La Cuisine (2022)

Guilty Pleasure Street Food !!!

Have you guys ever had a craving for street food? You know its not good, you know you might get stomach issues eating that but you don't care ..you go ahead and indulge yourself..give in to that craving and enjoy without thinking about the consequences because it makes you feel so good at that moment? La Cusine is that street food..it's my guilty pleasure..I know there’s nothing much happening in terms of plot, i know the acting is not always good, the last few episodes are ridiculous, there is cringe, there are awkward moments, characters getting more screentime than required, fillers and so many other issues...but do I care ? Not at all...reason : just one and only one:
Lukchup and Ram togehter are so adorable and their cute chemistry is so charming that when I sit and watch them it actually uplifts my mood..they have such a healthy relationship with the least amount of toxicity..watching their relationship progress is a delight in its own .i found my stress melting away just looking at them.. there was an entire episode dedicated to them just going and hanging out at the mall..that's it..but did i love it ...absolutely..i could have watched another one hour of them hanging out at that mall just having fun..
Although the last 3 episodes are poorly written and the whole NamNing thing where the makers want us to sympathize with her is just ridiculous…and the whole arc of her with the gun etc was just downright terrible.. the narrative just stumbles at the end and the show compromises on its greatest strength ( the cute moments between its 2 leads) to create unnecessary drama. Let me say something – mental issues or childhood traumas should not be used as an excuse for bad behaviour…and criminal acts should be dealt strictly and the perpetrators of such acts should not be shown in a sympathetic light ..series and films need to stop doing this..it sends a bad message..
But the first 7 to 8 episodes are a delight to watch and I would still recommend it for Lukchup and Ram and their cuteness …watch without expecting much and without being too critical and chances are you might end up enjoying this way more than you thought you would !!! this is a perfect example of fluff done well!!

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In regards to last week's episode , episode 11 (chub and ram get assaulted)

I know there is people who say they did not like this series , i thought it was actually very goos , its the first time i think a show did an amazinf work , at bringing a charecter to life , that eferyone is going to want to root for snd protect - Lukchub's charecter is the very essence of what this world is missing....

Hes an honest to goodness good man from the inside to his outside - every thing about him is pure to the vrry core , its actually quite beautiful if you ask me!

But I digress ....

The eoisode from last week is really bothering me to the very core ... It sidnt pop out at me the 1st time i watched episode 11 last Sunday .... But tonight i rewatched it to get me ready for episode #12.... And right before the scene where Chub n Ram are attacked , its obvious the very skank we have known was trying to use her influence , good looks and goid girl routine that shes been able to acquire thanks to her endlessly attaching jerself to the schools biggest heartthrob but why hes really most popular is bc ecrryone kmows he would give the shirt off his back to help anyone in need , so the school came to think she was the same as him in her own way , which she used to find favor from through pure manipulation because shes only interested in getting her approval from Ram parents to hopefully push him knto sometype of arranged betroved between friends of friends ...the very idea has warped her mind, she seriously believes she and only she has every claim to Ramin....but just watch the series , youll freaking despise her ...


My reason for this post after watching episode 11 the second time , i guess i was totally blind to Tatyiana , because she totally seemed to be on team chub and ram but i noticed right before Chub' n Ram were assulted , p'ram and chub were joined at the hip all night , but i find it VERY VERY SUSPICIOUS that Tatyiana of all people , wanted to take Chub andn show him something , but she kinda insisted it needed to just be Luk Chub , then mere minutes after he leaves with her , Ram finds out that Chub is outside for some reason ....

Okay 1st of all (the dudes that came for Lukchub , is the very spot he stood , so it obviously was preplanned to seperate chub from Ram , and to get him in the perfect spot to be left vulnrable for those scumbags , obviously ir wasent Nam Ning , bc she wouldnt have been able to even get close to Chub.

Its blantenly obvious that NamNing had to persuade the right person to help lure Chub away for this to happen .....it can be NO ONE ELSE other than Tatyiana , i had a feeling she was acting sus that night but coudnt put my finger on it until just watching the eoisode again... Maybe im wrong , i hope i am but i actually think my hunch here is right on the money....anyone else suspecting the same??!

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Another Stereotype bl

What can I say? I forced myself to watch every episode and then I kind of wondered why I did that!
I have to admit, I was pretty bored with most of this series, the first few episodes were cute but.... everything after those few episodes was sort of lackluster.

Maybe it was just me, but I felt as if the actors were simply repeating memorized scripts and not really acting.

And bl - where? A little hugging does not make a good bl! Another series where I felt like someone was trying to make money off the bl fans without putting in the effort for a good storyline. These shows should be labeled as bromance so we know before we start watching that there isn't going to be any real physical contact.

Stereotype - Another evil, jealous girl who wants the lead male and does everything to stop his relationship and gets way too much screen time, and she was not a good actress either. Music - I didn't notice any. Scenery - nothing impressive.

For 13 episodes this could have been a really good series, unfortunately, it didn't turn out that way. No rewatch value for me.

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Simple but then tried too much near the end

Once again another mostly ordinary Thai BL series has come and gone. This one also comes from a mid-budget company with lead actors who are making their debut on TV and that was barely promoted compared to other stories (like "Tharn-Type", "Until We Meet Again" or "KinnPorsche" just to name a few examples). Many things were good, others not so much and here are some examples.

The Good (or at least decent)

1. Lukchup: The lead character has a lot of good qualities that make him endearing to the viewers. He is sweet, friendly, super shy, cute, kind, and makes delicious Thai desserts thanks to her awesome grandma. He is the type of character you feel a bit frustrated with because he is so shy and also wants to forgive everyone who harms him almost immediately but at the same time you understand that he is also a good person.

2. The story (up to episode 11): This series has to be an example of a show that, up to episode 11, decided to stay on a safe, nearly risk-free storyline. University students, one in the cooking program, the other in the architecture program, meet thanks to food and bit of luck and end up being together. Lukchup and Ram's relationship starts to develop very early in the series and it becomes a slow-burner but eventually, every situation they experience, they experience it together. Unlike other shows, the lead couple really talks as Ram has this confident aura around him that makes Lukchup feel safe and trust him. At the same time, Lukchup has this charming and cute aura around him that makes Ram (and almost everyone else) fall for him and want to help him and have him around. Both sets of families accept Lukchup and Ram's relationship quite easily and welcome them immediately, so at least we avoided the typical cliché of having a parent being opposed to his son being gay and being in a relationship. We also avoided the other Thai BL cliché of having a lead character go abroad to study or because his parents are sending him away as in this case, Ram decides to wait for Lukchup to graduate so both can go to France and have Lukchup attend a fancy culinary school.

3. Side characters (with some exceptions): Lukchup's friends (Kitty, Super, Phai and Pangji) and Ram's friends (Sky and Titan) are a good combination of friends to have. All provide good support to the two leads by giving advice when its needed, by being there when a problem arises or when they need being comforted, by listening to what their friends want, by being vocal and maybe point out when something is not fair or someone needs to be punished. Sky is always the voice of logic/reason, Titan is a bit childish sometimes but always loyal and willing to defend his friends, Kitty is always fighting for what's right, Pangji is there to make sure the others don't go too crazy, Phai is there to protect his friends, especially Lukchup, and Super provides some funny moments along with Kitty.

The Bad

1. The stoyline (episodes 11-13): Here is the typical case of a series that went longer than it should have. Normally, we complain when a story runs for too many episodes (like "Bite Me", "Love Area 2" or "Hidden Love", just to name a few) or when we don't have enough episodes and we end up wanting more story (like "To My Star", Semantic Error", "Light On Me", among others). "La Cuisine" was the former, as up to episode 10 the story could have ended with a few adjustments to that episode and we probably wouldn't have protested too much. However, the writers/director/sponsors/production company, whoever it was, decided we needed 3 more episodes and here is where the story goes up in flames. The Thai BL cliché of the crazy/bitchy female character went in overdrive as it was exploited to the extreme. NamNing decided that bullying Lukchup and paying 2 girls and a guy to harass him and later 4 goons to beat him up was not enough and in the final episode she goes off the rails by pointing a gun at all of them and crying like crazy. We get a small glimpse of why she is acting the way she is acting on episode 12. In a similar scenario to "Don't Say No" (a BL disaster) where a parent emotionally and psychologically manipulates a child, NamNing's father leaves with another woman and her mother keeps trying to convince her to never let go of who she wants by doing whatever is necessary to get/keep it. So, in her mind, Ram is hers (despite never having dated) and Lukchup needs to go away for her to have Ram. But, the last 3 episodes don't really match the tone of the previous 10 episodes. And, in another Thai BL cliché, we got time jumps of 1 month and 5 years to justify Lukchup having his own restaurant and Panji and Titan getting married in episode 13. Finally, it is a shame we barely saw the families as Lukchup's grandma and Jirachin (Lukchup's brother) had the most airtime of all while both sets of parents and Ram's older brother and little sister barely appeared after episode 2 and could have been used a bit more.

2. Acting: Mick (playing Lukchup) and Pop (playing Ram) are making their acting debut as leads in a series. Both gave a nice interview (in very decent English as Mick lived in Alabama for one year and Pop lived in the UK for 2 years) to the "Let's Talk BL" podcast (you can find it on Youtube, and no, this not a promotion) where they told us their motivation to become actors and how it is something they will pursue if there are opportunities in the future as Mick is focused on being an engineer and Pop just graduated from university (in hotel management). So, both are clearly not 100% committed to being an actor, yet, and that was a bit evident as some of their interactions were a bit awkward, they barely kissed in the series and Mick looked painfully shy in a lot of scenes when he had to hug or play cute with Pop... it was probably because the character was written that way, but it was a bit odd. The rest of the cast had some awkward moments as well, as their inexperience showed and led them to some poorly executed moments, particularly in the more intense episodes near the end.

3. Side couples: This was one of the few BL series that I remember, not having even a glimpse of a secondary couple (until the end at least). Since episode 1 we saw hints of Sky being interested in Phai but nothing really develops AT ALL from episode 1 to episode 12. And then, in the final half of episode 13 we get to see all the stories of the couples which some of them came out of nowhere. Kitty being courted by Pream's secretary (who appeared on episode 9-10 when they were gathering evidence gainst NamNing), Super being super rich but hiding it and also dating Khaosuay, Pangji and Titan being the only established side couple but with Pangji complaining that Titan was a bit conservative as he never really kissed her until she did and then in the second time jump, getting married (that was a bit of a jump there) and finally, the couple we all expected to see, did happen, albeit in the final 25 minutes of the show... Sky and Phai talk about going to watch a movie, then Phai unexpectedly invites Sky to his apartment as he has a new cocktail he wants him to try, which then leads to both using innuendos to flirt with each other until Sky kisses Phai in a rather steamy kiss. That was after the first time jump (one month has passed) so it was quite weird how this couple went from 0 to 100 in about 15 seconds of screentime... they do show a flashback narrated by Boom (who plays Phai) telling us how it was almost love at first sight and how they always gravitated towards each other. But this was rather poorly executed as at first I thought Phai had a crush on Lukchup and that's why he was so overly-protective of him, so while I appreciated the kiss, it was odd. The rest of the side couples were boring and honestly, not very interesting.

The Ugly

1. NamNing and all the situations around her: Yes, I understand she seems to be traumatized because her family doesn't really love her. As seen in episode 13 when her father coldly hands her over to the police officer and goes inside the house screaming he won't go to the station to see her and then in the first time jump, she seems to be alone in a mental facility with the nurse trying to get her to eat something and she only requesting Lukchup (the dessert). However, the character is an ugly one as she resorts to all sorts of tricks to try to make Ram be with her. She bullies Lukchup non-stop after she finds out they are together and even hires goons to assault him. This series took the whiny, bitchy, screaming, crazy female character to the utmost extreme. And, above all, it was very poorly acted by Brownie (the actress who plays NamNing). I feel bad criticizing someone who is debuting in the industry, but her acting was terrible... from laughing like a maniac, crying hysterically, begging Ram and Lukchup to forgive her, begging her father to help her, screaming at her maid and at the police officers, it all sounded fake and was very poorly done. It is a shame she had no proper acting advice by the series acting coach because such intense scenes could have been executed a lot better.

In the end, "La Cuisine" began as a sweet, easy-to-watch show that provided decent entertainment and served as an entrée before some of us watched the more intense "KinnPorsche" as our main dish afterwards. However, the show ended a bit more dramatically than it should have by having too many episodes. It gave us nice moments and Mick and Pop seem to have potential if they decide to focus on acting, so, watch it once and maybe forget it later.

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A Typical Romantic story(major spoiler ahead)

Well.. I am person who usually don't give much higher rating to most of the drama. And i am even lazy to write review. Still, i just can't help but write a review. This series is good. I won't say, its perfect but was a cute and simple story about Ramin and Lukchup.

If you are looking for a cute romantic story, then this is for you. They are one of the cutest couple i watched. Both have that pure love around them. The moment when the both mc started to like each other and the interaction they had when facing each other were really good. Its just how a person usually act in front of the crush or loved one. Mik played Lukchup character very well. Innocent and a cute character who everyone will fall in love with. They didn't have that playful or flirty feeling that we usually get when we watch a campus romance, like we will feel that their relationship isn't serious and a small misunderstanding can break them. Even when there was a chance when Ram can misunderstand LukChup , when the photo of Lukchup kissing Lukchin came out, instead of doubting Lukchup, Ram was worried about his lover. In that time he didn't even knew that Lukchup and Lukchin are brothers. Even the way Ram get jealous was cute. And the family and the friends in this drama was very good. I like both characters family, specifically angel, Ram's little sister.
I love the chemistry of main characters. And the background music used in it was so good that i wat to make it my mobile ringtone...

If i am writing a review, i should also involve negative points.
Such us, 13 episode, it too long for this series. They should have reduced the number of episode or should have add more content into it. If you are looking for an exiting bl with lot of romance, then this ia nor for ya.
From the beginning, i was able to predict how the series is going to be. The villainess was very typical villain we usually see, with a crazy crush. And they wasted so much time on the villain and the gossip group. In last few episode, i felt like they are trying to fill the gap by adding more focus on villain. And i just can't understand how they dragged this story till 13 episode's when the content is very small. And i was so disappointed that, i could only watch a kiss scene at the end of the last episode. And the kiss scene was somewhat passive. And i wanted to watch the development of Sky and Paitong relationship and all i got was the 2 min at the end of the episode rewinding all the scene they had together. Don't even know how they got together. If they added much more scene for these two, then the 13 episode would have worth watching it. I think they spend most time on bullying. And some scene where so long, which should have been able to cut short. And sometime the passive attitude of Ram towards Namning irked me. He should have keep her distance from 0 her when his frds clearly told him that she is bad. Some scenes, i felt a connection break. Like when Lukchup misunderstood Namning as Ram's girlfriend, but still went out with Ram, like a 3rd party, which is very unsuitable for Lukchup's character setting. But i can understand, he is shy and can't reject anyone especially his crush and the end when they got together, Lukchip still didn't get a direct answer from Ram about his relationship with Namning. May be he just realised it somehow.
(But truth to be told, i don't like too innocent mc, well being cute is one thing and being a cry baby is another matter.)

Overall the series is good, the family, the chemistry, the friends, everything was good. Mik and Pop portrayed the character of Lukchup and Ram very well. And the acting of all other actors where good too. But after watching the whole episode and then thinking back, i feel like their wasn't much content worth of spending 45 min per episode for 13 episode. I watched many bl where they have deep story content and only spend 30 minute per episode for max of 4 episode in total. So, giving 45x13 minute wasnt worth. But if you ask me to rewatch it, yes, i will. Because it's worh watching again when i am down. Well, i will skip many episode and will only take 1 hour for completely watching the series though.

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This Was Not BL..

First the positive. I liked the actors well most of them. But this story left the BL reservation when they turned in to a woman scorned story. Namning created a relationship with Ram in her mind. She felt entitled to seek revenge against Ram's boyfriend LukChub. This then became all about Namning and her revenge. Revenge She didn't deserve to take.
Ram in all his promises to protect the fragile LukChub he allowed Namning to go free which allowed her to strike LukChub again which also cause hurt for Ram himself.
Plus there was very little affection between the couples. A true disappointment. But I loved the actor playing LukChub I'm all his innocence. But not a BL this is a tale of a woman scorned.

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A Hidden Gem I Didn't See Coming

I went into this series with pretty low expectations, which might be why I liked it so much. The characters really stood out to me. Even though they had their flaws, it made them feel more human. I loved how the show mixed in humor but got serious when needed.

One thing I wish they did more of was exploring the side couples. Phai and Sky’s story had so much potential, but we only got a quick preview at the end. Super was hilarious and became one of my favorite characters; it would have been great to see more of him.

And I have to mention how cute the main couple, Ram and Lukchup, were. Their moments together were so adorable. Even though I would have liked more intimate scenes, their cuteness was enough to keep me happy. Overall, I was really satisfied with the series and would recommend it if you’re looking for something fun and heartwarming.

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Not A Romance

I read many of the reviews for this show and after watching it, I conclude it is ok-ish. First this is not a romance. It has the elements of romance but for me does not fit the definition of a romance show. I like the story but wish it was scripted and directed better. This acting was on a middle school level--- lots of overreacting and the actors look like they're actually were acting, not in a complementary way. There is not much character embodiment, so not much character development, things just happened. Only the grandma seems like the genuine character, and the MLs their relationship is of two characters with no substance. A person hugging a tree has more romance than these two characters even after stupid 5 year time leap.... no romance.

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Sweetest Smile I've Ever Seen

No, it wasn't perfect, but I liked it. It's one of those university series that shows friends and has drama, and I found it enjoyable. Some people will hate how it got a bit overly dramatic, but I didn't mind that.
13 long (45min) episodes that I binge-watched in two days. I'm not sure why I hadn't seen this series already. The boy who plays Lukchup makes the series worth watching because he is sweet as pie and has the most beautiful smile. Not kidding. It could light up a room. I loved how all his friends tried to protect him.
Some viewers will love it for the cooking--it was a cute premise---the cutie guy cooks food that the picky popular guy actually likes, and the picky popular guy falls in love with cutie, who has had a crush on him for years.
We had the overly done snotty girl wreaking havoc, but no break-up! Yay! I was sure that was going to happen, probably after a dumb misunderstanding, but nope. Some danger, which I really liked. Each guy had a great friend group that really stuck up for each other and eventually formed one big friend group.

On the not-so-good side, this show was a little too thorough about some things for my taste. For instance, they spent two episodes on a club scene. A lot of weird dancing and characters staring at each other from across the room. The expected drunk scene (but no toxic rain scene--yay!) Flashbacks we really didn't need to see. Some characters got more storyline and screen time than I thought necessary.
The couple who we saw the least of (like, I'd forgotten about their initial possible spark, it had been so long ago) had the best kiss out of all the couples, including the leads, who never got past the new stage, even when they were shown five years later at the end. We got a proposal for them before we'd ever seen their lips touch. A weird kind of plot point formed too close to the end to be believable, especially due to the scene where the character laughed evilly. Ram should have been much more proactive when things started happening to Lukchup. He kept thinking it would all go away when he should have gone online and torn up some people's asses.

All in all, this was a long, entertaining watch and enjoyable if you like university stories, a little angst but not to the detriment of the couple, cooking Thai dishes, loyal and over-protective friends, a sweet character paired with a charming, faithful character, a side mf couple, and a little weirdness. I recommend it.

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TOO NICE

CUTE is what I would called Lukchup! An adorable shyshine, and honestly, who the heck can hate him??

The story is adorkable before the whole climax happen. But even so, it was still cute when Ram comfort Lukchup everytime. I was surprise to see there was no scene like 'Ram pushes Lukchup away cause the only reason he's getting bullied is because he's with him' like how most story would have done it.

Though one thing I would say I dislike slightly is Lukchup's super super kind personality. Although being nice is a good thing, but he's level is to the extend of even forgiving someone who almost killed Ram and him. He's a sweet boy but my lord, you can't be nice to even someone like that ooft. Another thing to say, Ram's acting is a little off at some point, but I manage to look pass it. He just looks a little awkward SOMETIMES, but it wasn't anything that ruin the whole show lolol.

All in all, I like the storyline :D //tbh I skipped the bullying part when I rewatched it the second time.//
The side characters are also very wonderful, especially the side couples! I am curious how Sky and Paitong relationship happened.

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wasn't bad

This show wasn't the worst I've ever seen but it wasn't all that bad either.
Though the story could've easily been told in less episodes and was thus a bit stretched out and very predictable in a lot of ways, it was still very enjoyable. I didn't however like how they stretched out the part with Nam Ning as well. This made it all even more predictable, and kind of annoying.
While I don't feel like this regards all of the acting, it was in a lot of spots horrible. I expected this to get better while the show went on, but it didn't. Sometimes I sadly felt like it got even worse as it went on. But this did however make for some pretty funny parts.
The music was just so-so. I liked the intro the first few times but after that I started to get bored of it and during the series the music was sometimes just randomly cut off only to start the scene again, but with different music in the background. I mean yes, this foes happen in a lot of shows, but in the other shows in which this happens, the music isn't randomly cut off, but it gets faded away.
For me, personally, the rewatch value isn't very high. I mean yes, I liked it, but not so much that I'd want to watch it all over again. like I said before, it was already kind of predictable watching it for the first time. So what would happen if I were to watch it again? I'd be bored half to death.
All of this considered I'm giving the show an over all score of a 6.

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