Love With Benefits (2021)

Well, I liked it!

DISCLAIMER: I do have notoriously low standards haha

I did go in with very low expectations after reading the main review but NO regrets watching it <33

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STORY:

PLOT OVERALL: It was like a cute little on-shot written with the synopsis ("Actors Play and First being made to live together for 10 days in a house to find/whip up chemistry for their upcoming series ") as prompt.


-1- I am pretty much sucker for a good "OBLIGATORY-LIVE-IN" plot, especially when mashed with an "HATE-TO-LOVE" ingredient. And I got it here.
Actors Play and First being made to live together for 10 days in a house to find/whip up chemistry for their upcoming series - was an acceptable and believable excuse. (I've seen series coming up with much more ridiculous reasons to push two people together).

-2- CHARACTER GROWTH: Personally I DID FIND subtle growth and changes in character - and that was all I needed. The story is of 10 days span and they pretty much had an slow steady built relationship, catalyzed by situations of close proximity and a third party, maybe hindered by personal inhibitions - common plot development but always realistic and understandable.

-3- DEPTH: Was lacking, or I am missing some details. But again, for a 5 episode plot explaining 10 day story with lot of fanservice scenes, it is not expected in an average show.

-4- PACE: Was slow, even super slow at times, I could safely skip 5, 10 seconds instead of waiting for something to happen and that's saying something. I was thankful to the speed controlled widget I have lol, I watched a lot of scenes between 1.2 to 1.8 speeds.

-5- HUMOR: It was a little bonus, to my humor sense, some scenes were funny, and I lowkey like Penelope (even though she was a little "clingy" at some parts haha).

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ACTING: GOOD.

MAIN LEADS: IMO CHEMISTRY WAS GOOD - their acting could show growth of their chemistry well, and the awkwardness in the beginning too. Nothing in to make me feel cringed or that it was unnatural.
There was indeed a little something missing in the chemi - a tiny little bump I cannot quite place - but as a casual viewer I was satisfied.

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SUPPORTING CHARACTERS:
I liked the variety in natures of the casting team. PRAEW was either aloof or just acts that way and probably a Y-girl, FAH was strict and more of a cold minded professional, PENELOPE was colorful character who could does have flaws but is also sensitive and fun, DIRECTOR pretty much impressed me in the tea scene lol-he gave his all, CHAI too surprised with acting skill in "that one scene". PLUTO was the sweet kind of second lead who in a well produced drama can give SLS induced heartaches.
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REWATCH VALUE: I am not big into rewatching but this definitely makes my list!!!!! It could be a cute comfort show for another day.

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Awful script-writing and character development

To start off with a positive, the two main actors had great chemistry and their acting carried the entire show. Intimate scenes were done well but they were often very abrupt and I had trouble understanding the characters' thoughts or intentions most of the time leading up to these scenes. In particular, the character of First (played by Folk Jakrin Sangruan). First's character showed no development throughout despite meaningful talks with the acting teacher - he continued to treat Play (played by Gameplay Garnpaphon Laolerkiat) meanly with an excuse of 'teasing him because his reactions are cute' and I'm not entirely sure how that led to them getting together, nor do I understand First's feelings towards Play.

The supporting characters added nothing to the plot and I ended up skipping all of the random side story parts as I really couldn't care less about Penelope... The love triangle was mostly unnecessary other than to give First a shove in the right direction and they should have allocated more time to focus on the two main characters and the development of feelings between them. It felt like their relationship kept going from 0 to 100 and then all the way back down to 0 again.

I only finished this since it was short, wouldn't recommend unless you have nothing else to watch.

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Fatally Dull

I have to be honest, this is one of the worst BLs I've ever seen. It's not offensively bad, it's just relenetlessly dull and bloodless. I don't want to waste your time with too much detail, so bullet points:

- The story was a good idea, but it was just a setting and did nothing to explore behind the scenes of the BL genre, at least not in any realistic and meaningful way. That would be OK, if not for:
- The lack of chemistry between the leads. I'm not sure if that's the actors' fault - the script was weak and the directing especially bad. That's the first time I've gotten bored and ff a love scene.
- The acting is lackluster. It's not embarassingly bad, it's just lifeless. I've seen Gameplay and Best in other things and they were both really good. But all the positioning was so awkward and unnatural - again, I think the directing.
- The editing is rushed, but I understand the production was such a wreck that the actors had to do a lot of the editing, so kudos for that, but it didn't really save the drama. Or I should say "drama', because:
- I get product placement, but this whole series was just a vehicle for marketing supermarket products like makeup and cheap icecream.
- The character of Penelope is truly awful. She spends the whole series sexually harassing the acting coach - relentlessly and without mercy, to the point I would have taken legal action in his place. It was very uncomfortable and yet another miserable portrayal of a trans character as a ridiculous and pathetic man-starved predator.

I can't recommend this, even for Gameplay fans. I came out of this wondering if he was as good as a thought he was, and he's always been one of my favorite actors.

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Love With... painfully slow pacing

Overall: If you are into love triangles and a really slow moving plot, then you might like this. I would have dropped it if it was longer than 5 episodes. Watched on YouTube.

Content Warnings: non con kiss and touching (character was asleep)

What I Liked:
- I think the three protagonists and the acting coach did well with the script that they had (I quite liked Gameplay portraying a moody/prickly character)
- the production value was decent for what I'm assuming was a smaller budget

Room For Improvement:
- the main problem was the pacing was too bit slow. If they had cut this from 45 minutes to 20-30 minutes, then I would have enjoyed it more. Everything was just too draggy and boring.
- also I didn't really see the motivation for changing feelings, it felt like the viewer was supposed to connect too many missing dots
- another stupid love triangle
- the acting coach being harassed, that whole bubble tea scene was not funny. I'm done with the stereotypical trans woman as comedy thing.

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Underwhelming

I could tell by the first episode that this was going to be cringe-filled. I'm more disappointed that I went into this with the intention that because Gameplay was in this, it would be good. That's not it at all. Love With Benefits is full of weird editing, mediocre supporting characters, and a plot that could've gone right had they actually put in some effort.

Let's Dive In.

Firstly, let's discuss this production. While seemingly low-budget, this series did a horrible job at editing. There were some scenes that just has these very inconsistent cuts that were strewn together that someone thought were okay to air. I sat there embarrassed for the actors for how terrible the editing team did them. Ad placements literally everywhere, those were probably the only moments that were decently scripted and put together well (got to make sure to get that coin!). The production team did a very sorrowful job, this series could've been better with a more decent crew.

I wasn't very fond of any of the supporting characters. The feminine gays were played up to be creepy, and annoying, and thirsty, so I skipped most of their scenes (when can we get an effeminized gay that's not supposed to be the touchy creep of a series???) The acting coach was decent I guess, but he was just kind of there. I did like Pluto though (and would've rather him and Play end up together).

The only thing that Play and First had was great heat scenes. The chemistry was weird, I don't like how they made Play out to be childish. It was aggravating. The relationship was ridiculously rushed since they "fell in love" within the span of about 10 days. The series was an obvious cash-grab than it was at trying to build an actual decent relationship.

I love Gameplay so freakin much, so I was left feeling a bit heartbroken that this was the series he was in. I don't want to sound insulting about the other actors, but Gameplay is better than this series. He deserves a main role that compliments his acting, and in this, it diminishes it. Give Gameplay a three-dimensional character with actual traits and a personality, and I swear he can do it. I was so looking forward to seeing him in Kinnporsche, and was absolutely devastated when he dropped out. He just deserves the attention and the role that I see others getting.

The acting was decent. This seems to be Folk's first acting gig, so I won't be too harsh, but I didn't like his performance at all. I would've rather them had switched his role with Best and then maybe this series could've been a bit better.

Overall, this was underwhelming. If you're looking for a few good heat scenes, then you got it, but if you're looking for an actual BL with meaningful moments and a storyline, than this is not the series for you.

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PLEASE STICK TILL EP 3 BEFORE YOU JUDGE

okay before I start the review, if you like the trope of enemies to lovers then you DEFINETLY HAVE TO WATCH THIS SHOW!!!!!!!!!

so, i know this drama might not look amazing at first but trust me its an wonderful new experience watching it. there are not a lot of drama like this and also it has its own uniqueness even though it might look cliché reading the summary.

story : there isn't a lot going on with the story as it only has 5 episodes but there is a twist ending that none us saw coming (its happy ending don't worry). its typical story were people who don't like each other has to work together and in the process they fall in love >0<. they did try a B story with Penelope and teacher, which was really cute in its own way as I haven't seen that many queer representation in bl series (yeah, I know its bl but it would be better to have other queer representations but its just my opinion, I'm not saying its a necessity but I just think it will be cool and different)

acting and cast : KJFBKDSBKJSDBFBSDJKBSKDBGKSBGBSDKFB !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE ACTING WAS SO DAMN AMAZIMG THAT I DIED AND CAME BACK TO LIFE LOL. but in all seriousness, the cast and acting was so perfect that I cant imagine anyone else playing the characters and their chemistry chefs kiss :3 . I really love how they were full of emotions in the entirety of the show, there were no lazy acting and both the leads were charming. I couldn't say anything negative about the acting or the cast, they nailed it ;)

re watch : HELL YEAH!!!!!

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I watched this drama because I saw a clip of it on IG, it has a review of 7.0 on Dramalist, plus I've seen one of the MLs in another drama that I quite liked. Now after watching it, I can honestly say it was not good...like at all. The only scenes that were good was when they were kissing, which I'm sorry, but does not make good drama. Everything seemed rushed or hectic and I don't take the small amount of episodes as an excuse because I've seen many other miniseries that provided a much better and cohesive plot. Also, because the plot was so atrocious it made the bad acting even more noticeable. And I'm all for young actors needing time to develop their talents but because the plot was no where in site it just highlighted it all the more. Watch it once if you want to give support but there is no need to watch it again, I promise you.

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I'd watch it again

Yes I skipped over the side stories, yes the character's chemistry held it up, yes First the character had huge gaps in development, yes the story needed a stretch of imaginations (but really, what BL doesn't), yes I did feel First was coming at Play a little strong without that yes (ok, that's really not ok), yes I was there and only stayed there for Gameplay's acting. but that doesn't mean it was bad.

I enjoyed it. I even went back and watched a couple of my favorite parts. I gave acting/cast that high a rating because though the side *stories* were worthless, their acting wasn't. I particularily LOVED seeing the beautiful, glorious, and POSITIVE representation of the queer community here. Hence the 9.5. And of course Play and First were fantastic, if only there was a worthwhile story/development.

The low Story score is because of these sides stories that I had to skip. I got the impression they were awkward. If they weren't there maybe they would have had the time to make First's actions/feelings make since, patch up those gapping gaps. Skipping the side stories definitely cut down significantly on an already short story. But short can be Sweet.

It was fluffy, cute, (except for that one part in the last episode. If you're ace you know what I mean. I can't say anything more ... explicit ... or I'll spoil things) and I want Usagi for myself so I can huge Usagi too.

Recommended if you want to escape far away from the constraints of reality, if you don't want to feel bad or sad, if you've had a (terribly) long day at work and you just want rainbows and butterflies and not thinking (key) and you don't mind skipping things (it doesn't make a difference, the sides stories are so irrelavent that you don't even know you missed them).

Also, there has got to be a sequal with an ending like that; additionally, I feel that D8 is new, and... short or resources and experience? (but again, what BL production company isn't).

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Good potential, great actors, disappointing execution.

The actors are very much responsible for carrying this series. The story had potential, but ultimately lacked in execution.

Pros:
- Characters with cute quirks and interesting personalities: Looking at basic descriptions, you would've thought Play would've been the grumpy character that was hard to get along with, when in fact he was very cute. The fact that he's restless and violent in his sleep unless he is cuddling his bear was a great touch that had me laughing. Meanwhile, First showed great ability to pay attention to small details. I think if the script had been better flushed out, these are characters that are easy to fall in love with. And the side characters showed just about equal promise.
- It could've been a great look-inside and critique to the BL film industry. And the forced proximity trope is often very well liked by the romance fandom.

Cons:
- The length of scenes didn't show much logic. In fact, the scenes around the product placements were often longer than the plot-relevant scenes. They should've either implemented the products into the plot better, or found a better balance.
- The relationship seemed to develop more through skinship than actual communication.

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Gameplay, Best and Folk were very good

Although I loved the three main actors and their chemistry, I thought the series suffered from a lack of editing. Contemplative moments were much longer than necessary to get the point across. The one support character's crush on the Director seemed superfluous since nothing was done about it regarding either a final acceptance of the crush or denial. The storyline where they pushed Gameplay and Folk together to create better chemistry seemed like something the Director would do but when the company did an about flip not wanting main leads who are in a relationship it seemed like a contrived plot diversion. Am I glad I watched it? Yes, but I think the writing and editing could have been a lot better.

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Almost dropped this series more than 5 times, If it wasn't a short series I would have definitely dropped it.
I'm not sure what other than the base story is correct in this series.
Actors tried to play their character well but it just didn't match. It felt like teenagers were casted for a role of 24+ characters.
The base story was good but other than that the whole script wasn't going in any particular direction.
The direction was real bad, lighting was incorrect, especially in the night setting.
Even the editing of the series went wrong.
Lol even the makeup on the actors didn't suit their characters.

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The production did not understand the assignment

The acting was good, if not great, it gradually improved and became adorable from ep 3. The OST was great as well! What did not pass the vibe was the presentation and delivery, the bad job at portraying from the production side made the show just... dull.

It was honestly the actors who carried out the entire show, ep 4 and 5 were comparatively better than 1and 2, but the show only got like 5 episodes! Also, don't get me started on the camera angles like what even! Maybe I've high standards or whatever, but the directing was truly awful!

The storyline was great, it was unique. If only they put a little more effort into depiction...

I honestly wanted to rate only a 6, but I love Gameplay too much for that lol-

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