#rainbow prince bl

[iguessitsjustme]

I need everyone to watch Rainbow Prince. Is it good? No. Is it enjoyable? Immensely.

But I was having a lousy day and just a general bad brain day and I’ve been listening to the soundtrack and it has significantly improved my day. So if you like cheesy musicals and aren’t looking for something groundbreaking but is still just a lot of fun, watch Rainbow Prince.

[bengiyo]

Having dropped Dangerous Romance, I am now down to three shows. As our intrepid BL adventurer, what would you recommend I watch?

Airing or Recently Finished

Of the things currently airing, I would recommend the following.

My Personal Weatherman (Gaga, Viki)

This show has been a fascinating examination of a new-ish relationship with some heavy kink overtones. This show is not so much about the chase, and so much more about how these two could actually function long-term. I've enjoyed reading @lutawolf kink talk about this one, and the leads have some of the best sexual chemistry we've seen from Japan.

If It's With You (Gaga)

We have a sexually active and assured gay protagonist who knows who he is and what he wants. He's also a menace with some sort of trauma. I am absolutely obsessed with him. This show is going to be very short at 5 episodes, so it may be one you don't want to miss out on. Truly, this has felt like nothing else we've had in a long time and I've been thinking about it for days.

Love in Translation (iQIYI)

This just finished and is an absolute delight. This is one of the better executions of a workplace romance we've seen this year, and was the show anchoring me with all the heavy shows and silly shows airing at once. This show had so much heart to it. It had some wobbles towards the end, but the kindness underpinning this show makes it one of my favorites of the year.

Past Shows

Because you're still doing the homework, here are some shows I know you missed.

Make It Right (Grey)

You should still finish this. I still believe this is one of the most important foundational works for what made Thai BL start to feel more queer. This show asked big questions about male sexual maturation and I don't think any of the Thai high school shows have gone there since.

We Best Love (WeTV)

You probably haven't watched much from Taiwan, but this is one of the best examples of why we remain committed to them. Sam Lin and Yu have hands down the top three best paired chemistry in BL.

Rainbow Prince (YouTube)

This camp masterpiece from last year is one of my favorite shows. It is a hot mess, but the songs are fun and the plot is ridiculous.

[twig-tea]

TWIG! Friend! I couldn't help but notice your tags in my excitement post about getting to La Pluie -- I see that you and I are YYY mutuals. :) Let's call YYY... say... zany or offbeat -- off the beaten path of the usual romance-dominated field of Thai BLs. What are some other "zanier" BLs (not just Thailand, but everywhere in Asia) that you love and would recommend for an off-the-wall experience? And, why?

@waitmyturtles I'm so sorry you sent this a million years ago and then I kept letting it languish. And it's extra rude because I love this question! It's so hard to add something like YYY to a rec list without a billion caveats, so this is a great chance to shout out some of the series & shorts that don't get as much attention. A few of these I know you've seen but I have to include them for completeness.

First, for the sake of other people reading this, as Turtles has written about, Cheewin brings his own kind of zaniness to almost everything he works on; my faves of his other than YYY are Make It Right and Secret Crush on You (the exception is Bed Friend, which is not in any way zany but I still liked it).

Also going to mention that since Turtles asked for off the beaten path zany, I won't be mentioning any of the popular comedies (in case you're wondering why I Became the Lead in A BL Drama or Man Who Defies the World of BL aren't on this list).

Alright now that's out of the way, let's get into the other recs!

Zany lesser-known BLs other than YYY

Ossan's Love Franchise (Japanese, 2016-2024, GagaOOLala)

It is... less true now that this series is lesser-known than it was when I started writing this draft (in uh... August 2023) but I shall persist! The franchise details alone for this series are complete crack:

A 2016 45-minute short [skippable imo];

The 2018 original series which builds the short into a zany 7-episode comedy series about a man in his late 20s who suddenly finds himself the love interest of his older boss (in his ~50s) and his coworker/roommate (in his mid-20s);

The sequel film Ossan's Love: Love or Dead (2019)which turns into an action film halfway through for no clear reason but also remains a romantic comedy in which the mains from the original season decide if they want to stay together

The AU season Ossan's Love: In the Sky (2019) which has the same characters of the lead and his boss from S1 and the short, but this time they work in an airport and all of the surrounding cast is different and leads to a very confusing love rhombus. Incredible 10/10 no notes [people hate this because they like the mains from S1 & the film but I loved the mess]

The sequel season to S1 and the film, Ossan's Love Returns (2024) which you can absolutely watch in isolation and is about the main couple re-establishing their relationship and their found family friend group after being long distance for a few years.

It's truly excellent comedy, and gets better every outing; there are some barriers that might prevent some enjoying the earlier seasons but the most recent one is really delightful. You can hear me talk more about this series with @bengiyo and @shortpplfedup on The Conversation podcast!

Diary of Tootsies (Thai, 2017, grey/Netflix (for the movie))

I love Diary of Tootsies and the follow-ups so much. SO much. One of the best laughs of my life was the opening to the movie, and I cannot be in a long car ride without thinking about the purse incident in s1. This show doesn't get a lot of BL fandom attention because the romance arcs are not typical for BL (but that's one of the things I love about them). And the friendship in this series is truly what sells it. Season 1 is self-contained, a lot of people dislike the romance plot of S2; I really like the arc across s2 to the movie (as established above, I tend to be less invested in a particular ship across a franchise or multiple franchises). The movie plot is all about reconciling who you thought you wanted and who you are with (amongst all kinds of shenanigans).

HeHe and He (Hong Kong, 2018-ongoing, YouTube)

This mockumentary sitcom-style series does tackle some serious topics and is also absolutely hilarious nonsense across its 3 seasons. The very simple premise is that a gay guy ("hehe" is slang for gay) and a straight guy who are old friends become roommates when the gay friend breaks up with his longterm boyfriend and needs a place to stay, and hijinks ensue. They do direct-to-camera confessionals spliced in with scenes from their lives. I love this show so much, and it would actually be high up in my indie BL rankings if it were completed. I lose it at least once an episode. It's very queer (if you want a show that tackles everything from hookups to turning everything into a joke to being so, so mean to each other while also loving each other dearly to even chemsex, look no further), and I am in love with all of the wacky characters that have formed a love-hate found family that is deeply relatable. The creators posted a video a few months ago saying they're struggling to end it in a way that they're happy with so I'm not sure we'll ever get an ending for the show. But if you like comedy and queer content it's worth a watch even incomplete! I've been very patiently following this project since 2018 and it's legitimately one of my favourite shows.

Rainbow Prince the Series (Filippino, 2022, YouTube)

This is a musical; it is a lot of campy nonsense. There is royalty, political intrigue, a dog, kidnappings, and so. much. singing. The songs are surprisingly catchy and it's all extremely good fun. Also a lot of the dialogue is very clearly improvised.

Hey! First Love (Vietnamese, 2019, YouTube)

This series of shorts are mostly just silly fluff. The very tenuous plot is that these shorts are slice-of-life moments from a young established couple, but it's all really just excuses for Vietnamese comedy and BL romance tropes. If you haven't watched anything from Vietnam, this is a very low-stakes commitment (I think it's under 30 minutes of content all told; there are 4 "episodes" which are spliced together shorts, each of which has a tiny plot but there is not much of an overarching narrative, and then a Q&A with the actors at the end) and gives you a sense of the Vietnamese sense of humour. Both of these actors have gone on to continue to be in other Vietnamese BLs, so if you have watched Vietnamese BL you may recognize them! The production quality on this is charmingly low.

Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (India, 2019, Amazon Prime)

This film was such a joy to experience in a live theatre. Billed "the first Gay Bollywood RomCom", this movie was a riot of chaos, dance numbers, shenanigans, hilarity, and cuteness. I loved the way this film incorporated the very real legal change to decriminalize homosexuality in its story. Arguably not "BL" as it very much fits in the bollywood tradition not the BL tradition, but OP did ask for all of Asia!

Like Love (China, 2014-15, grey)

And no I don't mean censored--this is from before China started censoring its BLs. This show has kisses as shown in the gif, and even (poorly cropped) sex scenes. It also is super bizarre. I was so confused by this show, the characterization, the fourth wall breaks, and how disjointed it was so I went to read the source material and...it turns out it's one of the most perfect adaptations I've ever seen, the book is in fact exactly like this. The characters are caricatures, there is no bridging between scenes, and the plot is the most absurd take on 'loserfail no-thoughts-head-empty character who doesn't admit he's gay but still ends up in a dedicated and loving relationship with a rich handsome domineering man ' I've ever seen. It's a bewildering experience. Note the sound quality on this one is suuuper miserable. I like s2 way more than s1 (s1 is getting together and includes a lot of the bullying-teasing and I'm-not-gay-I-just-need-him-to-pay-attention-to-me stuff, s2 is the honeymoon phase + getting the homophobic parents on board) but S1 is definitely the zanier of the two. That being said, if you wanted, I think you can dive right in to s2 (there's a direct-to-camera explanation of what happened in s1 at the start of it). Note that they set up a cliffhanger at the end of 2 in anticipation of s3 which was going to be made in 2016 but was cancelled because of the political changes in China in 2016 (this is one of the reasons I went to read the source material; they do get a happy ending in the books).

This is an extremely silly but also touching franchise with a lot of tropes I don't love, but also a lot of things I do (and just neat to see some stuff so early in BL: Underwater kiss? Helicopter ride? Femme fatale becomes friend of the faen? Supportive grandparent? It's all here). There are some fantastic speeches in s2 about supporting your gay children; I liked how in this the kids didn't give up on their parents but try to reconcile their filial piety with their dedication to each other. If you do watch S1, highly recommended you watch the series version rather than the film. For "S2"/the follow-up film, make sure you look for the uncensored film version.

The Lover Room 709 Cut (Korean/Japanese, 2016, grey)

This starts extremely silly, plays with BL tropes, and gets a little bit serious at the end but is mostly just full of puns and innuendos. Includes one of the most hilarious takes on kabedon, and egregious use of the soundtrack from Brokeback Mountain. Also: fart jokes. Folks worried it was going to stay teasing the audience but it does commit and we do get an actual resolution that is satisfying. I admit I've never seen the whole series (which includes stories of 3 other couples in the apartment building) but the BL cut is readily available if you search. Make sure you look for the deleted scene with the lotion application--this scene walked so IFYLITA could run (I'm kidding, but it's very funny seeing this scene now and thinking about that one).

The Boy Next Door (Korean, 2018, YouTube)

This is another older series playing with censorship (similar to The Lover) in which the two characters end up in BL romance tropes but are not actually in love...or are they? The shenanigans are very fun. This one is left more ambiguous than The Lover, which is one of the reasons it's further down the list.

Go! Go! G-Boys (Taiwan, 2006, grey)

I debated between this and another quirky comedy from Taiwan in the early 2000s, Formula 17, but while that's unequivocally a better movie, this one is lesser known and more zany, so it technically better fits the bill for this ask (but if you haven't, go watch Formula 17!). The plot is a bit cringe--straight boy signs up to gay beauty contest to pay off his girlfriend's debts (accompanied by his gay childhood friend who is in love with him) and finds his truth. Meanwhile a homophobic police officer has also infiltrated the contest for investigative purposes. Amongst all that admittedly not great setup, however, are several bizarre sequences including the incredible Lord of the Rings recreation scene (complete with Gatchaman of course), a killer soundtrack, a random delivery of poultry, someone slapping a cake, and, most absurdly unbelievable at all: police taking harassing death threats to the gay contest seriously. It does a great job of setting up what should be a dramatic scene and then immediately undercutting the tension with something absurd. It's not narratively good, but it is a fun ride! And yes, there is a happy ending. Stick around for a fourth wall break (literally) after the credits.

Something Crunchy Crunchy (Korean, 2018, GagaOOLala)

Extremely bizarre little musical short in which snacks are anthropomorphized as hot guys and they sing songs about being eaten and wanting to be eaten. Played entirely sincerely, but the concept is screamingly funny. Fascinating. Also, kind of poly?

Dom (Korean, 2016, GagaOOLala)

Another hilarious and weird Korean short, this time in which we see the protagonist's sex life from the perspective of the condom boxes that are anthropomorphized and given personalities based on their brands.

And since we can't leave out the ladies,

A few zany GLs:

Lily Fever (Korean, 2015, YouTube)

I wrote about this one a little in my GL rec list; it is absolutely bonkers nonsense. There is not really a plot, it's a fever dream of a show. Chaos! Not so much a romance as an excuse to see cute girls flirt and make out.

Legend of Yunqian (China, 2020, grey)

I debated including this one because only the middle is really the zany part, it's sandwiched with more serious xianxia drama. But in the middle of this miniseries is an extremely cute interlude in which xianxia characters time travel to present day for ~reasons. It's censored but there is very little uncertainty about feelings, and manages to be absolutely charming. Worth the short runtime for this kitten quickcut (subbed "Whomst?!" in the show for ultimate comedy). Warning for character death (but it's ok because time travel to reincarnated character!) Subtitled by the indispensable @douqi7s [see their pinned post for links].

BetCin (Filippino, 2022, WeTV)

A lesbian couple with a YouTube following decide to break up but then find out there's a contest for couples, and they decide to pretend to still be together to try and win the contest rather than tell their fans they've broken up. This series does some really interesting things by starting with a breakup and then looking at how two people who are no longer dating manage BGP while also managing their feelings. There's a lot going on in this show, and the hijinks definitely ensue!

Perfect One Night Stand (Korean, 2020, GagaOOLala)

This is a cute Strongberry GL short in which a friend agrees to help her other friend find a girl to have sex with before the day is over; they go through several quirky candidates looking for the titular perfect one night stand.

[happy-xy]

Adrian Dionisio RAINBOW PRINCE (2022) | EP.5

[bl-bracket]

Photo Help!!!

So finding the pics for the polls is always one of the more challenging aspects of this bracket, and this round in particular has proven to be exceptionally hard! So, for the first time, I have some characters who are confirmed to be in the bracket but I'm struggling to find a good photo of least one of them. So I decided I'm going to publicly put out a thing for them.

If you have a photo or link to one of the characters, please send it to me via the asks or dms! Or, if you happen to know which episode (and roughly what time) I could look up to find them, that's helpful too!

Ideally, I'd like photos of the siblings together, but I'm fine with just individual photos of the characters too! (turns out BL directors seem to hate putting siblings in the same frame of a shot that clearly shows both/all of them :/)

(bold are the characters that I need photos of!)

Intouch & Ahn (Until We Meet Again)

Koichi & Younger Siblings (Eternal Yesterday)

Tsubasa & Younger Brother (Kabe-Koji-Neokyashiki-Kun Desires to be Recognized)

Mikey & Livy (Rainbow Prince)

Vlad & Judit (Like in the Movies)

[littleragondin]

Best Siblings in BL - A Proposed List

I am incredibly excited for the Best Siblings in BL Bracket, it's hands down the one I had waited for the most. Consequently, I have submitted quite a few options and I am thinking why not share them all here. Consider this pre-propaganda for the ones that will be picked up for the bracket!

The ones I can see win this:

Yang and Tian from To Sir, With Love.

On paper, they had everything going against them: their respective mothers hate each other and try to turn them against each other, their father treats them unfairly differently, one of them is keeping a huge secret, the other falls for his brother’s fiancée … And yet!! they turn out to be the most loyal brothers we have ever seen in BL. They clearly adore each other, they protect each other and do whatever they can to make the other happy. Yang keeps Tian’s secret, encourages his hobbies and passions, and make sure he knows he’s loved, Tian defends Yang from their father, worries and fusses about him, and is always in his corner. They are simply wholesome and their love is top tier.

Minoru and Tane from Our Dining Table.

How could you not fall for the adorableness of this sibling duo? There is a huge age gap between Minoru and Tane, even further complicated by the fact that Minoru had to step up in taking care of his baby brother after their mother’s death. And yet, despite the difficulties the situation causes, both boys love each other so much. Even when Minoru is tired or frustrated, he always try to do his best by his brother. And Tane is just the sweetest (and most realistic tbh) little six years old I have ever had the joy to see in a BL. The scene where Tane babbles about poop curry and Minoru answers without listening until it finally clicks? peak sibling behavior.

Ton-hom and Long Pao from My Only 12%.

The two of them were fantastic older siblings to Seeiw. While he seemed a little closer to Ton-hom, they both always were there for him during the whole run of the story. They always looked out for him and took care of him, and it was obvious that he felt safe to tell them thing. They both provided comfort and gentle advice every time he needed it, helping him take responsibility for his mistakes but still ensuring he knew they were here for him. The gentleness that permeated through their relationship in every episodes really made them a strong contender for best siblings imo.

The underdogs I still would love to see go far:

Livy and Mikey from Rainbow Prince

The twins in Rainbow Prince have such a lovely, sweet relationship. They love and trust each other, and distance clearly hasn’t affected this. Also they share a beautiful duet song about how they’ll always be here for each other, and I think that has to count for something!

Kiw and Seuadao from My Secret Love

They were such quintessential little sisters, the both of them. They were bored with their older brothers’ antics in the way teen siblings often are, yet ultimately very invested in them working out and being happy. I’m sending them as a unit because the way they teamed up for/against their brothers was adorable – and they resemble each other a lot both in character and in their relationship to their respective brother.

Diao and Dao from Rakdiao

While they may not look like it at first glance, with their constant bickering and dramatic antics (hello sitcom writing), or the way Dao steamrolls her brother’s boundaries and Diao’s temper tantrums, they actually are quite a sweet pair of siblings. Diao came to live with his sister so she could keep her home after a breakup, and he worries that he may not be able to do so and will cause trouble for her. Dao wants he brother to find someone to build a family with, and even if she teases and mock a little, she worries when he gets in trouble and knows his worth. They do love each other, in their bizarre, over the top ways.

The ones I would really be happy to see win - the UWMA propaganda:

Dean, Don and Del Wongnate

I think those three deserve a spot in this list because their dynamic is just SO interesting. Don and Del have a maybe more classic relationship to each other, they are only a year apart, grew up together, and they are obviously very close despite how different they are. And then there is Dean, who just came back to live with them, whose shadow obviously loomed over them all their life, who is their older brother and isn’t sure he knows how to be, and they all have to adjust to the new dynamic at home this leads to. What makes them so good in my opinion is that they actively try to make this work, they want to be good siblings to each other. It’s sometimes clumsy (Dean telling Don he cannot go out because he shouldn't leave Del alone), it’s sometimes plain sweet (Del being heartbroken that Dean stops eating breakfast with them??), and it’s just very loving in the end.

Intouch and Ahn Chatpokin

The women in Intouch’s life love him very much, especially his older sister. In always trusts his sister with his secret, and Ahn while worrying for him, always protect and take care of him, and she never reconsider his role in the life of her daughter. She was already a teen when he came into her life, she sang to him when he cried as a babe and held him when he cried as a young man, she tried her best to shield him from their father, and she should never have had to bury her baby brother so young.

Korn, Krit and Kard Ariyasakul

Maybe the least focused on siblings of the show, I think they actually do deserve a place in that Best Siblings selection too. Korn, on top of everything going on with his father, always stand as a shield between his violence and his little brothers. He hates it, but he will sacrifice his dreams and aspirations so his brothers can follow theirs. And that love is entirely reciprocated, both Krit and Kard being here for him when their father hurt him, Krit ready to let go of his dream of becoming a cop to alleviate Korn’s burden, Kard naming his sons with the names both his brothers chose when they were young. Those three brothers loved each other so much, and my heart breaks every time I think of Krit, grown up and a father himself, telling Pharm "I don't have any brother left..."

I am, very obviously, missing a lot of really good siblings from really good shows, but those are the ones I love the most across all the shows I have seen. Can't wait to see everyone's submissions and reasons!

[liyazaki]

Hey Mor! Did you answer #4 yet?

hey hey, Eboni- nope & ohhhh Lord, do I have an answer for you 😂

4. most ridiculous plot

Rainbow Prince- oh, Rainbow Prince. you had me cringing harder than I've ever cringed, until I realized the cringe was intentional & then things got real. and by real, I mean @flukenatouch was getting live reaction scream-laughing-till-I-was-actually-crying voice memos at decibels I didn't know I could reach.

every episode reached new levels of BL camp I can't even describe, but here are some highlights:

drag queens singing an original song about searching for the perfect top

a guy sings a lament about being imprisoned by his evil father & he grabs the prison bars dramatically...but the actor is visibly holding back because the "bars" are actually just a garden gate, living on a prayer & ready to fall over at any second

seductive banana eating

the most infamous musical number- I'll never be the same, it was so ridiculously unhinged- was about a dog. just cause. because they really, really loved that dog. fun game: say the words "Chuk Chuk" to anyone who's seen RP, sit back & watch the reactions

royal bodyguards who do anything but body guard

hardcore kidnapping & "fight" sequences

logic just generally being defied/ignored at every glorious turn

if you're in the mood to laugh your ass off & get a boppy little soundtrack stuck in your head forever, I highly recommend.

drama asks

[absolutebl]

hi ABL!!! i hope you're doing good 💌 i was recently talking to a friend & giving them QL recs, when i realised that there haven't been many Pinoy QLs since 2020 😮 i couldn't find anything so i thought who better than you sksksk

There have been a few, but I've not been tracking them. Gameboys 2 for example (I DNFed it). The only one I watched was Rainbow Prince and that was... a journey.

Unfortunately MDL doesn't have a good system for filtering by the LBGTQ+ tag plus country of origin.

Here's a blog post I found on the subject....

[plaidcladjuno]

the first aid kit:

[lgbtally4ever]

OXIN FILMS

Philippines

This channel, alone, shows that the #Philippines is more progressive and liberal about the #LGBTQCOMMUNITY than the #USA! Also, more diversity is shown on this one network than ANY channel in #America!

[dribs-and-drabbles]

✨2023: A Summary✨

Post your most popular and/or favourite edit/gifset/analysis for each month (it’s okay to skip months!)

Tagged by @daymork - Thanks for wanting to see how my analyses 'popped off and what my personal favs are!' 💖

January

most popular — Bad Buddy/My School President parallel - not an analysis but people do love a good parallel!

favourite(s) — Never Let Me Go discussion - I love when something I write inspires others and it sets off a long thread where people keep adding to it. | Another Bad Buddy/My School President parallel - not technically my post but I love the additions I brought together on this.

February

most popular/favourite(s) — The colour-coding of Bed Friend - another long thread where others joined in.

March

most popular/favourite(s) — A ramble about Moonlight Chicken - which includes a little analysis of the show as it ended.

April

most popular — "What exactly does being blue/red/yellow/etc. coded mean?" - I don't get asks often but I was humbled that someone came to me to understand what colour-coding meant.

favourite(s) — Chains of Heart colours series - I was late to the series, and it ended disappointingly, but the colours were brilliant. | Colour-coded folks in UMG - not a bl but they also colour-coded the leads.

May - n/a - I didn't really write any big posts/analysis this month.

June

most popular — "It's the right moment to kiss!" Our Skyy 2 x BBS x ATOTS - Aof calling himself out as well as us bl fans.

favourite(s) — Colours in Our Skyy 2 BBS x ATOTS - I couldn't resist writing about it since it stayed consistent to how they used colours in the original series.

July

most popular — The casting of Be My Favourite - the realisation that the 'odd pairing' of Krist and Gawin was integral to the story being told.

favourite(s) — Be My Favourite ep 9 - the ep that got me thinking about the characters even more. | Kawi and his sense of Self - where I dip my toe into philosophy, theories of The Self, and how memory plays a part in that.

August

most popular/favourite(s) — Laws of Attraction ep 5 - I loved everything about this series but this was the one that got the most attention - maybe because it featured Silvy a lot? 😂

September

most popular — Friends don't let friends go - which pairs with Only friends stay (posted in Oct), and which say a lot about the group and Boston.

favourite(s) — Clowned correctly Laws of Attraction - I just love when something flippant I say is (sort of) right in the end!

October

most popular — The Rainbow Best sweater - not an analysis, nor any created art...but the sweater itself is art, as is that so many characters and actors have worn it.

favourite(s) — Getting emotional over Kiseki: Dear to Me - this was the ep that hit me in the feels. | The Thai Communal Wardrobe items #6 and #3 - again not analysis or art but the start of the communal wardrobe list!

November

most popular — Mhok's Fart Proudly t-shirt - this had me going back to my Bad Buddy days of analysing t-shirts.

favourite(s) — Horney Hockey part 1 and part 2 - more t-shirts, more fantastic additions. | A thought on Night and Day - I'm still so curious about Day and Night's relationship and I can't wait to find out what their deal is. | Band aids on Rung's car and the goldfish slippers the symbolism of Mhok and day's 'damage' and the healing that they're doing. | "It is only with the heart that one can see rightly" | The t-shirts are definitely t-shirting - these last two are essentially reflecting on the same thing - the sentiments in The Little Prince story that Mhok reads out in ep 1 of Last Twilight.

December

most popular — Mhok is Day's eyes - a brilliant use of colour in Last Twilight.

favourite(s) — Couple bracelets - just me excited over possibilities. | Most memorable items of clothing in bl series in 2023 - looking back through the year. | The Thai Communal Wardrobe bl advent - this was a fun series to do...and it only encompassed about a third of the items on the list, so I'll be posting them in dribs and drabs throughout the year.

--

Tagging people who also tend to write analysis or meta posts, I'd love to see which were a hit with the masses and also which were your favourites: @wen-kexing-apologist @grapejuicegay @lurkingshan @btwinlines @twig-tea @rocketturtle4 @waitmyturtles @telomeke and @respectthepetty

[wanderlust-in-my-soul]

Do you know any thai/korean/all BL dramas with sad ending?

Thai/Korean/All BL Dramas With Sad Endings

Okay, let me get started. BL in general is not really created for sad endings. It is a phantasy land where all kinds of dreams come true. And originally it adressed a specific audience. So, some of the dramas I am listing here are more queer media in general and not specifically BL. And some of those dramas have an open ending, that does not mean it is not a sad ending, and some might have a beautiful ending, which was kind of sad. There are so many ways of reading those endings.

Two of the shows I haven’t watched yet, but I know that those have sad endings… And please be aware, there will be spoilers after the read-more-dash.

Let’s get started!

Egoist – based on a true story, this Japanese movie is heartbreaking. It is a beautiful story about the love between two people and how they manage their life together until, yeah well, until fate f*ed everything up.

Eien No Kinou (Eternal Yesterday) – another Japanese title. From the start of this series, you just know that this won’t end well. It just can’t. And at the same time, it is so beautiful, you can’t stop watching it. So good!

History 3: Make Our Days Count – I guess people would come after me, if I don’t mention this Taiwanese bl. Yeah…I wasn’t that impacted by the ending, but most of the people who watched it were devastated. I understand why, so have fun 😊

Kissable lips – the first Korean one. This series wasn’t my cup of tea, but that wasn’t the question. For a sad ending, this is your series!

The Miracle of Teddy Bear – this is such a complex thai series as is the ending. Many didn’t watch it because of some weird elements of the series and the episodes are long, but BUT it is so worth a watch! The ending? I kind of liked it? But it was very bittersweet and considering the use of the Little Prince source it is really good...but sad... I am confused... still...

Dark Blue And Moonlight – a Taiwanese series…I wouldn’t recommend it. I can’t really remember the ending… I know it was bad sad.

180 Degree Longitude Passes Through Us – a thai masterpiece. I love this one so much and I analysed the sh*t out of it! It is so good and I was devastated in the end! Such a great storytelling and cinematography and story and the characters...perfection.

Dear Doctor, I’m Coming For Soul – this is a thai series, which got very little attention when it aired (I don’t know why, I really liked it) and the ending was just a sobbing fest for me. I mean I liked it and it was just logical, but I was very sad!

Don’t Say No – also a thai series and I don’t focus on the main couple… I couldn’t care less about them… but the side couple! Oh the heartbreak I felt and the betrayel!

He She It – To this day I still ask myself what I have watched here. All I know is, it is confusing and kind of sad…the whole story, not just the ending.

The Best Story – it is Thai and it is YinWar… so it is good. Nevertheless, it has a very bittersweet ending, and I didn’t feel good after finishing this miniseries. I was very sad!

Once Again – one of my favorite series of 2022. This Korean series deals with a lot of trauma. It has some supernatural element and is really really good! And I was sobbing for the whole f*cking last episode!

When The Waves Rise – in this Korean short film, it is all about the feeling you get from it. It left me devastated. I was really not doing well after finishing it. It touched a part of my soul and it left a sore spot there.

Your Name Engraved Herein – I haven’t seen this one, because I know it will break my heart and I am still not ready for that. It is a Taiwanese movie and I know that I will love it, but I also know that I will cry my little eyes out.

Grey Rainbow – haven‘t seen this one either. This is a Thai miniseries and it is said to have a very sad ending.

The Untamed – the king, the queen, the emperor of sadness. I love this 50 episodes long Chinese masterpiece of a series to death! It doesn’t have a bad ending imo and it is quite open, but the amount of tears I shed during watching this fantasy epos was not funny anymore. I was ugly crying for like 15 minutes straight at one point. And I felt empty after I finished it. I miss it so much! I wish I could watch it again with all the emotions I had during my first watch!

But yeah…this is my little list 😊

If anyone wants to add more dramas, please feel free to do so 💜

Anon, I hope I could help a little bit and this list is useful 🌼

[bengiyo]

Hi Ben!

I've been listening to the conversation pod and in one of the eps you mentioned that if any country was to adapt ITSAY you would like to give it to a well-funded Pinoy crew and it got me intrigued. I have only ever watched Gaya Sa Pelikula but I was quite impressed with that one. Could you recommend a couple of shows from the Philippines that you enjoyed and that you think are a good representative of this country's "flavour" of BL?

Thank you!

I absolutely will recommend Pinoy BL! The caveat I will give about my desire to see a Pinoy take on ITSAY is because of some of their films I enjoyed, particularly Isa Pa With Feelings (2019) and Whether the Weather is Fine (2021). I have been extremely impressed with Filipino cinema and know they have it in them.

Onto the recommendations!

Gameboys 1 & 2

The studio that I would love to see take on ITSAY is The IdeaFirst Company. They made this production in quarantine to keep the lights on and keep people paid. This is probably the best quarantine show of all of them that released in 2020 and 2021. Elijah Canlas is a monster talent, and it was so impressive to see Kokoy de Santos and Adrianna So keep up with him in a show that manages to be funny and dramatic about the experience of finding love in quarantine while your loved ones are dying around you. Elijah gives a gripping performance in Kalel, 15 (2019). It's currently available on Netflix with English subs. Season 2 is available on GagaOOlala in specific regions.

Boys Lockdown

I remain forever sad that we won't finish this, but this is another one that tackled the quarantine experience well and captured the kind of chemistry that I find really compelling with Pinoy teams. I think at their best they compete or beat Taiwan. This one is available on YouTube.

Rainbow Prince

Filipino teams are ambitious, and that is always clear with Oxin Films. Is this show good? Not exactly. But it's exactly what it's trying to be and is so funny. It is the first BL musical and it delivers as such. It's this kind of gumption that makes me want to see a well-funded team tackle ITSAY, because this show is so much fun and I listen to the soundtrack regularly. This is available on YouTube.

Those are my best recommendations to get a sense of it, but I'll also shout out the Ride or Die team that did Quaranthings and Stuck On You, which both had compelling characerizations in lockdown.

[iguessitsjustme]

I have seen what people said when the put other. So now a new poll!

[happy-xy]

Adrian Dionisio RAINBOW PRINCE (2022) | EP.5

[bl-bracket]

Best Siblings Round 1: Jiang Yanli & Wei Wuxian & Jiang Cheng (The Untamed) vs Livy & Mikey (Rainbow Prince)

[Submitted Reasons Under Cut]

Jiang Yanli & Wei Wuxian & Jiang Cheng: "I find it really hard to talk about them without going on a rant and crying. Yanli is the best big sister ever. She always puts her brothers first without fail and her care for them is the glue they need when they argue. Even though Wei Wuxian is not their biological sibling, trust and believe Yanli will shut down anyone who tries to minimize their relationship or claim Wei Wuxian isn’t her brother. In return, Wei Wuxian is fiercely protective of Yanli and will literally kill anyone who touches her. Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian both love her to absolute bits. The relationship between Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian is more complicated, but contains no less love. Ripped apart by circumstances out of their control on top of being constantly compared to each other growing up, they still have each other’s backs and canonically would die for each other and prove this multiple times. Yunmeng trio my beloved❤️"

Livy & Mikey: "The twins in Rainbow Prince have such a lovely, sweet relationship. They love and trust each other, and distance clearly hadn’t affected this. Also they share a beautiful duet song about how they’ll always be here for each other, and I think that has to count for something!"