A Shoulder to Cry On (2023)

A heartfelt and warm love story

Okay listen, I will be honest and say that I am a VERY big fan of Omega X so was already familiar with Jaehan and Yechan and obviously loved them a lot before this series came out BUT I can honestly say that despite really liking an actor, if the show is disappointing I can and will be objective and say I didn't like it. I've watched shows with actors/idols I love and found them lack luster and have said so (Jun baby i'm so sorry but Tinted With You was lacking a lot, you did your best with what you had). Now getting that out of the way I'll move on to my review of A Shoulder To Cry On.

I don't want to go into too much detail as that's not necessarily my style of review but I will say that the main leads had very good chemistry which does not come as a surprise to me seeing as they are band mates and have known each other and lived with each other for a while. However, it really shined through in this series,

I hadn't read the manhwa before watching so I had no specific expectations going into this. The plot line was pretty interesting to me and while a high school BL isn't exactly something fresh or new, especially in Korean BL, I think this one was executed fairly well and made fresh with Taehyun's background. I think that Taehyun's tragic background and his psychology as a result of it was an interesting point to have and also I think the problems both boys faced are problems that the youth and even some adults can relate to and it was nice to see the boys slowly grow closer and become a safe haven for each other and push each other to be better people. I really enjoyed the story line, acting and directing for this series and it has a high re-watch value for me and will become a comfort series for sure!

Now, this section of the review is going to be a rant ,so sorry in advance but honestly i'm not sorry. The relationship between Taehyun and Daeyoel started out rocky and we gradually saw them warm up to each other and become a comforting safe space for each other. Let's remember that they were both in high school when they met and since neither of them had been in romantic relationships before they were clumsy and immature which is to be expected from teenage boys experiencing love for the first time, especially with someone who has the emotional trauma that Taehyun has. They had a huge falling out in high school and they hadn't kept in contact so when they first met again years later, them not automatically getting in a relationship together is understandble as they needed to get to know each other again and build back trust in their relationship and probably build back the friendship that was there before as well. With the next and final time, I want to remind people that previously, when Taehyun confessed, Daeyeol did NOT ask to date him or anything, he asked for Taehyun to wait for him until he was mentally/emotionally ready to be in a relationship with him so with that, the second time skip didn't really tell us how long they had been in a relationship with each other at that point so considering their past and the fact that neither of them really dated anyone in the 2 years that they were seperated from each other and the fact that their relationship could be more recent I think their bashfulness or "awkwardness" is understandable and even realistic to a certain degree. Not everyone loves the same way, not everyone is comfortable with physical affection and everyone has different paces they are comfortable with in their relationships. Both of them being men has nothing to do with physical affection and it is a stereotype that all men are horn dogs who can't keep their hands to themselves. I don't know the reason we didn't get a kiss, if it was the directors choice, if it was the fact that they are in the same group so their company didn't want them to, or if it had anything to do with their ex CEO, who was often on set wreacking havoc and being the psycho that she is. In any case, I don't think a kiss is that important. A controversial opinion to have in the BL sphere apparantly but if the story is good and the chemistry is there then I'm not mad about not getting a kiss. I've seen many straight drama's with no kiss but were great still as well so this is not just a BL thing but an East Asian drama thing. Besides, I'd rather have no kiss than an awkward dead fish kiss. The reviews that are saying this is just a bromance or queerbaiting are very narrow minded and some of y'all are telling on yourselves that you're here only for the sexual content and not the actual story because I see y'all rating crappy shows high just because the NC scenes or kisses are intense and steamy, just say you fetishize gay romance and go. How in the world can you see two people save each other as their lock screens, go on a spontaneous overnight trip, hold hands or link arms, stare at each other lovingly, flirt openly, wear matching pajamas and use matching toothbrushes, sit in the others lap wrapping their arms around each other, sharing a lollipop, and stay up all night talking while laying next to each other in bed and low key cuddling and tell me that they are just friends and not boyfriends? Who are you to judge their relationship in the first place? You have to kiss someone to be dating? Do you do all those things with your friends? Because I never have, even friends I've known for years. Romantic relationships are different depending on the individuals and there is not one specific way to show and express love, as people watching LGBTQ+ content, this should be something you're aware of more than anyone else and yet the ignorance is glaring. As someone who is Asexual, maybe I relate more to this or can at least understand it. I'm alright with kissing, holding hands and cuddling with a significant other but anything more than that and i'm uncomfortable and gain nothing from it anyways. Of course i'm not saying either of the characters are Asexual but i'm saying that everyone has different levels of comfort with physical affection. If we go by crazed BL fan logic, if I don't have sex with my significant other does our relationship not count? If i'm dealing with anxiety or depression on a specific day or even just a day where i'm feeling fine but need my personal space and don't want anyone touching me, even my significant other, does that mean we're not in love or not in a relationship because I don't want to kiss or cuddle them in that moment or on that day? This logic is ridiculous, narrow minded and ignorant as hell. It's 2023, lets open our eyes to all the different forms of love.

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Wasted potential

I was really enjoying this show until near the end. I think there is a trend now in 2023 where Korean bls are now avoiding the bl in bl dramas, like they will keep the two men liking each other but will avoid them getting romantic with each other. They made it obvious that the two male leads liked each other and they even admitted it near the end, but they added an unnecessary villain where Tae Hyun friend was jealous that he started to hang out with Da Yeol more often and he felt neglected and it seemed that he liked Tae romantically. He kept interfering so much that he ended up getting Yeol to drop out of school when Tae lied to himself when he told Yeol he didn't like him like that and he was using him which we knew was a lie. Cuz I didn't read the manhwa I don't know how the plot was before it got changed for the drama but I feel like the ending for the drama was supposed to have a sad ending and saw it was going to do bad and had to refilm the ending. I need to read the manhwa to be sure, they had 2 yr jump from when Yeol dropped out and both Tae and Yeol are in university. This time jump seemed so rushed too. After 2 yrs passed they are both in university both Tae nor Yeol haven't seen one other. The ending implied they got together but they never said they were in a romantic relationship. They just started hanging out again after they got reunited again and Tae told Yeol he made a mistake, so Yeol said he would wait for Tae to confess then all of a sudden they are going to the beach and stay at a rented house. They flirt a lot and talk throughout the night. Tae doesn't want to sleep cuz he doesn't want to lose any more time while being with Yeol which was cute don't get me wrong. They had a lot of cute moments together but I feel like the director was avoiding intimacy between them.

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Few BL series give me such a feel for the characters

This series seems to be rather under-appreciated. In terms of plot, it is not the very best, but it is pretty good. In the last two episodes, there could perhaps be more scenes showing how Da Yeol and Tae Hyun become a couple. However, I think there feelings towards each other are pretty clear even if not spelt out directly. Da Yeol is the one who is quite frank (to himself) about his own feelings for Tae Hyun, from the early episodes where he finds himself paying attention to Tae Hyun. Tae Hyun, on the other hand, is confused--not so much (I believe) because of gay panic like in some series but really because he has psychological issues related from the time he was a child. He is afraid of being loved as the adoptive mother who loved him came to harm, and he does not dare to love others out of fear that what he treasures will be lost.

Tae Hyun's feelings for Da Yeol are shown fairly early when he looks somewhat jealous when he sees Da Yeol walking with a female classmate.. While some viewers wish to know how Tae Hyun comes to realise that he is really in love with Da Yeol, the answer seems quite clear to me: almost immediately after he tells Da Yeol to stop liking him. He wants to make up with Da Yeol but is unsuccessful even on Da Yeol's last day of school because he still needs time to overcome his issues. With Da Yeol gone, he realises how much he really wants to be with Da Yeol. Tae Hyun misses Da Yeol, but it is only two years later that he gets a chance to see Da Yeol again when Da Yeol gets drunk with a mutual friend.

The first time jump of two years occurs near the end of Episode 6. The second one occurs at the start of Episode 7, and we can infer that the two guys have been in a relationship since their last meeting. Episode 7 adds practically nothing to the story, but it is so full of sweetness that I can overlook it.

I love the way the series is moving without being sappy. As a coming-of-age series, it portrays the young people's lives without exaggeration. Whether it is Da Yeol's archery rival, Tae Hyun's ambiguously jealous friend or the female classmate who is carrying a torch for Da Yeol, Some may find issue with how Tae Hyun sets Da Yeol up, claiming that Da Yeol is sexually harassing him. The relative lack of action on the part of the school in response to such a serious allegation may also be questionable (although it might well be a veiled critique of society). the emotions and relationships are interestingly nuanced.

The series may not be every BL fan's cup of tea, but if I can judge it by how much it manages to make me care about whether the main characters end up together, it ranks quite high.

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This series has a special place in my heart!

When I first watched it I was just binging all episodes and loved it. It was an emotional rollercoaster.
I loved the atmosphere, the chemistry between the protagonists and the acting.

I would like to say something I have to get off my chest:
I don´t think I have a problem with the non-kissing part. I rather have a problem with the storyline that leads to the relationship they have in the last 2 episodes. I read some comments about the possibility with them being asexual. If that is the case I wish they would have potrayed this kind of sexual orientation (or more so non-sexual orientation) different. Without them communicating their needs and talk about their feelings their behaviour come off weird and unnatural. At least that is what I felt especially in Episode 7.
For that reason I was really disappointed in the ending. It had so much potential. I just needed to see how they realise and confess their feelings for each other. That could have been perfectly done in episode 6. Episode 7 was not necessary at all. As a result the non-kissing thing would have never been such a big topic because without more time jumps the ending would have been them confessing their feelings for eachother for the first time. There is no need for a kiss in this early stage of their romantic relationship. (In case they are not asexual).

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Edit: After typing my review, I found the review from Zelme and I pretty much agree to their opinion too, so feel free to check it out, because they put things differently into words and I feel like they did well. :D

https://mydramalist.com/profile/9837639/review/267273

Well... We have a bunch of eye candy, decent acting, a catchy OST and a story that's not that bad. I was pretty committed, liked the characters, and some moments were really sparkling... but the last two episodes were just pure nonsense.

We have 2 time jumps of 2 years each, and while I liked the first jump and understood why they would write it, the second time jump of another 2 years took me even more out of the story. They were suddenly together, apparently for a long time, and behaved even more awkwardly than at school, which made no sense.

So everything feels far too rushed because important milestones are simply not shown (confession, come together).

Apart from the fact that kisses are constantly teased, there are never any. No couple behaves like this, especially if they felt so comfortable with skinship before. I already knew there was no kiss (that's why I stopped watching the show the first time), but people who don't know must have been massively annoyed by it.

Until the last episode, the series was a good 8.5 for me, but this hiccup at the end - being awkward/uncomfortable, even though the two were very close to each other at school, including skinship, doesn't make sense to me and therefore depresses the series to 6. My frustration scala just exploded. I've rated A Breeze of Love also a 6 and plotwise I found A Shoulder to Cry On way more interesting and fun to watch, but oh boy, this last episode really killed my mood.

With one less time jump and without that regression in terms of their closeness, plus a fleshed out confession and how they eventually come together, the series would probably have stayed at 8 or 8.5.

Especially the last episode is frustrating. It feels like I wasted a little bit of my time. Not because there is no kiss, but because their behavior is actually quite unpleasant with each other, all of a sudden - because... while they were going to school, they were so comfortable with each other! Ugh! I just don't understand why they decided to write the characters like this, because theres no logical reason for this, omg.

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A Coreia do Sul tem me surpreendido muito com o gênero BL. Esta foi mais uma produção que não me decepcionou...polêmicas à parte sobre as cenas de bulling escolar, depois que se conhece a história de Tae Hyun fica claro que ele usa diversas formas de violência moral para afastar as pessoas para longe de si por medos e traumas de infância (está errado? Está, mas foi a forma que ele encontrou para sobreviver...). Delicado, mas profundo, mas o foco não foi o amor LBTQIAPN+, mas os medos que envolvem se apaixonar depois que se perde uma pessoa amada. A OST sempre perfeita! Não tem como não se apaixonar!

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I Don't Understand All the Hate for this Drama : (

Okay, so I've never written a review for a drama on here because I have my own set-up for this kind of thing, but I feel like I have to for this drama because of the ridiculously low rating it has on here.

I don't typically rely on the rating system on here to determine what I watch because I know that viewers' opinions on a drama can vary and there are some aspects of a drama that I happen to like that others don't. So, I didn't look up this drama prior to watching it - but I happened to look it up to try and find out if the actress for Soyong was someone I recognized (she wasn't, but no biggie), and saw that the rating on this was in the 7's. I was a little taken aback because the other dramas that I've watched have never been rated below an 8; it made me wonder if there was something seriously wrong with the acting, chemistry, pacing, or general cinematography. I then scrolled down to the comments to see what all the hubbub was about and saw people pretty much bashing the fact that 1. there was no kiss in the drama, 2. that the lack of skinship in the show made people want to label this as a bromance and 3. that it overall was boring. While I don't particularly care about kissing and bed scenes in dramas (they're a nice addition, but certainly not necessary) I was a little worried about the bromance comments. I've seen bromance dramas in the past (typically those from China because the censorship laws are a little finicky) and know that, for those, you have to read beyond the lines for the fact that the characters have more than just platonic feelings for one another. So, I was then feeling a little wary about whether this was going to be something I wanted to watch as I was looking for an actual romance drama and it seemed like people didn't particularly like it. Despite those comments, I decided to continue watching since I was still only on the 1st episode and hadn't gotten a feel for it yet. As I watched, I found myself getting sucked into the drama (by this, I mean actively reacting to what was happening on screen) and itching to get to the next episode so that I could see how Daeyol and Taehyun's story would pan out. I kept waiting for the "sucky" parts of the drama to come on, but it never got there. What exactly sucked about it?

I thought the plot of the drama was really interesting - it's not just about two high school boys growing feelings for one another, but about two people with complex insecurities trying to navigate past the preconceived notions they have on how they should be traversing their everyday lives. For Taehyun it was forgiving himself regarding the accident with his mother and getting past his abandonment issues; for Dayeol it was letting himself find something he was actually passionate about and not just doing because he was good at it.

The acting was really, really great - I was surprised that this is the first time either of the leads has been in a drama because they really blew it out of the water. There were a lot of emotional scenes in this drama - whether through anger, grief, or acceptance - and it never felt stale or off. I especially liked that they could actually cry because there's nothing that takes me out of a drama more than when they pull a crying face but no actual tears come out.

The chemistry was so freaking clearly there. I didn't know that these boys were part of a K-pop group together, so I'm sure the bond that they built in their careers helped with the naturalness of their on-screen relationship.

There was very clear and evident pining and romance happening on my screen. Sure, there wasn't a kiss on the lips or holding hands, but you could clearly tell that the two characters were romantically interested in one another. There wasn't a need for all of the more explicitly laid out romance to be shown to you - the stares, small smiles across the room, the light brushes of shoulders whenever they'd sit together, and just the general happiness on their faces whenever they were with each other painted a very clear picture to me that these two were clearly in love with one another (if not, at the very least, clearly infatuated). I'm also seeing some people say that it didn't feel like the two were in a relationship/working towards a relationship because they weren't constantly touching one another. I don't know if it's because I'm one of those people who doesn't equate physical affection with how someone feels about a person, but it just didn't seem like that to me. On top of that, the entire last episode was full of them being close - literally laying in each other's lap, resting their head against one another, touching each other's face, Taehyun hugging Dayeol's waist whenever he was drying his hair and Dayeol literally kissed Taehyun on the ear at the end. It made me feel like people checked out before the end because they didn't get a kiss elsewhere in the drama ;-;

I, unlike most on here it seems, didn't even hate the ending of the show. People are saying that it felt rushed - I'm assuming because of the time skips (not gonna lie, the 2 years on top of 2 years kinda threw me off) but to me it felt like their story didn't need all the extra fluff on how they rekindled their feelings for one another following Dayeol leaving in the middle of high school. I think the main focus of this drama was to show their journey through high school as they developed their feelings - not really what things would have been like as they grew into adults. It was clear that both boys still had feelings for one another after they entered university, so there wasn't really a need to get too into depth on how they would have reconciled after their sad departure. Would it have been nice to see a little of the exposition in their university years where they re-enter each other's lives and become friends again to lovers? Yeah, of course, it would have been - but it didn't ruin this drama for me. The last episode was cute, it felt like a small glimpse into what their life is like following them getting into a relationship. It was a nice close to it, honestly.

Overall, I just really really enjoyed it. I don't understand why it's 1. not gotten more attention and 2. surrounded by so much negativity.

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Wasted opportunity

The series was highly anticipated compared to many other KBL series like this already has quite a number of supporters prior to release. However, the series did not live up to expectations. "A shoulder to cry on" also did not make sense because they lost the plot midway. Finale was boring because the series had no climax hence the "happy" ending did not really make any emotional impact to the viewers. The time jumps were unnecessary too.

Wasted opportunity because this series had 30-minute runtime per episode yet they failed to deliver – I can name quite a few other series with half the runtime period that delivered a more complex and detailed storyline.

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The plot was quite interesting. It was adorable. It had the chance to be longer. I feel like it came to a closure a little quick in the last eps. I didnt like the time skips to random scenes so much. I could've preferred to see more of their relationship progress. How they came to the conclusion of being together. And how the other character unlocked eventually emotionally his self and felt at ease and comfortable to show his affection. At least to watch some more steps of the character development and the establishment of the love part. I didn't mind of getting no kiss scene. I won't lie though, ofc i wouldn't complain if there was one. Overall i enjoyed it a lot.

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Это прекрасно

Я люблю как снимает Южная Корея. Это то, что всегда дает красоту и чистоту сюжета. Ведь основная идея не показать много страстных поцелуев и постельных сцен, а именно показать жизнь. Сама тема BL довольно не правильно воспринимается в последнее время. это нечто многогранное,но с круглыми углами. От красивых моментов влюбленности, отношения и любви, до безумного хота.
И так дорама. Я сразу знала, что будет много критики. И все из-за того, что я написала выше и что вообще Корея всегда дает мягкость. Здесь не будет поцелуев. здесь исключительно на вашу пошлую фантазию или для тех кто читал манхву. А для меня это потрясающая дорама, сыгранная ребятами айдолами, потрясающе реалистично и правдоподобно, что мне не надо фантазировать, что было или нет, и "а где же поцелуи?" Психология, жизнь, взаимоотношения ... все здесь есть в полном объеме. Игра ребят. Джэхан. Его образ стрелка школьника. Настолько вдумчивый, правильный. и что мы видим в конце. Его взъерошенность, смущение, а вспомните момент с носками))) как он сыграл? да он как в номере с мемберами - прожил. Йечан. Сказать, что ему досталась легкая роль, ну нет. У него была наисложнейшая задача показать персонаж с огромной психотравмой. И если мы закроем глаза на те события, что случились с группой и что он прежде всего музыкант - он справился на миллион раз лучше многих именитых актеров. это было настолько правдоподобно. Потрясающая история любви. Дополнительно озвучивание мыслей и размышлений. Музыка, стрельба, история прошлого. Проделана отличная работа. у меня точно попадает в любимые и пересмотрю еще не раз. Йечан, прости, я слишком часто залипала на твои губы. А соты теперь греют душу и сердце в дождливые весенние дни.

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