VIP Only (2023)

Cute but also cringy. Watch for the leads.

General spoilers only at bottom of review.
Ep 1-6: Not much plot but cute and sweet with great attraction-tension between leads. A simple, fairly enjoyable, light and easy watch.
Ep 7-10: Cringe-fest! Cliched tropes kept popping up, higher suspension of disbelief required to get through, cheesy moments, corny lines, and more telling vs showing.

The lead actors are good and their chemistry is great; they kept me watching. There was slow building romantic and sexual tension, a decent amount of skinship, and realistic making-out. The actors seemed comfortable with each other and the growing interest and attraction of their characters was believable. Most of the time they managed to elevate the weak screenplay. I would readily watch them if they had another project together.

The plot is basic and extremely predictable, the script is mediocre, and the theme song is decent but over-used and I didn't like most of the rest of the music (either didn't feel like it fit well or it just came across as cheap or cheesy).

Good for binge-watching one time; it's cute and light but the 20min episodes don't have enough of a storyline arc individually to feel satisfying on their own. I won't re-watch it.

Stan Huang is great as Gu Jing and held a lot of energy in his eyes. I found him compelling to watch, even when the character wasn't doing much.

Liu Li is naive to the point that some suspension of disbelief is required to like him! Xuang Chen is good with his doe-eyed innocence. I think whatever annoyances I felt were with the way the character was written, not with the actor. It does take some skill to act so believably clueless.

The lead couple in You Are Mine have a mini cameo in this series. I personally felt like it didn't add much, either to their story or to this one.

Ep 7-10 really lowered my enjoyment with this show. If you can shrug things off and roll with it, you may fare better than I did (I could only do so up to a point).

GENERAL SPOILERS on CLICHÉS below.

In broad strokes, here's what's in store for Ep 7-10:
A love triangle, jealousy hijinks, the "burden" of a family member completely (and ridiculously) getting in the way of the protagonists being together, Gu Jing all of a sudden losing his spine and Liu Li abruptly getting one, characters doing things that impact two people without communicating with the other first, public approval/validation when handling a family matter, public gawking over light PDA, secondary characters getting closer romantically (though no time is really spent on it), and a childhood connection (which is told, not shown)!

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Boo

I really don't have much to say other than the fact that this bored the shit out of me. It wasn't bad, but it's definitely not memorable. I guess I would say it teeters on the line of being decent and also not good. Skimmed through the last three episodes and only kept watching cause Stan Huang looks incredibly too sexy with a goatee.

Let's Dive In.

Again, not much to say cause not much happened. It's a very simplistic story of a man who writes and a man who cooks who live in the same building and fall in love. The End. Stacks are very not stack-y, and objectives feel lost somewhere in the middle. But I don't hate this only because the leads are adorable (Stan Huang knows how to rizz) and I'm intrigued by that out of everything. The paper origami was the best little tidbit about this -- super creative and now I wanna learn.

The chemistry between the leads is good, not groundbreaking, but good enough that I didn't drop this. However, this series just drags which is kind of bad cause this is only a 10-episode series that lasts about 20 minutes. The waiter and the best friend and the ex all just feel like filler and again, nothing feels like genuine conflict cause you know that the leads will get together in the end, so who cares? I skimmed through the last three episodes and still got the jist of what happened. They do kissing great though (Only in these last few eps, the ones before were ehh).

Ratings:

Story:5/10 - boring! not bad, just draggy. Romance is decent and yes Stan Huang makes this score go from a 4/10 to a 5/10 for simply existing (that man is too fine).

Acting: 8/10 - It's okay, nothing groundbreaking, and they did good.

Music: 6/10 - Didn't pay it much attention but it wasn't distracting.

Recommendation Value: 2/10 - Watch simply because Stan Huang is the sexiest man in Tawan. Otherwise, forget this series exist (like I will).

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Cute but bland story

Usually I like Thaiwanees Bl:s, but unfortunately this one left me quite unaffected. The story is cute, but for me not very engaging. I usually like stories that involves food, but I did not become hungry even once.

The acting is good, and the chemestry sweet, if not passionate. They do the best they can with a skript that is so, so.

I feel that nothing really happens. The writer try to get some tension in to the story, but for me it doesen't feel real.

Bing it if you have nothing else you want to watch, but if your short of time you can skipp it.

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Plot was spread way too thin

When the best parts of your series are the cameos of other characters from the same universe of stories then you have a problem.
I like the cast and I thought there was a gentle and lovely chemistry between the leads but it was dull. I am all for a slow and sweet story but this was not it. I think it would have suited a shorter run. Maybe 6 eps? But there wasn’t enough here and it was disappointing.
There were elements of the story they could have delved more into and side characters too but instead it felt literally like sitting in the restaurant for half an hour each week for maybe 2 minutes if plot.

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I need more Taiwanese BL

I will admit that I didn't like the series much in the beginning. It was kinda cringy, nothing original there but these two things don't have to mean that the show is not good or not worth watching so I kept watching. I can kinda day that after watching other Taiwanese bl I think the cinematic style of this show and the storytelling as well isn't my thing so I won't say it was bad. I just didn't particularly enjoy it. But the leads were really cute! They worked very well together and they have good chemistry so I was pleasantly surprised with the last two episodes. I really liked the last two episodes so I can honestly say that I enjoy watching the end.

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One word: Very bad!

I did not had any expectaction from this series, because in the past one year, Taiwanese BL become more and more boring. It is like the Directors don’t have any ideas how to mantain a good BL series, with a good plot and story in general.
It is very surprising for me to see so much “innocence” in Taiwanese Bl, since Taiwan is very liberal and open to LGBTQ+. When I compare Korean Bl with Taiwanese BL, definitely Koreans are taking a first place. Koreans, as very limited in undesrstanding LGBTQ+, they are more surprisingly opened in bl series and their “Innocence’ is totally legit.
Well, about this series…I don’t want to spill bad words or to offend the fans of Taiwanese bl, but definitely this series is waste of time. Bad acting, bad chemiistry, bad story…simply BAD!
I gave high rate 6.5/10 only because I respect Taiwan and I adore Taiwanese people. Otherwise, I could give barely 1 point.The Boss is really good looking and that’s why I watched all 10 episodes, even I had pain in my stomach while I was watching. Even though he is good looking, still with no expression on his face, body language zero, even their kiss was so fake and with bad acting. On other hand, Liu Li presented as very naive guy, in that sense that he was stupid.
Anyway, this is only my own opinion from my own perspective, hopefully I will see some good and quality Taiwanese bl in the near future…

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some cute parts (watch suggestions)

Overall: cliched conflicts weighed down the otherwise cute plot. 10 episodes about 25 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala & Viki. The production company also made: Stay By My Side, You Are Mine and Anti Reset (airing in 2024).

Watch Suggestions (unless you enjoy slow pacing and cliched drama)
- watch ep 1 & 2
- skip ep 3
- watch ep 4
- skip ep 5
- could skip ep 6, there is a cameo from the You Are Mine leads and a cute sick/caring scene around 12 minutes but stop at 16 minutes to avoid useless family drama
- skip ep 7 & 8
- watch ep 9 (can also start at 8 minutes and watch thru to the end) and episode 10

Content Warnings: homophobic remark, dub/non con kissing, vomiting

What I Liked
- cute moments
- facial hair (and it looks really good) on a lead
- supportive/wingman friend
- two side characters (though zero screen time in episode 5-8 and only a little bit before then)
- cameo of You Are Mine actors in ep 6 and 10
- that Liu Li stood up to the mom

Room For Improvement
- the whole drunk cliche
- the waiter's rude comment would have made more sense if there were a bunch of people in the restaurant and some were leaving because they couldn't find a place to sit, also the animal sanctuary could have used a few extras as well
- in episode 5 the dub/non con kissing was uncomfortable to watch as was the freeze kiss in ep 4
- instead of introducing that character in ep 6 they could have developed the sassy waiter and the upbeat friend (who basically vanished from the series)
- camerawork sometimes moved too much/had odd angles
- slow pacing
- two grown men fought like middle schoolers over another man as if he was property and not a person, tried to be comedic but failed
- noble idiocy

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Intrique to watch this from YouTube pitching. Turn out as quite good. Sometimes really amazing with YouTube algorithm. Haha...

Story about a man, Liu Li (LL), who goes through heart break. Although it's been 2 years, but LL still can't move on from his crush and that's effect his writing. It's like he's been running in place for 2 years. And that's when he meet Gu Jing (GJ), the owner of beef noodle restaurant under his house. And they story began when LL drunk & accidently kiss GJ.

This drama told story about time, friendship & love heal the wound & open new beginning. This drama also tell us about to learn to put ur partner in every things in ur life. Like when GJ have trouble with his mom, LL that finally speak up & break the cycle.

Overall this heart warming story about love & relationships.

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Une discrète histoire d'amour

Je ne sais pas tellement quoi en penser. Ce n'est pas un drama que j'ai envie de revoir, mais je ne l'ai pas complètement détesté non plus. En réalité, j'ai apprécié le côté très léger et effleuré en surface des premiers épisodes. Les choses deviennent plus concrètes sur la suite, mais sans non plus être un labyrinthe émotionnel. Certains éléments n'étaient pas nécessaires, mais globalement, une forme de douceur se dégage et c'est un point que j'ai aimé.

Le personnage de Liu Lu était adorable. Je l'ai trouvé d'une grande douceur, justement. Xuan Chen a rendu son personnage mignon et aussi doux qu'un chaton bien que parfois un peu trop niais. Pourtant, c'est le personnage qui m'a fait sourire et m'a réchauffé le cœur plus d'une fois.
Gu Jing est le visage plus dur avec un caractère plus marqué. Je ne suis pourtant pas convaincue par Stan Huang qui me paraît assez raide. Ce qui est dommage pour avoir aperçu quelques extras hors tournage où il semblait beaucoup plus lumineux.

Côté histoire, c'est un bon divertissement mais il est inutile d'en attendre de grandes choses ou des rebondissements à profusion. C'est l'histoire d'un auteur de roman qui va tirer son inspiration d'un propriétaire d'un restaurant de nouilles. C'est aussi simple que ça et pour une dizaine d'épisodes, c'est suffisant bien que les premiers épisodes puissent sembler longs pour certains.

En bref, VIP Only est un drama court et léger qui pourrait être comparé à un amour qui se veut discret, tout simplement.

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Great Synergy but Weak Individually

Perplexing. I really do not know how else to describe this series. It is indecisive yet oddly compelling to watch. The two main leads are strangely engaging together, yet individually, blend into the woodwork as part of the background furniture. This is completely a story of synergy. Honestly, this is a rather low-key drama that is underplayed and relies more on the screenplay than acting. It is surprisingly well written, which is expected as it is a story about a novelist. This is an entertaining story to be sure. Nothing deep but well written. Ironically the side couple provided way more interesting dynamics. This is easy watching.

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Could Have Been Better

Simple, Sweet but Ordinary

Gu Jing (Stan Huang) is a good chef who owns a creative and retro restaurant. He opens his restaurant anytime he wants. Gu Jing finds that there is a young man who always gets the quietest seat, and that is Liu Li (Chen Xuan Yu). Liu Li is a gay-themed novelist who rents a room upstairs from Gu Jing’s restaurant. Gu Jing starts to send Liu a bowl of spicy beef noodles. Slowly, Gu Jing becomes the person that Liu Li confides in, the person who keeps him company during his hard times. Gradually, Liu Li realizes that his fantasies may be different from reality.

Read the complete article here-

https://the-bl-xpress.com/2024/03/09/vip-only-series-review-ep-3-to-10/

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