I love Sundays. A day of rest, it’s usually my day to sit back and catch up on series that I may have missed during the week.  With the world of BL entertainment having exploded into western culture, there are no shortage of series to choose from.  Thursday I introduced you to a completed BL (the first I ever watched) and today I will give a short list of some currently airing series, my thoughts on them, and some analytics, including where you can watch them.

So, without further ado… Let’s get started. 

LOVE IN THE AIR

To be honest, this was not a series I wanted to like. After a less-than-professional experience with the production company Me Mind Y after discovering that the USB in my Don’t Say No Boxset was defective, I decided I wouldn’t never again support the company. However, at the persistence of two of my BL besties I decided to give it a shot. I’m glad I did. 

The gist of the story so far: Rain is unlucky with cars, Phayu is a god at fixing them. After helping Rain twice, Phayu sets romantic sights on Rain – but not the type to swoon and fall so quickly,  Rain isn’t going to make the process easy for him. 

Typical MAME, the story focuses on the bad boy / sweet boy dynamic in college, but there’s something fresh and sweet about Love in the Air. First, the romance game is set within the first two episodes. Second, I do like the street race / automotive aspect of it (guys are just sexier when they have 600 ccs of horsepower between their legs). Third, it’s just really well written. Say what you want about her (and I know people do) MAME is a wonderful storyteller. 

The chemistry between the leads Phayu and Rain (played byBoss Chaikamon and Noeul Nuttarat respectfully) is off the charts. They are so fun and funny together but also incredibly hot.

Judging by the first two episodes this is the best produced of the series I’ve seen from Me Mind Y.  The picture and sound are clear, the coloring is great and the music also fits with the scenes. All in all, it’s really well done.

Country: Thailand

Episodes: 13

Aired: Aug 18, 2022 – Nov 10, 2022

Aired On: Thursday

Network: GMM 25 (iQiYi app for international)

Duration: 45 min

Adapted from the novels: Love Storm (พายุรักโถมใจ) and Love Sky (พระพายหมายฟ้า) by MAME

Rank: 10/10

WAR OF Y

As someone who has been in and around the entertainment industry for almost half my life, I am a big fan of the “Behind-The-Scenes” style of storytelling (2021’s Lovely Writer from Dee Hup House is one of my absolute favorite series), so I was very excited for this series.  

An anthology of 20 episodes, the first arc is called The New Ship and follows Pan (Seng Wichai) and Nott (Billy Patchanon) a popular BL ship who (in the series) are actually a real-life couple (as far as the series is concerned and the actors starred opposite one another in the wildly popular Secret Crush On You, so I figured it was a no-brainer and I would love this series right off the bat. 

Not so much. 

I do think Wichai is an incredible actor – it’s just really hard to find any redeeming qualities in Pan. He’s such an entitled little snot that any time something bad happens to him I literally laugh and say “Haha! You deserved it!” Because he does. He’s an awful human being. 

Production-wise, it’s one of the better out of Thailand I just hope it gets better. I don’t hate it though and will continue to watch. 

Country: Thailand

Episodes: 20

Aired: 2 August – 13 December 2022

Aired On:  Tuesdays

Network:  AIS PLAY (premium Youtube Channel – will premiere on GaGaooLaLa 27 August)

Duration:  45 minutes.

Adapted from: Original script. 

Rank:  6/10

TAKARA-KUN TO AMAGI-KUN

Japan has really been knocking it out of the park with their BL dramas. Mr. Unlucky Can Only Kiss, My Love Mix-Up, and Cherry Magic! Thirty Years of Virginity Can Make You a Wizard have all been incredibly popular and truth be told some of the best-made series I have come across.  

While unfamiliar with the mega this series is based off of, I was familiar with its stars. Sato Arata and Orriyama Nao both signed under Johnny & Associates and belong to separate Johnnys Jr groups Arata is a member of IMPACTors while Orriyama is a part of Shonen Ninja. 

On a whim, the sweet and sensitive Amagi (Orriyama) asks the handsome and popular Takara to date. To his surprise, Takara agrees. But, while the two are friendly toward one another in their high school, their romantic relationship is kept secret 

Two episodes in and I am really enjoying this series. It’s a bit more dramatic than last year’s My Love Mix-Up but, I like it. It’s more realistic and I can relate to it because I was Amagi in high school and had my own Takara.

Country: Japan

Episodes: 08

Aired: 19 August – 13 December 2022

Aired On:  Fridays

Network:  MBS (Viki / GaGaooLaLa for international)

Duration:  30 minutes.

Adapted from: Manga of the same name. 

Rank:  10/10

VICE VERSA

GMMTV will always have a soft spot in my heart. They produced the first BL I ever watched (He’s Coming To Me) and are the reason I stumbled into this wonderland of entertainment. So, needless to say I will be forever grateful – however, that doesn’t mean that I’m going to stop, drop, and drool over every single BL they put out.  

Though, usually, they do hit the mark. 

Vice Versa was one I’ve been excited about since it was announced during their 2022 Borderless event in December.  Starring Jimmy Jitaraphol and Sea Tawinan as two star-crossed lovers who literally travel to an alternate universe to find one another, the series seemed to have everything I wanted: A supernatural BL written by the mastermind behind 2gether and Fish Upon the Sky, with an impressive (and heart-stoppingly beautiful) cast that also featured special appearances by Nanon Korapat and Ohm Pawat from 2021s Bad Buddy Series (in which Jimmy had a supporting role) there was no way this BL could lose – at least as far as I was concerned. 

While the production value is typical of GMMTV (they still use body mics) it’s not terrible and while the story seems to at once move both too quickly and painstakingly slow, it’s really well done. 

Episode 7: Sunset Orange picks up where last weeks heart wrenching episode left off with Tun and Talay cuddling in bed after the death of Joob shook both of them to their core. Talay, worried for Tun’s safety wants him to find his port key and return to their universe as soon as possible – so he pushes him towards Pang, an actress from their universe whom Tun (as his true self) worked within their world as he believes she is his ticket home.  However, Pang doesn’t feel that way, in fact, she (like anyone else who has seen the pair together) thinks Talay is his port key. 

I have only two issues with this series. 1.) Why isn’t Tun, honest with who he really is with Talay? And 2.) Why isn’t Talay honest with Tun about how he feels about him?

Country: Thailand

Episodes: 12

Aired: 16 July – unknown

Aired On:  Saturdays

Network:  GMM 25 (GMMTV’s official YouTube for international)

Duration:  55 minutes.

Adapted from: the novel of the same name by JittiRain 

Rank:  08/10

Now, should this or some other BL Series that I have (or will) mention be Geo-locked there legal are ways you can watch the series. One of them is by using a VPN service. You can read about VPNs and decide which is best for you here.

For visual learners, please see below

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