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Journey With You (Chinese Series)

By Golu
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...
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The Gayborhood (Web Series)

By Golu
Calling this show 'Gayborhood' in today's time feels a bit outdated and not inclusive, especially given the content of the series. The series is very inclusive in terms of representation of gay, lesbian, drag queens and trans characters. It's definitely not just about gays, so an umbrella term Queer might have been better. Anyway, this is me just nitpicking. The show is primarily centered around a studio owner who rents out the place for shows and the employees working and their friends. This is not the story of just one person but a collective ensemble. Season 1 has 6 episodes of 18-20 minutes each. IT ends on a cliffhanger, so season 2 is very likely to follow.

Space Studios is a vibrant LGBTQ+-owned space in Dallas run by Bruce aka drag queen Heather. After a disastrous no-show by the previous manager, Bruce hires Noah, a friendly newcomer, to help manage the chaos. Noah quickly meets Jesse, a nonbinary staff member and handyperson, and gets a crash course in navigating colorful coworkers, unpredictable clients, and Bruce’s strong personality. Filled with humor, community dynamics, and unexpected heart, we slowly meet the remaining characters. We have a trans man podcaster who uses this space to produce and run his shows. His friend, a bartender dreams of making other big as a country music star. He gets spotted by an agent, who initial interest in the singer turns out to be more of psychotic person. This agent is more interested in Jesse, who feels creeped out and the season 1 ends in a cliffhanger when Jesse is kidnapped by this agent. We also have an ex-instagram star who disappeared after some controversy. This person is in their journey of transition and does a podcast with the guy to clear their stance. Turns out they are Bruce's son. We also have the ex-manager who gets rehired and then she works with Noah. The big night in last episode is about a drag show party where it is revealed that Bruce has been having an affair with his best friend's husband.

I did not find the show great but to be fair, it wasn't bad either. Its definitely not cringe and given that likely the makers did not have too much money to begin with, they have done a great job of showcasing 6 episodes with lives of some 6-8 characters from the LGBTQ+ community. It has drama, over the top emotion, love, passion and good doses of comedy. At no point I felt bored, which is a good sign. The show gives equal footage to all characters and everyone's story is treated with dignity. What I really liked was open dialogue when Noah finds out that. The podcaster was trans and how he knows so little about the whole thing that it makes him uncomfortable. Where there are gays , there will be drama, which is what we expect and see from Bruce's character. His instagram famous son's story was a little under-developed but maybe in future seasons we may see more of it. For now, this soap-opera-ish episodes take you through the ups and downs of human relationships while define the meaning of drama, love, lust and temptation. (5.5/10)
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