Payback

A Writer's Hopeless Cruelty

Payback opens like a standard revenge plot, but beneath the surface, it’s a dark study in karma, corruption and exploitation within the entertainment industry, and human pain.

We are not gently guided into Sun's world, we are thrown into it, face down into the mud, with our bare asses in the air.

We first meet Sun pulling a knife out at a talent audition, not for a role but for revenge. In a story driven by grief, that impulsivity defines him.
Flashbacks reveal a brutal past. He worked for a loan shark to support his aspiring actor boyfriend, Bank, only for the violence to backfire when a ruined debtee stabs Sun's younger brother to death. On top of that, Bank then steals Sun's savings for his dying mother and flees.
​Five years later, Sun is a hollowed out delivery man who ignites his quest for vengeance after learning that Bank (now an actor called Sunny) redirected that debtee toward Sun's brother. Sun infiltrates Sunny’s agency, aligning with company outcasts and recieves the help from a man called Jay, a mysterious figure with his own dark agenda.


Set up as a fast paced, action heavy revenge show, it is in fact, the opposite. The core engine of this story isn't revenge, despite being titled Payback. It’s the destructive cycle of playing God. Ironic considering where the writers take this.

When the ruined debtee warns Sun that karma will catch up to him, it is in the form of himself, killing Sun's brother.

Sun later emulates that exact same impulse. Naive, blinded by grief, and impulsive, Sun sets out to tear down Bank, completely blind to the fact that Bank is just a tiny cog in a massive, sickening web of sexual abuse, trafficking, and executive exploitation.

What starts off as a hell yeah! narrative, quickly shows us how out of his depth and powerless Sun actually is, and in essence, us the viewer.

​The show never shies away from the crime, the poverty or the violence. I can sit with that for a while, as long as there's hope.

It was the first time I actually sought out the OG manhwa so I didnt have to stew in my own anxiety waiting for weekly episodes.

For eight weeks, that grim tension held me on the edge of my seat.

​....And then came Episode 9, and a heartbreaking narrative choice that completely shattered any enthusiasm I had maintained up to this point, and never recovered.

By then, we knew who the villains were and how utterly evil and sick they could be.
That information had been fully established, and episode 8 ended with the most sensual and realistic portrayal of sex I have ever seen from a BL.

I was on a complete high for this show.
Then came episode 9's pool scene, and all enthusiasm and defensive arguments for it fell away, and I saw the writing for what it truly was: Gratuitous torture porn.

​All that building up towards a satisfying finale was just ....gone, collapsed under the writers' desperate thirst for pure shock value.

We already knew the sponsor was a monster. We already knew Sunny and the executive were abusing their power. We had seen at least three upsetting scenes of assault already at that point.

Doubling down on that with a very explicit and violent assault and murder, without offering a single breath of reprieve, stepped past a darker plot and slid straight into shocking and triggering the viewer.

Worse still was the sheer pretentiousness of trying to mask that shock as emotional resonance. The following scene of Sunny's panicking and laughing off tears in a mirror, right after that horror felt like a slap in the face.

Why should I care more about his feelings, more than the kid who's been raped and strangled, and is now floating dead in the swimming pool? Where was his justice in the end?

In cinema, there's a line between true Horror and Splatter sensationalism. Good horror is a delicate plucking, carefully curated to give you a thrill while maintaining the illusion of control. Torture porn or Splatter, drops the art entirely for the full on, unearned exploitation of the worst of humanity.

'Because it's reality' isn't good enough or acceptable to me. If I wanted that, I would watch the news.

I gained zero new narrative insight from that scene. It didnt need to be there. It's not in the OG manhwa either. It served as nothing more than an extra layer of misery stacked on top of Sun continuing to be helpless and somewhat more useless than normal, while nearly getting killed twice. I was convinced and bracing to witness a third assault in the same hour.

We were Sun in those moments. Helpless victims with no way out. No hope, no reassurance, nothing.

​In another scene, my skin nearly crawled off my bones watching poor Sky, a previous target of sexual violence, get pushed straight into Satan’s arms while Sunny laughed in the background.

And where was Jay? The one person with an ounce of authority? He vanished into a cloud of his own sleep farts, apparently. Man had the rock music theme song playing, smirked with all the information he had gathered, ready for his move and then....poof.....gone with the wind. A sticky note would have been nice, Jay.

Turns out, in a quick step flash back, he was just buying out copyright of a song. No grand scheme or the CEO of a finance company. Nope. Just owns a song because the human traffickers can't switch to any other script to push Sunny's career. Huh?

They swapped genuine plot progression for shock value, and then tried to gaslight the viewer into thinking it was deep character development and realism.

In the end, they just threw a bunch of random band aids onto the missing information to wrap up plot threads as fast as possible. A taser, legal documents no one bothered to look for and debt porn because trauma is a toy in this show, rather than solid, earned justice.

What stung the most is what they did to Two O. He vanished with no one knowing what happened to him or where he was. He was just forcefully dragged back into this show, solely to serve as a plot device for the sponsor's absurd death, and then be left physically scarred and traumatized out of his career.

If anyone was to be given a redemption arc, it should have been him. He deserved something other than being the quiet and sad little moral lesson for Sunny.

​They didn't solve the trauma they spent nine episodes inflicting on these characters. They just swept it under the rug, kissed on the roof and promised to travel the world.

Every viewer has an emotional line of trust a writer should never cross. Unfortunately, Payback put its foot on the pedal and drove right over mine, leaving me feeling as empty and as disappointed as Sun was when I first met him. Bleak, depressing and shallow.

The only good thing was Toptap, Min and the music.

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A Revenge Story That Almost Forgot to Deliver the Revenge

I went into Payback with genuinely high expectations. A darker Thai BL centred around revenge, corruption and the entertainment industry sounded right up my alley. It's adapted from the popular Korean webtoon Payback by Fujoking and Samk, and everything about the premise suggested this would be more than just another romance. It promised a gritty revenge thriller with emotional stakes, morally grey characters and plenty of twists. On paper, it had all the ingredients to become one of my favourite Thai BLs of the year.

I wasn't familiar with Min Thanakorn or Toptap Jarukit before this, but I was already sold after seeing Fuaiz Thanawat in the trailer. His supporting role in 4 Minutes proved he could act, so I had confidence he'd deliver here too. He absolutely did. Fuaiz brings a lot of complexity to Sunny, making him difficult to read throughout the series. Min is excellent as Sun, carrying the emotional weight of the story with quiet restraint, while Toptap does a solid job as Jay despite the script not always giving his character the strongest material. I also have to mention Boss Chaikamon and Shogun, whose scenes together were surprisingly effective. Their chemistry was strong enough that I honestly wanted to see more of them.

The opening episodes hooked me immediately. Sun's motivation is heartbreaking and easy to understand. After losing his younger brother Sky and eventually his mother because of the betrayal of his former lover Bank, now living as the successful actor Sunny, he dedicates himself to revenge. Watching him infiltrate the entertainment industry to destroy the people responsible was exactly the kind of story I signed up for. The added layer of corruption inside Dream Entertainment made the series even more intriguing because it suggested the revenge would be much bigger than simply settling old scores with an ex.

Unfortunately, that's where my excitement slowly started to fade.

For a series built around revenge, Payback spends surprisingly little time actually executing that revenge. Instead, most of the story follows Sun trying to establish himself as an actor. By around Episode 7, it genuinely felt like the series was still setting up the plot rather than moving it forward. The pacing becomes incredibly uneven, and the first six episodes easily could have been condensed into two or three. It constantly feels like the story is delaying the inevitable instead of building towards it.

I kept watching because I wanted to see Sun and Jay systematically dismantle everyone responsible for destroying their lives. I expected each episode to reveal another calculated move in Sun's revenge plan. Instead, almost everything is saved for the finale, where years of build-up are resolved far too quickly. Most of the major confrontations happen inside one lengthy boardroom sequence, and after ten episodes of waiting, the payoff simply isn't satisfying.

I haven't read the original manhwa, so I don't know whether this slower pacing is faithful to the source material or a result of the adaptation. Either way, the television series never finds a good balance between building suspense and delivering meaningful progress.

The romance is another mixed bag. Min and Toptap work well together as actors, but I never fully bought into Sun and Jay falling in love. The emotional progression simply isn't there. I kept asking myself when those feelings actually developed. Was it because of genuine emotional connection? Physical attraction? Or did Jay simply become attached after their one-night stand? The script never convincingly answers those questions, making the relationship feel underdeveloped despite the chemistry between the actors.

Jay also raises another issue. While he's clearly written as a morally grey character, some of his actions cross the line into behaviour that feels manipulative and coercive. Considering Sun is emotionally broken and consumed by guilt, several of Jay's advances become uncomfortable to watch rather than romantic. The series never properly addresses those moments or allows Jay to reflect on them, making the relationship harder to root for than it should have been.

The revenge storyline, however, does succeed in establishing why Sun and Director Arthur become allies. Their motivations are clearly defined, and the series does a great job explaining why their goals align. In fact, I found their shared pursuit of justice far more compelling than the romance itself. At times, it almost feels like the romantic subplot exists simply because the genre expects it, rather than because the story naturally builds towards it.

The finale left me with mixed feelings. While I appreciated finally seeing the villains face consequences, several resolutions felt rushed or overly convenient. The legal aspects surrounding the transfer of company shares are handled far too simply, major antagonists receive endings that feel almost random, and one character's punishment relies more on shock value than meaningful storytelling. Instead of feeling clever or cathartic, the conclusion feels like the writers suddenly realised they had to wrap everything up within one episode.

Ironically, this is one of the few Thai BLs where I genuinely believe twelve episodes would've been better than ten. Usually, series overstay their welcome, but Payback has the opposite problem. It introduces enough plotlines to justify a longer runtime but doesn't give them enough space to breathe. Two additional episodes dedicated to the revenge plot and relationship development would've dramatically improved the overall experience.

Where Payback never disappoints is the acting. Every major cast member commits fully to their roles. Min perfectly captures Sun's emotional emptiness and determination, Fuaiz remains one of the biggest highlights of the entire series, and Toptap does the best he can with a character that often feels inconsistently written. The production quality is equally impressive. The cinematography looks polished, the soundtrack fits the darker tone beautifully, and the overall presentation feels far more expensive than many Thai BL productions.

I also appreciated that the series never became boring. Even when I found myself frustrated by the pacing, I still wanted to know how everything would end. That's a credit to both the performances and the premise. The story is engaging enough to keep you watching, even if it doesn't always reward your patience.

Overall, Payback is a series full of unrealised potential. It has an excellent premise, a talented cast, impressive production values and enough emotional depth to become something special. Unfortunately, slow pacing, uneven storytelling, an underdeveloped romance and a rushed finale stop it from reaching the heights it constantly promises.

If you're looking for an intense revenge thriller, adjust your expectations. The revenge is there, but it often takes a back seat to Sun's journey through the entertainment industry and his personal healing. As a drama, it's entertaining. As a BL, it's solid. But as a revenge story, it never quite lands the knockout blow I was waiting for.

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Gripping, unsettling and frankly just a hell of a good time!

I absolutely loved Payback. It’s not often that a BL manages to give me a romance I can root for while also delivering a story that genuinely keeps me invested.

The way they introduced the story and Sun as the main character in the first episode immediately put you on his side, and he remained the emotional anchor throughout the entire series. Despite his dark past, there was an innocent naivety to him that made him feel like a kid who had to grow up too fast because of his circumstances. It’s not easy to make the audience care about a main character who barely speaks and has such a cold exterior, but Min did a fantastic job using his microexpressions to show Sun’s pain, vulnerability, and the small moments of softness underneath. Sometimes you could literally see his eyes become darker, and seeing the hurt he carried honestly broke my heart more than once.

Jay, for lack of a better word, was aura farming throughout the entire story, and rightfully so. Toptap carries himself with such confidence and authority that it’s easy to forget how young he actually is. One thing that made their relationship work so well for me is that Jay’s own pain allowed him to see through Sun and understand him in a way others couldn’t. He knows when to push and when to give him space, but considering everything he has lost, he was never going to simply stand by and watch Sun continue down a self-destructive path.

I also appreciate that the show never tried to pretend Jay and Sun aren’t morally gray characters. Jay can be hypocritical at times, bending his own morals when it benefits him, while Sun is still influenced by the shadows of his past because you don’t change who you are overnight. Their relationship worked so well for me because they were both broken in their own ways, and I loved watching them slowly become a safe place for each other. Toptap and Min play off each other effortlessly, creating not only incredible tension but also genuinely tender moments between them.

I loved that the show took the time to flesh out the side characters while also showing Sun slowly opening up and forming connections with them. Sky and Kajorn were two of the highlights for me. They brought some of the best comedy in the series while also delivering genuinely heartfelt moments. It’s important to show that a main character’s growth isn’t driven only by their romantic relationship, so I really appreciated the time they gave these bonds.

While I sometimes had to suspend my disbelief, I was having so much fun with the show that it never really bothered me until the final episode, where they pushed it a little too far. The ending wasn’t as cathartic as I had hoped and felt slightly rushed. I also can’t deny that there were some plot holes. It felt a little like a checklist of characters and plot points that needed to be wrapped up. That being said, revenge is rarely as satisfying as people imagine it will be, so I can’t say the ending completely failed to fit the story.

Despite these flaws, I personally loved this show. The dark and gritty tone, the characters, the music, and the overall atmosphere all worked incredibly well for me. Payback did something that not a lot of BLs manage to do: it kept me invested in the romance, allowed me to connect deeply with several of its characters, and still made me genuinely care about the main story. It reminded me how much I crave BLs with more serious and thought-provoking stories, and I honestly had a blast watching it.

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A Must-Watch Masterpiece: More Than Just a BL Drama

This whole year, most BL series have done nothing but greatly exceed my expectations, and I am incredibly happy to say that Payback falls right into this elite category. While I went into this project with exceptionally high expectations, the series somehow managed to completely shatter them, delivering a fabulous show led by immensely talented actors.

From the very first episode, it pulls you into a dark, intense, and emotional story that is impossible to stop watching. As a big fan of the original manhwa and novel, I was amazed by how much care, effort, and attention to detail went into this adaptation. Even when making specific changes to the source material, the creators made it work beautifully, capturing the true heart of the original while delivering something cinematic and emotionally powerful.

What makes Payback stand out is that it succeeds where many BLs struggle: it effortlessly balances a gripping, well-written plot filled with intriguing, surprising twists, and genuinely excellent NC scenes that serve the relationship rather than existing purely for fan service. The overall atmosphere is top-tier; the series trusts its story instead of constantly interrupting heavy moments with exaggerated comedy or silly sound effects. The humor is there when needed, but it never undermines the darker, revenge-driven themes.

Phenomenal Chemistry & Depth
It is genuinely hard to believe that this is Min and Toptap’s first series as lead actors, let alone their first project together. Their chemistry feels completely natural, effortless, and deeply rewarding to watch. They bring Sun and Yohan to life so flawlessly that Toptap and Min have officially become my favorite actors.

Min’s acting deserves special recognition. His performance is extraordinary; he has this incredible ability to maintain a guarded, almost expressionless face while still letting the audience read exactly what Sun is thinking and feeling. That is a massive skill. Even the subtle changes in his hairstyle and color perfectly mirror the stages of Sun's growth. I felt such a strong bond with his character—I laughed, I cried, and I cared so deeply for him that I know it’s going to be incredibly hard to say goodbye when it's over.

A Flawless Production
Beyond the main leads, the supporting cast brings incredible depth and authenticity to the show. The side characters have their own genuine stories to tell instead of just being used as background fluff.

Everything about this production is exceptional—from the gorgeous, stunning visuals to the incredible music, which was a massive highlight for me and set the perfect mood for every single scene. With fantastic pacing, memorable characters, and a plot that keeps you completely hooked, Payback is an unforgettable masterpiece. It is one of the most complete series I have ever watched, earning a permanent place among my all-time favorites. I honestly couldn't recommend it more, and it is one I will definitely be rewatching for a very long time. Easily a 10/10!

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They Built It Up For WHAT

The premise genuinely hooked me. A man whose life was destroyed enters the entertainment industry with one goal —> Revenge. The world it builds behind the cameras is grimy and real, full of manipulation, power games and people using each other to survive. Watching Sun navigate all of that while carrying years of anger was actually compelling television.

And then the ending happened and I felt personally wronged.

The show spent episode after episode establishing how powerful and untouchable the main opponent was. The tension was building. The stakes felt real. And then the resolution arrived and took approximately fifteen minutes. They pulled out some copyright and song rights issue, a board member casually revealed Arthur's true identity, the company was returned, and the big terrifying villain who had been looming over everything died of a heart attack. No fight. No struggle. No satisfying takedown. A heart attack.

I don't think anyone fully understood how it was resolved and I genuinely believe the writers were counting on that.

And just to make sure nobody complained they threw in a kiss at the end. Cute. Did not fix anything.

Also Jay repeatedly forcing himself on Sun is not a character flaw I am willing to overlook just because the man is attractive. Face cards cannot save the bad you do.

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Good with spots of mid

Payback has an interesting premise that is well carried by the principle character/actor of Sun but is honestly hindered by the romance in it.

I know it's technically integral to the plot of the show but the romance absolutely drags. Jay's actor is bad. His acting reads like caricature and he lacks the nuances to his facial expressions the character needs to pull off someone who is mysterious and powerful. His flat performance kills any chemistry between Jay and Sun which in turn makes the romance seem like a waste of screen time. Also a lot of the scene's that are supposed to be the build up of the romance / physical do play out or at least are directed kind of sexual assault-ish so please be warned if that is a triggering topic for you.

Aside from that, the show has a tonal issue. There is not enough balance to where they make things light and silly and where they make things heavy because the main plot of the story is extremely heavy. Having funny moments isn't bad but having so many every episode kills the message that you treat the topics with the wight they deserve.

On a positive note, the acting for most of the other characters is really good. Khajorn and Sky have great personal chemistry with Sun and pull their weight in all of their scenes, Bank/Sunny is played by an actor I know is phenomenal and he does not let down in this role either. I honest to gods do not like any other show Boss is in but his role as Pakin is played so naturally I might give more of his work a try.

Sun is the center of the show and the actor does great justice. You can see a subtle evaluation of his character grow in how he treats others and how he treats and expresses himself. He makes you really feel the grief and desperation of Sun and you want to root for him, even when you know he has done wrong in the past. Min, the actor, has very expressive eyes which they comment on in the show and I think is what made casting him the right choice.

The plot is also interesting. Both a revenge story and a tale of how to heal when you don't believe you have the right to. A minor commentary on the entertainment industry with not particularly subtle messages but good messages none-the-less about what it means to want to live. Combined with it being well shot, I really enjoy the show despite the flaws and am excited to see how it ends. With Sammon as a writer I have high expectations.

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underwhelming rushed finale... and too condensed

As it is with every thai series that approaches a good story it rains down 10 ratings & reviews. Of course it's neither a masterpiece and far from a 10. First we have all the changes to the manwha. Sky had a natural phobia of cameras and being filmed - so they added the bullying just for "dramatic effect". Was it necessary? Of course not, there are people with all kinds of phobias and many have them without a trauma to begin with. Jay was far more of a red flag in the manwha than in the series. So they tried to tune it down which may help to sell the series. But even the downtuned version of Jay is a red flag especially forcing himself on Sun. That's sexual harrassment. Sun lets it happen because he is broken and guilt ridden. There is no apology or any talk about it in the whole series. Do we need toxic behaviour in every third BL? Nope, they could have made Jay not that way, he could have revealed that he knows the little bunny from the beginning and they could have made it a more romantic story. And of course we have also a lot of rape in the series, with explicit representation, which is problematic at best.

Then we have the ridiculous finale. First Jay could not have found Sun stabbed because he went to the USA. What may be doable on a tight timebudget from Korea but doesn't work from Thailand. First, there is no direct flight from Bangkok to the USA. The only destination in north america is Vancouver which is a 13 hour flight and then you have to switch planes to a destination in the USA. Or you can go over China, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Phillippines, Singapore to the USA. Such a flight takes around 19 to 24 hours depending on the destination. When he left at 7 in the morning and he found him at night the next day (we don't know the time because it's dark quite early in Thailand) - that does not compute. They needed one day extra, but the scriptwriters were sloppy and did not research because nobody will notice. Sorry, I may be a nobody but I do notice.

Also the resolution of all the evil people were hilarious. First, when you claim a wrongful transfer of shares, you can't do it just so. There should have been a court order, we didn't see that mail or any documents attached to it. Also lazy writing. The old guy was the only one who died "properly". But to have Sunny to be raped - even when is a murder - it's nothing what I would consider a fair punishment. And Mr. President shot by his driver? How cliché do you want it? Yes! I guess the driver worked for the old guy, but the old guy was already dead when that happenend, did nobody in his organisation inform all the others? And of course that was not in the Manwha at all, that was a really lazy way to resolve an "open" end. The production run out of time. This is one of the few thai series which should have had 12 episodes.

So the positive: It was never boring. For their first roles the MLs did very well for most of their scenes, chemistry worked most of the time, alone they worked perfectly. Production quality was top notch and even the OST was great. The negative: The changes to the manwha. If you want to change things, change it completely but not half assed (Sky, Jay, confrontation @Dreams). Of course I didn't like the comedic bits inbetween. They broke the series vibe and where unnecessary. We don't need comedy in every fucking thai BL.

For a Thai BL, this was great, but the lazy writing is imho inherent in most thai scripts. It's was an entertaining watch, but as usual the finale fell flat. I have no idea why this was not a 12 episodes series where all the "loose ends" could have been resolved in a better way and all the crap series have 12 episodes of boredom. When you can live with a red flag ML and want an interesting story in a thai BL, you can watch without wasting your time.

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Payback did NOT do Payback well

To be honest, I'm confused how to rate this drama. There are parts that I enjoyed and several things that I didn't enjoy. For it's hype, I'm quite disappointed. 6.5 feels a bit too low yet 7 also feels a bit high. Maybe this is a 6.8 but I'll round up.

Trigger warning - this drama depicts sexual assault, self-harm and rape which did make me uncomfortable so keep that in mind. These scenes didn't affect my ratings (with 1 exception). Details and several spoilers ahead.

The drama's main protagonist is Sun who has a violent past but since losing his mother and brother, he decides to change his life and works as a delivery man. While making deliveries, he meets a manager who would like to scout him as the next actor at their company. Soon after he finds out that his ex-boyfriend was actually the one that got his brother killed but he's now a big shot actor. So he swears to get revenge and decides to take up the acting offer. While at the company, he meets Jay who is narcissistic and they end up butting heads. Unbeknownst to Sun, Jay is actually the director at the company and he ends up needing his help at various stages in order to get his revenge.

So far the plot is great, the set up is great but nothing about Jay was worthy of liking. Not only does he behave horribly towards Sun for no reason, he even beats him up later. Eventually he progresses to kissing him forcefully and practically molesting him at one point. Considering the power dynamics, this is sexual harassment and assault and the reason why I did not like Jay. What frustrated me is that Sun is capable of fighting extremely well but he could never seem to overpower Jay. The drama failed to coherently explain why Jay even started liking Sun and likewise why Sun ended up liking Jay beyond needing his help at times. It was explained to me by people who read the novel but the drama was useless at relaying that important information. I'll add an additional spoiler related to this in the comments.

Sun and Jay's relationship mostly feels forced because of this power imbalance and Jay's actions. I actually felt uncomfortable even during their NC scenes. Especially since Sun seemed miserable. The actors were performing bottomless and I did question if that was really necessary. Also I wish they had highlighted safe sex practices. Another triggering scene was Jay forcefully making Sun cut Jay's wrist. Despite all this, Jay does have softer moments were I liked him. Just wish there was more of that at the end but it was quite rushed which was another disappointment. They were also joking about jumping off a building which was in poor taste.

There are like 3 good characters in the drama - the kind manager who scouts Sun, a trainee with trauma named Sky and a sweet director. I swear I shipped Sun and Sky at one point. I also thought a photographer and Sky might start dating but the vibes I was getting went nowhere. Majority of the show is filled with horrible characters which made me pity Sun a lot. There is one main man who is running a prostitution racket by supplying budding actors to other men. He also expects sexual favours for himself. All this was happening right under Jay's nose. He even mentions that he has recordings of everyone's conversations, yet till the end he never used those to destory that industry and everyone involved.

Jay also has his own reason for seeking revenge and the show ended up focusing more on Jay and how he manages to get what he wants. Meanwhile Sun's payback completely took a back seat. His desire to be the top actor just never happened. He didn't even really start his journey as a lead actor. His ex, Sunny, stayed unapologetic until the end and his end just felt cheap and unrealistic. The bad guys were toppled easily which seemed like it could have happened earlier and too many people were hurt for nothing. Nothing needed to wait till episode 10. Because all the wrap up happened in the final episode, it all felt rushed and lacked impact and satisfaction.

The main reason I could watch Payback is because the pacing of the show was fast and there was never a dull moment even if it got a bit predictable towards the end. The thing I liked is the use of humour to cut through several of the tense scenes. However it's not the kind that makes you laugh till your stomach hurts. It's the kind where you feel relieved that the thing you dread is not about to happen. All the actors did well. There were some actions scenes that were decent.

IMHO I don't think Payback is for everyone. I feel like there were plot holes because the novel probably wasn't adapted well enough which is a shame. If you do decide to watch it, you might like it more than I did.

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COMPARISON TO THE MANHWA.

First things first it was a good watch if you come in blind without reading the manhwa,and comparing it to the manhwa definitely there would be some disappointments due to certain story deviations,but they did try their best.Atleast they maintained the integrity of the main leads storyline,as for the people around i could not understand some of the changes.Sunny's character wasn't as malicious as the manhwa,yes he stole and had Sun's brother stabbed,but other than being with the sponsor and pimping out his colleagues.They never showed his inferiority complex and how he really was scared of Sun.The change in the photographer's storyline was kinda odd because in the manhwa he really had the hots for Sun and never got to take the nudes,so his subtle interest in Sky had us viewers wondering if there might be something.They didn't do justice to the character of Jay's uncle,he was still quirky but never got to really show his serious side.The culmination towards Jay's revenge was somewhat anticlimactic....all in all,they did try.Its always tricky watching a live adaptation of a manga/manhwa or anime because your mind already has a preconceived notion of how a story unfolds.

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It good but …

First I want to say that the quality of this show is pretty good. The acting is really good and the chemistry of the main couple is also really good. I think, the plot has good moments and overall it is a really good show. Normally i would givr the show at least 8.0 points for the Story but their are two really import aspects in this show that i‘m not happy about.

1. Jay or director Arthur is sometimes abusive about sun. I get what the director of this show wanted to show. He wanted to show that sun struggles to alow himself to feel happy. But for me it doesn‘t look like it. For me it looks like sun doesn‘t want to kiss and is forced to to it from jay and i really don‘t like something like that. I always want that both peaple are completly want kissing etc. Thats why sometimes it was hard to watch because i didn‘t like how jay aprocing sun sometimes it gets better woth time but that doesn‘t make it right.

2. too many horrible scenes with forced sex scenes. Sadly i don‘t think this series handled it well. It‘s a very sensitiv theme and i think in a show you meed to be really careful how you use it. For me their wasn‘t show enoght importance about this. I didn‘t like that at all.

So because of these two important points, I'm not happy with this show. But i saw how much effort the actors put in to this so thats why it also is not the worst review. I just want to remind people that topics like that need to be used very careful.

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Not worth it despite the huge rating. Disappointed.

I don't know why this has so much high rating. I started watching this because it had such high rating. And I am disappointed. The story basically feels like I am watching the life story of only one character (Sun). And I feel like his acting is not so good.

Also I don't feel any chemistry between the couple , didn't like the casting. I wanted to see equally of both the main character not just one. The way the top (jay) falls in love with bottom (Sun) is also weird. I am talking about their first meeting(you will understand what I am talking about if you have watched the series).Overall not worth it. Not much depth in the acting or story either. You can give the manhwa a try but the live action ain't worth it.

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