Reviews

The best

At first i didnt think double storys would work well. But it they really made it work. We really got storys in one drama The Second story also very good no blanks no open ending they really made a complete movie inside 12 ep it soo amazing. I really love how they separate two storys using screen ratio. And as audience we didnt get lost in the two storys. And the actors really outstanding despite this drama being their first major acting role. They performed really well. It was really some crazy raw acting. Also the intimate seens they really made t work without showing much skin it was really great. And i wanna give applause to the director this is one of the best bls ever. And the music idk how much is their budget but the thats some high quality music really good. And about the ending this might be one of the best ending such romantic cool ending. I really recommend this drama watch it.

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Firecracker flirting with still waters: a bromance

This was a casual but enjoyable summer watch for me. I'm a sucker for minguo visuals and was looking for a more lighthearted drama, and this one delivered. This is a classic story of a policeman and ‘special consultant’ developing a close relationship as they solve cases together all over Beijing. Yuan Hong is an illegitimate son of a warlord who joins the police to uncover the truth about his mother’s death. Zhao Shaoshang is a spoiled baby of the family of an ultra-rich cabinet minister in need of a friend and some growing up. Together they work hard to piss off everyone in the city who’s got something shady going on, which is …everyone;)

Some cases were more interesting than others, but at least they were varied and the investigations progressed in a believable way (not counting some interrogation scenes that were pure comedy skits;)). They have a common theme of appearing supernatural at first glance but turning out to conceal thoroughly human motives. The spooky parts of the cases were fun, I think they could’ve leaned even more into it. The cast was great! There were some really colourful and entertaining secondary characters.

The drama has a lot of lighthearted situational humour, which I really liked. I normally hate comedy sound effects, but the instrumental ‘laughter’ here was kind of infectious:) The main characters' interactions were very entertaining as they got to know each other and used that knowledge for teasing and jokes. Their friendship has depth and develops in a natural way helped along by great chemistry between the two actors. As you can guess from the title, this is an intentional bromance sparing no effort to let the audience happily ship the two together;)

As for the main characters, tbh, I had no chance of liking Zhao Shaoshang because (1) I’m allergic to screaming and his tantrums were driving me crazy, (2) I find this type of smart-ass characters annoying, especially when it’s paired with rich family privilege, (3) it took me a while to get used to Zhai Zilu’s acting, which seemed too exaggerated compared to the rest of the cast. He absolutely did grow on me as some depth and vulnerability materialized, and a lot of his earlier bluster turned out to be just a shield. I do appreciate that the drama didn't hesitate to expose his flaws. Ironically, I found his absolute pettiness and inability to keep his cool even under the tiniest of provocations quite endearing:D …if only he weren’t abusing my eardrums.

Yuan Hong had an interesting air of mystery and capability at the beginning, but the actor lacked charisma and presence to really pull it off. For the rest of the drama, he’s mostly a tolerant ‘still waters run deep’ type but rather one-note in emotional moments. If Zhai Zilu is a bit ‘too much’, then Ma Sichao is 'too little’, but they balance each other surprisingly well.

I hope season 2 comes next summer and keeps the same level of writing and production. The last few episodes switched to a more dramatic tone, so I hope the story goes back to the lighthearted and bromantic mood because that’s where it shines☀️✨

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A typical 08/15 low-effort GMMTV series...

As usual, a weak story, over the top comedy - which is not funny for me - and nothing of substance in the whole series. "Oh, little boy was rejected as a highschooler, because he was a nerd..." is also a typical storyline shared in this instance with "Crazy Love, Moo-Moo!" but it was at least less cringe. All the characters have the maturity of 16 year olds, but our MLs are way over 30 now which makes their characters unbelievable.

There is not much else to say, except that the talent of the actors is wasted with such a series... But the bots rating it a 10, will tell you it's the best since slice bread - oh, most US americans don't even know what real bread is. Regardless, it was a show with a huge cast, because GMMTV has soooooo many actors they need crumbs to get feeded something. Chemistry was ok, but not really convincing. When they are at fanmeets, concerts or even brand deals their chemistry is so much better.

Production quality was ok, but nothing stellar, compared to other GMMTV productions this was on a low budget just to feed the fanbase and that's it. It's mostly a waste of time and will bore you, soooo many shows are vastly superior to this.

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Really cute, but sloppy writing

TayNew chemistry is really on top, their interactions as a couple are so natural. But unfortunaltely they where the only good part of the show. The second couple was so confusing and boring that I skipped some of the their scenes, like I don’t know why Akki that we can see from the first ep that he hates homewrecker very much two episodes later is down bad for Veha, this makes no sense at all. Also I think Veha didn’t really had a redemtion arc or anything, he didn’t even apologized properly to Kanit. Also Toto’s mom was so useless as a plot point, like why was she even there? They didn’t even use this thing properly, like what was the sense???
I have to say that the story till episode 5/6 is decent, but then it became so boring nothing happened the last 4 episodes, it was just them doing nothing, I think the script wasn’t really made for 10 episodes and they just added random stuff to make it look interesting.
At the end I just stayed for TayNew chemistry, cause they were really cute. Also I didn’t understand the last scenes , like why they didn’t show us the all ceremony??? And the thing with the ppl getting like alchol poison ig, I didnt really get it, it was so random and non sensical.
Not the best TayNew series, but their chemistry was really good!

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A psychological study that shocked me.

I normally dont write a review but if mine can maybe get one person to watch this show I find its worth it.

Story:

Deep in explores the relationships of 2 complex couples in different worlds. One in real life and another in fiction. Gao Zhung and Fang Chi are a couple binded by the script but their story is equally compelling to the actors playing them. I appreciated how the story wasnt clean or without its complexity and moral ambiguity. The director gives it equal importance and time to explore its really dark issues that the show handeled very well. The story is told by side by side in mirrored themes and psychological dependecy. Zhe Xin and Zhao Zhun feel very diffrent both in set up and personality. As the actors begin to fall deeper into their characters their story begins to mirror the other and their minds become more and more fragmented. The direction does a great and subtle job of blurring the lines of what is real with the audience all the way from the aespect ratio, to smal lines of dialoug they say that could easily be missed. The story here is the reason to watch this drama, the audience isnt treated like children, the complexity gives the viewer alot to chew on and discuss and this was easily the most surprising aspect about Deep In. The ending so recontextualises the entire theme of the series in something I havent felt since seeing the Sixth Sense for the first time. It makes rewatchability a must.

Acting:

The acting is another reason to watch this show both Ollie and Shuyuan take on these difficult roles head in and without shying away from its provocative nature. While china has found a way around these restrictions, its still very risky to take part in explicit material But these two do it confidently and not acting scared. They remain 100 percent commited to bringing the characters to life and for being so young I see a bright future.

Music / Score:

Admittedly im not a big music person but I found it to be implemented well here i think the music really lends to expressing how the audience needs to feel during certian moments. Creating great atmosphere and tonally setting things up.

Direction:

This as far as im aware is a first time director and I think shines here, visually the show looks great even with is budget. I want to praise him for making the correct changes with the novel and adaptating it for a modern audience while still respecting the original works intention. He even contextualises these chages within the narrative so it makes sense and that is almost never done in any show. He knows not to shy away from the dark aspect but does soften them to make them a bit more digestible which I appreciated. The direction is focused and clear on delivering its concept while adding so much little details to mirror the scenes. He is the glue that keeps the series together.

Overall thoughts:

Deep in a series that surprised me more than I eever thought when it began and that depth isnt revealed right away. The show eases you into thinking its going to be one way but as they get deeper into filming. The more its complex ideas come to the forefront. Its a dark deeply sad show but I feel executed super well. The performances are wonderful and the NC scenes serve as important context, and they made alot of positive changes for the better. I hope you can give this show a chance becuse there is alot of fresh and new ideas here that make it stand out above the rest. I'll be excited to see what this director does next.

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Finally A General that actually General-ed!!!

Tbh,even though I have become a fan of Hou Minghao, this drama caught me like a pendulum... Should I watch it or should I not? Cause I was actually bothered by all the age gap controversy. Everytime I tried to imagine Aimi and Minghao together, I just couldn’t imagine them as a couple and their irl meimei-gege dynamics wasn’t helping either.

What actually pushed me to give this drama a try was Minghao and his excitement about his role as Xiao Wuyi. He worked really hard for this one. As his first role a a general,the fact that all stunts done beautifully by himself,the plot and everything....i just decided to put my doubt aside and started to watch it. And my oh my, I am so surprised to say the least. It was so good,I just couldn’t stop watching.

The plot had some cliches. A fearsome General,a love triangle,some villains, palace politics, amnesia etc. But what made me hooked was the way they executed everything. Given it had only 28 epis,so there was no scope for dragging. So there were twists after twists,plots were unfloding pretty quickly. And surprisingly, they actually summed up pretty much everything within that 28 episodes,not leaving much scope to become bored.

Now if I come to the acting.... Hou Minghao deserves his crown. What a portrayal of a great hero Xiao Wuyi,known as Demon General, who is ruthless,cunning,always one step ahead of his enemy. His country,his fellow warriors and their safety are always his priority as a war general. For them,he was even ready to rebel against the corrupted imperial system.And then comes another part of his character, the lover Xiao wuyi. This Wuyi is not someone very expressive,he believes in action than words. His love for Xie Jiayu started as a protector....later transformed into mutual respect and then love.But it was never dominating over her. She was always his priority, but in a subtle, protective way. Xiao Wuyi was a great character...who knows what to do and what matters the most. His presence was extremely commanding,intimidating yet so assuring for someone who needs him the most.

Xie Jiayu was his great counterpart. Being only a teenager,her early childish antics were bothering me a lot,ngl. But as the plot progressed and she understood the seriousness in her surroundings and shaped her accordingly,was good to watch. As Aimi was a minor,of course there wasn’t any kissing or intense romance. But the subtle romatic scenes,only by hugging or holding hands was enough to show the strong bond,partnership and understanding between these two. And Aimi understood her assignment and delivered like a pro.

My main headache was Li Mao-Li Lejun siblings duo. Even though they were introduced as some hopeless, sympathieser siblings... Their later antics put them in a very grey zone. Li Mao was so confusing, he was like couldn’t decide whether to be good or bad. He was Xiao Wuyis bestie who even put his life in danger by pledging for him in front of Empress Dowager... But later in every scene,I couldn’t decide whether to trust him or not. Lejun was the most frustrating one. Even though the motivation behind her action was to keep her brother safeby any means....Don't know if she deserves the sympathy. But I was looking forward to her lovestory with the Eagle King,which ended up in a tragic way.

One of things I loved the most was the atmosphere of Prince Jingans house. Every lady was well respected,have their own motivation and life goals. Yuanzhi,Ruisheng,Jiayu all always respected each others,helped each other. All ladies in this drama are well suited and given proper storyline,not just a prop.

Ost's were all good. Pacing was good. Wardrobes were stunning.The palace politics was intriguing enough.And it was really good to see a General with actual action in war,bloodsoaked,ruthless,violent when necessary.

This one was a pleasure to watch. If it had enough budget (and maybe with a proper fml to avoid controversy), this could be on the same level a pursuit of jade.

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Heavy Topics, Good Acting, and Budget Fight Scenes

Reborn didn't shy away from heavy topics. The drama tackles a wide range of intense themes, including toxic family dynamics, grief, depression, school bullying, domestic violence, societal criticism, and the endurance of young love.

The cast did a great job with playing out these heavy topics, delivering strong, convincing performances across the board... some too convincing 😆. One character in particular made me want to jump through the screen and fight them myself. Unfortunately, the actual fight scenes were where the show fell short for me. It felt like production could have spent a few more RMB to make the action believable. I'm not saying that I was expecting Pursuit of Jade level choreography, but at least make it feel like a real street fight, if that's what you're trying to show.

I would say my biggest dislike for this show came from the ending and the central romance. While the main leads were well-matched, their love story left me unfulfilled. I wanted to see more affection, warmth, and genuine yearning between them. The ML (Zhou Ri Yan), played a similar archetype to his role in "You Are Desire", where is was also displayed as a fearless, tough pretty boy, but I never found his "tough guy" persona entirely believable.

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A Dog and a Plane — Sometimes Familiar Isn't Enough

I've followed Tay and New for almost ten years. Like many people, I first discovered them through Kiss the Series, long before BL became the phenomenon it is today. Since then, I've watched countless variety shows, YouTube videos and dramas featuring them. What has always made TayNew special isn't simply their chemistry. It's how different they are. Tay is naturally funny. Everything about him feels spontaneous, whether he's filming a series or simply appearing on a variety show. New, on the other hand, is much quieter and more reserved. Those completely opposite personalities have always balanced each other perfectly, and it's one of the reasons they became one of GMMTV's most iconic couples.

A Dog and a Plane doesn't try to change that formula. In fact, it almost embraces it too much. Their characters feel incredibly close to the personalities they've been playing together for years. That's not necessarily a criticism because both actors remain as likeable as ever, but after a decade of watching them, I was hoping to see something that challenged them a little more. The acting certainly isn't the problem. Tay is as charming and effortlessly funny as always, while New continues to bring a calmer energy that complements him perfectly. Their chemistry remains completely natural, and it's easy to understand why audiences still enjoy watching them together after all these years. What has changed, however, is the image of the couple itself. New has visibly become much more muscular over the years, while Tay still has the same slimmer and softer appearance that fans know so well. Yet their dynamic never really evolves. The series continues to present Tay as the dominant partner and New as the more passive one, exactly as it has done for years. There's nothing wrong with that dynamic in itself, but after so many projects together, I couldn't help wishing the writers would surprise us by reversing expectations or exploring a different balance between them.

Another thing I noticed is how much their romantic scenes have changed. Today, both actors are in their mid-thirties, and compared to many newer BL couples, their intimacy is much more restrained. The relationship is almost entirely expressed through kisses and affectionate moments rather than physical passion. That isn't necessarily a weakness because not every BL needs explicit intimacy, but it does contribute to the feeling that the series never wants to leave its comfort zone. Ironically, the person I expected to challenge that comfort zone was Jojo Tichakorn Phukhaotong. After directing series such as 3 Will Be Free, Never Let Me Go, The Warp Effect and Only Friends, Jojo has built a reputation for pushing relationships into morally complex or emotionally risky territory. That's exactly why A Dog and a Plane surprised me. Instead of feeling bold, it feels unusually safe.

Comedy is clearly the priority. The problem is that comedy also needs drama. The funniest stories usually work because genuine emotional stakes exist underneath the jokes. Here, I kept waiting for those moments to arrive. I expected more from the accident. I expected the ex to create real emotional conflict. I expected situations that would genuinely test the relationship before allowing the comedy to take over again. Instead, everything remains relatively flat. The result is a pleasant series that never becomes memorable.

As much as I love Tay and New, I found myself enjoying them more than the story itself. That has happened to me before with some of their non-BL projects as well. I've never been particularly attached to the straight characters they play, even though I genuinely enjoy watching them as people. That's why I'm especially curious to see them in Scarlet Heart Thailand. With so many established BL actors appearing in one of GMMTV's biggest upcoming productions, I hope the script proves that the casting wasn't simply designed to attract existing fandoms. Great actors deserve great stories.

Final Thought

I don't regret watching A Dog and a Plane. Tay and New remain one of GMMTV's most lovable partnerships, and after almost ten years together it's impossible not to smile watching them share the screen again. Unfortunately, this time their chemistry carries a story that never reaches the same level. It's an enjoyable BL comedy, but one that plays everything surprisingly safe. I laughed, I smiled and I enjoyed spending time with the characters, yet when it ended I never felt the urge to immediately watch it again or add the DVD boxset to my usual GMMTV collection. For two actors I've followed for nearly a decade, I simply expected something a little more ambitious.

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Relatable Themes with a Touch of Realism Deficit

This was a good show. It kept me engaged for the most part. There were some moments when it started to get a little slow for me, but overall, it was a good watch. All the actors did a good part with their character personalities. Some were better than others. There are a few funny moments, and definitely some funny characters.

What I liked about the show is that they explored the different ways people are criticized based on "judging a book by its cover" and only having half of the story. It showed how easy people take a bit of gossip and just run with it. I also liked how they touched on several parenting styles, some very aggressive and others more conservative.

The things I struggled with were some of the reactions to certain situations, which made it feel unrealistic in many ways. I also wanted more out of the love story between the ML/FL. Their relationship gave me a cliffhanger feel at the end. But I'm overall happy with how their relationship developed.

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Why Deep In Just Set the New Gold Standard for Novel Adaptations

​If this show doesn’t make you fall in love with it, I don’t know what will!

​Having read the original novel, I was honestly skeptical about how they’d handle the adaptation. The book is packed with heavy, deeply traumatizing scenes that felt almost impossible to translate to the screen. But the production team completely blew me away with how sensitively and beautifully they adapted the story.

​First of all, Shuyuan and Ollie did absolute justice to their characters. On top of their incredible acting, their visuals are unreal—I am officially obsessed.

​The narrative structure is brilliant. In one universe, you have the frame story: rookie actor Zhang Zhun getting cast alongside film emperor Zhen Xin, bonding while rooming together as Zhen Xin slowly teases his way into Zhang Zhun’s heart.

​But the main universe is where the emotional core lies. Gao Zhun’s story—surviving a deeply traumatic assault and later meeting the therapist Fang Chi through his girlfriend—is dark, complex, and captivating. To me, the dynamic between Fang Chi and Gao Zhun completely stole the show. It brought something fresh, raw, and genuinely unexpected to the table rather than falling into predictable tropes.

​That intense depth and care in the storytelling is exactly why this show captured my heart.

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Blurred Realities make Excellent Drama

This drama was intense from start to finish. The storyline, cast, music, and production was great. It was hard waiting for the episodes to release each week. So much could happen in each episode and yet it could feel so short. It did leave me wanting more but it was because the performances by both the main and supporting cast were so engaging.

The star lead of the film pointed his romantic intensity towards is co-lead and kept pushing the drama on set as his co-lead tries to handle and understand his feelings about his advances. In a stark contrast, the characters they portray in the movie they portray are the exact opposite; with the intensity bubbling over from the seemingly shy co-lead/patient to the lead star/doctor.

The cuts between the story they were filming vs the story of the actors involved were masterfully done. The reality sometimes bends for the audience as sometimes we spent a lot of time engaged with the films story. It serves as an interesting substitute for what traditionally would be a secondary plot on the same storyline.

Additionally, I love that the main characters weren’t sidelined by green tea characters. Other characters were introduced to face push forward issues and insecurities they were facing. I felt it lead to deeper and more engaging character development. Loved it. 10/10.

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A humorous thriller that makes you laugh while keeping you engaged

E(1-4)
Has you hooked from the very first moment. I love how every character is busy showing off a fake side to the world and going to extreme lengths to keep the facade. "Not all that glitters is gold" .....the best way to describe both the families. There are no black or whites but every character is shades of grey and looking out for themselves. Both the first two episodes show the same situation but from different perspectives and the ending really makes you wish they dropped all episodes at once while third and fourth ep sets the stage for chaos.


Each actor is doing their jobs so phenomenally and the story so far is engaging. The humor is on point and doesn't derail the thriller moments.

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Two BLs in one...

While many 12 episodes BLs are a chore, this series gives you two stories in one. We already had fictional BLs in a BL, but not done in such a way, that both stories influence each other on such a level.

As it's cliché both start out as men with a girlfriend, but watching it you feel there is something off. Ollies character is aggressive towards Shu Yuans character from the get go, he exploits Shu Yuans character when drunk which will have it's consequences. But what was just desire turns into something else.

The lines between the "actor" characters and the fictional movie characters blur. Of course there's a lot of drama, because of the girlfriends and the fact that in China being gay is quite unpopular in the entertainment industry. There are a LOT of nc-scenes too, they drive the story forward. This role was the first for both and both are very young, their chemistry is impacable. The whole team put the nc-scenes in a tasteful way, they never felt akward or cringe. Of course this is an emotional rollercoaster, it's not for the fainted hearted either.

While the production quality was superb, the dubbing was not. What may be felt as "wooden" is the dubs fault, they are not lip-synced perfectly at times, the raw emotions could not be transported as well. That's my biggest critisim of this series. Otherwise a chinese production is showing Thailand how it's done. The stories are interesting, the script is not silly and nc-scenes are not considered just "fanservice". Overall a recommendation from me!

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