sjay

Okay

I'm finding this series okay. I'm mainly watching it for Lukmo-Simai and the copy couple. Lukmo and Simai's storyline was the most intense and interesting for me (which makes me want to know what's going to happen to their story). I found the copy couple's storyline simply adorable and couldn't stop watching them.
CONS
I skipped all of the other couples for multiple reasons. The basketball couple - didn't have much of a storyline (too short to play is the main thing) and too young for me to watch comfortably. Both-Newyear - I haven't seen any sort of storyline or conflict, all I've seen so far are just lovey-dovey moments (even though it's in the 8th episode. I'm still waiting to see what happens with them. Eak-Phob - This one just doesn't work for me. I tried to keep watching it but, it really just annoyed me.

Thoughts - I personally think this drama would've been better if they didn't have so many couples. Instead, if they just had the main + a side couple with more focus to the plot and development, it could've been a lot better.
Rewatch value - 5/10 Might only watch for the two couples mentioned above.

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My Favorite Manhwa Adaptation Ever

For me, this was a really great adaptation of a manhwa. It not only adapted the manhwa pretty accurately, but also improved upon it by giving more depth and personality to the other characters, making them more rounded and human.

PROS

1. I think this drama wasn't afraid to really show the dark and gritty aspects of the entertainment industry. Some people might say that it's graphic, but to me, it's completely realistic.

2. Fantastic Acting - Both the main leads' acting was absolutely fabulous. Min (as Sun) managed to convey so much emotion in his eyes despite his stoic role. It's very, very impressive considering this is his first main role. His performance stole the drama for me. Toptap (as Jay) managed to put up an equally good performance in his role. Honestly, it just felt refreshing to see a show where both main leads match each other's performance level. Other than the main leads, the other cast (Shogun, Fuaiz, Khunnote, Claude, Gandhi, Pakin, etc) put up a great performance as well.

3. As said earlier, this drama managed to improve upon the manhwa. Characters like Pakin and Sky were kind of one-note and bland in the manhwa. This drama managed to take those characters and give them a backstory. I didn't care too much for those characters in the manhwa. I was neutral, but this drama managed to make me like them so much and made me want to see them as the second couple.

4. Plot- The pacing and the plot were quite engaging to watch. There was 0 moments where I felt bored. The story managed to create a great balance of romance and main plot, which made this an entertaining drama.

5. Chemistry/Romance - The chemistry between the main leads was fantastic. The romance, the bickering, and the intensity between them were quite enjoyable. Some might feel iffy about the romance with some of the dub-con scenes. I was able to look past it because I could see Sun reciprocating Jay's feelings to some extent. It really depends on what you as an audience can tolerate watching.

6. Character Development - It was quite lovely to see Sun go from this traumatized, guilt-ridden, and closed-off individual to someone who was able to find family, love, and meaning in life. The same goes for the Sky, who shows beautiful character growth as well. Tbh, you can’t help but root for all of the good characters (main and sides).

CONS

I think the only con for me would be that I wished certain villains had suffered a bit more, but this does not bother me enough to affect my score of this drama.



If you like grittier shows, then this would be a great show to try out. Do keep in mind that there’s some graphic stuff and trigger warnings, so if you’re someone who gets affected by dark stuff easily, I strongly suggest looking up the trigger warnings before watching this drama. For me, this drama is a great leap for adaptations and is a definite 10/10. Also, I do recommend giving the OST a try because it's an absolute banger of a song!

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Diabetes Inducing with hints of drama

Honestly, I liked this show a lot. While it did have a fe w cringe moments, there is a lot of other things I like more.
1. The entire show is a green forest for one. I love how non-toxic and healthy all the CP relationships are.

2. (The point is my fav) Healthy and open com munication! The leads have such a healthy communication thing going on that it's healing my trauma from all the misunderstanding-heavy BL's.

3. Both the first and second couple have really good c hemistry. There's absolutely no doubt about that for me. Didn't feel anything for the third couple, but we also didn't get much from them, so that's probably why…

4. Massive character growth from the MC.

5. Вecause it's really fucking cute and creating unrealistic expectations. Just seeing Fah and Rak's relationship made me squeal, but also I feel kinda jealous lol.

CONS
On to the negative side, there’s quite a few things that annoyed me. I, personally was able to look over it, but definitely will not be able to.

1. MC is quite childish and naive. Honestly, I can understand why he’s the way he is, but many viewers might find this trait unlikable or unbearable.

2. In classic BL fashion, some things that should be taken seriously were taken too lightly. In an attempt to keep the show in the cutesy stage, the drama has just glossed over a few things that I found very problematic.

3. Cringe Dialogues- While I found this mostly cute, some of the dialogues were just too much. It just felt like even the most cutesy adults shouldn’t be saying such things.

4. Some stiff acting moments- there was a couldn’t le of moments that felt a bit too stiff and took me out of the story, but considering most of the actors are new, this was a very good performance.

Overall, I would say that if you’re looking for a light, fluffy, and cutesy show, then you might be in the right page. However, this show isn't for everyone. It isn't really plot driven and is just a cute fluffy show(my cup of tea), so if you prefer plot heavy shows like Not Me or ITSAY, then this is definitely NOT for you!

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That Summer: A Summer That Stretched Too Long

Let me start by saying that I went into this series genuinely excited. It had all the ingredients for a delicious romance: an island setting, summertime vibes, an amnesia arc, a city-boy-to-island-boy character arc, and etc. Unfortunately, the show didn’t go the way I’d hoped.

Starting with the main couple, as someone who really enjoyed Winny and Satang’s chemistry in MSP, I expected their chemistry to be even stronger with them as the leads. To my surprise, I felt none of that chemistry here. On top of that, the writers made Lava quite unlikeable in the early episodes, which made it hard for me to root for the romance and him as a character.

As for the main romance, I understand they were going for a “simple summer love story,” but with ten episodes to fill, it needed more . Halfway through, it felt like the plot stopped moving forwards. Instead, we repeatedly watched the characters do everyday activities like teaching, playing on the beach, and so on. While the visuals were defo beautiful, there’s only so much visuals can do. This drama really could've been better with fewer episodes and a tighter screenplay.

Then there’s the palace arc, where the prince’s family was trapped. This could have added some spice or story depth, but because the show was so focused on the simple romance mode, they didn’t explore it at all. All we really learn is that Davin’s family was held hostage and then somehow won in the end. Honestly, the palace arc with another guy trying to take over made no sense. Since he was trying to get rid of the prince, he should’ve asked for proof of the prince’s death or sent a larger group to finish the job. The fact that only Victor and Paolo were sent made zero sense to me. With no deeper explanation or build up, it was hard to take any of it seriously. It felt like a fever dream.

There was also a second amnesia trope which, while completely unnecessary, I was still able to tolerate. However, the way they rushed through that entire arc in just two episodes really weakened the emotional impact of everything that happened earlier. I genuinely wanted to see more of Prince Davin and the realistic struggles that would come with a relationship that had such a clear power imbalance, but the show ignored all of that until the very last episode. By then, it felt far too late to matter. I did not care about the main couple at all by that point.

The second couple actually had more of a storyline, with more well-developed problems and feelings, but their arc still felt rushed. Especially the adoption plot. It felt like the writers suddenly decided, “Hey, let’s add an adoption angle, people will like that,” without thinking it through. It ended up portraying adoption as something easy and casual, which left a bad taste in my mouth.

The supporting characters, while enjoyable, were also quite one dimensional. Tum = Tik-tok obsessed, loves weed & alcohol, likes Kratae. Kratae = Responsible nurse and Tum's crush. Till the end, I never quite understood why they liked each other / what they liked about each other.

PROS
1. Beautiful cinematography
2. Strong production quality in terms of location setting and color grading.
3. Brings out topics that are fairly new to Thai BLs such as adoption, weed use, queer people in politics, etc.
4. Stronger second couple
5. Decent Acting

CONS
1. Main leads had no chemistry
2. Extremely slow/draggy plot line
3. Wasted potential with the palace arc.
4. Rushed second couple
5. Inconsistency between the 'simple summer romance' idea and the attempted dramatic political elements.

Overall, That Summer had the potential, but the weak development and draggy pacing made it bland and way less impactful than it could have been.

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It's a mess

I was really interested in watching this because I've watched the Korean version 'Antique Bakery'; however, there's just so many problems with this show that I cannot ignore.
1. The murder mystery feels like an extra segment that was added to make the show longer when it should be one of the main elements.
2. The journalists were completely unconvincing and annoying.
3. The romance seemed to come out of blue and a lot of the the show's side stories seemed to pop out all of a sudden without any hint of it in earlier episodes.
I feel like this show tried to be a lot of different things, which made the show messy and confusing. The friendship between the four main characters was cute and I liked how they realistically showed that trauma is not something you get over immediately, but that's all I liked about the show.

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