Love upon a Time

Love Upon a Time: A Place I Visited, Not Just a Series I Watched

ove Upon a Time ended up being everything I hoped it would be and more.

After production delays, recasting, and significant changes from the original pilot, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. What I got was a beautifully crafted historical fantasy romance that completely swept me away.

What surprised me most was how playful the series was. I expected something far more serious, but JJ's performance as Nakhun injects the perfect amount of humour and chaos into the story. Honestly, if a Gen Z university student suddenly found himself 400 years in the past, I would expect him to react exactly like this. His exaggerated expressions and comedic timing never felt out of place to me. Instead, they made him feel human.

Net and JJ are phenomenal together. Net brings warmth, emotional depth, and quiet strength to Phop, while JJ fills Nakhun with charm and life. Their chemistry is undeniable, and by the end of the series I was completely invested in every glance, every conversation, and every moment they shared.

What truly impressed me was the balance. Love Upon a Time is simultaneously a romance, a mystery, a period drama, and a fantasy. Remarkably, none of those elements overshadow the others. They weave together naturally, creating a story that constantly keeps you engaged.

Visually, the series is stunning. The rivers, landscapes, traditional homes, costumes, and historical locations all contribute to a world that feels rich and lived in. The production quality is among the best I've seen in Thai BL.

And then there's the finale.

What a finale.

It's the kind of ending that feels earned. After all the love, heartbreak, danger, sacrifice, and longing, the final chapter lands with enormous emotional weight. Long after the credits rolled, I was still thinking about it.

More importantly, this series achieved something few dramas ever manage. It didn't feel like I was watching a story. It felt like I was living inside one. I wasn't simply observing these characters—I felt present alongside them.

I'll carry Love Upon a Time with me not as a show I watched, but as a place I visited.

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Good but not the best. The drama was basically spammed 10s to raise the rating

I am a huge sucker for historical dramas. It may be straight or BL and this is probably on the bottom on the list. Now that doesn't mean this is bad. It's an above average show. Pretty good just not the best. After having a 7.2 during the initial episodes fans basically spammed 10s to raise it's rating but yeah 8.5 is reasonable.

I started this show cz i saw edits on the trailer and it looked sooo good but then the 1st few episodes. Especially ep 1 were disastrous. With JJ just screaming for no damn reason in ep 1. I really wanted to drop it but then i didn't wanna judge it too fast and fans were like give it a chance and that's how i ended up chucking netjj on dmd 2. Well I think I hated this drama till ep 5. I literally forced myself to watch it cz it was soo confusing and the whole time travel thing felt pointless along with the drama on its own. But later it improved. The drama got much more engaging, interesting and JJs acting also improved. But i felt they should have distributed the plot a bit throughout the series instead of revealing everything in the last 15 mins of the drama. I personally wanted a few more episodes in the modern era but yeah they pretty much tie up all the lose ends although a little late.

Coming to our pairs netjj and lattekim.

Netjj - as someone who has watched and loved bed friend I wasn't very convinced that NetJJ would work on screen. But they work just fine🤭 there are times where both are on absolute different wavelengths and not in sync when it comes to acting but i think they will get a hang of it as they work together. They definitely did a great job and u could see they're comfortable with each other.

LatteKim - I've liked Latte in dmd1 and i didn't know he got a partner and such a pretty one at that. I was pleasantly surprised and loved it. I literally waited for them the whole series our precious JomKaew❤️❤️❤️. I've got 0 complaints with them. They did an amazing job.

2 of my fav scenes are related to them. 1 is the scene where the bowl in the painting gets fixed in the last ep and 2nd could be TutorYim's cameo n Jom's trauma 🤌🤌🤌🤌 i went from hating jom to loving him.

Overall yep it's good u can watch it.

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Love will always find a way

Truly impressed with Love Upon A Time from beginning to end. each episode just got better and better.

From episode 1 it was so engaging and attention grabbing it left me wanting more.
Great job balancing the romance along with the investigative part in the story, I feel like nothing was left unanswered and any changes from the novel to the adaptation were practical ones that fit a physical version of the story even more.

The visuals and quality of each episode were beautiful, the hardwork from the staff behing LUAT was so clear. I know they all faced hardships during this project from prolonged delays to sets being flooded and so on but I will forever be grateful that not one person ever gave up on LUAT.

Net did a fantastic job as Phop, I've seen all the preparation from him in things like practicing his speech, sword and combat training, etc. every emotional scene from him made me feel everything he was feeling especially the sad scenes.
JJ was so good leading the series as well as he did. I know it must've been hard at times but I hope he can be proud of himself. it might seem like things aren't completely good but this is just the beginning for you and netjj.

Latte, i'm so happy after all these years he was finally able to be part of a series. I will admit he impressed me a lot more than I was expecting. He is typically quiet and private but for this role of playing two personalities he did a great job having a clear divide of each.
Kim, the perfect Kaew he is so lovely and truly embodied the character he was playing. it was my first time seeing him act and I think he did well.

--

If anyone is wondering if they should give LUAT a chance. my answer would be yes. maybe you are someone who thinks time period series aren't for you and that's okay but I will say this one is quite different from other time period dramas. it's the perfect rom-com mix with not too much comedy to take away from the serious moments.

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LOVE IT. One of the best DMD series!

I really enjoyed this 🥰 Another great hit from DMD. I wasn't sure if I was gonna like it cause I'm iffy with time travel series but I kept going cause I love NetJJ. I'm glad I kept watching.
I laughed alot. Especially at the servants. They were hilarious and loved the bickering between Klao's and Phop's servant. 😂
I loved how there was a full episode of them in the future, meeting and all instead of the last 30 minutes lol.
Time travel ALWAYS confuses me and was confused the whole time 😭 But when Phop started explaining at the end, it made a little more sense. I'm like ohhh and its all because of him, not the fortune teller.
Its sad that Phop found the real Klao's body in the water and thought it was Nakun. Ended up putting 2 and 2 together in the future, wasn't Nakun that dissappeared that night BUT it was still Klao from your time.
I'm assuming Phop basically died from a broken heart, wasn't eating and drinking?? Ngl I thought he was gonna commit suicide if he wasnt able to find Nakun. Going by the other couple (TutorYim) who died together. Phop looked so heartbroken and had no life in him anymore. 😭😭😭
Its great how they made Nakun's mom the reincarnation of Klao's dad. I never would've guessed that until Nakun seen his face on her.
We all been patiently waiting for 3 years for this to finally air! 🤣🤣 Its a definite rewatch. ❤️❤️

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I went in with high expectations, and I wasn't disappointed.

ACTING: I found a couple of the actors acting to feel very by-the-book, but it honestly didn't bother me; they still did a good job. I particularly liked JJ's acting; I found his energy and facial expressions (especially his smile) to be perfect for a comedy series. This isn't a comedy series, so we didn't get much of that side of him, but you get a good judge of his acting from seeing this and the more serious side that he has for the majority of the show. I'd only seen JJ in "I saw you in my dream" and "The Next Prince" previously and I found his acting very stiff in "I saw you in my dream" which was understandable for his first role, and we honestly didn't get enough of him in "The Next Prince" but based on what little I did see I can tell he's really improved. On a side note, I love it when JJ speaks English, something about it is really cute. JJ & Net really know how to cry.

OST: Was pretty & not overbearing. They went with the mood really well, and the lyrics often matched what was happening in the story or between the characters.

PRODUCTION: Very well done. My only complaint is that there were some moments where we were just staring or rotating around the characters when we could have just moved on, and there are way too many moments where the characters are just standing in silence for too long. Even when we are getting internal dialogue from Nakun, the silence stretches long enough to be awkward.

PLOT: As time-traveling stories go, I think this is one of my favorites. I like how it worked. I do think they spent a little too much time trying to explain it as if it could logically be explained, but it was also nice to hear some of the different viewpoints. Normally, I'm really disappointed when the characters in a series have to investigate something because it feels like they either aren't doing enough or they are overlooking the obvious, which makes them look stupid. Not in this series. I liked it, and the historical setting (which I normally don't like) made it better. I liked that gathering information and proof was harder than it is today, where literally everything can leave a paper trail or video evidence. I also liked that Nakun was noticing the small details; he was really trying to Detective Conan this shit.

ROMANCE/CHEMISTRY: I liked both couples, but the chemistry wasn't anything explosive. For Nakun and Phop, it felt like a natural progression, but with Jom and Kaew, it felt very reserved, which I guess fits with the time period. For Thee and Pun, it didn't make me feel anything at all, and that's probably because we don't really see their progression from passive to interested. Besides My Stobborn, this is the first time I've been interested in the NC scenes.

PRODUCT PLACEMENT: Made no sense, but I found it funny.

SPOILERS:

I'm so used to the main character traveling through time mentally that it was a bit shocking that Nakun physically traveled clothes, jewelry, and all. It makes sense because Klao is dead and there's no living body for him to enter, and honestly, I think I prefer this because it's like Klao's death was the trigger for the time travel. It reminds me a little of Two Worlds, where they can only travel if the other world's version of themselves is dead. I'm assuming that age matters as well, but it was never brought up in all the explanations they were giving us, so I'm not sure.

When Nakun is randomly sent back to the present day, we spend a lot more time mourning than I expected. I love that we got to see everyone in the past mourning for Klao/Nakun, whereas a lot of series would just move on to them meeting again in the future and living happily ever after. We get to see Phop find Klao's body and then slowly waste away till he dies. I do wish we had gotten to know how long after Nakun returns to the past that it took. Nakun is given time (no idea how much) to heal and become more mentally stable after he returns before he meets Phop again. I did tear up a couple of times seeing both Nakun and Phop become so lifeless. Nakun at least had hope that Phop was alive and that he just had to find him, whereas Phop found Klao's body.

I was upset about them just missing each other because it's so overused, but it's probably in the novel as well.

(I may read the novel, actually.)

I also REALLY love that Phop used a wishing stone to wish to be reincarnated near Klao with all of his memories. He got his memories back on his 20th birthday as well, around a year before Nakun traveled back in time, and it was interesting to see him put the pieces together and then set things up for his trip to the past.

Nakun gets his ring back! It's apparently Phop's family heirloom, which I found interesting.

I would have liked to have seen more of their time together inbetween them meeting again and their marriage, but this is me wanting too much, and I'm aware of that. The "wedding," if it can be called that, was literally just an announcement and signing the paperwork, which they somehow made sweet.

What was the bracelet about? What did it actually do, if anything? We see it vibrate or something a couple of times in the first episode, and then it literally does nothing. Did I miss something? If I did, please, someone explain it to me because I was watching for this darn bracelet to do something or mean something in every episode, only for it to amount to nothing. Now that I think about it, this is the thing that annoyed me the most out of the series, and I thought all the scenes with the mom went on WAY too long, especially the one where Nakun realizes that she's the reincarnation of Klao's father. Why did we have to rotate around them, hugging for so long?

A couple of annoying things aside, I really loved this show.

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Slow Start -> EXCELLENT Finish

Love upon a time is a show that started off slow and somewhat predictable, but slowly turned into a show that was unique and exquisitely done. I was really excited to see Net and JJ in main roles for a series, and they absolutely delivered on these roles! I am partial to soul mate/reincarnation tropes, so if that's not something you're into, this probably isn't for you - but if you're into it at all, this one is DEFINITELY worth watching! Just get through the slow start and it becomes a masterpiece.

Nakun (JJ) has been having the worst luck ever, right as he turns 20. Thinking it can't get any worse, he has a few too many drinks and goes and watches the stars fall - only to end up transported back in time 400 years. There, Lord Phop (Net) informs him that he, now known as Klao, has been missing for awhile, and Phop is glad he has returned. Nakun now has to try to play the role of Klao, figure out why he got transported there, and how he can get back, all while falling in love with Phop.

The first few episodes were a little too silly, and had a few too many stereotypical/repetitive elements of "oh I'm not really back in time, I must be dreaming!" type plotpoints. However, as the actual plot of the show picked up, this show began to wow me. I don't know what has been happening with Mandee/Domundi recently but WOW they are killing it! I loved the attention to detail in this show, from the costumes to the language (and the slow assimilation of Nakun into the past dialect was wonderful). I think that as long as you're willing to watch the first few stereotypical sent back in time episodes, you are in for a real treat with this one! The amount of emotion these actors delivered was fantastic to watch, and NettJJ killed these roles. Not to mention, Latte and Kim as Jom and Kaew was such a nice addition! I loved all of the characters in this and cannot recommend it enough, especially if you like period pieces.

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Gender doesn't matter for true love

I will give a solod 10 out 10 review for this as it is like the real world where in some countries the same sex marriage is not legally accepted and many of them are affected by that like can't be with there true love. I got happy tears for phop and nakhun when they got officially wed in the last episode.. they believed that they will re born in a generation where they can love without fear... i am soo happy that this is the best series in 2026.. we want a special episode for this series.... Please DMD please grant our wish... This series is like OH MY GOD i can't get out of this series....

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A Story of Love that Transcends Lifetimes

I have never written a review on here before, but I felt I had to for this show, as it has become my new favorite BL to date. This was the most achingly beautiful love story told in such a perfect way. I was hooked the moment the show started. The atmospher, lighting, writing, directing, editing, cinematography, production/sound/set design, wardrobe/hair/makeup, etc, were all top notch. I could feel the love and care that went into this show with the attention to detail and level of authenticity. And don't even get me started on the casting, acting, and chemistry! I fell in love with these characters and their relationships with eachother. I adored them and was heavily emotionally invested in their journey and their happiness. This show truly did have it all. It was funny; it was serious; it was romantic; it was breathtaking; it was mysterious; it was heartbreaking; it was sweet; etc., etc. I felt anything and everything while watching this. The story was so meaningful and one of the only BL's that actively made me cry (for various reasons). This is one of those shows that stays with you after it's done and is one I will absolutely come back to and watch again and again throughout the years. I appreciate EVERYONE who was involved in making this show become a reality 🧡

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You Who Came From The Stars.

If you ever had a chance to meet a version of you from another life and timeline, what would you do?
Love Upon A Time's underlying theme rests upon this fact. Like any other time travel drama, it comes with the same caveats, but what I admired about the story as it wrapped up, was how consistent the characters and rules of time were.
You just know that there existed a distinction between the past and the present, almost as if the flow was rough around the seams. But, it is this little point that made me add an additional half stars to my 8.5 rating.
Well, here goes my thoughts.

Time travel and History are two genres that rarely do well in synergy. The suspension of disbelief becomes a necessity to admire its beautiful and often tragic elements; something that viewers find highly disconcerting as the existence of paradoxes makes the former impossible to ignore. And melancholy is a feeling desired by none.
But, without a doubt, none can deny that they are always suspenseful, regardless of what genre of time travel the story is attempting to convey. Was it going to be a romance? Doomed for sure. Were they going to change the past? A price has to be paid.
Hence, isekai dramas, although a deluge of them are already present, tend to scare away viewers.
Like all drama viewers, I too, have had my fair share of the same genre. The Eternal Love, my first Chinese Drama, happens to be of the exact same kind as Love Upon a Time. If you think Nakhun Patthanathada was over the top, Qu Tan Er would have given him a run for his money — the girl got transported a thousand years back and she did not even attempt to hide that she was not the same person as she was before.

Scratch all that, I love time travel dramas and novels. Unfortunately, our male lead Nakhun Patthanathada doesn’t.

★ A rational English Literature student. Nakhun, finds himself plagued by a series of ill omens, culminating in him spectacularly failing Thai History as well as inciting his English Professor to grant the class an assignment on whether they believe in time travel fiction after he trenchantly refuses to divulge from logic. Fate offers him a chance to fix both his academic issues - sending him back directly to Ayuthaya Kingdom, 400 years ago.
Forced to assume the identity of a certain “Klao”, he attempts to navigate the past with his non-existent knowledge and find out what had happened to the real Klao. All while being constantly monitored by Klao’s childhood friend, Lord Phop, who starts to suspect that the new Klao indeed might not be the one he had known.

★ The drama begins with a pilot episode that goes a tad bit overboard with emphasizing how exactly unlucky Nakhun was. It takes its sweet time, introducing characters very much earlier while slowly building up the plot around them, letting their personalities and relations simmer and settle. Particularly characters such as Jom and Kaew.
Moreover, Klao’s storyline is literally buoyed by an ensemble cast - particularly Phop and the servants Chuay, Sai, Phong and the cooking Lady, who offer insights and flashbacks into the mysterious Klao’s past. Something that Nakhun himself might not be able to provide.

Personally, I liked how they managed to instill the truth about how high the stakes were for Nakhun - he was nowhere close to the real Klao and his modern shenanigan and detective work combined with the classic historical set up that characters such as Phop lived by gave an amalgamation of two different genres in a rather comic manner - it was romance for Phop while it was a mystery for Nakhun.

★ I’ve always admired JJ’s skills after seeing him in The Next Prince. (Yeah. Considering that his plotline was pure smoke, he managed to create something out of nothing just through sheer talent, which is why I remember him.)
But, Love Upon A Time gives him the opportunity to portray a variety of emotions - Nakhun is a versatile character who changes according to the person he deals with. He is rather funny with Thee, doesn’t mess around with Pun, careful with his words when it comes to Phop and manipulates both Phop and Chuay to get his way. He is also sharp and knows to defend himself quite well.
While Nakhun is more serene, the character Klao is hinted to have had a miserable existence. Moreover, we can make out exactly how different those two were.

★ They do not kid around with time travel. The prickly part? The viewers are stuck in the past as Nakhun is. This can be either thrilling or annoying, but as I am in the former category, I did not mind it much.

★ As for Nakhun and Phop’s romance? Nakhun clearly informs viewers about what he thinks of their relationship and I share the same sentiments as his.
Phop is already in love with Klao, which Nakhun perceives quite early in the story. From Nakhun’s point of view, the romance is fun and easy to follow and is evidently the lighter aspects of the rather tumultuous past of Klao. But, the caveat? It is bound to be doomed.
So, in spite of cheering for the couple, viewers can't help but feel despair. They were bound to the rules of the time and time itself was their biggest enemy.
Then, there is Phop. Who is clearly stuck somewhere in the middle of a modern romance and historical tragedy.
Net is an expressive actor and he does not disappoint, bringing Phop’s internal dilemma to life. He shines in the final episodes, both as Phop and Tinnaphob. I have to give it to him, his future self was a lot more calm and composed as compared to Phop from the past.

★ Jom - it's surprising that he received a lot of dislike initially. To me, he was a very interesting character and I found his actions quite different from how others perceived him. I might be in the wrong, though.
Latte plays the two very different characters extremely convincing – one was a goofball foolishly in love with Pun while the other was a very serious Physician who thwarts Kaew’s attempt at romance. Just like JJ’s Nakhun and Klao. Both characters are a stark contrast to their modern counterparts.

★ Kaew/Pun -- the most consistent character in both the past and present. Kim Pongsaton was absolutely ethereal in his role. Calm, quite and collected to both Thee and Nakun's, he was a scene stealer.
His romance with Thee was both endearing and heartbreaking to watch.

★ The Friendships, particularly between Jom/Thee, Pun/Kaew and Nakun was heartwarming. Not to mention Chuay, Sai and Phong

The story is almost told by an ensemble cast without whom the plot wouldn't move forward. Even minor characters like Varna exist to prove a point rather than simply being a plot device.

★ Nakhun and his mother -- initially glimpsed in EP1, her presence as a very important person in Nakun's life doesn't change, even when he goes back to the past. There was something deeply moving about seeing the simple love between a parent and child being portrayed on-screen. (I'm in a similar situation as him when it comes to college, which might be the reason it struck home.)

★ Villains -- the mystery is rather high stakes and dawdles as a result of the 'culprit'. But, it is not until the final half of the drama that things begin to become more clear. I have to say, by the end of the drama, I felt rather satisfied with how everything wrapped up.

★ The Soundtrack was absolutely beautiful. All the different OSTs, along with their instruments were absolutely wonderful. Particularly the one by Bowkylion and JJ.

And so were the traditional outfits. I loved Kaew's in particular as it seemed to simple suit him perfectly. Also, Phop's uniform and Varna's outfits.

★ Is the drama perfect? No way - but that's the thing about time travel dramas. Considering that we had only one and a quarter episode to reestablish Nakun's life back into the future. There is also an upsetting truth when it came to this, but I understand why it had to happen that way.
But, Love Upon A Time acknowledged these inevitable changes and boldly pulled the story closed without leaving any loose threads.

★ This is definitely one of the best works by Mandeep Channel, perhaps following Khemjira, Your Sky and Duang With You. There was a story and characters to build up and they managed to arrive at a neat denoument without stepping off line.
Kudos to the cast and crew and I'll definitely be looking forward to Net, JJ, Kim and Latte's future works.

I began this as an experimental watch, but three months later, I have completed it with satisfaction. A solid 9/10 for being one of the most wholesome dramas I've seen this year.

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STANDING OVATION FROM MY SIDE O'LORD

DOMUNDI HAS DONE IT AGAIN.... said by someone.
I have yet no words the Creatiome such as beautiful as this has been made that is not year 2020.
i was certain that 2020 was the best year for bl as many great bls were released at that time.
Obviously we still have may great series after that year but still. few only reached 10/10
this creation of art is not a series it's an emotion.
background music ✅ so good so comforting so suitable.
Acting ✅ 10/10
Net JJ served it damn.
Story ✅✅✅✅ A timeless beauty.
The vibe ✅✨ Fantastic
this game me such a A tale of 1000 stars vibe in sense of comfort.
this series was such a warm embrace.
the character LORD PHOP was ✅ was such a green flag. All the characters served it. I loved this series.

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