When people talk about “must watch” series, I often find myself not really loving them. Or just not seeing why some people see them as a great introduction to BL series. I was very surprised when SOTUS (mostly) lived up to all the hype. It is definitely worth the watch. 15 episodes went by in a blink!

I actually like how the storyline focuses on more than just the love story between the two main characters. I think we get to learn a lot about their friendships and the university lives, especially the whole junior and seniors’ relationship. That is not something that is a big part of university life in my country, at least nowhere near that extent, so I feel like it helps me make sense of not only certain events in this series but others as well.

The hazer seniors are such a fun group! I think they all balance each other out very well, and seeing how well they all know each other, they can react when needed. Knot is the kind of friend you turn to for a serious advice, and Bright is the friend that will cheer you up, no matter what is going on. Learning that Off improvised a lot of lines makes his character even better. Prem and Tuta were a lot of fun too. Especially with Tuta being openly gay. I really like how they didn’t turn him into a comic relief character or into an overdramatic drama queen. It was nice, especially considering when the series was filmed.

The first years are an interesting group too. There are a lot of complicated relationships going on with them. I think most of Kong’s close friends are too dependent on him, he tends to be the leader, the person that takes responsibility for everything and everyone. Which I found interesting, especially as he is the youngest child in his family. I do think that Kong doesn’t get appreciated enough by his friends.

Kongpob & Arthit: I love a good enemies to lovers story, but I was kind of wary of how things would go between the two. The whole power dynamic between the hazers and freshmen wasn’t really sitting well with me. I am glad that it was mostly for the show and that the hazers are a very chill group. And Arthit is absolutely adorable! Like the way he acts once he gets together with Kong or when he is alone. Kongpob seems to be someone who is very sure of himself, and someone who is willing to do anything for his friends, even too much sometimes. But back to the whole senior and junior dynamic, I really liked how Kongpob was the one who was the first to go after Arthit. And he was so smooth! And flirty! He should have lessons on how to flirt with your crush.

I do think Singto and Kirst have great chemistry. I think they both did great in their roles, and even better with portraying emotions through looks and their voices. However, I do think their kisses were very awkward. They didn’t make it seem like the two characters enjoy kissing each other.

I am a bit sad that we didn’t get any other confirmed new couple. Yes, there was M and his crush on May, but they didn’t officially get together. And let’s not forget Prem and Wad… why they decided not to sail that ship will forever be a mystery to me.

I really enjoy the OST. The locations are nice too, I really enjoyed how different yet similar Kong’s and Arthit’s rooms are. It also reflects the two of them and how they are.

And a little note on hazing – I think that depending on how it is done, it can be a very damaging concept that leaves permanent mental scars. The show did apparently exaggerate certain things, but it still doesn’t look fun if it’s done in any way like that. We do have some sort of hazing where I am from, both for high school and university. The high school one can get messy with people throwing things at freshmen, writing all over them… but there are also official hazing events, which are actually a lot of fun; they usually include a bunch of games the freshmen need to do or solve in smaller groups. They are always supervised by professors too. As for university, we just throw a big party and call it hazing, if that counts.