Moonlight Chicken (2023)

You watch it for EarthMix but fall in love with GeminiFourth

I don't know if it was a canon event for everyone, but this happened to me.

Story (8)
I couldn't get caught up with Jim and Wen.... maybe they are a little too serious characters? They are obviously two adults with adult problems, so I found them a little too complicated for my taste. That's not to say they're not a great pairing. Earth and Mix make even the worst-written character shine. But Gemini and Fourth were really a revelation: Ming and Heart deserved to have a spin-off series just for them. I also like that they are finally showing different disabilities in bls, it gives a breath of fresh air to a stale room of super nice and perfect characters.

Acting/Cast (9)
- Earth and Mix never disappoint: they are excellent actors who can play characters with great character depths
- Gemini and Fourth: I saw them for the first time here, and I really liked them; GMMTV's new recruits never disappoint
- First and Kao are a wonderful addition to an already fantastic cast; here they show how they are capable of being good actors even when they are apart

Music (8)
I liked the fact that they had all the guys sing in the opening ost. It's a wonderful lullaby.

Rewatch Value (7.5)
If I ever do a rewatch I will do it for Heart and Ming. I'm sorry to say this because EarthMix is my favourite ship, but in this drama they were eaten up by these two.

Overall (8.5)
Overall it's a good drama. There is nothing really problematic about it. There is just something missing (which I can't describe) about Jim and Wen. Just that.

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fun, tears & love

I really liked this BL but the couple that stole my heart was Li Ming and Heart. But let's go step by step! Unlike the couple formed by the two boys, I find that the relationship between Jim and Wen has not gone gradually, it has certainly had ups and downs but in the last episode a love seems to have been born between the two that didn’t exist until the previous episode. Surely Jim held back his feelings due to the situation with Wen, Alan and Gaipa but maybe I wouldn't have shown this gap so obviously.
I find Li Ming the best character in the drama, a little boy who grew up too quickly who, despite having received no love, has so much to give and gives it to Heart who also has never received any love since he became deaf. This couple was the one that let me breath again while everything went wrong between Jim and Wen, the only one that gave me joy from the start to the end. The theme of deafness, although I don't know anything about it, is addressed really well and I think it opens the world to those people who are left out of society because "they lack in something". Heart was immediately loved by everyone, treated like the others and i was so happy when Wen learned sign language (or at least, some gestures).
Gaipa and Alan also deserve a special mention. Despite the few scenes during the series, the two have stolen my heart and I hope that one day a spin off will be made to better understand their characters and their relationship. I felt every emotion of Gaipa from being whipped for jim to being rejected and the pain of losing his mother. A true, pure character with a big heart who despite the broken heart helps Jim. I experienced Alan's suffering from start to finish but I would have liked to see him smile more with Gaipa, only in the final episode I was able to see him happy. Although I don't understand the last scene when Wen approaches him and Gaipa angrily. Bro? It's none of your business anymore.
At the end, I would like to conclude with Leng who gave me lightness and fun. A little boy who, despite the difficulty of becoming a father at such a young age, try to gave a good life for his son.

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It's a fun series that has a lot going for it, but there are a few things not a fan of, especially Wan living with his ex. Wen needs to grow up and do better. Wen is to pushy with trying to start a relationship to fast just after braking up. Sadly was not at all a fan of the character. He is still growing slowly and not seeing all that is happening and the bigger picture took way too long. You can't just live with an ex and expect to be friends so easily. I enjoy this series because it does face a lot of issues and opens up about real problems. I love the lead chemistry. The cast is amazing. Sadly a lot of hurt, and pain but love and laughter. It's a good series, not great but it has a wonderful and powerful story to tell and it did a great job of it. Sadly I felt it took many episodes to really get to the point of the majority of the story and wish it took more effort to show real development with the couples and pairs. Overall would I recommend it Yes, love the cast and the storyline, just wish it put more to get to the point and showed more growth for the pairs. The one thing I have to say is Li and Heart are the best and most amazing characters ever.

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It Leaves a Mark to Your Heart

Not just a slice-of-life but slices-of-life because it transcends beyond it. Aside from gay relationships, it tackles about family, youth, being an orphan, unwanted pregnancy, single parenthood, person with disability, daily survival, among others we can witness in our society in a daily basis. But in the end, there is forgiveness, reconciliation, and healing.

This is a story of Jim, owner of a famous chicken rice diner that only opens in the evening. He is being helped by his nephews Li Ming, a graduating student and Saleng, who has a girlfriend. One night, upon closing, a drunk Wen was the only customer left sleeping on the table. Waking him and having beers together as they walked to the main street. Since Wen is totally wasted, he brought him home and let him sleep in his room. Quite sober, one-night-stand occurs. The next morning, Jim is decided to leave it as it is. They did not even got their names. But Wen could not forget what happened and came back to the diner applying as waiter as his second job just to pursue Jim. Then their story evolves.

Uncle Jim as they call him is struggling to make both ends meet as he raises his two nephews’, the nagging-hater Li Ming and sexually active Saleng. As Li Ming delivers an order to Heart's house (which is deaf), expensive liquor was broken and it was accused to Li Mings fault. That is why Li Ming volunteered to work with the family to pay the amount with an ulterior motive of escaping the work at the diner. While Saleng announced to his uncle that his girlfriend is pregnant. They could not propose marriage because they could not afford any dowry and the girlfriend's parents are in the province.

Wen is a person who tries to break-free from suffocating relationship but still living as "friends" with his ex, Alan. While Alan still hopes to make their relationship work and goes back as a couple. When Wen knew Jim in an unusual one-night-stand, Wen tries to pursue Jim which also has issues from his past.

Heart is a person with disability. For the past three years, he was unable to hear. He was kept home by his parents to avoid social ridicule. When Li Ming works in their home to pay the broken expensive liquor, enemy to friends develops and ends into deep feelings.

Personally speaking, I almost discontinue watching after the end of episode 3. (**SPOILER) That is because Wen made all the efforts to be in good terms again and Wen let Jim meet his father; but as Wen went home, some guy is sleeping in Wen's bed. More so, I misunderstood because in the picture it wears some glasses, I thought it was Jim's ex...(gosh, looks can be deceiving). It made me read all the reviews and comments as to what will happen next. And yet, as you continue watching, you can't help but shed tears non-stop.

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A complicated hookup with tiny sprinkes of bittersweets

I stopped watching this after the first hour because of the slow and pointless nature of the main couple's actions. The very slow-paced slow motion life did not touch me...

and I'm guessing we are supposed to understand the characters doing mundane stuff. Months later, I came back to the show to be tortured some more. The second couple was less complicated and had hints of hope and something resembling romance. The main couple just sat there being dramatic and well, complicated. The main couple's pointless actions eventually grew on me as the back story was revealed but I never fully understood the why. Like why are we here? And just why, why why

The acting is top-notch, and the visuals are moody and interesting. The story of a hook-up culture trying to be something more is not really a fun watch. But, it's closer to a bittersweet independent film that people force you to watch to say how life is horrible and we will all die alone. And after the torture of watching it you are supposed to be happy about your own life...I guess.

I'm being a bit dramatic, I mean, after all, I gave it a nine out of ten.

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NO ES PARA TODOS

Siento que esta serie no es para todo publico, toca temas muy adultos que para los demás espectadores puede ser muy aburrido de ver. En mi opinión esta serie debe de verse con una mente más abierta para poder disfrutarla. Me encanta todos los temas que toca, desde el embarazo a temprana edad, lo difícil que es soltar una relación de años y volver a estar con alguien, la relación tan afectuosa que una madre y su hijo llegan a tener e incluso lo difícil que es para una persona sorda llevar su vida normal; todo es perfecto a mi parecer. La historia de Heartliming es algo muy reconfortante de ver, me encanta ver a Liming aprendiendo lengua de señas para poder comunicarse con heart

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Good BL, characters not so much.

I would have to say this is a pretty solid BL, I really enjoyed it. The plot was sort of unique and there was a lot representation especially with the deaf community which isn't often seen in BL, and in shows/movies in general so i enjoyed the aspect about it.

The characters were a bit annoying at times, especially the main couple. And I didn't really like how they made Alan out to be the bad guy in the beginning, because I generally felt bad for him. But I was glad that Alan got his own little romance at the ending, or else it wouldn't really feel complete.

There was a lot realism in this series and wasn't overally fluffy, and was more realistic with the build up of the relationships and the relationships had more depth. You don't see that in a lot of BLs. Wen was a bit repetitive with his relationship with Jim, I like how there was more build up, but Wen seemed a bit to desperate and it felt like he was forceful which was a bit annoying.

I honestly liked the side couples more, especially with Heart and Li Ming, I wish there was some spin-off series between the two people they were so much more interesting but had way less screen time. And their overall relationship was more healthy and the dynamics were fun to watch.

So 8/10 feels right, mostly just wish the main couple weren't as annoying as they were shown, (It got a bit better.) And the side couple had more screen time. The age gap wasn't HUGE, but it was kind of weird.

I recommend this BL if you like slow build up between characters and are looking for more diversity when it comes to stories or characters.

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First Kanaphan's acting as Alan

This is the best screen play i have ever witnessed in BL industry.
The script, the acting, plot, story everything is a masterpiece
For some people this show might feel a bit slower paced but trust me that's the beauty of this drama
Also not to mention First's acting as Alan is a masterpiece, work of art BL industry will ever see.
P'Aof did an excellent job and I have mad respect for him for this project
All the characters and their portrayal is precise and the depiction of their emotions and character development is on point.
Moonlight Chicken isnt just a drama its an ART.

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It's the supporting roles that steal this series

Honestly, I found nothing dynamic about Earth and Mix's performances and they do not steal this series. They have done this before. Who steals this series is Fourth and Gemini. They are so solid and believable and I want them to have a whole series on just their incredibly real relationship. Unfortunately, this series went off into inane and empty directions that it did not need to do. Only for the sake of theatrics and not story telling. Also First did an incredible job in playing a rather small part but did so with complete conviction. He added quite a dimension to that role so kudos!

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Two great ships in one fantastic show

Look, I’m usually not someone who likes the one-night stand trope because I prefer the gradual development of feelings and two people getting to know each other. But omg. This was so good and we still managed to get that.

I really loved Jim and Wen and seeing how they started learning about each other’s lives and helping each other grow and make hard decisions, and that’s not even mentioning that the chemistry was off the charts both in terms of physical and emotional intimacy. They completely sold their characters, and it couldn’t have been done without the great second leads that were Alan and Gaipa.

Heart and Liming were also a fantastic second couple. As a foil to Jim/Wen, both of who were somewhat jaded about life and romance, we saw a much more innocent first love situation as two people started spending time together. The commentary on deafness and communication was really beautiful as well. They stole every scene they were in and between these two ships I found the show not having one boring moment.

It was actually so refreshing that there were no villains and no terrible misunderstandings between any of the couples. I was so impressed with how much JimWen and HeartLiming both communicated, and having the story focus on the theme of parenthood was also really powerful, between seeing Jim/Liming’s relationships, to seeing Liming’s mother return, and more.

I really do wish this was longer because the plot developments felt kind of thin sometimes when it came to Gaipa’s mother — who I didn’t really see enough of go get emotionally attached to — and also when it came to the chicken diner and the corporation that wanted to buy the land. Despite what we learned out about how the diner started, the place itself never really had “personality” after the first episode, if that makes sense, and I didn’t feel the high stakes of losing it.

Nevertheless, this is a comfort drama for sure and it just might’ve changed my mind about the “one-night stand” trope.

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Slice-of-bitter-life

I believe that, in the end, the good bits outnumber the bad ones, which is why I gave this series an 8 out of 10 overall. The essence of the series is good and most things were taken care of pretty well, but some others seemed to be put there carelessly or were just neglected. I'll try to sort my feelings about Moonlight Chicken as best as I can.

Starting from the plot and the overall narration: I believe it's good enough, but not really as good as it could be. The story itself is pretty simple (no surprises there since it's an obvious slice-of-life), there are a couple of major surprises but nothing huge. Something that I really liked about it was the cinematography, along with some specific dialogues and symbolisms sprinkled in: it felt like being fully immersed in the life of the characters and the metaphors and parallels made for a very satisfying watch during the most important scenes. What I didn't like was how the show seemed to cling onto the "realistic" side of it all way too much for my taste, to the point that a good chunk of the events are very anticlimactic - even when they were really important, I ended up not feeling much about them. The pacing felt too slow at times, and I also had lots of trouble understanding how much time went by between the main events: in certain instances it feels like it's only been a day or two, then it's suddenly revealed that it's been weeks or months.
There are multiple interesting themes in the story as well: moving on from grief or a past relationship, learning to be responsible for the people around, learning to let other people go and make their own choices for their life, and so on. These themes found their place in multiple characters and situations, but not all of them were explored as in depth as they could have. Since the pacing already felt too slow to me, I believe that putting some of these ideas aside might have helped to let the others shine more.
I wasn't able to enjoy the story as much as I wanted because it felt incredibly bitter, with money issues and lack of understanding among the characters looming over all the episodes like a huge black cloud. But that's just my preference and I'm not considering it an actual flaw.

As for the characters... well. Like others have already said, Earth was not the right actor to interpret Jim. Earth is about my age, so I kept feeling very weirded out when I saw him being called old and being treated like a middle-aged man at all times. I feel especially bad about it because Earth is a favorite Thai actor of mine, and also the main reason why I decided to watch this series in the first place, but he just isn't the right fit for this role. I believe that the other actors were a good choice, but since Jim is the main character and basically everyone interacts with him at some point, he made a lot of interactions feel off.
The characterization was pretty good for all the characters, support roles included. I liked the fact that no character was entirely perfect, and rather than making villains and heroes out of nowhere, there was just a group of people doing their best with their life.
As a couple, unfortunately Jim and Wen weren't interesting enough to me. Aside from Earth trying to interpret someone 10 years older than he is, I just didn't feel any chemistry between them. I don't believe it's the actors' fault since they had incredible chemistry in other series I watched with them as the main characters; it's probably because of a combination of overall mood and pacing to me. I saw some sparks on the very first episode, but then their individual circumstances made each of their appearances feel oddly gloomy and uncomfortable. I felt like Wen wanted to stick around for no real reason other than, well, the plot.
Li Ming and Heart were absolute show stealers. The acting of Gemini and Fourth is already amazing at their young age, and Gemini in particular did amazing portraying a deaf character. Their chemistry was incredible to see even in their smallest moments together, and the development of their relationship was steady and well-paced. Their story was also easily the most lighthearted of all, so I unconsciously started to look forward to their moments instead of focusing on the bitter and gloomy main plot.

In the end, I can say that it's a good series and that it should be watched at least once, but at the same time I can't recommend it. I don't even see myself picking this up again in the future, if not to watch Li Ming and Heart falling in love one more time. It can be good if you want to watch a more serious Thai series and take a break from goofy comedies with lots of sound effects, but that's it.

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