2026 Thai Watch Challenge

My go-to cheer-up and since it's the silliest, warm-hearted sitcom, it works to watch when I need some spark. Love the beginning so much I'm quite happy to 'have to' rewatch the first 5 episodes again for the Watch Challenge. It's going to happen anyway. VPN to Viu Thailand.

My reactions were all over the place. Technically poor in many ways, effective in others if you just go with it, not enough Mek Winai, a moment which was comically bad, parts of the plot which were obvious, other bits seemingly random enough to not be (though it all does eventually hold together), not enough Mek Winai, oscillations between creepy and melodrama, with the melodrama ultimately winning through. I ended up liking it. Even with insufficient Mek Winai ;)

The emotions in this are exquisite, sometimes painful, sometimes beautiful, always grounded and real. Score and pacing are superb, acting excellent - everything working together to give it such emotional depth. I really do love the Thai way with a story, especially their two hour movies.

Pared down classic road movie except with an elephant. And a Singaporean indie film-maker who's lived and worked in many places. There's a gentle dry, slightly absurdist humour (because elephant) in parts. The premise, cast, setting and language are entirely Thai but with a different feel than a Thai director might have brought.

Genres - western and Thai - become a riotous palette of textures, colours and emotions to play with. This is fascinating work.

Easy enough to vibe without subs, though I'm looking forward to filling in some gaps amongst the film-maker characters. Silly thing made me cry too. 

Spent half of it certain I'd seen some of it before - Legend of Sudsakorn, the WTF CGI-psychedelic boys own adventure is also from the poem.
This one - war movie with OTT violence, two love stories and questionable special effects. Reading up on the poem, it reconfigures a key element in a storyline but is otherwise true to the plot.

I was not prepared.

add Clean and Jerk back in after this, deleted it so Thai PBS would show up in lists on the page instead of my Challenge diary

Really intelligent youth lakorn. A bit more stressful than I was wanting but it was excellent. Cinderella turned into a critique of ruthless capitalists and the damage they do, but also a lot of growth and self-insight for the mains. And thoroughly Thai.

Violent and almost surreal - like it belongs in the lineage of Tears of the Black Tiger, but all in muted browns and dusty dirt. But I understood how Black Tiger fits into Thai cinema, and this one, I'm not sure at all what to make of it.

This was very much the wrong time to watch a bickering mains murder mystery with at least two abusively psychopathic support characters (Choi's misplaced loyalty to Kinnaree could be its own novel about abuse dynamics). The murder mystery held no real surprises, 2ML syndrome was rife, and the ratio of arguing, shouting and abuse to pleasant moments was difficult. Better when it remembered to delve into grief. Some comedic moments of course, the 2ML was lovely. and I discovered that all Got Jirayu needs to be perfect for the MMC of my novel is a cheeky grin. Surely he has that tucked away in his skill set.

Early episodes I thought I preferred the movie edit - translating the OG Taiwanese caricature characters into Thai exuberance made for an odd combination, but Nanon's smug side in all that monologue (in keeping with the OG) grated. Some of the humour was great (ep 4), some really wasn't (the workers at Pao's mae's restaurant. Eventually that settled down and the expansion allowed for a more developed and balanced world. Good case for my hypothesis re what's allowed for series/lakorn endings and IMO they succeeded in handling that really quite well.

Was surprised how faithful the movie was to the OG.

It was on Viki, Young main role for Freud. Monster movie spoof with good CGI, nonsense comedy but more situational (including sexual) than insulting appearances & identity. Not without that though. Wasn't bad enough to drop, some parts were engaging but it wasn't good either.

(Comment for My Dreaming is Fencing, to add back in
It came through in the end, but I did question it many times along the way. Acting was good to excellent, especially the women.

It came through in the end, but I did question it many times along the way. Acting was good to excellent, especially the women.

A writer's overly interior life, a chance encounter with an older woman prostitute and may be the imagined, or not, friendship of sorts which grows between them. Beautifully made.

Thai PBS has it now, and in 1080p :D 

I have thoughts... see review =D. On Thai PBS too

Young love that can't be set amongst a twisty crime lakorn. Lacking the emotional complexity of the premise but still enjoyable. Aside from the violence, an easier watch than the subject matter deserves. Especially liked the twists of the changing alliances, Akk & Captain's performances, Mo's sparkle and a younger badass with a heart of gold Fresh Arisara.

The kind of comedy movie where you never know what's coming next for most of it, like a long string of non-sequiturs. It set out to be funny, it was funny. Entertaining for a slow day.

I kept myself out of my review and everything else so I'll let it out here. Fuck this was difficult for me over and over again. The problems of middle age and aging, with the comfort which lets them sleep at night coming from a partner, close friends, being truly loved. Rub it in and remind me how pointless and lonely my existence is.