Anything I Want It To Be

Mariah

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Every Year After was just meh. I didn’t really like it but it wasn’t inherently bad just bland.

I don’t feel like Sam and Percy had any chemistry(a problem that I’m finding I have in a majority of these book adaptation series Amazon has done) (casting on these hasn’t been great, one or the other of each lead couple is noticeably a stronger actor and it’s ruining their chemistry for me) (Garrett in off campus, and Percy in this, Belly over Jeremiah in TSITP.)

The timeline was odd and the lack of non-summer communication just made it seem like they didn’t really know each other, spending 8 weeks with each other and then radio silent all year.

The acting was okay, these Amazon New Adult series aren’t going to win any awards.

I think not hiring teen actors to play the teens was really distracting. These are people in their 20s playing 14 year olds and then 15, 16, 17 without any noticeable appearance changes, other than like a one piece bathing suit to a bikini. They should’ve hired older actors to play the 11 year olds and had them be the teens as well. I kept losing track of how old they were supposed to be or where in the past or future we were because they looked the same age for the whole show.

I ended up liking Charlie and Delilah the best, not together but their characters were just the most interesting to watch. However I think they spent way too much time on the secondary characters.

There seems to be a lot of issue with the differences with the series and the book and from what I’m seeing I can see why it’s an issue.

We end on a pretty big cliffhanger (something I find incredibly annoying and in this age of years between seasons, and no guaranteed follow ups, kind of disrespectful to fans) and an up in the air main character relationship status.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Off Campus is kind of disappointing.

I’m finding it really hard to believe Hannah and Garrett have any actual chemistry.

The episodes and the storyline is weirdly paced so we don’t see a lot of Garrett and Hannah actually connecting and developing their relationship and then all of a sudden they fuck, are dating, immediately saying “i love you” and then the final act breakup happens. A lot of their real relationship and not the fake stuff is shown in montages which is just so lazy.

Dean and Allie were connecting way better but their whole story has basically been told so I’m not really sure what they’re going to do for their actual season, flashbacks?

Jules was really annoying and only popped in to insult the hockey team and record videos for their very popular blog. Oh and continuously push the liquid IV product placement.

Garretts dad had the worst fake mustache/beard I’ve ever scene on tv.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

I wanted to like Soul Mate more I really did but…

(Spoilers below)

it just fell into the oh so common pattern; a close friendship (no obvious romance), followed by trauma and a death to end it all.

The marketing for this show totally felt like bait and I don’t think it’ll needed to be.

I think the two leads did an excellent job and obviously showed their characters a lot of respect but this isn’t a mm romance. These guys are friends, albeit incredibly close friends but friends nonetheless. There’s no physical intimacy, there’s no touching, they don’t vocally share their feelings(until the very end in a voice over that is hard to tell if they’re talking to each other or telling the audience).

This is a good, emotional coming of age, coming into oneself, exploring life with the immense struggles that come along, drama, not a BL or gay romance. I’ve seen people call it a queer story and I think that’s a more accurate, fair descriptor.

There are Kdramas that have male friendships that aren’t labeled “romance” that portray stronger chemistry than what this show showed. I didn’t want to see them fuck on screen or heavily makeout but touching hands, closeness, a caress here or there would’ve been more impactful than what we got. I think a lot of people are going to see the show in different ways and interpret things differently and I think that’s fair. Personal experience is going to sway the viewer heavily with this drama.

Watch Soul Mate because it’s a good drama, don’t expect a mm love story and come out the other side happily fulfilled.

[andremichaux]

New Girl (2011 - 2018)

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Amazon Primes book to movie adaptations are just getting worse.

Love Me Love Me is awful.

Ending spoiler below.

The movies final scene is the second male lead and the female lead laying their heads on the chest of the male leads broken body after just pulling him out of a burning car crash that the female lead caused. Overlayed with the female lead saying “maybe me and James will finally get our first kiss”. That’s right the leads NEVER KISS.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

I just did a rewatch of Red White & Royal Blue and it’s actually crazy how much stronger Heated Rivalry is in comparison.

I like RWRB and have watched it a handful of times since it came out, really enjoying Nicholas Galitzine’s performance (admittedly liking Taylor Zakhar Perez’s way less, Nicholas is a better actor for sure in this) but recently watching it again shows how not great the movie actually is.

It really reads almost Hallmarky in its production, even in the more supposed emotional moments, the guys chemistry is definitely good but they sometimes look like they’re playing roles, not always super believable.

Heated Rivalry having a much much smaller budget, way less known cast, smaller production studio, virtually no promotion (until hbo picked it up), and producing a show that is so good is amazing.

Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams are like Oscar winning actors in comparison, the emotion is miles ahead of RWRB, the writing is better, the directing is better, the soundtrack, all of it is just done so much better. The chemistry between these two guys is miles ahead, they come off so believable.

All the props in the world to everyone involved in HR for just doing such a killer job making such a killer show.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Okay so that was impressive. I mean just absolutely adorable and emotional and so romantic. I can’t believe how good the finale is. Connor and Hudson’s chemistry is off the charts and they played their roles so so well.

My one single issue that I’m pretty sad about is the exclusion of the scene in the book where Ilya tells Shane; one day I’ll have covered the dock in candles and get down on one knee and ask you to marry me for Canadian citizenship and you will say yes because you’re a nice guy. And Shane says no I will say yes because I will still be madly in love with you and I’ll want to spend the rest of my life with you.

Missing that scene a lot.



But other than that, this was a killer episode and hit every other major scene and was so perfect.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Tell Me Softly is one of the worst movies I’ve watched in years. The basketball game was so incredibly corny, the actress doing a weird squat move repeatedly, like she was a seriously player and the whole party coming to watch was silly.

I’m sure if it gets two more movies I’ll watch, because I do enjoy torturing myself, but I can’t imagine they’ll get better.

Fernando Lindez is fucking beautiful so he was nice to watch.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

The scenes all felt so long that I actually kept checking the time expecting it to be running fast. The extra 10 minutes helped this episode so much.

The pacing of the show is so good, what they’ve decided to add new and what they’ve transferred from the book is so perfect.

Connor and Hudson killed it and their love is coming off so believable it’s unreal.

I’m so pumped for next week, the cottage episode is going to be full of so many romantic moments and I can’t not wait. Off to watch episode 5 again.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Season 2 officially confirmed!!!! 🎉

This better not be a two year wait like so many shows have. Not that it would change how I feel other than sad to wait but please don’t torture us like that with a long wait.

The Long Game not the Long Wait. Please 🙏

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Jesus Christ.

Heated Rivalry is unreal. This episode is so fucking good.

Still annoyed I have to keep waiting for the next two episodes but holy shit this week’s was something else. The way it was put together with montages that give just enough to move the story along and show how attached they both are. And then the scenes of them together are fucking fire only to end with both of them thinking of each other. Hudson and Connor are fucking killing it.

God damn.

(Shane in a suit jacket with a hoodie repeatedly was cracking me up. Also the song they’re dancing to is definitely not the one they overlaid the scene with but otherwise phenomenal episode.)

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Sigh.

I don’t mean to be negative but this episode wasn’t for me. Kip and Scott were cute (even though I think the Kip casting isn’t great) and it’s nice to see a different vibe than Ilya and Shane.

However they didn’t need a whole episode. I know people are saying without their background the future scenes wouldn’t work and I just don’t agree. Surprising the audience like Shane and Ilya get surprised would’ve been a better set up.

6 episodes, that we have to wait weekly for, and one whole episode goes to a side couple.

Oh well, off to wait another week.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

If you haven’t watched the first two episodes of heated rivalry again yet, definitely do it now (hbo versions). They edited the lighting and it’s literally completely different. You can see so much more, nothing is super dark.

You can even now see that the actor playing Shane, Hudson Williams, has a little tattoo right on his pelvic bone. Or when he’s getting blown you can actually see the finger marks Ilya is leaving on Shane’s chest.

It’s honestly like watching it for the first time.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Connor Storrie’s ass is a work of fucking art. It looks like it’s carved out of marble.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Damian Hardung is amazing as James Beaufort in Maxton Hall.

His facial expressions are beyond great. Every scene he’s in his face acting is sooo good, barely there widening his eyes, lips parting just a bit, clenched jaw, each scene is better when the camera is on his face. It’s unbelievable how good he is.

Harriet Herbig-Matten is also really good at showing her emotions through her face. They’re both extremely good in this show and my fingers are double crossed for a second season. 6 episodes just weren’t enough.

[mostlyfate]

You can get changed now. Take your time. Gosh. The shirt is too big.

[infinityxxxinfintiy]

Love In Taipei was just ehh. I haven’t read the books so my opinion is based solely on the movie and it just was not doing it for me.

The romance between Ever and both male leads just didn’t seem to develop at all. For like 85% of the movie she was with Rick and then all of a sudden she’s all in for Xavier. Beyond a few looks and a couple conversations they hadn’t built any sort of relationship and then boom together.

The lead actress who played Ever- Ashley Liao was just okay, it really felt like she was reading from cards to remember her dialog; weird pauses before starting a sentence, and no emotion in her speech. Also she’s supposedly 21 (the description of the movie on IMDb says she’s 18 but she literally says “21 years ago they had me” in the first 30 seconds of the movie) , but nothing about her acting or the writing makes it seem like these people are older than Kitty from XO, Kitty. Xavier and Rick were just as bland, Xavier- Nico Hiraga did a bit better showing his emotion, but not by much and Ross Butler-Rick was about what you’d expect if you’ve seen any other teen movie/tv show he’s been in.

This really should’ve been presented as a series and not a hour and half movie. After reading the summary of the book on Wiki, so much seems to be missing and so much is just left unanswered.

Rating 3/10, definitely don’t recommend if you’ve read the books and unless you really love bad teen romance, this is a skip.

The best part of the movie was her Aunt Shu, Cindy Cheung, she was funny and thoughtful and stole every scene she was in.