Dark Blue Kiss (2019)

This is as good as everyone says!

I can't believe I binged this for 12 hours straight, but also... yes I can.

This was so good I couldn't hit pause! The way this series absolutely captured my heart, broke it, and put it back together is insane.

As a spice lover, I almost didn't notice the fact the leads only kissed once (I think) so they did an amazing job selling the romance with little physical intimacy! (Though it is implied to have happened a lot off screen making it cheeky and funny)

Non being an angsty high schooler made a great villain. I thoroughly hated him. His immaturity and age showed quite well!

I loved both main couples, Rain and his love interest didn't interest me at all tbh. But Sun and Mork omg. Amazing!! Ofc Kao and Pete were epic.

I actually haven't seen any of the prequels and had no issue understanding and falling in love with this cast and the plot. Well done!

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Deeper than you may think

I read a lot of reviews and I think that when you watch this series you can whether like or dislike it. A lot of people criticised the fact that the story of Pete and Kao wasn't interesting because they fought for twelve episodes long. I disagree. Some people said that Sun and Mork's story was far more interesting than Pete and Kao's. I disagree : both of them were. Though, I agree with this who argued that Kao was maybe too passive and Pete sometimes too agressive. But it can be explained. + I apologise if there are any English mistakes.

Pete & Kao

I loved them in Kiss Me Again, I loved them more in Dark Blue Kiss. Why? Because it was the first time I watched a BL story that seemed so realist. The issues both of the leads faced were real issues. They have to deal with family, friends, work issues. DBK shows all the struggles a gay couple have to faced in our societies ( societies that accept gays relationships more or less). For instance, during all the series, Pete wants Kao to tell his mother about their relationship but he dares not, he's afraid to be a bad son. Same thing goes when he hides himself to his friends. Pete is more confident about who he is because he is already accepted by his father so it's easier for him. And while Kao is struggling with his sex orientation thing, Pete is struggling with himself. He has everything thanks to his father but he's still not confident (he doesn't have good grades etc.) which explain the fact he's so possessive over Kao. He's afraid of losing him, he's afraid for being not good enough and the fact that his secret boyfriend doesn't admit he's gay doesn't help him. I think that if they fought so much it's because they're afraid and that fear pushes them to lie or hide there feelings or even being not very understanding. But despite all of that they love each other so much. The two actors have a very good chemistry and I liked how sweet was Pete and Kao relationship. I loved how they had all those little fights, I loved how they support each other and show their affection in their own way. I think ep 7 was very important : Kao's surprise for Pete on their anniversary day showed that whatever people may say and even if Kao hides things, he likes Pete the most. Finally, I want to talk about the love/kiss scenes. GMMTV's dramas do not often show much. But what I liked in this one was all the allusions. It was different from SOTUS because we know that Pete and Kao are used to each other presence, they are confortable with each other (and yeah they do have sex, Pete seems to think about this a lot ahah). They discuss mature subject like wedding or making love. I liked that. Their friends and their families were amazing also.

Sun & Mork

I liked their story too, it was really fluffy and interesting. It was a pleasure to see Sun happy and to see everybody happy at the end in fact. I love they love-hate relationship and how understanding and funny Rain is with them. Like, the scene with all the three in the bed was so cute and funny. I was pleased to see a gay character that really assumed to be gay (Sun) and know that he is since a long time.

Let's talk abut Non now (and then I stop). I dislike him of course but poor boy, his father push him to become like that. I didn't like him since the beginning but in fact I think that Pete was a bit to much angry because Non was just doing some childish things to get him angry and Pete played the game. So I agree with the fact that Pete's jealousy was a bit excessive. In fact Non wasn't that evil. He is just a child who is looking for some attention and because his dad doesn't look at him, he is searching Kao attention, and Pete's in some way also.

So, I loved this drama as you can see by how long my review is. I think the story may seems cliché and a bit annoying for some but it's deeper than that.

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Nearly won me over

I have to say, immediately after completing the series I thought it was 10 worthy but after I actually thought about what i'd just watched properly I realised it was more like an 8ish.

I enjoyed the couples:

Pete and Kao - They covered a lot of actual issues that the LGBT+ community face all over the world which made the relationship feel more realistic and made this series stand out from a lot of other Thai bl's

Sun and Mork - My faves, that cute storyline where they 'hate' each other and you're just waiting for them to realise that they actually love each other. We got some very satisfying scenes from them I thought.

Manow and Rain - Wasn't quite as invested in this couple, felt a little 'oh Mork likes Sun, hey Rain, let's date now then' :/

My only main issue was Non, wayyyyy too much of him in this series, could have done with a lot less, felt like his personality traits were being a relationship wrecker and an assaulter who accuses his victim of assault (what?)

Oh and both bl couples were fighting at the same time so it might have been nice if these could be staggered so that we still got sweet moments from one couple while the others were arguing

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TayNew's chemistry makes Pete's character easy to forgive

After only recently discovering the world of Thai BLs, it soon became apparent that Dark Blue Kiss is among the fan favorites. I figured I'd give it a try from the very beginning. So, I watched all of Kiss the Series before moving on to Kiss Me Again. About a third of the way through KMA, I decided to start Dark Blue Kiss. I ultimately ended up finishing DBK before KMA.

Right away I noticed that the production was the best out of the entire Kiss entire. I was very pleased that the BL drama in a franchise was treated with the most delicacy. The opening credits blew me away. The tension rises as the opening music's intensity swells. Visually, glass shatters and Kao cries. It was a perfect match to the perfect opening scene, showing a big blowout between the show's main couple.

Even though DBK is the 3rd installment in a series, it's very digestible for new audiences who have no knowledge of Kiss or Kiss Me Again. In fact, there's nearly no reason at all to watch the other two series, as Pete and Kao's story lacks any continuity whatsoever. Ex: The two had revealed their relationship to the entire gang at the end of Kiss but in DBK, it's a secret to everyone but Sandee, who knew everything that was going on in Kiss Me Again (set before the events of Kiss), despite being shocked when they told her in Kiss.

Not only are PeteKao's story retconned multiple times but so are their personalities. Kao, for the most part, kinda remains the same, though he was much more goofier in Kiss and he always wore glasses that were never seen in DBK or KMA. Pete, however, is an everchanging character. Seeing as I watched him first in Kiss as Sandee's sweet and supportive friend, I was SHOCKED to see him be such an asshole in Kiss Me Again. But, I understood that he was acting out because of his feelings for Kao. In DBK, he's just an asshole simply because.

And don't get me wrong, the retconning stuff isn't ideal but it's nothing too bad. I certainly think it benefits most of the watchers who aren't interested in watching Kiss or Kiss Me Again. But Kao being an asshole was one of the few issues that I had with DBK. I thought Pete was an awful boyfriend. He's extremely toxic in his possessive and accusatory ways and he makes no apologies for it. I hate that the story leaned more towards Kao's actions being the problem by lying to his unreasonable boyfriend. Kao's livelihood was at stake but Pete wanted him to drop a client because of his insecurities. Pete was truly insufferable and he was never truly called out for it. And judging by the YouTube comments, viewers were actually romanticizing his toxic behavior. *Sigh*

BUT, despite how much I disliked Pete as a character, the chemistry that Tay has with New is undeniable. I enjoyed the sweet, romantic moments between the two and I can see why DBK is among the highly recommended of Thai BLs. Fans also seem to really enjoy Sun/Mork as the show's side couple. Truth be told, I was only mildly interested. The chemistry was great but I felt like there was too much back-and-forth with the development in the beginning. There was no consistent dynamic to their interactions. Sometimes Mork would talk about Sun with great disdain and then they have a snarky but cordial moment that leads to Mork and Sun softening up around each other... and then enemies again in the next episode. By the time there was more to relationship, I found that I didn't care about the relationship as much as the show wanted me to. Rain/Manow was background noise (which is unfortunate because Rain was one of my favorite characters in DBK).

Another minor issue I had was that I felt that there was too much emphasis put on Non's strict, tough-love upbringing with his overbearing father for there to be no satisfying conclusion to that story. Honestly, the writers really dropped the ball with Non as a character. There was a lot of potential to write a very gray character and build conflict that has the audience with a foot on each side. (for example: in the Thai drama titled 3 Will Be Free, starring DBK's Tay Tawan, two supporting characters are in direct conflict with the show's leads but because we get so much perspective from their side, they aren't considered bad guys to the viewers). It really annoys me when the writing is too simple and that's exactly what you get with Non. A simple villain. So much lost potential.

Overall, despite my issues with Pete as a character and how I personally believe that Non should have been written more sympathetically, I think DBK is very enjoyable.

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Splendid!

I'd read a lot of praise surrounding "Dark Blue Kiss" and was so excited to finally get around to it. Happy that it didn't disappoint one bit!

Alright, so first PeteKao:

Let's be honest, Pete isn't the most... likeable in this one, but I do love him all the same. I mean, his boyfriend is the cutest, sweetest, most likeable guy in all of their school, I'd be worried about someone wanting to snatch him up, too! He thankfully makes a few good points eventually which helps redeem him. Although, thank god for Sandee for telling him straight a few times. As for Kao, I think it's already clear that I adore him. I just wanna eat him up.

Although can we talk about how in one of the prequels, Kao is the one taking photos for Sun but now Pete is the photography enthusiast and Kao suddenly knows nothing about cameras? That was weird.

I'm obsessed with Pete's dad and Kao's mom. All of their scenes are so precious and really wonderful and honestly so refreshing and necessary when telling a story about a kid afraid of coming out. To see both of them react so beautifully is wonderful.

There's a lot that reminded of "Tharntype 2". Kao and Type getting into trouble for being too kind to a kid with a crush and bad intentions, Fiat and Non being that kid with a crush, and finally Tharn and Pete being the possessive and jealous type. Though I love "Tharntype 2", "Dark Blue Kiss" has more than just miscommunication to the major conflict which is a big plus (there's still a lot of it, though, so they're both pretty much equally frustrating eheh).

Speaking of Non, I think it's hilarious that he just disappears after the truth comes out. Fiat gets a redeeming ark in Tharntype and I was not about it, I actually thought this was much more fun when you've spent a whole season hating the kid. Karma (but yeah his dad needs to chill...).

Then, SunMork:

Sun is really cute and I do like him but it takes that boy such a long time to question himself and it doesn't look like he ever would have without Rain. Rain being sort of stuck in the middle was actually really awesome. I loved him. He's really sweet, loyal, kind, and funny; what more can you ask for? I feel as though I still don't really know Mork, which is a shame, but I like him. I thought their story was just as interesting as Pete and Kao.

The soundtrack is really, really great. I'm especially obsessed with the opening credits, I never skipped it, it was that good!

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Aof Noppharnach Chaiwimol’s Drama Gem

I am now a fan of Director-Screenwriter-Producer Aof Noppharnach Chaiwimol and will watch out for his future projects. I noticed that if Noppharnach is given helm of his projects, we get gems like Dark Blue Kiss, Bad Buddy and A Tale of a Thousand Stars… First off, I read in other reviews that there is a problem in continuity of the previous Kiss series and DBK. I think the producers gave Noppharnach the freedom to adjust the script so he can work his magic. And he did not disappoint.

I find DBK a light drama which touches the heart. But there are so many lessons that we might think unimportant, but small details that everyone can learn to further understand our lgbtq siblings. This is also a good watch for parents. Sex and Sexuality can be difficult topics, so these talks are better done early on with the kids so they become proud mature individuals.

DBK could have been a heavy dramatic series but Director Noppharnach chose not to do so. Which is a relief coz not all problems need to crush our world. I love how Kao, the seemingly timid half of Pete-Kao duo, handled his multitude problems. He is stoic and continued with living. He did not have a dramatic breakdown because his relationship of 3 years is falling apart. No TharnType moments. This is strength and maturity. Problems come and go, it is how you deal with them that shows your character.

I am now a fan of New and Tay. I used to wonder why Earth-New did not push through. Now I know why. The chemistry of New and Tay hands down beat Earth-New in Water Boyzz. Probably because of the director. Noppharnach is a master in shipping his romantic pairs: NewTay (DBK), EarthMix (AToTS), PranPat (BadBuddy). In DBK, it was a delight to watch the other relationships: Sun-Mork, Rain-Manow, brothers + bestfriend/boyfriend Rain-Sun-Mork. Everyone had great chemistry including the original gang from the Kiss series. And the parents, the usually forgotten and set aside people who have great influences in our protagonists, are given their time to shine (or sink). Then who would forget the brat but tragic looking-for-love Non. Viewers probably want to hug him due to his age but beat his butt with a big stick so he’ll learn his lesson. The three pairs with their individual backstories were all fluidly conveyed. A lot of romance between our established couple, and hopeful sweet moments with our budding pairs. No dramatics when not necessary.

Needless to say, this particular series will be watched multiple times by this reviewer.

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Finally understand why everyone loves this show

I had been putting of watching this, because I couldn't get through Kiss me again. But it was worth it! I basically binge-watched the whole show and enjoyed every second of it.

I especially love how this show wasn't scared to talk about important queer topics and did so kindly. For example when Rain basically outed Mork to his girlfriend, it wasn't a big deal to them, but Mork called him out on it anyways and educated his friend (and the viewers).
And Pete's Dad and Kao's Mum deserve parents of the year awards! I wish every parent would love their child unconditionally like this <3

This show made me truly happy and will forever be one of my favorites!

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Split Personality

Weird title, I know, but this BL left the strangest impression on me. It’s like there were two different writers, with two different agendas, each pulling the show in opposite directions. Apologies, as this is going to be a long one!

Story
Unlike a lot of BLs, that are more “slice of life,” Dark Blue Kiss actually had somewhat of a plotline for both couples, moving their stories forward. Not much, mind you. What got me was the forward-thinking moments juxtaposed by backward-thinking moments. It’s like there was one writer who was really progressive, perhaps a member of the LGBTQ community who wanted to actually address important issues pertaining to sexuality within a BL. And then there was another writer who was nothing but a BL fangirl who wanted to fill the show full of awful tropes. It was confusing. On the one hand, we had the fear of coming out, how being closeted can put pressure and tension on a relationship, a real discussion concerning what it’s like to be a gay man (we’re still allergic to the word “gay” for some reason, though they got pretty close here) in Thai society, the experiences of a young gay man living with a very homophobic father and how that can in turn affect his psyche, and female characters that weren’t there as plot devices—this was all great writing. For all that BLs should be about the LGBTQ community, it’s rare to see a show that actually tackles the above situations without making them contrived for the sake of just getting a couple together. This was evident when Kao finally came out to his mother, and it was “I like men,” not just, “I like Pete.” That’s a mature moment where he’s acknowledging his sexuality, not just his current relationship, as though the two are mutually exclusive. Similarly, with Sun’s ex-girlfriend, we get to see Sun as a gay man. In a genre where “I don’t like men, I just like X” is so common, it was nice to see some real representation.

Unfortunately, we weren’t without downsides. This is where it seemed like some secondary writer came along and just started tossing in all the awful BL stereotypes they could think of, and it really brought the show down. I’ll list just the few that jump out immediately: Intense jealousy that overrode any sense of empathy, a secondary character unrealistically bent on destroying the main couple, a bizarre inability to communicate simple concepts to one another that led to major conflict, the insistence on labeling one part of an mm couple the husband and the other the wife, so much lying for no real reason, and characters acting in an unreasonable manner for nothing but the sake of drama. Pete’s jealousy was so toxic and so over the top, and the worst part was he was never called out on it, making it seem like the show’s saying it’s fine or even loving to act like you possess and control the person you are dating. It was pushed to the point where he had absolutely no empathy for Kao’s living situation, and none for Non, a kid (a minor) with a crappy homelife, clearly suffering psychological abuse. Non was wrong in what he did, but he was so comically wrong at the end it just wasn’t believable, which is too bad because the show at first did a good job building empathy for him, but then ruined it by making him do something so bad I just rolled my eyes and went, “yeah, sure he did.” This was nothing but justification for Pete’s jealousy with a “see, he was right,” moment. Kao was no innocent party. All he needed to do was sit down with Pete and really explain why he needed to tutor Non, and then explain to Non that he wasn’t interested in him. Choosing to lie, deceive, and ignore what was an obvious attraction to him was just ridiculous—nothing in his character suggests that he would act this way, and so it all came across as contrived for the sake of the plot. Sun and Mork were also constantly unable to communicate in an effective manner, leading to so many unnecessary spats. Who runs into a hospital and starts yelling at someone who just got the crap kicked out of them? No one, that’s who. Sure, Sun was uptight, but that just pushed the bounds of believability. Who gets into a punch out outside of a club and then instantly gets over it and has sex because their younger brother scolded them? Again, no one. Sun at least somewhat acknowledges the error of his ways, but before he does that I don’t see why Mork was willing to sit down with him. This was all drama for the sake of drama, instantly resolved drama at that, when their relationship had been building nicely on its own. Fighting a lot is not a sign of loving each other more—that is not a healthy mindset. And, of course, we couldn’t escape the husband/wife label. The obsession this genre has with forcing heteronormativity upon a homosexual couple. At least this seemed to mainly be side characters using these terms, and not the main couples, but I’d love to see a BL where no one uses these terms to refer to two men. Or, where one of the men does not want to be referred to as a wife, since he isn’t a woman. This just fosters the idea that in an mm couple, one of the men is ultimately just a replacement or stand-in for a woman, instead of acknowledging the differences between straight and gay couples. People try to play it off as a joke, but I find it toxic. Sun actually had a nice moment at the end when he asked who wanted to be top and who wanted to be bottom that night—and wouldn’t it have been nice for a show to actually present this as a conversation, and not just each part of the couple instantly getting cast in one role or the other for who knows what reason. Versatility is much more common in relationships, as opposed to simple hook-ups where people state their preferences up front. For BLs to never show this is crazy, and of course, Sun’s words are then taken as a joke. Once again, a tale of two writers.

These two above paragraphs combined just made for some confusing messages, which is why it seemed like two different people were pushing the story in two different directions. When you compare the difference between an honest conversation about sexuality to the “I hope you never stop being possessive conversation,” the difference is clear, and it’s not good. I prefer the mature, realistic story in the first paragraph to the BL stereotype-laden story of the second.

Acting/Characterization; Intimacy/Heat Level
The casting of the two main couples was really good. Both sets of men were evenly matched from a physical standpoint, and therefore went really well together. Neither came across looking like the big, strong dominant one with their docile partner. This is a personal preference, where I like characters that are on equal footing with one another. Of course, they don’t always need to be the same size for that to be the case, but I find when there’s a big disparity in looks or size, it’s really easy for writers to fall back on bad stereotypes. Plus, (for a more shallow opinion) these actors just looked aesthetically pleasing together.

I liked both Pete & Kao’s respective parents, though, in liking them, it does make me wonder why Kao ever thought his mother wouldn’t accept him. She was clearly a loving, supportive woman. Moreover, all the female characters had actual personalities, beyond being either an evil roadblock for the couples, or some stupid self-insert fangirl for the couples. That was a refreshing change of pace.

There was one side character in the friend group who’s whole role, character, and acting style was to yell every single line. I muted him.

Until Non’s story unraveled at the end, I thought he was well characterized as a kid suffering the physiological abuse of a homophobic father, who clearly suspects his son is gay. He was meant to be the villain, for sure, but the actor portrayed him so well (until whoever wrote the last part of the plot screwed him over) that it was impossible to dislike him. He seemed like such a real person.

This was a rare show in which I liked both couples, and both felt like they got appropriate screen time. Although, I found Pete & Kao to be the weaker of the two, for all the reasons outlined above. Possessiveness and jealousy are not good character traits, neither is lying—they are things you list as reasons you left your ex. I understood Pete’s obvious frustration with Kao’s inability to come out, but that doesn’t give him the right to control Kao, who seemed unable to stand up for himself. They had a lot of nice moments too, and it was clear they loved one another. Had their story simply been about coming out, it would have been a lot better. Their intimacy/heat level was really low, as it was undermined by a lot of what was happening in their story. For a couple that had been together so long, that seemed odd. At least it was implied that they were intimate, as you’d expect. What kisses were seen were real, although, in my opinion, the actor playing Kao kisses very strangely. Can’t put my finger on why.

Sun & Mork had a different dynamic, as this was the story of them getting together. It was nice to watch them grow together and come to understand one another through shared experiences, and then fall for each other. There was no love at first sight, or anything like that. Again, the intimacy/ heat seen here was quite tame. They had a few closed mouth kisses, but they got progressively better in those scenes. And there was a least one mature moment. I also liked that neither character was rich. It seems to be a thing in BLs, where one half of the couple needs to be rich and the other poor. It came across as very sweet and genuine when Sun wanted to help Mork out financially, even though neither of them had much money. It wasn’t just a rich kid trying to throw money at a poor kid, like Pete & Kao, to make their problems go away. I’d love to see a series with Sun & Mork as the main couple. There was a lot of good material to build from here.

Well, that was a book that I just wrote, but this show gave me all the thoughts! There’s more I could comment on, but I’ll leave it at that and hope the good parts of this show are what stands out to the viewers, and what more production companies aspire to create.

Leggi di Più

Love it

I love this drama for how mature it is, it reminds me a lot of a telenovela, even the intro has that kind kd vibe! Sometimes i did get frustrated with the lack of communication between pete and kao and the sometimes aggressively possessive moments they had. I love the fact that they talked abou the more tough parts of their lives like not being ready to come out to the world even though your s/o is getting tired of waiting. Regarding sunmork, they have easily become one of my favorite couples in a bl series, i just love podd and gawin, their chemistry is so on point and their story was heartwarming.

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It was amazing

The drama was light hearted but not too much, there was just the right amount of comedy and it did have moments that had you sitting up with all your attention on the drama going on. Let’s not forget the sexual tension that had everyone waiting for Pete jumping koa and vice-versa.


Now I’ve watched a ton of bl’s including 2gether, Sotus, Why R U, 2 moons and so on. While I loved it nothing compared to this, there was something about this pairing that just did it for me especially Pete, it’s like I felt his emotions.

They had an amazing chemistry though Pete needs to work on his trust issues but Koa seems to have no problem with his possessiveness which can get out of hand sometimes. I’ve seen this series for almost a year now but I never watched it until now cause the description didn’t do it justice and made it look like any other cliche bl which was far from that.

My best bl couple was Sarawat and Tine but Kao and Pete have the tittle now, the only thing I was disappointed about was the lack of hot scenes, although they were always at it but they often just say it nothing was really shown which is a shame cause like I stated earlier on their chemistry is off the charts. I felt sad when it ended cause I wanted to see more of them and i hope I meet this pairing in another bl drama.

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Cute, fun, intimate. And the side couple!

Disclaimer: I haven't watched Kiss Me yet. I started from here 'cause I got curious of TayNew chemistry and I must say I wasn't disappointed.

It starts with Pete being mad jealous about Non, who is handsome, popular, rich and looks everyone from his pedestal. Yet, when Kao meets Non, he's just a flirty student of his. He doesn't get much bothered about him; to Kao, Non is just money (and the son of his mom's very intimidating boss). From the start, we get that what Kao does with Non, it influences his mom's work. Yet, Pete asks his boyfriend to stop tutoring the kid. At first I was SO MAD, and it was the most toxic move Pete could make. During all the drama we get the tension about the "Non" topic, how the characters can't stand the taboo, and the lies. Yet, we see how in love they are with each other. They both make the most unbearable wrongs, and both of them learn from that. I loved how the table turns in the end, I suffered with Kao when Non reveals himself as he is. I love them as a couple, how smooth everything was and how the concerns of both of them is valid. Credit points to Pete and Kao's friends who support the couple and help them open up.

Sun and Mork. omg, sun and mork. the way I suffered with their fights and overjoyed with them. They need a whole drama.

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