The Heart Killers Episode 1
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This is clearly another of Jojo's fantasies - visual style, sets, focus on sexual tension and sex itself all point to that. Since the emphasis is put on those things, story becomes unimportant and it's presentation makes it harder to take it seriously. On one hand - that's not really bad, as most BLs are desexualized and should focus more on relations between main characters and forming of their relationships. I stated this many times in comments and reviews: in a BL setting of the story is in service to the main plot - the guys becoming a couple and/or being in a relationship. That's what the story should be about. On the other hand - I'm not sure how future episodes will go about the story, will it be sidelined (will we get ep. 1 on repeat) for the sake of more visuals, or will there actually some development.Performances: Khaotung is good, First is alright, Joong felt off and weird (no idea why, normally he's okay), while Dunk (still) can't act and gave a weird, unconvincing performance. I'm used to that already, so it bothered me far less than it should.
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I was never a fan of PondPhuwin and criticised their previous shows, but I might enjoy this one a bit more. Santa and Perth gave subpar performances in this episode, while Est and Phuwin were a little better. Pond's deliberate over-the-top acting made me smile the whole time and I'll stick around for more of that. I guess I learned to appreciate Pond - he was really good in "Leap Day" and he's not wooden nor stiff anymore, displaying some comedic skill instead. That's enough to make me stay.
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I keep enjoying Pond as a detached from reality, comical mobster-heir-turned-CEO, an inhabitant of Delulu-land. Thee is genuinely funny, and not just because of over-the-top performance (which is the only way to play this character), but also because of his cuteness. Contrasted with the quiet Mhok and grounded Peach, Thee’s character and Pond’s portrayal of it provides all the comedy the show needs. Also, this episode’s daydreaming sequence (with Est popping up mid-scene for additional effect) reminded me of a similar scene with Ewan McGregor and Nicole Kidman from Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 musical "Moulin Rouge!". BTW: what’s with BLs reminding me of musicals lately? First it was "MuTeLuv - Diva Deva Mata" paying homage to "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert", now it’s "Me and Thee"… Continue, GMMTV, you’re doing it right. However, after 4 out of 10 episodes I’m worried about the romantic aspect of the show, which currently is missing – on purpose and according to script, as Thee’s feelings for Peach are unrequited. When exactly will Peach fall for Thee and why will he do it? So far nothing indicates Peach would even consider a romantic relationship with a man (all his past relationships briefly referenced in episode 1 were with women), not to mention with Thee. It’ll take some skillful writing to solve that problem and a decent performance to pull it off on screen; not sure Phuwin is the man to do it. As for the supporting/secondary BL couple: can we please stick with Rome and Mhok (now that William has graced the screen) instead of Aran and Tawan?
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Propelled by very good performances of Dew and Off as well as expertly selected music we're launched into the unknown. Gun's performance was uneven, ranging from very strong to uncertain and weak, as if at times he wasn't sure how to play Jira. The story flowed so smoothly that I didn't notice the passage of time. Like in the official trailer, several shots in the episode felt wide and cinematic - a real joy to behold. Also, eyeliner Thor looked hot.
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Gonna write just one thing about this episode: that shower scene was true BL gold delivered by Winny and Satang. Sure, there was a lot of necessary build up leading to it during most of the episode, but that conclusion was like a chef's kiss.
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MuTeLuv: "Hi” by My Luck Episode 2
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After a well paced ep. 1 which set the frame for this miniseries, we get a very good 2nd episode: smartly shot, nicely progressing the story and staying focused on the plot. While a huge fan of Keen since "Only Boo!", I'm very impressed with the good work Sea is doing here, portraying a surprisingly multifaceted character. Bon apetit, everyone.
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This show seems to be going from bad to worse. Started watching it hoping to see a BL, and - so far (after 3 episodes) - I see it's almost entirely a mystery/horror show. Nothing against it, but it's not what I wanted to watch nor what was advertised. Furthermore, we got strong hints (more than hints actually) that the supposed main couple (Peem and Khem) won't be based on present day same-sex attraction - it'll be some sort of continuation of an opposite-sex relationship from the past, which was interrupted by WWII, with both partners reincarnated as males. This sounds like stuff from shows produced 5-10 years ago, when it was standard practice to deny the characters are gay (remember lines like "I'm not into men, it's just you"?); they were always straight, falling for their childhood friends with whom they had a strong emotional bond etc. etc. Everything but gay. Reincarnated from female to male, but still in love with the same person as in previous life - sounds exactly the same. As for the supporting/side couple: by ep. 3 they started talking to each other - that's all; at this rate they'll become a thing in the last scene of the last episode. Also: tonaly this show became a mess. Ep. 1 was mostly consistent in this regard, being rather dark, even somber, sad and scary. Ep. 2 started to change that, adding more lighthearted elements; by ep. 3 we have serious and scary next to goofy and silly. Like I said: a mess.
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Poorly paced and weirdly scripted, ep. 2 was a whopping 77 minutes long - with content only for about 45 minutes. In all that time there was one, very brief moment where the story was vaguely hinting at the support couple - that's all. Keng's stunning looks are an asset of the show, but when he opens his mouth - the spell is broken; Namping is sort of there, but his "damsel in distress" portrayal is hard to watch. However, not all hope is lost: First did a good job in both ep. 1 and 2; right now I'm watching this show because of him.
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Since this is coming from a company producing BLs, is marketed as a LGBTQ+ romance/BL (as well as a horror/mystery) series and I'm watching it for those reasons (and not for it being a horror/mystery production) - I'm not a fan of ep. 1. Sure, it establishes the characters to some degree and introduces the horror/mystery storyline, but doesn't do anything in the BL departament; more than that: it implies that the main focus of the show will be its horror/mystery aspect - which disappointed me. As for the horror and mystery - it's nothing new nor groundbreaking, relying on well-known tropes from formats like "Final Destination" or the recently airing "Leap Day", released by GMMTV (btw: what looks like the same building was used in both productions).
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An interesting episode, well crafted (even with a tiny connection to events of ep. 9) and nicely paced - especially when it comes to the Kit-Shane plot thread (what I liked in particular was when the episode gave Shane time to dismantle everything scholarship related on his cockboard; this was given just enough time to breathe). Kit - again - was how a boyfriend should be: supporting, caring, but not intrusive, patiently waiting for the right moment to step in; Kit just might be a model BL boyfriend. BTW: while Kit is written as caring more for another (his bf) than himself, Shane, Kim and Mon are more about themselves - their plans, views, feelings, doubts and fears come first; this was very visible in this episode, but it wasn't the first time those characters behaved and acted like that. Also, Mon's mom wasn't in this episode - and that's a good thing.
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If you watched the trailer (as I did) you've already seen everything important from ep. 1: the main couple gets established (rather than introduced - as this, apparently, happened in a series which aired 4 years ago), issues the main plot of the series revolves around are presented almost immediately and the show gets on the road with the body swap thing. Both ep. 1 and the show as a whole benefit from good production quality, an interesting main plot and fairy well done scenes where the main couple gets intimate. However, there are more misses than hits here. First of all - the writing. Body swapping as main plot point can be used in many different ways: as basis for comedy or a tale of the main couple reflecting on their relationship or for each of the main characters to do some introspection; hell - it can even be used to produce erotic content. Whoever wrote the script for "Suntiny" knows this, but did what seems a half-hearted job: the comedy isn't very good nor is there a lot of it, and while both mains describe positive influence of body swap on their relationship, this remains a declaration only and is not followed by any actions. What also bothered me a lot was how writing influenced pacing of the episode: I felt like the story is not progressing in a natural way, developing in an understandable way, but jumps from scene to scene - and those scenes are only loosely related. Another problem was lack of acting; Max delivered his lines like a machine, in a flat, boring way - Nat, despite all of his shortcomings, at least brought some feeling and intensity to his performance. And one more problem: poor editing and some weird editing choices. Ep. 1 is only 38 minutes long and watching it I got the feeling that there are several scenes missing (either cut during editing or not shot/written at all) - scenes that should be there for ep. 1 to tell its story in a comprehensive way.
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Atmospheric, immersive and with a lot of undeniable chemistry between Great and Inn - that was ep. 1 and my forst impression of "Memoir of Rati". Loved all scenes shot after dark - this little detail gave them all the ambience they needed. Hope the political/geopolitical aspects of the story's setting, touched upon in this episode, won't become too important later - this is, after all, a BL.
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Sweet Tooth, Good Dentist Episode 10
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Emotionally and tonally by far the strongest entry into the series, ep. 10 takes full advantage of the slow story build up from previous episodes and clever writing to deliver real gut punches. Combined efforts of Mark, Ohm, Khaotung and Honey (portraying Jay's mother) result in a satysfying conclusion of Jay's arc, presenting him in full complexity - as a deeply wounded, split person. Mark's delivery of "I'm allowed to be happy with that, right? I didn't do anything wrong, did I?" shows not only the actor's skill, but also resembles another well acted moment of self-reflection - from ep. 7. It's also worth appreciating how this episode uses music and lack of it in more important scenes, like the last scene with Mark and Khaotung, which is played with almost no background music.
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Sweet Tooth, Good Dentist Episode 9
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I wasn't particularly happy with the previous episode, especially for the way it dealt with the strained relationship between Croissant and his mother. Now, for a change, I'm very pleased with the way Jay and his mom's relationship was presented and how that allowed more introspection for Jay - it all happened in a very calm and natural way, without needless drama or crying. I almost got teary watching Jay revealing his past to Sant, so honest and vulnerable thanks to Mark's very authentic performance. Scenes like that, where the actors themselves seems quite moved, show how good this series could have been with better and more consistent writing. MarkOhm keep carrying this show and scenes with those two are alone (regardless whether comedic, romantic, serious or even sad) are why I keep watching STGD and - on balance - consider it an imperfect, but decent show. P.S.: it's always good to see Khaotung working, especially when he's not under Jojo's horrible direction.
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After fun and joy of ep. 5 the show returns to its roots - and returns in full force. You can feel how abandoned the main characters are, left on their own with a problem which is hard to explain to anyone else and remains a mystery even to those affected by it. The whole production team, not just the cast, did a splendid job creating a world in which the main characters seem alone (even though they are surrounded by other people), desperately fighting a faceless danger which slowly creeps towards them. A perfectly suffocating feeling.
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