Love Stage (2022)

Toxic Adaptation Removes The Fun.

An unsettling adaptation from both the manga or the Japanese movie. The comedic elements that make the manga and movie work, get twisted oddly in this melodramatic re-imagining. The plot and characters (especially the secondary and tertiary characters) are all over the place and poorly written. I only got through these 10 episodes by watching at 2x the speed and fast-forwarding in addition to that.

General Spoilers below.
There is so much toxicity in this series. Everyone treats Anda like sh*t and emotionally manipulates him. He's always made to feel like he should say sorry when other people are the ones out of line. Parents are abusive (forcing him to do entertainment work when his stage fright is so bad that he can faint or get fevers) and his brother is massively controlling and secretly installs a gps tracker on his phone. Ryou does become supportive eventually but before then his actions are disturbing.

The way Ryou forcibly removes Anda's shirt to make him "prove" he isn't a girl is so wrong. And he NEVER apologizes, instead turns what happens in that scene into a way to coerce Anda into doing a photoshoot with him- knowing it's going to trigger his anxiety but wanting to make him "conquer" it, which is also the wrong way to go about that (and Ryou doesn't apologize for that either). Ryou non-consentualy kissing Anda repeatedly when he's sleeping is uncomfortable enough in the Japanese movie but at least they try to keep the tone light and only do quick pecks on the lips; though it's tasteless, it's kept as a joke. In the series, Ryou very seriously fully makes out with Anda's lips while he's dead asleep and it is flat out creepy.

The makeout scene in Ep 6 part 4 and love scene in Ep 7 part 3 are passionate (though the characters have drunk a lot for the first one). Sadly, that's the best thing to say about this series.

There's more that is uncomfortable/unsettling, silly, or frusterating with this series, but I don’t want to waste any more time on it so I'm ending my review here.

Leia Mais

If not for anything, watch it for Kaownah

I just completed binge watching the series. I must say Kaownah's acting is off the chart!

Personally I am super impressed with him because he was able to be in character in the numerous series he acted. He was a 'maniac' as Lhong in TharnTyre, a 'free spirit' as Song in Nitiman and a smitten celebrity in Love Stage. You can see and feel the love he, as Ryou, has for Anda. I don't know if Kaownah's look was due to the different years the 3 series were shot but I must say, he looks gorgeous in Love Stage!

I despised Llong in TharnType but simply adore Kaownah in Love Stage. That speaks volume of his convincing acting.

I like Turbo in Nitiman but as Anda, he came across as immature and irritating at times.

I definitely must mention that Ryou/Anda and Tee/Jed making out concurrently in the hotel rooms. It was hot, hot, hot! Someone get me the fan!

The chemistry between Ryou and Anda was indeed good. Probably KaoTurbo being an actual couple contributed to it. I also enjoyed the stolen moments between Tee and Jed.

Love the parents except them trying to force Anda doing stuff he hates! I believe the father knew about Tee and Jed given the way he advised Tee when Tee was facing difficulties writing new songs.

I don't want to spoil it too much. Just watch the series without comparing it to the Japanese and anime version. You will enjoy it.

Leia Mais

It's a pity it doesn't have an official international release

I watched the anime and the live action movie.
Didn't read the manga.

Since i liked the anime, which was one of the first yaoi i have ever watched, i was looking forward to this adaptation.
I' ve really appreciated Kaownah performance in Tharn Type the series, so i was excited to see him portray a totally different character.
I'm watching it live on Amarin TV HD34
Every Saturday at 22.30.
I am not that familiar with Thai language but since i followed many series i can catch the overall meaning of what they are saying.
The highlight on YouTube are the only subbed clips available on official sources ?
The main characters essence and traits are faithful to the anime ones.
The couple is cute with good chemistry and the delivery of emotions comes naturally, easy.
It is overall enjoyable and entertaining.
It's a nice, romantic story.

Hoping for a future release with English subtitles.

Thanks for reading.

Leia Mais

Shirts & Showbiz

Let me elaborate on the title!

The first thing that struck me in this drama were the wardrobe choices: I kept "admiring" the more and more extravagant shirts as the series progressed and wandering who the fashion/costume designer was! And there were some very original shirts' cuts on display on human coathangers!

The second thing is: the show business! Why get into it and why not and how far are you willing to go in order to succeed, what or who would you give up on for fame and fans! Every character in this drama was put in front of a choice related to showbusiness.

Ando and Ryou met when they were children when Ando, dressed as a girl for an ad shoot, made a lasting impression on Ryou. When they meet again 10 years later, Ryou, now a famous actor, is still unaware that Ando is a boy, not a girl, and when he discovers that he is under a huge shock but still can't help thinking about Ando. They eventually start dating but a rival actor's agent outs them and Ryou's careeg goes into a nosedive.
There are a couple of side stories. One involves Ando's parents, who being themselves celebrities, want him to get into acting which he vehemently refuses but they keep on insisting.Some people called them toxic: they are not really, they are open and understanding and helpful. The other story is about Ando's big brother , the rock star Tee. He is a beautiful specimen of masculinity, all shiny muscles and wavy hair and tattoos and on the surface he seems to be a brainless dude. But he is actually very smart, cares for his little brother very much and is in a secret relationship with the family's assistant!

The first half of the series is just some plain fluffy and cute fun as Ryou chases after Ando after having read a number of BL novels in order to find out how to flirt with his crush! Those scenes are so funny.
The tone of the drama changes when, after their first date, Ando falls asleep and Ryou kisses him. So this was a huge red flag for me! I might have forgotten about this if it had been a quick peck (I do not condone that either!) but Ryou kept on going for more, deeply kissing the sleeping Ando three times. Who never woke up! Weird! That kiss marks the end of the comedy series and the beginning of a serious drama!
After that start the honeymoon period, very steamy and seriously well filmed! And then of course the SCANDAL that ruins careers!

The cast is exceptional. The chemistry between the actors is there, nothing extraordinary but they were really at ease with each other and it shows! The music was there but unremarkable! I loved the way Ando was completely tone deaf when singing! The actor pulled it of brilliantly!Funny! Costume designers outdid themselves in finding or creating all these incredible shirts! And of course, the eternal problem with Thai bls: sound recording! They should have by now figured out how to record dialogue, when the actors are hugging and talking into each other's necks, instead of muffled sounds we keep getting!

This drama deals with a lot of issues within the entertainment industry: the stage fright Ando suffers from,how to get inside and how to survive. They show us the pressure the fans put on celebrities and how they can be ruined just by a few tweets. And so on and so on....It is light and superficial, it is not meant to be too serious but it still touches upon some serious issues thai entertainment industry suffers from!

I have not read the manga or watched any of the japanese versions but this one was surprisingly fun and enjoyable to watch, with the exception of that stolen kiss! The series is full of clichés, it is predictable and the production is a bit lazy. Except when they filmed shirtless Film (who plays Thee, Ando's brother!) frolicking with water all in slowmo! Hilarious and hot! But I had so much fun watching it, it was funny and never cringy! Not the best out there, but good nevertheless! Give it a go, you might like it!

It is entertainment industry, my dear! is the closing statement of this bl drama.

Leia Mais

One of my favorites for 2022

Overall, a really good series with very cute couples and friends.

I wanted to see how KaownahTurbo would fare as leads and I was pretty pleased, I think they had great chemistry and were pretty believable.
I haven’t seen any source material or other versions of Love Stage so I know nothing about the original series and can’t say how great or not of an adaptation this is, but from the trailer & music video, I felt like I had an idea of what this show would be about, others who have a different version to compare it to might not agree.
It’s not a serious drama, but it is a step up from most of the college and high school bl's.
Overall is a pretty light and fluffy, feel-good show, with a little drama thrown in, and also a bit of sadness at points.
Focuses on celebrities having relationships, although I am sure they don't end in real life as they did in this bl.
The episode where they are at the beach was the best for me (and a lot of other you tube watchers who commented on the number of replays for certain scenes... lol
I think Film/Tee was a great second couple.
The main female character, Aigo, was pretty cool, as were the parents.

I am sure I will rewatch this series again in the future.

Quick Note: Around Episode 6 the subtitles are messed up. I went into settings (the gear at the bottom of my screen and set the language to Spanish Latin American and then went into the Settings - gear for the series and set the translation to English and was able to get all of the correct subtitles.

Leia Mais

Not a must watch but a Do watch

I gave 10 stars for everything not coz it is super good but coz I just loved it. I have already watched the Love stage movie. Something's has been changed. But I loved this version as well.
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It doesn't have a super good plot or a revolutionary story line, but whatever it have has come out well.
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One thing it talks abt is that, an actor's private life. How a single scandle can ruin everything for an actor.
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A feel good series, and overall a basic and classic one

Leia Mais

It's wholesome but I cried too

I came to watch this after watching the Love Stage anime since I enjoyed the anime so much. I really recommend this drama, because it has such a good story and I admit it I was close dropping this drama but glad I didn't! This drama was funny and had comic scenes, but also serious scenes and I admit it I cried during this series. The story of it is very similar to the anime but the story was a complete mess at some point and that's when I was close dropping it but it's not a good drama without having mixed feelings! Overall I really enjoyed this and highly recommend this!!! ( bonus from handsome actors)

Leia Mais

Recommended drama

This drama was cute and simple story nothing much complications involved I like the brother of male lead who loves and cares for male lead , may be they should have spiced up a little but they couldn’t reach to the expectations I like the lead actors they are cute and great at acting and other couple also was good and script was neat and clean and no tragedy or traingle love story and I was happy to the other actor who got chance to work again and no toxic villains here all are good and got better life but one thing I was disappointed was the lead actor is good at nothing? Drawing , photo shoot, acting hell at last atleast they should have shown his strength at songs writing and achieve in his life but all they was just showing the love which was bit off but drama was good all the best to the team hope you give the same dramas which are fantastic

Leia Mais

Average BL despite the cute leads

The one thing that got my attention throughout the series: Why does Kaownah look so different from the time he was in Tharntype? Is it the filter, the fact that he buffed up somewhat or is it that he has gone under the knife? He looks great here, but I practically can't recognize him (and I actually prefer the way he looked back then).

That said, the Kaownah/Turbo (Ryou/Anda in the story) pairing in this series is rather nice, but the story isn't very strong. The story is fairly predictable, and while I think the actress playing Ryou's ex-manager is quite good, she is over-the-top evil with a comic effect. I think she's told to act this way, but somehow it doesn't gel with the rest of the series.

I don't know how faithful the portrayal of Anda's parents is to the original source. But it looks as though the writers can't decide whether they are terrible parents or understanding parents, and has simply to make them both, but at different points. On the one hand, they try to force Anda to join the entertainment industry when he obviously doesn't want to. The father even goes to the extent of tearing out a kissing scene from the script of an ad so that Anda would go along with the filming without knowing it. On the other hand, they seem to accept their children's relationship choices (not just the fact that they are in same-sex relationships). So I don't know....

Relatively minor problems like this mar the quality of the production, as does the rather weak story. In the end, although the leads are likeable, there is a certain ceiling preventing the series from going beyond the two cute leads. I like how there is a side couple that contrasts with the main couple. I like how the main couple decide to make their relationship public, the side couple does not--the message is that, ultimately, the choice should be made by them and nobody can decide what the right choice is.

Leia Mais

Adorably Messy for Love Stage Fans

Love Stage !! is by no means a masterpiece. Some of the storytelling feels a bit rushed, and some parts are underexplained. But as a fan of both the original anime and manga, this is a great adaptation. The show gave its own spin to this cute tale and captured the essence of Izumi/Anda and Ryouma/Ryou perfectly. I loved seeing the characters come to life and had fun watching the show, despite its flaws. I'd definitely recommend if you're a Love Stage OG. If you're not familiar with the original material, I think you'd enjoy it if you're in the mood a sweet, fluff romance.

Leia Mais

Celebrity is human .we need to respect the their are privacy

According to the story .I think thease story concept really good Anda & Ryou express their romance,sexual desire, share in feeling all is better.and support character acting also good.As far as I can see, the fan base is very involved in the lives of currently celebrities. It is shown very subtly in the story. If I see this in Asian countries, I see it mostly in South Korea. That is the reason why many celebrities commit suicide, even if we love them as fans, we should not interfere in their personal lives. This bl story is entertainment as a whole. But I have one question. Why do I feel a boring feeling every time I watch all drama 1 ep?

Leia Mais