Luz em Mim (2021)

I’d rather be dry, but at least I’m alive. LIGHT. ON. ME.

Am very impressed with this Korean drama. I’d go to the extent of even saying that this is the best Korean BL I’ve seen so far. It shows genuinely the struggle of the LGBT youth and those who were labeled as losers in high school, while giving us all the KILIG (google it) at the same time. Specifically the characters of Lee (Tae Kyung), Kang (Shin Woo), and Choe (Da On) fabulously show us the different sides of the experience of the LGBT youth.

The obvious highlights include our 4 main boys!

Go (Nam Goong) was such a bright and shining light in the series. It was just a wonderful performance that gave the viewers so much joy, while taking the story forward in a smart way, even with all the humor he brought with him. “Potato Pizza” says WHAT?!? Ahahaha

Choe (Da On) was such a sweetie. A boy clearly caught between a rock and a hard place. My heart really went out to his plight; being a child of absent parents while clearly compensating with grades for the approval the parents never really gave (heavily implied). It’s hard when you are suddenly hit by the discovery of being LGBT while being in such a crucial phase in your teen life. I am genuinely my happy that at the end of his story, he realized that he is living his life for yourself, and that the opinions of strangers on your life is never as important as your opinion of yourself (if you can’t love yourself, how can you love somebody else). I loved how his character really grew and give time to discover himself in the end.

Kang (Shin Woo), the precious little pancake! I just want to protect with my whole life! He was so adorable, and he is just our strong boy! His character has experienced so much with losing his friends from just being himself. Him being just love struck with Tae Kyung was just so KILIG to watch! I squealed so many times during his scenes with Lee (Tae Kyung). It was embarrassing. We love a gay boy who knows what he wants and does what he can to fight for it. “Fighting!”
Side note, did you notice his LIPS! They were so dry (not in a bad way). I just wanted to lick them every time there was a closeup on them! So kissable!

There is an obvious juxtaposition between the characters of Kang (Shin Woo) and Choe (Da On), where the former has been stung at a young age by prejudice and now hides his real feelings, while the latter is still just discovering himself, but in being such a public figure, is stifled by how the world perceives him.

With a setting of an all boys school, not withstanding that it’s also set in Korea, an obvious norm of toxic machismo is present within the male student body; an environment where being different is treated as a disease. Children are made afraid of being who they are, that is shown in the series. When a child finds out that he is different, instead of embracing it and accepting it as a part of them, they are made to think that this new found part of them has to be kept a secret. My heart goes out to Shin Woo and Da An. The struggle is real, and we have to do our part to move society where kids like them don’t live in fear.

Lastly, of course, and not least, Lee (Tae Kyung) gave such a lovely performance. In another life, little gay high school me also had 2 boys fighting over my affection. He was such an innocent character that just wanted to be accepted by his peers. Cute as a button. Thank goodness he never got scars from all the facial injuries he seemed to receive. Ahahaha. I wish I was as confident as him when I was in high school.

To close, I am subtly reminded of the events of the recent Olympics in Tokyo, where a GOLD medalist Korean woman was accused of being a feminist based on her non female conforming haircut. And the Korean, mostly male, population was scandalized and would rather have her revoke her golds just because of their alarm of her potentially being a feminist based purely on the fact of her hat cut. It seems that through the gloss and veneer of KPop and KDrama, we tend to forget that Korea is still deeply intrench in its conservative traditions. (Surprisingly way more conservative than my über Catholic home country). I honestly lost a bit of respect for Korea then, but I do honestly hope that through time, with representation in media as seen in Light On Me, that Korea will soon become a more accepting country.

The Koreans are very conservative. And that’s not going to fly with our changing world.

We have to do our part to normalize equality in our society. We must teach children that love is love is love.

Proper LGBT representation? Best Korea has to offer so far!

P.S. Lee, Kang, Choe, and Go we’re born in ‘95, ‘94, ‘95, and ‘96 respectively. I was also born in ‘94. Can I also still pass for high school!? Ahahaha. The gift of hydrated youthful looking skin, I guess. SANA ALL!

Leia Mais

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to have a basic shojo story with a male lead

For me it was watchable and enjoyable to some degree.
It was reasonably well-written and didn’t have much of a pacing issue like, let’s say a lot of Thai BLs do but it was still a predictable, basic, Shojo-seque story with a nondescript male lead and two Love Interests. A moody/broody Love Interest and a cheery/helpful Love Interest.

What I found especially interesting is that the atmosphere felt a lot like a webcomic or a manga. Maybe it’s bc of the vivid colors and make-up or bc of the camera work and editing. I’m not sure what it was but it felt very much like reading a comic. The atmosphere wasn’t really realistic but rather fairytale-like, which I actually liked.
The love triangle was very well-done. I mostly had the right hunch but there were times where I wasn’t hundred percent sure who TK is gonna end up with. It wasn’t pointless, it was understandable and it propelled the story.

I’m usually a sucker for slow burn but in this case unfortunately the story became dull and kinda boring towards the end. I think it’s bc when the time came to level up the drama the makers didn’t do the same with the pacing and it ended up being kinda out of sync with the all the drama happening in the series. The feeling was similar to like when you’re getting on an ride in an amusement park but something just keeps pulling you back. It prevents you from speeding up and enjoying the climax of the ride. That’s how this story felt to me in its third part.
My biggest problem though was the non-existent personality of the main lead. He simply didn’t have any core personality. He just did what felt best for the story at the moment. He was constantly changing his personality from awkward to blatantly honest or even aggressive to shy. These changes didn’t necessarily stem from character development but were rather random. It really bothered me. Everyone else did have a core personality, only TK was left to be very vague. He literally felt like a half-baked main character of a Visual Novel for the audience to identify with.
He was also fsr completely showered in make up. With his over-painted and strangely non-expressive porcelain doll face he looked like an alien to me. He somehow felt human but also kind of didn’t. It’s like he was in the Uncanny Valley. It was probably the directors fault but...who knows.
The overall development of romantic feelings in this series was a bit underwhelming too. While I could kind of understand why TK would fall in love with Da On and maybe vice versa, I had a hard time getting why Shin Woo fell for TK. It seemed like he fell for him in that study room while TK told the other boys that he wasn’t interested in games and they should just go bc they were disturbing other students but I still don’t get why that would make him fall for TK. ShinWoo’s development of romantic feelings didn’t really make much sense to me and TK too, fell for ShinWoo way too fast. I personally didn’t mind them getting together but tbh I felt like it would make more sense for him to end up with Da On. But both of them kind of worked so it’s fine.
Oh and btw. could somebody pls explain to me how in the hell did TK win that princely contest or whatever it’s called? That just straight up pulled me out of the story bc it was so unbelievable! What happened there? He was super awkward and couldn’t even talk properly and he won? How? Why? I don’t get it. Somebody explain it to me.

Anyway, regardless of my enjoyment level I’m still very grateful that Korea slowly decides to put more effort und budget into BLs. Hopefully Light On Me will become an important milestone in the history of Korean BLs. I’m truly thankful for that.

Leia Mais

it seriously felt like a waste of time

the plot is meh, the acting is meh... tbh when it started, the first eps were exciting it did have potential, but later on it didnt live up to my expectations, i dk it started as enemy to lovers but instead they suddenly added a triange love and i was like "ok" until it dragged and dragged, for how long? so the plot looks all about a never ending triangle and i started to get really bored, until i feel i had enough.
and the girl is annoying asf, i get it they are friends but if i was a part of the group i'd already be dragging her by her hair to get her out of the school because no go stalk someone else girl or nah even better get some help (im not into violence im just so annoyed about her character but for real id stop being friends with someone who behave like her), so i dont understand why they had to bear her non stop stalking and how she behave and talk with people. i also had enough of shows trying to include an "evil" girl or whatever
what im saying the plot is really weak ,the acting is not great, the chemistry no too, unfortunately i dont see myself finishing this show

Leia Mais

It's okay

This drama is more of a coming-of-age kind of BL. Yes, although, there is explicit romance and fluff but personally, it focused more on the discovery of the self and the things that come with it. At first, it kind of did looked like your cliché BL but as it goes on, it "strayed" away from that path.

The drama was just an "okay" drama because it just revolved around the 5 characters. There weren't even parents present in their respective houses. Another thing, when the MC realized that he liked a guy, he didn't undergo any pondering, reflection, or what. I mean, I don't know about other people but that kind of discovery deserved some time to think.

In addition, when people debated on who TK will choose between the DO and SW, I thought that it was better to not choose at all. I felt like TK could've given himself time to think things. He was torn between his former like and present like. TK liked DO because he was the first friend he had and TK developed feelings towards SW because he was there during his broken-hearted phase. I liked SW's character and I believe he didn’t deserved that affection or feelings that developed just because he was the one comforting TK when he was broken-hearted and sad because of DO. What if another person was there for TK? Will he also develop feelings for that person? Just my thoughts.

Anyway, still a good drama. There were really good philosophical thoughts here. Very quotable.

Leia Mais

A really enjoyable and cute BL with some really well done love triangle

The drama follows the story of Tae-Kyung, a blunt and awkward loner, who decides to join the student council of his all-boys high school to try to make some friends. He meets there 3 high school boys, very different from each other...The show resolves around how their relationships flourish (into a friendship or even more as feelings get into play...).

I loved the 4 main characters right of the bat: there are a bit stereotypical but that is what makes the show works so well! There are: our hero (the blunt and awkward guy without filters), the tsundere one (heart of gold behind a cold demeanour), the charming prince (nice with everyone but somewhat distant) and the funny guy (cute but also very perceptive and protective of his friends).

I found the story super refreshing, really pure and cute. It was efficiently paced over the course of 16 episodes of 24 minutes allowing enough storylines and characters developments. The various relationships felt fully fleshed: the love triangle was super balanced, it was very difficult to guess in which direction it will go. I must say I was really satisfied the way it went was what I wished for. However, I was (as it is often the case in BL shows) disappointed by the girl part. She is there mainly to create the drama (which is OK) but it is difficult to sympathize with her. I also found her redemption arc not believable and unnecessary.

The making was not outstanding but fun with vibrant colours. I loved the OST so much: the two main songs are sentimental and pop, totally fitting for the drama, and I was super frustrated to never hear them in full as they were mostly set at the end of the episodes in a shortened version...

I would recommend this to people looking for a light and cute BL story with a sweet and well done love triangle in a high-school setting. With its love story balancing in an interesting way scenes between multiple love interests, it gives a bit a similar vibe to the drama "Cinderella and the Four Knights", so if you enjoyed it, you might want to give it a go !

Leia Mais

The characters were super relatable

Let’s be honest, the plot was not anything new or exciting, but I think the execution was done well! The plot was given time to develop, the friendships had time to form, and love had time to blossom. It’s definitely a slow-burn with a sprinkle of love triangle, maybe even a love square. The cinematography was beautiful, the locations were very picturesque. The music, the lightning, the camera angles… Korean series have definitely mastered that.

Noh Shin Woo & Woo Tae Kyung – the two are a hot mess. I think they are both so relatable. Tae Kyung is an introvert, does not have any friends, and doesn’t do well in social situations. He does often come across as cold and closed off, but I think it was often just his nerves and not knowing how to act in given situations. Shin Woo has a crush, and he does not know how to handle it. He has been hurt in the past, so he built walls to protect himself. He is awkward and comes across as rude, but in reality, he simply doesn’t know how to act around his crush. I really like how they take things slow, going from enemies to friends and only then to lovers. It is not rushed. This is a first love, first relationship for both after all.

Shin Da On – he is an over achiever and a people pleaser. He is friendly, approachable, always smiling and hiding his true feelings. I think his struggle to maintain his status, the idea of him that others have, has been done nicely, especially in the latter episodes. It really showed the painful reality of trying to achieve the expectations of others. Da On trying to be good and helpful to everyone did contribute to certain people feeling like he was leading them on, like they meant more to him. And I really appreciate how that was pointed out.

I do think that Shin Woo and Tae Kyung were not given enough time as a couple. I really wished everything would have been resolved sooner and we would get to see them being all cute and lovely for a bit longer. I also think certain people were forgiven too easily. What that person did is horrible, especially considering the society and the school environment. Another thing that bothered me is how it was implied that we can decide who we will like. That’s not how it works. Just because someone is being nice to you or has feelings for you, you can’t just say “I am going to like that person too” and be done with it. I found that very strange and not really making any sense.

I think it was good that they addressed and showed negative aspects of being gay in all boys’ school. It is definitely not all sunshine and rainbows and people are not nearly as accepting as we would all like them to. So I think it’s important that such things get addressed from both the positive and negative side.

Leia Mais

Korean BL drama that spends enough time to develop friendships/relationships

Completed - 4/2/2022

Korean BL dramas tend to be pretty short, so I am glad to see that "Light on Me" is a longer one. And because of that, I feel that there's enough time for the drama to really develop the friendships and the love triangle well. The development feels organic and at a good pace. Most of the time, high school or college BL dramas focus so much on cuteness and fluffiness, that the romance develops way too fast and quite forced. "Light on Me" is able to spend time to let Woo Tae Kyung's character develop and really shows us how he grows from an anti-social loner, to one surrounded by close friends and loved ones.

Speaking of Tae Kyung, I am also happy to see a male lead that is not overly innocent and passive, a doormat or pushover. Although Tae Kyung is quiet, he's honest and will fight back. He's not afraid to speak his mind and thus, avoids any type of miscommunication or lack of communication, esp. when it comes to his relationship with Shin Da on. He wears his heart on his sleeves and really left the ball on Da On's court initially. The dynamic between him and Noh Shin Woo is different. He's not the smitten one, but one that holds the power to dictate how the relationship goes.

On the other hand, due to the longer length of the drama, I also would like to see other small subplots. I want to know more about Shin Da On's family and their family dynamics. What really prompted him to strive so hard to be liked and not be a disappointment. I want to see more about Noh Shin Woo's initial feelings towards Tae Kyung. We were only shown a few quick flashbacks of the initial attraction, but I would have loved to see more and know more of his background story. This drama did a good job in providing enough materials for Tae Kyung's character, but I wanted to know more about the other characters in general.

Acting and production quality seem to be decent. I would say Kang Yoo Seok (who plays Noh Shin Woo) might have the best acting performance out of the bunch. But then, I might also be bias as I think he's the most handsome one in this drama as well. LOL. Acting is not cringey but not always natural. They definitely act better with the more outgoing/friendly/fun scenes, than those that are emotional or require subtle facial expressions.

Leia Mais

SEASON 2 Should Happen (honest review)

HONEST REVIEW.

This is a proof that having LONGER episodes could add more value to the story and drama itself. It stretches the plot, gives the characters more exposure and builds deeper emotions and attachment from the audiences. Of course it has to have a good storyline like this one.

I’ve watched several BLs already (chinese, thai, japanese), so trust me, this is on my Top 5! It’s the most k-drama like BL drama (if you get what I mean).

It’s actually so REALISTIC. I’ve had someone like Daon in my life (lol). He was afraid to be a disappointment to his family, and everyone else. So he couldn’t fight for me. But he loved me. Anyway, the way every scene reminded me of our struggles before just get to shows that it’s something that really happens in real life.

So I basically watched it for Yooseok, but… I ENDED UP FALLING IN LOVE WITH CHOE CHANYI (SHIN DAON) ?

He played his role so well, that even I myself fell for him ? I was happy to see him happy. Admire him for always understanding people and situations. I was also hurt, when he was hurting. I was sad with him. I was regretful with him. I was with him on this drama. He made me, be with him all throughout.

It’s crazy!!! I don’t wanna invalidate Shinwoo’s efforts… he deserves everything… but Daon has a special place in my heart already and it grew bigger and bigger I couldn’t just let go of him. Like I wish Taekyung could’ve been more patient and understanding about Daon’s situation. They ain’t the same, Daon got different things to consider, different background, different people in his life, and I wish Taekyung could’ve supported him more while he was struggling. Daon (his character even in real life) needs someone who won’t give up on him, someone who he could call his safe haven where he can rest when reality hits him so hard. It was his first time as well so his situation was really understandable too.

This is not one of those dramas with 2nd Lead Syndrome (If I’m taking Daon as the main love interest), cause I want them to end up together so bad LOL.

If Season 2 will be about a 2nd Chance of Taekyung x Daon??? That would be THE END OF ME.

Like what if Shinwoo would for some reason screw up, or his Old Crush would come back???? Then Daon will be there for Taekyung. OMG OMGGG WE ALL NEED SEASON 2 WITH SAME CAST JUST ADD MORE LOL

Leia Mais

More than meets the eye

Wow, it's interesting to read the reviews here and see how polarised people are about this show. I came to this one a bit late - so many shows to watch, so little time! - this show did not disappoint. Let's dive in!

So maybe let's start with the positives? The Korean industry is only just warming up to this genre, but we knew at some point they were going to upgrade from 6 x 15 minute episodes to a full 16 eps. REJOICE! I think Light On Me really nailed it with the length of this show. 16 x 25 minute-ish episodes was great pacing for me. So often K-dramas want to give us so much that they end up giving us too much - think Crash Landing On You's epic 16 x 1.5 hour episodes - even as a huge fan of the CLOY show I could see how much padding went into the eps. So for me the length of the show was spot on - just enough to properly set up and grow the story line for us, but not too much that we start to see some silly scenes.

Aesthetically, this show is really beautiful and pleasing in its restraint. It opted for the surreal technicolour treatment that K-dramas tend to employ, especially so in their high school settings. However it is uncluttered and clean, as is the music. We are not smacked on the head with the OST every few minutes. In fact, everything is so minimalist that it really forces us to focus on the actors. The colour work and editing is so schmick. Every small grimace and slight hesitation is magnified to deliver a super-charged version of the sweaty angst and pressures of being 18 and in love for the first time. And oh boy, do we get all of this in spades.

On to the negatives - surprise, surprise, the baddie is female - AGAIN! Thanks, BL genre. I mean, in the context of this show, I get it. The story called for a female love interest, but did she have to be the antagonist AND the most unlikeable character too? The BL industry seems to think so ... over and over and over again. Also, how the most popular boys in the school so easily decided to adopt an orphan puppy at the start of the show was a bit unrealistic. Plus, we only ever saw the 4 boys in the student council room for the entire show, despite their being apparently 20 students in the council. There were a few of these little details which broke the spell a bit for me, but they were minor hiccups which did not detract from the show.

Which brings us to the story. On the surface, this is a very standard high-school love triangle, but it really, truly isn't. For starters, the love triangle is so creatively set up that we do not and can not know which two people will end up together until Act 3. We are totally rooting for either the Shin Woo or Da On camps, not just from episode to episode but from scene to scene. In some ways, we end up rooting for all four boys and their lives, really. Therein lies the strength in this show for me - each of the four characters are vivid, compelling and SO DAMN LIKEABLE. Yes, even Tae Gyung! Unlike many other reviewers I did not find his acting awkward ... I mean, his character was meant to be socially awkward, right? I was invested in all of them and very divided about how it was going to be resolved, which of course is exactly what they wanted.

So how does it resolve? In a really mature way, which, let's face it, is unrealistic for 18-year old lovesick boys. But I guess just like the four super likeable boys of this story, maybe this is the version of reality that we want to believe in.

PS: the ever popular Spock Hairdo continues to dominate.

PPS: For a super detailed and really illuminating read, I highly recommend Absolute BL's review of Light On Me on Tumblr.

Leia Mais

Adorable!

Actually, at no point was I rooting for Daon. I don't feel like he was ever right for Tae. Daon is handsome and kind, but I don't think he ever knew what Tae wanted or needed, whereas Shinwoo effortlessly fit with Tae. I wished Daon a happy, healthy, journey to self discovery much like Tae did.

The reasons I didn't give 10/10:
1) I wanted a clear break between Tae's feelings for Daon and Shinwoo.
2) Lee Sohee. She was redeemed for me in the end, which pushed my 8 star to a 9 star, but gosh she was MEAN!
3) I wanted more from the only kiss scene we got in the last few minutes of the show.

Leia Mais

Voir Kang You Seok dans Black Knight m'a donné envie de revoir Light On Me. De plus, je n'avais pas partagé mon avis ici, c'était aussi l'occasion de le faire. Bref !

J'aime la douceur de ce drama. Même si on peut y voir le cliché d'une romance de lycée, on y trouve bien plus d'émotion et de profondeur qu'il n'y paraît. La première fois que j'ai vu ce drama (lors de sa diffusion donc), j'étais septique. Le premier épisode ne lui rend pas honneur, les suivants sont bien meilleurs. Pour ma part, ce n'est qu'une fois arrivée aux épisodes 8/9 que je me suis rendue compte être enthousiaste dans l'attente des suivants, jusqu'à l'impatience d'être à la semaine prochaine.

Sans m'en rendre compte, je me suis prise d'affection pour les personnages. Parce qu'ils sont l'essence même de Light On Me.
Woo Tae Kyung est franc, introverti et maladroitement mignon. C'est aussi un garçon courageux qui assume ses sentiments avec une certaine réflexion. Lee Sae On donne une jolie performance bien qu'on sente qu'il n'a pas encore exploré ses talents d'acteur. Cependant, son manque d'expérience lui permet de peindre un personnage maladroit et parfois trop tiré qui est en accord avec Tae Kyung.
Le mystérieux Noh Shin Woo. J'ai aimé la façon dont il avance à son rythme. Il a conscience d'être lent, mais il reste malgré tout fidèle à ses valeurs et lui-même. Aujourd'hui, on tente toujours d'aller trop vite ou de laisser les autres nous façonner à leur manière. Shin Woo prend son temps et s'occupe sincèrement des gens qui comptent pour lui avec des actions silencieuses. Kang You Seok livre un personnage doux et fort d'émotion.
Ensuite, Shi Dan On, le président du Conseil des élèves. Sous pression par ses parents et son rôle de président, il doit être parfait en tout et partout. Choi Chan Yi dépeint un jeune homme très solitaire qui va doucement passer par une prise de conscience.
Quant à Namgoong, il incarne à lui seul la parfaite définition de l'amitié. Le genre d'ami qui réchauffe ton cœur avec son grand sourire et son affection communicative. Ko Woo Jin représente à merveille l'amitié et les rires avec son regard pétillant de malice.

En réalité, le seul personnage qui n'a pas trouvé d'intérêt à mes yeux est So Hee, interprétée par Yang Seo Hyun. Pour moi, elle est seulement là pour ajouter une petite rivalité, mais qui n'apporte pas grand chose à l'histoire. Elle aurait pu simplement être autre chose que la fille amoureuse et obstinée qui ne veut pas lâcher prise.
Le triangle (le carré plutôt) amoureux n'est pas malsain ou toxique. La romance est adorable ainsi que les réflexions des personnages.

Sans trop en faire, sans artifices particuliers Lee Ji Eun nous livre une jolie histoire ainsi que d'agréables personnages. Quant à Lee Yoo Yeon, il offre de beaux plans et des mises en scènes subtiles et gérées.
Dans son ensemble, Light On Me est un moment doux et agréable avec des personnages rayonnants auquel on s'attache beaucoup trop rapidement. Il rappelle aussi que trouver sa place n'est pas facile, mais qu'il faut prendre son temps et ne pas s'oublier.

Leia Mais