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high hopes crushed by 5 dollar budget
don't get me wrong, i love daouoffroad.but what the fuck is this?
i was sooo hyped for this and... it just didn't deliver. the casting was good and the overall idea seemed fine.
i was hooked from the first episodes, and then my enthusiasm slowly began to die as i got further into the story as i came to realize that the plot was literally hanging on by a thread and the production budget seemed to have been cut off mid shooting.
the characters were all so stereotypical and shallow...
pheem was... maybe kinda likeable?? i mean yes he has lived a very hard life. but i thought, after all the hardships his father had made him endure, he would come back to thanavej and take everything flip off his dad and marry than. but no. he chose to try to rise to power but still under his dad's order???? WHY??? YOU HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE EVERYTHING FROM THE MAN THAT HURT YOU THE MOST AND YOU STILL CHOSE TO ATTACK CHET WHO WE JUST SPENT A WHOLE EPISODE REMINISCING ABOUT THE TIMES HE WASN'T ACTUALLY BAD ALL ALONG AND IT'S JUST BECAUSE OF HIS MOTHER????? because let's be real, chet was evil but that's all on dad. if he wasn't pushing his children against each other and enabling his wife when she killed pheem's mother all of that wouldn't have happened.
also, why does he keep making promises to than he KNOWS he's not gonna keep? he runs away and then cries because than doesn't want him anymore. NO SHIT SHERLOCK??? MAYBE YOU SHOULD HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT THAT BEFOREHAND!!!
than was very perplexing. it's like he got used to the drama. why the fuck did he forgive pheem after he did exactly what than didn't want him to do? that just didn't make any sense. he was a good character, if only he wasn't so dumb...
chet was the archetype of the bad guy: always yells, get angry at everything, is not very smart, makes the dumbest decisions ever, has a kind of attempted but aborted redemption arc at the end. he was not nuanced at all, which really bothered me. you're really telling me that this man would actually try to shoot his own brother in a room full of people while actively trying to make himself look good so his father could take him in again? come on!! his character was not realistic at all and his death was kind of painfully cringe to watch as i didn't feel any sympathy for him. and i guess park was okay, tho his death seemed as unnecessary as predictable.
risa was supposed to be written as this evil mastermind but the switch in tone and pacing never really occurred for he character which only made it seem like she changed her mind and decided to become a villain at the last second. it wasn't even a plot twist it just felt like i had skipped and episode. her bodyguard was fine i guess though she was very forgettable. there was potential but it was so wasted. she was insignificant to me. i would've loved to see her relationship with risa unfold more, or even with park or than, but nothing. such a shame.
the dad, don't get me started on the dad. he was so badly written. he was not smart or cunning or anything. he was merely a plot device. i wish he had been more nuanced. i mean each time his children did something shady he would turn to the next one without suspecting anything and the cycle would start again. AND HE NEVER TRIED TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT.
ms. nit was also very forgettable. she's supposed to be pheem's mother figure, but she's just never on screen for more than two minutes at a time. i should have counted how many times pheem went and told her that it would be the last time she helped him. because that happened at least four time.
the plot was paper-thin and very badly written, and had very drastic tonal changes that felt very strange. like you're telling me this is supposed to be a dark, edgy action series with very serious topics and then there's an inexplicable scene where than and pheem go on a little pottery and painting date??? hello??? is this a romcom??? it just felt very out of place...
the production was... interesting. i believe the editors went on strike halfway through... the cgi was soooo bad it was painful to look at. the bullets and wounds were made in a way that seemed sooo cheap. did they edit this in capcut of something?? because it sure looked like it. give me ketchup and a cookie cutter and i'm sure i can do better.
and don't get me started about the lest episode. it was a literal hemoglobin fest. when than put the video online and risa watched it, i couldn't help but giggle at the name of the site, "Dark Web". that was so silly. the way risa and her little team along with park died in the elevator felt so rushed it lost all meaning. and come on... pheem's reappearance? i mean yeah we all saw it coming but that was so unnecessary. he could've informed than so much earlier and saved him the grief to have the love of his life die in front of him... but nooo my man pheem decided to wait two fucking weeks because he was "busy with paperwork"!!!! WHAT THE FUCK!!! AND THAN FORGAVE HIM ONCE AGAIN COME ON PEOPLE HAVE SOME FUCKING COMMON SENSE
overall this series was infuriating because every character kept making the wrong fucking decision at every turn and it drove me insane.
BUT
daouoffroad's chemistry is so unmatched, imma let it slide and i'll pray that their next work together has more than 5 dollars of budget and that the screenwriters don't commit suicide halfway through because of how bad the script is being written.
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The Wicked Game is Wickedly Awful
The writing is awful, the production quality is terrible, and these poor actors are fighting to make any of it moderately decent. I'm constantly asking myself "what tf is going on?" because it goes a million miles a minute through a paper thin plot held together by absurdity and people's loyalty to the main ship. My only hope at this point is that the cast gets better work in the future. But this is genuinely the worst drama I've watched since I started watching Thai dramas.Was this review helpful to you?
It’s good but…….
Ep1Ive watched it my problem with the series is that I don’t like the way the series was portrayed the recording was off the camera angles were too close and too many awkward stops between the scenes.Another problem was that they put too much background music it made it harder for me to concentrate.The acting is good I’m a fan of the actors it’s just the production.
Ep 2 it’s gotten better based on story line. I do think the camera is to close to the actors and bothers me while watching it certain camera angles don’t look to good. this episode was interesting too watch and more going on compared to the 1st ep which is a good thing for the show to progress and develop the story over time
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Emotional payoff just wasn’t as strong as it should’ve been.
Honestly, I loved almost everything about this series, but the ending felt really rushed. When they met again—especially when Than saw Pheem—it should’ve been way more emotional. Instead of just standing up and saying, “I saw you get shot right here,” I wish Than had actually broken down for a moment. Like, he should’ve frozen in shock, sat down because he couldn’t believe what he was seeing, and then started crying or even blaming Pheem for what happened.Then Pheem could’ve explained the whole plan, and after hearing everything, Than would just hug him tightly, crying and sobbing into his shoulder. Pheem would laugh a little, and Than would be like, “Why are you laughing?” while hitting his shoulder and trying not to cry. And then they could finally have that soft, happy moment together. That kind of ending would’ve made it a 10/10 for me.(Well if we forget about the fight scenes..) also some of the plot twists were confusing, and the emotional payoff just wasn’t as strong as it should’ve been.
Overall, it’s definitely worth watching, but I still don’t think it’s more than an 8.5/10.
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the story and pacing is perfect + thrilling but the chemistry is meh
the story is actually very well written and the pacing is also perfect, it keeps you on edge every episode and there's never a boring scene.the brother's role (tharn) was actually the hardest to pull off with his constant tantrums but Nattawut Skidjai did an excellent job and I genuinely so impressed by it.
while the main couples chemistry was a 10/10 at the start, as things progressed their relationship had no depth, it was too superficial and boring and at some point even annoying.
the writing of the show was amazing but if your watching it for the romance I wouldn't reccomend it.
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The script has just the right amount of depth to keep you hooked without ever feeling heavy or boring, and the actors (meaning the full cast not just the 2 ML) bring it to life with a truly lovely performance. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for any future series they do together — I already know they won’t disappoint.
100% recommended: great fun, captivating from start to finish, and full of beautiful people from the 2 ML to the rest of the cast, with beautiful energy.
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Chemistry and endless bullets
I love this series. The plot took some twisted and turns that weren't necessarily required to keep it moving, but they didn't hinder the momentum either so I'm not mad about it. I also adore DaoOffroad as Than and Pheem. I always find their on screen chemistry spot on and completely believable. They must workshop a lot (if you catch my meaning) because they never have fish lips. The one thing that does drive me crazy in most of these types of series is the guns that never run out of bullets or fire waaay too many times before running out of amo at the most inconvenient moment. All in all, I feel good recommending this one.Was this review helpful to you?
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A Wicked Mess... Respectfully!
I know this one might be a little controversial because we’re talking about Daou and Offroad, but this series just wasn’t a favorite for me. I don’t know if I went in with really high expectations, if the show was overly hyped, or if I just expected more because the main leads are such a power couple. But overall, the story felt boring at times — it kept repeating the same beats: the brothers’ power struggle, the father who doesn’t care, and the same emotional cycles over and over. I honestly feel the script could’ve been much stronger.The actors, as always, did a great job portraying their characters, even though some of them lacked real growth or development. And shoutout to Tongtong, I really liked his character. At some point, I was more invested in Jet and Park’s relationship. Their chemistry was so palpable through the screen. I wish the show had given us their backstory: Where does Park’s devotion toward Jet come from? Does he love him like a brother, a lover, a friend? No doubt he cherished him deeply.
Another thing that bothered me was the so-called “father.” He is literally the root of why the siblings hate or resent one another. And I say “resent” because there were moments where it felt like the rivalry between the brothers was actually jealousy planted by Jet’s mother and reinforced by a father who refused to be a real dad to Pheem.
And then there’s Risa… girl, what is your actual problem? You clearly have the brains to manage a company. If your dad doesn’t see it, prove him wrong and go start your own business. But okay, I get it — it’s all for the plot.
I will say, for me, Pheem was mean all the way until the end. He put Than through so much, despite constantly saying he was done hurting him. Right now, in the Thai BL world, he holds the spot for the most toxic main character. Again, the actors did a good job, but something in the story just lacked overall.
For me, Daou and Offroad’s chemistry definitely carried the show.
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Where it all went wrong....spoiler heavy post series review
How did this even get greenlit? What a complete waste of a stellar cast. The real failure here was the script: cartoonish plotting, endless fake-outs, and character arcs that made zero sense.Offroad’s Pheem should have stayed the menacing black flag he was in the first three episodes. He should have used Than and discarded him (without yet another fake death!), setting Than up to take him down and reclaim his badge. The moment Pheem shot Than in the back, their relationship potential should have ended. Instead, we got redemption after redemption, each more nonsensical than the last. I found myself wishing they had killed him off, for real, sooner.
The script had more holes than Swiss cheese, and the cast’s talent far outmatched what they were given. It is infuriating that this script got funded while so many good ones never make it to a pitch. And truly, there is no excuse for any agent to read this and think, “Yes, let’s send this to D/O.” without major revisions. The premise is there, the cast is there, the story simply wasn't.
Then there is the secondary couple, Chet and Phak, who were criminally underdeveloped. Waiting for them to finally connect romantically was the only thing keeping me going, and they fumbled that ball as well.
D/O didn't carry this the way they should have, not because they lack talent (they have improved!), but because the screenplay needed a better treatment. Frankly, they have more chemistry on their social media than they ever got to show on screen in this mess.
They need to vet their scripts better, find a new agent, and take this as a lesson learned. This was a joke.
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Thai Soap opera style BL?
Holy mother of cliché moments, I love the two leads but out of all the bodyguard X businessman, protector X prorectee love stories, and enemies to lovers genre in general, this has a huge amount of cliché moments that are too much to turn a blind eye upon, and this is only for the BL part.Because the show literally gives you nothing else to look for, no story, no characters worthy, no mystery or crime to be solved, just nothing.
I have to say first that the cast were great, the two leads have a great chemistry and I've been a fan since LIT, I'm sure everyone shipped each sibling with his bodyguard, and somehow all were fantastic, be that as it may, this is the only enjoyable thing about the show, and Story-wise, it's the worst.
The story was the weakest, and I'm generally not a fan of soap operas but I could stand watching some of them if it's somehow enjoyable or has some interesting things going, and I didn't know that this was one tbh, I just thought it's a normal action bl.
I mean the whole Bodyguard backstory was too much, Of course we have this multi billionaire MC, rude and broody that has a really bad encounter with the very poor Cinderella man ML, an unfortunate one mind you, where he throw some cash at him to solve the issue but the proud and dignified full of self-respect poor man refuses to take them then both of them gives e/o some life lessons, while staring deeply into eachother 's eyes - In Short each calls the other an idiot - then oh wow the poor guys saves the MC from danger and damn why is he so sexy now, time to make him my bodyguard and fall for him because the way he throw a punch makes me hard!! And omg! You're naked wearing only a towel??? I will "accidentally" fall on you ouuuuuuppppssss!!! ....
And since this is a soap opera, now everything HAS TO BE connected, all characters are connected and of course the ML saved the MC when he was a child by giving him sweets or something, so now both of them has to collaborate and expose the bad guys while saving the MC from his childhood trauma in the process, and everything surely ends with faking death, knock knock, wake up dead man, he's back from the grave.
We're still doing this ... In 2025 ... Alright...see why I'm pissed ~~
And for the sake of my sanity, I'll not talk about the funny shooting sequences, with flashlight bullets nor the Jackie Chan style acrobatic fighting scenes that only help making the actors look cool instead of being realistic, and I'll definitely not mention the plot holes and unrealistic everything.
But I'll definitely talk about the intimate flirty moments that are completely out of place and the extremely unreasonable hate and animosity between the characters, why? No idea, I know the reason but that much hate is just unbelievable.
If you hate someone THAT much, and you are that rich, just hire a sniper! Easy, clean and Gets the job done with one bullet and no traces, apparently the idea of a hitman didn't reach Thailand yet.
Also, the older brother irritated me, he keeps exploding like a firecracker every 10 seconds, mate how can you lead a company with that temper, just calm down a bit, it's not good for business, if you were my son I'd never leave anything in your hands with this temperament, maybe if you behave like a normal person for a while you will get to rule the world and whatever ~~ but the whole Queen maleficent behaviour and facial expressions don't help your case, it only makes you look more like an idiot.
I mean, after all I had Daou's captain Tsubasa haircut every other scene and his drunk antics to soothe the pain of watching this story and maybe make it more bearable but still ... I won't get the time I wasted on this show back.
Overall I think this is a let down after LIT, maybe I prefer DaouOffroad in more lighter BL than this.
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It pains me to say this esp when the series features one of my favorite pairings but
This series started out so good, but I feel like after episode 7 it lost plot. Also, the official trailer was so different from what this show turned out to be. Did they change the story halfway after filming because I swear after Pheem shot Than and left him for dead in the same episode, seems like the writers had no idea what to do. The story was so different from what it was sold as in the trailers. I think some of those scenes didn't even air like the sex scene in the warehouse, Jet shoving Pheem into the chari and belitting him until Than came in and defended him etc. I really want to know what happened there and why this series was changed halfway without any explanation? I'm so confused. Not only that but Pheem was too much of a red flag to deserve a happy ending. His redemption was too fast, like I didn't even understand why Than still loved him in the end. Sure, they showed us that Pheem still had a heart and he sruggled with what he was doing at times, but I feel like Than forgave him too easily. Because honestly? Pheem went too far when it came to Than even if it was to save his life. I'm disappointed because I thought this would turn out to be my favorite DaouOffroad series when it started and it just turned out to be a mess in the end. Even the "villainous" character brother didn't make sense in the end. He was replaced by the sister out of nowhere.Honestly if it wasn't for DaouOffroad's chemistry and acting I think sadly I would have dropped it. But for them I watched until the bitter end.
Overall I give it a 7 and I doubt I will be rewatching much unless I'm in the mood to rewatch this silliness.
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So trashy it's a ton of fun to watch!
This series was a wild ride.I don't look for Oscar award winning acting performances, but some of the acting in this was really bad & over the top.
The writing made no sense at a lot of points, the musical score was repetitive and unimaginative. Let's not even start with the special effects & fight scenes...
Chet as a character especially was terrible & I found myself laughing whenever he appeared on screen.
I do want to commend Offroad for really exuding aura & confidence as Pheem in the first ⅔ of the series. It made him incredibly attractive & he had great chemistry with his romantic scene partners.
All in all I was incredibly entertained by the series & laughed a lot almost every episode.
So to me it's so bad that it's kinda good.
Will definitely be inviting a bunch of friends and watching this with them.
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