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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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We Are Brothers (Burmese Mini-Series)

By Golu
Right in the beginning of the series, there is a disclaimer that says "approved in strict accordance with the Myanmar Video Censorship Board", which probably means that it will barely be anything more than a tepid bromance despite being promoted as a full BL series. And this is what ends up being. There is a hint of gay romance in the past but besides that, this show ends up being strictly a bromance and not really a BL. With 8 episodes of approx 20 minutes each, it's an easy, though a frustrating watch.

Ling Yuang lives with his father and his aunt. When his father announces that he will remarry, neither of them have a choice. Enter the new wife with her son Shein Wah; who is same age and Ling. The dup now have to share a room and as per father's instructions get to know each other and become brothers. It takes time for them to negotiate their new status together and endure the ups and downs of their family dynamic, but soon their relationship begins to evolve into something more, which is never clearly told. When the father feels that the two boys are coming too close, he loses his temper and threatens to kick them out of house. Th boys have no idea what have they done. This is when the aunt tells the story that they had a younger brother who had a boyfriend. But when their father found out, he broke that relationship leading to their brothers drinking and smoking habit and eventual death. Since then, Ling's father thinks that being gay will lead to death. Back to the brothers, they are close (but are they in love? We don't know). To keep family together, Ling Huang decides to go for further studies so that his father's anger can be controlled and the family can live happily. Both boys are heartbroken by being separated, but neither of them truly knows what their tender but ardent relationship truly means to them.

As I mentioned above, this is maybe a bromance, if at all, not a BL; so it's perfectly fine to skip the show if you are looking for some good BL content like I was. And since I did not get much, I was a bit frustrated. I mean why make the shows in the name of bromance if you cannot honestly directly show what you really wanna show. The past story of gay brother was so obvious, but I guess the makers wanted to play safe. Actors all did a decent job with whatever budget they had and the two boys had a decent chemistry. The father's character was a little out of box, but maybe he was supposed to be this controlling, angry guy whose ego was the most important thing. The aunt adds a bit of comic relief and I also enjoyed how the two boys slowly start to get used to each other's presence. Their gradual getting warm to each other was done well. But overall, I have to say that this was still a bit disappointing to me. (3.5/10)
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