Masterpiece
This is definitely a masterpiece.. A beautiful story like this needs an equally talented cast to complete it which is thankfully the case here. Stellar performances by the cast just takes this drama to another level. The story shows a lot of flawed characters and how each character deals with it.. Some positively, some negatively.. It has portrayed all those emotions so perfectly that although you might not like each character you are able to sympathize with them and understand why they react differently.. Everyone has different life experiences and hardships but that doesn't mean one's own hardships matter the most and the rest are insignificant. Everyone's struggles are equally important and needs to acknowledged. This drama is able to portray all these complex feelings in a believable simple way. This drama also shows importance of family and how each family struggles to keep them together in their own way (whether by force or through love according to the different family dynamics present here)The main leads (Nychaa and Alek) have an undeniable amazing chemistry.I can see why they have been repeatedly cast together before. They portrayed all the emotions so beautifully that sometimes even dialogues were not necessary to understand them. Hoping to see them together again sometime in the future.
All other couples too have good chemistry. No toxic relationships thankfully (except for one maybe that too is not glorified) .
There is also a very powerful moment of women standing up for one another even though characters hate each other. It is such a good example of women empowerment. Kudos to the writer for that heartbreakingly touching scene.
Pop has such a great magnetic presence on-screen. His character is one of highlights of the show and takes the show forward. He deserves a lot more main lead roles for his acting and charisma.
Ending was good, though I wish some characters had slightly better endings but at least every character found peace in their own way. I think this is an amazing drama worth your time.
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This review may contain spoilers
The Best Thing About This Drama? The Main Couple
Revenge, revenge upon revenge. This lakorn is a never ending parade of revenge plots, until the very last episode. My brain is exhausted. The only time I thoroughly enjoyed the drama, where I smiled from ear to ear, and when my brain could rest, is the beautiful island time for the main couple. Here on the island, we get rid of all external forces, meddlers, 2nd leads, etc., and just have the chance to enjoy seeing the main couple be in love and solidify their relationship. The FL and ML have such good chemistry with each other and look comfortable doing these intimate scenes together.I really enjoy watching the main couple. Even though there are people around them who are toxic, they, as friends and then as lovers, never really waver about their loyalty to each other and love for one and another. For the most part, they have a healthy adult relationship where they talk to each about their insecurities and worries. They are not reluctant to express their love. The FL is also very open about her feelings; she faces problems and obstacles head on. These characteristics of a main couple are kind of rare in dramas. So, a lot of situations where there could have been misconstrued or misunderstood, the ML and FL work to resolve them and these misunderstandings don’t hang around for long. I appreciate that the FL is truthful with the 2nd ML about her feelings and never leads him on with false hope.
The OSTs in this lakorn are pretty nice listen.
The acting is very well done: not cheesy, cringey, or overly dramatic. The production, location, props, and wardrobe/styling/make-up are so much better than most lakorns. I appreciate that when the actors are in the office, they’re in appropriate business attires, and not dressed like they are in a nightclub or some hi-so dinner parties. I know that although the FL (Nilin) and ML (Anawin) have known each other since young, the ML in the beginning is not in love with the FL. But, to see him kissing the 2nd FL (Wianna), in the present (Ep 6) not when they were lovers, is hard to stomach. Future family dinners must be awkward AF. The poor FL having to know that both your father and your boyfriend have slept with the same woman. I feel awful for her. In the world of lakorn I guess this crazy relationship/dynamic is not the worse offender: there’s one where the ML falls in love with his young widowed grandmother, another where the FL is the ML’s stepmother, or a number of step-sibling love.
Rivalry or Game Prattana is an entertaining watch, with some scenes that can be FF without missing much, but other than the island time, not much else for me is a re-watch.
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Slow-burn romance with Amazing Chemistry; Focus on Family/Business Rivalries
Subjective Gut Rating - 8.25I am not a veteran lakorn watcher but from the few dramas that I’ve watched, “Rivalry” has probably the least amount of over-exaggerated acting. We still have actors opening their eyes really big and glare at you, but at least the camera pans away after a couple seconds.
Speaking of acting in this drama, I think the cast overall did a pretty good job. I am most impressed with FL Nychaa (as Milin), and 2FL Donut (as Wianna). I think they gave the best performance out of the bunch. ML Alek (as Anawin) did a decent job for the most part and is most animated when he has scenes with FL. Pop (as Tewis) didn’t impress me until the last episode. For the most part, he acts quite emotionless, though he’s good to look at. No one character really annoys me and as I commented, the acting is restrained to a certain point.
“Rivalry” really focuses on the rivalries between different family members, and different companies. The majority of the plot focuses on family conflicts and relationships, and to a smaller extent the rivalries between the two companies. The drama casually mentioned why both companies hated each other, but did not really delve into it. There are many twists and turns and the drama’s pacing is good and keeps me engaged for the most part. However, the second last ⅓ of the drama becomes quite melodramatic and that’s why I start to lose my attention. I definitely enjoyed the first half of the drama a lot more.
Chemistry between the leads is top notch. Nychaa/Milin and Alek/Anawin have so much fun and chemistry together, before and after they got together. Anwain is quite a bland character in the beginning, if not for his bickering with Nychaa. His personality definitely comes out then. It took me a couple episodes to like Milin, but she definitely has tremendous growth and I have grown to like and root for her. If you are a romance lover, you should be satisfied with the sparks and skinship between them. However, be aware that this is a slow burn romance, and it did take them a while to be officially together. But once they are together, the time they spent on the island is enough to make up for the long wait. Their love continues to be strong with open communication and trust in each other. I LOVE what Milin said to Anawin when she confronted him after the secret of Anawin/Anna’s breakup was exposed.
On the other hand, I don't quite feel the love or obsession that Tewis has for Milin. Instead, he seems to have a lot more chemistry with Lisa. Most of the time, he is constantly flirting with Lisa and getting all up close and personal. His actions are not telling me he’s in love with Milin.
I would have liked to see a little more of the pre-marriage and marital relationship between Phakhin + Jennis, and the love triangle between Sean + Pete + Naorn. The drama is so long that there should be enough time to tell us more.
The ending to me is actually quite surprising and I can’t tell if I like it or not. I knew something’s up with this character and there has to be a reason behind his employment. But the way it ended was somewhat dramatic and tragic.
If you enjoy family business/rivalries and want to take a first pass at a Thai drama, I think this is a good introduction. If the second half is not as melodramatic and slowed down the pace, I would have given this a solid 8.5. For now, I’ll keep this as an 8.0-8.25.
Other Random Observations:
1. So many beautiful women in this drama! Nychaa looks beautiful with less makeup and a fresh face as a high schooler!
2. I am not sure why the farm lady let some strangers go through all the files in the office.
3. A public restroom stall with a lock on the outside? Why would you do that? For the sake of the drama, I guess this has to make sense.
4. The hospital looks like a 5-star hotel. There are chandeliers!
Completed: 3/3/2023
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Revenge, hatred, jealousy
Just as the title explains - it's all about the rivalry between 2 families that are enemies with each other. I would say 80% is all about this 2 family fighting with each other over projects/deals & jealousy/hatred among the people.1. THE GOOD
- Good chemistry between FL and ML. Although it was not the main plot of the show but they still managed to their display their romance well
- Good ending in my opinion, where the bad ones are punished
- Decisive and strong FL - not wavered by other factors when she is determined to do something
- Not draggy, things are exposed early and moves on
2. THE NORMAL
- Pretty decent OST, although nothing catch my ear particularly. Also seems like they repeat the same song throughout the show
3. THE BAD
- Revenge from start till the end.. there are almost no romance scenes in the last 2 episodes
- Too much expose on the people, it's like everyone have a deep secret
- ML still cannot forget his ex gf for almost 10 episodes into the show (abit hard to watch)
- Too many side character storyline already (for e.g. 2nd ML + 2nd FL, FL's brother + wife, FL's brother love triangle).
FINAL VERDICT: i would say this is not for the light hearted. if you're looking for something that is easy to watch then this is not for you, romance is about 20% of the whole show although it is very sweet. most likely won't be rewatching it too.
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Children of two rival families fall for each other, and this storyline got me all interested in watching the drama.
Though they were rivals, we come to know mid series that the girl had a childhood crush on the boy. It is a beautifully crafted concept but lacks a bit of engaging quality. I tended to skip parts because it was quite long and boring.
Character development of the lead couple was good but other characters were so so. Side characters were somewhat bizzare. Only supporting character I found normal was win's ex girlfriend.
I would have given it a 5 rating but according to thai dramas it was good so gave a high rating.
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My Favortite 2022 Lakorn!
I've not liked any recent lakorn since 2020 releases. I really enjoyed this one!! And, for the record, I did not skip any parts.Tl;Dr: It is a great lakorn with some minor questionable things! Watch it!
Long Story -
I liked the plot. The story was tight and really goes to show that lakorn can be made entertaining even without these cringy plot devices. I really appreciate that they treated women with respect in this lakorn, for the most part! No bitchy characters - male or female. Everyone just had different truths and acted on those truths. No bitch-slaps, no misunderstandings or lack of communications to prolong the plot!
I loved our leads & their chemistry! Their chemistry was subtle when they were friends and just exploded beautifully when they got together. I loved how the chemistry did not overwhelm the friendship in the initial episodes. It was just an undercurrent and really well-done! I started this show for Alek (He is sooooo good looking!), but I was very impressed with Nychaa & Pop! The other actors too - the entire cast had great chemistry. Milin's family was messed up - but you can still like them and understand them - which was some really understated & good acting! The ML's family and people around them too! Awesome acting over all!
The OST was pretty neat. Nothing to write home about. But, one of the better music I've heard in a while in a lakorn.
The few things that I felt was a bit of a miss were just minor things - I wanted more of a confrontation between Milin and Lisa. While Tawis & Lisa had great chemistry, I wish it wasn't very confusing in the beginning. And, the most confusing for me was when Tawis claims to really like Milin - I mean, when did that happen? That piece wasn't very convincing, really. And, finally that part where some of the folks are kidnapped - how did the rest of the family just run on to the scene when they weren't even there to begin with! That part made me laugh!
Anyway, I liked the ending. It closed the open ends well and I like the closure that most of the characters got. This show deserves an 8+ rating, if you ask me! This is one of the really good lakorn out there! Don't miss out!
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Akting TOP BGT: ga cheesy, cringey, draggy, atau terlalu dramatis. Produksi, lokasi, props, dan wardrobe/styling/make-up jauh lebih baik daripada kebanyakan lakorn. Aku appreciate sama karyawan kantor, bcs pakaian ngantornya sesuai gaya ngantor. Beda sama lakorn-lakorn lain yg pakaiannya kayak mau ke night club hi-so. OST-nya lumayan rapi dan enak didengar, meskipun ga ada yang menarik perhatianku. This lakorn can show many complex feeling with simple trick, berhasil banget nunjukkin pentingnya keluarga dan gimana setiap keluarga fight nge-protect anggota keluarganya agar tetap bersama dengan cara mereka sendiri (baik dengan paksa atau melalui cinta sesuai dengan dinamika keluarga yg berbeda). Buat kalian yang mau liat parade plot balas dendam yang ga pernah berakhir, lakorn ini pilihannya. Balas dendam demi balas dendam sampe episode terakhir. Membuat otakku hampir habis?
The only thing that makes me really enjoy yg serasa istirahat ya pas island time, scene Win-Milin lari ke Phang Nga. Chemistry mereka halus saat masih berteman dan meledak dengan indah saat bersama. Aku suka bagaimana chemistry ga membanjiri persahabatan di episode awal. Meskipun ada orang-orang toxic di circle mereka, sbg teman dan kekasih, kesetiaan dan cinta mereka ga pernah benar-benar goyah. For most part, adult realtionship goals mereka bener-benar sehat. Bicara satu sama lain tentang rasa ga aman dan kekhawatiran, ga segan-segan expressing love. Maybe banyak situasi dimana ada salah paham, tapi Win-Milin fight for finish it, so kesalahpahamannya jadi ga bertahan lama. Ciri-ciri hubungan Win-Milin ini agak langka sih di lakorn, karena mereka bener-bener healthy relationship.
Nychaa-Alek punya chemistry luar biasa yang ga terbantahkan. Mereka keliatan nyaman aja pas intimate scene. Aku bisa liat kenapa mereka sebelumnya ada diduetkan, bcs mereka bisa figuring semua emosi dgn begitu apik, so terkadang bahkan dialog pun ga diperlukan untuk memahami mereka. Pop punya magnet yang luar biasa di screen. Karakternya salah satu highlights dari lakorn ini yang ngebawa plot maju ke depan. Akting dan karismanya layak untuk dapat lebih banyak peran utama.
Menurutku lakorn ini punya ending yang bagus, pokoknya aku suka endingnya. Menutup ujung yang terbuka dengan baik dan aku suka closing yang didapatkan sebagian besar karakter, dimana yang buruk di hukum sesuai dengan perbuatannya. Tapi kalo kalian cari tontonan ringan yang mudah untuk ditonton, aku akan mengatakan kalo ini bukan tontonan kalian, karena romansanya hanya sekitar 20% dari keseluruhan lakorn meskipun sangat manis. Meskipun lakorn ini aku nilai bagus, kemungkinan besarnya aku ga akan rewatch juga ya karena hampir 80% hanya cerita tentang balas dendam demi balas dendam.
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