Plus & Minus (2022)

Quintessential bromance to romance

A+

Like kiwi, bitter at first bite with a sweet aftertaste.

I want to give it the same critics as Be Loved in House: I Do, i.e., not a top tier drama but still a very much appreciated discovery. The difference is that the former is a slow burn romance whereas the latter is a bromance quickly turned into a strongly built long term romantic relationship. Once you acknowledge your deepest feelings for someone, it's almost impossible to go backwards as though these feelings could disappear as easily as they emerged.

Give in and let it in!

Another aspect I felt was even stronger in this one is that the actors seem even more comfortable with each other, to the point where people have even questioned the actors' relationship. HEAR ME OUT! Nobody has the right to judge what's beside the work. Stay in your place and let people live.

This drama is all in all a strong recommendation.

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Podia ser melhor

Friends to love sempre é um plot que me pega principalmente pq acho um grande desafio essa virada de amigo para amante., principalmente quando não é algo que rolou igualmente pelos dois, houve uma confissão. Então entendo o sentimento Li Gong em duvidar de qual eram os verdadeiros sentimentos do Zeshou " será que ele está comigo pq me ama da msm forma que eu amo ele? será que ele consegue dividir o que é amor de amigo e de namorado? ". Eu entendo esses questionamentos, o que não entendo é vc usar a separação no intuito de ajudar o outro, sendo que só traz mais sofrimento e dor. Sendo que o que eles mais falavam um para o outro era que eles ficaram juntos sempre, que resolveriam tudo juntos... esse plot me deu preguiça e raiva, não precisava. Eles podiam enfrentar esse desafio juntos.
Tirando isso é um casal com muita química e extremamente fofos.
O casal secundário eu gostei, mas não me apeguei. Não senti mto o desenvolvimento dos sentimentos deles no início, mas gostei como a relação foi sendo construída.

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Enjoyable, but a bit too much side plot that takes away from the stars.

Plus and Minus is interesting as the two main leads have been high school friends. They now live and work together. Usually in BLs, either they love in high school, or they meet later in life. This makes the story pretty interesting from the start. Most of the characters are enjoyable, and the main couple is extremely attractive. You can tell they care about each other.

Overall, the drama is fine, but spends too much time on the character's jobs instead of the relationships. This does make the story more realistic but less interesting. Maybe I am more excited for the love aspect rather than the divorce lawyer job aspect but I wish this was less detailed so their love could shine more. I ended up fast-forwarding a good part of the series.

When they do have couple moments its all really good. The kisses are very passionate and they look amazing. The ending was a little annoying but it was resolved so its good.

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Eu gostei da história dos dois casais. Um BL simples, mas com momentos de intriga, ação, tristeza...enfim, muitas emoções diferentes num mesmo plot. Achei bastante interessante as participações especiais de casais de BLs anteriores ("Seja amado em casa" de 2021 e "HIstory 3: faça nossos dias contarem" de 2019). Sem grandes pretensões, é uma produção simples, mas com dinâmica bem ativa, o que não te deixa cansar da história, e, por ser chinês, eu diria até um pouco surpreendente. Os episódios são curtos (entre 25 e 30 minutos), consegui maratonar em um dia só.

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Nice but average BL but still I enjoyed.

I think this series is not really keeping up with top-tier Taiwanese BLS out there. I feel like it has its own thing. The two main leads portraying as Zhe Zheshou and Fu Li Gong made me enjoy the series, them alone. I think I have issues with the flashbacks. I thought it would have been good if it's mix well within the first ep. I thought that without those two handsome male leads the scene felt dry and not that exciting. The second couple, uhmmm, nah not a fan of it. They're just unnecessary and lacking. They're my least likable second BL couple ever. Okay moving on. I found it dissatisfied to see Boris Wang rarely like bitch come on he's so eye-catching to look at. I don't care if he's just a supporting character but I would rather have him partnered with other actor and replace the second couple.
The surprising cameos were nice. Not really expecting anything but I'm glad they're there. I'm conflicted with the feelings of both Zheshou and Li Gong. I thought it took years just for them to date each other. It's weird that Zeshou acted surprised when he saw the keychain in the little box hid by Li Gong. I don't think it doesn't make any sense knowing in EP 12.5 they both have it already. The blind dates are ridiculous, I don't even know why the hell they advised each other to plan double blind dates each other.
I'm okay with Nikita being like a love guru to the two main couples but when she dated Li Gong I was turned off and taken aback. It's just so downright weird . I thought that is best left as a concept rather than execution. I hate how sometimes Li Gong just broke up with Zeshou. It's so unfair for Zeshou knowing his mother just passed away and his father being indifferent about their same-sex relationship. I thought that just made it hard for me to sit through. Eversince that thing dropped one by one, I just can't help but have pity towards Zeshou. Besides the negative sides of this series I enjoy it.
I never expect anything I'm just enjoying the screen time of the two male leads. Overall this was a nearly decent but still mediocre series

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Not terrible...

but not great either.

Gong was such a monotone character. No matter what was happening, happy or sad, he acted the exact same throughout the show. We were supposed believe he'd been in love with his best friend forever basically, but it just never came across to me that he had this intense love or passion. The only time I believed anything he was conveying was the love scene in the very last episode. The music ruined most scenes as well.

The side couple had more chemistry and better acting, but unfortunately their story was just as boring as the rest of the show.

I feel if this was actually shortened by half it would be an enjoyable bite-sized BL, but 12 episodes where almost nothing happens? I don't see myself coming back. I really wanted to love this!

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A Fiery BL Romance between Lawyers

Overall, I thought this show was quite creative and I quite enjoyed it (in spite of the crappy writing near the end of the show starting from episode 8).

Positives
- The co-stars did a great job conveying the feelings of their characters.
- The first and second episodes were hilarious. I enjoyed Zheng's plan for rejecting blind dates.
- Episode 12 was well-written from the dialogue to the story to the setting, etc. It was likely the series' best episode by far (aside from Episode 13 (the special/extra)).
- Episode 13 was very enjoyable. I especially appreciated Zheng's character growth in the episode. It was funny and added a comical aspect to the show that bumped my rating from 7.0 to 7.5.
- Lots of skinship/kissing/contact. You see this a lot in Taiwanese BL but it is always more enjoyable compared to JBLs and KBLs as they tend to do away with much of the skinship.
- Great acting from the fathers of the co-stars. Especially appreciated the supportive nature of Fu's Dad.
- The story was good, made sense and was decently enjoyable.
- The music was catchy and well-suited to many scenes in the series. Opening theme was quite good too.

Areas for Improvement
- Chemistry was weak for the side couple (Kato Yuki and Jian Yingze). Did not enjoy their relationship as much as the main co-stars. Did not like that it felt like Yuki forced Jian into a relationship either; seemed forced and was too fast. Yuki was far too aggressive. This was unrealistic writing.
- As others have pointed out, the lighting in the camping episode was very off. It made it hard to watch.
- The owner of the bar was a bad character cliche. Did not enjoy her character though I thought she did a good job partly getting Zheng and Fu to realise they ought to be together.
- The sister did not have much of a role to play in anything besides the first few episodes. She deserved more as a female character in the show.
- I think the flashbacks were good for adding context to the show especially when it comes to how Fu's love for Zheng started but I think it lacked a lot of development. It was not developed well enough for us to see how Fu actually came to love him.

Suggestions?
- The side couple was unnecessary. It felt like they did it to only increase the show's screen time (same goes for the break-up).
- The break-up felt unnecessary because it was based off of a cliche and did nothing to make the show more enjoyable; another fight/argument between the two would've been better if they were looking to implement conflict.
- The support characters could've played more important roles in the story, they were largely quite 2-dimensional.
- Could have added more flashbacks that focused on Fu's growing love for Zheng; perhaps the 18th birthday was the largest contributor but it was not good enough for me.

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Where’s the Sizzle?

Just my opinion, there’s no chemistry unlike Beloved in House I Do.. They tried to correct the formula with the main pair falling in love early on. But the problem is the main pair’s chemistry is just not there….
The most interesting among the main actors for me is Yuki. With his long luxurious locks and sweet smile, He has this quiet lovable charm like that of Shi Lei. But where is his Yu Zhen? Or the confident mature shop owner, Yan Zhao? I’m sad to say that his Jian Ying Ze has little redeeming value except for his daughter. I wanted to ship Yuki to Fuli Gong.

With the soundtrack similar to Beloved, I kept missing Shi Lei and Yu Zhen. And this is not good for a series if I am thinking of another one

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Positive multiplied by Negative is equal to Negative

Each show has its own pros and cons, some overcome it but some don't. Just like how Plus & Minus started up in a good run but began to stumble in the middle and failed to re-sprint in a recovery state.

A BL roaming around the field of law is quite fresh yet the storyline ruins the chance of it to be unique and memorable. The vibe has a lot of similarities to the previous BLs I’ve watched such as Beloved in House: I Do and HIStory 4: Close to you, that loses the spark of the show to cater its own impact. Nevertheless, one thing I’m grateful for this show is by reuniting some of the prominent characters from the other famous Taiwan BLs. Seeing them made me reminisce about their own story from their respective shows.

Connecting the title to the two couples, I must say that Plus goes to the main one and the Minus goes to the second pair. The lack of chemistry between the side couple and the nuisance acting along with the baby girl is a cringe. I skipped their scenes since it mostly distributes an uninteresting flow of story.

Fortunately, the main couple saves it but it isn't enough to save the whole show. That accidental kiss on the sofa was the only romantic scene I adore from them and the rest are pure plainness. The downfall of the show starts on EP07, all episodes prior to this one are good ones. Then I began to get really bored of the later episodes. Nevertheless, the finale was fine. Helding a wedding ceremony is a good execution not only for romance but also for showcasing the legalization of same sex marriage to their country, Taiwan.

Ending this with a positive statement that the Plus and Minus pendant is so cute!

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Mostly Minuses, But Not The Worst

Another story ruined by the irritating "I spoke to your family and now we cant be together" plot. "Its for your own good" plotlines rarely come across as anything but supremely irritating and this was no exception. I was okay with this show up until that point, then I began aggresively skipping and turned it up to 2x speed. I didn't even finish the episode before I had to accept that I really was too disenchanted to be bothered with the rest of the show. So, let's talk:

This show is slow. The plot is thin-- not spider silk thin, but it's not going to make you feel much. There is a gargantuan amount of fluff but with no plot to support it, it feels.....it's just missing something. I was suspicious of Yuki for almost seven episodes just because he decided he was in love out of nowhere. I was constantly looking for the additional plot in every situation only to find that it is always a matter of what you see is what you get. It is as deep as a tablespoon.

The main couple was cute up until the bullshit. The tension of "will they, wont they," was resolved in less than an episode, but the amount of emotion they resolved it with made it seem like theyd been apart for at least three (and they really should have been), so it felt a bit bizzare. I liked the side couple a decent amount despite the utter lack of....anything behind their relationship, but then they also got hit with the trope-mobile and had a misunderstanding three minutes of conversation and a five minute walk could fix. I'm being harsh, but these characters are all, presumably, close to or over 30. This shit would barely strike me as acceptable with college kids, I dont really have the tolerance for it at their ages.

The best part of this series was the cameo from Be Loved In House, and I dropped that series too, so make of that what you will. I am surprisingly disappointed with this series, most likely because the reviews implied it was much more put together. Which is why I normally ignore the reviews, but I suppose I hadn't been burned by them in awhile and forgot. There is a correct way to do slice of life and this was not it. The pacing is eclectic-- relationship things are rushed, but the surrounding plot (or lack thereof) is glacial. Characters lose or gain traits to better accommodate random conflict.

I had some good things to say about this, so I'll get to that and then wash my hands of this mess. I am always a staunch advocate for relationship building. Plus & Minus does a good job of showing the platonic bond between the main couple. They use key moments and habitual behaviors to show the weight of the years between them instead of a quick montage and, as a proud hater of montages, I really liked that.

The sets were always appealing to the eye, which matters very, very little to me, but I did notice it. I enjoyed the little things the main couple did for each other. A lot of BL make it seems like getting together is the happy ever after, or just have no idea what to do with a couple once they are together. This is not necessarily an exception, but they did cute little things for each other, and that, specifically, was nice to see.

Outside of that, nothing else stood out particularly much, definitely not enough to be worth mentioning so I guess thats it, bye.

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Cheesy, Slow & Stupid

The biggest problem with this series is that nothing ever happened! The few times an attempt was made at some type of drama it simply fell flat.
The actors may have been good, I can't really say, because they were not given much to work with. I didn't feel any real chemistry between them and the love making scene was slow and awkward - with the worst ever music, I think they tried to use the music to make it more passionate, but it really made the scene worse.
There was no note worthy music throughout, the child actress was not really cute and appealing... but...
The worst was simply a poorly written, overused ideas script.
I also personally did not really care for one of the main leads, personal preference, you know.
The secondary couple was also very weak, with nothing really happening, and drama was over some old clothes that got donated... really?
No rewatch value for me, I barely made it through the first time.

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