Color Rush

Although it can be found in the English-speaking countries, Asian countries have established reputations as producers of BL content. If you don't know what BL is or means, it stands for boys love. So, yes, it's LGTBQ in nature but, more often that not, is simply 2 young men realizing that the person meant for them has the same gender and the sharing of a long and relieved hug or the type of kiss Asian romances usually favor, BL or not. This means lips make contact but mouths don't move, upper body might make contact but lower does not, one person's hands touch the other person but the second person's don't, and often, as the realization comes as a shock to the other person, the eyes are wide open in a shocked expression and either remain that way or slowly close in acceptance.

It can differ a little bit. Depending on the broadcaster or network, the boys made sleep in the same bed and there might be a shared embrace and some kissing about the neck area. If the partner, although the same or close in age, is physically smaller, contact is very sweet or if they've graduated from high school or are physically matched, things could get much more passionate.

School is a VERY popular locale in BL as many have their feelings awakened at a young age. A new Korean BL by Storywiz Film called Color Rush does involve 2 boys of high school age but how and why they connect is beyond the scope of the normal BL and that's why it intrigued me.

Yeon Woo is what Color Rush calls a mono. He can only see grey but, as he explains, his mother taught him there are shades of grey, a list he often recites when anxiety starts to set in. He lives with his aunt as his mother, also a mono, has disappeared. Bad things happen to monos and, Yeon Woo often explains, monos frequently do bad things. However, these bad things usually happen, he explains, when a mono meets a probe, a probe being the one person in the world who can show them color. In the world of Color Rush, monos often become so obsessed with finally being able to see color that they will do anything to be with their probes, including kidnapping them. So Yeon Woo tries to live quietly, be happy with his grey world, and listen to his aunt who is still looking for his mother and when things go awry frequently will move homes and put him in another school.

When the story begins, Yeon Woo is starting another new school. The first people he meets are the eager to please class president and his buddy who, it is explained, often is inhabited by the spirit of an all-knowing senior citizen. The third person is Yoo Han, although they don't really technically meet as Yoo Han is an idol (singer/dancer/maybe actor) in training, so he frequently sleeps in class and wears a black mask.

Things get interesting though when Yoo Han wakes up and he takes off that mask as he, it turns out, is Yeon Woo's probe and the quiet life Yeon Woo has worked so hard to live is over as once Yoo Han bears witness to the look in Yeon Woo's eyes when he's experiencing this rush of color, he feels compelled to continually offer opportunities to do it again to a freaked out Yeon Woo who fears he will become addicted to it and, as others have done, hurt his new-found probe.

For me, the sci-fi aspect of the show was really intriguing. The fact that the episodes are only 15 minutes long threw me at first because when I first met the characters, I wanted more time with them. However, as the story is naturally building in intensity, I've come to realize that 15 minutes is perfect as viewers like myself ride the roller coaster like rush of emotions Yeon Woo is feeling with such a connection that when it's over, we really want more. At least I know I do.