndrome III yet but knowing Frank I wouldn't expect it to go super high heat in terms of actual physical contact.

I guess the ones that have surprised me are mostly out of Thailand are pulps that I knew nothing about going in. Let me see...

Thai BL that ended up being way hornier/better than I expected

Secret Crush On You - such a weird show but BillySeng brought IT, whatever IT is, they got it.

Love in Translation - yeah, what happened in that sauce isle boys? Very saucy. Whatever pun, more please.

2 Moons 3 - about on par with ForthBeam from 2 Moons 2 but nothing else in the previous 2 series would lead one to expect the horny we got in this show on the main.

Second Chance - yeah it was a throw away pulp and this studio is hit or miss on chemistry but it had one of the best kisses of its year.

Big Dragon - I don't know what I expected form the trailers, but it wasn't as good as it turned out to be. Don't get me wrong, the rest of the show is naff, but the chemistry/heat levels are scorching.

Ghost Host, Ghost House - generally the horror stuff doesn't do chemistry well, but these two have some of the best chemistry EVER put into a pulp. I really hope we see more of them.

KinnPorsche - It's no secret I'm not as wild about this show as most, but I did think the VegasPete stuff was unexpectedly killer in all ways.

Oh My Sunshine Night - yeah it was exactly what one expects from OhmFluke but THE SIDES!!!! I mean... WHAT? I'm not mad, just pleasantly surprised.

TharnType - Okay but remember at the time what we'd had from Mame was LBC (relatively low heat) and other Thai stuff I was familiar with at the time was Make It Right, Love Sick, SOTUS, and UWMA. TT was way higher heat that I'd seen from Thailand before. And then...

Why R U? - ZeeSaint's "away trip to the beach" full on sex scenes plus repping for verse was just crazy at the time. Especially since Saint played Pete in LBC before this and Zee was new to BL. Add that to the very odd and disjointed (and miss-matched) SaifahZon counter story and WRU? was this insane all over the place viewing experience, including the heat levels. There was this "what will they do next?" kind of tension over the production. Not the story (because who was following that?) but the PRODUCTION. At the time, it was welcome, but truly bonkers. What a way to drive narrative tension... pure high heat chaos.

Thai BLs where chemistry failed meet my (relatively low) expectations

My Ride - honestly, if they had just gotten the kiss right this might even have earned a 10/10 from me

Unforgotten Night - ugh

Bite Me - double ugh

Friend Forever - I know I'm the only person who watched this but why could we not have gotten ONE kiss from the leads?

Nitman - studies have since shown us it is entirely not Noh's fault... see Oh My Sunshine Night

Wedding Plan - the leads were fine, but Mame usually fails me in every way except chemistry, so "fine" is not up to her usual standards. Those standards being predominantly "they hawt together" and nothing else. There wasn't even a side dish couple to pick up the slack noodle... so to speak.

Korean BL

For most of 2022 I was consistently getting surprised by Korean BL's chemsitry when it was good but now I've settled into half expecting it yet still being delighted when it happens and is well done.

I do think Semantic Error was a bit of a seed change for them.

The problem is, now we know they can do it, we are starting to get pissed when it's bad or entirely absent.

Taiwanese BL

Taiwan is the opposite of Korea.

I expect good chemistry and almost always always get it. I struggle to think of a time when they've disappointed me (in this arena). Maybe a few? But I tend to cut Taiwan more slack than other countries because they have so few BLs and they are generally so consistent. If they falter at all, at least the side couple will pick up the slack.

Japanese BL

I have no expectations of Japan. Life as a BL fan is a lot easier that way.

(source)

[outofthemouthsof]

15-Day BL Challenge in 1 Night!

I'm more of a lurker than a poster but Tumblr's my fave place to wallow in BLness. My 2nd favorite place is the spreadsheet where I track the shows I've watched (172 completed in just over a year), so @negrowhat 's challenge was irresistible. I'm gonna cram my answers in one post. Here goes!

Fave OG Actor Pairing: Some of the ones I think of as OG are only like 4 years old, so this was tough. And the 18 shows that have gotten my top score aren't very old. But I went through those 18 and picked the oldest, and it was the 2018 Korean microfilm Some More. Because it's so short it's super rewatchable, but even if I wasn't able to watch the whole thing a half dozen times (which I have), I'd still have gone back & watched the sweet moments and sex scene about 25 times (which I have). So I guess my fave OG actor pairing is Park Chan Ung and Kim Joon Bum! How they got me so deeply invested in their love in mere minutes is beyond me, but they did!

Fave Rookie Actor Pairing: Does Japan do the CP thing that Thailand does? I don't think so, but one couple I wish had about a dozen more BL series together lined up are Kouhei Higuchi and Atsuki Mashiko of My Personal Weatherman! Their chemistry was visceral and they're too pretty to be believed.

Side Dish That Should've Been the Main Course: While I enjoyed the main pairing a lot, they were nothing compared to the crazy rollercoaster side plot (how'd it go from so funny to SO dark to so sexy to so sweet and wholesome like that??) of Vegas/Pete from KinnPorsche!

Fave Ship Dynamic: Obvs from answers 2 & 3 I am not against D/s ships at ALL. Also a sucker for tough-but-submissive-bodyguard with mafia-brat-prince. Honestly I like tons of different dynamics from innocent to toxic, but one that gives me major butterflies is a guy who thinks he's straight but when confronted with the idea of liking another guy, doesn't have a macho freakout or run away, just kind of straightforwardly & sincerely searches his feelings until he figures it out. And then takes care of his baby. Why's that so HOT and sweet? Some of my fave examples: Pete/Ae in Love By Chance, Le Jian/Amber from DNA Says Love You, and Ida/Aoki from My Love Mix-Up!

Biggest Flop: This is expectations vs. execution, right? There's loads of shows I've abandoned, some I've stuck with for no good reason, etc., that are way worse than what I consider my personal biggest let-down. I was so enamored of Perth from LBC that I assumed he could do no wrong, and the bully-to-lover, rich/poor pairings often do it for me. So I guess I just assumed Dangerous Romance would be amazing, and it was REALLY good for a couple episodes. It wasn't the worst thing I ever saw, but so much of it just ... felt ... flat. Very surprising.

Fave Line From Your Fave Series: Well I know my fave series--Cherry Magic Thailand was the most perfect, entrancing, heartwarming series EVER, OMG, it was staggeringly good and stuck the landing in a way few shows have managed. I can't really think of one standout line--the script was so on point & there were HUNDREDS of sweet tingly moments. There were some epic ones in ep11 tho: When Achi says "The voice inside your head is so loud" and Karan (the boldest he's ever been) replies "Don't worry; soon you won't be able to read my mind anymore." (But then clearly uses that power one more time to gain the sweetest nonverbal consent EVER.) Then, Karan: "Do you regret losing your power?" Achi: "I'd regret not loving you." (OMG how I squealed.)

Fave Villain: This was so tough. An over-the-top villain I loved to hate (and an actor I loved from his sweetie-pie green-flag role in SCOY) was obvs Heng Asavarid as Chalothon in The Sign. But an actor who was so excellent at being loathsome and malicious toward the main couple, with just enough of a redemption arc that I didn't totally despise the character by the end (but did hate most of the way through): Park Hae In as Eun Ji (Jae Won's ex) in The Eighth Sense. It was a typical "faen fatale" role but so well done. So a tie between 2 totally different takes on the destructive ex.

The Trope You Hate Except When It's "This Series": OK, "hate" is a strong word for how I feel about the drop-of-rain-makes-you-ill so love-interest-takes-care-of-you trope. It's OK. But holy SHIT is it overused. Holy shit. I sigh resignedly when I realize we're going there. EXCEPT. When P'Phayu goes to visit Rain in Love in the Air when he's sick, and his version of caregiving? Forcibly applying medicine in the form of a rectal suppository. It is so funny, weirdly sexy, very in line with their dynamic (doesn't get in the way of their romance moments later at all), & it shoves a big middle finger up the overoveroverused sick-bed trope.

Most Visually Pleasing Love Scene: Okay, THE scene in The Sign is the clear winner in my & many people's books. But there are so many runners-up: the post-race one in Love in the Air. Just about every one in Pit Babe (both couples) & My Personal Weatherman. (A lot of other faves don't quite qualify as visually or emotionally pleasing--lustfully pleasing should be a 3rd category in this challenge!)

Most Emotionally Pleasing Love Scene: Again, I have a clear winner: Cherry Magic Thailand. So full of emotion, so well deserved, so everything. Sigh. But lots of runners-up: same scene in The Sign, both kissing scenes in DNA Says Love You (tame but soo emotionally satisfying), Ray & Sand's camper reunion in Only Friends, the post-prison love scenes for both couples in Kiseki: Dear to Me, the 1st time in I Feel You Linger in the Air ...

Breakup That Should've Stayed Broken Up: Maybe it's because I try to be choosy in what I watch all the way thru or maybe I'm a big softy who tends to root for every couple no matter how lame. In all my completed shows, I could only think of 2 breakups where I wasn't at all invested in them getting back together (and maybe against it): Tian/Poon, What Zabb Man and Top/Mew, Only Friends.

Wedding You Wish You Had an Invite To: If we're talking weddings that actually appeared in the show, Achi and Karan's in Cherry Magic Thailand, obvs! If it's hypothetical weddings, I'd be desperate to go to one of ANY of the characters in Playboyy! I'd wear a bulletproof vest & bring my own flask of booze, but it would be the trashy chaos-filled social event of a lifetime.

Give 5 Good Boys a Gold Star: Just 5? OK, some I haven't mentioned yet. 1. Shin Woo, Light on Me, 2. Palm, Never Let Me Go, 3. Mohk, Last Twilight, 4. Thun, He's Coming to Me, 5. Neua, Secret Crush on You. Best boys!

The Top 5 Most Sad Boys: I'll limit it to ones where the suffering was kinda pretty, not just painful. 1. Way, Pit Babe, 2. Akk, The Eclipse, 3. Kaipa/Gaipa, Moonlight Chicken, 4. Hae Bom, Cherry Blossoms After Winter, 5. Kiyoi, My Beautiful Man

Bestest Besties: Just one? Gah! Fine, Pearl & Gavreel in Gameboys. She got those boys together in quarantine!

[waitmyturtles]

Turtles Catches Up With Old GMMTV: Love By Chance, New Siwaj, and MAME

[What’s going on here? After joining Tumblr and discovering Thai BLs through KinnPorsche in 2022, I began watching GMMTV’s new offerings -- and realized that I had a lot of history to catch up on, to appreciate the more recent works that I was delving into. From tropes to BL frameworks, what we’re watching now hails from somewhere, and I’m learning about Thai BL's history through what I’m calling the Old GMMTV Challenge (OGMMTVC). Starting with recommendations from @absolutebl on their post regarding how GMMTV is correcting for its mistakes with its shows today, I’ve made an expansive list to get me through a condensed history of essential/classic/significant Thai BLs produced by GMMTV and many other BL studios. My watchlist, pasted below, lists what I’ve watched and what’s upcoming, along with the reviews I’ve written so far. Today, I’ll cover Love By Chance, the PerthSaint ship, my first experience with a solo New Siwaj project, and my first MAME adaptation.]

TW: anti-queer derogatory language, sexual assault

Well -- wow. Love By Chance, huh? My first-ever solo New Siwaj project, AND my first-ever show with an original book by MAME. Lots going on here.

My thoughts are quite jumbled on this show, so let me list away by means of setting up this review:

1) My thoughts on Perth and Saint, 2) My feeling that for the first half of the show, I was watching my first derivative structured BL, as influenced from what came before it, 3) A missed opportunity to take a deeper dive into how individual characteristics can shape a relationship,  4) What is New Siwaj’s deal with not being able to hold storylines strong through to the end, and 5) Brief thoughts on MAME.

I know that LBC is a fan favorite, and this absolutely makes sense to me. I will DEFINITELY be fast-forwarding to beloved AePete scenes in the future. The show started off STRONG, the AePete storyline was written cleanly, and I mean -- Perth and Saint. 

This is my first rodeo with Saint. @manogirl​​, you asked in a comment what I thought of his acting. I thought he was superb. I don’t know the MAME source material for this show, but it seemed to me like Saint was playing up to Pete’s character as originally written, and that Saint NAILED it. 

I’m also on a Perth Tanapon HIGH right now, having finished Double Savage recently, and I’m heartened to see his very natural ability to turn up maj chemistry with partners like Saint and Ohm, who just naturally give and respond back. (I understand that we’re on tenterhooks to see if things can improve with him and Chimon in Dangerous Romance after their turn in Never Let Me Go -- I haven’t seen NLMG, but understand his Chopper to have been milquetoast.) 

But anyway -- of course, as the majority of the fam knows -- the strength of the AePete storyline and the stunning acting between these two ABSOLUTELY carried this show. @manogirl​​, probably the only criticism I would offer about Saint/Pete would be that Pete’s manner WAS flat and restrained, and it wasn’t until the football field scene that I realized that I could understand where that manner came from.

I think we all know that without the incredibly strong acting of Perth and Saint, that there wouldn’t have been a show to speak of here (especially as I now understand what the second season of this show was about, yikes). But Perth and Saint kept this whole project together, literally. They were a DELIGHT to watch, and when their scenes petered out at the end of the run, I wasn’t thrilled about it.

But rewinding back to when I started the series: I think, with the help of the strength of their acting, that I felt something early on in my watching -- that I was watching my first true derivative BL, influenced by what came before it.

Can I list all the tropes that I saw? Engineering, beach trip, sniffing of shirts, guitars and singing, shrimps, the to-be-expected top/bottom dynamic, etc. I am positive I’m missing more tropes. 

In Love By Chance, I really saw the tropes become structure. I remember noticing in Love Sick the tropes being born -- the hoses, the beach trip, alllll the music and singing. And of course, in SOTUS, they become canon.

I saw the tropes settled in Love By Chance, like a board game that everyone knows how to play by now. And you know what -- I’ve never considered myself a trope person, but I utterly LOVED how these tropes were handed to Perth and Saint, and I saw what they did with them. PerthSaint handled the meet-cute with such PACE and steadiness, that they made the tropes feel natural and fresh. The tropes, in my opinion, actually helped move the story forward.

Some quick thoughts on AePete’s relationship. I think we were lucky in seeing as far as we could go into AePete’s relationship, as much as we could see, up to the “I love you.” I really liked that we saw much more of their relationship develop after the first kiss and the first sex, when we learn that Ae is a serious horndog, is a jealous bro, but is FULL of loyal love for Pete, and couldn’t give a hoot about what the world around him thinks about it -- to the extent of holding Pete’s hand as close to Ae’s family as I had seen in a BL so far on the chronological watchlist.

But New Siwaj had to New Siwaj (cc @bengiyo​) -- in that, with the TinCan and TarTum (wtFUCK) stories, and that KengklaTechno SHIT going down, that a ton of time was taken away from the show being able to focus on elements that I thought were FASCINATING in AePete’s relationship, such as Ae not being able to take Pete’s help, and Ae’s tendency towards stereotypically masculine POVs and behaviors. 

Ae’s randiness and jealous tendencies were huge drivers of their storyline, and they didn’t seem to unsettle Pete, which I thought was fascinating and -- only in my humble opinion, PLEASE feel free to debate and disagree, I am all ears on this -- harkening to a kind of macro cishet perspective on their relationship. 

Why do I say that? I’m jumping ahead on my list of themes, but quickly: from the REST of what I saw in the show -- TinCan, TarTum, KengklaNo, and Pond’s behavior (I honestly QUITE liked Pond, actually) -- I’m working with a theory that part of MAME’s story structure here is based in Asian cultural homophobia, in stereotypes of how the queer community should act by way of societal expectations in Asia. But more on this in a bit. 

Back to AePete for a second. In Ae -- there’s a lot to be explored. Where does his jealousy stem from, besides testosterone and an unending urge for bodily intimacy? I want to KNOW how Ae’s expression of masculinity affects their future relationship. I want to KNOW why Ae can’t take Pete’s help -- does he truly think of Pete in the wife role, and that Ae, as the husband, doesn’t need any help? I want to know WHY Ae is so patriarchal to Pete. I want to KNOW why Pete doesn’t question it, at least at first. 

Maybe they were going to get into it in the second season, if the PerthSaint ship hadn’t split. But there’s A LOT THERE.

While I’m working through this, I’m thinking of Bad Buddy/Our Skyy 2 x Bad Buddy (of course), and seeing the embodiment of Pran wanting to NOT take Pat’s help on Pran’s play project in Pha Pun Dao -- and how this desire for being able to do things ALONE, without ANYONE’s help, likely led to Pran working in Singapore after the boys graduated.

I’m spoiled, now, by seeing this internal need of Pran to explore his independence play out through Aof Noppharnach’s lens in OS2. We don’t get that depth here in LBC with AePete, and I really wish we could have gotten more. Ae IS SO FASCINATING. @bengiyo​, you mentioned to me in a side conversation that Ae might be tagged as demi, and I just wish, I WISH, we could have had more depth there. IT’S THERE AND IT’S FASCINATING TO HAVE KNOWN WHAT WE COULD HAVE HAD with these guys.

Because: between New and MAME, good lord -- these side storylines! We had literally almost TWO FUCKING EPISODES devoted to TinCan! 

Flatly put: I don’t think we had a worthwhile payoff with any of the side stories. And I think the side stories ultimately took the show down for me. I might even say that AePete weren’t strong enough as a foundational column to hold the show up as a whole -- but I can’t write that totally off, because they were SUCH a gem couple, and Saint and Perth’s acting was SO GOOD. We just missed so many opportunities to really get to know them better.

New Siwaj’s screenwriting and filmmaking — smdh. I’m not as pissed as others about what went down in Double Savage, but we saw New using flashbacks as a way to cover his ass for jumbled storytelling throughout the series. Flashbacks, side stories, whatever -- New likes to clearly make things complicated in his work.

And maybe he was intrigued to turn MAME’s novel into Love By Chance BECAUSE he saw what he likes to play with in filmmaking in MAME’s story. But as an auteur, I wonder if he has contemplated a linear beginning-middle-end perspective on a main couple, one that can actually be satisfying! (Hello, ATOTS.) I will say, though -- that New and MAME might be a natural pair to complement each of their tendencies towards fringe-ier filmmaking techniques and perspectives. 

I want to offer a few quick thoughts on my perception of the story as crafted by MAME specifically, with the absolute understanding that she’s controversial, and I welcome all feedback on my thoughts here. (And I also understand that the other directors I mention below used source material written by other novel authors, so naturally, the comparison between MAME and the directors is not quite fair. But let me go there anyway.)  

@bengiyo​ has shared with me (thank you, my ever patient friend) that she’s popular in many circles by way of the chemistry of the leads in her stories and her penchant for heat, which are two qualities that I also appreciate in BLs. In any case, here goes my critique.

Between the TarTum and TinCan traumas, plus the questionable KenglaNo scene, I have an unsettled feeling that MAME has tapped into Asian cultural stereotypes of homophobia in LBC. I’ll explain through a personal anecdote.

When I was a kid, like pre-teen, the ONLY band I listened to was Queen. Queen WAS IT. Freddie Mercury was MY HERO. MY HERO. A mixed Indo-Persian gay Brit with a voice like god. Kicking down doors and prejudices. He’s up there today with my slate of utter heroes. 

My father -- traditional Indian-from-India guy -- was taken aback. He made reference often to his discomfort that I was enthralled and inspired by a gay man who had died of AIDS. To me, what I think of as the “usual” homophobic stereotypes from my family were thrown out often -- Freddie Mercury had multiple partners, he dressed like a woman, he was dangerous and filthy, etc.

I know that MAME is known for processing her own personal trauma through her art vis à vis queer storylines. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion about this.

It gives me the minor jibbles. I’m not sure this sits well with me. I don’t want to deny ANYONE, ANYONE their right to make art. But I can’t help but think that MAME ISN’T aware of Thai/Asian cultural homophobic stereotypes towards the queer community (not to conflate specifically Thai and Indian perspectives, which is why I’m glomming on “Asian” here). From the kind of commentary I grew up with with my dad -- I was hit on the head, SPECIFICALLY vis à vis the side stories, that Asian cultural homophobia was being leveraged in LBC as a potential means of connecting with fans that may have otherwise ignored this show. That elements like gang rape must be a given. That incestuous implications have to be a part of a queer story. That intentionally non-consensual sex must be a part of the telling of a queer story. That the TinCan story had to have ended with Can pulling back, with Tin left to suffer.

It makes me jibbly with a concern about trauma porn. That trauma porn MUST be a part of a storyline, in MAME’s eyes, regarding stories about queer people.

Again, I don’t want to deny anyone their chosen modality of creating art. But I reflect on this against, say, Aof Noppharnach’s storytelling in Bad Buddy, in a world where there’s no homophobia; or Cheewin’s storytelling in Bed Friend, where nuclear AND office families are accepting. Trauma is STILL a given in these fictional queer worlds, created by queer auteurs, because there IS homophobia in real society (Bed Friend) and intergenerational trauma IS a reality (Bad Buddy). 

But the trauma isn’t leveraged AS AN AUTOMATIC, ABSOLUTE GIVEN for the SAKE of the storyline HAVING queer characters -- which seems to be an equation that I think is making me jibbly about MAME’s perspective here. @bengiyo​, my question is: is the trade-off between having high heat and great chemistry worth it, for MAME to HAVE to include what I’m seeing as Asian absolutist stereotypes (as I grew up with these stereotypes) in the telling of queer stories?

I’ll certainly have more to say and think on this when I get into TharnType, and I’ll likely be able to answer some of these questions on my own. As an Asian raised in America, and as an ally, I have enough concern about what I saw by way of MAME’s story, as compared to what I heard in my childhood home by way of prejudices, to at least hold a red flag in my hand.

AePete were an absolute delight in this show. But I’m not sure, yet, if it’s worth setting queer characters up for traumatic fictional journeys BECAUSE an author has chosen to tell stories of queer people to process THEIR OWN personal trauma. I don’t know. As an Asian, I’m really conflicted. Because it seems to me to tap into easily understood and dangerous stereotypes that Asians might otherwise hold about the queer community and queer rights -- and that it’s easier to ride the bandwagon instead of hopping off of it and running on your own. Processing one’s pain is one thing. Trafficking in stereotypes because one might think queer sex and queer love is of a specific type and kind by way of continental and cultural stereotypes is something vastly different, and quite concerning for me.

This thought train isn’t over until I watch TharnType. I’m sad that PerthSaint didn’t continue, and I’m sad that Earth Pirapat doesn’t inhabit the role of Type in TharnType, but like I said before -- PerthSaint were worth it alone for me watching this show. And MAME and New Siwaj, separately, have had TREMENDOUS influence on Thai BLs, and I needed to watch their first show to understand where this particular trajectory started, and where it’s going to go, with TharnType, Until We Meet Again, and other projects on the list coming up. Let’s see where this takes me next.

[LBC is done: PERTH! I don’t think I have anymore Perth on my watchlist, wah. Come back to me, Perthy-werthy! 

Okay: I finished the BL cuts of Kiss Me Again this weekend, and I’ve gotten familiar with TayNew/PeteKao. I have THOUGHTS! (I really like them! I know there’s ish with New, but I’m waiting until I get to DBK to dive into that research.) I will NOT review the BL cuts, and will just wait to do a big old review after Dark Blue Kiss -- but I’ve watched the BL cuts FIRST to get their airing dates chronologically correct (I’m saving their Our Skyy for after DBK).

THAT MEANS THAT I’M STARTING He’s Coming To Me this week (FINALLY!). I have a few homies out there who mentioned rewatching this and possibly doing a watch with me (!!!). Please note that I can’t binge at all (mom lyfe), and that it usually takes me around a week to finish, so: go at your own pace and don’t wait for this old mom to catch up! And anyone who wants to join at your own pace as well, PLEASE DO! I would LOVE to commiserate on what I know will be a ridiculously amazing show -- and I’m shaking with happiness that I’m finally diving into Aof’s earlier work in the OGMMTVC series, which was a huge original point to my starting this project.

Here’s the watchlist as it stands. Lovely Writer is a new addition to the list as meta-BL commentary. As EVER, I’ll take recommendations! 

1) Love Sick and Love Sick 2 (2014 and 2015) (review here) 2) Make It Right (2016) (review here) 3) SOTUS (2016-2017) (review here) 4) Make It Right 2 (2017) (review here) 5) Together With Me (2017) (review here) 6) SOTUS S/Our Skyy x SOTUS (2017-2018) (review here) 7) Love By Chance (2018)  8) Kiss Me Again: PeteKao cuts (2018)  9) He’s Coming To Me (2019) (watching) 10) Dark Blue Kiss (2019) and Our Skyy x Kiss Me Again (2018) 11) TharnType (2019) 12) Senior Secret Love: Puppy Honey (BL cuts) (2016 and 2017) (I’m watching this out of order just to get familiar with OffGun before Theory of Love -- will likely not review) 13) Theory of Love (2019) 14) Dew the Movie (2019) (not an official part of the OGMMTVC watchlist, but I want to watch this in chronological order with everything else) 15) Until We Meet Again (2019-2020) 16) 2gether (2020) 17) Still 2gether (2020) 18) I Told Sunset About You (2020) 19) Manner of Death (2020-2021) (not a true BL, but a MaxTul queer/gay romance set within a genre-based show that likely influenced Not Me and KinnPorsche) 20) A Tale of Thousand Stars (2021) (review here) 21) Lovely Writer (2021) 22) I Promised You the Moon (2021) 23) Not Me (2021-2022) 24) Bad Buddy (2021-2022) (thesis here) 25) Bad Buddy (2021-2022) and Our Skyy 2 x BBS (2023) OGMMTVC Rewatch 26) Secret Crush On You (2022) [watching for Cheewin’s trajectory of studying queer joy from Make It Right (high school), to SCOY (college), to Bed Friend (working adults)] 27) KinnPorsche (2022) (tag here) 28) The Eclipse (2022) (tag here) 29) My School President (2022-2023) 30) Moonlight Chicken (2023) (tag here) 31) Bed Friend (2023) (tag here) (Cheewin’s latest show, depicting a queer joy journey among working adults)]

[forkaround]

The fact that AePete did it in the same room! Here it’s a hotel. In LBC it was Pete’s room. Lol. Time is a circle

[theyellowhue]

you would think that by how much I wax poetic about AePete, they would be my favorite character in Love by Chance, but sadly you are mistaken. don't get me wrong, Ae and Pete are perfect for each other, they definitely fill the void in my heart that doesn't believe in true love anymore. But my favorite character is Pond. that man has done more for AePete than AePete themselves. without Pond, LBC would just be Ae and Pete in constant longing and pining because both are dumb enough to preserve their truly adorable and genuine friendship over the fact that they desperately want to kiss each other.

truly, not all heroes wear capes, some of them will purposely have a p0rn marathon in your shared dorm room to force you to stay over your not-yet boyfriend's apartment and somehow grow the balls to finally ask him out.

we deserve a Pond in your lives.

[slayerkitty]

Having a weird moment with Wedding Plan and Love By Chance because I just realized the guy dating Nuea's... oh hell, is Rhy his cousin? Is the same guy who was friends with Ae and hit on Pete in LBC (different actors ofc). That is super weird to think about. (That is the same character, right? I'm not hallucinating it or something?)

[acequinz]

Okay but listen. THOUGHTS ON MAME AND HER WORKS IN GENERAL.

As much as I hate romanticising rape and shit and as such have never liked Mame as a person.

I have noticed a pattern in her content.

And that is all the victims get some real good tlc or basic TLC I don't fucking know I don't get a lot of it .. Except Tar(also type), my boy got extra trauma. To be exact her victims face a pattern of dealing with the trauma.

The pattern being

Person looks fine and even happy, then has their trauma triggered all over and is a mess, has one person with them who never leaves then despite the trauma and how it makes the victim lash out and cares for them and loves them through the entirety of it just unconditional love.

I know tharntype, tharn was the one to trigger the trauma and a cause. But after that shit , he did do his best to take care of Type and never gave up on him despite all the abuse.

Tar also recieved a lot of support from Type even after he moved to a whole different country to get over his things. I don't have much to speak on him cause I didn't watch lbc S2 completely.

Fiat always had Leo comforting him through the entire period the nudes were going around and everything else.

All of them also had the common scene that the "top" takes care of the "bottom".

It happened with Type, Tar, Pete, Rain and now Sky.

And while one could say this is her projecting her personal fetishes or preferences onto her characters.

It also makes me think that does she write the rape victims and all that stuff as a fetish or a way to deal with her trauma regarding it.

Cause I know I consume a lot of dark fiction to deal with certain traumas I have ... Is she doing the same thing?

Cause if she is that is just making me feel like an asshole for judging her the way I did ....

[theflagscene]

I just saw the WIP tag thing, can I ask about 13 (toddblack) and 18 (aepete)???

13 - Even MORE ToddBlack

“What are you doing?” Black asked as he slipped out of his shoes by the door, which he locked rather pointedly once he had seen who was in the apartment.

“Knitting a sweater, clearly.” Todd deadpanned, which caused Black to scoff in annoyance at his boyfriend.

“You’re such an asshole.” Black grumbled, Todd only humming in response, knowing him it was most likely in agreement with the statement. “I’m going to shower.” Black announced, heading toward the small bathroom tucked away in the back of the apartment. Todd said nothing, just reading his book in the low lamplight. Black paused as he passed the side of the bed, seeing one of the little dolls that Eugene had bought him as a gift years ago when they were still dating was on the floor. It was the one wearing the little knit hat with an E on it, the one that wore the hat with a B on it still stood primly on the nightstand. Black narrowed his eyes at Todd who was the picture of innocence - which Black knew was a load of bullshit - as he crouched down and picked the trinket up. He glared at Todd as he very firmly put it back on his nightstand next to the other one, Todd arching his eyebrow slightly at the movement but saying nothing. “Don’t touch anything, I’m going to shower.”

“You already said that.” Todd pointed out.

“Not the touching part.”

“Hmm.” Todd just hummed in reply nonchalantly.

18 - AePetePWP

(This isn’t anything special lol, just a smutty one shot from the LBC episode 12 ‘punishment’ scene)

Do you know what I wanna do now?

I don’t know, what do you wanna do?

Make you moan, so they can hear you through these thin fucking walls.

Pete nearly blacked out hearing those words drop from Ae’s lips, they had been together many times but he never truly was ready for Ae’s dirty talk. Given the chance Ae could get down right vulgar, his words often causing a tingling squirming sensation to rise up in Pete’s belly, a nervous sort of excitement. Like what he was hearing was wrong, but he wanted to hear more of it nonetheless. “Ae…” Pete breathed gently, biting back a small whimper when Ae bit down on the corded muscle that ran along the side of Pete’s neck that was standing out against the pale column of skin thanks to how he had his head thrown back against the pillow.

Send me a WIP and get a snippet!

[that-bl-bitch]

9 fandom friends to get to know better

I was tagged by @clowncroccharms thanks!

-----------------------------------------------

3 ships I love

Obviously my favorite ships are forever rotating and I’m only gonna stick to bl land if that’s cool so this is who I’m liking currently 

1- kor and namsom (city of stars) second lead syndrome always and forever😘✌🏽 (I just love how much he loves her he will do anything to be with her again)

2- miyata and iwanaga (koi wo suru nara) need I elaborate 

3- Achi and Ji (to be continued)

First ship ever

Gun to my head I couldn’t tell you who my first ever ship was but since we’re sticking to bl land anyways I’ll do the first ship that got me into BLs in the first place which is tin and can from love by chance, like I said forever and always a second lead syndrome having bitch and I meant it when I said it like forreal I didnt even know that Pete and Ae were the main characters going in, anyways i saw them on tumblr and said who and what is that and started watching lbc a couple weeks later 

Last song I listened to

-Overdrive by Conan gray 

Favorite childhood book

-I would have to say Diary of wimpy kid probably 

Currently reading

Nothing right now but I am about to start "Solomon’s Crown" By Natasha Siegel a gay period book which is not my vibe usually, I don’t like non modern set books usually but then I read Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms By Sarah Wallace & S.O Callahan and fell in love, This book is really good if you like fairy’s, magic, gay romance, and (I believe) regency  era this is the book for you this is not my usual genre very far from it and I truly loved it enough to read it again and don’t really reread books it’s also set in a queer normative world which is like why I don’t read period cause I don’t want to read and about period specific homophobia and secret sneak around relationships so without that I was really super optimistic going in and truly 10/10 I’m not gonna go into to details but it did make me cry and feel so much love in my heart but go read the blurb and if you are even slightly interested in it from that I think you should give it go, so after finishing that now I’m trying to chase that high so I hope Solomon’s Crown is also really good, I have a bunch lined up in similar worlds so wish me luck

Currently watching

Next level chef UK cause I love next level chef and I’ve already ran through the American seasons and now I’m working on the UK

edit: I rough draft this last night when I was watching NLC: UK but right right now I'm watching station 19

Currently consuming

Nada, I’m in bed chilling I did just have brekkie, cherrios

Currently craving

I could really go for some cotten candy ice cream

I'm tagging: @monroeurfnboat @hautegirl07 @good-night-space-kid

Yall have been in my notifs lately so do it if you wanna :)

[italianpersonwithashippersheart]

Who are your top 10 (or top 7) favorite characters of all time, from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series, etc)? Can I ask why you love them?

Once again, this ask is very broad and my memory is so-so but I will do my best. Gonna try to limit my list and list 3 to 5 characters I love from each category.

One disclaimer, there are going to be more men then woman in this list. Simply because between trauma due to bullying and the probable neurodivergence and the laten gender issues I have a super difficult time connecting with woman characters, mostly because I can't let go of what I am supposed to be feeling and process what I actually feel for any given character.

Books:

There is this book called Devil's Footsteps by E.E. Richardson I used to love and still do. And I really love the three protagonist in that book. Especially the main character. A lot of his character is about letting go of his guilty and processing his grief over his brother.

Wylan from Six of Crows. Something about him feeling broken and having all that trauma, and still being kind, still moving forward despite the fact that you are out of your depth.

Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice

Stanley from Holes

All my books are put away right now so I can't look them and at this moment I don't rember anything else.

TV Shows:

Spike from Buffy and also Faith from Buffy. I like morally grey characters. I have always found Faith more interesting then buffy (don't hate me) and Spike way more interesting then Angel.

2 Characters from an Italian Tv show called Ris Roma (spin off of another show). A sort of Italian CSI show.

Veronica mars. And Logan Echols from the same show.

The Main Character of a show called Fairly Legal (that show was not good, but I loved it and I am sad it got cancelled). She was a bit of a mix between a layer and investigator and I loved her energy a lot.

Pretty much all the main characters from Leverage, but especially Hardison and Parker.

Jessica Fletcher from Murder She Wrote

Ian from Shameless

Animated:

Daria, because I releated a lot too her, and I admired how strong she was.

a Couple of anime shojo protagonist that I am going to cheat and lump together because I think they are pretty similar. Like Sana from Kodomo No Omocha and Hime-Chan from an anime called Hime-Chan no ribbon. I grew up with those two anime.

Can I say Bugs Bunny, is that cheating?

Zuko from Avatar

Bob and Linda from Bob Burgers - they are very good parents, and they love each other, they are like if the Addams Family wasn't creepy. Does that make sense?

BL:

Takara from Takara-kun to Amagi-kun

Todd and Black from Not Me

King (and Uea) from Bed Friend

Tankhun from Kinnporsche

Heart from Moonlight Chicken

Togawa from Old Fashion Cupcake

Both the main boys from Utsukushii Kare

Ai Di from Kiseki: dear to me

Cheating and saying Tutor from Why R U and Pete from LBC together. Because I am obsessed with Saint range. Watching those back to back is a trip and a half.

Currently some of the boys from DFF (namely Non, Phi and White and maybe Jin) could be on the favorite characters list, but I definately need to see the end before I can say for sure.

First, Zoey and Nonth from Playboyy. Porsche might be getting on the list too. Soong is definately on there.

Thanks for the ask I hope you enjoyed my answears. If you want me to elaborate on any of these characters feel free to send another ask.

[bl-bam-beyond-extra-blbambeyond]

LOVE BY CHANCE

SEASON 2

Listen, this show irked me like no other. Why? Because I adored LOVE BY CHANCE except the rape of No by Kengkla or whatever his name was with the help of No's own brother.

Love By Chance Season 2 had more problems in its story. Starting with Perth returning as Ae after on screen love interest Pete (A FIRED SAINT) left presumably for Ae. And Ae's constant crying in his room, in the bleachers, on the field, behind the school or wherever and if he wasn't sniveling he drinking or both. The we have the introduction of eye candy Mai. Who the fuck was this guy? Never saw hide nor hair of him in LBC but suddenly he's the only one that can bring Ae to his senses. While Pond who was in the first series was useless as tits on a boar hog. Everytime he found his friend Ae in a bad way he had to call Mai. NONSENSE.

Then there's Job, who the fuck was he. A replacement for Can's sloth like friend Good. More useless eye candy because he was tall and cute.

Then we have the other MEEN who was a recast of Tin's older brother played by a hotter and younger actor that was younger than the actor MEAN playing Tin. More useless eye candy given a BL story of his own. He never loved his wife. He loved a guy yet he was sleeping with a woman that got pregnant and he married her while fantasizing about the boy he left behind. NONSENSE but more eye candy.

Then the Tin and Can rewrite was the most ridiculous. Pete no longer existed in their story when in my opinion he was a huge part of it. Yet in the rewrite Tin and Can met randomly in front of the university. Tin blamed Can for being in the way. He wasn't. Plenty of space to walk around. And they just kept running into one another all the FUCKING TIME.

Now in LBC the International College was across campus and Tin and Can met because Ae was dating Pete. It was out of the way for one to go to the others faculty. Suddenly they are all up in one another's faces.

This series made me hate MAME for such a long time and I refused to watch her content until LOVE IN THE AIR.

[absolutebl]

Hey so I've started to watch the older bls and one of the most famous ones is love by chance. Now I loved perth in never let me go and I've been around enough to only hear good things about saint's acting—mainly from you— and what I wanted to ask was is it worth it??? I don't want to waste my time on it but I'm not that nitpicky either. What do you suggest???

AePete are possibly my most favorite couple in BL and their story is GREAT.

I would advise skipping all the other couples (yes TinCan included). Just watch when it is them on screen. Many of the side couples are... difficult, but you can’t fault the leads. Tigger warnings, there is some abusive ex action, but it’s victoriously dealt with by our tiny crass love muffin hero.

But yes, I think it's worth it for them.

It's the only Mame show that I truly love and AePete are a cornerstone couple in the BL world IMHO. Perhaps not as formative as some of the others of that year, but man they are great.

Love By Chance pitch:

AePete’s meet cute is one of the best ever put on screen. They are just so genuine and soft with each other, it’s hard not to love them from the first moment. All the BL tropes deployed (and there are a lot of them) are earned honestly by the narrative, including the seme/uke dynamic (such as it is). The characters are unique as this is a poor/rich pairing, where Ae is tough & scrappy, caring & protective, and probably demisexual, while Pete is timid, shy, lonely, and out gay (with his peers). The language is also glorious with Pete using formal (even old fashioned) register, while Ae is entirely rude. You can train your ear for Thai high & low registers with this show (in fact, it's why I started learning them). As surrounding characters point out, they shouldn't work together, and yet they're very much wonderful when the are together. Watch LBC for the mains, ignore the sides (trigger warnings), and don't bother with any of the follow ups and you'll be fine. AePete will remain in your heart for a really long time.

[aylinaliens]

what historical bl aus can you recommend to read 👀 and why you never published yours 😩

historical bl aus you say *cracks knuckles* you got it. here is a list of the ones i can remember off the top of my head but i know there are a ton more i’m just not remembering right now.

and as to why i haven’t published mine: i don’t even know 😩 i currently have an aepete historical au sitting in my drafts where prince pete runs away from his bethroment and into the arms of a notorious outlaw. it was a big crossover with a bunch of other thai bl characters…maybe i should pick this back up djsjdjs but i also have like 5 more half-finished ones too not to mention all the modern royalty x body guard au’s in my drafts…

Off On A Hero’s Journey (SeanWhite — Complete, 32k): medieval au where sean is a knight and white is a prince 🥰

Thinking in Figure 8 (TeamWin — Complete, 15k): tangled au!! TANGLED AU!!!

Of Serpents and Swords (WinTeam — Complete, 20k): knight team has to slay a dragon but he ends up falling in love with him instead. lowkey a shrek au but it’s *chefs kiss*

When The Storm Comes (InKorn, WinTeam, DeanPharm — Complete, 24k): historical mermaid au?? yeah 🥺

Merely Dreams (Kuroadachi — Complete, 26k): historical/reincarnation au. the amount of research and work that went into this fic is a outstanding, but r was so good

Love Me Through the Centuries (AePete, TinCan — Incomplete, 64k): this absolute time travel arranged marriage banger has not been updated since 2020 😭 i still highly rec it though!

Heavy is the Head (AePete, WinTeam, DeanPharm — Incomplete, 12k): prince pete meets a knight in training but hides his identity. uwma + lbc au. this was last updated in may of 2022 so

Lost in Diplomacy (Wangxian + a handful of minor pairings — Complete, 90k): arranged marriage, angst w/ a happy ending, and slowburn. this monster of a fic made me go through every emotion out there.

The early bird gets the worm, the early fox gets the bird. But the dragon wakes the earliest of them all (Wangxian — Complete, 52k): let’s see we got dragonji, foxxian, omegaverse, mistaken identity and slowburn 👀

Mountains We Met (Wangxian — Complete, 79k): handmaiden wangxian au. go read it !!!!

Storms & Tempests (SaifahZon — Complete, 21k): regency saifahzon is exactly what you would expect it to be

Half Agony, Half Hope (Wangxian — Complete, 105k): persuasion!au 🥹 there are two additional one shots included in this series it was a m a z i n g

and there you have it! that is just a fraction of fics that i can recommend, i have a whole spreadsheet arranged by pairing/genre/trope so if anyone ever need recs let me know. or i can just share the spreadsheet if that’s easier. maybe i’m just the weird one for doing that instead of just bookmarking them 😅

[patpranishome]

I just spent two hours, going back in time, scrolling through LBC tag and got reminded once again why AePete was my og ultimate ship and Perth became my first son ( now, I got so many sons, hahahahahaaha).

Man, the show was not exceptional in any case but, I remember swooning over Ae's actions and Pete's cuteness. Perth and Saint displayed good acting chops and both of them grew to be even better now.