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#Eternal Yesterday
lurkingshan · 4 months
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Japanese BL Starter Pack
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It’s been awhile since I dropped a rec list, so I am here today to share one that is very near and dear to my heart—a Japanese bl primer for those who are new to the jbl game. I created this for @neuroticbookworm to help her on her journey when she decided she wanted to start getting into Japanese works. The fandom (on Tumblr and generally) tends to focus primarily on Thai shows because they are the easiest to access for international fans, since Thailand is working its way toward world domination via ql media and wants us all to be able to watch. But there is a lot of great stuff to watch beyond the easy access Thai channels, and Japan is the country where this genre originated, so its shows are important for anyone who considers themselves a bl fan. Japan doesn’t cater nearly as much to the international audience so tracking down the shows sometimes takes some ingenuity and can-do spirit, but that’s part of the fun!
And so, the list! Bookworm is about halfway through it and having a ball, so I figured it was time to stop hoarding it and share it with anyone else who would like to dip their toes into jbl and isn’t quite sure where to start. A few notes: 
I am not here to teach you about the deep roots of the jbl genre or give you a primer on yaoi manga. I am by no means an expert and there are other places to find that information. Start here with this great post by @nieves-de-sugui and then maybe wander over to @absolutebl to read up more on the evolution of the genre.
This list is by no means an exhaustive accounting of every important Japanese bl ever made; it is simply a nice sampler platter of the cream of the crop among various styles you will find in jbl. Watching through this whole list will not only expose you to some fantastic shows, but also give you a sense of what makes jbl unique and how the country’s style differs from others, and point you toward the types of jbl you’ll like most (they tend to put shows in pretty specific style and tone lanes and once you find the ones you like there are lots more where that came from). 
If you’re coming to this post as a jbl lover and you don’t see your favorite here, I promise it’s not because I don’t love it very much; I simply had to make some choices to get this down to a reasonable shortlist. Feel free to leave extra recs for others to find! 
I’m putting these in a loose suggested watch order that will take you through the various jbl lanes in a kind of popcorn style, because I always think it’s good to change it up so you don’t get too stuck in one mode, and it works its way up to most of the extremely Japanese stuff (you will know what that means by the time you finish). But do what’s in your heart and change up the order if you want, friends, I am not the boss of you! 
Cherry Magic (Crunchyroll or grey)
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gif by @liyazaki
I believe everyone on Tumblr is pretty familiar with this one, which is not a coincidence—this is one of the most accessible jbls. Not in terms of actual access to watch it, mind you (we’ve all jumped through shady internet hoops to watch it) but in terms of its content and style. Cherry Magic is a classic workplace romcom with a magical twist, and it is charming af. It’s a great exemplar of Japan’s light and zippy comedy lane for bl—a lane in which, importantly, the romances stay chaste even when the actual plot is about sex, or lack thereof. My friend @waitmyturtles would kill me if I didn’t make sure you know that Cherry Magic also has a lovely follow up film. And bonus: there is now a Thai remake airing so if you watch the original you can get in on the discussion about the different adaptations between countries. This is pretty easy to find these days in all the usual places, but I strongly recommend watching it here.
Old Fashion Cupcake (Viki)
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Moving on to a slightly more mature workplace romcom. Old Fashion Cupcake, another Tumblr favorite, is an age gap boss-subordinate romance, and it’s both very adult and somehow wholesome af at the same time. Sure, there is a lot of carnal desire going on here, but there is also a lot of wooing via fluffy pancakes. It’s a tight five episodes and a fantastic example of what Japan, with its extreme technical precision in writing, directing, editing, pacing, and acting firing on all cylinders, can do in two hours. There’s not an ounce of flab on this thing and you’ll want to watch it over and over again.
Utsukushii Kare (Viki)
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Time to get a little weird! Weird is a key feature of Japanese media, and lots of jbls explore unusual relationship dynamics rooted in complex psychology. This is the first show on the list that will likely feel very Japanese if you’re new around here—my advice is to lean into it and finish the show, even if you get uncomfortable along the way. In Japanese media, discomfort always serves a purpose. This is a high school story with a twisted relationship at its center, and I’m not saying any more than that. Don’t spoil yourself and go watch it! This one also comes with two sequels—one short second season and one movie—that continue from the original story. They are less essential but still excellent.
I Cannot Reach You (Netflix)
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Next up, another high school tale, but with a totally different vibe. This show is kind of a revelation in its willingness to tell a story about overwhelming desire—including sexual desire—with young protagonists. It’s rooted in a classic but often misunderstood trope, friends to lovers, and takes the angst of it seriously, giving us a low stakes story that feels extremely high stakes to our leads. It’s also gorgeous and uses a classic Japanese visual style (bokeh) that you’ll be dying to learn more about. 
His (Viki)
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Time for a break from high school, and we’ll sprinkle in a movie for some added flavor. His is a jbl film featuring a second chance romance between a stoic, introverted man who moves to a remote town to start over, and his ex-boyfriend who follows him there unexpectedly, adorable child in tow. Importantly, this movie does not take place in what we often refer to as the “bl bubble” where homophobia doesn’t exist; the leads’ experiences of being gay men in a homophobic society are hugely important to the plot and themes of the story. It’s a beautiful film and I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched it. @bengiyo would surely also like me to tell you that this film follows a brief prequel show called His: I Didn’t Mean to Fall in Love about the characters originally meeting in high school; I do not think it’s really necessary to watch it but completists can start there.
The Pornographer series (Gaga)
By now you should be ready to get into some classic Japanese fucked up psychosexual material, right? Right! The Pornographer series is told in five installments in this order:
The Novelist, a six episode miniseries
Mood Indigo, a six episode prequel series
Spring Life, a 15 minute short
Pornographer: Playback, a two hour film
Spring Life Continued, a 15 minute short
Confused by that distribution model? So say we all; sometimes Japan likes to make us work for it to make sure we really appreciate its many gifts to us. The story across these installments is about a very difficult to love protagonist, what makes him the way he is, and the also-unhinged-but-in-a-different-way man who finally gets through to him. It’s an extremely satisfying love story and one of the best character arcs I have ever seen, full stop. For this one, you’ll want to just pull the word problematic out of your pocket and store it in a drawer; nearly everything that happens in this story is problematic and that’s the point. Lean in! All of these installments except for the film are on Gaga, if you get that far hmu and I will supply you with the final puzzle piece.
Our Dining Table (Gaga)
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You could probably use a break after those last two, so it’s time to shift over to a heart-tugging twofer: family trauma mixed with the cutest shit you’ve ever seen. ODT is an example of another classic type of Japanese show: the food drama (you will see the GOAT in this category at the end of this list). In Japanese culture, food is love, and the act of preparing food for your loved ones is a common path to romance. You’ll love this story about an isolated office worker who meets a pair of brothers, learns to cook as a way of connecting with them, and begins to heal from his own trauma as a result. The image above is a scan from the manga, which @troubled-mind curates to make extremely cool comparison sets like this one. Many jbls are faithful adaptations of yaoi manga source material, so it’s good to have a bit of familiarity with them.
Minato’s Laundromat (Gaga)
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Japanese media loves to explore taboo, and often manages to do it in a way that is surprisingly light and chaste. This is an age gap romance between a teenager and his adult neighbor that explores internalized homophobia, emotional repression, and falling in love across seemingly impossible social chasms. It’s also a great example of old school yaoi seme-uke dynamics that still show up across the bl genre. Also, take my advice: end your journey with this one with the first season and just pretend season 2 doesn’t exist.
Eternal Yesterday (Viki)
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Remember what I said about weird? Time to do that again, but with a heaping dose of grief and pain on top. It’s not a spoiler to tell you this show involves a major character death; a major character death is, in fact, the root of the entire story. This is a magic realist tale of first love turned tragic, and it will hurt and heal you. It is one of my favorite dramas of all time.
Restart After Come Back Home (Gaga)
And now for a break for your poor exhausted brain. This film is basically the jbl version of a Hallmark original movie, about a city boy who goes back home to the country and falls in love with a total sweetheart while working together on a farm. Enjoy it, bestie, you’ve earned it! 
Tokyo in April Is… (Gaga)
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You’ve probably noticed by now that emotional repression and failed communication are big themes in Japanese works. This second chance romance has plenty of both, and it’s a great example of a kind of muted emotional style that Japan does so well, where the surface of the story seems almost placid and calm even as deep emotion roils underneath. This one (and Eternal Yesterday above) are part of a special line up of jbls on Japanese channel MBS called Tonku (Drama) Shower. The shows air one after another in the same time slot on Fridays (in Japan, perhaps Thursdays for you depending on where you live) and you truly never know what you’re gonna get, but they’re all interesting. Warnings on this one for sexual assault and trauma. 
The End of the World With You (Viki)
Time for sexy and weird again, but even more so! This has to be one of the most unique bls ever made; it goes to some truly divine and strange places, and it feels incredibly queer while doing it. Made by the same screenwriter/director of the Pornographer series with a lot of the same sensibilities, but in a more heightened apocalyptic setting. This one has existential angst, a road trip, a redemption tale, and a variety of interesting side characters in the mix.
What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Gaga)
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Congratulations, you’ve reached the end of the list and your reward is watching one of the best bls of all time, and a perfect slice of life food drama to boot. WDYEY now has two seasons (along with a couple specials and a movie that fall in between) because the universe clearly loves us. You can now get it on Gaga for easy access but I’m partial to the versions over at @kinounaniresource for better subs. Wherever you watch, settle in to get cozy with Shiro and Kenji and make sure to always eat before you hit play.
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absolutebl · 5 months
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Hi ABL! After watching episode 1 of Between Us, I was impressed with the level of "thirst" between Boun and Prem's characters in the last couple of scenes. Are there shows or scenes of shows, regardless of actual heat level, that you think did "thirst" well, regardless of how that's resolved at the time? Subjective, I know, but would love to get your take on this!
20 BLs with the BEST Thirst!
Thirst wants to slide a hand under his waistband right tf now and grind. Horny wants to rip his clothes off, and probably pop buttons and laugh about it. Yearning wants to run both hands up his back while they kiss deeply. Hunger wants to lift him by the ass and slam him against the wall.
Raise your glasses please, to THIRST.
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I Cannot Reach You - Japan 2023
It's fresh in my mind, so first on this list.
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Secret Crush on You - Thailand 2022
This scene in particular sprang next to mind, just because for me it kinda defined thirst in Thai BL. (Also see my #1 pick for sides at the end.)
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Jun & Jun - Korea 2023
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We Best Love: Fighting Mr 2nd - Taiwan 2021
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2 Moons: Ambassador (AKA 2 Moons 3) - Thailand 2022
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Eternal Yesterday - Japan 2022
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Why R U? - Korea 2023
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HIStory 3 - the BL that shall not be named - Taiwan 2019
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Bed Friend - Thailand 2023
They sleeping together but King still thirsty af
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Big Dragon - Thailand 2022
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My Beautiful Man - Japan 2021
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Between Us - Thailand 2022-23
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Minato's Laundromat - Japan 2022
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Ghost Host Ghost House - Thailand 2022
the infamous leg scene alone qualifies them, but they very mutually thirsty in general
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My Personal Weatherman - Japan 2023
It's the point.
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I Feel You Linger in the Air - Thailand 2023
The oil scene is a stroke of genius.
Well, several strokes.
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Old Fashion Cupcake - Japan 2022
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I Told Sunset About You - Thailand 2020
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Love in Translation - Thailand 2023
Just because of that damn convenience store make-out scene.
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Nitiman - Thailand 2021
I find thirst is often (although not always) the provenance of the seme character.
Mutual thirst is really rare.
Side dish gravy
Shorts, side couples, and so forth.
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Oh My Sunshine Night - Thailand 2022
Noh appears 2x on this list. He's GREAT at thirst. Possibly the only Thai actor to give Japan real competition. GIVE HIM ANOTHER LEAD!
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HIStory 4: Close To You - Taiwan 2021
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Gen Y 2 - Thailand 2022
@heretherebedork and I call them PokeTongue for a reason.
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Y-Destiny - Thailand 2021
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kiss x kiss x kiss: Perfect Scandal - Japan 2022
No shocker that Japan is the only one to field a micro on this list. Usually thirst takes more build up.
Defining THIRST
I make a distinction between thirst and other types of physical desire. This is just me and language.
Thirst usually leaps off the screen and has an edge of danger to it. Like they gonna get caught, or go out of control just from wanting to touch. They gonna die without physical contact. It's pure survival need. Japan kinda specializes in this.
There's no humor to thirst, but horny can get kinda cheeky. It's more fun and mutual (ee.g. KinnPorsche). More want than need. So it's more Thailand and Taiwan.
There's also yearning (e.g. The 8th Sense), which has a more emotional soul tether to it. Korea in particular, but also like GMMTV and lower heat prestige stuff, high school things for example (My School President).
And finally hunger, which I tend to think of as desire but with a nourishment component. It's I want what's MINE. Like Taejung in Cherry Blossoms After Winter.
These aren't mutually exclusive, mind you.
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I dithered but they didn't quite make the list
Irresistible Love - China 2016
Second Chance - Thailand 2021
Takara & Amagi - Japan 2022
Love Area - Thailand 2022
Takumi-kun - Japan 2007
Moonlight Chicken - Thailand 2023
My Engineer (RamKing) - Thailand 2020
It's why we're all still mad we never got full RamKing
(source)
This posted dated end of 2023. Not responsible for thirsty BL that happens after. Check the comments for additions and other's thoughts on the matter.
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Aside from hands, what are your other favorite body language indicators?
I love this question, but I am afraid my answer might be quite boring because the body language indicators that I love vary from actor to actor. Singto, for example, has a lot of little ear movements that I found really incredible to watch in Shadow even if that show ended up fumbling at the end. I really loved the way Furuya Robin tensed his jaw when Sugimoto said some bullshit to him in his office in Episode 4. I love the way View uses her eyes as an emotion and thought indicator for Aylin in 23.5.
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Some actors are eye actors, some are mouth actors, some are forehead, or eyebrow, or full face actors. Sometimes it’s the way an actor sets their shoulders. How they play with tension in their own body, how they hold their breath and release it. How they fight to hold back tears. How Off was breathing during Ten’s panic attack. It’s the way Chris bit his lip when Qian is on the phone with Yuan in Unknown. It’s the way Nanon sets his jaw before Pran goes in for a deeper kiss in Episode 5 of Bad Buddy. 
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I love contrast and conflict, it’s why I’m so obsessed with characters like Kaz Brekker in Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, for example, because he loves Inej so deeply but he can’t touch her. So I love when a character says one thing but has a body response that tells me another.
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When their masks crack for just a second before slipping back on. I watched Philadelphia last night, and was struck so deeply when Andy’s voice broke and Tom Hanks was delivering lines with his voice was thick from holding back a deep and agonizing sob while trying to translate lines about life and living. It’s the way in Black Sails that Toby Stephens’ face falls in realization when Flint kills someone to stop them from shooting Silver, because he knows he’s just shown Silver his weakness. It’s the way light enters and leaves in Komiya Rio’s eyes and smile and posture in Eien no Kinou. 
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gif by @wanderlust-in-my-soul
TL;DR The body language indicators I enjoy are highly dependent on the actors on my screen.
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ginpotts · 5 months
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@userdramas event 12: loss ↳ eien no kinou (eternal yesterday)
no one remembers him as a living corpse. i cried so much, i felt like i was turning into a puddle of tears. in the end, my sadness never went away... and it probably never will.
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gillianthecat · 1 year
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I feel like Japanese BLs use place and space and landscape differently. Perhaps it’s as simple as the fact that Japanese architecture and plant life looks different from Thai, Korean or Taiwanese architecture and plant life. Perhaps it’s just that the Japanese industry generally has higher budgets and more experienced/skilled people behind the camera, which creates a certain look. But there’s something about the use of space, either expansive and wide open, or closed-in and intimate that’s… I don’t know what it is, but it feels like it’s something.
This was brought on in part by watching Eternal Yesterday and then watching @iguessitsjustme’s HiraKoyoi video (which almost made me cry this time, now that I’m primed to). And they got thinking about the way there’s a certain… almost desolate emptiness? that’s not the right feeling. perhaps just… openness, realness, slight wildness… to the landscape in this trio of small town high school BL I’ve watched recently, the two above plus Takara-kun to Amagi-kun. Even Kabe Koji somehow felt that way when they returned to their hometown. Is that just what all small towns look like in Japan? (Are they even set in small towns?) Or are these locations deliberate choices.
And even in city settings there’s a certain way that buildings and spaces are shot, inside and out. But I don’t know enough about filmmaking techniques to say what it is.
If anyone else has any thoughts on this I’d love to hear them. I’ve never been to any of these countries and haven’t watched all that much other media from there, outside of BLs, so I have little context, just vague feelings.
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bengiyo · 3 months
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We are headed into our final Drama Shower show of the season. How do you rank the shows we got this season and how are you feeling about the direction of the project?
What is Drama Shower and Why Does It Matter?
Before we get into rating these shows, I want to do a breakdown of what this is. To give you a sense of how big a deal Drama Shower is, fans are regularly updating a Wikipedia page for it with relevant links to follow the project. Also, there is a dedicated MDL page for it.
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Drama Shower is a dedicated half-hour programming block on MBS, a Japanese broadcaster that is over 70 years old, in conjunction with Kadokawa, a Japanese publisher and holding group, that plays BL content at 1:30 am on Fridays. The project's main producer is Kaoru Azuma, who is a self-described long-time BL fan. He wants to show that BL can do a variety of stories in genre, and has recently stated that he wants to produce original content through the project as well.
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We originally had six shows air through year one: Mr. Unlucky Has No Choice But to Kiss!, Senpai, This Can't Be Love!, Takara-kun to Amagi-kun, Eternal Yesterday, Candy Color Paradox, and Jack o' Frost.
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I originally reviewed these shows as overall a mixed bag, but showing great promise. I liked that they got more comfortable with depictions of m/m intimacy over time. I thought Mr. Unlucky was legitimately funny (9), Senpai never found its footing (6), Takara and Amagi mildly squandered their premise (8), Eternal Yesterday was extremely poignant (10), Candy Color Paradox had ambitions that exceeded its talent pool (7), and Jack o' Frost was a really strong finish (9.5).
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MBS seemed to enjoy the performance of this project enough to continue it for another year.
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For me, I think it's very significant to give BL itself a time slot to see how audiences are responding to BL as a concept compared to the pitch of individual shows. I'm really encouraged by MBS doing this. Even if you don't care about the name MBS, you have interacted with their content, because they are also behind Full Metal Alchemist and Haikyuu! anime adaptations.
Rating Year 2
I actually liked the way year 2 started, even if I'm a bit mixed on the end. I really loved opening with Tokyo in April is... I liked that they had BL trying to be topical. I think the show unfortunately conflates some things it shouldn't, but I loved TIAI and I loved Ren and Ryunosuke's experience being gay men. I liked the changes they made to the source material. This show was dark in a way that it owned, and I really like that. I gave it a 9.
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We then moved to My Personal Weatherman, and that went over well for the people who like to see really hot people go at it with each other. I actually enjoyed how much Yoh and Segasaki actively misunderstood each other even as they were speaking to each other. I don't know that they exactly completed their story, and I suspect that there may be a future outing for this show. Despite enjoying it, I think it didn't get all of its pieces together fully and gave it an 8.5.
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We then crossed over into uncertain territory with One Room Angel. Despite enjoying a lot of what was going on in this show, I don't actually think it's a romance. It's my understanding that the angel character is a lot younger in the source material, and so they may have been a little shy about how much they did with these characters on screen. I also don't think the storytelling was balanced between the leads. However, because I am susceptible to complex stories about grief, I gave this show an 8.
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Now, we have Sahara-sensei to Toki-kun. I hated this show so much. I think it makes the unfortunate mistake of asking me to care about how homophobia and public perceptions impacts people through its flashback drama, but then does nothing with that in the front. It sucked so hard, and I'm really disappointed because I thought this show had some of the most potential, and I thought Toki was one of the most watchable characters Drama Shower had produced. I ended up giving it a 4.
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Our next and final show (I think) for this outing is called My Strawberry Film. This one will also be in a high school, but I know little about it, other than we may have a GL plot in it.
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So, overall I'd give Drama Shower an 8. I think fans of BL, and especially Japanese BL, should continue to show up and support it. The fact that we have a dedicated programming block is important. The fact that none of these shows has felt like a retread so far is super important. Drama Shower is varied. There is something in here for almost everyone. Drama Shower is the biggest commitment to BL we've had from a distributor other than GMMTV's ongoing BL slate. Taiwan has Vidol doing is four projects, but Drama Shower is the first time I know of that a Japanese distributor has focused on BL in a meaningful, ongoing way. We should stick with it.
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Koichi. It's okay. I will never forget you. Until the day I die, I will never forget you. Koichi is my number one. I love you the most.
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bl-bracket · 11 months
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Best Kiss in a BL Bracket
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Round One
Pat and Pran First Kiss (Bad Buddy) vs Kochi and Mitsuru Bed Kiss (Eternal Yesterday)
Jaewon and Jihyun Ep 9 Kiss (The Eighth Sense) vs Gavreel and Cairo First Kiss (Gameboys)
Seojoon and Jiwoo Ep 4 Kiss (To My Star 2: Our Untold Stories) vs Gao Shi De and Zhou Shu Yi Drunk Kiss (We Best Love: Fighting For Mr. 2nd)
Tinn and Gun First Kiss (My School President) vs Hira and Kiyoi Hand Kiss (Utsukushii Kare)
Vegas and Pete Hospital Kiss (Kinnporsche: The Series) vs Wan and Kitae First Kiss (Our Dating Sim)
Kan and Thua "Asleep" Kiss (The Eclipse) vs Sean and White Final Kiss (Not Me: The Series)
Siwon and Duan First Kiss (Blueming) vs Phupha and Tian Forehead Kiss (A Tale of a Thousand Stars)
Akk and Ayan Underwater Kiss (The Eclipse) vs Tin and Tol Final Kiss (Triage)
Nozue and Togawa First Kiss (Old Fashion Cupcake) vs Ai and Nhai Cheek Kiss (Ai Long Nhai)
Palm and Nueng Ep 9 Kiss (Never Let Me Go) vs Korn and Intouch Stolen Kiss (Until We Meet Again)
Pat and Pran Ep 7 Kiss (Bad Buddy) vs Ram and King Tent Kiss (My Engineer)
Kinn and Porsche First Kiss (Kinnporsche: The Series) vs King and Uea Morning Kiss (Bed Friend)
Hira and Kiyoi Final Kiss (Utsukushii Kare 2) vs Puen and Talay Forehead Kiss (Vice Versa)
Teh and Oh Aew Underwater Kiss (I Told Sunset About You) vs Gu Hai and Bai Luo Yin Drunk Kiss (Addicted)
Sound and Win First Kiss (My School President) vs Dean and Pharm First Kiss (Until We Meet Again)
Sean and White First Kiss (Not Me: The Series) vs Ye Guang and Xu Qi Zhang First Kiss (About Youth)
Kinn and Porsche Goodbye Kiss (Kinnporsche: The Series) vs Tongfah and Paper Ep 3 Kiss (Second Chance: The Series)
Nuea and Toh Ep 7 Kiss (Secret Crush on You) vs Tin and Tol Bed Kiss (Triage)
Hojoon and Jaeyoon Final Kiss (Roommates of Poongduck 304) vs Zi Xuan and Yu Hao Net Kiss (HIStory 2: Crossing the Line)
Sky and Prapai Final Kiss (Love in the Air) vs Siwon and Daun Dream Kiss (Blueming)
Vegas and Pete First Kiss (Kinnporsche: The Series) vs Palm and Nueng Beach Kiss (Never Let Me Go)
Payu and Rain Victory Kiss (Love in the Air) vs Yi and Kon Diao Sofa Kiss (Cutie Pie: The Series)
Mark and Vee Ep 3 Kiss (Love Mechanics) vs Arthit and Kongpob Ep 14 Kiss (SOTUS: The Series)
Gao Shi De and Zhou Shu Yi Bridge Kiss (We Best Love: No. 1 For You) vs Gun and Cher Ep 10 Kiss (A Boss and a Babe)
Jaeyoung and Sangwoo Ep 7 Kiss (Semantic Error) vs Bai Lang and Jin Xuan First Kiss (My Tooth Your Love)
Seojoon and Jiwoo Final Kiss (To My Star 2: Our Untold Stories) vs Pluem and Kevin First Kiss (Ghost Host Ghost House)
Milk and Uncle Final Kiss (Choco Milk Shake) vs Payu and Rain Ep 5 Kiss (Love in the Air)
Tan and Bun Couch Kiss (Manner of Death) vs Mark and Vee Shower Kiss (Love Mechanics)
Neo, Shin, and Mew Beach Kiss (3 Will Be Free) vs Sound and Win Forehead Kiss (Our Skyy 2 x My School President)
Lian and Kuea Siam Paragon Kiss (Cutie Pie) vs Win and Team Be Brave Kiss (Between Us/Until We Meet Again)
Tinn and Gun Park Kiss (My School President) vs Khai and Third First Kiss (Theory of Love)
Akk and Ayan Dream Kiss (The Eclipse) vs Seriyo and Yuzuru Bedroom Kiss (Seven Days: Friday - Sunday)
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blbeloved · 4 months
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BLs That Heal
Tough times all around so #FujinHaven did an informal survey of BLs fans find healing, help them feel better about themselves, more calm and optimistic
The titles,grouped by theme, are rich in emotions and intimacy; inspiring; absorbing; cathartic and humorous too
Healing for those dealing with loss, shame and grief:
#Egoist 🇯🇵
#EternalYesterday 🇯🇵
#GameBoysTheSeries 🇵🇭
#HesComingToMe 🇹🇭
#OneRoomAngel 🇯🇵
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Oxytocin drips:
#MySchoolPresident 🇹🇭
#HIStory3Trapped 🇹🇼
#CherryMagic 🇯🇵
#ALeagueOfNobleman 🇨🇳
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Serotonin boosters:
#LoveSick 🇹🇭
#AdvanceBravely 🇨🇳
#LoveInTranslation 🇹🇭
#Addicted 🇨🇳
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Soft Tops:
#SemanticError 🇰🇷
#MyRide 🇹🇭
#LoveByChance 🇹🇭
#UnforgottenNight
#SecretCrushOnYou 🇹🇭
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Can’t cry but really want to cry and it will all be worth it:
#KillerAndHealer 🇨🇳
#NirvanaInFire 🇨🇳
#TheUntamed 🇨🇳
#ToSirWithLove 🇹🇭
#HanhPhucXaBay 🇻🇳
#UntilWeMeetAgain 🇹🇭
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Visuals and Vibes:
#DinosaurLove 🇹🇭
#MrCinderella 🇻🇳
#BoysLockdown 🇵🇭
#2Gether 🇹🇭
#HelloStranger 🇵🇭
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Lots of laughs and smiles:
#WinterBegonia 🇨🇳
#BonAppetit 🇰🇷
#StupidGenius 🇻🇳
#BoyNextDoor 🇰🇷
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Enjoy the list and check out the first feminist reviews of live-action BL at Fujin Haven blog https://fujinhaven.portfolial.com
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duckflyfly · 1 year
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Micchan is very warm.
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hokkienmee · 2 months
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Drama: Eien No Kinou 永遠の昨日 Lyrics: DISH// - あたりまえ (translated by sevenmoonstory)
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lurkingshan · 7 months
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Finally, I thought of a question! What shows, if any, did you rate a 10 on MDL, and why? And if you haven't rated any a 10, why not?
Oh snap! Yes thank you, I will take the opportunity to promote some extremely well-executed dramas. First, a note on how I think of drama ratings: I try to always judge shows by their own standards and I think primarily about the execution of the story rather than my own personal emotional reactions. For me, a 10/10 means the drama executed its own vision and purpose with a high degree of fidelity and is virtually without flaws in that execution. So for me, a short kbl romcom can get a 10 and so too can a 70 episode cdrama historical epic. I am not comparing them to each other, but rather to the standards of their own genres and the scale of their own ambitions.
That said, I'm a stingy b (@bengiyo, @waitmyturtles and @neuroticbookworm can attest) and dramas without significant flaws are actually pretty hard to come by. Calibrating a story perfectly to fit within all the constraints of filmmaking is actually an extremely difficult balance of art and science. Drama creation is hard work! As I was discussing with @sorry-bonebag the other day, most dramas are either too short or too long and it throws off the pacing and results in some questionable story decisions. And there are often other motives and considerations that have nothing to do with art getting in the way (hello capitalism!) Some of my personal all-time favorites do not get a 10 because I have issues with choices they made somewhere in the storytelling (waves hello to my beloveds Bad Buddy and Coffee Prince). I have completed 346 dramas that are trackable on MDL (with another 9 currently in progress) and only 10 of them have received a 10 from me. There are a whole slew rated 9 and 9.5 though, and those are all excellent and you should check them out. And of course I must include the caveat that there are some rumored all-time bangers that I have still not had the chance to watch and may someday become a 10.
So, which 10 dramas succeeded in passing my very high bar for a 10/10 rating? Drumroll please…
Ein no Kinou (Eternal Yesterday)
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Go Ahead
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Happiness
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I Told Sunset About You
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Kinou nani tabeta (What Did You Eat Yesterday?)
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La Pluie
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Old Fashion Cupcake
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Our Dating Sim
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Semantic Error
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The Rebel Princess
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absolutebl · 6 months
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Which Japanese BLs should Thailand actually remake?
I should say up front I am NOT a purest. I actually like seeing different country's takes on IP. It says a lot about the culture in question and how they perceive themselves and queerness. I don't have "babies" so Thailand can fuck around with whoever they want to IMHO.
However, I do think Ossan's Love is a poor choice. And much as I love the original I think My Love Mix Up is a fine choice and Gem4 will do a great job.
But still, let's play a game.
The JBLs that GMMTV should adapt
You ready to be offended?
Seven Days - oh yes, I said it. ME! This BL is actually perfect (I WILL FIGHT YOU), but I think it would be fun to see what GMMTV could do with such an elegant piece of clean storytelling. It's right in their wheelhouse. I want an 8 ep run: One ep for each day plus one for them as a couple.
Minato's Laundromat - give us the age gap we deserve, Thailand.
Mr. Unlucky Can Only Kiss - I think Thailand could do a much better job with this one, frankly.
Eternal Yesterday - and give it a happy ending, damn it
Candy and Kiss - I'd love to see Thailand adapt this underappreciated little manga.
Takumi-kun - YES, I said it... bite me.
Wait For Me at Udagawachou - this is a long pull (and QL not BL) so I think only the 180 Degree people could handle it, but I'd love to see Thailand try.
Hand if off to Taiwan instead
My Personal Weatherman
My Beautiful Man
Tokyo in April
Silhouette of Your Voice
Same Difference - fucking please adapt Docchi Mo Docchi Taiwan, I will love you FOREVER. This is a GREAT IP that was criminally mishandled by Japan.
Hand if off to Korea Instead
Given
Kabe Koji
I Want to See Only You
Senpai, This Can’t be Love!
Jack o'Frost
Fujimi Orchestra
Ones I Think No One Else Can Handle
Our Dining Table
Takara & Amagi
Old Fashion Cupcake
Life: Love on the Line
His
What Did You Eat Yesterday?
The Cornered Mouse Dreams of Cheese
I'm gonna remind you all the Thailand has already adapted Love Stage!! and they did a better job than Japan, IMHO.
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(source)
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wen-kexing-apologist · 4 months
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Late top 5 ask because I just thought of it: 5 shows that you are always down to rewatch
What a great question that is also such a mean and incredibly evil thing to ask me, wen-kexing-apologist, Chronic Rewatcher lmfao
So fun fact I have seen KinnPorsche 14 times, Our Flag Means Death 11 times, The Old Guard 11 times, Heartstopper 11 times, The Eclipse probably 6 times, Bad Buddy and ITSAY 4 times, etc, etc, etc. And those are counting all the times I have watched a show all the way through. This is not counting the number of times I have actively gone back to watch specific episodes or specific scenes.
See the problem is sometimes I hyperfixate and then I just have to watch it until it is out of my system, sometimes an OST pops in to my head and then I get the urge to watch the show again, and sometimes I agree to edit the transcripts for the backlog of @the-conversation-pod and @bengiyo and @shortpplfedup start talking about a show and I'm like "ahhh good times! I should rewatch that!"
So you can imagine the stress I am under. I'll have to do this by category
Show I Am Constantly Rewatching: Bed Friend
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I know what you may be thinking, and yes you are correct I am in this rewatch for Uea's emotional journey. Uea is my sweet summer child, I love him, I have adopted him in to my family, his happiness is my happiness and I love love love watching him go from a quiet, reserved, unhappy character who keeps getting put in unfair situations through no fault of his own in to this confident, vibrant, happy person who is on his way towards healing. Often times it can be hard for me to pick A Favorite thing; a favorite character, a favorite scene because there are so. many. good. ones. But I am constantly, and I mean constantly rewatching the scene in Episode 8 where Uea tells King about his past. I have lost count of how many times I've seen it, no even kidding I watched that scene before I went to bed just last week. I will always always be down to watch that show because I love seeing how far my boy is able to grow with just a little bit of love, care, and therapy.
Show I Would Rewatch for an Instant Mood Boost: If It's With You
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I have a difficult time understanding/feeling emotion in my body unless I abstract it in to fiction. So when I experience strong emotions it is typically when something super happy or super tragic happens on screen, in a book, during my D&D game, etc. One of my absolute favorite things is when something makes me so happy that my body is no longer able to contain it and I have to do the Neurodivergent Hand Flappies(TM). I think I spent 80% of this show grinning so hard it hurt my face and doing the Neurodivergent Hand Flappies because it just...they made me so happy. Amane is so sweet, and he deserves happiness, and he is getting his happiness and he's just full of sunshine and I already rewatched this show like immediately after it finished. This show joins my This Could Fix Me list.
Show I Would Be Down to Rewatch for Emotional Catharsis: Eternal Yesterday
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I have not rewatched this show...yet. But I want to, and I know that I will eventually. I can only imagine that it is sadder and more evil the second time around. I cried soooo hard over this show. But it is beautiful, and it is healing, and the pain is a good type of aching pain that comes with coming to terms with grief. With acknowledging grief. With finding where the beauty and peace lie within death and memory, and the way its claws dig in to you and leave you changed forever. Ghosts can be warm, and this show makes me warm despite it all.
Show I Would Be Down to Rewatch for Content: I Told Sunset About You/I Promised You the Moon
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I think I am in @shortpplfedup's camp about how you find new things to think about every time you watch this show. I actually desperately, desperately own I Promised You the Moon several rewatches because I have seen ITSAY four times at this point and IPYTM once. I am currently rewatching IPYTM with a friend who is seeing it for the first time, so that should help. But the first time I watched this show I was unable to function to notice anything, and it wasn't until the third time I'd watched ITSAY when I was rewatching it to prepare for the podcast panel, that I finally was able to form any level of coherent analytical thought to it. So I would rewatch this at any point just to see what more I could pull out of it.
Show I Would Be Down to Rewatch But Haven't Yet: 180 Degree Longitude Passes Through Us
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Bold, based on how intense of a reaction I had to this show, I know. But this was one of my favorites, I never wrote anything about it because I was too busy having a literal mental breakdown over it, one that was so bad I almost had to bail on the entire show with like...20 minutes left of it, and I originally nixed my plan to show it to a friend. BUT I have watched the specific scene that did me in (and only that scene) and it went over fine once I knew to expect it so I do want to watch the whole thing again. I have a friend who I have been forcing to watch BL shows I liked and I watch them with her, and this is on the list. However, I am currently running her through I Promised You The Moon and What Did You Eat Yesterday? Season 2 so this show is still quite a ways out from a rewatch because I am not a total monster and want to give her some modicum of emotional break between those two shows and 180 Degree.
Bonus:
Show I Would Never Rewatch: Enchante
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I hate this show truly an unreasonable amount. I hate Theo so much oh my fucking god. I refuse to watch this again and I'm mad that I finished it.
ASK ME MY TOP 5 OF ANYTHING BL
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ginpotts · 9 months
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@userdramas event 08: heat [ insp 1 | 2 | 3 ] ↳ an assortment of ❤️‍🔥 jbl moments (✿◠‿◠)
fumiya & ritsu -- jack o' frost (2023) koichi & mitsuru -- eien no kino (2022) hira & kiyoi -- utsukushii kare (2021) togawa & nozue -- old fashioned cupcake (2022)
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waitmyturtles · 6 months
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WELL???? HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO LIVE THE REST OF MY DAY AFTER THAT????
I Feel You Linger in the Air, episode 11:
I didn't write about episode 10 last week due to life circumstances; I know my dear friends @lurkingshan and @neuroticbookworm took issue with the ways in which pieces of the narrative from episode 9 were left on the ground. I was feeling basic last week and enjoyed the soapy drama arcs, but I do agree with Shan and NBW that last week's episode was a touch watery and wanting.
NOT THIS ONE.
THIS EPISODE? Y'all know I've been mostly watching older series this year. Of NEW series that I've watched this year? With the caveat that I haven't watched La Pluie yet, this episode 11 of IFYLITA may be the single best episode of a new series I've seen this year. WHY?
Tee Bundit let this story tell itself. No interference. He let Nonkul and Bright take the lift, and tell the script TO US. THEY ARE CIPHERS. They let the emotion of this moment, the MOMENT THEY ARE HOLDING ON TO AS YAI AND JOM, TELL THIS STORY.
MY GOD. THE ROOM WE HAD TO EXPLORE ALL OF THE EMOTIONS.
Oh god! Every time they met together, the controlled intensity, the KNOWING of the time they had left, and still! Yai flirting with Jom in the bed as Jom is drawing his portrait! We coulda had tears! No, Yai just jumped him instead!
Jom sees Yai standing in the garden! Back hug, chin snuggle! These two are ENJOYING ALL OF THEIR EMOTIONS TOGETHER, knowing what little time they have left. They are not leaving ANYTHING on the table in terms of their interactions. They're not gonna sit in the corner and sob! THEY WILL LIVE AND LOVE THE REST OF THEIR DAYS TOGETHER.
That dance scene. The leaning in. The emotion of foreheads touching. The achievement of Jom to get a moment of equality for the house servants, to not work, to be friends all together in one room, to transcend caste and wealth, to be accepting of Yai and Jom's love, Jom coordinating for Yai a moment where Yai can be out and safe, as Jom was in his future life, around people that love them together.
FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK.
Also, god. The Eaung Paeng storyline. As a mom, I am gritting my teeth and hoping for the DAMN best for EP, because she deserves the best. I do not want anything happening to EP. 1928 -- not necessarily a year I think of as a high point for women's healthcare. Carrying the baby of a man you hate? Probably the worst-case life scenario I could possibly think of.
Shit, y'all, this episode took me OUT. @slayerkitty! I don't easily cry at shows, but I SOBBED.
I'm just blubbering. Best work I've ever seen by Tee Bundit, and I've seen almost all of it this year. Episode 12 will be hard to top; if it doesn't top this episode, I can't exactly blame Tee, because this was an artistic HEIGHT.
P.S. @lurkingshan IS RIGHT. This will TAKE YOU OUT if you're an Eternal Yesterday/Eien no Kinou girlie like me.
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