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wen-kexing-apologist · 1 year

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By god do I just need to scream into the ether about the Heart and co. confrontation scene.

First, the tension, incredible. Gemini and Fourth are phenomenal actors. Heart and Li Ming know they are walking in to a very emotionally fraught situation and their hesitation is palpable.

It's scene breakdown time babyyyy! Let's start from the beginning

For a boy who admitted last episode that he has no idea what he is doing, he sure keeps doing things right. He's letting Heart know he's going to talk. Now, granted I don't know what he is saying here precisely if he is just simply saying "I'm going to talk for us/first", "I'll interpret," or if he's saying "I'm going to talk?", I don't think his face moves in any way that would imply a question, but his face is partially obscured. Either way he is at the very least keeping Heart in the know, and at the most asking for Heart's explicit consent to lead this conversation. You can't see it from pictures, but I appreciate the fact that before they cut back to the wide shot, Heart nods, so we as an audience, and Li Ming as the speaker here knows that Heart is okay with the power dynamics at play, with Li Ming talking for both of them.

It's a blink and you'll miss it moment, thankfully I'm obsessed with this scene and therefore have been looping it endlessly, but I feel compelled to point out the way eye contact in this moment goes a long way in conveying how Heart's Mom and Li Ming view Heart. When Heart's mother points to her son she doesn't even look at him. The most she does is cast a downward glance at his bandage, and that's before she even points. And you can argue all you want that she doesn't look at him because she's specifically talking to and addressing Li Ming. But I call bullshit on that because Li Ming is specifically talking to and addressing Heart's mother, and he's looking straight in to Heart's eyes when he refers to and gestures towards Heart. I'm sure that both of these characters believe they love and care about Heart, but of these two characters which one actually recognizes Heart's personhood?

But uh oh! Li Ming stood up for himself and for Heart, and talked back to not just an adult, but a powerful adult. And now she's mentioning past debts, and now there will be more to pay as a result. And Li Ming can only work so much with school and life and everything. He clearly doesn't know what he's getting himself in to, or what he has gotten himself in to. Li Ming and Heart's Mom are both getting angry, tensions are rising, something needs to happen to de-escalate the situation or this might go wrong. Uncle Jim absolutely must intervene (I hope you can hear the sarcasm in my voice). Interesting note: Guess who else doesn't look at their child when making a decision for them. Jim does look at Li Ming directly after this though, but it's to ask him why he did it. It's to place the blame for the accident on Li Ming. "You Li Ming, why did you do it?" "Heart asked me to." "Stop saying that."

Jim is scared, Li Ming is pissed. "He was bored at home" "I said stop!" Jim is used to the way powerful and wealthy people can control and punish the poor. Jim and Li Ming have had conversations before that indicate this very mindset. Jim has mentioned power to Li Ming before and Li Ming's response has always been "what, so we just let them?" "He's a police officer so he can just do anything he wants to us?" to a young adult like Li Ming, this is an absurdity, to an older man like Jim, this is a reality. "he can just do anything he wants to us?" the answer is yes. Which is why Jim is so desperate to get Li Ming to stop talking here. But it just serves as a reminder to Li Ming that Jim thinks he's a child, and that he needs all his battles fought for him. If Li Ming doesn't keep pushing, nothing is going to change (social and political commentary anyone?)

"There you go again," Heart's mother says, and this is Li Ming's initial reaction. This moment of annoyance and anger that this woman who doesn't even know him is once again accusing him of something he didn't do. This woman who is pointing once again to her son without even a glance in his direction "You know that he's mute, so you can say whatever you want?" First of all, even people who are mute have ways to communicate, so it's not like even if he was mute Heart would be helpless. Hell, even if Heart was mute he still has fucking sign language.

The face of a woman who was, in fact, not aware that deaf people dislike being called mute.

GUESS WHO FINALLY LOOKS AT HER SON AFTER THAT!!!! Please please if the writers are kind and merciful, this will be the point in the show where Heart's mother does so deep deep introspection and realizes how much she has fucked up. "He's just deaf," Li Ming says, loudly, and he steps forward, to try to engage Heart's mom in further conversation, in more dialogue. And what does Jim do? Pulls him back, takes him off his even footing "I said stop,"

The face of a man who is very scared for the trouble his nephew might be getting himself in to, and the face of his nephew who is very disappointed that his uncle keeps not only backing down, but forcing him to back down as well. Who keeps asking him, in these small ways to lie instead of tell the truth. To remain quiet, to take the blame, to stick to the status quo.

And then the part I hate (emotionally) begins. Heart asks Li Ming to tell him what they're saying. And I hate it because Heart's parents refusing to learn sign language does not only hurt Heart but it hurts everyone around him, themselves included. But specifically here, it hurts Li Ming, because he has to be the one to look Heart in the face and repeat the words his mother said, knowing that to do so will hurt Heart. Knowing that he has to be the one to hurt Heart.

And this moment is also a great reminder for the audience as well that no one else knowing sign language creates really uncomfortable power dynamics between the person who is able to interpret and the Deaf person. Because Li Ming is hesitant to repeat it. Heart has to repeatedly grab his arm, repeatedly ask Li Ming to tell him what was said. Li Ming has absolute power over Heart right now, to refuse to say it, or to flat out lie. He doesn't, but it also should not be Li Ming's decision whether or not Heart knows, accurately, what was said. Even after we see it in his face that Li Ming agrees to translate, he still hesitates for a few seconds to move, to reach for the notepad, to have to write it down.

And once he writes it down, Li Ming's eyes do not leave Heart. He is honed in on Heart, on Heart's face, on his shoulders, hell even on the back of his head until Heart asks him to translate. And god as much as I hate this moment in the scene for the pain that it causes Li Ming, I hate it even more for the pain that it causes Heart.

He is fucking livid. Rightfully so, because HE'S NOT FUCKING MUTE, HE'S HAD LANGUAGE THIS ENTIRE GODDAMN TIME. He just wants to live his life like everyone else AND HE HAS TO TELL HIS PARENT'S THAT USING SOMEONE ELSE'S VOICE. Because they have refused to use his own. GOD. I'll be surprised if anyone makes it this far down in the post but I just...AHHHH I have no coherent thoughts about this moment, I just....Heart's parents do fucking better. Damn. And the worst part of this scene is yet to come because his Mom tries for like 0.2 seconds, but it looks like she's going to start signing something and Heart just looks SO surprised.

He's so focused on it, he's paying so much attention to it. Is this it? Is this the moment he finds out that his mother has actually been trying? That she has learned and is ready to start using sign language with him? To talk to him, to understand him?

No.

She can't do it. She doesn't know how to. And it's just..it's so easy to see how much hope he had for just a second, how much that one millisecond of effort obliterated all the logic in his head that told him they didn't know it, they didn't care. And how quickly that disappointed anger snaps right back in to place. So Heart starts talking, in sign language, like he has been able to do for years, and he speaks his mind, and his mother still can't understand him. And we see the same dynamic here as with the "mute" comment. Heart's Mom wants Li Ming to translate, Heart wants Li Ming to translate, Li Ming knows how hurt Heart is, and yeah, probably some of his hesitation in voicing what Heart said is because he knows what Heart said will hurt her. But more so because I think it hurts Li Ming to know how much pain Heart is in.

God, poor Heart, literally having to beg to be heard.

"He said you are ashamed of him being deaf,"

His mother shakes her head and says "Heart, I'm sorry. I don't know what to say, dear," and therein lies the problem. She doesn't know what to say, she never has. She has never bothered to learn how to communicate with him since he went deaf. She has kept him locked away. And it doesn't matter if she thinks she did that to keep him safe, Heart feels like he's being hidden away. And she doesn't say "No. No I'm not ashamed. I have never been ashamed." she doesn't know what to say. Because she can't say that. She can't deny that, and it just confirmed everything that Heart has known. So he leaves, because that's too much to handle.

Bullshit 'he'll be fine, honey'. Your fucking son just told you that you never bothered to learn sign language in THREE FUCKING YEARS, and stormed away after admitting that he feels like you are ashamed of him, and you think no need to go after him, he'll be fine??? Fuck you. ACAB.

Does this...

look like...

he's fine, to you?

No. I didn't think so.

I don't really feel like I need to say much about this last shot. It stands on its own so strongly. Mirrors reflecting back, Heart and Li Ming only ever being able to see each other, to be seen by each other. Warm light at Heart's back, Li Ming in front of him, sandwiched between warmth in all of that blue, isolating coldness. All that evidence of how much time and the energy Heart has spent learning sign language. I don't know what the post-its say, I don't know that I want to know.

I don't know if they are notes Heart has written to himself when he was learning, and this is just what remains of his effort. Honestly I hope it's that, because if it is what I think it is, general, every day responses that he might have to give in reply to his parents that he can just pull off his wall and return, that is so much fucking worse. Because then its just the evidence of all the effort Heart has put in to communicate with his parents on their level when they have not put in the same effort to communicate on his. Even if it's something cute, even if it's all the notes that he and Li Ming have passed back and forth to each other over the last few months, serving as a reminder that someone cares, you still are left with the heartbreaking shot of two young men, desperate to be understood by their families, only having each other to hold on to, surrounded by reminders that they are the only two people that can understand each other. No matter how hard they try.

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circuscl0wn · 1 year

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To BL Fans who post Analysis❤️

Shout out to all the BL Fans who do analysis on series and decipher scenes, shots, coloring, cinematography, and more🫶🏾 there’s so much that I don’t notice at times or things that I do notice but just can’t put it into words and y’all come around and do it FLAWLESSLY.

Don’t ever feel crazy/weird for having a long ass post analyzing an episode or a particular scene. Cuz not only will I read it but many others will. I can say that I learn SO MUCH from coming onto this platform and seeing others thoughts. Thank you for your analysis because they allow people to make connections they hadn’t before, allows them to laugh, allows them to cry in realization. Additionally your analysis allows people to feel relief that you were able to vocalize what they were thinking but couldn’t explain.

#did I write this because I just read several moonlight chicken analysis posts back to back? Yes #you are all amazing #bl drama #thai bl #gmmtv #moonlight chicken #my school president #literary analysis #analysis #lgbtq drama #asianlgbtqdramas #lgbtq series

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akkpipitphattana · 10 months

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i’m making this it’s own post because i haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since i wrote those tags this morning.

in ep5 of moonlight chicken, during the alanwen breakup talk, a waiter walks up and asks if they want him to rekindle their fire so they can continue their meal and wen says they’re done. obviously there’s meta there about the “fire” of their relationship dying and wen saying no is a way to emphasize that they are truly over. HOWEVER, it’s even more meta when you consider the fact that it’s p’aof playing the waiter.

if you didn’t already know, p’aof is the director of moonlight chicken. so in this scene, you have the director, the person who decides where the story goes and how it plays out, asking his character if he wants him to rekindle the fire of his previous relationship and that character says no.

it’s. there is SO MUCH to that. like first of all just the acknowledgement of that offer being put out there. p’aof asking wen “do you want me to give you these feelings back? to fix this relationship with this person you cared so deeply for? i can do that for you. do you want that?” and wen says no.

he doesn’t want that. he loves alan, but not the same as he once did. he doesn’t want that relationship anymore, he wants what he has with jim. and in this scene, he is ACTIVELY CHOOSING to cut off what he’d been holding onto with alan. not just by having this conversation in the first place, but in telling his creator he doesn’t want him to rekindle their flame. ITS CRAZY.

#every p’aof show has so many fucking layers it’s crazy #moonlight chicken #alanwen #mine #my analysis

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dropthedemiurge · 1 year

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I am once again fascinated by P’Aof’s power in filming and intentional message for every episode (hello to the Metaphors Overflowing episode lol).

It’s so clear that the overall theme of this episode was ‘the ending’. (SPOILERS for Moonlight Chicken EP 7 below!)

First of all, a very obvious one – Ms.Hong gone, it’s the end of her life, it’s another parent of Gaipa gone, he’s alone and heartbroken now, in need of someone to stay by his side – but his possible relationship with Jim ended right before this episode as well (and completely finalized now). He says he doesn’t want to be the good and kind guy anymore, because kind guys give out love and get nothing in return. Gaipa got his world shaken and turned upside down, it’s time for him to find a new anchor.

Then the relationship between Alan and Wen – yes, they broke up already but again, it’s final once and for all in this episode. Now they confirmed for sure that nothing could’ve saved their relationship they’ve been clinging to so hard all those months. But the bond is still there. The soft smiles and letting each other go are there. The end of 5-years-old couple.

The end of unfair gap misunderstanding between Jim and Liming we witnessed as well – when Jim finally got the advice and started listening and talking to his nephew. What does he want? Why did he try to smoke? Why is he gay? What are his plans for the future? Come on, grab a beer and tell me. I’m going to let you make the decisions for yourself. It’s the end of their conflict, now they are equal adults.

It’s the end of Jem’s abstence from Li Ming’s life. He might not want his mom back in his life or himself back into hers – but his mom is here now and she wants to take care of him, now it’s up to Li Ming to choose.

And, well, Heart got the closure of his conflict with parents in this episode as well. Now both his mom and dad FINALLY after three years let him outside and they even make effort to communicate in sign language with him. He’s already on the path of having a different life.

I also loved how mature the relationships were shown – yes, they established JimWen heading towards dating finally, they hinted at Alan meeting Gaipa as well, but Wen takes care of Alan and Jim stays by Gaipa’s side throughout the whole funeral. There is no jealousy, no bitterness, just people who care about each other and understand that we need to help each other. Even Jim tried to help Alan (wow I was genuinely afraid of how that’d go, but seems like the bitterness from Alan towards Jim has almost faded too).

Following this message, Jim deciding not to use someone’s title deed and just closing Moonlight Chicken Diner which he was so proud of in the beginning... isn’t giving up. It’s not a sad finale. It’s not losing everything. It’s getting his closure with Beam and their dream, writing down a dot on disrespect from Beam’s parents. The closed restaurant is a metaphor of closure and a very obvious symbol.

All of the characters had something end this episode. But things have to end in order to face new beginnings.

Wen, Jim, Alan, Gaipa, Li Ming, Heart, Jem, even Leng and Praew – in the final episode we’ll see how each of them (and together) will move on. What new path will they choose? Some of them held to their past for too long. Finally, they’re free to choose.

#moonlight chicken #moonlight chicken series #moonlight chicken ep 7 #i swear i said i wasn't going to write analysis or thoughts #what IS THIS damn

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starburstfloat · 1 year

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The Inescapable (and Comforting!) Queer Lens of Moonlight Chicken and The Eighth Sense

I've watched quite a few BL series over the last few years, but something that's struck me (and others I've noticed from tumblr discourse!) is how two recent series Moonlight Chicken (Thai BL) and The Eighth Sense (Korean BL) both embody not only characters and a plot that centralize on real queer experiences, but also a distinctive lens that makes them so achingly and relatably queer that it would be a disservice to not dissect and analyze!

(Please bear with me as we tackle some foundational background info *cracks knuckles* so--) The lens is a really cool means to understand a piece of media because it's an artistic approach from the filmmakers to show us the world through a controlled perspective. The lens has a certain focus (also dubbed focalization). In Looking in: the art of viewing, narrative theorist Mieke Bal describes focalization as the relationship between point of view in a story alongside the vision/meaning that the observer consumes of said pov. So not only does the lens convey certain emotions, but it's the observers (aka audience watching the show) who add additional meaning to it.

This relationship gets really interesting to look at when you consider that traditionally a lot of BL has been created for straight women as a sort of fetishization of gay men (I'm generalizing here, but consider a lot of BL that feels like a straight couple dynamic).

But with these two recent series, the lens feels different. It feels like it's been filmed not only in a way that conveys queerness, but for a queer audience. This focalization creates a really special dynamic between the media and its relatability. It's one of those things where I feel like you just have to be gay to understand it, and that's probably why so many of us have found solace in these two series!

For these two works in particular, there's an undeniable focused aesthetic examination of how queer people see the world and interact with it. There's an artistic emphasis on how one's queerness is inescapable and omnipresent, and how it paints our character's world.

Let me stop rambling and try to show what I mean.

In Moonlight Chicken, this omnipresence is observable in the way the characters Wen and Jim meet in episode one. Wen gets drunk at Jim's restaurant, trying to stall on going home to his ex. The way the camera work plays out during this scene perfectly captures how queer people find and recognize one another without having to overtly express their queerness. Consider the first conversation they have after closing hours of the restaurant: the lens is focused on how subtly they are drawn to each other. There's the wide shot of both of them sitting and talking, something that may be dismissed as nothing more than a two-person shot, yet the way their bodies take up so much of the frame welcomes us to notice their body language and how open they are to one another. This, coupled with the alleyway shots later that cut to individual close ups of their faces, sometimes briefly scanning the other's, a mixture of hesitancy and recognition shaping their reactions, is so queer coded!!! Like!!!!! Hello??? I love how it all culminates to Jim saying "I don't have a wife yet...I'm sure you know my preference" like LMAOOO my dude.....it's been more than obvious but I'm glad you're saying it out loud.

I guess what I'm getting at here is that the way this has been filmed is so beautiful and comforting because it depicts how queerness is inextricably tied to how we process our world. It's in the way we instinctively tag others as being in or out of the community and find solace in that recognition, all while teetering the boundaries of our attractions and carefully assessing a situation to see whether the feelings are mutual, misinterpreted, or if it's safe to express who we are.

Moonlight Chicken manages to embody all of that in the most mind blowingly subtle ways across ALL OF ITS CHARACTERS!!!! I've never encountered any other show like it - it's simply stunning, and it's set the bar way too high now.

We also witness this comforting queer lens in The Eighth Sense. So far only two episodes are out, but the way this show has been filmed is already so much more mature, graceful, and emotionally relatable than most other BL shows I've seen. And again, I think this is because the filmmakers have utilized a lens that conveys how queer people see and interact with their world in a way that other BLs have failed to accomplish. The narrative focus is so strongly centered on our protagonists living in a straight world while they navigate and (in Jae Won's case) want to hide their queerness.

Here, the queer lens resides in the way the camerawork establishes a sense of evaluation and hesitancy. It's the way the camera lingers on how Ji Hyun shrinks a bit when the surf instructor lady jokes "you came here cause of the pretty girl on the poster didn't you?" or the way we get close up shots of Jae Won's annoyed face as he demands his friends stop asking why he broke up with his ex girlfriend. As a queer audience, these subtle clues are just so relatable. It's a reflection of our own lived experiences, of bottling up our inner selves and constantly having to monitor our reactions and behaviors in a straight landscape.

These shows aren't just giving us gay characters who Meet Cute and fall in Love and deal with some turmoil and live happily ever after - they are filmed in a way that forces us to see and be seen.

And I can't get enough.

#there's still so so much to say about both of these shows #but consider this a preliminary brain dump #tagging this under #rebecca should have minored in film studies or queer theory #moonlight chicken #the eighth sense #queer theory #film analysis #media analysis #여덟 번째 감각

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canonicallyanxious · 1 year

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going crazy over jim telling wen not to waste time on him because someone like him doesn't fit to be anyone's home only for wen to come straight to his house when he had nowhere else to go and resting his head on jim's shoulder just like he did at the end of episode 2 and jim LETTING him both times going absolutely STUPID

#sarah.txt #moonlight chicken #SCREAMING CRYING FOAMING AT THE MOUTH.#i wish i had smart analysis but it's late and work kicked my ass today and i'm all kinds of stressed #but u know when no one else got me i know the gay chickens got me #mlc meta #story meta

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akaane000 · 5 months

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Thinking about my cover image here:

the shot compiled by @i-got-the-feels (thank you very much for this lovely shot of Alan). When I was exploring with filters, I found this yellow highlighted filter and just thought about how well it brings out the alternative emotions in this particular shot (which was originally blue, as Blue = Alan according to @respectthepetty - I absolutely adore their analysis!)

So, I think the alternative version of this shot with the yellow highlights would represent how Alan was feeling at the moment, how he was feeling sad, depressive, and heartbroken at the prospect of his relationship ending (and yellow represents these feelings too - pls correct me if I'm wrong, I'm new to the whole colours world, wholly inspired by respectthepetty's colour analyses)

This thought just came to me while I was staring at this image so here you go :)

#colour analysis #moonlight chicken #alan #i love him sm #alanwen #mlc

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panncakes · 9 months

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only friends sounds interesting and fun but whenever i see stuff about it i feel like everyone else already has so much lore and knowledge about these characters and the actors and all the behind the scenes stuff that it feels like showing up to a test i didn't study for lmao

#i know these couples have an intense fanbase and im not that familiar with them #(first obvs from not me and i enjoyed him and khaotung in moonlight chicken)#but the depth of the analysis going around is so funny and so incomprehensible to me lmao #also i know im sorry i shouldve watched the eclipse but the only one im going back to school for is milklove at this point #school shows just dont hold my attention anymore

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distant-screaming · 1 year

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I cannot watch the new mlc episode for another 3 hours. Pain and suffering forever

#distant screaming screams into the void #mlc #moonlight chicken #why must I do things!!!!! why can I not simply do silly little gay analysis and live my silly little life!!#anyways I can't wait to go home and cry because of today's ep 😀👍

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wen-kexing-apologist · 1 year

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Heart's Vocalization Thoughts and Feelings

Hello and welcome to another round of Moonlight Chicken Posts That Literally No One @respectthepetty Specifically Asked For:

Heart Edition Round ?? i've lost count.

Mx. RTP may have gotten me hooked on red/blue through clothing but my first and truest love will always be lighting so I need everyone, but especially Professional Life Ruin-er Formerly Known as "Petty" (you're my best friend now, sorry I don't make the rules), to understand that this specific lighting ruined my life. Like on a cellular level, my body is a wasteland, my mind will never recover. Stepping in from the outside world, from Heart's world, Heart's life, Heart's home in to the rich, red, warmth of Li Ming's world, Li Ming's home. I've said it before, but I'll say it again, if my memory serves me correctly we never see Heart in warm lighting until the end of Episode 4, and we definitely don't see Heart in red lighting until Episode 5. Up until this point when Li Ming and Heart are together, there is always blue lighting on them, and especially when they are in Heart's home there is always a blue wash on the whole scene. So finally, finally we get red lighting babyyyyyy, fuck yeah!

Ok, sorry, I'm normal again.

Initial thoughts going in to the actual scene are as follows: 1. Stripes, my beloved! 2. Heart is so head over heels for Li Ming it's ridiculous.

Anyway, I love the small little smile that Heart has on his face here when Li Ming is essentially giving him an 'I told you so' to Heart about asking his Mom. I know that Li Ming sees Heart earlier on in the episode, but he isn't present for the conversation between Li Ming and his mother so regardless of whether he knows that Li Ming talked to her, I don't think he knows the specifics. But he follows this comment up with "You're smart. You can persuade her." Obviously he knows that something happened because Heart's mother has never listened to her son before, why would she start now?

So! Much! Red! Lighting! They are in love your honor. I am so grateful for every moment we get to see of Li Ming and Heart alone together having fun. They may be on the edge of adulthood, but there is still so much repressed youth in them that has been dying to get out and can't because it's been contained by parental shame, by the need to work to survive, by the nature of generational gaps and unsuccessful attempts to protect your loved ones.

When Heart and Li Ming are by themselves (with the exception of the post confrontation mental breakdown session in Ep. 5) there is so much joy between them. And look at Li Ming, he is so proud of himself here, for successfully persuading Heart's mother to let Heart leave the house. They don't have to sneak out anymore, Heart's parents are finally starting to understand that they can't make their son problem go away if they just keep Heart cooped up.

Once again like father-figure uncle like nephew, Li Ming has found himself a love interest that is also obsessed with the family cat. Honestly, this cat is living the dream, all he has to do all day is be held for approximately 30 seconds and get fed a fuck ton of treats. So far this scene is just very cute, Heart taking in his surroundings, attaching himself immediately to the cat, absolutely bathed in red light. And there is something so simple I love about the set up this moment brings to the important turning point that immediately follows...

Heart's holding the cat with both his hands. He can't text or sign.

Side Note: I am curious if Thai sign language has finger spelling.

And here we go! Heart speaks, not just vocalizes, it's not an exclamation of surprise, it's not a shuddering breath, or a sob. It's not a squeak or random sound Heart makes because he can't hear how loud he is being. Up until this point, every time we have heard a sound from Heart it has been unintentional. This is the first time we hear Heart speak. And importantly, he doesn't have to. He doesn't have to say anything. There isn't anything urgent, nothing that would require a sound to get Li Ming's immediately attention. He doesn't need to say Jimbo's name, literally right before this he looked at Li Ming and pointed to the cat. He could have ended the acknowledgement there. But he doesn't. He speaks. And he absolutely does not look at Li Ming while he does it. He keeps his eyes trained firmly on the cat in front of him.

I stole this gif from @earthpirapat because I don't know how to make them, and because I need anyone who reads this to see Li Ming's reaction in this moment. He is also looking at Jimbo, because he, like the audience, believes that Heart is going to end his acknowledgement of the cat's name by pointing to the cat. Li Ming is content to watch his friend play with his cat, and that's all he is expecting. Until "yyim-" tickles his ear, and Li Ming's head snaps straight up to Heart's face. You can tell how surprised he is at the way he pulls his head back a bit more to really look at Heart. To make sure that what just happened is actually real when he says "bo".

And I think it's important to know that Heart does not really seem hesitant to speak. He just...does it. What he is hesitant to do is look at Li Ming. He waits a full two seconds after he's said "Jimbo" to look up from the cat he is holding in his arms.

But he has nothing to worry about because when his eyes go to Li Ming, what does he see?

A puppy dog of a man, radiating excitement. Li Ming is beaming. It's funny to me a little bit that the thought has never seemed to cross Li Ming's mind that Heart, who only went deaf three years ago, is actually able to speak. But nevertheless he is thrilled.

"You can speak?" he asks, and he's chuckling a little and pausing and you can see all the gears in his head turning as he signs because it's like his whole worldview just got rocked. And GOD I love this moment so much because from the second that Heart speaks Li Ming's eyes never leave Heart. Or if they do it is literally an unconscious thing that is happening when he's trying to remember his signs. Heart puts Jimbo down and Li Ming literally folds his body in half, to follow Heart's movement, bends over to tap him on the shoulder. "Hey, you can speak?" he says again.

"Yeah? Can you speak again? I want to hear." he asks, and he's baffled. He's losing his signs. Like he is signing successfully to Heart, sure, but it's taking him much longer to create his sentence than it normally does because he's still in such shock over what just happened. That Heart can speak, that he heard his voice. His brain cannot keep up with his emotions.

The face of a man verrryyyy skeptical that his voice would be that exciting for anyone to hear.

"I"

"Want"

"To Hear"

"Your Voice"

I have no thoughts. I have no notes for this. It is just an incredibly powerful moment to me in furthering Li Ming as a safe zone for Heart, as someone trusted and precious. Each sign is deliberate. This is a deliberate request. This isn't a question built on surprise, "wait wait do it again" this is specific. "I want to hear your voice"

Look how pleasantly surprised Heart is. Look how happy, how bewitched he is in this moment. A few weeks back, I wrote a post analyzing Heart's communication. At the time I wrote it, I was doing a lot of speculating about Heart and his ability to talk and what it meant for the character if he could versus if he couldn't. The tl;dr version was me essentially wondering how much agency Heart has over his own isolation. Is he capable of talking and chooses not to to test the people around him, maintaining control of his own isolation, with speaking as a lifeline, or because Thai is a tonal language did he lose the ability to speak because not being able to hear might impede his ability to make distinct tones. Either way he has the ability to talk, it's a matter of whether or not he could be understood if he did vocalize his words.

I got a pretty quick reply from @littlederxxnged with a link to this Tweet quoting P'Aof and Heart's voice:

And if this quote is real, if the reason Heart doesn't speak is because he lacks the confidence to, this makes the scene all the more important and all the more wonderful for me. Because it's showing us, the audience, that Li Ming makes Heart feel confident. Li Ming makes Heart brave.

And I love that I don't get a sense of fear from Heart in any of this. Surprise? Yes. Confusion? Yes. Skepticism? A bit. Hesitation? Absolutely. But it doesn't seem to come from a place of fear. Heart is not afraid of using his voice around Li Ming, and he is never afraid of what Li Ming's reaction will be. He certainly has no idea what Li Ming's reaction will be, but it shows how much trust these two have built in one another, that Heart feels safe enough with Li Ming to test his voice.

I don't know if Heart will speak again the show. I don't care if he does. Speaking is not his primary language anymore and he doesn't owe his voice to anyone. I just want to establish that before I say I find it so much more special that Heart says his own name, rather than Li Ming's here. Why? Because the way I interpret Heart's character at this point is a man who is far more certain about what he wants out of life, now that he is able to live his life again. We get to hear Heart's name, we get to hear Heart speak for himself.

Something really cute about this moment as well is Li Ming's reaction. "I heard you just say your name!" I love that he signs to Heart what he heard. I love it so much. We know that Heart is hesitant to speak, and it takes him a second to get the word out, and I'm sure he can feel the vibrations of his vocal chords when he says his name, but he can't hear it. Li Ming is SO obviously happy, so obviously thrilled.

But this is about Heart, Li Ming's feelings have nothing to do with it. Okay, Li Ming's feelings have everything to do with it for Heart. But Li Ming's initial, gut-reaction response to hearing Heart, hesitantly say his name, is to hype the ever-loving FUCK out of that boy.

"You're great! You're awesome! How can you speak? You're so great. I'm happy." and GOD Heart can't even hear him say it. Li Ming isn't signing here, I mean he is very obviously happy, and very obviously showering Heart in praise. But Heart cannot hear him. For most of the hug he can't even read Li Ming's lips. But the pride, the joy, the excitement is so palpable. He's jumping up and down, you don't really need to hear his words to feel how happy he is about what just happened.

He pulls back "How could you do it? I'm happy. Can you see? I'm so happy," He is talking so fast. He is talking so so fast. He cannot contain himself. But he has integrated himself so much into Heart's life, that despite the fact that he is fully forgetting to sign here, he is touching Heart, he is jumping up and. down with Heart, he is showing Heart how much being trusted with his voice means to him.

Sweet baby angel, you are talking so fast. He sees a bunch of words coming out of your mouth but does not hear what you are saying. And he looks confused because he definitely did not anticipate this strong of a positive reaction to just saying his name. Especially when you consider he isn't confident in his voice. He looks confused because he almost certainly did not anticipate this outcome.

(Ignore the subtitles on that second picture, focus on Heart's smile)

Does Heart owe us his voice? No. Did we ever need to know if he could speak? No. Does this moment hit particular hard after the confrontation scene last episode concerning the use of the term "mute" in reference to Heart. Absolutely. We saw how much it hurt Heart to learn his mother refers to him as mute.

We know Heart has to beg Li Ming to even tell him what she said, Heart can see how much Li Ming hesitated to deliver that blow. He saw how strongly Li Ming was standing against his parents, he's a smart kid. He might not be able to follow the full conversation cause it's happening quickly, and they are shouting which fucks with lip shape to read lips, and Li Ming and his mother are both facing away from him. But he knows his mother said something bad, he knows Li Ming defended him.

It is so so so so so SO important to me that Heart decides to speak in this moment. That he uses his voice casually, to say a cat's name, in private, with just the two of them.

Heart's voice is not a commodity, it's not a novelty. It's a gift. And Li Ming treats it as such. Heart is being vulnerable with Li Ming. Heart hasn't spoken to anyone in three years, and when he does speak in front of Li Ming for the first time Li Ming literally cannot contain his joy. I love how many times the camera cuts to Heart's face in this, to show us to tell us that Heart loves this. That he is surprised by it, but that he is more than happy to speak again, that he is smiling the whole time because he knows how important it is to Li Ming. Because it's important to him too.

If you finished this whole post, congratulations you have won an invisible medal.

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absolutebl · 12 days

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Hi ABL! Can I be what I'm assuming is the 80th person to ask for your analysis about the move of Prem and Boun to GMMTV? Particularly, any thoughts on:

Why did the move happen and does it mean anything that they moved together?

What might this mean for new series with them as a pair and the potential to break up their pairing?

Are there any GMMTV talents that you'd love to see Boun or Prem paired with?

Thanks in advance for any insights!

BounPrem move to GMMTV

DISCUSS!

AKA Thai BL industry speculation, my favorite game!!

I am actually cautiously optimistic about this.

They're an ideal pair for GMMTV to get. Especially if GMMTV continues optioning Japanese IP. These two are beautifully suited to A LOT of yaoi. Just imagine them in a Thai version of Takumi-kun? !

Rise up Broccoli Nation... let's talk kabedons!

Why did the move happened?

From BounPrem's perspective:

I think they've been pretty underserved by their current home and that home is pushing them towards pulps (I refuse to talk about Even Sun and I found Between Us pretty darn disappointing too.) If they want higher quality narratives and content, GMMTV is a better home for them.

Also it will handle their brand better for sponsorship and longevity. I was shocked not to see them on more stuff in Bangkok. Most sponsor gigs and major promos and billboards and such were GMMTV pairs and... ZeeNunew

Right now there are good indication for pairs who WANT to stick together (even while aging up) that GMMTV can handle it - because of what they've done with OffGun and TayNew recently.

It's clear that GMMTV will throw a good pair at decent content (or at least popular stuff) pretty regularly. With GMMTV, BounPrem stand an even better chance at landing a prestige piece, since they have an established fan base.

From the pair's perspective, this is a good career move.

Now, from GMMTV's perspective, let's talk...

Does it mean anything that they moved together?

Yes, it most likely means GMMTV signed them as a BL pair. Some of GMMTV's other hot properties like EarttMix, OffGun, and TayNew clearly want to do (and have done) more than just BL for GMMTV. Even "second levels" like JimmySea are being split for het dramas. It means they lose their BL talent for a good potion of filming season, while they film some other property.

If GMMTV can sign a high value pair that's happy to stay doing BL regularly, that will work very well for them.

ALSO they've add a hot property pair into their stable that's on the EarthMix (highly commercial) level AND willing to do high heat. I think this is key. GMMTV has shown they want to move into sexier stuff (NC-GMMTV?) with things like Moonlight Chicken and Only Friends. VERY few of their existing pairs are willing to go there, and can do it as well as, BounPrem. These 2 do lust and thirst in a way that most GMMTV pairs can't (they are just too brotherly with each other).

I think this is a sign GMMTV want's to enter the after dark market, and move international markets too. (The higher heat stuff tends to be particularly popular outside of Thailand.)

Also, I think it's pretty clear some of GMMTV's hoped for heavy hitters last year (like PerthChimon) aren't working out for them, so it makes sense to onboard a solid bankable pair whole cloth at this juncture.

I said a while ago I thought GMMTV would make a play for ZeeNunew. I didn't have BounPrem on the list as a backup option, but these pairs are kinda similar, and fill the same niche.

Anyway, smart move all 'round, IMHO.

What might this mean for new series with them as a pair and the potential to break up their pairing?

I think the pairing is now less likely to break up than ever.

I think they've possibly been tempted to sign BY a prestige new series carrot. We could get something historical with them in it. Or, like I said, something Japanese IP. Probably higher heat than GMMTV has given us in a full BL.

Eyes Target the Finder thoughtfully. (It was VERY popular when I was over there.)

Are there any GMMTV talents that you'd love to see Boun or Prem paired with?

Like I said, I think GMMTV's objective in signing them would actually be the opposite - NOT to split the pair.

But if you just want me to speculate for fun (and piss stadn off), I'm always happy to do so.

First is great with anyone, so First with either... or both. First is like the MSG of GMMTV, always improves the taste of any dish.

It might be fun to see Jimmy paired with Prem. But in all honestly I really want a Jimmy + Khaotung thing to happen.

I think Mix has some BDE too, so I think he should play the seme for a change, why not him and Prem?

As for Boun, I think he's a little more dependent on the pairing. It's hard for me to imagine him with someone else. Lemme think. Someone with a very soft screen presence, maybe? How about Gun?

Heh he, now I'm just winding ya'll up.

Let me have my foibles.

#fun fun speculation #thai bl #bl industry chat #BounPrem #gmmtv #thai bl branded pairs #smart move gmmtv very smart

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akkpipitphattana · 1 year

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Am i the only one who doesn't get what Wen sees in uncle Jim 😭 Don't get me wrong i love the show, and i LOVE Heart and Liming, and i quite like Wen's character too, but Jim is just so cold and grumpy and never smiles and i just don't get why Wen is so obsessed with him, like sure the story with his ex is sad but like Heart has a way more traumatic backstory but he's not an ass to people, or Liming whose parents literally left him with an uncle that only fights with him is not half as bitter... I just wish they would have made Jim a bit more likable, or at least relatable like Alan. Sorry for ranting, just needed to get that off my chest 😂

i’m so sorry if my posts making fun of jim made you feel like this blog was a safe space for jim haters but it’s not 💙 SHDKSKDJD like i’m sorry but i just don’t agree with you, i genuinely adore jim and his character

like for one you’re just wrong. on multiple accounts. for one, jim DOES smile. evidence:

isn’t it beautiful? but i get what you mean, it’s not often we get a jim smile. but the man also has a shitton on his plate! he can barely pay his bills, has the diner (which is his LIVELIHOOD) threatening to be shut down, and he has a kid he has to take care of on top of all that. a kid that’s not even his own, mind you.

and when you say he’s an ass to people, you mean when he chose not to pay his car insurance and instead bought leng a gold necklace to use for praew’s dowry? you mean when he refused to use gaipa’s feelings for him to his advantage and returned the title deed because of it, despite the fact he COULD have gotten a loan out of it and saved his business? you mean when he didn’t hesitate to let wen stay with him after he moved out of alan’s despite the fact that jim had made it clear from the beginning he didn’t want complicated and yet wen continued to be persistent in fitting himself into jim’s life while KNOWING he was still living with his possessive ex? no, you’re right. he’s so cold and uncaring and doesn’t give a fuck about the people around him. clearly.

as for li ming and jim, i’ve already made a post about this, but everything jim does in terms of li ming is his attempts at protecting him. i’m not saying he’s going about everything in the right way, lord knows he’s not, but NO character in this show does. like i said, wen continued to pursue jim despite the fact that he hadn’t completely cut things off with alan. alan chose to confront them both at the worst possible time because he was fueled by jealousy and anger, he pushed wen and tried to go for jim, too. li ming continues to go behind jim’s back and put himself at risk of pissing off people much more powerful than him. leng and praew are starting a family they didn’t originally plan for without a lot of money. the only characters you can argue haven’t don’t anything wrong are heart and gaipa!

the point is. this show is great because the characters are real people. they’re messy, they do the wrong thing, they hurt the people they love. but at the end of the day, they love each other and are there for each other. that’s the whole point! and jim isn’t any different just because you don’t find him likable enough.

#also i genuinely think a lot of the people coming for jim just genuinely don’t have empathy for his situation #they don’t understand what it’s like to be poor which is a lot of what drives jim’s character #jim has said it himself that the struggles of the wealthy don’t compare to that of the poor and it’s an important message #AND THATS NOT EVEN ALL HE HAS TO DEAL WITH!#moonlight chicken #jim jaruek #asks #nonnies #my analysis #mine

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shannankle · 4 months

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My Top Shows 2023

Doing this at the last minute but here goes--the top 10 shows I watched in 2023!

*Note: I rate my shows on a letter scale cause I don't like narrowing it down to a specific number. (S-standout As-Strong Bs-Fine Cs-There's some problems Ds-ooof)

1. Oh No! Here Comes Trouble

This one instantly became an all time favorite. It covers themes about grief and loss in a deeply empathetic and humanizing way along side the supernatural elements. I don't know if it's because I've experienced loss myself or because it's a universal experience, but I love shows like this that help you understand what it means to grieve and heal in a familiar yet new light. It reminded me a lot of Natsume Yuujinchou (another favorite) in that respect.

Aside from the larger themes, you have a distinct directing style, quirky sense of humor, well-rounded cast of characters, and excellent acting (the lead actor was also in Your Name Engraved Herein and he's just as standout here). In addition to all that, the show gives us a main trio of characters whose strengths are deliberately not their wits. This is used for humor but also to make more meaningful points about connection, empathy, and different ways of thinking (yes, I headcanon the main trio as neurodivergent).

Rating: S+

2. The Eighth Sense

This show! Another piece that is deeply rooted in exploring trauma and loss. This time within the framework of a romance. I'm usually pretty hesitant with stories that bring disability into romance, especially mental illness. There's a tendency to lean into the idea that love cures all and other not so great tropes. The Eighth Sense does a great job balancing that line, giving us romantic beats without wading into them uncritically. In the end, healing and love are things we choose not something guaranteed, but there's still an immense hope in that. I'm an giant sucker for shows that tackle both queer and crip experiences with nuance and grace, and the Eighth Sense hit that mark for me (so much so it even had me writing a little meta). On top of that it has beautiful cinematography and visual choices.

Rating: S

3. Moonlight Chicken

A beautiful show all around! P'Aof constantly knocks it out of the park with every show he directs, but I felt particularly strong about Moonlight Chicken. I adore the way it centers on themes of home and community. It even inspired some meta and a bit of personal reflection for me on what it means to choose home as someone who is queer and disabled. The show gives us the messiness that comes with navigating new and old relationships and somehow also the simplicity of it all. And of course, the show includes a Deaf character and handles his story with nuance and clear care.

Rating: S

4. Shadow

Singto, Fluke, and Fiat in a queer horror show--sign me up! It wasn't as scary as I expected, more psychological (which is good because I am so picky about what types of horror are too much for me vs what I enjoy). I loved the way the show played with time and reality and drew upon various religious practices to create a unique atmosphere. I also adored the attention to small details that make the piece ripe for analysis. I will probably be eyeing clocks and tech in many shows to come. It's also a show that is bringing up themes about queerness, mental illness, domestic violence, and historical trauma. I'm continually drawn to pieces that are queer and crip, so I suppose it's no surprise that this one drew me in too.

I know this show was divisive, about as many people thought it stuck the landing as didn't. I happen to land in the former category. I adore media that makes me stop and think, and given the amount of meta the show had/has me writing, I'd say it well and truly tickled my brain. The show didn't always go where I most wanted or expected but I think that challenged me even more to really think about what the show might be trying to do (my thoughts on that here, spoilers though).

Rating: S

5. Our Dining Table

Japan does a lot of things well, but I'm particularly fond of their slice-of-life. Our Dining Table fits right in there with food and found family at the center. It's warm and cute, but has a depth beyond it's soft exterior, delving into loss, loneliness, and what it means to be fully seen by those around us. All of this tied up in a queer bow. It was easily the show I was most excited to watch each week when it was airing.

Rating: S

6. Mysterious Lotus Casebook

Another one I fell in love with this year! While it has plenty of tropes, cutting through the core of all of this is the growing friendship between the main trio, especially between Li Lian Hua and Fang Duo Bing. Their relationship and personal growth as characters was really beautiful to watch, on top of it just being a fun show with a great balance of humor and drama. Plus Fang Duo Bing's mom 😍

Rating: S

7. One Room Angel

Another solid entry out of Japan. As much as I love Japan's bright slice-of-life offerings like Our Dining Table, they also excel at stories that don't shy away from heavy or complex emotional themes. And I'm noticing as I tackle this post that I really resonate with heavy themes. One Room Angel has it's lighter moments and own quirky humor. But it also tackles depression and suicide as it explores the journey of finding enough connection and meaning in life to keep moving forward.

Rating: S

8. I Feel You Linger in the Air

I Feel You Linger in the Air was such a beautiful show! I'm so happy we got a historical thai bl this year and that it was so so lovely. I really liked last year's To Sir With Love but it does have it's Lakorn/soap style that is a bit more of an obstacle for me. IFYLITA certainly has it's drama, but it feels more tightly drawn. Throw in a little time travel and beautiful love scenes and it was a delight to watch.

Rating: S

9. My Beautiful Man S2, Eternal

When I watched the first season of My Beautiful Man I liked it but wasn't exactly sold. I read a bit of meta from the community which changed my tune a bit. But it wasn't until watching season 2 and Eternal that something really clicked. I immediately went back and watched season 1 after finishing the film and oh boy did I fall in love. Not only do S2 and Eternal give us great character growth and forward motion to Hira and Kiyoi's relationship, and they feel like a natural expansion of the first season in the best way possible. What can I say, I love the whole series!

Rating: A+

10. Kiseki: Dear to Me

Kiseki: Dear to Me feels like an outlier to me. It's hard for me to put my finger on just what made it click for me, but I was so into it when it was airing. I recognize that plot wise this show is a bit of a mess, but at the same time it hit something just right in my brain. Perhaps it was the emotional intimacy the actors portrayed? They did a fantastic job drawing me in. Apart from that I couldn't take my eyes off of Ai Di's impeccable fashion choices, and the many many cameos were quite fun.

Rating: A+ YMMV

A few close contenders:

My School President (S) *split airing 22' and 23'

Tokyo in April Is... (A+)

Laws of Attraction (A)

Bed Friend (A)

The End of the World with You (A)

Me, My Husband, and My Husband's Boyfriend (A)

If it's with You (A)

Our Dating Sim (A)

Love Tractor (A)

The Warp Effect (A) *split airing 22' and 23'

The New Employee (A) *split airing 22' and 23'

La Pluie (A-)

Midnight Museum (A-)

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waitmyturtles · 11 months

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HYPERBOLIC SPOILERS FOR THE PHENOMENAL SECOND EPISODE OF OS2 x BBS x ATOTS

Can I feel so much in just one sitting?! Besides the UTTER giddiness of yesterday’s episode, at least for today, I think I have some actual, sensible, legible analysis to offer. I’m really moved, almost to tears.

I mean, as I blogged just a few minutes ago, part 4/4 of this second episode WILL go down in history in my heart as OBVIOUSLY some of the BEST, most STUNNING content in the HISTORY of anatomical and muscular analysis filmmaking. Yes.

I’m seeing on Twitter some grumpiness for the comedy of this all (the girlies want more woop woop?! I mean?!), but I seriously think this whole crossover set up and the way it’s been written is brilliant. And I don’t think this is just for fun.

But first, regarding the comedy and some other one-off points -- I mean, I knew that all four of these guys would be great, but their comedic TIMING, with the writing, is spectacular. They clearly had a FANTASTIC time filming this, and you can see it -- while they didn’t have much time to actually film it, it’s so well done.

I really want to call it, I really want to see it, I wanna see more subverting of the ships, and I wanna see these guys do more with each other separately -- I’m excited to see the implications of OhmEarth and NanonMix next week, and I think that Aof might be making a huge point by separating these guys, pairing them up together with others, and mixing shit up, because that’s what he does (especially while I have He’s Coming to Me on the mind soon on my OGMMTVC watchlist).

Another one-off point: like I wrote yesterday, we’re getting a double-dose of nostalgia, and I also wrote that I haven’t had to wait NEARLY as long as most of y’all for the return of BBS and ATOTS. But that being said, even though I only watched ATOTS last fall, I actually literally nearly cried when I saw the ATOTS flashbacks and heard the music. Because the way that show was designed in 2021 (I got so much OGMMTVC on my mind) -- those motifs WERE designed to imprint themselves in our memories as remarkable for a kind of cinematic, bildungsroman BL that we weren’t used to seeing back then. That show was nostalgic not JUST for the damn ship, but for Pha Pun Dao, for Chiang Mai, for the Thailand that Aof celebrates vis à vis EarthMix in ATOTS and Moonlight Chicken.

It’s gorgeous, and he knows what he’s doing by putting PatPran in that mix -- another couple at a different stage of their relationship, with a background and shared struggles that are different than TianPhupha’s, but that still offer both freshness AND nostalgia to the backbone story of ATOTS.

What’s moving me about these first two episodes reflects on what I just wrote -- this is no longer a story about Bad Buddy or ATOTS. This is a story about two couples going through their shit. Pat and Pran have ALWAYS been about going through their shit. We went through a A LOT of SHIT with them, including forward flashes after they graduated and seeing how they were faring in their long-distance relationship.

Remember: we haven’t spent ANY time with Tian and Phupha in their relationship yet, ABSOLUTELY NONE. They smooched once on the hill, we saw them cuddle, and Oishii sent us off. So we’re JUST finding out, NOW, how they’re faring, and we get thrown in a fight.

A fight that’s similar to the kinds of struggles that Pat and Pran have already shown us and are showing us now. Tian wants Phupha to see a slice of HIS life in Bangkok. Tian wants Phupha to yield a little, to stop being so stubborn.

Pat wants Pran to open up more. Pat KNOWS why Pran keeps everything so close to the chest. Pat is SO USED to being the balancing effect of their relationship, to push forward, to pull back, but to ALWAYS HOLD PRAN DOWN AND REMAIN AS PRAN’S ROCK, because Pran has not had the same kind of large family structure as Pat could rely on in his childhood and doesn’t know how to take emotional risks. Pat knows this and works hard on balancing it out.

But Pat can go overboard, right, and that’s partly why Pran drove away to Pha Pun Dao -- to prove to himself that he could complete this project on his own, but also, flirtingly, knowing that Pat would ultimately be by his side, and to play the competitive games that these guys always play with each other, because they’re still college dudes with bones to pick.

What we’re seeing is BOTH COUPLES FINDING THEMSELVES IN THEIR MATURING GROWTH STAGES OF THEIR RELATIONSHIPS.

Hello, mic check, there’s something happening here in Our Skyy 2. WHAT HAPPENED IN THE ECLIPSE EPISODES?

Same damn thing, the same damn thing that pissed the girlies off before. WE’RE SEEING AWLLLLLL THESE GUYS IN THE GROWTH STAGES OF THEIR RELATIONSHIPS. Akk was frustrated by all the expressions of care that Ayan is overabundant with. Ayan WANTS Akk to RECEIVE the care, because the RECEPTION OF CARE IS the signal, the trigger, the MEANING of the relationship for Ayan -- it tells Ayan, when I care for you, Akk, I AM SHOWING YOU MY LOVE FOR YOU, and that’s how *I* DEMONSTRATE IT.

Tian: Phupha, come with me to Bangkok.

Pran: Pat, let me do this by myself.

Akk: Ayan, I don’t need as much care as you’re giving me, it’s too much.

Phupha: You’re making only about me being madly in love with you.

Pat: I want to help you, my boyfriend.

Ayan: This is how I show my love for you, Akk.

Y’all. Aof, Golf, these filmmakers. QUEER RELATIONSHIPS ARE RELATIONSHIPS THAT DESERVE THE INVESTMENT AND RESPECT OF EMOTION AND GROWTH IN ART. Not all queer art/BLs need to be about the thrills and frills of the first kiss, of the first sex, of the first whatever. We’re expecting these guys to live together forever in fiction, right? Aof and Golf and the other homies are saying -- kk, girlies, we’ll give you the fan service, alright, but we’re going to show you HOW WE, AS THE QUEER COMMUNITY, DURING PRIDE, GET THERE IN OUR OWN RELATIONSHIPS, TOO, messy details and all. Shit.

Here’s something from reality. I’m the youngest girl of my Indian family -- I was not equal to my older siblings at all, expected to fail, treated as if I didn’t know how to function in society. Y’all can predict what happened. Your gal got a great career, a great family, a husband, the whole thing.

So when I first met my husband, I’m riding my life on my own -- paying my own rent, my own bills, everything. I had already proved I didn’t need my birth family for anything.

But what I didn’t consider during those first years of the relationship was the following: my future husband’s love language was dependence. He was certainly IMPRESSED by dating a woman who had her shit together. BUT. He WANTED me to DEPEND on him, AT LEAST emotionally, if not for other things. I wasn’t going to like, quit my job for a relationship, but -- I was ALSO having REAL trouble DEPENDING on him emotionally.

Like Pran, maybe. I didn’t trust trusting anyone emotionally, because that was a paradigm already created by my family in my upbringing. I had TRAINED myself to NOT need emotional feedback from ANYONE romantically, because I learned to survive in other ways.

Of course, with great communication AND TIME (TIME), I came around and learned to lean on him and trust him.

Aof and Golf are giving their couples the benefits of growth and time to make the relationships better, and stronger, and working, and functioning, and I can’t emphasize enough how REAL THIS IS.

That’s what these episodes are giving me. I WANT TO SEE MORE BLs with established relationships (@bengiyo, @lurkingshan, @wen-kexing-apologist: WHAT DID YOU EAT YESTERDAY FTW). I want to see contextual heartache. I want to see fights. I want to see tears. I want to see snottiness and shittiness and passive aggression, because all of that is worth examining in human emotional art.

That’s real, that’s worth reflecting in art, and I see Aof and Golf doing this on purpose to give RESPECT to the emotional structures that they’ve created in their work.

I’m having so much fucking fun with these episodes, but I should have expected this, I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN, that Aof would already render me an emotional mess as well. It always happens. That it’s happening to our BELOVED COUPLES, AT THE START OF PRIDE, I’m just like. We’re just so blessed to have this art to enjoy.

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telomeke · 4 months

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✨2023: A Summary✨

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

I was tagged by:

@colourme-feral (here);

@lurkingshan (here);

@dribs-and-drabbles (here);

@ranchthoughts (here);

@chickenstrangers (here).

Thanks for tagging me, sweeties! 🥰 Hope the new year is treating you well. 😍

Apologies for being a bit late with this, but after I got back from my 2023 year-end break there was a ton of stuff to attend to, with deadlines suddenly looming much closer than they had seemed looking through eggnog goggles. 👀

But anyway I have a bit of time before the next deadline, so I'm going to use this window to try and summarize my 2023 on Tumblr. 😁 (Some of the posts referenced below may not fall into the definition of "edit/gifset/analysis" but that's just me being honest: my output on Tumblr is definitely a bit of a mixed bag! 🤣)

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🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇🎇

✨JANUARY 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – A meme summarizing Greta Thunberg's epic takedown of toxic masculizard Andrew Tate, with the help of Jerry's Pizza boxes, Elon unbanning Andrew on Twitter, and the domino effect:

‌ (above) Post linked here

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FAVORITE POST – Of course it's something to do with Bad Buddy. 🤣 I posted about my experience viewing Bad Buddy's corner at the GMMTV Exhibition in Osaka, with photos and write‑ups about actual wardrobe and props that appeared in BBS (especially Baseball Mom and the Ep.12 memory board! 🤩):

‌ (above) Post linked here

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✨FEBRUARY 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – A write-up about Jim and Li Ming's confrontation in Moonlight Chicken. More than just a teen-versus-(surrogate)-parent argument, the scene was also an insight into elder/junior dynamics and the importance of self-control in Thai culture:

(above) Post linked here

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FAVORITE POST – Oh don't make me choose between my kids! It's a toss-up: the more popular one is a Bad Buddy post about the pause before PatPran's second kiss on the rooftop in BBS Ep.5 (yes, THE Kiss™):

(above) Post linked here

But also sharing the Feb 2023 favorite spot in my heart is a post about GMMTV producer/director cameos (in My School President and other series) and what they might mean beyond the show:

(above) Post linked here

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✨MARCH 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – This was written after Michelle Yeoh won a SAG Award for Best Actress and was nominated for an Oscar in the same category. I thought most of her newer fans wouldn't be aware of Tan Sri Dato' Seri Michelle's death-defying stuntwork (I'm really not exaggerating here) during her earlier years as an action hero in 80s and 90s Hong Kong moviedom, so I wrote a piece about it:

(above) Post linked here

If you've not watched the video linked therein yet, you should. And then carefully pick your jaw up off the floor (as I had to, the first time I watched this). Not to give too much away, but it involves Michelle riding a motorbike helmetless atop a rickety Malaysian train carriage with no safety measures at all. 👀

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FAVORITE POST – My favorite post for March 2023 is about the characters' names in Moonlight Chicken, and it's so long I had to break it into two parts. (Whenever it's an Aof show, you can usually expect the characters' names to carry some significance, as was the case with Last Twilight and Bad Buddy too.) So Part 1 of the Moonlight Chicken post is about the names in general, what they mean for their characters and any relevance they might have for the narrative:

(above) Post linked here

And Part 2 of my favorite post for March 2023 is about Wen's name, with a detour into political color symbolism in Moonlight Chicken:

(above) Post linked here

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✨APRIL 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST AND FAVORITE POST – It's the same post doing double duty, about the prevalence of the chue len Korn as a character name in Thai dramas:

(above) Post linked here

There aren't that many actors named Korn, so I found it quite befuddling that so many characters would have that name, but there you go. And "Korn Kob" Songsit Rungnopakunsi was ultimately crowned king of the Korn harvest: 😂

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✨MAY 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – Our Skyy 2 x My School President's red-hot comment on Thai politics, with Principal Ratchanee (Gun's mom) announcing a subversion of the election process:

(above) Post linked here

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FAVORITE POST – My favorite post in May 2023 was a look at linguistic wordplay on some t-shirts in Moonlight Chicken, touching on the themes of generational change, eggplants, etymology and cute little weiners:

(above) Post linked here

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✨JUNE 2023✨

Well! Our Skyy 2 dropped its Bad Buddy episodes beginning 31 May 2023, so June 2023 was dominated by BBS for me. 😍

MOST POPULAR POST – A (sort-of) review and analysis of the Our Skyy 2 x Bad Buddy x A Tale of Thousand Stars episodes:

(above) Post linked here

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FAVORITE POST – Do I really have to choose? Top of my own list is the most popular post above, but I'm going to list another one that was just a Phupha-whisker away in second place, and it's the OS2 x BBS filming locations:

(above) Post linked here

I love research and analysis, and tracking down the Bad Buddy filming locations was especially fulfilling because it combined the opportunity for me to exercise my bloodhound instincts and also find out more about this show that I love so much. (The locations were not very well-credited in the original BBS, unlike later GMMTV offerings, so it was very satisfying hunting down mystery BBS locales based almost solely on visual clues.) I've got almost the whole list of BBS locations now, although I've yet to post the last few (which are minor locations only).

So I'm very proud of the work I've done on identifying the BBS filming locations – and also a little alarmed at how powerful Google plus a bit of logical deduction can be.

Stay safe on the Internet people! Don't ever reveal too much private information about yourself, because my time doing this and other location posts has shown me that online info can all be tracked down and consolidated to identify what might have seemed to be pretty well-hidden at the start. Which bodes ominously for privacy and safety, online or off. 👀

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✨JULY 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – A write-up about Bad Buddy's Nong Nao, Pat's beloved comfort object. But in the unraveling of Nong Nao's significance to BBS (and this was surprising to me too) we got further insight into Pat's character as well:

(above) Post linked here

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FAVORITE POST – OK, so the Nong Nao post above is quite my favorite for July 2023, but it also shares that spot atop my list of faves with this reply to a Bad Buddy Ask from @pandasmagorica about Pat and Pran's emotionally-laden verbal zingers on the Ep.5 rooftop, before they took that step forward beyond the point of no return and fell into The Kiss™:

(above) Post linked here

It's not just about how well the dialogue was written, or how well Ohm and Nanon brought the scene to life. Part of why this post is special to me is because the scene demonstrates how well-crafted BBS actually is, with an underlying logic and consistency that holds up no matter how hard you prod and poke at it (which, for the record, wasn't quite the case for OS2 x BBS). When you can analyze the characters, their actions and reactions in-depth as though they are real people with real motivations, and no inauthenticity shows through, you know there's been a whole lot of deep-rooted work sunk into it. I'm still in awe of what Khun Noppharnach has wrought. 👀

But there's another reason why this post is also one of my faves, and it's rather more personal.

It's because this Ask is the first one where @pandasmagorica lifted the Anon veil to use his own Tumblr name. And that was when I felt I'd made a new friend right here on Tumblr. 😍 I'm actually quite reticent in real-life, so I don't make friends easily – but I do treasure the friendships I have once made (even though I can be pretty bad at staying in touch; doesn't mean the feelings aren't there still – far from it). I'd learnt to recognize @pandasmagorica's voice even when his Asks were anonymous, and this particular Ask made my heart swell with happiness. So even though we haven't communicated directly in some time, dear @pandasmagorica, please know that you're still a treasured friend to me! 💖

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✨AUGUST 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – This was a bit of throwaway fluff, an assembling of images pointing out the visual similarity between a promotional poster for Only Friends (on the same day as the show's debut, which was 12 August 2023) and a poster for the iconic 1990s sitcom Friends:

(above) Post linked here

Image posts and zingy hot takes always garner likes and reblogs so much more easily than long, thought-driven essays on Tumblr, especially when they ride on a wave of hype (as this one did, on the absolute tsunami welling for Only Friends). Doesn't mean the post or the series are really anything of substance though! 😂

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FAVORITE POST – I have more than one in August 2023, and they were momentous for me. 🤩 The first is my analysis (loving, yet incontrovertibly loopy to the point of near-lunacy) explaining my finding why Director Aof put the incongruous Baseball Mom t-shirt on Pat in Bad Buddy Episode 5. If you've not read the explanation yet, the answer will surprise you:

(above) Post linked here

There's also a Part 2, because as usual I had so much to say, and this second part explains why PatPran's Ep.7 rooftop encounter is also a parallel with (and counterbalance for) the Epic Rooftop Kiss in Ep.5.

Anyway, my other favorite post for August 2023 is also dear to me because it points out some very clever visual rhetoric in Be My Favorite that was carefully woven into a particular scene, taking up the clarion call for marriage equality in Thailand:

(above) Post linked here

Screenwriter/director Waa Waasuthep Ketpetch really piled on the magic into this one scene. It was fun to pick it apart and look at all the different elements, within what was otherwise an only somewhat complex and not too challenging series (that still managed to be highly entertaining nonetheless). 😍

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✨SEPTEMBER 2023✨

My MOST POPULAR POST and my FAVORITE POST are one and the same, which was an apology to any legitimate Tumblr user I might have blocked (as were facing yet another onslaught of porn bots with believable names suddenly following our Tumblr blogs):

(above) Post linked here

I then got a few snarky comments (from people whose names I didn't recognize) letting me know that people whom I've blocked can't read the post. 😮

But that's not exactly true (this is Tumblr after all). 🤣

I've since found out that if you've been blocked, you can still view the blog that blocked you, as long as you read it in blog view but not dashboard view.

If you've been blocked, here are some salient points to know:

You can't search for that blog on Tumblr (but Tumblr's search function is pretty much rubbish anyway, and you can still find the blog with a Google search).

If you know the name of the blog, then typing the URL (in the address bar) using blog view format (as opposed to dashboard view format) will still bring you there. For the difference between blog view and dashboard view (using my own Tumblr as an example) – typing telomeke.tumblr.com into the address bar will take you to my Tumblr in blog view, while typing tumblr.com/telomeke into the address bar will open my blog in dashboard view. You can still view my Archive (if I haven't hidden it) and read my posts, even if I've blocked you.

This one should be obvious – you can't like, comment on or reblog any of a blog's posts if that blog has blocked you. You can't DM that blog either. You can send Asks, but they will not be received. And that's part of the delicious irony that Tumblr bestows if you block any hater troll from your blog – you can continue posting everything that set them off in the first place, and they will still be able to see it, but they can no longer send any negativity your way. (You can also troll them back with impunity, but why waste precious time and energy like that? You won't know if they've seen your trolling, just that they can. 🤷‍♂️)

Asking to be unblocked is a bit trickier if you've been mistaken for a bot and inadvertently blocked. You'll need to ask a friend with a Tumblr account to request the unblocking on your behalf, or you'll need to set up a new Tumblr account just to send in this new Ask/message.

Anyway, the point of my post above was to let newbies know how important it is to humanize your blog, so as not to be mistaken for a bot and blocked – it would be especially rueful if the blog that blocked you (thinking you were a bot) was one you followed because you liked the content in there!

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✨OCTOBER 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – This was a jokey review of/(slash)/reaction to the newly-released Red Peafowl trailer:

youtube

(above) Post linked here

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FAVORITE POST – @pandasmagorica sent me an Ask about PatPran's sex life in Bad Buddy, and this was a fun look at the physical side of their love (that they, and Director Aof, kept mostly hidden from view):

(above) Post linked here

Because BBS is extremely self-referential, part of me now thinks they kept so much of PatPran's sex life under wraps in order to squeak by the ratings – this is what the cookout scene with Junior in Ep.11 seems to be telling us, IMO.

And they succeeded in getting a 13+ age rating, allowing Bad Buddy's message about LGBTQ+ positivity and growing into your authentic queer self to reach exactly the audience demographic that needs it (and of course even beyond them too 😊).

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✨NOVEMBER 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – This was a look at the meanings of Mhok and Day's names in Last Twilight:

(above) Post linked here

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FAVORITE POST – I'm cackling with fairy godfather glee because I got to inflict the warm fuzzies on people in the Bad Buddy fandom, by helping them relive their first time watching The Epic Rooftop Kiss in BBS Ep.5 (on the two-year anniversary of that event).

YouTuber "Chib" had put together an absolutely genius montage of a myriad reaction videos to The Kiss™, and my post was simply a link to it. But the ensemble of gasps and outpouring of unbridled emotion onscreen had so vividly brought back memories of my own first time watching PatPran's rooftop moment that I just knew I had to share it. I think Bad Buddy fans who watch the video will absolutely see themselves in it:

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(above) Post linked here

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✨DECEMBER 2023✨

MOST POPULAR POST – The Sign really happened in a big way when December 2023 came around, and my most popular post is testament to that. I wrote about the naga and garuda mythology underpinning the narrative (hat tip to @respectthepetty for getting the ball rolling 👍) and the subject seems to have resonated with a lot of viewers because the post is still getting notes a month later:

(above) Post linked here

But the post above really should be read in tandem with others that followed, because the series is really going all in with the naga and garuda, and there's lots to take away if you're a culture and linguistics fiend like I am. Additional info linked below: 🤩

Evil jellyfish (Tharn's pet name for Phaya, a mistranslation of the Thai แมงกะพรุนไฟ that actually means fire jellyfish, which is a nod at the flames of the garuda);

Nong Khai, naga fireballs and the dance of adversaries;

More naga and garuda references in Ep.4 (although the storytelling had become a bit muddled by then).

(above left) Post linked here; (above right, top) post linked here; (above right, bottom) post linked here

The props, lighting and wardrobe are also playing their part to add to the visual feast of naga and garuda references. I may post more about these if I can find the time. 🤩

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FAVORITE POST – All the above (Signposts? 😂) are dear to me. But tying with them for top spot on my favorites list at the end of 2023 is this one, a tongue-in-cheek look at QL objects of carnal affection:

(above) Post linked here

Not meant to be taken seriously (and maybe I shouldn't have been focusing on the actors themselves instead of the characters they play) but it's all in the name of good fun. 🤣

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And that's a wrap! 🥳

Dunno who to tag next because I'm so late with this, and I think everyone will have already played by now. So I'm just going to tag creators at random (excluding those already tagged above) – if you've already done your post, please send me a link because I'd love to read (and re-read) what you've done!

@waitmyturtles

@grapejuicegay

@neuroticbookworm

@airenyah

@absolutebl

@williamrikers

@wen-kexing-apologist

@respectthepetty

@pandasmagorica

@recentadultburnout

@visualtaehyun

@inventedfangirling

@dimplesandfierceeyes

@bengiyo

@befuddledcinnamonroll

@btwinlines

@twig-tea

@blmpff

@hereforlou

@solitaryandwandering

@brazilian-whalien52

@hughungrybear

@callipigio

@dudeyuri

@kattahj

@jemmo

@non-binarypal7

@lovelyghostv

@isaksbestpillow

@shortpplfedup

@rythyme

@squeakygeeky

@starryalpacasstuff

Apologies if I've missed anyone out – if I've ever liked and/or reblogged a post of yours, please know that you're special to me too and do feel free to play along. (And do tag me please, so I can read your post! 😍)

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P.S. This site (JetBlackCode) is super-helpful in searching for and filtering your posts: 👍

#tag game #2023: a summary #YouTube

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