A PLEASANT SURPRISE
Until We Meet Again is the best BL series created till date. In this 10-page essay I shall...
Just kidding, I'm not going to write 10 pages even though my mind is clouded with an overbearing number of emotions right now. This review isn't even going to be coherent but it's going to act as an archive for my thoughts for when I want to convince friends to watch this.
Story - 10/10 for a great plot, amazing writing and for connecting loose ends perfectly. Every character had a part to play and helped the story progress in their own way. What started out (to me) as a cute little fluffy show with cooking interludes turned into a full fledged character development journey showcasing the healthiest relationship in BL I've ever seen.
Their relationship impressed me so much. P'Dean is not your typical "top" BL lead. He respected the boundaries set by Pharm, is communicative and shows how much he cares for Pharm through his words and actions. He respected him when he said he needed a break. Same goes for Pharm. After nearly a decade of being plagued by nightmares, they became each others' safe place. I pray that I have a relationship that's as healthy as DeanPharm.
I would like to thank the writers for acknowledging the existence of homophobia and the effect it has on teenagers. All the other shows either don't focus on it at all or brush it aside after talking about it for a few minutes. But the way it was portrayed in this show was relatable to be in so many ways and as a queer person, it made me happy to see a BL drama which was more than fanservice-filled moments catering to a fujoshi/fudanshi audience. A gay relationship isn't going to be sunshine and rainbows. Thank you for showing that.
I would also like to thank the writers for not portraying female characters as a tool for making the MCs jealous or as their crazy exes or merely people who fetishise gay couples and so on. Positive light on all female characters? Who would have thought this day would come?
Pacing - 9.5/10. When I first heard that this series had flashbacks and present time scenes shown back to back, I didn't want to watch it and this is the only reason I postponed watching this for so long. I expected it to be messy and confusing but it wasn't. The time skips were shown in a very clear manner and didn't leave me bored.
Acting - 9/10. I'm not sure why I'm rating this as 9/10 instead of 10/10. Perhaps it's because Dean had three expressions most of the time - anger, shocked grief and whipped (Honestly same.) Not saying his acting was bad or anything though. Most of the scenes required him to act whipped anyway. Pharm's acting was great too. The sub cast's acting was so-so but Dean's grandma stole the show even though she didn't have that much screen time. Her acting skills were phenomenal. The emotions, the pain, the longing; it was all evident in her eyes. I cried with her every second she was on screen.
Music- 10/10. I don't have much to say expect they did a good job. Loved the OST :'0
I usually don't give high rewatch values because I'm the type of person who prefers to binge a lot of shows and never touch a series for a second time. But this one, I will make an exception for this show. I would definitely rewatch it and like the experience the emotions all over again. Forgive me for repeating myself, but this show really kept the fanservice to the minimum possible (almost negligible) level. I was seeing a gay real relationship and it's progress here.
(SPOILERS START)
A complaint most people had against this was that they didn't understand why Pharm said they needed to stay apart in the last episode. In my opinion, that was a very crucial part of the show. Until then, Pharm had trouble seeing Intouch and himself as two separate people. He wondered if the love he felt for P'Dean was only because In and Korn were in love in their past life. The nightmare he had about P'Dean cutting off the red thread of fate and moving on was a very valid and understandable fear on his part. After suggesting time apart, Pharm dreamt about In and Korn again. But this time, it was not from the perspective of In; he was watching it from the side because he was Pharm. He was a different person, not the Intouch from the past. That realisation was important for him to put aside the insecurities he had about his relationship with P'Dean and confess his feelings once again.
(SPOILERS END)
That's all I have to say. Of course, our tastes might not be similar but please give this series a chance. The chances of you regretting it are very less. And towards the beginning you might feel like dropping it but please stick till the end.
Just kidding, I'm not going to write 10 pages even though my mind is clouded with an overbearing number of emotions right now. This review isn't even going to be coherent but it's going to act as an archive for my thoughts for when I want to convince friends to watch this.
Story - 10/10 for a great plot, amazing writing and for connecting loose ends perfectly. Every character had a part to play and helped the story progress in their own way. What started out (to me) as a cute little fluffy show with cooking interludes turned into a full fledged character development journey showcasing the healthiest relationship in BL I've ever seen.
Their relationship impressed me so much. P'Dean is not your typical "top" BL lead. He respected the boundaries set by Pharm, is communicative and shows how much he cares for Pharm through his words and actions. He respected him when he said he needed a break. Same goes for Pharm. After nearly a decade of being plagued by nightmares, they became each others' safe place. I pray that I have a relationship that's as healthy as DeanPharm.
I would like to thank the writers for acknowledging the existence of homophobia and the effect it has on teenagers. All the other shows either don't focus on it at all or brush it aside after talking about it for a few minutes. But the way it was portrayed in this show was relatable to be in so many ways and as a queer person, it made me happy to see a BL drama which was more than fanservice-filled moments catering to a fujoshi/fudanshi audience. A gay relationship isn't going to be sunshine and rainbows. Thank you for showing that.
I would also like to thank the writers for not portraying female characters as a tool for making the MCs jealous or as their crazy exes or merely people who fetishise gay couples and so on. Positive light on all female characters? Who would have thought this day would come?
Pacing - 9.5/10. When I first heard that this series had flashbacks and present time scenes shown back to back, I didn't want to watch it and this is the only reason I postponed watching this for so long. I expected it to be messy and confusing but it wasn't. The time skips were shown in a very clear manner and didn't leave me bored.
Acting - 9/10. I'm not sure why I'm rating this as 9/10 instead of 10/10. Perhaps it's because Dean had three expressions most of the time - anger, shocked grief and whipped (Honestly same.) Not saying his acting was bad or anything though. Most of the scenes required him to act whipped anyway. Pharm's acting was great too. The sub cast's acting was so-so but Dean's grandma stole the show even though she didn't have that much screen time. Her acting skills were phenomenal. The emotions, the pain, the longing; it was all evident in her eyes. I cried with her every second she was on screen.
Music- 10/10. I don't have much to say expect they did a good job. Loved the OST :'0
I usually don't give high rewatch values because I'm the type of person who prefers to binge a lot of shows and never touch a series for a second time. But this one, I will make an exception for this show. I would definitely rewatch it and like the experience the emotions all over again. Forgive me for repeating myself, but this show really kept the fanservice to the minimum possible (almost negligible) level. I was seeing a gay real relationship and it's progress here.
(SPOILERS START)
A complaint most people had against this was that they didn't understand why Pharm said they needed to stay apart in the last episode. In my opinion, that was a very crucial part of the show. Until then, Pharm had trouble seeing Intouch and himself as two separate people. He wondered if the love he felt for P'Dean was only because In and Korn were in love in their past life. The nightmare he had about P'Dean cutting off the red thread of fate and moving on was a very valid and understandable fear on his part. After suggesting time apart, Pharm dreamt about In and Korn again. But this time, it was not from the perspective of In; he was watching it from the side because he was Pharm. He was a different person, not the Intouch from the past. That realisation was important for him to put aside the insecurities he had about his relationship with P'Dean and confess his feelings once again.
(SPOILERS END)
That's all I have to say. Of course, our tastes might not be similar but please give this series a chance. The chances of you regretting it are very less. And towards the beginning you might feel like dropping it but please stick till the end.
Was this review helpful to you?