My Favorite BL from each country VERSUS the BL I think actually best reflects that country's style in 2025
Japanese BL
My top pick for JBL (live action yaoi):
Seven Days
Honestly? I did dither over whether to hand this title over to I Cannot Reach You, but I had to go with my heart and the earlier offering. I like that this show is not only the best that Japan can do, but also the best they once did, too. Seven Days is the greatest heritage BL anywhere on earth. Fight me, I dare you.
Best current rep of JBL:
Miseinen: Mijukuna Oretachi wa Bukiyo ni Shinkochu aka Our Youth
Lots to pick from here, Japan has been doing great work over the last few years. Although, as one expects from them, it has been about 50/50 soft BLs versus harsh ones, with lots of spice and some challenging concepts thrown in to keep us on our toes. While I prefer my BL gentle, I think that these days Japan is actually strongest in the BL sphere when they go sharp and edgy. They seem to handle difficult concepts with the most honesty and consideration, so.... Our Youth wins.
Thai BL
My top pick for ThBL:
Until We Meet Again
UWMA will always be my favorite Thai BL. I can't imagine it ever getting unseated. But it's incredibly atypical for ThBL because the story is so very strong. And story is generally not Thailand's strong suit.
Best current rep of ThBL:
Your Sky
Yes we are getting more prestige and chaos BLs like Pit Babe these days, but those are still less common than the classic uni-set fluff. Thailand's strength remains vested in its consummate chemistry and gentleness with its characters. It's not that soft BLs are the best Thai BLs, it's that soft is Thailand's most successful BL bailiwick. I was very tempted by both Wandee Goodday and ThamePo for this category, since one major trend in Thai BL lately is that it's moving into the workplace, but GMMTV's filming quality is too high to accurately represent for Thailand.
I felt the need to go a little pulp with this pick, since pulp is still what Thailand primarily produces. Thus Your Sky is a clear winner as it reps for both the now (green flags, yay!) and the enormous back catalogue of Thai BL.
Korean BL
My top pick for KBL:
Semantic Error
Korea occupies more 10/10 spots in my heart than anyone else, but this was still an easy pick. Out my many KBL favorites (Color Rush, Light On Me, Our Dating Sim, Semantic Error, To My Star) there is only one 10/10 that I have called, frequently, Korea's pitch perfect BL. The pinnacle of smoothly executed pristine romance, I'm handing Semantic Error the crown with confidence.
Best current rep of KBL:
Love For Love's Sake
Another easy pull, Love For Love's Sake showcases the way Korea is pushing to explore interesting (slightly darker) concepts while staying true to their signature style and aesthetic. This was the only KBL in 2024 to get a high mark from me. So as more recent KBLs go, this is it.
2024 was not a great year for them, IMHO. But it would have been hard to beat the bumper crop that was 2023.
Taiwanese BL
My top pick for TaBL:
We Best Love
Always and forever. Like Thailand, Taiwan has only managed a 10/10 rank once, for this series. Despite the fact that, if pressed, I would call Taiwanese BL my favorite. WBL is just everything I love about Taiwan's messy, slightly unhinged, high drama, high domesticity, high chemistry, style of BL. Someday, we all hope, they will be able to repeat this magic. (Which I, frankly, can't say about Thailand and UWMA.)
Best current rep of TaBL:
See Your Love
I might call Kiseki: Dear to Me closer to Taiwan's typical style these days, but that aired too long ago now. So I am going to pick SYL partly on the basis of its recency. But also this is an ABSOLUTELY darling show. The cheekiness, the chemistry, the charm, the fashion, the classy way it handles content other countries simply can't or won't tackle (like queerness, mental health, or in this case, disability), the slightly bonkers plot (kidnapping, really?), and the utter squee that is gay domesticity in spades? Quintessential Taiwanese BL.
Vietnamese BL
My top pick for VBL:
You Are Ma Boy
I dithered for between this and My Lascivious Boss, both from 2021 which I think can now be considered the heyday of VBL. I like them both about the same, but the seme in this one is less red flag so I went with YAMB.
It's pretty classic VBL in that is is very messy with its story and characters, great on chemistry and domesticity, and while often fun there will always be elements that make us wince, whether it's a trigger or not. VBL is, in a word, clumsy but there is a raw chaotic good to it that I enjoy. I miss that a lot.
Best current rep for VBL:
Mr Cinderella
This was a real challenge since I have DNF'd most VBL over the last few years. The most recent one I actually enjoyed was 2022's Mr Cinderella. Higher production values and experienced BL actors plus two charismatic leads with good kissing and comfortable body language made this Vietnam’s objectively best BL to date. Frankly, it should occupy both slots.
Pinoy BL
My top pick for PBL:
My Day
My Day is my favorite PBL. Although Gameboys and Like In The Movies are rated just as high, My Day is the only VBL I ever rewatch. It's just so much FUN. All are from 2020, which it I guess means that was the heyday for PBL. Sigh. I miss it, too.
Best current rep for PBL:
Tie The Not
As many BLs as I have DNF'd from Vietnam I have dropped twice as many from the Philippines over the last few years. Tie The Not is a 2023 offering that came as close as anything over the last 5 years to winning back my heart. It missed the mark a bit, earning only a 7/10 but there was a small part of me that hoped it represented a resurgence. It did not. Still, it is the best we have had from them in a long time.
Chinese BL
My top pick for CBL:
Addicted
This remains one of my favorite BLs, and one of the best made and most truly heart wrenching out of China. It is great... if you ignore the ending. And that too is a very CBL thing. There is something about the cold atmosphere and rural setting plus the honest uncensored living conditions that really get to me (and probably got to the CCP as much as the boys kissing.)
Best current rep for CBL:
Meet You At The Blossom
This is hard because I don't know exactly where we are, but we are displaced out of time at the moment it feels like 2015 in CBLandia, not 2025. Either time period there is no way this can last. Appreciate Revenged Love while we got it because... yeah, it is representative of CBL - but CB as it might have been in 2020, and probubly won't be in the future. That's if it is allowed to finish it's run.
Look, we have had so little real CBL for so long, smattered with some censored bromance and sneaky only-international stuff, it's been a mad unpredictable ten years. As often happens when art is interfered with by waring factions of censorship and commerce.
All of this to say, I chose Meet You At The Blossom not because it's representative of modern CBL (there is no true modern CBL since it was never allowed to evolve), but because it's such a strange fabulous flaming creature. Like an IRL phoenix, we must appreciate it for this moment in time, before it combusts once again.
That said the best thing we have seen out of China in a very long time is actually Secrets Happened on the Litchi Island, which everyone should go watch immediately. And I do mean everyone.
But it isn't really BL, it's something more like an art installation meets fever dream with BL trappings that some of us are lucky enough to catch on YouTube. You should catch it.
Others worth mentioning
Stay Still
2023 BL from Hong Kong
What to say about this offering? It’s different, a mix of early CBL, Taiwanese shorts, and Pinoy visuals. It felt like the story was 2 independent shorts that had been lengthened and then smooshed together, and I wish they'd been approached as separate and tighter entities.
Nevertheless, this was a complex little piece, interesting in a sweaty grungy way, with a certain aura of queer authenticity that made it simultaneously tense, unpredictable, and refreshing. I’m not sure I would necessarily call it BL, but any county’s early foray into the genre usually starts out this way, so perhaps nascent BL? Worth watching, especially if you enjoy stuff from the Philippines and Taiwan.
Began Beginning
Burmese BL from 2024
Childhood best friends must come to terms with their own identities and true feelings for each other when a new boy comes to town, putting them into conflict with their families and ultimately, each other. For the first half of this show there’s a lot of sitting across from each other and talking about life choices over yummy food and then going to tourist spots (mildly boring and not particularly important to the plot). It changed tone about 2/3 in to be way more of a coming out family drama about forced marriages and homophobia. And then at the very end it changed again, becoming a full on soap opera with kidnapping, crazy characterization shifts, and rescue missions.
All in all? It was a wild raw creature to consume. No kisses since this is Myanmar, but a very romantic end, so I think maybe actually worth your time? I'm certainly glad I watched it.
Pure Vanilla
Singapore's 2023 microfilm
This is a short sweet offering from Singapore. It's a bit awkward acting but the tats are real and the feel is genuinely soft and queer. At the time it aired I said that I wished Singapore would give us a full proper BL.
Well, I got my wish as Sparkle in You Eye is airing right now - but I'm very much NOT sure about it. I prefer the Summerdaze style of BL from Singapore, not that they have enough BL to have a signature style yet.
Still it's nice to have them serving up... something.
Anygay, that's if for now.
This post dated June 2025, not responsible for BLs unfinished as of the time of this post. Favorites, both old and new, can always be unseated.
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