CurlyFries

I am usually not a fan of reviews that are made when barely half of a show has come out or when 3/4 is only out, because at that point you ought to just wait it out before making a review. My The Heart Killers review was an exception to this rule because that series has been dropped and is beyond repair. However, this time I feel compelled to make a premature review because I think I can say with certainty that this is not a show for me.

I'll start with my classic pros and cons list, then go into more detail afterward.

Pros:
- Production was pretty. I am a sucker for vibrant colors and this one used quite a few. And of course, a show with idols will make them look bedazzled and pleasing to the eyes. So, + Points for that.
- Not set in a high school or university as the setting. It is set in an actual workplace.
- Nontoxic couple that actually tries to have communication and my issue with miscommunication pet peeve was not being stepped on.
- Male comradery with the MARS group. While they could feel stiff at times, I still did laugh at some of their little group interactions quite a bit.
- Reinforces the idea that although Thame is from a popular group and is well loved in his company for his success he is still a coworker just like Po and there shouldn't be a power imbalance.
- Mini twist of Jun actually caring about Thame even though it was at first painted as him being an antagonist.
- A main character that can ACTUALLY help further the plot.
- It presents the idea of the pain the one that leaves could feel rather than just making the one(s) left behind an eternal victim.
- Pepper. I just liked him the most out of the entire cast of characters.
- No unnecessarily misogynistic portrayals of women nor are they treated as bitchy exes that can't take "no" as an answer.
- I get to see Sammy and Drake a moderate amount as side characters. I missed them.

Cons:
- The main two are kind of too simple relationship and character wise as the story goes on. I like my romances to be a bit chaotic or questionable, so this one was just not formulated for me evidently.
- This might be just a me thing, but I actually wanted the idea of sexuality to be brought up rather than just a one-off line of "he likes tiny girls" (in which that should probably be reworded because it sounds diddy coded). I am obviously not a fan of homophobia but I wanted his close friends to question if he had always liked guys, and especially wanted him to seem at least a little conflicted with himself about it.
- The bandmates join back a little too fast. I was hoping for more conflict between them about that. Somehow Pepper was the most believable about it than the others and he technically showed up with the least amount of effort required to drag his ass back to the squad house.
- The main romance is just too boring and takes up a big part of the show; especially after the gang is reunited again.
- The idol part of the story started to lose my interest the more it went on. I cared less and less for their future because only about half of the group has any real relevancy.
- Thame seems to lose any of his internal conflict that made me like him so much in ep 1 a little too fast.
- Thame's jealousy annoyed me.
- They teased JunPo, only to completely disregard it just as fast and it made me question if Jun even actually confirmed liked Po or not.
- Baifern seems to almost not exist past like the first two episodes and I feel like she shouldn't just exist to be the initial quest giver.
- Cringe rapping in ep like 4. I understand that Thame was meant to be wrecked verbally for the sake of the plot, but I just don't like rap all that much so I was only really enjoying the setting rather than the music. The mint haired person also pissed me off because the logic that idols can't be real musicians or even rappers is so fucking dumb that I cannot believe people actually think this in real life. Do they actually? I really have no idea personally at all.
- I agree with some others that some of the acting isn't that good. I see others saying that William is fantastic for a rookie, but I just don't quite see it. I think he did alright, just not beyond alright. Beautiful voice, though.


The characters:
Po: I mean I just think he is kind of lacking personality wise. He had a few moments that shined with cheekiness like when he laughed at Jun, but then he goes back to feeling like a self-insert in a Wattpad that coincidentally has two idols going after him (as someone in the comments on Youtube pointed out).
Thame: I liked him at first because you could tell he was a troubled soul and it indicated a more complex personality that contrasted with the expected idol persona everyone sees. But then he seems to actually just be this fantasy guy that is almost perfect and always thinking of the protagonist. His jealousy also felt misplaced because of how his writing past the first two episodes was. I usually don't like intense jealousy plots to begin with, so maybe I'm biased, but I really didn't like this one for the simple reason that it felt misplaced and reeeally unnecessary because it was obvious to the audience and literally every other character that Po would not choose literally anyone over Thame.
Baifern: I miss her. Bring her baaaack other than a damn phone call every once in 5 episodes. Seeing Ciize makes me nostalgic because I swear I see her in every other thai show that I watch.
Jun: I actually like him the second most because he adds the much needed drama to keep me somehow watching for 8 episodes, but now that it seems his motives are found out and he has conceded going after Po to Thame he will probably be sidelined unfortunately. And I like mischievous characters too. He was such a homewrecker.
Pepper: I liked him the most. He is gorgeous, kind, understanding, unproblematic, and the best of all: mature. I liked that he was the problem solver compared to Jun's problem amplifier. I also like that he is in a confirmed and steady relationship with a woman because you rarely get to see those that much in these kind of shows unless the woman or him are problem starters.
Dylan: started out kind of interesting with his love-hate relationship towards Thame, but then loses that the moment he switches up and joins his band suuuper fast. It would have made more sense if he marinated on the thought that maybe he abandoned Thame first by jumping to conclusions and not hearing him out before leaving. But no, he gives up on his goal of joining the rapper underground super fast. That diss track of his towards mint hair was satisfying af though because he annoyed me SO much.
Nano: I literally don't have anything to say about him other than he gives the vibes of those cliche BL bottom tropes that people love to write in manga and manhwa. His voice also felt far too cutesy for me. I think maybe his actor was trying too hard or something. I was messing around guessing Nano would be my bias in the first ep when Baifern asked Po and oh boy was I wrong because he is NO ONE's favorite because he is such a filler character for their band collection arc.

ThamePo romance: I seriously found them so bland. I understand that they are objectively a good pairing and that I should probably sense the chemistry that all those other commentors did, except I just didn't really vibe with them past like ep 2. I liked how human and multi-faceted Thame seemed in eps 1-2, especially his reactions to some of the weird things Po said/did. It felt surprisingly realistic of how someone would actually react in that situation if it took place in real life rather than romance land. I liked how their awkwardness suited each other in those two episodes. Then, it just seems they started like each other a ton more within the next few episodes and I could not see why. It definitely doesn't help that the pacing confused me because I swear this is all taking place in like two weeks or something. Now they feel like a Wattpad writer's attempt at "fluffy boyfriends UwU".

JunPo (lost potential) romance: I somehow have second lead syndrome on this one. There is no reason for me to like them more than ThamePo other than the facts that ThamePo is boring (to me), this is a bickering couple trope, semi-enemies to lovers, Po seems to show more expression in his scenes with Jun, and the fact that I'm messy af. This was probably the only time I ever wished for a love triangle to happen in order to spice a continually bland story up. They didn't have any physical chemistry at all either, but I just enjoyed their interactions more than any other character interactions. They definitely will work better as frenemies than lovers anyway.

The pacing: I am so confused of the time frame of this show. It all has to happen within 3 months because of the final concert, right? Yet, it feels like the first 8 episodes have only passed about two weeks tops. It would make the fact that two guys fell for Po within that time feel waaaay too forced in that case. Too Wattpad-esc.

Rewatch/Finish: I think I'll probably just skim the next 5 episodes. I've lost virtually all interest in the plot now that I have a gut feeling that Jun will become the next member to the "we got sidelined after like one semi-important plot point we starred in!" band this show is forming. If this show manages to magically change my perception of it by the end I'll make another review of it.



Conclusion: I understand how other people could appreciate this; I just wasn't one of them, unfortunately. Unlike some other reviews of mine, I actually believe that this one is not inherently bad nor should it be treated as bad (unless the remaining episodes have an identity crisis and proceed to crash out like *certain shows* do). I also never really had high expectations to like this one either because I had a gut feeling it wouldn't be what I wanted in the end, so my expectations weren't that crashed or anything like that.

Would I recommend? Only if you like idol plots and simple, healthier romance with no real drama or spice.