P'Fon(Kanittha Kwanyu) has delivered another emotional series anchored in deep realism
Story:
The plot was cohesive and grounded and deals with themes revolving around teenagers. Although the whole twins part was definitely touchy in many ways, the series succeeded in portraying a lot of contemporary issues that teens face. A lot of I thought would be plot holes were justified so that's great. It ended on a very positive note, which I needed due to this series being very emotionally taxing. Plot threads were unraveled and tied beautifully. The dialogues were nothing short of perfect. However, I think a little bit of development was cut short. I hope they made some scenes shorter to make up for that.
Cast:
I cannot stress how perfect the cast for this is. I think it's also with P'Fon's directing that a lot of the actors could really portray the right emotions, even with just their eyes or voice or body language. Emotion is definitely the one thing the director really nails, as I've seen with A Gift to the People You Hate and Happy Birthday. I'll go through everyone now.
Namtan Tipnaree as Meen/Mind- As I'm writing this, it was her birthday yesterday. I've seen her before in My Dear Loser, Puppy Honey 2, A Gift to the People You Hate, Wolf, and Love Beyond Frontier. I never thought she has this very easy-to-read emotional side. I think it was partly due to the framing of her face too, that the audience can marvel at her eyes. I'm not just referring to her crying scenes either, but when she stands up to Tida as Mind, she really portrays the character's trauma and fear beautifully. It was like in My Dear Loser: Edge of 17 when Nanon's character stood up to Plustor's, "I'm still weak, but I won't back down." It was definitely a different feeling than when Meen stands up to Tida, which was anger and roughness. Her interactions with herself as the twins was great, that was some excellent cinematography, editing, and script coordination. Her romantic interests were really two competent guys. I do agree that maybe what she feels towards Natee is just deep gratitude as she does towards Gun, but they all only got to a hug, deep conversations, and arm on her shoulder/hand-holding while skipping class so I think she's still clearing stuff up. A lot of her crying scenes were really amazing and I would love to see more of her. The contrast in portraying Meen and Mind really shows her skill.
Krist Perawat as Natee- Krist Perawat has delivered yet again another great performance. I would love to see some improvement from him though, because I think he wasn't really that challenged, even with this role. Don't get me wrong, he played Natee correctly, if that makes sense, I guess I wasn't that into him. He played the role well though.
Jan Ployshompoo as Tida- I love that at the end Tida was humanized. If I remember correctly, she performs very well in class, goes to a review center, and that really just makes her another version of Pete, just more twisted due to her mom sort of spoiling her and her dad's ideology of being on top. She really got on my nerves around the first half of the series, but then slowly she reached this "psycho" level of actions i.e. actions that would do herself more harm than good just to humiliate Mind or show everyone that Meen is actually Mind, which made me wonder what made her that way. Needless to say, I was satisfied by Jan's acting, even at the end, in despair and remorse, her acting was beautiful. She really impressed me in this one because I've seen her in Sotus, Happy Birthday, One Night Steal, YOUniverse, and this is a really big step for her I feel.
Kay Lertsittichai as Gun- This was a larger step, and it was such a really big risk it seems, to cast such a newcomer in such a big main role. It really paid off. In some moments where Kay was supposed to portray more emotions I guess, he resorts to the blank slate smiley Gun, but I guess it's still in character. His scenes with his dad, his mom, confessing to Mind about his love and also about his personal life, and with Mr. Q were his best scenes. I hope Kay gets more projects since this series really proved him to be capable.
Ciize Apichaya as Lyla- She also impressed me a lot! Especially in her interactions with Pete about very smart people and people that aren't smart. Her scene where it's all too much for her in the car was executed and built up to well.
Jamie Jutthapich as Kat- She isn't really a new face, but it's weird that she hasn't gotten a lot of attention. Her characterhad her ups and downs and the moment of triumph during her audition really gave me a big sense of relief and elation for her character. I want to see this actress more in different roles.
Sing Harit- Warning: I kinda have a crush on Sing Harit and has been ranting for a long time about him not having a really intense, emotional role, and now, I have been satisfied. Pete was such an unforgettable character to me. I think he played a character that speaks to many about the inner struggles of those teens who get pressured by their parents or really needs proper parenting/love or just wants everything to end but are still holding on because of their good mindsets. I think self-destruction of teens has been portrayed a lot in media, now it's time for characters like Pete. Yes, suicidal, self-harming, etc etc teens exist, but I think more teens are like Pete's character, who really wants to set things right for everyone's sake. And now that Sing Harit has an adequately emotional role, stop making him the icebreaker please. Even though I love him as that, I would love to see his growth.
Max Jenmana as Mr, Q- Mr. Q really reminded me of the great teachers I had that have come and gone. The goodbye might not be that emotional, but my friends and I did have messages of appreciation written. I would say his acting is excellent and he portrays this really great confidante character.
The parents- Um Apasiri is such a great parent like she's always the parent of a lot of troubled children in a lot of series, and this is yet another great performance from her. Natee's dad was great(him in Happy Birthday and A Gift to the People You Hate really showed his skill, this is a not too heavy role for him), Meen/Mind's adoptive mom had an awesome performance, all the other parents just nailed it too.
Guest appearances:
Puimek as Koykaew was another great performance. June as June was great too.
Music:
a. Intro- A lot of people found the intro iconic, I think. To me, it was really catchy and helps build up your feelings for what's to come in every episode. That and it's combined with visuals of the main characters and significant plot points.
b. Getsunova's forget to forget- I didn't find this particularly excellent. However, the song really grew on me. As it's used in the series more and more, I found myself liking it more.
c. Aye's อยากถูกมองด้วยแววตาแบบนั้น- I was really into this. I think Aye's voice is very angelic and is really great with this type of songs--holding a lot of emotion, I think. I loved her cover of Chocolate Kit's Jum Chun Dai Rue Bplao which was the OST of Happy Birthday. I found the piano(I think?) track of this being played in a lot of scenes, and it is really great at evoking emotions.
d. Getsunova's คนเดิมที่ไม่เหมือนเดิม- I really loved this song. I think it was really catchy, and its MV was great. I think they should've released this song sooner though.
All in all, I found myself humming the osts a lot, so I took the time to learn the actual lyrics. I don't know if you'll find them great, but I guess once it holds the sentiment from the series, they'll grow on you.
I definitely see myself rewatching this in the near future, I mean while waiting for the last couple of episodes, I found myself rewatching the series multiple times. I think there are a lot to understand, unpack, and predict in every episode and the deeper you get into the story, at least I had a lot. Maybe it was just me because I watch this when it gets uploaded on youtube at 12 midnight in my country. That aside, if you really liked a certain character's arc or you liked how certain plot threads unravel, then go watch it again. It definitely won't hurt.
The plot was cohesive and grounded and deals with themes revolving around teenagers. Although the whole twins part was definitely touchy in many ways, the series succeeded in portraying a lot of contemporary issues that teens face. A lot of I thought would be plot holes were justified so that's great. It ended on a very positive note, which I needed due to this series being very emotionally taxing. Plot threads were unraveled and tied beautifully. The dialogues were nothing short of perfect. However, I think a little bit of development was cut short. I hope they made some scenes shorter to make up for that.
Cast:
I cannot stress how perfect the cast for this is. I think it's also with P'Fon's directing that a lot of the actors could really portray the right emotions, even with just their eyes or voice or body language. Emotion is definitely the one thing the director really nails, as I've seen with A Gift to the People You Hate and Happy Birthday. I'll go through everyone now.
Namtan Tipnaree as Meen/Mind- As I'm writing this, it was her birthday yesterday. I've seen her before in My Dear Loser, Puppy Honey 2, A Gift to the People You Hate, Wolf, and Love Beyond Frontier. I never thought she has this very easy-to-read emotional side. I think it was partly due to the framing of her face too, that the audience can marvel at her eyes. I'm not just referring to her crying scenes either, but when she stands up to Tida as Mind, she really portrays the character's trauma and fear beautifully. It was like in My Dear Loser: Edge of 17 when Nanon's character stood up to Plustor's, "I'm still weak, but I won't back down." It was definitely a different feeling than when Meen stands up to Tida, which was anger and roughness. Her interactions with herself as the twins was great, that was some excellent cinematography, editing, and script coordination. Her romantic interests were really two competent guys. I do agree that maybe what she feels towards Natee is just deep gratitude as she does towards Gun, but they all only got to a hug, deep conversations, and arm on her shoulder/hand-holding while skipping class so I think she's still clearing stuff up. A lot of her crying scenes were really amazing and I would love to see more of her. The contrast in portraying Meen and Mind really shows her skill.
Krist Perawat as Natee- Krist Perawat has delivered yet again another great performance. I would love to see some improvement from him though, because I think he wasn't really that challenged, even with this role. Don't get me wrong, he played Natee correctly, if that makes sense, I guess I wasn't that into him. He played the role well though.
Jan Ployshompoo as Tida- I love that at the end Tida was humanized. If I remember correctly, she performs very well in class, goes to a review center, and that really just makes her another version of Pete, just more twisted due to her mom sort of spoiling her and her dad's ideology of being on top. She really got on my nerves around the first half of the series, but then slowly she reached this "psycho" level of actions i.e. actions that would do herself more harm than good just to humiliate Mind or show everyone that Meen is actually Mind, which made me wonder what made her that way. Needless to say, I was satisfied by Jan's acting, even at the end, in despair and remorse, her acting was beautiful. She really impressed me in this one because I've seen her in Sotus, Happy Birthday, One Night Steal, YOUniverse, and this is a really big step for her I feel.
Kay Lertsittichai as Gun- This was a larger step, and it was such a really big risk it seems, to cast such a newcomer in such a big main role. It really paid off. In some moments where Kay was supposed to portray more emotions I guess, he resorts to the blank slate smiley Gun, but I guess it's still in character. His scenes with his dad, his mom, confessing to Mind about his love and also about his personal life, and with Mr. Q were his best scenes. I hope Kay gets more projects since this series really proved him to be capable.
Ciize Apichaya as Lyla- She also impressed me a lot! Especially in her interactions with Pete about very smart people and people that aren't smart. Her scene where it's all too much for her in the car was executed and built up to well.
Jamie Jutthapich as Kat- She isn't really a new face, but it's weird that she hasn't gotten a lot of attention. Her characterhad her ups and downs and the moment of triumph during her audition really gave me a big sense of relief and elation for her character. I want to see this actress more in different roles.
Sing Harit- Warning: I kinda have a crush on Sing Harit and has been ranting for a long time about him not having a really intense, emotional role, and now, I have been satisfied. Pete was such an unforgettable character to me. I think he played a character that speaks to many about the inner struggles of those teens who get pressured by their parents or really needs proper parenting/love or just wants everything to end but are still holding on because of their good mindsets. I think self-destruction of teens has been portrayed a lot in media, now it's time for characters like Pete. Yes, suicidal, self-harming, etc etc teens exist, but I think more teens are like Pete's character, who really wants to set things right for everyone's sake. And now that Sing Harit has an adequately emotional role, stop making him the icebreaker please. Even though I love him as that, I would love to see his growth.
Max Jenmana as Mr, Q- Mr. Q really reminded me of the great teachers I had that have come and gone. The goodbye might not be that emotional, but my friends and I did have messages of appreciation written. I would say his acting is excellent and he portrays this really great confidante character.
The parents- Um Apasiri is such a great parent like she's always the parent of a lot of troubled children in a lot of series, and this is yet another great performance from her. Natee's dad was great(him in Happy Birthday and A Gift to the People You Hate really showed his skill, this is a not too heavy role for him), Meen/Mind's adoptive mom had an awesome performance, all the other parents just nailed it too.
Guest appearances:
Puimek as Koykaew was another great performance. June as June was great too.
Music:
a. Intro- A lot of people found the intro iconic, I think. To me, it was really catchy and helps build up your feelings for what's to come in every episode. That and it's combined with visuals of the main characters and significant plot points.
b. Getsunova's forget to forget- I didn't find this particularly excellent. However, the song really grew on me. As it's used in the series more and more, I found myself liking it more.
c. Aye's อยากถูกมองด้วยแววตาแบบนั้น- I was really into this. I think Aye's voice is very angelic and is really great with this type of songs--holding a lot of emotion, I think. I loved her cover of Chocolate Kit's Jum Chun Dai Rue Bplao which was the OST of Happy Birthday. I found the piano(I think?) track of this being played in a lot of scenes, and it is really great at evoking emotions.
d. Getsunova's คนเดิมที่ไม่เหมือนเดิม- I really loved this song. I think it was really catchy, and its MV was great. I think they should've released this song sooner though.
All in all, I found myself humming the osts a lot, so I took the time to learn the actual lyrics. I don't know if you'll find them great, but I guess once it holds the sentiment from the series, they'll grow on you.
I definitely see myself rewatching this in the near future, I mean while waiting for the last couple of episodes, I found myself rewatching the series multiple times. I think there are a lot to understand, unpack, and predict in every episode and the deeper you get into the story, at least I had a lot. Maybe it was just me because I watch this when it gets uploaded on youtube at 12 midnight in my country. That aside, if you really liked a certain character's arc or you liked how certain plot threads unravel, then go watch it again. It definitely won't hurt.
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