Thai PBS info & recs

This is to make it easier to share information on all things Thai PBS, including newly subbed titles, recommendations and conversation about those we've enjoyed. Or want to complain about I suppose :D  Also things like changes to their link format. That slug= one has been ditched. Yay for that, but also links to correct. I've de-slugged those I know about. (The Summer We Met, The Forest, those in the Thun Thai anthology, Saeng found the change and updated The Death of Khun Phra. Thanks Saeng.) Some older links still get to English subs, others don't.

Current link format is vipa.me/th (or en)/contents/number/name

Anyway, here's a thread we can subscribe to rather than stumbling into things others have stumbled onto :D

If you don't know Thai PBS, it's Thailand's public service programming. They stream - for free - via vipa.me 
The vipa site can be a bit awkward to navigate but several of us have gotten the hang of it and try to keep working direct links on the pages for programmes with English subtitles. If you find a link on a page and it doesn't get you to the title AND with English subs, please ask for help.

Biloba's list of Thai PBS with English subtitles is a great resource for getting started.

Hello,

I'm currently watching a Thai PBS historical food drama titled Plai Chawak about two step-sisters working as royal palace's cooks in which their older brother (who's also proficient in cooking) also working for the king as a law enforcer. It also tell the story about Siam and France's territorial and political dispute.

Another dramas from Thai PBS I ptw are Khru Ma,  Once Upon a Time and The Death of Khun Phra (I'm a fan of Pond Ponlawit). And I'm considering watching Once a Doctor, Always a Doctor but sadly only 6 episodes available with subs. I'll ask the admin about it.

Yay, people finding this <3 <3 <3

+1 on both Khun Phra and Kru Ma. (MDL lists as Khru Ma, Thai PBS as Kru Ma, the difference mattered to search on at least one of the sites.)

Don't know Once Upon a Time. But that's a solid cast. Tangtang, Rudklao and Pond are all favourites. (Oh, it's already on my PTW. So I guess I forgot that I do know. Oops.)

My top rec - the one I think everyone should see because it is so good but hesitate to suggest to anyone because of the subject matter is The Broken Us. Serious subjects but so delicately and gently told.

Also The Rhythm of Life, excellent youth lakorn. Well-crafted plot and only a bit of melodrama. The young actors are really good, especially Ton.
Sweet Sensory, very gentle, friendship-orientated, lovely way to spend some time.

 Saeng:

I loved Kru Ma and Khun Phra, different as they were. 

And I'm currently at episode 8 of Once a Doctor, and it had subtitles for me without problems until now. [Edit: Checked a random point of episode 16, English subtitles were there.]

Adding it to my ptw. Thanks for checking it.

Apparently vipa video cannot be opened if my browser had adblocker, it just keep on loading. I forget about my precious adblocker who prevent almost everything. 

 Elisheva:

Yay, people finding this <3 <3 <3

+1 on both Khun Phra and Kru Ma. (MDL lists as Khru Ma, Thai PBS as Kru Ma, the difference mattered to search on at least one of the sites.)

Don't know Once Upon a Time. But that's a solid cast. Tangtang, Rudklao and Pond are all favourites. (Oh, it's already on my PTW. So I guess I forgot that I do know. Oops.)

My top rec - the one I think everyone should see because it is so good but hesitate to suggest to anyone because of the subject matter is The Broken Us. Serious subjects but so delicately and gently told.

Also The Rhythm of Life, excellent youth lakorn. Well-crafted plot and only a bit of melodrama. The young actors are really good, especially Ton.
Sweet Sensory, very gentle, friendship-orientated, lovely way to spend some time.

Or we could search it using the original language title.

The Broken Us looks great, adding it to my ptw. Thanks for the recommendation.

 autumn iris:

Apparently vipa video cannot be opened if my browser had adblocker, it just keep on loading.

uBlock Origin on Firefox lets vipa through for me, though it's slow. uBlock Origin lite on Vivaldi seems to be faster for vipa. Just my data points.

 autumn iris:

Or we could search it using the original language title.

The Broken Us looks great, adding it to my ptw. Thanks for the recommendation.

That too :D

I hope you like it. Let me know when you watch it, I've been meaning to see it again.

 autumn iris:

maybe on December. I've already made my watch schedule until November. And the Thai drama titles are already fixed.

That is organised. I have no idea what I'm going to watch next week :D  No hurries, whenever you do.

 autumn iris:

Spirit of the Shadow, Unexpected, Thui Ja, and The Forgotten Stone. But there's no rating in mdl.

I've watched all of the Thun Thai anthology (those + The Recipe of Lasting Love and Be Mine... Be Yours). They are all subbed on Thai PBS; updated direct link on each mini-series' page unless I missed one. As for ratings, it might be that they're too new and niche to have enough viewers? I don't know, older niche titles with small numbers of viewers also don't have ratings. MDL is pants for transparency though, so who knows. That's just my guess from going down obscure rabbit holes.

The first two were lighter, the others more serious. They're all good and worth watching, especially if you're interested in different regions, peoples and traditions within Thailand. (Locations listed in the first entry for the Thai Drama Club's Regions list here.)

 Because they were short, they don't stick in my mind all that well. I wrote down brief thoughts for each one in my 2025 diary/watch challenge list if you want to take a look (entries 35, 36, 39, 42, 53, 54). I don't remember why I rated Thui Ja so high (9.5), though my estimation of it went up when I realised it was a 20+ hour lakorn compressed into two =D

Each one is different, though they're all very Thai PBS. It's easy to fit them in alongside other things too, so I do recommend them.

 autumn iris:

@Elisheva can't quote as it's too long.

The "Quote" at the bottom of a post quotes the entire post. To quote part of it, highlight that bit. Hopefully it will give you a wee "Quote" just above the highlighted bit. Click that and it will quote the small part. This might not work on the mobile app though but it does on a browser.

You're very welcome. I love Thai PBS and am always happy to do what I can to promote it and help others watch more. It's this hidden gem I'm very glad I found out about via the Thai Drama Club and Biloba's list.

 autumn iris:

I don't understand about your words

Oh sorry, I spend too much time talking to myself. I don't know what the origins of Thui Ja are. It feels to me like someone wrote a well-polished proposal for a full-length lakorn. And then I don't know, insert some cliche like they couldn't sell it for full-length but it was picked up for two hours instead.

There are several storylines which are touched on in brief. If you know lakorn tropes, you can easily fill in the blanks and that adds depth and richness. You probably can get some of that too even if you don't know lakorn tropes.

Technically, they pack FAR too much into two hours. Technically, they should have picked one storyline to develop more. But I came away from it amused I'd gotten a full length lakorn for a fraction of the usual time =D and amazed by how coherent they kept it all.