Frank Hecker

The genre we call "yuri" originated in Japan, but some of its most interesting manifestations are in other nations in East and Southeast Asia, where it is typically marketed as "GL". One recent example is the live-action Thai television drama GAP, also known as GAP: The Series (to distinguish it from the novel on which it is based), Pink Theory, and other names.

GAP is currently being broadcast weekly on Thai TV Channel 3, and then afterward being made available on YouTube with English subtitles, starting with episode 1, part 1. It's an example of what's sometimes called "shakaijin yuri": yuri stories featuring adults doing adult things. In the series, one of the two main characters, Mon, starts her first job at a small media company run by the other main character, Sam, an older woman whom Mon has idolized ever since she was a child. However, Sam does not remember ever meeting Mon (or at least doesn't admit to it), and their relationship gets off to a rocky start before love starts to blossom.

It's a pretty good series overall, and well worth watching if you're a yuri fan. I'm not going to attempt a review; Erica Friedman already posted one on the Okazu blog, and I basically agree with her assessment. Instead I wanted to comment on some other aspects of the series and how it came to be. (Warning: This will contain some minor spoilers for the first two episodes.)

I finished watching the final episode 12 of GAP: The Series a couple of days ago. Here are some final thoughts on the show. (WARNING: This includes spoilers for episode 12 in particular.)

This post is the last in a series discussing Yasujirō Ozu’s Early Summer (1951) as a hypothesized example of “a queer film subtly but firmly protesting compulsory heterosexuality, made by a (possibly) queer director and starring a (possibly) queer actor.” See also my introduction in part 1, and my detailed breakdown of the film’s scenes in part 2, part 3, and part 4.

Here I provide my final thoughts on the film and my thesis.

NOTE: This post contains spoilers for Early Summer.

I originally hypothesized that Yasujirō Ozu’s 1951 film Early Summer could be seen as “a queer film subtly but firmly protesting compulsory heterosexuality, made by a (possibly) queer director and starring a (possibly) queer actor.” My second post looked for evidence in favor of this thesis, as did my third post. In this post I discuss the final section of the film.

NOTE: This post contains spoilers for Early Summer.