On a different note, i just saw My school President - uptill the 3rd ep. What a wonderfully done school based rom com ! The characters are real like.For a change parents of the school president are shown realistic ,with realistic dialogues & not just showpieces.Tiw is the best wingman from all the Bls i have seen till now.Fourth is delightfully cute. If it continues like this without getting sidetracked,it will probably be a sleeper hit. After a long time, i really liked a silly bl so completely without skipping any part.
Agree- I think it’s a P’Aof project- the two leads had small parts in Bad Buddy. Sly subversion of tropes like wiping the ukes messy mouth and good music add some zest
There are so many side couples that were better than the mains. I agree completely with You're My Sky. I love Saen and Ai. They were the reason I kept watching. The series was good and I was hoping Dome and Vee ended up together but their story was hard to watch at times because of Vee's guilt. I love OffGun but Gawin and First were so good together. I have to say this because Unforgotten Night was definitely forgettable except for the side throuple of the bodyguards! They helped me through the last few episodes. Tutor and Yim were great just not enough screen time for me. I almost didn't get through Cutie Pie because of how toxic and cruel Hia was in the beginning. I'm not going to list all my favorites because I've probably seen every bl this year but Secret Crush's main couple was excellent but had 2 side couples that I liked but I thought Intouch and Daisy's couple added something we've never seen before. The last one I'll mention is My Secret Love. The main couple was so dramatic that it was irritating at times. All 3 of the side couples were so good. I can't pick my favorite between ParkLee and BearBomb because they were great for different reasons. I also liked TimMai and wished they had had more time together as a couple.
I'm not sure Mr Critic ever watched My Secret Love. Because, I agree, those side couples both carried their weight in that series. By contrast, we know Mr Critic disdained SCOY. Hence, their absence from his list makes sense. I was little invested in the more prominent side couple, and Daisy and Intouch lacked screen time. Still, the latter pairing would have squeaked onto my list precisely for the reason you cited: to acknowledge that the series was downright innovative to portray a femme character who exercised romantic agency. All hail Daisy!
@@johnmaster3748 I loved Secret Crush and would love to see all the couples in more series. Billy and Seng are doing well together but I don't think Opp and Nutt will do anything together since Opp seems to be more into his music/group. I even liked the straight couple in Secret Crush and usually they're just annoying but Secret Crush, La Cuisine,which gets no attention at all even though it's my favorite from this year, and probably my favorite straight couple which is Bosston and Sammy from Between Us.
hehe John.. actually.. I checked sky and surprise couple before making the video.. and Sky was a let down.. I had no idea Daisy also had one.. hehe.. now i have watched them and I think they deserve one spot.
I will be, once again, very honest here: this year we've had several series that were CARRIED solely by the second couples, whether for storyline or chemistry. And I loved many of them, but I would like to name two: OppNutt's couple in Secret Crush On You, because it is not often we see effeminate gay (or openly transgender in this case) characters in a series being taken seriously, much less having a decent happy ending as a couple. And the second one is AouBoom in Vice Versa, which was barely a side couple per se, no one was expecting that, but even so they did what needed to be done in the 5 minutes they had. Of course, those would not be in the top 10 (we've had better), but those two would fit as honorable mentions, in my opinion. Now, I agree with your list. These ones were REALLY good.
So glad you highlighted Mork’s Uncles in My Ride (an underrated if perhaps slight old fashioned story). I agree it was nice to see some ‘uncles’ (aka older men) portrayed in a BL. As good as Vegas and Pete were, I would have to give #1 to Yok and Dan. I bought their relationship and think it is one of the best couples (main or side) ever depicted in Thai BL. And I hope to see both side couples from You’re My Sky be a main couple in a better (and not sports related) series.
BLC loved that video, good idea. Have to say Dan and Yok are a all time favorites for me as well. I think the reason Vegas and Pete were so strong is they were able to over come the shock value of the S and M aspect and still show great chemistry and acting skill.
That was sadism only. The sexual subculture you reference is not premised on kidnap or torture or lack of consent. A masochist is someone who derives sexual pleasure from pain, but who enters freely into a dynamic with the sadist. The real-world S&M community emphasizes trust and consent in defining the contours of that relationship. Vegas-Pete are an ersatz S&M couple, reflecting either the violence-laden milieu of the mafia genre, or the writers' fanciful take on the S&M subculture. Pete is no masochist, he is a victim of a mafia civil war. In no way, did he choose these events. What transpires between Vegas and Pete does not reflect the S&M subculture. Whips are a common element in S&M play, but whipping in S&M "play" should never break the skin. In real life, wounds like the series depicts Pete suffering leave permanent scars, and can lead to loss of life via infection if untreated. (Pete collapses. The series gets that right.) Likewise, brief bursts of low-level electricity on the genitals comprise a stimulating aspect in some S&M play. Trying to injure the sub from cruelty is not part of it. Typically, in true S&M relationships, the sub has a safe word; and when asked to stop, the Dom does. Pete begged Vegas to stop. Begged, in fact, to die. To label these scenes "S&M" obscures this violence behind a patina of legitimacy the conduct does not deserve. This series depicted torture and sexual assault. Audiences confused criminal torture with consensual S&M. This discussion should do better. Let us not borrow the sliver of respectability eked out by a poorly understood, mostly marginalized sub-culture, and use their name to obscure sexual assault as romance. Apologists will argue Pete's subsequent support for Vegas constitutes a belated consent and legitimatizes their relationship. That attitude is a cop out allowing the viewer to enjoy the skinship on offer without grappling with the morality of the situation. Here, you have a victim who establishes a rapport with his abuser as a means of softening the violence of his captivity. Insofar as they become a couple, the victim's feelings result from trauma, conditioning, and shock. The shock value you identified was certainly real. The actors did play their parts well. But when one party begs for death for several days before switching to empathizing with his captor, that's not love, it's a survival strategy. Stockholm Syndrome ought to disqualify a side couple from this list, not vault them to the top. Although Pete later offers the illusion of consent, nothing alters the fact he experienced torture and sexual assault prior to that moment. His empathy for Vegas is a product not of love, freely given, but of lessening the horror inflicted upon his body and mind. In the context of dramatic entertainment, enjoying a twisted relationship like Vegas-Pete is permissible. I begrudge no one the second-hand thrill derived from this work of fiction. If this list represents "most impactful side couple" or "most talked about side couple," then I concede Vegas-Pete as a contender for top spot in this category in 2022. But surely "best side couple" ought to represent more than cruelty, violence, and trauma. I see nothing in Vegas-Pete worthy of celebration.
@@johnmaster3748John I was not referencing the S&M sexual subculture I said "the shock value of the S and M aspect". Vegas was clearly a sexual sadist, but sadistic behavior does not necessarly have to involve sex or consent. The meaning of sadistic and masochistic has many shade of gray as they say. You can say "our boss is so sadistic he makes us work overtime with no additional pay". Some people are emotionally sadistic, they just get enjoyment from seeing people suffer. On the flip side someone can be a masochist with out consent, a relationship masochist, the guys who always hooks up with a boyfriend that abuses them and beats them up for example. They know the guy has a lot of pentup rage but they will deliberately provoke and solicit rejecting responses from their partner to feel hurt, humiliated and defeated. Is that consent? You see this when Vegas originally catches Pete and ties him up and tortures him. Pete keeps doing things to provoke Vegas more and more, showing Vegas he can take the pain he loves it. It is only when it turns sexual that Pete starts to freak out because he has to confront the desire he is feeling and begs Vegas to kill him. We later see from flash backs that Pete's father beat, abused and humiliated him the same way Vegas is abused by his father. It is this shared experiance (that turned one son into a masochist and the other a sadist) that makes them bond. They discover in this horrible ordeal their Yin to their Yang. Unforgotten Night and Big Dragon teased the S&M subculture as a sexual fetish, what we see in KP is sadistic and masochistic behavior on a different level. Yes from all the hints, behavior and flashbacks we can see that Pete has masochistic behavior, if only from the view point that he will endure pain to be loved by an abusive father or sadistic lover. As far as best side couple, best is subjective ( best looking, best chemistry, best acting). I think they are both good looking, I think their chemistry is great, what I was trying to say in may original comment was even though they had very complicated, challenging and yes controversial characters as actors they dealt with that and made the characters work. Should we not say an actor is best at his job because we do not like the characters they play. If you play a serial killer and do it well you can not get a best actor award? I for sure found the whole Vegas Pete relationship disturbing to say the least, but it does not stop me from praising them as actors or as a convincing side couple. Truethfully I do not think the Vegas Pete relationship is about the sexual subculture you reference. It is about two broken people dealing with the bad hand they have been dealt in very inappropiate ways. Should a evil sadistic person get a happy ending, maybe not. But that is a whole different rant.
@@samtab2364 hi, Sam, I was always going to write that essay, the only question was whose post it would reply to. I picked yours, despite feeling fairly confident you would not actually need a primer on sexual subcultures, because I knew you would dish something back. And that something would be well thought out. Indeed, that was the case. Between us we've laid out competing frameworks to interpret the Vegas-Pete storyline, but neither of us is celebrating it with an uncritical eye. My main beef is with "apologists" who've refused to admit any problems exist. Never lumped you into that category, even though i used your post to build mine around. I was pretty sure I'd taken you out of context because I noted the unusual phrasing "...S and M aspect..." was not precisely what I wrote about. I have a clearer understanding of what you did intend from the reply. But, I arrived at this video list with an agenda, and I aired out that agenda. So I am satisfied with where the discussion stands. Thanks for the original post that created an opportunity.
@@samtab2364 I will append this one final thought, just reacting to the idea "that's a whole different rant." Leaving aside my qualms about representation, morals, and ethics, if I just critique the Vegas-Pete storyline as written and presented for the screen, I'd be griping about the writers being apparently unable to decide whether to give Vegas the happy ending or not. I think they split the difference with having him get shot, but then redeemed in the mid-credits tag. IMO, they should have gone one direction or the other and owned it fully. He's dead for his sins or he lives happily ever after. I thought leaving him for dead (apparently) when the screen faded to black only to resurrect him mid-credits was a cop out. That's my rant on the "evil sadistic person" question.
Love, love, love Dan/Yok! Gawin and First were so good together! I wish they had another series as a couple. While I like Khao/First, I really like Gawin/First. I love that you mentioned the uncles in My Ride. That and the friend gang of bike delivery boys were the best parts of the series for me. Well, and the main lead's dimple. I'm a sucker for a dimple. Both side couples in You're My Sky acted circles around the main couple, and their chemistry was better, too. While I liked Kahn/Thua in The Eclipse, I didn't like what the writers did with Thua in the latter episodes. I never understood why he did what he did. Nuer and Syn were the best part of Cutie Pie. I'm happy they're getting their own series. Excellent choices, all.
In the entire pantheon of BL, can we identify another instance of an older same-sex couple playing such a prominent role in any series? For that innovation alone, I'd have moved the pair from My Ride higher on the list. But they do not exist in this story as mere tokens. They provide an anchor of stability in Mohk's life, and a model for what he hopes to attain. Their bickering felt like a loving, long term couple. But even that bickering, which makes them comic relief, disguises their true contribution to the series. Their advice to their nephew about how to accept his feelings for a man played a pivotal role in the plot. Most of these side couples exist so far to the side that their existence exerts little influence on the main couple. Here, even the putative boyfriend, upon meeting them, became enchanted by them. Their lives modeled what the main couple sought and sparked a discussion about the meaning of "family." Real world gay activism and civil rights very much relies on contesting different interpretations of family, especially "family of choice" contrasted with "blood family." It's not insignificant that accepting Mork as boyfriend means Tawan takes on Mork's chosen son as well. Thus, this side couple offers way more substance than the garden variety side couples on this list, some of which exist only to eat up screen time. I'd have considered them for #1.
@@johnmaster3748 The only other instance I can think of is Ai's father and his husband in Ai Long Nhai. Older LGBTQ couples are very difficult to find in BL. The uncles were great, and you're right about them being a wonderful, positive influence on Mork. My Ride is an underrated series. I honestly hadn't thought of them in ages until Mr. Critic brought them back up here in this video. My Ride sort of fell off the radar for me when compared to the hype of other series out there. You make a compelling argument for having the uncles as #1.
@@j_scott making compelling arguments...it's what I show up here for! I admit, the angle regarding social construction of family and the way in which the Uncles model "family of choice" for Tawan and Mork + chosen son didn't occur to me when I watched...not until just this morning. But since I use "representation of LGBT issues" as an important element in grading series, My Ride just jumped higher on my year-end list thanks to this new insight. Underrated, indeed.
First/Fluke is my #1- get well written scenes and match two good actors: Wa-La! Magic happens. Fluke carried Podd in Dark Blue Kiss and First carried Te Shippers. One good actor or performance can also elevate a side couple- plus they don’t usually have enough screen time to demonstrate repetitive moments to fill time or lack of character development- a major stumbling block for most leads. Boom and Kris stood out in you’re my sky and are young actors. Hope they get more chances to learn and develop!
I feel in YMS no pair was a side couple, they had almost the same screen time with their mini storylines. Not sure why Mr Critic included a couple from YMS.
Mork’s uncles are only ones I remembered before seeing your video,tbh.Syn - nuer were cute.Neo and Louis were fine in The eclipse uptill ep 7 that i saw.
I agree with most of your picks. Dan/Yok are probably my favorite couple with Dome/Vee a close second. I’m not a fan of Vegas/Pete, because of the whole abducting and torturing thing. I don’t care about BDSM if both people are mutually consenting from the start. That was not the case in KP. In my opinion, Pete had Stockholm syndrome. It was yucky to me even though I really liked both actors. I heard they’re in a new BL and I can’t wait to see what they do with a different dynamic. I did like Kim/Porschay but I’m a Jeff Satur fan.
Your list is excellent, I completely agree. In addition, I really liked Ah Jian and Ray from About Youth, and can I mention all of the very brief side couples in Man Who Defies the World of BL s2? 🤣All of the brief stories we get in that series are so good.
Vegas and Pete are a given side couple and one of my favorite couples and I consider them as a side couple drake,jimmy at BadBuddy even though they’re not officially couples in the series but most viewers love to ship them together. I hope GMMTV give them a series together 🙏🏼
I know quite a lot of BL fans did not like SCOY and felt it was just too cringe. However, I loved the Jao/Sky couple in SCOY. Heng and Surprise were so cute together. Dan/Yok and Vegas/Pete are also my favorite side couples.
@@deborahw2770 fun with dipthongs? [Edit: guess not, since dipthong only describes vowel combinations. (Should have looked it up before posting.) Is there a term to describe consonant combinations? Th-, ph-, sk-?]
VegasPete and DanYok are probably my top 2 couples period, let alone 2022. My only disagreement on this list was KimPorchay, I found the age gap and power dynamic between them off putting.
BLC Buddy--checking in on 12/22/22 (how strange that looks) to see if you are going to be having a Best Of and Worst Of list for this almost past year. I know it will be excellent. Hope you are doing well and that is not just making small-talk.
It's okay to add Em and Name from Remember me? The series is still ongoing and nothing really happened between them yet, but I hope for them to end up together.
it made both of them Main couples.. and i think it was a nice way to do.. rather than making one sidecouple and trimming their storyline. Same as in Star and Sky
@@blcritic Yes. It was frustrating to watch but ultimately we did get 2 full stories for each couple. They could have done the crossover moments a bit better.
I was fighting with myself who will be the number one and I decided for Rain and Phayu. Rain the Conqueror and Phayu the Servant😍🤩👏. Just the way they were looking at each other was enough. And I have to admit, that I did not find Noh attractive in Nitiman, but know, Holy ...maybe it depends, who is your partner and his partner was now yummy😂👍👏.Second will be Vegas and Pete. I hope they will have more screentime in season 2🙏.Great chemistry and also acting👍. Third place for Nuer and Syn. I am waiting for their new series. First from Not me can be paired with anyone and the result will be great. Dome and Vee made the series for me, cuz main couple was without chemistry. PS: I was rooting for TimMai and LeePark in My secret love and Daisy and Intouch in SCOY.
@@blcritic I also thought about the Tim/Mia couple from My Secret Love as well, I liked their story. Daisy and Intouch I liked as well in SCOY, also the Jao/ Sky couple, both their story lines dealt nicely with body issues. I just saw a TikTok clip where they were giving an award for best script at one of the award shows and the presentor said "a bad series can have a good script but a good series isn't possible with out a good script." How true. I have said before, for me the failure of SCOY was not the script or the casting it was clearly the bad choices of the director and production team. The way they directed Seng to look and act was a major fail for me.
You're my sky started off so well but the last few episodes just kinda ruined it. It felt a bit listless and pointless somehow. I can't even remember the names now so I think they all failed to win my heart. I kinda wish drake and Jimmy had ended up a duo in bad buddy. Max and nat did well in cutie pie their romantic scenes were far beyond what I expected from those two they really have improved since the dewblue days. Jeff and barcode I liked but since barcode was underage it felt pretty pg compared to the other duos. Vegas Pete had an interesting storyline. The fact that both were a bit unstable and abused but somehow found love still I think resonated with people. It took the enemies to lovers trope to the extreme but somehow still works.
@BL Critic maybe if they hadnt planned the Jimmy sea thing already they would have. It would have been hard to see him switch if him and drake really rocked our world. Jimmy and sea are meh at their kissing acting is alright but I liked Jimmy in bad buddy better
On a different note, i just saw My school President - uptill the 3rd ep. What a wonderfully done school based rom com ! The characters are real like.For a change parents of the school president are shown realistic ,with realistic dialogues & not just showpieces.Tiw is the best wingman from all the Bls i have seen till now.Fourth is delightfully cute. If it continues like this without getting sidetracked,it will probably be a sleeper hit. After a long time, i really liked a silly bl so completely without skipping any part.
Agree- I think it’s a P’Aof project- the two leads had small parts in Bad Buddy.
Sly subversion of tropes like wiping the ukes messy mouth and good music add some zest
@@justdave3153 oh really, I don’t remember seeing them in Bad buddy.
There are so many side couples that were better than the mains. I agree completely with You're My Sky. I love Saen and Ai. They were the reason I kept watching. The series was good and I was hoping Dome and Vee ended up together but their story was hard to watch at times because of Vee's guilt. I love OffGun but Gawin and First were so good together. I have to say this because Unforgotten Night was definitely forgettable except for the side throuple of the bodyguards! They helped me through the last few episodes. Tutor and Yim were great just not enough screen time for me. I almost didn't get through Cutie Pie because of how toxic and cruel Hia was in the beginning. I'm not going to list all my favorites because I've probably seen every bl this year but Secret Crush's main couple was excellent but had 2 side couples that I liked but I thought Intouch and Daisy's couple added something we've never seen before. The last one I'll mention is My Secret Love. The main couple was so dramatic that it was irritating at times. All 3 of the side couples were so good. I can't pick my favorite between ParkLee and BearBomb because they were great for different reasons. I also liked TimMai and wished they had had more time together as a couple.
The UNbodyguards! They were the best.
I'm not sure Mr Critic ever watched My Secret Love. Because, I agree, those side couples both carried their weight in that series. By contrast, we know Mr Critic disdained SCOY. Hence, their absence from his list makes sense. I was little invested in the more prominent side couple, and Daisy and Intouch lacked screen time. Still, the latter pairing would have squeaked onto my list precisely for the reason you cited: to acknowledge that the series was downright innovative to portray a femme character who exercised romantic agency. All hail Daisy!
@@johnmaster3748 I loved Secret Crush and would love to see all the couples in more series. Billy and Seng are doing well together but I don't think Opp and Nutt will do anything together since Opp seems to be more into his music/group. I even liked the straight couple in Secret Crush and usually they're just annoying but Secret Crush, La Cuisine,which gets no attention at all even though it's my favorite from this year, and probably my favorite straight couple which is Bosston and Sammy from Between Us.
hehe John.. actually.. I checked sky and surprise couple before making the video.. and Sky was a let down.. I had no idea Daisy also had one.. hehe.. now i have watched them and I think they deserve one spot.
@@blcritic just curious why you think Sky was a let down
I will be, once again, very honest here: this year we've had several series that were CARRIED solely by the second couples, whether for storyline or chemistry. And I loved many of them, but I would like to name two: OppNutt's couple in Secret Crush On You, because it is not often we see effeminate gay (or openly transgender in this case) characters in a series being taken seriously, much less having a decent happy ending as a couple. And the second one is AouBoom in Vice Versa, which was barely a side couple per se, no one was expecting that, but even so they did what needed to be done in the 5 minutes they had. Of course, those would not be in the top 10 (we've had better), but those two would fit as honorable mentions, in my opinion.
Now, I agree with your list. These ones were REALLY good.
So glad you highlighted Mork’s Uncles in My Ride (an underrated if perhaps slight old fashioned story). I agree it was nice to see some ‘uncles’ (aka older men) portrayed in a BL. As good as Vegas and Pete were, I would have to give #1 to Yok and Dan. I bought their relationship and think it is one of the best couples (main or side) ever depicted in Thai BL. And I hope to see both side couples from You’re My Sky be a main couple in a better (and not sports related) series.
BLC loved that video, good idea. Have to say Dan and Yok are a all time favorites for me as well. I think the reason Vegas and Pete were so strong is they were able to over come the shock value of the S and M aspect and still show great chemistry and acting skill.
That was sadism only. The sexual subculture you reference is not premised on kidnap or torture or lack of consent. A masochist is someone who derives sexual pleasure from pain, but who enters freely into a dynamic with the sadist. The real-world S&M community emphasizes trust and consent in defining the contours of that relationship. Vegas-Pete are an ersatz S&M couple, reflecting either the violence-laden milieu of the mafia genre, or the writers' fanciful take on the S&M subculture. Pete is no masochist, he is a victim of a mafia civil war. In no way, did he choose these events. What transpires between Vegas and Pete does not reflect the S&M subculture. Whips are a common element in S&M play, but whipping in S&M "play" should never break the skin. In real life, wounds like the series depicts Pete suffering leave permanent scars, and can lead to loss of life via infection if untreated. (Pete collapses. The series gets that right.) Likewise, brief bursts of low-level electricity on the genitals comprise a stimulating aspect in some S&M play. Trying to injure the sub from cruelty is not part of it. Typically, in true S&M relationships, the sub has a safe word; and when asked to stop, the Dom does. Pete begged Vegas to stop. Begged, in fact, to die. To label these scenes "S&M" obscures this violence behind a patina of legitimacy the conduct does not deserve. This series depicted torture and sexual assault. Audiences confused criminal torture with consensual S&M. This discussion should do better. Let us not borrow the sliver of respectability eked out by a poorly understood, mostly marginalized sub-culture, and use their name to obscure sexual assault as romance.
Apologists will argue Pete's subsequent support for Vegas constitutes a belated consent and legitimatizes their relationship. That attitude is a cop out allowing the viewer to enjoy the skinship on offer without grappling with the morality of the situation. Here, you have a victim who establishes a rapport with his abuser as a means of softening the violence of his captivity. Insofar as they become a couple, the victim's feelings result from trauma, conditioning, and shock. The shock value you identified was certainly real. The actors did play their parts well. But when one party begs for death for several days before switching to empathizing with his captor, that's not love, it's a survival strategy. Stockholm Syndrome ought to disqualify a side couple from this list, not vault them to the top. Although Pete later offers the illusion of consent, nothing alters the fact he experienced torture and sexual assault prior to that moment. His empathy for Vegas is a product not of love, freely given, but of lessening the horror inflicted upon his body and mind.
In the context of dramatic entertainment, enjoying a twisted relationship like Vegas-Pete is permissible. I begrudge no one the second-hand thrill derived from this work of fiction. If this list represents "most impactful side couple" or "most talked about side couple," then I concede Vegas-Pete as a contender for top spot in this category in 2022. But surely "best side couple" ought to represent more than cruelty, violence, and trauma. I see nothing in Vegas-Pete worthy of celebration.
@@johnmaster3748 how do you know all of this and how did you type all of this from memory😭
@@johnmaster3748John I was not referencing the S&M sexual subculture I said "the shock value of the S and M aspect". Vegas was clearly a sexual sadist, but sadistic behavior does not necessarly have to involve sex or consent. The meaning of sadistic and masochistic has many shade of gray as they say. You can say "our boss is so sadistic he makes us work overtime with no additional pay". Some people are emotionally sadistic, they just get enjoyment from seeing people suffer. On the flip side someone can be a masochist with out consent, a relationship masochist, the guys who always hooks up with a boyfriend that abuses them and beats them up for example. They know the guy has a lot of pentup rage but they will deliberately provoke and solicit rejecting responses from their partner to feel hurt, humiliated and defeated. Is that consent? You see this when Vegas originally catches Pete and ties him up and tortures him. Pete keeps doing things to provoke Vegas more and more, showing Vegas he can take the pain he loves it. It is only when it turns sexual that Pete starts to freak out because he has to confront the desire he is feeling and begs Vegas to kill him. We later see from flash backs that Pete's father beat, abused and humiliated him the same way Vegas is abused by his father. It is this shared experiance (that turned one son into a masochist and the other a sadist) that makes them bond. They discover in this horrible ordeal their Yin to their Yang. Unforgotten Night and Big Dragon teased the S&M subculture as a sexual fetish, what we see in KP is sadistic and masochistic behavior on a different level. Yes from all the hints, behavior and flashbacks we can see that Pete has masochistic behavior, if only from the view point that he will endure pain to be loved by an abusive father or sadistic lover. As far as best side couple, best is subjective ( best looking, best chemistry, best acting). I think they are both good looking, I think their chemistry is great, what I was trying to say in may original comment was even though they had very complicated, challenging and yes controversial characters as actors they dealt with that and made the characters work. Should we not say an actor is best at his job because we do not like the characters they play. If you play a serial killer and do it well you can not get a best actor award? I for sure found the whole Vegas Pete relationship disturbing to say the least, but it does not stop me from praising them as actors or as a convincing side couple. Truethfully I do not think the Vegas Pete relationship is about the sexual subculture you reference. It is about two broken people dealing with the bad hand they have been dealt in very inappropiate ways. Should a evil sadistic person get a happy ending, maybe not. But that is a whole different rant.
@@samtab2364 hi, Sam, I was always going to write that essay, the only question was whose post it would reply to. I picked yours, despite feeling fairly confident you would not actually need a primer on sexual subcultures, because I knew you would dish something back. And that something would be well thought out. Indeed, that was the case. Between us we've laid out competing frameworks to interpret the Vegas-Pete storyline, but neither of us is celebrating it with an uncritical eye. My main beef is with "apologists" who've refused to admit any problems exist. Never lumped you into that category, even though i used your post to build mine around. I was pretty sure I'd taken you out of context because I noted the unusual phrasing "...S and M aspect..." was not precisely what I wrote about. I have a clearer understanding of what you did intend from the reply. But, I arrived at this video list with an agenda, and I aired out that agenda. So I am satisfied with where the discussion stands. Thanks for the original post that created an opportunity.
@@samtab2364 I will append this one final thought, just reacting to the idea "that's a whole different rant." Leaving aside my qualms about representation, morals, and ethics, if I just critique the Vegas-Pete storyline as written and presented for the screen, I'd be griping about the writers being apparently unable to decide whether to give Vegas the happy ending or not. I think they split the difference with having him get shot, but then redeemed in the mid-credits tag. IMO, they should have gone one direction or the other and owned it fully. He's dead for his sins or he lives happily ever after. I thought leaving him for dead (apparently) when the screen faded to black only to resurrect him mid-credits was a cop out. That's my rant on the "evil sadistic person" question.
Love, love, love Dan/Yok! Gawin and First were so good together! I wish they had another series as a couple. While I like Khao/First, I really like Gawin/First.
I love that you mentioned the uncles in My Ride. That and the friend gang of bike delivery boys were the best parts of the series for me. Well, and the main lead's dimple. I'm a sucker for a dimple.
Both side couples in You're My Sky acted circles around the main couple, and their chemistry was better, too.
While I liked Kahn/Thua in The Eclipse, I didn't like what the writers did with Thua in the latter episodes. I never understood why he did what he did.
Nuer and Syn were the best part of Cutie Pie. I'm happy they're getting their own series.
Excellent choices, all.
In the entire pantheon of BL, can we identify another instance of an older same-sex couple playing such a prominent role in any series? For that innovation alone, I'd have moved the pair from My Ride higher on the list. But they do not exist in this story as mere tokens. They provide an anchor of stability in Mohk's life, and a model for what he hopes to attain. Their bickering felt like a loving, long term couple. But even that bickering, which makes them comic relief, disguises their true contribution to the series. Their advice to their nephew about how to accept his feelings for a man played a pivotal role in the plot. Most of these side couples exist so far to the side that their existence exerts little influence on the main couple. Here, even the putative boyfriend, upon meeting them, became enchanted by them. Their lives modeled what the main couple sought and sparked a discussion about the meaning of "family." Real world gay activism and civil rights very much relies on contesting different interpretations of family, especially "family of choice" contrasted with "blood family." It's not insignificant that accepting Mork as boyfriend means Tawan takes on Mork's chosen son as well. Thus, this side couple offers way more substance than the garden variety side couples on this list, some of which exist only to eat up screen time. I'd have considered them for #1.
@@johnmaster3748 The only other instance I can think of is Ai's father and his husband in Ai Long Nhai. Older LGBTQ couples are very difficult to find in BL. The uncles were great, and you're right about them being a wonderful, positive influence on Mork. My Ride is an underrated series. I honestly hadn't thought of them in ages until Mr. Critic brought them back up here in this video. My Ride sort of fell off the radar for me when compared to the hype of other series out there.
You make a compelling argument for having the uncles as #1.
@@j_scott making compelling arguments...it's what I show up here for! I admit, the angle regarding social construction of family and the way in which the Uncles model "family of choice" for Tawan and Mork + chosen son didn't occur to me when I watched...not until just this morning. But since I use "representation of LGBT issues" as an important element in grading series, My Ride just jumped higher on my year-end list thanks to this new insight. Underrated, indeed.
First/Fluke is my #1- get well written scenes and match two good actors: Wa-La! Magic happens.
Fluke carried Podd in Dark Blue Kiss and First carried Te Shippers.
One good actor or performance can also elevate a side couple- plus they don’t usually have enough screen time to demonstrate repetitive moments to fill time or lack of character development- a major stumbling block for most leads.
Boom and Kris stood out in you’re my sky and are young actors.
Hope they get more chances to learn and develop!
I feel in YMS no pair was a side couple, they had almost the same screen time with their mini storylines. Not sure why Mr Critic included a couple from YMS.
actually I thought about that however, the story was about sky and paper.. even the name says You're My Sky..
@@blcritic between characters called Sky and series with Sky in the title in 2022, there's a high ceiling for confusion!
@@johnmaster3748 so you’re saying the ceiling is sky high?
@@justdave3153 yes. But I think my meaning was partly clouded by poor wording. Thankfully, you helped it clear up.
Mork’s uncles are only ones I remembered before seeing your video,tbh.Syn - nuer were cute.Neo and Louis were fine in The eclipse uptill ep 7 that i saw.
I agree with you about Dan and Yok
I agree with most of your picks. Dan/Yok are probably my favorite couple with Dome/Vee a close second. I’m not a fan of Vegas/Pete, because of the whole abducting and torturing thing. I don’t care about BDSM if both people are mutually consenting from the start. That was not the case in KP. In my opinion, Pete had Stockholm syndrome. It was yucky to me even though I really liked both actors. I heard they’re in a new BL and I can’t wait to see what they do with a different dynamic. I did like Kim/Porschay but I’m a Jeff Satur fan.
HEY BESTIE GREAT VIDEO 😊😊🥰🥰
🥳
Your list is excellent, I completely agree. In addition, I really liked Ah Jian and Ray from About Youth, and can I mention all of the very brief side couples in Man Who Defies the World of BL s2? 🤣All of the brief stories we get in that series are so good.
Good nod for the cleverness of the parody side couples! They may have lacked screen time, but we always knew what clichés they represented.
I just loved those mini side couples of Absolute BL
Vegas and Pete are a given side couple and one of my favorite couples and I consider them as a side couple drake,jimmy at BadBuddy even though they’re not officially couples in the series but most viewers love to ship them together. I hope GMMTV give them a series together 🙏🏼
I know quite a lot of BL fans did not like SCOY and felt it was just too cringe. However, I loved the Jao/Sky couple in SCOY. Heng and Surprise were so cute together. Dan/Yok and Vegas/Pete are also my favorite side couples.
"Sky"? I thought that character's name was Sah-ky or Ess-Sky. 😙
@@johnmaster3748 Comedy phonetics?
@@deborahw2770 fun with dipthongs? [Edit: guess not, since dipthong only describes vowel combinations. (Should have looked it up before posting.) Is there a term to describe consonant combinations? Th-, ph-, sk-?]
@@johnmaster3748 Fricatives. Consonant sounds such as "th" are dental fricatives. Yes, I did go look it up. LOL
@@deborahw2770 your dedication to the cause is admirable.
VegasPete and DanYok are probably my top 2 couples period, let alone 2022. My only disagreement on this list was KimPorchay, I found the age gap and power dynamic between them off putting.
BLC Buddy--checking in on 12/22/22 (how strange that looks) to see if you are going to be having a Best Of and Worst Of list for this almost past year. I know it will be excellent. Hope you are doing well and that is not just making small-talk.
VegasPete are far and away my #1.
It's okay to add Em and Name from Remember me? The series is still ongoing and nothing really happened between them yet, but I hope for them to end up together.
I considered them.. however, they were still not together at the time of making the video.
What do you think about the way Love in the Air dealt with the 2 couples? Focusing on 1 couple for 1/2 the series.
it made both of them Main couples.. and i think it was a nice way to do.. rather than making one sidecouple and trimming their storyline. Same as in Star and Sky
@@blcritic Yes. It was frustrating to watch but ultimately we did get 2 full stories for each couple. They could have done the crossover moments a bit better.
I was fighting with myself who will be the number one and I decided for Rain and Phayu. Rain the Conqueror and Phayu the Servant😍🤩👏. Just the way they were looking at each other was enough. And I have to admit, that I did not find Noh attractive in Nitiman, but know, Holy ...maybe it depends, who is your partner and his partner was now yummy😂👍👏.Second will be Vegas and Pete. I hope they will have more screentime in season 2🙏.Great chemistry and also acting👍. Third place for Nuer and Syn. I am waiting for their new series. First from Not me can be paired with anyone and the result will be great.
Dome and Vee made the series for me, cuz main couple was without chemistry.
PS: I was rooting for TimMai and LeePark in My secret love and Daisy and Intouch in SCOY.
I actually considered TinMai from My secret love, however they had the least screentime. Daisy and Intouch were good
@@blcritic I also thought about the Tim/Mia couple from My Secret Love as well, I liked their story. Daisy and Intouch I liked as well in SCOY, also the Jao/ Sky couple, both their story lines dealt nicely with body issues. I just saw a TikTok clip where they were giving an award for best script at one of the award shows and the presentor said "a bad series can have a good script but a good series isn't possible with out a good script." How true. I have said before, for me the failure of SCOY was not the script or the casting it was clearly the bad choices of the director and production team. The way they directed Seng to look and act was a major fail for me.
You're my sky started off so well but the last few episodes just kinda ruined it. It felt a bit listless and pointless somehow. I can't even remember the names now so I think they all failed to win my heart. I kinda wish drake and Jimmy had ended up a duo in bad buddy. Max and nat did well in cutie pie their romantic scenes were far beyond what I expected from those two they really have improved since the dewblue days. Jeff and barcode I liked but since barcode was underage it felt pretty pg compared to the other duos. Vegas Pete had an interesting storyline. The fact that both were a bit unstable and abused but somehow found love still I think resonated with people. It took the enemies to lovers trope to the extreme but somehow still works.
I also kinda wished Drake and Jimmy..
@BL Critic maybe if they hadnt planned the Jimmy sea thing already they would have. It would have been hard to see him switch if him and drake really rocked our world. Jimmy and sea are meh at their kissing acting is alright but I liked Jimmy in bad buddy better
Vegaspete are not the number one side couple for me
They are always the main couple for me...🥰🥰🥰🥰
💔💋💔💋💔💋💔Thank You!💔💋💔💋💔💋💔
Sky and prapai