Word of advice: go into this show as blind as possible. If death and light horror aren't your thing, then just take this as your queue to pass on this one. But if those are your jam, DO NOT watch any trailers or read any reviews, including the rest of this one.

Ok, did you watch it? Good. Have you still not watched it but are ignoring my above advice bc you're a masochist for spoiler-induced trauma? Well, you're a monster, don't say I didn't warn you and proceed if you must.

Basic premise of the series for context: Mike and Peem are students in an acting class, they're also secretly hooking up despite Mike also having a girlfriend. Another person in their friend group, Mean, finds out about the secret affair and then tells the girlfriend about their hookups, causing her to break up with Mike on their anniversary. Mike is much more devastated and angry than anticipated, but he doesn't know who told her and jumps to the conclusion that Peem did it in order to break them up. This misunderstanding leads to violent and tragic consequences that both Mike and Mean have to live with.

First thing you'll notice about this is of course the performances, and performing is somewhat of a theme in the story so the actors' choices are always intertwining with the writing in such a unique way. Obviously, Gameplay and Jeff have absolutely pitch-perfect chemistry in everything they do and this is no exception. Though, if you're looking for the same dynamic they had in Ingredients unfortunately this is not the show to you. A brilliant combo of writing and performance from Jeff makes you really unsure throughout the first episode and a half whether Mike is a good or bad guy. It's clear that he cares for Peem, but he's also still not willing to break up with Pear and even treats her so sweetly at their anniversary despite having very recently had his tongue down Peem's throat (and from the spicier shots we get who knows where else). Is he being manipulative and leading Peem on bc he selfishly wants both, or is he genuinely just confused or not ready to openly date a man? You really don't know, and with Peem's almost demonic appearance/disappearance at the end of episode 1 it almost leads you to believe that maybe he's the villain.

But then in episode 2 Mike is writing a song for him and Peem is confessing his love and they're sweetly making out and you're back to thinking they're both just dumb kids in love who are bad at relationships. Until Mike blows up after Pear breaks up with him. Not only does he blame Peem without evidence and refuse to listen when Peem denies it. Not only does he tell Peem he only loves Pear and never loved him. Not only does he push Peem into the pool after it was already established that he can't swim. He watches Peem drown. No panicked run for help or confusion about whether he's faking it. He knows Peem will drown without intervention and he watches it happen. It's horrifying in a way you just don't expect.

Finally we get Ghost Gameplay and holy shit is he scary. I'd only ever seen him play pretty sweet-natured characters before, so it was truly wild to see him be so imposing and terrifying. But another surprise was Pom Runn as Mean, his complete terror at being haunted by Peem is so visceral without feeling over-the-top. His confrontation with Mike is a gem of a performance too; after Mike finally figures out that he was the one who actually told Pear, Mean is so damn smug in response. He punches right to the point and says exactly what we're all thinking: Mike doesn't really have a right to be angry bc he was the shithead who cheated and fucked his friend, all he did was reveal to Pear what a shit person Mike really is. Jeff gets across Mike's storm of fury and guilt so damn convincingly, you can see him ripping himself to pieces inside. And then after terrorizing Mean for a bit, Ghost Peem has to go and cry on Mike's shoulder while Mike sings their song in a voice that breaks with pain and tears. Goddamn you Jeff Satur and your emotionally manipulative voice, and damn you Peem for still loving Mike even after he fucking murdered you.

After you're done trying to decide which character is going straight to hell, go back and rewatch to appreciate the cinematography. This was obviously a very, very small production but they 1000% made the best out of what they had. The lighting in particular is so emotive, soft when we need to believe the romance and haunting when we need to piss our pants in terror. There's a scene in an empty school building that's particularly good, with almost total darkness punctuated by bright strips of fluorescent lights, as well as that really sudden fade to black that ends the final scene.

And with that fade to black, don't expect to have everything wrapped up in a neat little bow, or get answers to even some of your questions. It's not that kind of story. Think of it more as a narrative experience than a linear tale. What happened to Peem's body? What did Mike tell his friends and the police about how he drowned? Is Ghost Peem really trying to kill Mike and Mean as revenge or just scare them? What the hell was that deal with that acting coach? Was that acting class in the first episode before or after Peem's death? You can argue and hypothesize about these questions for hours after finishing the show, and that's the real beauty of it for me. It's a little 45 minute long bubble of intense relationships and jump scares and haunting visuals and Ghost Gameplay, which is as close to perfection as almost any show I've watched.