Slow and predictable, but safe

I'm not going to lie, I really had to force myself to finish this series. The first episode throws a lot of information and plot at you and then it just really slows down after that.

So I'll just go through each category individually.

Story:

Pretty bland, milquetoast if you will. Pretty standard use of tried and true BL stereotypes and tropes. Doesn't really do much expanding on them. Nothing too out of the box, but it's fine if that's what you're wanting.

Acting/Cast:

The main male leads were all pretty good. Some of the female side characters were pretty cringe, and not really in an endearing way like I think they wanted us to see them as. My biggest gripe is who thought it was a good idea to cast two brothers (who look nearly identical) and then never explicitly state the difference in their characters (who aren't related in the show btw) and then wait until the very last episode to even put them in the same room together? I saw so many comments stating that people thought they were the same person for basically the whole show. (I could only tell them apart from their different colored book bags). Whoever decided to do this was foul.

Music:

Eh. It was fine. The main theme wasn't really anything spectacular. I don't remember any other music so it must not have been that memorable lol.

Production Value:

I swear every single Thai BL show that I have watched thus far has had bad audio mixing for at least a few scenes (if not the entire show). I'm pretty sure in the good year of our Lord 2022 that production companies should be able to afford decent microphones (or better yet quality sound engineers) There was a scene in an early episode where a teacher was addressing a group of students at the front of the classroom and whenever it switched between the two scenes, there was a very noticeable change in audio quality. For me that just completely takes me out of the story and makes me question just who directed this and listened to this scene and thought "Yeah, that's good." and then just kept it in?? Maybe I'm just nit-picking, but I digress...

There were so many plotlines (and potential plotlines) that were touched upon or mentioned, but never explored deeper. Just to name a few:

-Arthur?? My guy?? Like I get he's there to move the plot along but that sudden 180 he did at the end really threw me for a loop. Then he just dumps all his feelings out and complains that nobody loves him? Where was the character development? Where was the exploration of how/why he felt genuinely bad for how he treated Jeno and truly wanted to repent? He plays a main role in the first two episodes, then gets expelled (we are led to believe) and then just shows up at the prom and airs it all out? They could have done so much for with him as a character but I guess it is what it is.
-Chris and his studies. It's brought up multiple times throughout the show and we are made to believe it's a very important part of Chris' story: What exactly does he want to study at University? The answer is...We don't know! He never decides, or at least he never states it out loud. Guess it wasn't that important, but then why dedicate multiple scenes to him lamenting on it? Wild.
-What actually happened to Tong Fah in his accident? They didn't want to dedicate any screen time to it, so did it get mentioned, even in passing, what happened to him? Absolutely not. I guess it's up to our imagination.
-Literally what is the point of the pool scene in the first episode? It's never explored or even shown again in the series later on, until the very end of the last episode, and I guess it's then that we learn it didn't really ever happen? Maybe it was just a metaphor for Tong Fah's feelings. Still, it felt a little out of place.

Overall:

Pretty standard, safe BL trope. It didn't quite give me the warm fuzzies and I ended up having to try and convince myself to even finish it. Maybe it was a bit boring for me? Either way, it was fine for what it is. I probably won't end up re-watching it though.

Citeste mai mult

better than the first series, but still has its own flaws

Some of these reviews are cwazy like did we watch the same show?

like yeah marriage is a recurring theme but some of y'all are making it seem like that's all tharn was talking about in every episode when, and this is true, it wasn't. it came up in the beginning and then took a back seat until the end of the show and that is perfectly okay. additionally, even though Tharn was upset that Type didn't want to get married, he never pushed it so hard (as some other reviewers claim) and in the end Type decided to do it of his own free will. so idk why everyone has their panties in a bunch about this.

i also saw someone say that Type ended up getting jealous at a picture of Tharn and a girl but he wasn't?? he literally stated that he knew Tharn wouldn't cheat on him (with her) and then that plotline just fizzled out, which i am happy about. really the reason he went and spoke with her was because he wasn't sure if Tharn would have had the guts to tell her no directly so he just did it himself. not saying it was the wisest move to do without his partner's consent, but who cares because neither of them ended up being mad about it in the end lol.

anyway, this series was leagues better than the first in my opinion, if only because it toned down some of the unnecessary miscommunication and drama between the main 2 (not saying there wasn't any of that, but it was a lot less than the first series in my humble onion). honestly even with the inclusion of fiat and leo (whose relationship i really did not care for and skipped most of their scenes together lmao) i still thought the drama levels were toned down a bit, save for Techno inserting himself into places where he most certainly doesn't belong but that's why we love him right? *rim shot* ALSO i'm actually kind of irritated that, yes, Champ really is that dense and that he Friendzoned the good doctor so many times and STILL their relationship was left up in the air at the end of it all smh.

i liked Type a lot more this time around considering he was indeed less hot headed than before. i thought he remained calm and collected a good majority of the time and you know what props to him. admittedly the whole fiat issue made me mad but i guess where else were we going to get that juicy tharntype drama(tm) that we are used to seeing by now? i will say the whole monk thing threw me for a loop but it was nice to see those aspects of Thai culture being visited in a series like this.

overall i would say this series is pretty well balanced with drama, fluff and a good sprinkling of sexy times. it's a good send off for the couple and while it did have some frustrating moments (which u should come to expect with a tharntype show) i enjoyed it a lot more than i expected. i would say it's a good show to re-watch when you just miss these two specifically and want more of them being a loving couple than being in fights (i.e. re-watch this one rather than the first series)

Citeste mai mult

Starts off good, gets a tad boring later on

Now don't get me wrong, I love a good romcom. But this one just kind of fell flat by the end. (Keep in mind I have never read the webtoon while reading this review)

The first few episodes provide a good backdrop. It introduces us to the main character and her issues and trauma regarding her looks. This is of course where the title comes from, and I was expecting a drama centering around this issue of finding beauty inside yourself when people around you seem shallow. And it was that....for like 5 episodes.

Listen, I love Eunwoo and his acting was fine for what he was given, but good lord Suho's characterization is so dry. Besides a few scenes regarding his past trauma and fighting with Seo Jun, his whole personality is either nothing or simply Ju Gyeong.

They did my man Seo Jun so dirty. Like yeah he got to debut but is that really considered a happy ending for him? She strung him along (albeit unconsciously) for years and in the end he got friendzoned and ended up with nobody. Speaking of characters done dirty, I don't know how Su Jin's character is in the webtoon, but she had so much more potential that they wasted on making her the intentionally evil person just to move the drama along. Her backstory and her emotions were well portrayed and I caught myself feeling so bad for her, until they just threw that all away to make her pure evil and then she disappeared until the last episode and suddenly all was forgiven? nah

Unfortunately I found myself skipping through a lot of Su Ho and Ju Gyeong's more intimate scenes. I thought at least the entirety of the drama might delve deeper into their relationship and expand on them slowly coming to realize their feelings for each other, but nope they get together in like episode 5 and then all the magic is kind of gone. i found myself saying 'yeah yeah get on with it' anytime they were acting all lovey dovey in the later episodes, especially because i knew that Seo Jun was still getting the short end of the stick.

Overall, the side characters and their relationships were a lot more interesting and they held my attention more often than the main couple. The music was cute and I enjoyed listening to it. The show as a whole is okay, but I don't see myself ever rewatching it.

Citeste mai mult