Close Friend (2021)

Too rushed and unable to meet its full potential

Episode 1: 7/10 (Pretend To Love)
—Story- When I saw episode one would be OhmFluke I was very excited as I already knew they have great chemistry together. Unfortunately the fast paced plot meant their relationship didn’t go anywhere, and they were hardly in any scenes together despite the whole first episode being about them. I appreciate 20 minutes isn’t a lot of time for a full story to take place, but they could have done so much better than that. It was a huge mess with no real closure to the jealousy and misunderstandings, and the ending felt so incomplete. As a start to the series it really fell short for me and while I love OhmFluke so much, and we got to see Fluke’s award winning tears again, they didn’t have their chance to shine which was severely disappointing.
—Acting/Cast- Ohm as Pierce: Ohm is a pretty good actor, but unfortunately this series didn’t showcase his talents as he played a character with little emotion, meaning we couldn’t see a full range from him. His facial expressions were lacking and even when faced with a potential breakup his face was just quite blank and expressionless. I am a little disappointed with his character and was sad that Pierce didn’t have the time to properly apologise for when he did, but at least we got something.
Fluke as Typhoon: Fluke is back at it again with the top notch acting and the famous crying scenes he really excels in. While I feel like Ohm didn’t have the chance to shine that well, Fluke really showcased how a powerhouse actor can steal a scene with less than 5 minutes of screen time the entire episode. Fluke is honestly one of my favourite actors and this just goes to show why. His acting in the final scene was the best part of that episode and is the main reason I ranked this episode as high as I did. I really hope to keep seeing more of Fluke in the future!
—Overall, I’ll give this episode a 7/10 which I believe is quite generous in the circumstances. It could have been so much better with a better director and more time, but they really took over in the limited time they had and gave the best performance they could.

Episode 2: 5.5/10 (Just Friend)
—Story- Well, I wasn’t expecting any bestiality in a drama but first time for everything I suppose. Everything about this episode was just strange and confusing. Although I liked JaFirst ever since I saw them in TharnType 2, I just don’t understand why First had to be a cat that only we could see as a human, it was the strangest thing I’ve ever seen. Other than the confusion at this part, the rest of it was pretty good. Although it was fast paced, it didn’t feel rushed or incomplete like episode 1 did, although it left me with several unanswered questions (like seriously, who sends a potential partner home just to cuddle with your cat, maybe it’s because I’m not a huge animal lover but I just don’t understand.)
Acting/Cast- First as Moojoom: Well, he played a pretty good cat even if it was the weirdest thing to watch a human meow and swipe at the air like that. He looked very sweet and defenceless in the box which I suppose a human version of a cat may look like, and First is very good at acting sad and depressed which made him rather pitiful when he was locked in the bathroom. As I said before, it was such a weird episode that I’m still questioning what I just watched and because of this I don’t think I can rate his acting very well.
Ja as Xin: Ja is a pretty good actor and although he’s still a relatively new actor, he’s very good and I’ve enjoyed his other works such as TharnType and UWMA. As I mentioned in First’s review, it was such a weird episode that I don’t think I can rate his acting very well, but he did a very good job playing with Moojoom (his human cat lol).
—Overall- I’ll give this episode a 5.5/10. The storyline was a little better because it didn’t have the same incomplete feeling that episode 1 left me with, but the fact that it’s a romance between an animal and a human meant that any enjoyment I got out of the episode was replaced with an abnormal feeling of bewilderment.

Episode 3: 9.5/10 (Willing Or Not)
—Story- This was one of my favourite episodes so far and I actually enjoyed it a lot (mainly because I love judo). After the first 2 episodes I was getting a bit sceptical as to the quality of this series, but MaxNat really saved this for me. As the storyline wasn’t in as much depth, it didn’t feel fast-paced or rushed at all, and honestly 15 minutes felt like much longer. Despite having no particularly romantic scenes (other than the piggyback at the end) Max and Nat had great chemistry, which combined with a more interesting plot, meant they did a really good job with this episode.
—Acting/Cast- Nat as Mini: Nat is actually a really good actor despite his age (ironic as he’s a few months older than me) and he always does such a good job. I first watched him in his debut role as Blue in WhyRU and have watched all the other projects he’s been in which was why I was so excited to see him here. Although now I play quite a few different sports, a few years ago I hated any type of sports or athletics, which is why I found Nat acting exhausted and tired really relatable for me. I loved his little commentaries when he looked at the camera and started complaining about something Titan did.
Max as Titan: I still can’t believe Nat (who is short) is called Mini and Max (who is really tall) was called Titan, but when I first heard his name I had to pause the episode and laugh at the hilarity of it. Max actually reminds me of my old Volleyball coach, incredibly determined and won’t let you take a break until you can barely move. I always think coaches and instructors like that are the best because you can guarantee you will learn some important lessons from them, which is why I really loved Titan in this series. Like Nat, I’ve also been watching all of Max’s projects since the beginning and I really enjoyed this episode with him in as well.
—Overall- I would have to give this a solid 9.5/10, it would be a full 10 if we actually got some romance like a sweet hug or even a kiss. I’ll settle on the piggyback at the end, but as this is supposed to be a BL series, it would have been nice to see some kind of romance. Other than that I honestly enjoyed everything about this episode.

Episode 4: 9/10 (Just One Life)
—Story- I’m so glad that episodes 3 and 4 have started to get better as I absolutely loved this episode. Although some people preferred this episode over MaxNat’s, I personally don’t think it was as good, only because I was quite confused about the plot. It did feel very rushed, one minute Peam is crying over his ex, the next he’s fallen in love with XiaoPing. Although it made more sense after rewatching it, when I first saw this episode I was quite confused by the beginning with Peam crying and wanting to throw himself off a bridge then XiaoPing appearing out of nowhere and cheering him up. Those were the only complaints I really had about this episode, everything else was so good. Yoon and Talay have such great chemistry from recording YYY the series and they definitely carried it on here, which has got me very excited for their episode on Y-Destiny. It was just a cute, fluffy episode without any drama and a breath of fresh air.
—Acting/Cast- Yoon as Peam: Although Yoon has done quite a few projects, he hasn’t had very many main roles which is quite surprising considering the high quality of his acting abilities. I first saw him in his main role in YYY where he flawlessly acted in such a funny, comedic series. It’s clear from this episode he has a certain charm that reveals itself when he plays a funny character which really draws you in. He’s so talented and I look forward to seeing his future projects.
Talay as XiaoPing: Although I knew Talay has done quite a lot of acting before, I never realised he’s a member of a boyband until I looked at his profile. He’s such a natural actor and I’ve enjoyed every project he’s been in with special emphasis on My Engineer and YYY. His expression management is no joke and the way he can manipulate audiences emotions just from a slight change in expression is incredible. He’s honestly so beautiful and his eyes are stunning, it’s so visually pleasing when he smiles that I keep falling more in love with him.
—Overall- I’m going to give this episode a 9/10. While this may be a rather unpopular view, I really did enjoy this episode, but I honestly think the slightly rushed place and simplistic plot set it a little lower than episode 3. However, it was still an amazing episode and I really liked it.

Episode 5: 10/10 (Dear My Star)
—Story- Okay, now it seems I have a new favourite episode. This was about a long distance relationship that connected through the 2 characters being “pen-pals” (thats what I would refer to it as but basically just talking through letters to someone in another city/country). This is the first time I’ve seen something like this as, while there have been dramas with online relationships forming, this episode was completely different from that. As this episode was set during the 90’s I was worried it would look tacky and obviously fake, but that wasn’t the case at all. It was such a natural setting and layout that if the camera hadn’t have had such high-quality definition and I didn’t already know Jimmy and Tommy, I would have honestly thought this was filmed in the 90’s.
—Acting/Cast- Jimmy as Night: Jimmy is such a great actor and I honestly keep forgetting he only started acting very recently when I watched him in a main role in WhyRU the series. His expression management is insane and I constantly find myself falling in love with how sweet and innocent he is. Although the episode lengths are quite short, due to the plot we were able to really meet the character of Night in depth and learn about him. I love Jimmy’s facial expressions when talking and writing to Mekhin, and when they met you could practically see the stars in their eyes. Jimmy and Tommy have such great chemistry and they definitely showcased that in this episode.
Tommy as Mekhin: Tommy is another actor I love to watch and I first saw him when he played a couple with Jimmy in WhyRU the series. Although that was the first time I saw him in a drama, he has been in the industry for 6 years so has had more experience than his costar. Tommy is such a great actor also for the ways he can manipulate the audience just from a simple change in expression. Although he’s played a couple with other actors than just Jimmy, he definitely has the best chemistry with Jimmy and it came across so well in this episode, making it my favourite one.
—Overall- This is definitely a full 10/10, I absolutely loved everything about this episode. The storyline was something unique and refreshing to watch, and Jimmy and Tommy’s chemistry made it even better. I honestly hope they will make an extended version of this episode some day!

Episode 6: 8/10 (Imagine You)
—Story- I’m still very confused about this episode due to the elements of Sci-fi that didn’t really make sense to me. KimCop are one of my favourite BL couples in the industry so I was so excited and happy to see them here, but I think the plot they were given was too confusing for only a 15 minute episode. I thought the VR concept was great and a really interesting idea, but it should have been a series within itself instead of a single episode which made it all quite rushed and complicated. I have quite a few questions about the ending, particularly whether Jedi actually carries the memories from his VR counterpart or if he has no idea who he is, but why was he nice to Ray one minute, then cold to him the next? Although the confusing storyline ruined the episode for me a little, as this could have had the potential to be my next favourite episode, KimCop have such great chemistry that I enjoyed the episode regardless.
—Acting/Cast- Copter as Ray: (recently edited this review to change Copters pronouns, they are non binary and use they/them pronouns <3) Copter is another actor I discovered right from the beginning of their career after their debut in 2 Moons, and I’ve followed them for almost every project they’ve taken on. I have so much respect for Copter as an incredible artist. They’re such a great actor and they definitely showcase their remarkable acting abilities in this episode. Ray was incredibly anxious and clumsy in front of Jedi which is very relatable as many people struggle to face their crushes head on, especially when you’re basically in love with a celebrity. Copter did a great job with Ray and I’m so excited to see them in many more of their upcoming projects.
Kimmon as Jedi: Kimmon, like Copter, I have been watching since his acting debut. Although I never realised he was in Love Sick 2 as well, I’ve watched nearly every series he’s been apart of and I’m constantly keeping an eye out for any new projects he takes on. Jedi was such an interesting character, both his physical self and VR persona, and I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about him. As I said before, if the episode was longer and we had the time to learn more about him and have some more questions answered then I would have loved him even more. Despite this he was such a cool character and, like Copter, I can’t wait to see more of Kimmon in the future.
—Overall- I’m going to have to give this episode an 8/10 because of the short, confusing plot. This is one of those episodes where the perfect phrase comes to mind “The idea was better than the execution”, which sums up this final episode perfectly.

Final Thoughts:
My final ranking of these 6 episodes is as followed:
1. Episode 5 (Jimmy and Tommy)
2. Episode 3 (Max and Nat)
3. Episode 4 (Yoon and Talay)
4. Episode 6 (Kimmon and Copter)
5. Episode 1 (Ohm and Fluke)
6. Episode 2 (Ja and First)

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Quick Entertainment

While I wouldn't say this is the BL of the year, I still had a lot of fun watching each individual couple and their story. I think that this could've been better had this been kind of like En Of Love and each couple got at least three-four episodes to enhance the story and go deeper in plot. It was a bit depressing to see that each episode was only about 20 minutes long. That's barely enough time to do any storytelling with. If anything, they could've made these episodes at least 40-45 minutes long and give us an actual thought-out plot. However, most of the couples did use their time wisely, and I was left entertained for the most part.

Let's Dive In

I'll go from my most favorite to least favorite episode. Most episodes were on the same scale, nothing much too better than the other. Although, some really did just do better (lol).

Night (Jimmy) and Mek (Tommy) - 9/10

I would PAY to see their story fully fleshed out into a 12 episode series. The entire vibe that this episode gave off was absolutely radiant. Out of all the episodes, this one used their allowed time the best. Nothing felt too rushed, and nothing was left unsaid. The plot was something pretty new. Since it takes place back in the 1990s, things are different, and their writing to each other, and using payphones, and it's too much for me to handle. Mek makes these itty-bitty origami stars that I think are the most heavenly thing I have ever experience. They write back and forth to each other, sending pictures and origamis and just having a fun time. Jimmy was the best thing ever. I love how he has the child-like aspect in his acting. He is literally an adult child (in a good way though). His sitting on the phone with Mek was just absolutely precious. I loved the way they met, and how the "a thousand stars" thing work out. I have a few nit-picky things which are that their relationship didn't necessarily feel like a relationship, and more like they were becoming close friends (LOL). This might be due to them only having 15 minutes to tell a story, but as I said, had this been longer, I think I would've been able to see their relationship grow further. The last thing, Please for the love of God, these boys do not pass as high school students. Hell, they barely pass as college students. It could've been better had it been the summer that they come back from college and had met through close friends or something along those lines. Anyways, I loved this story so much, Both Tommy and Jimmy did an excellent job, and I can't wait to see them in future series.

Jedi (Kimmon) and Ray (Copter) - 9/10

Come on now, this was the cutest thing ever. I just want to sit here and talk about how much I love Copter. He played this stubborn, stoic character in Geny Y, but here, he is just all bubbly and happy, and smiley, and I can't explain how much I love him. This was a concept I had never seen played out (a little bit in Great Men Academy, but not in this aspect), and it was beautiful. I liked how we could see the obvious difference between Jedi in the VR and the real Jedi. Everything really was just an illusion up until the end. Which, confused me a bit. So was Jedi actually in the game? Was he actually pretending not to know Ray? I would've liked more of an understanding of the ending, but I guess we can interpret it for ourselves. Kimmon was an absolute joy as well. He basically played the same character, but with completely different attitudes. I think I liked the real Jedi better just because we should never assume the traits or characteristics of actual celebrities and consider them to be the nicest people ever, which Ray gets a bit of a taste for up until the end. While I would love for real Jedi and Ray to get closer, I think it felt too rushed in the end. It was definitely there to give us a happy ending, but had this been an actual series, I would've wanted them to take more time before getting close like that. Overall, I really enjoyed this episode and think it would've made for a good full-length series.

Xiaoping (Lay) and Peem (Yoon) - 8/10

This episode reminded me of the Kao and Pete one from Our Skyy. This was the episode adventure, in which they go on some hunt to find something. For these two, it was a hunt for Peem to be able to...find love? That part was a bit confusing. I'm not sure if they were searching for Peem's true love or for luck in his love life, or for him to get his ex-girlfriend back. But besides that, I think this episode was pretty cute. I loved them going through the maze and us getting a wide birdseye view of them. I liked how Xiao had an already established crush on Peem and tries to help him with his problems while also trying to get the courage to tell Peem that he likes him. The only thing I was a bit confused about was the sparkling ray around Xiao at the beginning of the episode. What was that supposed to represent? that Peem was seeing his true love? I don know. once again, maybe it's something for us to interpret, but I would've liked to see that beam of light around him at the end to connect us to the beginning and give a clear understanding. Peem's actions were a bit ambiguous at the beginning. I'm pretty sure he was on the verge of committing suicide, which if that were the case, then I wish it would've been more spoken about throughout the series, and instead of trying to get back with his ex-girlfriend that made him feel this way, we build upon his confidence in himself and knowing that he can get passed her and move on. I felt like it was dropped too quickly, especially something as serious as harming oneself. Also, I think Xiao telling Peem that he liked him was cute, and once again they gave us a happy ending for the beck of it. Even though I liked that we get to see them go back and redo all of the rituals, I still would've liked it if Peem thought about it for a bit, since it was not obvious that he had any prior feelings for Xiao like Xiao did for Peem. But once again, with only 15 minutes, you've got to up with a resolution fast; there's just no time for extra. Overall, this was a cute adventure, and I enjoyed seeing Lay again.

Mini (Nat) and Titan (Max)- 7/10

This was a surprise to me how much I actually enjoyed this episode. I believe it was a bit entertaining with these two because I feel like they have spent enough time together for me to actually ship them. It was a great creative choice to have them do a montage of them practicing together cause we see them grow in their relationship and see that they've spent quite a lot of time together. This was one of the sillier episodes perse. While I'm not too big of a fan of the comedic BL's, I will say that this one did have that aspect about it that I liked. For one, I just loved the height difference between Nat and Max. I'm a sucker for height differences. The only thing I can say that I'm not fond of is Nat's acting. I'm pretty sure he's still brand new in the acting field, but a lot of his expression and emotions are so stoic and so monotoned. I hope he can improve in his acting before any other roles are given to him. I don't get how when it comes to jujitsu or karate there is only ever one move. There are plenty of moves in these activities but these series only give one defined move. Would love to see literally anything else. I didn't understand Mini's reasoning for breaking the 4th wall. It was to narrate what was going on, but I would've liked to see it instead of being told. Overall, this was a decent watch and left me entertained for the most part.

Pierce (Ohm) and Typhoon (Fluke) - 6/10

Confused is the only word that comes to mind for this episode. This did not leave a good first impression. While I was so excited to see Ohm and Fluke again (since I hadn't seen them since UWMA), I was rather disappointed in this. For one, Fluke had little to no screen time. I wanted to see more of him so badly. I'm absolutely in love with Fluke's acting, but this show (just like My Bromance - 5 Year Later) did not do him justice. Fluke is an incredible actor! Use him! But even with the time we see him, he did an incredible job, especially at the end. So many things went wrong. I liked that they already had an established relationship, and I liked how this was more on the serious side like others weren't. It's an actual thing for someone's love to not be on the same scale after some time, but it was not done right in this ep. Peirce spends most of his time in the studio with Marc, in which we get little hints that Marc might've grown feelings for him. because of this, Peirce and Typhoon are having a bit of a struggle in their relationship. The end did NOBODY justice. There were so many things left unsaid. Let's start with the fact that Peirce told Marc that Typhoon was only his brother. Why did we not see anything further for that? we should've at least seen Typhoon learning that Peirce had said that, or Marc figuring out that they're not just brothers. I needed something more on that cause it's obvious that Peirce is not ready to be public about their relationship. By the end, we see that Typhoon and Peirce land in an argument which leads to them breaking up (or not?). But this was so chaotic and so not realistic that I was left confused and needing another episode to fully understand. Peirce says they need a break and Typhoon doesn't want one so he cries and says "let's act like we're in love" and Peirce is like "sure" and they kiss? No, that's not okay. Pierce forgot their anniversary, Peirce lied about his relationship with Typhoon, Pierce had some underlying something going on with Marc, and he wasn't being open with Typhoon about anything. They weren't a good couple at all, and if anything, they needed that break to be reminded how much they love each other. Overall, too many things were left unsaid, and they aren't a healthy couple at all. But, because I love Fluke so much, and I do love their pairing, they get a somewhat decent score, as well as they had a few cute moments that I wish were built upon further.

MooJoom (First) and Xin (Ja) - 4/10

No, just no. This ep was so out of whack that I literally have no words. While the concept of the show was actually pretty neat, I think that this would've worked out better had it not been a romance and rather just a show about a dude and his pet and how they live throughout their life (kind of like those kid movies in which their pet turns into a human and they go through wild adventures together). But for the most part, I was uncomfortable. Especially when I thought they were going to kiss, it really hurt my stomach. It's literally a cat like the human Moojoom is not real and in fact, a literal cat. But, I think that First did an excellent job in his acting, which is why this isn't sitting lower than a 4. Actually, I was quite impressed with this couple, and hope to see them in other shows (one where there aren't any animals). Overall, the acting was good, but the fact that it was a cat just was too much for me to handle.

I'd say that overall, these were pretty good. I think there are even some episodes that would make for a killer series, and that I can see doing well in numbers. One thing that I will say I really enjoyed about this series was that there weren't any ads or brand deals. I think this is the first series ever in which I can't remember a single time that an ad was used. If so, then they did an incredible job at keeping it subtle. I would recommend this for a watch since it only took me a couple of hours to finish, but this will most likely be yet another forgotten series.

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