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A Book To Live Action Adaption That Failed to Deliver But Still Has A Special Place In My Heart

Reverse With Me was the first ever Thai GL book I read and it was an absolute masterpiece. Not once did it fail to deliver me a great balance and mix of romance, thriller, and fantasy. Which is why in the first place, I was extremely excited about this adaptation—then it was announced that it was only going to have 8 episodes and I immediately knew my favorite Thai GL novel was not going to have a live adaptation that gave it justice.

Production-wise, SiamSi Studios evidently did their best, as can be seen from the visual effects, intro, and ending sequences. It really did encapsulated the magic of the book, but the main issue of this show is the amount of episodes it has. Zezeho's masterpiece with Reverse With Me could not be replicated properly with only 8 episodes. Sure, some would argue that SiamSi was able to somewhat fix the episodes and length issue by making Fiat the sole antagonist and made a great plot twist that logically made sense and actually moved me quite a bit, but it couldn't erase the fact that KaranKliao's amazing love story suffered because of it.

Due to the show only having 8 episodes, we missed out on so much yearning, slow burn, and natural build-up potential which was what made the book extremely good. Scenes were simplified to the max to maximize the story building alongside the relationship building to the point that everything seems to move way too fast to even feel anything for the main leads. And don't get me started to giving the hetero side couple so much screen time, it was definitely super questionable. I tried giving it the benefit of the doubt thinking it was going to be part of Fiat's masterplan of some sort, but nada. Absolutely nothing. So much wasted screen time that could have been allocated for something else. Not to mention, we barely got to see Kliao's friend group that had so much significance to Kliao's life in the book.

Despite all of these issues, I still can't help but be biased and say that because of how good the book is, the show, in my eyes will carry with it the feels the book made me feel which just goes to show that bad writing will always produce bad shows but good writing makes way for a great show.

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A warm feast for the stomach and heart.

I feel full. Partially because of all the food showcased but mostly because of finishing season 1 of this series. I never knew how much impact a show with such a simple premise would bring to me, but here we are with She Loves to Cook, and She Loves to Eat.

Growing up in a family that has food and offering food as their primary love language, this one just hits so close to home, I couldn't help but feel warm the entire watch. It's so endearing to see how food brings people together in other aspects in their life just like how it is being portrayed in this show.

There is something oddly comforting about watching two women eat together and talking to each other about life and about anything at all. This show did extremely well instilling the feeling of coziness and the feeling you get when you truly are at a safe space.

I love how they took time for Yuki to process her feelings and be sure of them before doing anything. The theme of self discovery was well done in this series which I appreciated a lot.

I only have good things to say about this show and how comfy it made me feel while watching. Although the 10 episodes were short, the slow burn was immaculate and got me kicking my feet and giggling. A light watch for anyone looking for a sweet and simple time.

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Missed potential and uncomfortable comedy in a workplace romance.

Warning: spoilers ahead!

Content & trigger warnings before watching the show: SA, Cheating, Mean Tsundere Behavior

This exes-to-lovers trope had potential, but it lacked creativity and romanticism. Fuyu’s character starts off stone cold and unreasonable, but I tried to overlook it, understanding people cope with heartbreak differently. She apologizes for her actions by episode 5, so for those wondering, she does make amends.

Fuyu’s character swings between acceptable and illogical behavior, especially since she’s a tsundere who’s mean without considering the other party’s feelings. If you don’t like this type of character, this show might not be for you. While the chemistry between the leads wasn’t as spark-filled as I prefer, their cozy dynamic worked for a more comfortable vibe.

Some emotional scenes could have been better with stronger acting. I did enjoy the contrast between Fuyu’s workaholic nature and Itsuki’s motherly, hands-on vibe, and their parenting dynamic with Tsuki was adorable.

The show also explored workplace struggles for women, like menstruation, having kids, and having to use "female charm" for career gain. The working mother and stay-at-home father dynamic was refreshing, and Fuyu’s character felt grounded in her dedication to work, but was also slightly problematic considering that if the genders were reversed, we would all despise the man for being such a red flag.

However, the show had major issues: 1) Sexual harassment masked as humor, which was uncomfortable and unnecessary. 2) The romanticization of cheating. 3) The lack of background on Fuyu and Itsuki’s past relationship made it hard to root for them. 4) Fuyu's unsure feelings or uncleared feelings toward her husband. How could she say she's a lesbian yet proceed to say she loved her husband without clarifying what kind of love it was? Sure we can maybe read between the lines but this kind of misrepresents lesbians and feels counter intuitive.

Despite these issues, the show was a decent watch, especially with its unique game development plot. However, the rushed ending and unresolved plot points (like Ro Asami’s feelings for Fuyu) left me confused.

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