Love in the Air

Just Missed Being Memorable

There is such a natural rhythm to this series, and I have to admit that all the performers were top notch. I applaud their level of comfort in showing us the love scenes with naturalness and intensity. They were not afraid to show us that they were in love, and I felt like they meant it. This is a remarkably impactful series that just missed being profoundly memorable. We needed to see, feel, and know the pain of being raped, physically abused and psychologically tortured from an early onset so we could feel it on a deeper level. Do not be afraid to take it one step further. There was a deeper message here. Show it all. But I applaud this series for the progress that has been made. I was deeply moved. I sobbed a lot in the last episode of this series.

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So this was better than it had any right to be.

Okay, let me rephrase that. While LITA wasn't on par with BBS (Bad Buddy the series) with its enemies-to-lovers goodness marred with family drama or Eclipse the Series which touched upon important issues such as mental health and homophobia, it still exceeded expectations.

I went into this expecting the typical plot and tropes and for the most part, I was right. Plus, MAME is notorious for incorporating problematic elements and tropes like many of their kind working in the BL industry. Still, I just wanted something that was good enough to occupy my mind and didn't require much effort to consume.

However, one thing I did not expect was how much the actors would bring to the table.

Noeul, Boss, Fort and Peat each did exceptionally well with the role they were assigned. The guys made their characters more likable than I thought they'd be which added to the viewing experience. While PayuRain's story was enjoyable because it was just a pair of young, virile boys being very much into each other and exploring their relationship in their own unique way, I vastly preferred PaiSky's storyline to theirs.

PaiSky's storyline had that emotional depth that I wish had been more present in PayuRain's, and Fort did an amazing job playing Prapai. I did not expect the reformed cheesy rich fuckboi to grow on me so fast, but he did. Fort's micro-expressions went a long way in his portrayal of Pai and added a lot of depth to this character. Peat also did a wonderful job playing Sky, and their chemistry was one worth watching as it played out onscreen.

Also, seeing them actually act like students was refreshing to see at once. I'm lowkey tired of Thai BLs claiming X person is from X faculty and then doing absolutely nothing to showcase the fact. Studies are a vital part of your character's life if they're in an educational setting and just think of the numerous plot points that can emerge out of it! Exhibit A, Rain breaking down in front of Payu regarding how mean his teacher was about late submissions. Or Exhibit B, Sky calling Pai over to help with his homework, despite the latter having no knowledge of architecture but still doing so because that's what you do in a relationship. I personally vibed very much with these instances.

However, that does not mean that there were problems. The writing fell flat in the second half of the show wrt to Rain's character. I know my guy isn't the brightest bulb in the box but to make him out to be the worst kind of airhead was not cool at all, Noeul didn't deserve that. Furthermore, the 'graphic' depictions of Sky's trauma felt more like they were there for shock value, rather than to add weight to the story. We understand Sky has trauma, you can just hint at it, there's no need to add such long scenes depicting it like that. My Guy has Issues and Baggage, We Get It. The only thing worth nothing in those scenes was the difference in how much Sky had grown, when he fought back against Gun the second time indicating a growth in mental fortitude.

Also, Sky and Rain's friendship was one of my favorite things about the series, but it went so stale in the second half, their interactions seemed so shallow and forced, which was very offputting. If they are besties, act like it!

Also, shoutout to Tonnam, who played Sig. I didn't expect to like the guy as much as I did, but Sig's character was quite refreshing and I really enjoyed his dynamic with Sky.

All in all, not a bad watch, but not exceptionally good either.

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The Guilty Pleasure

Rated ~ 22.5/50 ~ 4.5

I had just finished watching Not Me and was in desperate need of more motorbikes. I initially was going to ignore this because it's MAME but decided to watch it anyway.

I am not a fan of MAME. S*A appears in her work like a fetish but your one true love will heal you, and her female characters are guaranteed to be trash. It's quite sad.

But I was in a mood to turn my brain off and just be dazzled by all the pretty men and their motorbikes.
There's really nothing new here. Both stories follow the same narrative.
Story one - Genuis architect falls for naive young student and manipulates the situation to let him think student is pursuing him. They fall in love and have hot steamy sex. Kidnap episode for drama.
Story two - Naive student's so called bestie, despite the pair telling each other very little, is forced into having hot steamy sex with genuis architect's friend in order to get out. hm. Rich wealthy who happens to be the fastest biker, because he has to match the excellence of his friend, proceeds to stalk and force his way into a relationship before realising he's in love. The sassy bestie turns tsundere and then a meek kitten as we see his ptsd emerge, get retriggered, retraumatized by the ex and friends who assault him again, but being in love will make it all better.

Really... This is why I dont like MAME. It's not a hate wagon. There's a lot of issues happening here and surfaces in her work. The plot is absolutely wack.

But I watched with my brain off and just enjoyed the visuals. And I absolutely enjoyed the visuals. The actors are gorgeous. I wanted to fix pyah's hair a little but he kept it back for the most part so I dealt. The actor for Rain is stunningly beautiful and they kept putting him under warm lights, which lit up his eyes and skin tone. The scene in the kitchen, with the sunlight behind him is screensaver material.
The sex scenes were very heated and more like how het couples have sex which is probably why they are enjoyed so much. Anal is a little trickier to keep to a position so it has you thinking that the bottoms are really flexible and the tops are really big lol But I have to give credit to the actors for going full on with those scenes. I was a little turned on. Cant lie.

And that's all I can really say about this series LOL The actors are pretty, the luxury visuals are enjoyable and the sex scenes are hot.
I dont even remember the music.

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Don't know what they did but it's not what I expected

I started watching it thinking it will again be a bunch of red flags and the soft boys falling in love etc. SO I came with a very low expectations however the drama surprised me alot. What I liked the most is probably how the characters are very typical of Thai BL but they seem very realistic unlike others. None of them were whole green forest or red sirens but they felt like human with charms and flaws. And thank gosh finally a BL where the characters actually study or work and not just scenes of them fooling around. Overall it was quite enjoyable to watch.

I am not sure how MAME's novel is but I can definitely see a very well established character development. The plotline is nothing extra ordinary. Just two best friends falling for two best friends and the pursuing. But BoosNeoul and FOrtPeat acting and chemistry truly made this show enjoyable. I won't say it was 100% toxicity free but I think we can keep it with them especially by how Phayu and Pai does their best to make it up. I think it is not the character which were toxic but the situations shown. I think out of all of them Sky has the most defined back ground story.

The cinematography is amazing. They seem to have a good budget, I have to say the intimate scenes were wild and not just wild wild but realistic wild. I am not the type to enjoy these scenes very much but this one kept me hooked and became one of the highlights of the show for me.

I don't know why there are so many negative reviews when considering all things that we have seen in Thai BL this one is way better. I would suggest giving it a chance especially if you like bikes and their handsome rider

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i have a lot to say...

i don't like it, the history feels like a Wattpad book or somethig like that, i feel like it lacked development !!! above all the principal couple :/ omg idk if its the actor or the character (rain) but he makes me feel CRINGE the wat he acts above all the kiss scenes... It's like i read in other comment who said if rhis series didnt hace 18+ scenes it will a fail (sorry not sorry) :/ anyways the second couple is a little bit more acceptable (I almost forgot to mention the fact that what was the need to put the couples' story separately? It wasn't easier to show everything at the same time)

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Get's better the more episodes you watch

Honestly i started watching this based on the trailer and me shipping NoeulxBoss, and about what I've heard this being a good BL with alot of skinship haha. I think it is quite good they decided to split the first half of the series main in Rain / Payu and Second half in Sky / Pai, as i think the story of Sky / Pay is so deep it would be messy to go through the story of Rain / Payu. Honestly, from all the commotion surrounding Noeul / Boss i did expect alot more about their story and part in the series. In the end it felt merely like a rather standard story, cute and adorable but not necessarily refreshing or new. Then again, i was severely impressed with both the storyline and acting of Sky / Pai. It has a deep yet traumatic storyline and i think it is amazingly well played out, and some scenes really got to me emotionally. Deffinetly a great series, even if the first few eps aren't that deep.

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Annoyingly plain

At first I had very high hopes for this series because of what seemed to be the setting - I have never watched any series/film that revolves around street races, and since the teaser seemed to include both that and a good amount of romance, I was looking forward to it.
The first disappointment for me was exactly this: racing in Love in the Air is a minor device at best, and an aesthetic at worse. The characters are seen being involved in this illegal race that seems to be such a big deal for everyone, but the setting is explored so little that, now that I finished watching, I'd argue that Love in the Air is more about university life than racing. (Minor spoiler here: we don't even get to see Pakin in person for the entire series, he's only ever mentioned despite being such an important and powerful character.)
The second disappointment was finding out that this story relies on a handful of tropes that are just... handled in the worst way? There's multiple instances of dubious consent, assault, stalking, and other things that are heavily romanticised. I read/saw these tropes in BLs multiple times in the past, but it was about 10 years ago or so, and I really thought that we had gotten over bad writing in favour of good characterization and introspection. I guess I thought wrong. After realizing that the author of the novel this series is based on is also the same author of TharnType, I'm not even surprised.

Despite my disappointment, I decided to keep watching, in hopes that I would still get to enjoy the series to some extent. The couples are cute and they have some very romantic moments, but I'm afraid there isn't much more that I can say.
- Rain's character seems to be almost entirely undefined. At times he looks stubborn and decisive, then he randomly turns all soft and cute and well-behaved; at times he almost looks capable to think and make decisions on his own, but then he seems to just lose his brain. I feel like his personality changed at every scene, which was frustrating to see.
- The series did a good job with Rain and Payu, showing that they don't just live for each other, but they also have their job/studies to take care of which are equally important. Then the story decided that Sky and Pai only need to be around each other and think about each other at all times; Sky got to show a little more of his university life, but Pai literally seems to be a rich guy whose only task in life is to pursue Sky in any way possible.
- I'm not a fan of dubcon, but I was willing to let it slide in case the series tackled it well. And... it didn't. Not in a horrible way (I'm not expecting a series to teach me that something is Bad and Wrong), but in a very plain way. The most controversial tropes were handled in such an unoriginal way that I felt annoyed and bored.

In the end, I can say that the couples were cute enough to let me watch until the end. Rain and Payu were more interesting to me, while Sky and Pai's story (which starts at part 4 of episode 7) got boring very quickly and I ended up fast-forwarding the last two episodes. I can only recommend this in case you have nothing better to do.

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Daddy

The entire show is based on two tropes
1. He fell first but he fell harder
2. Trauma is fun
Phayu x Rain:
At first Rain wanted nothing to do with Phayu but after a kind of one night stand Rain wants to prove a point and make Phayu fall in love with him. Why would you make someone you have zero interest in fall in love with you??? you definitely have better things to do. Phayu is super manipulative because Rain does exactly what he wants him to do, and as expected Rain falls in love. Rain started as kind of an independent person and ends up becoming a mop. There is nothing better for a new couple then sickness and kidnapping.
Prapai x Sky:
I liked them much better, but that doesn't mean I liked them. Prapai needs to learn the meaning of NO. The chase is fun, but after a few episode it becomes uncomfortable. I actually liked Sky's character arc. The plot with his ex made me feel really sorry for him, and I liked how the relationship with Prapai helped him get over his trauma, but he still needs therapy.
Again, kidnapping is fun...but they need to find better plot points.

Rain and Sky don't feel like friends. They show wants to make me feel like they are besties, but they seem nothing more then colleagues. They need to talk to each other more... that can help a lot.

Overall, nice trash, motorcycles are cool, won't watch again, puns are my love language, Sky is the best.

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THIS IS THE BEST ONE (list of reasons to watch if interested)

Where to even start.
If I ever knew I could love a drama this much. I often go to read the English translations of the books Thai dramas are based on when I start to really enjoy the show, this is always step one. Both the book and the show, they drag you in. I knew it from the first episode. Firstly, please, let's be grown ups. I can understand some people may have different opinions on Phayu's behaviour in the first couple episodes toward Rain. Personally, makes sense. Also, hot as f***.
Sorry, let me give an actual review now. (Btw if you haven't you should definitely watch the trailer, I watched before I started the show, because I saw it week-by-week, the most painful thing I ever did)

Let me quickly list themes in the show to help you decide:
- Knight in shining armour moments (more than one)
- The best NC scenes you have ever seen (no, I'm not exaggerating)
- Taking care of each other when they are sick
- Hand-by-head pinning to the wall
- So funny (especially Rain, that boy)
- Making each other better people/becoming better people for each other
- Amazing friendships
- Pillow talk
- Emotional confessions
- Multiple love languages
- Please they are so hot, all of them, all of the time
- Two lead couples, storylines separate, but slightly overlapping
- Phayu and Rain, hot/cool senior (both an architect and garage owner), bratty/dumb/adorable/earnest junior
- Prapai and Sky, rich business man and street racer on the side, adorable/traumatised/standoffish student

So, the books are separate, but set in the same place with overlap of the characters. Love Storm (Phayu means storm in Thai) and Love Sky. Exquisite, would recommend. Phayu and Prapai are friends and Rain and Sky are friends. If you have read or watched the wonders that is the Tharntype collection then you know MAME. Tharntype was my first Thai BL and it still holds a really special place in my heart. If you liked that in anyway, this is for you. Also, please be aware, if you are really tight on the 'but that wouldn't work in the bedroom between two men, you have to do XYZ', it happens in the book, you just have to imagine it happens in the show, because I think they felt it would be taking it a bit far, I've seen this a lot and I understand where people are coming from, but please remember it is television, it's a story, and it's for fun.

Tropes:
- Rich hot playboy
- Love at first sight (not that strong)
- I will find you
- big fancy house
- enemies to lovers (a bit)
- knight in shining armour
- caretaker
- kidnapping
- first love
- romantic ride sharing
- top obsessed with bottom
- caught in the rain
- the first cut is the deepest
- the big kiss

Okay, a bit more spoilery from here:

Plot summaries (but not all of it, go and watch the show)

Phayu and Rain stole my heart, my soul. The way that Phayu looks at Rain kills me. The story goes in this general direction.
Rains car breaks down in... the rain lol. Phayu happens to be passing on his motorbike, and as a mechanic decides to help the boy. Rain charms him a little with his behaviour, though he doesn't know it. Rain thinks he is really hot, but my boy has no idea that he likes the boys too. Rain discovers the girl he has a crush on at university likes this alumni from their programme who turns out to be none other than Phayu himself. Once again, Rain's car breaks down at the architecture meet-up and Phayu helps him once again. Then Rain realises that this man maybe wants more from him. Rain is confused, knowing that Phayu is very attractive, but he himself is not gay. As Phayu comes on stronger, Rain gets more defensive. Then trying to mess with Phayu and gets himself in trouble at the illegal street race that Phayu works at. Phayu continues to call him a stupid little boy, to which Rain has the, very sane I'm sure, response of telling him that he is going to make him fall in love with him. In attempting to do this he gets distracted from his university work and oversleeps when he should be handing an assignment in. He is so heartbroken at the response from his professor and goes to Phayu in bits. Phayu enforces distance, saying that this is clearly a distraction. Rain works extremely hard and gets all of his work done in order to be able to be near Phayu again. When he is praised by his professors this time he runs to tell Phayu once again and their relationship picks up from here. Along the ride there are no major arguments from this point. I would die for this couple, I cannot tell you how many times I have rewatched their episodes.
Then we move to Prapai and Sky. In said situation where Rain get's himself in trouble at the illegal street race, Sky is with him and when they get separated, Prapai, a rich racer, helps him out of trouble. When Sky asks what he wants in return, it is clear Prapai wants to sleep with him. Sky faces him head on and does exactly that. Months later, Prapai cannot stop thinking about the night he spent with this boy, who never even told him his name. He goes looking for him, by going to Phayu's boyfriend who he knows is his friend. He then finds him and begins to pursue him. Prapai has been a player his entire life, never settling with one person. But, he is extremely interested in Sky and doesn't question it. Sky could not be more displeased, he wants to be left alone, especially because of his traumatic past relationship. No matter how many nightmares he has, or how rude and standoffish he is with Prapai, Sky can't seem to shake him. At the same time, Sky is in his second year at university and is helping induct new students whilst doing his own work. He becomes sick and refuses to go to the hospital. In this moment there is no one to care for him but Prapai (istg situationally it makes sense). He nurses him back to health, and in seeing him tackle his fever dreams, realises that there is something that is causing Sky a lot of anguish, but knows better than to ask about something he likely doesn't want to share. From here Sky is thankful to Prapai and lessens his stubbornness a little. As their relationship develops they become closer and closer. Eventually, after some sad breaking away and then back together (so much more happens, but I don't want to give it all away, and the breaking is within an episode don't stress) our boys have never been so in love. Tragedy strikes near the end when Sky's abusive ex reappears with malice. But, not to ruin anything, it's a happy ending.
Highly recommend watching the special episode for peace of mind (and the only time I've ever thought calling someone daddy was hot).

If you have read this you are clearly not the kind of person who minds a few spoilers before watching a show, so if you like watching clips and edits on YouTube, defo watch a couple of the high quality edits (especially PhayuXRain to Unholy).

Well, I'm not going to get a lot of sleep before work tomorrow, but it was worth it. I hope this helps :)

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It was good, but could have been better

This was a good drama. I like the main couple, and then the second couple grew on me. I wish the story overlaps, instead of having to show the first CP RainPyu first and then PaiSky in the second half. I read there's a reason why they did that because in the book; both couples start their romance and meet each other at a different time. I just wish they could have fit everything because it gives me the impression I am watching two different dramas lol.

I like how strong the leads are, and I like how there is no force stuff in here.

This is the same author from TT, so if you like TT you might like this one.

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