Television series
Love By Chance
Love By Chance is a Thai BL drama about two college students—quiet, studious Can and charismatic athlete Ae—whose unexpected connection unfolds across romance, genuine humour, and the messy realities of first love. It's warm-hearted and funny, grounded in character work that gives its ensemble room to breathe. Perfect for anyone who wants romance that earns its emotions.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you want a slow-building college romance where awkward, sweet small moments carry more weight than big dramatic gestures, and you don't mind a gentle comedy streak along the way.
Skip it if you want fast plotting or short episodes, because at about an hour each across 27 episodes, it moves at its own unhurried pace and demands real patience.
What it asks of you: Settle in for roughly twenty-seven hour-long episodes spread across two seasons, with unhurried stretches where the feelings take their time to surface.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
2gether The Series2020
A Thai BL that balances comedy and sincerity with real chemistry between leads. The fake-dating premise gives way to genuine character depth, and it's just plain fun to watch—witty, charming, never tries too hard.
But The early episodes lean hard into slapstick humour, which doesn't land for everyone. Also fairly short (13 episodes), so it goes quickly.
Heartstopper2022
A British series about young queer love with the same warmth and character focus as Love By Chance. Beautifully shot, funny without being cruel, and genuinely moving about connection, identity, and friendship.
But It's squeaky clean in a way that might feel saccharine if you're after grittier drama. Aimed slightly younger in sensibility.
Bad Buddy2021
Thai BL about enemies-to-lovers with exceptional production values and a genuinely great script. Rich characters, real stakes, and it doesn't waste your time on filler. One of the best in the genre.
But Darker than Love By Chance—family conflict, class tension, real danger. If you want pure sweetness, this goes places that hurt.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Love By Chance
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
BLOOM2021
Both explore first love and physical/emotional vulnerability, but Bloom strips away plot and context entirely to focus on pure sensation and emotional impression—the inverse of Love By Chance's grounded character work. Same subject, completely opposite approach.
A strikingly experimental animated film about two men discovering connection through memory and desire. It's sensual, weird, formally inventive—nothing quite like it. Made for festivals, not mainstream, but unforgettable if you're open to it.
But Almost entirely visual storytelling with minimal dialogue. Non-linear narrative. If you need plot clarity and narrative forward momentum, this will feel oblique and frustrating.
More like this (4)
Your Name Engraved Herein2020
A Taiwanese coming-of-age film about two boys in love during the 1980s, with real political and social stakes. Beautifully made, emotionally generous, and it captures that intensity of first love with genuine depth.
But It's a film, so just over two hours—more compressed. Also more serious in register. There's loss here, and it doesn't soften it.
The Half of It2020
A Netflix coming-of-age film about a scholarship student who falls for a quiet jock through writing love letters. Smart, genuinely funny, with real tenderness. It trusts you to get the subtext.
But Very indie in feel—deliberately low-key. If you need high production values and constant momentum, it might feel slow or slight.
The Halfway House2004
Like Love By Chance, it's interested in how people actually talk to each other and form bonds—the small moments that matter more than plot. But where Love By Chance is romantic and hopeful, this is bruised and skeptical. Both understand that connection is built in conversation and vulnerability, just pointed in opposite directions.
A Welsh drama about a group of broken people in a house for a weekend, with unexpected beauty and dark comedy. Character-driven, ensemble-focused, finds profound humanity in ordinary people. It's about connection in a completely different register.
But It's nearly 20 years old, shot in a deliberately flat style, and very bleak at times. Not a love story—more about damage and repair. Takes a lot of patience.
Monk2002
The emotional core isn't the murders—it's the friendship between Monk and his assistant Natalie, which unfolds exactly like Love By Chance: two people from different worlds learning to trust each other through thousands of small moments. Both prove that connection matters more than plot.
An American procedural about a brilliant detective with OCD solving murders. Sounds dry, but it's genuinely hilarious, deeply kind, and over eight seasons builds one of television's best relationships—grounded, earned, earned some more. Comedy with real warmth.
But Episodic format means no long arc momentum for several seasons. Very American in tone and pace. If you want contemporary cool, this is resolutely uncool in a deliberate, earnest way.
