Fleet of Time (2019)

fleet of time

this thdrama was just so amazing, the characters were all so relatable and well written, i honestly loved the first part when they were still in highschool, their life was so much easier and the drama had such an lighthearted and chill vibe. I didn't like dislike the uni part but let's say there were a lot of details that didn't really make sense to me and some characters just annoyed me a lot, but well sometimes that's how life is. I anyways love the way this drama had an important impact on me. im still young and fear of growing up, i don't want to deal with "real life" problems, that's why i cried and related to the characters emotions a lot. the fleeting of time is something you can't stop, «with time people and things change» (-khing), that's why this drama made me realize even more the importance of youth, we should cherish every moments and live happily just like khing,yae,win,fang and chieaw did, they encountered lots of difficulties but when they were together they would always smile brightly and try to solve each others problems. I also loved the way the scenes were shot, it had such an aesthetic vibe. i really liked this drama and hope this review will make you watch it<3

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Either the best thing ever or the most mediocre story ever. I can't decide.

This is either the best drama I have ever seen or one of the most mediocre, and I can't decide which. That's why I just split the difference between a ten or a five because I don't know if this was cautionary tale about the trials of picking the wrong person or a mediocre romance with disgusting elements thrown in.

The good: Yae, Khing, and Chiaw absolutely give me life and should be protected at all costs. They are all amazing characters and their acting was top notch.

The bad: The three named characters above have the least screen time in favor of the two actual leads Win and Fang. I hate both of these characters for different reasons, but I hate Win the most because he is the epitome of a bad choice in a good wrapping. He is cute, and at first glance, romantic, but he actually puts Fang in horrible positions and never really has a good reason for why he pursues her. He becomes noticeably horrible later in the series, but I hated him from the very beginning. Fang on the other hand is the epitome of innocence to a fault. She allows people to take advantage of her (and no I'm not talking about that DISGUSTING storyline thrown in at the end of the drama), never speaks up for herself, and is as interesting as watching paint dry. She has this most annoying habit of LONG pregnant pauses every time someone asks her a question, and it just made me frustrated the entire time she was on the screen.

If this drama is a cautionary tale, it was amazing because they seed from the beginning the cracks in the main leads' relationship.

If it is a mediocre romance, it was not very well done at all. Watch it for the three characters above, especially Yae. His storyline was amazing and honestly would have been a stronger drama on its own.

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If this is not example of writer's failure, then I don't know what is.

I got a bit scared reading the synopsis, nevertheless their school years start in 1999, therefore it's not true the characters are "growing up in Bangkok in the 1980s", LOL. Actually, the series starts with Bank Thiti's voiceover saying he's 35 now, but back when he was only 16, "everything around him was merry". Then follows the beginning of the story that starts with some good ol' school bullying. Merry.

Pattie Ungsumalin's character enters the school, wearing their puffy school shirt, so that we don't get to see whether her waist is 20 or 40 inches (of course there's no doubt in Pattie's case, she's always been skinny to the point it's uncomfortable to look at) and acting all wooden (probably not Pattie's performance fail, just the character's trait). She first gets bullied for something she didn't even do then after she still takes her bullies' side they accept her among themselves. "Yay".

Nevertheless, she gets along best with the only boy that was not mean to her even in the beginning, and rather avoids Bank Thiti's character, who suddenly looks all jealous. He also keeps being annoying in class and bringing unasked attention towards Pattie's character, despite it's quite obvious she is the attention shy type. She even more or less openly tells him so. Still, he doesn't quit it. Best Nathasit's character Yae is shown mostly doing silly fun stuff and laughing around, but he was laughing also when a girl was being bullied. Jomjam Suphitcha's character Khing is a girl who takes no nonsense. Now, she would probably be best person to set the Bank Thiti's character straight. Instead, the scriptwriters let her mostly hanging around Yae and challenging him in his antics. Victor Chatchawit's Cheaw keeps clinging to Pattie's quiet girl, offering help and support to her ceaselessly. Which only results in Bank Thiti's character targetting her the harder. The circle thus closes.

Things are not black and white all the time. Actually, both of the boys prove to have good feelings towards the same girl in question, but that's a problem, too. They might be in 1999 but I am not: I find it tiring that when there are 2 boys interested in 1 girl, they always have to be best friends (and if not, then they are brothers, of course). Then the reason of Pattie's character's extreme quietness is revealed. It's quite a tragic one. I really didn't get the "merry and carefree atmosphere" the high school timeline was suppposed to have... when it was quite full of bullying and fighting and jealousy and tragic deaths? It's true the characters keep on spending plenty of time just hanging out and laughing, no matter what they just dealt with. Maybe we should do that even after we finish school and get a job? Is that what this show is trying to tell us?;)

All the characters were dealing with considerable stress (one bordered on suicide attempt). The main couple shares one fake kiss, the second couple shares an awkward tussle, the odd guy out shares a night with his absentee mother. There's nothing to be enchanted with. Should the "college years" be better? I waited for many episodes... It draaagged, I seriously began to be annoyed even by the opening credits. Why all the nostalgia? This series was far from portraying some "unforgettable story" (if there was any story at all). I tried and waited and waited and waited for the university part to FINALLY begin (seriously, it was like the high-school would NEVER end, that much it dragged) so I would find out what was the point of this "drama"?

There was still yet one more episode almost entirely dedicated to the guys packing their stuff and visiting the empty classroom one last time to sit there with teary eyes. I understand the scriptwriter was having huge nostalgia attack while writing this. Still, seeing the supposedly teenage characters acting deeply moved by completing high school attendance was kinda ridiculous to watch. Oh, there was also Khing being finally asked to date the guy she had the unrequited crush on, followed by the worst onscreen kiss ever (then she almost got gang rap*d... aw, the idyllic school days).

Then another crisis hits with one of the friends going to jail... I wondered whether we were still in the "idillyc" timeline. This was probably the first time the show wasn't boring, but we suddenly move by sharp edit to university (with the group of 5 friends now reduced just to 3) without this being resolved (or it just got resolved by him dissappearing into prison, just like the other boy disappeared abroad).

Then the university life happens, which is quite horrifying experience itself. You get uprooted from safety of your home (if you did have that kind of home), bullied by seniors and their "initiation games" to no end, and forced to LIVE with strangers: apparently one cannot choose their roommates, but they might choose to bully you, too. We now concentrate just on our first couple + Khing (as we lost the 2 other friends). Fang, after spending years in anxiety that she won't get into the same uni as her boyf, is clearly going to have a taste of "be careful what you wish for". She doesn't get to live with Khing, but with ruthless rival targetting her boyfriend, who got popular with ladies instantly. She comes to their dates all moody and refuses as much as to kiss him. You can see her losing him before it actually happens.

There is also a new suitor for Khing, who is about as funny - the writer obviously thinks Khing NEEDS to date a "funny guy" - as Yae, BUT doesn't look like Best Nathasit (who perhaps got another acting gig by now and had gone in other show, because suddenly we can't see even a visit scene with him). The college life really doesn't seem an improvement... Oh, there is one new girl getting closer to Win, and she is likeable. She is actually too likeable for the character portrayed by Bank Thiti, and of course more likeable than the girl portrayed by Pattie Ungsumalin, which doesn't even need the mention.

As we no longer have 5 people, we lost the scenes featuring the group camaraderie. Mostly we are forced to watch the very slow breakdown of the relationship of Win & Fang, who has the disadvantage that she's not compatible with him in bed. The two of them are on different timelines kind of, too:) She needs to wait for years to be ready, ideally for a wedding. He has the hormones (pun intended) screaming to him NOW. Even if he sincerely loves her and intends to marry her, there are years stretching ahead during which he'll need to deal with the body's needs somehow. Ideally such couple should be separated for this, and meet again after studies then this awkward discrepancy should not be mentioned:)

So, people who should have stayed together got separated. People who should get separated stayed together. Thus begins the university part of the series.

When Win hangs out with the likeable girl, we can see it's not just the unfilled body needs. He's also bored out of his wits (one scene he falls asleep while being with Fang alone). And the new girl is interesting and fun to be with. But at least he can relax with his roommates. Boys are not as cut-throat as girls, so he's friends with them. Fang has to live in as hostile an environment as ever, but it's safe to say one can understand Win's view. Even writing an e-mail (THAT's what he's supposed to do when he misses her) to her is uncomfortable.

Suddenly we skip 1 year ahead, which is manifested by Bank Thiti's hair growth to uncomfortable length (I'm not sure if it was his own or they've given some crazy wig to him). Pattie Ungsumalin's character spends couple of nights knitting him a cap, to cover the hair. She also keeps being badmoody because she is jealous, unfortunatelly she acts the way she's practically pushing him to be with somebody else. I must say after watching this couple from the beginning, I am tired with their storyline. On the other hand, Khing has to strive for several episodes to be able as much as see Yae, of course. All the while being pestered by the annoying new guy, whom I just wished to step back to group background cast. If this is not a sign of a scriptwriter's failure, then I don't know what is.

Best Nathasit finally reappears, wearing even crazier wig than Bank Thiti, or if those were his real hair, then good for him. He appears, and nothing much else. The only comfort is the number of remaining episodes is getting thinner. This CANNOT drag AS much as the high school. Music does stand out, though. It's like stolen from some way different (and way better) series/movie. There's also interesting visual effect acompanying Pattie Ungsumalin's silouette leaving one scene, unfortunatelly I was focusing more on her unflatteringly skinny figure and weird shape of her bones (which we CAN see clearly, ya know:) so that aspect - along with poignant music acompanying banal events - also did not work on me.

It looked more and more like this whole show's only purpose was to portray the way full of doubts whether there will be an happy ending for the couple Win & Fang, the couple I didn't even care whether they stayed together. And all the other characters were, after all, also only there to add support to their "story" (they didn't get their stories properly adressed and finished). Regretfully, I found basically any side-character in there more interesting than Win, or Fang, or the acting of Bank Thiti, or the acting of Pattie Ungsumalin, who seems to be always cast in roles where we are obviously supposed to be in awe just looking at her, though I don't find Pattie Ungsumalin that all-sufficient.

The synopsis says that in the university "Win starts dating a beautiful girl, Alyn. Out of jealousy, Fang hangs out with a playboy." It is not even as "entertaining" as that. What we really see is Win dating Fang for even more years, despite that their dating totally sucks. Win hangs out with cool girl, Earn. After quite some time, their developed feelings just start to show more on the surface. Out of jealousy (because she of course happened to see the first GLIMPSE of something happening in between the two and then got instantly jealous... same like Yae, btw.), Fang first leaves the university (after mostly hanging out with Khing, who is not allowed to have her proper story) then suddenly is seen in some kind of study group where she doesn't protest loudly enough against one insipid looking boy attempting to get closer to her.

Another weirdly absurd scene is shown when there is a photo exhibition being held with many people attending yet there is only Fang's face being shown on dozens of photos. It's like it's all happening in some bizarre reality where there is nothing more fascinating to look at than the face of Pattie Ungsumalin. Even if she really had that interesting a face, it would be slightly ridiculous. Her face is practically wallpapering the walls. Ironically, the girl who is - at least in direct comparison - interesting, just humbly sits there playing her guitar. It's Win who is author of all the photos, but he hugs the likeable girl, which we can UNDERSTAND even without words. Of course, Fang appears just the right second to see it (it's the 3rd time this gimmick is used in 1 same episode, therefore it gets so ridiculous I almost expected to hear added laughter in the background, like in sitcoms) and leaves jealous, YET AGAIN. I'm afraid that even though the college part of the series is considerably shorter, I shall probably be proven wrong in thinking it won't manage to be as draggy as the high school. Yet another "achievement" of this show's scriptwriter (please don't write more "dramas", please).

We touch the side-stories of the characters we COULD care about ever so slightly, but most we dedicate to "drama plots" like Fang being stupid to go into the room of some loser guy who's obviously trying to make move on her and prepared his rape drug for her already... I kinda tend to ignore such plot devices in all lakorns/dramas as for me, they don't even count. Here, they have chosen to mix it with the first Win/Earn bed scene which was kinda unfair to those characters, maybe teenage audience might be impressed by such montage (pitty the editor did not put their professional skills to better use than this series) but I am far from it: this didn't change the way I looked at the characters. In other words, just because they mixed two unrelated things in one montage or because she called his name in a drug haze, I will not think that Win was responsible for what happened to Fang. So moving on, to actual final of this "Fleet" of time... Which felt like eternity, LOL.

Now, the most amazing about the final episode was that it actually came. What this series managed to do is produce the feeling that it might possibly NEVER end. LOL. At least I got busy writing this review during it, else I would probably eaten my ficus plant. But before the final, there is of course yet one more episode showing the "happy" reunion of the 5 friends sitting at one table mostly with long faces, each trying more or less to supress. I couldn't help but smile. It's like they'd shown facial expressions of an audience watching 19th episode of this. They could probably look similarly "excited", lol. Especially knowing it is STILL not the last one... Loved seeing Khing & Yae together, though. Even if that was just somehow hastily put together near the end. Next time the group meets there are 6 people, sitting like 3 couples. Besides Khing sitting with Yae, Fang is sitting with Cheaw, which she probably should have done AGES ago (spare herself AND the audience) but then Win brings Earn, which was a shitty thing to do. Though I agreed with the 3 couples, and I liked Earn, I would know better than to bring her with me when meeting my ex and OUR common old friends. And if I have enough brains to know this, then so should Win. But of course this show's great writer needed all the people gathered for the "great" final, which is not worth the bother of describing it here.

Overall, the sharp discordance of the music playing with the content showing was oscillating between ridiculous and bizarre. Plainly said, strong score was put over weak scenes. Better actors were serving background to lesser ones. Characters were dissappearing/recurring at random... But I wouldn't let myself to be mislead that made this series something special. Uneven and dilettantish yes. Just because most of the creators kinda screwed up in their job, I would not sit here and wonder whether this is the best or worst story ever. Back to planet Earth... I'm giving this the rating it deserves.

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