The Effect (2019)

The effect others have on Us

This drama is so beautifully written. The actors do a great job on their end. The way "The Effect" deals with such a sensitive issue is praise worthy. Nothing felt over the top. The choices each character make in the drama makes sense. It is a must watch if you don't mind something dark and nerve-wrecking. At the end of the first episode, I thought it is going to be a typical BL with A liking B but C liking A and doing something unethical to get A's attention, but I was mind blown to which extent the show was taken to. Also I should mention that Shin's friends were my favourite. They are there beside Shin during all his ups and downs. People around them may talk shit about Shin but his friends are there to support him and even fight for him. Beautifully written and must watch.

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This is REALITY (TRIGGER WARNING)

I'm not going to lie, I come to have expectations when I watch most BLs. I want to believe they all will end with the main couple getting together and living happily ever after.

When I watched this I did not get a happily ever after, I got reality.

It started off like most series do. It had the same concepts: There's the Junior, Shin, who looks up to someone, maybe has some sort of feelings for them. Then the Senior, Keng, who is either hiding his feelings and sexuality but as soon as he meets the Junior, he realizes he can't fight it anymore. There's also the friends, and this series definitely has the good friends and the bad friends. The good friends who support you and fight for you, Pramote and Bright, and the bad friends, AKA Man, who do things that make everything worse.

Episode 1 had me thinking it was a normal series. There was the awkward moments, and the scenes where you think "Oh they might hug" or "Oh they might kiss". But there is also the story line behind the main couple that shows the jealousy and anger of rejected love. Man was jealous because he saw the way Keng looked at Shin, and instead of being a good friend and being understanding he decided to use social media to force Keng to come out as gay. Not exactly the way you want to get someone to accept your feelings. The result of social media is what starts this train wreck. The "effect" faceless people on the internet have is astounding. And as a result, Shin starts to step back from his relationship from Keng.

Episode 2... now this episode started out showing the consequences of social media. What else could Shin do but step back. But his friends supported him. (BEST FRIENDS EVER) They stood by him while social media crucified him because he was a "nobody" while Keng was "popular". I won't lie, at this point, I was hoping that Keng and Shin would talk it out and remain friends at the least. So coming up to the end of the episode, when Keng was at Shin's house and they were talking, I was very unprepared for the results. For Shin to step out of his comfort zone and be honest about his feelings was good and should have been received with understanding... but Keng, already having his own issues concerning family and feelings did not receive it well at all. And sometimes that is the reality. You won't get someone who UNDERSTANDS, and if they already have their own mental health issues you ARE going to get anger and resentment. Keng response was horrible and also a little sad. When he raped Shin and afterwards told him he loved him... God that broke my heart, because to me it showed that he really didn't understand AT ALL.

Episode 3 was also a hard one. This episode showed the aftermath of the rape and once again how social media still made a VICTIM INTO A PERPETRATOR. Faceless people on the internet had their own opinions about things they just didn't know. Sad but true reality. How do you force yourself to speak up when no one wants to listen and all you want to do is fade away. Shin attempted suicide was heartbreaking, because WHAT ELSE COULD HE DO? In his mind, there was nothing left... I do have to say though, that his friends and his parents were the best support system anyone is this world could ever have. They supported him and defended him, through everything. They also didn't try to tell him to get over it. They just said they would be there for him to lean on. THAT is the BEST support you could ever get.

I won't spoil the ending though in case anyone else is reading this. I did very much enjoy it though.

If my kids were older I would let them watch this, because it gives a view on how rape just isn't male-female, it can be same sex. It shows that even behind closed doors, no one is perfect, there's always going to be someone out there who wants what they can't have. That mental health issues are real! Even if you can't see it, even if you don't think someone can have it, even if they tell you it's all in your head... it's real. And also that social media can be a platform for bullying, rumors and hatred. Just because it's on the internet doesn't mean it's real. Use your words wisely.

10/10 would watch again , but honestly I'm going to have to wait awhile.

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BL goes to the dark side

Today was one of those times that I REALLY wish I had read MDL comments before watching something. Several issues that I struggle with in Thai dramas were in the forefront here. It felt like an anti-BL story that started off sort of cute (like "Until We Meet Again,"). But then it spiraled down/ mutated into a cautionary tale that explored the serious ramifications of unclear sexual preference, general self-focus/entitlement, social media bullying, faux friendships, self-blaming (wrongly claiming responsibility), denial and ultimately even rape.

I'm not sure how/why I continued viewing this painful story. Watching it felt like a sort of penance for enjoying other Thai shows. As someone who gravitates toward happy endings (and yes I know that's not realistic, but this is my cathartic preference), this was the antithesis of that. Rather than the light, fun and slightly titillating dramas that I've enjoyed, this was heavy with only one redeeming quality: friendship. It did explore what a true friend was (Keng's relationship with Man lacked mutual respect while the friendship with/between Bright and Pramote with Shin was marked by earnest respect and loyalty despite the circumstances).

If I had to summarize everything simply, I'd say that the fantasy of young love was cruelly juxtaposed with plausible reactions and mass hysteria. So many people were focused on Keng and what they wanted him to be rather than accepting his interest/disinterest. That very public fixation transformed what could have been a beautiful friendship into a tragedy. As Bright said "what you think might happen in a drama...but in real life it's not that easy."

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Unwanted Love

Unwanted love is unwanted love. The Effect deals with the consequences of unwanted love. A subject matter that’s too often glossed over in many BL series Thai or otherwise (see the start of two main storylines of Make it Right and arguably two of the storylines in Love by Chance). This was a difficult watch but definitely worthwhile. Although it starts off like your typical teen series, don’t expect it to be that. The Effect’s storyline is deep and at times difficult to watch, but it’s told in a very mature manner. James Prapatthorn is a stand out in his first leading role in a series. It’s not easy for a young actor to have to portray all the levels of emotions his character goes through in the series. The depth and subject matter is a definite change of pace from your normal drama that deserves your time.

I rated the music a bit low. The main soundtrack for The Effect sung by Boy Sompob, the king of the BL OST, is up there with most of the OST from other series; it’s not Shake but, it’s good. Where I take major points off is the background music in some scenes is downright inappropriate. The music is supposed to help convey mood. In this series, sometimes the music that they chose was counter to what was portrayed visually. It’s alarming in a bad distasteful way.

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Honestly speaking after the death of Sulli and the Go Hara when I watched this show somehow it helped me to understand what they were actually going through... I wish this show was compulsory to watch... So that people learn what their words actually did to others lives...just because we have advanced technology and living in social media digital world we have no right to post anything without knowing the reality and who we are to judge...I think we have lost enough people to stop now...
Story, as I said is so beautiful and well connected...
Acting is really powerful...
Music disappointed me somehow but with this story and acting who give attention to music

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Massive trigger warnings!!!

I know everyone has already said it but there I am saying it again: before you decide to watch, you need to know that this may be a short series but it is VERY heavy and needs the BIGGEST trigger warnings.

So after watching many sweet cheesy BL series, I wanted a change and decided to check this out after reading the reviews. It sure was heavy on me and left an impact, however, it was a big slap for me to get back to reality. I don't even want to talk about the despicable acts that were portrayed in this but it did have some good things in it.

I loved how the main character got real support from his family and close friends who know him best. It just shows that only those who know you best will support you in hard times and that those who comment from afar surely know nothing. Another thing is platonic ships do exist and not every ship has to be sexual so THANK you to the director for showing that throughout the series (main character's friends). The character developpment in this was amazing, everyone is strong and can move on from whatever bad thing that happens to them, no matter what.

Now about the ending, everyone was talking about how it's not so good but for me I could somehow understand the director's pov as they wanted to show that pressure (from family, society and surroundings) can lead to damaging things affecting everyone around that person.

Just a small note before I end this review, if you truly love someone you may want to tell them to get away from social media because it sure will have a bad impact on your life.

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Great performances and OST Single

Boy Sompob's heartbreaking OST ballad "Back" tells the whole story of this drama, perhaps better than the drama itself. Thankfully "The Effect" is only 3 episodes, so there isn't the usual 18 extra episodes of padding and the interest level is at full throttle. James Prapatthorn originally auditioned for the support role of Pramote but was born to play shy and adorable Shin, a college Freshman. Oat Chakrit plays Keng, a handsome Senior who's the big man on campus. But Keng has a secret: he likes guys and it's love at first sight when he meets Shin. On his first day at school, Shin befriends two guys his own age -- veteran actor Yacht Surat as Bright and newcomer Top Akechat as Pramote. Bright and Pramote develop their own non-romantic bromance as the story goes along. Meanwhile, we learn that Keng has serious anger management issues. He's so sexually repressed that he ends up raping Shin. Well, that pretty much kills the story dead in its tracks. Whatever sympathy we had for Keng is gone. We never really learn if Shin likes guys, but he emphatically states he doesn't love Keng, so we'll have to go with that at face value. What salvages the drama from this point on is the unconditional (but unromantic) love Shin receives from Bright and Pramote. Usually these secondary characters are throw-aways, but Yacht and Top really get to show off their considerable acting skills. Keng tries to make up to Shin, and even though we can identify with the real life dilemma of a gay man being attracted to a straight guy, the rape was a deal-breaker for our sympathy. Shin, again, tells him to go away. Five years pass and Shin has finally completed university. He meets up with Bright and Pramote on graduation day (they graduated two years earlier). They part and Bright and Pramote walk off together holding hands. But we're left wondering what happened to our main characters. Presumably, through some telepathic connection, they commit suicide at the same time, by the same method of stepping out into the street in front of a car. The tilt up of the camera and dissolve to white suggests they died and went to heaven. Well, maybe so. But after such a long drama, that was a pretty abrupt and unmotivated ending. And if Shin died, who is narrating this story? His ghost? It may be the producers are setting us up for Series 2 but where would we go from here? If they survived the car accidents, who would cheer for Shin hooking up with his rapist? Anyway, I do hope to see James in something else. He had tremendous chemistry with Top in their scenes together. They'd make a great BL romantic duo.

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If you're watching this because you saw it in some Bl list , don't do it .. I don't mean it's a bad watch but yeah it doesn't end well for you .. It doesn't have a disappointing end or something but ...They left no void in showing some bad aspects of the LGBTQ+ world and even simply how there is a fine line between love and obsession ... The scars which run down deep due to the emotional trauma for a person , they executed it really well .. and not to mention sensitive topics such as sexual assault , molesting and homosexual rapes , it's not for someone light hearted , Do i regret watching it ? I certainly don't but did i enjoy watching it ? Definitely not , this bought up many personal scars to the surface which i'd rather leave alone... and for the rewatch value , it's not that the show doesn't have the rewatch value but would you really watch a psychologically depressing thing again ? I'd rather not ... Ho' mentions to Yatch , he's a darling in this one..

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