Step by Step (2023)

Brand new walk!

Everyone is probably so bored with Step by Step. I honestly am, not by the series but by the endless theories of this and that.
I loved Step by Step from the first moment, WHY... because it had that real-life element. People will do stupid shit, people won’t be logical, people will run if they are scared of being hurt, people will manipulate and people will be manipulated, people will lose the people they are head over heels in love over stupid things, people will lie...people will DO AND SAY STUPID S*IT and that is the one and only truth...

THE BIGGEST FLAW:

The 2nd couple is robbed of a great story, but I believe they might be having new project. But still robbed. Not many things can top the hotel forbidden kiss. That story could be awesome!

OVERALL:

I love this series, it was long enough to develop the characters in all their aspects. I did not find all the side characters equally interesting to be honest and I am not supposed to.

I loved the controlled chemistry so it looked more real life than fairy-tale BL love stories (I love fairy tales as well:P). Just like Love Mechanics, this series had the same back-and-forth dynamics, and it just felt real to me.

Also the best memes came as a product of this drama.

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One Step At A Time

Step By Step is one of those dramas that I feel you either love it or hate it. I found it to be different from most standard BLs with it's office setting and focusing on the office dynamics and work relationships as well as the romantic ones. It was initially pleasant that the leads' relationship wasn't rushed and had time to develop, but I do feel that it lost it's way towards the end. It's not a perfect drama by any means, it didn't always seem to know what to do with it's side characters, there were plot lines that popped up out of nowhere and others that were simply ghosted, there weren't always good explanations for why characters reacted the way that they did, etc. Still, I personally enjoyed it and thought it was a pleasant diversion.

The plot is nothing fancy, essentially an office romance between a boss and his subordinate, which of course is going to cause drama. What I liked about it though was the attention to detail in regards to that office setting. We actually get to see the characters working, going to meetings, presenting, and so on. Maybe because I'm at the ripe age of 32, I didn't find it boring, but I can understand those who did. Personally it felt like a slice of life drama with an office focus, but more realistic than others I've seen. Yes, there's the ridiculous and over the top moments and things that would never happen in actual office, but I enjoyed that quality of peeking into a world I'm not at all familiar with fictional though it may be. It did feel like the story started to lose steam a little over halfway through and didn't seem to know where to go from there. And then there at the end there was a lot of drama thrown in which, besides being unnecessary, felt rushed. And I have to say that the ending, while cute, was rather anti-climatic. Despite it's length, it still felt like there were unanswered questions.

The pacing was a mess. Most of the drama and actual issues with our leads' relationship were relegated to the last three episodes and that's because they didn't actually get together until Episode 10. I have no issues with a slow burn which this definitely was, but I think the story could have been better spread out, allowing them to get together sooner and actually have some time as a couple before the drama started and then showing them handling those issues as a couple or delving into their characters more to show why things ended between them the way that they did prior to the time jump. Time in general was a struggle with this drama as it was hard to tell how much time had passed. It didn't feel like much time had passed, but then things like Ae's pregnancy would make me realize that a lot more time had gone by than I thought. Especially in an office setting, it felt like they should have been able to more clearly show that time progression. There was also the issue with the side couples/story lines not getting the attention they deserved which, again, could have been rectified if the pacing and story planning had been better. As it was, we were left with a very unsatisfying ending for Jaab and Jen who essentially just disappeared as the story progressed, Ae, Khanun and Beam were also shuffled off to the side and only showed up on occasion after a while, Chot and his boyfriend were thrown in at random times, and there were other parts that just needed better planning.

One of the biggest things I felt was lacking was insight into the characters' thoughts and the reasoning behind their reactions. Two examples would be Jaab's sudden rejection of Jane and Pat's reaction to finding out Jeng was gay. Jane was a fairly minor character throughout the series, so I can understand to an extent not going in depth with his emotions and mental state, but given that we are given the impression that he is in a happy, committed relationship, I do think there needed to be more insight into why he was so swayed by Jaab. With Jaab, he's liked Jane for a while, so why when Jane reveals that he and his boyfriend broke up, does he say they should just be friends? They shared a kiss, it was obvious Jaab still had feelings for Jane so what was with that? There was no explanation, no reasoning, nothing as to why he didn't want to give a relationship with Jane a shot. Similarly, Pat's reaction to finding out Jeng was gay seemed over the top and unnecessary. Why was he so shocked and put off by that revelation? Pat's reactions to things involving Jeng didn't always make sense, but this one and his decision to ghost Jeng for two years felt like taking things to the extreme. There needed to be more explanation as to why Pat reacted the way that he did for me to understand and sympathize with him.

The characters ranged from good to mediocre. There were a couple of gems in there, but most of them didn't leave much, if any, of an impression. Overall, I found the way characters were treated to be a bit disappointing just because it was so all over the place. Some characters had great character development and others were left stagnant.
-Pat was definitely more on the mediocre side for me. His childishness, tantrums and changeability made him a hard character for me to really get on board with. More insight into his character, why he was the way that he was, would have been helpful. As it stands, he really did just come across as immature and there were times that I really struggled to understand what Jeng saw him in aside from that he is a cute kid. Jeng talked about how smart he was and that's something that should have been shown and utilized more because while he did seem intelligent, it didn't seem like he was extraordinarily so. There also needed to be more insight into his feelings for Jeng. While initially he was obviously attracted to Jeng before realizing that he was his boss, once that revelation came about, his interest seemed to cool. Afterwards, there were a few hints that maybe he was developing feelings for Jeng, but when he went back to Put, it put those feelings in question. Regarding Put, that conflict felt like it resolved far too quickly. We went from Pat not wanting to see him, speak to him, anything, to, what felt like in a very short time span, being willing to start a relationship with him again. And then Pat goes from crying over their breakup to confessing he has feelings for Jeng. I almost felt like I had whiplash with the way Pat's feelings seemed to keep jumping around. I also wanted to explore more as to why Pat didn't believe that Jeng's feelings for him were real and why he didn't feel like he deserved Jeng initially. I was frankly a bit disappointed in Pat's character growth. He talks at one point about he's grown so much and is no longer as emotional, but I didn't really see that a whole lot. He still seemed overemotional and overreactive to the end.
-Jeng was definitely one of the best characters. He was very interesting to watch, especially as his feelings for Pat developed which I felt was well done. His feelings were clearly built up, starting from polite interest which then grew into romantic feelings. There was never any doubt regarding his feelings for Pat. I wish they had done as well with Pat and his feelings. I also appreciated his character growth from no nonsense, perfectionist boss to someone who was able to let loose a bit. Part of what also appealing about him was that he wanted to change for the better and he made an effort to do so. There's the element that Pat did inspire those changes, but he made the conscious decision to change on his own. His maturity especially in contrast to Pat was refreshing especially when it came to things like Pat blaming him for essentially not being a mind reader. Pat seemed to think that he should be able to change with a snap of his fingers, not realizing that change does take time, and I was very impressed with Jeng's patience. I would have liked a little more time spent on his background and his relationship with his parents, especially his father. A lot of that was just skimmed over and there at the end, it didn't really feel like things had been resolved between him and his father. Still, I felt that he was overall a decently well-rounded character and I really liked him.
-I didn't have particularly strong feelings about most of the remaining characters save for a few. I found Jaab to be a weird combination of interesting and boring. He had moments where I was invested in him, but there were a lot of other moments where I almost wanted to skip his scenes because he wasn't doing anything for me. Once his relationship with Jane petered out, I really lost interest in him. I did like some of his interactions with Jeng though and the support he was willing to provide eventually. Jane could have been a much better character if he was fleshed out more. As it was, there just wasn't much too him and that made it difficult to relate to him or really feel anything strongly about his character. I was disappointed with that because I did like his relationship with Jaab and I wanted to see more of it's development. I really liked Ae and I wish there had been a bit more of her. Her confidence was awesome as was her obvious love for her friends. She was always ready to go to bat for them and she was just in general an awesome character. I like strong female characters and I feel like they tend to be lacking in a lot of BLs so she was a pleasant surprise. I did find the revelation that Beam had been in love with her to be a bit out of the blue since I hadn't gotten that impression earlier on and it just felt unnecessary. Chot was another gem, I loved that he had a well balanced personality. He had just the right amount of over the top without it being grating. Plus he was just a sweetheart in general, always there to listen and be supportive, an understanding friend and lover, and just an all around lovely person. I could use someone like him in my life. The last character I want to mention is Jeng's father. He was too much of an enigma for me to really appreciate his character and he definitely needed a bit more fleshing out. His actions and thought process were left very ambiguous which works sometimes, but not here. I wanted to understand his treatment of Jeng and Pat as it felt more than a disapproval of his son being gay and getting involved with one of his subordinates.

As for the acting, can I just start off by saying how refreshing it was to see them cast an age appropriate actor for Jeng's role. I couldn't help but thinking about like Moonlight Chicken and how they tried to convince us that Earth could pass for an almost 40 year old. Hair, makeup and clothes can only go so far and trying to make actors look and act older than they are really does not work. Man was perfect because he both looked and acted the part. He gave a certain maturity to the role that someone much younger simply can't. I enjoyed the nuance of his performance and thought he played the part perfectly. This was Ben's first acting role and it showed. He wasn't bad per se, just compared to Man, he felt green. His expressions didn't vary a whole lot and some of the emotional scenes felt forced. I do think if he'd had more experience, he could have better conveyed some of the emotions and thought processes of his character. I was pleased that they cast two actors who are clearly comfortable speaking English since the fluency matched both of their backstories. I've seen far too many dramas where they give their characters backstories of having grown up in the US or spent a lot of time there and are supposed to be fluent, but the actor is clearly not comfortable with the language. I completely understand that learning another language is a challenge, so no disrespect to those actors, it just personally pulls me out of the story when it's clear that they're not as comfortable with the language as the story is trying to make them seen. Both Man and Ben were articulate and clearly understandable and delivered their lines effortlessly.

Despite it's flaws, I overall enjoyed Step By Step. It's not perfect by any means and could have been better with some tweaks, but for what it is, I found it entertaining for the most part. The build up of the characters' relationship, the setting, and the characters themselves had a different feel from other BLs I've watched recently and I liked that. It felt distinctive in it's own way. As I said before, I think this drama is rather polarizing in that you will either love it or hate it without a whole lot in between. If you go in without any major expectations and understand that it is flawed, I think that can stave off the disappointment that some might feel. For my part, I wouldn't discourage anyone from watching it, just be aware that it's not for everyone.

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Lovely

If you like the atmosphere of Ugly Betty/She was Pretty and a little bit of Cherry Magic vibe you have to see it.
Man Trisanu Soranun's show alone is worth it.
I have seen some negative comments about Pat, the protagonist, I don't particularly like him, but you have to understand that he is a kid with no experience in life, which is what is interesting about the protagonists, who evolve throughout the series .
I liked seeing some characters from Lovely Writer, the secondary characters are good.
I personally like the creative work environment, that they are adults with adult problems and in the "real world".

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Is that the ending?

I first was really into the story. The tension was really high and I was wishing that they will be as much drama as regular drama. But no... They missed the mark by quickly ending the series. I wanted more father-son fight head to head to prove himself. I was hopping that Pat's evolution as a strong man (he's always crying) will be also shown. Gays are not the kind who are crying everywhere, because we never wanna show our weaknesses. I also wished for more between Pat and his ex, and also Jeng and his ex. It was way to flat and could have used more.

I think that Tee was too ambitious in this project and took a very complicated drama and cut it short for GMMTV. It's sad because I really had hope that it would be a good one. Everything changed when Pat quit his job. From then, it turned very fast. So fast it makes you feeling upset because you want to know more. When everything was slow at the beginning, it went so fast with so many things at once you loose the plot and interest and just wanna know the ending.

And lets not forget the frustrating story of Jaab and Jane. Not only it was one side story I loved, I also wanted much more from it. But as soon as they kissed, they became nearly invisible. Of course, it took time, but when Jane told Jaab he broke up with his boyfriend, thing could have become a reverse flirt with Jane trying to get Jaab, even if he wouldn't succeed and leave to Japan, it would have been better than just make them dessaper from each other's life. Jaab is so cute, he could have finish by being with Pat's ex, Put. They do work in the same environment and could have been better together at the end, after Jane left to Japan.

And who wasn't exited to see AA again. I wish he was going to be one of the main couples when I saw him, but he's only Jeng's friend and business partner. He could have been Moon's new boyfriend after Jane left him after kissing Jaab.

They missed so many things that it was hard to watch until the end. I do love the cast, and it is not about the acting (they were all fantastic), it is only about the storyline.

Plus, having a very high profile actor like Pete Thongchua to play Jeng's father and Orn Ornanong Panyawong to play Pat's mother mean that is was not a problem of money for this to be amazing.

So yes, I am disappointed. If only GMMTV would give more attention to the story instead of pushing for only short series, it would be good. I do love dramas because it is shorter than US series that goes for years. But when you have a good story, it could also be a bad thing !

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It started out so well!

We had everything we needed to make it work. A desire to show professional life for what it really is. A romance that takes its time to understand how the heroes fall in love.

The problem, which took me a long time to understand, is that Pat's character is extremely toxic. At first, we feel sorry for him and his "I overthink 24/7 and have zero self-confidence" side. But as the episodes progress, we realize that he makes no effort to adapt to others. He's always running away from the slightest problem (and with him, EVERYTHING is a problem) and he can never make a decision on his own. His ex even has to give him advice about his relationship with his other ex - the last straw! Watching the last episode, you end up getting very annoyed.

Jeng isn't perfect either. His need to control everything is problematic, but we're not on the same level as Pat. All in all, Jeng is reminiscent of that friend who spends his time getting back together with his toxic ex, despite his friends' recommendations.

As for the secondary characters, most of them serve no purpose. Jaab's story is both incomprehensible and unfinished.

In short, it's hard to enjoy this series to the end because of its unlovable main character. The very successful first episodes aren't enough.

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A drama that had better potential

This drama at first glance seems like your everyday, cheesy drama.....but this drama was definitely more than that. it has an absolutely amazing plot that leaves you confused with everything going on in the drama, beautiful characters that have no personality or depth in any way and an absolutely teary-eyed ending that leaves you regretting your whole decision to even stay up till 3 am trying to find the "happy ending".

But all sarcasm aside this drama was definitely not worth the watch. The only reason i decided to finish this drama was because it was produced by Dee Hup House. In the beginning the drama was actually going quite good. It was smooth and very typical the protagonist going on as an intern and the problems he faces in his workplace. But once both of the male protagonists meet all i could see was a lot of unwanted tension and hatred. The first male lead Jeng's character was actually portrayed quite well. A strong, and affluent businessman who was next in line to inherit his father's company. Man Trisanu had portrayed that character to a good level even though his character had a lot of incomplete personality traits. But on the other hand Pat played by Ben Bunyapol was a total mess. There was absolutely nothing to his character, no personality traits or even mechanisms. His character was very insecure and very manipulated .Very incomplete. Even after Jeng proposes and they start dating it was very awkward. The scenes seem kinda forced. That overwhelming rush of emotions were never to be found. And the entire romance was lacking of very basic elements like getting to know each other, trying to understand each other or anything. One blue moon day Jeng proposes Pat says no and then sometime later boom they are suddenly dating.

Even if you were to turn a blind eye to all this incomplete mess, there would be no way you would happen to miss how this drama left us hanging with the second couple Jaab and Jen. They just vanished out of thi air. Suddenly there is a Paint dude from god knows where who turns out to be Jaab's boyfriend. This drama also had a lot of unwanted time skips. Overall this drama was definitely not up the genre of office rom-coms. So this drama was an overall disappointment.

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some of y’all are harsh

this drama doesn’t deserve nearly the amount of hate it gets. is it the best thing ever? no, not by any stretch. however when there are dramas that excuse literal sexual assault, calling this the worst bl ever isn’t fair in my opinion.

if you’re not into slow burn this one isn’t going to be for you. but honestly i think that was evident in the title: step by step.

let’s start with what i didn’t like to get it out of the way. the pacing and time given to certain storyline’s wasn’t the best. spending that much time on jaab and jen only to give no resolute ending to them was in fact a choice. it’s clear the writers tried to pack in too much. in that regard i understand the frustration.

the production at times was admittedly messy. two characters in the same room with completely disparate audio quality. it often sounded like they recorded at different times. shaky camera work here and there. music cutting off abruptly to an almost jarringly silent background.

the other common critiques i can’t get as far behind however. i liked that our mains were realistically flawed. i don’t think what we ended up seeing was no character growth. growing as a person isn’t about never making mistakes or even never repeating those mistakes, it’s about acknowledging when you do. which was one of the biggest take aways of step by step - and i think they did that well. i personally don’t want characters who never do or say stupid things. especially when they’re young or come from extremely sheltered backgrounds. i want them to talk about it and find a common ground which pretty much all our characters succeeded at in the end.

i also greatly appreciated their critiques of the bl industry and the shippers. it was good to see an acknowledgement that whilst they use bl couples to sell products the company heads are often very homophobic and that the general public doesn’t like any gay couple if it conflicts with the marketed ship. a nice follow on from lovely writers’ criticisms imo.

again i understand that the agonisingly slow push and pull of it isn’t for everyone, but there are plenty of snappy bls where the mains get together by episode 5. i liked being dragged along by my back hairs personally. the one thing i will say is the breakup in episode eleven felt unnecessary. the conversation about them not always communicating in the most conducive way could have happened without them spending two years apart, but i digress.

all that paired with a cast of really likeable side characters i would absolutely rewatch this

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Semi-interesting story but with poor chemistry and bad directing

I started watching this after having seen a summary on YouTube which caught my interest.

The story per se is not bad, although a bit cliché. The department manager and heir of a big company and an employee fall for each other - misunderstandings ensue, drama emerges and generally K-drama proceeds as expected. So far so good.

First let me start with the positive things: all characters evolve in a manner which is not usual in such dramas. The plot has all the necessary ingredients to make a great drama.

However, and now come the negative things: the said elements simply do not work. They seem like random scenes thrown together in a way that they are completely disjoint. There is no read threat in the plot. Certain scenes do not fit, while others would fit if there weren't so large logical gaps between them. The lead characters (Pat and Jeng) come from completely different worlds. So different, that all their interactions seem dissociated from the story told. There is not enough going on to justify what is being told. One minute cry-baby Pat rejects his Boss because he still needs to find out his feelings (while he himself effectively plays around with his ex), and the next minute they divulge each other in the car. Mr. Perfect (Jeng) changes from a stern, hated by his employees manager into a respected team leader. Super rich, successful, handsome (like spending 3 hours in the gym on a daily basis), living in a super maisonette with his totally immature little brother (who undulates between subversiveness and independence, himself an innocent boy and at the same time a game player), excellent cook, who spends time to develop a recipe that suits Pat's taste buds, when he sees him saying he does not like celery. The gap is too large, and the causality of his actions simply is unbelievable. One detail that kept confusing me is also the time intervals between scenes. Sometimes something takes place the day after and sometimes a month or two later, and this is not made clear enough.

One last negative thing is the chemistry between the two main leads. I am anything but convinced that they develop feelings for each other. I guess, after having watched countless Bl dramas (I probably should find another hobby LOL) with actors who couldn't be better suited for each other, this one falls rather short. It is also their total incompatibility, mature vs. young, tall, full of muscles and totally manly vs. rather boyish, super rich vs. middle class, super clever and talented vs. more normal, good cook with his own restaurant vs bad cook (although son of a cook), I can go on for ever. The gap is really unbridgeable, and their initial encounter (when they still do not know who the other is) simply to short to develop such feelings. Everything seems forced and unrealistic.

I am not sure where to attribute all these flaws... Don't get me wrong, the series does not suck or anything, it simply is produced at a rather amateurish level.

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Cliche BL Set In Office

**Brief Synopsis**
B (Employee): Pat
T (CEO): Jeng

- Beginning: B is a new employee at T’s company. He meets T for the first time when he spilt coffee on him. T notices B way before B notices him. From the very start, T finds B interesting and slowly develops a crush on him. However, he is his manager so he tries to keep his crush a secret by being very strict with him.

- Middle: Despite trying his best at keeping a distance, he is still unable to resist getting closer to B and starts finding ways to spend time with him outside work. At first B is very nervous around him, believing him to be serious and strict and scary but after a while, he relaxes and starts to like him as well. After B suffers a heartbreak, T finally decides this is his chance and asks him out. His first confession is rejected because B doesn’t believe he is serious (as T is rich and handsome while B is just normal), but after some thought and advice from a friend, he decides to give it a chance. They started dating.

- End: But before they could have their happy ending, another obstacle comes their way. People have seen B and T being intimate so rumours that B had slept his way to a promotion began circulating around the company. B wants to cool it off for a while but T doesn’t want to discuss it. But when B finds out that T has kept an extremely big secret regarding his job from him, he is deeply hurt, breaks it off with T and leaves the company. Some times later, he finds himself face to face with T again, this time to collaborate on a new project. By that time, B has realized that perhaps he had misunderstood T and deeply regrets breaking up with him. He goes to see T and begs for a second chance, which T gives. The show ends with them together again.

**My Opinion**

WHAT I LIKED ABOUT IT:
- I really like the characters, especially the one playing T. He is really good at playing the manager and everything about him is just so sophisticated. B on the other hand is awkward and adorable. I really like this kind of pairing and have been rooting them on since the beginning and wondering just what T will be like once he starts dating B.
- Although still a little dramatized, I found the depiction of the workplace to be rather accurate. I’m glad they showed B dealing with being a new employee and T finding ways to support him even if they aren’t lovers yet.
- I really like the acting. The actors did a great job at portraying the affection between the two characters. They also did a great job at being what their characters were supposed to be. As for the supporting cast, their acting was okay as well.
- I really liked the concept of this show and for what it’s worth, I think the concept was pretty well executed. The pacing was a little too slow for my taste but the story flowed well.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE ABOUT IT:
- The plot is cliche and predictable. I have tried guessing what would happen multiple times and has guessed right every time. There is a set formula for these types of stories and this show falls within that formula.
- There were times when the dialogue was just a little bit too much, too awkward in mind but those moments are few so that’s okay.
- There aren’t enough intimate scenes, just two, but they are pretty well shot and moderately hot.
- Miscommunication is used as source for angst. B left without giving T any chances to explain, breaking off with him and disappearing. It is an overused cliche.
- Denying the other person’s feelings because you think they are better than you and shouldn’t like you is also often used as source of angst.
- The length is also something I didn’t like. It’s just way too long for no reason. I felt there were a lot of padding in the sense you can skip forward and still not get lost. Less attention could have been given to other pairings or other events and slim down the run time.
- Despite the long run time, I felt their relationship lacks buildup. We have no idea why T liked B in the first place and why B suddenly liked T when he was obviously deep in like with another guy just then. It felt more like T is B’s rebound, cheapening their relationship a little bit.
- Although I know it’s intentional they were written that way, I really didn’t like the other women in that department. They don’t seem to do anything and cause trouble with their gossip and yet they are not punished.
- Sometimes B feels too soft. Although B’s reaction is probably realistic but since he is a character, I would have loved to see him with a backbone. Luckily, he does seem to become more confident thanks to T.

**Conclusion**
An OK watch but probably won’t be revisiting.

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If you're into fast-paced and sexy scene heavy BLs, this ain't for you lol

I never thought I'd ever write a review about a series, but I have the biggest urge to defend this series. First off, finally a drama that focuses on showing what irl working looks like and not just prancing around pretending to do something important by just using big words LMAOO. Everything about the office and on-site work plot I absolutely loved it and highly recommend to people who want to know what working in corporate as a young fresher looks like. The plot. I do have to admit it is a bit slow-paced but I am into slow-burn so I didn't mind lol.

Second; the cast. Everyone did an amazing job in this series, hands down some of the best acting I've seen in a while. Trust me fr cause I watch tons and tons of Bl dramas all year round. I do have to say that P'Man was my favourite in this, he has proved himself as a very talented actor. It is so hard to act by just your facial expressions, but he did such an amazing job, especially in the crying and pining scenes. Typically the bl tops are portrayed as "too tough to break down/ be vulnerable", but his character was so on point with showing his emotions and being so raw about it. He deserves more recognition honestly. But the cast for Pat, Chot, Ae, Jaab, Jen, Kanun they all slayed as well!

Third; the characters. The chemistry was chemistrying for sure. The main leads were adorable and so were the supports as well. I often find people saying the characters didn't have any "real" obstacles like a homophobic mother or toxic ex or sabotaging 2nd lead etc. But I think everyone should take a step back and realise that being human in itself is an obstacle for being in a relationship lol. Not saying these factors don't make sense, but I feel like even in "straight/gay/lgbtq" relationships its the individual's emotions that usually drives the decision and not these things. When you are confused about your feelings about someone, or when you're insecure in yourself and think less of yourself in comparison to another person, or when you're helplessly in love but can't be with that person due to practical reasons: these are all equally valid reasons and circumstances as any homophobia or scheming ex. I do admit that the character of Pat is dumb sometimes, but he's human, we're designed to be dumb LOL. So realistically speaking I think this series did a good job with all their characters, and Chot and Ae are so fun I loved them to bits!

Overall I'd say that if you're used to seeing things escalate from like the 2nd ep itself then you'll meed a lot of patience to watch this. Highly recommend this, do watch this if this review interests you lol ><

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This Was Supposed To Be A Glowing Review

I am acearo but I am now also desparately in love with Man. The amount of times I said "goddamn," in response to his mannerisms cannot be counted– he exudes attractiveness, and I normally only find people pretty at best. Chot is a perfect character, I wish Chot was in every scene, but I am biased here as well as I have been ferociously interested in Bruce since Lovely Writer. Up until episode 8 or 9 this was an almost perfect series to me and I intended my review to be a dissertation on how wrong it is that the rating is 7.1. Obviously, my rating now is now far below that, so let's get into it.

Pat is uniquely irritating. He cries at the drop of a hat, is never in the wrong despite always being the problem, and generally manages to make every issue excruciating to watch. I do not like the character. I actually did at first because he had a lot of pizazz and determination, but that kinda disappeared around the halfway mark.

The storyline gets more disjointed as the show progresses and, at some point, it feels distinctly like the writers forgot their own plotlines. The coworkers (Ying especially) are gossipy, mean, and basically bully Pat and then they all chat happily at badminton?? Jen tells Jaab he'll stay away from him and then....doesn't. Like at all. Not even for one scene. Jaab tells Jen they should stay friends but last we saw them, Jaab was still 300% cooked for Jen and we get no insight as to why he suddenly decided not to go for it. Actually, speaking of JaabJen, I've never been so disappointed by a formerly interesting couple. Up through the kiss, I was invested in them. Right after the party when Jaab for some reason decides to shoot himself in both feet, I had to force myself not to skip through their following scenes right through to the end. It was just so stupid, entirely unwarranted, and woefully under-explained.

The entirety of the Jeng's dad plotline was meh. Put was.....there? I was kind of indifferent to him (I love Up, so he was at least nice to see) and the story around him and Pat, especially after he's shown caring only about Pat, then taking him for granted the moment they get together, then caring only about Pat again once they're apart. He felt more like a plot device than a character. I really want to disparge Pat more right now, but we'd be here all day.

Jeng is perfect, I have nothing bad to say. except maybe he should leave Pat and the company and just vibe at his restaurant.

Tbh, I had a feeling that, to maintain my high rating, I should've just stopped at episode ten because we all know how ep. 11 goes, but I chose my path because Man is not in any other BLs and I do not like him enough to subject myself to any form of not-queer media. I enjoyed how much of the office we saw and the maturity (read: this is not the right word) of the characters (bar Pat and like, all the side character coworkers). It's rare to have older characters be the focus of a BL so I really appreciated it in this series— not being in high-school, college, or fresh out of school is really a blessing for this genre.

The music was okay at first but once the waterworks kicked off (so much fucking crying is2g) it got irritating hearing the sad piano all the damn time. The acting was ok to good. I can see why people might be underwhelmed with Man's acting, I thought he was good though, provided he wasnt trying to act sad. Pat was good provided he wasnt crying or being dramatic or speaking. Chot was perfection, as was Ae and her husband.

I will probably rewatch this, but really just for Bruce and Man, so make of that what you will. Maybe worth one watch if you stop at episode 10 before the bs. 3000% worth multiple watches if you drop it around episode 8. I actually like that the episodes were long, I didnt really get bored, but I always watch everything at at least 1.5x so.

I am once again trying not to hate on Pat but dear lord he is the entire reason this show went to shit. Like even the bullshit storyline between JaabJen has nothing on how annoying Pat's character was. I hate that he was babied throughout the show; everyone can hear mean or realistic things except Pat. But Pat is the one who needs the reality check the most. I had a lot of sympathy when he was being bullied at the office but the moment it stopped he became one of the most insufferable characters I've ever had the displeasure of watching, and I've watched some real garbage. Pat's character feels like the type of person to show up to a wedding in white and then cry when they're reprimanded. Just spoiled and self-centered. My rating was actually still a reluctant 7 until episode 12, at which point Pat wore through my already hair-thin tolerance and I dropped it. What a waste of good potential. Tbh, I'd give this a 9 if Jeng didn't take Pat back. Fuck Pat fr.

Thats about it. This started great and then shot its own feet until it was just mediocre.

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