What's more scrumptious: the food or the young men?

This was an exceptionally well-made series with meticulous attention to detail that went from the depth of all the main characters to the making of the mouth-watering food that was shot with such precision, often in slow motion which amounted to food porn. It was a joy to see how the story of Aek, his love of food and one day wanting to be a world-class chef melded so perfectly after he met Aue, the owner of a high-class restaurant called Im-Aue which he came across as a delivery boy and the instant attraction they had for each other. Parallel to this is the story of one of Aek's three university buddies, Vich, with whom he shares a dorm room, a charming and playful young man who is a talented photographer and through Aek gets a job at Im-Aue photographing their food after completing an assignment on the creation of the desserts by their dessert chef Prem who he eventually falls in love with and which is immediately reciprocated, unlike the more troublesome love affair between Aek and Aue which takes most of the series to resolve.

One of Aek's buddies is Bie, a handsome and rich young man who doesn't take his studies seriously. He is played by Gameplay who starred in the foodie BL mini-series Ingredients and graduated from Le Cordon Bleu culinary school. He is the only well-known actor in the series and the only main character with real cooking credentials though you wouldn't know it from the skills shown by everyone else. Im-Aue was actually built from scratch and demolished after filming finished. Everyone who took part in this series did so because they believed in the story and had the same vision for its outcome. The result is nothing less than superb and it's hard to decide whether the food or the two main actors, both very dishy and desirable young men in their own way, shone brighter.

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Love triumphs unexpectedly

An absolutely delightful and heartwarming series. The unlikely love that springs up suddenly between Masumi and Toru is explored and portrayed with a light touch that keeps the viewer smiling almost right throughout. It's wonderful to see such universal acceptance within their circle, immediate or delayed, of their love for each other. The performances are excellent and the sprightly pace allows the story to be told with little fuss and no irrelevant fluff (admittedly, in the space of 4 x <30 minute episodes, that would be difficult). Note: after the final credits, there is an extra scene that heralds a forthcoming second series. Highly recommended and not to be missed.

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Romance on the run

As the episodes were short, I was able to watch them all in one sitting. In comparison to countries like Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines, there are not as many that originate from South Korea so I was pleased and delighted to be able to view this offering with its most original storyline that posed unique challenges. The two young male leads had first to be attractive, they had to be able to act well, be in good physical shape to do all that running and finally had to be a convincing BL couple, and in all those areas they passed with flying colours. It tells the story of the celebrated marathon runner Jin Hon, who is tall, handsome, rich, stern and focused, and Sung Ha, who has the room next door in the dorm building they live in to which he soon has the same number combination to open each other's doors, who is shorter, cute, poor and also a runner. Sung Ha is attracted to Jin Hon and secretly leaves cartons of milk for him on top of his locker until he's eventually discovered. It's fun watching him steal kisses from Jun Ho. One thing leads to another and Sung Ha quickly finds himself Jin Hon's pacemaker. I found this drama to be absorbing and entertaining, excellently filmed, produced and directed. There was just enough romance to keep it true to its genre from beginning to end. Mention must be made of the music that was heard throughout, mostly songs that reflected what was happening onscreen and were well -chosen. Highly recommended.

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Lust after thy neighbour

This may have begun on TikTok but its transition to YouTube has changed the format to full-screen 30 minute episodes so there will be 6 episodes. That said, it's a welcome change from most Philippino BL series with a thankfully much reduced cast of essential characters, the main ones being 18yo Charlie who is captivated by his new handsome, older and mysterious neighbour, Mico, who we often see topless and he has a great smile. The series revolves around Charlie trying to involve Mico in his life, an endeavour encouraged by his unusually gay supportive father. I have no complaints about the sound, dialogue, acting and production values. A very likeable series and should be on your watch list.

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