I Promised You the Moon (2021)

Painfully real, interesting and innovative take on a BL story

The drama follows the evolution of the relationship of Teh and Oh-aew as they are settling in Bangkok in two different universities. The story is painfully realistic: I'm quite impressed from an intellectual perspective of the narrative road taken by the show. The focus is more on the sad and difficult parts of the relationship rather than on the happiness and light moments...This is such an unconventional and fresh take on young love evolution but what makes it so interesting makes it also a bit dry to follow. There are some defaults in the pacing, as there is an unbalance between the waves of emotional distresses the viewer experiences watching the show vs. the time spent on rewarding and happy moments.

The main male leads keep being great together: it is not anymore a young love blossoming they portray but rather a mature relationship with his conflicts and interference, when habits and routine prevail on desire and butterflies in your stomach. I found them quite convincing in their role, and my heart felt a lot of pain as the characters went through a lot. It was almost awkward to watch some of the scenes as it felt almost too real in the interactions, as if the viewer is an intruder witnessing very private and painful situations.

The production maintains a high quality level in the second part of the story of Teh and Oh-aew. The Bangkok setting has less charm than the Phuket scenery but the context of the arts students working on various play together is superbly directed. The OST is still really nice: one specific scene with the two main actors singing shook me and set a new turn to the story.

I would recommend this to people that have seen the first part ITSAY of course. You need to be in a certain mindset to watch this Part 2 as the show is pretty deep and focus on the painfully real sides of a relationship. If you want some meaningless fluff, chose another series and wait to be ready and in the right mood for this. It is so worth it in a way as it is such an innovative take in terms of storytelling for a BL story despite some minor flaws in its pacing and writing.

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A simple and short review!

Its so beautiful. The actors arent even acting, theyre just simply being. Its so realistic yet remain interesting and keeps you having a certain emotion at a time. The production, cinematography, script, music, actors and setting was all 10/10. One of the best shows ive ever watched along with moon lovers and something in the rain.

It will make you happy,sad,thrilled,excited,touched…EVERYTHING.

Watch both seasons and prepare for the rollercoaster. The last ep of the 2nd season made me cry a LOT, it was just so impactful.

No one is evil. Everyone is just being human with their flaws and mistakes. Nothing cringey either. Okay i will stop talking. Just go watch it!

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A different tone of Masterpiece than ITSAY, but still a Masterpiece.

I understand why people have strong feelings against this second season. I understand people do not want to see characters they love make moral mistakes and hurt each other. But if this was a fluffy fan-service season, it would not have been true to ITSAY.

ITSAY was an absolute masterpiece of LGBTQ media and I don't think that can be disputed. It's hard to live up to that. But I think IPYTM did an excellent job. ITSAY is a coming of age story about falling in love for the first time - but it is honest, messy, and raw. It never gratuitously gave us what we wanted. Therefore IPYTM needed to continue to deliver on that honesty. But the tone is different, as this is a different journey in the lives of Teh and Oh.

First loves when we are young rarely work out, and if they do, they do not do so without difficulty. I really appreciated that they showed us that people do change, and love isn't always enough to keep two people together. Sometimes you have to mess up, suffer, and make the wrong call again and again before you learn what you actually need.

I know there is a lot of hate for Teh, but here's the thing - Teh and Oh were always different people. Oh was always more in tune with his feelings and empathetic to others. Teh was always a bit more selfish and slow to examine his feelings or consider the feelings of others. Teh isn't a bad person and I don't think he ever did anything to intentionally hurt Oh, however he is still naïve and rash. They went from essentially being kids, to only being with each other and being shoved in a drastically different environment than they had fallen in love in. They are learning how to be partners from trial and error. They don't fully know who they are yet, let alone how to care for another person.

This series is one of the only ones that does not placate the viewer or comfort us, but shows us the raw and often painful journey of growing up. I really appreciate it so much, and I feel like it would be almost impossible for another series to compare to this one.

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Realistic portrayal of young love

I absolutely loved ITSAY which I thought was a near-perfect coming of age story set in one of the most beautiful parts of Thailand. I was thrilled to watch this sequel but I didn't expect such a realistic portrayal of young love, the mistakes one can make when admiration gets confused with adoration and an older classmate takes advantage of that.

What I remember of my college years were the lightning quick growth everyone seemed to be going through, whether it was in their educational, emotional or psychological growth. Some dorm mates were changing their majors every 6 months, some were dating a different person every few weeks.

And we see a little bit of this in Teh and Oh's relationship, as Oh realizes he's not cut out to be an actor. As Teh gets more involved with the drama club and immersed into acting, Oh gets more discouraged. My heart hurt when Teh accused Oh of not trying hard enough, not realizing what Oh had been going through. Teens are not exactly great at communicating; they try and protect their partners from the unpleasantness and often turn to their friends instead. Or their friends are readily available and their partners are not.

What was a simple admiration of Jai turned to a crush, as Jai gave more attention to Teh. Immaterial of whether Jai actually had feelings for Teh (I would argue he may have), I don't think of the kiss as the act of betrayal. As an actor, Teh may very well be asked to kiss other actors. It was Teh's feelings/actions before and after the kiss that were more telling. His acting journal revealed his growing distance to Oh, and Jai fully took advantage of this. Teh's eyes followed Jai instead of Oh when they were in the same room. He would seek Jai out whenever possible. IMO, the emotional betrayal is what broke Teh and Oh's relationship. You leave a relationship when you no longer feel you belong there, and I applaud Oh for leaving.

Their time apart was crucial in both their growths. Oh realized he still loved Teh and was happy to love him from afar. Teh, on the other hand, realized that he had reached all his goals and none of them meant a thing without Oh by his side. I cried buckets of tears of sadness and of joy. I would give IPYTM over 10 if I could.

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It's worth giving a shot.

If I had to pick I do think that the first part 'I told the Sunset about you' is better. The drama itself had an amazing story line. It was really frustrating tho to watch the parts with only Teh and Jai together, and it got really stressful at some parts like when they kissed and at the end before Oh-aew ran off stage. The ending of the drama was really beautiful and wholesome and made me cry little. Also if anyone wants to know Teh and Oh-aew did brake up, but they ended up getting back together at the end of the series and there was I guess a little bit of cheating going on but it would make more sense if you watched the series first.

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Bold choices in a bold story. Still beautiful.

So I'm extremely glad I watched these series before learning how divisive IPYTM is. And honestly I get it. From ITSAY and LTIP, our protagonists are heading to their future hand in hand and the first episode has some amazing high points. The underwater kiss redux is even more beautiful and Sui's ep 1 goodbye to Teh is so beautiful and a wonderful conclusion to Teh's family plots from ITSAY.
Then comes IPYTM and the university/divergent paths of Teh and Oh. It is tough, watching Teh drift from Oh and also not accept them both changing. But it's honestly very realistic and gorgeously done. The same problems Teh and Oh had as 7th graders and 12th graders, they have similar problems in their 20s. And Oh does really try to hold them together and it's heartbreaking to watch it fall around him but life be like that sometimes.
It's not the story I wanted but it's story that was told to me and as much as it hurt watching, it was beautiful watching it.
It didn't "have to happen like that" but it did and we watched both Teh and Oh pick up the pieces and choose how they move forward with them and me as an audience member, I choose to do the same.
I Promised You The Moon is every bit as intentional and elevated as I Told Sunset About You and while the story might not be as well loved in the latter half, I very much argue that it's still as poignant and beautiful as the former.

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Relatable, Impactful and Realistic

I liked everything about this drama. It is well-written, the dialogues are well thought out, the OST is memorable, and most importantly, the moral of the story is so profound. Compared to other BL dramas whose sequels are usually all about fluff (with a bit of conflict and drama during the climax), this one dares to differ. No one could tell if it is going to be a happy ending (where the couple ends up together), or bittersweet (where the couple moves on and parts ways).

I am not an expert when it comes to technicalities. It is not as artsy as ITSAY, but I must say that I loved what I see, hear and feel. One should watch it with an open mind. And I guess it's intended for the mature audience? Anyway, since I'm no expert, let me share my insights about the storytelling instead. For me, this is what made the drama compelling. I liked how the audience got involved in the characters' growth. The story starts on a sunny note but turns mindfking when the dilemma comes in. It was a gradual attack on the emotions but it would make one think that what happened had to happen. Teh persists in his childhood dream, while Oh-aew finally finds his strong suit (advertising). I think this is the part where their ship begins to sink. Change is happening and it was inevitable for them.

Being in a long-term relationship could have its dull and lulling moments, and I could understand why Teh got attracted to Jai. But Jai, being another complicated character knows his limits and did not push further (who knows if he actually had feelings for Teh). Oftentimes, when you no longer share a common goal and interest, you tend to get less involved with your partner. But trying to make it work, and choosing that person all over again is what keeps a relationship going. In Oh-aew's instance, he tried for Teh, but one's heart could only take as much. Regaining trust is the most difficult part.

In the latter part, we could see that Teh finally achieves his dream. He gets exhausted from work to the point where he wants to give up and (maybe) finally understands why Khim and Oh-aew had to shift midway with their goals. He realizes that after all this, he still feels empty. Oh-aew on the other hand has moved on and has learned to love himself. Only when he talks to Bas would we see that there's still a silver lining in the Oh-aew and Teh's ship.

Bas' line struck me the most. It goes something like, "Being together once again could either go two ways -- the couple would be more in love with each other after a breakup, or would end up having a toxic relationship... If you want to know, the only way is to try (again). The only one who holds the answer is you." So realistic, right?

Finally, the writer decides to give us a "happy ending". Oh-aew and Teh ends up back together. However, it took me some time to absorb the mixed emotions. I had to take a pause and reflect on the story. The pain is still there because I know giving another chance is not that easy. But I liked what Oh-aew said. It goes something like, "We do not need to promise to love each other forever.. All I know is that I want to be with you."

So Teh, you ought to better make it up to Oh-aew a hundredfold! This is the only way to make me feel better hehe.

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Such a disappointment

Something is missing on this second part. Last year, "I Told Sunset About You" was a masterpiece, perfect timming direction, photography, costume design, edition, stunning OST. This time, everything is missing. They shouldn't have changed the director, or even the screenwritrer team had changes, the cinematography got lost without the old director of photography. It fall from the best series of decade last year to just another series, very shallow. Sometimes having a season 2 isn't a good idea. The guys are good actors but they can't do much without a good script. I think they should have kept Goy (she's a good actress, but even better writring), and Junior as screenwriters, Boss as director, Tang and Lin as cinematographers for obvious reasons. When your team is winning, you don't change the players.

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Through a Magical Tale of the Sun Lit Moon

This "sunsetty" tale to "moonish" change is one of the best I have ever seen. It is not an exaggeration and I am not that generous with words you know, just speaking from my heart. ITSAY had be in blues, and IPYTM is having me all yellow, despite the obvious change. The visuals, the setting, the camera work, the makeup, the cinematography and a wide range emotions these two artists are able to show is just marvelous and sublime work of art.

BL or not, LGBTQ or not, this series transcends into various aspects. It is surprising for people like me, who are accustomed to BL series for having poor productions values, and I have never considered production aspect when evaluating a BL series, knowing how hard it is for them to make a good content when people are not willing to invest. Over the years, from Love of Siam to this day, there is a tremendous growth in this industry especially 2016 to onwards. Japan used to make all kind of live action adaptations of their YA manga, but as we all know it takes century to get a sub for a Japanese series, so people interest eventually shifted when Thai join the game. Since then it just one after another surprise, and all of us have been critical towards it, that has actually helped the makers to produce and improve the content, and "I" series (as I say it) were able to born. This sequel to ITSAY is an example of a how work should never be compromised, even when the entire team that worked on its prequel changed.

With only 5 episodes, the content is solid, there is no filling in between season, and for the first time in Thai BL I am liking the supporting cast, their acting is not over the top, specially the girl troop who is not cheesy, like we are used to seeing where they gush over BL couple and go crazy. Seeing the acting of a girl, it was mature and actually looked like director really took care of it. The supporting cast however has not come up front yet, as it is vert layered as of yet. The group of friends Oh is having, there acting is acceptable and they are not typical boy troop tagging with leads.

What can I say about PP and BP they have absorbed their roles so well, that they actually looked like living a normal life off-camera. The rawness in their acting, specially BP gels so well with his nature that you can't tell it is bad or not, there are scenes, you will say cringeworthy if it were coming from some other actor, but BP looks absolutely breathtaking. His this natural way of acting is what makes this series eternal. Loving it, just loving it so far.

Regarding the story I am actually not concerned at all, happy or sad, they are way beyond their mere love. They only belong to each other, even they have loneliness keeping them apart. It is very much true, love alone can not fill the void, even if you have the person you longed for, with you, it is not a guarantee of your happiness. As happiness does not come from people. It comes from you. If you have little and you are content, that is what happiness is.

Oh needs to understand that having Teh all the time can not bring him happiness. I get that Oh is homesick, who doesn't? I was too, when I traveled at 18 into a completely alien country, so I can relate to Oh 100% but he is too sensitive to pull himself together. He is unwillingly making sacrifices for Teh, when clearly Teh told him he wants to be with him. I know Oh wants the best for Teh but he is hurting himself and this is going to put strain on their newly bloomed relationship. Now that there are people who gonna come between their relationships and the realistic "career and love" choice gonna play major role in their pain. But I am hopeful the tension won't last long and their separation (if any) is just another push for them towards each other.

This has managed to make a place into my top five BL series. Well it may not be the best of best, but it is actually a cream content one can make. Don't hesitate to watch if you are concerned about the sad ending, because some endings are not even important when the beginnings are significant enough to show how powerful the journey was.

Please join the official platform to watch the series, for those who can pay $6 per episode please pay. Initially I hesitated and expressed my grief, but eventually ended up paying because when you see such efforts being made, you won't feel sad paying it.

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