Hands off to the Thai movie industry. Seriously. If this same film was made anywhere else, the characters who were redeemed would never have been redeemed anywhere else. Every character has a part to play, no role is minor. The chemistry between all of the main leads, not just the romantic duo, was beautiful and believable. The friendship, the family values, the romance, and the empathy of this film simply blew my mind.
I excepted the Karsue to be the source of horror and jump scares. I never excepted to empathize the most with a floating head and viscera.
Watch this movie. You will not regret it.
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The Gifted starts as an episodic show where the first 8 episodes focuses on a different character. Each character is intriguing and the episodes do a brilliant job introducing backstory, side characters, and character development within a span of 40 minutes. Each episode was like a different genre: Drama, Mystery, Rom-Com, Supernatural, Psychological, Horror, Suspense, Thriller, and even Action. The number of Harry Potter references in the comments sections is hilarious. I can see Pang as Harry, Namtarn as Hermione, and Ohm as Ron. I bet Wave would be Draco and Ladda is Snape.
Let's talk about the characters:
Pang/Nanon: My feelings for the main lead waver through out the show (especially because all of the characters are so well written and acted), but he's likable enough to keep you watching. The first and last episode are probably his greatest in terms of acting.
Ohm/Sing: I think this is Sing's first lead role and he totally killed it. This boy is so talented and he deserves more than just support roles. Ohm wavers between cheerful and anxious so brilliantly.
Namtarn/Lilly: Okay...I'm not really a fan of this character. I don't like her and I don't care for her romance with Pang.
Punn/Gun: The episode that featured Gun's character Punn is hands-down the BEST. This episode alone could be an entire series. Gun's talent is unreal and he brings it all in this show. I would happily watch Gun play such complex roles forever. Cute Gun is to die for, but complex, acting God Gun is to live for! I spent this whole episode just holding my breath because every damn scene with Gun in it was just that intense. This episode alone I will rewatch over and over. I totally get why he won an award for this role and he deserves it.
Claire/Jane: Girl killed it! Normally, I hate Jane's character type but for the first time, the Queen Bee characters was my favorite Female character. Her development from Queen Bee to loving/sassy/genuine is awesome. Jane played a big part of why Punn's episode (#5) is so great. While I'm a big fan of OFFGUN, PunnxClaire is my favorite couple in this show and the only romance I want to see in Season 2 is theirs!
Wave/Chimmon: By the end, I liked Wave a lot better than Pang. Wave had his head straight the whole time and never wavered from his goals and objectives- qualities I like in protagonists. Part of the reason I don't like Pang is because towards the end, he gets so side-tracked and distracted in a way that (makes sense but also) strays from who we saw in the first episode. Wave's back story was one of the creepiest so it was a surprise when he came back as one of the most likable characters.
Mon/Puimek: This girl can kick butt! She was a fight scene with Punn that is just too awesome for words. I did not know Gun or the girl from Sotus S (Khao Fang) could fight so well! I really wanted to see her and Art get into a relationship.
Korn/Fiat: As much as I like Fiat, I think you could have taken him out of the show and it wouldn't have made much of a difference to the story. I hope he plays a bigger role in Season 2.
Jo & Jack/ AJ & JJ: These boys deserved an episode! I want to see the twins acting together so bad! Aside from short guest appearances here and there, we have yet to see these brother act in an extended scene.
If you read this far, I hope I've convinced you to give this show a try. It totally deserves it's high rating.
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This review may contain spoilers
If you are seriously a fan of this drama, I would skip this review. Overall, I enjoyed the drama so I'm going to apologize in advance for how critical this review is. I tried my best to be constructive. Keep in mind I DO like this drama. My advice is if you can get through the first 9 or so episodes, then this drama gets really good!Story:
The first episode was amazing! I loved the premise and watching Kim So Hyun kick butt was the highlight. But as the story goes on, all the things I loved about the first episode weren't given much importance later in the show. The fact that the Bong Pal hunts ghosts for MONEY was interesting, I wanted to see him take on epic cases and rake in the dough. However, his exorcism work is later given little importance and Bong Pal is consumed with his love life. Hyun Ji's missing memory is forgotten for most of the drama and is only really dealt with in the last two or so episodes. While it is the catalyst for Hyun Ji and Bong Pal's friendship, later she becomes content to be with Bong Pal even without her memories. It had such promise too! Hello, they kissed and she remembered stuff! I loved the concept of In Rang and Cheon Sang's supernatural documentary and had high expectations for the humor and escapades of these two trying to catch a ghost on camera, but again, later their role is to help Bong Pal 's love life and help him socialize more.
As for the romance, in the first half of this drama, I didn't care about the main couple's relationship. I honestly skipped most of their romantic scenes and just went to the fighting with ghosts. Their connection, chemistry, and growth in the second half is MUCH better. I don't want to spoil how but I like everything about their relationship after the plot twist. I only got through the first half of this drama because I shipped In Rang and Cheon Sang sooo much! Those guys are hilarious! Their friendship was so heartwarming. These boys genuinely cared for each other even knowing how annoying the other could be at times. These actors were seriously the MVPs that let this drama float. If it wasn't for their humor, I would have dropped this drama.
Over all, the plot wasn't that surprising and the epic premise was eclipsed by romance drama. The story is kind of similar to Oh My Ghostess but Hyun Ji and Bong Pal's connection was kind of a stretch. And as per typical KDramas there was a time skip and the couple had happily ever after.
Acting/Characters:
I enjoyed Bong Pal's personality in the beginning a lot! He was sassy and fun. His backstory is also beautifully developed. But as the drama goes on, you lose sight of his personality. He doesn't feel like a dynamic character that drives the plot, rather he just reacts to all the event. Also, it's kind of frustrating that he doesn't take much initiation in anything. His friends find him cases and invite him on trips so he experiences student life, his uncle/Monk friend finds the mystery behind his dad's disappearance, and even the main antagonist is more concerned with Hyun Ji than threatened by Bong Pal.
As for Hyun Ji/Kim So Hyun, I've been a fan of hers since School 2015. It's so cool to see her play a college student for a change. I have no issues with her acting. I wasn't a fan of the romance in the beginning but I chalk that up to poor story writing, not so much Kim So Hyun's fault. It would be nice if Kim So Hyun could show aeygo in way that was different or refreshing. She reminded me of Park Bo Young every time she tried to act cute.
I already mentioned that In Rang and Cheon Sang were my favorite part of this drama so that extends to the actors who play them. Especially Kang Ki Young, I look forward to seeing more of him in the future.
I doubt I would watch this drama again, but I enjoyed the experience of it.
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I enjoyed both sides of Singto's character so much! As alluring and suave as DJ Titan is, the rude-mouth, hot-headed, confrontational Tan is so refreshing. I'm used to seeing Singto play characters that hold their emotion in until they explode, so to see him so unfiltered with straight-up savage dialogue is such a treat. I did get the impression he was trying very hard to harden his voice for some of the more caustic remarks, but that just might because his soft-spoken persona is basically fixed in my mind.
I'm used to seeing exaggerated facial expressions in KDramas and Thai dramas, but Singto is the master of subtly. You really have to watch his acting closely and it blows you away when you see how much emotion he can express with just his eyes. His acting has grown so much and seriously shows no signs of slowing down. I just wish my attention wasn't torn from keeping up with subtitles :(
Jamie was adorable! There were moments where I found Mimi a bit annoying but never enough that she's unlikable. Plus, if she didn't have the personality she did (being a bit nosy and a chatty scaredy-cat), the plot probably wouldn't have progressed as fast as it did. In fact, it was a necessity for her to have those characteristics. My only issue with her overall is "Honey, that is NOT how you wear glasses! They go on the bridge of your nose, not the tip!" I'm a bit Singto-biased so it's hard for me to say if Singto and Jamie had chemistry. My favorite scenes were when Mimi was with her Dad or her best friend.
Lastly, Off and Singto! OMG! I cannot get enough of their verbal combat. It shows that these two are really good friends. Their scenes together were so natural. Off's acting blew me away. Like damn, he was amazing in Theory of Love but the small scenes he had in this series stands out! I can't wait to watch Girl Next Room: Richy Rich for Off and Mild.
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