Step by Step (2023)

Cute for the most part

I've enjoyed this show quite a bit. The slow burn was nice. I like that they really addressed the actual issues of an employee dating a boss. They seemed to have set it up that there could be a second series and I'd certainly love to see the actors in their roles again, especially Jeng and Chot, not to mention giving us a bit more of Jen and Jaab closure.

Best parts:
The Pacing Up to Episode 11: I liked that it was slow and when we finally were given that kiss we wanted to see, it was great.

The Character of Jeng: Not gonna lie, I think Jeng is an ideal boss and I kind of think Pat was being immature about his 'control freak' nature. The guy was just making sure his team didn't fail because if it did, people would be out of a job. That's the sort of manager you want. I also love that we've got the older, bigger, more dominant guy being vulnerable and really just a big softie. He's sweet and he's awkward at times. Man's portrayal of the contrast of a guy who needs to be in control of everything and his complete simping over Pat is fun to watch. Also, every time Jeng puts his hands in his pockets I nearly got a nosebleed.

Jaab and Jen's stuff: Listen, Pat and Jeng had some steamy kisses but that kiss between Jaab and Jen might be the best kiss I've seen in BL. With how good it was, I was really expecting a follow up with their characters. Jaab is an interesting character and I found myself wanting to see more of him.

Chot: He's cute, he's funny, he's endearing.

Worst Parts:
Pat: Mr "I dislike that my boyfriend has backup plans to ensure a project I'm working on doesn't fail and my department isn't shut down and people lose their jobs.". Maybe I'm just looking at it from a grown-ups point of view but I'd be glad for my manager to have contingency plans in case what I was doing failed. When Pat wasn't angsting over his boyfriend making sure people didn't lose their jobs, he was fine but I couldn't get over the idea that he'd be so angry that a manager wasn't putting all his eggs in one basket that was held by the new guy who's inexperienced. Yes he fancies you Pat, but that doesn't mean he should blindly let you do anything in the workplace.

Pat's Parents Scenes: They seemed unnecessary and I mostly skipped through them. I get that they're there to provide sage advice but I'd have rather that advice come from Ae, Chot, Nan, Ying..or anyone else, really.

The Pacing at the End: I feel like even if they DO give us a second season, this first season needed at least another 2 episodes. The last episode felt way too rushed given how long they spread out the first 10 episodes. It was abrupt in its pace change.

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One step forward, two, sometimes three steps backward

Oh the potential this series had!
And no, I'm not writing a delusional review like a few I've seen in here that were written on April 18 (the day the 1st episode aired!) and on May 3, telling me how wonderful the show is and giving all perfect scores.
This show is far from perfect and here's why:

1. Plot/Storyline: Office love is nothing new... we've seen a few office BLs recently like the Korean "Roommates of Poongduck 304", the Japanese "Cherry Magic", or the Thai "Bed Friends", so no, not an original setting. The way it was executed was also part of the problem with Pat entering a gossiping nest of a company as Ying and other employees cannot stop criticizing their boss in the episodes 1-3 (more or less) and suddenly, they magically stop. Jeng is the son of the company's president but is a micromanaging boss who doesn't trust anyone to do the job so he is always verifying it behind their backs or trying to influence the way his employees do certain things. The company's president is Jeng's father and he is also secretly involved in many things as he controls his son's life the way he wants and Jeng rarely says anything.
All that changes when Pat comes to work, as he is brutally honest since the beginning and Jeng begins to understand his mistakes even if he doesn't do much to change during the show. Pat finds two good friends in Chot and Nan who shield him from the gossip around him and give some good advice inside the company and Ae helps Pat outside of the company. Both him and Jeng slowly fall in love... and I REALLY mean SLOWLY!... as the don't do much until the latter episodes as Pat is living with very low self-esteem and insecurities and Jeng is uncertain if Pat will like him. Plus, Put is always lurking in the initial episodes as he wants to get back with Pat despite having broken up some time ago. So far, nothing that exciting... and it shows, as the series moved at a glacial pace sometimes with never ending scenes that included useless meetings, commercial shooting, Pat crying 3,467 times, Jeng looking confused... which takes me to...

2. Characters: Pat is smart when talking about marketing and ad design but he is a whiny crybaby for everything else. His relationship with Put goes nowhere and yet, he takes him back. His relationship with Jeng should have been developed since episode 4-5 but we had to go through his insecurities and doubts and then his overly dramatic moments of being disappointed in what Jeng did. Mr. Jeng is a nightmare boss that wants to control every single detail but he transfers that to his relationship with Pat when he doesn't trust him at all on episodes 10-11 and goes behind his back paying influencers so Pat's project becomes a success... something Pat finds out thanks to Jeng's father (another manipulative person). Jaab acts like a spoiled brat sometimes and he likes Jan or Jane (his name was written in 3 different ways in the English translation) but he gets rejected and he tends to sulk and sigh all the time. Jane simply disappeared around episode 7-8 when he quits and leaves, then he re-appeared briefly in Ae's wedding and then he supposedly went to Japan for two years. Way to mess up the secondary couple! The other characters are mostly forgettable... Ying is a gossiping machine at first, then transforms into a model worker and then quits in episode 12 to become a BL novelist... and her book?! "Step by Step"... how original! Put is the third wheel in most of the scenes as it fell like he never really matched the mood of the other characters... he wanted pat back but didn't try too hard... he wanted to antagonize Jeng but he wasn't that mean or cunning, so it ends up being just another character. Chot is the only saving grace of the show as he is the boisterous and colorful character that brings some sense to the rest of the cast while providing some funny moments as well. This reflects badly on...

3. Directing/Writing: Not sure what the final purpose of the show really was. The main relationship develops at a slow pace, the secondary couple had no development after Jane leaves and the ending for them leaves A LOT to be desired, and the straight (Ae/Khanun) couple goes from dating, to being pregnant, to marrying, to having the baby... so they developed quite quickly compared to the main couple. The uncut episodes were quite long (episode 12 is 1 hour and 42 minutes long!) but in this case, longer episodes didn't necessarily meant better episodes. Instead of having the chance to develop the characters and the situations a bit more and a bit better, directing and writing fell in the same traps throughout the series. If there is a problem, let's have Pat cry on his father's shoulder or have him argue with Jeng (while crying) and finish it with Chot or Ae or both providing some advice to Pat and Tae giving advice to Jeng, rinse and repeat this cycle. We saw this trend several times on the show and it became dull and annoying as we knew it will happen eventually. Questionable directing and writing also caused problems in another area...

4. Acting: Man (playing Jeng) is the most experienced actor from the bunch and his acting skills were ok, particularly when he cries with Jaab and acts vulnerable for the first time in the series. But he looked a bit stiff in some other scenes when it was Ben (playing Pat) who had to express more feelings than him. Look for the scenes of Ben crying and Man is just standing there watching awkwardly and then saying his lines. Bruce (playing Chot) was finally in his element as a diva after we saw him as the bad guy in "Lovely Writer" and had a quick appearance on "Paint with Love". Here he shines as he looked comfortable in this character and sometimes even stole the scene over the two leads and Up (playing Put) who felt flat for most of the show as he did not have many things to do as a secondary character. Saint (playing Jaab) was a nice surprise as he not only is very attractive but his acting was decent at times... he still needs some time to develop them but he seems to be on track. Wind (playing Jane) was a mystery... his character had some moments with Jaab but then he basically leaves on episode 7 and rarely appears afterwards. And finally, we go to...

5. The finale: Oh boy... you would think that 1 hour and 42 minutes will be enough to tell us the end of this story. Sadly, this episode became a long and almost boring one with the usual 7 meetings per episode with filler characters taking fake notes and pretending to be relevant for the scene. The episode is set 2 years after the previous one and Pat has blocked Jeng and moved on to create a company with Chot and Ae but about 90 of the 102 minutes of the episode, he is distracted, thinking about Jeng but doing nothing to talk to him and solve the issue... something that could have been done in about 5 minutes, maybe 10. They finally reconcile in a cheesy scene in the restaurant's kitchen with Pat telling Jeng he never hated him and that he was not hurt, only angry about what he did to him before but he wasn't angry anymore... so, you blocked him for 2 years but you weren't thaaat mad? Then, instead of having some scenes with Jaab-Jane... we get NOTHING... we get more Pat-Jeng dull scenes with two birthdays in the span of 3 minutes, Pat acting like a child while eating curry and Jeng finally resigning from his father's company... oh and we met Jeng's mother for about 5 seconds before she leaves.

A few more things... the production cannot even get things right as the trophy "Broccoli House" wins for the Best Ad is misspelled saying "Best Ad Awrad 2024" and what was the point of having all the meetings with Ms. Nadia from Fjord group in English? Sabina (the actress playing Nadia) is Thai-Austrian and we saw her recently in the mediocre "War of Y", so we know she is fluent in Thai. In this series, she only speaks in English and when she does, she clearly has an accent and she makes several mistakes... so what was the point of that?

In the end, another Thai BL series that leaves me with the sense of what might have been if some things were done differently or at least, done better.

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Like A 90s Song: Fades Out Instead of Ends

Like the header says, this series started out pretty good, it had its ups and downs throughout the story, but like a 90s song, it had no real ending.

The Good:
-The cast is mostly pretty great. Man and Ben have great chemistry and all the actors really fit their characters well.
-Jeng is absolutely loveable AND hot.
-It's a story about adults, not students, which is always a plus for me!

The Meh:
-Pat is supposed to be 24 in the beginning, and yeah he does sort of act like an immature 24-year-old, but it gets taxing to watch him whining after a while.
-The entire story with Ae and her family is just really pointless to the plot and only wastes screen time.
-Very unbelievable workplace dynamics (open harassment and not a SINGLE person is worried about getting sent to HR??? Really???) pulls you out of the story.

The Bad:
-Jaab and Jen's story is so far to the 'side' that we're clearly missing half of it. It makes no sense why they are the way they are, and it's very annoying.
-So much screen time is spent on the work projects and situations and we have those pop-up definitions of what the jargon being used is, but it never ACTUALLY ever has any involvement in the plot? Why?
-The biggest problem is it DOESN'T END! What happened with Jaab and Jen? What happened with Jeng's father? Why did his mother meet Pat for 30 seconds and nothing ever comes of it again? WHY IS THERE ABSOLUTELY NO CONCLUSION TO ANYTHING THAT HAPPENED IN THE SERIES???

It's worth watching for a reprieve from student BLs as an adult drama (well... mostly *looks at Pat*) and because Man is really loveable as Jeng, but it's not going to be anybody's favorite series.

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There maybe spoiler, idk, sorry♡

So, when the trailer was dropped, omygod i was really excited for it. It aired and found it pretty interesting with a very good cast. Yes, there were times when i got bored with it.

The main lead, Pat, his acting seemed fine. But ofcourse, somehwere his character seemed too attention seekef type. Like you say "the world revolves around me" attitude of his was too irritating.

About jeng, please such handsome man with very good facial expression. He really conveyed his messages with his eyes. Loved his acting!

THE ENDING- This made me so disappointed and mad! Waiting for this show to air for like 1 whole year and when it airs, the ending disappoints us and we start to think if it was worth waiting. It was hasty in short. There were different characters but they had so less screen timing and what happened to them in the end remains a mystery. One by one the characters were not there, they were disappearing. I was excited for this, the show made me laugh, cry, smile and again cry, so i thought the ending will be a blast, but it somewhere didnt make me feel satisfied. Yes, i was happy that jeng and pat ended up together but it yet disappointed me.

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Slowburn romance was great, bad pacing towards the end :-(

The good: Slow-burn romances and character development that remains painfully (but realistically….) incomplete. The bad: Awful pacing in the final 2-3 episodes.

You will notice that the romance develops a little slower in Step By Step as compared to most other series. The series has gotten some mixed reviews for being slow-moving and boring. However, some fans have lauded the storyline for its accurate portrayal of real life romance – often a “step-by-step slow burn”. 

There is some tension that constantly burns in the background, but the show keeps to a realistic pace that lets the relationship build naturally. 

Unfortunately, the pace takes an odd turn towards the end as gaps start to emerge in the narrative. This is particularly pronounced for the second couple – they had a mildly interesting dynamic at the beginning that got me excited, but their story seriously went downhill. Despite the longer-than-usual episodes, it still feels as though some parts were abruptly cut out.

For an emotional rollercoaster like Step By Step, some of the emotionally intense scenes felt forced and all over the place. But Jeng, played by Man, really carried the show for me. He absolutely nailed his role and I hardly think anyone could have done a better job.

Full review here: https://asianblreviews.wordpress.com/2023/07/13/step-by-step-2023-bl-review/

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The episodes are like a sandwich as a whole

The best episodes sandwiched the flavorless episodes. Everything is so good in the beginning (Eps1-3), they really tackled the office issues which I like. The episodes after them started to be less interesting so I hold this series after watching Ep8.

I reconsidered dropping it but I had a time today to binge-watch the remaining episodes so I did watch it until the end. Episode 9 was nothing special like Eps4-8. There are many side characters that were given too much airtime. Wish they would just focus on the main leads. What was done is done.

Episodes 10-12 got me surprised. Thanks to the office/work problems, I enjoyed the last three episodes. I wasn't expecting good kissing scenes but they threw me off-guard. That was pure Mukbang. LOL

Regarding the actors, I really enjoyed Man as Jeng and Bruce as Chot. Without Chot in the middle episodes, I would not hesitate to drop it. Man's acting was so on-point. I didn't like him visually at first episode but the more I saw him on the following episodes, I was hypnotized. He's so charismatic. As for Saint-Wind who acted as Jaab and Jane, I'm disappointed on their storyline. I enjoyed them during the initial episodes but they lost me somewhere in the middle up until the end. Their visuals are really exemplary but they still couldn't cover up the messy plots that were given to them. A wasted chemistry. I really love them though.

I did enjoy watching this series. It's decent but very lengthy which I'm afraid to recommend to other watchers.

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Trusting in ourselves/ obstacles of life

This is my first Review....Sorry in advance :)

I really enjoyed watching this show...it has a lot os messages for us and the story is really good. First we have the exemple of a new employee, his first job, young and had a lot of difficulties throw the story. It showed us that the first job is hard but we need to beleive in ourselves and do our best, also that we need to adjust with the older workers and trying our best to get along with each others.
The importance about the way we need to separate our personal life and our work, if we mix both then things are not going to end well, so we need learn how to control our emotions.
The fact that we need to work as a team to achieve our goal in work, we all are fighting for the same so we should always support eachothers.
At work and in our life we need to have confidence in us, we need to trust ourselves, it is really important. Also we can see a pregnancy that was not planned and the way they managed to have the child, once again..the confidence that we need to have...they were both scared but together got thro it.
The story of the main couple is really cute, a romance that develops in a office, but i think it was not that cliché because i was not expencting what happened to be honest and then we have a 2 years later that honestly did not make sense to me at first because the story was not solved at all and was a bit messy in the end, but i realized that sometimes we really need time to think and to grow as a person...so maybe that time was necessary for them to develop themselves.
I loved the way the parents were really supportive and were there for him, although they were divorced they were there for him and supported him so it was really good to see a non toxic family actually.
The story of the side couple was kinda messy and i still dont understand what happened at all because they liked eachother and i think it was not necessary what happened to them, in my opinion.
Back to the main couple...i really did not understand what happened for them to break up...like..all if that was so childish...they just needed to talk..i think it was to dramatic this part and then they made the "2 years later" and i think that we lost the track here...like..there is a lot that are missing...how the company started...what have they done...why jeng did not went to find pat? ok pat blocked him...but still...he new where he was living so i really think it was stupid the way they did this part of the show.
And then after the 2 years Pat just wants Jeng back...and is like " why are you running away from me?" like...seriously?? you were the one who broke up with him like a child...uff
Ahhh, also Put was a good mesage too in this drama...that we change..our feeling change and what the other person does to us makes us change a lot of things of ourselves for the better...we discover that we can do it and that we are capable of anything...that we need to love ourselves and be independent.
Back to story...2 years is too much...they needed 2 years to realize that what happened was stupid and childish...really? Two grown up man...god save me ahahah this was really stupid and not necessary , in my opinion...like..it´s really good that they realized that but..2 years...really? kkk
I was expecting more abouth them when they got together again...i am kinda disapointed about how it happened...acting like if 2 years were nothing...and back to their relationship as if it never ended...for me it is really irrealistic...
I think there is something missing...like...what about Jeng´s father? did he accepted them? why did he throw again the resign papers? How is the situationship between jaab and jen? There is a lot missing...i don´t know if there is going to be a season 2 but i really think this deserves a second season to explain some things and i would like to see the development of the relationship between the couples.
The acting was really good, and let´s talk about the kissing...jesus...they have so much chemestry while kissing and during the whole show...but the kisses were amazing..they felt to real and i love to see that in the shows.
I really do recoomend this show! :)

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Honestly, at first I really enjoyed this series but towards the end it started to be be boring and the plot twist in ep 11 was clearly unnecessary in my opinion. I went from being really excited to watch a new episode every week to forcing myself to finish it because I already watched too many episodes to suddenly drop it.
And I think it was kind of all over the place in the last episodes and even in the final episode I thought that there were so many unnecessary parts or really slow parts and the very end of ep12 felt kinda rushed... I think my expectation were a little too high.

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A drama without the drama

This series was such a breath of fresh air. It was a nice break from the overly dramatic, ridiculous storylines filled with miscommunication, jealousy and misunderstandings. There were no vindictive ex's, no love rivals doing underhanded actions to gain favor and no unnecessary filler to drag along in order to make the series longer. Every plot point had a purpose and were interesting to the extent that I almost forgot what happened in the beginning of the series since it was so interesting.

And, finally, a workplace drama that actually had emphasis on the actual job and work they were doing. Pretty much 80% of the series storylines had something to do with their work and it still made sense and was captivating enough to hold my attention. They didn't overly explain or dumb things down for the viewer but gave enough so that anyone who isn't into marketing could follow along.

The side characters were interesting in the way they were very realistic in their emotions and actions. Every office worker has dealt with the busybodies, the inappropriate jokesters and the quiet yes-men who just want to survive another day in the workplace. The friends were fun yet supportive and loyal and honestly, Zorzo as Ae had me laughing so much throughout the series. I also enjoyed seeing Bruce as Chot and thought he played the character well. Sometimes I find the "ladyboys" played a little too over the top but he had a nice balance and it was actually fun to see him opposite Up in a kind of role swap from their roles in Lovely Writer.

As far as the romance goes, it is a very slow burn but a sweet one. The hesitations on both Jeng and Pat's sides were completely justified and the satisfaction we get when they finally come together is made all the more sweeter because of it. This was a good example of a love triangle done right and I actually really liked how Put's character was handled. He was not mean or made out to be a villain but rather a man who realized he messed up and lost the love of his life because of his mistakes. He truly wanted Pat to be happy so he ultimately steps away when he realizes there's nothing more he could do to regain Pat's love. The side couple, while confusing at times, was frustrating in the good way that makes you root for them even more. Unfortunately, that story is left open though it feels like it was intentional for either a second season or a spin off featuring their story.

As of the time I write this, I have no idea if there are plans for a second season but I feel like it could go either way. There were a few loose ends that could be resolved better in a season 2 (mostly the second couple and Jeng's father) but I also feel like, as far as the main couple is concerned, they have a satisfying ending and don't need anything drawn out for the sake of views.

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Actually i saw many of bad comments for this drama... but i have to say this is not the first drama like this and some of criticize dont fair.. atleast this drama have some of romantic parts.. there r lot of dramas i watchd no good plot and not even romance .. as for this drama thire is kind of story.

But for me problem is on casting.. they dont have good chemestry.. actually jeng is good actor even he can not cry well he has very good emotions expressions.. problem is on pat.. itz not actually promblem of character pat.. problem is on actor who act as pat.. he can not give us feelings.. In this drama sometimes charater of pat looks like a idiot. Becoz some times he treat every boy same.. but it is not a problm there r lot of characters like that.. but here becoz of actor i dont like pat.. actually in whole drama i thought if the actor was changed drama will be somthing more... put got my attention than pat..

This time i realized why casting is important.. ( i am not saying actor who act as pat ugly or somthing like that.. becoz i am not selected dramas for look.. i watched dramas with actors who are not looking beautiful.. but thire acting made me fall for them)

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The idea was better than the execution

First of all, I love office set BL. Highschool often feels a lot too young for me anymore - I'm at the age where too much drama feels forced and too little feels saccharine, a real goldilocks - university is better, but adults living in the adult world is best. I will watch just about any BL that has this element, and I love me a good office romance.

And honestly, that is where this drama excels the most for me. Because it didn't shy away from the reality of what can happen when you date the boss. The way that things mostly fell on Pat was realistic and very sad. Yes, Jeng had pressures too, but the reality of situations like this is that his head was never going to be on the chopping block. It was always going to be Pat who bore the brunt of their relationship, and I thought that the show was fairly realistic in portraying just what that looks like. I don't blame Pat for finding it overwhelming (and for being worried that he was getting opportunities for sleeping with the boss rather than because of his own abilities. That's what people will think regardless, and those kinds of rumours can and will kill a burgeoning career before it even starts, depending on how high they go). And while I was furious at the meeting with Jeng to discuss how his sexuality will negatively impact the company, that is real too. Real and disturbing, and I do appreciate that it was framed in a way to (hopefully) piss off the viewer, too. Because it isn't actually cool to tell someone that they should be in the closet so that your company's stock doesn't plummet - or cool that it should make the stock plummet in the first place, or that it will make people pull out of working with you. It's horrible and bigoted and it should be pointed out as a bad thing.

I also liked the chemistry between Pat and Jeng, especially at the end when they didn't have to worry about the job stuff.

I was not bothered as much about Pat's lack of maturity at the beginning as some - dude is barely out of college and he seems to just be a little sensitive in general - which is fine. He mostly managed to hold it together when he had to, and I'm not against sensitive or emotional characters as a general rule. That said, I do kind of wish that he'd been a little less like the Pat that left in episode 11 in episode 12. If we're doing the 2 year time skip thing then I would really like to see some growth out of both characters - we definitely got some out Jeng, in his new willingness to displease his father by forging his own path. But I felt like Pat was still where he was before, and that was a little disappointing.

I also don't know when Ying suddenly went from being one of the worst pains in the office to being on the core team and a major support for Pat during the rough times at work. It's definitely not something I am opposed to, but I want a character arc to have an arc, not just for it to happen all of a sudden. I don't know, maybe I missed something.

Chot was a delight and he should have been in every scene.

I was sad that the second couple didn't work out, but also I thought that it was realistic in a way you don't often see. Sometimes things just don't work, sometimes you can't put broken relationships back together. I'm unused to seeing a broken relationship stay that way, too, so it was a nice change even if I'd really rather it not become the norm.

Overall I feel like it was fine. I liked what it did with the office romance trope and I think I would like to see the leads in another show that has a tighter plot. But I probably won't watch this one again.

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It could be better with more episodes

Alright, the journey of Step by Step comes to an end and honestly I'm left with mixed feelings, especially after watching the last episode.

At first, I was so into the story and unlike some people, I really loved the work aspect so it didn't bother me. I liked the slow paced but some scenes could be more developped, it's a pity. I think it seems quite common for the production of DeeHup House even though they bring a nice quality in term of filming, cinematography and colors.

I think, it was quite risky to adapted a very long novel (3 books!) into a serie with 12 eps and as I said, it could be better with a few more episodes so they might not rush things.
There is also, sometimes, problem with editing, I'm sorry, I'm not maybe the good person to talk about it but as a viewer, it makes me unsatisfied and it's sad because I really love the idea, the storytelling. I wish I could rate it higher but then.. Maybe I'm also a bit too generous.

For the acting side, it was alright but then Man Trisanu stood up the most as Boss Jeng. I really like his character but also how he portrayed him with his expressions and how he delivered the lines. I could rate thanks to him 10/10 for the acting but then, I have to think about others and Ben Bunyapol as Pat, since it's his first work, it was alright, not bad but I think it's also because of the writing of his character who is quite childish and has some insecurities due to several reasons.

I wasn't so much fond of the side couple Jaab and Jane/Jen but I felt bad for them. They deserved a better ending.

Nonetheless, despite some flaws, I kind of miss them and miss every Tuesday because it was my comfort serie, I shared, even though I was just a viewer, the feelings, moments and the part of these characters slice of life.

The soundtracks are catchy, easy to listen, I really love it.

And wish the best for all of them and looking forward to their respective works.

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