I Am Reading Too Many Books At The Moment.

In England, in a town called Uckfield, there is a skate, surf and snowboard shop on the high street. It’s called pipedreams. Which automatically reminds me of Andreil.

Maybe Neil owns a extreme sports shop in the uk and Andrew is travelling with Kevin and they go to get equipment.

(I sort of think that Neil would be a kickass skater/snowboarder. Maybe Andrew is a skier? Or he surfs?)

But they meet and get all competitive and the story goes on from there?

Someone one expand this idea please!

Could you imagine?

In Strongberry We Trust

I had a private ask about Strongberry recently so here’s some thoughts.

Strongberry is probably the most established KBL studio, they started in high production shorts/microfilms (as, indeed, did all of KBL) and still specialize in them. They also do some GL. They tend to have very good chemistry, work with professional actors (not idols), and will go high heat. They are now a division of Matchbox, and have been around and steadily producing content since 2017. The CEO is adorable. As of this post (Nov 2022) they are airing a new BL on their YT channel Choco Milk Shake.

Fandom slogan?

#InStrongberryWeTrust

For the fact that they pick odd premises but always seem to execute beautifully. Their stuff is either on YouTube, Gaga or pay to play on Vimeo, and they do move it around so my links might not always still be working. Vimeo earns them the most money. They are a small, struggling, queer-friendly studio, please support them and their content by not pirating or watching illegally. 

Here’s my ranking of Strongberry’s offerings.

1. A First Love Story

2021 YouTube short in 2 microfilms 

Tropes: childhood friends to lovers, home setting, soft tone, grumpy/sunshine pairing

Strongberry are true masters of their craft and yet A First Love Story is still one of the best things they have ever produced. It’s the only microfilm every to make one of my year end top ten list. It’s two episodes of about 8 minutes each that manage to perfectly portray the sweetest friends-to-lovers confession ever. It’s joyful, and gentle with its characters, and a little hot. How on earth do they manage to leave us yearning for more yet completely satisfied at the same time? It’s like the perfect amuse-bouche, that one finger food at that one cocktail party that you will never forget. You are a ridiculous human if you haven’t spent 16 minutes with these two boys. Go watch it now. Or go watch it again. It’s time VERY well spent.

2. Long Time No See

2017 Gaga KBL length series (total 1.5 hr, some places packaged as a movie)

Tropes: secret love, enemies to lovers, secret identity, assassins, catfishing, mafia, higher heat, grumpy/sunshine pairing 

One of Strongberry’s few longer pieces and I often wonder whether this is strictly BL. It’s about assassins on either side of a terf war who fall in love not knowing they are on opposite sides. Or do they? Good fight sequences, mature characters, high heat, very suspenseful, AND an HEA. If you like KinnPorsche you will LOVE this one.

3. Some More

2018 Gaga microfilm

Tropes: friends to lovers, hyung romance, self acceptance, countryside setting, soft tone, age gap, country boy/city boy

One of my most favorite of Strongberry’s shorts, about a city boy on a bike tour who gets injured and rescued by a taciturn, but (as it turns out) very gay, farmer. Mentions of pride, adorable supportive cousin. SO CUTE with excellent chemistry and featuring tropes I can never get enough of. 

3. Private Lessons

2019 Gaga microfilm

Tropes: student/teacher, jock/nerd, hyung romance, obsession, crush, university setting, May/December, age gap  

Given it is age gap and teacher/student (AKA P’ABL’s catnip) it should rate higher on my list, but the chemistry is slightly off. Stil I do love this one for the dynamic. Certainly worth watching especially if this is one of your fav yaoi tropes.

4. Step For You

2018 Gaga microfilm

Tropes: friends to lovers, sports, university setting, crush, jock/nerd, soft tone

About a reporter from the student newspaper who has to interview an older dancer and falls in love with him. This may not have been my first Strongberry, but it’s the first one I remember watching. 

5. Please Tell Me So

2021 YouTube microfilm (AKA That’s My Mr.Right!) 

Tropes: crush, obsession, cafe setting, sunshine/sunshine pairing 

Cute barista (played by Han Hyun Jun star of Love Class) has a crush on his customer, musters up the courage to ask him out. 

6. My Pistachio

2018 Gaga microfilm

Tropes: friends to lovers, crush, hero worship, hyung romance, university setting, play within a play, grumpy/sunshine 

7. As if You Whisper

2019 Gaga movie

Tropes: friends to lovers, self acceptance, music industry setting, grumpy/sunshine pairing

8. Confidential Coffee Break

2021 Vimeo microfilm

Tropes: mature romance, long term relationship, self acceptance, university setting, one act

It’s a monologue piece about two closeted older gay professors discussing changing times and the nature of acceptance (self and others) in modern day South Korean academic environment. 

9. Hold Me

2021 YouTube microfilm

Tropes: friends to lovers, self acceptance, high school setting

10. Sweet Curse 

2021 Gaga short

Tropes: horror, paranormal elements, ghost story, possession, obsession, gay friendship group, everyone wants that one boy, bad/good

This is a low-gore atmospheric horror, with some very high heat. I’m not saying it’s in the top 10 just because of that, but I am saying when Strongberry does high heat it v good and v gay. 

OTHERS

My Personal Trainer - 2019 short Gaga. It v silly and v gay. Influencer has crush on his personal trainer. 

Secret Roommate - 2020 short Gaga, Cohabit, self acceptance, home setting, family, coming out 

Fingers After - 2021 microfilm Vimeo. Cohabit, morning after, home setting, pining, sunshine/tsundere pairing. 

Secret Spectacles - 2017 microfilm Gaga. Very silly again, friends to lovers, paranormal elements, university crush.

Table Manner - 2018 microfilm Gaga. Cohabit, self acceptance, home setting, long term relationship 

The Summer Pasta Recipe - 2021 short YouTube, reunion, self acceptance, grumpy/sunshine.

There my be a few more I don’t know about, MDL doesn’t seem to have a sort function for production company. 

Choco Milk Shake 

2022 YouTube KBL length series (total 1.5 hr) 

Tropes: cohabit, F2L, paranormal elements, home setting, soft tones, sunshine/tsundere. 

Two pets, a cat and a dog, reincarnate as humans to visit their old owner.

Two Other KBL shorts worth checking out:

Just Friends? 

2009 Gaga short 

I consider this one of Korea’s first actual BLs. Boyfriends, one of whom is on military leave, trying to decide on coming out and their future together. Bonus for out gay director and queer activist. 

Being Me 

2018 short Gaga 

A summer of love for two long term besties who have basically always been boyfriends, but when a girl tries to date one of them, they finally realize it. Beautifully filmed and a STELLAR ending kiss. 

(source) 

An artist in Baltimore wrote names of fatal victims of the police force along the sidewalk. 

She began with victims killed on May 1st of 2013 and wrote every name that was recorded until the present day.

Names stretched from Penn Station to a George Washington monument in the middle of the city, which is nearly a mile in distance.

Source

#RIP to the lost ones by police brutality.

The world is just becoming worse and worse. Will it ever stop? Children are already dying Trump!

https://www.thedailybeast.com/state-department-to-lgbt-married-couples-your-out-of-wedlock-kids-arent-citizens

First person perspectives really annoy me.

me: *opens fic*

fic: “I-”

me: *closes fic*

The Merciless (2017) x The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci (1498)

10 People I'd Like To Know Better

Tagged by @gosiksmallspace . Thanks.

- Last song: Hate You by Jungkook.

- Last Book: (I’m including fanfiction because I haven’t read a novel in ages). Then with venom on your tongue (ask me who I’ve become) by Bright_Life_Lights on AO3.

(https://archiveofourown.org/works/58829320 https://archiveofourown.org/works/58829320 )

- Last movie: Project Wolf hunting. (The gore and deaths made me laugh).

- Last Tv Show: The Heart Killers.

- Last Thing googled: U-Thong Thailand. (It’s a place where I’ll be visiting).

- Favourite Colour: Viridian Green.

- Sweet/Savoury/Spicy: sweet if it’s a snack. Spicy if it’s a meal.

- Relationship Status: Single and far too busy with fictional characters.

- Looking forward to: visiting my friends soon and moving to Thailand in a couple of months.

- Current Obsessions: BNHA, specifically Shinsou Hitoshi. ATEEZ and Stray Kids.

Tagging: @babischlong-six @uhhhhmanda @godotismissingx @yardmargs @envylimes @stanaclown @frayed-at-the-seams @daxianme @bobafvcks @onaiclockwork (all the same people as Gosik cause I don’t know anyone else).

Reading soft fluffy LGBTQ one shots whilst listening to Joji is a whole experience.

tin putting a piece of cantaloupe ( fruit ) into his mouth , while looking can directly in the eyes and saying “ cantaloupe is tasty “ has the exact same energy as ming eating a kit-kat bar and saying “ i love kit-kat “ to kit

and i’m loving it