Faith

It’s been a while since I last watched a BL. As a fan of the genre since 2019, I’ve recently started feeling a little burned out. It felt like the same stories kept being told over and over again, just with slightly different twists.

And this is where Payback stands out.
Here are the things I appreciated the most.

First of all, I loved that the actors actually looked like adults. There’s no whitewashing, and the makeup is kept to a minimum, which makes everything feel much more natural.

The cast can genuinely act. MinLee was a pleasant surprise; through his microexpressions, he brought Sun to life flawlessly. But the entire cast deserves praise, as even the actors in smaller roles contributed to the story and made it more engaging.

Every scene had a purpose. every detail was there for a reason and contributed to the progression of the story, nothing felt random or unnecessary.

I also loved that, despite the height difference between the leads — and, by the way, the casting was spot-on — Sun never came across as too young or childish.

What I appreciated most was how faithfully Sun’s character was portrayed: strong even in his vulnerability, capable of needing Jay without losing his independence. He’s intelligent, determined, and, above all, genuinely strong. (For example, I really liked that he was the one who saved Sky all by himself.)

As for the flaws, I unfortunately think ten episodes weren’t enough. At least eleven or twelve episodes would have allowed more room to explore Sun and Jay’s relationship and, most importantly, to develop the final stages of the revenge plot in a more gradual and coherent way. Instead, some parts felt rushed, probably due to the limited episode count.

That being said, by the end, the drama makes it clear that Sun’s revenge was about reclaiming his life and learning to smile again, while Jay’s was about taking back what had belonged to him from the very beginning.