Never Again

This is an easy review -

Story - supercilious drivel; plotless, pointless, inhabited by paper-thin characters made to constantly pass the stupid ball, by the end crowded with filler scenes to merely pad out the episode count, and not bring any kind of reasonable conclusion.

Though the opening sequence was able to intro the series tie-in merch effectively.

Acting - None that I could see (exceptions Perth and Chimon).

Looking good shirtless does not bestow upon one spark and skill, and neither Pond nor Phuwin have improved one whit from the wooden sticks of FUTS. In every scene they are merely reading lines into a camera, that's it. And that is definitely NOT acting, and this remarkable dearth of talent should not be accepted as the norm (and on the same level as other brilliant actors within GMMTV), nor is it praiseworthy. Truly mind-boggling this series' MDL score. And the sub-basement mediocrity that some BL viewers champion.

Music - The First Noel? Also, the volume level for many of the seemingly endless montage sequences, way too loud.

Production - Color grading good. Basic camera work. Sound issues galore

And here I thought "Unforgotten Night" was bad fake mafia.

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Not quite as advertised

Kudos to P'Aof and GMMTV for producing an adult* (grumpy sneer) series.

That being said...

Too many plot threads surface skimmed, ended ignominiously. or utterly dropped and forgotten, so the Gemini/Fourth teen/barely legal story could overtake the show. And the hearing impaired storyline - SO much wrong, infuriating and insulting. Almost dropped the series. (Did plenty of fast-forwarding instead)

While I do like Earth and Mix as actors, and both did a solid job in this series - Mix stepping out with some subtle and effective character subtext, yeah!) just as with ATOTS and the dumpster fire of CLW, there is no sexual tension between them, at all. From the shag at the beginning to the kiss at the end, dry choreography.

Khaotung, as he demonstrated in "The Eclipse" is a good actor, but you really shouldn't notice that he's acting, and in all emotionally heightened scenes, aka crying, boy, he's acting his heart out.

First, as always, is divine, one of the finest GMMTV actors. Could speak volumes about his character building and in the scene's moment skills. Would watch him in anything.

The cinematography in the first few episodes excellent, framing, angle, and movement, dynamic and interesting. By the end of the show that magic had, sadly, lapsed into BL static average. Sound issues galore, however. Should really find better placement of mics in scenes where hugging is involved. Pleasant opening sequence, if too long, could have used some of that screen time for additional story time.

Finally, a thank you to cast, admin and entire production crew for bringing this series to life., for seeing the worth and wealth of the working class adult* story. May this be the first of many, and many more.


*should have been exclusively

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Unfair for the past to judge the present.

Yes, this is not "Not Me." It's "Cooking Crush."

Any reviews that compare the two series, solely because of the actors involved, are automatically suspect. One is a dark crime thriller, the other RomCom. Each series should be judged individually, within the framework of its appropriate genre. Full stop.

REVIEW -
I watch a BL with one major criteria - acting. If it's subpar - and there are many, many, a LARGE host of MANY that fall into this hole - not wasting my time. The second is script, a hollow and muddled narrative will be abandoned. Over the last 6 months, I've completed 2 series - Be My Favorite and Cooking Crush.

OffGun chemistry, the biggest seller of the series. No wobbling in character, each scene was theirs, from first glance to last kiss, Ten and Prem's attraction and story believable, they bonded over food, over family, over acts of service and sacrifice. Too often BL protags are thrown together by the script, and that's where the spark remains, on the page, not shining out from loving eyes. Every TenPrem glance has love baked right in there, and their love became real.

No silly BL miscommunication tropes - Ten and Prem spoke honestly and openly. Adversity met and overcome, hard work leads to a happy life. A solid friend group, two actually. and satisfying ending. I liked this series, warm hearts and smiles are always needed and appreciated.

Where this production stumbles is the cinematography, and editing. A moving shot when stillness called, a static on a stick camera when motion would add energy to the talky scene. Lingered too long, or zipped right on by too fast, the frame never seemed to be in the right place or angle. The edited cut on YT was an unkind thing for this series, and even with footage restored behind the WETV paywall, choppy still with odd scene transitions, and missing chunks of story padding that would have helped soften around the edges. Silly froth still must have a cohesive thru-line for the audience to engage fully.

And the script never quite rose to the original lofty goals of exploring socio-economic differences in Thai society. There kinda, sorta, maybe, briefly, then slipped in between the cracks. Rich vs. poor, doctor vs. cook, privilege vs. opportunity, money is usually also an issue. There could have, should have been SO much more to examine - they both had lost their mothers, for crying out loud! Where was that?

Also, second couple never clicked with me. What was the commonality that drew Fire and Dynamite together - stalking is not a good look.

I recommend this series if looking for sunny and happy, and will be revisiting TenPrem often.

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