Only Friends: Dream On

Nothing Burger

The entire series kind of felt like it was the ascent of a roller coaster that never reached the drop. The buildup at the beginning really hooked me and then as the episodes went on it gave the sense that nothing ever actually happened. Once I got to episode 10 it almost felt pointless to finish it off because everything was either predictable or just not worth it watching. In the first season even the final episode had twists and things still kept you sitting up but by episode 5 in this one I was already losing interest.

We’d get these over reactions by the characters but then you’d think about what caused the over reaction and it just didn’t add up to the feeling they wanted you to feel. For example in season 1 it made so much sense for Mew to get mad at Top and Boston for what they did and even you as the viewer felt mad with him but the “climax” of the show being a slow dance and an almost kiss made everything feel like a huge outburst for no reason.

The most annoying part of them all was all the fake outs. Why try to constantly build this moment of “omg what will they do???” for absolutely nothing to occur? By the time I got to the halfway point I couldn’t ever feel like I was on the edge of my seat because I knew exactly what was coming. Two characters would get really close and then one would pull back or they’d get interrupted and this HAPPENED every single time. By the third time you sit there with a straight face and just think “yeah they won’t even kiss anyways”. And it’s true. They didn’t.

The beauty of the first season was that I genuinely had no clue what was going to happen next but in this season it all felt like by the time the “climax” happened I knew where we were headed without even having seen the previews. You could already sense what would happen between each couple and each character before you even watched the next episode.

They even made Boston lacklustre. The one character everyone wanted to shake things up ended up being the level headed one that just did nothing at all the entire season? Next time just don’t even add him in.

I will however say that the cast did a great job with the slop they were given. They acted so well and really tried their best but even their great performances could not save the atrocities and snooze fest this entire scriptwriting had . Don’t use the only friends name if you’re not going to commit. If I did not have the expectations I felt I was given at the beginning maybe it would’ve been enjoyable but this was just a miss entirely for me.

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The sequel disaster ft. Only friends: dream on

I'll start the review by saying that much of my expectation from this sequel stemmed from its original series, which is half of the reason for season two’s poor performance.

The story wasnt anything remarkable, the couple stories was nothing extraordinary. The same could be said about season 1, however, what really sets them apart is the toxic writing in season 1. The main part of the plot was the messy relationship between the characters, not the actual relationship itself. In season 2, they completely ignored this aspect, introduced a lousy messy trope to stir things up towards the climax and slapped a “season 2” on it.

I personally would've rated it higher if it weren't a sequel but at the same time, I wouldn't have picked up a mediocre plot such as this if it weren't an extension of only friends to begin with.

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How to destroy a fan favourite IP in 10 episodes or less.

I've given this enough time to marinate. Here's my review, and I'll try to be succinct. This was a mess of a show from the get-go, in the worst way possible. Notice how I use the word "mess", it is intentional: when the public thinks of the Only Friends IP, we immediately associate it with intersecting storylines about romance, betrayal, misunderstanding, broken trust, and difficult relationships involving morally colorful characters that are so raw and humanly imperfect, one can't help but adore them.
This show had none of that; in fact, this show made the effort to destroy all the interesting parts of the characters from this season and the previous one. Case in point: TopMew. Two very headstrong characters, now turned influencers, that are lovey-dovey sweet as candy off-camera. No banter, which not only ForceBook are great at but was also an identifying trait of their characters' relationship, and their ambitions completely tossed aside to become a narrative tool for Dean and Jack. Speaking of narrative tools: SandRay. Oh, dear SandRay what have they done to you? After struggling with addiction to the point where rehabilitation was FORCED onto Ray and Sand feeling the guilt of being part of the problem with his illicit alcohol business, you are telling me the couple are now fully committed to selling alcohol? Thank God they seem to forget all about it in the last episode, where we see SandRay doing what they actually wanted to do at the end of S1: dedicate themselves to music.
Enough reminiscing, let's talk about this season, and let's start with the best couple: RomeRaffy. I am not putting this up for debate; AouBoom did a phenomenal job, even though they were the result of the recast (which we all loved) way later and their characters barely had 20 minutes of screen time (I'm being hyperbolic). This storyline worked because it followed the SandRay formula: a lovesick boy, who is also proud and stubborn, falls for an emotionally unavailable boy, who hides his insecurities under a stone-cold facade. I loved Raffy. Defying expectations set by his mother, only to end up exploiting what he hated most about her: the managing. I thought it was paradoxical but also a way of breaking the cycle, as he is now a manager as well, but he knows what a GOOD manager has to do and be. Especially while managing someone he loves. Also, how does he step into the pampering role of the relationship after Rome's ultimatum, turning Rome into a Tan variant? Their relationship was what Only Friends is about, if only we weren't missing a key part. A key part that was missing from this show entirely.
Why weren't they kissing eachother?
I don't care about the "but the fans want the fixed couples" or "the fans are going to go CRAZY (/neg) if you don't give them the cps" excuses, because they are not true: if there is anything GMMTV is good at, it is giving us happy endings by all means necessary. Your cp will be fine by the end, I promise. We know this. Give us Dean and Raffy getting it on nasty style.There was no excuse to not do so; their reconciliation would have been more cathartic if they had just fucked their rivalry away: putting themselves in a battle for power, only to realize how the moment is truly vulnerable and intimate, and then laying their heart out for each other. They wouldn't fall in love, but it would have been, again, cathartic.
Sorry, I had better points to make, but let me just scream to the void: HOW ARE YOU CASTING DEAN AND ARNOLD AS MAIN LEADS TO A ROMANTIC PLAY, AND WE DON'T EVEN SEE THEM KISS??? That took me fully out of it. Joss and Mix are actors who are playing actors. Kissing your co-worker IS PART OF THE JOB; their whole arc is about this!! Completely unacceptable and disappointing. Think about it: Tua sees Dean kissing Arnold and goes ballistic, finds Jack in the crowd, and shoves his tongue down his throat. Chaos ensues. AND THIS IS WHAT ONLY FRIENDS IS ABOUT, GODDAMN IT.
I won't even go into Arnold and Tua's storyline because the lazy writing did these two talented boys no justice. Their slow burn was wasted; they should have been the friends-with-benefits couple of the season, and if I'm honest, I wanted Tua to be A FULL BITCH. I wanted him to be sarcastic and snappy, Boston-style one-liners and comebacks. Not his ex. Which. Again, fucking wasted. These writers hate Boston with PASSION. What do you mean, "I don't do hookups anymore"? What do you mean, "I want to commit"? WHAT DO YOU MEAN "I DON'T FUCK DRUNK PEOPLE"? Where is my Boston, and what have you done to him? A narrative point for ArnoldTua but with no clear objective, as he was a passive bystander, not even playing Cupid properly.
Speaking of happy endings, I was so happy when I thought Dean and Jack weren't going to end up together. The ending was rushed and badly written (which could be applied to a lot of arcs of this show, but this is getting too long), Jack's character's redemption was appallingly done, and his character lacked the depth they wanted so desperately to give him. Why, in the first season, do we make Ray's rehab moment the most poignant point of his character arc, but for Jack it is a passing comment that barely has any effect on his relationship with Dean? Sure, it is mentioned; sure, it gives Dean pause, but there's no follow-up. The most interesting part of Jack's character, and we aren't given any more explanation than a few lines and the understanding that he can drink safely now. Just such bad writing. We deserved better; they deserved better.
I'll stop here for now; this was so not worth the hype.

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Wrong Title and bland plot

Only Friends: Dream On has two main issues: being tied to Only Friends and having boring characters. While the series boasts a great selection of talented actors, the plot and the characters themselves are lackluster.
However, the biggest hurdle is simply existing in the world of Only Friends. OFDO would benefit so much from being called Romeo & Romeo and existing as a standalone story. The appearance of original Only Friends characters every couple of episodes (and specially Boston's involvement in the plot) didn’t add anything to the story; it only served to remind the audience of a more interesting set of characters. I’m not even the biggest Only Friends fan, but you can’t compare the two series when this one can’t even handle showing two characters kissing if they aren't in an established ship.
To top it off, the ending was boring. For a second, I thought the show would do something daring and split Dean and Jack up, but of course, they didn't. It’s a case of wasted potential and a wasted cast

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Dreaming of the first OF

As a BL connisuer, I felt like I had to watch this one so I did. You should too, honestly, but don't expect the same provocative chaotic splendor that made the first one so delicious.

Let me start by thanking Timmy, Boston, and Nick. These are the characters who gave me the most satisfaction during the largely unnecessary drama that ensued throughout OFDO.

Timmy was the voice of reason. I commend you, sir.

Boston was somewhat the old Boston but largely the new Boston. A little predictable but not devastatingly so. That said his chaos agent role in OF (sometimes extreme and heartless, but also believable) was what drove that story. That piece was missing here, and no other character really stepped into the void. (Sorry Raffy.)

Boston and Nick gave me one of the only moments in OFDO where I felt deeply affected by the story. Their brief exchange really got me right in the feels. Despite my luke warm response to this one, I would absolutely tune in to OF3 to see those two work their stuff out, whatever that might look like.

I really wanted to like the rest of this, but the conflicts were a little too dumb for my taste. I mean, come on, real hurtful betrayals went down in OF! There were real issues to sort out. This stuff felt petty and forced in comparison. I was mad at almost every character, and not for bad behavior, but for stupidly extreme responses that were unwarranted by the situation.

The couple that I enjoyed the most was Rome and Raffy. Their drama felt real and their responses were earned reactions to trifling behavior. But even that had moments where one or the other of them was doing dumb stuff that was needlessly cruel to the other person, made them look like a fool (especially Rome), or both. Even still, it felt more relatable.

This is probably gonna be unpopular, but Jack is a jackass. I was over him early on. No amount of warm fuzzies at the end could fix that for me.

And Tua and Arnold had way too many cringe moments. Plus they look like grown men pretending to be boys. Something about their story in particular made that stick out for me even more than the others. Perhaps its because in reality JossGawin are sexy AF, especially Joss and his salted caramel lollipop looking ass.

And are we just gonna forget about Pete and his literal crimes!? Where's the money, man?

At the end of the day, I think it was the writing and directing that left me underwhelmed, although there were some acting fails as well.

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A disapoitmant

Since the pilot trailer, I have been hyped for this show. Of course I watched season 1, and SandRay are still one of my favorite couples out there. Season 1 was messy, and I love it for that. So you think season two will be as messy, and I think it should be like that, because it's only friends, right? But then you get disappointed if you think you will see that.

The plot was so not logical and also really weak sometimes. No couple mixes at all; come on, why do you call it "only friends“ if you're not ready to do it? For me the writing was the worst. I think the actors tried their best with what they got, but most of the time it didn't work.

The weakest couple for me was Arnold and Tua. I say that knowing that Joss and Gawin have good chemistry, so it has to be the writing. I think the timing when they got together was so strange; it didn't work at all. So after like 20 min they break up; I felt nothing at all. Also, sometimes it was cringe to look at their scenes.

I think for Rome and Raffy it was hard as well. The Raffy from the pilot was nowhere to be found, to be honest. But still, AouBoom is just that couple who works with everything. Like, the plot was really not that good, but I can't deny that I still loved to see them together and root for them.

Jack and Dean were, for me, the only couple who worked, also because of the writing. They had really good scenes where I felt something. For me, the scene at the Museum of Exes was a masterpiece. I felt so much and cried over their broken love. You feel that they still love each other, but both need to heal first. They worked really well, and it was a good story just because of them. Also, the acting of Mix, wow, respect; it was really good.

So, all that said, I was disappointed by the writing, and I think they were too scared to risk the official partners, so they didn't really take the risks that were needed.

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A Lukewarm Echo of a Groundbreaking Original

The original "Only Friends" was a massive step forward for the BL genre, delivering a rich, complicated, interwoven story about unique, flawed characters in conflict. In contrast, "Dream On" simply exploits that brand value while delivering a thin story with low-energy couples you mostly don’t care about.

Where the original offered three masterfully interlocking stories, "Dream On’s" three narratives barely relate to each other, creating a frustrating lack of cohesion. I primarily tuned in to see if JossGawin could replicate the magnetic sexual energy they displayed in "My Golden Blood." They didn’t—but frankly, their weak story arc didn’t give them the narrative room to show what they could do. The same was true for EarthMix’s storyline; though underserved by the script, Mix’s outstanding, nuanced acting at least provided the show with some badly needed heart.

Ultimately, only AouBoom brought genuine energy, charm, and sexiness to the screen. Repeatedly cast as second bananas, they have become absolute experts at making the most out of smaller parts, and they easily carry the show here.

Overall, "Dream On" replaces the grit and complexity of the original with weak characters and a shallow plot. A major disappointment.

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Boring

This drama is a pretty typical BL series, and honestly, I found it quite boring. One of the biggest problems for me was that it kept repeating the same things again and again. The same situations, emotions, and conflicts seemed to come back repeatedly, which made the story feel dragged out and less engaging.

That said, all three couples have good chemistry, which is probably one of the drama's strongest points. The acting is decent overall, and the chemistry between the actors helps keep the drama watchable even when the story becomes repetitive.

Arnold was definitely my favorite character. I really liked his personality. I also like Tua, but after watching several of his works, I don't feel that his acting has improved much. Still, because Arnold and Tua have good chemistry together, it wasn't a big issue for me, and I enjoyed their scenes.

As for Dean and Jack, I don't dislike them as a couple, but I can't say I'm a fan either. My main issue is that these two actors seem to play very similar characters in every drama they're in. Their dramas often have the same kind of storyline, and their acting styles feel very similar each time, which makes their pairing less interesting for me.

As for Jeff and Raffy, I think they're a bit different. Individually, neither actor stands out that much to me when acting alone, but when they're together, they have incredible chemistry. Their scenes feel natural and enjoyable, and they really bring out the best in each other. They ended up being one of the highlights of the drama for me.

Overall, this drama is watchable if you're looking for a light BL with good chemistry between the couples. However, the repetitive storytelling and slow pacing made it difficult for me to stay interested. I ended up skipping quite a few scenes because the story felt unnecessarily stretched out. It's not a bad drama, but it wasn't particularly memorable for me.

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ROME RAFFY RULED THIS SEASON

After OF S1 I really didn't wanna watch this cz of how messy the season 1 was but i gotta give credits to the comment section with all the characters interacting that made me give this one a go. Anyone who is wondering if you should watch this one? YES you should. It's not as messy as season 1 and is more digestible more like a watered down season 1. We get 1 cross couple kiss which is from an angle so uk the actors didn't kiss🤣. The plot is pretty close to season 1.

RomeRaffy being SandRay from season 1 where Raffy has a huge crush on Jack while Rome just unconditionally likes Raffy like Sand liked Ray. Their story is probably the best one among the 3 with proper build and character development. When i started the drama i absolutely HATED RAFFY but now that the drama ended i absolutely LOVE HIM🤭 his character just grew soo well throughout the story.

ArnoldTua were practically TopMew of this season wity Tua being the virgin who ends up falling Arnold who is "not loyal" to him. Their plot was pretty simple so i was enjoying it until mid season i.e. the climax🙄 i was expecting things to actually happen like how Top actually slept with Boston but then nah it was a small misunderstanding (a really stupid one) which blew up to the point that i was like "bro it's not a big deal". So they went from being my favorite couple to an ok kinda couple. The climax is the reason i rated this drama a 9 cz i felt they needed something solid cz that was just stupid. They probably did it cz they wanted to play safe after the backlash the season 1 received.

Coming to JackDean🙄🙄 the BostonNick of this season. Dean was kinda Boston but more pitiful n sad kinda. Jack was a Jackass. For the 1st time in my history of being a BL fan have i ever truely wished for a couple to get a bloody sad ending and break up was in their case. I've even rooted for black flags but jack is just a BIG NO. Jack doesn't have much presence in the 1st half he's kinda a washed out character compared to others who had strong presence in the series but if u pay attention u can notice how he was never a supportive bf and just wanted a toy, someone who'd listen to him, praise him and worship him which is what dean is🙄. I absolutely HATE that they got a happy ending n ik that man hasn't changed a bit even after all this he's only back cz he couldn't find someone like Dean😑 they're definitely gonna keep breaking up in the future.

Coming to Boston. All that hype about him bringing chaos 🙄🙄 nah nothing as such happened🤣🤣🤣. The entire series i was like now he's gonna cause problem but then bro became a green flag and left🤣🤣🤣

Anyways although i do appreciate season 1 for it's risk and amazing writing this was more digestible although i felt it needed a bit more now that we hv watched season 1 and are kinda ready to tolerate cross couple interactions. I've rated this higher than season 1. Watch it guys it's good

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I don’t usually wrote reviews but…

Who edited this show? The music is too much, not every scene needs music and more than half the time the music doesn’t even fit the scene it’s driving me insane!
Why did they wait until episode 10 to finally get messy? Like this build up should have happened in episode 5!!
Why bring Boston back so early just to not use him for like 6 episodes?!

It feels like they rushed the show to make fans happy but I’d rather they took their time and did it properly.
This show is a mess but not in the way I was expecting but am I still watching it at this point… yes

Also side note gagaoolala really needs to work on the subtitles, almost every sentence was missing the ending of it. I just started filling in my own words..

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This was not Only Friends, this was a disaster

I absolutely loved OFTS and was excited when OFDO was announced. I regret it now.

Not a single right thing about this, maybe except casting AouBoom and letting Mark Pakin write the BostonNick scene.

They labeled this Only Friends and that's what I expected - the mess, the chaos, crazy hook ups, no boundaries, lot of borderline illegal issues. But I never got anything like that. That crazy mess was the charm of OFTS. As some lovely moot on Tumblr.com said, it was not about finding the goodest character, it was about picking your favorite asshole and rolling with it.

The problem of OFDO is that the characters are shallow, they have nothing going on and you don't develop any strong emotions towards them. I only somehow liked RomeRaffy, but not because they would be written that well, but because AouBoom did pure magic when they brought them to life on screen. But I gotta admit, they also have decent development going on and grow as characters, though the writing was very questionable (like why did we not get the scene where Rome tells Raffy about Pete???). It only kind of scares me, that RomeRaffy as we know them weren't the original plan. This series would be so much worse if AouBoom weren't here. Because honestly, RomeRaffy in AouBoom's hands had the biggest Only Friends potential had they been given the proper script. They had the tension, the chemistry, and definitely could pull the angst and more fights, were they given the chance.

Arnold and Tua are empty shells, they have nothing going on and hell, how I wish I would actually love them, because I am a big fan of JG. But they fell so out of place in this series, as if they took their part of the script from different series. Especially Arnold was so empty, we know nothing about him even after the 12 eps, hell we never even get to see his place and only characteristics he got was that he is kind and gets along with everyone. Tua is not much better, but we got to actually see his house and had some more character shown when he exploded and broke up with Arnold and kicked Dean out.

Jack and Dean are just awful people (and terribly written too) that did not have any character development and I was forced to believe they just happen to get together because love? It's so upseting because they were the centerpiece in this season. But no matter what they went through, they did not learn anything or grew as people. Dean showed biggest development when he geniunely apologized to Tua. But that not explains anything that happened with Jack. They just got back to square one. I will admit, I haven't seen any EarthMix work before this, but I can tell they are hella good actors (the scene in the gallery/ex exhibition was strong and emotional, though still a waste for this trash series) but the writers didn't do them justice. I understand they were very likely supposed to reflect TopMew from OFTS, but TopMew had character development and it made sense why Mew ended up forgiving Top. But that did not work with Jack and Dean. For a second they got me hoping they won't end up together, but of course, that can't happen because some people apparently are sensitive snowflakes.

Regarding that I also have to say I did not get why we had to see JackDean delivering the flowers or dealing with Dao (Dean's sister), because it did not move the story anywhere and it was just waste of our time (I mean, the whole series kinda was, but this was extra waste).

They also totally failed to connect the couples, like they did in OFTS. Mew, Ray and Ton were friends. Sand and Nick were friends. Top and Ton had history. Boeing connected Ton, Sand and Top. The whole cheating plot was TonTop sleeping together, Nick wiring the car, showing the recording to Sand, who passed it to Ray, who passed it to Mew, that caused the fight. But it also distanced RaySand because Ray thought Mew might give him a chance. It was all connected and that's why we got enough screen time for all.

In OFDO, they kept the couples separated. Yes, Rome and Jack are step brothers and Tua and Dean are friends, but the first thing barely played any role in this and the second was only used for the fight. Other than that the couples were always hanging out together and barely had scenes with others (maybe only during the play part and when it wall all of them). But the story didn't connect them so nicely like it happened in OFTS.

I also want to specifically talk about Ton. I am Ton lover. I love him and I will defend him forever. I was very excited about his return. But if you promise me Ton level of chaos, you better fucking deliver it. There was nothing of that. And hear me out, I woudn't mind this shift if they gave us the TonNick scene earlier, because Ton changing his attitude after seeing how much Nick was hurt by him would make so much sense. But what we learned from him was that he slept around in NY and it got boring there, so he went back to Thailand because in his opinion, Thai dudes are more fun to sleep with. That sounds like the same old Ton to me. But then he backs off the first chance he gets.

Which brings me to another big problem. They wouldn't let actors kiss outside of the official couples. TonTua, ArnoldTon, TonRaffy, JackRaffy, RomePete, ArnoldDean, GameplayDean ... why didn't we get these kisses? I know for sure the actors wouldn't mind (literally the reason Neo doesn't have fixed partner is because he likes to be open to anything), it's the creative team's choice. It would work much more if the kisses actually happened. Every scene of these not-kisses just felt like a slap into my face. And like it makes you not even believe in anything outside of the official couples, when they are visibly scared to let it happen. Like would you believe this is the sequel to the series that let KhaoBook kiss, NeoForce film a whole sex scene, FirstMark kiss, Mond kiss everyone he saw, NeoDrake sex scene and more? (Again, thank you snowflakes, who would cry and have tantrums if their couple kissed someone else).

Also, Ton and Pete appearing at writer's convenience was pissing me off bad. What was that writing? They both worked on the play so they should've been there all the time.

That brings me to Pete and the main "drama" of this series. The not-kiss between Arnold and Dean. It was such a non-issue, oh my god. On one hand I am pissed that they didn't let Tua get Mew-level of toxic, but on the other hand, this was such a non-issue (compared to actual cheating from OFTS) so I can't even feel that mad because it makes sense that ArnoldTua simply talked it out. JackDean were unable to just fucking explain it. Dean never gave solid arguments, just begged Jack to not leave him. And it's crazy because Dean had valid argument - he was drunk AND drugged (which btw was never addressed afterwards). But as I said, JackDean are awful characters, so why bother ranting about this. And RomeRaffy were not affected at all by this "drama" so they were just chilling together (the fact it wasn't Raffy was cleared in two sentences). And final confrontation of Pete wasn't bad, but it went by so quickly (remember what happened to Top and especially Ton after the cheating?) and once again, why didn't we get to see the conversation between Rome and Raffy about this? Because that was a breaking moment in their relationship and surely a big shocker for Raffy, who saw Pete as a friend.

I just hope that Great at the end doesn't mean the threat of season 3. If you want to do that, please let OFTS crew work on it at least, otherwise please let this series rest in peace.

In conclusion, I'm disappointed. This series shouldn't have happened. Never do this again, GMM. Thank you.

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It has… ups and downs i‘d say

Normally i hate drama, but this drama was really watchable i‘d say.
Atleast from EarthMix and AouBoom, don‘t get me wrong, i don‘t have anything against JossGawin! Its just their story got from obe second of the other boring as hell that i had to skip through their parts.
Not only was theirs getting boring, but in the middle of the Series, i couldn‘t bring myself to watch EarthMix or JackDean too. Smth was just too boring for me, idk what it was because i normally loved them in e. g. A Tale Of A Thousand Stars! And i also loved their acting in OFDO really much, their story was just… overplayed?
It was very different with AouBoom or RomeRaffy for me, i really love to see them act in that bickering and teasing manner, even though they almost argued all the time, also i felt really bad for Rome, and Raffy too. They bith played misunderstood and used characters, which was sad to watch but i was so happy that they found together as they are fr the right match!

Overall i‘d rewatch it, but mostly for Rome and Raffy…
Oh and about the storyline, the ending of Jack and Dean felt too realistic as Earth and Mix also like „left“ and just what Jack was saying had me wondering if it was maybe their real story or from a friend or so

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