Redwillow
Charmless
This one was disappointing for me. It started off interesting. I like Book and Force. I saw them in Boss and Babe first and I enjoyed their chemistry. It was present here as well. It's not killer chemistry but it's solid and enjoyable to watch. But then they put them in this series and it almost drowned out any chemistry or energy they have.The plot is lame for the get go. The whole secret admirer named enchante and the four people claiming to be him, was just boring. This despite having a cast of solidly good, and attractive actors including Fluke D. who could have chemistry with a statue. It flows from his pores and his eyes. They had an opportunity to have a second couple who would've been fire and did nothing with that. It was so pathetic.
Halfway through I realized I was bored and didn't particularly like Theo. I really liked Akk but his common sense and easygoing nature began to contrast too much with Theo. He had such potential to have a fun story but it was constantly thwarted by the grumpy as hell Theo! But, outside of skipping a little here and there, I stayed patient believing that Theo, and the show, would get better. How very wrong I was.
I'm not getting into any detail about the ending. I will say though, by the last episode I was wishing the show was more like real life and they Didn't end up together. By the end credits I felt disappointed and anti-climatic. I'm sure I will soon forget this one and I'm thankful for that. I'm also super glad that I watched a boss and a babe before this because I enjoyed them and that show so well. It was a nice introduction.
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Boring at best
To be honest after episode 2 I realized I wasn't that interested in anybody else's storyline except Duen and Mai. I thought those two had lovely chemistry that was strong enough to carry their own series. Both actors were also good, especially the actor playing Mai. I saw him in Nitiman and really enjoyed him in that as well.The whole magic cafe thing was a complete waste of time and an unnecessary gimmick to add mystery to the show. Sigh. I couldn't continue watching those scenes because they were so dull.
A mildly annoying issue: I watched this on YouTube and whoever uploaded it, has put the uncut version behind a pay wall. And all I could think was for what?? Why would I pay any additional money for this though?! To see some extra naked chests and a few kisses? I can get that for free from so many other shows available on YouTube, IQIYI, Viki, Netflix, etc. What a useless money grab.
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I had fun
I'm not sure why the rating on this show is so low. Then again I haven't read the reviews. I thought this was a pretty standard Thai bl and I enjoyed it. The two leads were mildly problematic but it didn't trigger my annoyance or my red flag alarm system. That was a bit surprising because Rak has a childish air about him that I generally would have found super cringe and Dino is stupid aggressive at times. But it was ok, for me. The only time I super cringe was at the kiss scenes. My God. Who directed them to kiss like that?! It was like watching overly horny teenagers make out - not something I ever want to see. All that tongue ...Anyway, it was decent to me. A solid 7.5-8. But it seems a lot of people didn't like it which just shows - to each their own.
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Wow!!!!
Omg! That was one of the best romance stories I've ever seen! I don't even want to write a long review. I just want to express how much I loved this. Everything about it was beautiful. Even the parts of the story that annoyed the hell out of me! It had all the up and downs of classic soap opera romance with the depth of writing and directing of a classic film. I ended the series having experienced major high and lows, moments when I cried, moments when I swooned, moments when I laughed hysterically. All the moments and all the feels. What a great experience. I wish I could go back to before I watched it just to watch it with fresh eyes again . I'm not sure why it only has a 7.9 rating because it's a definite 10 for me. Whoever reads this and decided to watch - ENJOY!Was this review helpful to you?
A master class in frustration
I strongly disliked this series. Dialogue was poetic but everything said made me increasingly frustrated and annoyed. Cast was gorgeous and performed well, but I disliked most of them entirely or at some point. Whoever created this story hates relationships and the characters they created. From beginning to end, very little character development or movement. I realized late in the series, around episode 12, that the story has become redundant and was astonished I had four more episodes to go. And in those last four episodes, outside of the last 15 minutes of the last episode, I became more annoyed, more frustrated, and more over it than any time during the rest of the series. The writer just made some bad choices for these characters that did not make the watching experience pleasant in any way. I kept watching simply because I'd gotten that far.Honestly, with so many shows on my Viki, iQiyi, and Netflix playlists, I wish I'd skipped this one.
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So Damn Good
Keeping this short and sweet. I randomly started watching this movie and it was devastatingly good! Mind bending, intense, dramatic, heart pumping - all the things! The acting is superb. The story is superb. The direction and production is superb. Layers upon layers of meaning within the story. Each scene unexpected so it keeps you at the edge of your seat. It was a rollercoaster of a movie and I had a blast watching it. I highly recommend. I'm about to go check out the pages of the two leads and see what else they're in because they were both such powerful actors. I want to see what they offer in their other works.Was this review helpful to you?
Good but underdeveloped romance
I really enjoyed this series. The cast was wonderful and production value solid. I think there was such good chemistry in the gangster friend group. I don't rewatch shows but for those who do, this wouldn't be a bad rewatch. My only issue, and pretty big one imo, is that the writers didn't develop Third and Khai's romantic relationship enough. Their friend relationship and the negative aspects of it were told well. I understood why they were friends. But I only understood why they should crossover to being more because GunOff have naturally good onscreen chemistry. But they weren't given enough solid romance to build the in-story romantic chemistry. So by the last episode, I felt underwhelmed by them as a couple. If they had incorporated more sexual tension/romantic chemistry into the story, it would have made Khai and Third's relationship better developed.Was this review helpful to you?
Amazing!
I just finished season 2 and Y'ALL!! This took me through every human emotion possible watching THEM experience all the emotions they felt packed into 8 days. This show is amazing. One of the best, if not the best, reality TV shows I've ever watched. I want to start the season again and rewatch because I'm sure there are nuggets I missed because I binged watched it. I couldn't help it! Every episode made me hungry for the next one.I adored this show and have so much respect for the production team that put it together. And can I give a double shot out for the music team that created the OST for this show! Wow!!! Much like our beautiful cast and all they went through, the song choices conveyed all the emotion stirred up in them and in us, the audience. Fantastic job!
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Loved it
Watched this after watching moonlight chicken. Loved it! The chemistry between the leads is delicious! Honestly, few actors and directors in this genre can pull off sexy, fiery chemistry with words and eyeing each other. It's practically G- rated and yet it feels very mature and not childish or cheesy at all. Additionally, the production is modern and detailed and professional. The OST is beautiful and fits the tone of the show some well. And all the characters main and support feel well fleshed out and enjoyable. I adored this series so much because it was so unexpected.Was this review helpful to you?
Sooo good!!
Oh wow!! I had a Great time with this series. It was delightful from episode 1 and maintained until the very last episode. That has been a rare feat in many of the c-dramas I've watched. And they didn't even managed to avoid the M/FL moving to another country for 1-3 years! Came close but they didn't go there and I love that. I adore the ML actor, Wang. Adore him! He acts with his eyes, face, and whole body. He embodies emotion and is so smooth in his acting. I want to watch everything he's been in. The other actors were also enjoyable.I loved this series. I'm a sucker for sports romance dramas, enemies to lovers, ensemble casts, best friends etc, so this hit all my buttons. I am not a rewatch kind of person but for those who are, this is a strong rewatch able show in my opinion.
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This review may contain spoilers
Satisfactory
This was a decent show. I enjoyed watching it but didn't feel my heart flutter or anything. I thought the actors were quite good, possibly even better than the material that had to work with. The story is pretty standard school youth drama with elements of depth that I appreciated. A solid watch.The ending, though. I'm not a big fan of endings like this though they are realistic. I think I can appreciate a turn like this when it's better built in and not in the very last episode. It's jarring.
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Interesting
This short film/series - whatever it's considered was weird. Not in a bad way but definitely weird. In just three episodes we manage to cross so many different themes and genres. Drama, romance, bl, thriller, horror, tragedy. THREE EPISODES. Add in Jeff's music which either entirely supersede the series altogether or uplifted it higher than it was deserving, and it just adds to the strangeness. But at the same time, there was something quite amateurish and charming about it. It's clear there was very little budget. I wonder if these actors even got paid. But they still did their best and carried the emotional weight of this strange show for the most part. I wonder what this could have been with the same leads but more script, production value, money, and time.Was this review helpful to you?
Solidly good
So, to be 100% honest, my horny behind came for the NC17 rating and the hope for hot NC scenes and stayed for what turned out to be a solidly good film! I love being surprised. The story, to me, isn't that deep. We've seen the dead mother/warped intimacy storyline a thousand times so there was nothing special. What was wonderful was how well the film was directed and how beautiful and purposeful each sex scene was written. I felt Ryo grew a lot with each encounter. As he got to know women's bodies and their minds, he got to know more about himself and how to Feel. That ultimately brings us to the lightly existential pseudo-incestious encounter towards the end which was beautiful, uncomfortable, and powerfully erotic all at once.To me, however, one of the best and saddest scenes was with the friend from the bar. No spoilers here but their encounter truly broke my heart. I will have to go back and watch their scenes again because I missed some things. I do wish there could have been a little more depth in that relationship which would have made their storyline even more powerful and enriched the film.
Overall, solidly good film. Lots of erotic scenes so if that's not your thing you probably want to skip this one. Very good directing, acting, and overall production.
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This review may contain spoilers
Derailed
This show had so much potential and I really enjoyed much of it. But it had too many annoying characters and just derailed completely in the end. This is all just my opinion.The second ML, Phupha, was entirely too emotionally introverted and selfish for me to enjoy his character for ten episodes. His silence, horrible communication, and actions hurt Nan over and over again and that's just unacceptable, to me, in a romance drama. What got me is that he very rarely apologized which means the writers didn't see his actions the same way I did - as being selfish and utterly lacking in self awareness. This would have all be cleared up for me if the character showed growth from this negative place and earned redemption by the end. But that is not the case. Phu remained a selfish, emotionally introverted, bad communicator until the end. I don't feel his character had much growth at all.
Side character issues
- Gei Gei is supposed to be comic relief but I found her to be extremely annoying. The many times she stuck her foot in some mess and did absolutely nothing to get herself out of the mess but run away. That means somebody else had to clean it up. I just can't with that character theme. It's always a turn off.
- Party and KK - Lord have mercy. I understand persistence when you trying to get a man but come on! I was very close to fast forwarding through all of their scenes. I held on by a thread.
- Phupha's mother - WTH?? This woman managed to have a whole family in Melbourne and not exchange even pictures between her children?? She supposedly loves Phupha so much and yet there isn't a single piece of evidence to support that. Even knowing her child was traveling to Thailand for work, she never bothered to get in touch with Phupha and have them meet up?? I mean, she may not have been able to afford to go to Thailand but who would miss the opportunity to connect, in person, their children?? Make it make sense. This was weak writing at best and somebody should have caught this in production and made some changes.
While all of these are pet peeves really, the fact that the show derailed right at the last episode top the cake for me. I couldn't make it through episode 10 without fastforwarding. The fact that after nearly 30 years of knowing each other and ten years and sooo much emotional turmoil, they finally get together just to have Nan be offered a job in China and Phupha tell him to go!! I was utterly done! Horrible writing. This couple's relationship was given zero time to blossom and the audience zero time to get to know them as a couple. Even to the very last when they couldn't even have a night to themselves without the writers throwing in KK to cockblock them. That would have been fine if it was 2-3 episodes earlier but at the end?! This isn't a teenage BL, these are grown adults. You have to put more into building the relationship. The writers failed and turned it into silliness for no damn reason. It's upsetting.
In conclusion, this show was on a good pace to be a solidly good drama but it lost its way by the end and it badly handled some of the characters. It didn't show enough character growth especially for Phupha, and it didn't invest in the couples actual relationship. The ending was cluttered and took away focus from the main couple which is the opposite of what should be done in a romantic drama. I was left feeling frustrated, disappointed, and very close to feeling like I wasted my time.
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Pathetic ending
The series was short and mediocre at best. I wouldn't write anything but for my annoyance at the ending. I think it's disrespectful to keep making BL's where the relationship finally gets going just to have one of them suddenly have to move across the country, or the world, for God knows how long. This plot device is old and tired and I just don't know why it's so frequently used nowadays. Writers need to be brave and write conflict without taking the easy way out by using distance or death. Come on!So, yeah, the series wasn't all that good but the ending just tanked it further in my opinion.
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