Great physical comedy but terrible characters choices

It's a breath of fresh air in the midst of a year of weak releases with obvious stories, childish characters and mediocre productions by gmm-tv.

Is the series a masterpiece? No, and it has many flaws, but it still manages to deliver a slice of life series with excellent physical comedy and hilarious timing that is elevated by the exquisite editing work.

It's impressive how everything that was wrong with My Love Mix-Up works here. The refined coloring, the intelligent cuts that only add more humor to the scene, the extremely catchy soundtrack, the very well-used sound effects and, of course, the cinematography also deserves to be highlighted with beautiful takes, frames full of references and style and a direction that knew how to develop and use each of the characters very well.

Is it a BL series? I would say no. It's more of a series about five interns trying to survive their internship and prove themselves worthy of their fields while facing life's problems than it is about a romance between a clumsy intern and a cold assistant director.

And honestly, that's not a problem for me. The series is fun, the characters are captivating and the crazy things they get up to in each episode are engaging enough to give the series a dynamic and interesting pace.

But if there's one thing the series failed at, it was in the development of the protagonists. Ryan is by far one of the most boring characters in this series. I like the development that all the characters have and the series really highlights this growth in them, but Ryan was created in such a way that it's simply hard to connect with the character.

He has no attitude, his whole sweet and innocent personality is a bit too cartoonish, he never stands up for himself, he has no charisma, he acts like a child who doesn't know anything about life or even how to perform basic functions at the beginning of the series and this really sinks the character and makes the main couple end up disappearing in the middle of the series.

And that's the problem. The main couple doesn't stand out at all and they simply disappear in the series, especially when all the drama with Bah-mee, Tae and Judy happens.

And this is another point that bothers me about the series. I particularly hated Bah-mae in the beginning and she was indeed annoying, spoiled and immature. The character has a very interesting growth and I love her chemistry with Judy.

I don't mind the betrayal plot because I like characters who are flawed and make mistakes, but it was a shot in the foot to put her in this plot only to have her get back together with Tae and act in the same annoying way as before.

They simply destroyed the character and made viewers hate her for nothing. It's a plot that takes up too much screen time and has such a weak and lukewarm resolution.

The friendship between them is the strong point of the plot because the romance is completely overshadowed by the narrative. The theft of the music video and the time jump of 5 years apart are two decisions that I can't understand why they were included in the series.

And this is another point that needs to end in GMM-TV's BLs. The time jumps with the characters separated because apparently they go back to the Ice Age when they move countries so they can't send a message or make a video call.

It's not the best, but certainly the most interesting BL they released in this weak year.

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It was difficult to get to the end

I confess that I wasn't expecting much from this series because coming from Star Hunter we know that nothing good is going to happen.

But it amazes me how a series that apparently has a high budget, decent actors and a fairly competent production is capable of delivering such a dull and lifeless story.

It's not a bad series and it's not the worst BL of the year, but it's hard to find anything to praise here. It's all so cliché, so mediocre, so boring.

Mos and Bank honestly aren't good in this BL. I don't think either of them really fit the role. Sun is a character who doesn't have much to offer and is nothing more than a rich man in expensive suits. Salin kinda has a story, but it's completely disconnected from the narrative. The plot involving Naga and his soul is a blatant copy of The Sign that seems like an afterthought. They try to make him a cute but sexy character at the same time and this creates a conflict.

But overall the plot between them is so boring. They speak softly, have shallow conversations and the whole romance between them doesn't have a hint of excitement. The NC scenes are good because they really give it their all there, but they're so cheesy that it's painful to watch.

The series has 4 couples, but honestly it wouldn't make the slightest difference if they weren't in the plot. Sam and Yotha have good chemistry, but they practically have crumbs of screen time and end up being completely wasted.

Pim and Prim happen towards the end and they have zero chemistry. It's a relationship that comes out of nowhere and has no relevance whatsoever. Chan and Juldis are the comic relief and nothing more.

Overall it's a beautiful series, with excellent locations, but it wastes everything on a story that doesn't know what it wants to be and tries to be a little bit of everything. And nothing works.

The characters are shallow and at no point do you care about them. The costumes are exaggerated and completely disconnected from the characters (which has been a problem in Thai BLs, this habit of putting the characters dressed as idols on a red carpet). The fantasy elements are poorly constructed and lead nowhere.

It could easily have been an 8-episode series and focused more on the jewelry and built a more interesting plot. If Salin had infiltrated the company to steal a jewel that belonged to his family and in the process he fell in love with Sun, something simple but fun like that, the story would have been great.

But what we have are great NC scenes and 12 episodes of questionable acting, shallow dialogue, poorly directed scenes and a plot that goes from zero to nothing.

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Roteiro vazio e uma história fraca

é uma série de personagens cativantes, a química do Force e Book é incrível e no geral é uma série leve e bobinha, mas o maior problema para mim é a falta de história.

os personagens são extremamente rasos, não há evolução ou construção do romance entre eles, o casal secundário está ali apenas de enfeite e a trama joga inúmeras questões que possuem ZERO impacto na narrativa.

a série começa mostrando o Gun como esse cara mau humorado, frio e rude, mas logo no primeiro ep. ele já está de joelhos pelo Cher e é isso. não existe construção do relacionamento deles ou desenvolvimento e isso torna a série entediante.

Cher inclusive é um personagem que eu adoro, mas que é tão caricato, tão bobo que soa absurdamente infantil e irrealista em muitos momentos.

o que temos é uma série que parece um compilado de cenas que não se adicionam. é toda a briga do Gun com o Time, os problemas com o Thup, o roubo do jogo, a mãe do Gun interferir na relação deles, a depressão do Jack, a morte da Thian. tudo isso é jogado na série, discutido em uma cena e logo em seguida esquecido.

inclusive a série perde muito quando decide jogar um plot que Thian se suicidou por ter engravidado do pai após anos sendo estuprada. é algo tão pesado, tão sinistro e eles só jogam isso e no episódio seguinte essa trama sequer é lembrada.

é uma série fofa, mas extremamente mau construída e rasa. e nem adianta inventar desculpas porque Our Dating Sim e Our Dinning Table são duas séries fofas que estão ai e tem uma construção impecável.

infelizmente não foi dessa vez que o Force e Book receberam uma série decente..

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To My Star (Taekwondo Version)

Hwang Da Seul is undoubtedly one of the best directors of BL series. And here is yet another proof of her competence and talent in creating such captivating stories with impeccable production, acting and cinematography.

However, I feel that this is a series that ends up repeating many of the arcs and narratives used in To My Star (also directed by her). It is the story of a witty, lively man who refuses to succumb to his problems and ends up moving in with a serious, bad-tempered and cold man. Little by little, he manages to break down the walls of this cold man and they fall in love. Until this man disappears without much explanation and years later they meet again because the cheerful man never forgot or stopped loving the cold man who begins to treat him in an indifferent and cruel way.

And that is where the problem lies. I feel like the first 3 episodes are perfect and contain such a unique and well-constructed narrative about two abandoned, lonely, and pain-filled boys who build a friendship and love that can withstand the pain and give hope about a better future.

That's the best part of the series. But they decide to do a 12-year time jump and the reason why it happens is the worst possible. I would understand if Ju Yeong had killed DoHoe's father and spent that time in prison. Or if they had met in college and the story focused on DoHoe trying to get into college and having to maintain a lie so that Ju Yeong wouldn't feel guilty.

But the story of their adult life is so weak and even boring. The dialogues are excellent, the acting is very good, but all this drama and DoHoe's distant and cruel behavior simply hurts the narrative much more.

I understand that the series tries to create this more complex, adult and conflict-filled plot, but the reality is that none of these conflicts really work. The whole issue of DoHoe forging his diploma or the problem with his mother who mistreated her son has little impact on the story.

The ending fixes a lot of things and manages to bring a resolution that warms the heart. But the series is too confined in the same space, repeating the same fights and this ends up greatly impacting what could be one of the best BL series of 2024.

It's an excellent series and gives a show in the technical aspects, but I really wish they had kept and explored the story of these characters' adolescence. The formula for a perfect story was all there.

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Tecnicamente excelente, mas um tanto arrastada

Algo que não pode ser negado é a imensa qualidade que esse BL tem. A cinematografia é impecável, a trilha sonora é perfeita, as atuações são excelentes e a direção realmente consegue trazer esse toque de delicadeza, timidez e o despertar de uma relação cheia de desentendimentos e sentimentos não ditos.

O problema é que esse BL acabou sendo lançado alguns meses depois de I Became the Main Role of a BL Drama, outro BL japonês que foi lançado no final do ano passado e que tem literalmente o mesmo plot. É a mesma história de um ator tímido e retraído que nunca teve sucesso e precisa fazer um BL com um ator famoso que ele teve contato no passado e que é secretamente apaixonado por ele.

E o problema é que o ritmo flui muito melhor lá do que aqui. Os dois maiores problemas que eu tive aqui foram o Yuki, um personagem um tanto sem graça e entediante e a forma como o roteiro decidiu enrolar até o último episódio para que os personagens finalmente conversassem.

E isso infelizmente acaba afetando muito o ritmo da série a ponto da narrativa se tornar repetitiva em alguns momentos.

Entretanto, não deixa de ser um BL incrível e muito bem produzido. Apenas faltou coragem e criatividade em criar um desenvolvimento mais ousado e diferente para os personagens.

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Great drama, terrible horror

It took me forever to start this series simply because I couldn't get past the first episode.

The problem with Dead Friend Forever is that the horror element here is extremely poorly constructed and executed. At times it felt like the series was going down a path like Nightmare on Elm Street, at other times it felt like Scream and Halloween and sometimes it felt like Bodies Bodies Bodies.

But the reality is that the horror here is from a low-budget school project. The deaths, the makeup, the killer and the mask are all so weak, so silly.

The drama present in episodes 5 to 8 and in episode 11 is simply the best part of the series. And I really wish they had explored this side more and really built a more elaborate suspense and worked the horror in a more psychological way.

Because all the scenes in the country house are terrible and weaken the plot a lot. These scenes can be summed up by the characters screaming and crying and screaming some more (which is done in excess here and is totally annoying). The construction of tension, fear and distrust is poorly executed and is based on the conveniences of the script and a "magic drug" that makes everyone hallucinate about Non.

The two-year time jump is something that cools the plot and I hate it. It makes no sense for Por, Top and Fluke to keep apologizing for hurting Non while they are hallucinating. At no point do they feel any sympathy for him and no drug can force that.

If Phee and Tan had discovered the truth about what happened and revealed it to the group, it would create a much more interesting dynamic.

Because the essential thing in a slasher horror is the suspicion of who the killer is. And that doesn't happen here.

If developed, they would all have motivations. Jin because of the guilt of what he did and because his friends' lie made Non get to that point. Por because Top broke his camera and made him be reprimanded by his father and end up in this mess. Fluke because his friends' lie risked tarnishing his reputation as a future doctor. Phee and Tan for the obvious reasons.

And in the end, all of them in the cabin being hunted by a killer would be amazing. But the deaths are weak (especially Por and Top), the confrontation is simply the characters screaming a lot and there is no tension. The series relies on the drug that Tan created and everything becomes too fantastical.

There really is something very interesting here. I love the middle of the series and Barcode simply shines in an impeccable performance. But it lacks nuance and the foundations of a good horror, it lacks a sharper direction that knew how to develop the plot instead of having the characters yelling all the time and it lacked a cleaner script that really removed all the unnecessary parts and created a bloody revenge drama.

Because that's what this story is. A revenge drama.

But the series mixes countless elements here - slasher horror, psychological horror, supernatural horror and syfy horror and ends up delivering anything. The last episode is a mess and the open end is a big no.

Great performances and an impeccable drama, but it needs a more elegant and precise editing, direction and script to be a good horror series.

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Excelente química, péssimo roteiro

Love in The Air é uma série muito gostosa e fácil de assistir. Ela tem uma trama chiclete (pra não dizer clichê) e personagens fáceis de entender. A química entre os atores é incrível e provavelmente uma das melhores coisas aqui.

Entretanto eu continuo não gostando de nada que venha da MAME. E apesar de ser mais sútil, todas as problemáticas das outras obras dela continuam aqui. Rain e Sky são os "passivos" da relação e a construção desses personagens é a típica construção de uma personagem feminina estereotipada. Eles são geniosos, imprudentes, atrevidos e no final dos seus arcos precisam ser salvos de um grupo de homens que tentam (ou ameaçam) estuprar eles.

Já os "ativos" são apresentados como dominantes, perigosos, ricos e homens bem sucedidos que sempre conseguem o que querem. O fato de ambos trabalharem para a máfia em NADA tem relevância na história e só é apresentado ali pra criar esse ar de periculosidade nos personagens.

A trama não se aprofunda em nada e a decisão de dividir os casais em dois arcos é um erro. O problema é que o primeiro arco é mais leve e sensual, com um romance rápido e quando o segundo arco chega, a impressão é que a série pisa no freio e repete as mesmas interações do primeiro arco.

Eu gosto muito do tempo que eles levam para desenvolver o Sky e os traumas dele. Mas ambos os finais são desnecessários. Eles criam um vilão aleatório para ameaçar o Rain e a volta do ex do Sky é algo que não me agrada em nada.

Não é uma série ruim, longe disso, mas tampouco é uma obra prima como dizem. As atuações são bem medianas, a direção não tem estilo e a história é uma tanto rasa e simples. Ela funciona por repetir a mesma fórmula das outras séries da autora e por ter atores que entregam ótimas cenas de intimidade.

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Uma versão barata de Not Me

Não é uma série boa, mas é aquele tipo de série que você só desliga o cérebro e aproveita porque se começar a pensar muito o negócio desanda.

Os atores são todos muito carismáticos e a história tem um ritmo interessante que não te deixa entediado e todas as interações do Sprite com o First são o que realmente funcionam nessa série.

Mas o roteiro é uma bagunça e isso vai ficando evidente com os episódios. É uma série muito crua e não existe nuance, não existe construção e tampouco desenvolvimento. Os tópicos são jogados em cena e resolvidos com uma facilidade que não me agrada.

E esse é o problema. Falta de desenvolvimento, excesso de personagens e tramas que não acrescentam nada e um roteiro cheiro de furos e conveniências. Só um exemplo aqui: Sprite e Zee são ambos estudantes, mas a gente nunca vê eles na faculdade e nunca há qualquer menção sobre como o Sprite consegue acompanhar as aulas dos dois. É algo irrelante pra trama, mas serve para mostrar o nível de descomprometimento com a história.

O casal secundário mal tem tempo de tela ou construção. O terceiro casal só existe porque eles queriam cenas de dois homens sem camisa se beijando. Toda a traição do Ko, o drama com as fãs do Zee e o vazamento da foto com a Salmon, o pai alcoólatra do Jack, a mãe doente do Tom, a briga com o Tong, os problemas familiares do Zee e Sprite NADA disso é desenvolvido ou tem qualquer impacto na trama. E eles simplesmente jogam isso e depois resolvem de qualquer forma e ta tudo certo.

É uma série que funcionaria se não se levasse tão a sério. Mas com um roteiro péssimo e uma história que enrola até o último minuto com os personagens tomando uma decisão mais burra que a outra, fica difícil de defender. Começa muito bem e divertida, mas se perde totalmente na reta final.

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Could be better but still is a masterpiece

There's no denying that Japan knows how to create a simple series, but so full of emotions and beauty that it's impossible not to fall in love. And here it's no different.

The series does have its problems, and the lack of romantic development, the camera trick to hide the kiss and the lack of scenes of them as lovers is something that really disappoints.

However, none of this takes away from the merits of this series. The script is full of nuances, it has a slow development, but it allows the characters to develop naturally. And what characters! Kohei and Taichi are so real, so passionate, so fun, so interesting and brilliantly played.

The acting here is the strong point. Both actors (as well as the rest of the cast) deliver a visual performance and the chemistry between them, the looks, the gestures, everything is impeccable.

The direction and cinematography also deserve to be highlighted. The series is beautiful and the scenes are very well composed.

I understand those who say that the series dragged on and created too many problems until they got together, and I agree with that. But at no point did the series leave me bored or frustrated.

Taichi teaching Kohei how to say his name in sign language, Kohei telling the teacher's jokes so that Taichi wouldn't be left out, Taichi saying he loves Kohei in sign language, this series has such beautiful and silent scenes, but they carry so much weight and devotion that it's impossible not to fall in love with them.

It has its problems, but it's still a masterpiece and a series that shows people with disabilities in a respectful way, in a light and stylish plot and with exemplary performances.

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Simples but captivating

It's a very interesting series and a great story for Daou and Offroad, who have undeniable chemistry and deliver an excellent work here.

The story reminds me a lot of First Love, Again and I like how it's developed. It's a simple story, but well executed and what really stands out here is the interaction and charisma of the main actors.

The direction is a bit weak, especially in the action scenes and the more dramatic moments. The series has a soap opera-like feel, especially in the cinematography, which is quite flat and waist the beautiful sets they have.

And one of the only things I don't like about this series is the villains. There's no need for them, they serve no purpose in the plot and the whole discussion about stealing the stone becomes repetitive and tiring. The series could benefit from a secondary couple or better development of the other characters instead of insisting on all this drama of the uncle and the impostor trying to steal the stone.

It's a fun project with great actors, a well-structured story and despite the poor production, it's a series that delivers an excellent result with a couple that exudes chemistry.

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