We are Brothers – Wo yishi deng ni – I’ll be waiting for you

“This project has been produced in strict accordance with the storyline approved by the Myanmar Motion Picture Organization and has been officially screened with the permission of Myanmar’s Video Censorship Board“ (quote from intro of episodes)

The producers of “We are Brothers“ had to bear this in mind when they made the series (see quote above), and all those BL fans who are missing kisses, not to mention NC scenes, in this series should remember under which conditions the series was made. But I would ask everybody to look closely (I won’t go into detail here).

The beginning of the plot sounds familiar – “stepbrother moving in“ and “enemies to friends“ are well-known topics in BL series. But as this cannot be a BL series, it is exciting to see how these topics are being presented here.

Linn Yaung (Chris Tao), a student who loves playing computer games, has been living in a house owned by his family for generations, with his father, a businessman, and his aunt, who takes care of the household. When the father surprises both of them by telling them he is going to remarry, and his new wife and her son Ghone Shein Wah (Bhone Myat Htet) are going to move in, Linn Yaung is shocked.

When the new family members arrive, and especially after Linn Yaung’s father announces that the two stepbrothers will share a room – Linn Yaung’s room ! – Linn Yaung considers his stepbrother as an intruder. With some childish actions he tries to make his life as hard as possible, disturbing him by loudly playing his games, forbidding him to play the guitar, and even by smoking although he knows that Ghone Shein Wah has lungs problems. He even divides his room with Scotch tape into separate parts and doesn’t allow his roommate to cross the line.

Step by step the two boys get closer, and Linn Yaung finally accepts Ghone Shein Wah as his brother. When one of Ghone Shein’s friends comes to visit, Linn Yaung is clearly jealous, and when the stepbrothers take a trip to the city and share a meal, they come across as close friends.

Tragedy strikes when the parents return from a business trip and see the boys being very close as if they were kissing, although Linn Yaung has only removed hair from Ghone Shein’s eye. The father is furious and separates the boys. His violent reaction, which devastates Linn Yaung and especially Ghone Shein, who feels excluded from the family and cries bitterly, is then explained to Ghone Shein by aunt Ya Min. Many years ago, the father’s and Ya Min’s brother had been in love with a boy, causing a brutal reaction by their father. The brother and his hoyfriend were beaten up, and the brother finally died.

When Linn Yaung overhears his parents discussing divorce, he decides to go to study abroad. His farewell is tearful of course, and even after a year Ghone Shein Wah reminds his stepbrother of the promise he made: “Wo yishi deng ni – I’ll be waiting for you“. The final scene with Ghone Shein Wah in Linn Yaung’s wrongly buttoned shirt reveals his true feelings.

Playing two boys, stepbrothers, who are obviously attracted to each other, under the conditions mentioned above requires fine acting, and both Chris Tao and Bhone Myat Htet deliver brilliantly. Chris Tao is able to display the development from a grumpy, spoiled brat to a loving brother convincingly, while Bhone Myat Htet acts sensitively as a shy, yet courageous person. Seeing the boys cry towards the end of the series really broke my heart. As the actors cannot use physical contact to express their characters’ feelings, glances and body language must do the job, and they do. May I add that I think both lead actors are more than handsome.

The supporting actors, from father to new mother, the deceased brother and bis boyfriend, aunt and grandfather all display their respective roles credibly, although for Western eyes the brutality of both father and grandfather appears over the top, but it underlines the obstacles the LGBT community faces in Myanmar.

The writing (Min Set Thit) mirrors the situation in Myanmar, focusing exclusively on the history and presence of this patchwork family, which is understandable as the budget obviously didn’t allow many scenes outside of the family home. The persons are well characterized and, in Linn Yaung’s case developed. There are some images, metaphors and allusions which I won’t elaborate on, but which the experienced BL fans will notice. I did, however, miss some information about what the boys actually do – they appear to be students, but that could have been shown a bit more as well as some more background information of Ghone Shein’s family.

Most of the story is set in the family home, a beautiful house, but there are also glimpses at the colourful Burmese culture. Technically, the series has very little flaws – only the sound is not perfect in a few scenes. The background piano music is appropriate and never intrusive, and the OST songs are as beautiful as the whole series.

All in all, I can say that I enjoyed watching Linn Yaung and Ghone Shein Wah’s journey a lot and I would ask everybody who hasn’t watched this beautiful series to do this soon – you never know how long Burmese productions will be available.