Between Doors – Series Review & Episode Guide

Dohyun is alone in his apartment when someone knocks at the door. He opens it to find a complete stranger standing there. They have never met before. Before he can even process what's happening, this random guy suddenly starts kissing him. It lasts a few seconds, and Dohyun is too stunned to react. The kisser has his eyes closed the whole time and only stops after realizing he has the wrong person. Both men stand there awkwardly, mortified by what just happened.

The stranger introduces himself as Yoonjae. He immediately starts apologizing for the surprise kiss. Yoonjae explains that he meant to visit his ex-boyfriend and greet him with a spontaneous kiss. Instead, he mixed up the apartment doors. They all look the same, so he accidentally ended up at Dohyun's place. While Yoonjae keeps rambling, Dohyun cuts in with a direct question. He can smell alcohol and asks if Yoonjae is drunk. That only makes things worse. Yoonjae looks completely humiliated as he continues apologizing. He asks Dohyun to pretend the whole kiss never happened.

After Yoonjae leaves, the two men run into each other again in the apartment lobby. Even though Yoonjae wanted to pretend the kiss never happened, he brought it up right away. Dohyun reminds him that they agreed not to mention it. Yoonjae looks flustered by his own mistake. Seeing how nervous he is, Dohyun softens a little. They finally give each other a proper introduction and shake hands. To ease the tension, Dohyun suggests grabbing a coffee. They can get to know each other better.

They sit down with their drinks and start chatting. Both admit they're the type to stay inside their apartments all day. Yoonjae opens up about his ex and confesses he was on his way to visit him, even though they have already broken up. Dohyun admits it's strange to visit an ex if things are over. Yoonjae quietly agrees. The conversation flows more easily after that. The two guys realize they actually get along. At one point, they hold eye contact a little too long. Then, Dohyun makes a bold move. He asks Yoonjae out for dinner.

Dohyun and Yoonjae's relationship is going smoothly. Their dinner date ends with another kiss. This time, there's no confusion. The next day, Yoonjae heads to work in a great mood. He chats with his coworker Minho, who's stressed about his relationship. Minho feels like his boyfriend is slowly drifting away. Yoonjae tries to comfort him and offers some love advice. But then, he meets Minho's boyfriend in person. And he's completely shocked to see a familiar face…

Between Doors begins with the wildest scene. Dohyun opens his front door, and BAM, a total stranger is making out with him. OMG!? Obviously, you shouldn't do this in real life. Keep your lips to yourself, people. But as a way to kick off a story? So memorable! The situation instantly grabs our attention. Afterwards, Yoonjae is apologetic, while Dohyun seems unbothered. Their reactions make this moment feel like a wacky accident. It's a hilariously awkward start, as long as you haven't died from second-hand embarrassment.

Between Doors quickly loses momentum. It has one good opening scene, but the rest of the plot is trash. The series can't figure out how to make these two leads connect. Their interactions are painfully awkward. The conversations feel like when you're stuck in an elevator with a neighbour you barely know. Awkward pauses. Polite nods. Zero spark. Despite all this dead air, the story wants us to believe they're attracted to each other. Based on what, exactly? I have no clue. Yet, they randomly start kissing anyway. That's because every episode needs to include a steamy scene to tempt fans into paying for the uncut version.

There's a plot twist! Dohyun isn't single. That bastard has a boyfriend! OMG. On paper, this sounds like messy drama. Yet, it plays out in the most boring way. I was expecting tears, screaming matches, maybe a slap across the face if we got lucky. Instead, we get three dudes mumbling at each other. If you're gonna do a cheating storyline, can you make it interesting!? Dohyun looks like a total scumbag. He's cheating on his partner for a random guy he just met. Classy move, buddy. Yoonjae finds out about the cheating and just keeps going, so he isn't winning any moral awards either.

The writing is so lazy and uninspired. There's zero character development, so we know nothing about the leads beyond their love life. What do they do for fun? Do they even have personalities? Your guess is as good as mine. The dialogue is bland as hell. Half the time, it doesn't make sense. The romantic moments feel soulless, as if the entire story is an excuse to make the actors kiss. The more makeout scenes there are, the more subscribers they can get. If you wanna monetize a BL drama, put some effort into creating a decent product. Don't just churn out garbage.

In Episode 1, Yoonjae's actor (Cheon Young Jae) portrays his character's embarrassment in a really funny way. For the rest of the series, he tries his best to salvage the crappy material with goofy moments here and there. If Between Doors had a funnier story, it could showcase his comedic chops properly. His co-star (Hwang Min Seon) is a former contestant from a gay dating show. Quite a few BL dramas have been casting the guys from His Man 3. I suspect it's a strategic move. They want gay actors who are comfortable with kissing scenes to handle the intimate moments.

The drama from the cheating storyline falls completely flat. Dohyun has zero shame or guilt about dumping his boyfriend. His attitude is so nonchalant that it's hilarious. Did I cheat? Yep. Did I hurt someone emotionally? Sure did. Do I look like I give a single fuck? LMAO NOPE. I should be offended by his trash behaviour, but I don't give a damn either. I have zero attachment to this series. All I feel is indifference. Overall, Between Doors is utterly worthless. I'm gonna finish writing the review, close the tab, and never think about this drama again. Good riddance.