This review may contain spoilers
A masterclass in angst pacing.
Player was a series I went into with low expectations. Having watched the pilot, knowing it was from P’Ize and the work that went into it, I still didn’t believe I would enjoy both the plot and the style of the show itself. I expected a pretty generic storyline with a heavy dose of gl tropes and some cute moments with not a lot of substance or gravity. Instead what I got was an emphatically emotional experience that I would classify as a masterpiece in true angst pacing.Player being given 12 episodes instead of 8 was a hugely successful decision by Ize. I’m almost certain those 4 extra episodes make for an expensive mistake if the show ends up bombing, but she took the risk and it paid off extraordinarily. Episodes 1 - 4 of Player are such a delightful representation of that excessively flirty meet-cute in Thai gl, peppered with all our favourite tropes that make you fall head over heels for the leads. Amena brings a breath of fresh air with her extensive experience - her expressions, her intentions and her unbridled ability for emotionally challenging scenes. In the earlier episodes, I think Memi partially struggled to match these moments - whether that is because Ame is so impressive, or she is quite inexperienced herself, it’s something that I saw dissipate as we got further in.
I think if one thing escapes my criticism in Player it is the chemistry between Ploy and Pun. Pun is not usually a character that I would enjoy, she is far too chirpy and unserious in the beginning for my tastes. But the more time she spends around Ploy and begins the descent into the murky waters of their split, the more we start to see a more matured side of her that wants - or even demands at times - to be taken seriously. I don’t think I need to speak much about the love scenes, they speak for themselves and I will have more to say about it once I get to the director. But what I will say is that every single soft moment of Ploy and Pun is just intoxicating. Ploy’s insatiable hunger for the chase and the mischievous twinkle in Pun’s eye when she knows she’s being chased. It really gives meaning to the “Player” name and we get to see it first hand every time they interact.
From the second half of episode 7 all the way through to 11 we get, in my humble opinion, one of the best examples of angst pacing I have ever seen in a gl series. It is so common for series to push a difficult or challenging storyline in a way that it begins at the end of an episode, continues through the next but ends up resolved by the end of that next episode. It’s a very efficient way of artificially making the time spent feel longer without frustrating the viewer by having to wait weeks on end for a reconciliation. So rarely are we made to sit and stew with our feelings alongside the characters but Player has managed to pull it off masterfully. I’m sure there are people out there who will feel as though it took too long. But for me, taking time to give each character a moment to shine in their pain was phenomenal.
The ending could have been stronger. I’d like to see more domestic storyline’d gl series put a bit more effort into their action scenes if they choose to keep them. I realise budget is always a problem, however I wouldn’t really have minded if the entire New York mafia plotline was dropped in favour of something less all over the place and more focused around the very important conversation that Ploy and Pun needed to have about the status of their relationship and how they so desperately need to learn to trust one another. That being said, it didn’t take that much away from the series as a whole. I sort of knew that I wouldn’t enjoy the ending if they stayed loyal to the book since I did not enjoy it there either.
Just before I finish, I want to take a moment to praise Pannares and her decisions in directing this series. First and foremost, the comedy in Player is something I also did not expect to enjoy the way I did. I was certain that the Angel Pun/Sherlock bit was going to be majorly overused and exhausted, however I think they managed to keep a great balance between when it was used over Pun’s normal inner monologue (which was such a highlight of the series for me) as well as the timing in which it was used. Pannares has such a talent for timing things in places where they won’t feel out of place or shoehorned and I really appreciate that about her directing style. On top of that, her real world knowledge of the queer experience helps shape Ploy and Pun’s love story into something that feels so real and tangible. These are messy characters with real struggles and flaws. The romance and sex scenes feel so incredibly real and intense without feeling gratuitous or male-gaze-y and in this day and age that feels like a long lost art.
All in all it was an incredible series, I think it deserves such high praise, especially for the first series from a smaller studio.
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