His Man Season 2 (2023)

The sparks and the spices

This dating reality show is so enjoyable. There are sparks but at the same time spices as well. The whole concept of the dating show is interesting especially the phone call to express the feeling part. The phone calls kept me at edge. Like I could never predict who each of the contestant would call. It was interesting and at the same time agonizing especially the phone calls involving the love triangles.

WARNING: Major spoilers ahead!!

Honestly JunSeong and Sungho are the best part of the show for me. I rooted for them since the very first phone call. "Roommate, hi" was what got me into the show and I fell deeper and deeper episode by episode. I couldn't help but cheer for JunSeong. He was so sure about who he wanted and the way he expressed his feelings in the most sincere way whenever he got the chance to, every second of it was absolutely worth witnessing. On the other hand Sungho was sure about his feelings towards Seonwoo until he wasn't. He wavered ever since the first call from JS. From "friendship 100% love zero" to "Beside JunSeong, others are like friends or colleagues to me", he came a long way. And damn their dates were an absolute delight to see especially the one after call match. The sparks were flying everywhere. They really stole the whole show for me,

Moving on to SeonWoo, I won't lie at first it really felt like he was leading everyone on and I wasn't quite a fan of it but as I watched more of him, he grew on me. And the love triangle of Hyun Joon, Min Sung and Hyun Jin, it was a bit of a mess. For most of the part except Hyun Joon, the other two seemed confused. They were certain one moment and the next moment they were not. It was honestly agonizing to see but I do get it that none of them were actually at fault. However, I liked Min Sung and Hyun Joon together. Their date was cute. But it's commendable how Hyun Joon stood up for himself. Also, Yung Hee damn he was so consistent and his efforts towards SW melted me. And Jeong wook this guy deserves nothing but happiness. He is such a softball mahn. I hope each one of them a happy life. I hope they live it to their best and also find the one they love and who loves them back too.

Overall an enjoyable show that kept me awake one whole night and even after I caught up to the recent episodes I could not stop myself from binge watching it. Highly recommended!!

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enjoyable m/m reality dating series

Overall: pretty well done, however there was definitely some misleading/confusing editing (especially in the finale) to create additional drama which I could have done without. When watching "reality" series, I always keep in mind that producers might tell the guys what to do/say and that editing can be extremely misleading (not showing things, change the order, etc). My goals were that the guys have some fun and being on the show helped (or at least doesn't hurt them) in their personal and professional lives. I have zero problem with them promoting their businesses as being queer has likely given them personal and professional disadvantages (and perhaps more so after appearing on the show). 14 episodes about 1 hour each. Aired on Gagaoolala & iQIYI (depending on your country)

Content Warnings: discussion related to homophobia/life experiences

What I Liked
- I like how they started with a date and the twist gave a bit more drama
- the 30 second phone call thing was good (I personally think it's best if the guys say who they are and call someone they are romantically interested in to avoid mixed signals/increase the odds of a mutual match)
- the twists were well done
- once again a good decision to not let them say their age or occupation right away. I think people get fixated on those things when in reality personality, values and goals are much more important compatibility-wise and it will make a good reveal in ep 3
- jenga game was a good way for everyone to learn more about everyone else, and although it got kind of serious, it seems to have brought them together and is an important thing for viewers to see/learn about
- production value such as nice music, set design, editing, etc

Room For Improvement
- too many phone calls, would have liked to see some more larger group games
- needed a graphic at the end of each episode to see who called who/was interested in who because I get confused and wanted to see if there were mutual matches
- needed nametags or nametag necklaces at least for the first few episodes to get familiar with all of their names
- there was confusing/misleading editing that I don't think was needed

Life Advice: I really want to have heart to hearts with a few of these guys, but here are my main takeaways/advice
1. Being "nice" is frequently much more hurtful if you are leading someone on verses being honest and saying you aren't interested in a person romantically
2. (related to number 1) Honesty is the best policy - make it clearly known from the beginning who you are romantically interested in, I know it can be embarrassing, but if you aren't mature enough to be honest then you aren't mature enough to be in a romantic relationship
3. Be careful of changing yourself for a romantic partner - it's fine to change things that you want to change, but don't change yourself to fit someone else's desires for how you should be, otherwise you're at risk of losing yourself and your happiness
4. Work on your own self esteem - don't expect another person to complete you but rather complement you. Using another person to prop up low self esteem is likely not going to end well.

Comparison to other m/m dating shows
1. Sparks Camp (Philippines) on YouTube. 10 guys, anyone can pursue anyone else, too many group games that are not getting to know you types, but overall done well
2. Love House seasons 1 & 2 (Vietnam) on YouTube (most have English subs, this is ep 1 of season 2 no subs though https://youtu.be/TKzT_nHfVTA ). I liked this set up more than Bromance because the guys could all pursue one another. I didn't like the "secret couple" aspect and dividing them up based on sexual position seemed odd (can't they discuss that in private???) Season 1 was also the most brutal "rose ceremony" I've ever seen in any dating reality show. Season 2 was better.
3. Bromance (Thailand) is also on Gagaoolala. This is the typical Bachelor/Bachelorette set up with a bunch of people competing against one another to be with the 1 bachelor. I didn't like this because they could have all been hitting on each other and we have multiple couples! I got kind of bored and skipped a bunch.

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