Thailand is known for its Boy Love (BL) dramas. From the outside looking in, one would think Thailand is being inclusive; however, the reality behind all the famous BL series such as Tharntype, 2gether, and SOTUS is far from the truth.
Thai BL series are still enforcing heterosexuality into gay relationships. Gay relationships in these shows often have a dominant and masculine guy who is seen ‘the man in the relationship’ or ‘the one who wears the pants’. While the other guy tends to be more feminine and submissive. This character is known as ‘the wife’ or the ‘woman’ in the relationship. In reality, there are no ‘guy’ and ‘girl’ in a homosexual relationship. And a piece of clothing does not determine a couple’s role in their relationship. Enforcing heterosexuality onto gay relationships, especially in movies and Tv shows, only perpetuate that straight has always been and will forever be the norm. This can be known as internal homophobia.
Boy love dramas, also known as Y series, are designed for straight female audiences. It isn't sure if the creators care about representing the LGBT+ community, but having the majority of their fans being teenage girls, they have to ‘tailor’ BL dramas to fangirls’ needs. After all, that is where most of their profits come from. This could potentially feed into the fetishization of same-sex couples.
On the bright side, as Thai dramas are becoming more and more popular, the LGBT+ community is getting more and more representation in the media. Not only do these shows have gay couples, but they are the lead. And in a lot of these dramas, being gay isn't a big deal. Whenever a character realizes he’s into guys, nobody makes a big deal out of it, nor were they bothered by it; many were even supporting and encouraging it. This is great as not only are they representing the LGBT+ community, they are also normalizing homosexuality, setting an example for all their viewers as well.
Though there’s still much work left to be done, having gay couples as main characters on the big screen is a momentous time in history and a huge step for the LGBT+ community. And the sooner we can acknowledge these problems, the sooner we change, and the better Thai Boy Love dramas will be.