Favourite Boys Love (BL) Series and Films.
I am including my most favourite series and films that depict boys falling in love.
This is just my list and I will include the pro's of my choices and con's. Also this list is in order from favourite to least favourite.
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1. Interpret My Love With Your Heart
Thai Drama - 2020, 5 episodes
My favourite BL of all time and even series of all genres. Really enjoyed watching this and can't wait for the second part. All characters are amazing in this series and the storyline is very meaningful. Music is perfection in this series, plus I love the marketing strategy of this series!
Pros: The actors playing these characters have all amazing chemistry between each other, and the cinematography is very modern yet references a lot of innovative classic films of Hollywood. This series has a lot of meanings and every object and dialogue is well written to make the series flow in a circle. Beautiful.
Cons: Ending. Although it has a 'happy ending', it is not very realistic, and there seems to be an important dialogue or even one extra scene between the lead characters that is missing that would really make this series end even better than it did. The last episode is still very amazing though!
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2. No Regret
Korean Movie - 2006
This one was my favourite before 'I Told Sunset About You' came along. I watched this film over 10 times. It is stunning in my opinion. The chemistry between the characters is amazing, and the storyline is quite realistic. It is also very similar to 'I told sunset about you' within the concept of 'a boy likes another boy SO much that they do not have to say how they feel, but they just naturally portray it.' I love this concept so much. It's like action, over words, and true love does not need words, just two souls matching one another and this film portrays this for me. The team of this film have shown 'deleted scenes' which really showed the film even better for me.
Pros: Characters are well developed in this series and their chemistry is great. Also it has a quite interesting ending. It makes you think about the story after you have watched it.
Cons: It lacks massively in production quality, most likely because it was made over 15 years ago. It uses the redundant story background of 'Very Rich vs Really Poor'.
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3. Addicted Heroin
Chinese Drama - 2016, 15 episodes
This one is a classic for BL lovers and fans. I love the chemistry between all characters in this series. Although in some sense one character can display toxic behaviours, he still is a step-brother of the other character and I love this concept for a series. This one was also my first Asian BL series that I have ever watched. Stunning.
Pros: Actors are hot haha. Really warm storyline to watch during rain or winter months. I love that it is set in China. I love the characters development.
Cons: Some scenes are quite childish and not directed well. Sometimes there is a sense of toxic behaviour displayed among characters.
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4. 2gether
Thai Drama - 2020, 13 episodes
I like this a lot!!! Obviously the actors are like models haha very cute! Their chemistry is great which is really nice. It has this charm of 'Fall in love from first sight', which is usually displayed in straight films/series. The production and direction of this series is amazing and very high quality. Some side characters are really interesting, and very comedic too which works and makes me chuckle. I love the music that is included in this series and some scenes are iconic for me which makes me re-watch this series a lot. I also enjoy the fact that they are a different type of couple than other couples in other BLs. They do not need to have sexual tension or kissing scenes to show how much these characters love one another. I know a lot of fans complained about the lack of kissing or whatever, but I like this concept actually haha. Not every couple in the world is kissing to show that they are romantic.
Pros: Hot actors haha and very talented obviously, with great chemistry. High production with high budget. Amazing music!
Cons: Side characters are nice but their storylines are very cringe compared to the main couple, which is annoying to watch and sad as well that their stories weren't developed better. The ending is a little boring for me, with unnecessary drama. This series does not follow many of the novel's story which is annoying.
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5. His - I Didn't Think I Would Fall In Love
Japanese Drama - 2019, 5 episodes
Oh man this was really cute with an amazing location and awesome acting. I loved that this showed a surfing vibe in Japan. Amazing location which I would love to visit myself. The actors are also very talented and the script is very interesting and original. There is a lot of innocence in the characters which is shown very subtly and I like this SOOO much, instead of cringe acting. I re-watched it many times. The quality of directing and script is very Japanese and minimalist, which I enjoy.
Pros: Great acting and amazing characters. Very soft and charming series which I enjoy watching during summer days. I feel fulfilled and very grateful for being myself when I watch this! Is a great storyline. The location is very mesmerising!
Cons: Too short!!!
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6. Red Balloon
Taiwanese Drama - 2017, 8 episodes
I like this a lot, but have not re-watched it. It is very interesting storyline with characters trying to find acceptance from their loved ones and society. The actors are very talented and show great chemistry which is always very enticing. It is set in Taiwan which I love. It is nicely directed and script is not cringe. I recommend it. I also find it similar to 'I Told Sunset About you' in sense of two friends are confused about their unexpected feelings towards one another.
Pros: No cringe scripts or dialogues. Actors are cute, and there is a great chemistry between both lead characters. Explores acceptance from society and loved ones.
Cons: Short series. Quite forgetful in my opinion.
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7. Where Your Eyes Linger
Korean Drama - 2020, 8 episodes
Very nice characters and they have chemistry, plus the acting is really astounding. The series has a nice production quality and great locations around Korea. The storyline is a little bit weird. In someway reminds me of the Chinese BL film 'Irresistible Love', because of the master/slave concept. But it is still very cute and nice drama. The ending is very short though, whereas there is a lot of tension going on around the last episode. Similarly to 'I told sunset about you', where the last episode is very emotional in all scenes, and suddenly the ending scene is all 'happy and dandy'. I don't like this story concept because it seems a little fake. But yet again I am very happy with this series.
Pro: Cute actors with great acting skills. Characters have a great development with depth. Chemistry is on point. Location is really nice showing few areas of Korea.
Cons: Ended too fast, with a redundant ending that missed a dialogue or an important scene to finalise the ending with a BL touch. Side characters are boring and weird.
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8. Mr. Heart
Korean Drama - 2020, 8 episodes
This is cute! The characters are comedic and fun and have their own personalities which differ from one another but still with great chemistry and passion. It is more targeted at younger teens than adults, but still I will re-watch it soon. The production is of high quality and references K-Drama style of series, which is nice actually. There is one scene which I hate; one of the lead characters punches the other character that he supposedly 'loves', I hate this so much, it's literally physical abuse!
Pros: Great actors with believable portrayal of chemistry. Great locations around Korea which I enjoy watching. Storyline is cute and nice to watch during rainy and winter days.
Cons: Too short. Lacks depth in storyline.
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9. 'Cause You're My Boy
Thai Drama - 2018, 12 episodes
I first watched these two in 2Gether series, but found their storyline very cringe and unnecessary. But then I found this!
This series is really cool. It lacks massively in production and direction, but the chemistry between the lead characters is great, plus the actors are unique in their own personalities, and I feel like they display themselves in some way through playing their characters. This is similar to the storyline concept of 'I told sunset about you', of two rivals turned really good friends and just enjoy each other's companionship, but both are confused about their own feelings.
Pros: Cute and great chemistry between characters. No one is overly rich or poor, but just normal characters, which is really nice to see that. Developed characters with interesting personalities that I hope this will be explored furthermore in other series of these characters.
Cons: I lack understanding of some scenes and dialogues, maybe because of translations or just weird direction. Low budget and super low quality of directing.
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10. Oppressive Love
Chinese Movie - 2016
I actually surprisingly enjoyed this film. It is set in China as well, and has some interesting characters in my opinion that I wish the director would develop and explore more. It has some BL scenes too. I also re-watch it when I am bored and lack interest in new series or films. But the production is really really bad. They seem to have a good budget for the film but it is not used well, instead it is used on locations instead of the script. Plus the ending is a mess! So be prepared!
Pros: Hot actors! Haha. Great characters with seducing chemistry. Set in China.
Cons: Actors should practice their acting skills more. Storyline is kind of confusing, especially the ending destroys a lot, because of it's confusion. Some translations are really badly translated.
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11. Water Boyy
Thai Drama - 2017, 14 episodes
I enjoy watching some scenes. There are many side characters which have their own storylines therefore I only skip to the BL parts. And these parts do not disappoint. There is a great seducing chemistry between the BL characters and there is a display of great talent from the actors. High production with high budget too, which is nice.
Pros: The chemistry between the characters is really sexy and great, because the actors are hot too. The actors are talented. There is no cringe in the storyline of the BL characters.
Cons: Too many long storylines about side-characters, and not enough about the BL couple.
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12. Irresistible Love: Secret of the Valet
Chinese Movie - 2016
I like this! But I never re-watch it. I like that they have a high production quality and high budget, with interesting characters and storyline. Some backgrounds of the characters are over exaggerated and redundant (VERY rich heir is confused with his feelings for his slave/assistant), just really weird character backgrounds. But I love the characters overall with their personalities. The ending is fine haha, but it is not sad or tragic. Plus it is set in China which I really enjoy. I do not think this film romanticises abuse and toxicity, instead it shows that one of the character is tired of this treatment and leaves, which is nice to see.
Pros: High production with talented actors and interesting characters. Storyline makes sense compared to other BL series which is a massive plus.
Cons: Some scenes are over exaggerated with the storyline, and background of characters is very redundant.
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13. Night Flight
Korean Movie - 2014
This one is really depressing and sad. It is a very serious film and I think it also aims at adults instead of only younger people. It does not have a lot of BL themes, but it is more about lost friendship and unrequited love. The characters are well developed and it is of high quality, plus the director, has directed 'No Regret'.
Pros: Talented actors and really well direction with a high-scale production. I love that it was filmed in Korea.
Cons: Very depressing, I could only watch it once, it hits home too much.
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14. TharnType
Thai Drama - 2019, 12 episodes
Umm.. amazing production and great actors. Looks like a high budget series. BUT first episode displays very toxic and sensitive scenes. This is in someway romanticised by the director and I do not like this. I wish they displayed an awareness of what relationships should not look like, instead of romanticising toxicity. The actors that play the lead roles have an amazing chemistry outside of the series which is really fun to watch instead of this series in my opinion.
Pros: Great kissing scenes. High budget series with a quality production. Really interesting lead and side-characters and even some scenes are quite innovative and interesting.
Cons: Romanticising toxic-abusive-unhealthy relationships. Some lead characters should have a better development instead of the same character personality throughout each scene. Cringe at times.
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15. SOTUS
Thai Drama - 2016, 15 episodes
Hmm... this is my opinion!!! I didn't like it. The actors are very talented, and I like the side-characters as well. But the main characters are boring for me. I do not feel any chemistry between the actors, more friendship instead. I feel the storyline is very redundant (leader of class is chased by younger student), I have seen this over and over. But it has a high production and really good direction.
Pros: High quality with high budget, and super talented actors.
Cons: I dislike one of the lead characters. Sometimes the dialogues are really cringe.