I have to say, I myself don't have many peers in gmmtv, it's always been just KSOGTN. So when we separated, I was quite lonely, because everyone else could still work as a unit, while I was going solo on my own. P'Sing, too, for that matter. So for us to reunite... In our personal lives we still see each other from time to time, but in terms of work I think both of us don't want to be lonely anymore.
I feel like now the timing is right. I finally came to the conclusion that I'll need to halt my plan of further studies for now. And if I'm not going abroad to study just yet, working the same old way still makes me happy. I like working where it feels comfortable, and being here makes me comfortable. I don't need to go anywhere else.
❶ ❷ ❸
Well, this was a nice surprise. I never know what to expect with a Cheewin show. He's done some things I've loved, but the last two shows he did before this one I did not vibe with at all. He seems to do best with writing that is solid but not overly complex, and I would guess who is on his production team makes a difference as well when it comes to tempering some of his more chaotic impulses. Tanya was an executive producer on this as well as an actress, so if she did play a role in the overall warmth and maturity of this series, I hope she does more work in the QL sphere.
As for why I liked this series so much,
We get to have:
Aerial performances including a himbo who spins on a pole (sometimes in wings).
Said himbo and a DJ who bathe together regularly but still act shy when admitting their crushes on one another.
Romantic and cute boyfies who are also incredibly horny and have sex in open spaces.
A man so in love with his boyfriend that he learns how to do an aerial performance in one afternoon.
A love triangle that resolves via poly.
Older lesbians who realize they can still be cute little girlfriends.
Couples and throuple working through issues with communication and maturity.
Characters who are capable of self-reflection, admitting wrong, and apologizing.
A theme of non-judgment and support for people regardless of the work that they do, especially if it's work society tends to look down on.
Diversity of gender expression and fabulous outfits.
It wasn't perfect, I wish we had gotten to see more aerials, especially because they had the actors learn the skill for real. The Seiji and Ken performances were weirdly cut, presumably for some bts reason. The aunt was so over the top she didn't really fit the vibe of the show. There was some rushing with the throuple resolution. (Though I won't mind if they were saving some things for a special episode).
This one was easy to miss with the number of releases we're getting right now, but it's worth checking out. It's not high art, but it's one of the sweetest shows I've seen so far this year.
No rlly bl is like the best genre ever cuz where else r u gonna see “you like being the top too?” *thunder strikes* *beethoven’s symphony no. 5 plays*
cons of being a novel reader: can't really theorise
pros of being a novel reader: i've never had so much fun reading people's opinions, reactions, and theories
Lately I’ve seen the narrative around Krist shifting from “he’s homophobic” to “he was homophobic, but he got better :)” so!
Let’s go back to a moment in 2017 during a ceremony where Krist and Singto accepted an award from the Thai branch of the gay magazine Attitude (now defunct). That’s the magazine that published this photoshoot:
[Attitude, 2018, promoting SOTUS S] (they also did one in 2016 for SOTUS)
Krist said that a friend of his once came out to his parents, and the parents wouldn’t accept him, so Krist told his friend, “It’s okay. If no one accepts you, you have me, and I accept you for who you are.”
So, yes, Krist was hotheaded when people kept harassing him about his sexuality, but can anyone truly blame him? No one looks at all the times he answered politely. Just the one time he broke.
There are people today who film these guys at the urinal. Who treat them like property because of money and time spent on them. Who hire trucks to drive around their company building making demands. And it’s 2024. GMMTV has legal teams on this stuff now. But you and I can’t imagine what kind of invasiveness Krist and Singto went through in 2016 as one of the first pairs in the BL industry to gain overnight fame and rabid, unprecedented focus from millions. Of course he snapped. It’s widely known that fans and reporters target Krist over Singto to get information even today because Singto never gives anyone the satisfaction of a reaction, but Krist is a people-pleaser and truly struggles with saying no to people. He’s always been the emotional one, the one who overthinks, the one desperate to make people happy. And when fans wanted to force KristSingto to publicly say that they were secretly dating, fans thought they could get Krist to break first, and they were right. (Personally, I always thought the Instagram story was an exaggerated joke that was a barely veiled “drop it.”)
Then interfans came along, marked him as an easy target, and maliciously miscast him as a bigot to wave after wave of new interfans who never bothered to research further after a random person on the internet told them he’s a homophobe.
Krist asked his parents for their blessing to audition for SOTUS when he was still a teenager. He was afraid of what they’d think, but because his parents are lovely people, they supported him. And they still do. Krist’s father has a running joke that he’ll let Krist marry Singto if Singto brings a durian for the dowry.
I never included Singto in my clarification thread because I knew how quickly people would dismiss anything with Singto as conniving, tricksy fanservice. But you really don’t know anything about Krist until you see him with people he considers his safe spaces. That includes people like Mike. Like Gawin. Godji. Oat. These people who love him because he’s earned it.
I know I talk about this a lot. But I won’t ignore it when people try to twist his character, especially with I see them making assumptions about the premise of Ex-Morning. All I believe is that he was angry and afraid and overwhelmed. Then he reacted, apologized, and learned how to handle the fame and the invasiveness better.
Please stop trying to claw marrow out of a past mirage.
You should save your 'first time' for someone you want to be serious with. Please don't waste it on someone like me. Well, do you already have someone you want to be serious with?