Stand by Your Side (2023)

I fell in love with all the clichés

This serie has a *happy ending*

The acting still needs tweaking especially with regards to Jiang Chi. I guess it was his face that has that type of smiley look or he just dont have any other expressions other than poker and the smirk.
Bu xia is uber cute. I really like his round eyes.

For the plot, I find it very confusing how the enemies to lovers trope started. Its like before I know it, Bu xia is already mad at Jiang Chi for whatever reasons.
The clichés that taiwanese dramas and chinese dramas often portrayed, i.e, uber rich, arrogant seme x clumsy but cute uke is sooo hilariously portrayed that I loved it. A lot of scenes are also too cliché that even the most serious scenes kept me laughing.

The lovey dovey scenes are a chef's kiss. Much like My tooth your love. I am sufficiently satisfied in this matter.

Overall, I will still rewatch this gem but not for the plot. I hope that the looming second season gives us a more oomph.

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Stay By My Side" Review: Taiwan's BL Drama Shines Once Again

🚨 **Spoiler Alert** 🚨

When it comes to the pulsating world of Asian BL drama, Taiwan has always held a distinguished spot. From the inception of the famed *HiStory* series, Taiwan has showcased its unique flair. And now, with **"Stay By My Side,"** produced by the illustrious Sanlih E-Television, traditional Taiwanese TV has boldly stepped into the BL arena — and what an entry it is!

Meet Gu Buxia, a student whose academic prowess may be questionable but whose charm is undeniable. Raised amidst Taoist temples, this character has a quirky fear: ghosts. Yet, it's his childlike innocence, devoid of any guile, that captivates the enigmatic transfer student, Jiang Chi. As Jiang eloquently puts it, "I'm smitten with the very essence of you."

The show beautifully weaves quintessential Taiwanese elements — Taoist temples, the traditional birthday dish of pig's trotter noodles, and colloquialisms that might get lost in translation. Yet, fret not international viewers! The endearing dynamics between our leads will keep you grinning from ear to ear, language barriers be damned.

And here's the twist: who knew that the ultimate way to drown out pesky ghostly whispers was by diving deep into a same-sex romance, complete with passionate embraces? While the series might shy away from any risqué sequences, there's no shortage of heart-throbbing kisses between our leads.

In conclusion, **"Stay By My Side"** is more than just a BL drama. It's a vibrant tapestry of Taiwanese charm and culture. It promises not just romance, but depth, humor, and a cultural immersion. Tune in, and let yourself be whisked away by its youthful zest and allure!

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A light romantic comedy

Watching this was a bit like eating fairy floss - similar to what you've eaten as a kid a long time ago and tempting to try again but only in a small amount (only 10 episodes - good choice, guys) because after being reminded of the familiar flavour, it's time to smile, give thanks, and move on to something more substantial.

The music is nice, the photography good, and the sound goes a little awry at the end but otherwise, it's a technically good production.

Hong Wei Che plays goofy well and Yang I Hsuan plays a straight serious face like an Okame mask. The two actors look to have fun with each other although neither appears to be experienced in the kissing department, which in any event, suits their characters.

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REALLY WORTH WATCHING

Very good. The story is similar to a novel I once read. By the way, the novel title is called "Don't You Like Me" in English, if you're interested in reading it. I don't know if this drama IP is an adaptation of the novel or not. The most important thing is that this drama really satisfied my imagination of the novel. Moreover, in terms of the cast; especially for the two main actors, both in terms of suitability for the characters of Jiang Chi and Bu Xia, as well as their acting performance. Apart from that, there are no problems with the other components, except for the duration. Hey, I really need more episodes😭😭

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Fluff with crumbs of supernatural elements

I wasn't really expecting this drama to be this cute, but I really liked how it turned out!

The story mainly revolves around the relationship between Bu Xia and Jiang Chi, with a lovely combination of tropes. There is a supernatural element in the story, but it's not explained nor developed all that much and is mostly used as a device to bring the two protagonists closer. I'm not a big fan of this, to be honest - I wish they used the supernatural element more in the story, or just took it away entirely as I don't believe it's too important for the sake of the plot, but it didn't spoil the fun so I'm not too disappointed.
The romance, which is the most important part of the story, was developed beautifully. Buxia and Jiang Chi grow closer over time naturally - their forced proximity and Bu Xia's circumstances made me worry about the pacing, but it was just right and very satisfying to see! All the events between them happened neither too soon nor too late, and most importantly THEY ARE SO CUTE. There might be some cheesy lines and moments here and there, but I didn't mind at all. While neither Bu Xia nor Jiang Chi get too much introspection, they are shown well enough to let their personalities shine, so I was already in love with them by the end of the first episode.

It's a rather short series, it can easily be binged in the span of three hours, so if you like a cute romance with lots of fluff, this is for you! On the other hand, if you're interested in the supernatural elements of the plot, I suggest you watching something else.

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NOT SO GREAT BUT IS VERY ENTERTAINING

Everything is just so entertaining in this drama, if you just want to feel good , relax and fall in love , well this drama is for you , because hello ! kissing scene is everywhere here.
I appreciated the looks of the actors , even they are not as handsome as of the faces we used to from actors of Korean dramas, they are attractive in their own way, and I liked their charms here every thing is just so natural and realistic.
I liked the captain of the basketball team here like he is my type , I thought there are going to be side couple on the team but none .. that so sad .. I remember him and I was right ! he was the side couple on the beloved in house I do .
everything here is just okay .. only just when the songs were played, the songs were too emotional but the perfect acting was not given .. but it is okay ..
Still just light , just okay .. I appreciate everything, the story is easy to understand , that is what matters to me always when I see dramas, there is point , and in the short run time the story is complete .. and I guess this might get a season 2 ! who knows !

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Fun Series

The series was fun and had a lot going for it. good leads and great casting. The story had a nice touch to it, it's something different and fun to have for BL. The only down part was I was not a big fan of the lead in the beginning was selfish and dumb always annoying to the second lead but got better over time. The ending could have been way better I have to say as it leaves you hanging be time. It made me want more and felt short in telling the story. There few a lot of missing gaps to the story, like one moment something is happening and the next it happened and we do not see it, but over all the story was still good to see play out and the leads had good chemistry and it had a lot to share but wish it wants more into detail as to the guy's abilities to hear ghost and how that will translate in the future. It is still fun and a joy to watch.

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The majority of clichés were handled well. I felt the gradual, convincing formation of their love.

There are cute moments in this BL series like in many others, but they are not as annoying, prolonged, and exaggerated as in most. The cute scenes are well-placed and realistically executed, which pleased me a lot.

Bu Xia is incredibly adorable, and I find myself warming up to him more and more. As the series progresses, we understand why Jiang Chi fell in love in a very beautiful way, which is quite rare. Usually, you don't understand the process of falling in love. If I can say, "I would fall in love too" when I put myself in Jiang Chi's shoes, then the series is good.

Everything was great, but I found the school gossip and people's senseless curiosity to be absurd. I think it disrupts the realism of the story. Also, unless it is seriously exaggerated, I believe people wouldn't easily label two close male friends as gay. For me, this was the first absurdity in the series.

I liked his sister and the supernatural event very much, but it could have been more detailed. The solution of the supernatural event turned out to be a bit ridiculous and (for me) sad.

The passion between the couple was good, but in the kissing scenes, I felt an energy from Jiang Chi as if he didn't want to kiss. It seemed like he was forcing himself to be comfortable. Because of the lack of passion in the kissing scenes, the series couldn't become my favorite. I'm sorry, but to love and rewatch a BL series, I need to feel that chemistry between them.

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Encantador, divertido, mas com alguns tropeços, assim foi o dorama

Foi uma experiência cativante, mas com altos e baixos para mim. No início, senti um pouco de vergonha alheia, mas logo me vi imerso numa trama fofinha que trouxe conforto e distração. A história, embora não tenha trazido grandes inovações, conseguiu me prender pela sua abordagem interessante. A abordagem do sobrenatural deixou um pouco a desejar, mas sei que isso não era o foco, então não foi um grande problema.

Apesar de os efeitos visuais não serem os mais impressionantes, a ambientação e a fotografia foram pontos altos. Os locais de filmagem eram bonitos, contribuindo para a experiência visual. A trilha sonora também foi cativante, combinando muito bem com a narrativa. O que mais me cativou, no entanto, foi a diversão que tive assistindo. A série se mostrou uma ótima companhia durante o tempo em que estive envolvido, e o fato de ser um dorama curto foi uma vantagem considerável.

Jiang Chi e Bu Xia formam um casal adorável, apesar de suas diferenças. A evolução da relação deles, partindo de uma rivalidade inicial para algo mais profundo, foi encantadora. As atuações dos dois foram adequadas, sem ser excepcionais, mas também sem serem ruins, transmitindo uma química palpável na tela.

Contudo, o final não foi perfeito, mas ainda assim, deixou espaço para mais. Sinto que uma temporada 2 ou um episódio especial seriam bem-vindos para proporcionar um desfecho mais completo à história. No geral, "Fique ao Meu Lado" cumpre o que promete: é uma história fofa e reconfortante, ideal para momentos de descontração, sem abordar assuntos difíceis, proporcionando um puro conforto.

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A Comedic Star Is Born in a Poorly Scripted Series

This show started off great. Taiwanese singer and C-pop boy band member Hong Wei Zhe makes star turn in his first ever acting role. He brings to life a ridiculous and aimless college in the problematic BL. He delivers a performance that perfectly balances earnestness and humor, and the camera loves his goofy faces. Unfortunately he can only carry the show so far and the last third of the show is paced so poorly with little to no dramatic momentum that it's pretty vapid by the end and ultimately makes you forget how good the show was at the start.

First the good! As mentioned about, Hong Wei Zhe was great. There have been several BL series and movies that used the ghost story theme -- HIStory: My Hero, He's coming to Me, Ghost House Ghost House, After Sundown, Y-Destiny, Sweet Curse, Low Frequency, Ghost Runner. IMHO the best of this genre are Eien no Kinou and Marry My Dead Body. This series doesn't do anything dramatically new here, but the execution in the set-up of the first 5 episodes is very well done.

Additionally, in a genre littered with manipulated misunderstandings pushed forward as interesting drama motivations (they aren't), this show had a nice balance (initially) between two characters who both had ulterior motives behind their actions. Jiang Chi had romantic desires, and Gu Bu Xia had talismanic needs. This dual deception kept things hopping through the first half of the show.

Also, the trope of the more serious unflappable character being the one in love with the silly and naive character was fun to watch. It's been done before, but this trope always feels a little disruptive, as usually the more emotional and verbal character (Gu Bu Xia in this case) is the one who is expressing that they like or love someone. I think it's always nice to see the character we wouldn't expect to be as consumed by those feelings to actually be the one who's love sick.

I also really appreciated all the kissing. So many BLs are filled with very tepid pecks, or no kissing at all. It was nice to see the production dive into this with such gusto.

Unfortunately there was a lot more bad then good. Isaac Yang is a very handsome actor, but the storytellers didn't give him a lot work with. He only had two modes in this show -- stoic or fawning. They kept talking about the conflict with his parents, but never expanded on it, which would have given his character a stronger backstory perhaps given him some more scenes to display more range in his acting.

The main dramatic force in this series was two characters each pushing their secret agenda's, so when they get together as a couple in episode 7, most of that dramatic motivation dissipates. Yes, Gu Bu Xia still doesn't come clean about why he allowed Jiang Chi to get close to him in the earlier episodes, but even that sort of gets wiped away when it turns out Jiang Chi knows about it and is ok with it. The writers could have used that to play out some real drama between the two in the last few episodes. It may have felt predictable, but at least there would have been something interesting to watch.

Instead we're forced to sit through episodes 8, 9 and 10, where nothing really happens happens except the two characters continue to fawn over each other kiss a lot. I do like the kissing, but it needs some story to support it. During these last three episodes they are tying up the ghost story, but it's really not enough to keep things interesting. The real nail in the coffin comes with the special episode 11. It's a whole episode where the two main characters just continue to declare their lover for each other. It's all vapid and ultimately makes you forget how good the first half of this series was.

The producers and writers missed an amazing opportunity with the surprise acting prowess of Hong Wei Zhe. They had all the ingredients to make a really fantastic and memorable BL, but dropped the ball with the story telling and pacing and left a really vacuous impression at the end.

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A bl that wouldn't usually be my first choice surprised me wholeheartedly. Bu Xia even though struggles to communicate at times with others is cute as you see him trying and having great support from his friends- especially in the bridge scene after the fight. The sister seemed so supportive and easy to talk to. They have a great relationship I don't always see with siblings in lbs apart from La Pluie
On the other hand, Jiang Chi felt harsh and cold to everyone but knew what he wanted and had the confidence to go after it. Kinda wished we knew the reason why he switched professions and his family.
Several intimate and close scenes weren't too over the top or exaggerated which I loved as they are opposites in personality

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