Manner of Death (2020)

Obsessed!

I feel like it's important to reference the show is in heavy needs of trigger warnings for things like sexual violence, murder, miscarriage, abortion, and basically any terrible thing that has happened and can happen to young women in bad situations. I don't think the show necessarily suffers because of these inclusions, but since this show is highly recommended on a lot of different channels, it seems important to reference these trigger warnings somewhere since they're usually not included.

I love this. Max and Tul have, once again, phenomenal chemistry together. This is the second drama of theirs I've seen, and I'm definitely interested in following more from them. They have a natural charisma together that works really well and sells their relationship and comfort with each other.

The actual plot is also fairly interesting, focusing on a mysterious set of murders and death and a medical examiner. The first few episodes lean hard into some educational elements surrounding true crime, a thing that the show later mostly discards. The secondary couple is also very cute together.

Generally, if you can handle crime dramas and the massive trigger warnings, I would recommend seeking out this drama.

Citeste mai mult

Pleasant BL Thriller

Are you tired of Thai dramas where the bad ones never get punished or they end up being redeemed?
Well, that doesn't happen in this one.

If you are looking for another typical Thai BL, then you should think it twice.
UWMA is an example of an original plot inside the BL world, however it's filled with BL content.
In the case of MOD it also is an original plot for a BL but the BL content is not that strong. I would say it's 75% thriller and 25% BL. The feelings are there all the time, but romantic/steamy interactions aren't shown that often. If you are into BLs mainly for the skinship, then maybe you should skip this one.
With that being said, let's continue with the review.



STORY
This is a BL Thriller, being the thriller the main part of the story. It gives you a premise, a murder, and from there the story starts to develop with new information given in every episode.
I won't explain the plot since the basics is given in the MDL details of the drama, but what's explained in there is just the first few episodes and then it completely changes. The plot is way more complicated than that, with many layers.
At the middle of the series I was worried about how it will go. All the plot twist given until then were pretty obvious from almost the beginning, so although they intended to show them as a twist they actually weren't. Maybe for someone completely new to thrillers, but if you have watched a couple of them... pretty obvious. I wanted a big turn of events. Something unexpected. And oh man, the last 3 or 4 episodes were unexpected plot twist after another unexpected plot twist.
I'm absolutely happy with the way the series have developed towards the end. When everything seemed to make sense, and when all the questions seemed to be answered... BAM! A fresh plot twist delivery.
The plot was well explained and the questions raised through the episodes were answered. As always happens, because there's nothing perfect, the story has a couple plot-holes but nothing important. I think the plot-holes are there in order to be able to progress organically and to have all the secrets out, because the story could have perfectly ended after 7 episodes yet there would still be a couple things in the dark that needed to be exposed. So in some way these plot-holes were necessary and that's why I'm okay with them.


INCOMING SPOILERS (more like my thoughts about the final plot twists)

The fact that Rung did what she did was definitely a shock. I wasn't surprised to know that she was involved with the culprits since I've suspected that she was no good since the beginning, but I didn't even imagine how much she did.
I believe in "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth", that's why I support death penalty to those who have killed someone with a purpose. I don't think that someone able to kill another human being, and continues with his/her life as normal, deserves to live in this world. So it's a pity that the congressman got away, but I loved to see Rung's ending. Gun, another one that I've suspected from the beginning, also got his well deserved finale. And the other two... well, I hope they got a strong punishment.
My favorite plot twist is Inspector M and Dr. Oat, and I actually believed that he wouldn't be able to walk again so when I saw him coming to the rescue I freaked out.
I wish they would have shown us more of Tat and Sorn, they were adorable.
The proposal... what the f was that?! Tan didn't fool me a bit, I knew that everything was his plan but I quite kept a little hope that they were actually being ambushed. I don't know if I would accept that type of proposal in the same situation. The poor Dr. Bun has experienced enough already.

END OF SPOILERS



CAST
Max and Tul still look comfortable with each other as they always did. They got to play characters that fit with their appearance and I believe that's something that helped with how they delivered Tan and Dr. Bun.
Great as Inspector M ended up being the second male lead without being the second male lead. He was able to win the audience's love although at first it was portrayed as an enemy, so congrats to him.
The rest of the cast did a nice job too. None of them excels in my book, but I enjoyed their acting.


MUSIC
As I always say on my reviews, I give all my attention to the dialogues and the plot. Unless a song catches my attention, I don't even notice when there is one playing. And that's what happened once again. I don't remember a single song from this drama, were there even songs on it besides background music during some scenes? Hence why my rating on this area is low compared to the rest.


REWATCH VALUE
Although I enjoyed the drama, I have a problem with thrillers. Once they are over I don't feel like rewatching them in the future. Maybe because I already know what happens so the excitement to find out what's next has disappeared. But maybe in a couple years I will check it out again. Right now I have no intention to do so but as I've said it's not because I didn't like it, it's just that thrillers are hard to rewatch without that first time emotion.

Citeste mai mult

Okay, so I finished this, it was not what I was expecting. I loved it, but I still haven't figured out how after producing this great series they downgraded to the annoying and bad Triage, I know most people enjoy it, but I wasn't one of those people.

But MoD is really good. I loved Dr.Bun and Tan together tho I wanted to punch Tan in the face a lot of times throughout the series but I forgive him. Inspector M, my man, I want one of you in my life but dang I wanted to punch you a lot throughout the series too.
Journalist Pat was a man who had no sense of danger but he was good, I actually really enjoyed it.
Pued well, I started liking him later on in the series but two words to describe him is coward and dumb, like come on my man you don't tell a person you saw them killing someone.

I only named Pued as dumb but a lot of characters were quite dumb a lot of times.
But there were was a character that surprised me in the end.. I never suspected Por to be directly involved but always thought he was behind the scenes but did the man surprise me.
The sister, Rung, well that is one two-faced bitch, I enjoyed her death, even tho prison would justify her better.

The two kids That and Sorawit, they are so cute and so important in this story, they aren't just a side couple to fill in the blanks, they are part of the story, without them it would be worse, a lot worse, specially for Nam.

This is not the typical BL and I loved this, no cliches, no annoying character. This is a mature and well done story. Loved it

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ok guys this is one my new favorites

God knows how much I missed some gays in crime or, even better, solving crimes. Dude this is so good!! I missed a BL show that had an actual story besides the romance. The way the plot is not actually about them but they do everything together and have their moments is beautiful. They are older and mature so if there's a fight is not gonna be silly and there's no jealousy, they are just fighting to find out about the truth and help others together. I could cry right now because they don't do BL series like this anymore, I really wanted more shows that are about other things and do not revolve everything around the couple. Like, this one is all about doctors, suspense, investigation and even teaches medical terms to the viewers. I'm on my period but I mean everything I just said lol I'mma cry I love this series so much

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My favourite BL of all time

Before this show, i hadnt watched anything else maxtul so i thought it was just a random show, it being a crime series really drew me towards it though. As soon as i was started i was honestly just so hooked. The plot is simply amazing, thr acting is great and i love the constant suspense and mystery right up until the last episode. I really cant point to another bl series like this honestly, its incredibly unique and this series made me watch maxtuls other projects but i have to say this is their best one yet. This series isnt solely centered around their romance but there bits about it quite regularly and i really like that about it. If you love crime series/ dramas, this is an absolute must watch, but if you dont, please still watch it anyway because this series is unforgettable! Ive already rewatched it 3 times and its just as amazing everytime. I think its going to be a very long time before a bl this good comes out again

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I was impressed. I can usually figure out the bad guy pretty quickly in crime dramas. This one had my attention and had me making incorrect guesses right up until the end. The script was well done, the directing was fresh, the acting was on par, and the soundtrack was very fitting. This was actually a great series from start to finish. It’s hard to do a crime drama well within a limited number of episodes, and then to add the BL aspect to it and keep it from being cheesy was really impressive. I love MaxTul’s chemistry anyway, and will watch them in just about anything. I don’t know how re-watchable this one is because it’s kind of like other crime dramas, once you know “who done it”, you know. However, if you re-watch it just for the romance aspect, you would probably still be ok.

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Good but could be better

I am not going to go into a lot of details but there are things that i liked about this drama and also things that i disliked.

In terms of plot, I think that it was interesting. The drama doesn't evolve only on the murder but also to other things that are linked to it. Each episode is refreshing where there is new discovery of clues and target. This type of drama really fascinate me so it was interesting to know whether i could guess who the actual murderer is and i was right. So this really made me drawn to the drama.

However, I can't say the same about the acting in the drama. I know MaxTul are great actors and it can clearly be seen in the series, together with me. However, I can't say that i enjoyed it in this drama. I know they have a good chemistry with each other but it couldn't be shown here. In MoD, it felt like the actors were awkward with each other. They seemed distant. Even when they became a couple, it didn't help to lessen the e awkwardness. It felt like they were strangers. In together with me, they have amazing scenes including the kissing scenes but in this drama their cuddling and kissing moments are mostly during odd scenes. Therefore, it makes me think whether it was really necessary to have these scenes in the drama. It would've been much better if they were friends rather than couples.

On the other hand, i really liked the SMLs as they were very cute together. The contrasting character between a gangster and innocent boy was cute.

Like i said the plot was good, that is why i watched the drama till the end but i don't think i would watch it again. I hope i see both ML in a drama where their acting and character do them justice.

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Unlimited

First, I NEED UNLIMITED SEASONS!!! You can't go wrong with the powerhouse couple known as MaxTul, and they continued their God Tier amazingness here. Anytime MaxTul are together, it's perfection. I believe they've always had flawless chemistry and it shines just as bright in every scene they're in! The plot itself may seem a bit slow paced but it's well worth it(especially in the end). There's a lot to focus on once it gets started so I don't think you'll get bored lol I'd highly recommend if you enjoy suspense, deception, a not so common story and/or even if you're new to the BL world. There's a bit of something for everyone here.
Enjoy...

Citeste mai mult

Must see for any fan of BL wanting genuineness, vibes, and an interesting story!

This is such a beautiful show and it really changes your mood regarding work life, personal life, and the more serious parts of life in general. Its a well told detective story and the killers identified and their motives are explained which leaves you feeling satisfied. Max and Tul are Amazing as always I really loved their natural chemistry and sense of humor portrayed in a more mature setting in one of the most beautiful towns I have ever seen in a show. It was like Untamed in how beautiful it was at times. There are some really dark elements to the show and I wish they spent more time discussing trauma related to human trafficking and sexual abuse experienced they sort of brushed over the humanity of helping people After these experiences and I wish they paid more attention in portraying the emotions some of the victims would feel after going through these awful events especially Nam. The show focuses on Justice and starts off kinda slow but it really picks up speed and its a nice world to get lost in. Definitely a binge worthy show. ((Also Max is really good in this show its hard not to fall for him))

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YAS QWEN SKINNY LEGEND BOOTS THE HOUSE DOWN OKUR HUNTY MAMA AND I OOP SIS WORK MY PUSSY OUT BITCH!

Long story short: This thing was G O O D and you H A V E to give it a try.

First of all: WHERE THE HELL IS THE LOCATION OF THIS TOWN!? I have never seen scenery in Thailand more beautiful than this one. Sometimes I would forget about what's happening in the episode just because I was distracted by the beautiful visuals of the area. Really, I would move there if I weren't a starving man living in a third world country.

~Story:
I couldn't ask for anything more fascinating. I mean, it's a cop show, what could go wrong with it? Well, a lot, but that's not necessarily the case here. This is a very simple and obvious story, though, so you are probably going to guess how the plot will play out way before you watch the final episode. All the characters and settings are cliched references to the cop show genre to the point that it is very easy to point out who are the bad guys and their role in the story.
Still, this was a pretty decent show to watch. To be honest, it is not nearly at the level of, let's say, CSI, but it is still quite enjoyable.
The main reason why I began watching was because it was a BL but, honestly, I wish we could have gotten rid of that part. Or at least add it in a way that didn't feel "on the way." There were plenty of occasions I felt some scenes where out of place and, you guessed right, it just so happens to be the ones focusing on their romantic relationship. A good example of this, for those who already saw the series, is the laptop scene. In such serious and exciting moment in the story, them motherfuckers just had to start getting romantic right in the middle of it. I swear, it doesn't matter how fantastic those smooches were, it wasn't called for at such a moment!
What I meant to say is: I wish their relationship was a little more subtle since it feels like the romance drama and the cop drama were trying to fight each other for the spotlight.

~Cast:
Decent. There were flaws here and there a little too often, but nothing that bothered me enough to hate it. This is a drama that required very specific reactions in the right moments and many of those were missed, so I do wish we could have had better acting. But like I previously said: it was decent.

~Tan: He was quite good although I felt that the actor was *a little* restrained of his full potential. Like I was expecting a full reaction, but he only gave me half of it. He's still one of my favorites, though, because I stan a bad guy look. He was wearing black on almost all episodes, which is such a turn on for me aw yis.

~Bun: This doctor was such a man. I can't describe it any other way, he's just a man. A fucking idiot but in the adorable way. I like how they made this fully grown adult have the innocence of a child, but I just wish the actor was a little better at acting. The problem with him was the lack of emotion and ability to take it to the next level. I wasn't too impressed.

~Inspector M: M of "my goodness that cop outfit was so tight I was having impure thoughts." I didn't really get this character. It just felt like he was having multiple personality disorder because he was a different person when he changed from the cop to the civilian outfits and vice versa. I preferred the cop personality because I think it fits the actor much better. I actually don't have complaints about him -- he was the best one of the three.

Can I just add something, jush? I am so happy to finally have found a BL in which I can drool over the actors because they are either my age or similar age. I'm always embarrassed of being attracted to an actor in all the other BLs I've seen because I don't wanna look like a pedophile since most of those actor barely look like they went through puberty. Not my vibe, dude.

~Pacing, editing, and direction:
The pacing and editing were good. Again, this was one of the things were the cliched cop drama references took part of. For a good reason. If you're a fan of the cop genre you'll like how the story was put together. In my case, I liked everything until the romance began kicking in because of the reasons I stated above.
The direction is the thing that disappointed me the most. This show is not at the level I wish it could be. It's not CSI, you know? But I fervently wish it were. The vision wasn't fully realized and a lot potential was missed.

Sis, this show has literally EVERYTHING: Drama, suspense, action, roMANce, mystery, male titties, cops, backstabbing, puzzles, tight police outfits, corruption, blood, guts and chocolate cake. I mean, what else would you want? I totally recommend this drama. Definitely worthy of a rewatch and, hopefully, a season 2. Like, seriously, give me a season 2!

Citeste mai mult

Good storyline but at some point failed to execute

MaxTul is one of the icon of early BL's so I'm anticipating this series since the announcement. MOD gives a new and fresh Thai BL genre which talks about crime.

Likes in the drama:
• A fine drama portrayal of the negative side of politics or those who have the power to commit sins.
• Brave storytelling, it was dark and controversial
• Tackles real life issues
• Inspector M rules the show. He's fit and tight uniform serves the meal hahaha he's the hottest here. Plus he's good on acting so I was really captivated by his presence. Great Sapol did his job very well.
• Tat and Sorawat is the cutest! I do smile a lot watching their scenes together, it was so lovely
• The last ep also gives us Inspector M and Dr. Oat surprised chemistry. Hey, but we want more.
• Such a beautiful scenery in the ending

Dislikes in the drama: (Although I give this a 8/10 rating, I am still hesitant if this really a good rating for them cause the drama has too many flaws)
• Tul acting isn't really that convincing
• Romance from the main couple didn't actually work.
• Predictable plot, I guess it is not deserving to be called as a plot. I, as a viewer loosens the excitement everytime I predicted the next scenes in the story. I've seen a lot of it from other dramas.
• Since EP1, I already know that Rung is the one who killed Jane. Maybe because I have a good instinct or maybe there's only a limited character presented in the story.
• It went downhill after the earlier episodes
• Most gun related scenes are too unrealistic, how come they always survived it
• I often feel bored

If only they can manage to pull off the intense-action scenes with no plot hole and unconvincing scenarios, maybe my ratings will be higher than this. But overall it was a good drama.

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It was all about Tul and Max chemistry

Let me start by saying that; I love Tul and Max. They are probably the only straight actors that everyone knows and don’t mind if they are just because their chemistry is so strong! I have seeing all their BL’s and they never disappoint. Saying that, the story line took some time to develop. Now, I understand that it takes time to get all the chess pieces in order. But this took too long.
I did enjoy the twist and turns of the plot that it took you but again, it took almost ½ of the show until it really started to pick up.

The ending was unexpected but at the same time, it felt that they had to make it official with Tul and Max. Why I say that? Well, we are talking about these two guys after all. So the entire show was depending on their chemistry.

To be the 1st murder mystery, it did good, not excellent, but good. There are so many different murder mystery novels that they could have pick a better one. Honestly, I think they decided to use this story because it was a short novel and it will cost less.

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