Pinoy BL Series
Thailand
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My Extraordinary (2020): The First Pinoy BL Series on Philippine Free TV
“My Extraordinary” was the first Filipino (Pinoy) boys’ love (BL) series on Philippine free television. Given the conservative nature of mainstream Philippine free television, getting “My Extraordinary” (or at least its first episode) on TV5 was huge. While not as successful as other top-tier Pinoy BL series, “My Extraordinary” can be proud of its achievements in terms of acting performance and production value. It’s plot/storyline, however, has received mixed reviews.
Initially, the plot/storyline appeared promising because the lead characters, Shake and Ken, were worlds apart in terms of family background, school status, and economic situation. Regrettably, there wasn’t much development with regard to their relationship since it was cut short by their untimely deaths. Some say “My Extraordinary” was different for combining the BL genre with the paranormal genre but such effort has been done before. I can think of at a least three recent Thai BL series that dabbled on the otherworldly: “My Dream,” “He’s Coming To Me,” and “Ghost Runner.” “My Extraordinary,” nevertheless, had set itself apart from other Pinoy BL series for being one of the first to pursue the supernatural. Sad to say, its treatment of the unearthly wasn’t really that grounded on Pinoy culture. But more than the underwhelming handling of the ghostly turn of the plot/storyline, my uneasiness with “My Extraordinary” had to do with its use of the tiresome bury your gay trope in line with the equally wearisome too good for this problematic earth narrative that tackles homophobia and depicts gay characters as suffering victims without agency who die tragic deaths from an uncaring world. I know what lesson these types of realistic narratives are trying to impart -- that homophobia kills and ruins relationships -- but I expected more than this usual lesson from this series.
Luckily, the plot/storyline was salvaged by a solid script. Screenplay was literary yet very relatable. Yes, there were some preachy lines here and there but there were also substantial comedic and dramatic dialogues. Most of the funniest dialogues that I thoroughly enjoyed were delivered by Heaven. But my favorite lines were the more serious ones from my favorite characters of this series: brothers Ken and Lawrence. From the ghost Ken talking to sorrowful Monica, we got: “Mom, I’m your son. You’ve always known. You were just the last to admit.” And from Lawrence responding to Monica lamenting that Ken’s gay, we got: “So what if he is? What’s wrong with that?” Lawrence also said “So what if Kuya (older brother) is gay? Will fireballs fall from the sky? Is it the end of the world? If something bad happens to Kuya, I don’t think I can ever forgive Mom.”
From the lead cast members, Enzo and Darwin, to the veteran cast members, Yayo and Jojit, to the supporting cast members, Karissa, Z, and Keijee, acting was very good. I’m pleasantly surprised how natural and realistic the performance of the young actors were on this series. It’s a pity Keijee’s Heaven didn’t have the good character background he deserved while Karissa’s Sandee wasn’t really able to fully redeem herself.
Aside from the acting performance, “My Extraordinary” was also strong with reference to production value. The quality of production design, cinematography, sound engineering, and musical scoring was maintained all throughout the series. The soundtracks were all good. I especially liked “Hindi Ko ‘To Binalak” (I Didn’t Plan for This) and “Hindi Niya Alam” (He Doesn’t Know), both performed by Kenji Exaltacion. By the way, thanks to “My Extraordinary” for always acknowledging this account, Pinoy BL Series, on their post-credits.
Overall, I would certainly recommend rewatching “My Extraordinary.” If you’re looking for a top-tier Pinoy BL series with excellent acting performance and production value, “My Extraordinary” is an appropriate series for you. And watch out for its sequel “A Kiss 2 Remember” which I hope will have a much happier ending.
Initially, the plot/storyline appeared promising because the lead characters, Shake and Ken, were worlds apart in terms of family background, school status, and economic situation. Regrettably, there wasn’t much development with regard to their relationship since it was cut short by their untimely deaths. Some say “My Extraordinary” was different for combining the BL genre with the paranormal genre but such effort has been done before. I can think of at a least three recent Thai BL series that dabbled on the otherworldly: “My Dream,” “He’s Coming To Me,” and “Ghost Runner.” “My Extraordinary,” nevertheless, had set itself apart from other Pinoy BL series for being one of the first to pursue the supernatural. Sad to say, its treatment of the unearthly wasn’t really that grounded on Pinoy culture. But more than the underwhelming handling of the ghostly turn of the plot/storyline, my uneasiness with “My Extraordinary” had to do with its use of the tiresome bury your gay trope in line with the equally wearisome too good for this problematic earth narrative that tackles homophobia and depicts gay characters as suffering victims without agency who die tragic deaths from an uncaring world. I know what lesson these types of realistic narratives are trying to impart -- that homophobia kills and ruins relationships -- but I expected more than this usual lesson from this series.
Luckily, the plot/storyline was salvaged by a solid script. Screenplay was literary yet very relatable. Yes, there were some preachy lines here and there but there were also substantial comedic and dramatic dialogues. Most of the funniest dialogues that I thoroughly enjoyed were delivered by Heaven. But my favorite lines were the more serious ones from my favorite characters of this series: brothers Ken and Lawrence. From the ghost Ken talking to sorrowful Monica, we got: “Mom, I’m your son. You’ve always known. You were just the last to admit.” And from Lawrence responding to Monica lamenting that Ken’s gay, we got: “So what if he is? What’s wrong with that?” Lawrence also said “So what if Kuya (older brother) is gay? Will fireballs fall from the sky? Is it the end of the world? If something bad happens to Kuya, I don’t think I can ever forgive Mom.”
From the lead cast members, Enzo and Darwin, to the veteran cast members, Yayo and Jojit, to the supporting cast members, Karissa, Z, and Keijee, acting was very good. I’m pleasantly surprised how natural and realistic the performance of the young actors were on this series. It’s a pity Keijee’s Heaven didn’t have the good character background he deserved while Karissa’s Sandee wasn’t really able to fully redeem herself.
Aside from the acting performance, “My Extraordinary” was also strong with reference to production value. The quality of production design, cinematography, sound engineering, and musical scoring was maintained all throughout the series. The soundtracks were all good. I especially liked “Hindi Ko ‘To Binalak” (I Didn’t Plan for This) and “Hindi Niya Alam” (He Doesn’t Know), both performed by Kenji Exaltacion. By the way, thanks to “My Extraordinary” for always acknowledging this account, Pinoy BL Series, on their post-credits.
Overall, I would certainly recommend rewatching “My Extraordinary.” If you’re looking for a top-tier Pinoy BL series with excellent acting performance and production value, “My Extraordinary” is an appropriate series for you. And watch out for its sequel “A Kiss 2 Remember” which I hope will have a much happier ending.
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