no one asked for this but here are my thoughts on the announced shows from today (in order of announcement, BLs are marked with a 🏳️🌈, personal favorites are marked with a 🌟):
Enigma: The days where I’m genuinely intrigued by a plot about a mysterious school are over. I’m not a fan of neither Win or Prim so I’m gonna pass on this one.
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A Boss and a Babe (🏳️🌈): I did not expect ForceBook to come back twice next year lmao but I’m not upset. This would be the first series I see with them since I didn’t see Enchante but I really like their chemistry. I’m not a fan of boss-employee romance plots but I will give this a shot. Also the rest of the cast is amazing. Thumbs up!
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Find Yourself: I did not see the original so I can’t say much about it but the trailer did not intrigue me. next.
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Double Savage: This looks like a tragic but very interesting story I think, also Ohm and Perth seem to be an S-tier casting choice for this. These characters in this setting fit them extremely well imo. It’s a bit too much violence for my taste but I will take a look nonetheless.
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Hidden Agenda (🏳️🌈🌟): FIRST HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY!!!!!! This looks absolutely amazing. The cast is A+++ and I’m SO excited that JoongDunk are actually coming back. I was hoping they would. The story is right up my alley and it definitely fits them. Joongs character seems very similar to Kluen but I’m okay with that lol. These are the kind of roles that fit him the best. Also we’re finally getting AouBoom 🥺 And is PoddGuy gonna be a thing too? If so then sign me up even more lmao. So excited for this one!!!!!! 💜
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23.5 Degrees (🏳️🌈🌟): I cannot put into words how happy I am about this. We’re not only finally getting MilkLove but we’re finally getting a GL. This couldn’t be better. This looks so precious and so endearing, also GeminiFourth as the sides definitely makes this the most adorable project out of all. I absolutely love this. This is huge. Thank you gmm 🥺
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Because You are My First Love: DewPrim seems to be a good match but I’m not really feeling it. Next.
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Cooking Crush (🏳️🌈🌟): WELL WELL WELL. What do we have here. Still can’t believe it lol. I love shows about cooking and this looks fun, but to be completely honest I’m not sure how I feel about OffGun bl no. 5 lol. I love them but isn’t it time to move on lol. Also why did they say they were done. Idk. Obviously I’m gonna watch it but I think I would’ve preferred seeing Gun with Tor. Just to shake things up a bit. But oh well. Not complaining anyway ✌🏻
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Wednesday Club: This looks like a messy version of Club Friday lmao. Not sure. Could be interesting but could be a flop. I think I’ll pass. Next.
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Last Twilight (🏳️🌈): Hmmm..... If I took my glasses off I would probably think this was Vice Versa season 2 lol - I’m hesitant when it comes to shows portraying disabilities so I’m a bit reluctant about this one. I love JimmySea and I really hope they get this right. But I’m not 100% convinced.
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Loneliness Society: This looks boring, unoriginal story and a meh cast. Next.
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Only Friends (🏳️🌈🌟🌟🌟): FUCK. ME. UP. This looks amazing. I was hoping for a Jojo series in the style of friendzone and my prayers have been answered. And not only that but with my babes FirstKhao???? And ForceBook and NeoMark????? Christmas came early this year lmao. I absolutely love that FK are going into a completely different direction for their second project. This looks spicy and messy and chaotic - exactly my cup of tea lmao. BRING IT.
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Faceless Love: The plot around the face blindness is a very interesting concept but I’m not a fan of the main couple. Not sure.
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Dangerous Romance (🏳️🌈🌟): YES I LOVE THIS. I wasn’t feeling it the first time I saw it but after rewatching it a few times I’m really into it. Yes, it’s yet another school setting (sigh) but I’m very much digging the PerthChimon pairing. I didn’t think they would actually get their own show but I’m happy. The trailer is giving Bad Buddy and 2Gether vibes which I hope won’t dominate the actual series lol but I’m intrigued nonetheless. Yay!!!!!
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The Jungle: Sorry but this looks awful. The cast is good but the story seems so weird to me. Hated every second of that trailer. Next.
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Midnight Museum: This looks,,,,, interesting? I’m a bit creeped out lmao I was expecting to get TorGun and I’m not sure if they will actually be a pair here but we shall see. It looks very abstract which is intriguing but also has me a bit hesitant because it’s giving slight The Blue Hour vibes. But we shall see. Gun and Tor are gonna slay either way.
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Cherry Magic (🏳️🌈): I have no words for this lmao. Like what---. I did not expect TayNew to actually make a comeback and I sure did not expect them to adapt THE cherry magic lmao? I generally find adaptions interesting but I’m not sure if this will work. TayNew are highly experienced so I guess they will do these roles justice but idk. cherry magic is so fundamentally different from thai bls which is one of the reasons why it was so phenomenal so I’m curious how they’re gonna do this. But for now I’m not putting it on my favorites list.
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Our Skyy 2 (🏳️🌈🌟): YES I’m excited for this one!!!! Never in a million years would I have thought that there would be another season to this show lmao but here we are. I’m taking this as a final goodbye to these pairings which is a bit sad but I think it’s a good way to end these eras. I’m excited to see what they have in store for each of them!!!
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Beauty Newbie: Absolutely hate this one. I’m sick and tired of these shows trying to sell me the idea that beautiful girls are ugly and then some handsome dude comes along and tells them otherwise like what century is this??? Win fits in there though because his characters are almost exclusively conservative snobs. No thank you.
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The Interest: Couldn’t care less about this one lmao. Bye.
conclusion: 2023 seems to be the year of comebacks lol which I’m not mad about since I love all these pairings, but I do wish we had gotten more new ones. Also I was expecting to see more new faces (besides Title and Great). A few surprises like the ones we got last year would’ve been nice. However I am happy with what we’re getting, especially the fact that MilkLove is finally happening. Incredible. I’m glad they toned it down a bit with the number of shows and also that the event was shorter. A lot of their big shots were either absent or merely booked which was surprising; I was expecting to see people like Bright more frequently but maybe that’s for the best.
My personal highlights are Only Friends, 23.5 Degrees, Dangerous Romance and Hidden Agenda.
Can’t wait for 2023! 💜
xxx
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This Week in BL - Taiwan has one show, but that's all they need
Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.
April 2024 Wk 1
Ongoing Series - Thai
Two Worlds (Thurs IQIYI) ep 4 of 10 - I don’t say this often but I LOVE this love triangle. The longing gazes = chef's kiss. I like that we are finally getting flashbacks to Tai’s side of the love affaire. This show remains highly engaging. So pleased for MaxNat.
Deep Night (Thurs iQiyi) ep 5 of 8 - More lesbians! Yay! Meanwhile, when our leads make up they make out! (Yes I’m proud of myself.) I think this might be BLs first rooftop sex scene. We’ve reached new heights, BLabies. (Yes I’m proud of that too.) Anygay, basically a soap opera at this point, I'm not thrilled but I don’t mind.
"Do you apologize for being straight?"
City of Stars (Fri iQIYI) ep 10 of 12 - It was lovely. Very well done celebrity leaving the closet ep. Nice ensemble work too. Next week is doom! As expected.
Only Boo! (Sun YouTube) ep 1 of 12 - New main couple for GMMTV in an idol romance about a boy who dances good and a food stand vendor. It’s fine but overly very pulp feeling for something from GMMTV. I'm a little concerned.
1000 Years Old (Thurs iQIYI) ep 8 of 12 - meh.
To Be Continued (Sat C3 Thailand grey) ep 7 of 8 - Never turned up on my usual sites. So will have to wait until next week.
Ongoing Series - Not Thai
Unknown (Taiwan Tues YouTube & Viki) ep 7 of 11 - Qian was, indeed, the one who couldn’t let go. This show is fucking fantastic. It's the best thing I'm watching right now by a mile.
Jazz for Two (Korea Gaga/grey) eps 3-8fin - The bully and the blue-haired drummer side pairing were great. I hated the father. Hated him so much. Our main tsundere seme was a bit too tsundere for me. I was v annoyed by the time he finally softened. I'm amused by all the ways they finagled boys kissin-but-not-kissing in the first half of this show. 2024's "pan around the back of the head" has now become a "dipping of the brolly." We did, however, eventually get an okay kiss.
Honestly?
This was basically what I wanted from Given and didn’t get. So I’m pleased. The music still wasn't great, but you can skip those bits. A solid enemies to lovers BL, where the sins of brothers' past haunts the present. Great optics, decent chemistry, and a tidy script even if tsundere characterization went a bit extreme in some cases. 8/10 RECOMMENDED trigger for suicide
Love is Better the Second Time Around AKA Koi wo Suru nara Nidome ga Joto (Japan Weds Gaga) ep 5 of 6 - We got the past betrayal in detail and it was decently bad. Bitterness understood. Too soon to live together! The BL U-Haul strikes again. I do like their weird curry passive aggressive argument. This is an interesting show. Do I LOVE it? No. But I think I like it.
On a not-really-related note: adoption, including adult adoption, is actually pretty common in Japan (comparatively). It's often tied to business scionism.
My Strawberry Film (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 8fin - It all turned out to be a tragic GL in the end. Not BL = not my problem. No rating. I will forget its existence right about… now.
Love is like a Cat (Korea Mon Viki) eps 1-2 of 12 - Okay, weirdly kinky with the head scratching. Not much has happened and I’m not wild about what has.
It's done, ready to binge, but I suck
What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Gaga) 10 eps
It's airing but...
We Are (Weds GMMTV iQIYI) ep 1 of 16 - University ensemble BL featuring PondPhuwin, WinnySatang, AouBoom, MarcPawinPoon - basically the good kind of messy gay friendship group (so more My Engineer and less Only Friends). Looks a bit like the Kiss series but everyone is queer. I'm IN but I need my other computer and I'm traveling as usual. So I'll get caught up next week and probably won't regularly be able to watch this one.
Graduation Countdown (Taiwan YouTube) - It's too much for me to keep up with 2 minute verticals, I don't have that kind of TikTok endurance training.
A Secretly Love (Thai Sat WeTV grey) 10 eps - Completed. Worth watching?
Lady Boy Friends (Thai WeTV grey) 16 eps - reminds me a bit too much of Diary of Tootsies only high school. Not my thing. DNF unless it turns a corner and is truly amazing.
Kiseki Chapter 2 (Sun iQIYI) 6 eps - It’s so boring DNFed at 2.
Close Friend Season 3: Soju Bomb! (Weds iQIYI) 6 - The problem with situational comedy BL is it must be situational, comedic and a BL. This show gets 1 of 3 claims correct. 33% is not a passing grade. Dropped at 3.
In the news
Takumi-kun Series 6: Nagai Nagai Monogatari is getting the undeserved honor of Furritsubs. Follow them for details. Tip 'em if you like 'em. (Will I watch it? Oh, probably. Damn it.)
Then Next Prince turned out to be a trailer only. Word on the webs is we will be lucky if we get it this year. It’s BL Princess Diaries. Jimmy has a new pairing (that boy from Night Dream) which is... interesting. All in all, this show does not look good. Pretty but not good.
Next Week Looks Like This:
4/11 Gray Shelter AKA Gray Currents (Korea ????) 4 eps - SooHyuk is only just surviving and reunites with YoonDae, an old friend. They end up living together. One of the leads is played by Choco of Choco Milk Shake.
4/12 Living With Him AKA Kare no Iru Seikatsu (Japan Gaga) 10 eps - Kindly Ryota goes off to uni only to find his new roommate is his childhood bestie, Kazuhito. Kazuhito doesn’t have a girlfriend and Ryota tries to help him figure out why, they fall in love along the way. Same director as Old Fashion Cupcake.
Still to Come in April
4/18 At 25:00, in Alaska AKA 25 Ji, Akasaka de (Japan Gaga) 10 eps - Yuki lands his first starring role in a BL drama alongside superstar Asami (previously his senior at uni). Said superstar suggests they form a sham relationship until filming concludes. As they actually begin to fall in love, the spotlight begins to burn. I think I've seen this before (joke) and also the trailer doesn't inspire confidence.
4/26 My Stand-In (Thai iQIYI) 12 eps - adaptation of Chinese novel "Professional Body Double" by Shui Qiang Cheng. Stars Up (Lovely Writer) and Poom (Bake Me Please) directed by the same team as KP (not a recommendation IMHO - my biggest criticism of that show was the clashing directing styles). This one looks well complicated, lemme try: Joe is a stuntman for famous actor Tong. Joe falls in love with Ming but Ming sees Joe as nothing more than a Tong-replacement. After learning this horrible truth, Joe dies. Joe then wakes up in the body of another man also named Joe. He manages to rebuild the same life as before—with the same people eventually re-meeting Ming. Ming wants Joe back but Joe doesn't understand why. But Ming seems to know what's going on and wants to give him some kind of explanation.
I'm exhausted just trying to describe the plot.
Knock-Knock Boys (Thai WeTV) - 4 college friends conspire to help their friend lose his virginity. Familiar faces like Seng (yes, Billy's previous partner) and Best, news here.
Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.
NOTE: It looks like one of my personal favorites of last year Unintentional Love Story is getting a spin off!
THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS
See City of Stars & Unknown.
(Last week)
Streaming services are listed by how I (usually) watch, which is with a USA based IP, and often offset by a day because time zones are too much work.
The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire
If ya wanna be tagged each week leave a comment and I will add you to the template. Easy peesy.
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BL's Still Waiting to premiere in 2023
These release dates are taken from MDL, so with a grain of salt. Although some have been confirmed with official trailers and statements.
China
Japan
One Room Angel - Oct-19-2023
Sahara-sensei & Toki-kun - Nov-30-2023
South Korea
Bump Up Business - Oct-20-23
Wuju Bakery - Nov-?-2023
A Breeze of Love - Nov-10-2023
Taiwan
VIP Only - Nov-24-2023
Thailand
Pit Babe - Nov-17-2023
Beyond the Star - Nov-11-2023
Y: Journey: Stay Like a Local - Oct-14-2023
Shadow - Oct 31-2023
Twins - Nov-3-2023
Playboyy - Nov-16-2023
My Dear Gangster Oppa - Oct-26-2023
7 Days Before Valentine - Nov-22-2023
The Sign - Nov-25-2023
Last Twilight - Nov-10-2023
Cooking Crush - Nov-30-2023
The Whisperer - Nov-26-2023
Cherry Magic - Dec-7-2023
Bake Me Please - Nov-19-2023
Middleman's Love - Nov-10-2023
For Him - Nov-30-2023
Boyy of God - Nov/Dec-?-2023
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