Affair Episode 1

Solid, but a liltle slow start

I think it was a good idea to start with a flashforward, otherwise the episode would have only consisted only of Wan and Pleng dancing around each other.

The actresses (Sonya as Pleng and Lookmhee as Wan) really have great chemistry together; the episode didn’t flash back all the way to their childhood, but only to their (late, I assume) teens. First of all, the show has to establish the various relationships. We meet Wut (played by Anin’s dad from “The Loyal Pin”) and Khwan, plus Wan mother (played by Lada’s mom). We also quickly meet both Frank – who is interested in both Wan and Pleng – and Ek, whom Wan meets at the gallery.

At this point, we get into the relationship dynamic between Wan and Pleng. They are talking about boyfriends and starting a family all the time, but when one of them even makes the smallest, most tentative step towards getting to know a boy, the other one gets mad jealous. Yet they don’t seem to realize yet that they actually love each other, or they are deep down in denial.

I was actually surprised they would bring the inherently incestuous aspect of their relationship up with the Gemini reference. They really seem like siblings at time – except when they stare into each other’s eyes at way too little a distance.

Other than that, the show establishes that Pleng is a musical genius, but also kind of entitled and has no friends other than Wan. Her father is a – at this moment – successful businessman, but also a risk-taker. I’m sure that this will play no part in the story down the line…

Wan in the beginning has no ambitions for herself; only after watching “City of Angels” (on a Laser Disc, how far in the past are we?) with Pleng she gets the idea that she could be a doctor and makes a certain bet with her that we heard referenced in the cold open. Hmm, hasn’t she watched “City of Angels” till the end? Doesn’t she know what happens to the always-cycling doctor in that film? 😊

Well, and that’s about it for episode 1. It was kind of slow – especially for an eight-episode series – but I was entertained; they need to move the plot forward soon, though, another episode of this dance around their real feelings could get boring quickly.

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