Battle of the Writers

Sloppy but sexy

Listen, forget the sloppy story. It really was just all over the place. That being said, the 6 men comprising the 3 couples each really nailed the kissing and NC scenes. The scenes were erotic, but not vulgar and the kissing was some of the most passionate I've seen in a BL. I give each actor A+ for commitment. I just wish Tutor and Yim could get a well-rounded plot in the future. The two of them just nailed the chemistry and kissing in this series and deserve better. On a side note; call me shallow but Mark and Willi just have killer bodies that we got to see on display here, especially Mark! I was glad to finally see Mark have a partner in one of these!! Don't go into this looking for deep story telling and plot, just enjoy the romance.

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fun concept, (partially) messy execution

Times watched: 2x

The first time I watched this series I was still quite tainted by „Middleman‘s Love“. Back then it definitely affected my perception of Tutor and Yims characters in this series.

The first five episodes were solid. The back and forth between the fictional world and ‚reality‘ felt very fluid, was cool to see and made sense, the plot was built up nicely and I had my good fun with it. So I already was like: „wow. I am so glad I am rewatching this. This is so fun“
But then it got messy, unfortunately. So here‘s what I disliked:

That Sin went on vacation was out of nowhere. Before as well as after his little side quest he was only relevant on a side character level. If there would‘ve been some build up to him going there and it affecting the plot of their novel I‘d be fine with it. But like this… it felt a little like a waste of my time. The couple‘s chemistry was good, though. So why not use it?

Then they introduced the „enemy“ Intouch/Mohly. He was teased a bit but it was so subtle I definitely did not pick up on it on my first watch. His introduction was too late and too soft. I wouldn‘t even call him an enemy, let alone a (love) rival. He wasn‘t petty and jealous enough. All the problems he created were resolved… quickly and quietly.

The plot of their novel/fictional world got a bit confusing as well (when all we got for a while were the NC scenes). I couldn‘t follow it anymore, I didn‘t know what it was trying to tell me. Did it still have a connection to the ‚reality‘ plot? Idk. Wasn‘t there something about plagiarism in it too? Where did that go?
At least in the ‚real‘ world they got back on track, somehow. So the last 2.5 episodes were solid again.

Unfortunately the acted out chat room reminded me every time that Sin and especially Jao Samut were kind of just there and forgotten. I wished they were more actively included, so their little storylines would not feel so out of place and unnecessary. Either completely turn them into side characters or make enough room for them.

But there were definitely more things that I liked:
- the concept is fantastic. I love it.
- the production value was high and you could see it.
- Tutor and Yim were so fun to watch, their lovey dovey acting felt so natural. There‘s still potential upwards but more on the side of writing and directing.
- The NC scenes that were written for the fictional world being the more spicy ones (at first) made me giggle, a subtle but nice touch.
- Shan and Ob Aun‘s childhood story was good. And the actors portraying them did a very good job in my opinion.
- Shan‘s character felt the most consistent in the way he always could provide guidance in what to do in times of crises.
- The chat room being acted out was actually a cool touch, since they couldn’t really meet in person. Also showing how the room represents the mood of the group. Them being in Pyjamas or onesies to represent their avatars/icons. Fun.
- Ozone and Pie‘s story drew all the attention to them at some point. And it worked so well. Mark and Gems really created great chemistry. I needed more of their story.
- The part with the accidental posting of the wrong pen name and then how they resolved this mishap was stimulating my brain. They should‘ve made that a longer part of the plot where Intouch would play a bigger part in it as well.

It‘s always so frustrating to see the potential the story could‘ve had:
- I would‘ve loved it if the 5yes and their love interests all would‘ve appeared in the fictional world in some way. A way that made sense.
Generally it would‘ve made sense if the personal life of each 5yes member would have influenced their (part of the) story (a little more than we were shown):
- for Ob Aun, Shan, Ozone and Pie it doesn‘t need much more but for Sin, Jingjang and Jao Samut it would‘ve made sense so their parts wove into the rest of the plot better.
- That sometimes the fictional plot will tease or parallel things that have not happened yet/are happening in the ‚real‘ plot. Like the Snake King/Pie falling for his employee/disciple while Ozone/Shin‘er having no idea about it. Or Ob Aun starting to remember some parts of his childhood. Or the proposal.

Overall it was enjoyable. It was worth the one rewatch. Won‘t return to this for a while though.
spice level: 🔥🔥

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Lost Potential and reason for headache!!!

This Drama started well I was invested fro first few episodes , but was struggling to finish till the end later. Some parts were really great like supportive friends group, chemistry between couples (there are 5-6 on how you count), supportive parents, some good quotes from writers. Well the list of things can be improved is much more long -
1. too many unnecessary characters and subplots
2. Editor was probably absent while they were making this series. many times I couldn't make a head or tail of what's happening so the headaches!!
3. Slow pacing of story , some non con photography

In short , its a one time watch if you like the actors as they did well on the part given to them , but guys please don't hate me if you get serious headache!!

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What can be said of Battle of the writers!

Battle of the Writers is a very entertaining novel with funny moments and artistic scenes. I was surprised by the premise, and who doesn’t love a bit of forgotten childhood love? Plus, the chat room — which usually isn’t my favorite thing — I adored in this case because of how they talk in such a flat, neutral way, mimicking the detached tone that often comes through when chatting on devices.

I don’t understand the comments saying the wuxia storyline is confusing. It’s clear that the story unfolds as the male leads (MLs) fall in love and discover truths about themselves (like how one of the MLs was blind for a time, which is why he wore bandages). If you don’t understand the story, you can only blame yourself for not having the ability to interpret what you’re seeing.

While the looks and poses can be a bit uncomfortable, this is something associated with the Thai drama style, which has always been that way. They are a bit theatrical and tend to leave suspenseful moments between scenes to give the viewer time to understand what they’re seeing. As I said, it’s not unusual in this kind of drama. If you’re not used to it (and don’t want to get used to it), please spare yourself the annoyance.

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TutorYim dramas always have something special and charm

I will come back and edit this review later after watching more of the series. So far, acting is great, story is interesting with fun elements revolving around writing bl novels. The leads have great chemistry and their costumes and makeup are all lovely.

TutorYim dramas always feel unique, they have the softness and cuteness and also the sexiness to carry the drama along even if its not the best story. The production team need to start giving them top class scripts and projects because they are just so good together.

OMG the NC SCENES! They are very well done, I applaud the actors for performing such intimate scenes with a whole film crew in the room.

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Loved it!!!

I absolutely loved their acting in Battle of Writers. Some might say it’s a bit exaggerated, but honestly, that’s part of the charm in many Thai series—and it worked so well here. The performance style carries a different kind of intensity compared to ZeeNunew, but I still enjoyed it just as much. I’m also really glad that Gem had a solid partner in this series.

My review is coming in a bit late, but better late than never because this is truly a must-watch. I’ve rewatched the entire series more than four times now, and it still hasn’t lost its magic.🤣

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funny Fever dream without plot but not a rewatchable Drama

I guess everyone had different expectations here. Even though Tutor and Yim don’t have the most intense chemistry, I was still looking forward to their new drama after their previous works. I especially hoped the historical part in the Danmei style, which the authors approached as a BL project, would play a more significant role. At first, it seemed like the story would help the writers break through writer’s block with a fun project between friends and fellow authors. Then, out of nowhere, we were hit with a ‘We've known each other forever,’ ‘Back when I almost went blind due to an accident’ storyline. Just as the audience was left completely confused — and probably the directors realized from the reviews that the plot wasn’t making sense —Suddenly, the show shifted to 10-minute-long NC scenes that didn’t match the previous energy at all and felt disconnected from the characters, resembling soft p*rn more than anything.

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nonsensical plot and uncomfortable age gap romances

So before anyone's like 'omg you're just a puritan for having a problem with the age gaps,' as long as the younger person is at least mid 20s, I'll accept pretty much any age gap. I have so many ships where character A is mid/late 20s and character B is immortal and has been alive for like at least a century. I am not inherently against age gaps. But it's about the execution in this case - one, I have no idea how big the age difference is between Shan and Ob-aun and there's a flashback of a 16 year old Shan and a clearly pre-pubescent Ob-aun to draw attention to this age gap; two, it feels like the audience is supposed to be into their dynamic specifically because of the age gap with Ob-aun being presented as naive, innocent, and inexperienced while Shan is clearly not these things and being the pursuer. It's very weird and uncomfortable and the constant thought of 'okay, but how big is their age gap' overshadows any moment that could be cute. Oh and there's also a side pairing of a literal teen with an adult who is somewhat of an authority figure for him so... that's pretty yikes.

As for the story... there are so many conflicts constantly being introduced and not a single one of them is truly resolved. Like the set up of the entire story is that Ob-aun is accused of plagiarizing Shan, but Shan isn't the one who makes that claim so why is legal action being threatened? And the plagiarism accusation doesn't even matter because it's basically ignored after the first episode. Also for a group of writers, these guys do not know how to write a story because they spend so much time being like "I don't know how to write this scene, can you do it for me?" like ??????????

It's really not worth the time, but if you're determined to watch it, it's at least a short show.

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What were they thinking?

This drama is the most convoluted show/ drama I have ever attempted to watch. The story is not cohesive, the episodes do not flow from one to the other, the story is a mash -up of unrealistic, non-relatable, disjointed stuff. The explanation for this is actually in the story in episode 3 where the 5, yes 5 MLs are sitting around a table discussing writing a novel. They through up a bunch of ideas based on what they feel is their specialty and walla they have a successful story and not a word has been written. This has be how this train wreck came about. The best thing is the sets. From one scene to the next you can see that this was not fleshed out. I have to wonder how the actors could get through this. It had to hard for them. I found nothing good bout it despite the fact that I went back to the beginning to watch it because I truly believe that I somehow had missed something which was why I could not quite grasp the concept, but I know now that is simply not the case. It could have been much better if it had been more straight forward, the supposed scaring scene when delivering the food in its entirety should not have been in there at ALL. Just a waste and not the least bit humorous. The electricity going out as it did. This was too contrived ,

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