Cutie Pie (2022)

Disappointing!

This bl gave nothing at all and I was very hyped for it. The bl series had a good start but after like 3/4 episodes everything was a mess most scenes were cringy the NC scenes felt very forced and out of touch like they were putting on a performance not like two people causally In love and making out, the 3rd couple was bearable but still not enough to save the bl, the 2nd couple was very forgettable. I expected better and was let down big time
I literally have nothing more to say here but this review needs to be 500 words so I guess I’ll go on, most domundi BLs have this problem, the story line has potential but is always killed with lazy writing out of place events and lack of characterization and room for each character to be fully explored… I feel they need to work on that or all their BLs will be known for is just abundance of nc scenes and nothing else.

I guess they maybe deserve praise… the quality of the bl when it comes to the camera work was good ngl I loved that about cutie pie so even if it was unbearable at least it’s very clear 😭

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Cutie pie: A groomers wet dream

I saw other reviews and thought maybe I should still give it a shot because I was intrigued by ZeeNuNew and I instantly regretted my decision. From the first episode I knew I would struggle to make it to the end because how disjointed and stupid the story was. If you like toxic age gap relationships bordering on creepy ( or just outright creepy) then series might be for you. The power dynamics are downright unfair in the first two relationships: two super rich CEOs dating younger men who are genuinely afraid of them so they live secret lives which their CEO boyfriends know about and use to manipulate them.

The first relationship (Hia Lian and Kuea) even goes as far as having the couple be engaged from childhood (they met when Kuea was born and they got engaged at ages 13 and 5)which they keep reminding us of up until the end and led to one of the cringiest lines in the series “I’ve loved you since you were born”. The second relationship (Hia Yi and Khon Diao) was particularly disturbing to me because the actor who plays Khon Diao looked like and behaved like a prepubescent teenager in the show IMO (he was 19 when they filmed the show) and it was cringey watching him interact sexually with his scene partner who is 10 years older than him in real life. The premise of their entire relationship makes zero sense and just felt like an excuse to keep and groom a child. The last and best relationship (Nuer and Syn) was the only bright spot for me, they were age mates, enemies to lovers in the least toxic way possible and they had the most realistic relationship dynamic.

The assistants especially Foei did the job of providing comic relief well and I laughed whenever they were on screen. The chihuahua didn’t want to be there and it was so obvious, she kept running away but they wouldn’t let her go.

There was absolutely no character development instead we watched the character decline. One could argue that Hia Lian and Hia Yi had changed by the end but they didn’t, they just confessed their “love” and did the things they already knew their boyfriends wanted to manipulate them to staying in the relationship after treating them like dog shit for years. Kuea started off the series sassy, cute and talented but then he devolved into this weepy spineless caricature of a person. Khon Diao kinda stood up for himself a little but never followed through on his threats to leave. All it took was a dog, a salty dinner and a weak ass confession to bring him back to obedient puppy mode.

Overall, the series felt like an ad for groomers that was overly preachy about same-sex rights in Thailand. We literally could not go an episode without being reminded about how backwards their society is in that regard. I felt like they could have been more subtle and still make the message clear, instead they just kept pushing the agenda by showing us some of the most toxic relationships I’ve ever seen on screen.

In conclusion: Watch at your own risk.

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Great in the beginning but gets boring

It was personally one of the bl that I looked forward to and it started out great but it became boring after a few episodes. There was nothing special about the storyline and there was no excitement in watching the series. It felt like I was watching back-to-back filler episodes. Good casting and amazing budget but sadly, it didn't deliver as I hoped it would due to the poor plot. It was a disappointment and I feel sad for the amazing actors. I'm only finishing it because I'm already at the end but sadly, I won't be rewatching it.

(EDITED) I ended up dropping the series. I basically only see spoilers on Twitter and I’m good to go. Predictable ending and I don’t see why I need to watch the last 2 episodes.

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Even Love Scenes Couldn’t Save It

About the only good thing about this drama was the love scenes. It was nice that they showed real passion interaction and not anything that had overtones of rape, which you usually get an a BL. However the story was very bland and quite trope-ish. It’s basically like a heterosexual romance story you would have read in the 80s, with the whole arranged marriage and misunderstanding and stoic leading male. The acting wasn’t bad, but I have seen better and it may have helped the story if they’re acting had been a little bit better or more convincing. I would’ve given this a six if not for the production value and the love scenes. That was about the only real passion I saw in this drama. But it’s nothing that I will remember or want to watch again

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Still good but a HUGE LET DOWN!!!!!!!

I enjoyed it A LOT...From ep 1 to ep 6 that is. Starting from ep 7 it just went downhill for me. From the moment Kuea realized it was Lian he kissed in the 1st ep it meant he didn't have to lie about anything anymore as he realizes Lian new about Kirin. But somehow that weirdly slipped Kuea's mind and the lying dragged on for some more till the freaking end. Also YiDiao story was a hot mess I couldn't understand from start to finish. Nevermind they didn't explain the whole memory loss thing it basically means Diao went to live with a "stranger" he couldn't remember?! And since when exactly?? That did it for me...That was cherry on top in terms of ruining something that could've been really great! So still good but a HUGE LET DOWN!!!!!!!!!!!

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Enjoyable

I have to admit that I was looking forward to this show. I did overall enjoyed it. I thought the whole premise of two boys at such a young age would be expected to get married in a society that does not have marriage equality.
The main couple was cute, and it was clear, even with all the weirdness, that they loved each other and were destined to be together. The secondary couple was cute, too, Lin and Kondao.
Kirin's crew was so good. I really enjoyed their interactions with each other and Hia Lian. Sin and Nuea were so cute, especially with their kiss! You go, Nuea!
I do have some issues with the show. I feel that the odd brainwashing of the two main characters was never addressed by anyone in the show. I did enjoy the push for marriage equality at the end, but I wish it had been a bigger issue through out the series, not just mentioned at the club and at the end.
It was never clear exactly what Lin did to Kondao. It was unclear as to why Lin felt the need to take care of him, even after Kondao came back to Thailand. I wish there had been a discussion with them about the past and perhaps looking forward to the future together.
I felt the acting overall was really good. I really appreciate Zee, Nu, Max and Nat. The overall chemistry between the characters was good too.
I do still have a few questions.

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Intolerable Absurdity

The very premise of this show, with an arranged marriage - something extremely backwards - but a homosexual one - something progressive - is quite weird. But that's OK, I was curious how they would handle this concept and started watching in good faith. However, the idea that the older man in the arranged couple becomes the owner of the younger man, who has to obey him and cannot even go out without his permission - that was too much. The main character becomes a slave to his arranged fiancé and even his mother checks if he wasn't "naughty". The fiancé feels that he has every right to control and adult person, tell him what to do, what not to do and how to behave. What a horrible, suffocating, toxic situation! With such power relations, building love chemistry is simply impossible. I admire the actors, who did their best to make it look realistic, but even though they are clearly talented, the level of absurdity was simply too high.

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there is no plot here

my headline is really the main flaw i see here I gave the plot a 6 but I was being generous really if I was a bit meaner I would just give it a 2 or something.

regarding the plot again, there is no plot. arranged married trope done horribly and weirdly. the fact that their grandpas set up two literal kids for marriage that isn't even legalized ( I only loved the fact that they mentioned this issue not many dramas talk about this issues) for status reasons is just unrealistic I'm sorry. How'd they even know that they liked guys? why did kuea reject him at first? why did lian lie at all? why did lian act as if he didn't kuea back? the answers are just pure stupid it's like the writers were so lazy. no actually scratch that it's like they are mocking us or something. I just felt very stupid watching this.

even when they talked about same sex marriage seemed very forced and out of place it's like it was forced in the conversation where it doesn't seem to fit. the dialogues were just sometimes awful like it's out of a kid's mouth or something.

the constant forcing of kuea on Lian and the way he treats him like crap most of the time in the beginning when obviously it wasn't reciprocated was just awfullll and then he pulled I have always loved you at the end like huh? what?


the chemistry: if im going to be thankful for this show for something it's this one. they were really attractive and they did have chemistry together and the on set chemistry just makes you want to watch even more but I guess that wasn't enough to make it that memorable.


the biggest flaw that made me fuming and it's the actual reason i hate this show because i can handle a stupid plot and I can definitely handle no chemistry, but the constant infantilising? no way it's super cringe and annoying the way kuea and his friend constantly infantilised their partners and giving them orders or forcing them to stay home specially with the side couple was CRAZY I don't even know what was that? what were they trying to discuss or prove or show ? I'm deeply confused.

I hated that and I still do and nothing can make me forget how stupid that was I'm scarred for life.

anyway to watch or not it's really up to you because one thing about it it's definitely not boring it will keep you going huh? what? or wow but it's watchable really there are some good moments there where the chemistry was through the roof. so maybe watch it for a laugh or something.

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Sometimes I think this was such a drag...

For this series I did like the cast but the plot is something you can wrap up for just like a few episodes, suggesting it to be called a mini series as opposed to the other way around. The main problem the whole entire secrecy of Nu-Kuea has been dragged all the way to the end which is redundant for me. I don't really get that, like, hey you are sure that Lian escorted you back to your secret home while you're drunk and you remember it in a sober state but you're like denying it. It's just like constant denial to the fact that you're silly arguing with yourself whether it's him or not. The secret with that was dragged for the whole entire series.

Also the manipulative tactics Lian shown to Nu-Kuea is unnecessarily choking. For example, forcing Nu-Kuea to move out from his home to live with you is a big NO to me especially when he said he'll call off the engagement. The persistence of Lian really annoyed me especially when I learned he bought Keerati's assets for unknown reasons. Fortunately, he gave it to Nu-Kuea but I don't really think it's good to keep it secret from Nu-Kuea to the fact that Nu-Kuea's mother also know what was going on. I know he's helping Keerati family to regain their assets but I don't think this needs to be done secretly like there's no such point I can think of. The sudden changes in the way Lian was behaving is what a manipulator do which is awful. I mean if you have good intentions at all, why you need to do this and that. I really wish the series could have been shorter and the running time too.

There was also a vague remembrance towards Kon Diao's accident, I don't really know if it's just me or not. Maybe the dog Hia Yi was holding just got out and bit Diao. It's just silly because being bitten by a dog dont cause amnesia lol. The story between the second couple is just like a small portion of a pie and there's more to flesh out. Hia Yi and Hia Lian most of the time giving me poker faces. The idea of a sudden date of Hia Yi and Kon Diao should've have been removed whatsoever because it's awful. The insistence of Kon Diao of considering Hia Yi to display a label in their relationship is I don't think what I needed. That don't really made sense to me because the two main couples started being in a fixed constricting engagement.

The whole sequence of these arranged relationships doesn't seemed to make a right point for me because the two Hia's are just as controlling as they are manipulative towards their partners. This made Kon Diao and Nu-Kuea made masks when they face their fiances them switching off into their true selves. Though the two Hia's assured them that they have to be true to themselves, the surrounding secrets about buying Keerati's assets and the past accident of Diao are still overbearing especially when Nu-Kuea discovered his partner's secrets. Nu-Kuea struggled a lot because of the pressure of being a partner to someone who's not his vibe as well as Kon Diao to Hia Yi.

Like I said, the main issue is the secrets hidden dragged too long and manipulative tactics made this series not so pleasant to watch but I salute the series's ending which promotes equal marriage no matter who you are and being true to yourself. I think that made the finale satisfying to me beyond the problematic prolonged plot.

The casts were good especially Nat Natasit and Tutor Koraphat being eye candies. I just love them being on screen. I also love TutorYim, especially the scene where they were in a bar and someone accidentally pushed Yim towards Tutor kissing him which Tutor's character reciprocating how to kiss properly. That's just a love bomb to me, it gave me butterflies I needed for the series. Nat is really cute and pleasant to watch. His presence, though his personality here is seemingly timid, still glows even when he's just on the side of the screen! Zee's acting skills are toned down here much from Why R U? I kinda hope they evoke emotions out of him when he needed because his character's personality is plain boring and stoic like Max's.

The OSTs are really good. I had my ears for the songs in this series. The production is up to par, they really did that especially the cinematography in the finale ep where Hia made his way through the traffic. I love the shot there. That's all for this review, I hope no producers, writers or director would use the same toxic things I had found in this series, because if they will it will surely flop for shizzle!!

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Different Story, Same Themes - Rich gays and miscommunications

Arranged marriage was an interesting topic to introduce especially as a same-sex couple that has never been heard of before and also to show an older gay couple (grandparents who got them engaged).

What I don't understand is that two people who grew up together and are engaged don't know the personality of the other person and have to hide a major part of themselves from each other. The misunderstandings in the drama are things that can be easily resolved by short explanations and just listening to the other. Even after Lian declares his love to Keau multiple times, he is still doubtful.

Also, a little bit annoyed by the concept of rich gays. The majority of the BLs have either one or both of the main characters be filthy rich. Not sure why that is the theme in most dramas but it is getting repetitive. I wish to see characters from everyday life who don't have a lot of money but still live happily and lovingly.

Other than that, the acting and the visuals of the series were fantastic. It was very beautifully made. I loved the friendship between Keau and Kon-Diao as well as his other friends from class. Also, the friendship between Lian and Yi was pretty cool. Their interactions were exciting to watch especially when they both talk about their significant others. Adorable!

Syn was another unique character who is a main support character and also super religious. Haven't seen a character like that one. It was refreshing.

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Not Bad, But Not Great.

Plot: Kuea is part of a rich family who has close ties to Lian's family. Since the boys were young, Lian and Kuea were set up to be in an arranged marriage by Kuea's grandfather. In the beginning of the drama, we learn that Kuea has a second life that he keeps hidden from Lian because he's afraid that Lian will disapprove of his interests. He's created a different version of himself that he presents to Lian, but that is not the real him. Unbeknownst to him, Lian already knows all of his secrets but is waiting for Kuea to finally be brave and tell him the truth. So throughout the whole series we see Lian put Kuea in situations where he has to finally tell the truth about himself, only to learn that Lian loves him for who he is.

I usually have more to say about a drama and I usually dive into the pros and cons of each drama. I think that there weren't really pros or cons. It was just a blah drama. I liked Kuea's acting because he was quite expressive. But there were some troubling plot themes. Like Lian practically stalking Kuea at all times. Kuea doesn't know, but Lian basically knows every move he's made. And he doesn't tell Kuea at all.

It's as if the drama almost wants us to believe that the theme is that couples should have open communication with one another to avoid having problems. Lian loves Kuea, but by never expressing it, Kuea starts to doubt his every move. Kuea lies to Lian about his interests and never tells him how he's truly feeling. This theme may have worked if Lian didn't already know everything that Kuea was doing. Kuea has a secret house that he sneaks off to, to hang out with his best friend; Lian knows. Kuea is a famous bar singer named Kirin; Lian already knows. Kuea has changed his major; Lian knows. Kuea rides a motorcyle and fast cars on a track; Lian knows (this one was the most puzzling since he was going to Lian's best friend's racing track). What this does is it makes Lian's secrets come off badly. Yes Kuea kept secrets about his true interests, but Lian kept secrets about the house deed. He misled him when he told Kuea he didn't love him "as he was (which was the fake Kuea)." And the fact that he kept tabs on Kuea, in everything he did, was very weird. It was almost stalker-ish. It felt very unequal. I would have loved to see both of them discover things about each other. I think it would've made the drama make more sense. Both men were put in this arranged marriage, and they spent time away from each other. It would've been much more convincing to see both of them have these expectations of each other, and slowly find out that they were wrong. That, as they learn these truths that were opposite of what they expected, they actually loved their real selves much more.

Finally, the actual actors put a lot of time acting like they are in love with each other, but is seems that New is quite uncomfortable with the skinship. It's like Zee forces himself onto New and because there's a camera on, New tries his best to laugh it off even though he clearly looks uncomfortable. I don't like that at all.

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