My Stand-In

The book was better

This is basically the Thai tv show version of a transmigration story. The original book was Chinese, and transmigration is a popular theme in their novels. It almost always features a redemption arch as well. I think the show translated that well. The actor that played Joe fit the character well, even his body type. I also think he had good acting. The actor playing Ming, however, was not cast well. His acting was also pretty wooden at times. I have seen him in lovely writer, which I think he did a good job. But he was like a totally different actor in this show. Definitely subpar. He also did not physically fit the character in the book. This did not help me get lost in the story, but was distracting instead. I think the book was better, and recommend giving it a try if you haven’t read it.

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Beyond Life and Death – A Standout BL That Touches the Soul

I randomly stumbled upon "My Stand-In" while browsing iQIYI, not expecting much — and I ended up binge-watching all 12 episodes in one sitting (over 15 hours with breaks!) because I simply couldn’t stop. I still can’t believe I missed this gem when it aired. Every second was worth it.

This is my first time seeing Joe (Poom) and Ming (Up) — and wow, both are absolutely stunning. Their acting is phenomenal, their chemistry is electric, and they brought so much depth to their roles. Joe, especially, completely broke my heart. Growing up as an orphan, all he ever wanted was something so simple: a home-cooked meal and someone waiting for him. His journey, the pain he hides, and his quiet strength made me fall in love with his character.

As for Ming, I honestly don’t get the hate. Yes, he made mistakes and came off as toxic in the beginning, but context matters. It was a misunderstanding, and by episode 9, everything changes when he realizes it was Joe, not Tong, who he fell in love with at first sight. He fought his entire family for Joe, starved himself to the point of hospitalization, and gave up everything — money, family, reputation — just to be with him. And when Joe got kidnapped, Ming was ready to trade his life for him. That’s not a red flag — that’s a man who learned, changed, and truly loved. He even apologized with sincerity. To me, Ming turned out to be one of the biggest green flags in any BL I’ve watched.

And let’s talk about that moment when Joe shielded Ming and took the bullet for him. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.

I also adored their home — finally, something different from the typical uni dorm! That city-view balcony where they shared so many moments felt like its own character in the story. I also liked the bodyguard Jim, and I really wish we had more screen time with Mike!

From the cinematography to the music to the unique supernatural twist — this show had it all. The plot was emotionally layered, never predictable, and handled so beautifully. It made me cry, smile, ache, and hope. I’ve watched over 200+ BL series, and I can confidently say "My Stand-In" is in my Top 5 of all time.

This isn’t just a show — it’s a story that stays with you. An absolute 10/10.

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What a waste of time

You know, I've seen all this hype about the series and was really intrigued

First of all, there were a lot of people who said "it's so good, the best series of the year, what a hire bar". It avokes interest, isn't it?
Secondly, people said the main character was a red flag even more than Vegas from KP. And I really really love KP and Vegas. So, I expected something similar

So, I waited till the end of the show and then decided to watch everything at once. And you know what ? I'm highly, highly disappointed

The main character - Joe is so stupid it's not even funny. One of his "best decisions" that got my eyes to turn:
- being a virgin for his while life he loses it with a random drunk man for no reason at all
- he asks a person whom he has known for a week or even less to live with him (????)
- he falls in love with a person who doesn't give a fuck about him and demonstrates it clearly and so on
Don't get me wrong I wantched the series only for Poom, he's really pretty and a good actor. But his character is super dumb

The second main lead - Ming. He's a red flag but Vegas is still on top of my list of the most toxic characters. Just a reminder that Vegas tortured his supposed love interest and does other unpleasant things. So, Ming is not the best red flag, and he is stupid. His "best decisions":
- to do everything for Tong who doesn't give a fuck about him
- to waint for Joe for years. Man, you doesn't even love him! Why so out of the blue? And so on
The actor was fine even if sometimes he reminds me of a fish. But it doesn't safe the character

So, let me summarize

1) The plot is horrible and unrealistic with so many holes it's not even funny
2) A lot of questionable moments like with Joe's flat, Ming's relatives and so on
3) The process of shooting is shown really poorly
4) Supportive characters are plain
5) NC senses and fiting sences are just bad

Some positive moments are

1) The music. I think it suits the atmosphere
2) Poom (I've wrote about it above)

To tell the truth, the last five episodes I've watched using 2x speed cause I was bored

Will I watch it again? Never in my life
Will I recommend it? No, save your time

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"girl in debt" trope adapted to BL

In all earnestness, i have to say that this drama is a total fiasco - read embarassment. Besides the ML - nothing to see here, not even hot scenes.
By ep 4 or so, it's just recollection of the past... By ep 8, it's same story with - supposedly - different ML. It becomes absurdly repetitive: the ML died because of the villain and crazy jealousy of partner, he wakes up in a different body to share same jealous partner and same villain and same name and same life story... The narrative loop is motivated by the "debt" trope, like - the ML cannot escape the circumstances because he is trying to raise money for his sick mom.
I personally dont like most of the cast. Everything looks forced and rushed and unprofessional.
Very predictable too... The ML is to be appreciated post-mortem and coming back from the dead to his repenting lover and friends.
Body-swap trope is supposed to add to the wow factor, but it's not... It also becomes really soon Polichinelle's secret to its dumbest.
The trend of the year seems to be "movie in a movie" trope. I find it annoying and an attempt to ruin the little credibility these dramas already have.
There is some unwilling humour to it, like Joe being recognized because he sneezes during orgasm - LOL is this a new unconfirmed study? Also, his BF always takes him from behind because - we assume - he doesnt want to see his face, though s*x is good and packed with feelings!? I seriously want to know who wrote this stuff!!
I'd say, this lakorn is targeted to housewives while looking down on their intellectual abilities.
Waste of time.

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Does More Harm Than Good

This series attraction simply confounds me, honestly. To be sure, the acting is not the issue. But we have seen good acting before in mediocre series without any sort of recognition. Yet, this series seems to be inordinately ‘liked’ which to me makes absolutely no sense. Let me try and explain in reasons that both summarize the story as well as exhibit its massive flaws in the series overall – both in terms of its script and message. Let me emphasize that I have nothing against the acting, per se. It is satisfying but with no one really rising to the top to claim any accolade for outstanding performance. It all seemed rather predictable and pedestrian. You can read my full review of this BL, which for me does more harm than good, at BLBliss.com. It is filled with toxicity, abuse, and exploitation, and I find none of that 'loving'.

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Disgustingly Romanticized

Everyone seems to love this series and you know what, if that's your personal opinion, then so be it but I can't get behind the romanticization of manipulation and excessive possessiveness. In this show, we are all supposed to feel bad for Ming and support them getting back into a relationship because he apparently loves Joe and doesn't mean to hurt him, but we forget that regardless, he still does. Mans literally ruined his career knowingly and literally kidnapped him, that isn't love, love is something where you want the other person to be happy, and all Ming cared about was himself and how he felt.

The whole "Your mine" thing, yeah that wasn't cute, that was weird. He didn't love him, he wanted to basically own him. He thought of Joe as an extension of himself and expected him to not have a life of his own, he just wanted him to cater to his needs and the rest.

I won't sit here and say the acting was bad, but I will say the characters (Ming and Tong) were borderline psychotic. The fact that y'all are standing up for Ming actually disgusts me. I don't care if the synopsis, the novel, or even the freaking author forewarned me this isn't about that this is about the fact that behaviors like Mings are being romanticized and are seen as he loves me. I didn't expect much from this drama but it was even worse than I expected.

I hope you all understand that the actions Ming displays in this show are signs of abuse, and you guys all want to call him a flawed or complex character, but he isn't just flawed or complex; this man, by far, is one of the worst I've ever seen. Would you call a real-life abuser a flawed person who just made some mistakes, no, because we understand that they do those things willingly. While this isn't real life, it's supposed to mimic it, and Ming's actions should be seen for what they are. So stop using the whole "He's a flawed character" excuse and look at his actions for what they are, abusive.

I guess he stays true to his upbringing though, rich, spoilt, and thinks everything he wants should belong to him. You say he makes the story interesting, but interesting at what cost. The whole thing with him saying that he fell in love with Joe's back isn't cutting it for me.

Another thing is how easily we grazed over the fact that he literally was harassing new Joe, he took advantage of his need for help and kept using that. Keep in mind, though we know he was old Joe, all Ming had was a hunch, and just with that he started harassing this poor guy. It was that easy. Imagine that wasn't old Joe, imagine he harassed a poor guy because he reminded him of his ex. That's sick behavior. He's an abuser who only cares about himself and doesn't care about the people he hurts as long as he gets what he wants.

Y'all romanticize relationships like this on national television, but when people actually experience them in real life, y'all are up in arms (as you should) without seeing how supporting TV shows like this have a negative impact. Put the show aside and forget about the soul swapping. If you had heard this story on the news, would you still side with Ming? and if you say you would, that just shows me how sick you are.

Complex or flawed characters aren't the only problem here, there's another one and that's the fans who hype it up while pushing aside or not even acknowledging the bigger issue here.

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WHATS WRONG WITH YOU?!!

it started out pure. BUT ming is unforgivable in any universe. he was a violent, abusive, and obsessive-compulsive jerk. joe must have had stockholm syndrome, too, and he accepted this sick bastard every time. i can't believe you call this series great and the characters so sweet. they were toxic from start to finish; i never felt comfortable watching it. i don't care how much guilt ming feels or how much pain he's in, because he ruined the life of someone trying to survive on their own. this is completely unacceptable.

despite how shitty the story was, the production was excellent. it was impressive that they showed joe's new body every time and didn't make any mistakes in that regard.

this series is a show that fans hype, but terrible in terms of story and characters. i didn't even understand the chemistry between them because i was so focused on how dishonorable ming is. i was triggered every time they had sex, and most scenes felt like rape, even if joe consented.

the most heartbreaking scene of the entire series for me, and even a little bit, was when joe received a compliment from director pao. he really needed that.

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My Stand-In? More like My Stand-6-Feet-Away-From-Me-Please....

Okay, so I actually kind of enjoyed it, but I also found myself feeling immensely unsatisfied at the end. I like doing pros and cons lists, so I'll start with that.

Pros:
1. The acting. I especially though Ming's actor really gave this snarky and condescending, yet desperate attitude to Ming.
2. There were no overbearing advertisement placements that are unfortunately abundant in Thai BL series.
3. It wasn't a show that had overbearing comedy or goofy sound effects.
4. The show looked pretty nice. I mean, some of the fashion choices were not it, but the lighting and directing looked enchanting at times.
5. Did not take place in a generic high school or college.
6. Some of the characters worked for me (I'll go into more depth about this later).
7. Some of the fluff scenes were actually extremely cute, but I had to turn my memory of the previous episodes off in order to enjoy them fully.
8. The nsfw scenes were pretty good ngl.
9. That catfight between Ming and Sol was pretty funny and just made so much sense character-wise lmao.

Cons:
1. Joe.
2. The fact that they end up together. It has been a MINUTE since I found a main couple nearly equally intolerable (the last time was probably Clary and Jace from Shadow Hunters.
3. Sol's existence.
4. The semi-rushed last like two episodes.
5. The random old blind guy that can astral project or something for some reason???
6. Joe's death was entirely unintentional. Call me basic but I actually wanted there to have been some bigger conspiracy or something idek.
7. His family suddenly became accepting???
8. The side pairing of Mike and Jim was barely explored in the slightest. Truly unfortunate because I hadn't seen Inntouch in a role since My Engineer and I was looking forward to more scenes from him.
9. It felt like acting and stunt doubling became lost in the plot already by the halfway point.

Sound:
Pretty forgettable, but not the worst I've ever heard in a drama. Sometimes I liked it, sometimes I actually wondered what a song had to do with the scene it was playing in (maybe because I can't understand Thai I couldn't tell why it was playing during certain scenes).

Characters: Oh boy, where do I even start?
Joe: I cannot stand how he was written. I do not understand how he could continuously be the biggest loser to the point that I didn't even feel bad for him anymore after the 100th time of me yelling "BREAK UP WITH HIM!!!" at the screen whenever he forgave Ming for being the absolute worst lover. Also, I know calling yourself "paramour" makes you feel a little better about the situation, but let's be honest here; you're a hoe-for-hire. And don't get me wrong, I love a good hoe character, but Joe was not a fun or relatable hoe character he was just a pathetic one. I actually sympathized with him at first but then I lost all sympathy by the end when he forgave Ming completely after LITERALLY DYING TWICE BECAUSE OF MING AND TONG'S ANTICS and had the audacity to say "you should forgive yourself as well" like okay man, just admit you are a complete pushover that has a hero complex enough to sacrifice yourself for this guy Tong that literally ruined your life. Also, why did he choose to lose his virginity to the incredibly intoxicated Ming? Like, that was dubious consent (and stupid) right????

Ming: He was a walking red flag. Bro was clearly selfish and narcissistic and it makes me sick that he got to be with the guy he treated terribly in the end. Also, why did he have such a fetish on male backs? You're telling me that he fell head over heels for someone solely based on their back in dim lighting that he saw on a mall screen? Yeah, okay. I also have no idea why he kept putting so much faith into some random blind old guy that set up like Mickey Mouse tea tables and chairs in the MIDDLE OF A FOREST. But, whatever.

Tong: Okay so I might lose some people here, but I actually liked Tong. I mean that I liked how he was as an antagonist, not his personality because FUCK THAT GUY. It was honestly refreshing to see an antagonist that seemed realistic rather than cartoon-villainy in a Thai series. He felt like someone you might actually meet in real life and that made me more invested in his character. The way he was mostly chill, yet still felt the need to put his name on things to secure his position made sense and the way he got cocky and took a gamble that backfired so he secretly abused his in-laws' trust to attempt to cover it up messily also felt kind of believable. Then the way he was using his own future baby as leverage as a last-ditch effort just sealed the deal for me. Though I do agree with other reviews mentioning how he didn't deserve a semi-redemption arc and happy ending, I think it made sense for his character. He never struck me as fully morally black, so while that redemption arc felt rushed, it also didn't feel impossible to me. His happy ending made sense because a lot of the time people like him get away with the things they've done because of status, reputation, family ties, wealth. etc. So while I find him detestable, I get why he got his happy ending in the end.

The rest of Ming's family:
1. Mike was cool. He's played by Inntouch so I automatically felt a little (a lottle actually) endeared to him as a character. I liked how you could tell he did care for his brother, yet wasn't just going to give him everything off the bat without verifying things for himself first. One of the few characters I sensed true maturity from. Too bad him and Secretary Jim were so neglected because I was kind of getting interested in them by the end.
2. May: poor girl was as forgettable as Secretary Jim. She had such a lack of relevance that I genuinely started to wonder if they forgot to include her in the family drama or what. Literally just served to be Tong's walking leverage.
3. The mom: I did like her by the end. When she called Joe a gold-digger I kind of laughed.....but then I thought that was probably was too because her and the husband look like they are at least 20 years apart and they already have three adult kids so I have no idea what that was about. The way she was avoided being seen by Ming made her seem a lot scarier than she actually was, which I felt was a bit anti-climactic. I could tell from her reactions that breaking Ming and Joe up actually hurt her deep down, but she thought was doing the best thing for Ming and her family by keeping someone like Joe out. Also, that final scene where she had dinner with them was adorable. Loved that.
4. The dad: This man just screamed domestic abuser to me. The way everyone in the family was scared of him (except for that ballsy loser Tong it seemed) and even his wife had no power to sway his mind honestly irked me. Though, there are actual families out there like this, so I didn't think it impossible. But, like, then they tried to push him just wanting the best for Ming and not being homophobic at all and I was just like "Huh?" They really tried to give him a Fighter's dad from Why R U? treatment I swear. I MEAN HE LITERALLY PULLED OUT A GUN TO THREATEN JOE AND THEY SAY HE IS ACTUALLY A PRETTY UPSTANDING GUY? YEAH MAYBE PULL THAT ISH IN A UNIVERSE LIKE LOVE SYNDROME, BUT NOT HERE MATE.

Other Joe's mom:
She annoyed me. I have no idea why Joe was SO attached to her. I understand feeling the need to repay her for her efforts, but this man called her "mom" like it was natural like one month into being her impersonator son. OH R.I.P. original Joe btw. He was so irrelevant and his weirdo ex too like anything linked to him lost relevancy by episode 5 or 6. Also this mother made me so mad when got mad at Joe for being a "paramour" and lying about taking out a big loan, but bitch didn't you also take out loans and sacrifice your livelihood to help your son live well? Stop acting like he sold his soul to the devil or something. You know I bet she wouldn't have acted NEARLY as hypocritically like that if he agreed to the hoe to a rich WOMAN instead. Just admit you are still mega homophobic and be on with it sis.

Sol:
Dear god he made no sense to me whatsoever. You could take him out of the story and virtually nothing would change. Why was he even here? His reason for leaving Joe was already dumb and rooted in homophobia to begin with, but then he suddenly, what, became gay and missed Joe so he no longer felt like Joe had bad intentions? Wtf. Okay, guy. Also, this man could NOT TAKE A HINT! Joe was so CLEARLY NOT INTO HIM.....yet he still kept pushing that fact that he liked him onto Joe...like, I'm pretty sure Joe knows you like him after the fifth time you told him so you don't have to reiterate it again mate......him leaving for South Korea was so refreshing because if he decided to stick around and be an eternal third wheel I think I might start feeling sympathy for Joe again. Oh wait, how come Sol could keep coming to Thailand for extended periods of time? Isn't the Kpop industry quite demanding on its actors? I figured he was a solo actor, but even that didn't make up for the times I questioned how he could spend so much unfiltered time in Thailand. Also, he filmed a BL music video....but isn't South Korea pretty homophobic? I wonder how that went over for him when he returned......


In conclusion; this series gave me a semi-headache. By the halfway mark I was already counting down the episodes until the finish mark because the characters (JOEEE) were tiring me out so much. Joe will now go down in my TierListMaker BL Protagonists list as near-bottom tier. Let's make a more tolerable main couple next time please. <3

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Not an redemption arc

While I am happy that "Up" had a chance to play a different character (and we all did really hate him), I'm disapointed in the story. Ming understands what he did was wrong, but he did not change his character that much. I can believe that he now really tries hard to be a better partner, but we have no idea if his control and power issues has been dealt with and I doubt it.
There were scenes where he was lying on the floor not eating, just drinking and not doing much, but this did not help to change his narcisistic flaws which are still present in the finale. I guess the screenwriter are contradicting the character because they wanted an redemption arc.

I also would have wished, they used "Winner" for the first part of the show and only "Poom" for the second half. This would of course complicated filming, because both actors would have to learn the same mannerisms for their characters which would have made the story more interesting and the immersion in the story more believeable. That the same person plays both characters irked me a bit.

I'm not happy with Mings character development and the same for Joe. Joe is always Joe not standing up for himself, not understanding when to say no. I can understand you love whom you love but there should be a moment when your brain says "enough is enough!". This show had so much potential, the first four episodes had me hooked and I thought about how they will solve the redemption. And because of the lack of a real redemption arc this show fails. For me the finale was especially lackluster because everyone is now "happy", all is good and even Mike got Mings secretary as future BF (They should have expanded that arc as well), because most of the later episodes is a repeat of the first ones without the violence and lack of self-reflection on Mings part but he forces Joe once again repeating the same mistake again.

So overall the show is still above average even when the story-writing falls of a cliff. It did at least try to do something different in the sea of average shows, it did try to give us a mature story in the sea of university settings. And Up as Ming was really great!

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This was pointless

This series was just… empty. When I started it, I thought it would be an amazing one —as everyone said it was awesome and so good and even had a ★8.5 rating on kisskh—, but it happened to be just an easy one for me.
The story itself was pointless in my opinion. A man in love with another I don’t know why, being treated like sh*t and yet still loving something about it. Also a man who’s in love with his brother-in-law just because he saw his back in a trailer??? I don’t know. The thing about dying and coming back to life in another body is like what?? And Ming somehow felt it was Joe.

I’ll only talk about the main couple as there’s no secondary one *crying*, so let’s start:
There’s not so much to say about them. I couldn’t love their relationship nor buy their love and I hated Ming all along the series, so it was difficult to understand Joe’s feelings for him.

So the only way this series could have had a better ending in my opinion, is if it ended in episode 11, with Joe choosing himself and starting all over again. But no.

So I wouldn’t recommend this, but I also have to say that so many people liked it, so if it is a gender you like, please enjoy it.

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Plot Line and Poom's acting skills make me stay with My Stand-In.

This series hasn't come out entirely as such I'll updating my review once all 12 episodes are out. I've watched it till Episode 6 and the plot is honestly interesting but the acting skills of most of the characters make it an average.

I love Poom, he is doing great. His mannerism as a stunt man gives the story a lot of dimension cause otherwise it's a shitshow in my opinion seeing as the other characters have no originality. Up and the dude playing Tong are the most annoying beings, demons if I may, in this fantasy world. May is clueless. Wut is great supporting character, love that for Joe. Let's see where it goes from here.

I do like the plot. Not gonna lie, it's peaked my interest to see how the new Joe deals with life with having the insight of people in his life from before the accident. I want him not to fall for the crap again. I want him to be successful. And though the "ship" crap is gonna go on forever, if the dude is toxic, he is toxic, I don't wanna hear nothing.

The nice guy needs to pull up his big boy pants and move on. But this is a work of fiction, and not real life so of course there are going to be people shipping Joe and Ming. But I'm completely against Joe ending up with Ming (Up) or Sol (Porche) for that matter.

Ming deserves the hot and cold behaviour Tong shows him. I have no sympathy for his a$$.




⚠️ Side Note: The way Poom says Minggg with that loving and elongated baby tone, I'm sitting over here listening to everything he says with a "Yes, Sir" attitude cause who wouldn't. The love just seeps out of him and damn, my name ain't Ming but I'm ready Poom. I'm ready.

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