RESET - a perfect lakorn packaged as a BL series
In early 2025, I was going through a kind of drama slump where I didn't have the energy to start any QL series or finish ones I started. I found myself going through very old romcom lakorns of Channel 3, most of which were produced by Broadcast Thai TV (especially the Cupids Kammathep and Love Destiny series). As I binged my way through those series, I remember thinking where THIS energy of cheesy yet swoony, camp but also overly soap operatic vibes that is unique to the lakorn genre but backed up by convincing acting performances of the lead actors in BL series today. The last time I really felt this was Laws Of Attraction back in 2023 with Film and Jam.
I felt like RESET was an answer to what I've been waiting for. It has all the markings of a conventional lakorns (rebirth or time travel, possessive yet caring gentleman older ceo male lead, a step sibling business rivalry, a bunch of envious enemies plotting against the main characters) but it's also tight paced with a fun storyline. it's truly สนุก in every sense of the word.
The lighting is very artificial so immediately you know it's a lakorn but at times, there are very gorgeous scenes with superb cinematography (my personal favorite was the final scene of episode 1 where Armin dramatically falls into Thada in the rain. ABSOLUTELY CINEMATIC)
Of course, the series consists mostly of new and rookie actors so it's understandable that the younger actors have much room for improvement but they're pretty convincing in their respective characters so I don't think there's any jarring about their acting. In fact, I think they're doing pretty well in portraying characters that audience hate since the writing aims to achieve that.
But of course the highlight of the series is the undeniable chemistry between Peterpan and Pond in the roles of Thada and Armin, respectively. I love how Peterpan plays Thada with so much charm and enigma that you can feel the khun chai/suparburoot-ness or like the gentleman-ness of his character that you rarely see in today's cinema (especially in his speech and diction). I don't think it's common at all for ceo/sugar daddy type male lead to have that kind of classic gentleman old-timey vibes but I'm enjoying see it here in Peterpan's portrayal of Thada. Most importantly, THADA YEARNS. The kind of yearning that it's rare to find in BL series today but HE YEARNS and he does it sooooo well. Pond plays Armin who is such a lovable character that the yearning and adoration Thada has for Armin just makes sense completely.
This is my favorite QL work of the year solely because of how much lakorn-ness they're bringing to the table and I came into this wanting full romance, drama, angst, comedy and they're just delivering on all fronts. Of course, this is not a groundbreaking masterpiece in anyways but it's a work where I can feel the dedication of both leads to the story and the sizzling chemistry they have together which provides a really immersive experience.
If you're in need a palate cleanser from your usual go-to BL series or if you're looking to venture into lakorns, I think Reset is a good starter that provides the common tropes one would expect to find in a lakorn and the execution of these tropes are done in a tasteful way that's fun and exciting to watch for beginner lakorn watchers before delving into full fledge lakorns like To Sir With Love or The Miracle Of Teddy Bear.
I felt like RESET was an answer to what I've been waiting for. It has all the markings of a conventional lakorns (rebirth or time travel, possessive yet caring gentleman older ceo male lead, a step sibling business rivalry, a bunch of envious enemies plotting against the main characters) but it's also tight paced with a fun storyline. it's truly สนุก in every sense of the word.
The lighting is very artificial so immediately you know it's a lakorn but at times, there are very gorgeous scenes with superb cinematography (my personal favorite was the final scene of episode 1 where Armin dramatically falls into Thada in the rain. ABSOLUTELY CINEMATIC)
Of course, the series consists mostly of new and rookie actors so it's understandable that the younger actors have much room for improvement but they're pretty convincing in their respective characters so I don't think there's any jarring about their acting. In fact, I think they're doing pretty well in portraying characters that audience hate since the writing aims to achieve that.
But of course the highlight of the series is the undeniable chemistry between Peterpan and Pond in the roles of Thada and Armin, respectively. I love how Peterpan plays Thada with so much charm and enigma that you can feel the khun chai/suparburoot-ness or like the gentleman-ness of his character that you rarely see in today's cinema (especially in his speech and diction). I don't think it's common at all for ceo/sugar daddy type male lead to have that kind of classic gentleman old-timey vibes but I'm enjoying see it here in Peterpan's portrayal of Thada. Most importantly, THADA YEARNS. The kind of yearning that it's rare to find in BL series today but HE YEARNS and he does it sooooo well. Pond plays Armin who is such a lovable character that the yearning and adoration Thada has for Armin just makes sense completely.
This is my favorite QL work of the year solely because of how much lakorn-ness they're bringing to the table and I came into this wanting full romance, drama, angst, comedy and they're just delivering on all fronts. Of course, this is not a groundbreaking masterpiece in anyways but it's a work where I can feel the dedication of both leads to the story and the sizzling chemistry they have together which provides a really immersive experience.
If you're in need a palate cleanser from your usual go-to BL series or if you're looking to venture into lakorns, I think Reset is a good starter that provides the common tropes one would expect to find in a lakorn and the execution of these tropes are done in a tasteful way that's fun and exciting to watch for beginner lakorn watchers before delving into full fledge lakorns like To Sir With Love or The Miracle Of Teddy Bear.
Was this review helpful to you?
