It's pointless
I'm dropping this at episode 5, because I can't bring myself to watch this any further. For me it's pointless, and a waste of time.When this aired, I had zero expectations. I thought it would lack a good story like so many other BLs out there, especially the more sexy ones, but I was pleasantly surprised, because there was some potential for an intriguing plot. The acting is incredible from First, Khaotung, Neo and Mark. Force and Book are almost unbearable to watch, because they aren't able to breathe some life into their characters. Better actors could have done a better job for sure. Well, not the whole cast can be stellar, so that's not the biggest issue here. I was hooked after episode 2, enjoyed episode 3, was bored by episode 4 and started skipping scenes, and now at episode 5 I will end my misery. This series reminds me of some German soap operas, where the couple gets together in a few episodes, they love each other, and you don't even know why, and then they get separated, and you have to watch endless episodes of family, friends, and the jealous ex-girlfriend plotting schemes to keep them separated until they get together in the 99th episode and marry in the 100th. Apparently this concept is very popular in Germany, and most likely all over the world, despite me to this day not knowing how something like this can even be considered an entertaining watch.
What is my point? I don't enjoy people plotting schemes and making their life miserable for no good reason. I don't enjoy the idea of love where you don't even understand why they are attracted to each other. They are all obsessed with someone, while having good potential partners around them. It's just shallow, damn shallow. You can't feel the character depths, which makes it hard to root for anyone here. I don't feel sorry for them, I don't want to see them happy, I'm just annoyed by their dirty little games and their stubbornness that makes them miserable human beings. It honestly feels strange to look at those characters who are played by great actors, some of them I really like, and just thinking: I don't care about your issues. I don't.
Still, I'm not surprised that this series is popular at all. Most people enjoy this kind of drama. I even think it's pretty realistic. We have more bad people than good people in this world, and when it comes to relationships, so many behave like lunatics.
But I personally feel too old to watch some guys f*cking around and being dramaqueens for no good reasons. I feel this is something for people in their mid 20s, especially for those who enjoy the NSFW content, which I normally do, but it cannot save this series.
To sum it up: I don't think it's a bad series. There sure is an audience for it. The acting (most of it), the music (!!) and how some of the dialogues are written isn't bad, some scenes are beautifully filmed too. But the characters are too shallow, their intrigues too dirty and pointless. So it's a no for me.
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A very realistic description of the gay scene... unfortunately!
Having experienced the gay scene from the inside, I can tell you that it's unfortunately just like in the show: everyone sleeps with everyone else, fidelity is a dirty word, friendship is a concept, alcohol flows freely and drugs are all too easy to come by.The series can't be faulted for its desire for hyperrealism, and in that sense it succeeds. But we're not here to watch a documentary, and Only Friends doesn't have the stature of an Oscar-winning film, so a little levity would have been welcome. The characters are in 100% toxic mode at all times, and we'd have appreciated it if this had been softened by a bit of a bitchy moment. I was expecting to watch this series all smiles with a glass of wine in hand and found myself sighing and thinking "someone get them a psychologist!".
Apart from Sand and, to a lesser extent, Nick, the characters are not really likeable: Mew is falsely candid and rather bland, Top is infuriatingly "I want to control everything", Rey is ultra-toxic, Boston is the epitome of the well-built bitch who doesn't give a damn about anything, Nick is touching but goes too far in his actions. Then there's poor Sand, in whom I kind of saw myself.
As for the acting, Neo and Mark are excellent. As for the others, it depends on the moment.
In conclusion, I'd say it's a good series, but if you have to compare it to Friendzone, which is in the same style, Only Friends is worse.
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Boston is the winner kkk ?
In a show where the word love is misused because it hardly exists. Everyone is just on for a good duck. All of us be ashawo haha.Boston makes it on my list of beloved characters. Of course in real life I would not wish even my worst enemies a Boston in their lives haha. But got to give to the guy he stayed true to himself, he was an a***hole through and through and unapologetic about it. That’s what we call consistency haha. Too bad someone was hell bent on taking him for who he is and supposedly loving him no matter what.
I loved Sand. I adored Ray. I cared less about the other couples. These two were the only reasons I kept watching, the reason I’m giving this “interesting show” a 9. My fav couple they were not perfect but whatever they had was so much better. Sand was perfect for Ray. Ray was a douche sometimes but he quick to realize his mistakes and seek out Sand. Unlike Boston the Ashawo, who even had the audacity to f someone while on a date with his bf.
Spoilers
I sympathized with Nick. I get it all he wanted was love, but he was looking for it in the wrong person. The only time I was genuinely annoyed with Boston was he forged a lie to hook up with Top. But I didn’t blame him much for breaking Nick’s heart because he at least had the decency of telling Nick so many times before that he would not give him what he wanted. He was honest with him, he told him he is an ashawo and was not willing to be anybody’s bf. It’s Nick who insisted on sticking around. At first I thought all Nick wanted was to be loved, so I was happy for him when some one, Nick’s showed genuine interest in him and was even willing to be his bf, but Nick only had his heart set the ashawo.
I never bought into Top and Mew’s love. First of all I was annoyed by how Mew’s so called friends were so eager to get him laid. Was like let the guy be, he will get there himself when he wants to.
Anyhow going into the show I knew exactly what I getting into so not gonna complain about any of the “interesting” stuffs.
Everyone is an Ashawo in this series 😂.
Most problematic lines/ scenes for me.
There were so many of them as expected
But this one’s stuck with me.
Mew telling Ton: I’m going to finally sleep with Too because I’m afraid he will get bored of me I don’t.
Ray wanted to have a threesome with his bf and his bf’s ex. Was like this show has gone too far with fan service.
I predicted that Sand and Top were also going to kiss haha since I saw everyone was kissing everyone it didn’t matter whether or not they’re “dating” other people.
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loved it.
My friends made me watch this series and I loved it. The cast is great, especially First and Khao are just incredibile, immense chemistry and they’re both very good actors, always believable in their performances. The story is very nice, intrigues of friendships and romantic/sexual relationships that never fall into ridicule, and the plot twists, unexpectedly, were definitely surprising. The several relationships feel overall natural, and all the conflicts take the right amount of time to be resolved, nothing ever feels rushed. And last but not least, is a very hot series, lol, many interesting scenes indeed…I would definitely recommend!!
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It shows real world or...
It really shows real world outside of our dramas. It not about bl but a person. His emotions, living ways and so on...But at some points i found this show is really crazy u find any characters hooking up with each other but i kinda expected it.
Everything has come to MIDLE. Nothing compled like a hole drama i think but this also shows that life can change any time and cs of anyone.
It's good to watch but not to rewatch nevertheless u want ur head goes crazy
PC i want to know why did the director end them like that really want.. cs their casting contains really good actors. Maybe this way director thinks they can attract viewers
All of the my opinion..
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One of the Best "Gay BLs' Ever Made
One can argue until the cow comes home as to whether it is a BL, but it is without doubt a solid and outstanding gay series, surprisingly. The whole series belabored the negative issues with each couple without concentrating on the thing that would have taken this series to greatness. It lacked human warmth. It tried to do too much to show us the issues that it lost sight of its humanity. What humanity it showed was ugly. What I did greatly admire about this series is that it is GAY. This represents the gay world. This is how the gay world is in reality. I am not sure if this series recognized what it had on its hands. I wish it would have gone just a bit deeper into what motivates these characters.You can read my full review of this interesting and raw gay BL series at BLBliss.com.
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A Work of Art
TLDR: This is a nuanced show that can only be enjoyed by a psychologically mature audience. If you see things as strictly black or white, if you cannot empathize with characters who don't think like you, or if you're expecting this to be like GMMTV's other BL shows, then this show will frustrate the living poo out of you. This is a sophisticated piece of work. Each cast member delivered on point.It's been a year since I first watched this show and have watched it multiple times since in order to understand each character's unique perspective - trying to judge the show as objectively as possible. Considering the cinematography, the soundtrack, color grading, the screenplay - and how all of it comes together cohesively & paints an incredibly vibrant picture of the multifaceted "queer-college-student" life - this was one of the BEST shows that was produced by Thailand in 2023, not just one of the best shows to come out of GMMTV or just one of the best in the BL genre. Each and every aspect of it was meticulously choreographed, and this attention to detail is what I liked the most about this show. It was a VERY high quality production.
Here's my more subjective take.
Story:
This is a dramatic story, which might not be for everyone. Each of the characters behaves in immature ways and they're all toxic in one way or another (some more problematic than others). Each character has very unique flaws but each individual represents a different version of the messy, confounding and spontaneous college student life. The story begins with & stays driven by the character's infatuations, lust, and obsessions with one another, so the focus is entirely on the nature of their evolving relationships. There is no other overarching theme or 'takeaway' from it (and that's fine). At first glance upon this group of friends, Mew (Book) appears to be the bespectacled, dependable, studious & prudent kid, Ray(Khao) is the recklessly alcoholic, money-to-burn rich kid, Boston (Neo) probably has the highest body count in Bangkok, and Cheum (Lookjun) is just a chill girl. Top (Force) is introduced into the mix by Boston and has a reputation of being one of the most desirable men in the country (well, Force *IS* absurdly attractive, so this was an excellent casting choice) and Nick(Mark) as well as Sand(First) go to the same college, eventually encountering a member from this group, which then enters them into their drama. The story is shaped by the character's drinking habits (lol), their love lives, their social relationships and the resulting personal agendas.
Is the story interesting? Yes, very much so, if you can watch it without getting attached to the actions of the characters. If you're easily triggered by fictional characters doing fictional nonsense, then you're not mature enough to watch this. The key word here is MATURE. The series can only be enjoyed if you're open-minded and mature enough watch it as merely a bystander. This is not teenage drama - it's much more complicated. If you're used to seeing everything as black and white then this is NOT the show for you.
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Finally the real gay community
I was so excited to see the chaos this would be. I was so proud of GMMTv for the audacity. Realistic stuff always get me, it's a love-hate thing.But let's go to the character analysis.
Everyone sucks. The only character who is an actual angel is Sand.
Mew: was descent until he became Harley Twink and turned toxic as well.
Force and Boston: both can't keep it in their pants. Except Force was willing to join monogamy at the end, but Boston couldn't, that's not who he is.
Nick: did some fucked up shit and was very colorblind when it came to red flags, but he was not a bad person at the end of the day and I'm glad he teamed up with the best person in the "group".
Ray: messed up, poor little rich kid... nah 'cause Ray fucking sucked and would make a scene out of every little thing. He definitely doesn't know how to deal with anything and that could be because he doesn't got a mom and a present dad but took him too long to even want to try to be a better person. He hurt too many people. Sand was a saint for pulling up with all that shit.
Sand: I think he is flawless, but he gave too many chances to Ray, also kinda colorblind. It went well at the end, thankfully.
Chuem: I was so happy that this actress would be gay in the show. Also was so happy that she was dating Nanon's sister. But damn, she was so annoying and had no own opinion. She would just believe anyone that came up to her and said like '"your girlfriend said "blah blah"'. She wouldn't even ask or talk about it, she would just come for the person. There was also kinda of a lack of chemistry between her and April tbh.
April: is only there to be Chuem's girlfriend, barely appears.
Yo and Plug: I wish their story had more screen time, cause they meant nothing to me (which is sad 'cause I love Jennie)
Atom: bro was filthy. I tried to understand that he was very confused and fell for the first guy he hooked up with right after he found out he likes men too, I was kinda sorry for him but he fucked up still.
We can see most characters are very well written and developed. I really liked that and the fact that everything was very real, like getting out of that romantic perfect bubble. I kinda wish the couples wouldn't end up together, because that could be like a lesson about real life: some things don't work out and that's okay. I loved that Nick and Boston didn't get together in the end, Boston tried but he was unable to be monogamous, so he should just try and stop making other people's lives miserable. Overall the drama was very nice to watch, chaos is very entertaining. Seeing our beloved actors getting out of their comfort zone and playing shitty characters was an experience.
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Crazy, but Fun
Like the title of this review, Only Friends was crazy, but fun. There's a LOT of drama, but that's the whole point of the show. If you're looking for a gentle, sweet, kiss-on-the-cheek drama, check out 2gether or something like that. This show is NOT for the people wanting the innocent first love story. This show is meant for the people that want the drama that comes with boys that are capital M - messy!Story:
I gave the storyline an 9.0 instead of a 10.0 because there were so many misunderstandings. Don't get me wrong, I love me a good misunderstanding, but it felt like there was a point where the only drama for every couple was the a misunderstanding arc. Use it once or twice, but don't keep reusing it in the same fashion for every couple. Communication is key!
I will say, the ending was pretty good and the way that the characters reacted to things was fairly understandable/reasonable for their characterization. This is to say that the reactions may not have been reasonable in a modern IRL setting for an everyday person, but for the characters and their stories, the reactions and motives were fairly on point.
Acting:
First/Khaotung were amazing as always. Their chemistry is OUTSTANDING. I loved them in The Eclipse and I loved them here. They were messy messy, but they were real in a way that I appreciate. Sand stayed firm in his boundaries and Ray learned how to see himself through Sand's eyes leading him to loving himself more than he had in the past.
Give it a go if you're looking for a far more mature series (and you're not afraid of a little mess.)
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Serious Themes, Great Storytelling, and One Truly Green‑Flag Character
This series introduced me to ForceBook and NeoMark.My favourite story is the one between Ray and Sand, in fact I watched it more than once.
Having been introduced to ForceBook in this drama, I didn't have a very good opinion of this couple because I didn't see any chemistry between their characters, but luckily I've changed my mind after watching other series.
However, it is a very good series that tackles different and serious issues, and it is the first series in which the characters (except Sand, a green flag, and Nick, a yellow flag) are all powerful red flags.
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