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absolutebl · 2 years

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10 BLs to Watch if You Loved KinnPorsche

It’s really hard for me to understand exactly why you liked a thing, anything, let alone a phenomena of pop culture. Also there is nothing exactly like KP. With those two codicils in mind, I will do my very best.

So here are 10 things I’m going to assume you are looking for.

higher heat levels - things get steamy

lower angst levels - external conflict (rather then internal agony and navel gazing)

good chemistry (not the same thing as heat) - this means the actors are good at portraying physical, mental, and emotional attraction to each other

action

grey morality

multiple couples

mature characters

non-school setting

longer length treatment

a happy ending

I do hope I’ve gotten it right. This BL list will be rated on a scale of #/10 KP rating system - one point for each of the above, half points allowed. (Which is NOT my normal BL rating system.)

Some things that I can’t really help you with:

Explicitly kinky characters. There is very little of this in light BL (stories with happy endings) and what there is I’ve a listed here.

Mafia or yakuza set dramas are more common in dark BL. There are a few exceptions, but none of them have the bodyguard trope of KP.

Trigger warnings: assume if it happened in KP it may happen in these. including the stuff people argued over and disliked. Also dubcon and few others nasties. (Why so much dubcon in BL?)

Narrative structure. As you probably noticed in KP, strong story structure is not a hallmark of BL, but rather the exception. So far there have been only a few great strongly written high concept and killer narrative BLs.

Let’s start, shall we?

Loved KinnPorsche? Try These BLs Next

1. Manner of Death

(Thailand 2021) WeTV

This is a gay romantic suspense featuring a doctor and a mafia character. It’s more a murder mystery investigation with multiple plot twists than a mafia romance, but it is tons of fun. It’s stars the Original Kings of BL IRL ships: MaxTul. Also two of the hottest bodies in BL.

KP rating 9.5/10

It has higher heat levels, low angst (there is no angst at all, really, these boys got other things to do), great chemistry, action, grey morality, multiple couples (kinda - this is where it flails at bit so I dinged it 1/2 a point), mature characters, a country + medical setting, longer length treatment AND a happy ending.

What to watch next if this was your favorite off this list? Triage or Dear Doctor, I’m Coming for your Soul.

2. Trapped

AKA HIStory 3: Trapped

(Taiwan 2019) Viki

Basically the definition of enemies to lovers. Is about a cop investigating a cold case where a mafia boss is the only witness, so he starts chasing him. Along the way to solving it, they fall in love. Side characters = mercenary hitman meets nerdy cop of his dreams, cooks for him. All the leads are stellar. It’s high heat, fun action, and a bit of a mystery drama but is pretty about all of it. My only warning is that the main couple doesn’t entirely end up together, it’s implied, but... amorphous ending. The sides end happily tho.

KP rating 9.5/10

Contains mature characters, non-school setting, higher heat, lower angst, great chemistry, action (some of it the SAME action, these two run through the woods hand-cuffed together for days too), grey morality, multiple couples, and a longer length - only the ending falters.

You want HIStory 3: Trapped NOT the other HIStory 3!

If you’ve been frustrated by the heat levels and setting of Thai BLs since KP, then that’s because you need to turn your attention to Taiwan instead. Taiwan specializes in high heat levels and non-school settings. (They have some, but it’s not their focus.)

What to watch next if this was your favorite on this list: HIStory 2: Crossing the Line, DNA Says Love You, and you can explore the top 10 I talk about in my Taiwan’s history with the genre post. A warning, do not take Trapped as a typical example of HIStory franchise, it’s all over the place.

3. Long Time No See

(Korea 2017) GaGa

Long Time No See is about two assassins who fall in love via online gay fanfic without knowing they are hitmen on opposite sides of a turf war. Or do they? It’s absolutely great and very under appreciated. One of Strongberry’s few longer pieces (but still short by Thai BL standards) with good fight sequences and very suspenseful.

KP rating 8/10

Contains all KP elements except multiple couples and a longer length: mature characters, non-school setting, high heat, low angst, good chemistry, action, grey morality, and a happy ending.

What to watch next if this was your favorite on this list: Actually you might try some of Japan’s darker stuff, I’m thinking Double Mints, for example.

4. Not Me

(Thailand 2022) YouTube

This is crime thriller BL-lite about a group of motorcycling malcontents bent on bring down a corrupt system. Overtly queer, the romantic threads are not entirely the narrative drivers and it’s very slender on tropes, making this one, like MoD more gay romantic suspense than BL. But if gritty tension is what you’re after, this one has that in spades.

KP rating 7/10

It’s pretty low heat, this is OffGun+GMMTV and heat is not what they do. It has some angst because of the twin thing and the political thing (but not as much as I expected). The characters are not mature by my personal standards, they do act with the idealism of youth and they are in university some of the time. Otherwise ticks all the boxes: good chemistry, action, grey morality, multiple couples, longer length treatment, and a happy ending.

What to watch next if this was your favorite on this list: you can try OffGun’s back catalogue but it’s probably not what you’re looking for, try Bad Buddy instead and consider my favorite Thai BL, Until We Meet Again.

5. 3 Will Be Free

(Thailand 2019) YouTube

Is about a mafia kid, a stripper, and a grifter who accidentally kill a hitman and then have to go on the run with two assassins chasing them. Along the way the three of them basically fall in love with each other. You also get the mafia hitmen perspective. It’s GREAT and very queer.

KP rating 6/10

Low heat levels for this one because it’s from GMMTV. However it is also low angst (there consistent outside stressors and this plot moves FAST), good chemistry, lots of action, very grey morality, multiple couples (but with each other, this is a poly romance), is not set at school, and has a longer length treatment. However, the characters aren’t entirely mature and it has a slightly ambiguous ending - they survive and are kind-of together but also stuff has happened. I dinged it an extra point because technically this is a queer romance and not, actually, a BL at all. Still it’s a very under-appreciated gem of a show, and I highly recommend it.

What to watch next if this was your favorite on this list: there’s nothing else out there like this show, sorry, it’s unique. However if you like Tay (Shin) you should watch his BL series the Kiss series and Dark Blue Kiss (watching guide here) where he plays a completely different personality.

6. Irresistible Love

AKA Irresistible Love: Secret of the Valet (YouTube) + Irresistible Love 2 AKA Uncontrolled Love (YouTube)

(China 2016) grey

This two movie series is mafia esk but it’s very rough and lacks narrative cohesion. Rich kid (maybe mafia) boss has obsession with his family’s butler in a classic execution of the whipping boy trope. It’s in two parts and the second part has two endings, you want the one that ends not entirely unhappily. I not-so-secretly love this BL: obsession, mutilation, very hard fought and absolutely classic Chinese BL pre-censorship. It's a wild melodramatic ride.

KP rating 6/10

This has higher heat levels (all are dub con), good chemistry, very grey morality, mature characters, non-school setting and a medium length treatment. It also has some serious angst because of the unequal power dynamic and the seme’s bisexuality, there’s little action, only one couple, and the ending is all over the place, happyish if you can find the right one. (As of typing this post: the YouTube links should still work, but this is a grey show it has no official distribution.)

What to watch next if this was your favorite on this list: really? This one was your favorite? Okay then, how about trying My Beautiful Man AKA Utsukushii Kare? Or go for Addicted, if you want the best that China can do.

7. Golden Blood

(Thailand 2021) YouTube

A Thai BL pulp with the whipping boy trope (attack dog variant) about a boy who is pulled off the streets because he has the correct blood type and trained to be the servant/caretaker/bodyguard of a rich mafia kid. They fall in love.

KP rating 5/10

This one has higher heat levels, multiple couples, a longer length treatment and a happy ending. But it is a Thai pulp so the production values are poor. There is some unnecessary angst as the characters are not mature and it is partly set in university, the chemistry is uneven (great with the sides but not the mains), there is action but it’s not very good, and grey morality (sort of). All in all, a mixed bag.

If you liked this best you have some pretty relaxed standards. why not lean in and try some MAME stuff like TharnType, Don’t Say No, or Love in the Air. Consider yourself warned.

8. Unforgotten Night

(Thailand 2022) iQIYI

Ostensibly a kinky story of a mafia Dom who after a one night stand gets obsessed with a simple office worker and kidnaps him into his dark crime riddled world. But that made it sound appealing. It’s terrible.

KP rating 5/10

It does have higher heat levels but they aren’t actually, ya know, good because the chemistry is poor, there’s a lot of unnecessary angst, there’s some action, grey morality, multiple couples, longer length treatment, and a happy ending but ho boy. It’s not a wild ride, it’s a confused and quite dull one. Also you will spend a lot of time worrying about plumbing, and not in a euphemistic way.

If you liked this best, you're confused. You need to learn what good chemistry looks like, watch Zee’s catalogue - Why R U? and Cutie Pie.

There is also Chains of Heart to consider.

9. Where Your Eyes Linger

(Korea 2020) Viki

Ostensibly high school set about a poor kid whose been raised in a mafia kid’s family specifically to protect him (whipping boy trope, attack dog variant). Themes of codependency and survival with pretty classic Korean style romance ending.

KP rating 4.5/10

Excepting Strongberry, Korean stuff is rarely high heat, this one gives you a kiss at the end but that’s it. Decent chemistry, only a little action, only one couple (also a hallmark of KBL), and short treatment. It does have grey morality and a happy ending (at the very last minute). The characters are not mature and it is set in high school.

What to watch next if this was you favorite: you might try Hwang Da Seul’s other BLs To My Star or Blueming. I like the both a whole lot.

10. Word of Honor

(China 2021) Viki also Youku’s YouTube

Yes a censored Chinese bromance actually made one of my lists. But remember I’m rating this by KP standards, not my own. Normally I leave the censored stuff off my lists because I believe in censoring the censors. However, if anything gets on, it’s usually this one.

This show is my favorite of the post 2016 bromance wave. It’s two murder-gay assassins (pining sunshine/tsundere), and they are so insanely gay for two boys who are never allowed to kiss. Tropes include: wuxia, soulmates, paranormal, historical, and fantasy elements.

KP rating 4/10

No heat, this is Chinese BL post censorship, some angst (China likes angst) but in this case it’s warranted, good chemistry, fantastic action, beautifully grey morals, there are other couples but only het and they die, a VERY long treatment, and an ambiguous ending.

If this was your favorite go ahead and watch Untamed (knowing they don’t end up together) or even The Guardian. You might also try Advance Bravely if only to see our boy Jun swap seme for uke. That’s kind of a bodyguard romance.

And that’s it, those are my recs. Feel free to leave your own recs (and reasons) in the comments.

This post is dated Sept 2022, not responsible for other BLs that come along after that date and fit the KP model better.

That said, recent additions!

Never Let Me Go

KP rating 7/10

This is a bodyguard romance with has lower angst, good chemistry, action, multiple couples (sort of), mature-ish characters, longer length treatment, a happy ending. However it is medium heat, no grey morality, and 1/2 in a school setting.

The Sign

KP rating 9/10

Def has the higher heat levels, lower angst (it’s mostly external conflict), fantastic chemistry, and some grey morality, mature characters, non-school setting, longer length treatment, a happy ending. It’s only flaw is weak secondary couples. They there, but not awesome.

This show is literally everything (except straight) all at once. It's BL, queer, band of brothers, romcom, erotica, PNR, fated mates, police procedural, fantasy, mystery, suspense, and slasher. It’s the king of genre mash-up chaos. Sure, it's madness but there is genius in it. Was it a crazy unhinged mess +1 roll for damage? Yes. Yes it was. Did it manage to hold all those tangled threads together? No it did not. Was it also a charmg, sexy, engaging, non-stop piece of entertainment? Sure thing. I think this show is basically my KinnPorsche, and frankly I’ve been chasing that dragon naga since KP aired. Is it perfect? No. But it was balls to the wall FUN.

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