My first and favorite BL series

I never intended to watch Gameboys. I was bored and decided to rewatch a gay movie on Netflix and settled on Edge of Seventeen. When that movie ended, Netflix suggested Gameboys and I was too lazy in that moment to look for anything else. I could not imagine how much that would change the course of my year.

As I started watching Gameboys, I could feel how hard my eyes were rolling, how much I was smiling, and how much I was shaking my head and tut tutting at their antics, (Cai). Gameboys is so cheesy and light and saccharine (Gav), I wondered if this was intentional or the genre or Filipino culture. Then around episode 3 (Secret Snippets), I found myself at the precipice moment of "if I continue this, I'm going to be really hooked." And I continued, I binged the rest of the series, and I immediately restarted it again and in some ways it feels like I haven't stopped rewatching or at least thinking about Gameboys.

Gameboys is absolutely a masterpiece and I have recommended, coerced, watched it with most of my friends, annoyed the others with how much I've watched and talked about it, and it reintroduced me to BLs.

What I initially liked about Gameboys (and what I still like about Gameboys after watching many more series), is that Gameboys is honest and unashamed of its themes and characters. It is a cheesy, sweet story about two guys who fall for each other over video calls during a pandemic. Gav really is that earnest and sincere and flirty. And Cai--- Cai is a demon twink villain protagonist who I want to sit down and give a stern lecture to and also just hug and tell him it's ok and he's ok.

As I rewatch Gameboys (and also watch it alongside my friends for their first time), I get to come back to this world that seems so real and so much own our world. It is a pandemic story and it's also filmed as video calls and zoom hangouts and timeline statuses and posts but the strength of Gameboys is the strength of Elijah's and Kokoy's acting and their chemisty. When I first watched this series, I wondered if these were strong actors or if the material was within their wheelhouse. I think the answer is both. Then as I learned about how the show was made and that they didn't physically interact or practice or workshop directly together, I was amazed at how strong both of their performances are. You could have told me they had a set made with both their rooms and were looking at each other and was camera trickery that made this series and I would have believed it. So learning that they were actually in their rooms staring at themselves or their sibling holding the camera, I was really impressed that they could give such a clear performance. Watching Gameboys feels like you are facetiming with them and watching their live zoom hangouts. It's a really immersive series. And watching Cai defrost over the course of the series is a treat.

Gameboys is without question centered around Cai and Elijah is a phenom in this role. Nearly every episode and sometimes it feels like every scene he's in, Cai just evokes such strong feelings within me. Like I want to yell at the screen, "bitch, get over yourself" or "girl, calm tf down" yet I never (really) turn against Cai even though I feel he is definitely his own worst enemy. Elijah is able to convey internal conflict and insecurity and pride and sheepishness and lust and regret and anger and pain and that's all within the first couple of episodes. Watching Gameboys with my friends, we're laughing at Cai for his antics while understanding that this dude is just kinda wound tight like that. Cai can and does read as unpleasant or at least highly disgruntled at times yet Elijah always has this way of making me want to hug this dude and help him get past his demon twink ways. It's probably the tears. Like these dudes are the best damn criers and it seems like Elijah always has that one perfectly fat slow moving tear just ready to fire off. And when he smiles, it's just game over. Elijah is able to show a character who has such an inner light and beauty while also having such a strong bitch face and scowl.

Baby. Ok baby, now let's talk baby, baby. Oh Gav. So Gav is definitely the supporting protagonist in Gameboys, yet Kokoy is just as strong in his acting and his understanding of his character. Just within this season, I felt like we can get a good sense of Gav and his character. But also I feel like there's confusion about being confident and flirty versus being a playboy or fuckboy. Like Gav is just so damn sincere and clear with his intentions to court and date and prove his affections for Cai, I feel it is truly a misunderstanding of the term play/fuckboy if one thinks it applies to Gav. Dude is just committed and focused and also again, he's upfront. Like I /get/ it, because I was also very taken aback by Gav my first time watching Gameboys because dude is making major declarations like 5 minutes into episode one. Gav is a romantic bolt of lightning. But unlike lightning, Gav maintains that level of devotion and impact the entire series. Like lowkey, Cai sometimes hella does not seem worth the effort Gav puts in to maintain and carry their relationship but Gav truly means to win Cai's heart and honestly, work bitch. Because Cai does not make it easy and over the series, we see Gav both acknowledge how hard it is for him to both win Cai over and maintain that level of energy and devotion. For me what is a standout about Gameboys as a series is that Gav also acknowledges that Cai is difficult and is not helping or supportive. From the first impression, it could seem like Gav is just a stock romantic archetype but Kokoy is able to really humanize Gav and bring him to life. Gav is just as rich of a character as Cai and while Kokoy doesn't get as much to do within this series as Elijah, Kokoy absolutely delivers a world class performance. Good job baby.

Overall, Gameboys remains my favorite BL series. Other series can deliver more with regards to production value or skinship/high heat or series length but so far nothing has made me happier as a fan/audience member/habitual rewatcher as Gameboys has. Gameboys is just fun. It's fun to watch. It's fun to cry along with. It's fun to get frustrated at the characters. Gameboys is an amazing experience. I love the songs and the sound board. The 8bit remixes to their original songs is so effective and cute and fun. And there are several songs and moments where the music really brings in the feeling of classic evocative drama and sorrow. And something I definitely underappreciated when Gameboys was the only BL series I've seen but now that I've definitely broadened my horizons, it stands out so much is that Gameboys doesn't play out any of their songs/score/music cues. Isang Laro and Pass or Play? are definitely the thematic songs/score of the series but they play just enough in my opinion to be effective without being used every time Cai and Gav look at each other. Pag-Asa, Ikaw At Ako, and Ngayon are always used at just the right moment and they land so well because aside from Ngayon, they're just used once. Gameboys is a series that is so indulgent and overflowing with feelings, yet there is restraint and, more importantly, intentionality with this series. There are call backs and parallelisms and they are used precisely to show that while Cai and Gav do differ so much on the surface, they are so compatible and similar.

I can't imagine being a bl fan and not giving Gameboys a shot. It really is that good and worth all the many, many, many awards they are getting.

To TIFC and EliKoy - thank you and baby, ggwp

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