Thread by @raikantopinisms

Breathtakingly Brilliant CONFRONTATION scenes in BL dramas: a thread

(Or why we should normalize STELLAR ACTING in the BL genre)

🚩DISCLAIMER: You don't have to read this. I wrote this FOR MYSELF. I'm an irrelevant noob so don't expect any expertise. I write threads because I love archiving my passion for love stories and film and documenting how I feel about them.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO READ THIS.

Here's a tip if you don't see your favorite series/ship in this thread: START A THREAD OF YOUR OWN. It's 2020, dragging people for having time and skills to appreciate good content is OVERRATED.

Normalize intelligent discussions about BLs and what could improve it as a genre.

As humans, we avoid CONFLICT as much as we can. Maybe that's also true for our nature as fans of film and shows: we lean towards lighter entertainment that could momentarily steal us away from real life.

It's probably why heavily dramatic confrontation scenes are so RARE in BLs.

INDIGO MOOD, a Japanese BL that aired last year, is a criminally underrated gem that featured one of the most COHESIVE direction and RAZOR-SHARP acting accuracy I've ever seen in BL.

It still puzzles me completely why this show didn't get the recognition it definitely deserves.

INDIGO MOOD is a sequel/prequel to THE NOVELIST which aired also on the same year.

Both of these series have darker, mature plots that cater to a more adult demographic, which gave it more LIBERTY to prioritize pursuing artistic excellence over tailorfitting it for popularity.

Takezai Terunosuke has reinvented himself for this role, it's almost like pure SORCERY.

He and Yoshida Munehiro were absolutely TERRIFYING in their performances, notably for this scene: bruised egos, raw hurt and regret, anger. It crawls and haunts your mind like a nightmare.

That confrontation scene is fantastic because the actors so CREDIBLY portrayed the magnitude of heartbreak in a way that made you understand why sometimes we watch romance not just for the happy ever afters;

That there are also days when we turn to art to seek CATHARSIS.

From the contrast of their cold-as-steel and trembling delivery of dialogue, to the glassy and piercing gazes, down to the way their breathing quivered and hitched with escalating intensity-- everything speaks of this: a great confrontation scene requires HIGH CALIBER ACTING.

History 3 Trapped is a lot of people's ULTIMATE FAVORITE for a reason: because it's such a winning blend of SLEEK and stylish directorial hand, a grand, ambitious plot that actually lived up to its vision and actors with such CAPTIVATING screen presence and BLAZING chemistry.

Trapped is more than just the Mafia x Police AU trope of our dreams coming to life in the most wonderful way: it's such a solid proof of how the BL genre can be WHATEVER IT WANTS TO BE.

Trapped is a MASTERPIECE of ironies: justice and wrath, violence and softness. It's AWESOME.

This confrontation scene towards the end of Trapped is such a perfect example of how the show brilliantly uses the art of CONTRADICTIONS: because although Shaofei and Tang Yi were arguing here, it is very evident that they are ON THE SAME SIDE and are each other's biggest ALLY.

Jake Hsu and Chris Wu were PHENOMENAL in this scene because even if their roles have clashing perspectives and on opposite sides of law, despite the agression this confrontation required, you still see two human beings in love who are each other's greatest weakness and STRENGTH.

Chris had to swing between emotional outburst and DESPERATION as he pushed away and clung on Shaofei while Jake had to sustain an aura of calmness and STABILITY in order to be Tang Yi's rock. The way the two of them FLAWLESSLY executed this legendary scene is so damn REWARDING.

Most people have a very bitter memory of Make Our Days Count because of how it ended, but it will always have a special, fond place in my heart because it brilliantly showed that being a school-based drama is NOT AN EXCUSE to dumb down the story to juvenile, subpar cliche plots.

Confrontation scenes are meant to be hostile, but this is the GENTLEST non-violent conversation on DIFFERENCES I've ever seen.

The SUBSTANCE and the MATURITY of acting skills weren't compromised and were kept TOPNOTCH despite the youth of the characters being portrayed.

I'm serious when I say this scene GETS ME CRYING every single time. The TENDERNESS, the PURITY, the overwhelming weight of young love at a time in your life when you believe everything is possible.

Wayne and Chunchih are such GENUINE and SUPERB actors.

In an industry saturated with many enemies-to-lovers-themed shows, Theory of Love stands out for taking the classic yet underutilized Secretly-In-Love-With-My-Bestfriend trope with a generous amount of slow burn goodness.

The CLARITY and CONSISTENCY of this show is IMPRESSIVE.

In the second act of Episode 11, Theory of Love has managed to give us THREE different kinds of confrontations in under 10 minutes, with VARYING DEGREES of tension, in order to illustrate to us the PROGRESSION of how they reveal their pain.

OFFGUN delivered in ALL of them.

This first confrontation is so fitting because it highlighted the explosion of Third's pent-up hurt and Khai's helplessness. Gun was especially remarkable here because he gave the appropriate LEVEL OF INTENSITY for a character who has cried so much and is so tired of heartbreak.

The second confrontation is so iconic because of the elevated tension due to Third being increasingly volatile, but this time, Khai now exhibited courage by approaching him despite his intoxicated outrage. The way Third relented in silence when Khai raised his voice is brilliant.

The third confrontation is rarely talked about but I consider this the BEST because OffGun gave such a piercing performance in a very calm conversation. The way Off's voice wavered with uncertainty and the way Gun's eyes were screaming of so much pain made this scene so POWERFUL.

This is what a lot of people don't understand: when we say TharnType is FEARLESS, we're not just pertaining to love scenes. We also mean TharnType The Series isn't afraid of taking risks at executing what a lot of BLs are running away from: the COMPLEXITY OF CONFRONTATION SCENES.

You know a series is EXCEPTIONAL when it takes a very STRESSFUL level of difficulty to pick the best kiss scene in the same way it's hard to pick a best confrontation/dramatic scene because EVERY SINGLE EPISODE has something uniquely extraordinary to offer.

MewGulf are such gifted and hardworking actors because they give their 300% in every scene, whether it's a kiss or a confrontation, making sure nothing is lackluster and every line delivery and portrayal is something to remember.

I mean, NO WONDER THEY GOT AWARDS FOR BOTH. 💯

You know an actor is a LEGITIMATE THREAT when he can deliver RAWNESS and VULNERABILITY in the most natural, nearly INVISIBLE way. This boy is BORN to do this.

Gulf Kanawut's potential is SCARY AF.

Emotionally INTELLIGENT actors profoundly understand the depth of their character's identity and are capable of ripping your heart to pieces without yelling or full on sobbing. The pain and tiredness in Mew's eyes in this specific scene is so EXQUISITE.

The legendary breakup scene in Episode 11 has earned a rightfully deserved award, but I will never get tired of praising the complexity and flawlessness of this nearly 6 minute-long confrontation which preceded it.

IT WAS THE SHOW'S GRANDEST FLEX OF ITS ACTORS' RANGE BRILLIANCE.

It doesn't matter how many times I've seen it; I always watch in clench-fisted awe at how Gulf can spew Type's EXTREMELY LONG lines with VENOM and FEROCITY and how Mew can silently radiate so much FEAR, DEVASTATION and PATIENCE as his Tharn character takes and endures all that.

This confrontation is such a STELLAR depiction of a DETERIORATING RELATIONSHIP. It is ugly, cruel and unforgiving and so so hard to watch. INSANE ACTING STAMINA is needed to withstand this emotionally, physically and mentally draining scene and MewGulf gave it to us PERFECTLY.

WHERE YOUR EYES LINGER is one of South Korea's pioneer BL offerings that breached mainstream popularity.

It's the BL with the shortest average running time per episode and yet it is, without a question, one of the STRONGEST, EXCELLENTLY EXECUTED BL productions for the year 2020.

I've always dreamt of how a BL would be like if it was given the Kdrama treatment, and WYEL didn't fail us: it is every bit SOPHISTICATED and COMPELLING and just so beautifully done.

This Ep 6 confrontation featuring Jang EuiSoo and Han Gichan's knockout performance is GLORIOUS.

It's mindblowing how EASILY these actors can navigate the QUICK SHIFT of their emotions by translating that in the way they look at each other.

Gook misunderstood TaeJoo's confession here as yet another teasing so he raged and GiChan portrayed hurt in the most MESMERIZING way.

The moment they're no longer looking at each other, TaeJoo started raising his defenses by acting cold and speaking harshly again, while Gook kept it all in and only let his guard down to shed TEARS the instant TaeJoo turned his back on him.

Jang Eui Soo's CONTROL is IMPECCABLE.

Some series attain mainstream fame, some series win awards, and then there are some series that come once in a lifetime, REVOLUTIONIZES STORYTELLING in the most unexpected ways and changes our experience forever.

GAMEBOYS IS THAT SHOW AND IT ARRIVED TO US WHEN WE NEEDED IT MOST.

It takes a certain brand of EVIL for a writer and a director to craft a very elaborate dialogue and a very demanding long scene shot with no cuts. But it also speaks of how CONFIDENT they are that @kkydsnts and @elijahcanlas_ can pull it off MAGNIFICENTLY.

And damn, THEY DID.

It's no surprise that the intricacy of this meticulous scene generated countless discourse and overwhelming critical acclaim.

I cannot begin to imagine how RIGOROUS and EXCRUCIATING it was to memorize all those lines and movements while making it look realistic on camera.

Elijah and Kokoy nailed every single EMOTION and MOTION needed in this 4 minute scene. From the way Elijah unplugs the Plasma Disk, its light dimming at the exact moment he refused Gav's coming over, to the way Kokoy closed doors FOUR times, as if emphasizing shutting Cai away.

The creative choices of the team behind this show has CRAZY ATTENTION TO DETAIL.

The way Ep1 Gavreel was naked the first time he called Cairo, in contrast to Ep12 Gav dressed in two layers of clothing and a hat somehow alludes to him putting up walls now to protect himself.

And does it not break your heart that Cairo's shock evolved from when he looked scandalized on first sight of Gavreel on episode 1, to how he felt wrecked and in pain from Gavreel hanging up on him on Episode 12?

How his room once full of colors and chaos is now stark EMPTY?

These subtle parallels is every film lover's dream; a testament to how this series is too ASTOUNDING to ignore, too MAGICAL to resist falling in love with. It's so hard to shut up about a show THIS GREAT.

This breathtaking confrontation isn't just worthy of awards, it needs to be taught in acting schools.

It is prime proof of how GAMEBOYS prevailed to tell a story in a situation that had no handbook to follow and how they wrote their own rules: THE NAME OF THE GAME IS EXCELLENCE.

There are many BLs to look forward to for the rest of 2020 and I have a good feeling there will be a lot of awesome additions to this list by the end of the year. I can't wait. ♥️