Between Us

swam in circles

Overall: this is a kind of sequel/retelling of Until We Meet Again with a shift in the main couple focus from Dean/Pharm to Win/Team. People will enjoy Between Us more if they've seen Until We Meet Again first. Note that when Team says 'brother' it means his cousin, not his biological brother. Aired on Wabi Sabi's YouTube membership channel and iQIYI.

Content Warnings: non con touching/kissing, manhandling, slap, past death, grief/trauma, homophobia (another huge content warning in a comment under a spoiler)

What I Liked
- seeing some familiar faces/characters from the first series reprise their roles
- new and extended scenes of Win and Team (return of the broccoli!)
- Win checking on Team's intoxication level
- sweet moments
- some funny moments
- the discussion about homophobia
- Win's older brother/gaming couple
- friendship between Pharm, Manow and Team
- Win and his siblings' relationships (especially Win and his younger brother)
- how Win didn't push Team to tell him about his past

Room For Improvement
- my main issue was that they went around and around, this story could have been told in 6 episodes instead of 12
- 5 couples was too many couples
- I don't understand Win's character, if they had given some background about a bad breakup or something then his actions would make sense, but they haven't shown us as an audience and so he just seems really hot and cold
- Team was oddly reluctant at times and also oddly hot and cold (mostly cold), how was Team more reluctant than Pharm (Pharm!!!) in the final episode?!?
- terrible communication between Team and Win
- for people who did not see UWMA I think this would be a bit confusing, I did want to see when Team, Pharm and Manow first met because all of a sudden they are talking as friends
- Win feels more of a jerk (what on earth was that dialogue during the hurt/care scene in ep 1) and Team is more vulnerable/less sassy and I didn't like the change
- the non con part before they went to the hotel room in ep 1
- Win's shifting hair roots (didn't take off review points for this though)
- camera blocking shots in the kissing scene in ep 1
- the conversation between Bee and Prince in ep 9 was odd, university students in Thailand don't know about bi/pan as a possibility?
- using almost the exact same music (even background music) from UWMA one of which goes with a really tragic scene in UWMA

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When a Series Adaption too close to the Novel, It feels like Heaven.

First of I'm a novel fan. When a series is adapted from a novel I would be really particular to see how the works is being made to one. I read the Hemp Rope and I'm so inlove between the story of WinTeam. All that they did, all the emotion they have, all the words they speak of, all that are like your favorite food that will make you full but you'll continue to eat it because it makes you happy. While adaptation have the rights to change most plots and adds other stuff, I like how Between Us had choosen to keep the main plot in full, even the amazing lines they said, It was nice to read it but hearing it is even more better. My heart is very satisfied with this adaptation, I almost cry with happiness as to how Boun & Prem personified WinTeam. They have done their best and I approve them and will only consider as the only Hia Win and Team could ever be. I also understand the series tweak some important details from the novel as the novel is emotionally too heavy to deal with. Nonetheless all WinTeam centered plot both novel & series is like heaven for me.

Talk about acting Boun & Prem can truly deliver. I'm almost in awe. I love how they know their characters so well and executed main-heavy scenes superbly. It gives me goosebumps with their powerful acting. It's just great. Their acting potential is limitless, they can explore more and improve and grow. I will look forward to their future projects.

Just like any other bl drama, this series has some flaws as well (repeatitive flashbacks, too many micro stories -they're really good and well executed but feel off, 2 new cp, over screentime to certain frames ) but it was negligble to me as I am always drawn to good acting by Main Leads and overall imagery of the series and this one just hit all my checkmarks to be a series I would surely rewatch again.

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Between Us, It's Not Worth The Wait

Creating spin offs focused on the side couples that captured the audience's hearts has been a thing for a while. Sometimes it's done really well, but in a lot of cases as showcased here with Between Us, it just ends very poorly. The thing with side couples is that they're just that, side couples. They can bounce in and out as needed to provide whatever is needed, some levity to keep the show from being too heavy, a nudge to keep the plot rolling, a touch of ingenuity to get the lead couple together or back on track, etc. They're not central to the story, but they do play an important role. The problem comes though, when you try to take them and make them the leads. Unless both stories are planned out at the same time, it's bound to get messy which was the case with Between Us.

I watched Between Us and then promptly went and skimmed through UWMA which means that the differences between the two were positively glaring. Since these two dramas were obviously not planned out at the same time, there were inevitably going to be differences, that was unavoidable. However, with that being said, I think they could have done a much better job of making those differences less obvious.
-The most obvious were characters that were prominent in UWMA that were just completely omitted in Between Us, namely Dean's sister, Del. She became a good friend of Manow and Pharm and was frequently seen with them at the swim meets and such and with Manow in the drama club. I don't know if the actress was unavailable, uninterested, or if they deliberately omitted her but it was weird to have her absent. Same with Alex who was also part of the drama club and again was almost completely omitted aside from one comment about him that Manow made in Episode 1. If they didn't want those characters in there, then so be it, but find a way to explain why they don't show up. Pretending they don't exist is not the way to go. Your audience isn't stupid.
-Similarly, part of Manow's journey was her discouragement of not getting any acting parts and just working backstage. This was another fairly major change since she acted in a short film that won a prize in UWMA and acted in something for the club's open house as well. Don't get me wrong, I actually liked the change, but it just felt like they didn't care about consistency and staying true to the original story.
-Sticking with Manow for a second, her and Pruek's relationship was also completely different. This is another change that I liked, I actually adored their relationship, more than Win and Team, if I'm honest, they were so wholesome, but again, nothing like what transpired in UWMA.
There's definitely more but I'll stick with those so I don't keep rambling.

The biggest problem though with Between Us, is that there simply wasn't enough story to stretch for 12 episodes. There just wasn't. Again as side characters, as a side couple, Team and Win were fantastic, they were the comedic relief together, separately they were confidants for Pharm and Dean respectively. It worked. But with them as the leads, their characters also changed. Team was almost infantilized. He was whiny and childish. His constant complaint of "Hia" became increasingly grating as the drama dragged on. And Win, who was teasing and mischievous in UWMA, was suddenly possessive and overprotective. The teasing came out as well, but to a lesser extent and as the drama went on; their relationship took on an almost parental note which was weird and felt unnatural. Their relationship in UWMA, for as little as we saw of it, felt natural. That's part of why it was so charming. What we needed was something that told us why they worked. Not a one night stand, not family drama, or a traumatic back story, just them, what was it about their personalities, who they were, that just clicked and unfortunately we got everything but that.

But while I feel like starting their relationship with a one night stand wouldn't fit with the narrative initiated by UWMA, it could have worked. If they had showcased what started out as just sex slowly developing into something more. But instead, they kept their relationship painfully awkward, particularly on Team's part, hesitant to touch or be touched, and the kisses were just not great. There should have been a steady improvement, but there wasn't. I'm going to guess neither the writer or director have ever been in relationships and have no idea how they work because seriously, there should be growth and development, not just physically, but emotionally. But again, we have the weird parent/child dynamic between the two that never goes away. We have Win's apparent fear of commitment that's never really addressed. There's also Team's completely unfounded fear that he's not truly special to Win that's also not addressed. Those are two aspects that would have been interesting to explore and could have given insight to the characters, providing growth for them as individuals and as a couple. We also have scenes like the one where Team apparently sits in the rain for two hours waiting for Win to rush to his side. Really? You're visiting your parents, they're probably 10 minutes away, but you're going to call your boyfriend who's two hours away. And then Win, who has a car, decides to ride his bike. The levels of stupidity in that one scene were just off the charts. And then the episode where they finally admit they love each other but spend half of it chasing each other around. Basically, by the end of the drama, I wanted to bash their heads together, not that I think it would have actually done any good.

The other thing bogging down this drama was, as usual, the myriad of side couples. Now the two I didn't mind were Manow and Pruek, as I already mentioned, and, for the most part, Tul and Waan.
-Manow and Pruek had a good, steady development in their relationship and I loved his endless support of her. Seriously, Pruek is boyfriend goals. If he has an older brother exactly like him, I want him as my boyfriend thank you very much. I also loved how he just accepted her as she was with all her quirks and oddities. He took everything in stride no matter how weird and it created some truly adorable scenes. I just cannot describe how much I adore them. I liked the depth given to Manow. I loved her in UWMA, but there was more to her here. She wasn't just the funny friend, she was a whole character. And she had so much personality! BL's and dramas, in general, take note. A woman does not have to be a skinny, pretty little thing with no personality to be appreciated. Not that Sammy isn't pretty, she is stunning, but I love that she doesn't fit that typical mold. I wouldn't have minded more of a focus on her struggles and efforts to be an actress despite not fitting society's idea of how an actress should look, but I'll take what I can get.
-Tul and Waan, for all that they didn't have a whole lot of screen time, were an interesting couple if nothing else. They added an element of intrigue with the whole will Tul get the cajones to tell him who he really is or not. They reasonably developed characters with a mostly believable story. I liked their interactions both through their game and in person. Their ending was a bit rushed for my taste, definitely a 0 to 60, and the chemistry seemed to be a bit lacking there, but I didn't hate it.
-Bee and Prince were my least favorite side couple. They had some cute moments, but I didn't feel their relationship was well developed. When I first wrote this review, I really didn't get Prince's struggle and it seemed over the top. Now, having seen more how celebrities in Thailand and Asia are treated, I have a much greater appreciation for his dilemma and the trials he and Bee were bound to face. So that aspect I felt was well done. But as a whole, their relationship felt choppy. They hadn't interacted enough before they were in love for me to believe it was something lasting or to even fully see how they got there. Still, I did find myself rooting for them and for their future together.
-Pharm and Dean are of course in there, but they're not added into the story very well as a couple. Honestly, they're just kind of there. Dean, as president of the swim club and Win's friend pops up more than Pharm, but past the first couple of episodes, he's mostly there as a sounding board for Win. Since his and Pharm's story has already been told, I don't really have anything to say about them, other than, I did like Pharm more here. I don't know if it was because I can tolerate him better in smaller doses, he seemed more mature, which he did, or there were a lot fewer scenes of him being all shy with Dean after they'd been together for a while. Whatever the reason, it worked.
-They weren't a side couple but I was not fond of A and Sea. Frankly, they were jerks toward Bee and if I was him, I would have dropped them as friends. There is good natured ribbing and there is bullying/mocking. In my opinion, they went past good natured straight to bullying/mocking. He was obviously serious about Prince and rather than offering their support, they just mocked him. Who needs or wants friends like that?

And this was yet another drama that clearly thought its viewers had short term memories and so must show flashbacks at least once every ten minutes. I'm exaggerating, but the number of flashbacks really was unnecessary and excessive. Other than the music reused from UWMA which was just as lovely as I remembered, I wasn't overly impressed with the OST. It was mostly pretty forgettable and there were definitely moments where the music was too loud and it made hearing the actors' voices hard. The cinematography varied. Some of it was really great and beautiful, but then there were moments of shaky camera work, some awkward shots or lighting that really detracted from the quality.

The acting is honestly pretty mediocre. I didn't find myself impressed with any of the leads, no one really jumped out to me which was kind of disappointing. But then again, that's pretty much how this whole drama sums up. Boun and Prem for all that I did like them in UWMA lack chemistry. They have a couple of scenes that should have been hot, but frankly I didn't feel anything. Other scenes, where they were messing with each other or even when they were having a few heartfelt conversations, there was chemistry. They just severely lacked it physically. And should say that not everyone was mediocre. Sammy was once again a delight as my girl, Manow and Bosston kept giving me warm, fuzzy feelings every time he was on screen, so I will give credit to those two for keeping me invested.

I came into this drama really wanting to like it. I was excited for Win and Team's story, to see it unfold and develop. Unfortunately, I ended up disappointed in so many ways from the change in both their characters to the lack of development in their relationship to just how bland the story was overall. If you enjoyed UWMA, I really can't recommend watching this. Actually, I just can't recommend watching this period.

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So much wasted potential

So I have not seen the original series, this was my first introduction to the characters and I knew next to nothing about them going in.

I liked how the main couple's relationship started different than in most other series I have watched - when kicking things off with casual sex, there was a lot of potential for it to form an interesting dynamic balancing horniness with developing emotions but then... none of that happened? There was 0 horniness. They continued to be awkward and not touch eachother for about 70% of the series and even when they had had sex multiple times, Team still continued to behave like he had never touched another man and it was just weird to see. Kisses between them were particularly bad and all the sex scenes very stiff and uncomfortable.

They could have done so much with the backstory as well, it was always about Team but even then, they just showed the one flashback over and over again and even that became a little stale. The climax of that story was emotional if a bit stiff but I did enjoy watching it.

As for acting, it was.. ok, they didn't really have much to work with and everything was so stereotypical without any big surprises. Team started out as a whiny and chidish, and continued to be that way the whole 12 episodes. Win was better, I could actually see some caring and loving emotions in him. I loved Mannow, she was so weird.

Tul/Waan and Mannow/Pruek were my favourite couples even though they both got a very little screentime. But at least they actually seemed to enjoy touching and spending time together, which was fun to see and I bought the idea that they could be a couple. Prince/Bee did seem promising too but I have to admit I skipped 90% of their scenes, mostly just because I found the ABC gang so very annoying.

One thing I have to say about music, I didn't really pay attention it, it did not improve the visuals in any way but the reason I rated it particularly low was the sound editing(?) I guess? The mics used were very bad and you could constantly hear kind of gross mouth noices which was pretty upsetting and distracting.

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Watching this show made me genuinely sad. Not because the plotline was moving or emotional, but just because of how incredibly awful everything single aspect of this show was. I think this show single handedly made me straight. This show has five couples that we are meant to cheer for, but somehow they managed to make me throw up whenever I see any of them EXCEPT the one straight couple. After episode 8, I couldnt do it anymore and had to watch the rest of the show in 2x speed because the pacing was horribly slow. Scenes lasted far too long. The MLs could take up a whole episode inching towards eachother

Team and Win.) Team is the most annoying character I have ever seen displayed in media. He is constantly whining and complaining. He asks his boyfriend to do everything for him then hits him and insults him when he does it. Win does everything for him and all Team ever does in return is be the most annoying bottom in BL history. I don't know how anyone could ever enjoy such a pathetic character.

Yaoi Monster and Pharm.) This fucking twink started crying because Yaoi Monster grabbed soup for him. This is the stereotypical yaoi couple. The big, strong, masculine top and the weak, crybaby, bottom. At the beginning of the show, they set up a plotline for this couple to follow and then after it was set up for them, the writers just completely forgot about and showed them once or twice in each episode. Though, honestly this was probably a good thing because if I saw Yaoi Monster and Flower Boy anymore than I already did, I would have a brain aneurysm.

Gameboys.) These motherfuckers were so incredibly weird I didn't even bother learning their names. They played games together online which was like, cute, okay, I can get behind that. BUT once this freakazoid goblin finds out his little crushes personal identity, he begins stalking him. Stalker Goblin somehow manages to made any pleasant or causal interaction the most creepy and just absolutely horrendous thing to watch. He is always so creepy around his crush, trying to touch him and get him to cuddle. AND THE OTHERGAMER BOY CALLS HIM OUT ON IT. LIKE “youre so weird, why did you stalk me” AND THEN THIS GRIMY DOLPHINMAN IS LIKE “sorry,, I just really liked you 🥺”. AND THEN THEY GET TOGETHER???? LIKE COME ON GIRLS…

Bee and Twink.) I can’t do this anymore.

I liked the actors, but I cannot handle this fucking show

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In With a Bang...Out with a Wimper

Let me just start by clarifying: this is not a bad show. It isn't horrendously acted, it doesn't have a ludicrous plot that makes you want to rip your hair out. It's a perfectly serviceable, if a bit bland average to mid BL series.

So why did I rate it so low? Because I'd almost rather have the exceedingly bad trainwreck. At least those shows tried to do SOMETHING interesting, even if it ended in a disasterous dumpster fire.

This show had me in the first couple of episodes. I was excited to see where they went next. And then...they didn't go anywhere.

This show's worst crime is that it is exceedingly BORING. There's no forward momentum with any of the characters. We're 8 episodes in and everyone feels like they are in the exact same place they were in from episode 1. I think I finally figured out that this is because there is no story here. TeamWin was a wonderful side couple in UWMA who served the plot perfectly by giving much needed light-hearted catharsis. This is why we fell in love with them. They were a release of tension when the plot needed it. But their story is too thin to fill a twelve episode run. So instead of giving us an interesting look at their characters, or more of what made us like them in the first place, we get an endless parade of side couples, each more bland then the next. All of the couples suffer because none of them are given any time to develop in any interesting way.

Maybe it's time to come to terms with the fact that sometimes we like side characters simply because we don't delve into their stories. There's a little bit of mystery, we only see the best bits of their relationship. Between this and EvenSun, I'm coming to the conclusion that Boun and Prem can't carry a series as leads. (I came to this same conclusion about OhmFluke. I loved UWMA but everything else they've been in has been a muddled mess, and let's be honest: the heart and soul of UWMA is actually KaoEarth.)

This should have been good. It had all of the pieces in place, all of the same actors as UWMA, two characters who had legitimate chemistry at one point. I don't know if the pandemic can be blamed, or if the delays in filming just led to apathy, but that's what I feel from these actors when I watch this show. They're phoning it in. They don't care, which unfortunately leaves me not to care either.

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They had better series.

I kinda expected more. Somehow in this series I felt like they are lacking chemistry or maybe characters didn't fit them that much. I didn't felt romantic mood and the story is really all over the place. Music don't help to create mood. Sometimes it doesn't fit at all. Many times it looked like they only shoot the scene once because the amount of mistakes or clearly not planned scenes was huge. It's just generally speaking not that well planned. I kinda blame producer and production stuff for it but to be honest it also kinda felt like supporting actors actually acted better than main couple and that surprised me because I've seen them acting much better in other series. The fact that full version is for people having membership is not that greatest idea and the cuts where they say it before every episode are just irritating... You can easily find full episodes on other sites so making it like that will just make them loose views. Visuals are as usual great they are both good looking but it's not enough to make me repeat this series.

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good objectively but didn't live up to the hype

If you're like me and have been waiting literally 3 years for this show to come out, I think its quite obvious to say that I was kind of disappointed that it wasn't all I was hyping it up to be. TBH I thought this show was going to change the trajectory of my life but honestly, it was just like. Okay. If I watched it without all of the hyping up I gave it I think I would have liked it a little more, but unfortunately, I've been waiting for this since 2019. I absolutely hated that there was FIVE COUPLES?????? Any more than one side couple is just farrr to many im sorry. Half the episode most of the time was not even about winteam and I always found myself wanting to skip through prince and beeprince and pruekmanows scenes. tulwan was a pleasant surpise though- I ended up really really loving them, and would love to have been able to see more of them. So yeah overall it was okay and im not upset that I watched it, but it could have been better considering how fucking long it took to come out.

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Slow burn at it's finest

If you don't like SLOW BURN, this title is not for you.
This show depicts what can really happen in REAL relationships. And a lot of people don't want that in a show. They want rainbows and cute. This is not that show. This is raw and complicated. It's got relationships that evolve in drastically different ways.

I waited years for this. Was it perfect? No. Is any show perfect? No.

I've been watching bl for a long time, and the efforts put in by the cast are evident.

The plot follows the novel "hemp rope" if you haven't read it, please do.
SPOILERS FROM HERE:

Win and Team start out as FWB, which leads to a situationship. Feelings were never supposed to happen. They both suffer from losses and traumas of different kinds, leading them to irrational fears. Their back and forth and anxiety were spot on to what my husband and I went through. (TMI, sorry)
Bee and prince (not in the novel) were a good reminder that actors have lives outside of their work.
Pruek and Manaow have virtually nothing standing in their way.
Waan and Tul are complicated bc what starts as friends ends in secrets and misunderstandings.

Between Us, despite the ups and downs with production, the acting is incredible. The plot has holes, but not big enough to care.

The actors:
Boun and Prem put their everything into this show, and it's evident. Boun suffered inner ear injuries, and Prem hurt his back.

Am I biased? Probably, but I can say I connected with the characters deeply.

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BounPrem and lacking plot

So, I am a HUGE BounPrem fan, I have seen all of their works, and I first discovered Thai BL from this very show. The plot was good, the original cast were together from UWMA (other than KoaEarth because it wouldn't fit with WinTeam). The drama was good, and Boun really showed a lot of depth and emotion in this work. Prem has slowly come into his own, and you can see his improvements in the series, too. But, I have some big issues with the show overall. I would have loved for special episode to show how things turned out for WinTeam after college ended, but I know that is sadly not going to happen. :( Still, it was a solid show that highlighted a lot of love, bitter emotions, the importance of having someone accept you, and overcoming your fears. Here are the pro's and con's of this series. I still HIGHLY RECCOMEND WATCHING THIS! But, here's some spoilers you should know and some major issues I had with it.

Pro's:
1) Its BounPrem. Anything they work on together is gold chemistry-wise, and the projects that they have worked on under other directors or even during live events have been really enjoyable to watch. They are very natural with one another most of the time. Though Prem is still pretty innocent with anything physical, so he tends to need time to really get into a scene, since he's admitted to having no experience, having only kissed Boun, and so he ends up having a slow response to some scenes, it worked well for this show because it matched Teams character, so it's a pro here.

2) Episode two's nc scene was so awesome! Their special clip for it showed that they had a lot of... excitement, in their eyes. Like you could tell they got into it, which made it sexier and realistic. Team showed impressive control when interrupting Win while they were making out, because his character is typically meek, so I liked that part of the scene too. They both did a fantastic job in this one, much less nervous, more confident and it wasn't rushed, either, so the pace was good. It was probably my fav nc scene of the show. They did very well.

3) The songs for this were recorded by Boun and Prem and it made it better, to hear their music during certain scenes. Very nice touch.

4) Win's care of Team is magic, I love how he pampers him without being too easy on him, and his care for Prem comes through in his portrayal of Win. You see them a lot before and after this project and Boun always looks at Prem with affection (whether that is as friends, brothers, or more- its undeniably there) and Prem's awkwardness that is often covered for by Boun is also present in this series. As is the obvious trust and playfulness Prem has with Boun whenever they are seen together. It felt like they brought parts of themselves and their relationship (whatever it is) to the roles, it didnt feel like they were just acting. That made the series much better. It takes talent to give that impression.

5) Boun's smile is honestly one of my favorite things, its contagious, so whenever he would flash that smile after a emotional scene or while flirting, it always drew me in. Prem always seems to smile or calm down when Boun is smiling, and you can see that happen a few times when it really shouldn't have. (Like, Team is crying and had just had a traumatic experience and Win smiles and suddenly he seems much calmer) Its a double edged sword for Prem, really, but I think its a pro in this case. It matches Team's reliance on Win, so it fits nicely here.

6) The story for WinTeam is pretty good regarding the slow burn effect that many fans love. They grew closer slowly but surely, with Win focusing on Team from the beginning and both slowly falling in love. It was a beautiful aspect of the show, if not a bit frustrating at times.

7) The scenes with WinTeam always had a certain gentleness to them, and the drama was good. Boun really stepped up his acting for this role, and Prem has really improved in a lot of ways. Of the two, Boun has always been the better actor, but Prem is finally coming into his own, which is seen throughout this series.

Cons:
1)The other couples and the unnecessary amount of time they were given. Now, granted, BounPrem's first roles were side characters in UWMA and in only 30 minutes of scenes, the BL world fell in love with them. In fact, they are arguably the favorite pair from that series! However, neither of the side couples in Between us had that chemistry, neither of them could capture feelings of love or connection beyond that which is expected of them. (Though Bee did try his best!) they took away from WinTeam time- which is why we were all even watching this!- and the Bee/prince story didn't have anything to do with the theme, it barely even tied in with WinTeam or the premise of the series!

1.5) Most specifically, the relationship between Bee and Prince was... upsetting. Not because it wasn't a sweet concept, but frankly, Prince's acting is in need of work and, when paired with Bee whose character was built around humor, it just didnt fit. Not only that, but they had wayyy more time than needed for side characters. 30 to maybe an hour max should be devoted to side couples, especially when they have TWO of them, but they had a large chunk of time in most episodes, even when WinTeam was dealing with a lot of emotion, this couple would suddenly pop up and break up the pacing of the entire episode. If you want this paring, give them their own series, but for the love of god, don't freaking interrupt the main pairing and the whole plot of the story randomly to see the side couples!!!!!!

1.6) Also Tul and the brother... WTF was that? Frankly, I thought it was a better concept than Bee/Prince, since it at least fit with the story and added to it rather than took away from it, but they did not get nearly enough screen-time for any real coupling. The ending was super rushed for the entire show and this was very much the case for Tul and the brother. They should have had more time to develop, if so much time was devoted to lesser known and less important characters (bee/prince) while Win's close friend and brother were given minimal... it seems unfair. Like the director (issue number 2) had a specific focus on the Bee/Prince pairing and had no plans to deviate from that focus, even if it means taking away WinTeam time and stopping the other side couple. If you're going to half-ass a side couple, just dont try it.

1.8) The THIRD side pairing that was the most unnecessary was between Manow and the swimmer. It didnt fit and wasnt needed. It likely only happened because the actress is dating a producer, so she got more screen-time than she should have.

2) The director. Whenever New is directing, you can expect to see odd pacing, too slow plots or too fast turn arounds, and way more of a boyish, shy, less mature approach to relationships. This can be seen very clearly with the pace and the lack of kissing. They are set in college, not high school, and more maturity was needed from them in terms of approaching the other. As they are close friends and occasionally more for this series at first, I could see it. But as they develop feelings for each other, it is obvious that they want to-or should have- shared a few more kisses and physical scenes. It didnt need to be too intense, but friends with benefits suddenly becoming super sweet and not at all physical makes little sense. They needed to run with that plot, or confess much MUCH sooner. Several times kissing was teased, which was annoying. He also tends to have odd breaks right after intense scenes, like HE needs a break and so he just switches gears on the pairings and the fans. Its annoying and i wish BounPrem didn't like him so much, as he is the director both prefer to work with. :( so their series are most likely going to be directed by him. :(

3) The NC scene in the bathroom. That was Horrible. It was rushed, like it barely happened. After their steamy ep.2 scene, they should have-and needed to- bring that same fire for the bathroom scene. Win had clearly wanted to stake a claim on Team, he's holding back and it's harder for him every day. So when he follows him to the bathroom and kisses him, there should have been more to it. When he asked if he could sleep with Team and then just pushed him into a stall- which was hot- only for the scene to end, well. I was pretty upset about it. The pace was too fast. They should have been shown kissing for longer because they clearly want each other by this point, so passion and desperation would have been two emotions really needed for this kind of sudden scene. It lacked that, it lasted 2 minutes, and it left me upset that a good opportunity was wasted. Why put it in there at all if your going to not run with it??

4) The confession. Another poorly done pacing from New. They had so much build-up, so much they both worked through, Win was planning to confess- and then he froze. For a looooonnnnggg time. Then he's chasing after Team, and they for whatever god-awful reason decide 'hey, lets not talk about this. lets sing about it while we cry and still dont say the freaking words' which went on for a solid 5 minutes. Before they finally got to the point. The fact that Win had Team so insecure was really sad, but Win was even more insecure, and he needed Team to be strong for him. Which, thankfully, he was. So, of all the BL confessions I have seen... this one is a 6/10. I'm being generous. If I didnt LOVE BounPrem, it'd be less. Once again, this is a New issue. He's constantly messing up the pacing, and it makes an otherwise critical scene either too long, too short, or oddly arranged.

Overall, I still rewatch it, because Boun-specifically- tends to have a soothing effect on me for some reason so I'll rewatch his works. But, if you dont like attention to side couples, the slow-burn, teasing kisses, and/or dislike the overly drawn-out type of story... well, please support them by watching it regardless, just get ready to be left displeased half the time.

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Bad Writing Failed The Actors

LIKE:
Boun & Prem’s chemistry
Waan & Tul story
Manow & Phruek
Location shots (the resorts)
Boun riding motorcycle
FX: blood injury looked real

DISLIKE:
WRITING:
Making Team so childish and whinny, got annoying fast.
Flashbacks used too often and the same ones over and over.
No in-depth back story to explain Win’s fear of commitment. He’s a peace keeper in his family, he’s rich…. AND?
Too many side stories & characters, when focus should’ve been on Team & Win, Manow and Phruek.
No character development for anyone.
Pacing issues caused by repetition and dragged out moments, making it boring without the intimate scenes.
Badly handled mental health issues; once again writer/production team carelessly approached the mental health problems of the characters.

PRODUCTION: Shaking camera moments, please don’t get the k-drama syndrome and use your film stabilizer. Sound editing was not good (either a mic issue or something else).

MUSIC: over powered actors voices too often and certain songs overplayed.

OVERALL:
The actors did well with what they were given. No excuse for bad or lazy writing with characters and zero plot dimension. They had 2 years during the pandemic to focus on what the fans wanted story wise, but failed in so many ways [see all the negative reviews for in-depth analysis of plot/story/writing issues]. (I like Boun and Prem, I want to see them working with other writers and production companies. If Boun won’t do BL without Prem, how about give him a female love interest?)
I will watch certain moments again, or just wait for someone to do a scene compilation on Youtube. I would recommend it to someone who is just starting to watch the BL (Boy Love) genre.

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