Interacting with fans of BL/GL from many different countries I've come across people who don't like or who avoid Japanese BL/GL because it isn't juicy enough for them or they don't like the stylistic choices of it and I won't ever understand that.
Maybe because I grew up watching jdramas with all its trope-y, kitschy, comedic, sugary sweet goodness and that vintage feel. And now getting queer content in the same format as the straight dramas I used to watch..it's like finally these queer themes are getting the same treatment as any other dramas. No more killing your gays, no more tragic endings or cold, loveless plots with brutal lessons (me, side eying every Japanese BL movie I've watched from the 00s)
Sure we still get darker queer dramas from Japan, but we also get the sunny, soft, fun dramas. This is the mix I've always wanted, getting to see the themes I grew up with, light and dark alike, but with queerness at the center of it. Feels like something I've always been missing is finally taking it's place. I'm glad BL and slowly GL too, is in higher demand and getting to be something more regular. I mean we even get themes like that in dramas not centered around romance at all with Oishii Rikon and I could not be happier. This is what I've always dreamed of.
