Call It What You Want 2 (2021)

I have so many issues with this season I don't even know where to start.

Argh, this was frustrating.

How can they tackle a story such as abuse of power, sexual abuse, and waste so much time on James and Ait's relationship? My problem isn't even that I find them boring or that Ait is annoying and immature. My problem is that they could have had something actually valuable to say and they bailed. The endless speech about James and Ait being in a relationship bore me to death. Even while acknowledging that shipping actors together is huge in the BL industry and makes sense to talk about (the way Lovely Writer also did), Tee's problematic behaviour comes last and is barely addressed. Honestly, I was more satisfied with the first season's ending... It felt open ended and optimistic whereas this one felt rushed and unresolved.

Now, don't get me wrong, I wanted to see Bas and Marco get together, but somehow when they do, it fixes all of Bas' issues? The depression, self-harm, suicidal ideation, the constant self-blame? I can even excuse that they picked the weirdest time to have sex, I can believe that would happen, but it was way too rough considering Bas' history which made me really uncomfortable. Oh, and that's without even mentioning it's mere hours after Marco confessed his love to James. Yikes...

I'm trying to remember positive aspects but the end got me so upset I think I forgot everything else. I mean, if you exclude what I said above, Marco and Bas kissing in front of the cameras is quite cute. Apart from that, Bas' struggles are very real and definitely what I wanted from this season, brilliantly acted by Michael as well. Everyone say thank you Michael for giving this season a reason to exist. He single-handedly raised all of the scores.

I wouldn't say don't watch it because Michael is amazing but... gosh it's flawed. If it was any longer, I would have said don't bother.

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Highly Recommend

Looking for something cute and fluffy? TURN BACK! Looking for something that screams 'real life'? LOOK NO FURTHER!
In true S2 fashion, this season focuses on the side couple. And I'm living for it! Everything about it was emotional. We all know the entertainment industry is cut throat, but CIWYW highlights the dark secrets everyone tries/is forced to hide, for the sake of their reputation and careers. Everyone deserves a friend like Marco for when you're feeling darkness like Bas. I wish it wasn't so short and there's a bit of room for S3, but I'm legit satisfied af with this ending. I wouldn't recommend to a newbie to BL, unless you want them to see the negatives of it all but I'd definitely put it on your PTWL.
I hope everyone learns something from this series whether it be 'Don't be scared to love who YOU want' or 'Talk to someone when you're in a bad state of mind and/or body'.
Enjoy...

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An attempt that falls flat

It is a shame... I've seen most of the reviews and comments posted in here and I agree with some of them.
The idea presented by director Anusorn and GagaOOlala when part 1 was about to air was an original and almost controversial one. Exposing some of the ugly truths about BLs, particularly in Thailand, that happen usually in small companies with low budgets and inexperienced actors that don't have proper representation and need the job and shameless directors or producers who might take advantage of that inexperience, was something unheard of in a world where everyone watched BL stories and shipped the couples without thinking about what was happening behind-the-scenes.

Anusorn had a very successful series when the remake of 2Moons, now labeled as "2Moons2", aired in a production done by a company called Mello. However, it is well known that Mello has had plenty of issues in the past with poor handling of their actors that led the original cast of "2Moons" to be completely replaced for "2Moons2". Anusorn was also told he will not be directing the new sequel, "2Moons3", so he openly complained on social media and promised to expose some of the secrets from the industry. Then, in more errors, Mello created a music group with the "2Moons2" main cast but excluded Earth, which caused a whole bunch of protests from the fans and ended with most of the cast quitting "2Moons3".

This whole process took Anusorn to direct "Call It What You Want" and "Call It What You Want 2" with GagaOOlala and it gathered quite a lot of interest because of what he promised to deliver... sadly, he delivered something, just not what we all expected. The series (speaking of CIWYW as a whole) was a failure in my opinion and here is why:

1. While part 1 had a nice setup of the characters and the situation that Bas was facing with his boss, Tee, part 2 descended into chaos with how rushed some of the stories were developing. From Bas crying his heart out and Marco taking him on a road trip to the beach, to Bas exposing Ait and James and trying to kill himself, to Marco saving him and having sex, to the press conference. It ALL felt super rushed... Marco drove through Bangkok in 3 minutes to save Bas and fell in love with Bas in like 2 seconds apparently.

2. The plot in part 2 makes no sense. Marco and Bas have barely met, so there is no reason to take him on a beach trip. At least I don't bring someone I nearly just met on a trip and share a room with that person. Then comes the plot mess of Marco and his love decisions... he loves James, he hides his feelings but Ait senses that he likes James, but during the beach trip he is starting to like Bas, only to turn around and confess his feelings to James after Ait corners him into doing so, then he drives like a maniac to rescue Bas who is about to kill himself, saves him and immediately decides to have sex with him (despite Bas having all the trauma from Tee's sexual harassment that drove him to the suicide attempt, but they seem to ignore that), then Marco openly questions James and Ait about their relationship during the press conference with no apparent reason as both James and Ait look confused and don't know how to handle it in the beginning. So, Marco goes through many phases in just 6 episodes but some don't make sense.

3. Bas had the most miraculous recovery of a clinically-depressed patient I've ever seen. From crying in episodes 1 and 2, telling James and Ait about Tee's abuse, getting mad/jealous of Ait and James and sending their picture to Tee just to expose them, to crying again when his father called him a failure, to trying to kill himself, to finding love with Marco. In just 6 episodes, Bas magically recovers and goes happily with Marco. I will say that Michael (the actor who plays Bas) did a very good job in portraying his emotions from a distressed man that was a victim of abuse, to a depressed man being labeled as a failure by his own family, to a hopeless man when he felt nobody was able to help him, to a hopeful man when Marco showed him that he needed to have more confidence and self-esteem.

4. The James-Ait relationship was dull and boring. Ait is a whiny spoiled brat who desperately wants James's attention and James is confused (in part 1) about wanting to risk his career as a director for a relationship with Ait and then acts like a firefighter (in part 2) putting out all the fires caused by Marco's confession, Ait's tantrums, Tee's abuse, Bas's mental health, etc. The confession in episode 6 was nice but it was way too long and useless. All BL fans know BL couples are fake (with very few exceptions like Both-Newyear in "Top Secret Together"), all BL fans know that BL couples do a LOT of fan service in all the press conferences, interviews or live IG sessions, etc., by acting all cute and lovely around each other... the issue is that SOME BL fans do not want to understand that is all an act and want to live in a bubble where their favorite BL couple is real and love each other. That is why Max received a lot of angry messages when he revealed his relationship with Mook Worranit, as BL fans were obsessed about him and Tul being an actual couple. That is why fans were concerned when it was announced that Saint will not appear in "Love by Chance 2" as fans claimed that Saint and Perth were the perfect couple. The message that James and Ait tried to portray in episode 6 was a nice one in theory, but in reality, obsessed BL fans will not understand that fiction is not the same as reality.

5. The villain of the story, Tee, just vanishes. After Bas, Marco and Kaprao decide to expose Tee in the press conference, he just stands up and walks out of the room without answering any questions from the press and without providing any sort of explanation. The woman who acted as the main sponsor of the fake series Ait and Bas were starring, just looks around disappointed and then we see James directing the new series and Bas and Ait acting in it... but no Tee anywhere and no scene that maybe showed him being in jail or something. The whole idea of director Anusorn was to expose some of the ugly truths behind Thai BLs and you had Bas suffering from Tee's harrassment since season 1, you would at least expect some punishment for Tee... but NOTHING happened to him on screen. And yes, I am aware that sometimes the guilty person can go unpunished but since this is a story that was created with the specific purpose of showing these truths, but, sadly, part 2 just focused too much on the Ait-James and Marco-Bas relationships rather than focusing on exposing the bad guy. And also, why have Kaprao if you are barely going to use him in both parts? He is the one who initially accused Tee so he should play a bigger role that what was given to him,

In the end, "Call It What You Want" parts 1 and 2 end up being a failed attempt to bring something different to the Thai BL industry and is just, yet another mediocre series in my opinion.

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Part were great and parts were problematic

I'll start by saying that I liked the first one very much and the parts I was so-so on, I was hoping they would fix in season 2, namely Bas and his extreme depression. It seemed like they were going to address mental health issues and I was all for that realism as someone with 2 degrees in mental health. The actor who plays Bas was BRILLIANT and I couldn't wait to see more of him, his acting and his story line. The first few episodes were on par with first season, but where they lost me completely was Bas literally being stopped from commiting suicide only to jump into the bed, happily, mind you, with Marco, who had not talked to him since he wanted Bas to tell on P'Tee and who had ALSO just confessed his love to James, a few hours later. WTF! They had gotten so much right with showing how a person with SEVERE depression behaves (the severe mood swings, the staring into space seemingly lost in their own thought, etc.), with how someone who was in multiple abusive relationship ( parents and P' Tee) behaves (banging his head, blaming himself, the suicidal ideation). Michael's acting in this role was amazing and honestly rescues the series for me. It was like they said, we only have one episode left and our second couple isn't official yet, lets have them confess their love and sleep together. Marco would have been freaking traumatized seeing Bas, who at the very least was his friend, hanging from the ceiling by his neck, twitching and dying. Bas would still be in his head about having almost died, about having not succeeded in dying, about what his Dad said to him only hours ago, about the ENTIRE fustercluck with P'Tee. No one would have been in the mood. And yes, I am fully aware some people use sex to cope, especially after a near death experience, but not a almost death by suicide experience. AND even if they did, it should been portrayed as them desperately clinging to each other, trying to forget why they were both so sad. They would have had sex just to be close with ANYONE to forget their individual pain and would have been consider a one off at this time. Not the great passionate, steamy sex scene we got to signify the beginning of their relationship/love. Neither were ready for this relationship. Marco needed to get over James and Bas needed LOTS of therapy. This could have been parlayed into a 3rd season or a spin off with just them, addressing the fact that 'we had sex and we kind of like each other and maybe we should explore these feelings' as well as addressing Bas' problems with his family and P'Tee's abuse and that it drove him to want to end his life. Then you get the finale, with Ait singing on the stage and Bas hiding in the bathroom and doing goofy ass code signals before the conference, followed by James giving a really touching speech about BL actors and behind the scenes staff being human and being allowed to live their lives. It was like they couldn't decide if this was a comedy BL or a realistic one. Until We Meet Again pulled this balance off brilliantly, not so much for CIWUW2. I can't say don't watch it because just Michael's acting alone was worth watching it for me, but the amount of people in the comments caught up in Bas and Marco being together and thinking that love scene was cute and hot bothered me, so I had to point this out for anyone thinking about watching it. I don't normally write reviews but couldn't find anyone as disturbed as I was watching the last 2 episodes.

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worse than season one

Okay so, season one did many good things, but this season was just so flawed.

Ait constant acting like a 5-year-old and not believing James telling him that he and Marco haven't done anything. Then Marco (being in love with JAMES for FOUR years prior to all this) goes and has sex with Bas who just hours before tried to commit suicide? It doesn't feel very realistic to me. Plus, with Bas's background with sexual abuse - him having no struggle with being intimate but having PTSD from it overall made it all look so unrealistic. Like what the f'ck!
They could have done so much good stuff with this series and Michaels's acting as Bas was extremely talented (I would never be able to cry that much in a series, and with so much feeling sharing to the public through the screen). There are so many themes and topics in this series that are so important to talk about - suicide, self-harm, non-supportive family, toxic masculinity, abuse and so much more. It was like they tried but failed halfway.
Still, there are a few good scenes but I couldn't really appreciate all that because of all the small (and big) details that made me so frustrated and almost wanting to quit the series. If it would have been any longer I'm sure would have.

- samuel

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Sequels Failure....?

This was nothing near perfection, however, this sequel dangled severely close over the failure edge. What saved this series for me was the acting, where it loses its touch is how they handle mental health and admitted suicide. Call It Want You Want 2 is the sequel to the story that was to bring down the brutal BL industry, except it does nothing merely more than make a fool of itself.

Let's Dive In.

The story of CIWYW2 starts where it ended, with all leads entirely in the same situation that we've seen them in already. Through some trials and tribulations, all their situations are neatly wrapped in a hideous bow, with a happily ever after that I wasn't satisfied with at all. This series could've been IT. It had all the material there, it had everything that it wanted to be, except, instead of "exposing" anything, they sadly crumble under the terrible writing and corrupted plot.

Getting into what wasn't good: Let's start off with some of the bullshit that was James and Ait. Their entire relationship in season one was something that I came to terms with liking, after a few forgiven plot devices and tropes -- but this season, they serve to be an even bigger nuisance. They must've hired a middle schooler to write the script, cause that's what James and ait's situation was giving. Ait getting upset -- no, change that -- fuming because he finds out that Marco has a crush on James is irritably laughable. And why get mad at James? How was James supposed to know that? Or why even for a chance get mad at him for a lousy crush? They try to make it a moment, but it can't be, because any real person would've slapped Ait silly for getting as mad as he did for something so frivolous. Apart from that, there was just no build-up of their relationship or chemistry. It felt stale, it felt dormant, it felt like it was going nowhere, even though they were trying to convince us that they were in love, to have this huge moment during their press conference (which lasted WAY too long), and instead, I found myself zoned out, having to go back and rewatch. it's sad to see this, especially knowing that these actors have so much potential, it's just they have nothing to show for it.

Another huge problem with CIWYW2 is that they do such a good job at showcasing Bas' trauma. His trauma with the assaults from the director, the trauma with his unsupportive family, the trauma of his eating disorder, and literally everything else he had going on. A great setup, a great performance from the actor, perfect emotional punctuation and act, so then why was its execution so bad? Mental health is not solved with the words "I love you", mental health is not solved with a quick hook up. Mental health is something that takes longer than a few hours to get over, and this show implemented all of that. Bas, after only maybe a few hours, is cleared of all of his worries and problems by Marco speaking sweet nothings, and sex. It was so inappropriate to do that, it was so invalid to show that within a few hours of trying to commit suicide, it would be a-okay if you can find somebody to say "I love You". No matter how mad I wanted Bas and Marco to get together, I don't think their relationship will ever be justifiable for me, ever. It's sad, really, cause I loved the dynamic they had, I loved that Marco was there for Bas, he was the one that found Bas -- and in the matter, he only needed to be there to take care of him, not to take advantage of his vulnerability. I wish so badly that something different could've happened.

Another small problem I had was with Bas' brother. Seconds after his brother is being SA'ed in the living room, he's telling him to "man up", "Stop crying", are you serious? It's the toxic masculinity that for real got me. I skipped the rest of his scenes, I just couldn't do it.

What I liked: Not much. I liked that the man running the show got called out for the things he's done. I enjoyed watching Kaprao and Bas teaming together to get back at him. But, most of all, I did really like the acting. These people have talent, and some really good ones too. Sadly, this show just didn't do them justice. I can't wait to see them in other projects,

Ratings:

Story: 7 - Sad really. I can say that I enjoyed some of it. Most of Bas's scenes because the actor did a phenomenal job.

Acting: 9 - Again, the acting was brilliant. They did a fantastic job, and I can't wait to see them in other things.

Music: 4 - I don't remember it, so that's good and bad. Their singing was atrocious, which gets an extra three stars off of the already 7 stars I was going to give them originally.

Rewatch Value: 1 - no way I'm going to watch this again. One, cause it's pretty heavy and sad -- two, cause it's just not handled well.

Overall, this just shows that some series are better off ending than trying to do sequels or season 2s. Was I in love with the first CIWYWW? No, but I liked it much more than I did this one. I don't recommend this unless you want to see some really talented actors.

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Such a waste of potentially good materials and actors

The series has promising premise, important message, some handsome actors, and a director whose past work I was quite impressed with…it is really hard to understand how it ended up to be one of the most unauthentic, overwrought mess of a melodrama that I’ve ever seen. The script was so poorly written and the dialogues do not allow most of the actors express emotions of any depth or even seem consistent with their characters for them to seem real or make much sense.
The relationship between James and Ait was unconvincing at best,. Ait’s character and reaction to others changes from scene to scene like a bipolar person, and James character as written make it really hard for me as an audience to see why Ait would be so infatuated with him, let alone fall in love. He’s insensitive to Marcos’s interest in him and doesn’t even have anything to actually say to Ait during their fight except repeating literally 5 times “please just let me talk to you” it seems obviously the script writer could not think of anything for his character to say. Bas is supposedly the most sympathetic character but was underwritten and overacted in such an overwrought way that really did not do justice to the pain and suffering he supposedly was going through. The only character that really make sense and seem real is Marco.
Overall it is frustrating to watch and a major disappointment, a real missed opportunity.

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Highly recommended

Ok i have just login my account to give a review and want to recommend.
This drama is really different and unique,
It should be recognized, all actor did a great job even though most of them are totally new or first time got the main role.
Its definitely better than season 1 because story is unfolded .
The most impressive thing is acting omg the acting of all the actors is so real, they have worked really hard and it shown in the drama.
And one more thing music /song is up to the mark, if u don't trust me just watch it and thanks me later lol

I will definitely recommend this drama.

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There's so many different emotions

Well, first of all I'd like to say that if you're looking for something sweet and light, this is NOT it. Turn around. But something with dark topics? Go on <3

I had a lot of different emotions while watching this. I laughed (very loudly, my sis may think I'm crazy), cried, felt uneasy, disgusted, sweet, desperate, frustrated, sad and happy. Uh, never felt this much while watching a series.

The storyline was kinda simple but I liked it. Also I didn't like Marco (or Bas) in the first season that much but now I somewhat love the first one and understand the second one while feeling sympathy with him.

I also saw someone talking about Bas's end, that all his problems just solved in an unrealistic way and speed, but I didn't see it like that. Sure he still has the problems, it's not just like bam and he's all good. But now he can solve his problems without being all alone. And I'm happy for that, very happy.

Also someone said there's a problem with Tee's ending. Well, I also - of course - think all he was doing was wrong in the worst way possible. But I personally think he will get responsible for his actions later on, they just didn't show it in the show. Or how can I know, maybe he won't... But I see it like that (that he will get jailed or smth).

Personally the first season was okay for me but this season, I liked a looooooot. Bas's actor's acting was amazing and made me feel connection with the character and my past self (when I wasn't feeling that well).

Even though there may be (and is) some problematic issues, I loved this. I LOVED THIS. I don't know, I may feel a little bad by saying that but I loved this. Genius series.

This may not be for you since those issues but it also may be perfect for you. So. Just give it a try :)

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Smokescreen, disillusion, waste of time

"Call It What You Want" wanted to deal with a sensitive and important subject and promised to show new perspectives for viewers of boys' love dramas. Everything is rushed and it's a shame bc this drama had potential.

The disappointment is as high as the expectation at the end.

The writing of the characters seems to have stopped halfway as if the screenwriter wasn't sure if he should really demonize the villain, break Bas psychologically or not, put forward Ait's immaturity or not, assume James' lack of personality and heroize Marco or not.

Bit part spoiler.
The dialogues are flat, without strong messages to the victims, to the audience, especially the exchanges between Ait and James, "I love you, do you love him, I don't understand why you're doing this, etc...." and Marco who told Bas to hold a press conference to talk about the sexual abuse/rape. Even a 10 year old would know to report to the police. *sigh*

This drama was meant to expose the dark side of the BL industry, to make us aware of the seriousness of the situation behind the glitter and the fanservice. It should have focused a little more on the process that led to Bas' suicide attempt, shown how the industry's bigwigs get away with their crimes, shown the responsibility of the journalists and crew for these behaviors/ abuses. And I think it'd have been possible if Ait and James had been given a little less screen time bc they don't bring anything to the story in this S 2.

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Chave de ouro

A segunda temporada dessa obra marcante, não apenas foi maravilhosa de se assistir, como também complementou a primeira, deixando todos os pingos nos "is".

Puxando o ganho do tema, a obra fala de uma forma bem crítica sobre a indústria BL, mas do lado que os fãs não veem, o lado por trás das câmeras, que é muitas vezes é de uma crueldade surreal, e é alimentado pelos fandons, por mais triste que seja dizer isso. Só existe uma demanda quando existe uma procura, e enquanto os fãs não conseguirem separar o ator da vida real, essas bizarrices continuarão existindo
A segunda temporada também teve 6 episódios de em média 25 minutos, tem a mesma qualidade na fotografia, roteiro e atuação, a ost também é a mesma.

Essa temporada é mais focada no drama que envolve Bas, que sofreu abusos sexuais pelo produtor da série (Tee), e agora se encontra desesperado, pois seu antigo colega de elenco denunciou Tee publicamente e citou o nome de Bas como testemunha.
Agora Bas, que já sofre com sua auto-estima baixa, problemas familiares, lida com o abuso sofrido e o medo de que a repercussão destrua sua vida, também vai lidar com o início de um amor que lhe dará forças para vencer o medo. Esse seu novo amor, Marco, é o melhor amigo de James, que terminou a primeira temporada desolado pois amava secretamente seu amigo e teve que ver ele se apaixonando por Ait. Nos braços de Bas ele vai encontrar consolo.

Os furos que existiram na primeira temporada foram resolvidos nessa, não tenho nenhuma reclamação.


Por fim, recomendo essa série a todo fã de BL (e que vejam a primeira temporada primeiro, óbvio), tentem entender do que ela se trata, e seu valor histórico e social, pois após essa série, outras séries iniciaram uma onda de críticas sociais em seu roteiro, seja sobre termos pejorativos (como esposa- sim, eu considero pejorativo!), sobre a necessidade do estereótipo de "ativo e passivo", sobre o fato de que existem relacionamentos onde os dois são ativos e passivos, contra o governo, e muitas outras.

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One of the Top 10 of 21

This is a brutally honest portrayal of the film industry and of the spirally effects of mental illness. Yes, the characters are flawed and yes some are timid and lack courage but when push comes to shove, they stand up for what they believe. This is a phenomenally good series and a flawless transition from Season 1. The outstanding performance of one spiraling out of control is so spot on that it was frighteningly real. This is real on so many fronts. For me, it shall be on my Top 10 List for 21.
You can read my full review of this breathtakingly good BL series at BLBliss.com.

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