BLISS RATING: ★★★★+
“If two hearts are meant to be together, fate will bring them together regardless of time, or challenges.” – Instagram/Love is destined…
Unique is not quite the right word to describe this series. It is an incredibly fascinating series that will leave you wondering, am I watching the “Perils of Pauline”. (Look it up if you do not know what that reference is). The first 4 to 5 episodes are beyond trying to describe. They are filled with the macabre, killings, tortures, and painful dilemmas. Each is a separate anthology with episode 5 the beginning of a semblance of a cohesive story. The only constant is that two characters are in love with one other character lurking and negatively influencing the entire story.
It is a passionate love story between Tien (Duoc si Tien) and Tai (Huu Tai). It is obvious from the first episode that these two are in love with each other but how that came about is unknown. (That intrigued me). The only connection is that this intense love that they feel for each other transcends all obstacles in their path. And they have huge obstacles to overcome. I cannot decide how I feel about the first 4 episodes since they are so unrelated yet somehow connected. The connection is both love that they have for each other and an evil revenge that is hell-bent on destroying that love.
That destruction in their happiness is Hong (Luang Anh Ngoc). She is so sinister, evil, mentally deranged yet central to their development as a couple. Honestly, this story makes the ‘Perils of Pauline’ look like a cakewalk in the park. These guys suffer immeasurable pain and agony over many years to attain the fruition of their love. I do not want to summarize the story for you because you must see it for yourself. I must warn you that this series is raw, gritty, non-apologetic about its delves into the macabre, killings, stalkings, and murder. It is bloody and gruesome so hold off if this is not your thing.
Normally, I might find this all a bit too gratuitous but, in this case, it is central to their development. Their relationship would not be as strong if these situations had not occurred.
There is an introduction in about episode six that brings this series to an intensely greater human level and a new kind of commitment is added to their relationship. A very young student, named Do (Gia Huy), is orphaned, and is cared for by Tai, who is his teacher. As Tien enters the picture, he too is captured by Do’s charm and intensity. It forces this couple to not only maintain their own relationship but to commit themselves to the awesome responsibility of having a child to take care of. Indeed, this was a brilliant and unexpected twist. With all the insanity in their lives and in their relationship, the introduction of a child that influences their own relationship was ingenious and unexpected. But is that not life?! This kid almost single handedly steals this series with his charm and wit. (By the way, this boy can ACT! He is superb!).
I am truly not doing this BL series any justice in trying to describe it. There is so much to process in this production but to summarize more would be to give away too much of the story and plot. I want the viewer to experience for themselves what this series is all about. Some will no doubt hate it, while other will love it because of its very unusual approach to its story line. I think it is brilliant. It is extremely well acted by all and there are a few steamy kissing scenes. I bought the relationship and the intensity of it. Yes, it is difficult to watch at times, but its overriding message is love will conquer all.
There is also a sequel to this series Called TIEN BROMANCE — MY SMALL FAMILY. These are snippets of scenes after Tien and Tai are together and Do has been adopted by them. I must admit that some of the scenes are quite endearing while others missed the mark. The problem with this mini-series (5 episodes of short duration) is the scenes are not always in sequence and the translations into English are choppy and not very good.
Again, a lot of it is simply translated into English words without context of meaning or syntax. I know these are not made for English speaking audiences (oh, how I wish they were) so I am not faulting the production, necessarily. It is obvious that they put in a lot of time and energy into making this story feel more like a real home exists (which it does). They tackle some very interesting issues such as bullying, jealousy, and most importantly having two gay dads rather than a mother and father. They do not shy away from this issue. They also tackle the normal growing up issues of trying to raise a child who at times is a bit precocious.
Who really S.T.O.L.E. these series? Gia Huy as Do is simply brilliant. He does not take away the intensity of the main leads but sure does hold his own. Do stole the scenes he is in both in this one and My Small World. He is an absolute natural on camera and makes this story work so well. He is just a joy to watch.
Duoc si Tien and Huu Tai display passionately the love these two characters have for each other with such believability, fervor, and commitment it is so hard to imagine that they are only acting. They are so relatable, and we get to see them in the humdrum of everyday living. Nothing special at times but these slices of life are what living is all about. They are truly good and despite all the issues with translations and editing, I just liked this series. Kudos for making gayness so ordinary at times despite the wildness at the beginning!
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