Love by Chance (2018)

A nearly polished gem everyone deserves

A heads up: this is the most fluttering, refreshing, and satisfying Thai BL has ever produced so far. A series mixed of fluff and drama, Love By Chance is your typical BL story selling us innocent and pure love. Most of the story arcs were promising, and upon its ending, it certainly delivered. Its cliche scenes did not compromise the humanity of the characters, which BL stories tend to abuse for squeals from fangirls, and making it believable and realistic. Above all, its authenticity shone throughout the show, credits going to all who are involved in this magnificent show which gave viewers - fans and casual viewers - a story rather than nonsense supercut of skinships and nonsensical kissing and humping.

The first main story of Ae and Pete seems to have been carefully written with its tendencies to curve a little from typical bs of BL and is just focused on delivering a *spoiler* pure, innocent, and genuine love with just a bit, if not totally without, pathetic twist and turns. The characterization of Ae and Pete is very simple but not forgetting the humanity and them, which makes their story work. Even their lines have some intricacies which don't just attempt to make fangirls fall from their seats. Skepticism arose from the second main story of Tin and Can due to probable exhaustion of authenticity where the first main story relied on, but somehow, thanks probably to its director, author's magic still worked, despite the story starting way too out of time and left hanging in the series. The other stories, however, were just too underdeveloped to allow viewers to sympathize with them, not to mention them being borderline questionable. It's major downfall is that romanticized story arc of Kengkla and Techno, which was ironic, having another arc which 'kinda' depicted some horrors of what rape could do to one.

The actors so far have acted most of their scenes more decent than the crap Thai BL has been feeding us fans. Perth, tho, steals the spotlight. Nah scratch that, Perth owned this show. He gave Ae justice which such good acting, as if Ae isn't from a TV show but actually living irl. Ae has become the most dynamic, three-dimensional seme a thai BL has ever offered, and his personification is all thanks to the great acting skills of Perth. Saint is in close second, who as well has given Pete the humanity most BL actors I have seen could not for a uke of the story. He delivers vulnerability of Pete perfectly that audience could understand his plight just by watching his diverse emotions seen in his face. It also showed how smart Saint is in acting. While Perth's acting is straightforward, Pete's relies on subtlety, which definitely worked for his role as Pete. From the variety of expressions he could give in just a frame to careful body language, Saint sure knows how to tease every fan not by using his mouth to fish squeals but by showing them that action speaks louder than words. These two actors have carried the first episodes by themselves and made Love By Chance worth the wait for each upcoming episodes. They made Ae and Pete real and cemented the credibility of this show. There were hiccups of course, like Plan in the first part and Gun, but forgivable. Plan is often subject to my criticism due to the awkwardness of his acting, but eventually caught up during his important scenes. He allowed Tin x Can ship to sail and go on to its adventure. Mean is consistent in all of his scenes, making Tin a delight for viewers who want a not-so-flat character tsundere guys tend to be.

Its original OST and those which subsequently released are awesome, fitting perfectly for the mood and theme of the story. The use of other soundtrack from other series though is distracting, which voids Love By Chance as that new BL series apart from other series.

Love By Chance is that story you'd look for deep down the list of most popular being mostly trash BL stories everywhere but it's that nearly polished gem everyone deserves.

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I started this bcoz of reviews. Ae is kind hearted guy who doesn't know he's gay/bi till he meet Pete just like in other BL series. Pete is an innocent,pure,helpless guy who falls for Ae. I like how Pete came out but his acting made me cringe sometimes. Tin-Can relationship is confusionship. Can doesn't know whether he loves Tin or not still he goes to his house, kiss him like couple. How Tin suddenly loved Can is something idk till now. may b bcoz of their 1st forced kiss. Last thing with techno... It's RAPE. How can they approve that script. It basically shows if u love someone then just rape him/her when they're drunk/unconscious & they've no choice to not accept u. Wow. May b I'm gonna watch some scenes but not series. It's just one time series. Infact Ae-Pete also has some triggering scenes like Ae punishing pete when he talked abt mean, kissing him forcibly in locker room & he won't even regret it. But many r loving that scene as if it's normal in real life.

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Ok so I haven't finished the show because I still have to watch the last episode but I know how it ends and...wtf??? If you had asked me two weeks ago I would have said that in my heart the show deserved a 9 but in my head it was a solid 7.5. Now both my heart and head think the same: It's just not that good so I'm going with the 7.5. I'm pretty new to BL shows so I don't know what to expect from others after reading everywhere that this was probably the best drama they had seen. I really liked the story at the beginning, although Pete was a bit too much for me, and I was also very excited for Tin and Can because I love the ''enemies to lovers'' trope, but after episode like 9 or 10...eh? Things were going great for Ae and Pete, they were cute as always, but Tin and Can's plot was just so rushed (and Kengkla/Techno and Tum/Tar were nonexistent although I didn't care much about them tbh). I tried to enjoy the scenes that Can and Tin had together(even though they looked sooo out of nowhere lol) with hope knowing that if their plot was being rushed it was because they were going to be endgame...or not? Going back to the two forgotten couples (which had like 5 minutes of screen time), why would you include a topic as delicate as rape without giving it enough time? And Kengkla and Techno's storyline was very messed up too. Anyways, I know this looks as if I'm only ranting and didn't actually enjoy the show. I did and I invested a lot of energy in it so that's why I'm so mad. Maybe I was expecting too much from it because everyone was hyping it 24/7. If someone happens to read until here I'd say: watch it and reach to your own conclusion. It's nowhere near perfect but the two leads have good chemistry and most of the time they're quite nice and fluffy (I'm not super fond of possessive/extra horny Ae but whatever).

Edit: I have tried to watch that last episode but I just can't bring myself to do it unless a second season is announced and that ending is fixed (which would be a Christmas miracle *sighs*). Fingers crossed and I'll wait for a show where Mean and Plan are the main couple and have a happy ending...please???

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What a joyride.

Love By Chance serves as the third BL I had ever seen, right behind Tharntype and History 3: Trapped. When those are the only BLs you've ever watched, for sure Love By chance would be in my corner. Having had seen this BL many many months ago before finding actual masterpieces, I would tell you that I had fallen in LOVE with this show... not so much now. But, I want to stay true to my original rating in which I gave it a 9 out of 10, but if I were to do back and watch, (which I NEVER do) I would give this a PHAT 6.

Let's dive in.

Production: 5/10 - I will always and forever be bothered by the way BLs (Thailand productions in general ig) think we need 85 different camera angels when we only need ONE. We seriously don't need them showing us a kiss and then changing angles and show us them re-kissing and then do another angle and have them re-re-kissing again. Other than that, everything else looked normal.

Story: 6/10 - Not too much to say about this one, this was really just another very generic Uni BL. this was only my second BL that had been set in Uni, so I wasn’t too bothered, but looking back now, it wasn’t all that special like it had felt when I first watched.

Acting: 6/10 - Nothing too amazing, but nothing too poor either. I loved Perth's acting and Plan has always had me in awe about how good he is. Everyone else did their part of giving us "good enough".

Other: I had watched this series well after the situation that happened with Saint and Perth, and honestly, it was quite saddening, especially since I heard about there being a second season that Saint wouldn't be in. Tragic. But, from what I heard, I'm glad he left when he had the chance. Also on top of that, I have seen the situation in which the actors would make fun of and pick at Earth who is the only openly gay actor on LBC. Really turned me off to this series VERY quickly. I can't tolerate bullies, especially bullies that work in an industry that put their names on the map. dis-cuss-teng!

C-O-U-P-L-E-S

Ae and Pete: 9/10

Their story arc was pretty precious. From even the beginning, I honestly liked the connection that Ae and Pete had. The way that Ae helped him feel comfortable with his sexuality, Ae saving Pete, Them giving each other bracelets and the extra lovey-dovey shit on top of that. Overall, their dynamics were just really fun to watch. I will always shout this from the rooftop; I LOVE me some friends to lovers trope. Even with the good shit, there was undoubtedly the bad too. Ae at times overshadowed Pete and wouldn't let the dude make decisions for himself. On top of that, Ae's weird reasoning for throwing himself at Pete was very problematic and NOT okay. "You talked to another human being??? guess I'll have to punish you for it" *smirk emoji here*. Yeah, it was weird and them being a couple is not an excuse, especially since Pete was noticeably uncomfortable.

FIRST KISS: Okay, accidental kisses aren't everything to me, but, you know what, I'm not mad. Their kiss was so fresh and so innocent, I could really feel the anxiousness and the excitement of it happening, and Ae announcing that it was his first kiss added the cherry on top.

FIRST TIME: Yes, bye. Yes. This was everything, I LOVED that Pete was the one that explained that he wanted to have sex. Especially when he's the one negotiating and he opening up about what he wants. We love consent AND communication !!

Can and Tin: 8/10

Even though I’m not a huge fan of enemies to lovers, I give them a pass cause I enjoyed this one. The date episode was when I had gotten sold with this couple, and on top of Plan's amazing acting, it all really worked well. I really like how they ended things with this couple, it wasn't happy ever after, it was heartbreaking and sorrowful. Tin just needed someone and was taken aback when Can didn't feel like he could be that person. Although I liked this couple, I hated their development. There were many ways Tin could’ve gotten Can to like him back, there was no need for the whole “I’m going to force you to kiss me” thingy going on. very weird and very awkward,

FIRST KISS: No, Is there anything more I need to add to this? Just no. I wish to say that literally all other kisses were better, but all of them were just BAD. Not only bad but the worse I’ve ever seen in a BL. Like I don’t even know if I would call it kissing, I would more call it, Lip Touching. I truly believe the director said to them, “alright, you put your lip on the side of his mouth and then just pretend that you’re kissing.”

TW: R*PE

Techno and Kengkla: -2/10

There are plenty of reviews that speak on this topic, so I'll keep it brief. NO. Like No. Instead of formulating a whole ass heist, maybe next time we can try just, idk, having a freaking conversation? Maybe some flirting? Something along the lines of consensual perhaps? I feel bad for the actors though, they both seem decent, but this series shine a really bright and negative light for them both. Hope to see them in something better next time.

Not rating their "intimate" moments. It's all below hell.

TW: R*PE and IN*EST
Tum and Tar: 3/10

Someone's going to have to explain to me BL's obsession with In*est, cause from here on out, it's like nonstop. Although I adore Earth (He's right behind Fluke as one of my favorite BL actors), I still can't get behind this couple. Also, Tar tells Tum about something so traumatic that he's been through, and Tum was like "cool idc" and s*xually assaults him???? and it's not talked about ever again and is instead ignored and moved past????????? um, no?????? The only thing I truly enjoyed about these characters was their brotherly dynamic, (you know; when it didn't turn illegal). Also, Earth takes like two points out of the three, absolutely adore him.

RECOMMEND? If someone were to ask me what to watch as their first Bl, Love By Chance would be the 48th suggestion. Does that answer the question?

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There's just something special about LBC. I love the characters, the story, the acting, the chemistry between the two leads ans of course the OST! IMO all the songs fit the story perfectly. My Favorite has to be It's Maybe Love by Stamp- whoever picked that song for Ae & Pete's sl was spot on.
Ok on to the story, I know some will probably find Ae and Pete's sl boring since they don't go thru much angst or except for 2 episodes, no real break ups since they become an item. I find it so refreshing that we have a couple on a BL series that actually communicate to one another, they listen and the fights they do have they fix them by actually talking to one another. Ae & Pete have to be one of the healthiest relationships on a BL series ever and for that reason I love them and Love by Chance so much. It's hard to believe these were Saint and Perth's first BL roles, imo they seem really comfortable with each other. I mean some of their S*x scenes are bordering on a bit explicit but I never doubted these two characters both loved each other and were hot for one another either lol. They had a lot of chemistry.
Also the writers did an excellent job in portraying a teen love story between two 18 year olds. Their dialogues sound exactly like what a teen their age would say when experiencing that first love. Kudos to the writers for that. I've seen other series where the dialogue makes me cringe sometimes but not here.
Ae's character is special to me, Not to take anything away from Pete's adorableness and cuteness, sweetness etc but Ae is a breath of fresh air. I like how he deals with coming to terms with his sexuality, he never once hurts anyone with his confusion and once he realizes what he wants he's confident enough to go after it without any shame or struggle to me that was something different that I quite enjoyed watching on LBC
Adding all this to the side characters like Pond, Tin, Can, Ping and Bow it makes this series one of the best I've watched when it comes to Thai BL series.
10/10 from me.
P.s I wasn't much of a Tin/Can fan but I see why people like them & I'm glad they were included they did make Love by Chance more interesting.

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Note: The producers have announced two weeks ago there will be a S2 where they will give closure to the many unresolved issues pending from S1. This review will be revised at that point.

•••

A punch is never worse than when not expected. This is the most heart wrenching and gratuitously cruel ending I have seen in years. It is beyond sad, beyond sorrowful; it is just plain upsetting.

The supporting characters, Tin and Can, eventually take over the drama while the main characters fade into the distance and turn rather insipid. But while the main characters achieve the cheesiest of romantic endings, Tin and Can end up in total devastation; one which caught me by surprise and really upset me because there was no anticipation, no purpose, and nothing other than a cruel knock out to what appeared to have been, at first, a movie about redemption and hope.

A drama that promised to be one of the best LB stories of the year turned out to be a nightmare of frustration and disappointment. Tin portrayed one of the most traumatized characters I’ve seen in this type of drama, one that could have taught viewers the values of recovery and redemption. But, instead, the writer opted to cave in and give prevalence to the cowardice of Can destroying any redemptive quality this ultimately very uninspiring plot may have had.

When viewers are tricked by an exaggerated twist of fate working alongside a false sense of hope the manipulation becomes disgustingly obvious and very irritating. I consider such manipulation a sadist approach to scriptwriting and a disingenuous sense of the dramatic: in other words, this movie is a bad high school novel written by a teenager. I would not recommend it to anyone taking film-making seriously.

I must mention though, that the fault lies with the writer, producer and director. The acting was beyond good; and on occasion it was, in fact, amazing! But the story and re-watch value are worth a negative number - something below zero... which, unfortunately, this site does not allow.

In conclusion, this drama is about Can caving into negative social pressures and becoming a closeted case bringing Tin down with him, who was painted in terms of exaggerated martyrdom for the sake of an audience of masochists (or suckers like me) who must have ended the series with a horrible taste in their mouths. A drama made for Xanax and in the service of the anti-depressant pharmaceutical industry, no doubt... XD.

I have made note of the director’s name to remove every single movie he has made from my watchlist - like I would any movie made by manipulative, frivolous, and callous writers with an exaggerated sense of the dramatic and a pitiful sense of resolution. Gratuitous pain is not welcomed; I find it trite!

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Like most fans, I've become addicted to Love by Chance. While it's not my favorite series, I've been thinking about what it is that makes me like it as much as I do.

I like Ae (and he is a good actor). I think everybody dreams about having (or being) a head-over-heels in love superhero from time to time, and Ae fits that character. Other characters I like are Pond (he's so hilarious and really attractive), Tin (probably the hottest guy on the show and plays the jerk so well), the girl who plays Pond's girlfriend and Trump... yes, I actually enjoy him (although not his character, I realize he's the villain).

There's a good balance of romance, comedy and drama. While homophobia is part of the show (Trump; Tin), it's a small part, with a good deal of tolerance and acceptance of same-sex relationships. This is a good thing.

For me, the downsides of the show (not a dealbreaker) are the over-the-top-oh-so-cuuuuuute scenes between Ae and Pete... I like them but can we tone down the sugar overload just a bit? I know Pete is a fan favorite but, for me, his shyness/cuteness/weakness is so exaggerated that his character doesn't seem real. The Tum/Tar relationship bores me... possibly because the younger guy looks 12 and it's hard for me to imagine him in a serious relationship of any kind. Can makes me laugh (especially when he walks around blabbing to himself out loud in public), but his character is so weird... is he supposed to have some kind of mental disorder?

We're now 8 episodes in, and Ae/Pete are now officially a couple. Yay! They will have sex very soon (it's the big buildup right now) and probably move in together. Then what? If there's a Season 2, I'd prefer for them to be a "happily ever after" couple, and not the main focus, because that would mean a new set of intense drama for them. As for the rest of this season, I'm looking forward to what happens with Trump (you just know he's going to show up), as well as Tin/Can.

Edited to add: my review stands, but the ending absolutely ruined LBC for me. Hence, the reason for my somewhat low ratings. Because of the finale, I feel like I wasted my time watching it. It pains me to say that, because I really liked LBC.

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Starts off cute, but becomes disturbing -- romanticizes rape and abuse

Love by Chance, previously considered the reigning BL until 2gether joined the race, was quite a mess. Let me enumerate its main weaknesses and strengths below:

Weaknesses
1) Boring, uninteresting and disturbing subplots
There are four subplots running simultaneously in LBC - PETExAE, TINxCAN, KENGKLAxTECHNO, and TUMxTAR, of which the last two were so irrelevant to the story that they can just be completely omitted and it won't change a thing. Obviously they were just included in LBC to serve as a "cue" for a prequel or a sequel, but they had no connections whatsoever with the main story - that of Pete and AE. There was actually another subplot, that of Tharn and Type, but the other half of that story did not appear in the series at all; there were just fleeting mentions of his existence.

I can also describe these four ships as "disturbing." Let us start off with Pete and Ae. Ae starts off as that sweet, protective boyfriend, but midway into the series, he starts to show his abusive side: he gets mad at Pete for talking to other boys, he literally drags him around, and he dictates what Pete should and should not do.

Tin and Can's relationship is not based on love but rather an exchange of needs. Can is "poor," and he gives in to Tin's demands in exchange for material things. Can is a very impressionable, carefree character and is generally unfamiliar with the concept of "love" until Tin came along. He is the complete opposite of Tin, so it's a mystery how and why these guys were paired. It's like pairing a child to a fully grown man.

The story between Kengkla and Techno romanticizes rape. Kengkla obviously took advantage of Techno and even conspired with the latter's very own brother so that he can take him to bed. Kengkla even pinned the blame on Techno and basically blackmailed him into becoming his boyfriend. It was NASTY.

Tum and Tar are step brothers who have developed feelings for each other. I am not sure how it goes in Thailand, but in other countries, such relationship is generally frowned upon. These two characters do not interact with anyone else in the series (except for very few scenes each of them is talking to Type).

2) I am not a big fan of characters that are introduced in one episode and then completely disappear from the series afterward. LBC has three of such characters --- Trump, Money and Chompoo. Trump's conflict with Pete was left unresolved; I was actually waiting for him to appear somewhere in the end to bring closure to his subplot but there's nothing. Money appears around EP 4 to invite Pete to join the cheering squad. Pete accepts, but not a single cheering scene can be found throughout LBC. Why mention it then? It was so pointless.... Chompoo never knew that Ae was in love with someone else. She just literally disappeared, so her purpose of making Pete jealous was also pointless.

3) Underutilized characters: Good, Bow and Ping. These characters have so much potential and, along with Can and Pond (the latter of whom was thankfully given a bigger part!), they are the only source of laughs in the entire series. Sadly they have been pushed aside in favor of much less interesting characters such as those I have mentioned above.

4) BS sponsorship scenes: The first 8 or 9 episodes of LBC had no plugs from sponsors, which is an admirable feat that I have never seen in any of the Thai lakorns I have watched. So I was disappointed at the last few episodes when LBC started showing pointless scenes that are specifically built for its sponsors.


Strengths:
1) I want to single out Saint, Perth, and Yacht from the rest of the cast because they played their roles so well. Saint completely embodied Pete (him saying "krab" so many times was cute!), Perth played Ae without reservations (however I think there are scenes where he played him too well---remember that humping bed scene, anyone?), and Yacht was all around great. I can even say that without Yacht's portrayal of Pond, I would've rated this serie much lower because he brings the series to life without fail each time he appears. I think it is unfair that he was ranked as a "supporting character" even if technically he plays a big part in Pete and Ae's story.

2) There are so many "conservative" Thai BLs that can't show anything else beyond innocent pecks on cheeks or two lips merely touching each other, leaving straight and gay fans disappointed. The creators of LBC apparently understood this so they went all out: multiple scenes of boys making out, having foreplay, showing near nudity, and talking dirty, so in terms of fan service, LBC excels in all counts. However, not every member of the audience is interested in this kind of stuff...

3) Music --- a very trivial point, but I loved the sounds in Love by Chance.


LBC was a messy show all in all. There are two followups to this series (TharnType and A Chance to Love), but I think I'll just put them aside for now given the many cons I have observed from this show.

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Holy Moly

I really don't know what to say for my general feeling on this drama. There were some strong points but a lot of weak ones as well. It's just a real mess.

Story:
Pete and Trump's conflict was kind of interesting? I mean, I wasn't that convinced of the situation and just saw it as a way to show Ae in a heroic way, but how could they just completely forget about Trump? He was the only major antagonist in Pete's life so I don't understand why he was underutilized. Also, I found Pete's character to be very weak. He's shy, nice, handsome, and rich (had all the Apple products and matching pajama sets lol). He wasn't very compelling to me, and it didn't help that he was always a damsel in distress.

AE. I fell in love with Ae's character. He was the realest character to me with how multifaceted his personality was. I could genuinely feel his confusion at having to deal with feelings for a person for the first time, and his flaws also added to his realness. His possessiveness was a bit concerning to me, but Pete obviously didn't mind it. I really just admired how honest he was throughout his relationship with Pete.

Other characters that I liked were Pond, Cha-am, and Good. Pond is probably really accurate in representing a college-aged male and could be quite distasteful sometimes. However, he was such a delight and showed some redeeming qualities. He pretty much carried all of the humor in the drama. I especially loved him and Cha-am together because she really brings out his more gentle side. As for Good, he reminded me of a sloth. His mannerisms were just so cute and his interactions with Can were interesting. He's iconic.

I didn't find Tin and Can's relationship all that enjoyable. Can was extremely petulant most of the time and he also looked really young to me, too young to fit with Tin. There was a lot more they could've done with Tin and Can's storyline as far as Tin's family interfering in Tin's life. It was just such a missed opportunity to cause more drama from Tin's brother especially as well as the fact that they have different lifestyles.

Tum and Tar felt very irrelevant in Tharntype (until the end) and the same can be said here too. You could watch the whole drama without them. Their relationship is also very taboo, and I don't understand why this isn't being questioned by the other characters in the drama. However, they barely interact with Tum and Tar so it makes sense.

I think everyone agrees on how terrible sexual assault. There's just something about selling your brother to your friend and allowing your friend to molest your brother, hmm. Anyway, Kengkla and Technic were unnecessary and their behavior was downright disgusting.

Acting/Cast:
A lot of it was average or kind of rough.

Saint is probably a really good actor, but his role as Pete was just so subdued. He also is very manly compared to Pete in the way he speaks and acts which is very interesting but he's acting. Understandable. He also reminds me of Jin from BTS, lol.

But holy moly, Perth carried the drama with his acting. I already praised Ae's character as being so real, and this wouldn't have happened if Perth hadn't been casted to play him. Perth absolutely sold me on every feeling Ae had. He could just convey so much with his eyes, and I could feel the love he was portraying toward Pete. It also helps that Perth is a cutie. My only gripe with casting Perth in this role is the fact that he was doing all of these scenes at the age of 17. I know the age of consent is different in Thailand but still. It just kind of weirded me out even though I'm around his age. Anyways, he's an amazing actor, and I'm definitely looking forward to his other works. (He did great in UWMA.)

Music:
The music in these dramas aren't that great, the background tracks in particular. But for some reason, I really enjoyed the music. The little techno instrumental was funny.

Rewatch:
The only thing I would rewatch is the Pete and Ae interactions. Everything else can go.

Overall:
The drama lacks good conflict and also has a ton of questionable/abhorrent behaviors portrayed in the show. I enjoyed very few characters. I mainly stayed for Pete and Ae's relationship.

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So I just finished this series and created this account just for this.

Until the episode before the last everything is okay. But then in the last episode everything rushes to an end and things will even leave you with a heartbreak. My advise to you is to just focus and cheer on the main couple and the drama will please you.


SPOILER COMING UP NOW:




I hated Tin and Can's ending, it left me heartbroken. The other ships weren't even clear to me, except for Pete and Ae of course. They could've done way better on this, I'm dissappointed and left with may questions.

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Severely Underdeveloped

Kengkla and Techno were based on one sided love and the lack of consent which was a questionable desicion if you ask me. Complete waste of a really good character, Techno. It seemed to be a couple that was just thrown in last minute without any thought or purpose.

Tum and Tar are literally step brothers so explain that? 🤨 The only thing holding this couple up is Earth's acting. Why can't they just be loving brothers? Why do they have to be in love? Why is this even a thing?
They missed such a good opportunity to show the importance of sibling love and the importance of family. But noooo instead they decided, "You know what this story needs? Some good old incest to spice it up."

Tin and Can are by far the most tolerable couple which is saying something because i dont like this couple either. It was like a failed enemies to lovers type scenario. Can is whiny and cringy at times, he acts like a child, which i guess makes sense if he was a child, but he's literally a college student so i dont really understand what happened there, and Tin is just... hot lmao. Like i cant tell if i like this couple or if i just think Tin is really good looking. Regardless, they had some cute scenes, followed by some really weird scenes, followed by unnecessary angst, followed by another cute scene to patch up the weird angst.

Moving on to the main couple. Pete and Ae are... boring. Which is dissapointing considering that i love the actors playing these two. I don't really have much to say on them. The 18+ scenes were... strange, and i skipped almost all of their scenes together.
I don't know Pete just really rubbed me the wrong way for some reason. He's just so weird i dont get it.

Anyways that was my review. Boring plot, weird characters, and underdeveloped relationships with no meaning.

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*Potential spoiler section is marked below*

Ahhh, the series that made viewers fall in love and then broke their hearts! Putting aside the unfortunate news that Season 2 is unlikely, I still think this is a good drama and recommend adding it to your watch list. Just get your heart and tissues ready before watching the final episode (and make sure to watch the Director's Version so you don't miss anything).

The plot was interesting and dynamic, with each episode moving the story along nicely. Beware that we are introduced to a lot of characters up front, and for me at least it was a little challenging keeping track of who was who and what their relationship to one another was, but with the help of a cheat sheet and a couple of episodes later, I had each one down.

The acting, for the most part, was pretty good. Although some actors in the beginning felt a little stiff, I did notice it improving as the series went on. Saint as Pete was absolutely adorable, and he somehow managed to exude both shy innocence and sexy naughtiness. As others have noted, it was so refreshing to see that this character was gay and not gay-for-you, which occurs frequently in BL pieces. Perth as Ae was caring and doting, and his loyalty to and protectiveness of Pete was charming. Tin and Can--ugh, my favorite couple and the favorite of probably a majority of fans as well. Can (or Cantaloupe, as Tin likes to call him *my heart*) was so cute: young, naive, and pretty much drama-free until resident tsundere Tin decides to make Can the target of his affections. Once it became apparent that they would become a pair, I waited impatiently for the upcoming episode to see how much further along they would get. I just loved the side of Tin that Can brought out, and seeing Can get so flustered with Tin as he tried to work out his emotions towards the other boy was so charming and well-done. And that last scene with Tin in the shower, wow. Surrounding circumstances notwithstanding, he really shone in that scene. It was so beautiful and so raw and probably the best-acted scene in the entire series, in my humble opinion.

There are two other BL couples to speak of, though they don't get nearly as much screen time. The first is Tum and Tar, step-brothers who harbor complicated feelings for one another and one of whom hides a dark secret. The second consists of Kenglka, a high school student crushing on his best friend's brother, Techno, a university student who is friends with Ae and Can. Though short, I feel that Tum and Tar are given sufficient screen time to tell a complete story and leave you with a bit of closure. But I was a bit disappointed that KlaNo's story got barely any development. The most significant thing that happened between them occurred in the last episode, and it felt more like the beginning of something that would have been explored further in Season 2. I did hear that P'New was going to make a spin-off for these two characters, though we'll see if that's still going to happen now. I hope that he does, as I'd love to see Mark and Gun breathe more life into these characters. Though they only had a few minutes together as a couple, Mark did so well in his role as Kengkla, and I'm curious to know how KlaNo's relationship develops.

Characters aside, in terms of story line, from what I've seen, P'New stuck pretty closely to the timeline and events in the books. Thus, although I got a little bored with Ae and Pete's story, preferring to see more development in the three side couples, I appreciate the director's faithfulness to the original text. This also helps explain why the other couples didn't get as much screen time, especially TumTar and KlaNo, as I don't think they played major roles in the book (with Tum and Tar playing bigger roles in other books from this universe). And, without revealing too much, this may also explain why one of the couples got a sad (read: heartbreaking) ending. I think the series just ended in the wrong place in the books.

***BEGIN SPOILER***
Speaking of that ending, because I have to get my thoughts down . . . . Sadly, Tin and Can do not get a happily ever after. At least, not in the series. This, coupled with the fact that Season 2 seems unlikely, is the source of disappointment for most people. One the one hand, I respect P'New's rationale that it makes the series more realistic: not everyone gets a happy ending. I can also see where Can's rejection was somewhat supported by his earlier actions. Tin was the more pushy one, and Can struggled with his feelings throughout the entire series. He was still struggling when Tin confessed to him, trying to figure out the difference between liking someone as a friend and liking someone as more than that. But on the other hand, Can also (perhaps subtly) seemed to be warming up to having Tin as a boyfriend, which I think gave a lot of viewers hope and made the ending even more surprising. We saw Can get jealous when he though Tin liked someone else, and we also saw Can ask for more kisses when hanging out with Tin earlier. Again, it may just be that Tin confessed too soon, before Can had a chance to work out his feelings, and because of that I can see how P'New would construe the confession scene, and its consequences, the way he did.
***END SPOILER***

Overall, this was a really solid start to what could have been a few great seasons, and I'm sad to see it end the way it did. I'll keep my fingers crossed that things will get resolved and we'll get a Season 2 or maybe a couple of spin-offs, but I thin right now P'New needs a break from the real-life drama. On the plus side, I heard he's cleaning up some unedited footage with plans to release it, so at least we'll get one final treat. I'm also now impatiently waiting for the English translation of the novel to be released to I can get that happy ending I'm told exists. :)

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