HIStory4: Close to You (2021)

Don't recommend !

I normally don't write reviews but seeing one under this made me specifically want to comment. The comment was stressing that new bl fans were having a problem with this drama because of the stepbrothers and r*pe romanticizing. I've been a fan of bl since 2018 and I've seen many stepbrother plots which is not a problem. I am tired of the trope but it's something that'll probably never change. However, that person justified the r*pe as just a toxic factor within the couple. Romanticizing r*pe within dramas/novels should never be a thing and that's why people have a problem with it. TengTeng and Licheng completely saved the entire drama, I skipped through and ignored the other couple's parts. Not only did Yongjie admit to having sex with Xingsi against his will and getting him drunk on purpose, but he also took a video of it and showed it to his parents. That's sexual harassment. I get the point that person was trying to make but it was a terrible point, r*pe should not be justified as toxicity, it is a real problem in the bl world that people don't talk about. Yongjie being sweet and cute later on does not justify what he put Xingsi and his parents through. The show terribly executes their story and really could've done better. R*pe should not be included ever.

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Free The Imperfect Truth And You Will See The Potential Of This Show

First of all, I won´t go deep into the storyline in my review, since that would take me too long to explain why this show is in my opinion a good one, even though some episodes caused a lot of hate. I firstly state that I am NOT playing down the TWs such as those portrayed in this series, nor will I say that I don´t understand those offended. I can definitely see where antipathy comes from.

Their acting performances were substantial and they were embodying their roles well. (I am talking about the main cast here)


Ye Xing Si/ Fu Yong Jie:
The beginning of this show is very light and most viewers may have not expected the quick turn in the XS and YJ couple, which was truly shocking for me as well. However, I did not judge the cast or production for it, since they were just doing their job in recreating the written. Many viewers started a hate wave against them and I can not understand what the History-Production has to do with the storyline.

The storyline was not too exaggerated nor was it something casual. I agree that Yong Jie made a complete reckless move on his brother while he was drunk and you should not take advantage of drunk people, on the other hand, wasn´t it to take the blame for his brothers coming out? (I want to point out the conversation in minute 11 of episode 19) Wasn´t he willing to lose his father to enable XS an opportunity to come out? He was hiding all his life and YJ just wanted to end the suffering by taking the blame. YJ is also mentally not okay and of course, that is NOT an excuse to stalk nor to use a drunk person and this is exactly what I am trying to say here:

1. Disorders are part of our everyday life. They lead to activities or behaviours that can damage yourself and others. They portrayed it well.
2. His brother forgave him. He wasn´t forced to do so, he had the choice to hate him and even take the video to the police. He didn´t. Not because he was afraid but because he understood the intentions and also fell in love with him, unforced.

Also, the episode when the father himself, who saw the video and everything, agreed to support them. Therefore there is a lot more behind that night than just pleasing a long-standing desire.

Xiao Li Cheng/ Teng Mu Ren:
To be honest, I was kinda annoyed with the beginning of their story because I thought Xiao Li Cheng was hiding too much behind his superficiality. It only took me another episode tho to fall in love with their storyline as well. It was very contrasting to the other couple. While these two have a bubbly and messy relationship, in which two friends discovered their feelings for each other, the other couple had a dark and complicated one. I loved the build-up and how realistic the misfortunes and downsides of their discovery were. Shock. Denial. Frustration. Dedication. All of the build-ups leading to a positive outcome of their relationship.

In general, this show had me jumping with joy and down on my knees the next second. No other story had made me question the reasons, connections and similarities to real-life as this one did. Not because it was dramatic and confusing, but because it was IMPERFECT. Just like us. We are not perfect either. That´s okay. We also know that this is not an excuse to hurt others but something that makes us human. If that show had no frailty, it wouldn´t have been this catchy.

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