Skip to main content

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...
Post a Comment

Hermoso: Season 2 (Filipino Series)

By Golu
Season 1 ended on a cliffhanger with someone drowning in a storm and honestly I assumed it was Kyle but it turned out to be Andre, the fisherman boyfriend. I was actually surprised the makers came back for a second season given how that first one went. This one is marginally better because at least there's an attempt at a story, even if the execution leaves a lot to be desired. 13 episodes but only about sixteen minutes each, so it moves fast and you're done before you know it.

A year after Andre's drowning, a doctor living alone in the mountains finds him and nurses him back to health. Andre wakes up with no memory of who he is or where he came from and the two slowly fall in love during his recovery. Back home Kyle is running the business, still missing Andre, and has this gut feeling that Andre might still be out there somewhere. His trans friend is in a relationship with another fisherman from the village but things between them are rocky and they're talking about splitting up. When word gets out that someone matching Andre's description was spotted in the mountains, Kyle, his trans friend and her boyfriend head out to find him. On the way the boyfriend starts flirting with a local and that pretty much ends things between them. When they finally track down Andre he has no memory of Kyle at all and refuses to leave with him. Kyle has to stand there watching the man he loves be in love with someone else. He tries everything to convince Andre to come back but nothing works. Then it comes out that the doctor is actually a fugitive and the police are after him. Kyle tips off the cops but right at that moment Andre's memory comes flooding back, and instead of being relieved he blames Kyle for cheating on him with his ex, which is a whole season 1 thing, and walks away from both of them. The final episode does this sudden twist where the doctor apparently comes back and he and Kyle go together to find Andre and somehow the three of them decide to just be in a relationship together.

Turn your brain completely off and treat this as the guilty pleasure it absolutely is. The guys lose their shirts at any given opportunity for absolutely no reason and it's pretty obvious why this show exists. Not complaining though because they are all genuinely good looking and the show delivers plenty of eye candy. That said it's hard not to laugh at how conveniently everything falls into place. There's zero explanation for what happened to Andre during that entire year. His memory comes back with no real setup. The trans friend's boyfriend literally meets a random guy in the mountains and just decides to stay there. Another fisherman from season 1 shows up out of nowhere and confesses his love for the trans friend and suddenly they're together. Kyle is honestly the weakest performer this season and the less said the better. The doctor on the other hand is extremely easy on the eyes and the mountain location and the house are genuinely gorgeous. The scenes between him and Andre are pretty hot. But there's only so much skin can carry. The short episode length is genuinely a blessing here. Critiquing the acting feels pointless because acting ability clearly wasn't the main hiring criteria.

Season 2 is just as logic-free as the first one and leans way harder on looks than on storytelling. But the eye candy is real and as a gay man you really can't complain too much. (4/10)
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Tuxedo (Thai Series)

By Golu
When I saw this series with 8 episodes of about 20-25 minutes each, I thought, good: Finally someone has come to senses and made a show which is not stretched out and they have tried to squeeze in a decent storyline in a good small episode format. But unfortunately, despite a decent premise on hand, the clunky writing, bad screenplay and an extreme tasteless portrayal of mental illness makes this show, not a fun watch. By the time it finishes, you just want to laugh off at the entire absurdity of it all. Aioun is talented tuxedo designer and very much in demand but he has handful of clients and he builds suits only for people who he feels a connection to. One night when his younger brother is about to get mugged, he is helped by a total stranger named Sichol. Since he tears his suit in the fight and has an interview the next day, Aioun gifts him a suit form his design as an expression of thanks. Sichol's interview is for. Personal assistant of a man named Nawee, a wealthy heir to h...
25 comments
Read more

Heartstopper: Season 2 (Web Series) (UK)

By Golu
Heartstopper Season 1 was a universal hit. You could not have read one bad review or heard from anyone who has seen the show not liking it. It was the kind of series that is easy to love, with sweetness exploding out of every scene without overwhelming you. So naturally, when Netflix greenly Season 2, expectations were naturally high and the same happened with me. I didn't know what to expect, but I had high expectations of this very very sweet teenage love story. And with eagerness and being a little late to the game by a few days, here I am, pouring my t thoughts down having just finished one of the most anticipated shows of the year. The second season also has 10 episodes and has all of our loved ones from the original season. The show continues from where it had left off in Season 1. Charlie and Nick are a couple and only their very close circle of friends know about it. This includes Charlie's best friend Tao and his trans best friend Elle. The center of the show is still ...
19 comments
Read more

Gaya Sa Pelikula (Filipino Series) [Like In The Movies]

By Golu
Pinoy BL series seem to be catching up to the popularity of the Thai shows. And I must say that they are doing a pretty good job at it. Where Thai series started to get repetitive with so many shows based in a college setting with seemingly similar storylines, Pinoy series are offering the viewers with new and interesting stories and some really good sets and surroundings. This series was 8 episodes of about 25-20 minutes each. Karl, a 19-year old introvert architecture student is in the middle of an identity crisis. Prior to the start of the second semester in college and forced by his parents, he moves into his uncle's condominium unit so that he can learn to be financially independent. Karl takes on odd jobs online to do so. But when one of his major clients suddenly goes MIA, he is left short on funds and without a means to pay for his utilities. An opportunity presents itself when his cocky neighbor Vlad has to hide from his family and proposes to share Karl's space for th...
23 comments
Read more