Enemies with Benefits

No benefits in watching this

As a premise, I will be transparent and say that I mainly watch BLs but I very much enjoyed both Jan and JingJing's performances in Hide & Sis so I decided to come out of my comfort zone and give this show a try: much to my chagrin, this did not go well at all.

Being a very standard, predictable office romance (not a critique per se, just a statement regarding the genre), I wasn't expecting much plot-wise but I at least wanted to enjoy the characters and their development. While Lal is an ok character (whose main flaw is just being a total simp for reasons that I am still trying to grasp), Wine was the bain of this whole show: an egocentric, contradictory, entitled spoiled brat, she had the potential to be a very interesting character based on her backstory and trauma; in the end, if her indecision was kind of reasonable in the first half of the series, later on her constantly going back on her footsteps became a chore to watch (I don't know how many times in ten episodes she stormed out of the room after arguing with Lal). The general romance plot is, in the end, reduced to a bunch of trite tropes that are not even well done nor endearing to watch (them being enemies for like one episode, the secret relationship made way more complicated than necessary because they refused - I don't know why - to at least be friends at work, the useless lies and cheap break up in the last episodes and I could go on).

The latter part of the show, also, introduces a main villain whose only trait is being a sexual predator: from his introduction onwards, Wine is further reduced to a damsel in distress, while Lal has to constantly save her until the very end. This boils down to another main flaw of this show: the sheer heteronormativity of it all, with Lal always acting like the "man" of the couple and Wine being the fragile woman who needs to be saved and protected. I thought we left this kind of writing behind years ago, but here we are, I guess. On a positive note, I enjoyed the commentary on the role of women in the workplace and, more in general, the feminist message that the writers tried to send (message that, oddly enough, clashes with the aforementioned heteronormative structure of the romance).

Production wise, the show doesn't do anything particularly well or bad; the supporting cast was fine, occasionally funny, but nothing more. The side couple is, in my opinion, sudden and unremarkable.

As a whole, Enemies with Benefits is mediocre at best, with no real highlights: I've seen worse, but I've also definitely seen way better.

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We needed a trigger warning in 2nd half of show

The drama begin as romcom, and slowly turned into drama in seconds half

This started as a chaotic workplace comedy with an amazing chemistry between Wine and Lal, their enemies to fwb to lovers arc was so fun, Lal falling first while Wine slowly opening up to her, letting down her walls that sje build due her past trauma and finding comfort on lal presence

Then the show suddenly turned into a heavy drama with SA, abuse, and power trips that dragged out for too long and completely caught me off guard, i didnt sign up for that and i didnt not enjoy it, Medsei being the spy and boba thief was the only plot twist I actually enjoyed 😭

I loved seeing clingy Wine, Lal's chaotic incompetent but loyal team, and pakpoom that wzs funniedt bestie yet present when lal needed them
The serie had great OSTs and beautiful filming locations, but the loud background music throughout episode and color grading weren't for me.
overall i e'joyed the show and don't regret watching it.

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More Than a Romance: Where the Chemistry Meets the Craft

Everything about this show was meticulously considered and beautifully executed by Snap25. The chemistry between JanJingJing is genuinely top tier, the kind that elevates every scene they share, whether it's a charged workplace standoff or a quiet, vulnerable moment between them.
What impressed me most was how well the show balanced its stakes. Each episode held its own tension while never losing sight of the two overarching threads: Lal and Wine's careers hanging in the balance, and the very real emotional threat Korn posed to Wine. That layering kept the story propulsive without ever feeling scattered. The ending is deeply satisfying, and even the finale itself keeps you hooked, desperate to see them finally happy and settled into their dating era after everything they went through to get there.
Production wise, this is a masterclass. Styling, editing, cinematography, all outstanding, and it shows in how consistently polished the show looks and feels across all ten episodes. Over that run, I stayed completely invested not just in Lal and Wine's central relationship, but in Wine's personal struggles and trauma, which were handled with real care rather than used as cheap drama.
The side couple could have used a touch more screen time, admittedly, though I understand the choice not to take that time away from LalWine's story. If anything, it suggests the show might have benefited from twelve episodes rather than ten to give the side story room to breathe. That said, LalWine's arc itself felt completely well rounded at ten episodes, so I don't think their story needed the extra length.
Overall, this is a GL not to miss.
And don't sleep on the OST. Five songs, each one thoughtfully tied into the show's visual language. There are two duets from JanJingJing carrying two distinct emotional registers, plus two solo tracks linked by a striking orange motif that threads through both JingJing's and Jan's individual music videos, watch for the orange rolling out of frame in one and rolling back into frame in the other. Even the side couple gets their own song. This is a show that clearly put real thought into its supplementary content, not just the drama itself.

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Totaly what I expected (and more) : Two horny coworkers who are supposed to hate each other that fall in love - while being in denial.
I love how it has a lot of girl protecting girl even when they are hating each other.

Both couple got strong chemistry. All character suit each actress well. They did an amazing job at casting and at playing.
Lal is too funny, she a loser. I love her. But to be honest, I would be a loser for Wine in glasses too.

As a Ciize fan (who is surprised?) I'm happy to see her as a secondary couple but I hope in 2027 she will finally be ML again.

Looking foward for JJJ next project.

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The series of the year

Without spoilers, all I need to say after having finished the series is that it is a masterpiece. From the amazing soundtrack, having five great original songs, to the acting being phenomenal, the story handling important topics the way they should be handled, the way it shows a real- life relationship that is so relatable, and lastly, the undeniable chemistry between Jan and JingJing... That is it, that is the review. I do not need to say much because the series speaks on its own. Simply put, it would be the definition of perfection if perfection existed. I do not want to spoil stuff about the story, but I do need to mention how beautiful, emotional, and pure Lal's and Wine's relationship is. The way you can notice in their eyes how much they love and care for each other, the fact that they are both mature enough to realize when they have made mistakes, and therefore apologize to each other, the way they always try to communicate, and the fact that their love for each other was never the problem, it was the outside world that, with their misoginy ended up making it harder for them to be together, but them fighting through it and choosing themselves and each other in the end, is what makes this series so spectacular.

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Has GMMTV’s GL Series Entered Its Dark Age?

Good Points:

Jan and JingJing’s acting was absolutely wonderful.

Jan delivered a stable yet consistently high-level performance, and JingJing’s explosive acting power was genuinely impressive.

Bad Points:

(Structure)

First of all, the structure was just terrible. Why did they wait until the latter half of the story to bring in Wine’s past trauma, which should have been one of the most important elements? (The series did depict Wine’s trauma from her previous workplace to some extent, though.)

If Wine had been deliberately written as a mysterious character, with the full picture of who she was gradually revealed as the story progressed, or if there had been a convincing mystery element that justified keeping her past hidden, then revealing Wine’s past in the latter half of the story might still have made sense.

That kind of thing should normally be shown early in the story — in the case of Enemies With Benefits, around Episodes 1 to 4. From there, the story should have shown Wine overcoming that trauma through her relationship with Lal, and then, in the final arc, brought back the source of that trauma as the ultimate test she had to confront.

But in reality, every bit of character depth came too late. By the time they finally started digging into Lal and Wine, I had already lost interest in them, and I was bored with the story itself.

That is what makes it so frustrating. Lal and Wine had enough potential for me to like them, so it feels like such a waste.

(Too Many Unnecessary Elements)

First of all, the side-couple storyline was completely unnecessary.

Lal and Wine were already underwritten, and yet the show threw in even more romantic elements for the side characters in the second half. At that point, it was nothing but noise.

Tangkwa should have been a character who represented the beliefs that Wine could not directly express to Lal. She should have been used to give Wine more depth, showing why she respects Wine and what Wine means to the people around her.

Proud, meanwhile, could have been a tricky character who enters the story midway through, but is also serious and sincere about her work — someone who occasionally shakes up Lal and Wine’s relationship as a counterbalance.

In the early stage of GMMTV’s GL series, there have been successful side couples in works like 23.5, Us, and Whale Store xoxo. But in Enemies With Benefits, whether because GMMTV’s GL series has entered a mass-production phase or not, the side-couple elements ended up feeling extremely sloppy and unnecessary.

(The Setting Is Too Weak)

This series sometimes tries too hard to create tension around the idea that “it would be bad if people at work found out about them.”

But honestly, all I could think was: “Would it really be that bad if they found out?”

The reason is simple: the story never properly shows the threat or background behind what would happen if they were exposed.

If they really wanted to make the idea of being found out feel dangerous, they should have shown something in Episode 1, like Lal witnessing two employees in a relationship being forced out of the company. That would have made her think, “This company is dangerous. We absolutely cannot get caught.”

But the atmosphere in the workplace is actually pretty light. It feels like everyone would probably accept them anyway, so there is no real sense of tension.

Far from feeling like a threat, the employees in Sales and Accounting actually seem to want Lal and Wine to get along.

It is also a waste that the employees in Sales and Accounting mostly become background characters or comic relief. They should have been important supporting characters who helped explain why Lal and Wine are respected, and why their different versions of “being right” clash with each other.

Instead, they simply ended up as comedy devices.

As for Lal and Wine themselves, they were extremely hostile toward each other from the beginning to the middle of Episode 1. But after sleeping together under the influence of alcohol, the very next day, the distance between them suddenly shrinks as if all that hostility had never existed. Then one of them suddenly asks the other to become friends with benefits.

That was way too abrupt.

The show should have carefully portrayed the process of them gradually getting closer. If it had done that, it could have created the kind of painful, frustrating tension where they have physically crossed the line, but they are not lovers, and their emotional distance is still nowhere near as close as their bodies have become.

That is what the story should have shown.

(Conclusion)

Lately, I have been nothing but disappointed in GMMTV’s GL series.

From 23.5 to Whale Store xoxo, they were releasing one god-tier work after another. But from Girl Rules onward, everything suddenly turned to crap.

They do not need to make multiple series at once. I want them to carefully create one high-quality drama at a time.

Laying down a production line and mass-producing GL series like a factory is not the answer.

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