Don't Say No (2021)

A happy smile and A MUST SEE

I wasnt sure about watching this after Tharntype, but i gave it a go and they became one of my favorite couples. They are so cute together and i love how leo loves fiat good or bad and how they work thru problems together just sometime miscommunication/misunderstanding do happen in life. Leo has such a strong mature personality for his age and how he's communicates with the adults to solve the problem. This drama has touched on so many difficult topics & situations and it show that with friends and family they can conquer anything, i really love how they portrayed the parents of leo/fiat/leon being so open minded for boys and see there's true love regardless of gender.💘💘. I'm glad fiat remember his lost memories and was able to make amends to all. I do wish leon and p'pob had more air time to develop their relationship and a maybe a reunion of them with a short spin-off including leo/fiat getting married would be fun. Just saying.
If your not sure.. You'll miss out on a great show
Update: just finished ep 10 and the scene for next week i take back the communicate 😢

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So much potential, but the lack of character growth was disappointing

Content Warnings (not between m/m couple): physical abuse/assault, kidnapping, blackmail, having several previous partners shaming, drugging, manipulation

Overall: I really disliked Fiat (especially) and Leo from TTs2, but I was hooked after watching episode 1 of Don't Say No. Unfortunately the lack of character growth and the dreaded 11th episode plus a stupid ending for the side couple made it not reach its potential. Don't watch episode zero as there is some really messed up stuff that happens in that. All you need to know is Leo & Fiat are life long friends who recently became romantic with one another.

What I Liked
- communication*, Fiat & Leo actually communicate about their issues and work to resolve them. They even communicate during and after "fun" time, which I rarely see. However, episode 11 was a huge disappointment.
- the 2 main female characters are supportive friends and bonus the step mom is nice. I'm torn on Leo's mom who is supportive but almost in a manipulative/too invasive way.
- pacing was okay for the most part
- explanation for character motivation/faults, we get to see why characters are doing things (at times via flashbacks), and how different people interpret the same actions
- subverted/modified tropes with the side couple (hurt/care, sharing umbrella)

Room For Improvement
- *was really sad to see the lack of character growth especially from Fiat. That whole 11th episode was so dumb and unnecessary and they never even showed them actually communicate what happened with those events to each other!
- they should have made the family past trauma the final 4-6 episode arc and then show Fiat have some character growth
- the main couple (Leo/Fiat) don't look comfortable with kissing each other/being intimate, you can't be established boyfriends and not at least pucker your mouth for a kiss... these scenes were hit and miss for me.
- the side m/m couple: Pob should have been written as nervous/inexperienced, but instead he comes across as a jerk who thinks about himself only and plays games with Leon (like in episode 8 when he smirks after talking with Leon). And their ending was super stupid. I started out not liking them, liked them briefly and then ended up not liking them together.
- the overused cliche evil wannabe girlfriend
- Fiat's dad has about one brain cell, his actions were so toxic and stupid
- the comedy sound effects, they just aren't my thing but at least there isn't that horrendous gulping noise

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It could've been better

So, Imma briefly explain how I'm gonna organize this thing. *Does contain spoilers*
1. LeoFiat
2. LeonPob
3. Why I liked it
4. Why I didn't
5. Other Comments.

LeoFiat:
O.M.G Where do I even start. They were a so-so couple. They had great communication skills which I liked, but I didn't like how overly possessive Leo was like it's ok to be possessive but he was too much. Fiat, listen bud, I hated you in TT2, but I see where you're coming from, so much damn trauma.

Some of the things Leo said in the last ep were a bit weird, I was like "What did he say?". I feel they were a bit toxic at times though, but still cute at other times. I didn't like how Leo kissed the girl and then had the audacity to get mad at Fiat. I feel like Fiat didn't get much attention and comfort when he was going through everything with his mom. So I feel like the shit with them could've been better, the communication was key though. They talked most things through like a healthy couple should.

LeonPob: Maybe it's just me and being a sidecouple hoe but I love them. I feel the story was a little cliche though, but nothing wrong with that. It's the usual soft boy meets the bad boy story, and the bad boy who's known for sleeping around with people and never settles down but when he means the soft boy he changes. I feel their communication was pretty solid. I loved the ending tbh, a lot of people were confused and upset with it, but to me it makes a lot of sense. "Right person, wrong time" that's the perfect way to describe them. They love each other but sometimes there are more important things that you have to first before you continue in a relationship. I loved their acting and the emotions they showed in each one o their scenes.

Why I liked it: Pretty good idea, nice communication, great actors. (I totally didn't keep watching because everyone was fine as hell). Really good girl characters (except the stalker girl, f u), they were very supportive. Really nice music.

Why I didn't like: TOO MUCH TRAUMA, It was like every episode we were getting some new drama that Fiat went through, it's ok to have some but like omg, so much. Some of the parts in the show felt like random fillers. Like long stares and slow mode parts. Another thing I didn't like was Leo's overpossesivness.

Other Comments: Mane needs to stops with all the traumatic stories and the rape shit, bc it's becoming too much. It's fine to write them but if you don't know how to develop it into the story and make it make sense then don't keep doing it. She'll but all this rape in her story but the characters who are the rapist never get in trouble, no consequences.

SOOOOOO, basically, it's meh. I kind of liked it and I kind of didn't.

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justice for fiat

what the actual hell was this…..

started off as a great idea, the awkwardness that comes from shifting a friendship into a relationship and how gestures/skinship carry a whole new meaning. genuinely loved that, but it only lasted a very short moment.

fiat…. god, what DIDN’T fiat go through?! it felt endless in regards to just how much he had to go through. it started to feel like a wattpad fanfic too. the ending was pretty underwhelming. there were also a lot of highly inappropriate conversations with Leo’s mom that really made me uncomfortable.

the second pairing reminded me a lot of neo & louis, it was a bit odd of a feeling but I actually think they were nice to see develop, but a crappy ending really had to come and ruin everything.

not the best, but first kept me wanting to see this through.

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Feels formulaic and too commercialized

TharnType 2 was the series in which the main couple here (Leo/Fiat) was introduced. In my eyes, Leo/Fiat is one of the most gorgeous couples in BL (whether we see the two as individuals and as a couple), but more needs to be done of their story.

TharnType 2 was really a vehicle that capitalized on the success of the first season of TharnType while serving to introduce Leo/Fiat and perhaps see the market potential for a series on them. I think this was one reason the Tharn/Type plot in TharnType 2 was weak. Unfortunately, I see a similar strategy in Don't Say No: The best part of the Leo/Fiat story is already in TharnType 2 even though it lacked full development, and Don't Say No seems to be a vehicle to test the commercial viability of the Leon/Pob side couple here.

While the production is generally polished enough to be rather watchable, it wouldn't be too much to ask for a more compelling story for Leo/Fiat. Essentially, the Leo/Fiat side of the plot in Don't Say No is simply: crisis, sex, crisis, sex, crisis sex repeated ad nauseam. The plot feels somewhat fragmented and can mostly be summed up as: various things in Fiat's past come back to haunt him. The part of the story involving Fiat's mother seems to be the most compelling and could have been developed further into a tighter plot for the entire series.

And really, the sex borders on being excessive. The sex scenes are actually quite nicely shot and I guess fewer people would complain about them as compared to the number of people who complain about the lack of skinship in series like 2gether. Nevertheless, the repeated mentions of sex as a "punishment" for Fiat cheapens the Leo/Fiat relationship even though the characters never mean it seriously. The sex scenes fail to show the couple's deep love and instead feels like the bells has rung, announcing, "Time for some fan service!"

The other couple in Don't Say No fares better in some ways. Leon (Leo's brother) is an a playboy reformed by love, not a very original sort of character. However, Pob is rather interesting. He seems like the soft and innocent type of character (like Wayo in 2 Moons, he takes care of a cat), but he is also someone with a mind of his own and not a pushover.

The ending for Leon/Pob isn't nice, unfortunately. While the Leo/Fiat story in TharnType 2 ended happily and it does not really matter whether there is a separate series on them, we are left hanging with Leon/Pob in Don't Say No. I'm not a fan of this sort of fan manipulation when there may not be a follow-up season for the couple. The turn of events for Leon/Pob in Don't Say No is actually quite unnecessary: the couple could simply have ended happily in Don't Say No, and, if a separate series is made on them, the turn of events can be introduced at the start.

I think the No. 1 rule of milking a successful series commercially ought to be: Ensure that the milking is not felt by the audience. Unfortunately, this isn't the case in Don't Say No.

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My overall opinion!

Ok so first of all I wasn't gonna watch this series tbh since most of the reviews I read were saying It wasn't good or that it's the worst BL of the year but heck bcz of Pinterest I ended up watching it.

Music:
No cap the opening song is a bop every time I see the opening it gives of 2014/2015 western school show vibes and I live for that we need more Thai BL's with openings like these.
This isn't a part of the music but I honestly found that it was too quiet usually when you watch a BL there would at least be some type of sound in the background while they talk but it was so quiet that I was truly just laughing, AND THE BASKETBALL SCENE SOUNDS one minute you hear nothing next thing you know you hear a loud thump on the ground then BOOm sound gone.

Acting:
I'm not gonna lie when I say there could be some improvements..I'm not an actor myself so I can't exactly criticize their acting but sometimes I felt like Leo's acting wasn't it idk just it didn't feel right? idk how to explain it, especially with Leon I felt as though his facial expressions didn't fit the scene he was filming, let's say it was a sad scene his partner would be sad while he looks like he isn't which I found a bummer. Fiats acting I found it ok there could be improvements like with the crying scene I didn't feel as though he was sad and sometimes I felt like he was going a bit overboard but overall it was ok same goes for the rest of the cast but they did their best and that's all that matters.

Storyline:
I'm not even gonna lie when I say I digged this storyline mainly because it didn't fit but it did? Ok, hear me out so what I mean is like why was Fiat crying like almost 80% of the entire show like oof cut ma dude some slack mate . CAN SOMEONE TELL ME WHY THEY DID LEON AND POBHANS STORY LIKE DA WARAGUAK I was just very surprised I found it strange at the ending as well like waw...same goes for the intimate scenes at first they were like yas very great but then it progressed to like almost every episodes to the point I had to skip like half of dem bcz I just wasn't digging it T-T

In conclusion, I would recommend watching it first then judging, I found it funny but strange but yet with a pinch of enjoyment and excitement :)

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Love the actors but frustrating lack of communication

First, I just want to say I loved Fiat so so much! Ok, now on to my rant-y review:

I enjoyed the overall chemistry, acting, and the storyline overall but there’s still a lot that annoyed me about this show. As I say about every Thai drama I’ve seen, all the stupid fights the main couple always gets into is due to a LACK OF COMMUNICATION and this one was the same way. It irks me to no end that all of their dumb drama could be avoided if they would just communicate better.

In episode 9 or 10 (I can’t remember which one) when King drugs Fiat, I think that Fiat should’ve told Leo what happened. And he was clearly drugged even when Leo walked into the bar, so that whole interaction and “jealousy” crap annoyed me because the entire show was literally Fiat crying the whole time over how much he loved Leo, but other stuff or people keep getting in their way.

Ok Leo and Fiat’s friend circle: I loved them. The twins were great, the other two boys in each of their crews’ were silly, but they were really good and supportive friends the whole series. Side note: can we just talk about the lowkey adorable FEMALE couple we got?? Please, can we get more of a side story or bonus episode with them?? I loved these two strong females!

Leon & Pob: be still, my tender heart. I feel ok with the ending only because it’s not a real ending and I’m hoping (it probably will) that episode 13 gives them the attention and ending they deserve. Pob is the sweetest Angel on earth, nurturing any animal or person that needs care, this I’m sure due to his childhood. He was guarded of course, but Leon still managed to get past his barriers and I loved watching them together. I screeched when Pob actually told Leo he was jealous of Leon’s past with other people/the attention Leon gets from girls still, that was so refreshingly honest and cute and I’m glad he still trusted Leon (unlike our insecure LEO and fiat lol). I do think Pob still had some things to work through and had to do the humanitarian work he intially set out to do before he fell in love with Leon, so I’m fine with them finding each other again (in episode 13) since I’m sure they waited for each other.

Finally thoughts: overall I did enjoy this series. I’m super biased to Fiat, I loved him. I forget that this was part of the TharnType universe (I dropped season 2) but honestly the prequel and this series filled me enough of LeoFiat that I didn’t need to watch that show “just” to see them in it.

I hope to see more of these two actors in works together in the future!

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It could have been better, but still, it's good.

First of all, you must watch "TharnType: 7 years of love" before watching this series. If you do, you will have a better understanding of the main leads. I didn't like Fiat because of what he did in TharnType S2, but with this series I ended up loving him. In this series, we get to know that part of him that we couldn't see in TharnType S2. Yes, he is determined and sassy, but he is adorable and vulnerable as well. Personally, the acting was on point and everyone did a really good job. Both couples had excellent chemistry. If you like hot scenes like in TharnType, here you get a lot of them as well. The story was some kind of roller-coaster, unnecessary drama, some characters sometimes didn't use the logic, and there was some toxic behaviors. Still, it was enjoyable. Is it good? Yes. Did I love it? No. Would I recommend it? Yes, but I'm pretty sure people will not like it as I do. So, if you want to watch this series, do it. Just don't have any expectations.

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Another BL where...

Here is another BL where the main couple is disappointing and the secondary couple is more interesting, more genuine, more believable and most important more likeable. I am assuming that the attempt to integrate mental health issues into a BL is an admiral effort but this one just made the BL less likeable. Yeah I know some mental health issues are not necessarily pleasant but deciding to present them in a series should be evaluated and it should be pretty well know how that is going to impact the overall rating of the series. I feel that this effort (presenting a mental health issue) was just not well done here. See other reviews for details which I mostly agree with.

I was going to give this series a rating of 8.5 before the ending. The blackmailing's and drugging in the last few episodes was just too much for me.

The shining stars here are Leon and Pob. Both actors were great! The character development was just awesome and believable. Both James and Smart should at least be nominated for a best actor in a supporting role award. I was so disappointed when they did not wind up together. I hoping for a sequel starring Leon and Pob.

Also on the good side, the rest of the cast were all very strong (Aek, Tho, An,...)

I should also mention that I feel like Leo had his great moments too, but most of them were in the earlier episodes.

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Gorgeous cast with terrible writing

The show had sooooo much potential. Amazingly gorgeous cast, beautiful sets, chic-ass costumes, vistas and a nice sports theme fallen into the infallible unrequited love trope which unfortunately turning into some weird in unhealthy obsession! This show is nothing but a train wreck!

One thing I don't understand, when MAME decides to write a drama which may have quite a lot of mature scenes, none of the on-screen drama which happens seem to have no maturity at all? No exploration of sexuality, no coming to terms, no bullying or homophobia around, a strict and overprotective parent but none of them seem to have any problem with their kids being gay, mother happily accepts a promiscuous son-in-law, MAME since when have we started living in such LA LA LAND? Even I'd like to know it's address so even I could live by such an overprotective and spoiling partner and not have even a sense of guilt or fear.

Looking at the production quality, music and setup, it had no doubt a high end production value, but did it really do justice to the mainstream LGBT populace you are using in your writing? The writing would have been wayy better to have an in depth character exploration of both the main leads, how their relationship evolves, instead we get a dumb headed ML who goes bonkers whenever his wifey is at threat.

Plus you can't really put this drama in a singular genre, there's slight comedy, but isn't funny at all, there's thrill, isn't thrilling at all, emotional, but couldn't empathise at. The story lacked impact, I feel there wasn't even a story at all, just selling the show for some steamy NC scenes which *no comments*

I found myself mostly struggling to get done with the show even though I wouldn't exactly call it boring but rather unconvincing. People looking to watch it just for the pretty cast may go ahead, those looking for anything more may prefer skipping it. Thank you!

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For a MAME series, it was actually an okay watch

All right! Another series completed! And it's a MAME series, which are all usually questionable (at least for me). The only one that I kinda enjoyed from MAME is LBC. Her other series- nope! And well, this had some good parts- as well as some not so good parts. But all in all, it was an okay series that I was able to spend my Fridays with!

Story-8/10
I have decided to give this series an 8, only specifically for these reasons-
1.Leo and Fiat actually kind of showed how real college boyfriends would be- if they weren't making out with each other, they were sleeping with each other- like in literally every episode.
2. Leon and Pob- you guys stole my heart and I am still heartbroken at your guys 'ending.' I know that we will have a special episode, but still.
3. The twins and Fiat's friend- they brought me joy with their antics. I know that I am going to miss them soooo much!
4. Leo's parents and Fiat's dad- They accepted them and their love for each other.

As for the reasons why I didn't like this series was the fact that I originally thought that Fiat's dad was against them by the way he acted towards his son. But he wasn't. What we got were not one, not two, not three, but fricking FOUR antagonist. And they were able to solve these four roadblocks so easy to return lovey-dovey to each other (Fiat's mom freaked me out a bit, I must add, though). Also, I thought that they had no communication issues, but that clearly went out the window by episode eleven.

Acting/Cast-7.5/10
Some of the acting was good. Some was a bit over the top. And some just actually suck. Smart and James acting- just phenomenal. First's acting wavered a bit for me- one scene it's stellar and the next...meh. I felt Ja's acting was okay as well, except for when he was crying- cause it got no form of emotions from me. I personally felt that the acting of the three of the four antagonist sucked big time. And for that I'm going to give this series a 7.5.

Music-9/10
I actually love the opening and closing OST. Like there were times that I would swing along with the opening OST and sway to the closing OST. So I decide to give it a 9.

Rewatch Valu-7.5/10
I actually do see myself watching this series- most specifically for Leon and Pob and the antics of their friends. So, I give it a 7.5.

Overall-8/10
Overall it was an okay series, with some flaws. But I did enjoy it and I am looking forward to the special episode that will be airing on November 06!

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