Mae Krua Kon Mai (2021)

Perfect comic timing and fantastic cast guaranteed to give you hearty laughs!

For me, Thai rom-com dramas have developed their own brand of slapstick antics that mesh well with the plot and character development. Mae Krua Kon Mai is a great example of this. The show provided a good amount of witty and lowbrow humor and physical comedy. It also used timing, rhythm, and music effects to keep things engaging and entertaining from start to finish. I was interested from the get-go, so much so that I watched it without subtitles, and then with subtitles the second time.

This is one rom-com that raised the irony level of life for me. I was not expecting Param, the ML, to fall in love with Dao, the FL, when she was in disguise as a less attractive person of a lower status. I know, it's superficial of me, but I have watched way too many dramas to expect otherwise. So it was a pleasant surprise when this show deviated from the usual clichés. Yes, Param knew about Faidam's true identity, and there were already sparks whenever he met Dao. However, almost all his flashbacks and sweet memories were about her as Faidam. The verbal sparring and the constant one-upping between our leading couple were so fun to watch. One could see Param's curiosity evolving into attraction and ultimately love, as mischievous Faidam constantly challenged him, frustrating him while piquing his interest more and more.

Every time these two were together, the screen lit up, whether they were squabbling, bantering, teasing, staring into each other's eyes, or glaring at each other. August Paisarnkulwong as Param and Namfah Phatrathinchaicherin as Dao/Faidam were amazing together, and they did an excellent job portraying their characters. Namfah can do comedy, and she was really good at playing the dual personalities. August was more subtle, but he emoted so well. He cried so prettily, and whenever he flirted, I had to grab at my chest to calm my heart. I didn't mind the slow burn romance, but I did wish that there were more kissing because they looked comfortable and natural together when they did.

For sure, there were moments where I wanted to yell at one or both of them for being prideful, and I was definitely annoyed at Param for being so ambiguous with Rika. True, he repeatedly reminded her that she was only his fake girlfriend and he could never love her, but man, letting her kiss you and be all touchy-feely was no way to draw the line! Dao can also be irritating as heck with her refusal to talk things through and clarify matters. Still, despite such moments of wanting to tear my hair out, I cannot help but immensely enjoy the show. The best part for me was that Rika, as the nang rai, did enough to bother but never really got away with things. I love the twist towards the end of the show where it was building up to another opportunity for Rika to stir up trouble, but it did not happen the way I had expected it to go down. Ahhh, it is just so satisfying seeing the villain fall flat!

It's funny, but this is the third drama that I've watched that had Ice Srisevok as the nang rai. It would be a shame if she was typecast.

The acting was great across the board, and there was just so much chemistry between the cast! Between the OTP, the secondary couple (Oab and Pon - absolutely adorable together!), between Faidam and Param's mother, between Faidam and Watsy (adore that guy!!!), Dao's family with each other, and between Buap, Taew, and Faidam. Everyone worked in tandem so well, and I just want to see the behind-the-scenes clips of everyone having fun making this drama. I find it very interesting that multiple actors played characters with hidden agendas or dual personalities. Dao as Faidam, Param with his fake girlfriend, Rika, who pretended to love Param but was actually a gold-digger, Param's mother who was miserly but had a generous heart with the people she loved, and even Max, Dao’s long-term boyfriend but I’ll leave it at that since it is a major spoiler.

There were many negative comments about Dao darkening her skin when she becomes Faidam, and coming from a society that judges by skin tone, I can understand the discontent. However, the show never implied that Faidam was ugly due to her darker skin tone. To me, it was more to ensure that she is even more disguised, although I don't know how she managed to get away with it for so long. To the show's credit, it did not treat us, the audience, as being stupid. At least Dao realized that she would be recognized by the people close to her, just like how Korn did almost instantly, so she did her best to avoid them. I also like that Param was quick on the uptake and found out fairly early on about Dao's disguise.

Music-wise, I liked the two songs that were featured but nothing memorable. Rewatch value is high; I've already watched it twice, but I am tempted to watch it again because I am curious to see when exactly did our OTP transition from hate to love.

Overall, do give this drama a try! The sweetness, the silliness, the laughter, the gorgeous leads, the terrific cast, the lovely ending - there's enough to keep you entertained!

Read More

Edit: Good enough to enjoy this comedic drama. Don't judge a book by it's cover. ~

This is the first time that I wrote a review here in MDL so if this didn't go well, please forgive me. I give this drama a try because I'm in the mood of light-hearted dramas where the male lead fall in love with the so-called 'uglier' identity (idk the exact term for that, sorry) of the female lead like True Beauty and Accidentally In Love.

Plot: 8/10 - I enjoyed the show. I like that the development in relationship of the main couple is slowly processed, not really fast-paced. I had a roller-coaster ride in almost every episodes. However, there's some unnecessary scenes which just made the drama a bit longer, though I managed to watch everything as I'm not a fan of skipping scenes. There are some kind of flaws regarding with the plot, and there are some times that I'm against to what the writer wanted the characters to do. Still love the ending and satisfied with it though, but the kiss is...

( I saw a lot of people who's bothered about the tag "blackface" before (which is removed now) that made others think negatively of this drama. Some are against that tag because they said it sounds like having western-centric mind and white-supremacy something, while some people are not because they said that female lead just did that to disguise herself and blackface is not a bad thing. As for me, no one is wrong. It's just how they see, understand, or how they gave meaning to that word, so let's try to understand and respect each other's point of view. )

Acting/Cast: 9/10 - This is the first time that Namfah became the main lead of a drama, but so far I liked her acting here! She performed her two characters well. August's acting was fine too. I love how she react every time he'll flirt with her lmao, and I love their chemistry too. I just don't like how the main lead tease the female lead so much before, to the point that I'm the one who feel like crying for her and not her herself (which is reasonable). And there's some part where some of the casts are a bit overacted or lacks a bit emotion in a particular scene. I also love all of the supporting characters, this drama is more fun and entertaining with them. Also the antagonist Khun Rika did a great job as well for making us hate her 'til the end but love her behind the scenes.

Music: 8/10 - Nothing to say much, Yak Ja Roo by Ice Thamonwan and Kho Chuea Chai Dtua Eng by August Vachiravit were nice.

Rewatch Value: 7/10 - As I've watched every episode of this drama like 4-5 times already while it's airing and after it finished airing, so I don't know if I'm going to watch it again. But I guess it will still be as enjoyable as before if you re-watch it.

Overall, it's fun watching this drama. I enjoyed the whole month of watching this and it somehow helped me to relieve stress. I got more friends while watching this drama and interacting with them, and they all enjoyed this too! Give it a try and see if it has the charm that's up to your cup of tea too.

Read More

If you are looking for logic you aren't gonna find it here

So my typical review format :

Positives :

1. The premises wasn't bad
Like not the greatest but intriguing.

2. The acting

Except for the male lead, I feel like everyone was at least a passable actor.

3. Comedic timing

Even though it wasn't my style of comedy, I do have to say most actors had good comedic timing and if you are into this humor you will laugh a lot.

4. The gay best friend/ brother
they were the best characters and I really wish we would only focus on them

Now to the negative ( Dont be shocked if I write more here, its easier to know what you didnt like since it stands out more )

1. The male lead
This is maybe just my personal preference, but I absolutely despise male leads like this.
He is super weak, never draws a clear line with other girls and doesnt know what he wants at all.
He is the definition of all talk!
But for me he is even worse.
He uses the second female lead, even though he knows/assumes that she has a mental problem where she obsesses over him.
Its mentioned quite a lot of the start that if he were to leave her or cut her off, she might k*** herself.
He as a mental health professional should know that his behavior is only feeding into her obsession.
BTW this plot line kind of gets dropped towards the end and he tells her in their last conversation that she doesnt love him but only wants fame and money.
But if he knew that from the start why did he let her around him like at all !
Also why did he constantly believe her over the female lead ? Also he says they are friends ? What ?
Also lets assume that he is friends with her, thats alright I guess.
But why would he make a friend who is KNOWS is in love with him, pretend to be his gf ?
Like that is just not ok !
And if he knew that she didnt really love him, but would do everything for fame and money, why would you let such a person be around you and use you? Also why would you believe such a person over the female lead ?
Also his feelings for the female lead happened when or at all ?
In the middle of the drama he is like slowly developing feelings for her. However he still treats her terribly and still keeps up the fake relationship with the second female lead.
Then he gets super hurt when she rejects to marry him! LIKE DUDE according to her everything she knows is that you have a girl friend.
Also he takes the misunderstanding that his family wants her money super personal.
Even though that was something purposefully created by his own mother to get rid of the second female lead.
SO he made her misunderstand his relationship and his families situation but then blames her for it.
In the end they are together but honestly I would habe never chosen to be that kind of guy.
Also why was he a mental leash professional, like why was this part of his character ? It didnt really come into play at all.
He never really cares that his mother clearly has some trauma from growing up poor, so that she that stingy.
He never cares about that and never really talks to her about it.
He only mitigates that problem by giving employees money behind his mothers back.

2. The romantic relationship
Chemistry ? Where ? Come out I was looking for you ?
Their relationship from start to finish makes no sense and honestly I dont think they like each other at all.
This is one of those couples who spends 95% of their interaction fighting each other.
I dont mind an enemies to lovers, but they kind of got stuck at the enemies phase.
In their last scene together they talked to each other nicely and I was like, isnt this almost the first time?
At the start their interaction was fun like that and I was looking forward to the growth.
He becomes sweeter to her and so does she to him.
But that doesnt really happen.
Its literally fight, fight ... someone goes too far.
Apology and fight again !

3. The plot
This was something that started to bother me a little bit into the drama.
I dont mind leaps in logic but in this one no logic was to be found at all.
The premise is that the families have them in an arranged marriage, which none of them want.
She hears some bad rumors about him, so she disguises as a maid/cook at his place to somewhat proof that he isnt a good person.
Ok so when he confirmed his relationship with the second female lead, shouldn't that have been enough.
When the fake creditors came around, couldn't she have just recorded it.
She almost never makes an attempt in finding out more and she just works there and tries to keep her secret.
Also the supposed connection she built with people there, isnt really noticeable and again more talk then show in any kind of actions.
But now something happens which i think made my brain almost collapsed.
She has a boyfriend of 4 years and even after spending like 20 episodes with our male lead, when her bf asked to marry her she wants to agree !
But if she had a boyfriend, why not just say that ? why not just wait it out until he comes from the states ?
Why not just have a shot gun wedding with him and then tell you family about it ? And dont tell me she wouldn't have done that, she totally would have !
Because his plan was to have a relationship so he wouldn't have to marry her, but she had a serious relationship and she doesnt think to use that as a reason to not marry him.
Also spoiler her bf ( saint btw, we love him in this house even though we hated Why R U ) is gay. ( Btw also a plotline i despise, instead that the female lead has to own up and choose, just make someone gay and the problem will be solved)
She catches him cheating and cries a little and thats it !
When this happened I kind of lost all hope for the drama because the emotions of the characters made no sense anymore.
she even says she had been dating him for 4 years but never suspected anything.
Also again male lead isnt upset really that she wanted to marry another guy like 5 min ago and they get together like a day later.
The mother opposing plot line was ok but it was really only thrown in to make the drama like 4 episodes longer.
And I love how at the start he countnt oppose his mother and in the end its like no problem.
The entire plot was built on such a shaky assumption ( that he had a gf and the family wanted her money )
that it made no sense.
A drama with logic leaps sure, but a drama where you dont understand why a character is doing something because their actions are built on absolute nonsense is just hard to bear.


3. the female lead
Why oh Why ?
She is just not really a good person. Like not bad but also not good.
I thought that after misunderstanding the financial problems and coming to love her in law family she would try to help them, but no.
She also omits that fact that she has a bf for most of the drama and only has some phone calls with him.
She uses her friend in the house more than once and even almost destroy the relationship between her friend and her bf just to keep her lies up.
She is super judgy and just very in your face.
She isnt terrible but I found it very hard to emphasize with her.
Its like she thinks everyone wants her.
She isnt very open minded or very smart. ( since she never really makes attempts to prove that he isnt good, suddenly the phone doesnt work etc. ) Oh and yeah she isnt smart, because even though it is super obvious that her secret had been revealed she never figures it out.
Also she doesn't develop.
The fact that she makes her skin darker to appear ugly is also problematic on its own.

4. The comedy

For this point i just mean that the comedy took first place and logic took second.
However i find it really hard to enjoy comedy when i dont get why a certain thing is happening.


In conclusion:
I kind of regret watching this and please only watch it if you are a fan over overly comedic shows. And dont care that much wether the relationship makes any kind of sense.

Read More

Super light hearted, cheesy and romantic drama

Before anyone call me a "racist" or uneducated, I am fully aware that blackface is not acceptable. Yes, I am fully aware that back in the day people used to applied darker foundation on a lighter/fair skin person. Yes, we lived in the 21st century but what does that even mean? Everyone is suddenly more genuine? No. There are many sensitive topic that cannot be brought up without people calling it out and I understand. However IMO, if a topic is being portrayed in a respectful way and not discriminating against dark skin individual then I am not one to let it bother me.

The people that commented on here about how they darken her skin to make her look or portrayed "ugly" is not true. Never once did they ever mention how dark the FL is, or how ugly her skin tone is or how unlikable she is due to her skin tone.  Yes they could of omit the skin tone but I personally don't see it as "racist". If we're calling out everything in the book about dark skin toned then can we also put "tanning" on the list of unacceptable.

I really love that this lakorn is moving at such a fast pace. Thank goodness our Prak'ek is not dumb and is super smart. He start to suspect Faidam identity and eventually find out that she's Lormdao, his betrothed.

The plot break down is actually good, no dragging and definitely a lot of onscreen with the leads.

Quite honestly I like Faidam personality better than Lormdao. Faidam is what make the lakorn feels so light hearted, enjoyable and interesting. I find Lormdao character to be  unreasonable and annoying. I definitely find other Prak'ek more annoying than Param, he's doable IMO. Although he found out the truth about Faidam, i understand why he still bring Rika around because honestly Faidam have an agenda and Param wants to know why she had to disguised herself.

Overall, very sweet and romantic drama.

Read More

Ok, this is one of the Thai dramas in which I actually found myself laughing. The story though had some defects and questionable points but overall it was an enjoyable drama.
I couldn't understand the fact that they could not completely recognize the FL whenever she painted herself into an ugly face (as mentioned in the drama) 'cause I found her very noticeable and there were so many key points just pointing towards her throughout the story but on the contrary all the characters found themselves not noticing even one at all until the ending few episodes. The plot again was a very common and cliche but I seem to enjoy them even though i know the whole direction of the story of how it ends and what is going to happen.

I found myself liking the way the ML's mother (Pitsamorn Montianrak (Watsana Phunphon)) acted, she portrayed a very comedic character who has a miserly and stingy behavior but also has a hint of kindness hidden in her very action and the FL.
I have got to say it is very hard to portray two different characters with completely different behaviors by one person and it is very hard to pull it off but Thunyaphat Phatrathinchaicherin (Lomdao) acted it well and has given an enjoyable performance.

If I have to recommend it I would definitely do as it is one drama that gives a smile to your face and you can definitely enjoy it with your family and friends and its rewatch value...I can't say it is high but it totally depends on the person and their preferences.

If ya'll need any recommendations then go ahead and check out them in the recommendations page and hope you guys enjoy the drama as much as I did.

Read More

Definitely Must Watch

I just finished the series yesterday and I must say that it's really a comedic relief. Although, I don't agree with the FLs method of trying to get to know the MLs family and intention into marrying her I kind of understand that her personality is that she does not believe until she see or hears it herself. I'm not sure when they fell for each other exactly in the series but the series showed it was a gradual development.

I find it funny when they try to oust each other to the MLs mom and how it blew on the MLs face. The mom's reaction was understandable for me since the FLs family kind of guessed what she's doing and they know it will end up in a mess, it looked like her family prepared for the worst which is opposite of the MLs mom. I really love the acting and the character of Wat, the FLs bestie. I wish everyone would have that friend who supports and nags but still is with you all the way.

The chemistry between the FL and ML is off the charts that I can't help but smile at their antics and when they are already dating. The ending was a bit rushed for me, I wished I could have seen the downfall of the SFL, she's such a B****. And that boyfriend who turned out to be gay I wished there would have been a scene where he explained but it went to being caught then the acceptance, even if the FL already is in love with someone else I would have wished for a better closure.

The OST sang by the ML is cute and I find it catchy.

Overall, I would definitely rewatch this when I need to relieve my stress.

Read More

BEST ROMCOM

So glad to see Namfah and August together. I love them since Krong Karm. Both their acting is superb. I am torn between liking Faidam or Lormdao. I both love the character. Also, Mor Param fits the role - the snobby one but can't hide his true feelings for Faidam thru his smiles. Loved their bickerings and antics. Hehe. This lakorn made me laugh and laugh. All the casts are funny specially Madam Morn and Granma Pathum. The OST also made me in love. Watched 30+ lakorns and all I can say is, this is my best for romantic comedy so far. Really enjoyed it!! Highly recommended!!

Read More

no wonder this lakorn received a high rating in Thailand. For me, this series is one of the best lakorn. Really recommended for someone really interesting in cute romantic story.

For the storyline, I found that it's kinda draggy in the mid of the series. This lakorn actually can wrap up in total around 18 episode. I'm pretty sure they dragging the plot due to high rating maybe (?). But it's nothing bad since I'm actually enjoying the plot. But people easily can be bored and drop out this series.

The main problem of this series is the appearance of Faidam. She disguise into a dark skin girl with a big mole. I find it's really offended to dark skin person. People should stop with colourist agenda and need to come out with a new idea how to create a brand new concept.

Read More

Nothing spectacular, but refreshing and cute.

This isn't a super exciting drama, I'll be honest. However, I really enjoyed it very much. I think the characters are likable and written well. It does have that over-exaggeration that I find a lot of romantic comedies have (especially ones that aren't Korean dramas).

The story is pretty basic, it's just an average love story. So there isn't anything special going on with the plot or anything. The acting by the cast is pretty good. Some actors/actresses are better than others, but they all manage to pull it off and make it believable. I think the chemistry between the supporting characters Oab and Pon is lacking. It's okay though since they aren't the focus of the story.

Overall this is a refreshing, cute, and charming drama. I think it definitely deserves a chance to be watched. Especially if you're looking for something that is just light-hearted and pure.

Is it an average-ish drama, yes. However, it works well for what it is.

Read More

This drama was so surprisingly romantic and funny. Love the music, story and the whole cast did such a great job. This is also my first time watching Namfah & August on-screen and they did a nice job in portraying their characters. Lomdao is the heroine who disguises herself as Fai Dam (Black Mole) and moves into Param`s house as his cook to get to know his family better since she have heard negative rumours and she is engaged to him. I love the hate-love relationship between Dao & Param and that Param knew early on in the story that Dao and Fai Dam are the same person. Them bickering and teasing each other made for a lot of comic and romantic moments. Always sparks between them. That ending epiluge was also so cute and romantic!

This story also reminds me of "Punya Chon Kon Krua" starring Mark & Kimberly with how the FL also disguised herself and how the ML was suspicious of her from the start.

Read More

I had really high hopes for this drama and I'm surprised at how high the ratings are. If you want to watch a funny drama then I guess this might be what you're looking for but it gets really draggy.

Contains spoilers ahead-

Both leads are very attractive but that doesn't excuse the doctor being a complete jerk a good majority of the story. When he finds out that she was the maid, he acted irrationally and put her in danger several times. His relationship with his patients are disgusting. The use of the actress being insane and wanting "to hurt herself" if the doctor didn't return his feelings is horrible. The amount of times I wanted to scream at the screen because of the second lead and doctor. He was pushy towards the FL about her identity yet keep saying he would wait for her to admit it herself.

For Dao on the other hand, she was extremely stubborn. The way she handled the marriage was selfish and she didn't really consider how the mother and the people around her would react. I think the idea of wanting to know who your future husband actually is, is a great idea but at some point she just wanted to be right and to prove that he was using her. The way they handled the situation with Max is so weird to me considering that he proposed and had a secret lover that she caught, and the next day she was magically in love with the doctor and got married.

The supporting characters were unreasonable most of the time. They made the ML mother unlikable and the her whole perspective changes last minute, creating more to the ending which is why it got rushed. I understand that it's normalized in Thai culture that cheating on your wife is ok but the father overdid it, the son joking about it made it worse. It was unnecessary. The trope that darker skin means lower class should also stop being normalized. It's such a bad idea to put out there that females with dark skin are not beautiful, when in fact, most of us can't control it.

The ending is rushed and the middle is really draggy. It repeats the loop he finds more about her secret, she denies, he knows, she denies and so on. They take about 24 episodes to finally get together and they are already getting married.

Read More

Cute, fun and easy watch

I'm not a big fan of lakorns but I really enjoyed this one. My mom and I usually have different taste when it comes to Korean series (she likes the makjangs lol) but we agree that this one was fun. This is our first time watching a lakorn together and we breezed through the episodes.

It's quite light and I've enjoyed even the slapstick comedy. Faidam and her shenanigans was the highlight of the series for me. It's not too deep and the drama mostly happened near the finale so it's an easy watch. Although the plot was kind of stagnant in the middle portion of will-he-or-will-he-not-tell-Dao, it did not diminish my enjoyment of the episodes. Also there were a lot of flashbacks in the last three episodes and I think they did that because the show got extended. The villain is not fleshed out enough and it seems like audience shouldn't care about her at all. They didn't even give her a story. Like she just existed to cling unto Dr. Param and ruin Dao and Param's relationship.

Another relationship that I liked in this show is Faidam and Madam Morn. It's cute to see their relationship become a mother-daughter dynamic. I was irritated and literally rolling my eyes at Madam Morn's stinginess but I guess they had to give her a unique trait for some reason (may it be for comedic or what). Dao and Wat is also friendship goals! Wat and her mom is my favorite familial relationship in this show (I hated the family dynamics of both leads). I really loved how the relationship between Param and Dao is slow and gradual but still cute and not boring.

Namfah was my favorite. She really nailed her role as Faidam. Her comedic timing is gold. This is the first time I've watched her and I've become a fan. I've seen August in U-Prince and his charisma always gets me. This time though, my mom is with me in fangirling over him. He has lesser variety compared to what Namfah has to act out in here but he still did pretty good. August and Namfah's chemistry is so so good. I was squealing at those kisses. The rest of the cast really grew on me too.

I always thought that lakorns are too dramatic but this show made me have a new perception. This romcom is just my style and I would love to see August and Namfah work together again in another lakorn with this kind of genre.

Read More