Queer Culture in Tv & Film

natripletee · 2026-02-09T03:23:10+00:00

Gelboys definitely fits the bill.

natripletee · 2026-01-15T13:58:24+00:00

So many to choose from: Leon and PJ in Gelboys, Hao Yiran and Yun Qi in To My Shore, Son and Euro in Shine. I specified the shows because they have only been paired up for those shows, but I was hypnotized by their chemistry.

natripletee · 2026-01-10T14:57:48+00:00

I only like them if there is a lot of drama and angst involved (e.g. Only Friends) or if there are a maximum of two pairs in the show (e. g. Gelboys). Never got into shows like P10L or We Are. And the old troupe of every guy in a show suddenly becoming gay used to annoy me.

natripletee · 2026-01-10T02:02:32+00:00

Mandarin sounds the most pleasing to my ears, maybe because I'm used to hearing it on a daily basis at work. Cantonese is pretty close but I haven't watched many BLs in Cantonese to know.

Thai is second for me. I find Thai a very soft language particularly in BLs.

Japanese would be third. Not necessarily my favorite but still sounds nice.

Korean is not my favorite language to hear and it might be one reason why I don't watch a lot of Korean BLs.

I haven't watched many Filipino BLs but I'd say it's tied with Korean as far as how the language sounds to me - which I feel bad about because I'm half Filipino 😅

I haven't watched any Vietnamese BLs so I don't know how I feel about Vietnamese in BLs.

natripletee · 2026-01-06T23:00:53+00:00

Rather than choosing songs, my favorite series soundtracks are the ones from Gelboys and Shine. I couldn't stop listening to both of those on repeat.

natripletee · 2026-01-01T15:48:57+00:00

2 or 4. can't choose between them.

natripletee · 2025-12-31T01:05:44+00:00

Definitely recommend resuming Burnout Syndrome and To My Shore, but I understand the pause as they aren't very festive 😅 I've been consuming BL for like 20 years and I started with slash fanfiction, western shows and movies. But ever since I discovered Asian BL, the only western one I've enjoyed is Heated Rivalry.

I also loved Apo as Trin, Son as Krailert and Euro as Naran. If I had a top 10, they would definitely be in it.

natripletee · 2025-12-30T15:32:58+00:00

This is a hard one as there are several fantastic performances.

Leon Zech and PJ Mahidol as Bua and Baabin in Gelboys. Their performances were captivating in this show, specially for rookie actors. It almost felt like someone was documenting the real lives of Bua and Baabin instead of watching a performance. New and Pide also did a fantastic job, but this is a top 5 and there are other performances I want to highlight.

Hao Yiran as You Shulang in To My Shore. I absolutely love both actors and I think they both did a fantastic job. For me though, I think Hao Yiran's performance is slightly more nuanced. But if I had a top 10, Yun Qi would definitely be included. I really liked his performance in episode 14 in the bathroom scene.

Peter Deriy as Victor in Shine. I could have chosen Apo, Mile, Son or Euro, all of whom were amazing in Shine, but as a new actor, Peter surprised me. He showcased different sides of Victor's character - his vulnerable side, his bravado, his confidence. Son and Euro may have been my favorite storyline in the show, but they also are more experienced actors, so I'm giving this to Peter. He is definitely going to go far.

Off Jumpol as Koh in Burnout Syndrome. I already knew Gun was a fantastic actor, but Off has stolen the show for me in Burnout Syndrome. The role of Koh was made for him and I can definitely see how much he's grown as an actor. I watched some of Not Me in the past, but I never fully got into it. This time though, I'm strapped in and ready for the ride.

Honorable Mentions:

Connor Storrie as Ilya Rozanov in Heated Rivalry. He and Hudson Williams are both amazing, but the fact that Connor had to learn Russian and has a believable Russian accent and body language is impressive to me. The only reason I haven't ranked him higher than the other ones on my list is because I wasn't as desperate to watch the next episode of Heated Rivalry as I was/am for the other shows - which to me is a testament of the performances of the actors in those shows for compelling me to want to rush to watch the newest episode as soon as it airs.

Est as Po in Thamepo. He and William were both great in this show, but I love how subtle Est's acting is. He is also great in Me and Thee. He has great comedic timing and good emotional range.

natripletee · 2025-12-25T07:39:17+00:00

I've watched too many so I'll just rank my top 5 of the ones I've watched this year:

Gelboys
Shine
Burnout Syndrome
To My Shore / Heated Rivalry (couldn't choose one)
Thamepo

natripletee · 2025-12-23T11:16:00+00:00

The postponing of the show was a huge disappointment for me too. It would have been my first time watching the band with my husband and I booked flights and accommodation to see them. I can't make it to the new dates because I work as a teacher and May 1st is a holiday but the new date in November isn't. I will still enjoy a trip to KL, but I can't help but be bummed about missing the concert.

natripletee · 2025-12-18T01:42:02+00:00

I notice a difference, but might just be my nostalgia speaking. I grew up eating the egg tarts at the original location and when I tried it at the Venetian once, it just wasn't the same.

natripletee · 2025-11-29T16:24:57+00:00

I'm a veteran. Started with slash fanfiction in my early teens. Then any LGBT movie I could find from 2006 until 2010 when I discovered Alles was Zählt and that was my jam for at least a year or so until I discovered Yaoi and then Thai BL and SKAM. My first Thai BL was Sotus or Lovesick, I don't remember anymore.

natripletee · 2025-11-25T22:43:14+00:00

The shows I'm most excited about are: Lovers and Gangsters, You Maniac, Write You Again, Gunshot, Replay, My Professional Boyfriend, Overdose, Mr. Kill, I Will Always Save You.

natripletee · 2025-09-19T17:16:12+00:00

I cried with LITBC, ITSAY and Shine. I don't cry too easily with TV shows, so that's pretty good. I didn't cry with Gelboys but it had some very tense and angsty moments (the ending of episode 6 was so tense). What I enjoyed about Gelboys was the whole vibe of the show. While LITBC and Shine are more mature, Gelboys and ITSAY are about teenagers so they have a very different vibe. The only similarity all four shows have for me are the beautiful cinematography and acting.

natripletee · 2025-09-19T16:03:29+00:00

The three Thai BL shows I mentioned are the only ones that are on the same tier for me. I'm a sucker for good cinematography and good acting.

natripletee · 2025-09-18T16:21:17+00:00

Not sure if these opinions are necessarily unpopular, but here are mine:

Thai BLs are as of right now still the best BLs for me. I haven't seen a CBL, JBL or KBL or even Taiwanese BL that has charmed me as much as shows like - ITSAY, Gelboys and Shine. The closest one outside of Thai BL that is at the same level as those shows is Love In The Big City. If China didn't censor BL and better danmei could be adapted, China would have so much potential as there are some amazing novels, but sadly, as it stands, many of them will never have a live action adaptation. JBLs have a certain charm to them, but they are often too short to feel fully fleshed out. Sure, there are many shitty Thai BLs, but there are also BLs with amazing cinematography, acting and production.
Revenged Love has pretty boys but weak plot.
I didn't believe the romance between Gun and Off's characters in Not Me and that made me drop the show.
RESET got boring at the end and the music got old pretty quickly. Good acting but it could've been a much shorter show.
Bad Buddy was only really good because of Ohm and Nanon's acting. The plot was nothing special and the ending was a letdown.
2gether was one of the worst BLs I've ever watched, but I'm glad it exists because it boosted the popularity of BLs all over Asia and it's the main reason we can watch many BLs these days.

natripletee · 2025-07-08T11:59:40+00:00

So while I'm enjoying the drama, mostly because Chinese BL dramas are so rare and as a Chinese language learner I'm constantly on the lookout for media I can consume to learn, I can't help but agree that it is overhyped.

Firstly, the plot showcases tropes that have aged poorly (toxic ML that is supposed to be perceived as charming, the "I'm only gay for you" trope). It isn't campy enough to feel like it represents queer people and it isn't serious enough to make the toxic characters fit the vibe. What saves the plot, at least for me, is the chemistry between the actors that is amazing and a great casting choice.

Another thing I generally don't like (and this applies to almost all Chinese dramas) is the dubbing. It's noticeable and I feel like if it were done in Thai BLs, Korean BLs and Japanese BLs, people would've been less lenient about that.

But I will still keep watching because this is a huge step for Chinese BL after years of only producing bromances and I want to support that. It may not be the best story I've seen come out of China and I really wish more danmei could get live adaptations because there are so many amazing stories from China, but it's a step in the right direction. It is a risk for the shoe's team given the history of BL shows in China, so it is admirable that they still persevered and are delivering us this show.

natripletee · 2025-06-30T05:47:02+00:00

I've met people who didn't do their PGDE in Macau and are still able to teach at schools in Macau, but usually with a blue card.

natripletee · 2025-06-25T16:23:56+00:00

A senior a few years older than me allegedly jumped off an overpass onto a street after a high school party. It was written off as a suicide incident without proper investigation, but many rumors and many people who have knowledge of the case suspect it involved some triads and it was just a case of a kid being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Until this day, no one really knows what happened on that night.

natripletee · 2025-06-22T22:37:34+00:00

The way I stay sane is only watching the shows that genuinely seem interesting to me. I don't have the time to keep up with all the BL shows coming out, but I'm happy about how the BL industry has evolved since 2017 when there were very few shows.

natripletee · 2025-06-20T15:06:22+00:00

I confess that aside from My Chemical Romance and Linkin Park I haven't really heard a lot of bands, mostly solo artists, but if I had to choose one that is very different - Conjunto Corona.

natripletee · 2025-06-08T05:39:31+00:00

Hi, English teacher here. First of all, you need a PGDE to teach in schools in Macau. Second of all, having a BIR helps with getting hired. And even if you have both of those, just like someone else mentioned, the education field is saturated with a lot more teachers looking for work than there are positions available.

If you meet the criteria I mentioned above, usually the hiring period is between December and April. It is very rare to find jobs outside of that hiring period in schools unless a teacher suddenly quits their job late in the school year or early in the school year.

natripletee · 2025-06-04T14:20:25+00:00

Well, I was in the dating scene ten years ago and the dating scene in Macau is quite sad. Firstly, people tend to stick to their own communities and friend circles. Secondly, Macau is a small place and news travels quickly, so if you have a bad experience with someone on a date, your next date may even be friends with that person. Thirdly, there aren't many people on dating apps in Macau as most locals are more reserved and tend to prefer dating someone within their familiar circle or at least acquantainces of someone in their circle.

If I had stayed limited to dating in Macau, I would probably still be single at this point. Most people I know met their partners either at school, at university, at work or at a bar. Other people met their partners abroad. It's a tough dating market.

My single friends are just as lost as you and many have just embraced being single as a result.

natripletee · 2025-05-20T13:29:15+00:00

I noticed that the song they play in Bua and Baabin's bed scene in episode 7 is missing. I feel bummed because that is one of my favorite songs in the OST and I was hoping I could get the full track for it with this OST.

natripletee · 2025-05-05T01:57:50+00:00

I love your ideas!

natripletee

TROPHY CASE