lilili

I was screaming NARC at the screen when the housekeeper did that.

I also love how after she sent the money she checks her account and says something like oof I did that without thinking. Like Gorya she's not superhumanly strong, she feels like a real person.

In all the other versions he either forces a kiss or tries to sexually assault her **stares at manga and Taiwanese version*** This change is huge because it shows Thyme's growth and also you can see how Gorya is also looking at him differently. Her feelings are shifting in a way that makes sense.

I know, right? The emotional beats really landed hard in this episode. I can't get over how good the writing is and credit to the actors, esp. Bright, Tu and Prim. Win was also really good and his character is finally gelling for me.

I just finished watching and I can't even form coherent thoughts except to say GODDAMN THE WRITING IS SO GOOD. Same plot points but deepened and changed, everyone is more complex and thoughtful, Thyme and Gorya just make more sense, I like that the connection to Ren is still there and how Kavin and MJ got big chunks of dialogue and we got to know them better than just being party boys. And Kaning being a complete badass, I LOVE HER. Gah I will be thinking about this all day.

When she wired him the money for the dessert I literally started shouting at my TV, so gooood! This whole episod

Ah yes!!! I love this 😁

YES and omg you know my podcast????

Gorya (me) sent me 🤣 Also I wish I was as strong and cool as Gorya!

I love Taiwanese Shan Cai and also her voiceovers add a lot of depth to the character because we can hear her struggling with her feelings for Daoming Si and Lei. ETA: But I agree that Gorya is the most complex and feels the most real of all the adaptations

Ha well I wasn't sold on Kim Bum in Korean BoF as a playboy either. Potter/player is just silly. The Japanese version, the character was sleazy which fit but I didn't like him, he just creeped me out. I loved the character in the Taiwanese version because he was kind of low key party boy drifting through life and I felt like it was set up better in how he interacted with women. I also love that he ends up having a one night stand with the Kaning character because she makes a choice to lose her virginity to him before moving to the US and that it's a surprisingly emotional encounter for him that temporarily puts a pause on his playboy ways but then he recovers and gets back to it. It all felt very real to me,

The Taiwanese version has horrible production values but the acting of the 3 main leads and the writing are on point. It was my favorite version (I've seen nearly all of the adaptations) but F4T is climbing fast and will probably end up being my fave. What you said here: "I would have never, in my entire life, expected someone to rewrite the script in suchhhh a good way it's very very well written" 💯 this

I think saying that you want someone who is kind, generous, responsible, ETC just like your older or sibling is a lovely thing. But HYD crosses the line to being weird. In the anime after Makino kicks Domtouji, he lays on the ground with heart eyes and says sister? That's too far.

Korea also made the 2ML a much bigger character than in other versions because the actor was popular so you had crazy things like a wedding photoshoot with the 2ML instead of the ML. The second half of the drama practically convinced you he was end game. In other versions the 2ML is important but in his proper place narratively.

I literally had no idea who Bright or Win were until the first episode of F4T dropped. And then I binged 2gether during F4T's two week break. So I had zero biases going in and didn't know anything about the fan controversies. But there's a reason that show blew up the way it did even though it has bad writing and directing and the secondary couples are boring. The chemistry between Bright and Win is insane and every time they are adorable together it's like a crack endorphin hit to the brain.

Now they are both in F4T and so far I'm loving Bright as Thyme. Very different role from Sarawat and he's hitting the mark. Win not as much, he hasn't sold me on being a playboy but I'm open to having him change my mind.

I looooooove The Smile Has Left Your Eyes! I'm so grateful they took out the incest but I did have a laugh over how they messed with people's expectations around the childhood connection trope.

You're getting a lot of charitable takes on this but here's my considerably less generous take: if you watch Japanese content, themes of incest is a thing (a thing I hate very much). Watch 100 Million Stars From the Sky if you want to be psychologically scarred for life.

Ah really love your breakdown and agree with most of it. Your breakdown of Ren's character being off intentionally until something breaks through when he loses control is so insightful. Too bad Dew is out of his depth. Agree that the pool voiceover was Win's strongest scene.

I wish I could read those early threads. I remember when the teaser dropped there was a lot of criticism of the adaptation and people saying the franchise should die because it was too toxic to make in the modern era. How are people in Thailand reacting to the drama now that there's three episodes out?

You made my night! Thanks for listening :)