TheLey

Visually Beautiful with Zero Depth

For those looking for a short and sweet review, this show had beautiful cinematography and virtually no plot which unfortunately made it relatively boring to sit through.

The long version as to why can be found below.

Characters:
- Thee is an extremely one-dimensional character, despite being one of the main leads. We learn nothing about him throughout the entirety of the show, except for that fact that he's born of status, in love with Rati, and a man of conviction. And even the conviction part, given that it's only ever directed at his love for Rati and not duty to country for family is questionable since he fell in love with Rati at first sight. Cute in theory, but Rati could have been a terrible person, a hardened criminal, and even an axe murder and Thee would never have known or maybe even cared, because his love came first.
- Rati has a bit more depth, a solid two-dimensional character with motivations and history that does not revolve solely around his love for Thee.
- Mek & Dech - These two are the most flushed out characters of the main leads with Mek taking the gold in this regard. He has motivations, convictions, and goals for his life that don't center around his love for Dech (which is nearly unseen throughout the show and a driving point different/side character specific review).

Plot:
As mentioned before, there almost isn't one. Due to the fact that Thee's love for Rati is so strong the audience isn't ever prepared for an internal battle or will-he-won't-he plot. Given the time that this is set in that would have been the most appropriate plot to have, but assuming because the directors, writers, or producers wanted to keep this series safeguarded from that, it places the show in an unusual realm where there is drama but no conflict. A plot cannot survive without some sort of conflict, tension, or friction that must be overcome and without these things a story cannot have a climax either. Instead what we are given as viewers is drama. There is some family drama and "from two different worlds" drama, but because the conviction of the characters, specifically Thee, toward his love is so high it makes these dramas seem almost hollow, because you know that he will choose his heart over anything else. There is never a moment in this drama where one thinks, "Oh shoot, will they or won't they" because it's guaranteed that they will, so for maybe the last 3-4 episodes, you're basically going through the motions to get to their happy ending.

Cinematography:
The reason that this show wasn't a total waste and it's not (it may be slow and boring, but overall it's fine as a show - not great, but also not awful) is the cinematography. It's a beautifully filmed show with great scenery and a similarly great wardrobe. There are some parts that do look set-ish, but overall for a drama set in 1930s Thailand, they did a pretty good job setting things up.

So yea, overall I wanted to love this drama and while I walked away not hating it, I'm still partially baffled at how a show could be so middle of the road to the point that, "It's fine" is a true depiction of the show.

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