A CHALLENGING QUESTION! Every country has their own style and tropes, and right now the genre seems to be in a huge growth state so there’s always new stuff to see. That being said, here are some I’ve either watched more than once or plan to watch again:

Semantic Error
Korean, available to watch on Viki, 8 episodes about 20-30 minutes each

Tropes: enemies to friends to lovers, college students, whoopsie-ing yourself into a crush

Quick Pitch: Jang Jaeyoung, a popular and talented art student, has his graduation plans spoiled by Chu Sangwoo, an antisocial perfectionist computer science major. In revenge, Jaeyoung sets out to annoy Sangwoo as much as humanly possible.

Chemistry: 10/10
Kissing: 8/10 (docked for having very minimal kissing)
Spiciness: mild

Notes: A very grounded show with a small cast that nevertheless feels very lived in. A good starter show!

Old Fashion Cupcake
Japanese, available to watch on Viki, 5 episodes about 25 minutes each

Tropes: age gap, secret crush, coworkers

Quick Pitch: Nozue is a salaryman approaching his 40th birthday and feeling a little purposeless and listless. His younger colleague Togawa begins hanging out with him as they try living carelessly (and eat a lot of delicious desserts).

Chemistry: 10/10
Kissing: 7/10 (while there isn’t much, what is there is good)
Spiciness: mild with a slight kick

Notes: Another good starter show with a very small scope. Personally I just to see a show where everyone is a full adult, and I love the dynamic of “person who doesn’t think they’re desirable” and “person who is absolutely feral for them.”

Never Let Me Go
Thai, available to watch on YouTube, 12 episodes about 50 minutes each

Tropes: bodyguard romance, high school students

Quick Pitch: After Nuengdiao’s father is murdered, his mother has Palm, the son of their bodyguard, move in and attend school with Nuengdiao as an unofficial bodyguard.

Chemistry: 8/10 (Palm’s actor sells it better imo)
Kissing: 10/10
Spiciness: medium

Notes: There’s some school stuff at the beginning, but most of the plot focuses on the attempts against Nuengdiao’s life and the power struggle for his family’s business. I think this is a good starter Thai show—there’s some cringe stuff, but overall it’s lighter on the melodrama imo. I also appreciate that it’s a school about teens that doesn’t pretend teens aren’t horny.

*Until We Meet Again/Between Us *
Thai, both available on iQiyi, UWMA also on Viki, UWMA 17 episodes and Between Us 12 episodes about an hour each

Tropes: college students; uwma: soulmates, reincarnation; between us: teammates, fwb to friends to lovers

Quick Pitch: Until We Meet Again: Dean and Pharm have always had dreams about In and Korn, two star-crossed lovers. They meet at college and discover they are the reincarnated couple.

Between Us: Team joins the swim club and enters into a complicated relationship with Win, the club vice president.

Chemistry: 8/10 (it varies)
Kissing: 7/10
Spiciness: uwma: mild; between us: medium

Notes: I’m bundling these two together because they are companion shows. UWMA is a melodrama with family drama and more about homophobia and intergenerational trauma. Between Us is also about overcoming trauma, but is more romcom-y with multiple couples. These both lean more into style tropes of Thai dramas (slo-mo, sound effects, Thai college life). I would suggest watching UWMA first.

Love in the Air
Thai, available to watch on iQiyi and Viki, 13 episodes about 50 minutes each

Tropes: college students, enemies to lovers (kind of), life changing ons

Quick Pitch: Best friends Rain and Sky are freshmen architecture students who get involved with, respectively, Phayu, an architect, part-time mechanic, and occasional motorcycle racer, and Prapai, a rich playboy who also races.

Chemistry: 10/10
Kissing: 10/10
Spiciness: hot!!

Notes: The first half focused on Rain and Phayu, who have a series of misunderstandings that lead to Rain wanting to defeat Phayu, which, uh, backfires. Sky and Prapai start as a one-night stand that results in Prapai pursuing Sky, who is hesitant because of a previous abusive relationship. Sky’s storyline involves discussion and some depiction of sexual violence, so please be careful with yourself! My favorite Thai BL bc of its focus on the relationships and how the plot twists feel earned. Also the best sex scenes I’ve seen, in that I feel they serve the characters well and are intimate and well-choreographed.