Theory of Love (2019)

Good but underdeveloped romance

I really enjoyed this series. The cast was wonderful and production value solid. I think there was such good chemistry in the gangster friend group. I don't rewatch shows but for those who do, this wouldn't be a bad rewatch. My only issue, and pretty big one imo, is that the writers didn't develop Third and Khai's romantic relationship enough. Their friend relationship and the negative aspects of it were told well. I understood why they were friends. But I only understood why they should crossover to being more because GunOff have naturally good onscreen chemistry. But they weren't given enough solid romance to build the in-story romantic chemistry. So by the last episode, I felt underwhelmed by them as a couple. If they had incorporated more sexual tension/romantic chemistry into the story, it would have made Khai and Third's relationship better developed.

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Pack your shit and Leave

The amount of times I screamed, "PACK YOUR SHIT AND LEAVE" at my tv while watching this is uncountable. The beginning half of the show is frankly, infuriating. I don't know if it speaks to the acting or the hook of the script that kept me going, but something did, and I did end up feeling pretty rewarded by the end so Kudos. Still, lord, the beginning hurt.

I don't know if it hit me more because I have been in that world of unrequited love for a friend. Lost years of my life over it. So, while the beginning made me want to tear my hair out, it was eventually very redeemable, and honestly a bit cathartic.

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BL Romance from various unrequited loves perspectives: frustration level is high!

The drama is centred on a friends-to-lovers trope with a lot of pining. I found quite interesting the fact that the story was shown from the unrequited loves perspectives for the several storylines. It is quite nice to see the romance from the point of view of the unloved/pining character without knowing the inner thoughts of the recipient of those intentions.

Unfortunately, this narrative choice is not enough to make the story great. The script is indeed deeply flawed as it is impossible at first to support the hero acting as a doormat and to understand why he likes the other main lead who is really treating him quite bad in their friendship and is full of red flags.

Women characters and development are another weak point of the series. Most of the women are either seen as crazy or as disposables to be used and thrown afterwards. A couple of them intervene in side romances: those relationship are overall cute but quite transparent and uninspired.

The first half of the show is really painful and unbalanced in terms of developing the relationships. Despite all of this the series is terribly addictive: it frustrates you as you find yourself wanting to knock some sense into the main leads but at the same time you are really curious to see how they are going to be together. The second half of the show is much better story-wise thanks to the flip in the dynamic of the main duo.

There was some real good acting in this series: I found the performance of the main actors (Gun and Off) particularly nice. Their chemistry together was shining and they carried the numerous emotional scenes. They were not helped at all by the scenario which was making the characters quite antipathic or annoying...and still they managed to emote and provide some saving grace to the show.

The soundtrack was ok but not really standing out, as well as the production which was rather average with some real cringe moments. Product placement was (as it is often the case in the BL Thai dramas) super present and repetitive ad nauseam.

I would recommend this to people loving the main actors Gun and Off and more specifically their pairing. Be aware that this show can induce a high level of frustration for the viewer because of the annoying behaviours of the main protagonists.

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Vanilla Bromance

First half was nothing but Thirds angst & misery with his unrequited love for Khai, and by Ep 5, I was ready to give up.
I just wanted his friends to give him a verbal slap and tell him to get over it as it was clear Khai only loved him as a friend and that was all it would ever be.

But Then Behold! The story focus shifts to Khai, who miraculously goes off kissing women, decides he's gay, and has fallen madly in love with Third overnight! (yeah, right...) Anyhow, at this point the story starts to lighten up and become more fun to watch, so all good I guess.

The Acting was OK but Thirds character remained to be an uncharismatic drip throughout the whole series.
The side stories could have been more interesting, but never got off the ground. Giving Bone a gratuitous GF at the end, just made a mockery of his feelings for Paan. And as for Two & Un, I'm still not sure what their relationship is supposed to be (?)
....BB ;~)

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Thirddddd

It’s been a while since I watched thai bl, for reasons…
This drama was from the best bls I seen, it felt like a Hollywood or Netflix production.
Third: the story around films and love for directing and dramas with Third was so refreshing and beautiful, Third went through so much shit to find his self value and to know that he can let go of the person he loved if that person is endlessly abusing and hurting him.
Khai: I wanted to murd*r him pretty much for the whole series 😂
He was so clueless and selfish and imo he never deserved Third but the heart wants what it wants, so I was glad that he got himself together in the end.
And the ost is one of my favorite songs ever, since I watched the drama this song never left my list.

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I almost dropped after ep 8

I don’t typically write reviews (usually just give it a 10 if I like it and move on) but I feel like I have to explain the rating a bit since it’s so low. I’ve read a few reviews sharing similar sentiments, so I feel more confident putting this into words.
(I only critique the characters, the actors were fantastic) (also fully opinion, I’m not saying you shouldn’t like this show, just saying why I don’t)

Praise:
The cute moments that were sparingly sprinkled throughout really saved this for me.
It had nice closure, and I’m glad we were able to see them post-graduation. I really like to see what happens to characters after the main storyline end; it’s nice to know if they get to follow their dreams.
It’s a well written show and the cinematography in many places just hit the spot. A lot of the time, the blocking of the scene really portrayed the characters and emotions well.

Grievances:
This was a *really* frustrating watch for me, mostly because of the lack of communication. My biggest pet peeve when it comes to any genre of show is bad communication. I felt like the characters weren’t being fully transparent about anything. A lot of the conflicts seemed to be caused by miscommunication and lies. I feel like yeah, that’s real life, but it just seemed like *wayyyyy* too much for a 12 episode show.
Khai was quite the unlikeable character and I feel like his redemption arc wasn’t full enough to make me like him; it seemed to stop once Third accepted him when he still could’ve improved.
And Bone? Oooh I have a bone to pick with Bone. I dislike teacher-student relationships in shows. No exceptions. Even though Bone and Paan never had a relationship, it felt like a romanization of his crush. I feel like his acceptance and moving on from her came wayyyy too late in the show for me to really sympathize with Bone. At first I thought Paan was closer to Bone’s age, but after realizing she was his teacher, I immediately stopped rooting for them. I flat out fast-forwarded through most of their interactions because it was so clear Bone liked Paan, and it gave me the ick.
I feel like Un and Two’s relationship wasn’t fully explained, and it almost seemed like it came out of nowhere, which was really off-putting. I would have liked to see it more explored.
The first half of the show was a real struggle for me to get through; I was mad at the characters 99% of the time. I stopped on it after ep. 8.3 because I was so frustrated with it all.

To reiterate: if you like the show, you like it. If you don’t, you don’t. This is my opinion and I’m not asking you to agree

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Beautiful story and acting, but has some flaws

To make myself clear, I really loved the series and the acting. First let's talk about the good things

1)Acting

Gun was amazing in the first half of the story. He portrayed third and his agony so well. I felt his pain and helplessness. I also felt very torn and angry when Khai played a trick on him to test him. I was broken when he confessed his love in front of the camera. Wow...just wow❤️❤️ Though in the later half, I have to admit, I was quite annoyed with him but that's a different discussion. Off....my oh my...the guy is a genius in portraying an asshole. I wanted to punch him so bad esp when he knew Third's feeling and still kissed him to hurt him. I was extremely angry and wanted to kick him in the balls (that's just the testament to how good he acted) Mike did a good job with this guy in love with a teacher (come on admit it, it's a bit of a guilty pleasure😉) I have always loved White since lovesick series but Earth and White's coupling was somehow more interesting and touching to me than really the main couple (sorry am a sucker for side couples)

2) Music

This has to be my Favorite OST after Lovesick/LBC ost, UWNA ost and DBK ost. It was so good. It hit you right on the feels and it was placed in such correct moments that you would tear up because how the music made you feel

3) Different setting

Finally, a series with no engineering or doctor as the background. God, I was getting tired of engg and doctor background. This had a fresh background of film students and the bonding over making the short movies. The different setting made the story a little more interesting esp when Khai started pursuing Third!!

4) Friendship

I was truly happy to see the four guys frdship. It was not the perfect one but it was heart felt. They were supportive, caring and very real. The male bonding other than love was so well depicted not just between White, Mike, Off and Gun but also between Earth and Gun, Gun and the president of drama club, also the president of drama club and Earth. It was so heart warming not cheesy neither exaggerated. Really loved all the male bondings.

5) Character development

One of the things that thai bl lack a lot is properly creating a character arc. But here all the characters had an arc and it was so well depicted. Third had an arc, khai had an arc, Un had an arc, Earth had an arc, Mike had an arc and they were not messy but slowly revealed. I liked how the characters grew and changed as the time went on. Khai's was the biggest development but I particularly liked Un's development as it showed how true feelings can change a person's heart naturally.

Even with all the above great points, there were some really annoying issues as well

1) Third in 2nd half:

I know EVERYONE FELT SORRY for third even I did but people tend to forget that Khai had no idea third was in love with him so his actions were not meant to hurt him except when he did discover the truth and used Praw to hurt Third so that Third would give up. But in the 2nd half third was being plain mean. He knew how khai felt but didn't believed him and was being a complete jerk. Plus, towards the end he became annoying and boring. Sorry it is my personal opinion so don't come at me. I just felt Third just got annoyingly bitchy at the end

2) No time to other plots

When you can't properly give time to other plots then don't put so many plots. I wanted to know more about how White and Earth came to like each other and also how Earth started to like him and how he and Gun became frds. Same for Mike and teacher thing (though I gotta admit, they still managed to do some justice to it) Same for Un and the girl he liked. So many plots but barely any time to fit in all. The director still did much better job than many other dramas but still I felt too many plots were introduced but not well explored


3) Slow first half

This is just nit picking but I felt that till ep 7 the story was TOO SLOW. Third was going on being hurt by Khai and Khai was going on ignoring Third's feeling and round and round it went. I just think that portion could have been shrunk in 4 eps and rather used to show some side characters story development.

That's about all. It was a good drama to watch and enjoy. The first half might feel a bit draggy n painful but please bear it, coz it's worth it. Highly recommended!! Thank you.

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Third needs an intervention

Or maybe a lobotomy. I'm only on ep 5 and I can't stand the way he's mooning over Khai, a slutty guy who gives him absolutely nothing. Less then nothing. What does he see in him? I want to klonk their heads together. Please tell me this gets better... I'm not a drama dropper so I'll watch till the end but I'm not happy about it. And if there's one more scene of Third fully dressed crying in the shower over the biggest asshole in Thailand, I'm gonna lose it

Also, what about the rating? I've seen nothing that makes it have to be NC17. Viki has it behind a code. For why? Does it get spicy later on?

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This series told me "No one will ever love you" in 10 languages.

My theory of love:
THIRD: "If the love is real, it can withstand anything."
KHAI: "My six-word love story: You changed my life. Thank you!"
TWO: "One night I looked up and saw 1000 stars...hello Phupha are you there?!"
BONE: "Paan broke my heart now I'm into guys and hitting on Tine's brother."

"Third,
I've watched as many romantic films as I could. To find out what love is. Instead of finding the answer, I found you in every one of them. Every scene that the lead characters express their love is the same as what you've done for me over the past three years that we've been friends. Now I know love is not beautiful flowers, not luxurious locations, but the sincerity you've given me. If I am to confess my love to you, there's no better way than the sincere way you did for me. If you still think what I've done here is not love, I really don't know what love is to you. I've engraved my name and yours in it. For me, you're not a movie, you're real. Would you be my boyfriend?"

And that's how I died

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It's a rough road

The cast acts very well throughout this series, except for that bike crash scene. That was--That was a travesty. What soap opera invaded my drama? Also, Off was not good at crying or sadness 90% of the time he tried it. Not like Gun, who can bust out the waterworks at the drop of a hat. Other than that, I thought the acting was great and all the actors picked did very well in their roles.

I wanted more P'Un and Two. I've never seen Earth do a tsundere type character before, so this was fascinating and hilarious to me. And Two was adorable once they cleared things up, so excited to finally be together.

I feel bad about it, but I actually got bored of Bone's story before the end. I liked how mature he was about it all, though.

Khai's turn around could've been built up/shown better. He has a pretty much 180 flip there after his big revelation. I did *love* the vivid flashbacks he had while trying to kiss a random woman at that beach bar though, unable to perform even a peck on the cheek because of the memories of what he did to Third.

More smiling Gun, please!

Music gets a 5/10. The same two bits of music played constantly, and none of it was memorable.

Rewatch Value 2/10 - because damn those first episodes made me want to *rend the flesh* from Khai's bones. I wanted to turn him into a meat smoothie and sell him to Sweeney Todd. I wanted to make his insides his outsides. I wanted to peel him like a potato. And I'm not a violent person (despite what that rather graphic imagery suggests).

Not a series I would recommend, because while the series post-Khai realizing he's an asshole was good, that was...that was a lot to put up with, honestly.

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Okay, I stand corrected.

If you saw my updates as I watched this show, you would know... I absolutely hated this show. Lol Not to the point where I wanted to drop it.... But to the point where you could tell I was most likely screaming at my computer screen. Lol

Mind you, I was told the outcome would be worth it and I thought I had called the ending a few episodes in anyway... Let me tell you I'm glad I was told it was worth it and also glad I called it but was still genuinely surprised at how it ended.
I feel like BL has been pretty cut and dry with it being pretty easy to call (I'm not complaining, I don't mind what people call 'Same story, different character') but I feel like Theory of Love (while kinda keeping the same pace) actually threw some curveballs in there. I was not expecting him to fight for his love all the way up to the last episode. I'm so used to it being in the start or middle where they give in and THEN the drama hits. Boyyyyyy the drama just kept hitting with this show. Lol I liked that this ended the way it did. It made me actually care for a character that I hated through 90% of the show... and that doesn't happen often. Once I hate a character, I tend to go to my grave hating them. Lol so this was a nice twist.

I didn't expect to actually like this show and I actually started it out of plain curiosity. I had planned to watch half/one episode then move on to see if there was something better.... as you can tell, mistakes were made and I ended up binge watching the whole damn thing. Lol I regret nothing!! lol

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Uma história sobre amor e amizade que vai deixar saudades

O que falar desse BL? Eu tenho um super preconceitos com os bls da GMMTV, então fui assistir logo com um pé atrás, mas já no início a série me conquistou. Me identifiquei muito com a temática de cinema, por ser bem entusiasta quando mais jovem, adorei as inúmeras referências, especialmente a cena paródia de 10 coisas que odeio sobre você. Achei a série muito bem produzida, tinha ótimas OSTs, boa fotografia, as atuações também foram bem acima da média pro padrão Tailândia. Mas o que mais me cativou nessa série foi a dinâmica da amizade dos quatro personagens principais, raramente em um BL se vê uma amizade tão bem desenvolvida e bem trabalhada, especialmente o Two foi meu personagem favorito, sou suspeita pra falar porque Love Sick foi meu primeiro BL, então tenho um certo carinho pelo White desde lá, mas nesse papel ele estava muito bom, me apeguei muito ao jeito fofo do Two e confesso que queria ter visto mais do casal UnTwo. Além disso gostei de não terem forçado o Un em cima do Third, como eu pensei que fosse acontecer, também gostei do Khai no início realmente ser um escroto, mas depois sofrer e evoluir. Enfim, uma história bem feita, uma amizade bonita, personagens principais cativantes, a série não perde a mão com um humor sem graça, como em outras produções da GMM, pode ter um defeito aqui ou acolá, mas no geral tudo é feito na medida certa e me agradou bastante, vai me deixar muitas saudades.

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