Memoir of Rati

It's not horrible...but disappointingly it's not the next "I Feel You Linger in the Air" either.

Subjective Gut Rating: 7.75

Objectively, “Memoir of Rati” is not a bad drama. It’s light and sweet, and perfect for those who want to see Great and Inn together again in a period setting. However, I was hoping this could be the next “I Feel You Linger in the Air” that could touch my heart. Unfortunately, “Memoir of Rati” isn’t it and I was disappointed.

Plot
The plot is simple. Two sets of lovers facing familial and societal pressures due to their ‘forbidden’ love. There’s not a lot of angst nor too many evil characters. I was actually quite surprised that there really isn’t a lot happening in these 12 episodes. There are many scenes of the two sets of lovers together and hanging out, and definitely a selling point for their fans. But as a drama, it is rather bland and could probably reduce a couple episodes.

Romance
If you are looking for a sweet and cute romance, this is the right drama for you. There’s barely any angst that could rip your heart out. Everyone is nice, honest and communicative. The main romance blossoms quite early, since we have a love-at-first-sight situation going on, and Thee isn’t shy in showing affection both verbally and in action. Thee is the doting, smitten Mr. Green Flag, and Rati is the more naive and shy Mr. Green Flag. The secondary romance between Mek and Dech is more fun and more innocent. They’re like best buddies until friendship becomes more. Their kisses are few but are better than those from the main leads. Maybe I was expecting a lot more passionate kisses and better sexy scenes.

Acting/Characters
The acting isn’t bad. I think Great did better than when I last saw him in “Wandee Goodday” and he definitely looks handsome in the white uniform, a lot better than in flowery boxing shorts. Inn, Aou and Boom all met my expectations. Aside from a couple ‘villains’, most of the supporting characters are lovely. I’m especially thankful that there aren’t any loud slaves/servants, which typically always show up in a historical lakorn. None of that here and not a whole lot of shouting either.

Production
Compared to “I Feel You Linger in the Air”, this drama pales in comparison. It’s not bad, but the cinematography is not as good and the sets appear simpler. I was quite worried in the first scene of Inn when his face was layered with white and thick foundation. The makeup artists aren’t doing a great job in this drama. Inn and Boom are already pretty pale, and they look whiter here. Aou seems to have a fake/spray tan on him but I do appreciate the drama at least try to darken his skin since he’s a commoner who needs to earn a living. Great probably looks best out of the four of them. At least the costume department did a pretty good job in dressing up the guys in nice clothes.

Would I recommend this drama? Probably if you like the leads, or are interested in a sweet romantic drama in a historical setting.

Would I recommend this drama if you’re looking for something similar to “I Feel You Linger in the Air”? Nope. Unfortunately, “Memoir of Rati” is subpar in almost every single category, especially if you are looking for a good emotional roller coaster. After watching this, it makes me miss IFYLITA even more and I want to rewatch some of my favorite and memorable scenes.

Having said all that, I have a decent time watching “Memoir of Rati”. It’s not the drama’s fault that I was expecting it to be something that it’s not. Therefore, I am rounding up my 7.75 rating to 8.0 instead of down to 7.5. It’s not a must watch but since there aren’t too many Thai historical BLs, it’s worth giving it a shot.


Completed: 9/6/2025 Review #621

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A Soft Take on a Few Soft Boys

I don’t usually watch Period dramas, but I always enjoy BL dramas, and someone here on MDL recommended this to me, so I thought, why not?

I can positively say I’ve never seen anything like this before. This drama really drew me in from the very beginning. Like a cowboy that wrangles a rope around a horse, it held on tight and never let go.

The first thing I must commend this drama for was blending French and Thai languages and cultures. I don’t see this very often in dramas, and the act of bringing cultures together makes this drama more universal and it was executed in a beautiful and compelling way, with Rati coming from France and meeting Phi Thee in Thailand(in that era, it was known as Siam). Even though there was some resistance from both countries, they still did their best to work through their differences. Rati was eager to be in Siam to fulfill his duties, and Phi Thee eager to embrace someone from another country.

My second point I’d address would be the portrayal of respect in regard to social class and professional standing. I understand that your supposed to respect those that rank higher than you, but there were certain characters that would abuse that in this series, which I found to be rather ridiculous. If everyone is an adult, then surely someone can take a stand and speak against unjust criticism and outright discrimination, but that rarely happened until something extreme occurred like public physical assault. If everyone in this drama just stopped being so damn reluctant to speak up, a lot of the violence could’ve been prevented. I can’t really speak on if that’s what it was really like in that era in that country, but that bothered me.

The third thing I would touch on was the romance aspect of Rati and Phi Thee. Throughout the series, there was a lot of hidden promise for them. It was evident that Rati had never been in a relationship before, so it was all the more exciting to see Phi Thee pursue him in such a gentle and reassuring, and flirtatious way. I’ve never seen a man pinning for someone so innocently before, so those were my favorite scenes of the series. I can somewhat understand the direction the writers were trying to take with this relationship; letting their bond grow over time and creating a delicate sort of sophisticated romantic dynamic, but it was almost like this romance was one-sided sometimes.

This drama was thrilling, ambitious, and aspirational. I was really impressed that this drama really went the extra mile with its use of the French language and multiple cast members speaking French and Thai throughout, and made me appreciate it that much more.

If my hypothetical future relationship doesn’t look like this, I don’t want it. Overall, everyone in this series did such an incredible job bringing this series to life, watching it was a pleasure and an honor.
I would definitely rewatch this with a friend.

Memoir of Rati, I 💜 you

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A "secret" historical romance

Such a nice change for a gmmtv series. This historical approach was refreshing for me. The gentle love, all the yearning. My heart melted each time. Although I started it bc of AouBoom (wish we got more scenes of their couple, for me their story was more interesting) i enjoyed GreatInn enough as well. Their story was so sweet. Thee valued and loved Rati with his whole heart and he made it loud and clear. He has fallen so hard for him! They both waited for each other. Even after their separation they truly stood by the "my heart belongs to you and only you". Every scene was full of emotions that you had to read them in their eyes and gestures.

We got a glimpse for both economical statuses at the time. The wealthy ones and the ppl that worked for them. AouBooms couple was a great way to show how each one valued money. While Dech took part in muay matches for fun, Mek did it to get more money exposing his body in danger when he should be taking better care of it bc his strength was what was keeping him into work. I loved the fact that all Mek needed was a chance into education to get him do great stuff. He prooved that poor ppl are also intelligent when given the right tools.

My only complain is that we didnt get to see Thee's father relationship with his other son. I wanted to see them get even closer then just one dinner together. And also get a lityle more development on the brothers character too.

For me the rating isn't unfair. Having more subtle shows isn't bad. It was serious and romantic at the same time. While we also got some funny moments from MekDech (classic AouBoom that teases each other on their own way and we love that).

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Cinematically Wonderful But .....

Pretty quickly, however, we realize that this story is stilted and becomes astonishingly boring. I mean REALLY boring. Frankly, it is bland and exceedingly predicable; one could easily write the next dialogue long before it was going to happen. That is how predictable and trite this narrative unfolded. Nothing and I mean nothing surprised me. I almost fell asleep watching this series. With few exceptions, almost everyone is wooden, ostensibly and unfortunately, also cliché. This is a cinematic triumph. The cinematography transports you back to the early 20th century indeed. The costumes were some of the finest I have ever seen and are presented in exceptional detail. The sets were wonderfully detailed, and we were transported to a different era. It is so unfortunate that the action in the story did not match everything else. I kept waiting for something to happen and nothing ever did. Even the kissing scenes and love scenes were muted and sanitized and almost presented like two schoolboys on a camping trip. Certain aspects were not serious in nature. It was indeed so soft that if forgot to do something to my heart. Watching paint dry would have been more emotionally satisfying. Even the secondary couple, while better in terms of emotional fulfilment, was only slightly more engaging in relatability and depth. Neither couple honestly made my heart pitter-patter in any way, shape, or form. This series was flatly dull from an emotional fulfillment.

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Very beautifull, i loved it!

First of all, i really don't understand the ranting many people do about GMMTV, i love most of their drama's.

This was a very beautiful drama, very slow burn, but i really like a slow burn like this once in a while.
I loved the story and i like period drama's. The visuals were stunning!
I also liked it that they used actors who spoke French in a native tongue for the roles of the french men. It happens to much that they use actors who can't fluently speak the foreighn language they are supposed to portrait.

The acting was amazing, everyone did a great job.
Both couples have great dynamics and chemistry.

Definatly a must watch if you don't mind a very slow burn drama.

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Visually Beautiful with Zero Depth

For those looking for a short and sweet review, this show had beautiful cinematography and virtually no plot which unfortunately made it relatively boring to sit through.

The long version as to why can be found below.

Characters:
- Thee is an extremely one-dimensional character, despite being one of the main leads. We learn nothing about him throughout the entirety of the show, except for that fact that he's born of status, in love with Rati, and a man of conviction. And even the conviction part, given that it's only ever directed at his love for Rati and not duty to country for family is questionable since he fell in love with Rati at first sight. Cute in theory, but Rati could have been a terrible person, a hardened criminal, and even an axe murder and Thee would never have known or maybe even cared, because his love came first.
- Rati has a bit more depth, a solid two-dimensional character with motivations and history that does not revolve solely around his love for Thee.
- Mek & Dech - These two are the most flushed out characters of the main leads with Mek taking the gold in this regard. He has motivations, convictions, and goals for his life that don't center around his love for Dech (which is nearly unseen throughout the show and a driving point different/side character specific review).

Plot:
As mentioned before, there almost isn't one. Due to the fact that Thee's love for Rati is so strong the audience isn't ever prepared for an internal battle or will-he-won't-he plot. Given the time that this is set in that would have been the most appropriate plot to have, but assuming because the directors, writers, or producers wanted to keep this series safeguarded from that, it places the show in an unusual realm where there is drama but no conflict. A plot cannot survive without some sort of conflict, tension, or friction that must be overcome and without these things a story cannot have a climax either. Instead what we are given as viewers is drama. There is some family drama and "from two different worlds" drama, but because the conviction of the characters, specifically Thee, toward his love is so high it makes these dramas seem almost hollow, because you know that he will choose his heart over anything else. There is never a moment in this drama where one thinks, "Oh shoot, will they or won't they" because it's guaranteed that they will, so for maybe the last 3-4 episodes, you're basically going through the motions to get to their happy ending.

Cinematography:
The reason that this show wasn't a total waste and it's not (it may be slow and boring, but overall it's fine as a show - not great, but also not awful) is the cinematography. It's a beautifully filmed show with great scenery and a similarly great wardrobe. There are some parts that do look set-ish, but overall for a drama set in 1930s Thailand, they did a pretty good job setting things up.

So yea, overall I wanted to love this drama and while I walked away not hating it, I'm still partially baffled at how a show could be so middle of the road to the point that, "It's fine" is a true depiction of the show.

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Watch for Mek and Dech — the two absolute cuties!

Ok, at ep 7, the Thee x Rati story is getting to be mega repetitive. They are in love, but they are jealous of one person after another. Sometimes its Thee's fiance, sometimes its the prince, sometimes its the French guy Rati is friends with. I gotta say, the start was strong but the leads' storyline is getting hella repetitive and their relationship is boring to me.

HOWEVER, I am not ashamed to say that I am now watching Memoir of Rati almost ONLY for Mek and Dech. These two cuties have my heart omg. AouBoom are so cute together, and the storyline of a kind-hearted baronet and a sweet and scrappy peasant becoming friends and then eventually something more is an absolute delight. I love how their relationship is progressing, and the class divide (and the ultra A hole dad) is making it all the more delicious.

AouBoom absolutely NEED a series as leads, they are so cute together.

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mellow drama

A field of fluffy fairy floss and a historical lakorn of dubious accuracy took a walk in a river of chamomile tea and had a brood of handsome gay babies. This is their story.

Overall it's light fare, though it does have substance layered in. The villain is a lakorn trope, but rendered as a petulant child with outdated attitudes. It does the historical lakorn thing of using the past to dramatise and pour emotion into the need for current social change, with the younger ones leading the way out of homophobia and class inequality. The narrative pairing of those together, and how one allows certain characters to find empathy for the other, was a strength. And the matriarch's final scene.

I'm not keen on gentle-washing the past but recognise that here it's in service to the present, with crystal clear calls for equality and acceptance which need to be repeated and told in every way possible. The creators chose to make this a calm quiet sugar-spun fairy tale. As such, they and the actors did well.

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Lovely for what it was

Not the most riveting series, but still quite lovely.

Acting:

Pretty good stuff all around. I think the story called for a lot os subtlety from the actors and they did a good job executing that.

Writing:

For what it is, it’s well written. That being said, personally, I need a little more conflict, drama, passion, etc. from my entertainment. But it was a very specific and interesting plot overall. The years apart followed by the makeup was done very quickly and I think it would have been better the show more.

Chemistry/Romance/Kissing:

Decent chemistry within the bounds of the story. They went the soft, subtle, romantic direction and they worked well that way. This was a solid romance story. The kissing was mostly great from everyone.

Music/SFX:

Pretty darn good stuff. Fit the vibes and all that. SFX were solid.

My attention span is awful so I did need to pause a lot to go read or watch something else so I could get back into the story. But it was a pretty good show regardless.

Now, for some highlights from my notes:

- They didn’t start referring to the Great War as the First World War til around 1939, tho
- Thee is a sweetie what a guy
- Brb, gotta go read up on Siam-French relations in the late 1800s to the early 1900s
- So, not great…
- FOOOORD FORD IN THE HOUSE
- Just in, Great and Inn will not be continuing as an acting duo as of 9/19, weird timing
- Damn societal norms and pressures
- An almost cheek touch??? Ya’ll are WILD
- Have to keep taking breaks because ADHD, my attention span is shit during shows like this
- Baby is CONFLICTED
- AHHHHH they KISSEDDD in the water under the moonlighhttttt
- Oh dear, here comes trouble in a teal skirt
- But granny, I love him
- Ayyye reciprocationnn
- Things aren’t looking great out here
- *Think of me, think of me fondly when we've said goodbye. Remember me, once in a while. Please promise me you'll try. When you find that once again you long to take your heart back and be free. If you ever find a moment. Spare a thought for me*

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