jpny01

Phupha was tightly coiled, confident, macho, in control, and Type A, whereas Jim has insecurities, a lower sense of self-worth, and is more of a giver. I think maybe what it is is that BL characters behave like boys and Earth tends to play men, who in most cultures are not as free to be histrionic. Very often the uke is the author inserting herself into the story and the seme is the object of her fantasy, and the story revolves around the uke, so you don't notice how little the seme does except rescue the uke from constant trouble.

Here, Earth is the main character, not Mix, so it's unusual to have the center of attention not be a narcisstic little brat who cries a lot. Think about Until We Meet Again - what can you tell me about Ohm's character? What is he like? All I can come up with is "a mannequin that can somehow speak." That might have been the stiffest performance of all time, but nobody will remember it that way because Fluke cried 24/7 and the story was about him. Ditto for the other pair. I can't even remember if Kao had any speaking lines.

What I meant by "range" is not the roles, but rather the ability to display emotion without telegraphing everything. Crying is "cheating". Somebody squirts tears into your eyes before the take rolls and everyone knows you're sad. If you have to portray sadness just with subtle facial expressions, that's much harder. So in this Mix has more or less the same mood and expression all the time. That this is different than Tian's or Mueng Nan's, not to mention Win's, doesn't to me mean range. Despite the reserve of Earth's characters, I always know exactly what he's feeling because he's so good at conveying it with economy of force.

I don't think Mix is a bad actor - he's not, and there are things he does well. For example, although it's not been stated, it's clear he comes from money because he's playing Wen in an effortlessly aristocratic way (either that or he's effortlessly aristocratic). Compare that to Phuwin in Never Let Me Go who's rich kid is cartoonish and mannered (that's probably largely the director's fault). Wen paid off the motorcycle guy and was careful to be as unobtrusive as possible and frame it in a way to spare Jim's feelings and sense of honor - think about how Nueng paid off the ganster in Never Let Me Go.

But that's the difference between a really good series (like this one) and a mediocre one.

I think your last sentence is the final word. :) If you want realistic depictions of mental and physical afflictions, BL is not the best place - where PTSD can be cured instantly but True Love, and psychopaths and malignant narcissists can become saints if only a cute guy with great abs would love them.

I don't think the money thing is distasteful, it's just different. Many immigrant cultures of European origin in the US had money featuring prominently in weddings (check out The Godfather for a Sicilian wedding) until recently, and in traditional European weddings, the wedding night was not exactly private - in many cases the local community watched the consummation, usually not quietly. Can you imagine your neighbors jeering your cheering and jeering while you're trying to "perform" for the first time?

That makes sense. This is from a website of a legal firm:

After a Thai bride's hand is requested from her father, financial discussions may begin. While by no means compulsory, the 'sinsot’ dowry system and the prominent role of money in Thai wedding ceremonies can at first seem crass, or even distasteful, to an American groom. However, it is important to understand that Thai culture places great emphasis on financial stability in marriage. Traditionally, a man marrying a Thai bride would move in with her family; the husband would then be obligated to take care of his new in-laws financially, and would receive their support in reciprocation. Family homes are usually inherited through female children, with their husbands also benefiting.

In return for these future benefits, the husband rewards his bride’s family in advance by presenting them with a dowry. A pre-agreed sum of money is publicly displayed as part of the ceremony, often in small denomination bills or in gold for dramatic effect. Negotiation on an appropriate amount is quite normal, and can vary hugely depending on the assets of the bride’s family and of the husband; as well as the bride’s education and beauty. A Thai bride from a village might command a figure of around THB 100,000 - 200,000 (USD 3,000 - 6,000)...

It was written for him, so it's actually not possible to miscast him, but whatever. He'll get a lot of criticism from a couple of people, apparently, but I'm not seeing much else.

Didn't he get the necklace after the car incident? Maybe I'm remembering it wrong.

How on earth can car insurance fees be enough for a dowry? I live in the USA and it's only $700 per year, and you can choose to pay it monthly.

Yes, that's what I'm saying. I'm responding to the idea that there's too much emphasis on them being poor, and I don't see it that way. They're poor, and so their behavior and decisions have to be in character for poor people.

I don't see similar complaints like "we get it, they're rich" about the 99% of BL characters who are gazillionaires with large household staffs and giant mansions.

I'd kind of like it to be the mother, because Chopper's dad is hot AF.

I'll go back and watch that. I think maybe the issue is that Khaotung ALWAYS looks like he's flirting, so I don't notice it (he's a sexy boy - I'm sure he can't help it.)

The parents are going to be a problem - I think there will be things that are hard to watch.

Oh my goodness - I hadn't seen any of that discussion. Here his character is not quite as uptight, but in 1,000 Stars he played a very reserved character, but his tension and longing were so palpable - here I get a ton of emotion out of even his subtle expressions. I think that requires a lot more skill than expressing strong emotions. But it doesn't really matter - if people don't enjoy his performance, they don't.

I know, but I'm fairly sure his parents are awful to him if he does anything even slightly embarassing like talking too loud or slurring a word and he's learned to be silent. The only time it struck me as Not Quite Right is when they were struggling or Heart was startled. In the scene where he got surprised and dropped the super-expensive bottle, he would definietly have sworn or something. I don't swear, but it just comes out if I stub my toe or something.

Thanks - I didn't notice Khaotung liking Jim at all - I'm guessing it was in the preview or an interview or something, or maybe I just missed it.

Yes, I just wish I spoke Thai so I could get the full effect. Sometimes Wen seems a little too aggressive, but I think his dialog is a bit more playful and clever than it is in translation.

I think people's brains have been so trained by BL cliches that if someone doesn't casually display obscene wealth that it's somehow intrusive, and if they don't cry all the time they're "stiff". Remember Lovely Writer? There were no stakes - the worst case scenario for Gene if he got fired would be he'd have to choose which of his gigantic mansions to sulk in, and his big emotional meltdown was because someone didn't tell him who he was - a childhood friend, not Hitler in disguise.

Men don't display a lot of emotion. Earth is acting like a man, and he's playing a character with great skill and depth. I'm just astonished at some of the reactions. I think maybe there's an age split - the younger viewers want the more traditional BL that Fourth and Gemini are doing in this. I like all of it and I'm glad there's variety and contrast.

Jim's found family is poor. When you're poor, money is a struggle. To skate around that would be lazy and inauthentic, and whitewashing how hard life is for people who don't know how they're going to make it to the next month. Their poverty is one of the main drivers of the plot - and I don't think it's been "in your face" at all - it's never gratuitous, it's related to the story. Jim couldn't afford his car insurance, which made Mix have to pay off the people he hit. Mark got the girl pregnant, so Jim had to sell his car (I'm guessing) to get the dowry. They're not wallowing around in mud, they're just struggling a little and working hard.

I'm amazed. I think Earth is easily the strongest actor in this series. Mix is so-so, Fourth & Gemini are both naturals and I think will end up being spectacular with a bit more experience, but I'm really surprised to hear someone call Earth "stiff". He's playing a reserved character, and yet I can always see on his face what he's feeling - that's much harder to to do than crying all the time, which BL audiences seem to love.

His parents are too ashamed of his condition to allow him out in public. Can you imagine what they did to him if he spoke to loud or slurred his words? Just think about when you try to talk to someone when you're wearing headphones - you almost always get the volume wrong and end up scaring someone, or if you try to speak softly, they can't hear you. I don't think it's a plot hole. Except for when they're fighting over something - I think Heart would yell at him in that case.

Have you ever been wearing headphones, and someone asked you something, you answered without taking them off, and scared the sh@# out of them because you were talking so loud? That probably happened to Heart constantly when he first went deaf - and note that his parents are too ashamed of his condition to allow him out of doors, so you can expect they were horrible to him for talking loud. That would make anyone refuse to speak.

What love triangle? I didn't notice Khoutung in a triangle.

Who is complaining about Earth?!? He's incredible in this. Maybe you're right about age - people think crying and chewing up the scenery is acting - when it's really the ability to convey emotion subtly. Earth could be the deaf mute character and you'd always know exactly what he's feeling. I know that when it comes to the arts, there are no wrong answers, but anyone who thinks Earth is a bad actor simply has no idea what they're talking about. I don't have any problem with Mix, but it certainly wasn't him carrying 1,000 Stars on his shoulders, and he isn't here either.

It's ridiculous that Jim is supposed to be nearly 40, though. Come on.

I think we're losing a lot of the wordplay in translation, which is a pity, but kind of unavoidable.

Maybe it's just turned up too high, Occassionally, epecially if someone is speaking loudly, there's some distortion. The cinematography is absolutely beautiful, and the colors are so artful.

It's weird - such a high-quality production and the sound was substandard this ep. All that crackling and plastic rustling - I'm guessing everyone noticed when Fourth was poking the ice in his cup with his straw. If you didn't notice, I apologize, because you will notice it now and it will distract you.

And are they going to feed that cat that weird stuff every episode? That might actually get kind of funny, like if they have to pause a gunfight to feed the cat and talk about how tasty it is.

Fourth was the real standout for me this episode, and he and Gemini are such naturals. Earth was great as usual, but Mix doesn't do as much for me. He's not bad or anything, but his range is more limited. And of course I love my Mark.

I like that this actually feels like Thailand instead of the set of an American 1980s evening drama about hyper-rich people like Dynasty. I like that there are absolutely no tropes or cliches, I enjoy the realism, and I love the pace. This is a series that will grow on me, I think.