Gay shit I watched

mlm, wlw.  ~550 minutes

big budget time travel period drama that is honestly just brilliant in every way

cw: non-explicit non-romanticized rape, but he gets his come-uppance.

mlm. ~670 minutes

Blind guy x caretaker. This is genuinely excellent representation of and advocacy for disability. And it's also really adorable.

cw: off-screen suicide of a supporting character (not a bury-your-gays trope)

mlm. ~490 minutes

beautiful genuine representation of realistic gay relationships and disability

mlm. ~540 minutes

This was made by queer people and you can tell. Has serious themes of suicide, internalized homophobia and struggling with self-acceptance, oppression (school and curse are allegories for society and religion) and finding community. But don't worry no sad ending.

mlm. ~570 minutes

Mad plotting skills. I've never seen a time loop done this well.

cw: sleep kiss

mlm. ~470 minutes

Genuine attempt at progressivism, both feminism and gay rights. Time travel is well done.

Has some benevolently acephobic messaging that I don't appreciate but you can't have everything in life.

mlm. ~370 minutes

This should not be your first Thai BL. It honestly shouldn't be among your first ten Thai BL's. 

The story is complex, with hidden layers of meaning, and relies on some understanding of the nuances of how referring to others and yourself works in Thai. There are many versions of 'I' and 'you', and the differences are important here.

cw: age gap, but if you understand what the characters represent on the second layer of meaning, then actually no age gap.

mlm. ~650 minutes

This is pretty standard Thai BL. It's just well-executed.

cw: kinda femme-phobic

mlm. ~650 minutes

Slow burn. Interesting plot and setting. Lots of yearning and indirect flirting.

cw: bunch of guns

mlm. ~200 minutes

Taiwanese Heartstopper. It's sweet.

mlm, wlw. ~660 minutes

A successful attempt at destroying the ubiquitous top/bottom distinction. Lots of mutual pestering. Good acting.

mlm. ~540 minutes

Incredibly adorable and wholesome. Excellent demonstration of how communication is supposed to work in relationships. They say what they mean, and they assume the best in one another. It's refreshing.

Spoiler: This is an adaptation of a Japanese manga. I heard one character was supposed to be aro ace in that. This character is strongly hinted to be aro ace in this adaptation as well, but ends up in a relationship by the end.

mlm. ~240 minutes

This is not a BL, but it is definitely 'gay shit'. Authentically queer, indie, hilarious. Has subsequent seasons which I haven't watched yet.

mlm. ~500 minutes

Mafia x cop. It's fun, what can I say.

cw: kidnapper x kidnappee, but it's not anywhere near as fucked up as in KinnPorsche

mlm. ~400 minutes

Beautiful cinematography. The lead has a frustrating personality, but this is still really good.

Also, PP Krit is a pop star with a YouTube channel that you should check out because it is very gay.

mlm. ~210 minutes

This is a long advertisement. It is exclusively saccharine fluff, and it will give you diabetes.

Jeff Satur is a pop star with a YouTube channel and he has flair, go Google him.

mlm, wlw. ~440 minutes

Overly dramatic soap opera, but the plot is good, the characters are fleshed out, and it calls out structures of political and economic power pretty harshly, so what's not to love?

The special effects are terrible, and the sound effects a bit obtrusive but I promise it's worth it.

cw: murder, torture, death of a child and a dog, not overly graphic but definitely pulls on your heartstrings.

mlm. ~630 minutes

Murder mystery, speaking truth to power, good plot.

cw: murder, non-romanticized sexual assault, not graphic

mlm. ~130 minutes

Not a BL, but definitely 'gay shit'. Homophobic police officer is forced to marry an effeminate gay ghost and find out why he died.

Campy and queer. Really funny. I had a blast watching this.

mlm. ~660 minutes

Singing high school students are whipped for each other.  Excellently fluffy.

mlm. ~420 minutes

Good communication, mental health themes, character growth. Idk man, it doesn't do anything revolutionary, but it just does what it does well.

mlm. ~630 minutes

The political storytelling and visuals on this one are EPIC. The dynamic between the leads is pretty classic for a Thai BL, as in trope-y, top/bottom, which is why this got a 9 instead of a 10.

T, mlm, A, wlw. ~90 minutes

Based on true stories from actual Thai queer people, who actually had a say in this production and how it represented them. 

mlm, GNC. ~540 minutes

This is wholesome and genuinely queer. It breaks several BL norms that need to be broken. The ex-boyfriend gets to be an okay guy, the effeminate gay gets to have an actual sympathetic and significant role that isn't just comedic relief, and he gets a loving boyfriend, the top/macho man gets to be insecure and cry, they get to have actual issues in their relationship with how they treat each other, and resolve them through effective communication. There is no 'we are fated to be with each other and all other relationships were insignificant and issues can't really matter because in the end we'll definitely end up together.' It's refreshing. But it's also a really slow slow-burn and some people don't like that.

mlm. ~640 minutes

This is dramatic, funny, heartfelt, and it has a competent plot, but the special effects are not amazing.

Copaganda. Special military unit guys. One has premonitions and constantly has to save his love interest from dying. Plot twist, they're both reincarnated magic creatures.

mlm. ~770 minutes

The plot is excellent and dramatic. The dynamic between the leads is stiff and uncomfortable. Very angsty. Soulmates and reincarnation.

cw: suicide, pretty dang intense. Ending  of show is not tragic.

mlm. ~660 minutes

Nothing revolutionary here, just a well done classic BL. Funny, good communication and cooperative problem solving. It's got a supernatural gimmick and I'm always up for those.

wlw, GNC. ~106 minutes

Tomboy roommate x homophobic roommate. Both have internalized and societal homophobia to overcome. It does a great job pulling on your heartstrings. Acknowledges the existence of trans men (confusing them with butches) and stands up for them, but throws trans women and feminine men under the bus. This really does have its charm. Gay people made this.

mlm, mlm, mlm, mlm, mlm, mlm. ~120 minutes

This is possibly the campiest show in existence. This is ridiculous and self-aware about it. It makes fun of the outrageous unrealistic-ness of classic Japanese BL tropes by exaggerating them, using them one after another, and having the main character name them explicitly, but I promise there is nothing homophobic about this. This is hilarious. All of the BL couples constantly inthe background of every scene is what makes this the best thing.

~79 minutes

wlw. ~90 minutes

This is what I want from wlw media. Sometimes I feel self-conscious about giving GL's consistently low ratings, and I wonder if it's just my standards being too high, but no, it should actually be possible to make a high quality GL and this is the proof. This deals with internalized homophobia. It feels authentically queer. 

cw: lead cheats on her husband

Spoiler: They don't end up together, but I hope in season 2 they will.

mlm. ~240 minutes

He ends up in a dating game/novel and has to make one character happy. Or that's what the plot seems to be in the beginning, but twists and turns abound. Excellent. Some parts were confusingly edited, but overall, this is angsty and sweet and well written.

mlm. ~120 minutes

Nothing revolutionary here. Just a well executed classic BL. Good angst, good fluff, good happy ending.

wlw, GNC. ~32 minutes

Man how I wish GL's had more butches, but at least this one delivers! Coffeeshop manager teases employee. Extreme levels of adorable. Genuine, immersive, addictive, convincing.

mlm. ~360 minutes

Orphaned teenager adopts homeless boy. Years later, homeless boy has grown up to be upstanding man who is very into his adoptive 'brother'.

Excellent acting, well-written. Overall just competent, solid. 

cw: fairly graphic streetfighting match. Bunch of guns.

mlm. ~430 minutes

Strict boss x manic pixie dream boy intern. They have character development, backstory trauma that actually impacts the story, actual communication, discussion of healthy boundaries, they got me to get emotional. But it is pretty slow and I think that's why it's not generally very popular.

mlm. ~135 minutes

Excellent campy humor. He gets a job costarring along a certified star in a BL, and unbeknownst to him, the star has a major crush on him. Also they have to live together.

mlm. ~300 minutes

Autistic coded lead (although maybe that's just how most Japanese main characters are) meets kiddo with brother. Kiddo is extremely adorable. This is very very fluffy. Also lots of typically Japanese social anxiety. The dad gets the subtle wingman of the year award haha. He's the only reason these two manage to communicate at all.

mlm. ~165 minutes

Depressed dude's dead cat and dog show up in human form to cheer him up. I know that premise sounds fishy, but I promise this isn't a fetish thing. This is silly and funny and fluffy (not a pun) and they did manage to make the dog guy seem dog-like and cat guy seem cat-like.

mlm, wlw, T. ~80 minutes

Feels queerer than average Thai BL. Magic barista knows everyone's problems and gives them life advice. Nice and short.

mlm. ~450 minutes

This includes a body swap, but I promise it is actually gay and handled well. Countryside besties to lovers. Starts out with the main character being pretty unlikeable, but he changes. It is worth it to continue watching.

mlm. ~720 minutes

This is not actually brilliant in terms of plot, but it's just visually stunning. You can pause this show at any point and chances are you could print the image out and hang it on your wall as a painting. Very trope-y and commercialized, but still thoroughly entertaining. 

Plot and character motivation for Hia Lian are confusing on the first watch, but things actually do fall into place on second watch. He is not as fickle as he seems, he is just cunning.

mlm. ~540 minutes

Reaper versus doctor. Other than the excellent plot, this isn't very special.

mlm, intersex. ~310 minutes

Ghosthunting youtubers. It's queer and silly and fun  and angsty and the plot is good.

cw: getting outed

mlm. ~440 minutes

Wholesome vibes. They've got good friendship chemistry, as in, it feels like natural teasing. Plot is underwhelming.

mlm, GNC. ~171 minutes

Honestly it's been a while since I watched this and I didn't write my thoughts down at the time.

This deserves a bunch of content warnings and I don't think it ended well, but I mean it's a classic right?

mlm. ~150 minutes

Reincarnation, oh no she's a dude in this lifetime. Good acting, good plot, but quite wattpad-y and not very queer.

mlm, wlw. ~460 minutes

Ghost hunter influencer visits family and doesn't realize they're all ghosts. Watching the ghosts' attempts at normalcy is wonderfully awkward and weird. Dynamic between the leads is natural. It does start to drag a little in the later episodes, but that doesn't justify the fact that it's somehow not very popular.

mlm. ~180 minutes

Has a queer indie feel. Lots of gay panic.

mlm. ~600 minutes

Ghost x medium, mystery for how he died. University setting. Good natural dynamic between the leads, good plot. Contrary to expectation, no sad ending.

mlm. ~200 minutes

Dude has major crush on fellow volleyball student. It's sweet. 

cw: romantic relationship between brothers, but they're not the main couple so it's fairly skippable.

mlm. ~500 minutes

Accidental time travel from 2000 to 2022. Absolutely terrible communication, but the show knows it and judges it. It's funny, has a decent plot, good dynamic between leads, but yeah no it's not revolutionary.

mlm, dating show. ~660 minutes

Very wholesome, activist, queer, healthy.

mlm. ~840 minutes

mlm. ~325 minutes

sequel to 'I told sunset about you'. Equally cinematographically stunning. The lead is still a frustrating personality.

cw: the lead cheats.

mlm. ~180 minutes

Total memory loss right after breakup, thinks they're just roommates, reconnect. Just a solid BL.

mlm. ~240 minutes

He borrows his crush's eraser, but it has another boy's name on it. That boy misunderstands and thinks he has crush on him, and he is incredibly considerate about it. This is an adorable show.

mlm. ~115 minutes

Insecure gay boy with self-destructive habits and a shield made of humor finds the greenest flag in history and falls for him. This feels authentically queer, dealing with internalized homophobia and how it can make you betray yourself, and dealing with teenage confusion about what feelings mean.

cw: starts with a scene in which a minor has just had sex with an adult, but there is nothing graphic about it and this does not continue.

mlm. ~325 minutes

Excellent acting, excellent plot, excellent visuals, excellent angst, excellent fluff, excellent teasing. You will enjoy this.

Medical student taking in injured gentle gangster who likes to tease. Gangster does great as a mock househusband. The age gap is not really ok, but the 17 year old is the aggressive one and the top, and the gangster is nothing but gentle. 

There's a scene in which the sister walks in on gay kissing, and instead of freaking out about her brother being gay, just smiles and walks away, and I think that's an amazing way to subvert the 'a gay couple can barely kiss once before they get walked in on and all hell breaks loose for them' trope, which is so common, and honestly kinda traumatic. 'Maybe it should actually be totally safe and okay to be ourselves', is what this show says. 

One of the four guys gets to dress stereotypically gay and still be a badass gangster, and not the butt of the joke, but an actual fleshed out character, and I'm sorry to say but that is still SO rare in BL.

This show has the intention to change the genre and make it queerer. I love this, but it also does have issues. 

There's one scene in which one guy is too drunk and emotionally vulnerable to consent, and the other guy knows it's wrong and still has first time sex with him. He heavily regrets doing that, but given the lighting and slowmo of that scene, it is romanticized.

cw: it's a mafia show, there's going to be murder. Age gap. Consent issues.

wlw. ~36 minutes

Not your typical GL. Two magic ladies saving town. The plot is lightning speed, and it does not ever slow down. You might think you're watching a summary or a 'previously on', but no this is in fact how the show is structured. Blink and you miss a whole plot point. 

The GL is implied only, because this is from China and gay media is illegal there. They're doing what they can.

One of the ladies is frustratingly childish, but the other is hot so.

wlw. ~60 minutes

Yeah it just continues lol.

mlm. ~540 minutes

Warning: simply skip the first episode. It sucks, adds nothing to the plot, and has a completely different tone from the rest of the series.

The Thai BL that opened the flood gates way back when. It's interesting to see where the tropes originated, and honestly, they are better executed here than in most subsequent Thai BL's. It's sweet and innocent. But there is a lot of uninteresting straight stuff to skip through (which can easily be done without missing any plot concerning the gayness), and if you want to keep track of all the characters, you had better note down their names and key words because dang there are a lot of them.

It deals with some heavy teen themes. I know someone had a sex tape leaked but I don't know if that was season one or two of love sick.  I know there is classism, cheating, slutshaming and a toxic straight relationship somewhere in these, although the show judges all of these things negatively and does not romanticize it.

mlm. ~1620 minutes

It's too long, but there is wholesome communication in here, and a lot of it is skippable unrelated straight storyline.

mlm. ~160 minutes

Law student rebels and goes to country side, meets cute bumpkin. Motto is do what you like, not what is socially acceptable. Just a solid BL. Nothing else to say about it.

mlm. ~780 minutes

Critique of BL industry standards that forbid dating. Pretty classic top/bottom dynamic between the leads. Not as revolutionary as it could've been, but it's a solid BL nonetheless.

mlm. ~90 minutes

Dude tries to get away from abusive ex and meets cute new chef, very queer.

Part of the 'My Universe' collection

mlm. ~65 minutes

Looks like a student project. It's stupid in a good way. Lonely guy prays to bad boy love spirit, and love spirit likes him. They had fun making this. Campy and nonsensical.

mlm. ~640 minutes

Rich boy x bodyguard, but also they're classmates. Murder plot, on the run. This has all the dramatic elements of a wattpad story. It's fantastical, not based in reality, but is that a bad thing? It's sweet, it's angsty, it's got everything you need. This knows what the BL genre is about and does just that.

cw: support character gets killed

mlm. ~125 minutes

39 year old boss dude feels old. His subordinate likes him and wants to make him feel young again. This is sweet and genuine.

Consent politics could be better but could be much worse.

mlm. ~200 minutes

Guy travels back in time to see the student who saved his life as a kid and died in process. It's about coping with survivor's guilt. This is really good but I knocked off a whole point for that sleep kiss.

Spoiler: The ending is sad, but it is justified.

mlm. ~145 minutes

Ex gangster gets stabbed, wakes up and now has an angel tagging along. They stick together. Great plot, great acting, emotional.

cw: suicide due to homophobia

mlm. ~62 minutes

Thai international student has supernatural nightmares. These guys don't beat around the bush. Good plot, alright everything else.

The second part never got made, probably because it became illegal to do so in China.

Spoiler: Open ending

mlm. Not a BL. ~150 minutes

His recently deceased brother's Canadian boyfriend shows up and he isn't entirely comfortable with the gay thing. Raising kid together. It's funny, endearing, genuinely queer.

mlm, wlw. ~150 minutes

Genuinely queer story. Divorced dad meets new boyfriend and together they cope with society, homophobia, raising a child, and just life.

Spoiler: At the end they're really mad at each other but there is a season 2 that I haven't watched yet.

mlm. ~270 minutes

Thai guy comes to visit Korean friend who turns out to be dead, but they fall in love anyways and also he opens a restaurant. Solid BL. Good plotting, good acting, good pulling of heartstrings, good fluff, good angst.

mlm. ~300 minutes

Best friends to lovers. It's about the ethics of divorce. Just solid and familiar. It's really funny. It just works.

mlm, T, GNC. ~500 minutes

CHAOS QUEERS. Who gave a gay club a budget and where can I thank them?  It's a musical lol.

I know I already gave the prize of 'campiest show' to a Japanese BL up above, but this is a strong contender. Don't expect any of this to make sense, and don't expect any of it to be competent in any way, that's not what this is about.

Prince flees to other country during coup and takes up secret identity as commoner, and immediately takes advantage of his newfound anonymity to run away from his entourage and aggressively flirt with a hot guy. 

As many supporting ladies as possible are played by trans women and drag queens. Except the bodyguard, who is basically a Russian barbie doll, but fierce. 

The first episode has a drag show in which the main singer is like 'good evening ladies and gentlemen and everyone in between'. 

I think most of this is improvised, and they simply left the bloopers in. It feels like the actors are just hanging out with a vague sense of where the story is supposed to be heading. The plot is nonsensical and melodramatic in the best way.

cw: half undressing a sleeping person

mlm. ~700 minutes

Dude annoys guy on the way to job interview, guy turns out to be new boss and new roommate. Enemies to lovers. This is funny and endearing.

cw: several sympathetic characters repeatedly misgender their friend, a trans comedic relief character, with the intention of hurting her feelings, and this is played for laughs.

Not a BL. ~350 minutes

Give a bunch of  veteran Thai BL actors control over a series and see how they take apart the genre. This is campy and hilarious, and I'm sure these actors had a lot of fun coming up with it.

mlm. ~70 minutes

Catfishing a guy to get him to sell his vintage camera. It's fast and fun and I like it, despite the lacking production quality.

mlm. ~200 minutes

The lead seems autistic coded, alexithymia, very logical. Other than that, just a solid BL with a classic BL dynamic, as far as I remember.

mlm. ~480 minutes

Ghost story, good communication, privacy theme.  Feels genuinely queer. Good plot, good dynamic, good angst.

Spoiler: they don't get to stay together in the end.

mlm, T, GNC. ~210 minutes

This is a reality dating show for a bunch of gay guys, hosted by a trans woman. It's heartwarming and dramatic and wholesome and queer.

mlm. ~210 minutes

This is a passion project from a gay Filipino couple living in LA, retelling parts of their own story.

Filipino goes to follow his dreams in hollywood and fails, falls for roommate. It's got soul. It's got authenticity. It's flirty. It's funny.

mlm. ~200 minutes

Undercover rich guy spots cute basketballer and arranges to be his roommate. Basketballer does some 'no homo tho' stuff, then his lesbian witch sister accidentally gives him back his ghost seeing powers, which he can only get rid of by touching rich guy. 

Majorly adorable. Even the ghosts are cute. Solid BL. Solid plot, solid characterization, solid humor. All-round good show.

mlm. ~90 minutes

Awkward neighbours who don't really like each other slowly fall in love. It's ridiculous and comedic.

mlm, minor wlw. ~180 minutes

Activist bad boy x extracurricular activities nerd. It's stupid in the best way. But also genuine and emotional in the second half. Kind of a Filipino heartstopper. 

cw: there is some mild violence played for laughs, but it's not major.

mlm, T, GNC. ~104 minutes

Queer sports team, based on true story.

Not a romcom. This is almost a quarter of a century old, and it does show, but this is still great. Very queer, very funny, very uplifting.

mlm. ~600 minutes.

This is a comedy. It relies on repeated innuendo. Only one out of the four couples in this is gay. The other stories are unrelated and skippable. 

They were roommates. Plot is nothing special, it's just situational comedy.

mlm. ~1440 minutes

So this one is controversial. Not everyone likes it, and I'm convinced that's because it appears to be a typical BL on the surface, but that is not what it is. If you're skipping or fast forwarding through this, then yeah the plot isn't going to make sense to you and the ending will come as a shock, because the story is actually quite complex and layered.

This is a queer story about mental health, becoming a better person, overcoming homophobia and being able to start loving yourself through the love of someone else. Despite appearances, Nat is the main character and Tofu is only there to help him grow as a person. He's not an actual love interest. He is a mere representation of a love interest that was already lost.

This series is a form of activism.

Spoiler: depending on how you view this, you could interpret the ending as positive or negative. I interpret it as positive.

wlw, GNC. ~94 minutes

Not one butch, but two! 

This is not necessarily competent, but it is genuine and fun and a bit all over the place.

Livestreamer x fan, judo competition, being a replacement for your dead brother. There's so much in here.

mlm. ~380 minutes

High school besties who were kinda in-between being friends and lovers separated for 10 years, now reconnect. 

The plot, acting and cinematography are all quite good, but this story should've been told linearly instead of with this amount of flashbacks. It is hard to contextualize their current actions without having a clear image of what happened in the past.

wlw. ~150 minutes

If you like GL and you haven't watched this one, what are you doing with your life?

She loves cooking but needs someone to eat it, and her neighbor just happens to fit the bill. No giving up on this one before you finished ep 6, that's where the backstory emotions hit.

It's got a good plot, it's sweet, it's considerate, it's got gay panic, it's got self-discovery, what more do you need? 

Spoiler: Well it would be nice if it were reciprocated I guess, but we'll wait for season 2 for that.

mlm. ~350 minutes

Guy loses job because his boss did fraud, finds famous hiding artist, has to convince artist to sign contract in order to get his job back. 

Solid standard BL dynamic. Well executed. Nothing out of the ordinary.

mlm, wlw. ~130 minutes

Brother and sister are both gay, switch lovers to pretend straightness to parents, hijinks ensue. Comedy. Honestly it's been a while since I watched this, but I definitely remember laughing and liking it. 

mlm. ~180 minutes

Solid enemies to lovers. Good chemistry. Good plot, good angst. Solid.

mlm. ~180 minutes

Sequel to the one above.

Misunderstanding leads to them having to start over years later. Still good plot and good angst.

cw: I really really hate how they portrayed the character said to have aspergers. It's not accurate to what autism is and it does feel malicious. 

mlm. ~80 minutes

Rich careless dude x silent bodyguard. Besties to lovers. The one that made South Korea realize that BL was profitable.

Short and effective. Wattpad-y in terms of its plot and drama, and I'm not saying that as if it's a bad thing. It's not sophisticated but it is enjoyable.

wlw, GNC. ~110 minutes

So genuine. There are no evil people here, and yet it's about adultery. Relationships are hard. Communication is hard.

mlm. ~200 minutes

New secretary has to deal with very grumpy boss that everyone else is done with. 

This is over the top and ridiculous on purpose, in a good way.  It's silly and they have a fun dynamic together. The plot, acting, chemistry, production quality etc are also good. A good watch.

cw: kidnapping. Bit sexist.