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Contrast (Japanese Series)

By Golu
This is basically a high school BL where two guys who have nothing going on in common somehow end up getting really close to each other, and that's kind of the whole point of the title too. There's barely any drama or fluff packed in here, it stays pretty straightforward the whole way through. A little bit of friction pops up here and there, but it's nothing compared to what you'd normally get in this kind of show. Runtime wise you're looking at 8 episodes, each one sitting around 25-30 minutes. The two guys carrying the story are Akira and Kanata, and funny enough they knew each other's faces way before they ever knew each other's names. Kanata's the type everyone likes, always got people around him, popular guy, but there's this distance to him that people can't quite place. Turns out he had an injury that ended his football days, and that's what pushed him into being more withdrawn, and it only got worse once his younger brother got picked...
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Mermaid Sauna (Taiwanese Series)

By Golu
A zany Taiwanese comedy about gender swap is the basic premise of this show. Although the plot is quite thin and you may feel the story line is silly, the performances from the three leads keep this 8 episode (15 minutes each) series lively and entertaining to a certain extent but certain sequences become inconsequential and relevant too. As always, good marks for the novelty of the subject at least.

A-Bu, a single gay man in his 40s, with his sharp wit and humour, is the owner of a gay bathhouse Mermaid Sauna. He has two employees: a young 22 year old university student Xiao Chi who is works there so he gets free nude models to draw and Hua Hua, a beautiful and very flirtatious female who has a complicated love life because of her continues seductive charms on every guy. Xiao has a girlfriend who like shim very much but he is a very shy guy and doesn't know much about love or anything. One night the trip are partying and they end the night drinking up a special sake. Next day they wake up and are mortified to find that their bodies have swapped. Xiao Chi is now in A-Bu’s body, A-Bu is in Hua Hua’s body, while Hua Hua has transferred to Xiao Chi’s body. They don't know how to reverse the effects and since they are stuck in a different body, they have to get used to a new routine and life based on in twos body they are. Each character goes through his/her journey. Xiao Chi realizes his love for his girlfriend, A-Bu ends up meeting the possible love of his life and Hua Hua understands what she wants from life. Of course, the end is happy where they manage. To get their hands on the special sake to get their lives back to normal.

The one things that stands out about this show is the leads and how good actors they are. They do an amazing job of keeping their original personality but also modifying it based on who they become after soul swap and this is what makes it very exciting. Expectedly, the humor is goofy and whacky and you can't take it seriously but it does end up bringing a chuckle and a smile. It did for me at least. The show does try to stereotype each of the characters traits in the beginning but thankfully towards the later half of the show we see good growth in their arcs. Every once in a while, we see hints of hidden depth that go beyond their intended archetypes. But again these are not meant to be taken seriously by us as audience. The budding romances are half baked, be it with a wanna painter or the rich and handsome young man. But still there is a certain charm in the way they were developed. We do get to see a few kissing scenes and some hot bodies, but other than that the show is pretty PG, with a mix of gay-straight characters and scenes. 

Overall, a decent show shot with two possible endings with a subtle difference. It was a decent timepass that did bring a smile to my face. (5.5/10)
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Comments

Sailor Maan said…
I liked this one, a stupid but nice story with very good main casts. The way they change their acting depending on the character they embody is great. And funny. On the cons, it's short with 3 parallel stories, convenient situations, so no real time to develop something deep even if the characters growth was nice. And some attitudes were questionable at best. But I found it really entertaining and lighthearted as a whole.
May 18, 2022 at 11:10 AM
Golu said…
Exactly my thoughts. It was one of those "keep your brain aside and just try to enjoy" kinda show. The acting was quite good in how they swapped their original character and their new soul
May 18, 2022 at 2:57 PM
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