This drama is like a baby taking its first steps…
a bit wobbly and can hardly be called walking, but it’s such a big achievement it’s worth celebrating.A straightforward criticism of the capitalistic world and social structures that exclude everyone not willing to act according to unfair rules. While some scenes might have felt preachy, the message was loud and clear, and sometimes this is exactly what is needed. You could feel the passion of youth in this project.
What the drama does phenomenally is making you care for this bunch of young people. Realistically speaking they should have been either dead or arrested by episode 4 at best, but against all logic, you just want to see them succeed and get out of it alive.
The acting! GMM truly decided to cast their best in this one. We all know Gun and Off have natural chemistry, but it was great to see them shine next to each other as individual characters, rather than just a couple. First was so good, at times I felt like he was too good for this script, or too good for this small part of Thai entertainment industry.
Production wise I loved quite a few shots. The use of different sources of light made some scenes extremely beautiful. Shots of two Guns were well edited - yes, if you know the actor well, you can see how the double used for some scene is different, but one has to be really nitpicky to make it an actual flaw.
All that said, the whole show was so serious and unserious at the same time, I’m not sure how I’m supposed to feel about it. Motivated to make a change and tackle social issues? Rolling on the floor laughing about poorly executed fighting scenes? How unrealistic the production was took away from how realistic and serious the issues they tried to present. How am I supposed to see baby faced Gun take down a few professionally trained highly specialized security guards of the millionaire villain? Him boxing once a week with his teen buddies must have been enough for training I guess.
Not to mention the frequent PPLs. I know the drama needs founding, but taking into consideration the anti-capitalistic themes in the show, it just stood out in a painfully negative way.
Then we have the flying parkour, Sing being completely miscast, the lack of closure - no, this is not how you are supposed to do an open ending or any ending. The power imbalance between the good and the bad guys that I was supposed to just accept as realistic, when it made little to no sense…
Overall, it’s hard not to like it. It gives all the right messages, delivers great entertainment, a variety of characters and point of views. Leaves enough space for the viewers to make their own mind. The acting was amazing, visually it was pleasant to the eye. It just did not feel polished enough - the passion should have been used a little bit for the good old planning, practice and production. Maybe some script rewrites here and there too.
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Less Rhetoric and More Stories
I was excited about this series. It looked dark, and dingy with A+ actors such as Gun and Off, but I walked away very disappointed. I have been to Thailand and I know about the political protests, but in my opinion, there was way too much moral grandstanding and preaching. I felt like the writers took 1960's American talking points and wrote a story around it. To me, this is an example of the elites, grooming other elites to be "revolutionaries," but who will probably be authoritarians themselves when they take power in the future (e.g. look at the leaders who imposed pandemic lockdowns, travel restrictions, freezing bank accounts of protestors, throwing protestors in jail without bond, etc). They missed opportunities to present problems that poor Thais face (except for Yok's mom), and chose to use rhetoric instead. In social science classes, we are always reminded that by sitting in a chair at university, we are by definition elite, regardless of where we start in life. Yok is the only member where you see a person living in poverty with a disabled single parent. Since this is fiction, of course, he is probably on his way to becoming a famous artist, and he saves himself (successful artists become rich) at the end by describing proletariats as a state of mind, not SES, or class. Instead of white savior syndrome, it's university educated syndrome, reinforcing that a formal education is the only pathway to a meaningful future. This is just my amateur opinion.The acting was top notch, and I could see a difference between Black and White, that's how good Gun's acting was. I think that Gun deserves many acting awards for this role. I enjoyed seeing him paired with women partners too. Off has really grown as an actor as well, and he has gotten over his awkwardness when he has to do intimate scenes with Gun. I especially liked that they didn't use the normal filters, so we could see the actors' pores, blemishes and lines on their faces. The sets they used were just as gritty and grimy, fitting with the tone of the story. I felt that Black and White disowning their family was another 1960's cliche, and it made it seem like, all people working in government and the legal system are morally corrupt people.
I'll only rewatch if I fast forward through all of the rhetoric. Had they spent less time on rhetoric, and more time focusing on the characters (Yok's mom could have used more screen time) and people who are really struggling, I think that I would have enjoyed it more.
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It's very good, but that ending...
The acting in this is superb - all the actors did an excellent job, even all the minor parts. Some of that is good directing - there are actors in this that have been mediocre elsewhere that were fantastic in this. Standouts for me were Off, who had way more star power than he has in the past (and he's gotten mighty fine, I must say). There's a scene with Gawin that's an 11/10 - you won't be able to breathe (although some of that is beauty). Gunn has always been good, so no surprises there.The Music is pretty good. It didn't really stand out to me very much, but it avoided tired cliches, never got in the way, and supported the story.
The story... this is a tough one. With the number of plot threads introduced, I kind of expected some of them to be dropped, but not ALL of them. The ending of this wasn't an ending - it just stopped, and it was way, way too happy for the story. It even ends with the tired cliche that this series had avoided up to that point, the triple-take kiss, which made me LOL it was so silly. I don't like sad endings, but come on. The only thing it was missing was a rainbow and unicorn. What was the point of Todd's character? He never did anything that was important to the plot, except for one thing before the series starts, and we never find out why he did it. He never does anything of consequence again (except look sexy).
The 2 BL romances were good, the straight ones just chewed up time and had nothing to do with the story. There's a lot of violence in this - a lot of it is necessary, but there's a lot that's just eye-rolling machismo and wasn't needed at all. For example there's a scene where someone hurts someone emotionally - it would have been a lot stronger if it was all words and not lots of punching. In another, a decision is made by an actual physical fight between the two viewpoints. This is never done again despte there being a huge number of times there was no consensus, so why that one time? There's another case where a character deliberately beats someone into a coma. How on earth do you calculate how much beating to administer that leads to worse than unconsciousness, but not quite death? Dumb and unnecessary.
All-in-all, this was a refreshingly different series - I just wish it could have been more nuanced than rich=bad and poor=good. Evil powerful people tend to be wealthy because evil poor people don't have the means to gain power (except in revolutions), not because rich people are inherently evil. Although to be fair the ending was so abrupt that it's not entirely clear even the main villain was a villain. In any case, you don't get points for including social issues if you having nothing to say.
I guess the secret to enjoying this is to not take it very seriously. Let's face it - this is a story about a law student who replaces his evil twin in a marxist motorcycle gang. (I know Black isn't evil, but he's definitely not the good twin). In the end, it contains some really good romance with great chemistry in both couples, and that's what saves it from it's total lack of plot. (Before anyone says it - consider a rope ladder. If you use excellent materials and fashion it with skill and artistry, but you never hang it up, is it a ladder, or an expensive pile of rope?)
I don't think I would rewatch this, but there are scenes I might go back to - there were several that were in the top handful in all of BL.
Overall: 8. It would have been a 9 or 9.5 if it had an ending.
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Not perfect, but a very promising path for GMMTV BL shows
I’ll try to be straight to the point, because with a show like this you can end up extending yourself too much cuz there’s so many things to talk about. But I think this one was pretty much almost impeccable in a few aspects, especially regarding its production quality. Well, if we ignore a few special effects here and there, where it felt a bit too amateurish. But it’s easy to ignore that when the rest is so on point. Art direction, music, acting by pretty much all the cast. The fact that we could finally see skin that looks like skin!!! That’s important too.The social commentary theme is also a breath of fresh air in BL shows (and it’s brave too considering the political context in Thailand!!). It’s often too on the nose, but I think as a show that’s targeted at younger audiences they have to uncomplicate things for better and broader understanding. There’s also the writing conveniences which are mostly done by making the boys’ gang act clueless. Their plans are a mess! But I also think that it’s important to show those characters as far-from-mastermind individuals. They’re super young, after all, and they’re mostly moved by their emotions. Especially Sean. But honestly, all of them with the exception of maybe White, who seems to be the most rational character.
As far as the actual BL parts go, I must admit I was never that into SeanWhite as a couple, despite me thinking that the OffGun chemistry is perfect. What I was invested in, though, was the side couple DanYok, which kinda pulled me in even before I started watching the show (just from seeing Twitter/IG clips). There was something that felt magical in how the storyline began and proceeded to develop for majority of the episodes. Chemistry was fire. But then I don’t understand why the writers/director decided to make them so chaste? Like, Yok looked like he wanted to eat Dan with his eyes. And Dan looked like he was willing to be eaten. And then those two guys end the series with a hug? I’m not saying they should be having wild sex on screen (but I wouldn’t complain if they had)!! Not at all! But they barely kiss. And kissing is not a problem in this show, clearly. See, in the one scene they had in episode 13 they are there having a moment, a heartfelt conversation. The intimacy is visible just by the way they talked and looked at each other. Then Yok looks into Dan’s eyes and gently touches his face. His eyes move to Dan’s lips and that alone was sexy as hell. And then Yok proceeds to touch his lips on Dan’s for about half a second. And then sexy time is over. I don’t know whose decision it was to “nerf” this pairing like this, but it was very tasteless.
Anyways, despite the underwhelming finale (not just because of the DanYok hug, but as a whole), this show was a pleasure to watch and follow weekly. I hope other thai BL directors feel inspired by the work done here because after this the standards are gonna be high.
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A story that goes beyond BL
Wow just wow!!!!Not me was a new bl everyone was excited for since its announcement and especially since offgun was leading. The show itself did such a good job of balancing the bl aspect and non bl storyline to the point were u couldn't pick which you enjoyed more.
Beautiful performance from all the cast especially Gun like that boy definitely showed how great of an actor he is under gmm and even in the thai acting industry. The switch up between black and white is so insane u just cant picture gun being like that, but he pulls it off effortlessly.
DanYok the bl side couple that did something most bl side couples lack and that was pure PASSION. Fluke my husband did a splendid job and im really proud this show gave us a different side of him especially since gmm doesn't seem to respect hes worth.
Overall acting 10, storyline 10 also the pacing for this show is amazing definitely respected them for not dragging the stories out. Definitely gmms top bl id recommend everyone tap in and u won't be disappointed
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Not me! No, I was not disappointed at all!
Overall, the show had a few flaws here and there, but I was not expecting such a bl to be produced. The concept of this entire show is just incredible and kept me wanting more at a few episodes. Notice how I said "few"? That is because sometimes, they spent too much time trying to justify the gang's ideology that I felt like it was such a drag. This aspect did make me skip a few parts throughout the show as I was simply uninterested. However, the scenes that deprived the story of the element of the gang did move the plot, but I don't think it made much of a difference. After it ended, I went, "now what?" because it was just incredible. 100% WATCH IT! It's worth it! Trust me. Other than this criticism, this show is just MWAH. The central character development is so visually understandable, and you can see the shift in the change of personality of the main character. Fantastic acting and a good story pacing for this type of story! WATCH IT IF YOU LIKE violence and gangs mixed in with some unique love story.Was this review helpful to you?
1This review may contain spoilers
Satisfying In All Aspects!
(No spoiler until the bottom of the review)This is the most fulfilling series! The acting, script, cinematography, music, production value, everything! The show is not 100% perfect, but it still FEELS like a 10/10. The mood it set, the tension that was built, the deep bonding between characters... it hooked me immediately and kept me enthralled throughout. I didn't fast-forward through anything, it was all worth watching.
Everyone is perfectly cast! Gun especially did a fantastic job as the two twins White and Black. His energy, the way he carried himself, and the look in his eyes were so distinct between them. Phenomenal acting. All the characters, even the secondary ones, felt like fully-fleshed people. The script, acting, and directing all supported this. I became invested in almost all of the characters! And I loved the different group dynamics.
I loved how this was done: It's hard to describe but it felt like the focus was on the slowly built bond and trust between White and Sean, NOT on the romance of it. Yet when it did become romantic, it was immensely powerful because of how carefully their connection had been built up. It felt so real/realistic and filled me with warmth, happiness, and satisfaction.
The politics of the story was interwoven very well with the plot. I appreciated that it often gave arguments from opposing viewpoints and mostly didn't feel too heavy-handed or preach-y. Instead it was easy to invest in the group's goals and root for their cause, even if they had disagreements amongst themselves (or with others) on the best way to go about it.
Most of the time I wasn't conscious of what the background music was doing. I like that because it means it was an effective support and not a distraction. Whenever I did notice it, it fit perfectly to enhance the emotions I was already feeling.
I already know this is a show I will watch again and again, at least once a year. It has filled my heart full of feelings and prompted some thoughtful thinking.
GENERAL SPOILER on the ending:
I liked the ending. It felt like a natural lull in a story that would continue. A time when our beloved characters are in a good spot even though their fight is not over. They still have goals they want to accomplish but we are able to be hopeful with them. It felt like a satisfying end to the show but didn't feel like an end to their story. Beautifully done.
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THE BEST BL I HAVE EVER WATCHED
I honestly don't have much to say other than watch this BL. It was SO GOOD. I was completely entranced every episode, I didn't want it to end. The acting, the music, the cinematography, the story it was all so good and I can't get it off my mind and literally no series hits the same anymore. Also like I loved every single side character and was invested in all their stories which is so rare for me. GRAM AND YOK AND DAN their stories like held their own but were also beautifully entwined with the main storyline. And don't even get me started on the level of acting Off and Gun brought to this show. the characters were all so complex and the actors DELIVERED. The soundtrack was so good I have OEOEOEOEOEOE playing on repeat on Spotify (if u kno u kno). Lit just rambling but that's how good the show is I can't even think straight. I can't wait to rewatch it. I'm praying for a season 2. WATCH IT!!!!Was this review helpful to you?
THE STORY: In short, I like both the BL story and the non-BL story, it's a rarity that both stories actually work. I love the theme, I love on how the script could cover a lot of social issues in Thai (read the news, folks, three fingers salute) without having to bore the viewers, but yet simple enough to understand. Looks like, everything can be outfront, except the monarch. One more thing to appreciate is this BL series does cover LGBT rights, something that often missed out on other popular BLs. However, I have to admit there are some parts that doesn't go: the heist and escape drama needs more thrill, White's journey disguising as Black are filled with "side" quests that gave virtually no point other than "our gang members can be fucking cool", and twice the episodes are ended with fake alarms ("it was just my friend testing me").
ACTING: We've seen Gun Attaphan's award-winning acting in The Gifted, so it's no surprise that Gun can play two different characters of a completely different aura. We've seen White for so long and when we finally get to be introduced to Black, it feels amazing, I'm once again in awe of his acting skills. I also give applause for other actors and actresses: Off's acting is an upgrade (his acting under the rainbow flag scene is on point!), First and Gawin's love story stole the show, and others too.
DIRECTING & OTHERS: Nuchy herself is an award-winning film director, so I feel relieved the series is on her hand. Otherwise I cannot imagine how horrible the series would be without her (and her amazing team). The series put excruciating details on the visual; and notice that many of the camera techniques used throughout the series were cinematically different than other GMM TV series; I feel like watching a movie rather than a TV series. How about the music? Rather than staying with a set of basic scores, Not Me has put some 200 different songs sampled to accompany different scenes and moods, and this creates another cinematically different experience compared to other GMM TV series.
CONCLUSION: I see BL fans might get disappointed because the non-BL story dominated the overall series, but this is what I want from BL series. Many BL series put too much effort on romance and fan service, abandoning overall story and other aspects - Not Me successfully balanced it. Kissing scenes and other romantic moments were built without stereotyping and while they are intense, they don't hypersexualizing it. While Sean & White's love story were built under poorly made bricks, Yok & Dan's love story is concrete and solid. Looks like the action and non-BL drama needs more improvement, but Nuchy still can cover it and make it enjoyable, quite decent for a TV drama standard.
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This was not just another BL
It was obvious from the beginning that this was going to be in another level. But, it still exceeded all of my expetations. Gun nailed it in playing two characters, you could really see the difference between White and Black, you could actually think they were two different people. One complain I have is that I really wish we had seen more of Black, maybe more flashbacks or having him come back two episodes earlier, he pretty much only showed up to be hot and kick ass, but he did those two things VERY WELL.Off, Papi really went off with this role, everytime I see the scene when they break in Tawi's factory and they have to act only witb their eyes, I still have chills, his voice breaking when he called Black's name while he was beating his ass up...
Now, the story, the polical satire, pushing for diversity, and the fact that they were doing that through art is what really got me. The show ended with a reminder that things can't and won't change over night, but as long theres people willing to fight, there will be hope. The van scene, the people saving them gave me teary eye, because it show how much power the people have if they unite in one cause.
The relationships:
White and Sean. Chemistry on point as we would expect from OffGun, well devoloped, cute, hot and the right ammout of angst. They were surprisenly good at communication even with the secret identity between them
Yok and Dan: the acting was on point, they were so emotional and cute. Yok's pain of being betrayed by Dan really hit me, and I loved that by the end Yok fargave Dan without knowing why he did what he did, It was like saying that all he needed to know is that he was sorry and was ready to change and that punch was weirdely satisfying
Gram and Eugene: NOOOO. That made absolutely no sense, we were led to believe Gram was in love with Black and I understand not having time to develop something between Gram and Black wich Im convinced was the initial plan, I know they had to reshoot most scenes from the last episodes so ... I understand, but I was fine with Gram having a one sided crush, why stuck him with Eugene ? Also, who does that to a friend? To me it just doesn't fit Gram's character to go after his friend's ex. It doesn't fit Eugene either, she was obviously not over Black, it also bothered me when Eugene is having her flashbacks remenbering her relationship with Black, most scenes was the ones with White. They did had chemistry, it just didn't make sense.
White and Black: weirdely enough, it actually work, never mind that we had a scene with the twins where Gun actually got naked but had to be cut from the waist down. They had amazing brotherhood, their supernatural connection played it well on the story without being cringey. I dont know what else to say, they were very good together despite the fact that it was only one actor playing both roles.
The Gang: so, this is where the story gets me, the trio Gram, Yok and Sean were awsome together. The rooftop scene, the banter when they were making plans, especially the hug when Sean gets shot, everything was well scripted and the loyalty and brotherhood was there, but, White felt out of place in it which made sense in the first episodes, but towards the end it felt like he still wasn't part of the gang despite telling them the truth, it was like he was just taging along. While Black was barely part of the group, at the beginning we were told that he was their leader but when he comes back and they learn the truth about White nobody stops to ask where the hell have Black went.
PS: those parkour jumps were awful.
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"freedom is everybody’s business" -- NOT ME: a love letter to Thai people
Not Me is undoubtedly one of the best Thai series ever made and it's a product of an incredible amount of care. as i said in the title of this review, Not Me is a love letter to the people of Thailand by the producers, the writers, the actors, and everyone else that was involved in the production of this show. it is a poignant love letter to Thailand's queer community, their revolutionaries, the Thai proletariat, and everyone else who is marginalized by the system, written by people who clearly care a lot and want better for their country and their people.besides having an incredibly well-written, complex, and layered scenario; intentional and complementary sound design; creative, boundary-breaking, and emotional cinematography; this show addresses a lot of important societal issues, such as labor rights for disabled people, class differences, educational opportunities based on class, privileges and social/cultural capital, the idea of law as justice, corruption, nepotism, police brutality, workers' rights, the “right” ways of the revolution, the luxury to protest, and many more. this show is very unapologetically anti-capitalist AND very unapologetically queer; what better way to communicate its messages than through one of Thailand’s most influential soft powers? a BL.
one thing that particularly impressed me was how the show did not hold back at all; as much as they were unapologetically anti-capitalist and pro-revolution, they were not afraid to explore the gray zones and they were not worried about getting everything "right." the variation in different characters' different approaches to the "revolution," or radicalism in general, the ambiguities in their ideologies, the different ways they all approached the cause based on their lived experiences; it all added so much nuance to the show and showed how the writers/producers took their audience seriously and wanted us to grapple with these ideas.
the quote i added in the title is from Dolemite (1975) and the context is Black people's liberation; it says, "revolution was never meant to be easy [...] it's not a matter of color. freedom is everybody's business." i added this in because while Not Me takes place in Thailand, the issues addressed are universal and freedom is everybody's business, which includes yours and mine. since solidarity was also one of the points the show emphasized as being very important for any sort of societal change, i believe it is worthwhile to make a point out of this.
furthermore, i loved how the gang were portrayed as frequent readers who constantly engaged with radical material. i loved how the characters participated in discourse, as in there was actual dialogue written for different characters going back and forth, about the issues addressed by the show. i particularly loved Nuch's input & their discussions with Gram. i loved how all of these characters approached the fight in creative and unique ways. there were expressionist dancers, expressionist artists, readers, those who fought by protesting, those who made signs for protests, those who organized on social media; there was space for all.
ACTING -- as strong as the scenario of this show is, the acting performances of the whole cast need just as much praise. starting with Gun, who had the hardest job of all yet delivered phenomenally, his acting is never really over the top but always nuanced and intentional. the way he played White, the way he played Black, the way he played the White that was pretending to be Black, and the way he played the Black that was pretending to be White, were all different and easily identifiable just by his gaze. it was almost like the look on his face reflected the lived experiences of the character he was playing; his gaze was cold, controlled, and firm when he was Black, whereas he looked inexperienced but passionate, innocent but not dumb, and filled with so much hope when he played White. Not Me also had Off's best acting. i never thought Off gave any particular outstanding performances in his previous work that i've seen or i've never seen an OffGun show and said, "yeah, Gun is great but look at Off's performance," until i watched him in Not Me. Off's performance in Not Me very much stands out and is proof that a good script and director can bring out very different skills in an actor. he did a great job at portraying Sean's grievances, his pain, his anger, and his shortcomings. additionally, i thought OffGun had so much more chemistry in this show than their other shows together, which also shows chemistry can be cultivated through writing & directing and it is not static between two people. lastly, First also gave one of his best performances in Not Me. he was doing a lot of eye-acting and i particularly loved how he interpreted Yok's disappointment when he found out he had been betrayed.
POLICE BRUTALITY -- at first, i thought it was weird that they wrote Yok's love interest as a cop, who are agents of the state, tasked with stopping revolutionary efforts all around the world by any means necessary. however, this was one of the gray zones they explored, which did, in fact, serve a narrative purpose. Dan represented the people who understood what was wrong with society but fell victim to the idea that they can change things through becoming a part of the system. he became a cop and the very same system he thought he would be able to change by doing this made him complicit. he was given authority and power over the people simply by becoming a cop and he was given a deadly weapon, as well as the authority to shoot whenever he felt "threatened." eventually, he ended up becoming a well-working part of the system and reinforcing the same conditions he hoped to change through becoming a cop.
despite appreciating Not Me addressing how systems of oppression cannot be changed from the inside, i thought the show really dropped the ball when it comes to Dan and his police brutality storyline, especially considering the global political climate at the time this show came out, as well as them mentioning the Black Lives Matter protests. despite the heavy, heavy guilt Dan felt, which Gawin beautifully portrayed, i found it very hard to feel sympathy towards him after he revealed how he "accidentally" killed a presumed-to-be-guilty yet unarmed person (not that it matters) who was running away and faced no consequences other than his conscience. he detailed how he did this, how his coworkers covered it up, how he felt so guilty that he changed stations, yet he never quit his job (until later). yet, he never found the family of the man he unlawfully killed and apologized. he left Sean without a father, took someone's partner from them, while exercising (abusing) his state-appointed power. he saw Sean seeking justice years ago yet he only went to him when he couldn't carry the guilt anymore. even worse, when confronting Sean, Dan says it was an accident, which shows that he still doesn't get it. this is how the system operates. he would not be in that position at all, with a gun in his hand and the power to direct it at someone, if he hadn't chosen to become a cop and a part of this system. he said it was an accident but he never really took responsibility. he killed a man but he never was judged by the law.
furthermore, i was really disappointed with Yok's reaction to finding out what Dan did, especially because he knew Dan for so little yet was friends with Sean for years and saw how traumatized and radicalized he was by his father's death. i felt like he really didn't feel the weight of what he did beyond how it made Dan feel. it was sort of this romantic, opening-up moment, which felt odd to me. i felt like all the things Yok said were wrong and lacked empathy for Sean; he said Dan was now making amends by fighting against Tawi when he never even took responsibility for what he did or even apologized so how could he be making amends? on whose terms? to who exactly? in what ways? i really didn't think he deserved to be comforted, especially by Sean's very own friend.
while watching the show, i said, "unless Sean kills Dan and takes his revenge or is able to get him charged with murder, i won’t think they handled that storyline fairly and it will just be (some cops are good but they make mistakes) copaganda to me," but the actual confrontation between Sean and Dan was so much worse because they made Sean look unreasonable for wanting revenge and it felt like he was forced into resolving this issue within himself for the comfort of everyone else. Yok was yelling at Sean, saying "he's trying his best to make it up to you" for, literally, killing his father through state-legitimized violence. on top of the fact that they kept referring to him making amends, which somehow did not involve the actual victims at all, i just felt crazy watching this particular scene. everything Gram said was even worse. he said, "don't take revenge, what are the laws for?" yet the laws clearly didn't do anything? in fact, the laws were in place to protect and empower those like Dan who protect and serve the state. if the law was there to provide justice to citizens, would Dan get away with killing someone just because he was wearing a badge? Gram said to punish the ones who really did wrong, which, he is right, because police killings are political and directly related to structural oppression and this is not a problem of individual shortcomings of one cop. yet, no form of "justice" was served for Sean and his family and Sean didn't deserve to be made to feel like his feelings weren't valid, no matter how impulsive. of course, i didn't actually want him to kill Dan and get himself in that predicament with the law, cause unlike Dan, he would be charged, but he wasn't wrong to want revenge.
NON-VIOLENCE -- one other area where i thought the show dropped the ball was their focus on non-violence in the context of the revolution, or simply, as it relates to societal change. it reminded me of all the people who were more worried about the looting of luxury stores, damage to property, or respectability politics during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, than the people who have been victimized by the police state for far too long, when we know all revolutions in the past have been won through using violence back. in Blood In My Eye, George Jackson says, "revolution builds in stages; it isn't cool or romantic; it's bold and vicious [...] the power of the people lies in its greater potential violence."
Not Me, in many ways, addressed how the law itself is not justice nor is it always just or correct. they acknowledged it is there for a reason but also showed the characters struggle with its limitations. they even openly said how the law exonerates the elite who use it for corruption because it’s made by them and for them. we often saw White question this; he said, “fair competitions only result from fair rules. what if the rules aren’t fair? is it right to break them?”
while they did address both sides of this spectrum, there was a focus on non-violence, especially portrayed by the main character White, who seemed to be in the middle of everything yet saw and acknowledged both sides. this focus on non-violence, which goes against the radical nature of the show, was disappointing but kind of expected. i was surprised at how honest and fearless the show was in addressing certain political and social themes that i thought they would not fall victim to the liberal notion of non-violence in the context of the revolution. also, them mentioning Martin Luther King Jr in the context of nonviolence was very on point because anytime someone wants to criticize revolutionary efforts, which, of course, can involve violence, they will quote MLK and how he advocated for non-violent protests. Not Me does the same and it's not surprising why they don't bring up other Black revolutionaries, like Kwame Ture, who said, "in order for nonviolence to work, your opponent must have a conscience." furthermore, MLK is always remembered by his most famous sayings about non-violence, yet his other words, such as, "one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws," go unmentioned.
it felt like maybe they intended to focus on unity and the positives to give people hope and make the idea of the revolution more palatable (then again it is a tv show), but diluting revolutionary efforts through notions of non-violence or more palatable and comfortable ways of revolting excuses the violence suffered by the people. both in Sean's case and in general, i think the expectation to stay calm through abuse is where the violence lies. it is almost offensive to ask people to contain their anger, to act respectable, to not use force, when state-sanctioned violence is normalized and millions live in poverty.
WHITE'S PRIVILEGE -- finally, i want to address White as the main character. i mentioned the show focusing on nonviolence before, and this focus is mainly established through White's character. before White took Black's place in the gang, they were already using different forms of violence to fight back.
when White first comes in, we see him as this rich, privileged, sheltered guy, and when he joins the first mission, he’s obviously dumbfounded. in a way, White represents the elite in juxtaposition to the rest of the gang, he doesn't have the same life experiences, he hasn't been burned by the system the way they have been because he's been on the other side, and he has little to no lived experiences with any forms of oppression. yet, he leads the conversations. he represents neutrality, intelligence, and logic while those like Sean or Black, who are rightfully angry, are portrayed as rabid dogs who lack civility and only know violence. White represents the elite's understanding of conflict and revolution and i don't like how him being the main character made it so that his point of view, one of neutrality, was emphasized.
however, this was also White's journey of understanding his privileges and his own position on this chess board, he said, “ [...] if the privileges i’ve had in my entire life come from exploiting others..” which very directly addresses capitalism and wealth inequality. the fact that White had an easy life where he did not have to think or act about the structural problems of society and systems of oppression is because he had the privilege not to. in the end, the show made it seem like it was White, who did not live in Thailand until recently, had no direct experiences with poverty, oppression, or state violence, and lived an overall privileged life, who would bring reason to the group and their actions against those like Tawi. in a way, it was White's neutrality and "logic" that diluted the revolutionary efforts of the gang, which were much more strong and radical when Black was leading them. the show made it seem like these guys, like Sean, who were radicalized through their direct experiences with injustice, were akin to savages acting on pure rage.
i'm emphasizing this point because it was so painfully obvious; even when they found out about the cop's betrayal, White was the one who could see both sides of it. while others were mad or disappointed, White, once again, represented reason and could immediately sympathize with Dan and did not seem to be as emotional about their efforts being ruined. however, what the show doesn't directly tell us is that White can afford to be neutral about this BECAUSE he is privileged. even his capacity for sympathy towards Dan demonstrates how privileged he actually is. he isn't as angry as others because he can afford to be. he hasn't been hurt and damaged by the system the way others have been. he doesn't have the same grievances despite believing in the same cause. yet, he was made to be the voice of reason, which everyone followed. he got to criticize, direct, and change the ways the gang went about the revolution and we were just supposed to believe he somehow knew better and was better, which seemed condescending. for example, when in EP6, White did not follow Sean's plan and assumed he knew better, it showed us that he did not value the experiences of the people who were actual victims of oppression, unlike him who only learned or read about these things. it seemed like the show created scenarios that made the gang look impulsive and thoughtless while White was always written to be the voice of reason and intelligence. as Attica Locke wrote, “you didn’t make good choices, you had good choices,” and that's how privilege operates.
IN CONCLUSION -- no matter my stance on some of the focus points of the show, i loved how they addressed the gray zones in a lot of the issues in the plot. they never claimed to be right or know everything about everything. they tried to acknowledge and explore as many viewpoints as possible, which made for a very enjoyable and educational watch.
most importantly, my favorite part of the show was how they made so much space for love throughout it all. we need so much of it. we need love for each other because that's how we build community. societal change can't come about if people don't care about each other. we need people like White to care about people like Sean. we need people to care when there is nothing in it for them. we need them to care even when it doesn't serve them. this is why i love how they didn't end the show with some unrealistic portrayal of a successful revolt or something. they ended it by emphasizing the most important point: solidarity, solidarity, solidarity. they ended with, "not me, not you, but everyone," emphasizing the importance of the collective over the individual.
and the fight continues.
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WOW, what a show.
This review will be brief. Not Me is a series that stands out for approaching social issues with a sensitivity that is not common in BL series. Cast, direction, script, cinematography and soundtrack: all on point. Gun knew how to interpret the twins naturally and moved between them in a sublime way. Off was also excellent as Sean. First and Fluke were wonderful as Yok and Dan.The only caveats would be in relation to the character Gram and his arc, whose development was not satisfactory. The second point was that the penultimate episode had such a dramatic load (and it was excellent) that it seems that there was nothing left for the finale. The final scene, however, is beautiful.
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