3
This review may contain spoilers
The Illusion of Danger
And so, another queer journey comes to an end.
As the emotional dust settles, I find myself equal parts entertained, mildly bewildered but still quietly fond of the story they tried to weave, even if the script lost its spine along the way. And by that, I mean, after episode 3.
The first half was infinitely stronger. In the beginning, the central spell worked because the dynamic had a genuine, pulse pounding tension. Is Big Jane a morally grey character? Do we trust his intentions? He has Big Boss bgm and the theme song keeps singing about red flags ? And it plays .... alot .... So I hope you like it 😂
On paper, Big Jane was set up to be a walking red flag; detached, transactional, and completely unbothered by the collateral damage of his deals.
But the script got scared out of it's own potential and instead of exploring that dark, fascinating smoulder, the writers reduced his edge to a series of 'misunderstandings.'
Meanwhile, Little Jane turned out to be a red flag of the opposite variety: ohhh noo, he was the aggressively, recklessly altruistic character. He played the hero for everyone else without leaving an inch of solid ground for himself.
Rather than leaning into the genuine danger of Big Jane’s world, the narrative devolved into a relentless and exhausting back and forth. Little Jane continuously took the side of the universe over the man he claimed to love, falling into a cycle of forced angst and irritating indecisiveness.
By episode 6, I really wished Big Jane would turn out to be a literal demon in the end, just so he could shout "Psyche!" and pull the rug out from under us all. 💀 A much more entertaining plot twist than a He said, She said so let's seperate, but no, I want you back, forever babe I promise, but oh wait, I need time to think, I can't trust you even though I know about what you do ..... sigh ....
I wanted a deeply thoughtful, maybe supernatural, kind of twisted romance and got a deeply insecure, indecisive main character and an "is he or isnt he?" boyfriend whose entire bond was built on the fleeting high of being treated like a human being in episode one 😗
Toward the end, the scriptwriters were juggling far too many burning torches. The amnesia plot in Episode 11 was completely unnecessary filler, padded solely to drag this show to a 12 ep finish line. Pacing choices felt dictated by a coin toss, and character agency took a backseat to a deeply irritating supporting cast. (Shoutout to Dan, who vanished and reappeared like a phantom solely to drop a massive plot download at the end, leaving me to wonder if the man survived on pure, unadulterated hatred alone. 😂 I was at least satisfied to see Little Jane's shooting lesson come back. There was some effort in consistency)
Despite my grievances, I would willingly step back into the circle for TeeHeng. They were, without a doubt, the highlight of this entire show and probably what kept me from rage quitting at ep. 8. While they are still a little green, their chemistry is undeniable. Once they fully settle into each other's orbit, they are going to be pretty fire, I feel 🔥
Don't Be Too Emotional was a flawed but delightfully chaotic ride. It completely failed to stick the landing, but it had enough visual flair and heart to light up my Friday nights.
And, of course, that sneaky little final scene left a window open for a Season 2 or a Special. The ultimate producer's safety net, added just in case the sales and draw are strong enough to summon them back into the studio for round 2 ☕✨
As the emotional dust settles, I find myself equal parts entertained, mildly bewildered but still quietly fond of the story they tried to weave, even if the script lost its spine along the way. And by that, I mean, after episode 3.
The first half was infinitely stronger. In the beginning, the central spell worked because the dynamic had a genuine, pulse pounding tension. Is Big Jane a morally grey character? Do we trust his intentions? He has Big Boss bgm and the theme song keeps singing about red flags ? And it plays .... alot .... So I hope you like it 😂
On paper, Big Jane was set up to be a walking red flag; detached, transactional, and completely unbothered by the collateral damage of his deals.
But the script got scared out of it's own potential and instead of exploring that dark, fascinating smoulder, the writers reduced his edge to a series of 'misunderstandings.'
Meanwhile, Little Jane turned out to be a red flag of the opposite variety: ohhh noo, he was the aggressively, recklessly altruistic character. He played the hero for everyone else without leaving an inch of solid ground for himself.
Rather than leaning into the genuine danger of Big Jane’s world, the narrative devolved into a relentless and exhausting back and forth. Little Jane continuously took the side of the universe over the man he claimed to love, falling into a cycle of forced angst and irritating indecisiveness.
By episode 6, I really wished Big Jane would turn out to be a literal demon in the end, just so he could shout "Psyche!" and pull the rug out from under us all. 💀 A much more entertaining plot twist than a He said, She said so let's seperate, but no, I want you back, forever babe I promise, but oh wait, I need time to think, I can't trust you even though I know about what you do ..... sigh ....
I wanted a deeply thoughtful, maybe supernatural, kind of twisted romance and got a deeply insecure, indecisive main character and an "is he or isnt he?" boyfriend whose entire bond was built on the fleeting high of being treated like a human being in episode one 😗
Toward the end, the scriptwriters were juggling far too many burning torches. The amnesia plot in Episode 11 was completely unnecessary filler, padded solely to drag this show to a 12 ep finish line. Pacing choices felt dictated by a coin toss, and character agency took a backseat to a deeply irritating supporting cast. (Shoutout to Dan, who vanished and reappeared like a phantom solely to drop a massive plot download at the end, leaving me to wonder if the man survived on pure, unadulterated hatred alone. 😂 I was at least satisfied to see Little Jane's shooting lesson come back. There was some effort in consistency)
Despite my grievances, I would willingly step back into the circle for TeeHeng. They were, without a doubt, the highlight of this entire show and probably what kept me from rage quitting at ep. 8. While they are still a little green, their chemistry is undeniable. Once they fully settle into each other's orbit, they are going to be pretty fire, I feel 🔥
Don't Be Too Emotional was a flawed but delightfully chaotic ride. It completely failed to stick the landing, but it had enough visual flair and heart to light up my Friday nights.
And, of course, that sneaky little final scene left a window open for a Season 2 or a Special. The ultimate producer's safety net, added just in case the sales and draw are strong enough to summon them back into the studio for round 2 ☕✨
Was this review helpful to you?
