#gameboys

tagged by @thisautistic @hughungrybear @baseballmomlesbiandad and @thisonelikesaliens and @romanceismycallingcard

Oh this was fun, but I had to stop myself before the list got too long. So just know this is only some of the kisses I feel are unforgettable. As usual, If I get tagged again I'll do more. Also please ignore the way I switch between present and past tense speech, I'm sorry.

CirPhu's Kiss in the Club Room from The Boy Next World

Oh gawd it made me SCREAMMMMM! They both wanted that kiss soooo badly. Noeul looked so pretty in this scene and I wonder if Boss' sides were on fire for having to stand in that position the whole time. This series really spoiled me with the amount of kisses we got and they're all memorable. But THIS ONE? It's my fave.

Hollanov's Goodbye Kiss in the Stairwell from Heated Rivalry

It's literally all I can think about and talk about. What a perfect way to end such an amazing night. It's so sweet and soft and intimate. And I just love that the crew were like 'Oh...this is a bit too intimate for this point in their relationship,' and Jacob was just like, 'Yea I know but we're keeping it.' HudCon's chemistry wins every time.

Da Un and Si Won's Awkward First Kiss in Blueming

I will always scream about how perfectly awkward their first kiss is. I just love how eager Si Won is to kiss Da Un and how Da Un's cool ass just basically tells him to calm down before taking the lead. And Da Un is just so gentle and sure. IT'S JUST SO FUCKING GOOD!

The Bar Kiss in TharnType the Series

It's their best fucking kiss in s1. It's the moment Type fully lets his guard down with Tharn. They're in a place Tharn is very comfortable in and Type feels safe and he also feels a bit jealous. But here Tharn is in his face promising to save his real smiles for Type. It's their first public kiss and lemme tell you I was full on freaking out because Type allowed it to happen because we all know he could've stopped Tharn if he wanted to.

WinTops' First Kiss in Ingredients the Series

This fucking kiss! So much emotion behind it. Win was a lil plastered and sad about having to leave Tops soon. And Tops had just ignored some other man to take care of his sloppy roomie. But this moment was now or never for Win. He needed to show Tops how he felt before it was too late. The kiss is so soft and sweet and you can feel how excited they are for it. They both wanted this for a long ass time.

And also the way their hands were CLASPED! I miss JeffGame real bad.

CaiReel Slow Dance Kiss in Gameboys 2

Another passionate drunken kiss. The lead up to the kiss was very romantic with Gav playing music and inviting Cai to dance with him by the pool. Gav has the biggest love-filled eyes for Cai, he would hang the moon for him. Also they were both just so very horny for each other so that kiss got needy and messy really, really fast.

The Choco Valentine's Kiss in Utsukushii Kare 2

Hello??? Kiyoi gifted his favorite stalker a cute box of chocolate and rubber ducky for Valentine's Day! How could Hira not ravage him? Especially when his KING is feeding him a chocolate. I love that Hira apologizes for how he's about to proceed. Because he's about to wear his beautiful man out. BUT WHO'S GONNA STOP HIM?? NOT KIYOI!

THE Kiss in Old Fashion Cupcake

I don't need to explain this. We all know why it's here. But I will forever scream about how this shit was done in one take. I did think Togawa was going to swallow Nozue whole...he might have if Nozue didn't run away.

The Kiss by the Lockers in Young Royals S3

Simon was feeling very, very flattered that his boyfriend Prince Wilhelm dropped rowing so he could join chorus and spend more time with him. Like it was such a small gesture but it really meant a lot to Simon and he wanted Wille to know that. And there is a moment where Wille looks so lost in the sauce. Mind you, they're in the middle of the school. And Wille was trying to drag him away to do more, too bad Simon had to catch his bus.

The Dressing Room Kiss in RESET

Armin has a fucking movie premiere to go to. HIS FUCKING PREMIERE! But the only thing he and Thada care about is kissing each other. I've never seen a kiss that mimics the Yin-Yang symbol like this, it looks like it would be awkward but they look amazing and it looks so natural for them. Also the THROAT GRAB?? I love that Armin is smiling into the kiss too!

And I love that moment where Armin literally forgets that Weinai and Janine are in the room with them. He's looking like, "Damn! Are y'all still here???"

PeemKhem's First Kiss in Khemjira the Series

Specifically the part where Khem is looking away and Paran grabs him by the chin and kisses him again. Their first kiss is very special to me because we were edged the ep before and I needed this kiss like a hit of booger sugar. And I love the part when Khem smiles between kisses. He was about ready to give up waiting for Paran to come to him, so I know this moment was thrilling and also relieving and rewarding. I could scream about this kiss for hours.

Rain Cheering Payu Up in Love in the Air

I love this moment because Rain plays the soft and submissive boyfriend card to calm Payu down and cheer him up. He knows that Payu likes it when he's cute and obedient. He even called himself Payu's Wifey because Payu LOVES that. But also he had to step out of that good boy role because Payu was taking way too long to kiss him. It's the most boyfriend-iest kiss ever. And I know Payu appreciates Rain tremendously. Again, Noeul is just so pretty. And he and Boss kiss so good.

The Very Public Lap Kiss from Fourever You

The way Johan just grabs North's face and kisses him (After making Hill cover Easter's eyes of course). And Johan loves to grip North's neck when they kiss. And North just immediately responds. The visuals of this kiss are insane. We don't get enough lap sitting and kissing. And I just love that Johan does not give a fuxk he's going to kiss his boyfriend whenever he feels like it. MaxkyBas kiss sooooooo good too!

Post 6 (and only 6) gifs/pics of the QLs you personally consider essential viewing for fans of the genre—emphasis on “personally.” These are your feels, so no need to pick series you don’t like just because they seem "important". Feel free to explain your choices or not.

Then tag 6 friends for their 6. I was tagged by @xagan

I tend to value engaging with different country's approaches to BL, so I'll do one from six different countries.

Thailand - I Told Sunset About You / I Promised You The Moon

It's really hard to overstate how good this series is. It's so good that I sometimes don't recommend starting viewers here as an introduction to BL because I worry it'll set the bar too high for what's available afterwards. However, part of what will always make this particular project so important is how specific it feels in its approach to the coming-of-age romance. Perhaps its my own angst from decades of stories like this that end of separation, but the final sequence of Sunset healed something in me.

Japan - My Beautiful Man

I almost selected Eternal Yesterday here, but I think Utsukushii Kare might be the better choice for the way it shows how well Japanese BL can handle more complex pairings. The desperation and ugliness that Hira and Kiyoi have to work through make the three outings we have with them a standout in the genre. It's the rare example of a good sequel.

The Philippines - Gameboys

When it comes to The Philippines, other than Like in the Movies, I love going back to Gameboys because it is the project that I think best captures how we all felt during the lockdowns of the pandemic. Moreover, it's a scrappy project carried by incredibly strong performances from the entire cast. I think anyone's cinematic experience is improved by becoming familiar with Elijah Canlas, and it's incredible that they found actors and actresses that could match him.

Korea - Let Free the Curse of Taekwondo

Hwang Da Seul loves stories about relationships in which one of them pushed the other way too far, but still they made it. This is her latest and best version of this. More than any other outing, it was easy to understand exactly what happened here and follow the threads. I also love the way this story resolves the romantic rival more than any other show I've experienced in BL. It also stands out for me as one of the best examples of sex in BL not being used to signify love; sometimes the sex is being used to avoid dealing with other problems.

Taiwan - We Best Love

I don't think this is the best project from Taiwan, but it's probably my favorite. I like showing people this one because it's an example of the standout chemistry the Taiwanese teams are able to bring out of their talent. Despite the plot getting a bit silly, the emotions between Gao Shi De and Zhou Shu Yi remain extremely accessible across both seasons, and I especially like that our protagonist is the one who lets down the romantic lead.

China - The Untamed

I thought about other recommendations for China, but this project is probably the one I return to the most. It's a dense show, but it's rewarding to follow the plot threads of this one. Despite it being a censored romance, I remain fond of it for making the bonds between men the core of its narratives. Despite the censored nature, the fact that the story revolves around guys' obsessions with each other captures the core of what draws me to m/m literature.

I am so late to this, but thank you to @khaotunq for tagging me in this! I love doing these, even if it takes me a wee while to get ‘round to it!

Post 6 (and only 6) gifs/pics of the QLs you personally consider essential viewing for fans of the genre—emphasis on “personally.” These are your feels, so no need to pick series you don’t like just because they seem ’important.’ Feel free to explain your choices or not. Then tag 6 friends for their 6.

so, I’m kinda copying Jay; basically giving you the six series that I would say are my favourites and are the reason I am so invested in this genre/fandom ❤️

1. Gameboys (Philippines). This was the first BL I ever watched and I didn’t even know there was a genre/community at that point, it was just this show I found on Netflix. I fell in love with Elijah and Kokoy as Gavreel and Cairo, I found a little community on Twitter of their hardcore fans in PH who welcomed me with open arms and were so kind in helping me navigate and learn about the series and about Pinoy culture. I’ve actually spoken with Elijah quite a few times now about his movies and whatnot and I just adore this series and its fandom. Filipino fans are some of the kindest I’ve ever met. This series is always going to hold a very special place in my heart; it’s funny, cheeky, emotional and just real. I love it so much.

2. The Eclipse (Thailand). Okay, this shocks no one as everyone knows this is basically my number one show. It was actually the 3rd BL I ever watched but it cemented me into what became my hyper-fixation on all things Thai. Like, I truly thank this series for not only being amazing, but just sort of grabbing onto me and refusing to let me go. I wear my Eclipse hoody all the time (I need to replace the zip 😔) and I have two replicas of Ayan’s necklace 🫣 which is funny to me because when I first watched this show I wasn’t that fussed but I couldn’t stop thinking about it and went back and rewatched like 3 times and that was it, favourite actors and favourite series.

3. Bad Buddy (Thailand) I know this will be on everyone’s list but it’s there for a reason. Like, this series had such a lasting impact. The story was so simple but the writing and acting made it so much more. I hate what happened with Ohm and Nanon, but I’m so thankful we have this series.

4. Love in the Air (Thailand). Weird pick, I know, but this was actually the first Thai BL I’d ever seen. I’d watched lots of Thai movies before but this was my first series (unless you count the horror series School Tales, which has a lot of our actors in it). Is it perfect? No. Is it problematic? Very. Do I love it? Yes. Sometimes I feel like this might be my TharnType; a very problematic show but I can’t help but love it. (If you know me you know I hate TharnType with a passion, so for me to say this is a big step forward 😂)

5. Cherry Magic (Thailand). Yes, the Thai adaption and not the Japanese one. Now, I hope people don’t get upset with me but I’ve always been open about disliking the Japanese version of CM since before the Thai one was even announced. It just doesn’t have the same chemistry or story telling (imo). Tay and New made those characters their own, and even when I’m reading the manga I imagine Karan and Achi because they felt so much more real to me. I love Keita in the Japanese adaption as Kurosawa but I feel his energy wasn’t returned by any of the cast. So, the Thai adaption will always be superior to me and it’s the one I will always recommend. Like, this is in my top five of all time favourites. It’s up there with The Eclipse. It’s the sweetest, softest, loveliest little show yet it has its moments of drama and hurt without being too over the top or ruining the vibe of the series.

6. A Boss and A Babe (Thailand). Yes, I said it. I bloody LOVE ABAAB and I do not understand why people hate on it so much. It had fantastic writing and the cast were brilliant. ForceBook really showed their chemistry and I absolutely loved this series and I will always recommend it.