Due to an odd little BL detour I now have reviews for TharnType
https://mydramalist.com/profile/ChinguMode/review/58911

and HIStory3: MODC
https://mydramalist.com/profile/ChinguMode/review/58635

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    I was thinking about TharnType today. I’m still at ep 4 but I’m surprised you liked it so much. The first ep was quite amusing but then things develop so fast in their relationship that it felt crazy, so unbelievable. There are good moments like Tharn finding a way to get Type out of that prejudice scandal but the idea he would tell him about his past so easily is silly. Worse, that Tharn would not even then, reconsider his abusive behavior and that soon after this boy would freely offer sex, insanity ehehhe.

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      Hmm… not sure that ‘like it’ is the right word. Since I put a lot of caveats around my opinion of it. I think that it has quite an intelligent script and very good acting but that they’ve tried to force it into a Thai BL mould in a way that doesn’t always work. My rating is giving it credit for what it’s trying to do. Also I think it gets better once it stops trying to service fans who just want to see hot guys get it on.

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        It’s one of those shows I keep imagining how it should have been made, I keep filming a jdrama or kdrama remake in my imagination, fixing all the nonsense. I think calling this script intelligent is quite a big compliment. I do think it has better acting than most Thai BLs.

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          Well I guess that depends on how you see stuff like the sex abuse and the sex thing. Type is gay. He’s attracted to Tharn and he is at least partially in love with him. He wanted to have sex with him and he’s in a process of finding excuses for his behaviour that doesn’t involve him being gay. So it’s not about him offering sex quickly, it’s about him finding a rationale in his head for going forward with something he wanted to do anyway.

          It’s like when Techno was telling him he should thank both him and Tharn for the bullying incident with dinner. Type wanted to spend time with Tharn but couldn’t admit it so he basically maneuvered Techno into making the plan for him. All of Type’s behaviour is about trying to deal with the cognitive dissonance of being gay while simultaneously dealing with his trauma by blaming gay people. I found the whole bullying incident to be really confronting since everyone was talking about his homophobia when the real issue was that he’s a rape victim. It’s to Tharn’s misfortune that he understands Type better than Type understands himself, since it leads him to tolerate behaviour that is basically intolerable. His “Type may be a bigoted asshole but he’s still a nice guy” speech was particularly revealing, as is his refusal to judge Type for his appalling and hypocritical statements on homosexuality.

          But then I’ve seen to episode 7 and it becomes increasingly clear that Type is one very confused, messed up little boy. On the one hand, Tharn deserves better and it shouldn’t be his responsibility to “fix” Type. On the other hand, Tharn is by far the best thing that ever happened to Type. But I can’t help feeling that in the real world this relationship would not last since Tharn is headed for severe emotional burnout. And that’s where I’ll probably get annoyed with the script as the show progresses.

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            Yes, I thought Type was gay and in denial since first ep, one of the things this drama has done properly is at least we don’t have the gay only for you thing. Not that this can’t happen but not so fast as dramas make it.
            I think you were more forgiving of Tharn, he seems quite clever and sensitive so it was strange that he could be abusive towards Type and never have a second thought about it and even weirder that he would accept Type’s offer. Unless Tharn had a really mean side, I didn’t think he would ever accept Type’s idea. It’s not about Tharn being open to have sex first it’s understanding that Type, in real life, would never have been ready for it, not in that moment at least.

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            I thought Tharn’s behaviour in the first few episodes was wildly out of character based on what we eventually learned about him. Which is why I’ve said it was fan servicing and twisting the script to meet the needs of the genre.

            I think we’re going to have different opinions on Tharn and Type choosing to have sex so will just put it down to mileage varying.

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          As for Tharn’s sexual harassment of Type – pretty sure that after he found out about the abuse he has always asked for consent. I mean, he should have been asking for consent all along, but that’s a whole other problem. I don’t find it surprising that someone who’s been hurt as much as Tharn has would tend to approach a relationship sex first.

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    I’ve never heard of TharnType. I’ve added it to my To-Watch list.

    Have you by chance seen Sotus The Series? It’s so far my favorite BL drama.

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      I saw Sotus a while ago.

      I wanted to like it because it’s one of the few BLs that treats its female characters like people, doesn’t depict sexual assault as romantic and doesn’t turn everybody gay. But I couldn’t. I personally found the OTP shallow and the hazing boring. Also, I fundamentally disagree with hazing in principle so that was an issue as well.

      I also watched SOTUS S right after SOTUS. It wasn’t bad, per se. But watching two people who have supposedly been together for two years act like they’re still flirting was ridiculous.

      Having said that, it’s not necessarily an improvement to move forward to something like Together With Me or even the first few episodes of TharnType where you have dysfunctional relationships with loads of skinship that feel almost like soft porn. Hey I’m all for the skinship but it should serve a narrative purpose. The most recent HIStory3 is possibly the worst example I’ve seen.

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        I haven’t seen Sotus S yet so can’t comment on that. But I personally found Sotus adorable and loved Arthit. And the actors did a good job.

        I also don’t agree with hazing but still liked the characters and romance so looked past that part of the drama.

        I’ve not seen Together With Me but it’s one of my sisters favs.

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          I personally think that Korn and Knock have a terrible relationship. I haven’t seen the third series on them yet but I imagine it’s them both doing whatever they want, failing to communicate with each other, and then jumping each other’s bones every now and then. Say what you want about the original Lovesick and its problems, Phun and No had a fantastic relationship; it was respectful, considerate and they had great communication.

          Certainly in the original Sotus I didn’t have any problems with Arthrit and Kongpob’s relationship. I just felt it needed to be fleshed out a bit more.

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        Have you seen He’s Coming To Me? I’m watching it currently and while it’s a bit slower paced and the whole “ghost” part probably doesn’t bode well for an ending, it does some things really well. It avoids the sexual assault/harassment trope, the female friend character isn’t hateful, and (so far) not all the boys in the story are gay. It also has a good scene with the ML coming out to his friends and mother.

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