TharnType

Techno being the only (kind of) sane person in this mess of a series

I don’t even know where to start. I kept seeing people talk about TharnType being one of the must-see BL series, so I decided to give it a go. It definitely had some good moments, but it also had quite a few bad ones.

But let’s start with the good. I think both Mew and Gulf are amazing actors and have done an amazing job playing their characters. I really loved the way the two of them acted out certain more emotional scenes. We can all agree that the two actors have an amazing chemistry. I do find it hard to imagine Mew as university freshman, but it wasn’t really something I was too bothered by. Also, the ice kiss. I’m just going to leave it at that. The OST was amazing as well, I really enjoyed Mew’s voice. It’s very soothing.

The friend group was… interesting. The two roommates were a lot of fun, Khlui being the noisy neighbor that we all have was an absolute joy. Even if he was a bit clueless. And pairing him with wanna-be-idol Seo was a combination I didn’t know I needed. Champ and his food obsession were a bit overdone at moments, but I think he was a nice addition to the group.

Now, let’s talk Techno. I truly believe that he was the only (kind of) sane person in this whole mess of a series. Sure, he sucks at keeping secrets and did make some questionable decisions, but most of the time, he was the one making sure things didn’t go from bad to worse. I know he was often used as this comic relief character, which is a bit disappointing, as I believe they could have done much more with him.

Thorn and Tanya (Tharn’s siblings) were absolutely amazing as well. And I feel like the relationship shown between them is very realistic. I have siblings, trust me. I just wish that Thorn would be a little less supportive of Tharn and his toxic relationship with Type. I still have a lot of questions about San. I don’t think a punch in the face would be enough for me to forgive if he did that to my brother.

Now, a warning. When I talk about characters, I am talking about characters. It has nothing to do with the actors who played them. I know they are not the ones that come up with the story, they simply act what they are told to act. So, keep that in mind. I know I will ruffle a lot of feathers with my opinions on the characters below.

Tum & Tar – just why? I get that Tum has a crush on Tar, that’s an issue I just don’t feel like getting into. Let’s just say that stepsibling relationships are not something I usually enjoy when the two characters pretty much grew up together. But with the number of problems and symptoms Tar was showing, I can’t believe that Tum didn’t try to find out more earlier. I think we can all agree that Tar’s story is heartbreaking, and I am not trying to put any blame on him. Could he do things differently later in the series? Yes. Do I understand why he didn’t? Yes. He is a victim of an incredibly violent crime, and fear of something like that either happening again or becoming a public knowledge has a lot of power.

Llhong – why is he not in jail? I think that after he dropped the glass, we all knew he was madly in love with Tharn. I was surprised just how awful he actually is, but his feelings were not a surprise. And while on the topic of Llhong, let me just add that giving him a special episode to make us feel bad for him was the worst possible decision they could have made. He does not deserve a redemption arc. The end! Kudos to the actor though, he did an amazing job when it came to switching the emotions shown.

Tharn & Type: say what you want, but they deserve each other. And I don’t mean that in a good way. Type has his own problems from before, which does to some extent explain his homophobic behavior and thinking. He did cross certain limits though. But what I found to be maybe even worse was his abusive and manipulative behavior towards Tharn once they got together. The jealousy was overdone, and the fact that he punched Tharn, multiple times? Red flag after a red flag. To be honest, Tharn is full of red flags as well. He was too pushy, especially knowing that Type is not okay with gay men. Adding to that, he sexually assaulted Type, multiple times. And yes, him kissing him without his consent, trying to get him off when he caught him, and going down on him in the bathroom were all non-consensual. Also, their first time – I don’t get the thought process behind it, I really don’t.

I think the timeline of the story is all over the place as well. The way the characters deal with problems is a mess on a whole other level. There is very little to no actual character development. The writers included a ton of serious issues – from sexual assaults and trauma related to it, mental illnesses, homophobia… yet none of them were handled in an appropriate manner. They were done in a very ignorant and offensive way.

I’d probably give it an even lower rating, but the acting and the OST are saving it.

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Engaging...but, be prepared to dislike characters.

Firstly, I believe it's okay to dislike and judge characters and their choices without discrediting an entire show. Secondly, this show should probably come with a trigger warning. I do think the acting was good, and I say that partially because of how often I was talking to my screen about how awful a character was being. Type is not a good guy. He isn't a good partner for most of the show. He does have reasons for his feelings, but that does not excuse his actions. I don't think he was ever held appropriately accountable. Tharn is so hurt by thinking he must be a bad person since everyone leaves him, that he doesn't try to hold Type accountable. You just want to yell at your screen that it's all counterproductive and they NEED THERAPY, but...that being said, trauma can be internalized this way. It's a drama, so the biggest conflict is super intense, but the little stuff isn't totally unrealistic. I'm sure some people could find relatable moments in there. I think this drama is fine to watch for the acting and for possible catharsis, but you have to keep in mind the situation. It's possible to get lost in the cute parts and the sexy parts without realizing it, and no one wants to romanticize trauma or abuse.

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Is this still worth watching in 2021?

News flash, it aint. (Summary in last paragraph lol.)

Okay so lets start with the likes and positives seeing if I would end with the positive points, it would be like giving painkillers to someone who has been hit by a car.
- The cast was cute, but more importantly knew how to portray emotions when the focus was solely on them. Tharn's actor knew how to cry, Lhong's actor did a great job towards the ending, showing how sad he must have been yet clearly showing Lhong missed a couple screws.
-The supporting cast did their part well. Techno seemed like a true ride or die or atleast long term best friend. Tum played a very, VERY, loving brother so well. Just by the protective nature and his whole demeanour you could see something really hurt Tar, and Tum REALLY loved him.
-Sets were believable, I would stay in most of the dorms. The main theme song grew on me over time, but the original singer did it better then most of the covers by the cast for me. He really embodied it.

Okay so now for the reason 4 stars is pretty high for this trainwreck-
Does who ever wrote this, see consent, as a kink? Tell me. Because once you really sit down and rewatch some scenes, (which is why I do not recommend rewatching, it ruins the show as a whole if the ending did not yet.) you see consent was a word no one had in their dictonairy. And I mean NO ONE. If you know someone their trauma and its origin, you would think to respect it and stop being a selfish sex monster. (Like a normal human being, but the show fails to do that right with most of our lovely cast) Hell, someone who has not made it clear if they have ANY romantic or sexual attraction towards you, is a no go. The show handles trauma and consent as if it is just something as normal as buying groceries and it does not need to be respected. Neither do boundaries. That are made clear. If I tell you not to kiss me in public, you don't. If you do, don't get mad at me for getting mad and demand an apology. What world do you live on? Tell me so that I can assure NASA skips it.
The plot twist "Lhong" was. not. needed. PERIODT. I get that you want a shock factor for the final episode, an unexpected plot twist, but this was just poorly done, and hell, a show that FAILS to treat trauma, rape and other serious topics with the maturity and approach they need, should in no way, shape or form have done the twist it pulled. Also how the show decided to end this twist once again removes the seriousness of the topic and makes it seem like a joke. Had Lhong declared his love for Tharn whilst Tharn, went through it, (CAUSE CHILLEEEE, How he even got home in the state he was in? Did he drive? how he aint crash?) they dated, Type moved on, Tharn and Type figured they cant live without eachother and had to deal with their current flings and trying to get rid of the other their partner AND fix their own relationship would have been better then this. Lhong deserved a better final couple episodes then this. Even if it was just him being the supportive bestie who hid his feelings forever. (And did not ruin any relationships till date of course.) It would have been better, and maybe a more emotional rollecoaster for us as audience. The show milks anger from us because ThE MaIN COupLe Has A tHreaT, and that way tries to keep its plot interesting. Well once you are angered out, this facade flops and u see the shit plot for what it is before the shitshow even ends. I am not excusing what Lhong did in cannon, it just should have never been cannon, ESPECIALLY in this show that can not do it right.
Type, is just an asshole and how Tharn even felt for him is beyond me. Tharn (no angel either) as well being so over sexual it becomes predator-ish is a problem. The show once again over glorifies problematic traits and makes it seem "cute or sexy" when relationships could never work like this in reality and excuses this behavior by making it work in the end in a happy ending, that could never exist in any reality. I get it, fiction is supposed to be an extreme, and fairy tale like so we can escape. HOWEVER. It has been shown this can be down SO well, without having to overglorify, excuse or romanticize, the inexcusable or overly problematic to the point its not fiction, just unrealisitic. The show also fails to end the cans of worms it opens. For example, Tharn's homophobia never really goes away, it just gets swept under the rug, since he is not homophobic to Tharn anymore. He says it himself, he still hates gays, just not Tharn.

So, the show is not worth it, because it does not know how to deal with the immense serious topics it puts in the plot, just for shock. It even makes the topics seem so normal or insignificant that the topics almost become a joke. There never is any punishment or resolution next to a punch or kick, promoting violence over common sense. If this plot made any sense to begin with. This story many times made me really think it was a bad wattpad (365 days level plot/writing) story adapted into a show. How anyone let this plot on TV is beyond me, since there are much better BL shows, so the standard is there. The couple good points and the very real/good acting at times can by FAR not save this. No matter how many cute smooches, hugs, unrealistic dynamics or sparkly sound effects you put in the show. Once you remove that pink filter of "WoW HOw CuTe!!1!!" you would see how f*cked up this show is. (again no hate for the actors tho)

ps this is all my experience, likes, dislikes and opinion, if u disagree, too bad but let me live-

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Skinship Doesn't Makeup for Unresolved Toxicity

SPOILERS AND TRIGGER WARNINGS


Currently watching. Sexual assault and verbal abuse in the first episode. I can already tell this will be problematic and toxic.

Finished this drama and it didn't get any less toxic, problematic, or abusive. It got a lot worse. Let's get the positoves out of the way since it's short. Tharn is eye candy and the couple has good skinship. It's annoying when couples in dramas don't behave as if they like each other like a normal couple. They actually hold hands, hug, kiss, and show affection like a normal couple which is great.

Now the negatives. One ML (Type) is verbally and physically abusive towards multiple people including Tharn. His parents are horrible because they knew he was sexually abused as a kid and they didn't put him in any therapy.
The other ML (Tharn) is sexually abusive towards Type. His brother Thorn is horrible because he's friends with the person that sexually assaulted Tharn when he was younger. Thorn doesn't tell their parents and Tharn doesn't get any therapy. Not only are they still friends, but this guy still comes over to eat with the family. To top it off, he makes comments about sexually assaulting Tharn when he was younger because he looked small, young, and innocent and wishes Tharn was still young like that. He's a predator.
Tharn's best friend Llhong paid 3 grown men to sexually assault a 10th grade kid and recorded it. He is also manipulative and physically abusive.
So this drama is insane. It includes sexual, physical, and verbal abuse of adults and kids. And the story didn't include any lessons about how to deal with these real life issues. If there were healthy solutions to these problems shown or at least suggested, then maybe it wouldn't be as bad. No one called the police which is the least that could have been done. At a minimum, the police should have arrested Type, Tharn, Llhong, and Thorn's friend. I'm sure justifications can be made to arrest more characters in the drama too. Most of the characters are terrible people. It's like almost everyone is an antagonist and there's no protagonist at all.
I know some people still rate this highly because of the skinship between Type and Tharn, but I can't do that. Yes Tharn is very attractive. Yes Tharn and Type have great skinship. This is not enough to overlook the mountain of unresolved toxicity this drama has.

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Yes but No

I want to start by saying it was absolutely not the worst series I ever watched, but omg was it mid or even bad.
I have a lot of reasons for saying it, but let's start with some things I actually liked about this series.

Actors/acting was good, and I'm not only talking about main characters but side characters as well, there were few people I did enjoy seeing.
I also really liked the story, while I do think there was much more better ways they could've done it the idea was good, and I would love and see someone try to make something similar.
Chemistry between Gulf and Mew was there, it was nice and while I wasn't too much over the moon for it, I still found it enjoyable to watch these two to interact. I do have to say tho in my personal humble opinion Tharn and Type should've not ended up together. Because honestly, I cannot imagine a single good reason why any of them would want to be with another.

Tharn is just a spineless guy with no self-respect or dignity, who also has no concept of consent. He forgave Type multiple times without even him apologising for what he did first. Throughout the whole series I just wanted to grab Tharn by his shoulders, shake him and say “WAKE UP” because the way he would never stand up for himself when it came to Type is diabolical.
Also, the fact that he sexually assaulted Type not once is crazy and often overlooked by TharnType fans, but definitely shouldn't be. It was clearly shown multiple times how he would kiss Type while he is sleeping, gave him hickeys while he was drunk and blacked out, and the shower scene? Like let's not ignore it and instead of calling it cute, hot or sexy let's call it what it is, a sexual assault.

Type is a toxic asshole who doesn't respect a single person around him. While I know that Type has trauma, it absolutely doesn't excuse his behaviour towards people around him, people who care and love him. He disrespected and physically assaulted multiple people who absolutely did not deserved it and wouldn't apologise unless he gets some kind of “punishment” for doing so. And the way everybody around him act like it's normal is insane to me. It's important to acknowledge his traumatic experience, but let's not try to excuse his behaviour just because of something like this.

And while I'm talking about traumatic experience, I want to talk about Tar. I've seen multiple people say how tar was annoying, stupid and stuff like this. I want to start by saying that victim-blaming is a terrible thing, and y'all doing it is just disgusting.
There wasn't a single thing that he did that would make him as bad as y'all trying to paint him to be. Throughout his whole story, I was just feeling so sorry for him, and he absolutely did nothing to deserve what happened to him.
He was so scared, traumatised and broken I cannot imagine blaming him for anything at all, all the “bad” things that he did were just a Lhong's disgusting plan, and he is the only one to blame here.

Now for the Lhong and oh do I have a thing or two to talk about. First off, the fact that he didn't get any jail time or ANY repercussions for that matter is CRAZY to me. He was so disgusting, everything about him made my skin crawl. He is not just a bad guy he is a devil himself, and there are still people trying to defend him saying he was misunderstood, he is so UNDERhated.
Nothing, and I mean NOTHING, could excuse his behaviour, the things he did are literally illegal. Sabotaging all of the Tharns relationship, paying three man to gang-rape a high-schooler (Tar), and then also blackmailing the same boy and pressuring him into doing things he was not comfortable with to break Tharn and Type up.
He is the worst of the worst, he is a terrible human being and all that he deserves is a jail time!!!

Honestly, there is so much more bad people in this series, since most of the characters were kinda good until they did something crazy and made my opinion about them fully change. But there were also characters that I liked, but they are not worth mentioning except for the one character that I liked the most, and it's Techno. Techno would always add this nice and comedic feel to the series when needed the most, as well as being a great supportive friend and trying to help Type with anything he could. There was one thing that made me a bit uncomfortable is when he really would not believe Tar even when he has seen a proof, and tried to tell Type that as well. But other than that, I would say that he is my favourite character.


In conclusion, I am kinda happy that I watched this series, since I wanted to give it a try all the way from 2019. I first tried watching it back then when it was just coming out, but it was too much for me, so I dropped it. But I am happy that I came back, but I am even happier that I finally finished it.
I did enjoy it to some degree, but of course all of the red flags were really hard to close my eyes on and just try to push through.
I do think though that this series is overrated, and it is really toxic, so for anybody to enjoy it at least a little, you need to be able to “ignore” a lot of stuff. Otherwise, it is definitely unenjoyable to watch.

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Well-balanced BL drama

This is one of numerous Thai BL I've watched during quarantine and is by far my most favorite from the genre. I wouldn't say this drama is perfect, in fact it has flaws in various aspects.

Story wise, TTTS brings out serious issue such as childhood trauma and mental health problems but 12 episodes was clearly not enough to peel them all through thus making the drama felt unsatisfactory for some. Another thing is that the drama has multiple nonconsensual acts which weren't addressed properly. Let's say people can brush off few 'fictional' issues, but at the very least a drama has to convey which behavior is deemed wrong or right to its audience. Even with the story's faults, I appreciate the neat pacing of each episode.

Acting wise, both main actors can portray their roles quite well despite not having that many experience under their belt. Some parts can be improved but more experience will hopefully do the job. The drama also has one of the best chemistry I've seen in Thai BL to the point where I can't be convinced watching other BL couples.

Lastly I wanna give kudos to newbie director Tee Sinta for making the story come to life, for casting suitable actors, for capturing beautiful shots even with limited budget and no sponsor. Once you see the drama, you'll understand how good his directing is.

TTTS is not perfect but well-balanced. The plot has depth, the acting is good, the humors are well-timed, music placement is wonderful, and the directing is superb. What more can you ask for?--

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Tharntype the series

Such a great series . all the characters played in the series was so good every character had a meaning of its own in the series. The series is so great and unforgettable..
The character development from hate to love was so good portrayed. Both the characters played by the main actors were suited for each other.. some scenes for was relatable the love they portaited was so real. I have never seen such a great BL series in my life.. I hope it does get more success in views.MewGulf forever...

Hopw it does success more ..
Can't wait for the season 2 ...
I hope everyone will support mew gulf through this journey..

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The I-dont-ever-watch-Thaidrama review

Pressured by the overwhelmingly positive reviews, I, the I never watch thai dramas because cringey acting, weird story, etc has ruined it for me years ago type, gave this a chance.

Phuuu...what am i gonna say about this.

+ The one thing that stuck was oddly enough the title song. Catchy af.
That's actually one thing about ThaiDrama i approve of: the music seems to be kinda good most of the time. Liked it.

+ the actors. Looks-wise both started out not my type at all but especially Type's actor won me over. Still not that much of a fan of Mew but oh well, seen worse. Acting was fairly good too.
Chemistry was there, especially in the later half of this season.
+kissing/making out was less cringy than i thought, they actually acted well!

~ plot. I mean, who doesn't love a good rivals/enemies to lovers plot, BUT it had its faults. Like, the whole I hate gays bc I was abused (btw they never explore the abuse in a healthy way, no therapy, no healing etc) thing and then he lets Tharn actually abuse him. Wtf?!

- A lot of NON-CON is going on on this at the beginning and it's bad. BAD! Kissing a sleeping person, ignoring multiple NOs etc. That kinda thing. Just no!

Will I rewatch? No. I will most likely watch season 2 although I dont know why but that seems to be the charm of this series, you actually wanna stick with it, even through the bad and ugly, kinda fascinating actually...mh....

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I'm not really sure what to start with because there are so many things I want to talk about. I had to rewatch an episode at least 3 times because I would constantly skip because I was uncomfortable with some of the scenes.
Type:
I'm not really that mad at Type for SOME of his actions because they have reason to them. Like he was sexually harassed when he was younger. After that, he trained himself so then that wouldn't happen again (Does that make sense)
Also I feel like Tharn came into his life too quickly for Type. Type finds out his roommate is gay, turns out that roommate likes him, and that roommate kind of sexually harassed him. The times I remember most were when Tharn was kissing Type in his sleep and in episode 3 when Tharn kissed him and did something else (watch the episode if you want to know) Type looked uncomfortable and was trying to push Tharn away. When that happened his childhood trauma was brought back up and that would not feel good to remember at all. Other than that Type could seem like a complete asshole so that's why I said "Some of his actions".
Also when the 2 start dating and Type realized after a while that he was being a bad boyfriend to Tharn he apologized. In most situations most people don't notice they are doing that and don't apologize. I'm glad that Type realized and apologized.
Type's character was written very well and he's my favorite in Tharntype.

Tharn:
I felt so bad for Tharn when I found out that Lhong was behind a bunch of drama. His best friend. Was behind multiple things and Tharn didn't even know. But I also didn't really like Tharn. He did that stuff to Type and he didn't even know about his past trauma. That's what makes the situation worse. He just hurt Type even more. Also kissing someone in their sleep and giving Type a hickey is too much and Type didn't even give consent obviously because he was asleep. He wasn't awake or aware of what is going on so it's basically sexual harassment.
Like, imagine you were asleep and you woke up to find hickeys on your neck? would you like that!?

Yea, I didn't like this series much.
One thing I'm really mad at is that Lhong got NO punishment for his actions!

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The best BL of 2019
TharnType is with out a doubt the best BL Drama of 2019, so lets start obviously from the beginning, the OP (Be Mine (ไม่ยอม)), God, i dont think i have fall in love with a oppening such as with this, the lyrics from the singer point of view is heartbreaking, knowing that he will not give up on his love, even tougth he knows his crush doesnt love him back(it may be confusing to speculate who dedicate the song to who, but after watching the entire series you will understand everything).
The acting is good, The Character development of Type (Gulf) is flawless, you can even see how his facial expresion change as the series avance. Would have been the greatest acting performance of the series if it wasn't for Lhong (Kaownah) is amazing how complete and credible his acting was. And can we take a moment to apreciatte how Hot and Gorgeous Tharn (mew) is?, literally every scene that he is in is breathtaking.

Meanwhile the Story could not be the series stronger points, but it manages to involve really serious theme in the plot, as Type and Lhong background stories

To conclude, TharnType may seem like a regular BL Series, but its better than that, thats the reason is the best of 2019

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