The description on MDL here is a bit vague. I'll paste a translation of synopsis given on the local platform that I'm watching this show on.
Sroi and Mala were best friends and traditional dancers in a theater troupe. They were destined to reach the pinnacle of their careers together, but the appearance of a man fractured their friendship, forcing Mala to leave. Despite this, for many years afterward, Sroi and Mala's fates remained intertwined through the ups and downs, pain, and losses of life. More than just a story of love, hate, and revenge between two dancers, "The Bangkok Red Opera" also portrays the Golden Age of Traditional Thai dance and the historical factors that led to its decline.
Now that we're 4 episodes into the show, I can see a bit clearer of the narratives they've been trying to set up: how Thai theatre forms change through out the years, how the "new" form of musical theatre was looked down upon at its beginning, how traditional Thai dance was once at its golden era but gradually went in decline; using the complicate relationship between two female dancers to showcase all of this.
It's such a fascinating period show to watch. I can understand why this project won the Thai government support grant from THACCA.
Two lonely souls unite and choose to spend 10 years together. Their fates intertwine, spinning a tale of soulful love that takes them to Berlin, Seoul and Tokyo.
After inadvertently destroying the life of his best friend, Ryu Narutaki abandons everything and leaves Japan. He nearly dies at a church in a foreign land before he is saved by a Korean boxer named Hwang Johan.
Both men carry deep scars, and as their lonely souls come together, it soon becomes clear that they are soul mates. The threads of fate bind them with such suffocating tightness that they find themselves deciding to live together. They travel to Berlin, Seoul and Tokyo, experiencing unforgettable pain, suffering and, ultimately, joy. “Soul Mate” is a soulful romance between two young men that spans 10 years.
Statement from junior screenwriter (for the upcoming One31 series Dang and His Gangsters) /novelist BennieRule who wrote a time travel story novel also based on Mingyi Swa/Nares (Novel Plot: Mingyi Swa goes back in time after dying in the elephant duel to befriend Nares to save himself from dying). The novelist has and pitched it to One31 throughout December 2023 to August 2024 and they did not choose to follow through with the screenwriter/novelist's project despite showing initial interest in it. He posted a timeline of his story (https://www.facebook.com/BennieRule2558/posts/pfbid0oetbmUA2xv8L5MXzHFuEswd1LrmaKFDisNGMj3KCDEfy3b5FToKG7NmFJ9AEJ8qRl), causing many netizens believe One31 also stole his pitch deck ideas for The Last Duel. The writer and One31 have met up to clear their misunderstanding. This is his statement (https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1bkAPkrToK/). -------------------------------------- Hello, dear readers and followers.
I, BennieRule, would like to use this space to update and clarify the situation regarding my previous post about the timeline of my novel, "Aisurya Rajan," which was published earlier. The post contained content that could be interpreted as implying that the Pitch Deck of "Aisurya Rajan" was used in the production of the "Hongsawadi" series on Channel ONE.
After contacting Channel ONE and scheduling a meeting to discuss and verify the facts with all involved parties—including the relevant team, the representatives who presented the Pitch Deck, and Channel ONE itself—I have now clearly learned that the "Hongsawadi" series did not copy, adapt, or use any content from the novel "Aisurya Rajan" or any related Pitch Deck. Furthermore, I have learned that Ms. Sirilak, the scriptwriter, and the entire "Hongsawadi" series team never saw the "Aisurya Rajan" Pitch Deck, were unaware of the story content, and had no knowledge of or involvement in the presentation of my work. Therefore, it is impossible for my information to have appeared in the series production process.
Consequently, the content I previously communicated may have led to misinterpretations and misunderstandings among the public. This may have affected the reputation or feelings of those involved. The author sincerely apologizes and affirms that there was no intention to offend anyone; the sole intention was to clarify the timeline. The author accepts responsibility for the error in which the content may have been misinterpreted, altering the original intention. The author will be more careful in verifying information before communicating in the future.
Finally, the author would like to thank Channel ONE and all the related teams for their kind time to discuss and resolve this issue amicably. Thank you.
Damn. I cried from beginning to end. What a great finale. Lots of great moments and silence was used to maximum…
It's always hard to do shows where you already know the ending but somehow they've made this superb show phenomenal and unexpectedly gut wrenching in every way possible. It's insaneeeeeeeee like the editing between their duels and the moments they shared together
Tongtong said he AUDITIONED for this role and got cast into the role. He got this role on his own abilities, stop hating on him just because there's a cast change https://youtu.be/JA867NGwn2A?si=_NkaOZan5aeIBB_7
Yes. Thai people will not be able to see the full episode nor the 4 parts of one episode that if you live outside of Thailand would be able to see. It's not weird at all and is a common practice among all One31/GMMTV shows. Most of the time, Thai people will have to watch the uncut/full episodes of these shows on a streaming platform (Viu, iQIYI, WeTV, TrueVision, Netflix, OneD...) or watch it on free TV channel in real time.
For the Last Duel on Youtube, it is geoblocked in two countries (Thailand and Vietnam). So yes inThailand it's geoblocked because One31 wants Thai people to watch directly on TV (which increases the TV ratings) or on their local app and OneD because they have their own platform now, Vietnam is geoblocked because One31 sold the distribution rights to two local platforms (I'm subscribed to one so I'm able to watch The Last Duel in real time with vietnamese subtitles).
Anyway I try to support both because Thai TV industry is currently going through a massive recession so the industry as a whole is trying to compete against big platforms like WeTV, iQIYI, Netflix.... One31 used to have deals with Netflix for some OneD originals series in 2024 (Empress of Ayodhaya, Thicha, Love lesson 010...) but Netflix Thailand seemed to have cozied up with competitor lakorn channels CH3 and CH7 by acquiriting all of CH7 and CH3 primetime dramas and One31's countermove to that is to push for OneD app and the integration of GMMTV, Change2561 series into their app OneD.
Sorry for all the info dumping. All of this is just to say yeah the economy is not going well for any lakorn channels and One31 is just trying to survive, though I have a sense they're aiming for local audience first and international audience second for their non-BL/GL dramas (and fair enough).
OneD offers logoless option. The video is not available for people in Thailand. If they want to watch full episodes they would have to watch on OneD app. Unlike international fans who have both options of watching the full episode on Youtube or subscribing to OneD.
OneD is an app first introduced in 2023 for one31 dramas. They used to let us watch all eps free in 720P on there without subscribing and if you subscribe you would have the 1080p option, but there's been a stronger push for the app since the beginning of this year (2026) so they will make the first 2/4/8 eps of a show free and then the rest of the shows are locked behind premium (for The Last Duel it's 4 free ep and the rest are premium)
International fans will have less incentive to subscribe because One31 will update their english subtitles eventually to the full episodes upload on youtube but Thai fans have no option to watch it on Youtube (unless they use VPN) so they are more inclined to subscribe.
1 
Sroi and Mala were best friends and traditional dancers in a theater troupe. They were destined to reach the pinnacle of their careers together, but the appearance of a man fractured their friendship, forcing Mala to leave. Despite this, for many years afterward, Sroi and Mala's fates remained intertwined through the ups and downs, pain, and losses of life. More than just a story of love, hate, and revenge between two dancers, "The Bangkok Red Opera" also portrays the Golden Age of Traditional Thai dance and the historical factors that led to its decline.
Now that we're 4 episodes into the show, I can see a bit clearer of the narratives they've been trying to set up: how Thai theatre forms change through out the years, how the "new" form of musical theatre was looked down upon at its beginning, how traditional Thai dance was once at its golden era but gradually went in decline; using the complicate relationship between two female dancers to showcase all of this.
It's such a fascinating period show to watch. I can understand why this project won the Thai government support grant from THACCA.
Their fates intertwine, spinning a tale of soulful love that takes them to Berlin, Seoul and Tokyo.
After inadvertently destroying the life of his best friend, Ryu Narutaki abandons everything and leaves Japan. He nearly dies at a church in a foreign land before he is saved by a Korean boxer named Hwang Johan.
Both men carry deep scars, and as their lonely souls come together, it soon becomes clear that they are soul mates. The threads of fate bind them with such suffocating tightness that they find themselves deciding to live together. They travel to Berlin, Seoul and Tokyo, experiencing unforgettable pain, suffering and, ultimately, joy. “Soul Mate” is a soulful romance between two young men that spans 10 years.
FYI Youtube Description for Soul Mate trailer
--------------------------------------
Hello, dear readers and followers.
I, BennieRule, would like to use this space to update and clarify the situation regarding my previous post about the timeline of my novel, "Aisurya Rajan," which was published earlier. The post contained content that could be interpreted as implying that the Pitch Deck of "Aisurya Rajan" was used in the production of the "Hongsawadi" series on Channel ONE.
After contacting Channel ONE and scheduling a meeting to discuss and verify the facts with all involved parties—including the relevant team, the representatives who presented the Pitch Deck, and Channel ONE itself—I have now clearly learned that the "Hongsawadi" series did not copy, adapt, or use any content from the novel "Aisurya Rajan" or any related Pitch Deck. Furthermore, I have learned that Ms. Sirilak, the scriptwriter, and the entire "Hongsawadi" series team never saw the "Aisurya Rajan" Pitch Deck, were unaware of the story content, and had no knowledge of or involvement in the presentation of my work. Therefore, it is impossible for my information to have appeared in the series production process.
Consequently, the content I previously communicated may have led to misinterpretations and misunderstandings among the public. This may have affected the reputation or feelings of those involved. The author sincerely apologizes and affirms that there was no intention to offend anyone; the sole intention was to clarify the timeline. The author accepts responsibility for the error in which the content may have been misinterpreted, altering the original intention. The author will be more careful in verifying information before communicating in the future.
Finally, the author would like to thank Channel ONE and all the related teams for their kind time to discuss and resolve this issue amicably. Thank you.
This is for your information. 🙂
Ep 1: https://nekocap.com/view/krGAx0hwon
Ep 2: https://nekocap.com/view/xHPzOUFphP
Ep 3: https://nekocap.com/view/rF9HPvBc2R
Ep 4: https://nekocap.com/view/UmDsxCeouU
Ep 5: https://nekocap.com/view/ZJO6WZMwzv
Ep 6: https://nekocap.com/view/ZOA5tMe2Fr
Ep 7: https://nekocap.com/view/T6jz64I41U
Ep 8: https://nekocap.com/view/o9pWWeq3Sd
Ep 9: https://nekocap.com/view/tjZDAe4KCL
Ep 10: https://nekocap.com/view/hQOgeXq2Sf
https://fptplay.vn/xem-video/vu-dieu-tinh-thu-69e83f2bb2e0443e63fb71fd?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=mar_film_thailan_fptplayhoiphimthai_vudieutinhthu_20260422&utm_content=comment_slug_vudieutinhthu
https://nekocap.com/view/o9pWWeq3Sd
https://youtu.be/JA867NGwn2A?si=_NkaOZan5aeIBB_7
https://nekocap.com/view/T6jz64I41U
For the Last Duel on Youtube, it is geoblocked in two countries (Thailand and Vietnam). So yes inThailand it's geoblocked because One31 wants Thai people to watch directly on TV (which increases the TV ratings) or on their local app and OneD because they have their own platform now, Vietnam is geoblocked because One31 sold the distribution rights to two local platforms (I'm subscribed to one so I'm able to watch The Last Duel in real time with vietnamese subtitles).
Anyway I try to support both because Thai TV industry is currently going through a massive recession so the industry as a whole is trying to compete against big platforms like WeTV, iQIYI, Netflix.... One31 used to have deals with Netflix for some OneD originals series in 2024 (Empress of Ayodhaya, Thicha, Love lesson 010...) but Netflix Thailand seemed to have cozied up with competitor lakorn channels CH3 and CH7 by acquiriting all of CH7 and CH3 primetime dramas and One31's countermove to that is to push for OneD app and the integration of GMMTV, Change2561 series into their app OneD.
Sorry for all the info dumping. All of this is just to say yeah the economy is not going well for any lakorn channels and One31 is just trying to survive, though I have a sense they're aiming for local audience first and international audience second for their non-BL/GL dramas (and fair enough).
OneD is an app first introduced in 2023 for one31 dramas. They used to let us watch all eps free in 720P on there without subscribing and if you subscribe you would have the 1080p option, but there's been a stronger push for the app since the beginning of this year (2026) so they will make the first 2/4/8 eps of a show free and then the rest of the shows are locked behind premium (for The Last Duel it's 4 free ep and the rest are premium)
International fans will have less incentive to subscribe because One31 will update their english subtitles eventually to the full episodes upload on youtube but Thai fans have no option to watch it on Youtube (unless they use VPN) so they are more inclined to subscribe.