World's Most Incompetent Cops
Going into this, I was super excited for the murder/crime aspect of this show, especially as someone who really loves crime dramas. If you're going into this for that like I was, SKIP IT! This show is a romance that happens to have a crime happening in the background. The cops can't solve a case for shit, and spend all their time flirting instead.Jade (Joong) is the cop in charge of a new murder case when a new inspector Kamin (Dunk) arrives to help. The two of them investigate the murder of a college girl and the subsequent murders of the other students in her friend group. As murders continue to happen, Jade's brother Jay is also put at risk, as are the cops themselves. Even though the cops don't get along at first, they grow closer as they work on the case - and Jade's immediate attraction to Kamin is obvious to everyone.
I have never watched a crime show with more incompetent cops. These guys did not solve ANYTHING!! Even up to the very end (no spoilers here) they basically didn't do anything themselves. They quite literally just spent their entire time flirting with each other. The romance fully took away from the actual plot of the show. If you don't care about the crime and just want to see Joong and Dunk flirt, go ahead and watch it. If you care about the crime aspect at all, there are much better crime dramas....
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Lacking Something Deeper
Wu could have been so good if it committed to something a little more than it had. While it had good bones, it felt like we had very little time to get invested in the characters before they're thrown into trying to stop a demon which, as the viewer, we are really only told why they need to do this, not shown it - which was my main issue with a lot of this show I think. It seemed like the characters kept telling me why they needed to do things/how they were feeling/etc instead of SHOWING me these things. It seemed like a show that needed to be longer to really get to delve into the feelings of the characters and their motivations. While I love a supernatural story, this one missed the mark for me. I wanted a little more from the big bad evil demon AND a little more of Pete's internal struggle with his own demon.Also, I am totally cool with a story that doesn't have romance in it.....until you use every slow-mo zoom in, romantic music, pull him in until he's two inches from your face type move in the How to Make A Romance Show Book! For a company like GMM, who has made the vast majority of their money on queer media, to make a show that is this queer-coded only to make sure there's no queer romance feels like a slap in the face. And like I said - I do not need this media to be queer/romantic! But there are ways to make a show not a romance that truly make the show not a romance.....this was not the way. If you know GMM, you know that Sky and Nani are not a BL pairing, so I knew going into this that it was not a romance. HOWEVER! I have never felt so frustrated by a queer-baity show before. This isn't a show coming from somewhere that censors queer media, nor is it coming from a company that doesn't support queer media - in fact, it's actively using the profits of queer media to make a show that is 100% intentionally avoiding real queer representation.
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A college friend group growing up
We Are showcases how a friend group will change, expand, and grow up together as they experience love and complications. I was honestly worried that the show was going to get annoying with how many characters/couples they have, but it was done so well and was so fun to watch. I looked forward to it every week!Peem (Phuwin) is an art student who is about to submit his painting for the school gallery, until Phum (Pond) ruins it. Peem gets so mad he kicks Phum, and Phum gives Peem a choice: either pay for the most ridiculous doctors visit ever, or be my servant. Naturally, Peem has to choose the latter, with the stipulation the agreement ends once Peem finishes remaking the painting. Naturally, as the two start spending more time together, their relationship develops as feelings emerge. Alongside Peem are his good friends, including Tan (Aou) who has had a crush on Phum's brother Fang (Boom) for awhile, and Q (Winny) who starts becoming closer with his peer mentee Toey (Satang). All of these relationships have their own struggles, which helps to round out the show. While it is definitely mostly focused on Phum and Peem, the other couples are really fun to watch as well.
This is one of the genres that GMM will always excel in: a school-setting with friends that fall in love. It's light and fun and could easily become a comfort show. The conflicts tend not to be trivial misunderstandings, but rather deal more with the characters trying to figure out their feelings and how to pursue their crush. I didn't think that anything was overly drawn out, or that the pacing was off. There were a few moments between Phum and Peem where you're ready for them to just be together already, but the slow building of the relationship was worth it in the end.
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Mediocre At Best
I was soooo looking forward to watching this because I've been wanting a good GL to watch and I had heard so much about it! Unfortunately, it was extremely mediocre. The entire plot was predictable, the characters were only sometimes likeable, and every conflict could have been resolved with a single conversation.This was not a queer story. Yes, it had queer women as the main characters, but this exact storyline could have been done as a straight or BL romance. I wished the writers and directors focused more on the relationship dynamic between the two women and less on silly arranged marriage plotlines.
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Horror + Romance = Perfection
This show is a MASTERPIECE! I knew nothing about any of the actors going into this, and honestly didn't know much about the plot but BOY am I glad I decided to watch it. This is genuinely one of the best Thai shows I have ever seen.Khemjira (Namping) is living with a curse - at the age of 21, he will die. He's always been able to see ghosts, and they seem to be getting more malicious as he gets closer to 21. His best friend Jet decides to take Khem to see the shaman of the village he grew up in. This shaman Pharan (Keng) is reluctant to help Khem, especially because Khem coming to the village means he brought all kinds of bad energy and karma with him. Eventually, Pharan agrees to help, but the ghost behind this curse refuses to let go to events of the past, and is determined to kill Khemjira, even if it means taking down everyone else too.
I LOVED this show. The horror elements are SO good, and even though a lot of people wanted to watch for the romance between Pharan and Khem, I think the curse plotline was the highlight of this show (but the romance was INCREDIBLE too). I quite like a show where the romance is secondary to the main plot, and that's exactly what this show delivered. Plus, I'm a sucker for past lives, and the way this show tied in past life/soulmate elements with the horror elements was FANTASTIC! I genuinely cannot recommend this show enough. It has something for everyone, and manages to balance out the darker elements with fun happy moments. The side couple manages to stay just as interesting as the main couple, and adds a wonderful extra little flavor to the story. If you're considering this show at all, absolutely give it a shot.
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Dreams Change, Love Doesn't
When Life Gives You Tangerines is a masterpiece. They took incredible actors and mixed them with the most heart-wrenching story and beautiful cinematography to create one of the best dramas I have ever seen. Fair warning - I don't think you could watch this show without shedding tears. However, it is every bit worth the pain.Oh Ae-Sun (IU) is a young girl growing up on Jeju island in the mid 20th century, who is constantly follow around by Yang Gwan-Sik (Park Bogum). With big dreams of moving to Seoul, marrying a wealthy man, going to college, and becoming a poet, Ae-Sun has a hard road in front of her. Growing up with a single mom working long hours diving and a good-for-nothing step father makes those dreams seem even more out of reach. Gwan-Sik, hopelessly in love with Ae-Sun, will do everything he can to support her dreams - and when he finally figures out his feelings are reciprocated, he feels on top of the world. Ae-Sun and Gwan-Sik have a tough life ahead of them though, as everything and everyone seems to be standing in the way of their happiness.
This show is absolutely gorgeous. The way the story manages to tell the lives of these characters from the 1960s to the early 2000s and do so in a way that is never confusing is incredible. As you move through the show, you get glimpses of the past and the future, and you start to put together the picture of the couples life. The more you learn about them, their hardships, and their love, the more you fall in love with them. This show is truly about building these characters, and showing how their experiences early in the show influence their decisions later - a girl who could never follow her dreams growing up is determined to let her daughter try everything she wants; a father who went through the hardship of providing for his family at a young age wants his son to not bear the same burden. However, these are not perfect humans, and their choices as parents are not always the best. These ups and downs are what make the characters feel so real, and it truly draws you in to the story like no other drama. The turns the story takes are so realistic, and I loved the shifts in focus throughout the story to look more closely at their children as the story progressed. Overall a gorgeous drama that is ABSOLUTELY worth the watch (just have the tissues ready).
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Go Young's Tragic Autobiography
The best way to describe this show is snapshots of our main character Go Young's (Nam Yoonsu) life. We first meet him in college, where his queerness makes him a loner. This doesn't stop his pursuit of love, but not all romantic encounters are created equal. Go Young finds again and again that love requires not just the right person, but also the right circumstances. In his quest to figure out what love looks like and how to make relationships work, we see him continue to get his heart broken, both by his own faults and his partners'.I think what really sold me on this show was the way it was done. It felt like it was being told as if Go Young had written his own autobiography, where he emphasized what he found important and left out the details that seemed too mundane. We get glimpses into his life and his relationships, without ever getting to see his day-to-day life. What happens in an episode may be a few weeks or a year, depending on how important the events felt to Go Young himself. Each relationship he enters presents new challenges, and unable to navigate them, Go Young continues to feel tired and alone. I did not expect such depth of issues on queerness coming from a Kdrama, and it was done beautifully. The issues were never taken lightly or laughed at, and the relationships were portrayed in such a realistic way that it truly felt like this could be someone's autobiography. It was unfortunately sadder than I had anticipated, and the realism just emphasized the tragedy, but it was beautiful nonetheless.
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HOW is this show this good??
Duang With You is a show where you read the description and maybe decide it's a little generic - in a college setting, one guy is pursuing another in hopes to make him fall in love. I think this plot has been done a million times before in a million of mediocre ways. However this show is NOT one of these overdone college romances with no substance. This show FULLY explores these characters, their fears and hesitations, their insecurities, and how their feelings for each other develop over the course of the show. This show is so beautifully done that now that I have finished it I want to go back and rewatch it from the beginning just to experience it again!Duang (Teetee) is a design major who, after seeing Qin (Por) perform a song at their school's Freshy Night festival, immediately falls head over heals. Qin is used to the attention of people - and rejects them immediately, every time. Duang is determined to pursue Qin though and (as long as Qin is okay with everything) will do whatever it takes to win him over. When the two are forced to work together for a performance, Duang sees the perfect opportunity to get closer to Qin, and while Qin is reluctant at first, he quickly notices how pure Duang's intentions are and decides to see how long Duang is willing to treat him this good.
Wow. WOW. The acting, the directing, the writing.....all of it was incredible!! I could not stop kicking my feet and laughing at this show. It's cute, it's silly, and it's got some perfectly balanced trauma and heartache to go along with it. No stupid miscommunication conflicts that take three episodes to figure out for no reason - everything in this show felt like it had a purpose in developing the characters and their relationship. Teetee and Por did a FANTASTIC job as these characters, and I think that Duang may go down as one of my favorite BL characters ever. The side characters really helped to keep the mood goofy and light when needed, and I really enjoyed all of their storylines too - but truly, the focus of the show is on Teetee and Por as Duang and Qin, and I never for a MINUTE got bored of these two. I cannot wait to see what the actors do next!! I don't think I could possibly recommend this show enough; you just have to watch it to understand the hype!!
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Somewhat Silly Scammers
After Perfect10Liners, I was super excited to see Junior and Mark as leads again. Plus, I was excited to see Ohm and Poon act together for the first time! Both pairings did not disappoint! The story definitely centers more on Junior and Mark, but frankly, their characters have a better/more complex storyline anyway, so I was pretty happy with the split. I do think there were a few points in the show where the conflict seemed a little too easily resolved compared to the weight it should have had, but I think that's the kinda thing you're bound to run into when you're doing a romcom with betrayal in it. Still, this was a great watch with a good balance of humor and seriousness.Tim (Junior) is a scammer and his current plan is to scam the CEO of a large mall, Pai (Mark), by making Pai fall in love with him so he can marry him and take his money. Of course, the one rule that every scammer should follow is not to fall in love with the target. Tim spends months and months winning Pai over, pretending to be the perfect boyfriend, etc. until he can finally propose to Pai. Just when everything seems perfect, Pai's younger cousin North (Poon) elopes with U (Ohm), who he randomly met on a hiking trip and has known less than a week. The sudden marriage makes Pai concerned that U might be a scammer, and makes Pai nervous about weddings in general. Tim, realizing Pai is right about U being a scammer, has to try to not blow his own cover by outing U and manage to convince Pai they should still get married. But, all truths will eventually have to be revealed, and at this point it seems Tim has already majorly failed the most important rule of scamming.
I think this show was really fun overall. Honestly, the idea of Tim and U being scammers would have been much more intriguing to me if this wasn't a romcom, but was more of an intense and serious drama. I found that sometimes the comedy took away from the intensity of the whole getting betrayed by the person you love thing. Still, if you like a more balanced show, this one definitely has its ups and downs with serious portions broken up by the more comedic sections. Some of the conflicts and plot points are lost a little too fast (I feel like we totally forgot about the debt collectors??), but the acting from Mark especially really made me enjoy this one. Worth watching if you need something with some depth, but don't want something too intense.
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Needed a bit more courtroom and a little less romance
Idol I is a show that focuses on drawing the line between love and obsession, truth and conviction. I think the story surrounding those two themes is the most interesting part of the show: do fans love these idols, or are they obsessed with them; is heartbreak caused by lost love or a lost purpose; is convincing someone the same as the truth; and is there such thing as an objective truth? While I think this show took a little too much time on some of the romance and not enough time on the legal issues, I still really enjoyed this show.Maeng Sena is a defense attorney known for taking on high-profile, nearly unwinnable cases and winning; whether that's because she wants the fame and money or because she's invested in the truth is unclear. All that matters to her is having enough time and money to spend on Gold Boys, her favorite idol group. However, when superstar Do Raik of Gold Boys is charged with murdering one of his bandmates in a case with no other suspects, Sena is given the case. Maintaining her professionalism, Sena is determined to prove Raik's innocence - but she is quickly confronted with the reality of the idol that she has been watching on TV for so long. Still, Sena is determined to do her job properly, and not let personal feelings get in the way of catching the culprit.
For a drama that seems to be trying to tell the message of "fans should not treat idols like objects to obsess over," the fan x idol romance seemed to tell a different story. And yes, sure, her story is different because of how they met, but it did still feel somewhat contradictory until the end. Plus, frankly, I was WAY more interested in the murder case than the romance. I wish they had spent a little more time in the courtroom or being questioned by the prosecution. Plus, some of the details felt way too simple for Sena to figure out so late. Still, I enjoyed all the twists in the story and had a great time watching - just know that there is quite a lot of romance for a murder drama.
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Rivals to lovers with a twist!
Head 2 head was a show that really surprised me. After watching Sea and Keen in Only Boo, I wasn't quite sure how much to expect from them - it seemed like GMM was condemning another couple to a life of school uniforms and solidly mid romances. However, h2h was a lot more than that!J (Sea) and Jinn (Keen) have been rivals from the start, despite their parents being best friends. The two have competed since childhood, and show no signs of stopping now that they're both fashion design majors at the same college. However, when J gets hurt in an accident while racing Jinn, their parents force them to live together so Jinn can care for J and the two can learn to get along. Their relationship begins to change as J starts seeing visions of horrible things happening to Jinn and starts trying to prevent them - but not every tragedy can be prevented, no matter how hard J tries.
I've seen a lot of people relate this show to Bad Buddy, and truly I see the resemblance, though I loved the addition of visions of the future, the internal struggle of "do I love him because I love him now, or because I know in the future I will love him," and the need to change what the visions show. I thought it added a really nice layer of complexity to the show! The only downside of this show was the repetition in the beginning, where it feels like these boys are in the hospital more than they're at school. I felt like they could have instead developed some of the plot points of the future visions a bit more, but I still REALLY enjoyed this show. Not only did Sea and Keen do an INCREDIBLE job portraying these characters, but the other characters in the show were equally fun to watch. The second couple, played by Surf and Java, stole the show in some of the episodes. The relationship built on Java's character's idea of "I can't lose him, but I don't quite love him," was SO interesting. Frankly, I'd watch a whole series about their characters too. I didn't think any conflict was overly drawn out, which I appreciated, and I could see this becoming a comfort show for sure. The sweet relationship that slowly develops between rivals paired with the ups and downs of the side couple's relationship made for a perfectly balanced show. Definitely give this one a shot!
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Needed WAY more merman plot!
When I saw how well done the special effects were for this show, I was actually really excited to start watching it. I feel like there have been more and more supernatural/fantasy shows coming out recently, and I'm a big fan of it in general. Unfortunately, this one really missed the mark for me! It seemed like the whole merman plot wasn't even relevant for most of the show, with a (frankly, uninteresting) romance being way more important. The show wasn't bad - there was the right amount of romantic conflict for the length of the show, and there were some interesting plot points that came up at the very end. However, if you're expecting a merman-filled drama, somehow this one isn't it.When Phurit moves to an island to co-own a bar, he hears legends about the mermen that once lived there, and assumes these are fairytales. Little does he know, the cute bartender Nawa that he's been flirting with is secretly a merman. Nawa has been warned time and time again that humans and merman can't fall in love, but that doesn't seem to be stopping him.
This is basically a Romeo and Juliet style forbidden romance - and genuinely, you could have replaced "merman" with just about any other reason to forbid a relationship and the plot would have gone the same way. Random merman lore was thrown in on occasion, but somehow never seemed all that relevant. Also, mermen hunters were brought up and were barely even an issue! They TOTALLY could have made this show about a merman and a hunter, or at least have one of the major conflict be between Nawa and a hunter. Instead, every plot point revolves solely around the relationship: the hunters just mean Nawa needs to "be more careful" and not see Phurit....okay I guess? This was so close to being a really interesting show, but unfortunately missed the mark by making it way too romance focused for a show that should include way more magical elements.
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To love the one you hate, and hate the one you love
Kill to Love was AMAZING. I am so impressed with the writers ability to tell such a complex, engaging story in the time that they had with this show. The major conflict of loyalty vs love vs revenge, and the twisting of hate and love....all of it was incredible. The ONLY reason I gave this a 9.5/10 was I couldn't help but wonder how much better it could've been if they just had a few more episodes - a few sections in the last 1/3 of the show felt a bit too rushed, but I am still so amazed at everything this show managed to do.When an assassin infiltrates the palace in an attempt to kill the crown prince, the crown price's brother, sixth prince Xiao Shu He, is forced to help the assassin escape. In doing so, Shu He feels that this assassin is someone he might know. Suspiciously soon after, Shu He narrowly avoids an "assassination attempt" himself, thanks to a chance encounter with his long-lost childhood friend, Duan Zi Ang. Fully aware that Zi Ang attempted to kill his brother, and that he was behind this fake assassination attempt, Shu He brings his friend back to the palace to help him recover - and to keep an eye on him. As Zi Ang attempts to gain information to help in his assassination of the crown prince, Shu He attempts to gain information on Zi Ang - but as the two continue to spend time together, they can't help but develop feelings. Are these feelings real, or is it a tactic to get closer to the one they're trying to kill? With their home nations on the brink of war, how far are they willing to go to deceive one another?
All I can say is WATCH THIS! It's not heavy on cultivation like I thought it might be, but the politics of the two countries is INCREDIBLE. A sixth prince who wants nothing to do with politics; an assassin who is forced to follow orders; a crown prince becoming power hungry; an emperor hidden away in his palace; and a country on the brink of an all-out war....you can imagine that both the external pressures of war and the internal power struggles only enhance the relationship tension between Zi Ang and Shu He. And of course, I have to mention how much I enjoyed that this relationship wasn't censored! It was truly wonderful to watch, and kept me guessing about who was telling the truth, and who had other motives. ABSOLUTELY worth watching!!!
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Predictable, but the romance made it worth it
Every time a new JimmySea show starts airing, I remember how enjoyable it is to watch them work together. Their chemistry just feels so natural, and their ability to portray the characters in My Magic Prophecy was incredible. Was this the most innovative, creative show? No. BUT the relationship was great and I thoroughly enjoyed the twists in the story, even though they were fairly predictable.In (Sea) is a tarot reader, but he's more than just another fortune teller - he is truly clairvoyant, and often gets visions of bad things happening to people close to him. However, the stronger the vision, the larger the toll it takes on him, and he often ends up hurt because of it. When he sees his friend's older brother Dr. Thap (Jimmy) getting killed, he ends up stopping it from happening, but it seems this wasn't a one-off encounter. Thap's life is quickly put in danger after he treats a critical patient, and it's unclear who wants this patient dead so badly as to kill the doctor. To protect himself and his family, Thap stays with In in In's late parents house in a small village, and while the two do not see eye to eye at first, a relationship slowly forms between them.
I thought this show was super well done. Jimmy and Sea have amazing chemistry as Thap and In, and I loved the way the relationship progressed. I also really enjoyed the parallel investigation storyline, with the doctors and cops trying to figure out how a patient ended up in the hospital, the foul play involved, and the threats to Thap's life. While most of the twists in the case were predictable, it was still super fun to watch it play out. I do think the highlight of the show is the relationship though. It is truly such a sweet and caring relationship between these characters, and the way they help each other through the struggles is fantastic. Definitely worth watching for that!!
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A Little Too Silly
Honestly, I only watched this show for EarthMix. I'm not typically the biggest fan of this style of comedy, and I've found that Thai adaptations of Japanese BLs typically don't quite land for me. So it didn't surprise me when I found myself not super invested in this show. I LOVE Earth and Mix in their more serious and dramatic roles (Moonlight Chicken, ToTS), and I think their comedic characters in this one just didn't quite do it for me.Heng (Earth) is the worst real estate consultant at his office. When Mo (Mix) transfers to his branch, the two move in together. However, when Heng learns that both Mo and his boss have feelings for him, he's stuck trying to figure out his own feelings (and why they would like someone like him).
This show was pure comedy. It was silly and goofy and pretty fun. However, it just felt like so much back and forth. I kept waiting for the show to have a little more depth, and instead they threw in a random amnesia plotline. If you're a big fan of EarthMix and want something lighter from them, give this a shot - but if you're like me and prefer their more serious characters, you could probably skip this one.
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