Until We Meet Again (2019)

Emotionally Taxing and Kind of Confusing

The story is intriguing, the threads of fate are touching. I understand why so many people like it, but I likely won't have it on my rec list for a few reasons.

Pros:
- The relationship between Pharm and his friends is amazing. I love Manow and Team. Every time the three were on screen -golden.
- Little mini cooking shows whenever Pharm bakes - love it. It could only be better if I got to eat it.
- Dean's siblings, Pharm's mom and brother, and Dean's grandma - love all of them.
- Team and Win's relationship, as little as we got, was cool. I like Win a lot (but there's a scene that suggests he sleeps with his earrings in and I swear to god that is not a thing. They just didn't want to change his costume because no one does that. Right? right?! )
- Everything university related was good. A solid school story that was a breath of simpler, fresh air around all the drama of the reincarnation plotline.

Cons: (this is where the spoilers are)
- ok the fat shaming for Manow was dumb as fuck and I got sick of it really fast. Just "well, look at you're body" "why are you always eating?" "ew I dont wanna see you in a bikini" "stop eating all the time" - I swear it was every episode and Manow is beautiful so they all need to just stfu, honestly.
-Crying. Everywhere. Every episode. Someone - multiple someones - crying. At first, it made sense and I didn't mind but by the end I was like "everyone cries next scene, I bet. and the one after. I bet we get one scene this episode without tears." The scenes merited it, sure, but it was a constant state of emotional height that was hard on me as a viewer when binging. Maybe it wasn't so taxing on the people who watched it week to week, but it felt like I was on edge and tense for the next emotional drain for the last 3 or 4 episodes straight.
SPOILERS AHEAD - last warning
- The timeline of In and Korn's relationship is all out of order, so trying to piece it together to get a coherent tale of woe was hard for me. I had to make a lot of assumptions about what would lead Korn to shoot himself since we didn't actually see a lot of him struggling with mental health or anything. We got that his dad was harsh and strict and threatened In, but Korn seemed positive and hopeful for his future with In all the way up until In's dad found them at the restaurant and they ran away together. Then they get confronted and Korn is suddenly ready to die. It's key for the plot but I didn't see how we got there emotionally for him.
- Convoluted family trees. By the end, I knew who was related to whom, but to talk about it was like "So Pharm's uncle... Wait, no, I mean, Dean's brother... I mean, I was right, Korn's brother and Pharm's uncle." or "So... In's grand-nephew is now his boyfriend?" It really didn't help that Grandad Mafia was technically Pharm's grandfather but Dean was there calling him Dad. When they start using old names and titles, it really starts to make me confused even though I know who is and isn't related.

So I had a good time, but after the last stretch of episodes, I feel like I've been emotionally holding my breath and I can barely remember all the fun times they mixed in earlier. All I remember is tears, nightmares, more tears, and boys needing therapy.

Lire davantage

Glad I watched it.

At first I wasn't going to watch this series after reading the synopsis and a few reviews but I'm really glad I gave it a chance.

The story was sad and tragic from the very beginning yet somehow managed to pull off a happy ending. It was the only series to date that actually brought me to tears and it wasn't because of any interactions between the couples but rather their interactions with their families. The goodbyes, the reunions, the revelations.. they were heartbreaking but necessary.

Starting with the lows, honestly, there wasn't a whole lot I didn't like. I remember reading one review that harped on the fact that Pharm cries in every episode and, while true, I didn't find it annoying or unnecessary. (I think the only thought I gave to it was wondering what the budget was for the eye-drops and tissues for this production and the crew.) Also, normally, I'm not a big fan of everything being connected as if it were one big coincidence; this person is related to this person who just happens to be related to this person and so on. Besides having to pause a few times to get the connections straight in my head, I think all the connections actually worked and made sense in this series, especially when you get to the ending episodes where both families come together to ensure Korn and In find their way to each other again. Fate just happened to decide to do it by way of family relations.

The part I really liked about the series was how everything that happens has purpose. I generally don't like a lot of filler, even if that filler is of the spicy nature. (This series lacked the spice but not the emotion so that was enough for me.)

Speaking of spice, this series is straight up "food porn" and I'm kind of upset that there isn't a cookbook out there with the recipes from throughout the series. That didn't effect my ratings, though.

Edited afterthoughts:

Another review I had seen brought to attention the fact that the flashback scenes were hard to follow since it didn't give a date or time stamp for them. While I will say that would have been a nice added touch, I personally didn't think it was necessary. You can clearly tell at what point in their relationship the scene is from just by Korn and In's interactions and that in itself was impressive.

Also, speaking of the flashback scenes, in one of the first ones where you see Perth as In's friend, I couldn't help but think of the phrase "Go for the Oscar, Perth." Which basically means they didn't necessarily have to go that hard in their acting. I'm not saying it's the actor's fault, a lot of times it's the monologue they are given, but still, that just stood out to me for some reason. There were a couple of times, actually, where I feel like they didn't need to dial it all the way to 11, but it wasn't enough to effect the rating of the show either. Even the cookbook is still more important to me.

Lire davantage

I like the story, but not the execution...

This one is a hard to rate. I've heard so much praise about this show ever since I started watching BLs and was curious, however, I must admit if it wasn't for me wanting to watch Between Us I would have watched UWMA much later.

I really like the story. The idea of a couple who's love ended in a tragic way being reincarnated and finding their way to each other again, I mean, that is a hell of a story. Unfortunately, the execution didn't meet my expectations. If I'm being very honest, it was way below them. Some scenes were dragged unnecessarily long, unrealistic dialogues and way too many "dramatic moments" which weren't exactly dramatic... There were a lot of issues I had with this series production wise and let's just say I was glad ep 17 is finally over.

While I don't think any of the actors are bad, I failed to feel the chemistry most of the time. There definitely were moments that I highly enjoyed, but I just didn't "buy it" most of the time. The most natural and enjoyable characters for me were Korn and In (and Win with Team, although they didn't have that much screentime).

The story became more interesting towards the end (there were moments when I was really surprised, of even in shock) but still, it was dragged a lot for my taste and I do believe if it was written a bit differently, I would enjoy it much more. We see Dean and Pharm being drawn to each other and both of them having flashbacks to their past lives, but I feel like they didn't talk about it or try to solve the mystery that much. Early on, Pharm keeps crying randomly (well, after a flashback, but nobody around him knows that) yet nobody - especially Dean - ever asks him why? What's wrong? Why are you having a breakdown just cause our spoons touched? And after they confess to each other about having dreams about the same couple, why don't they try to find out who it is? What happened? I mean, Dead did a little bit of searching, but Pharm seemed to not give a damn about it for a good chunk of the show, and then was acting all shocked when he "found out the truth" when it was him who told Dean that he doesn't wanna hear what Dead had found out. I dunno..

Like I said, the story is really interesting, but I wish it was written or directed a bit differently.

Lire davantage

Most memorable BL

Maybe because I believe in reincarnation that I am biased in rating. It is really nice to see reincarnation in a BL series along with religious beliefs about the afterlife.

Plot: I really love it! Although the way Korn and In's scenes were too modern for the year that they were stated to have been in, it was refreshing to see the story unfold by watching the 2 different eras of the couple. It also has many heart wrenching scenes that was hard to turn off the waterworks. The only BL that I ever cried so much for :"). Side couple is also cute! Kind of wanted Sammy's character to fall in love with a girl but that guy works too.

Cast: Amazing cast! Pharm is a character added in Fluke's role diversity. He made the character extra cute and I'm sure Ohm agrees. Ohm is an actor I didn't really like at first because of how cold he seems to be but really he is a sweetheart (for fluke <3). The difference in characters of Ohm and Fluke made DeanPharm's dynamic work. I personally find that Kao and Earth isn't that perfect match for a couple because there wasn't enough chemistry for them to convey it to Korn and In, but they still managed to do it so kudos. Prem and Boun are just amazing. Their chemistry is really top tier.

Music: Superior OSTs. Music played for each scene is also very fitting to the emotion portrayed and brings life to the series.

Rewatch value: 10/10 because I have already watched it 3 times. It's really the BL series that drew me in so deep.

Lire davantage

Ho adorato questa serie... Attori, musiche, storia, tutto perfetto. Ero titubante all'idea di guardarlo per paura di rimanerne delusa ma me ne sono innamorata. Dopo solo pochi minuti dall'inizio della serie ero già in lacrime.

Trovo che le relazioni tra i vari personaggi siano perfette, il parallelismo tra passato e presente è fatto molto bene, ho pianto ad ogni episodio, mi sono emozionata, era tutto ciò che volevo da questa serie.
Ho amato particolarmente la relazione tra Korn e In, le emozioni vengono trasmesse pienamente e ti senti parte del loro percorso, ridi con loro, soffri con loro, ami con loro, così come con Parm e Dean. Bellissima anche la coppia secondaria.
Alcuni colpi di scena sono prevedibili ma vengono comunque rappresentati molto bene.
La recitazione di Fluke e Earth l'ho trovata impeccabile.

Lire davantage

Best bl in the history of bl

This was accuarly my very first bl to watch and am glad it was i mean what could be better than this love that concurred even death untill we meet again the title itself made me curious but the cast wow no words the story was flawlessly written i love it
Starting with the main couple
OHMFLUKE who play dean and pharm
First i have to admit i fell inlove with pharm on the first sight like how cute can he be like so adorable that it made me cry but when i say dean i was like heck yes i personal love bad boys and his walking style to his looks are onpoint but them together mind blowing the story evolves around their past and how they reunite with there present selfs after a series of hard nightmares and family issue what stayed strng was there love it never died with them it literally stayed with them until they met again see now you get the title what mad me sad was how pharm was mostly affected by what happened and all he did in his past self was just being in love so am glad he got his happy ending coz he deserved it
BOUNPREM who played team and win time to confess i accuarly started watching this show becouse of them i am obsessed with them and a huge fan and though i wish they had more scenes am glad they are getting their own show becouse what they have is so unique i loved how they mocked pharm and dean being their best friends it made sence i loved how they still managed to have cute couple moments and hopping to see more in between us
Menaoh del and don also played a huge role in the series it was all cute how each character had a specific role in helping the main couple and just to be clear you should watch it if not already then thank me later

Lire davantage

What a beautiful, compelling, moving and often witty drama.
The acting was a little wooden in early episodes, but as this wonderful story progressed, the actors became more comfortable with their roles.
Pharm, character becomes very emotional, but considering what he's going through and the fact he has no apparent control over the memories that activate those emotions, it's not surprising.
Win and Team were adorable. The former was certainly persistent. I felt the latter could never seriously reject him; it was more like rejection of feelings Team was afraid of.
I absolutely loved it; not perfect by any means, but I adored the actors and the characters they portrayed, the plot, plus had a few good cries and will really miss it.

Lire davantage

It had promise & it was too long

I liked the premis of the show.
It was interesting & had great potential.
The main couple was cute, their love story was kinda tragic yet cute and honestly overall a little boring towards the end.

The secondary couple is them in their past lives & I enjoyed watching their story. I love InTouch. Their story was heartbreakingly beautiful & just as tragic. The actors who played In & Touch were absolutely brilliant. Cooheart is the standout actor in this show.

After InTouch's part of the story was told, the series relied heavily on DeanPharm's story & them as a couple. There was so much crying. Too much crying. To the point that though you understand why they are sad & crying, as a watcher, you no longer care & just want it to stop.
I struggled to finish the series & by episode 14, I had given up.
It genuinely felt like the series was too long. It should've been like 10/12 episodes long, not 17.
You could argue that they had a lot of story to tell, I could argue that a lot of the episodes were filler and thus didn't need the 17 episodes.

HOWEVER WinTeam stole my heart. Was it the sexy angel wings back tattoo? Probably but I was more infatuated with that couple than the main couple and I am so excited for Between Us💃🏾

Lire davantage

almost dropped this series but luckily i didnt!!

just to preface - i was like halfway through between us before i realized that this series was supposed to (not really) be watched first. but i dont think it really effected my view on the show itself.

PRODUCTION
was okay. there wasn't a lot that sticked out to me but the overuse of the same music got SUPER annoying after awhile. 17ish hours of the same handful of background music playing on loop was super annoying. also the pacing was abnoxiously slow sometimes and scenes dragged on for way too long.

STORY / WRITING
i am a HUGE sucker for reincarnation stories so this whole idea was my jam. but i really wish that it wasnt dragged out for so long. it was confusing sometimes i didnt really understand how much they knew of their past lives at some points. i luckily didnt ever feel like the characters were dumb but the slow pace of the show sometimes made it hard to sit through. which is why i can't really see myself ever rewatching this series in the near future. i felt like for awhile just nothing was happening - it wasnt until episode 9 that i really felt engaged in what was happening.

CHARACTERS / ACTING
fluke (pharm) does super well with emotional scenes especially at the end i was really stunned with his acting. however near the beginning when he was moreso acting shy it more felt like he was cringing to me. sometimes i wondered if pharm was actually comfortable around dean. i did sorta think he wasnt my favorite but i appericate him a lot more now. i do wish we got more development at the end with his fears but oh well.

ohm (dean) i have a soft spot for kinda reserved characters. i did think he pulled off emotional scenes until the end - maybe bc he just was right next to fluke who was giving his all haha. i also didnt really feel like we develed deep enough into his feelings. they did a little but and i really liked it when they did but they couldve given us that a little bit more.

together they were sweet but like i kinda said i sometimes wondered if they were truly comfortable around each other. i did feel like their physical actions with each other felt a little too scripted sometimes but it didnt distract me completely. in the end i was happy for them.

earth (intouch) really was such a perfect comparison of fluke. i really am glad they didnt make intouch and pharm extremely similiar. i did have a problem with intouch being kinda annoying but it didnt last very long and im pretty sure he's my favorite from the series. just very cute and lovable.

kao (korn) was a lot like dean. which given that pharm and intouch were different didnt make a lot of sense. i also didnt really understand korn's motivations that well in the end (beginning). i dont really think it ever got properly explained why he did what he did. i also feel like the changing for his feelings for intouch kinda came out of nowhere.

but their scenes together worked really well i felt like intouch's character was so much stronger when he played off of korn. their beach scene really sold me. i liked their happiness and it really made me appreciate them and feel for them when all the sad stuff happens.

i liked the side characters - i do feel like the continuity when it comes to win/team is pretty rough when it comes to between us. but this was made first so i dont blame this series for that. they are just much more light-hearted here than they are their own story. manaow is best girl i absolutely love her. and seeing ja playing sin made me brust that WIG bdgahwhshwh. i love u ja but omg i couldnt help it.

OVERALL
im glad i stuck through the series i loved the concept for the story and while i have my issues with it i think they pulled it off a lot better than most people would. i probably wont rewatch this anytime soon but im excited that ill finally get back to watching between us haha!

Lire davantage