Stalker (2022)

Is it worth watching? Yes.

As someone who watches BL often and tries to keep up with BL releases, I admit I didn't have much hopes for this series just based on the trailers. I'm the type to at least watch the first epsiode though, so I gave it a try. I have to say, the embrassment was way too much for me and I put it off for at least a month before trying again after multiple recommendations and good reviews from friends. After the first 3 epsiode though, it did get much better. So for those looking to see if the series is any good, you'll have to survive the first 3 epsiodes before you make any judgements. I would recommend watching at least until epsiode 5 before deciding whether or not to drop the series. Also a warning for those who are new to the series and has just started watching. Toh is the defination of second hand embrassment. If I got a dollar everytime I had to press pause, cover my face in embrassment and scream at my laptop, I'd be a millionarine right now. All in all, the series itself is very unique and weird (which I think is done on purpose) so going into it, keep in mind that it isn't like any other BL series you've seen so far and don't try to treat it as such.

Before anything, a big shoutout to the translators who diligently worked to put up subtitles for us international fans. They were one of the best I've seen on an offical channel. Thank you so much for all your hard work~

Story : There are multiple things I like about the story itself. One, it has a unusal main character. Almost all BL stories start with the main character being a normal good looking guy who somehow ends up in a werid situation with the main lead and then falls in love. Here we know, Toh is not normal at all. He has his issues, (extremely) embrassing moments and is in love with Nuea from the start. He goes too far sometimes and honestly really needs to see a doctor that specializes in mental illnesses. However, there's character development. We do see somewhat of an improvement. His friends advice him and go as far as restricting him by keeping someone nearby to watch over him. Although this isn't very helpful, they are trying their best and at the very least doesn't brush it off. They acknowledge that he has a problem which is the first step. As his relationship with Nuea gets better, we also see his friends helping him address and change his hoarding habits. They even thought about him having withdraws and instead of instantly insisting he change immediately, they restrict it to him collecting one item each date. They'll slowly start restricting him to one item a week, one item a month, one item a year and so on until he stops all together. This is not only helpful but also better for both Toh and his friends. Making him stop collecting items immediately would not only cause withdraw symptoms like they said but would also lower his confidence and self esteem when he sees that he's not able to follow the set of rules. It'll not only make him feel bad and less deserving of a happy relationship with Nuea but also disappoint his friends which can cause tension between them. I'm glad the show decided to use a realistic way to help with Toh's bad habits. I'm also glad that Toh's willing to follow his friends advice and not break the rules they've set for him despite all the grumbling he does. This not only shows how much he treasures their friendship but also that he understands his friends' worries for him. It shows how close-knit their friend group is.

Two, the story centers around feminie characters. Most BL shows have masculine or manly characters and use good looking (mostly straight) actors so they can attract females and get more views. They use actors with softer features as bottoms but be honest, they would totally look like straight guys if you saw them alone walking down the streets and didn't know they were in a BL series. They do sexy photoshoots and even in sex scenes where they're supposed to be getting railed, they're told to look sexy in order to avoid looking "feminie" or "weak". Yes, there's nothing wrong with a manly bottom but there's also nothing wrong with a feminie bottom. The only reason why most shows don't use feminie looking actors is because in Thailand and SouthEast Asia especially, females or being feminie is considered weak. A guy who acts feminie is considered not a man. Guys who act feminie are shunned from scoiety. Even in movies and TV shows, they're there to provide comedic relief, be a cannon folder, a confidant that the female lead shares her worries to, or a side character that'll never get his own happy ending. They're only given jobs like hair stylists and makeup artists because those are considered feminie. hey're always the butt of the joke. It's been this way for centuries in Asia. Toh's whole group of friends are very feminie compared to other male characters. They talk about guys, they sqeaul when there's someone hot, they tease each other about their crushes, they go into detail about their relationships, etc. Most of all, they act and dress feminie. They show their emotion, they cry, they blush and are openly (mostly) gay. Although these aren't exactly what we would call feminie traits, compared to other male characters, they are considered as such. I love this show because it shows us their perspective. It treats them like normal human beings.

Three, we're seeing many new LGBTQ+ representations in the series. I would say it is the most inclusive series I've watched. We have bisexual main characters (Nuea, Sky), openly gay group of friends (Toh, Jao), a trans person (Daisy), straight people who are fine with other people's sexualities (Intouch, Som, Tor) etc. The characters in the story are already gay, bi or pan. They don't get "turned" gay or play the "I'm straight but the person I like just so happens to be a guy" trope. By accepting the fact that there are other sexualities and that straight people don't just happen fall in love with the same sex, we are one step closer to the goal (portarying LGBTQ+ people correctly and as normal people). In addition to the male x male couples, we have two straight couples (no more, everyone in the world is gay trope), and a lesbian couple (the very first too). We see them give Daisy her happy ending with Intouch unlike other BLs where characters that are trans or as openly feminine as Daisy are used as comedy relief. This is a huge improvement for the BL industry and Thailand.

Four, although we get introduced the main characters with their groups of friends, unlike other BL series, they don't just disappear as the plot continue. This is honesly one of the best things I like about the series. Both Toh's group of friends and Nuea's group of friends are seen multiple times. This is unlike other BLs where you can count the amount of the main characters meeting with their whole gang in one hand. They encourage them, comfort them, help them and advice them. At the same time, they call each other out when they see them doing something bad. They don't just brush it off because Toh's the main character or they're all busy with their love lives. They help with Toh's bad habits, Jao's insecurities, Daisy's worries, etc. They are great friends for each other. They don't get ignored or forgotten as the couples get together. Yes, we see lots of scenes where each individual ship is alone but we also see lots of scenes where they're with their friends and are talking about their problems or listening to others' problems.

Five, the relationships develop very naturally. We can see their whole love story and can even tell accuate timelines about when they first meet, when their relationship start to change, when they started falling and when they finally agreed to date each other. It isn't a sudden interest or relationship because we see them gradually falling and changing both in the way they treat their love interest and the people around them. Because we can see how much their relationship change them for the better, we're able to root for them more. And because their love story happened so naturally, it doesn't feel unexpected or something done just to get the plot going when they get together. This is possible too because the crews are always together. We kinda see everyone's love stories at the same time and how it affects others. Props to the director for being able to not make it look overwhelming. Seeing them interact with all their friends together with their little movements, the way they are close to each other and the way they touch each other makes them look so much more natural. This can be seen in epsiode 10 (the basketball court) or epsiode 9 (at the bar). Plus, the other couples give a good contrast to Nuea and Toh's relationship. Their relationship is obviously very strange and weird but the writer's telling us that not all couples are like that and there are couples with healthy relationships in the show which is a good message to send espeically to the younger audience who would wish of a love story similar while watching these series. At the same time, just because these couples are in a healthy relationship and started out much more normally than NueaToh, doesn't mean that they don't have their own problems and worries. It shows that all the couples have their ups and downs too, not just the strange ones. Relationships aren't just all cute and butterflies. To have a real relationship, you have to put in the work.

Six, character development. There's so much character development in this series. Almost everyone has some level of character development which shows that the writer, producer and director really worked to give the characters depth and improvement. Considering how cartoonishly funny they acted in the first 3 epsiodes (also probably the reason why most of us cringed a lot), we see them have flaws, probelms we relate to, improve, and eventually makes us see them as real life people instead of just characters. Yes, they still have that cartoonish manner that reminds us these are just characters in a BL series but as we continue to watch the epsiodes, we connect with them. We see character development from everyone. We see Nuea changed from this cold, manipulative person to cute and clingy as he falls and confirms his feelings for Toh. We see his jealous and possessive side as well as his considerate and kind side. He reasures Toh when he has insecures about himself or the relationship. He's patient with him when Toh's throwing one of his tantrums. Heck, he even lets Toh try topping him once (though it didn't work out) because he didn't want Toh haven't any sort of regerts in their relationship. But, not only do we see their individual developments, we also see their relationships develop. NueaToh for example, started out more as Toh being head over heels for Nuea and worshipping him like a god. He even gave him "Red" as a nickname because red is considered holy and auspicious. It is also because of this that Toh can not bring himself to talk about his flaws with Nuea as he's afriad that'll cause them to break up. As the relationship goes on, Toh opens up to Nuea. The turning point is when Nuea discovers Toh's hoarding habits and breaks down realise that even though Toh loves him very much, he's just waiting for their relationship to end because he doesn't understand how someone like him can be with someone like Nuea who is a god to him. This made Toh realise that while Nuea's amazing, he's also a human being with emotions and feelings. It made Toh understand that even though Nuea has been the one to reasure him about the relationship this whole time, Nuea might also be feeling insecure about himself. He now knows he's not the only one that could get hurt by this relationship and Nuea is just as vulnerable as he is.

We also see Sky change from this teasing playboy to someone who's seriously in love. He's open with his feelings, considerate, kind, patient and tries his best to understand Jao. He cheers Jao up, give him more self esteem and confidence and listens to his concerns and insecurities. He went from a player to the best boyfriend anyone could've asked for. We also see Jao's journey as he goes from being insecure about his body and doubting whether anyone could actually love him to accepting his flaws and eventually Sky's love too. From trying to drown himself in the ocean to accepting people can love him despite his flaws is a huge improvement.

We see Daisy struggle with her gender identity as she gets feelings for Touch. This shows us that despite the happy, easy going image Daisy has, she also has her own struggles and worries. She worries about how her being transgender might affect the people around her. She's worried about how others might think of people she love because of her. She even tries to change herself and become "Day". We learn about the struggles that come with being trans and dating as a transgender person. I also really liked that all of her friends, especially Som, was extremely supportive of her. Som also made sure that Daisy changing herself into "Day" was something she wanted to do, not something she did for other people. And that if that was really what she wants, she is always ready to support Daisy. Som and Daisy are usually the ones that are always happy, so I'm glad the show showed a new side to them.

Seven, The series doesn't have any problems concerning sex or consent. There's almost no action when one of them is drunk, asleep or drugged. Even kisses are consented by both sides and done mostly sober. I think the only time they kissed when one of them was drunk was in epsiode 7. Toh asked Nuea to keep his promise and even admitting to drinking the alcohol just because Nuea had told him drunken kisses are better. He insisted but he was still a little bit drunk (he remember what he talked about with Nuea though) so I guess it doesn't really count as him giving Nuea consent. Even in epsiode 9, Nuea didn't do anything sexual to him other than giving him a bath until Toh was awake and sober enough to talk and understanding his surroundings (Toh was apperently pretending to be drunk but Nuea didn't know that so it was nice to see he didn't do anything despite them already being offical and Toh being a clingy "drunk"). They also talk about safe sex and seem to always use protection while doing it. So big props to the writer and the director.

However, the story does makes me cringe a lot and there have been times where I just couldn't take the secondhand embrassment. I also dislike that while they acknowledge that Toh has a problem, they haven't done anything to help with it like taking him to a professional. Even in epsiode 8 where Nuea tells Toh he knows about the photo collection and that he knows Toh has been following him around taking pictures, it is evenually seen as a romantic gesture made from a supposely one sided crush. In epsiode 13 where Toh's hoarding problem gets exposed, instead of Nuea talking about how problemic this is, the shows says that it only happened because Toh was so insecured in the relationship that he wanted to keep things as memories for when they eventually break up. But I do give it credit. Despite it not doing much about Toh's stalker and hoarding tendencies, we do see that the series does have realistic solutions for his hoarding problem. Toh is also willing to listen to his friends and change. However his stalker and hoarding tendencies do need to be addressed and shown very clearly as a bad habit.

I really like the series and there have been so many things to praise it on, but in the end Toh is the main character and I really dislike that they somewhat ended up brushing off his problems. What I had hoped for is that they either get Toh some help or show Toh's character development regarding that problem. 8.5/10

Acting/Cast : Billy did a great job as Nuea. He was able to express Nuea in his own way. The most memorable of course are the kissing scenes. We can all see how hard he and Seng worked at those. I'm glad we saw an realistic portayal of how actual kisses would be like (the panting and moaning from both members is just chef's kiss). Both parties where whimpering, moaning and panting which not only show us how pleasureable the kiss was, it is also an accuate portayal of how someone would react kissing their long time crush in a heated kiss. This was unlike other BLs series where these sounds are either edited out or covered by music. Thank you for showing how a heated kiss is like in real life. Seng also did an amazing job as Toh. He was exactly like how I imagine Toh would be like. He had me convinced he was Toh. I don't think anyone else could have replaced him. The rest of the cast was also very good but I think personally, I liked Opp and Nut's chemistry the best. They worked really well together and I was rooting for them hard. I hope to see them in more scenes and BLs. 10/10

Music : The music was amazing. I really liked the opening music and I played it so much while waiting for the next epsiodes to drop. It was the perfect music for the series. The moment that song played, I knew exactly what it was for. Which in my book is high marks considering how bad my memory normally is. Other than the OST, the other music pieces used were also good. The timings were right and the editor did a great job puting them in. It was nice. 10/10

Rewatch Value : Honestly, I would not rewatch it. At least not everything from the start to end. I might rewatch certain parts I really like but the embrassment and cringe is too much for me to want to watch the whole thing again. 8.5/10

Overall : 9.5/10

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Insanely Good

ATTENTION: There are so many people watching CUT versions on other platforms. If you want to watch the UNCUT version with amazing subs, Please check out Idol Factory Youtube Channel.

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Not sure when I fell for this show, but it was early on the series. It has become a series I literally stop everything for to watch the CH3 version without subs; the Youtube Uncut and subbed version, then watch it again twice on Youtube because every scene is So freaking amazing! The actors, plot, director, Producer and all the staff involved did a wonderful job. If you dropped this series, thenYou're missing out on amazing series that has never been done before. Looking forward to upcoming episodes XD

Update: This series is literally a series that was created for LGBTQ+ that have not been represented in BL in the past. The actors are portraying the characters perfectly and with each cringe or 2nd hand embarrassment, there is a beautiful thing happening. I hope people give it a chance by watching episodes after Ep. 1. It has become my guilty pleasure and I can not wait for Friday to come quickly! I’m so proud of Saint for producing this series and for recruiting all these talented actors to his agency ???

UPDATE: Just watched Ep. 9 today... and I have to say... it was amazing! For those who dropped the show... you're honestly missing out on such a heart warming, Funny, Spicy, cringy, 2nd hand embarrassment giving show that has never bene seen before!

May 14th UPDATE: I finished the episode and I will say this again... 10/10 for EVERYTHING! There are some parts I would've liked to have been added from the novel but even without that, I still Love this series soooooo much! We definitely Need another series for TouchDaisy and SomTor/TorSom XD.

Thank you for producing this series IDF/Saint and to all the actors and actresses/ director/Staff and just everyone involved in this series.

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THE WORST MOST CRINGY AND EMBARRASSING SHOW EVER

Ok I can’t take it anymore. I usually only write reviews about shows that are incredible. I’ve never taken the time or the energy to write a review for a show that I didn’t like. But this show was just SOOOO INFURIATING that I needed to rant about it somewhere. But there are some good parts about this show I like and I will name those at the end>>

THIS SHOW IS UNBEARABLE. UNBELIEVABLY CRINGY AND CHOCKED FULL OF EMBARRASSING SCENES EVERY DAMN MINUTE OF EVERY DAMN EPISODE. TOH IS SINGLE-HANDEDLY THE WORST CHARACTER I HAVE EVER WATCHED IN ANY TV SHOW IN MY ENTIRE LIFE. HE IS SOOOO INFURIATING IN EVERY SCENE HE IS IN. I. CANNOT. STRESS. THIS. ENOUGH. THE AMOUNT OF TIMES I ALMOST THREW MY PHONE AT THE WALL BECAUSE OF HIM ALONE, WAS A VERY HIGH AMOUNT OF TIMES. it’s just that NOBODY acts like that in real life. AND HE HAS THE MOST ANNOYING THAI VOICE I HAVE EVER HEARD. Never wanted to slap someone THIS BAD. They made him sooo annoying that it got to the point where even when he does act normal, I STILL AM FILLED WITH RAGE EVERY TIME I SEE HIM. EVEN HIS SMILE ANNOYS ME THE MOST. Yes sure it’s probably not the actor himself. But It’s JUST THE WAY THE WRITERS AND DIRECTORS MADE HIS CHARACTER AND ITS SIMPLY THE WORST. There were SO MANY SCENES I WISHED I COULD FAST FORWARD. I honestly wished I could have stopped watching it. But for some reason I had to keep watching for Nuea and Sky.

Now. Onto everyone else. NUEA IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PERFECT MAN EVER. After watching him he's definitely one of my FAVORITE BL actors. He’s stunningly gorgeous. He has a BEAUTIFUL personality. THE WAY HE TAKES CONTROL OF ALL THE ROMANCE SCENES. SOOOOO HOT. exactly what I want in a main BL lead. My only complaint abt him ofc is, THERE. IS. NO. WAY. HE WOULD FALL FOR TOH. THERES NO DAMN WAY ANYONE IN THE WORLD COULD FALL FOR THAT. Im not saying nobody could love someone that is shy, weird, insecure, or overly obsessed with their crush. That can all be fine. ITS JUST THEY MADE HIM SO UNREALISTIC CUZ NOBODY IS ACTUALLY THAT BAD OK?! TOH DOES NOTTT DESERVE NUEA. FOR THIS REASON THEY DO NOT GO WELL TOGETHER. I CANT STAND SEEING A BEAUTIFUL PERFECT MAN LIKE THAT WITH THE MOST INFURIATING PERSON I HAVE EVER SEEN. FOR THIS REASON THE WHOLE POTENTIAL OF THE SHOW IS RUINED. IT HAD SUCH GOOD POTENTIAL FOR CHEMISTRY. THE QUALITY. THE ACTORS. BUT THEY RUINED IT ALL. it could have been SUCH A BEAUTIFUL SHOW. THE ROMANCE SCENES COULD HAVE BEEN SOOOOOO GOOD. SUCH POTENTIAL GONE TO WASTE. I. WILL. NOT. STRESS. THIS. ENOUGH.

Onto another character. I LOVEEEEEE SKY. HES PERFECT IN EVERY WAY. He’s an ANGEL. That man has not done ONE wrong thing in this entire show. And Jao is super adorable. I LOVE them two together. Sky never gave up. Kept chasing him. Who doesn’t love that? The side couples are 100000 times better than the main couple. I have NO complaints about those two.

Now about Intouch. That MAN IS FINE OK? He is STUNNING. wish he got more screen time. Also. No issues at all with him or Daisy. I need a spin off series of just them two… withOUT Toh. Please.

Alright I doubt anyone actually read all of that^ but I just needed to get all that anger off my chest. I’ve watched a hundred Thai shows, and yes they ALL have so many cringy scenes. That’s undeniable. But this one was multiplied by A MILLION. Every damn minute Toh was there.

Anyhow. Ya. I think that’s most of it. I have never used caps lock so much before. BUT HE DESERVES IT.

The moral of this is: SAVE YOURSELF. DONT WATCH IT. ITS NOT WORTH IT. YES NUEA AND SKY ARE BEAUTIFUL BL CHARACTERS. BUT. ITS NOT WORTH THE PAIN.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk~ Dani.

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Unique! Rewatch!

This series is why I still believe there is love for everyone. this might seem over the top to some but if you have not felt left out or an outcast in your life in one way or another, then It might be difficult to relate but I did and it was just beautiful.

I'm amazed at how many people have lost the main storyline, point of this series but I'm also glad there are people who appreciate the diversity and representation that we've never had in any other BL series.

I'm so thankful for Saint and everyone involved in this series for brining this series come to life!

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I felt seen...

I felt like I could belong. This series not only help me realize what kind of F*d up world we live in, It also helped see understand myself and Love myself.

I just read a comment saying how the male lead is effeminate and creepy and they just dropped the series because of it. I'd like to say to that person, good riddance. Because how people react watching this series is literally shows how society also treats these characters that are based on real people that exist.

This world makes us think that we need to fit in somewhere and do things how they want us to do. But in reality, this world is made for the entitled, elite that made all these society rules and those of us who recognize it and never succumb to fitting in know how difficult it is to be ones self but at the same time, how empowering it is to say "This is Me, I was born this way and if no-one comes into my life loving me for myself, then I dont want it". This series was exactly that.

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A Hidden gem

SCOY is the ultimate hidden gems if I've ever seen one. Every episode was really surprising and exciting, never a dull moment at all.

I think, before SCOY, I was really in a daze and watched anything BL, no matter how bad. But SCOY has raised the bar for me because it seems like I was in need of a romcom that was actually REALLY funny and not a repetitive tropes that other BLs use. SCOY was genuinely Funny... like Cover your face with your hands/pillow/scarf or anything, with your hands and legs flailing around and Screaming and laughing every few minutes in Every episodes. Now that I've finished it, It feels empty and no matter how much I try to get into other series I missed while watching SCOY, I simply can not get into them.

I will definitely re watch this in a few months.

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My heart...

This journey started a bit rocky for me because I've been reading comments on MDL that said "Toh is a stalker and must be admitted to a mental hospital"... I read all these before starting the series because it got me curious and as a counselor, I wanted to "study" his character. What I found was more than what people were talking about. They only focused on Toh's actions and failed to mention the other character's insecurities and actions. Almost everyone in this series had insecurities that were addressed in the show one way or another. But I want to focus on Toh as he seems to be a topic of choice for some to hate on the series.

Well... I was disappointed because the comments made it seem like Toh was like "Girl interrupted" while he was literally acting like fan. He collected food, which I found was a bit sad but other than that, because it showed a lack of self esteem and we start understanding it is based on nurture and not nature, through out the show,

I see that the title of the book says "Stalker the series" but in all honesty, it was a poor choice of word and Secret crush on you fits better to what the series showed. Because as a counselor that works at a treatment center, I did not see any harassment or disruptive, unwanted behavior from Toh towards Nuea that would make me say "he needs therapy or needs to go to a mental institute".

What I got from his actions, especially after meeting his parents is that he grew up in a Loving home but was still told since young he was not beautiful or was ugly and then when he started going to school, he might have felt more self conscious because he was made to believe since his younger days from his most trusted family, that he did not possess a face that is fully acceptable to the world. And based on his mom's "obsession" with handsome men, we learn how looks are coveted in society and if you dont have the looks, then it'll be hammered into you that you are not good enough.

That is why I Loved Nuea's view of Toh. Nuea told Toh that he is cute on multiple occasions and told him to be himself and did not ever want him to change himself because he loved him the way he was. The last episode, when Nuea brought all Toh's collection into his home and made a display of it without making Toh ashamed... that sealed the deal for me. Nuea was the only person in Toh's life, from childhood until now, that ever showed a full and total acceptance of him without any strings. Nuea is the only person in Toh's life that Loves and accepts him for who he is.

Can you imagine? A person you've had been crushing on for a long time tells and shows you, no matter what you reveal about your true self, and no matter how much society says you dont deserve this, that person is there fully, without any conditions, to show you your worth that you have never believed you had. By doing this, Nuea was not encouraging Toh's "habits" but telling him, it is ok now. I am with you now and what you've collected so far is more then enough and from now on, since our feeling is mutual, lets be present together and look forward to our future that involves only Us!

This was a Beautiful watch and I would recommend it to anyone.

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stalking, obsession, hottest guy on campus, multiple couples, queer affirming

Previously known as Stalker the series, and you can TELL. Co-produced by and featuring (but NOT staring) Saint and directed by Cheewin (sigh) with mostly fresh faces it was pure pulp and... I hated the plot.

In fact I was ALL OVER THE PLACE with this show.

I ADORED both queer friendship groups, and the language use that resulted, and the main character reads as out gay and a bit femme, which is lovely to see. As @heretherebedork​ pointed out this show is basically giving the characters that usually get punch downed on, mocked, side-lined, and pillorized, their own love stories and happy endings - and I LOVE THAT for them. And for Thailand.

But (and you knew there was a big ol’but coming) the stalker aspect was far too much for me. Toh, the lead, was so cringey I dropped it at ep 3 because it had become my personal hellscape of second hand embarrassment. Like Bridesmaids or The Hangover this is NOT a style of humor or romcom that I enjoy at all.

As is often the case with stories of this type, Toh came off as desperate, needy, and awkward while Nuea had no personality. This meant that I could find no reason for Nuea to fall f\in love with Toh (although sexual attraction seemed to play a BIG role and that, by episode 6 started to save the show for me). Self consciously the narrative seems to recognize its own flaw in this matter and sought to address it by hanging yet another lamplight (or two) on it in the final episode but, I was over it by then.

And while Nuea did grow a bit out of his blandness, Toh never stopped being a complete nightmare (for me). Certainly as we got to know Toh better his disposition was better understood (Austen) BUT I never grew to like him, or entirely understand why Nuea liked him, either.

I DID like how very first love and gay sexual journey of discovery Toh & Nuea’s relationship was.

This was one of those rare (and much coveted) BLs where the characters actually do seem to want to bone. In fact SCOY’s Nuea & Toh are the pinnacle of that awkward first-time super-sexualized relationship in university. Like, I REMEMBER what this was like. Knowing how cool you want to be, but also just craving another human THAT BADLY you totally forget your cool.

And frankly, I like that in a YA drama. Really good, adolescent first love, shown in a positive light with a pro-sex message as well a themes of communication and safe sex? We NEVER get that from Thailand. In fact, we rarely get it in any gay shows, anywhere, BL or not BL. Just ANYWHERE. The fact that this show featured a drunk kiss that was NEGOTIATED ahead of time blew my mind. How clever. What a subtle way to address dub con. In this aspect the actors did a GREAT job, especially Billy (who played Nuea).

There was an awkward raw visceral connection going on that really worked and that previously only Taiwan and Japan have ever really bothered with. The other show that got this DOWN was HIStory 3 the BL that shall not be named.

But otherwise, I spent more time cringing than enjoying the mains. The side couples, however.

THE SIDE COUPLES!

I lost my mind first over Sky & Jao.

A confident king who falls head over heals for the sweet scared boy with self worth issues and makes know bones about his interest. Actually we have seen this trope before, but it was so perfectly done with this show.

But then at the very end they gave us Intouch & Daisy. Daisy & Intouch did not have enough screen time and I could watch a full series all about them. Their language alone was a real pleasure to listen to. I think the show didn’t have quite enough faith in standard Thai BL watchers' willingness to invest in them as a couple, over which I am quite sad. Because i get it. But in this matter, at least, I wish the show had been even more brave and boundary pushing.

In the end, for me, this show was a real doozy. It was a mix of Thai cheer meets creepy, Taiwanese in-your-face queer, and Japanese chaos muffin slapstick (like Kieta Hatsukoi). Was it successful mixing these things? Not for me.

It had a ton of things I really did not like (e.g. the humor was crass and awkward, and the whole thing was extremely CRINGE). It also had things that really worked: (e.g. representation of multiple different kinds of queerness, about which it very Taiwanese - in that there was no doubt that the characters really did want to bone). It was the opposite of sanitized gay. Honestly, if you can make it through the first half, and survive the never ending cringe-factor that IS this show, the second half is entirely unique - content we’ve never seen before in BL.

SCOY must be applauded for giving us, without question, the queerest, most honest, most truly gay Thai BL campfest that I’ve ever seen. It has to be praised for everything that it does accomplish:

beautiful peer groups;
all powerful and encompassing friendship support;
those friend’s giving equally bad advice & gossiping;
discussions of topping versus bottoming and safe sex;
examinations of wife/husband language;
concerns around body image and self-worth;
AND the gross, weird, ugly, hilarious side of all of the above.

Did I love this show?

Absolutely not.

Did I want to love it?

Yes.

Do I admire what it was trying to do and, to a certain extent, did do?

Absolutely.

SCOY drove me nuts and made me bush but had flashes of unparalleled genius.

SCOY was many things (a lot of them annoying af) but it what it was, primarily, was actually quite special.

So, I remain conflicted.

SCOY made me feel whiplash and I hate that sensation. But I love what it was attempting. I loved when it was suddenly very sexy but then I hated SO MUCH when it was suddenly not sexy at all. I certainly fast forwarded more than I watched. But when I paused to take it in, it did get fun and enjoyable.

If you like slapstick and you don’t mind cheese and cringe then you might enjoy this BL quite a bit. In the end, this one really came down to a matter of taste. It’s not to my personal taste, the narrative was hit or miss, but its intention was pure gold. This one waffled from 5-9, so I ended up just going with 7/10.

RECOMMENDED WITH RESERVATIONS, just not the usual ones

Final note, the sub team on this one was AWESOME, gotta give them a shout out.

They did mad good work.

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Literally the Best... WTH?

I started my SCOY journey a bit late because I, ignorantly, took some negative comments on here to heart. Which I should not have at all. If anyone wants to know the true and honest feelings of people who actually watched this series, You must check out Reddit, Tumblr and last but not least, Youtube comments under each episode.

This series had literally everything that No other BL had or has and will ever have. I"ve watched so many BLs in the past couple of years but I have to say, this is by far my favorite BL as it is literally about everyday people that have never been represented well in other BL series. They were always made fun of or were put in the series for comic relief (i.e. LBC, 2gether and etc...) those side characters were given the chance to shine through this series and I am so glad it was made. The actors are crazy amazing. Each character has a place in my heart, I Literally LOVE each and everyone of them, I even like Prao and her gang. Lol.

The relationship between the couples are one of the healthiest and cutest I have ever come across. The way the Never hold grudges or if they did something wrong, they are ready to apologize and talk it out. No break ups in this series and that is another thing that makes this series different. If there is a misunderstanding, then it is literally covered by the next episode and not dragged out.

When it comes to friendships, well 3 equals 4 (Toh, Som, Daisy, Jao) are the epitome of the Best friendship Ever. They went through up and downs together, they supported, advised and helped eachother so much that I kept thinking, "why dont I have friends like that?" Nuea's friends also are wonderful (Sky, Tor, For, Kangkwan) ... and when the two friend groups came together, It was like fireworks. It just fit perfectly!

One last thing I want to point out, what Toh was doing is not Stalking, it was basically keeping things that shouldn't be kept like crab, the can from the trash and the tangerines. But other than that, Everything he did was out of love and not in anyway to hurt Nuea. Toh Never followed Nuea anywhere except School festivals. He never approached him or made Nuea afraid for his life, nor did he appear in front of him. on the contrary, Nuea was the one to reach out to Toh first through P'Thep, who asked him to go to Nuea's sister's birthday to take photos. Nuea figured out that Toh would never come to him on his own so he made the first contact.

If anyone wants to know what Stalking really looks like, watch Kong stalking Toh in ep. 12 and 13. I know most of us relate to at least one character in this series and that is one of the best things about it.

Thank you to all the actors, Producer, director, staff, and all the wonderful audience who understood what this show was really about.

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Dropping this would have been a huge mistake!

My first review despite years on MDL. This is because this show is that good and that underrated. Give it 5 episodes at least. Look past the shock value. The story and characters are amazing.

Every now and then a drama comes along and resonates with me more than others. Means more to me than others, obsesses me more than others, touches me more than others.

SCOY was one of those every now and thens...

I dropped it the first time I watched, only to come back to it when I needed to escape some bad news I had received. Yes, admittedly for me the cringe and second hand embarrassment was powerful in the first two episodes, but my mood was such that I could see past that and actually listen to the story they were trying to tell me. Listen to Toh and his rules for crushing. See Nuea watching the guy with glasses and smiling. See the friendships that were unconditional and supportive. I could really see the story past the crazy. And what a beautiful story it was.

Some say Toh is a criminal and creepy. He harmed no one. He did nothing illegal. He was devoted and loyal and pretty strong. His intentions were never to hurt or make someone uncomfortable. If Nuea had approached him and said I see what you are doing, please stop, I'm pretty sure Toh would have been upset that he had made Nuea uncomfortable and would have stopped immediately. That's how I see it at least.

I've heard others say the story is not plausible. How could Nuea like Toh? Considering I'm a chubby nerd that got the hot popular jock, I can't really agree with that way of thinking. Was this story in a setting of unicorns and rainbows. Yes, maybe. But, wouldn't it really be wonderful if all parents accepted their children for who they are unconditionally? Wouldn't it be wonderful if all friendships were as unconditional and supportive as theirs? Wouldn't it be wonderful if all the bullies always get put in their place? Wouldn't it be wonderful if your secret crush was secretly crushing on you as well?

I never write things this long on MDL. I usually don't have the confidence. But SCOY really meant so much to me. This crazy, silly, beautiful mess of a story captured my heart.

I thank them all, from actors to subbers. I wish them all the best. You made this person very happy.

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