Love Mechanics (2022)

An upgrade

I’m glad i waited till second watch to write this review because i accidentally skipped a whole episode on first watch. This review is mostly about the gripes i have with the show more than anything. Overall it was cute and definitely an upgrade from en of love. Also YinWar are so fawking cute woah. But i had a couple of issues with this show:
1. Vee also cheated on Ploy. Maybe it was just the vibes i was getting, but it felt like the show didn’t want it to feel that way. Even before Vee discovered that Ploy cheated, he had had sex with Mark and kissed him twice. He also cheated and I wish we addressed that.
2. The sex scene in the first episode was non con tbh. Mark was WASTED; homeboy was gone. heck he thought he was having sex with Bar and not Vee. i understand that Vee had a couple of drinks as well, but he was definitely in the mind frame to have stopped what was happening.
3. Vee said some nasty things to Mark in ep. 6 or 7? the episode that had gone for the orientation thing, whichever it was. If I was Mark, I honestly would not have forgiven Vee. that was very disrespectful on vee’s part.
4. The way no one wanted to hear Vee out after that whole “kiss” with Ploy was crazy. like if Ploy hadn’t cleared things up herself with his friends, Vee would not have been heard at all. It also took way tooo long for Mark and Vee to clear things up. Like i understand it looked shady, but a simple conversation could have solved everything.
It is a good show don’t get me wrong, but these are big things that dropped the rating from what could have been a solid 9.5 or even 10 down to a 8.5.

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Expand Length Version of My Engineer Love Mechanics

This expanded version of Love Mechanics was the expansion of Vee and Mark's story that we were all waiting for. The biggest flaw was spending too much time of the Ploy arc, which was not what happened in the book or the first version. They could have spent more time on other things, for example, they could have showed how sad Vee was after losing Mark, like they did in the original series.

The best changes are, the acting ability of War and Yin (especially Yin) has greatly improved in the last 2 years. War was always very good, and Yin must have worked hard to improve as much as he has.

The recasting of Bar and Kan was something that I never got used to. I had trouble recognizing Bar because I was so used to the other actor who played Bar in En of Love. Although I think the recast was fine, I feel that as a viewer, I did not have time to adjust to the new actors, so I didn't have face recognition.

I'm so glad the families were shown closely related to the book. I thought that Mark in the series had a little less fire toward his dad, but it worked out in the end.

I highly recommend this version of Love Mechanics. I liked both series, but appreciated the time this version allowed to get to know Mark, Vee and their friends.

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A traditional BL executed superbly

This is not an ground-breaking BL and it is not anywhere near being artistically magnificent. But it is a great BL. This is what we watch BL's for. If you don't like this BL, you're not among the typical BL audience. You want something that is totally new because you are bored with all the standard BL formulas, or you have super-high artistic standards and hope you are watching a Fellini film. Guess what, most of us aren't here for that. Nonetheless we did get a drama with a lot of character development and exceptionally complex and realistic depictions of what real relationships look like. That was the part of this drama that took us all by surprise. The rest of what we liked involved some exceptional acting by War and Yin. Now I have been watching both of these guys and I'm not surprised that Yin improved as much as he has in this drama. He's actually roommates with War who is really one of the best actors in the BL business, and I secretly hope that they are lovers (lol), but I;m sure War rubs off on him. Everyone is surprised Yin has improved so much in this series, but I'm sure that War has motivated/coached him to get him to this point.

I think whoever looked at this drama really worked hard to improve it over the previous versions, and I'm talking about the novel as well as the first version which is part of En of Love. The idea that we start with a rape that develops into a relationship is really kind of absurd. This drama is not deep enough, or artistic enough like a Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down, to handle a rape being the starting point of a relationship. I'm glad they switched to drunken sex being initiated by the person who was supposed to be raped in the previous versions of the story. This was a fatal flaw in the initial series, and I was dismayed by people talking about the book who made light of this. I am not a person that likes to censor artistic liberties, but this simply did not work here, and I think it was a very smart decision of the writers of this series to edit that silly scenario out of this drama. There were just a lot of smart decisions by the screenwriters and the director that improved the series over the previous versions, including removing the lame idea of Vee kissing his girlfriend [who he broke up with], as a memento of their former love for each other in a public place where everyone would know about it. They improved that scenario a lot and they really worked at it. instead of Yin volunatarily kissing Ploy, he is basically kissing her against his will and after she reveals that she has been emotionally and physically abused by her current boyfriend.

What is wonderful about this version is that every conflict is resolved quickly. New conflicts are allowed to develop which is fine because that is what happens in real life, but endless, implausiible miscommunications that are dragged on for 4+ episodes are just not done here, thank god. I really appreciate this drama for treating us like adults and not dragging on stupid storylines that we know couldn't last for more than a few minutes in real life. You should see this as somewhat ground-breaking, even if the overall plot is commonplace.

What should you love about this show? The acting is incredible, and the story is solid - just forget all the other ones that are similar. The characters feel like living, breathing people with all the personal issues that lead to natural feeling dramatic situations that we can all relate to. The ending is just spectacular and is one of the best in the BL world. If you want a wonderful uplifting moment to your day, binge-watch this till you get to the end. The angst will mean nothing, because you will get to an ending that will fill your mind and heart with a kind of rapturous, glowing, euphoric feeling. What else could you want ? This is what you came to watch BL's for, and you couldn't hope to find something much better than this.

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Such An Amazing BL

Such An Amazing BL
This was such a pleasure to watch! The acting, love story, chemistry and everything in between was amazing!

When this was premiering I’m not sure why it wasn’t talked about more!

Yin and War set such a high standard for acting and chemistry. This show had me pausing, giggling, swinging my feet, yelling at the screen, and crying.

Yin and War are also so good looking and cute - watching their faces was defs a bonus. The supporting cast was also amazing and gorgeous and hillarious. Like what a supportive gang and truly loved the plot. It focused on love and that’s how I like it!

Such a good show and I rewinded to watch certain scenes A LOT! Highly recommend ya’ll.

Watch this ish cuz it will have you hooked!

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You'll definitely get hooked at this series!!! In my opinion lol

May contain a slight spoiler (?) Read at your own discretion.

I can't even remember how did I start watching this series lol. But I can say I enjoyed the series. I watched LM first before En Love so I have no comparison but will probably watch En Love also because I've found some comments/reviews that there were some scenes that was better portrayed or emotions were more felt than the full length and vice versa.

I am satisfied with the ending with a literal dessert on top (rooftop I must say lol) 😉 I must say Yin and War has THE chemistry!!! And you can really feel their emotions every time they are contemplating about their feelings. And that window scene that broke me where Vee was stuck between Ploy and Mark. The ginger tea scene. Yin did well on his acting I just want to hug him.

I also want to praise War for his acting. And also as for Mark's character, his character was not that likeable at first bec of how he approaches someone he likes but as the series went he showed how big his heart was. Forgiving was never that easy.

Some issues about conversation but also showed character development on both leads. And I really like the comedic scenes, their friends (but sometimes not lol iykyk) and how VEE turns to ᴠᴇᴇ when he realizes how he acted on his outbursts (Ep 9) and in front on Mark. Oh the smile got me!!!

Favorite part: the shower scene. Can't get over it hahahah!

But lastly, I just want to say that some scenes were cliché like when you found out your boyfriend was kissing their ex and you just don't want to hear what happened or the explanation at least. But I can't blame them, because hello trust issues.

And please tell me i'm not the only one that has an unsettling feeling until the end because we all know that both Ploy and Vee cheated on that same day. But Vee and Mark's cheating were never addressed or came to light. Like maybe deep down I'm hoping that it was revealed so I can finally be at peace with my mind. Even though I know it will lead to problems but at least it can be solved and will not affect Vee and Mark's relationship in the future (hoping for another series hehe)

And I think it was my 3rd BL series that I have watched and loved ❤️

Lire davantage

A well done on this one

This was definitely a better done drama as opposed to the other short stories that came out, this was really enjoyable and well played out.

This expanded version of Love Mechanics was the expansion of Vee and Mark's story, however I do feel they could have spent more time on other things, for example, they could have showed how sad Vee was after losing Mark, like they did in the original series. The characters are not meant to be squeaky clean, but even in their worst moments, they’re vulnerable, honest portrayals of what it means to be a painfully flawed and confused human being. Mark and Vee’s interactions are littered with tense, flirtatious interactions and non-answers, making it clear that their relationship is not nothing. But the best thing is that Love Mechanics doesn’t try too hard to fill in the gaps or explicitly articulate what characters are feeling in each scene.

Overall: it is a really a good drama to binge watch in one sitting, I unfortunately did this while it was on going and i really looked forward to every up coming eps. I did like the last one the best, as it showed how far they came to be what they are and the challenges they had to face to get to where there are. A must watch

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Double Standards at it's finest...

Another BL that lives of the main actors chemistry. I admit, the two of them are really good together, the acting is on point, the love scenes believable. It's not their fault the writing is so bad, they do the best they can with a bad script.

The story is trash and boring, the typical teen-romance with almost no plot and waaay too much unnecessary drama.

But what got me the most and is also the reason I couldn't finish this, is the double standard. It's a common thing to portray women as the mean, dumb and/or lying b****** in this kind of dramas, but wtf?!

Vee is crying about his cheating girlfriend when he does literally the same thing to her with Mark. His first night with a very intoxicated Mark (which is so problematic in itself because taking advantage of a drunk person? ... I can't even...) was brushed over like nothing. Then he stalks after Mark every chance he gets, constantly mentioning their night together and the moment he discovers Ploys affair, instead of breaking up (and confessing to his own cheating!) he starts an affair with Mark behind her back. Meanwhile judging her for doing the exact same thing... Wow.
Not to mention Vees behaviour towards Mark, treating him like his dirty little secret, promising to break up with Ploy but not doing it and just let him suffer...a classic.
But who is the only one portayed as the materialistic, ruthless devil? Of course the girl...

The whole thing made me so angry that I couldn't continue watching this after episode 5, so I don't know if they manage to fix at least some of the problematic topics in later episodes. Maybe I'll try again sometime in the future, just for the sake of finishing the series but for now I'm through with this.

Lire davantage

realistic & catching

Not your typical lakorn in any way, i'd say the american influence is strong... Very fresh view on love, as unconventional as BL can be.
The actors are also quite common-looking - but not by far boring! They are NATURAL and FRESH to the point you might believe you watch a reality show! Kudos to the director who spotted their potential... They are unbelievably gifted and sooo engaging! The cast is the strongest point of this drama, which also has the quality of keeping things simple - nothing over the top. Everybody can relate to this slow-paced teen story, and i mean - everybody, since the young actors succeed in conveying a lot of emotions with just their eyes and expressions...
I give this drama a 10 for the pure love of the fragile-but-strong Mark and the unbelievably-not-shallow Vee, and also for the rest of the cast, that succeeds in depicting a not perfect but serene college life. Excellent!

Lire davantage

So good yet so bad

I'm profoundly and inconsolably torn about this series, and it's driving me nuts.

As it is an ongoing title, with only episode 4 just having aired as I'm typing this, and me not having seen its prior version nor read it, might writing a review right now not be the most fruitful. But as said am I so torn that I need to vent my mind somehow somewhere.

The STORY is my main, big issue so far. Actually, every trope which has, in previous series, had me drop them is present in Love Mechanics; the persistent pursuit of someone who's been very clear that they're not interested, unbalanced power dynamic during intimacy AND non-consensual intercourse, jokes about previously mentioned situations as if it's nothing serious. Sprinkle that with the weirdest and back-and-forth phasing, too much screen-time for certain scenes and too little for others, and unclear relationships. The list goes on.
I can admit to being on the picker side but I can overlook a lot of things in favour of a good plot, but that's also it - LM's plot isn't anything special: Two students catching interest in one another, one already in a straight relationship and the other dealing with whether they're fine being a side piece or not. Some overly dramatic incidents on top (a car crash and the escape of a weaponised and delusional, mentally unstable patient) which are brushed off and forgotten within minutes just... it's a lot yet absolutely nothing at all.
I've also yet to figure out just how much Vee and Mark knew each other before their first night together, as it's seemingly hinted that they're barely acquaintances with Vee only knowing Mark as the boy who isn't leaving his friend alone, yet does no one care when they seemingly out of the blue start to spend a LOT of time together. Which I naturally read in as that they’re not that estranged. This alone makes me incredibly frustrated as I can't tell whether the phasing of their relationship, banter and the reaction of people around them are to be expected and developing accordingly or not.
Nothing makes sense to me folks, nada. My hope rests in the coming episodes.

So why am I even watching it, if it's all so bad? Yin and War's ACTING. Their chemistry, how they portray emotions, how they make me buy every little thing between them (or around them) even as there's not a single horizontal line of the story to be found, has gotten me in a neck-lock. Each episode is roughly an hour but they make it feel like 10 minutes.
The way these two look and interact with one another onscreen reminds me of PPBK in I told sunset about you and it's breaking my mind.
Yin has me feel for Vee although he's the one causing every heartache so far, and War lets Mark show every emotion that he's feeling and shows us the struggles of being someone who falls in-love fast and hard. I'm rooting for them even if it's so clear already that the best for both would probably be to NOT get together; a new sensation which I rarely experience. In that sense am I a little conservative and never see the point to why one would want to fight for something that's barely begun yet is already causing so much pain and confusion. But I WANT them to get together. And seeing as they haven't followed the regular BL pattern, already turning the knife around a good few times while just releasing episode 4, do I fear the absolute misery heading our ways.

MUSIC and REWATCH value? The music is alright, nothing has really caught my attention but more importantly hasn’t it been throwing off the vibe of any scenes besides maybe ones. Rewatch value is and will probably remain very low, as I - as said - don't like how a huge portion of this drama has been made. But each to their own.

Overall will I class this as a huge guilty pleasure. It's beautifully made, the lead cast is incredible and the storytelling is horrid. I'm glued to the screen, can't wait for the next episode and I'm infuriated over it.

Lire davantage

Why was this considered 18+?

Why was this drama considered "mature?" There wasn't anything really 18+ in it. It was cute, but a bit boring with no real story. The kiss scenes were weak and no NC scenes at all that were worth watching to even be considered as mature. It was just a very, basic BL series. I'm at a crossroads on whether I'd watch it again. If I'm looking for something soft and a bit boring, then maybe, but I have to be honest here; I don't recommend this BL to anyone, especially if you like BL'S with more spice, because this isn't it. It's more fluff. I'm more of a spicy BL fan with series that contain more NC scenes, with a good story too. That's why I loved Venus in The Sky. Good story and spicy scenes! Need more BL'S like it.

Lire davantage

Definitely an Upgrade

I've watched both versions and can honestly say this is definitely an upgrade from the original. The chemistry between the 2 male leads is amazing and they play their respective characters well.
As with all series in this trope, there are the clichéd moments and characters. The story could do with more polishing and of course you will find yourself talking to the screen, in various exclamations! Would really like to see what happens with some of the other pairings that happened along the way, not just Bar.
Will be watching out for new series with this duo, they are just that good together x

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