This review may contain spoilers
The Weight of Reality
[Spoilers will be tagged where they start]First of all, I know people were upset about this show for not having physical intimacy between the two leads, but frankly that is not the plot of this show at all. Is it still queer? Absolutely. This show explores the lives of two characters trapped by society and their own emotions, and how they try to overcome this together but are ultimately still victims of a harsh reality.
Ryu (Hayato), an ice hockey player, has no response when his friend and teammate confesses his feelings for Ryu. When the team learns of this, they make a mockery of the gay teammate, causing him to attempt suicide. Ryu, feeling guilty for not protecting his friend, runs away from his team and Japan to stay with his friend in Berlin. Burdened with the guilt of his friend's suicide attempt and dealing with the weight of coming to terms with his own sexuality, Ryu goes to a church to confess his sins. When the church catches fire, Ryu decides to burn with it until the man that overheard his confession saves him. This random encounter seems fleeting, until Ryu sees the man that saved him compete in a boxing match. In another chance encounter, Ryu meets Johan (Taecyeon), and the two become fast friends. Their lives become intertwined as they both deal with the hardships of being queer in an unaccepting society, and feel as though they need to find a way to save their souls through each other.
This show manages to hit you with a new tragedy every episode. I swear, any time someone seemed slightly happy, the writers decided to throw something horrible at them. I really loved the themes of found family and queer love, but my GOD they could not let any character be happy ever! As much as I love a sad drama, this one felt like a little TOO much.
[Spoilers start here]
I truly think the only positive takeaway from the show was the found family aspect. The way that Ryu steps in to support his best friend and everything she goes through, along with Johan, was truly the best part of the show, even when the entire group was having a rough time. However, for the finale to have Ryu marrying Sumiko for the sake of Kanau really hurt in an unexpected way. I understand why Johan left, and I think it made sense for all of the characters, but for Ryu to never truly be able to be with someone he loves because he knows it won't be accepted and frankly, even HE never accepted it himself, really really hurt. And honestly, I do not think the writing addressed this aspect well at all. I fully understand the idea that Ryu and Johan are never explicit about their relationship, even in private, considering what the two have been through. But for the show to end the way it did, with the "I love yous" right before Johan's death, felt cruel to the audience! It almost felt like a situation of "we're not allowed to really make this gay, so let's kill off the male love interest and have the main character marry a woman." While I don't think that was the intention, it still felt like they could have told this heartbreaking story of two queer men crushed by the reality they live in, but still manage to portray acceptance of oneself in these characters. All we see are two men being beat down over and over again, and never managing to live the lives they wanted. You REALLY need to want a sad show to watch this one.
Was this review helpful to you?
More royal politics than romance
As someone that had been waiting for The Next Prince for nearly 3 years, I was super excited to watch it when it started airing. I thought that the sets and costuming were fantastic, and I loved the overall plot. I do think many people went into this thinking it would be a lot more romance-focused than it was, but I thought it was a great balance. While the romantic conflict was fairly predictable and repetitive, I thought that the way the romance was incorporated into the larger plot was lovely. Plus, the side characters were super fun to watch too!Khanin (Nunew) is a fencer living in London with his father, when suddenly everything he knows is turned upside down with the arrival of Charan (Zee). Khanin learns of his royal heritage, and is told he must return to the kingdom of Emmaly to compete for the crown. With Charan as his bodyguard, Khanin makes the journey to Emmaly (with assassins pursuing him) in order to train for the royal competition. As Charan helps him train, feelings begin to develop between them, and even though a relationship between a royal and his bodyguard is seemingly impossible, Khanin is determined to make it work.
This show is definitely more focused on the royal competition, family/political issues, and Khanin's journey into royalty than it is about the relationship between Charan and Khanin. Personally, I was totally fine with this. I understand the expectations people had going in to a ZeeNunew show, but I thought that the balance was great. I especially loved that this meant there were fewer relationship issues between them, allowing us to have more happy moments with them as a couple and explore the relationships of the other characters a bit more. I was left waiting for the lesbians to get any screen time (they didn't really), but I loved Ramil and Paytai's (JimmyOhm) storyline. The third couple did feel a bit thrown in unnecessarily, but they were still entertaining. I think a lot of the hate for this show is due to slow pacing and lack of romantic conflict, but I thought it was still quite enjoyable, especially if you're aware of what this show is truly about. Watch this one for the political tension between royal families and the competition for the crown.
Was this review helpful to you?
Love or Obsession?
The Trunk was a lot more than I expected it to be, and I mean that in a good way. Contract marriage plotlines aren't typically something I go for, but this one seemed interesting enough to get me to watch it, and the shorter length of it made it especially easy to watch. I didn't expect to get so hooked on it!Han Jeongwon (Gong Yoo) is currently going through a divorce that he doesn't want, and he's so desperate to keep his wife that he will do whatever she wishes to convince her; however, she insists on signing him up for a one year-long contract marriage with a woman of her choosing, and tells him that if he makes in through, she'll take him back. Jeongwon agrees, believing it the only way to win back his now ex-wife. The contract marriage should be straightforward, but it's anything but. Between the anxious drug addict main character, a contract wife with too many secrets, a controlling and manipulative ex-wife, and the ex-wife's new boytoy, there's bound to be conflicts. Things escalate further when the characters are towing the line between falling in love and convincing themselves obsession is the same thing as love.
This show did a great job at portraying the relationships. What I thought was super interesting was the dual timelines: one starting at the beginning of the contract marriage, and one about 5 months into the contract where the police are investigating the found trunk in the lake. The back and forth allowed for some excellent foreshadowing and parallels, though it did feel like they could have tied it all together a bit better. I thought that the contract wife's storyline was super interesting, but I just wish it had been a little more worked into the show. I actually quite liked the ending of the show, though it wasn't what I had expected for this one. I would say that it's best if you watch not just for the romance, but more for the rich people drama. Overall I'd say it's worth the watch considering how much they manage to do with only 8 episodes.
Was this review helpful to you?
Enemies to Lovers DONE RIGHT
This show was incredible. A true enemies to lovers, complete with a beautiful slowburn and tension all the way through. Yin and War did an INCREDIBLE job as the leads, and knowing that this was made by the company they started themselves only makes it better. I almost started rewatching this show before it even finished it was so good. Even with the longer episodes, it was able to hold my attention for every single minute, and had me excited to watch every week.After a brief encounter, it seems that Jack (Yin) and Joke (War) hit it off. When Jack goes to the bank for a much needed loan to pay off some debt collectors, he's surprised to see that Joke is the branch manager. What he doesn't know is that Joke is lying - and actively trying to expose the bank for its corruption. Joke gives him money he stole out of the safe, but the cops are quick to catch on. Joke, feeling bad, confesses to being Joker, an infamous thief that exposes corrupt businesses, and goes to prison. However, this leaves Jack with no way to pay off the debt collectors. Flash forward 5 years and Jack has been forced to become a debt collector himself, and has sworn to get revenge on Joke if he ever sees him again. Joke spent his last 5 years in prison coming up with every way he could make Jack forgive him. Upon his release, Joke immediately searches for Jack to apologize, only to be confronted not with the sweet young Jack he once knew, but a Jack dubbed the "Grim Reaper" by the locals. Regardless, Joke attempts to get close with Jack and help him out of the debt collector hell he's been forced into, while Jack swears that if he tries to get close to him again, he'll kill him.
Jack and Joke were absolutely wonderful to watch. I love a good slowburn and this one delivered in every aspect. Starting off with a full episode on the backstory of them was brilliant, and watching them go from beating each other up to slowly realizing they shouldn't be enemies, to a clear romantic tension between them was FANTASTIC. The action scenes were some of the best I've seen in a Thai show, and you could tell how hard they worked to make the fights good. That, combined with the tension of the heists Joker pulls off makes for one of the most entertaining watches ever. It'll have you on the edge of your seat the whole time and hit you with unexpected twists at the best times. The relationship development is perfect too, with issues that aren't too drawn out and a beautiful ending for the characters. ABSOLUTELY worth watching!!!
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Stunning, Emotional, and Nearly Perfect
As is typical with shows directed by Aof, this is a masterpiece. The visuals are beautiful, the acting wonderful, and the storyline nearly perfect. I watched this as it aired and I looked forward to it every single week.Day (Sea) has recently gone blind and is suffering mentally because of this. He has fallen into a depressive episode, refusing to leave his room or even open his blinds. His mom has had to hire caretaker after caretaker because no one can seem to put up with Day and his attitude - until Mhok (Jimmy). Mhok is trying to get any job he can to earn money, which isn't too easy when you have a criminal record. Day knows his mom will hate Mhok, which is precisely why he chose him, hoping that this will stop his mom from hiring someone else. Unexpectedly, Mhok seems more committed to this job than anyone ever has, and it seems that the key to winning Day over was simply to treat him like a normal person. Slowly, feelings start to develop between the two as Mhok shows Day that life can be just as wonderful even though he's gone blind.
*Spoilers Start Here*
Up until the finale, this show was actually perfect. Not a plot point was out of place, the pacing was wonderful, and the development of the characters and their relationship was absolutely beautiful. Watching Mhok and Day learn about themselves through each other and fight to be together was absolutely wonderful. However, the only reason I couldn't give this a 10/10 was the finale. I was concerned the first time Day received the cornea transplant, and was surprisingly relieved when it didn't work. I kept thinking - this entire show is about overcoming the challenges of being blind and Day learning to accept himself and his new reality, so why would they make it so he could see again? So in the finale when Day gets a SECOND cornea transplant that works, I was a little disappointed. It felt a bit like saying "your life will get better because your disability can be healed!" which is not typically how that works. I understand the narrative they made of "giving things a second chance" and how the second cornea transplant worked into that, but it still felt a bit off to suddenly throw in Day regaining his sight in a show that otherwise focused on how he could make the most of his life and be happy and in love despite his disability. So, I can only say this show was nearly perfect. It is still a beautiful show that is 100% worth watching, though it is an emotional one. Luckily, these emotional aspects aren't the typical relationship troubles, but rather Mhok and Day as a couple working through the hardships that come their way.
Was this review helpful to you?
Messy!!! (in the best way)
Imagine the messiest person you know - someone that always has drama, makes too big of a deal about things, etc. Now imagine six people like that who are all (loosely) in the same friend group. That's the plot of Only Friends.The show was NEVER boring. I was screaming at the TV and pausing to take deep breaths every single episode. You've got Mew (Book), Ray (Khaotung), and Boston (Neo) who are all pretty close friends (plus their lesbian friend Cheum (Lookjun)). In an attempt to help Mew get laid, Boston sets him up with his friend Top (Force). Mew and Top hit it off, but instead of a one night stand, start going on dates. Things start getting messy when Boston and Ray seem to be jealous of this relationship for different reasons; things get messier when bar singer Sand (First) meets Ray, and Boston starts seeing Nick (Mark). These six "friends" seem to be anything but - and they are much too willing to hurt each other in order to get what they want.
This show was super fun. It was the boldest show I've seen from GMM, and it was done well. With this many characters, it's hard to keep them all interesting and dynamic, but they did an excellent job with it. It was juicy all the way through without a moment to rest. And while I sometimes do wish there were more happy moments throughout, or more instances of positive character growth, it was extremely entertaining to watch and had me yelling at each character for different reasons. Definitely worth a watch.
Was this review helpful to you?
Only good if you're a big fan of EarthMix
Out of all of EarthMix's projects, this one is by far the worst. While the two have great chemistry, who thought that this plot was a good idea?Win (Mix) is in a car accident with his sister, Lin, and when he wakes up he's in his sister's body. He then embarks on a journey with his former friend Korn (Earth) in order to retrieve holy water to return to his body. Along this journey, past issues between Win and Korn resurface and as the two learn to get along again, feelings between them emerge - but does Korn have feelings for Win, or does he only care about the body his soul is transported in?
The entire conflict of this show being "is he into me or is he into me because I'm in my sister's body" is crazy. What even. Regardless, watching the relationship between Win and Korn change was very enjoyable, and the fairly slow burn friends-to-lovers was fun to watch. But thank god it was only 10 episodes because I don't think I could have watched much more.
Was this review helpful to you?
They couldn't have come up with a plot that didn't involve falling in love with a dog...?
Definitely a cute, short little show with a unique concept. I think reincarnation plots can be very interesting but this one was a little...different. Normally I would advise just getting past any of the weirdness that this entails, but this one was hard to move on from.I would have rated this higher if it weren't for the fact that any time you remember those people used to be his pets. Any time you think of that, any kind of romance that was going on feels a bit odd. Best watched if you don't think about it too much!
Was this review helpful to you?
I thought this was supposed to be good???
I watched this because I kept getting tiktoks about it since the second season dropped and I was thoroughly disappointed. The main characters are so annoying and unlikable that whatever plot they were going for just didn't work. Hira constantly gets bullied by his classmates but when it's Kiyoi he likes it? Then throw in a weird time skip, a much better potential boyfriend for Hira, and a whole lot of unnecessary conflict/miscommunication and that's about all that happens! Did they like each other the whole time? I guess so! Too bad they never actually told each other this or else the show would have been over in the first episode.Was this review helpful to you?
Cute, but nothing special
When the rich kid is forced to live on his own and support himself he ends up living with the landlord of his apartment complex...who is also his subordinate at work. Interesting dynamic between them but I feel like they could have done a lot more with it than they did.As is typical of Korean BLs, I feel like the characters didn't have a lot of room to grow throughout the series. I wish instead of unnecessary breakup plot points, the writers would allow the characters to properly develop over the course of the show. Overall a fun and easy watch.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Unfortunately infuriating
[I will tag where the spoilers begin]What can I even say about this show. A vampire plot that lacks any real vampire aspects, special effects that were laughable at best, and a script that was missing any kind of depth all rolled up into one show. The acting unfortunately fell flat, and I don't know whether to blame the lack of chemistry between the actors, the script writing, or the directing but I think I could blame all three if I wanted to. Every episode of this show made me more upset than the last, even though I kept trying to see if it would get good. All I wanted was some classic vampire romance - the fear of being bitten, the tension in a kiss scene, broken trust because of a vampire's true desire - and instead I got a college basketball tournament, a half-baked evil vampire, and a relationship lacking any real tension. I really hope that the fault lies in the crew and not the cast - I wanted to like JossGawin, but truly could not get invested in them as a couple during this show.
Tong (Gawin) has been raised in an orphanage. When he goes off to college, he ends up helping his friend at a job, where he unknowingly works with a bunch of vampires. It is quickly revealed that he has golden blood, irresistible to vampires because of the special powers it gives them. Mark (Joss) is a vampire tasked with protecting Tong from other vampires, but soon their relationship becomes more than that of a bodyguard.
*Spoilers start here*
I truly don't know how they went SO WRONG with this plot. I can get over bad special effects or clunky dialogue, but oh my god this show was actually infuriating. You're telling me Tong gets attacked by Mark because of his blood and this causes ZERO issues with their relationship? There was no real conflicts besides the whole "does he love me or does he just love my blood" which wasn't even well thought out! And then Neo's character dying out of nowhere, without any kind of "let's turn him into a vampire to save him"??? That's the oldest plot in the book!! Why was the basketball tournament so important in a VAMPIRE SHOW??? I really think there was no need to set this show in college - it adds nothing to the actual plot and instead just feels like an excuse for GMM to reuse one of the sets they've used before. Mond played the only character that I actually liked, because at least he was INTERESTING! Joss and Gawin really gave me nothing to work with here. They were always crammed in a tiny bathtub together, or Gawin was staring at Joss shirtless (which, I get it, but why is he shirtless THAT often), and somehow they STILL didn't have chemistry. I was hoping that at least during the makeout scenes when there wasn't any awkward dialogue that the relationship would have some tension, but somehow that STILL fell flat. Even the "twist" in the real villain was predictable from episode one.
This one just fell SO flat for me. While there wasn't any one thing that made it bad, the combo of a lot of small things made this show hard to watch. I really wanted to like it, especially because I think vampire plots are super cool, but I just can't recommend this to anyone.
Was this review helpful to you?
More Nuanced Office Romance!
Enemies with Benefits was a fantastic office romance GL that managed to deliver a lot more than just the typical "coworkers aren't allowed to date" type of forbidden office romance that I expected. They did an excellent job developing the characters and giving them solid reasons for their actions, even when sometimes the viewer learns these reasons after the actions have happened. I really enjoyed the combination of them slowly realizing they have feelings for each other, needing to be professional at the office, AND Wine's backstory coming back as a major conflict. I thought all of it was done super well. The only real issue I had with this one was that the constant getting together, calling it off, then getting together again got repetitive towards the end, with miscommunication conflicts driving this issue every time, but overall I still really enjoyed this one! Definitely a GL worth watching!Lal (Jan) recently became the head of the sales department, and learns very quickly that everyone at the office is scared of Wine (Jingjing), the head of accounting. Wine runs a strict program and will be sure to call out anyone that makes errors in their reports. While the two don't get along at work, at a company dinner, Lal notices Wine being pressured into drinking and removes her from the situation before the men there can make it worse. But when the two head back to Lal's place to sober up, they also end up hooking up, starting a friends with benefits relationship. Since relationships are strictly forbidden at the company, the two of them keep this fling a secret, but it starts to develop into something more.
I love an office romance, AND I love shows where grown actors play grown adults (yes I am sick of 30 year olds playing students). This show delivered great acting, a great plot, and AMAZING chemistry. Jan and Jingjing do an incredible job acting together, and I really enjoyed just how much I could sympathize with both of their characters, even when I knew their actions would cause conflict. I especially loved how Wine's past comes back to haunt her later on in this series, and the way it plays out is really really well done. It doesn't take away from the romance, but adds new layers to the characters' relationship. This one is definitely worth giving a shot, and I'll be on the look out for all of their future projects!
Was this review helpful to you?
What happened to the mess?
Watching a sequel series, even with totally new characters, always means it will get compared to the first season and I gotta say, this season did not live up to the messiness of season one. Still, the show was very fun to watch, but given how wild season one was, I expected them to up the stakes of the drama, not dial it back. The actors did a great job, but it just felt like it was missing something.Jack (Earth) is writing the play for the senior theatre majors, and everyone expects his boyfriend Dean (Mix) to get the main role; however, now that they're actually ex-boyfriends, Raffy (Boom) plans to take Dean's spot as both the lead in the play and as Jack's boyfriend. Tua (Gawin), the costume designer, convinces his crush Arnold (Joss) to audition too, not thinking of how he'll feel watch his crush kiss someone else. Meanwhile, Raffy can't seem to stop running into his one-night stand Rome (Aou), who ends up working sound for the play. This group of friends (or more than friends) try to put on a play while tensions run high between them.
If this were a show that was not supposed to be a sequel to only friends, I would have rated it higher. The level of drama and mess that this show had didn't feel much higher than a typical friend group college BL. Considering in season one we had cheating, hookups and kisses outside of typical pairings, drugs, etc., this season felt so low stakes in comparison! Also you're telling me that with all of those actors we couldn't get a SINGLE kiss between two non-pairings?? Come on. Even Boston didn't make this show much messier, and he's BOSTON! If they end up doing more seasons, they better up the drama to be on par with season one again, because I felt like I was constantly waiting for the big drama-filled moment to come and it simply never did. I do think the show is still worth watching, and the actors do a great job with these characters, but don't expect the level of drama there was in season one because it's truly not there.
Was this review helpful to you?
Guilt, Grief, and....Cats??
I will start out with the fact that this is definitely a biased review - as a big fan of First and Khao (and cats, I suppose), I don't think I can give a very critical review of this. Is the premise stupid? Yes. Is the script and cinematography great? No. Did I enjoy every single episode? Absolutely. It's clear to me that they had no clue what they wanted the tone of this show to be - truly, this is a story about a son who feels guilty about the death of his mother, and with no way to make it up to her, feels this guilt as a weight he can't lift. And somehow, they thought the best backdrop for this story was a cat cafe and a debt collector that can talk to cats. It's stupid, but actually provided some balance to the heavy points of the show.Tiger (First) is a debt collector, or rather the son of a debt collector, who just can't seem to get money from his favorite debtor: Meow, the owner of a cat cafe. Even though Tiger is allergic to cats, he still loves to visit. However, after some medical issues, Meow passes away, but manages to pass on her power to talk to cats over to Tiger. Lynx (Khao), Meow's son, hasn't been involved with her life very much these last few years, but returns after her death to deal with the logistics. He decides to run the cafe himself, despite his issues with his mom (and her cats). Tiger agrees to help him get the place up and running again since he needs the debt payments, but really he just wants to get closer to Lynx.
I'm still genuinely so confused as to why they decided to mix a talking cat romcom with the guilt of being a bad son and the grief of losing a parent, but somehow it worked? I think most fans of these actors were well aware that this show was going to be sad regardless of how happy the premise sounded because - let's be honest - FirstKhao can't have a series where they don't cry! There were definitely aspects of the show that could have been handled better, especially the tone shifts during episodes. Still, this show kinda surprised me with how much I enjoyed it! It's one of FirstKhao's lighter shows, and it was fun to see them in some different roles than normal. If you're a fan, I'd give it a watch - but if you're not a fan of cats too, you might not like it.
Was this review helpful to you?
Supernatural Crime Romance?
The concept of GBYFD was really intriguing to me, and I loved the direction it went with the supernatural elements. While I do wish we got a little more backstory on the rituals and people performing them, especially before the big reveal, I still very much enjoyed how this show played out, including the investigation of the crimes. I do think there was a bit of a lull about 2/3 of the way through the show, where it felt like very little progress was being made each episode to move the case along, but I still very much enjoyed it - though watching it after it's aired might be even more enjoyable because of that lull.Thup (Pooh) has always been able to see ghosts, and now that he's on his own, it's become overwhelming. It doesn't help that Thup ends up the only suspect of a string of murders connected to a ritual. Singh (Pavel) leads the investigation, and while he once suspected Thup just as everyone else did, it turns out Thup's knowledge of the supernatural might come in handy. Singh decides to trust Thup, and as the two grow closer, a relationship starts to form between them.
I think anyone who enjoys crime and supernatural shows will really enjoy this one. I thought the main actors did a great job portraying these characters, and the story was fairly well paced and the ending didn't feel too rushed. I did think they could have expanded on some of the characters a little bit more, but overall it was still a super fun watch! Sometimes I did think the romance was being treated as more important than the investigation, and I know we were all expecting romance with Pooh and Pavel, but I always find that too much romance ends up feeling out of place when there's murders happening....maybe I just don't find murder investigations as romantic as these characters do. Regardless, this is still definitely worth the watch!
Was this review helpful to you?
