3
5
jpny01
Had Potential
Overall, this was a disappointment, given its initial promise. It had many things going for it, but in the end the writing, or lack thereof, reduces this to a mediocrity.
Tae's Phap was a really original and different character, and he and Singto were a good odd couple. This doesn't follow the standard seme-uke formula - their personalities are what are opposites, not their appearances and sexual positions. Their appearances are of course opposites, but that's a reflection of their personalities, not the masculine-feminine polarity we usually get.
The story is actually funny at first, with a fairly clever cockroach cam in the first episode, but the humor is unforunately dumped later on for the usual unnecessary implausible miscommunication-based melodrama.
it feels like this was a 10-episode story that was dragged out to 12, forcing Maze to cease his development in Ep 9 and backtrack, which just made him seem like an asshole and ruined the audience's desire to see them together. At the beginning, Maze has real reason to be furious with Phap and frustrated with him. When he returns to that state in Ep 9, it's just depressing and made me not care anymore.
Even the ending, when Phap returns, there's apparently a plan, but what it was I have no idea - have Phap act like Maze for no apparent reason?
Phap isn't really given much backstory, which I suppose isn't critical as he's a care-free artist - but Maze really needed one. We do get his central motivation and the reason why in the very last part of the last episode, but as there was no build up to it, it was too late to have any meaning.
Also, the central conflict for both couples is the relationship between Maze an Nueng which is confusing. Maybe there's a subtitle problem, but their relationship seems pretty clear and it's incomprehensible how Phap and Tharn can misunderstand it - especially Phap, who had it explained to him.
One thing I will say - it's more or less revolutionary that all the characters are jealous over other men instead of the usual women thrown in for no apparent reason other than to add some unwelcome heteronormativity.
The time wasted on incomprehensible drama could have been invested in the secondary couple, which were so unfleshed-out that it was difficult to care about them, other than Yacht being so adorable. They are never really integrated into the story - they're more or less just nailed to it. And with no context, they're just two guys who show up and won't tell each other how they feel but like each other for reasons that aren't ever discussed.
It's not all bad - it tries a lot of new things, the characters are original and interesting (at least at first), and the first half of the series is very engaging and charming. Tae is the real standout, playing an impish and odd artist - we've really never seen anything like this before and it was very refreshing. It's a pity they derailed his character in Ep 9.
It's worth watching just for Tae, but I wouldn't go in with any great expectations.
Tae's Phap was a really original and different character, and he and Singto were a good odd couple. This doesn't follow the standard seme-uke formula - their personalities are what are opposites, not their appearances and sexual positions. Their appearances are of course opposites, but that's a reflection of their personalities, not the masculine-feminine polarity we usually get.
The story is actually funny at first, with a fairly clever cockroach cam in the first episode, but the humor is unforunately dumped later on for the usual unnecessary implausible miscommunication-based melodrama.
it feels like this was a 10-episode story that was dragged out to 12, forcing Maze to cease his development in Ep 9 and backtrack, which just made him seem like an asshole and ruined the audience's desire to see them together. At the beginning, Maze has real reason to be furious with Phap and frustrated with him. When he returns to that state in Ep 9, it's just depressing and made me not care anymore.
Even the ending, when Phap returns, there's apparently a plan, but what it was I have no idea - have Phap act like Maze for no apparent reason?
Phap isn't really given much backstory, which I suppose isn't critical as he's a care-free artist - but Maze really needed one. We do get his central motivation and the reason why in the very last part of the last episode, but as there was no build up to it, it was too late to have any meaning.
Also, the central conflict for both couples is the relationship between Maze an Nueng which is confusing. Maybe there's a subtitle problem, but their relationship seems pretty clear and it's incomprehensible how Phap and Tharn can misunderstand it - especially Phap, who had it explained to him.
One thing I will say - it's more or less revolutionary that all the characters are jealous over other men instead of the usual women thrown in for no apparent reason other than to add some unwelcome heteronormativity.
The time wasted on incomprehensible drama could have been invested in the secondary couple, which were so unfleshed-out that it was difficult to care about them, other than Yacht being so adorable. They are never really integrated into the story - they're more or less just nailed to it. And with no context, they're just two guys who show up and won't tell each other how they feel but like each other for reasons that aren't ever discussed.
It's not all bad - it tries a lot of new things, the characters are original and interesting (at least at first), and the first half of the series is very engaging and charming. Tae is the real standout, playing an impish and odd artist - we've really never seen anything like this before and it was very refreshing. It's a pity they derailed his character in Ep 9.
It's worth watching just for Tae, but I wouldn't go in with any great expectations.
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