HIStory2: Boundary Crossing (2018)

Fun and Entertaining but Shallow

This story is just plain fun and entertaining. It is likeable, perhaps not very deep in emotional impact but a very good story. There is incredibly good eye candy here for all those guys are so cute and adorable and look pretty good in their volleyball shorts. (Hey, listen, I am still not dead yet). The major drawback to this story is the lack of character development of the major players. I get tired and annoyed when only the last few minutes in the series does one of them succumbs to his own feelings for the other while they rest of us have known how he felt from early on. I understand the need to focus on volleyball but seriously, not focusing on other things seems like a waste of getting a point across. That is what makes this story so shallow. It wasted so much time when more character development could have occurred where we might have cared more for them.

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Fair & Adorable ...

the actors are perfect in their roles and all have exceptional chemistry with each other. I don’t know enough about volleyball to judge if it was presented correctly but it looked good and several of the actors are volleyball players. I really loved the inclusion of Liu Hung-Min and Liu Hong-Jie, as I always like it when real life professionals are cast in series when it comes to sports. this series is adorable. Both couples are engaging and a pleasure to watch. Xia Yu Hao is such a fantastic character and how Fandy portrays him is the cutest.

There is a lovely element of first love in how Xia Yu Hao acts, he is excited and jumps head first into everything he does regarding Qiu Zi Xuan. Qiu Zi Xuan on the other hand is a lot more reserved showing his joy when it comes to volleyball. The contrast between them both is also well done as it is not played up too much which is often an issue some series have. I really liked all of the side-characters in the series too, especially He Cheng En. All of the friendships were perfect and supportive which I liked. I also liked how they connected Obsessed with the series, it adds something a little extra.

It is less dramatic because there aren’t really any threatening people trying to sabotage their relationship. I liked this about the show a lot because it feels more realistic this way. When a drama gets too intense because of an evil person getting in the way, it’s usually not as good. I like it when all the characters are fairly decent and understanding people.

Overall its a kind of a okay drama..

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In my opinion this drama was just perfect! Of course this also has a lot to do with my preferences for BL stories and characters. Even though it's not perfectly obvious who is the seme and who is the uke in the main relationship (and it's also not necessary to know), I considered Xia Yu Hao as the uke, and I really like delinquent / rebel uke characters because they are usually so soft and loving once you get to know them better which really contrasts with the way they pretend to be. Also I love it when the seme character is a little tsundere and the uke is more active, so this couple was exactly to my liking^^
The actors also portrayed the characters extremely well. I was especially impressed with the actor playing Xia Yu Hao who really made me feel the emotions of the character and in addition is simply overwhelmingly cute and pretty! Qiu Zi Xuan's feelings and thoughts on the other hand were not so easy to understand, but that was part of his character who was more reserved and composed. Overall the actors were great and made the story so emotional and enjoyable to watch. The romantic scenes where in no way awkward, but seemed very natural and real.

Many people are complaining that this drama is too short, but in my opinon that is not the case. In comparison to many Thai dramas (of which I have seen a lot) that usually exaggerate with the time given to every single scene to really build up that emotion, I actually prefer this faster pacing of the HIStory Series. Making this series longer (without adding more story) wouldn't have made it better. For me the story is told just at the right speed to not make it seem rushed, but also not let it get boring. And the emotional / romantic scenes are still long and passionate enough to really get involved emotionally. (And if I wanted more I sometimes just watched single scenes on repeat^^)

Even though it was such a short series it also included a second couple that didn't get as much screentime, but still enough to make their story seem satisfyingly complete which I really appreciated. Here we had another active uke (although his confession was kind of unintentional), and I also have a thing for romantic relationships between brothers, so this story exactly suited my taste, too, which made the series even more perfect for me. All the important side characters were also smoothly included in the story and the relationships between the main characters and their respective friends were very beautiful and supporting.
Although I don't have anything to complain about, I gave "only" 9 stars for the story because I didn't feel like it was anything special enough to give it a 10/10. Overall though this series definitely deserves the 10 stars. I will surely watch it again and I can only recommend it to all of you :)

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I have to admit I was really excited to watch this drama because everyone mentions it as one of the best BL’s out there. I can’t believe it took me so long to watch it.
I’m so glad I did because it was great. The story was simple but I liked the way we got to know the characters in so little time (it’s only 4 episodes, after all). At first it looked like it was going way too fast, something I don’t particularly like, but then it slowed down and I started liking it more. Episodes 3 and 4 were amazing, I was really into the two couples!
I don’t want to spoil anyone but I have to mention the amazing last scene!! Simple but sooooo well acted (you know what I mean if you’ve watched it ;)). No awkwardness between the actors, we truly felt how much the characters had grown, simply beautiful.
The second couple’s ending scenes (the last two scenes in which they appear) MADE ME SCREAM SO HARD ONGOMGOMGONG I LOVE THEM!!!!!?????!??? Yep, that’s the type of feeling. A second season is seriously mandatory.
I didn’t pay attention to the music that much but I liked how it fit some moments of the drama perfectly, like it even matched the character’s movements. It made the scenes more emotional. The last song that played is really pretty as well.
I’ll certainly rewatch this. I can’t not to! This is in the top 3 best History series for me. History 2 was like a miracle after History 1. I never thought the quality of the series would increase this much from one season to another!

These days I’m starting to rate BL’s as “normal” dramas, because the quality in acting and script is increasing, so it doesn’t feel like just a badly written story about two gay characters but a story in which the characters happen to like the same gender. Which I really appreciate. I’m not sure if I expressed this correctly, it was not my intention to offend anyone! Anyways, I really like this drama and I rated it as I would rate a non-BL drama. For a show released before 2019, when Bl’s quality started increasing significantly imo, it’s an amazing rating.
I really hope we get a second season because we need more scenes with both in a relationship!!! Please!!! It’s a need!!! Survival is in risk!!! I hope they do it like they promised even if it seems as though there are some problems occurring. Anyways, if anyone knows if there’s a novel out there, please let me know! And to those of you who haven’t watched this: please do! You will not lose your time.

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Simply Sweat History

Where to begin... This series is way to short for the level of amazing that it is. Beginning to end, I was captivated by the simple yet fascinating love story that was surrounded by a sport. I am not a sports person but I had to watch this series twice, simply because I had to relive the drama. I couldn't even say how this would end, but I found myself hoping more and more that someone would come and take a beating for me.

Story - This story began simple enough, where trouble teen (Xia Yu Hao) runs into serious teen (Qiu Zi Xuan) while trying to escape authority. That fence jump even impressed me. Come bro, jump my fence anytime. While one is forced by a teacher to work with the other as punishment, they find a mutual love for the sport, or so I thought. I couldn't quite figure out if the motivation was love for the sport or love for who is teaching him to play the sport. I figured it out by the end, but by then I was so distracted by the nervous phone calls and glances between the two main Characters, that I was surprised to not know how it will end.

The mini story of Wang Zhen Wen and Wang Zhen Wu was also a nice touch to the entire series. I wasn't sure sometimes what was happening between them, but the moments of secret confessions made me tear up a bit. They really loved each other and only wanted each other to be happy. Only someone that truly loves you will push you away for you to be happy while they slowly die inside.

Acting - The acting by the main cast was superb. They delivered every emotion and had me on the edge of my seat coming down to the end when they had that simple but so powerful argument before the game. Every stammer, every double take, every nervous reflex that they had, I believed. Every smile, every long run, I swear i hopped they didn't trip nor get stopped by a teacher.

Side bar: These boys are soooooooooo handsome, made me want to be a BL actor just to see if his lips are as soft as they look.

Music - Pay attention to what you are hearing, because my heart beat with every song that was played. They matched the emotion of the scenes so well, bringing more depth to the emotions that the acting already had me feeling.

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Amo HIStory

Sou uma fã incondicional da saga HIStory, desde a primeira temporada até a quinta, que terminou agora em 2023. Depois de rever essa série que amo tanto, senti vontade de escrever sobre ela...

A série só tem 8 eps de + ou- 25 minutos. O roteiro inicia com um clichê, o cara encrenqueiro e o melhor aluno que são obrigados a conviver juntos e acabam se apaixonando. Olhando apenas por essa ótica parece uma série simples, mas não é.
Primeiro, apesar o ambiente escolar, a ênfase maior é no esporte e no quanto ele se relaciona com questões pessoais, como caráter, comprometimento e espírito de equipe. A história mostra Xuan, que é totalmente apaixonado por vôlei, mas não pode mais jogar depois de uma lesão. Independente disso, ele decide não abandonar o esporte e segue ajudando a equipe. Hsia Yu Hao entra na equipe na intenção de causar confusão, mas acaba se apaixonando por Xuan, e sim, apesar dos poucos episódios foi lindo de se ver o quanto esse casal se desenvolveu de forma gradativa, natural, sem atropelos nem apelação. Quando Xuan rejeitou Hsia Yu Hao, eu tive um misto de sentimentos, até entender que ele fez aquilo pelo bem da equipe e do desempenho de Hsia Yu Hao no jogo, mesmo se sacrificando. Foi belíssimo ver a forma como ele aceitou esse amor na hora certa, do jeito certo, e com um beijo que fez história.

Uma outra história de amor se desenrola em segundo plano, e essa me assustou um pouco no início, pois já haviam acontecido algumas polêmicas e cancelamentos de algumas séries por causa de supostos "incestos", mas percebi que não era o caso. O termo irmão, se aplicava a eles por afinidade, o pai de um casou com a mãe do outro, portanto não existiam laços consanguíneos. Esse casal me deixou um pouco decepcionada, pois a história deles foi bem desinteressante, o final deles foi confuso, O menino falou para Hsia Yu Hao que eles "estavam vendo como ia ser", e em seguida beija o outro na boca (??), fiquei sem entender.

Senti falta de saber mais sobre as famílias, mas como o tempo de série era curto entendi que o foco deveria ser no casal principal.

A atuação, mesmo em se tratando de atores iniciantes foi excelente, o ator que interpreta Hsia Yu Hao tem um rosto muito expressivo, ele consegue transmitir os sentimentos apenas com suas expressões, acho isso fantástico. A ost dessa série está na minha playlist até hoje, amo de paixão. Detalhes técnicos como filmografia, fotografia e afins, tudo isso funcionou muito bem.
Com certeza verei outras vezes (já vi 3x), e com certeza indico essa série com muito carinho.

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A breath of fresh air

This short series was so well done, perfect in every way. Even though it is short, the story is well done, the actors are amazing and there is never a dull moment.

The actors had real chemistry, the kisses were not just lips pressed together, the anger, happiness and other emotions were heartfelt. I even like the side couple a lot. Brothers who are not blood related, the difficulty of admitting they had feelings for each other.

Volleyball was a nice change from basketball, and the shots of them jumping were awesome, as was the music during those scenes. The music overall and the lyrics were perfect.

I watched this a long time ago, glad I watched it again.

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Suka ke ketua ekskul volly

Berawal dari pertemuan seorang siswa baru bernama Hsia Yu Hao dengan seorang ketua grup volly sekolah yaitu Qiu Zi Xuan dipinggiran sekolah, pertemuan tersebut menghasilkan tatapan mata keduanya secara langsung yang membuat Hsia Yu Hao merasakan perasaan cinta kepada Qiu Zi Xuan. Hsia Yu Hao merupakan siswa yang punya beberapa masalah di sekolah, dan pertemuan dia sebelumnya di pinggiran sekolah dengan ketua grup volly adalah tidak sengaja karena Hsia Yu Hao sedang kabur dan berlari meninggalkan sekolah dengan memanjat sebuah pagar. Setelah pertemuan itu, Hsia Yu Hao tertarik untuk masuk ke grup vollyball dengan alasan tidak langsung ingin bertemu sang ketua grup tersebut (Qiu Zi Xuan). Chemistry kemudian terjadi, HIStory ini mempunyai konflik yang tidak terlalu fokus kepada bL, namun nuansa BL nya jelas sangat terlihat. Masalah relasi mungkin terlihat ketika hubungan main role terhalang karena mereka berdua merupakan sesama anggota grup volly atau salah satu dari mereka masih merasakan denial. Selain hubungan main role, masih ada second role relationship yaitu hubungan antara Wang Zhen Wen dengan Wang Zhen Wu yang menurut saya kurang begitu terasa chemistrynya karena scene mereka yang sempit dan pendek, ini mungkin karena History mulai mencoba memasukan dua relationship dalam satu series untuk yang pertama kalinya, sehingga hasilnya kurang maksimal untuk second couple ini.

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Um dos BL's mais gostosinhos que eu já assistir, uma história bem levinha entre um bad boy que é obrigado a entrar pro time de vôlei da escola e um ex prodígio que mesmo após uma lesão, ainda ajuda os colegas de time. Apesar de curtinha, a série desenvolve bem o casal principal, as atuações também são um ponto forte, desde o casal principal até os personagens secundários.

Eu só não dei 10 para essa BL por conta da exploração limitada do esporte na trama, mas isso é um gosto pessoal, entendo que com 8 episódios não era possível fazer muita coisa, já que o foco principal era o romance. Entretanto, esse ponto me fez muita falta, o máximo que eles abordam são algumas regras básicas e 2 minutos de uma partida. Outro ponto também foi o desenvolvimento muito lento do romance com o casal principal, eu adoro quando as coisas vão acontecendo com calma, mas deixar pra fazer isso no final do último capitulo é sacanagem. Eu fiquei pra ter um surto achando que eles não iriam se resolver, e quando se resolvem é essa MIGALHA, eu só queria um episodio deles sendo um casalzinho feliz, é pedir muito?????

E sobre o casal secundário: não desgosto, mas também não sou a maior entusiasta, eles tem uma química até legal, mas achei tudo muito jogado na relação deles. Em certo ponto considero esse romance deles até descartável pra série, poderiam ter usado o tempo pra desenvolver mais o romance do casal principal.

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