This Week in BL - Some Great Shizz Is Happening
Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.
July 2026 Week 5
Ongoing Series - Thai
The Edge of Horizon (Sat Gaga) ep 7 of 10 - Lesbians to the rescue! Probably my all-time favorite trope ever. (Closely, followed by grandma to the rescue. We have a new one for the ranks of wonderful grandmothers. ) I am so terrified for our leads though. Will they make it through the revolution okay? This is the fateful question.
Argh Ongsa’s eyes should be illegal, they are so sad.
I can’t believe I have lived to see the famous Siamese bloodless revolution of 1932 depicted in a BL. One of the great wonders of our age.
Be My Player Two (Thurs WeTV) ep 3 of 10 - it’s really fun to see Maxky‘s comedy shops on full display. He’s actually kind of cute and funny. I wasn’t expecting that.
Your Third (Sun iQIYI) ep 1 of 12 - definitely something suspicious about that marriage and their not quite kiss. Otherwise, this is an extremely silly show.
Love Destiny (Tues iQIYI) ep 3 of 10 - oh dear, this is actually not so good. It is very lakorn. The acting runs from wooden to scenery chewing (wood shipper style). And while I understand the background music choice, it’s loud and intrusive. Also, to be fair to me, the durian is too much even if only on my screen. That said... I enjoyed all the cooking stuff.
Match Point (Sun YT) ep 1 of 10 - I said this was Bad Buddy plays tennis. I’m sticking with that log line. I like it OK, but I’m living for the side couple. Really. Very excited to see these two together or wherever they go with it. Otherwise this is lackluster.
Knot (Thurs iQIYI) ep 5 of 10 - If I were Ongsa I would run far and fast away from this family. Nakhin with his perverted little affection for Betas is turning into my favorite character.
OMG this show. All the stuff that doesn’t need explaining is explained 10 times over and the stuff we need explained isn’t even touched upon. I'm just so MAD at it. I want it to be better! Shakes ineffectual fist(ing) at universe.
Side note (side knot?): If anyone were to put ineffectual fist(ing) on our screens it would be BoatOat.
My punwork is done here.
Ongoing Series - Not Thai
Bittersweet Love (China Fri Viki & Gaga) ep 9 of 12 - I like this show so much. The central relationship is so incredibly toxic yet so unbelievably appealing and aching at exactly the same time. This is a very CBL show. I cannot stop watching it. It’s probably my favorite thing airing right now.
The Prosecutor's Proposal (Korea Fri iQIYI) ep 8 of 10 - secrets are out and things have gotten very, very dramatic. It’s a little ridiculous and I am enjoying it ridiculously.
Love Algorithm (China Fri WeTV) ep 3 of 10 - it remains engaging but too short. I wish we just got a bit more to keep us alive and in the story. I suspect this BL is gonna be better as a binge watch, so if you wanna wait, I would do that were I you.
My Summer of You (Japan Weds Gaga) ep 6 of 10 - obligatory running of the gays. Only an extreme version. And a crying confession scene that I have to admit I found a little bit cringe.
Duty First, Kiss Later AKA Kiss wa Sousa no Ato de (Japan Mon Gaga) ep 1 of 10 - This is extremely enjoyable. Normally the super camp stuff from Japan is harder for me to stomach, but I’m actually liking this. It’s charming. You know me, I love an age gap, I love a hyung romance, I love a enemies (but only because one of them is too awkward to say anything nice ever). I love a nerd/jock. Fun fun fun.
The Servant Prince (Japan Fri Gaga) ep 5 of 10 - still very much enjoying this. Even though it’s getting a little bit less kinky and a little bit more like a normal relationship - I’m hoping the kink stays in play.
A Winter Sun Wakes the Wind in Spring Hills' Dream (China Fri Gaga) ep 12-13 (I don't understand either) of 16 - I admit to getting a little bored with this at this juncture. It is so slow moving and it is taking a long time for anything much to happen. And now sad? WTF
Are the Sexy Buttocks Not Good? (Japan Tues Gaga) ep 4 of 10 - oh Japan, must you?
IT ENDED!
(Classic sadist to be pissed his sub is hurt when it's not his doing.)
Payback (Sat iQIYI) ep 10 - Confirmed: Jay is definitely a sadist. How nice! And they kept it in! Even nicer. I am so damn glad they managed to stick the landing this hard. Best revenge is a life well lived, I suppose. Excellent work, thank you very much. I am delighted.
Summary
A killer BL about revenge and corruption in (and out) of the entertainment industry. But wait, it's so much more than that. Sun, a broken kid who has lost everything (also former extortionist and hitman) becomes an actor to pursue revenge. A sadistic (in a good way) and powerful director, Jay, becomes obsessed with him, but also has ulterior motives. It's Bangkok Boy + Top Form and I was as obsessed with this show as Jay was with Sun. This is an adaptation of a Korean webtoon and it showed. Korean names in the credits and you can feel their fingers all over the tenor of production and Korea's signature workmanlike style looked great on Thai BL. That plus great optics and stunning NC scenes from our mains and there’s nothing not to enjoy about this show. Payback is nobody’s bitch. Except maybe Jays. 9/10
Peach and Me (Sat iQIYI) ep 4 - summary:
A lovely addendum to the original piece. Basically a "special" that neatly avoided BL's chronic second season curse. A look on the brothers, families, friendships, and happily married life. It was all very charming with nice little kisses and fun little plot bits. Also, that ending where they had all the other GMMTV pairs play Peach & Thee was inspired. (It showcased how perfect Pond is for the part.) I hooted with laughter the entire time. (I am the audience for this.) Now all I want is a full season 2 of Rome & Mok consolidating power in Hong Kong and fighting off bad guys within a bad guy system. Pink milk dreams. 9/10
When Oranges Fall (Weds YT) ep 12 - that pet name negotiation was actually around the pronoun "ter" not pet names. I’m not mad about them translating it that way, but just so you know.
Summary
A simple coming-of-age story about two boys who are neighbors and fall in love under an orange tree. And... that’s it. It’s sweet. I wasn’t wowed. I'll probably forget about it tomorrow, but I wasn’t upset by it. 8/10
A Dog and A Plane (Fri Gaga) ep 10 - It was a relatively cute final episode. I gotta say I feel like this show lost its way a bit and would’ve benefited from being shorter. As Cooking Crush was for OffGun, so this show was and will be for TayNew. Next, I would like to see them get their version of Not Me. Please and thank you.
Meanwhile, how many times have they been married in a BL now?
Summary
A fun, if rambling, story built around the fake dating trope, about a rescue worker, a flight attendant, and their respective friends. A solid TayNew installment with friendly, decent chemistry, but not much else going for it. It is, however, unique and that it’s the only BL I know of that depicts the Thai lottery conscription process. 8/10
Smile after Tears (Taiwan Weds Gaga) ep 12 - summary:
Basically, this is two romances: the first one is a tragedy, and the second one ends with them apart. Both revolve around the same boy, and I failed the entire time to understand his appeal. He was boring and stiff and joyless. This was not enjoyable and I’m sorry I watched it. 4/10 fatally flawed
It's airing but...
Ordinary Love (Japan TVer) 8 eps - I did want to see this, but it's hard to find. I don't have the bandwidth for JBL's prima-donna behavior.
Blue Lips (China) 16 eps - I watched 3. I like the visuals, but the production is abysmal. This feels like it should be animated or AI or something. Dropped without further thought.
Sin and Love (Korea iQIYI) 10 eps - I didn't make it through ep 1. I find the leads utterly lacking in chemistry (still). Police, drug lords, undercover agents, and spies in a system that is collapsing and feels like a bunch of kids playing dress up. ENDS THIS WEEK.
Make it Right 2026 (Thai Fri Viu) 10 eps - The remake no one asked for on a channel no one watches.
When Light Fades (Thai YT) 10 eps - dropped at ep 4. I wasn't engaged and I don't think it's going to end well.
Deep In (China Viki) 12 eps - The leads of a BL cannot tell the difference between acting and reality. (Just like many BL fans.) I'm waiting until we know how this one ends. One can take the BL outta China, but one cannot take the mistrust of Chinese BL outta me. ENDED. TELL ME WHAT TO DO!
Class Crush Crisis (Thai Netflix) 8 eps - trailer One of those high school messy gay shows Love Sick style. I like this kind of BL but I don't have Netflix and I'm not renewing my VPN until Sept, so...
Don’t Be Too Emotional (Thai iQIYI) 12 eps - By ep 5 I truly could not figure out how to enjoy this show. I dropped it.
Your Summer My Storm (Japan Viki) 10 eps - definitely more of a wacky family drama than anything else. Ep 3 was about a lost dog. It’s silly. It's not BL. Dropped.
Your Sky: Hare Nochi Koi (Japan TVer) 10 eps - I'm never wild about a Japanese adaptation of a Thai BL, (partly because it's been MAME most of the time and partly because they have a huge back catalogue of quality yaoi waiting to adapt, why opt for the poor story structure that is Thai BL?) But I loved Your Sky. I will watch this if it becomes easy to do so.
Next Week Looks Like This:
(I took the stuff I'm not watching off, sorry. It's cluttering up my dash and I'm adding so many new ones this month I needed the room.)
Coming August 2026
8/4 The Sun From Another Star Special.
8/5 New Boyfriend (Thai Weds YT?) 10 eps - trailer From the "I Promise I Will Come back People" so I am NOT excited about this. Billed as a slow burn office romance.
8/6 After Moving Seats the Boy Behind Me Has a Crush on Me AKA Sekigae Shitara Doyara Ushiro no Otoko ga Ore no Koto Sukirashii (Japan Weds Gaga) 8 eps - Ordinary student Haru finds a handwritten confession from Kosei, the impossibly handsome and popular kid. Haru finds himself swept up by the relentless advances of a boy who has been hiding his feelings for far too long. School Trip 2.0? I'll take it.
8/6 Unlucky Bae (Thai Sat YT? Netflix) 10 eps - trailer ThamMac (with sides AunStamp - same as Revamp) star in this adaptation from the novel Chut Chop Sai Mu by LuaAimei. When his boyfriend, Aun, cheats on him, sorcerer Mac curses him but accidentally gets Aun's hot bestie instead. Feeling guilty, he tries to protect Tham from his own hex. (In case you are confused like me, Mac was the uke role in that horrible Thai remake of Addicted Heroin, and Tham is a fresh face. They both babies, so this is basically GMMTV's debut pair this year.) I like the premise and it looks silly and fun, will ride on the chemistry of the lead pair. But if this is only on Netflex someone else will need to report in.
8/8 Gelboys 2 (Thai Sat iQIYI) 8 eps - I won't be watching this but I know some of you loved Season 1.
8/10 Popular Serizawa Acts Weird Around Me AKA Yokya Shudan ni Iru Serizawa wa Ore no Mae da to Yosu ga Okashii (Japan Mon Gaga) 10 eps - Suzuki, a loner student, secretly wrote a BL novel using Serizawa, the school popular guy, as his model. When Serizawa reads it, Suzuki panics, but Serizawa showers it with praise. Then Serizawa keeps finding reasons to hang around him and invite him out.
8/14 Connecting to You (Taiwan Fri all) 13 eps - trailer From 2025, Jia Kai can't see ghosts, but he can see the different colored threads connecting people. An accident brings him into contacts with a skeptical cop, but Jia Kai's ability can help start cases, they start living together. THIS IS THE SHOW I AM MOST EXCITED FOR THIS MONTH. (It seems Viki, iQIYI, Gaga all picked this up, wild.)
8/14 Wait a Minute Harutora-kun AKA Chotto Matou yo Harutora-kun (Japan Fri ????) 10 eps - High school student Sui is often teased by the boys in his dorm. Though he laughs things off, deep down he's wary of close relationships. Then he's assigned to share a room with straightforward Harutora. A coming-of-age romance that captures the awkwardness of adolescent love. I'll watch if I can find it, but I'm not fussed.
8/14 Weirdo-101 (Thai Fri YT) 10 eps trailer - SeaKeen are back in high school again. Sea is a neurodivergent genius type. Keen is the jock who becomes the object of his affection. This one is for @heretherebedork if I ever saw one. I liked the first trailer better than the second one. I'll watch it if it's on YT but probably not if it's a pain to find.
8/16 LoveX3 AKA Love Cubed (Thai Sun iQIYI) - trailer The same team behind Love Sick 2024 uses much of the same side pairs to bring a Make It Right 2026 feeling peace. Chaotic boys in blue shorts. The scond trailer gave me more hope than the first.
8/25 Nour (Thai Tues WeTV) ?? eps - Oh it looks SO GOOD. Just watch the trailer. An actually creepy vampire suspense thriller with a touch of the macabre? Fresh pairs? Psychic detective is one of my fav gay romance archetypes. I am VERY intrigued.
8/? Mr. Fanboy (Thai ???? iQIYI?) ?? eps - trailer Fanboy becomes an actor to get close to his crush but ends up with that crush's enemy and turns antifan. It's messy actors and I don't like fan stuff, but in this one both aspects are getting twisted. So I'm in. AuauSave getting to be leads with James back on my screen as the baddie and I am not mad about any of it.
THIS IS TOO MUCH Y'ALL. NO MORE.
All BLs Announced for 2026 that I knew of at the start of the year. (Not kept updated.) Domundi Line 2026 Line Up (mid year)
(last week)
The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @sunflower-positiiivity @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire @everlightly @renafire @mestizashinrin @bl-bam-beyond @small-dark-and-delicious @saezurumurmurs @waitmyturtles @worldhopping
(hellsite doesn't allow me to tag that many people, sadly)
