Upon many recommendations, I saw Gameboys by The Idea First Company. What I felt lacking in Hello Stranger, Gameboys had oodles of. The series is about two young gamers challenging each other to a friendly game online. Innocent Cairo (Canlas) accepts the challenge of impetuous Gavreel (De Santos) and unwittingly finds himself at the center of his playful advances. If Gavreel wins, then Cairo would agree to be courted by him.

Gameboys feels like a series about the emerging world of Gen Z made by Gen Z creators. The story is unique, individual, respectful of gender issues and mindful of the COVID-19 crisis. It is able to give you a full preview of the entire series and the thesis of Pinoy BL all inside of 10 minutes of the pilot.

The storytelling is very fast-paced, the acting is authentic, the graphics are new and sophisticated, and the music guides you to feel what the characters are currently feeling. As the story progresses, backstories are revealed and the characters are given a kind of depth that virtually tugs at your heart and makes you want to cry. It is beautifully told in a very new way, yet it feels so familiar it’s as if you are transported back to the very first time you ever fell in love.