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Journey With You (Chinese Series)

I've always had kind of a love hate relationship with Chinese historical BLs. Some are genuinely excellent, but then there are others that cram in so much plot that keeping track of all the layers of betrayal and scheming gets exhausting, and I end up checking out mentally. Part of the issue is also just how much content is out there in this space, so something really has to stand out to keep me hooked. In this case, the production value is genuinely impressive, top tier stuff, but story wise, I just couldn't bring myself to actually care about these characters. There's a ton of political scheming and backstage manipulation running throughout. Somewhere in the middle of all that chaos, a hostage ends up falling for his own Prince Charming. The show runs eight episodes, each around 50 to 60 minutes long. After spending three years guarding the border, Fifth Prince Yin Qi gets called back to the capital because of a secret letter, only to end up walking straight into a deadly...

My Stubborn (Thai Series)

This series is a classic case of likely the makers realizing that sex sells even in BL stories. Enough of this high school love and romance, we need to throw in more kisses and lot of hot bodies and sex and we will have a winner on our hands. Honestly this is what I feel the conversation must have gone when this show was being greenlit. 12 episodes of 50-60 minutes each, the story just keeps going in circles for no reason at all. I am honestly baffled at why these Thai film makers still insist on longer duration of episodes. Almost 80% of the narrative includes unhindered & unapologetic sex scenes between the main leads. I’m yet to find an episode where they weren’t kissing or having a full-blown sex session.

Let's try to summarize the story if I can. Show starts with this guy Sorn jerking off in a public place. A younger boy Jun is watching him and Sorn watches him. But he then says that "hey I see you are hard, let me teach you and kiss you " and the young boy gives in, both telling each other this is not gay. A few years later these guys find themselves working in the same office when Jun joins as an intern. Apparently there is some difference between them > this is when Sorn starts full on flirting with Jun leaving no opportunity to remind him that he taught him about kissing and that it is his duty now to teach him how to have good sex so that he becomes a good student. Almost in every single episode we see how Sorn finds an opportunity to steal a kiss and have sex with Jun who is initially confused by what is going on but starts to slowly have feelings for me. When he overhears Sorn talking that he can never fall in love with a 'kid' he is disappointed. After some drama and intervention by 10 other characters in the office, Sorn realizes that he also loves Jun and steamy sex continues. In between all this we have another couple, the boss of the office Tai, who has know Jun from when they were kids and treats him like a younger brother. His relationship with an office colleague. We also have a lesbian couple in the office and random chatters who keep coming in and out to create all sorts of drama and confusion.

A lot of things don't make sense here. Sorn wants to be al over Jun all the time but his drama is 'I am emotionally unavailable" or " I cannot fall in love with a kid" makes absolutely no sense. HE has been fucking the kid for months now and suddenly you care about his young age? Throughout the drama he kept hiding his feelings, emotionally hurting Jun, until he decided to change cuz he was the one hurting and he didn't like that. The brief was clear. Make the kisses and sex as raunchy as possible. The kisses were almost like Sorn devouring poor Jun. Sorn isn’t exactly boyfriend material, his mood swings are epic, he is extremely horny and has an on-off relationship with his office colleague, Penny. He tallies anything and everything with sex, so he isn’t exactly adept at understanding the nuances of a healthy relationship. Jun, was probably young enough to give in so soon and learn a thing or two about sex. But somehow, as always, the couple survives. As actors they both do a decent job of the brief that was given to them. They both have great bodies and charm to pull of the scenes, but that constant scared look on Jun's face as soon as Sorn comes close gets annoying after a while. The other couple was quite bland as compared to the main one. They are childhood friends, live in each other’s pockets, obviously have strong feelings for each other and yet, they won’t commit. So, we spend almost 10 episodes watching them dance around each other with no clear resolution. Also, the actors failed to make a mark with their abysmal chemistry. Either they didn’t develop a camaraderie during workshops or they weren’t comfortable kissing. The lesbian couple seem totally forced and unnecessary. Overall, you gonna like this a lot if you want a spicy BL, if you want plot and story, look elsewhere. It had a few brief moments for me, but overall forgettable. (4/10)

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