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minarydesign · 2 years

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Bad Buddy – A Case For Why it is not “Just Fluff” or “Bad Writing”

(this will be long LOL I feel like that’s what tumblr is for)

Ok so I consume a ton of Bad Buddy media. Like a TON from twitter, to interviews, to reactions and recap vids, to podcasts. I like to nerd out about a show I really enjoy and listen to all the opinion pieces. The response to Bad Buddy has been overwhelming positive which makes me happy cause I have a deep love for this show. I don’t have issues with critiques either. I don’t think we all have to like the same thing, but I just found some really interesting and I kind of wanted a space to counter them and explain why I disagree. This isn’t an attack on other viewpoints, but I love when they can spark discussion or debate. I really had to exam some things when I heard these two opinions and think about why I disagree.

Bad Buddy is just Fluff and Bad, Basic Writing

To be fair the people saying this, and I have heard several people say it, were not putting the show down. Their point was that it was lighthearted and not too melodramatic and felt like it lacked some substance and that it being “fluffy” is why it was their comfort show. I would never call it just fluff so I was so confused by this reaction. I mean I cried multiple times watching this show. I spent hours dissecting ideas and feelings about real life topics. When I think of a show that is “fluff” I don’t feel challenged by it. I watch it and leave it till the next week. I can have it on as background noise, but this was not that. It wasn’t that for most people. The conversations I read and watched around this show were not lighthearted only. Did we celebrate their love? Yes, but I saw much more than that. I mean it’s hard to trend each week on fluff post. It wasn’t a bunch of “Ohm’s so sexy, Nanon is dreamy” posts. People were engaging is some in depth debates. Fluff doesn’t elicit that kind of response.

For me this show had several moments that had emotional impact and made me examine how I would handle a situation. I wonder if because the implications of certain things were quiet and often not conveyed through dialogue some people don’t consider their depth as valid.

The conflict that drove the whole story was the rivalry of the parents. This is such a real thing. Whether it be as direct as two families that have hate for each other or families who don’t want their kids to be around or fall in love with a certain race or religion. The idea of a parent’s past dictating the interaction of their children is so real and honestly heavy. The generational trauma that that can cause and how it can affect who we love and how we walk through life just isn’t fluffy to me.

Pran’s Character Hurt My Heart The Most – He was so damaged by his mother that it fully informed every decision he made. The fact that the rift between the parents was because of this lost scholarship even better informs why it manifested the way it did (which is why the writing is good and not basic!). I have so much compassion for Pran’s mom as well as contempt. I fully believe Pran’s mom believed she was protecting him. Think about it. She had a close friend who betrayed her and took her future. If you can’t understand how devastating this plot point is then it may be difficult to get the impact it would have on how Pran was raised.

Education for women during the time Pran’s mom was a kid was probably difficult to get. Education can be your ticket out. I know for my mom going to college provided her a future and options. It meant she did not need to rely on a man or marriage to make a life for herself.

POCs and low income families (1st Gen College Kids) know the sacrifice of higher education. I know many immigrant families can relate as well. My mom was the first in her family to go to college and my father went to the military so his sister could go to college. Even with financial aid they knew only one could go.

No matter how good her life may be going now the pain of what could have been will always linger. My father was at the top of his class. Who knows what he could have become if he had not lost years to the military? I know that thought still haunts him to this day.

Making this the reason was so much more compelling than some “break up” plot line. It’s relatable and sad. It can change your whole world view. Pran’s mom felt like getting too close to the wrong people can destroy your future. She convinced herself that Pat’s dad was raising him to be just like him since he showed zero remorse. I think she truly believed she was protecting Pran from a fate like hers. She over protected to the point of damaging him. Not just his relationship with Pat but a fear of “stepping out of line” and “not being perfect”(note his OCD tendencies).

There was a level of emotional abuse there you could see in how he reacted to things. Pran would make himself small whenever he felt like he was at fault for the parent’s situation. He would tighten up and cower. Ugh he hurt my heart. I would get so mad at reactors that would complain when he wasn’t more vocal. The one time he was brave and open with Pat he got sent away for TWO YEARS!! If that doesn’t create a core memory I don’t know what would. It changed him and shaped him. He “had no friends” when he was little. As much as we couldn’t stand Wai it was the closest, he allowed himself to be to someone cause “mom loves Wai”. The toxicity of that mother/son relationship and how it affected his whole life is not “fluff” or “bad writing” to me. There is nothing basic about that story line. To make us angry and how she treated Pran but not a villain because she was hurt too is beautiful writing. Remember writing isn’t just in the dialogue, it’s stage direction and world building. Those are all in the script as well.

Pat was affected too but he is just built different.I think Pat’s need to impress his father was caused by this idea of following in dad’s footsteps that Pat’s father felt. Pat cared less though at the end of the day. Once he realized how much he loved Pran, Pran came first. The shine came off his dad and he was willing to distance himself from that point forward. Remember in the last episode the line “I haven’t been home in a while.” Pat would have run away with Pran and not looked back. I do think it’s important that we know it did change his relationship with his father. I don’t think they will ever go back to what they were which again is so realistic and true to what it’s like when our parents don’t turn out to be the heroes we believed they were. It doesn’t take a dramatic scene or tons of dialogue to convey those messages. A show is the sum of all it’s parts.

Simplicity has Value in Writing

I may be showing my age but has anyone seen the movie The Station Agent? It was an indie film. It was Peter Dinklage’s first staring role and I loved it. There was little to no dialogue and most of it was improved. The show’s focus was on character interaction and relationships. There was not much to the story but there didn’t need to be. I think a story being “basic” or “simple” can be beautiful and powerful especially if it knows it’s focal point. This show is about Pat and Pran and more importantly it showcases Ohm and Nanon. They were allowed to fully stretch their acting prowess and embody the characters. I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing. The Station Agent was written specifically for the actors that were cast. They were friends prior to the show. They would workshop it in the park and the writer would make adjustments to match their performances. Putting together a collaborative work of art is just as interesting as writing that stands alone.

Also at face value maybe the story is “simple” but when we think of all they tackled while keeping it light, sweet and romantic that is extremely challenging to pull off.

Generational trauma

Eradication of LGBTQ tropes like wifey, “oh I’m not gay I just like you”, cheating storylines, the toxic female, the homophobic friends and family, violence and SA, drunken first times, forced kisses ect.

A true GL side couple (when has GMMTV ever? They haven’t that’s when)

A healthy communicative relationship (finally we get to see gay couples have love in the way that heteros have in romcoms for years)

Those are just a few things. I know I’m missing more. To call it fluff and simple and then ignore all these moments that we have been waiting for from this industry just feels contradictory to me. The show did a lot to move BL in the right direction.

This is already too long and I haven’t even touched on so much. I will be making more posts LOL cause clearly I have a lot on my mind but in the end to me this show has so much depth to it. I wept on the roof top. I lost it when Pran’s mom left the guitar on his bed. My heart broke when Pat realized all the time he’d lost all because of his dad’s pride. Every time Pran made himself small as to not cause problems I wanted to hug him. We talk about the rooftop but the raw emotion Pat showed fighting with Wai outside the condo. The way he couldn’t process his feelings and he poured it out as anger cause now that he knew this was more than friendship he was jealous of what Wai had. Ohm was brilliant in that scene. I feel like we don’t talk about it enough cause we got stuck on the rooftop. LOL!

So many moments that seem simple had so much impact….so much more than fluff. What is so special about what the writers, P’Aof and Ohm and Nanon were able to do with this project is use their extreme talents to convey multiple layers below the surface of something that seems light. I love them for it and I love this show.

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minarydesign · 2 years

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Girl... this IS exactly how I feel!!!!!

My BBS Journey

This is an ode to the best BL show I’ve ever watched. Mark it, signed and noted January 20, 2022.

With only hours left before the finale airs and my journey with BBS ends, I wanted to get some thoughts down so I can look back and remember how I felt about this series. No guarantee that this won’t be disjointed and rambly. Or that it won’t end up being a gush fest for OhmNanon (spoiler: it totally will).

To say that this show and OhmNanon own me is an understatement. They had me from the first note of the opening song. I came to BBS for Ohm; knew he was special since his Make It Right days, followed him to He’s Coming to Me and everything since and in between. Ohm is an exceptional actor, one with the rare ability to fully use his spatial awareness to completely capture his audience. He is versatile with excellent comedic timing, a solid grasp of the dramatic beats, and is just so natural in his delivery that you forget he was ever any character other than the one you are currently watching. He also has the rare ability to have this instinctual chemistry with anyone cast opposite him, this is no small feat. You buy into his on screen relationships because Ohm fully commits. He makes everyone better. And does it while making it look so effortless that you’re just a puddle of awe on the floor. It’s wild to me that he’s still somewhat underrated and underappreciated in the acting world. Like what? How? Do people not have eyes?

I wasn’t as familiar with Nanon, but it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say I came for Ohm but stayed for Nanon. All the acting superlatives and awards are one thousand percent deserved when it comes to Nanon. I’ve never seen anyone act so convincingly with just their eyes. The saying ‘eyes are the windows to the soul’ is very apt here. With Nanon, you feel what he feels, just from his eyes alone. He projects every emotion from annoyed to bashful to distraught with barely any facial movement and it’s just like whaaaat?? How is that even possible? And to think he’s so young and is only scratching the surface of his craft. I can’t wait to see what else he does. I think he’ll surprise us again and again. ALSO I’ve never seen a more beautiful crier in my life. And I never knew that a person’s freaking dimples could be an entire character on a show. We were blessed to see these boys share the screen together as partners elevating each other; two halves of a whole. I doubt we’ll ever get to experience this again; does lightning ever strike twice?

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minarydesign · 2 years

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BBS: My Favorite Pran Moments

Of all the characters on the show, Pran is probably the one many of us relate to the most. We see ourselves in Pran. We understand unrequited love, have walked in his shoes. We see how he lives inside his head and makes himself smaller for others. How he gives so much yet takes back so very little so we applaud Pat for recognizing this and setting out to compensate by loving Pran LOUDLY and unequivocally- all of him, just as he is.

Here are my favorite moments from the series of our soft architect. It would be impossible for me to put my favorite Pran moments in any kind of ranking order because I LOVE them all. So instead I’ll list these chronologically as they appeared on screen.

EP3: You seem happy when you get to compete against me.

This is the face of complete and utter devotion to all things Pat. I go back to this scene a lot just to revisit this soft moment. Pran comments that Pat seems happy when he gets to compete against him and Pat responds by teasing Pran that he does it because he likes to see Pran’s face…when he loses. And it’s very subtle here because Nanon is a masterclass actor, but you can see the light in Pran’s eyes at Pat’s words and again see that very same light extinguish when Pat qualifies it with when you lose. Go rewatch it. It’s very subtle but it’s there and it’s a testament to Nanon’s acting.

EP4 - Ink, do you like Pat?

Forget about Pat wrestling the gun from that goon, this was the bravest moment on the show for me. When I first watched this scene, I couldn’t believe Pran would willingly put himself out there like this, it almost seemed out of character. BUT I later realized that there’s a quiet strength in Pran that’s undeniable. It’s not ostentatious or in your face, instead it’s a soft and unassuming confidence that many might overlook and oftentimes underestimate. He’s cerebral and overthinks everything so I imagine that this wasn’t an impulsive question for him. He’s thought about it, a lot, and by that I mean all the time, probably ever since high school as he watched Ink and Pat interact from the sidelines. (Oh, Pran.) And so he asks and waits with breath held…and we can see the exact moment when he’s relieved that Ink’s answer is no:

I love this scene sooooo much because it not only underlines Pran’s bravery but also reveals the extent of his feelings for Pat. It’s so relatable because we’ve all been here. This moment allows us to see Pran’s vulnerability and applaud his courage in the same breath. Truly masterful direction by P’Aof and incredibly nuanced performance by Nanon. Also, with the surrounding natural light, Nanon looks absolutely stunning here. Like, I can’t look away.

EP4 - Someone like you? What’s to like? I…hate you.

No list of favorite Pran moments would ever be complete without this iconic scene from the end of EP4. I’ve said a lot about this scene in my ranking of BBS endings so I’ll try not to be repetitive here. Except to say that I consistently come back to this anytime I feel like dying a little because honestly that’s what it does to me. How much did Pat’s yes take from Pran? Everything. Watching him fight to hold back his tears as Pat lists all the reasons why Pran (as Ink) should like him, I have a visceral reaction to it every time. And then the soft, adoring smile as he watches Pat sleep as if he’s unable to look anywhere else. Ugh, it gets me every single damn time.

EP5 - Why? Do you want us to be friends?

This is the exact moment where Pran looks at Pat for a split-second and decides to pull him in for that second, deeper kiss. This is when he makes the decision that he’s going to allow himself to have this. To have Pat. For just this small breadth of time. And there’s just something both beautiful and incredibly sad about how much of himself he pours into this kiss. Because for Pran, this is a one-time thing. So he goes for broke and lays himself bare at Pat’s feet. It’s both a destructive and healing kiss. His face at the end reveals his turmoil as his defenses make its way back. He knows that he can’t ever really have this, not in the way that he truly wants because it was only mere days ago that Pat admitted to having feelings for someone else. And more than that, is the constant weight of their families’ rivalry hanging over them so Pran does what he has always done- locks it away and leaves behind a reeling Pat.

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