The Secret of Male Students – Series Review & Episode Guide

Jiwon is a high school student with the secret ability to read people's thoughts. He views his telepathy as a burden and wears headphones to block out the constant mental noise. However, Jiwon becomes intrigued by Siwoo, a classmate whose thoughts remain a mystery. For some reason, Siwoo is a rare exception to his power. Jiwon is also drawn to Siwoo's good looks and fantasizes about kissing him.

As the class president, Siwoo is a bespectacled student who projects an image of reliability and discipline around others. Jiwon, the vice president, accidentally discovers Siwoo smoking on campus, which breaks school protocol and shatters his classmate's seemingly perfect persona. Shocked, Jiwon takes a photograph as proof, but his clumsy movements create a commotion. Siwoo notices the noise, instantly realizing he has been caught.

Siwoo asks Jiwon to talk privately in class. He uses the opportunity to steal Jiwon's phone and delete the incriminating photo. When Jiwon realizes what happened, he accuses Siwoo of theft, though he has no solid proof. As their argument escalates, Siwoo removes his glasses and reveals a mean streak hidden beneath his polished persona. To make matters worse, Siwoo takes a new picture of himself smoking with Jiwon, which makes them partners in crime. Jiwon is outraged that he has now been dragged into the situation.

Despite their tension, Siwoo develops an interest in Jiwon. He becomes eager to keep tabs on his classmate's activities around school. Jiwon is close to another male student, Sanho, who has been skipping school to work and pay off debts. Jealous of their bond, Siwoo schemes to break it apart and draw Jiwon's attention back to himself.

The Secret of Male Students kicks off with an entertaining first arc. The love interest is a class president who hides his sly personality, and his sneakiness creates sparks as the two leads clash. Their enemy-to-lovers arc has a promising start. Also, the series includes kissing scenes early on, even if they are just fantasy sequences. I like seeing the BL goodies right away, which proves this drama isn't shy with physical intimacy. The Secret of Male Student sets the right tone, exciting me about what comes next.

After a decent beginning, The Secret of Male Students fails to maintain its momentum. The other arcs are nowhere near as enjoyable. Instead of building rapport between the leads, the series pivots to a love triangle with a random rival. You already have little time to tell the story, so why take this unnecessary detour? This drama has a bad habit of introducing new plots before abandoning them, which leaves everything underdeveloped. It suffers from cramming too many ideas into a short narrative. You only have 30 minutes! Scale back immediately!

Siwoo is a compelling protagonist, reminding me of a wolf in sheep's clothing. My favourite part about him is his personality changing whenever he removes his glasses. Specs on, he seems like a harmless student. Specs off, he transforms into a scheming bastard. The duality in his character is amusing, and I wish the series expanded upon it even more. The other lead, Jiwon, can read people's minds. His telepathy is an interesting trait, but the story barely explores his abilities. Why bother giving him this superpower if you can't integrate it into the plot?

The Secret of Male Students packs plenty of juicy BL content, especially for a thirty-minute drama. It features multiple kissing scenes, which are all lengthy and affectionate. These aren't dainty little pecks on the lips, but the actors are legitimately making out. They commit to every passionate encounter without holding back. However, the relationship between the leads feels unnatural. The story moves too fast from enemies to lovers when the couple's feelings haven't fully developed. It should've removed the love rival to give the leads more time to connect.

This series adopts the annoying trend of filming the drama vertically, which makes for an awful viewing experience. Even the passionate kisses feel less impactful due to the limited visibility, like looking at a tiny box over a larger picture. Splitting the story into 30 short episodes only adds to the problem. With just one minute per episode, there's barely enough time to establish anything meaningful before the scene finishes. A romance is more enjoyable with a gradual buildup, which this format can't achieve due to the awkward transitions between episodes.

The last few episodes focus on exploring Siwoo's past. I appreciate learning more about him, but the plot's execution falls flat. There isn't enough time to expand on anything with depth, reducing a sophisticated arc into shallow character development. I can't understand why the series is so damn short. If you're going to film a BL drama, it needs a full-length narrative to tell the story properly. The Secret of Male Students may have some good ideas, but trying to create a convincing romance in 30 minutes seems impossible. Sadly, this series is a disappointment.