1
1
This review may contain spoilers
A Tragically Well-Done Political Romance
Wow. I am in awe. I am not the type to be fond of romances heavily involving a political massacre or the prospects of living in secret due to high intensities of homophobia, but this was just absolute perfection. Shine, what a series you are. Mixed with the upheaval of political unrest, including student protesters, high-end rich folks, and free-spirited hippies, this series had it all.
Let's Dive In.
I want to first state how impressive of a performance Mile and Apo bring to the screen. This was their best work yet. I'd never seen Mu Huang (and probably won't), but even without my knowledge of their performances in that, I still know this has to be the best they've put out. With the addition of Son, Euro, Peter, and Kob, the acting was top tier. Paired with a delectable script, there's is no way Shine won't be finding its way into my top 5 of this year.
The story is tragic. I would not recommend this to anyone not ready for the themes presented in this, which is every trigger warning about anything ever. Nevertheless, the subjects that Shine "shine" a light on are poetically infused with passion, anger, depression, angst, and even a good handful of humor. Truthfully, this entire series is written like a poem. At first hand, it's a little hard to keep up with, and this is definitely not the series to have as a background watch. You have to pay close attention to the details and the dialogue, or you could miss critical components. Multiple times I had to rewind and really digest the words on my screen. This is not an easy watch, wait to see this for when you can sit down and really observe.
The romance in this is crushingly grievous. Both pairings have unreal chemistry, and leave you yearning so, so, so much. You have Trin and Tanwa's story that is a pleasant warm blanket until it's not. And then you have Krailert and Naran's story that is all clandestine meetups and secretive passages in the newspaper until it's gutted so hard you will cry. I am no crier, but the tears will come, trust me.
I like how accurate of a tale this is. Nothing is rainbows and sunshine and unicorns like some BLs would transform stories like this to be, it is an actual tale of what would happen if this was real life. Placed in a time of needed government reform and fierce bigotry, this was everything it needed to unfortunately be.
The saddest story of them all is Victor's. I cannot believe this was Peter's first acting gig, and what a performance it was. As Victor, he played this rebellious college student to a T. His tragic demise was such a plot twist for me. I wasn't expecting it at all, and it crushed me. I need to see Peter back on my screen. I'm hopeful he'll get new work in the coming year.
I was fooled plenty of times, but the revelation to Dhevi's wicked scheme was so left field I had to pause my screen and just sit in quiet for a moment. Throughout the series, we are meant to feel bad for Dhevi. She wants to be loved, she wants to have a child, all of which Krailert is not mentally and/or physically able to give her. So the unveiling of her plan all along and the way she dragged Krailert since the beginning was just a throat-punch to the neck. But even still, there is a part of me that resonates with her. Not her evilness, but the yearn for something/someone that isn't available. Veera's death was another hard pill to swallow, as you root for him and Dhevi for the longest. I wonder what the circumstance would've looked like if Dhevi would've revealed what she knew all along in the beginning. They could've lived in a lavender relationship whilst having their own romances on the side. Truly one of the mot heartbreaking stories in Shine.
Trin and Tanwa's story is the only one with a happy ending. Thankfully, with only a two-year time jump, Tanwa, tasked with finding his way through his depression and misery by Trin, is able to become his self again thanks to his dad, of all people. They later met, fall in love, and literally live happily ever after. That ending scene was a real tribute of long-lasting love and the possibly of same-sex couples growing old together.
Krailert and Naran...phew. That's all I really can come up with.
Ratings:
Story: 9/10 - Perfection. Also, just a beautiful script. A standing ovation to the writers. The cinematography, the color grading, the camera work compliment the themes in this so well. I also appreciate the hair, wardrobe, and makeup department. Actors looked like they were in the 70s. Brilliant. There are some little things here and there, but overall, amazing.
Acting: 10/10 - beautiful performances from literally everyone. Not notes here.
Music: 8/10 - I am not a music girlie by any means, but every song worked so perfectly in this. I even stayed to listen to Tanwa sing, and I never do that.
Recommendation Value: 7/10 - It's pretty low, I know, but I don't recommend this unless you have the guts to handle it.
Omg, doing all of this reviewing, and I didn't even talk about the NC scenes. PERFECTION. but, BOC doesn't usually miss that nail. So if it helps, you see plenty of beautifully naked men that kind of balance out all the sad shit (kinda).
Let's Dive In.
I want to first state how impressive of a performance Mile and Apo bring to the screen. This was their best work yet. I'd never seen Mu Huang (and probably won't), but even without my knowledge of their performances in that, I still know this has to be the best they've put out. With the addition of Son, Euro, Peter, and Kob, the acting was top tier. Paired with a delectable script, there's is no way Shine won't be finding its way into my top 5 of this year.
The story is tragic. I would not recommend this to anyone not ready for the themes presented in this, which is every trigger warning about anything ever. Nevertheless, the subjects that Shine "shine" a light on are poetically infused with passion, anger, depression, angst, and even a good handful of humor. Truthfully, this entire series is written like a poem. At first hand, it's a little hard to keep up with, and this is definitely not the series to have as a background watch. You have to pay close attention to the details and the dialogue, or you could miss critical components. Multiple times I had to rewind and really digest the words on my screen. This is not an easy watch, wait to see this for when you can sit down and really observe.
The romance in this is crushingly grievous. Both pairings have unreal chemistry, and leave you yearning so, so, so much. You have Trin and Tanwa's story that is a pleasant warm blanket until it's not. And then you have Krailert and Naran's story that is all clandestine meetups and secretive passages in the newspaper until it's gutted so hard you will cry. I am no crier, but the tears will come, trust me.
I like how accurate of a tale this is. Nothing is rainbows and sunshine and unicorns like some BLs would transform stories like this to be, it is an actual tale of what would happen if this was real life. Placed in a time of needed government reform and fierce bigotry, this was everything it needed to unfortunately be.
The saddest story of them all is Victor's. I cannot believe this was Peter's first acting gig, and what a performance it was. As Victor, he played this rebellious college student to a T. His tragic demise was such a plot twist for me. I wasn't expecting it at all, and it crushed me. I need to see Peter back on my screen. I'm hopeful he'll get new work in the coming year.
I was fooled plenty of times, but the revelation to Dhevi's wicked scheme was so left field I had to pause my screen and just sit in quiet for a moment. Throughout the series, we are meant to feel bad for Dhevi. She wants to be loved, she wants to have a child, all of which Krailert is not mentally and/or physically able to give her. So the unveiling of her plan all along and the way she dragged Krailert since the beginning was just a throat-punch to the neck. But even still, there is a part of me that resonates with her. Not her evilness, but the yearn for something/someone that isn't available. Veera's death was another hard pill to swallow, as you root for him and Dhevi for the longest. I wonder what the circumstance would've looked like if Dhevi would've revealed what she knew all along in the beginning. They could've lived in a lavender relationship whilst having their own romances on the side. Truly one of the mot heartbreaking stories in Shine.
Trin and Tanwa's story is the only one with a happy ending. Thankfully, with only a two-year time jump, Tanwa, tasked with finding his way through his depression and misery by Trin, is able to become his self again thanks to his dad, of all people. They later met, fall in love, and literally live happily ever after. That ending scene was a real tribute of long-lasting love and the possibly of same-sex couples growing old together.
Krailert and Naran...phew. That's all I really can come up with.
Ratings:
Story: 9/10 - Perfection. Also, just a beautiful script. A standing ovation to the writers. The cinematography, the color grading, the camera work compliment the themes in this so well. I also appreciate the hair, wardrobe, and makeup department. Actors looked like they were in the 70s. Brilliant. There are some little things here and there, but overall, amazing.
Acting: 10/10 - beautiful performances from literally everyone. Not notes here.
Music: 8/10 - I am not a music girlie by any means, but every song worked so perfectly in this. I even stayed to listen to Tanwa sing, and I never do that.
Recommendation Value: 7/10 - It's pretty low, I know, but I don't recommend this unless you have the guts to handle it.
Omg, doing all of this reviewing, and I didn't even talk about the NC scenes. PERFECTION. but, BOC doesn't usually miss that nail. So if it helps, you see plenty of beautifully naked men that kind of balance out all the sad shit (kinda).
Was this review helpful to you?
