Absolute BL

For pride I'm posting my favorite lines in BLs, one each day.

This annual list has long seemed like the only piece of BL commentary out of the ‘western world’ that seems to have its finger on the pulse, and I look forward to it each year despite oarticular disagreements I may have about some of the choices. However, a conspicuous absence (or two) from this year’s list has me shook and I simply must ask for your take.

In the entry for Heated Rivalry, the series’ global phenom status is mentioned as a reason for its inclusion, which casts the absence of Desire and (especially) Revenged Love as particularly conspicuous. Both of GMMTV’s lackluster vampire efforts are there, but the seismic CBL sensations of the summer are nowhere to be found.

Upon further investigation, it appears that some shitty things are happening behind the scenes at Teen Vogue with whispers of a highly political restructuring afoot, and I’m wondering if parent company Condé Nast may have political interests in not mentioning these two series that China would prefer faded into obscurity? A convoluted conspiracy theory like this honestly seems more likely than the series in question simply not being on the author/editor’s radar, and I’m wondering if you have any thoughts!

PS: this is a super-specific, kind of wonky question so I understand if you decide not to answer, but I still really hope you do. 🤞🏻

Okay so for those who don't know, in early November 2025, Condé Nast announced to staffers (I was never able to find an official press release, but that's not required of private enterprise) that they were folding Teen Vogue into Vogue proper and laying off 70% of staff.

Teen Vogue was a beloved magazine that some 10 years ago stepped up to unflinchingly take on coverage of politically controversial issues with an explicitly feminist and youth-focused lens including trans rights, reproductive rights, body autonomy, and student protests.

Under Condé Nast!

At the time, it was WILD. (Frankly, still wild.)

Teen Vogue. Of all magazines.

This was allowed to continue for a decade, which shocked everyone.

Here's why we were sooketh:

Condé Nast is owned by Advance Publications, it numbers GQ, Vanity Fair, and stakes in Warner Bros. Discovery and (wait for it) Reddit among it's assets (along with Vogue).

Advance Pub is privately held by the Newhouse family which includes Congressman Dan Newhouse (Republican, Washington's 4th district) a mainstream conservative, notable for voting to impeach Donald Trump (back when that was possible).

Generally speaking, the Newhouses keep private about politics, but Dan's behavior is considered representative (pun intended) of the family preferences.

There's also some suggestion their careful curation of conservative stances in their media empire over the last 100 years has paved the way for, if not Turmp, at the very least Trumpism.

All of which is to say, I'm utterly unsurprised to learn that Revenged Love and Desire did not make the list and, frankly, surprised they even managed to cobble the darn thing together at all this year.

Considering how very much China is being made of right now by the PTB, it would be more notable if either show HAD made the list IMHO.

能幹 = capable

能 = can

幹 = do/fuck

so combined with my other post on the pun on beast:

Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts?

What’s one thing that’s stereotypical about you?

I have the remnants of a british accent + I drink tea. 

Play any instruments? 

Piano, badly 

A music artist everyone criticizes that you like: 

Last show you watched: 

Last movie you watched

Senior Love Me? 

Last song you listened to

The Arc - The Light 

Last book you read

Old Fashion Cupcake manga 

Your top five most listened to artists this month on Spotify

Stray Kids

BTOB

Young K & Day 6

Kang Daniel

TRENDZ

Ever drank alcohol?

Every Friday and it’s Be My Favorite’s Fault 

Every smoked anything?

Fish, mostly 

Do you prefer to eat-in or take-out?

Both 

If you could time travel what decade would you go to first

Am I invisible or do I look the way I do now? If #1 then the past, if #2 then the future. 

An actor everyone loves that you don’t like for whatever reason

Speak any other languages?

4 none of them well, including my ostensible original 

Have any tattoos? Want any tattoos?

no

Have any piercings? Want any piercings?

yes

Do you prefer the hot or cold weather?

cold 

Cats or dogs? Or some other pet?

none but those owned by others tend to adopt me (the house has a cat and he think’s i’m his)  

Trendy over comfortable or comfortable over trendy?

trendy and comfortable, why choose? 

Say one thing bad about something you love

the singing is terrible and the acting is usually pretty crap too

Do you prefer to read digitally or from a physical book?

digital 

Do you put milk in your hot tea?

yes 

Do you know how to play any popular gambling games?

no

A character you relate to for whatever reason?

A quote (from anything) you really love

How many pairs of shoes do you have

maybe 10? 

Do you have trouble saying any words because of your accent/speech problems?

no, i’m good at words and public speaking 

Earbuds or headphones?

buds 

Showers or baths?

Early bird or night owl?

insomniac 

Candles or scented spray?

fresh flowers 

How often do you change your clothes?

as often as is necessary 

Chess or checkers?

all board games bore me 

Something you can do that you think is cool?

Perfume or body spray?

body oil 

What’s something that genuinely scares you

other people’s unhinged obsession 

LED lights, the room light, or sunlight?

diffuse natural light 

What’s something you do differently than everyone else?

peel and chop fruit 

If you have hair how often do you style it in some way?

spiky if i bother at all 

Nail polish, press on nails, or acrylic nails?

short and tidy but nothing else 

Do you have any fidget toys? If so what’s your favorite?

 I learned to sit still or get whacked, and i’m fine with the outcome 

Do you drive?

yes 

Your go-to genre of music?

Are you a good multitasker?

no one is a good multitasker 

Silence or background noise?

kpop 

A famous movie/show that you’ve never seen

i don’t know i haven’t seen it 

Any sport you would like to play?

i don’t like sweating with other people around… 

actually, i don’t like sweating at all 

Can you write in cursive?

yes & calligraphy 

Is your handwriting neat or at least easy to read?

yes very 

Colored pencils, markers, or crayons?

black 

How many pillows do you sleep with?

2 

How many blankets do you sleep with?

3 (if the top sheet counts, ALWAYS top sheet) 

Do you ever plan to get married one day?

fuck no 

Do you ever plan to have kid(s) one day?

fuck no 

Do you subscribe to any religion?

fuck no 

Something in your room that you think is funny for whatever reason

the hotel room i am in right now has a teacup the size of my head painted with parrots and I have no idea why. 

Would you rather be an actor, singer, comedian, or would you do something on YouTube/twitch/some other site

i would rather gouge out my own eyeball than be a celebrity of any kind 

Are you scared of the dentist?

not at all, my dental hygiene is fucking amazing, they often get mad at me for wasting their time 

(before you ask: good genetics + fucking flossing = the answer, just floss while watching your favorite bl, it’s not goodamn rocket science, take care of your teeth you slackwits) 

Do you wear makeup?

sometimes 

If you could be any character of the opposite sex, who would you be?

i already am 

In the literal sense, are you an introvert or extrovert?

both 

What’s something in your room that makes no sense without context

aside from that dumb teacup, i don’t know, i’m not in my room, i’m rarely in my room 

Favorite subject in school?

If you could visit any place in the world where would you go?

right now, i wanna get to taiwan before it isn’t anymore 

A show/movie thats been on your watchlist forever but you for some reason keep putting off

Is the name you use online your real name? (Real name does not mean deadname)

never 

Do you have a favorite sibling?

If you were to have a kid what names would you have in mind?

no fucking children, not mine, not anyone else’s, i am not interested, yours is NOT the cutest nor the smartest (trust me) and i don’t want to hear about them 

Do you think things like anniversaries are a big deal?

no

Mobile games or PC/console games?

no games 

Do you believe in things like ghosts?

no

Long sleeve + shorts or short sleeve + pants

depends on the weather and culture 

Can you do any voice impressions?

no 

What was the first fandom you were genuinely into

star trek 

Do you prefer womens or mens products?

depends on the smell, price, and effectiveness  

would you be fine having your partner completely provide for you?

never 

Plain clothes or vibrant and eye catching clothes?

neither, i’m usually just stylish and quirky 

Movie date or restaurant date?

food 

Do you split the check or expect only one of you to be paying it?

split or I’ll pay if my friend isn’t holding 

Favorite fast food place?

i’d rather not 

How do you make your coffee?

in italy 

Do you pay attention to the music or the lyrics more?

music 

Are you more energetic or tame?

energetic 

Are you witty?

only by accident  

A show everyone criticizes that you like

The above is a video shared by smrchildsadness on Twitter, showing a person participating in a pride parade exchanging a pride flag with a person standing on his (am using his pronoun based on the TikToks/Tweets of what happened) doorway who had a Portuguese flag. There are sounds of cheers and crying and the two people hug each other as they exchange the flags. The man at the doorway then waved kisses to the crowd within the pride parade.

The Tweet says: "NO YOU DONT UNDERSTAND HE WAS WAVING THE PORTUGUESE FLAG BECAUSE HE DIDN'T HAVE A PRIDE FLAG AND THEY TRADED FLAGS AND HE'S SO EMOTIONAL TO GET HIS OWN PRIDE FLAG I'M EMOTIONALLY RUINED"

For context, apparently they were worried that maybe he's a nationalist because he was waving the Portuguese flag and some nationalists opposing the pride march were waving that flag. But upon interacting with him, it turns out he didn't have have a pride flag and he wanted to wave *a* flag in support of the pride march. So they had an exchange and now he has his own pride flag 😭🥹.

The image above is a Tweet by kunwara_ladkaa that says "I'm crying so much right now (Image taken by Manuel Fernando Araújo/Lusa)". The image shows the same man from the pride parade crying as he hugs his new pride flag.

The above image is a Tweet by dudz_zZzz that says "ainda não parei de pensar nele," which according to Google translate from Portuguese to English is "I still haven't stopped thinking about him." The image is a drawing of the person from the pride parade, crying as he hugs his new pride flag.

THAILAND | When Light Fades - Official Trailer

Airing June 25, 2026 on VIU

At the 1985 Labour party meet, the motion to support LGBT rights as a party was passed due to a block vote from mining unions.

For pride I'm posting my favorite lines in BLs, one each day.

A couple of familiar faces are making the return to J-BL land! Furukawa Yuki (Restart After Come Back Home and God's Favoritism) and Ryota Nagano (Punks Triangle) will be fronting Ordinary Love, the new joint CBC + BS Asahi production. It will be available at TVer and FOD (which boosts it chances at international release).

The original work is a BL by popular manga artist Jiki Masaya, who boasts a total of approximately 400,000 followers on social media, the manga was published on Pixiv. It is a down-to-earth love story depicting how the characters support each other and grow while struggling with realistic challenges.

At work, Ichiro (Yuki) and Keiichi (Nagano) are boss and subordinate. Because of past trauma, Ichiro avoids getting close to people, thinking that "a future where I live with someone will never come," and he keeps protecting his own peaceful daily life. Keiichi, on the other hand, says he doesn't feel romantic feelings for people and lives a life detached from love. Keiichi, who respects Ichiro as a mentor, starts spending time with him outside of work through their shared love of movies. Keiichi hadn't thought about the relationship going any further, but one day a drunk Ichiro confesses that he's gay. "I won't be put off. Absolutely not," Keiichi replies. They start dating, but after a year, Ichiro isn't sure about Keiichi's feelings. He's thinking, "Why would he date someone 12 years older than him, and a man at that?" and "Does he really love me as his lover?" This drama looks at what "normal" really means and follows two awkward people as they figure out their own happiness.

Author Masaya was surprised their IP was picked for a series stating that since manga was published independently and only in digital format, "While there are some differences from the manga due to the live-action adaptation, I personally believe that the expressions and charms have been accurately conveyed in a way that is suitable for live-action, so I think that readers who have supported me until now will enjoy it."

Meta Post of My BL Master Posts! 

Thank you so much! I keep a spreadsheet offline (because I have a spreadsheet for everything, I LOVE THEM with a pure untainted devotion), but that's not super helpful for you, now is it? A lot of my master posts have links to other posts in them or at the bottom so I hope you’ll forgive me for just directing you mostly at those? That way, if you’re intersted, the rabbit hole awaits. Ready? Here we go! 

Top Tear Master Posts

BL MASTER POST - WHAT IS BL? + more links to all the important stuff 

BL Foundations Syllabus Master Post - BL 101 Film Course - An Introduction to the Genre (if I were to teach a course on BL) 

BL Starter Pack Watch List (Updated 2025) - shows I recommend the most to thsoe jsut entering the genre

BL Breakdowns By Country - master post country by country analysis, a broad overview designed to manage watcher expectations, not as a socio-critical pop-culture analysis 

History of Asian BL - Form of… PHD THESIS! Why is there a big industry in many Asian countries for gay romance shows but little in the US, Canada, or UK? 

THAI BL MASTER POST - So this is a master post about Thai BL. It’s long. I’ve divided it into parts. Skip to the bits you’re intersted in. 

BL Directors - Overview - training to spot the different directors and their BL styles 

BL Language & Culture Master Post (mostly Thai) - round up guides to linguistic & language posts I’ve done over the years

Welcome to Tumblr BL Fandom - Here’s Your Primer

Meta Post - All My Stuff on the BL Industry

Other Useful BL Generalist Posts

Heat & Angst in BL + Terms Explained (dubcon, HEA, etc...)

Defining Seme/Uke (MORE seme/uke discussion including some coaching from P’AbsoluteBL on your sex life....)

Defining Chemistry - Giving Good Kiss in BL

WHY SO MUCH DUB CON IN BL? Fantasies Seme/Uke (AGAIN) Cultural Biases 

BL - The Second Coming - Your favorite BL is getting a second season! Should you be scared or excited? Let's look at data.

How long does it usually take from an announcement to getting more info on a BL being made?

BL Review & Information Content Providers/Blogs OFF Tumblr

The History of the Genre Series 

Top 10 BLs Out of China + history of the genre

Top 10 BLs Out of Japan + history of the genre 

Top 10 BLs Out of Korea + history of the genre 

Top 10 BLs Out of Taiwan + history of the genre 

Top 10 BLs Out of Thailand + history of the genre

From 2022 the best of lists are outdated, but the history stuff still stands.

My Top 60 BLs - The Elite 10% of 600 Watched (as of mid 2023)

Chef de Smooching - Recipes for BL 

Let’s Play Frankenstein’s BL! (best worst production by country) 

If You Dated BL - country by country amusement 

BL Master List of 415 BLs as of mid 2022

Queer Stuff

BL Linguistics & Queer Identity - I Am Gay versus I Like Men 

Will BL Get More Honestly Queer? 

Actually gay, not BL gay - the idea of "by queers, for queers, about queers," the BL bubble, sanitized gay, and a queer lens

Queer lens (from the director) and chemistry (from the actors) in BL (A Tale of Thousand Stars)

Touch & Daisy in Secret Crush On You - Queer Coded Language and 3rd Gender Identity

BL in Taiwan & Gay Marriage

Debating Queerbaiting in BL ( + Devil Judge... is it queerbaiting?) 

BL Actors and the Assumption of Queerness - outing actors, coming out, being out, more:  Is that BL actor actually queer?

So is it really fetishization? straight women loving bl 

Some BL fans are sasaengs, and it’s a problem in this fandom 

BLs That Highlight How Society Treats Queers

10 BLs That Are Honest to a Queer Experience 

10 GREAT Chemistry BLs to Binge 

BL Actor Pairs - Meta Guide (this is a marketing tactic - no, really, there are no exceptions, not even your favorites, sorry honey, welcome to the fandom), my term for this tends to be Cobranding

About Me Personally

BL FAQ - personal favorites, beginnings, how I got started, what I like best, where I find shows

My Journey to BL via SFF, Yaoi & M/M Romance 

fan psyche and capacity for nostalgia

My Absolute Top 15 Best (and Worst) BLs 

Favorite BL Nuggets of Narrative 

400 BLs, My 40 Favorite Moments 

All My BL Series Watch Alongs and Epic Trash Watchings 

Top 10 Most Underrated BLs 

because I, weirdly, get these ones a lot: 

this is basically what I do 

I hold multiple citizenships & passports 

currently I lurk on the left coast of the USA 

I travel a lot for work & pleasure, so when I vanish it’s just I lost internet access (I’m not dead yet) 

my (too many) degrees are in (among other things) anthropology + maths (focus on stats, history of pop culture, etc... look, it made sense at the time and it seems to have worked out for me) 

my gender is: working in theory terrible in practice, I genuinely do not care what you wanna call me 

sexually I identify as omnivorous 

I swear a lot and I will eat absolutely anything, including very spicy food NO LIMITS! 

i am a fan of Kpop but i consider myself a dilettante and not active in that fandom (TOO CRAZY) if you push me though: GOT7 (b. Jinyoung bw. Jay B) and BTOB (b. Minhyuk) more here, that said if your blog is too Kpop heavy I won’t follow back (sorry, I’m here for the BL)  

I tend to be under pretty heavy NDAs so due to that + my queerness and involvement in kink I’m highly protective of my own safety, location, and IRL identity, so that’s all ya get. 

My MDL profile (all my reviews of shows are also put on MDL, and I only review BL) 

Memes & Silly Shizz 

5 Love Languages of Thai BL 

ABCs of Thai BL 

BL Couples as my High School Friendship Group

BLs as K-pop groups

Honest Elevator Pitches for Thai BL 

University Gayness Ranking via Thai BL

Your Favorite Thai BL Couples = What to Watch Next? 

Not Just BL

Explaining Thai to the Casual BL Watcher - It Has Registers 

Thai Honorifics Between Ages in BL and real life 

Linguistically fascinating BL couples 

I’ve a lot more on the Thai language and BL, mostly cross linked int he above posts

ASIAN GL History of GL - Popularity Struggles 

Favorite Noona Romance Recs!

Also, you are so right I should come up with a better tagging system but... I never thought this would all get so big and take off so much. So, yeah, my bad. Too late now. 

Please ask if I forgot anything or there’s something specific you are looking for. My ask box is open (not a euphemism) and I check my notifications regularly. 

(source) 

For pride I'm posting my favorite lines in BLs, one each day.