Only Friends

Oh my...

Well...this is the story of a dysfunctional friendship group with lots of toxicity and poor behaviour. I guess there must be some friendships that are this bad in real life, but my advice would be to run.

Straight off in the early episodes, there are a number of NC scenes. They are the kind that leave much to the imagination...but also don't....(the car scene!).... Neo (Boston) as a jealous, sex obsessed 'good friend' is not what I expected, but he's very good at it. Mark (Nick) as the lover who wants to be a permanent fixture in Neo's life is heartbreaking to watch. It's that feeling of desperation and longing that is almost too much to bear. There's a particular scene that really showed all the pain of wanting and finding out the truth and he was great.

What I like: Neo's acting - I've only seen him in roles where he plays the slightly silly friend, but his role as the jealous, selfish friend, is well acted. Mark's acting: I thought I didn't know who he was, but then realised he was in Moonlight Chicken. Such different roles and he's so good. I think I love him! 🫣 Khaotung (Ray): complex character, well acted, great facial expressions (as usual)

What I don't like: there are parts of Neo's role that feel like he's a cartoonish villain. Force: I don't like the character and not impressed by his acting.

It's like reading a book and you want to know what happens in the next chapter, so I'll be watching until the end.

Just watched episode 6 - Book's acting in this episode was top tier (no pun!). I haven't liked his acting before, but the last scene was brilliant. So wicked and so cool, but so full of raw emotion.

This is becoming crazy! It was heartbreaking to watch Mark's character as he sobbed, but what a good actor! There are so many self-serving characters that I can't look away....

I'm still watching this toxic mess and every week, Neo's acting and character get better.

Episode 9: what I liked: First (Sand) and Khaotung (Ray) have great lines and have such tender, sweet scenes. Loved it. Neo's acting (obviously!)
What I didn't like: not sure I like Papang's character (Daddy (ugh!) Dan) - a mix of needy and a little creepy

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If your friend group is like this..., LEAVE!!!

This show was such a delight to keep up with week after week. THE DRAMA?!?!?!?! It was sooo fucking good. The characters were messy and human, and above all, the story had meaning and a message in all the characters portrayed.

As for the couples -

1. SandRay were the best couple to me. Not only are FirstKhao pretty AF, but their chemistry is just beyond everything. Their acting, especially Khao, who had such emotional scenes, is top-tier. I love that they found their way to each other after all their trials and tribulations - mostly due to Ray and his drinking problem. I became a FirstKhao stan after this

2. TopMew - ForceBook were much better in this show than in 'A Boss and A Babe', especially Book's character. He was more mature. As for their story in this show, that's complicated. Cheating is something hard to get over, and I genuinely don't know how they'll deal with it.

3. TonNick - Who knew that NeoMark had such range? Anyway, I'm so happy that Nick finally chose to love himself over loving Boston, who never treasured or respected him as he deserved. My heart really broke for him in the last episode, but some lessons do need to be learned, albeit the hard way.
As for Boston, I feel the punishment was deserved. He spent all his time plotting against his friends and putting his selfish needs above all others. Finally, his selfishness left him with no one in his corner.

4. As for Cheum and April... They were kinda meh. And Cheum wasn't a good friend either, especially to Ray. She always favoured Mew more, and Ton wasn't even anywhere in her view.

5. Finally, Yo n Plug, I wish they had more of a role to play. I'd have loved to see their relationship dynamic and the inner workings of dating while trans or dating a trans character. Maybe someday trans characters will get better roles in BLs and not just like comedic relief or the random bar-owning friend.

6. As for Mix's appearance in the ending scene...interesting. Very interesting

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2 Years, 2 Rewatches, and It Still Lives in My Head

One thing I don’t like about BL: too much fan service. Well, in BL there’s no fan service like abs in k-dramas. I think BL is a genre that is fan service itself. But when you add fan service to fan service — well… they make a lot of sex scenes. I don’t mind it if it makes sense, but most of the time, it doesn’t — and that’s why I try to avoid shows like this. That’s also why I’m scared to watch many popular BL shows. I don’t want to be disappointed.
And what do I mean by “makes sense”? Well, some sex scenes are there only because of fan service, like I said. Yeah, people like sex, but if you want to see both love and lust in one, porn is not enough. So to fulfill the fans' desires, they make shows like this, and in every episode, there are like 10 sex scenes. And to be clear — I’m not that type of fan. But if you are, that’s fine, I guess. Even though I’m not a fan of the type of BL where there are too many spicy scenes, I fucking love this show so much that I call it my No.1 favorite — and I even changed my whole personality because of it.
Since I’ve written this long-ass intro, I have to talk about that first. Well, Only Friends has a lot — a lot — of spicy scenes, and most of the time, I don’t mind it. It "makes sense." Why? Because it’s about friends with benefits, and what would be the point of that if there weren’t scenes like that? Of course, there were some unnecessary scenes, but okay I can accept that.

The plot and the characters. The plot is basically Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High? by Arctic Monkeys. So if you like that song, this is made for you. I wouldn’t like it if the characters weren’t so fun. It’s a story you’ve definitely heard somewhere else (yeah, Arctic Monkeys literally sang about it), but have you ever heard about characters like these? I definitely haven’t. They are so toxic and such big red flags that you have to love them. It’s like Azula from Avatar — such a bitch that you just have to love her.
The relationships between the characters are so well written that you’ll say: “What a small world.” Yeah — such a small world that they all know each other because of stupid things like sex, stalking, being roommates... “This one is my crush’s crush,” and “this one is my roommate’s sex friend”… and many more. Doesn’t that sound like fun? To me, it pretty much does.

Acting. Oh my god… The actors are so good that I believed they were the characters. Ever since I watched Only Friends, I consider First my favorite actor. He has such a passion for acting — and you can see it. He’s a great actor. But he’s not the only great one in Only Friends. They all did a fantastic job.

Directing. Jojo Tichakorn and Ninew Pinya — I love you. I love you so much. Their work was so creative. In the first episodes, through their direction, they made sure we really got to know the characters — like we knew them personally. How? All characters had their own role in the club. Also, we’d never know what the characters truly thought of each other if it weren’t for the interview scenes because these characters are so fucking fake that they’d never say anything to each other directly. For them, communication is not the key.
There was also this scene — the therapy session scene — which I still don’t quite understand, but it was very creative and it felt like art. Also, Ninew Pinya (one of the directors) is an acting coach, so maybe that’s one of the reasons why the actors were so good.

Shows with themes like this can be easily messed up. You have to keep everything in mind so you don’t contradict what’s already been said or shown. And in Only Friends, they did a pretty good job. Let me explain with examples — spoilers ahead:
The main conflict between Mew, Top, and Boston — everything you might ask about it does get answered. Why did Top cheat? Well, he didn’t love Mew at the time — he just wanted to be someone’s first. Why was Mew mad even though he and Top weren’t officially dating? Mew thought Top was dead serious about him — since he already told Mew that he wants to date him. And also he slept with his best friend. Why didn’t Boston get a redemption arc like Top did? Because Boston doesn’t even care. He took his friends for granted. And you may ask many more questions and it still be answered.
Also, I was really scared they’d mess up the part where Ray cheats on Mew. Ray, who hated Top the most for cheating, would be forgiven too easily for doing the exact same thing. I was nervous — but it turned out great. Everyone knew Ray was no better than Top. But at the time Mew was dating Ray, he wasn’t exactly innocent either, so he didn’t really have the right to be mad at him
There’s one thing I really don’t like about Only Friends. And if I had to rate this show objectively (which is a stupid thing to say but whatever), I’d give it 9/10 — because of this one thing: the fucking Boeing guy. Like, who the fuck is he? He ruined everything I loved about the show. The screenwriters had to stick to 12 episodes, so they needed another conflict — and this conflict didn’t make any sense. The whole show, Sand was holding back only because he was deeply in love and most importantly, it was a one-sided love. When he finally gets to be with the one he loves, the fucking Boeing guy shows up and the screenwriters suddenly make Sand act out of character. He starts thinking about being with his ex? Does that make sense? No, it doesn’t. He was loyal and devoted the whole show — how could he even think about something like this? Yeah, Boeing could’ve been there, but it would’ve been better if Sand didn’t look like he was hesitating.

Okay, I think that’s all for now. I wrote this two years after I watched it for the first time, and it’s still on my mind. I’ve seen it many times, and each time feels different. Every time, I notice something new. I’m not saying this series is for everyone, but I really loved it — even though I’m not a big fan of BL. I usually watch BL only when I want something light and unserious, but I think this one is actually a pretty serious piece of work. And I dare say it’s one of the best BL series — if not the best.

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Wonderfully messy

I like many others have been counting the days for this show to air. As usual GMMTV has another iconic show on their hands.
The acting: I already knew the acting was gonna be good because of the beautiful pairings we had for the casting but I was still so pleasantly surprised at how much more everyone had gotten even better. Khaotung and First blow me out of the water every single project they do but this one right here is the one! Just breathtaking. THE CHEMISTRY.
Force and Book are another pair that have stolen my heart. Book has really shown how versatile he can be going from a boss and a babe to only friends. When I heard Mark and Neo we’re gonna be paired up I was so excited. People were upset that Louis wasn’t going to be with Neo but I just knew Mark was gonna be such a good pair with Neo and give us what we needed. And I was not wrong. Like I was nowhere near wrong. Like at all *insert the blushing emoji.”
Finally GMMTV has given Mark his time to shine instead of giving him the side character treatment.
The story: the story is messy as hell and so scrumptious. This show does a beautiful job at discussing difficult topics and showing the process of not so pretty consequences. I really just want to highlight GMMTV for not giving all of the couples “happy” endings just because the pairs have wonderful chemistry. One of my favorite things to come out of this show is you should love yourself and not lower your standards for no one. Absolutely gonna miss this series forever hoping for a season two.

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Top 5 Series from GMMTV

In my opinion, this show was the most interesting one yet and has climbed up to my top 5 favorite shows from GMMTV.

I could talk about and debate about how I feel with this show for hours.

There are such amazing characters that are play by some really talented actors. I'm not going to type a lot but the couples were really interesting. Boston and Nick have a dynamic that I have never seen in a BL before. Honestly, as much as I hate Boston, without him this show would be quite dull, so, to me he's the best character along with Ray. I love that they bring the drama. This show by far has the best drama I have seen in GMM TV. Love the complicated friendships that they have going on. Ray liking Mew. Sand and Ray hating Top but then making up towards the end of the series.

Nick with his delusions and thinking he can be with Boston forever is such a realistic situation in my opinion.

Ray and Sand we're just an amazing couple with a lot of problems going on between them and I feel really bad for Sand. We could argue about who's a black flag, red flag, yellow flag, or green flag but I think that most people agree that sand is a yellow-ish green flag. By far the most likable character there.

Mew and Top are also very realistic. As much as I'm not really into their couple in the show and with how much Top actually gets on my nerves, I think I feel happy with the ending. I'm happy with every couple's ending and I think that each couple could not have ended better.

Now I'm super excited with what they're going to do with season 2. I hope we see some if not all of the original cast in season 2 because I think there's so much they could actually continue doing with their couples. They don't need to leave us on a cliffhanger with them and change to a whole different cast
It's for sure going to be interesting
What's Mix going to do to Mew and Tops relationship?

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Only friends forever.

I need to vent.
I absolutely loved the series so much that I watched it again. This, being the second time I watched it, I see it in a different perspective than I did a year ago when it released.
Even then...it never stops hurting.
The ending.😭

Okay, let's start by mentioning the positives.
I love the cast. Neo Trai, First Kanaphan, Khaotung Thanawat, Mark Pakin, Book Kasidet, Force Jitrachapong, and Lookjun Bhasidi as always never failed us. I have absolutely no problem with the cast, hell, even Nonnie Pitchaporn did such amazing acting(Does it run in the Kirdpan family to be this cute?). Sand and Nick probably had to be the best-written character ever. On top of that, they were so relatable and real, except Nick always lowering his bar. Ray's healing era was instantly my favorite. And Boeing was legit the character who stepped in, kissed everyone by Nick, and left. Slay kind, you dropped this👑.

Then, storyline. If you're into messy storylines, you're gonna love this. I did <333333
I bet everyone is going to hate Boston the most, but not for me. I surprisingly never liked Top. The reason was, Boston came off straightforward, he was like 'Yeah, I'm an asshole' but Top on the other hand came off as a manipulator from the get-go. He manipulated Mew by making his confession grand. So...yeah, there's that.

Okay, improvements. To be honest, I loved everything.......except........ForceBook. Wait, no don't get me wrong. Their acting is really good, as amazing as ever. But after seeing them act in light hearted and fun series like Enchante and Boss and a Babe, they were almost fit for it. Their individual acting itself was amazing, but as a serious ship, they were slightly off. But by their masterpiece of an acting, that flaw went simply unnoticable.

Overall, the experience is great.
I am very sad over the fact that Boston didn't change. I fully expected him to and I thought the ending would be Nick and Boston don't ehri merry way to New York, but sadly I was wrong. But we can accept Nick's decision as good humans. I also loved the ending, clearly, they sort of accepted Boston and let go of their past fury against each other.
So yeah, I suggest you watch it. And when you do, have a good time <3333333333

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A Rollercoaster of Emotions: A Late-Night Binge-Watch

When I first saw Ray with his head resting on the toilet seat, I knew he was the one. Have you ever watched a movie or a drama and felt an inexplicable connection to a character? Ray was that person for me—twisted and flawed, yet profoundly relatable. Life has a way of molding us into unexpected shapes, and Ray’s journey resonated with me.

As for Sand, he's such a sweet guy. I mean, he saved my Ray and made him a better man. What could be more perfect than that? I admire his hardworking nature, the way he takes care of the people he loves, and his deep bond with his mom. It pained me to see him cry or suffer, but such is life.

Mew's situation is perplexing. I felt anger toward Top for betraying him behind his back. It's as if fate inscribed in red ink, 'Innocence gets you hurt.' Mew possesses a forgiving heart—a quality I lack. If I were in his shoes... well, let's not dwell on what I'd do.

Top is still not my cup of tea from the first time I saw him. His character resembled a predator toying with its prey, inflicting wounds and then licking them. Perhaps my bias influenced my perception, but anyway...

And then there’s Boston, a lost soul who struggles to understand love and how to be loved. When he settled down, I hoped he'd find stability. Alas, he stumbled again, losing something precious. Boston reminded me of a thirsty lamb in a desert, bypassing an oasis to wander deeper into scorching sands. Sometimes, we all need a wake-up call—a metaphorical smack on the head—to alter our course.

Nick, the sweetheart, faced perpetual bad luck in love. His heart woke up one day and chose unrequited love. I'm relieved he eventually found self-awareness and escaped the torment he inflicted upon himself. Innocent face, wounded heart—sweet Nick.

The friend group was f**ked up to the core, probably why I sometimes wish I remained friendless to avoid the drama, betrayal, and complicated love dynamics.

The series itself was a whirlwind of emotions. Stellar performances by the actors, perfectly crafted scenes, and an engaging storyline held me captive. So here I am, writing this review at 5 a.m., fueled by my all-night binge-watch. Was it worth it? Absolutely.

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Obsessed with RaySand

I really enjoyed watching this, even though I actually prefer to watch cutesy, sweet, no-angst shows, which I would say this isn’t.

First off, I love RaySand’s story/romance it’s done so well and Khaotung and First do an amazing job acting. I will say I wasn’t really all that interested in MewTop, but that didn’t detract from the story too much. The acting is all quite good, I think this is a pretty top-tier cast (especially Khaotung, the way he portrayed emotions was really really good). Some emotional moments nearer the end did make me tear up, again the way Khaotung and First portray their characters is SO good. I also am a big fan of Neo, he did a great job (even though Boston isn’t the best).

I started this show not really thinking I’d even get through it, but mainly because I just wanted to give it a try- then ended up finishing it in 3 days. There’s a lot of messiness with the characters, and a lot of drama (and a lot of bad decisions made), and it makes for a great show.

I also really loved how the show talked about sexuality and consent and such were important and talked about. I see too many BLs living in some sort of fantasy world where consent is not given and it’s not a problem- not even talked about. Also there are some BLs that are just weird with pacing and the story and confusing, but this absolutely was not, the plot and pacing were very natural, the way characters react is completely natural. It was a very good watch.

I wasn’t even planning on writing this much, I just finished it so I think I have a lot to say about it. If you’ve actually read this, I definitely recommend you watch the show, and I hope you enjoy it.

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I think a very good study in human behavior. Funnily enough.

Explicit. Characters are of all shades of gray. When I say explicit it is definitely on higher end of explicit for a BL. And when I say I overall liked this watch, you may think it was those scenes but not really.

It was simply upredictable and exciting to see characters respond to plot demands. So dramatic! So fun! With burlesque quality to it. Cannot pinpoint it but I feel like I have been thrown into the OG Gossip Girl first watch. Does anyone get what I mean?

I was easily invested in the story of each of the characters, so much that I remember all of their names. And I do not have to say leave your morality at the front because these are not good people and they do not pretend to be.

At the beginning, everything and everyone seems superficial and thin like paper but throughout the show they flunctuate as people and do so in an honest and raw way.

The characters were developed with solid back stories that justified their actions in the drama, but were still unexpected when they struck you as audience. Ray was multi-layered character from the get go and fit Khao's emotional and vulnerable performance excellently. Even the lack of chemistry with Mew exemplified that his match was elsewhere. Sand was an absolute favorite in the way he was written, his sass was very well portrayed and his wimpy attitude was toned down but his cool and confident disposition. The chemistry was on point between the main leads.

Ton was consistent as hell in his immorality. He made me think so much. Even though I would condemn some actions in real life, the drama made me consider the angles of forgiveness and contempt and change ...and all in all, letting go. Nuncheon, I thought was useless in the plot. If judging from this as my first time seeing his performance, Force seems better person than he is an actor. In behind the scenes he was funny and charming, seems like a great guy to have around in any team --but his acting I just did not think was complex enough for the role of Top. Book was solid, nothing much to complain about. Mark Pakin the same case as with Force, this is my first time to see him acting and he did not impress, seems like a great guy perhaps the role did not fit. Also strange because his chemistry with Neo was not really lacking in the interviews and behind the scenes so I am not sure why I was not vibing with them. I am throwing all unpopular opinions here, sorry.

In all, a few things carried this drama: complex and unpredictable plot, refreshing mature script that matched perfectly with the scenography and Khao, First and Neo.

I know many people here rate it as trash, even tho I understand I would disagree. depends what you are looking for (or finding). With all those salacious scenes you expect to be kind of at the brink of oversaturation but characters were simply well written so you may end up caring more about what happens to them. Like me.

I think I liked Only Friends more than Eclipse, even though I think Akk fit better First than Sand did, and Ray suited better Khao than Ayan did... And well, I am First's fan girl first, and an objective reviewer (caring about your viewing experience) second, hihi.

Go for it. It's unexpected surprise. And 12eps only.

Thanks for reading.

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A great show that went off the rails somewhere along the line

Boy oh boy am I conflicted about this one! There are some things I adore about it, some things I absolutely hate about it and on the whole I suppose I'm just not quite sure where I stand.

Let me start off by saying that the acting and cinematography in this show are phenomenal, the soundtrack absolutely slaps, and best of all: it has some of the most realistic and multidimensional depictions of queer people and their lives I've ever seen in a Thai show.
Relationship boundaries are complex and shifting, sexual roles and preferences are fluid, and monogamy is often not all it's cracked up to be. For that alone the series scored big points with me.
Unfortunately though, they completely flubbed the ending in my opinion.

This story could have had the perfect three act structure: the building of relationships, then the complete breakdown of those relationships, before finally rebuilding connections and salvaging whatever possible from the wreckage.
And for a while it really looks like that's where the show is going. I absolutely adore the first third of the series and am very much on board with the sheer chaos of the second third (I especially love the twist to Mew's character and think this could have been the perfect set-up for a truly interesting and subversive character arc).
But by the last third I was so furious about some of the writing choices made that all that goodwill pretty much went out the window.

I strongly dislike the way Mew and Top's relationship rekindling is handled (I think it's a great disservice to both characters to be honest) and I just couldn't get invested in their dynamic anymore.
Boston also gets done pretty dirty in that the show frequently blurs the line between "this character is a complete dick who is unrepenting and pretty much irredeemable" and "this character is simply polyamorous/prefers open relationships" which plays into negative and antiquated stereotypes.
And then there is Boeing whose inclusion is as unnecessary as it is deeply irritating. It detracts focus from two of the most important relationships in the show and pretty much ruins several character arcs in my opinion.

That being said the series does still have a great deal to offer: it is raw, touching, and real. It subverts a lot of tired old tropes of the genre while also skillfully addressing several important issues like consent and addiction. It is incredibly sex-positive and unabashedly queer and features several loving lesbian and trans couples (though none of them really get enough screentime).
And most importantly it's pure, chaotic fun.

In short I hope to see this production team create more shows like this in the future and hopefully learn from some of the mistakes here too.
I also would like to take this opportunity to grab GMM by the proverbial collar and inform them that they better wise up and make space for more authentically queer productions going forward without leading good projects awry due to unexpected audience demands dammit!

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Crazy little thing called love.

Oh boy. This series was a ride and a half, and I'm still not entirely sure about my rating.

There were points when I was so frustrated watching this, but it did a fairly good job at engaging me. I'm a sucker for complex relationship dynamics, and I think each of the pairs in this delivered on that tenfold. So to best assess, let's look at the couples.

Mew & Top: When I started, I wasn't sure about them. Mew's character was relatable for me, and I wanted Top to be a good guy -- but of course, nothing is that easy. The fist shaking and face palming done during certain scenes with them was numerous. Surprisingly, I feel they did a good job at redeeming Top. I was rooting for him by the end, and in a weird twist, I was annoyed by Mew. His character flip due to heartbreak was enraging at points, but they pulled it back together. This was the pair I was least engaged with, though. Also can we talk about the random storyline they threw in at the end? Literally insanity to me because it had zero development and felt like someone was like "but wait... fire!"

Nick & Boston: This dynamic hit so much on Queer as Folk, but couldn't live up to that series. Still, Nick was endearing, though naive. Boston was not meant to be likeable and they did a fantastic job of conveying that. I really wish they would've explored more of his character, especially after what Nick said to him about wanting to be loved. I feel like that hit so hard, but wasn't fleshed out. Furthermore, they tried to redeem Ton, but there was no real moral dilemma evident when he just repeated his usual patterns. I feel like if they wanted us to believe he had some signs of hope, they needed to show that more. Ton grew on me, but like mold grows in a poorly ventilated bathroom. I'm sad but happy in the end that Nick chose himself. Boston has some growing to do, and he can't do it if he is enabled.

Sand & Ray: I actually chose to watch Only Friends because I enjoyed First so much in Note Me. This couple is really the star of the show for me. Ray was so enraging at points, and I think Sand was such a beautiful person, which they conveyed well. They were ying and yang at points, but complimented each other. As someone who works with mental health and addictions, Ray was a particularly heartbreaking character. His one therapy session had me near tears, and I wish we could've seen more of his exploration. I would've loved for them to delve more into the dynamics of recovery and loving someone in recovery. Their chemistry was palpable. One thing that bugged me a bit is the lack of closure related to Sand's dad.

Boeing: Not a pair, but he gets his own line because he created so many feels. Love the actor, hate the character -- so basically, he did another great job at acting. He was like Ton but boss level Ton. Any time he walked into the room, I was ready to throw something at my screen.

The ending felt a bit flat, but I enjoyed by journey (well, most of it).

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