This review may contain spoilers
what was this
The truth is that when I saw the trailer it caught my attention. It seemed like an interesting story. Too bad it was totally wasted due to the lousy script and lack of development it had.The "secondary couple" reason why I kept watching this series barely had a few minutes on the screen and their story was finished in the last chapter in a rushed way which felt very forced.
The adult characters were conspicuous by their absence, the protagonist's mother was injured and disappeared from the series, Palm's father also disappeared and the villain...they remembered that in the penultimate chapter
And the performances, the adults are fine, chopper and ben I think they did well, I can't judge them too much because they barely have a few scenes, now the protagonists, the boy who plays nuengdiao I think he has improved since Fish Upon the Sky although he must work In their expressions that are a bit strange and the crying scenes, no way, now pond that boy seem like he was only reading the script, he can't feel anything when I see him act.
To end this review, I tell you that it seemed like a series with a story that had potential but was totally wasted, 12 chapters in which nothing interesting happens because they left that for the last chapter.
My score is a 5 only because of the beautiful cinematography it had
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Sometimes incoherent, huge plot holes esp towards the end, but for the most part pretty enjoyable.
For me at least. Episodes 10 & 11 really brought down this story for me. I feel like Never Let Me Go started out so strong but somewhere along the way it lost its way. It's like the writers lost interest and were just trying to finish it the soonest possible. It was pretty obvious because things started to make no sense. Character motivations sometimes felt out of nowhere and left people scratching their heads with their actions. Some characters were just a waste of space eg Ben and Chopper. Seriously, what was their point in this series? The villain was also laughable. The writers intent was to make him this scary, unstoppable force but in the end he just came out as a clown.Also, something happened with Phuwin and Ponds acting after episode 9. It was very flat and like neither of the two cared how bad their performance was. They just wanted to be done with it and that's that. That's one of the things that took me out of the series and made me lower the rating to 8.5 paired with the plot holes. Aside from that I feel like before they hit episode 10, they were really giving it their all and I was enjoying watching them portray more mature roles compared to their time in Fish Upon the Sky. The story and acting may have been up and down but something that wasn't was their chemistry. That's really what kept me coming back episode to episode. Luckily episode 12 felt like the beginning of the series again both in the acting department and the writing. I was satisfied with the way it ended.
Despite my huge problems with Never Let Me Go towards the end. I still pretty much enjoyed it and thanks to episodes 1-9 & 12 it's one of my favorites of the year. Due to the suspense, acting, chemistry and action aspects of the series. The filming locations were gorgeous. If we ever get another series like this, I hope the writers sit down and watch some of the mistakes they made with NVLMG and improve on them. Overall I give this an 8.5 and would recommend. Despite it's flaws it's still worth a watch.
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Disappointing But Eye Candy
LIKES:Beautiful ocations, especially island moments.
Cinematography and sets were good.
Lighting was okay for the most part.
Wardrobe was modern and tasteful. The male leads were handsome in suits. Tasteful jewelry.
FX were okay; gun shot wounds looked somewhat realistic.
Ost was okay.
Good eye candy (beach scenes).
Chopper and Ben were cute.
Acting for Phuwin as Nuengdiao was okay and same with Perth as Chopper.
DISLIKES:
Production:
Shaky camera syndrome due to not using film stabilizer.
Zooming in way too close; no one wants to see the caked makeup or their pores or nose hairs.
Pacing issues, especially with rushed ending.
Music sometimes overpowered what was being said.
Background noises were overly loud too.
Editing:
Flashbacks in episode 11 were over done and too long.
Acting:
The adult acting was over the top for all of them, but especially for Palm's father and Nueng's uncle Kit.
Pond as Palm had friend chemistry but never as a lover. He was not good at showing emotion and felt very stiff. He needs more acting lessons or to be placed in a different role.
Directing:
Little to no emotion or time given for the actors to react to some of the climatic moments.
Pond 's kisses; he looks like he's eating Phuwin's face, which is not sexy.
Delayed reactions that were almost ridiculous.
FX:
Bruising from fighting looked very amateurish and disappeared too quickly.
Writing (see under overall, as it has spoilers).
OVERALL:
Some parts were boring and just the usual trope. Important moments for the MLs to show their emotions were rushed or non-existant. Conclusion was very rushed in all aspects. This started with potential and went down hill. Watch for the eye candy, don't use your brain and have no expectations, then it's good. I won't rewatch any of this, not even some parts. I recommend it for anyone just starting out in BL genre, but barely.
******[SPOILER ALERT]******
DISLIKE:
Writing:
Like everyone else's reviews I agree way too many plot holes.
Lots of stupid moments: Nueng's father is killed and the mother doesn't get better security?
With all the shooting going on and how wealthy Nueng's family is, why don't the bodyguards have bulletproof vests?
After Palm and Nueng make out, why when they are alone is Palm calling Nueng Mister? It makes their relationship cringy.
Palm and Nueng share a bath, but Neung is very noticabley in his underwear?
Chopper and Ben needed more time for their relationship, even their conclusion was very lack luster.
The way Palm and Nueng's relationship develops it seems more one sided with Nueng being more invested in their love.
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The bodyguard trope is something that was used SO MANY times in romance media already, but this one is really interesting. Nueng always tried to place Palm by his side as his friend, not as bodyguard. We don't have any kind of power play in here, so even though Nueng is a rich boy and Palm's boss, he doesn't use it to be above him in any way (you don't exist, drunk Nueng).
And obviously, we can't talk about this series without mentioning the AMAZING cinematography. The cinematography of this series is breathtaking. When it comes to BL, this one is easily one of the top ones.
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It's not just bad, it's REALLY bad :)
It's like... the worst thing that I watched this year. The plot is kinda interesting, I don't like this trope at all, but it's interesting. The problem's that the execution was HORRIBLE.It has 12 episodes, and in the five episode you already know who's the villain and what will happen, and after that, it's so tiring. I watched without any expectations, but I was surprised... because it's worse than everything that I could expect. The screenwriting it's horrible, the scenes was boring, and their conversations don't make sense. The character's actions didn't make sense at all too, because they "loved each other so much" but they break their promises so many times and didn't really fight to be together at all. It was so weird.
And about the acting, oh my god, they are horrible. I love Pond (Palm) and Phuwin (Nuengdiao), but as a person, because they are really, really bad actors, as I said, they work in Fish Upon The Sky bcs FUTS is camp and funny, but in a serious story like NLMG, it looks so... bad. The dramatic scenes were so cold and oh my god, Phuwin crying was so bad, can't believe that anyone buys it. Pond was better, but still very much unemotional, faceless.
The only good thing was the OST, at least Phuwin is really good at singing. Believe me, I like him, I'm his fan! But I can't stand how bad he is at acting, I'm very sorry.
Watching was torture for me, I hate it so much. The plot, everything, it's badly written and badly executed. Now I understand why GMM doesn't promote NLMG at all, if it was me I would do the same, LOL.
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Can't Get Into It
It's been about a month since the series ended and I still can't get myself to watch the last two episodes, and I think I'm done trying. I really sat my ass through this series because I really do hate dropping, but also forcing myself to watch something I don't like rather than to sit and watch something I do like is torture to myself. Never Let Me Go fails in a lot of spots for me, except for how gorgeous these actors are.Let's Dive In.
One reason that the series was so hard for me to get into was that the initial plot just doesn't make sense. Why hire a fisherman who's amateur at being a bodyguard to protect a highly important person? Especially after the fisherman's father failed to protect the important boy's dad? Just why? I think this would've worked out better had Palm just been on a scholarship to attend the same school as Nuengdiao and they became friends to then become lovers. Maybe then I could've finished this. But I can't because nothing about this situation adds up. Either that or Palm should've been an older gentleman who was a bodyguard in his past coming back into the job to help out his dad.
I've said this in FUTS, and I'm saying it here too: something about Pond's acting never settles right with me. I will say he was at least slightly better here than in FUTS, but I can never believe his acting. It sounds like he's reading the lines off the paper instead of acting them. Someone on Reddit said his acting reminds them of a last-minute put-together high school play and I couldn't have said it better myself. And I'll probably get crap for this too, but for some reason, I can't play into Pond's chemistry with Phuwin. It's just not there, at all. They do being physical very well, but besides that, I don't feel the chemistry between them in their acting. Pond gives off "I'm straight" vibes like crazy, and while I'm not trying to assume his sexuality or anything, that's just how it comes off.
I would've stayed for Chimon and Perth, cause I was decently enjoying their side story, but it's still not enough. I'll just wait to see them in their series once it airs. The fighting sequences made me squeal with laughter, because what in the everloving fuck was that. The make-up department at least did the bruising and cuts well.
Ratings;
Story: 5/10 - Chimon and Perth's story is entertaining. Some parts of Neungdiao's story is intriguing (like his uncle trying to kill him), but I can't get over that his mother thought it was a good idea to hire a fisherman with no bodyguard experience to protect her highly targeted child, which is why this series will never do it for me. I think they even teased it in one episode, which I'm glad they acknowledged that it was dumb, but still.
Acting: 7.5/10 - I'm mostly giving this score to Perth, Chimon, and Phuwin. I think there are some parts Phuwin lacked a bit for me, but it still wasn't bad. Pond's acting is once again, mediocre if not worse than that.
Music: 5/10 - Didn't pay attention to it. So it wasn't distracting. Good.
Recommendation value: 4/10 - As I said, it might've just been me that felt this way, but there are much better stories out there to watch than this one.
Just a little bit of a rant, but I don't think Pond and Phuwin were the right pair for this series in general. I think having switched up some important plot points would've made it better, but in order to have made this series as good as it could've been with just the original story, they should've found a pairing that was older, or at least a person a lot older to play Palm's role. Someone like Joss or Earth or White or Pod or Gawin or Tul (even though he's not with GMMTV, just trying to throw out some actors that would've done this role well), anyone who seems a lot more mature than Pond was able to portray. Phuwin is fine in Nuengdiao's role, but I'm thinking Khaotung or Pawin, someone who might've been able to handle a more dramatic role.
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This is one of the best bl I have ever seen!
First of all, I really love how every character is flawed, no is really "perfect" here. Staring with nuengdiao, in my personal opinion at very first episodes he acted rude because , he was thinking that everyone thinks that he is a scaredy cat and a rich brat who can't do anything. But, in reality he wanted to blend in with the kids and with palm. Palm's character is a prime example of "can do anything for his lover" which is kinda cliche I gotta admit but, did palm's dad ever show any affection towards him? No, he didn't. He just wanted to make his dad proud. Uncle non is ever grateful towards the family of nuengdiao, that he even forgot about his son by bodyguarding nuengdiao. But, deep down he really cares about him as well.Palm's mom is also a flawed character. She didn't go all gaga over palm when he arrived. Which is the reality. Personally for me chopper is the best character. He is always misunderstood,his dad is an a**** ,chopper is also afraid of rejection just like nuengdiao and is always hurt. Nuengdiao acted selfish when he blamed chopper for his mom's attack and his dad's death, but for nuengdiao's perspective, he is all broken.I would also blame someone who knew about the killings of my parents, suppose. Ben on the other hand, needed time to accept himself. Another thing that is shown here that young teenage people as well as adults can also make mistakes. When we are young we make some bad decisions,Which is completely normal. Nuengdiao rushed for love because he thought no really loves him but he just doesn't know.
Acting:
Pond's acting was just solid 10/10. Phuwin's anger scenes could have been better but he also did an amazing job, so all the other cast members
Conclusion: you can watch this drama if you want some spice in your life. It is not a "typical rom-com" but a different topic which is very good cause inter-caste relationship is shown here which I thing is a great topic to make a show on and thanks GMMTV for those scenes?
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Much ado about nothing
Yeah, this was disappointing, and I might've lost a few brain cells in the process. The so-called plot was way too convoluted and more often than not downright stupid, and I probably would've dropped the series in its sudden honeymoon phase if not for a super entertaining group watch. But before I go on a long rant, here are some things I actually liked:Nat as the usurping uncle. He nailed every scene he was in. No complaint there, even though his character made some dumbass decisions.
Perth and Chimon as the secondary couple, I guess? They were criminally underdeveloped and had barely any (shared) screen time, but they made the series bearable at least. They both deserved so much better.
That's it. Now on to the problems:
The writing is a complete train wreck. The entire plot hinges on a premise that screams “KinnPorsche in kindergarten” (or high school, I guess) and it could've been so entertaining. A billionaire heir who ends up with the most unlikely candidate as a bodyguard because everyone and their mother is trying to kill him for his money? And they're just trying to survive high school? Sounds campy and amazing, sign me up!
Sadly, that's not how Never Let Me Go turned out, because the series ended up taking itself way too serious. It tried to tell this super serious story about the problems of the elite few while also trying to include the struggle of the less fortunate, and it ended up being a forgettable mess. In fact, how Nueng constantly talked down to Palm was quite infuriating after a while, because the series never addressed how shitty and spoiled its little prince was behaving. Instead, it tried to hammer in how devoted and loyal Palm was, even though Nueng did NOTHING for him. Except throwing his money around, of course. Got to make up for treating Palm like a subhuman somehow, am I right? And they say romance is dead, urgh.
I think, they originally aimed for an enemies-to-friends-to-lovers kind of dynamic between a spoiled teen billionaire and his dirt-poor bodyguard, which – again – could've been interesting. But then there were other “love interests” (more like plot devices) and in the end their relationship jumped from one textbook-BL-stage to the next because stuff happened. I can't even give you a proper recap, because there was no suspense curve. Stuff happened, was resolved after five minutes tops, and then the episode ended. Nothing except the main conflict carried over to the next episode, and for some episodes our “charming” main couple noped the fuck out of that by fleeing (and staying) at a beach resort. After Nueng's mother was gunned down, I might add. But sure, take your time. Good thing the main plot just conveniently takes a break while they're away being in a relationship that came out of nowhere. A relationship they both end on more than one occasion for the stupidest reasons. So yeah, not feeling it. Sorry not sorry. But maybe don't get your boyfriend's name tattooed after three days. Seems like a bad idea, especially after watching this mess of a series.
But what made the series near unbearable for me was the nonexistent story arc. It started as a high school show, then they were on vacation for several (!) episodes, and then they went back trying to be a convoluted pseudo-thriller for the last two episodes. Where's the connection? Beats me, but if I have to see another pointless beach episode ever again, I'm going to lose it. Seriously, so much stupid “plot twists” happen, I can barely recount all of them, but here are some of my personal highlights:
Ben and Nueng have more screen time than Ben and Chopper, and they even share a kiss. It's a plot device, because although Nueng is already getting bullied, we have to add some homophobia to the plot. Dead parents and bullying wasn't bad enough, I guess. Why sacrifice the actually compelling secondary couple to a cheap-ass plot device, though? The series wasted so much time on a relationship that was doomed to fail that Ben and Chopper barely got any development, but in the end they get together either way. Good for them, but why not dedicate some time to two actually decent actors? The deserved better.
Maggie, Palm's “love interest”, shows up at the beach resort one day. Why? Beats me, she's just another device for some subplot that doesn't even matter. And it's always good to add some jealousy to the mix, am I right? Because why waste precious time on actual attraction between two characters. Maggie also deserved better, by the way.
Both mothers essentially got fridged, and I hated that. Especially at the end, when Nueng (?) had the audacity to insinuate that Palm's mother sacrificed herself for their happiness. No, shut the fuck up! That's not what happened, and there's nothing romantic about that. Oh my god, I'm still so mad about it.
Also, the last two episodes desperately tried to make up for all the time they wasted at the beach resort. Palm's dad went to prison because Nueng's uncle framed him, and now Palm has no one left? No worries, Nueng simply buys his freedom, because apparently that's how justice works. Nueng has some scores to settle? No worries, he just grabs some bodyguards (not Palm though, because he left him behind in the middle of nowhere after DRUGGING him – and they say romance is dead²) and slow-walks up to his uncle and his bullies. Turns out his uncle isn't as easily intimidated as a bunch of high school bullies, so he retaliates with the most evil and original plan ever: Use Palm to pressure Nueng into signing the company over to him. In a truly hilarious scene, a lot of people get shot (sadly not Nueng) and then Chopper saves the day. Nueng could've apologized or thanked him at this point, but he doesn't. And why would he? The crown prince of main character syndrome country hasn't done anything wrong. Urgh.
Anyway, to wrap this overly long review up: Never Let Me Go is a convoluted mess and the lead characters aren't able to safe their sinking ship. So if anyone needs me, I’ll be over there, waiting for Dangerous Romance to hopefully give Perth and Chimon the spotlight they deserve.
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I don't know..
Honestly i don’t know what to say.. I started this drama because i thought it would be a different plot, original, eccentic but.. NO. It was no sense. The first episodes were slow, i would say almost interesting but towards the end it was super fast, also the last episode: everything happenend in 45 mintues and for all the time i was “WTF?”. Even the actors and the acting skills were false, no emotion, all was so forced.. the face of Neung in some scenes were so innatural, i didn’t like his role ‘cause he’s childish, rude and i would also say toxic. He kissed Ben just because he gave him attention and do we want to talk when he drugged Palm who was already drunk? He has heart problems. On the other side palm was.. i don’t know. I liked that he would have sacrificed himself to save neung but it didn't feel like love but just a "i’m doing it for duty”. last but not least: i didn’t see so much love by both.I’m so sad because it could have been a very beautiful serie.
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Never let me go... I don't think I ever will
I knew it was going to be heavy since I saw the trailer. The storyline didn’t seem anything special – rich boy needs a bodyguard, the job is given to a poor boy who knows how to fight, they fall in love, bunch of problems follow them. But I am a sucker for cliches, so I am not complaining about it. I do feel like there are certain things regarding the storyline that don’t make much sense or seem extremely unrealistic, but the way the relationship between Nueng and Palm develops seems fairly realistic. There was a lot of questioning what they even are, is a relationship between them even possible, trying to not develop feelings for one another and being unsure about their feelings. We need to keep in mind that the characters are 18, so all of that felt very natural.During the series, we do get to see both make some very questionable decisions. And while they seem like very typical plot twists (which they are), they also make sense, especially after what the boys went through. I feel like they are both very mature and kind of childish at times, it’s an interesting combination that I once again blame on their age. I like Nueng’s personality because it was not your typical rich boy persona, he was actually quite brave when needed and did stand up for those he cares about. His characther growth is amazing! Palm confused me for a very long time with his constant “Mr. Nueng” even when their relationship developed, but I feel like the reason for that is his father and how he tried to make Palm know his “place” in the rich people’s world. He hates being dependent on others as well, and that shows through quite a few of his actions as well.
We do get a side couple – Nueng’s cousin, Chopper, and Ben. I don’t really know how to feel about the two, I love the chemistry between the actors who portray them, but the characters are kind of annoying me. Being an emphatic person sucks, because I also understand why the two act the way they do or why they did something. In the first few episodes, my heart hurt for Chopper because being second best for someone who is your whole world sucks. His relationship with his father is also very difficult as the two have very different expectations and goals for the future. As for Ben, I want to hate him, I really do, for what he did, but I can’t because I can understand his fear that lead his actions. It doesn’t really excuse it, but it makes it make sense.
One question though - what happened to other bodyguards? Like no matter what is happening, most of the time Palm and his dad are the only bodyguards shown doing something to protect Nueng and his mom. I understand that the two are in charge of Nueng and Tanya, but it’s still kind of weird.
The ending was expected, but I am glad it ended the way it did. I think we could all tell who will come through at the end after a few episodes. It does feel too simple though, realistically things couldn’t be done like that so easily. I know some people might be a bit annoyed by it, but it was the comfort I needed. I really enjoyed the OST as well. I felt like it fit the storyline extremely well.
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Super mid, lacked REAL depth
First, I must emphasize, I love the cast members. Phuwin is the loml, and his irl friendship with Pond is so cute! Also, Perth and Chimon are both so talented and handsome (I loved Chimon in The Gifted). However, this drama just wasn't the best.PLOT: I don't even know what to say about it. It was just so mid. The producers definitely tried to make the plot deep and layered, but it just annoyed me many times.
CHARACTERS: Palm annoyed me sometimes because he just seemed kinda robotic and I don't understand where his attraction for Nueng came from. Nueng annoyed me too because he too often seemed like a rich and spoiled kid. I get that he had his losses, but I didn't connect enough with him or the story to care too much.
Next, we have Ben and Chopper. I love Chimon, but Ben just didn't make sense. His feelings were messy and the way he acted was so contradicting sometimes. Chopper, on the other hand, was great. I sympathized with his failures and he added depth to the story that actually made sense.
Both Palm's dad and Nueng's mom annoyed me A LOT.
CINEMATOGRAPHY: This series has a lot of beautiful scenes, which are great for fan edits and could attract the audience. Although I don't really like the plot or execution, the cinematography is great.
MUSIC: I love Phuwin, I love his singing, and I love the OST, especially how he incorporated some Chinese into it.
SHOULD YOU WATCH IT: Overall, it wasn't a BAD drama... It was just... fine. I don't regret watching it because I love the actors so much. For that reason, I think that it's work checking out.
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More Like, Always Let Me Go
If I had a nickel for every time these two lead broke up and got back together in the name of love… I’d own a goddamn bank! We get it, you are in love, with a hero complex. Enough already!Listen, based on the rating of some of the reviews here, I didn’t want to waste my time with this drama, cuz I thought it was going to be worse than that one drama where the lead was secretly collecting the rubbish of the male lead. But then I wanted to procrastinate instead of doing the dishes, and decided to put this on. And, I was presently surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Really, it was a good one. Which makes me wonder if PondPhuwin had been progressing backwards?
What happened to them? I felt none of the vibe I felt with them in this drama while watching We Are. Shouldn’t their chemistry had been better with time or… I’m glad I decided to watch this drama so I could see them at their peak.
My first drama with them was We Are, and that series was not it. Their acting was nothing, and their chemistry was on the floor. Really, I have nothing good to say about my first impression of them, unless to say, at one point I seriously thought they were afraid of each other’s lips. But this show was good. Sure it was messy, but they had a plot and they followed it, and I liked the general vibe between the two leads.
What I liked
- The Music in this was epic!!
- I actually liked PondPhuwin’s chemistry in this. Their acting could use work, but I was okay with how they each played their roles.
- Those hawaii shirts made me laugh. Each time, I was like, why? not sure if I liked it or not, but I laughed so…
- I repeat the music in this show was amazing!!
- The special our sky 2 episodes, don’t care what no one says, I enjoyed it.
- The plot was flawed, I'm sure it had as many holes as a basket, but even with all it’s flaws, I liked it.
- Chopper
- How Palm didn't seem to have any ill-wishes towards his mother. He went straight to calling her 'Mother'. He's better than me, cuz my grudge holding arse would have straight up went, 'Ma'am and/or Auntie.'
What had me going huh?
- Constantly leaving each other to protect the other. We get it, you love the other so much, now stop it, it’s getting old.
- When Nueng talk down to Palm and then we are suppose to forgive him because somehow it was justify. That scene at the dance party made me wanna shake him.
- How Nueng never have any bodyguards with him? Sure, there was Palm, but even when Palm wasn’t around, dude was doing stuff alone. Like, child, peoples are trying to kill your arse!
- The Uncle being sooo obvious as the villain. Literally, his expression was bad guy coded, and at one point he was even walking side ways with a villain tilt of his head. Also, how people in movies/series never notice when someone acting suspicious??
- Palm’s father: Telling his son to give up his life and future for a debt his bum arse owned, was rubbish. Also, why did Nueng’s mother think the guy who worked on a fishing boat would be a good bodyguard? cuz he played basketball?
- Palm’s mother not even knowing what he looked like was wild. Poor boy.
- No matter how I tried, I could not vibe with Ben… don’t know why, he didn’t even do anything that awful.
Anyway, there were a lot more I liked and some things I didn’t, but imma leave it here. If you haven’t watched this show, and some of the reviews are throwing you off, ignore them, this drama isn’t perfect, it has it flaws, but I enjoyed it a lot, so I’ll recommend it.
I hope we’d get more dramas like this from Pond & Phuwin in the future.
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