Major Slow Burn (falling in love with souls, not appearances).

General spoilers only. For enjoyment, I'd recommend watching for the interactions between characters and not taking the plot too seriously. Despite the weaknesses in plot, pacing, and some of the dialogue, I only fast-forwarded through some blatent product placement scenes and some of the secondary couple (which weren't a large focus anyway). The way they tried to determine who was their portkeys was drawn out in odd and contrived ways, and I could see that getting a bit annoying for some people. Overall I found it entertaining and enjoyable and easily binge-watched it.

The story was intriguing but it took a couple of episodes for me to get invested in the characters. Once I did, I was along for the ride and able to shrug off the weaknesses in the screenplay. I liked and cared about all of the main and secondary characters, everyone was cast well, I smiled a lot, it tugged at my heartstrings multiple times, and was resolved satisfyingly.

Jimmy and Sea have good chemistry but it comes across differently than many BLs. The focus is on their growing affection for each other as humans and not on physical attraction because they are in other people's bodies for most of the series. This purely mental-attraction type of slow burn was something new and I enjoyed it. It added emotional impact when they did finally kiss. I thought the story could have done something about them getting used to each other's physical appearances once they're back in their own bodies though, and maybe introducing physical attraction. I feel that was something obvious that the screenplay missed entirely.

The production handled the body-swap between universes very well. It's very clear and easy to follow. What I loved is that once they made it clear that Sea and Jimmy were in the bodies of Ohm and Nannon, they transitioned back to Sea and Jimmy playing their characters. You know they look different in that universe, but you get to see the actors play their character all the way through.

They did okay with world building and kept to the "rules" they established. The dialogue got a little cheesy with a couple cliche lines in the last couple episodes, but it was bearable. Music worked well but nothing really memorable for me. The coloring of scenes was often pretty or appealing. I'll certainly be more aware of this aspect of post-production going forward (the series prompted me to learn more about colorists and their job).

The thing that dropped this from a feel-good 8 to a 7.5 is the screenwriter's inane decision to make one of the leads (Talay) averse to affection after they confess to each other. I hate this trend in BLs. It's a cheap, unrealistic, and ineffective way to create sexual tension once a couple gets together. Seriously, "I love you but I'm going to freak out if you try to be affectionate, let alone kiss me" just does NOT make sense if you love someone and they love you too. They could be shy, sure, but not constantly uninterested, avoidant, asking "what are you doing", and giving bombastic side-eyes. Sigh.
At least Sea only acted moderately put-off and didn't act disgusted (like many actors do when it's written like this).

Overall there's some skinship and a couple good kisses.

I could see myself rewatching this in a few years.

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Adorable & Fun Though Screenplay Has Weaknesses.

Adorable & Fun Though Screenplay Has Weaknesses.
Watch when you want something simple to digest yet interesting, with some really cute moments, and also some angst with emotional performances (that gets resolved). Don't take it too seriously and enjoy!

Six 20min episodes. FYI watch past the title page at the end of episodes; most of them have another short scene. For Ep 6 there's a small scene with a kiss right before the credits roll.
There's also an hour long special (Ep 7 on Viki) of the two lead actors watching the series, reacting, and talking.

The screenplay is more like a 6/10, however, my overall enjoyment makes it 7/10. It's just so cute & adorable and funny in spots! It's also an intriguing premise. It made me smile alot, tugged at my heartstrings and made me tear up despite the shortcomings in the screenplay (mostly due to time constraints), and left me with a warm feelings.

The acting is good, an 9/10 overall. There are micro-facial expressions and line delivery feels natural. Jin Gun is especially watchable and I'd give him a 10/10. He has good comedic timing, his facial expressions and reactions while his character is confused are so good, his crying is realistic, and he nailed the depressed hollow feeling in a later episode. I would watch this again at some point mainly for him.

The biggest weaknesses are with the arc of the relationships in the story and the timing constraints of such a short series. Character emotions evolve super quickly and the plot is very rushed. If you can shrug this off and go with the flow you might enjoy it for what it is, if you want something that's well fleshed-out this isn't it!

It's not high budget but the audio was clean and mostly consistent and the camera work, though fairly simple, was smooth. The music wasn't noticeable but didn't distract either.

There's some skinship and a couple light kisses that actually look sweet and like both characters are engaged (a couple steps above a dead-fish-kiss).

There's so much potential for more to be done with this premise, but I can recognize that time constraints curtailed this. While the writers could have decided to do a deeper exploration with only the first half of the plot, that might not have been a satisfying point to end at either. That makes it easier for me to forgive the screenplay's shortcomings and just enjoy what is there.

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So Much Potential But Super Rushed Last 2 Episodes.

General spoilers. Eight 16-20 min episodes. The first 6 episodes completely drew me in and tugged hard at my heartstrings. I was fascinated to see how things would unfold. It perfectly explored pining and unrequited love. What this did differently, and what I found special, was that it also explored how a friendship could be effected by this from BOTH points of view. In addition to that, it realistically portrayed how struggles with family and money can effect kids and sometimes strain their interactions with even their closest friends. (The kids in this case are seniors in high school.)

The last 2 episodes were rushed, introduced more plot than it had time for, and took the focus away from the evolving connection between the lead characters. It was slice-of-life and following the interactions and emotions between the two friends so I expected that to continue. Instead, the story started to jump large spans of time in episode 7. We go from not knowing how things will actually work out romantically to being 62 days into their dating, and then 100 days.

The ending was happy but unsatisfying because we didn't get to see/experience Jo Yoo Jae's emotions progress into romance. I couldn't help thinking the character might have decided to date Seo Han Joon just to keep him in his life. Which I don't think is the intended message, but the script and editing didn't really give us examples of it being much more than that. Episodes 7 & 8 showed us romantic milestones but didn't actually show the characters being romantic with each other.

The acting was very good. Especially Kim In Sung who conveyed so much through his face, eyes, and voice. Very natural, a lot of micro facial expressions, and captivating.

I would have been fine with the one lead-up to a kiss and not getting more if the script, directing, and editing had shown examples of them being sweet with each other. Even just staring into each others eyes and smiling. Something! Their physical interactions didn't change at all once dating. We especially needed to see something from Yoo Jae to believe his feelings had grown past platonic affection.

I would easily watch the first 6 episodes again so I'm really disappointed with what they did with the last 2 episodes. Feeling this unsatisfied by the end brought my rating from a potential 9 down to a 7.

Nothing remarkable or distracting about music or cinematography.

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NEW Take On 18 Yr Old, Bodyguard, Rich-Kid-Poor-Kid Story!

Overall 8.5 rating. Story 7.5, Acting 8.5, Chemistry 9, Music/Audio 9, Cinematography/Lighting 9, Rewatchability 6.5, Secondary Characters 9, Suspension of disbelief required is moderately high, Emotional angst level (mostly resolved) 9, Character emotions & psychology make sense.

Not a typical highschool, bodyguard, or rich kid poor kid story! The dynamics and interactions between multiple characters really kept my interest and the script was mostly written well. What didn't work for me is mentioned in the "general spoiler" section at the bottom of this review.

I really liked how they showed the class divide between Nuengdiao's world and Palm's through everyday examples; in both big and subtle ways. It really ties into the psychology of Nueng and Palm and their actions/decisions throughout the series stay true to character and are believable (especially for 18 year olds in love).

There is a definite magnetism between Nueng played by Phuwin and Palm played by Pond. There is a lot of great physical tension between them as they fall for each other, then a lot of skinship and some very emotional kisses.

This series had a fantastic secondary cast. Both of the moms are wonderful (yet very different from each other), Uncle Kit is an antagonist who feels like a real person (not just a one-dimensional "villain"), Chimon as Ben is charismatic, and Perth as Chopper is phenomenal with inner conflict and emotional depth.

I especially loved the dynamic between Chopper and his dad (Uncke Kit). They were both completely emotionally convincing in some very high-tension scenes.

Sound and silence were were utilized really well to enhance emotions and tensions. There were 3 songs I loved and have added to my playlist. Many of the songs have English lyrics so it was easy for me to tell how well they fit the scenes. What was odd is that there were 2 or 3 times (brief) where instrumental Christmas carols were used as background. That seemed really out of place to me and mentally took me out of the moment each time.

Pond and Phuwin are strong actors and easily had me invested in their characters quickly. They felt a little bit flat or not quite comfortable, however, in scenes that required panic (of which there are a couple). It wasn't a big detraction, but it was noticeable to me.

I really appreciated the little scene about gun safety that was added in as the young adults were training.

I will likely rewatch this at some point. I'll probably view episodes 1-8 and 12 the most frequently.

GENERAL SPOILERS below

My biggest issue with the story was how unrealistic it was about some very common-sense things. Some examples:
A very wealthy family has members who are injured or threatened yet no professional bodyguards are hired, at all? But then late in the series they are? Things pertaining to safety come up multiple times so this had me rolling my eyes.

When various people are shot the first, second, and third instincts are NOT to apply pressure on the wound to slow bleeding. Facepalm.

Palm refuses monetary payment or assistance multiple times yet later in the series is somehow able to obtain what he needs when he needs it.

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Lackluster, Generic

General spoilers only. The story moved too fast in eight 15min episodes for the main relationship to build any real connection or emotional depth. We get one montage of them happily dating and yet the characters are invested in each other like it's been months.

You might enjoy this if you want something quick and simple while you're sick or to have going on in the background. It's not bad, it's just not very meaningful.

I felt that Ho Yeon, the 2nd male lead, aka the the third wheel with unrequited love, had more depth to his feelings for Seung Jun than Jae Hyun. Jae Hyun has a simple love-at-first-sight obsession. There's no reason behind it. Whereas Ho Yeon has been steadfastly by Seung Jun's side through thick and thin and is so caring and supportive. I would have been much more invested if the story had focused on him and Seung Jun.

I thought the actors did well with what they were given. Lee Dong Won (Seung Jun) and Shin Myung Sung (Ho Yeon) kept my attention the most.

Otherwise, the storyline in generic, there's nothing new or insightful in the script, the cinematography is decent but unremarkable, and the music is sung well but not interesting enough that I would want to play it on it's own.

It wasn't necessarily a waste of time since it's so short, but I won't re-watch it.

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Enjoyable & Lots Of Wonderful Hugs

Acting 9.5, story 7, script 8, good chemistry, kisses short and simple but lots of skinship & tons of wonderful hugs, music 5 (one main song used for almost all big scenes and there were times when the music didn't match the nuances of a scene's mood and pulled me out of it a bit).

Very cute and sweet (a couple slightly cheesy moments but they didn't detract) and straight-forward.

The pacing of the main relationship and plot was great all the way through the 10 episodes. Well-crafted tension and a nice long arc of light to medium angst that was resolved satisfactorily.

The lead actors where great in their roles and gave really distinct energies to their characters.
It was also different and interesting having one of the leads being a professional potter.

I will likely rewatch at some point.

GENERAL SPOILERS:
I didn't understand the crux of the issue that continued to hold the second couple back. I did like the actors and how they portrayed their characters though.

I really appreciated how it took a while for trust to be rebuilt between the main characters (not fixed in just one episode); it felt more realistic and was ultimately more satisfying when they reconciled.

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Fun For Comedy, More Bromance Than Romance

Purposefully absurdist. It's very much like a manga with exaggerated behaviors, facial expressions, and vocal exclamations for comedic effect. It's odd, goofy, and sometimes borderline cringe from the ridiculous situations created. I was in the right mood for it, however, and found myself laughing out loud at least once every episode.

GENERAL SPOILERS BELOW.
The story did an interesting job in giving examples of different types of love. But two major things didn't work for me.
First, the main character isn't very likeable (though the actor makes him fun to watch!). He's hard working, positive, and kind with clients so you see why other people may be interested in him initially. But he's not that thoughtful with the people close to him, and he doesn't show character growth in this regard, even when it's pointed out to him (repeatedly). He's a good natured bumbling idiot who wants to keep the peace and avoid confrontations.

Second, mutual romantic love is in very short supply. It supposedly comes to fruition at the end for the lead, but his interactions with his lover don't support this. It starts like a bromance and ultimately stays feeling that way. For that reason the ending landed a bit flat for me.

I rated the acting by all highly because even though it's exaggerated, it is conciously done by the actors for comedic effect, and they succeed well in what they're aiming to achieve. The actors playing the main character and the boss were especially dynamic and enjoyable to watch.

Music didn't distract but there was nothing specifically memorable either.

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Lacks Focus & Skill

Tries to be too many things and fails at pretty much everything. This movie came off as a juvenile attempt at "indie art". It is INCREDIBLY BORING. I read that the director was inspired by Japanese pink films, as well as a few other things. This does seem like it fits that genre, it's just poorly done.

The only thing that kept me curious and watching was the character Playboy, acted by Steven Isarapong Furher (who is actually pretty good despite the crappy script). It's the first time I've seen a very masochistic character ALSO be such a dominant personality. I find that duality fascinating and wish that had been the focus of this film and explored further.

The directing, pacing, plot, script, cinematography, and music are all terrible. But I was able to finish it with some fast-forwarding and without feeling totally scarred by it so I'll rate it a 1.5.

When a character replies to another there is a pause the average of 3-5 seconds (sometimes longer!). It's ridiculously slow. Maybe the director really wanted the actors to fully feel the lines before speaking them but it completely dissipates any tension the incredibly vague and stupid plot tries to build up.

There's not a lot of background music/noise. When there is, it starts and stops abruptly and feels out of place. It always detracts instead of inhances. The simplistic drum beat during sex is awkward and distracting. The rap about rape is completely out of left field, bizarre, and disturbing. There's no cohesion.

If you want something extreme with a hopeful ending watch Dangerous Drugs of Sex instead (a 2020 Japanese film). That is very well done.

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Hollow

There wasn't enough of an emotional connection (with any character or between any of them) to make up for all the disturbing and shock-value scenes (sexually and non-sexually). Gruesome in parts. It's not philosophical or psychologically interesting either.
I wish I hadn't given it a try.

The "bond" between the student and teacher is thin and forced. Their motivations, especially regarding each other, are weak and shallow. They had very little chemistry. The "romance" is flat and actually had me rolling my eyes a couple times.

The acting was okay but no one was charismatic.

Out of the many sexual scenes, the 2 that weren't disturbing weren't good either. They felt blocked-out and not natural at all. Rather awkward and perfunctory.

To me there was nothing redeeming or in any way enjoyable about this story.

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While watching my rating went from 7.5 to a 3

While watching, my thoughts on what I might rate this show went from a 4 to a 7.5 the slid down and ended at a 3.

Acting was strong by all. They really did a good job despite the drek they were given. Dialogue was very simple but at least had a flow to it. The weaknesses lay in the storytelling and reliance on ridiculous plot devices to keep it going. Also, the further the story got, the more distasteful some of the topics and relationship dynamics became. By Ep 10 I was pretty fed up with the writers, by Ep 12 wished it was over already. Only continued for King and Ram (one of the secondary couples) and THEIR story is why I'm giving the overall story rating a 3 instead of a 2. If seperated from the rest, I would rate their scenes a 9/10. One basic kiss per couple. PG for intimacy, PG-13 for themes.

King and Ram was the only healthy relationship, and had a very sweet progression. The only ones whose actions matched their words; were consistently thoughtful, sweet, and supportive of each other. Until Ep 14 when the writers suddenly wrote them out of character (I felt) to be dramatic and force romantic confession. These writers are so lazy and unimaginative.

Ep 1 & 2 were silly when setting up the story between the two leads (Bohn & Duen) & I fast-forwarded bits. But Ep 3-6 had me invested in them and the side couples, especially King and Ram, and I didn't fast-forward. There were multiple genuinely funny comedic moments that had me laughing out loud. I was feeling really positive about this show, but that started to slide in Ep 7 and things just got worse from there.

GENERAL SPOILERS BELOW:
I liked Mek but his best friend and unrequited love Boss was whiny and annoying. Wanted Mek to have a happy end but at the same time didn't care about Boss. Frong starts with completely unexplained/inexplicable deep animosity for Thara. In Ep 9 started to enjoy their interactions but their start felt like just a plot contrivance without any thought behind it.

Ep 7 started fast-forwarding small bits again. Ep 8 was ridiculous; the hot/cold dynamic between Bohn and Duen was getting really repetitive and the "plot" devices sprung up to keep that going were getting more and more stupid and annoying. Ep 9 and the relationship between the lead couple is so juvenile, immature, thoughtless, rather mean, and all for completely STUPID reasons. First it was over-reactive Jealousy, then who is the "wife" and who is the "husband" because of comments made by others. It's getting really hard to keep caring about them. I mean, they are supposedly into each other but are each offended, almost disgusted, at the thought of being "the bottom"? And all the friends feed into this and make fun of them about being the bottom? WTF???

The BL obsessed and delusional sister is so awful. It's one constant cringe whenever she's in a scene. Also every background female and their friends loudly shipping whatever guys were hanging out in front of them was rude and toxic. Normalizing that behavior, when it's none of their business and can impact people's real lives negatively, is psychologically unhealthy.

Ep 11, seriously, who is THAT scared to be kissed by their boyfriend of multiple weeks? (Bohn & Duen). The actors are doing what they can with what they are given, it's just the script making them do inane and ridiculous things.

Ep 12-14 fast-forwarded most of it. King and Ram are the only ones I kept watching.

After showing some promise of an enjoyable show at the beginning, I was really disappointed, frustrated, and annoyed with what the writers did with it. Very juvenile.

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An okay watch for a Suzuki Jin or Noona-romance fan.

Suzuki Jin is what got me through this. He is a good actor and charasmatic enough to keep me watching and to make me want a good ending for his character even if the screenplay is written simplistically.

While the screenplay does bring up various concerns one might have with an age gap romance, and social and familial navigation, it doesn't explore them well or deeply. It's not very insightful or thoughtful. A couple things come up repeatedly though they feel only partially discussed (like they're being used as a writing crutch), while others are resolved with unrealistic ease. There's way too much going on with the plot and side people so there's no time to explore things with more meaning. Character psychology and development stays simplistic as a result.

The set up is insanely fast. There wasn't adequate time for me to get invested in the characters before they started doing things that strained their likability. The first Ep of 20 min has Mayuki confess to Shino and them starting a relationship of sorts and growing some feelings, then it's all angsty struggles from then on. Shino's character was bland and I couldn't get invested in her.

There is a good amount of sweetness, skinship, and hugs, and a couple of kisses. The hottest scene is in the first episode (shows a bit of the lead up to the two main characters sleeping together).

Some suspension of disbelief is required for various things throughout the story.
General Spoiler below.
(Ex: who would start living with the person they are in love with and *immediately* leave their home in that state of disarray every day? Especially when it's a usually thoughtful character who is still trying to secure the other person's affection! That really came across as a forced plot point because the writer needed it to happen early on to prompt the "kid" arguments.)

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Start At Ep 7 For A Better Continuation From Season 1!

Ep 1 had so much emotional abuse by a ridiculously devolved Minato to Shin that I couldn't enjoy it. I skipped to Ep 7 per another reviewer's suggestion and was so glad I did! The emotional abuse starts to fade out then and it felt like a better, much more sensical continuation of Shin and Minato's relationship from Season 1. I highly suggest starting at Ep 7 if you want to be able to like Minato and be happy with the ending.

Minato continues his extremely slow character development, but it does happen. The acting is, again, supurb by all (especially Sho as Shin), and the secondary couple's progression is sweet and fun to watch too.

I rated Season 1 an 8/10 and I would rate Season 2 *Ep 7-12* at an 8/10 as a satisfying conclusion to the character and relationship arcs. I'm removing 1 star for Ep 1-6 because of the regressively poor characterizations and the unwatchable toxicity that was unnecessary and detrimental to the story's development.

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Best Friends And No Stong Emotions.

Endearing and brought a smile to my face, but it was also... full of nothing. The characters didn't portray or evoke any deep emotions. I often like the Japanese slice-of-life approach to storytelling but it felt especially empty in this one. And it's only four 20min episodes. The kids are written like actual highschoolers and fill their days with semi nonsensical talking tangents and not doing much.

The message that is spelled out for the viewer, mainly in a voice-over at the end, is cherish what you love in the present even if you're afraid it may go away someday.

The thing is, it feels like best friends cherishing each other and not more, despite the little kisses. I think it would have been more satisfying if left at close friendship but because the screenplay tries to *say* they love each other as more, *without showing* that in their interactions, there's obviously something missing.

The characters themselves say that nothing at all has changed since they both confirmed their feelings for each other. I think it's because they have a best-friend-soulmate connection instead of a romantic one; that's how it comes across anyway. And that is also a very special connection and worth cherishing. I wish the screenplay had focused on that message instead of forcing it to be a "romance", which negatively impacted my satisfaction and rating.

General Spoilers below.

There's barely any plot but the couple of threads there are, are left hanging at the end (does Sakura actually play in the school show? how does he sort out his next steps with or without music? who is the creepy kid knocking into people and does it keep happening?).

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Emotional Platonic Bond, Heartwarming & Heartbreaking.

Not a BL and I feel it's misleading to market it as a romance. There was maybe potential for that but then you learn the angel is around 16 while the adult is in his 30s. It felt more like big and little brother to me. Seemed like a redemption of sorts for Koki's guilt about his own little brother.

Heartwarming and heartbreaking with an ending that is hopeful and really sad at the same time.

General Spoilers below.
It started somber but with some lovely understated humor and then got really heavy. It did get more positive and hopeful but it was heartbreaking at the same time because the angels's wings filling in meant he would leave at some point. The very last couple shots were weird and not satisfying; it seemed to imply an open ending but just left me confused.

It's too heavy and unsatisfying for me to watch more than once but it was well done, and well acted. I'm glad I watched it once as it did have some poignant messages handled in a tactful way.

Trigger warnings for accidental death, suicide, violence, and bullying.

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Beautiful, Real, Powerful, Hopeful.

General spoiler only at bottom of review.
The way the story was written and told resonated deeply with real life. I had long lingering feels after the series ended. It made me nostalgic of the ups and downs of college, first love, and the hope of youth. Cried hard twice (one sad one positive). Some heavy themes (and a character actually getting help from regular therapy, which I so appreciated). Loved the main characters and their (true) friends.

Positive messages. Deeply touching. Riveted the entire time, didn't fast-forward through anything. Pacing and tension consistently well-crafted.

Chemistry between the leads was like magnets. Skinship and kisses were natural and full of feelings. Beautiful intimacy.

Beautiful cinematography and use of light. Artistically captured the feel of the ocean (didn't just look pretty).

Music, natural sounds, and silence were well utilized and timed. Really enhanced scenes. Some of the songs chosen were memorable and the orchestral piece at the end with the credits was perfect.

Note to self: Because this touched me deeply and resonated with some difficult personal past experiences, I may find it too emotional to rewatch frequently.

GENERAL SPOILER ON THE ENDING:
It is a happy and hopeful ending.

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