Kai

Ep 9 is not good for my health. I swear I need to take blood pressure medication before watching an ep.

I’m pretty sure Akin himself thinks he was being silly too about the award which is evident when he so easily let go of the matter as soon as he was able to express what he felt to Jin and had himself a little cry. Plus, of course he would be sad about losing the title he had for five years. Akin himself expected to win and once expectations are not met, it is natural to feel sad about it no matter how one tries to rationalize it. If only someone had given him cake and beer and let him rant a little after he lost the title then maybe he can so easily let go of the disappointment like he did when he lost the best actor award. Unfortunately, at that stage he was still so repressed and he did not yet know that he could be himself to Jin. I mean it was all in the dialogue during the rooftop scene.

Additionally, that line he said to Jin on that rooftop scene where he declared that ever since he won that award, he never stopped acting. Upon hearing him say that, one can surmise that he was lying to himself when he claimed that the award did not matter much to him as his goal was to be taken as a serious actor and the number one actor.

As to the maturity, we have to look at two things, i.e. the characters and the conflicts they each face.

Jin at the start of the series had no motivation and goal. It was only when he met Akin did he finally find a purpose which is being with Akin. All his actions throughout the series are dictated by this goal of being with Akin.

Akin, on the other hand, had a clear goal. He wanted to be the number one actor. That is his sole goal. He didn’t even want to be seen as a celebrity.

Conflicts. If you look at the show, majority of the conflicts, big and small, had been thrown Akin’s way. Losing awards, losing brand deals, his roles in films/shows being minimized, negative publicity, Johnny, the sasaeng, sigma who is actively bringing him down(though still unsaid) and Jin. Most of all Jin. His biggest conflict is Jin. Jin had him rethinking about himself, his wants , his goals. Just as he had written to his grandmother, finding someone to love made his life complicated. It’s uncontrollable, it’s confusing and made him feel as if he is not himself anymore.

Otherwise said, Akin is on uneven grounds trying to reconfigure himself to fit his ever changing surroundings and to fit Jin into his life.

While Jin’s life throughout the episodes had been smooth sailing. He became a popular actor easily and quickly. He even made Akin fall for him without much difficulty. The only real conflict had been Johnny. He had already reached his goal which is being with Akin.

Jin appears mature because his life is steady. Nothing is really making him change. His most notable change had already happened in the early episodes when he found his purpose.

Akin, on the other hand, may appear immature because his life is being upended. He is facing new challenges which he is not always best equipped to handle due to his formerly repressed self.

Those series were planned years ago. I think they’ve long been abandoned.

Without knowing how long filming usually takes for thai shows or movies, 6/7 months sounds about right. In my head, the timeline for the show is the following: They met again to film gemini after 1 year, 3 months and 15 days from when they last met filming the cop show as Jin proudly said durinG the script reading for gemini.

However, the show started with Akin having the most huggable man title for 4 consecutive years. Then in between the cop show and gemini, he won it for the fifth time. Then around the end of filming for gemini, Jin won the title. Then they did separate projects after Gemini for a few weeks before the Johnny incident.

So give and take maybe around 2 years from when they first met on set of the cop show. Anyhow, it’s 2022 in the present timeline.

Their solo fans are maybe more powerful to drown out the “craziest” part of the cp fans. Solo fans can be zealous in protecting their idol. They probably have squads dedicated to reporting posts lol

No, the sasaeng wasn’t redeemed. They need the issue to die fast so Akin used the sasaeng’s obsession to his advantage. Made her worship him even more so that she would forget any ill intentions against Akin. It was essentially to control her behavior.

For a moment, I thought that the sasaeng could have been Jin if he made different choices lol

The brushing off is deliberate. As Jin had said in the bar scene, he can’t do anything to Johnny at the moment. Akin could not publicly accuse Johnny of a crime without risking his own career including Jin’s career.

What Jin did do is gain blackmail material against Johnny so that even when Akin kicks him and attempts to punch him, he can’t do anything to retaliate. He is no longer untouchable, he could no longer hide behind the producers he slept with. As such, he could only wear the sash labeling him as donkey, he could only endure the pain when Jin squeezed his hand. That’s Johnny’s consequence. They have power over him now.

Is it ideal? No, it never is even in real life. But as this show is set in the entertainment world, involving a popular veteran actor and a rising star, it is futile to hope for a satisfying consequence.

It felt like ep 7 was presented like a stage play. Act I, Act II kind of thing. While ep 8 was like a thriller.

Yes! I too thought that who I was seeing on my screen was Akin. Not Boom acting as Akin but Akin himself! Simply spectacular.

I like how Akin kicked Johnny for what he did. Too bad the saesang interrupted the punch. I also like how Jin is basically blackmailing Johnny to behave. Neither of them are forgiving Johnny and now they are acting extremely petty against lmao

The two eps were a rollercoaster. I haven’t processed them yet lol

You can buy to watch ep 8 besides having vip. Pretty cheap.

Yes, you can fast track ep 8 later. Fast track originally should have started next week but they moved it earlier.

First time I’ve appreciated a shaky camera. They truly know how to effectively use the camera.

https://www.tumblr.com/little-one-eyed-monsters/781625253314134016/black-honey-cut-for-everyone-to-enjoy-they-went

After the black honey cut, there is an interview between Smart and Boom where they talk about the NC scenes. It’s on wetv.

Oooff that interview was unexpected but I’m glad it was there. Never knew I’d appreciate having evidence that the actors have professionalism, trust and appreciation of each other. It’s one thing to hear tidbits of their trust and care for the other in different interviews, it’s an even bigger thing how they dedicated a whole interview talking about how they built the said trust. I really liked that.

Also, the black honey cut is hot.

We’ll get the extended cut of the honey scene tomorrow 🙌🏼

No.

Yeah. No.