VIP Only (2023)

This is a cozy time BL.

Overall this is a cute story. This doesn't have anything large or overly exciting. This is a cozy story and would recommend it for people needing a break from the over-emotional and high-adrenaline based shows. We also had a cameo from the 'You Are Mine' guys at the end and I thought it was well placed and it didn't detract from the story.

I really liked the two main characters and the side characters were very amusing. I also liked though a possible relationship could happen for the side characters, they weren't in a relationship, nor did we have to shift any focus to them. I think the shortness of this show meant that we didn't have the chance to make the people and interactions more complex. The writing is formulated with tropes to be soothing and comforting. I can recognize with how some watcher may not like that it is cliche in a way, but i feel that the laid back nature of the show makes that not a bad thing in this show. I also wished we didn't have the 'knew you as a child / long lost friend' trope. I see it was properly used and not relied upon, i just didn't need it.

The obstacles for them being together is an awful mother on one side and a past unrequited love on the other side. The unrequited love was part of the driving force of the story, but when the dude came back, I was disappointed in how all the "adults" in the situation handled it. HOWEVER, it didn't last long and it did cause the catalyst and made for some amusing postering between the love interests. The mom portion was frustrating. The mom was a big problem in general but the MC didn't even know she was a problem until way too late. This led to us not seeing the MLs have conversations about it, and even if the situation was handled wonderfully, it felt out of character.

Other than these issues and wishing we got to see everyone's friendship more, this was a comforting, low key BL and I appreciate that. This wasn't meant to be anything more than a couple supporting each other and growing in and amongst each other. If you wanted anything more than this, you may need to look elsewhere for a show.

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NÃO PERCA O SEU TEMPO

Que história sem sal e sem tempero (porque a série envolve comida kkkk)
O ator que interpreta o Gu Jing é muito bonito e o garçom era um personagem com potencial, esses são os únicos pontos positivos de toda essa trama.
A história poderia ser boa se não fosse pela clara incompatibilidade dos atores que não tem química nenhuma, a falta de tempo de tela para o garçom que é o personagem mais interessante, o triângulo amoroso (que eu odeio) sendo que o Liu Li é super desinteressante e não tem nada de especial, o roteiro fraco, as atuações ruins (salvo poucas exceções) e a má qualidade de direção.
Enfim, não foi uma boa experiência.

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Bluebird and origami

Well this was cute, quick to watch and utterly forgettable. Taiwan can definitely do better than this but I guess they must have somehow lost their touch in 2023 to produce a string of misses and a rare hit. This was a miss!

VIP Only is a love story between a chef and a novelist living above the chef's restaurant. It is wrought with tropes: falling into your arms, accidental kiss, helpful best friends, a third party, childhood connection, a mother-in-law from hell......there is nothing fundamentally wrong with tropes as long as you find a novel way to use it. Here, they just put one after another and called it a series! While I was watching it, I had a weird impression that, originally, the script was for a straight M/F romcom and they just cast a man as FL because his behaviour, his actions, his attitude, the way he talked and the way he was dresses in flowing oversized clothes, all screamed woman! I don't know, maybe the character is trans? Did I miss something? I know, those codes come from mangas! They'd tried and tested and we are fed up! Come up with something new, shake up the genre!!!!

More interesting than the main pair were their friends. They pushed and connived to get the chef and the writer together, and their interactions were funny. I would not mind watching more of them! When the writer's college crush reappears in his life, the chef feels threatened, and the way they bicker over the writer is silly and funny!

The cinematography was all over the place: from scenes that were too sharp and cold to dreamy scenes with lighting obscuring faces (really pretty) to some weird camera angles. The same goes for editing: sometimes smooth and other times jerky. And then there was the omnipresent music, all the time in the background, that boring elevator music not adding anything to the plot, just annoyance! The actors were there, going through the motions, chemistry rather weak but the cringe was minimal. Except for the surprise visit of the couple from a parent drama. The main actor Stan, reminded me so much (doppelgänger) of the ML from Hello Stranger(I have to find his name...), a pinoy bl!

Surprisingly so, I think I might rewatch this when I need something simple and silly to cheer me up.

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Fluff with chemistry

This drama had the right amount of fluff (especially at the end) with a big splash of chemistry, a sprinkle of drama and a lot of sassy energy!
The story itself is taking you on a journey of past crushes, how to overcome those feelings and choosing a new path to walk together with the right person beside you. It is uneventful but not boring, proplems are quickly solved and everyone is acting their age and that was refreshing as fuck! They are all adults, had their own reasons behind their actions and could explain them very well. The friends are a great support and their biggest fans and I loved them!
The chemistry was flowing and I had butterflies flying around my whole body. Their skinship is so natural, it was a blast to watch them just being a happy couple!
And I think I have a thing for cute pouts... The actor who plays the novellist has such a cute mouth, I couldn't stop starring at it everytime there was a close up of his face... Just like the Thai actors Boun (Between Us) and Nut (Oxygen, Pit Babe)... and the Boss.... what a sexy man! Big, slender, mature, bearded... swoon worthy!

All in all I recommend it! It is an easy watch, no big drama, but full of soft feelings, vulnerable characters and a great ambiance!

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So sweet, I died

My headline says it all, it literally is just that lol

This is a very simple show, no major plot twist or drama. A sweet, fluffy, cute BL.

Despite that, it's very nice to watch, especially if you're taking a break from heavier dramas.

I do love the little twist when I found out that they know each other since childhood. That little details add flavor to the otherwise a little too bland show.

I enjoy this overall. Watch it and judge it for yoruself!

The only thing I wish for is a 2nd couple which didn't happen, but that's just minor detail. I still love watching their interaction regardless.

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Interestingly Cute

I placed spoilers at the end of this review.

So far, this is the best one out of the compilation series. It was very cute and interesting.

The positive: Considering the short running time, this had a well-developed script. It did a great job slowly introducing the characters’ backstories and the pacing of the main story was perfect. The actors did a great job with their characters and portrayed them in a very likable fashion.

The negative: The only negative aspect for me was the conflict scenarios were too predictable. However, this was a minor problem for me.



******Spoiler Alert******
Even though it had the one story element I hate (love triangle), it wasn’t that bad and was resolved quickly.

Sorry, I already knew that the mother would become a source of a conflict after the first scene. Thankfully it to was quickly resolved.

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A love that surpasses the arc of time and the lives of the two lovers

Liu Li is a BL-themed novelist who wants to love vehemently, so that he can then express his thoughts in writing. Under the pseudonym Morris, he has published two best-selling novels based on his real-life experiences, but today, after the rejection of his platonic love, he suffers from writer's block and cannot find inspiration to write the third book, which he has already demands his editor.
Seeking inspiration, he sits at the same table every day at Old House, his favorite meat noodle and hot sauce shop, located in the lower part of the building where he rents an apartment, and where he makes blue origami birds for hours, while waiting for the arrival of the muse.
Gu Jin, or Boss Gu, as his employees call him, who was a successful advertising executive until his resignation, caused by a scandal involving his despotic mother, decides not to give up in the face of adversity and takes advantage of his culinary vocation to set up his own restaurant. business as chef and owner of Old House, where he will meet Liu Li.
Starring Stan Huang as Gu Jing, and Chen Xuan Yu as Liu Li, 'VIP Only' (保留席位 / Pao Liu Hsi Wei (Bao Liu Xi Wei), the Taiwanese LGBTIQ+-themed romantic comedy-drama spins in around the love relationship between the handsome and attractive chef who owns the creative and retro restaurant, and the shy boy with a vocation as a novelist who, although he has never been in a relationship, recognizes that as a writer he has many ideas about what it means to be in love.
Director another dreams of continuing to promote his career as a writer.
Based on the script written by Cai Fei Qiao, Xiao Yi Wei and Chen Liang Ci, 'VIP Only' is a tender and delicious story of love and improvement marked by literature and cooking, a relationship that arises between stoves and tables restaurant; a chef with high culinary skills and a regular customer.
Vidol is the Taiwanese streaming platform that makes this and other BL series such as 'Stay by My Side' (2023), 'Anti-Reset' (2024) and 'You Are Mine' (2023).
Like many of the dishes prepared by the chef, the love between the two young people simmers. It all begins when Gu asks Liu Li to go on dates with him to stimulate his imagination and inspire him to continue his work as a writer.
This is how in the middle of a role-play in which they both date each other and pretend to be in love, love surprises them.
Between plates of food, Gu reading Liu Li's novels, hearing about each other's lives while folding origami, or the novelist's determination to learn to cook because Gu is very passionate about the culinary art, both boys will leave getting to know each other and becoming closer, until they discover that they have much more in common than they think, since they were friends in childhood.
Liu Da Ren (Tim Cheng) and Lai Dai Yi / "Lai Tsai" (Kurt Huang), Gu's employee at the restaurant the first and Liu Li's friend the second, will help the two boys in their romance. However, their love will be put to the test when Wu Shin (Kevin Chang), the boy the writer was in love with, returns and tries to win him over.
The cast is completed with the performances of Hsiao Hung as Yao Shun Yu, and Parker Mao in the role of Xia Shang Zhou, protagonists of the Taiwanese BL drama 'You Are Mine', in which they embody these same characters.
The chef will also hallucinate with joy/madness when he discovers that Liu Li thanks Wu Shin for having inspired him to write two best-selling novels, and for teaching him to be brave and confess his love to the person he loves, and chooses him.
The love that unites Liu Li and Gu will surpass the arc of their lives and time, through the book written by the former and inspired by the latter and the romance they live.
Almost everything in 'VIP Only' could be on the verge of crossing the thin line of cheesy, or vulgar melodrama, but it is redeemed by the tenderness of its story, the truth of characters who support each other and manage to overcome difficulties while experiencing personal growth, the chemistry between the two protagonists and the interpretive flexibility of Stan Huang and Chen Xuan Yu.

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Sweet and Enjoy-able

Mini drama series yang mempunyai cerita sederhana, menghibur, dan menemani waktu luangmu terutama di malam hari ; inilah series yang sangat cocok. Menceritakan seorang novelis BL Liu Li dengan segala macam masalah kegalauannya mengenai putus cinta yang membuatnya mengalami art-block untuk berkarya menulis cerita novel BL, kemudian dia menemukan seseorang yang membantunya melewati itu ; dialah seorang boss pemilik kedai mie yang termasuk koki di dalamnya, kisahnya perlahan membaik ; dia sekarang mampu menulis cerita novelnya dengan lebih menyenangkan. Cerita sederhananya mungkin seperti itu, namun sebenarnya tidak sesederhana itu, kalian perlu menontonnya langsung ; ini sangat bagus!. Dari segi dialog mudah difahami, alurnya jelas dan sederhana, ringkas dan padat - sejujurnya series ini tidak bertele-tele ; walaupun punya konflik yang sederhana, namun tidak membosankan, resolusinya juga jelas dan tidak berlebihan. Romansa dari series ini sangat menyenangkan, dibumbui beberapa scene menyedihkan, mewarnai series ini menjadi lebih dinamis untuk disaksikan. Dari segi warna, memiliki warna klasik vintage dengan warna yang tidak terlalu konsisten, terkadang terlalu vibrant, terkadang terlalu pastel. Series ini memberikan pengalaman sederhana mengenai proses move-on, serta menemukan cinta sejati. Beberapa scene mungkin bagi sebagian orang menganggu terutama dibagian masalah Gu Jing dan orang tuanya. Menurutku Series ini rekomdasi banget untuk di tonton.

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