This review may contain spoilers
ROMERAFFY & DEAN
[Disclaimers: This is my first drama of all the actors except the recurring ones from S1. I have read only ROMERAFFY's parts in the novel. I don't remember much from S1 as I bingewatched it in a night.]
This drama was hardcarried by its actors. The writing was a bit annoyingly bad because the plot points were right there, if only they had tried to utilise them and maintain the flow. The characters were also sloppily written especially ARNOLD & TUA. Their relationship dynamic was the most boring of the lot and the fact that I didn't vibe with Joss and Gawin's acting didn't help.
My favourite character was DEAN: he was Machiavellian, sure, but he was also poor and not well-backed and priviledged like the rest of the characters and I feel the viewers and the writers conveniently forget this point, just like Jack. Dean has the burden to provide for himself, his sister and his mother (iirc) and he is just a university student. Plus, the nepotism and bias in the industry keep him from following his dream, which let's be real is very difficult to fulfill if one is poor and without connections and in this day and age, not popular. So, obviously he takes up the hosting job, does the couple thing with Arnold. He does what he can. The only downside to him is that he isn't truthful to Jack and is spiteful towards Raffy. But given how we see Jack questioning every decision he took, including his following Gameplay to his home, when he was stranded homeless, it is clear why Dean lies to Jack. Because no mater what he does, Jack will always nitpick. Jack stirs their relationship in whichever way he wants and treats Dean's views as secondary which Dean kind of internalises and hence wants to "change" for Jack. Jack created that pressure, even when they were on that break he reminded Dean that he had multiple Romeos he could easily get with. He is always ready to judge Dean for his choices but cannot provide alternatives to his problems. It is almost sadistic how he reacts when Dean is left alone by both Tua and himself and hence chooses safety in Gameplay's house. Jack's insecurity keeps him blinded from seeing Dean's situation. Also, the writers did such disservice by completely shoving the drug incident under the rug which led to that almost kiss between Arnold and Dean. I don't see Tua and Jack's reaction to that almost kiss to be overdone because cheating is anxiety-inducing and even though Arnold and Dean didn't kiss they wanted to/were about to and that also counts as cheating. However, the writers could have cleaned that mess by revealing the drinking and drugs that influenced some of that, especially in Dean's case. Jack was obviously insecure and hurt as Dean didn't tell him directly, and that made him rightfully mad as he saw that as a pattern. On the other hand, Tua being in an unrequited love with Arnold for long, obviously felt insecure as Arnold anyway had not shown his intentions clearly. This is a point I disagree on with a lot of viewers that their reactions were too dramatic for a non-kiss. Jack and Dean definitely felt like exes who still have lingering feelings and EarthMix played them so well. I cried during that breakup exhibition scene and kind of wanted them to have a last kiss in the last episode but didn't envision them ending up together as we aren't sure Jack has had enough development and as we see Dean choosing a different more stable profession but agreeing to act in Jack's play again, leaves us with doubts about whether their dynamic has changed. And anyway, one year can change only so much. They remind me of SandRay because I hadn't wanted them to end up together either.
The other character I liked was Raffy mainly because Boom embodied him so well. He is this entitled nepo kid who thinks he deserves the best of everything. I am kind of iffy about him liking Rome the same way Rome likes him but his jealousy over Pete liking Rome was very clear. Rome's character was a bit flat as the writers probably tried too hard to make him a green flag. He almost doesn't fit into the OF universe given how morally correct he is about everything. He was so head-over-heels for Raffy that it's almost impossible for him to hold a grudge. Bro just couldn't resist Raffy lol. RomeRaffy were easily the best part of the show.
The cast and crew said that this season is more character-driven and I side with them. I find the characters of this season to be much cooler individually. The earlier season had more drama and shock-value but this season they tried to be deeper story-wise. The catch is that the vision of the play and the behind-the-scenes drama of the play was so cool but the screenplay fell flat partly because of their CP agenda. They could've let Dean and Raffy kiss, Jack and Raffy kiss and Arnold and Dean kiss to match the premise they had set. The danger the intro sets doesn't translate into the episodes and it's frustrating to see them be so tame. I didn't want the cross-pair kissing for the drama but for the flow of the plot. Their relationship dynamics promised a lot of tension but couldn't deliver it. A lot of people who were fans of the 1st season are rightfully sad about it.
The intro was so cool, I never skipped it. The ROMERAFFY scenes are delicious and even their non-NC scenes (that one where Rome and Raffy are playing with the DJ set and their hands are on top of each other and that scene where Rome is backhugging Raffy to console him) are oozing with chemistry. They remind me of The Eighth Sense's couple - every touch, every glance screams they want to be together at any given point of time. I am so on the AouBoom train. I am seated for Billionaire Biker and am considering watching the other series they're in. They got the least amount of screentime but DELIVERED.
Even with its flaws, I was excited for every Friday and enjoyed watching the drama. I also enjoyed going on MDL comments and Tumblr every week and reading everyone's opinions of it. That, to me, is the best part of watching an ongoing drama.
This drama was hardcarried by its actors. The writing was a bit annoyingly bad because the plot points were right there, if only they had tried to utilise them and maintain the flow. The characters were also sloppily written especially ARNOLD & TUA. Their relationship dynamic was the most boring of the lot and the fact that I didn't vibe with Joss and Gawin's acting didn't help.
My favourite character was DEAN: he was Machiavellian, sure, but he was also poor and not well-backed and priviledged like the rest of the characters and I feel the viewers and the writers conveniently forget this point, just like Jack. Dean has the burden to provide for himself, his sister and his mother (iirc) and he is just a university student. Plus, the nepotism and bias in the industry keep him from following his dream, which let's be real is very difficult to fulfill if one is poor and without connections and in this day and age, not popular. So, obviously he takes up the hosting job, does the couple thing with Arnold. He does what he can. The only downside to him is that he isn't truthful to Jack and is spiteful towards Raffy. But given how we see Jack questioning every decision he took, including his following Gameplay to his home, when he was stranded homeless, it is clear why Dean lies to Jack. Because no mater what he does, Jack will always nitpick. Jack stirs their relationship in whichever way he wants and treats Dean's views as secondary which Dean kind of internalises and hence wants to "change" for Jack. Jack created that pressure, even when they were on that break he reminded Dean that he had multiple Romeos he could easily get with. He is always ready to judge Dean for his choices but cannot provide alternatives to his problems. It is almost sadistic how he reacts when Dean is left alone by both Tua and himself and hence chooses safety in Gameplay's house. Jack's insecurity keeps him blinded from seeing Dean's situation. Also, the writers did such disservice by completely shoving the drug incident under the rug which led to that almost kiss between Arnold and Dean. I don't see Tua and Jack's reaction to that almost kiss to be overdone because cheating is anxiety-inducing and even though Arnold and Dean didn't kiss they wanted to/were about to and that also counts as cheating. However, the writers could have cleaned that mess by revealing the drinking and drugs that influenced some of that, especially in Dean's case. Jack was obviously insecure and hurt as Dean didn't tell him directly, and that made him rightfully mad as he saw that as a pattern. On the other hand, Tua being in an unrequited love with Arnold for long, obviously felt insecure as Arnold anyway had not shown his intentions clearly. This is a point I disagree on with a lot of viewers that their reactions were too dramatic for a non-kiss. Jack and Dean definitely felt like exes who still have lingering feelings and EarthMix played them so well. I cried during that breakup exhibition scene and kind of wanted them to have a last kiss in the last episode but didn't envision them ending up together as we aren't sure Jack has had enough development and as we see Dean choosing a different more stable profession but agreeing to act in Jack's play again, leaves us with doubts about whether their dynamic has changed. And anyway, one year can change only so much. They remind me of SandRay because I hadn't wanted them to end up together either.
The other character I liked was Raffy mainly because Boom embodied him so well. He is this entitled nepo kid who thinks he deserves the best of everything. I am kind of iffy about him liking Rome the same way Rome likes him but his jealousy over Pete liking Rome was very clear. Rome's character was a bit flat as the writers probably tried too hard to make him a green flag. He almost doesn't fit into the OF universe given how morally correct he is about everything. He was so head-over-heels for Raffy that it's almost impossible for him to hold a grudge. Bro just couldn't resist Raffy lol. RomeRaffy were easily the best part of the show.
The cast and crew said that this season is more character-driven and I side with them. I find the characters of this season to be much cooler individually. The earlier season had more drama and shock-value but this season they tried to be deeper story-wise. The catch is that the vision of the play and the behind-the-scenes drama of the play was so cool but the screenplay fell flat partly because of their CP agenda. They could've let Dean and Raffy kiss, Jack and Raffy kiss and Arnold and Dean kiss to match the premise they had set. The danger the intro sets doesn't translate into the episodes and it's frustrating to see them be so tame. I didn't want the cross-pair kissing for the drama but for the flow of the plot. Their relationship dynamics promised a lot of tension but couldn't deliver it. A lot of people who were fans of the 1st season are rightfully sad about it.
The intro was so cool, I never skipped it. The ROMERAFFY scenes are delicious and even their non-NC scenes (that one where Rome and Raffy are playing with the DJ set and their hands are on top of each other and that scene where Rome is backhugging Raffy to console him) are oozing with chemistry. They remind me of The Eighth Sense's couple - every touch, every glance screams they want to be together at any given point of time. I am so on the AouBoom train. I am seated for Billionaire Biker and am considering watching the other series they're in. They got the least amount of screentime but DELIVERED.
Even with its flaws, I was excited for every Friday and enjoyed watching the drama. I also enjoyed going on MDL comments and Tumblr every week and reading everyone's opinions of it. That, to me, is the best part of watching an ongoing drama.
Was this review helpful to you?
