I've always had kind of a love hate relationship with Chinese historical BLs. Some are genuinely excellent, but then there are others that cram in so much plot that keeping track of all the layers of betrayal and scheming gets exhausting, and I end up checking out mentally. Part of the issue is also just how much content is out there in this space, so something really has to stand out to keep me hooked. In this case, the production value is genuinely impressive, top tier stuff, but story wise, I just couldn't bring myself to actually care about these characters. There's a ton of political scheming and backstage manipulation running throughout. Somewhere in the middle of all that chaos, a hostage ends up falling for his own Prince Charming. The show runs eight episodes, each around 50 to 60 minutes long. After spending three years guarding the border, Fifth Prince Yin Qi gets called back to the capital because of a secret letter, only to end up walking straight into a deadly...
Rawee is a 21 year old teen who lives with his monk grandfather. The old man's friend Parit comes to visit him and offers an opportunity to Rawee to live in the house. Looking for a better life opportunity he agrees. He stats adjusting in the new environment where almost everyone gives him love. While Rawee grows used to his new home, he begins experiencing scary visions and strange nightmares. Each night, he is haunted by troubling phenomena. Parit has a grandson Phloeng and according to a property, that in his 25th year he will have misfortune. The only way to lift the curse is for him to find a soulmate who meets specific requirements. As luck would have it, Rawee fits all the criteria. He's the ideal candidate to be Phloeng's soulmate. Phloeng and Rawee do not have good first meeting but when they are told why this arrangement has to be made, they both reluctantly agree to please the elders in the family. The duo are now supposed to be together in same room and Rawee realizes that when he is with Phloeng, he doesn't get nightmares. Slowly a beautiful bond starts to develop between the two men and they start to fall in love. They even realize that they had once met when they were kids, which help their love. But the evil spirit continues to haunt Rawee and the spirit eventually gets an opportunity to attack Rawee and almost take his life. This is when some old family secrets about grandpa Rawit and the Rawee's grandfather's relationship come out. All the family members ask for apology and the spirit leaves everyone alone finally moving on.
The one thing very charming about the film is the setting in a village in 60s. Add to that the supernatural element, it makes for an ideal setting and the film is visually pleasing. Every shot looks vibrant and elevates the ambiance. Most actors do a decent job, except that Rawee sometimes gets a little too shy and almost weirdly behaves like a girl and almost too deliberate. If we leave that aside for a minute, he does do a good job when the spirit is supposed to possess him. So in that manner, given the supernatural thriller genre of the film, it does an excellent job of creating the suspense of why this spirit is after Rawee's life who didn't even live here till very recently, and the whole family secret is sort of understandable and believable. Although the backstory seems melodramatic, I was satisfied with this explanation. The conclusion provides enough closure to leave a positive impression. But whey would a spirit wait almost 40-50 years to take revenge is beyond me. The romance between the couple is decently developed, although it does feel a little too convenient. Rawee's character could easily have been a girl and it would have made no difference in the script at all. I wish the film tried to make a little more of a bold statement with the family accepting the union of two males in the 60s.
Overall, it was a decent, time pass, suspense filled film, which I would have liked to explore a little more characterization of the leads. The parallel story of another boy in the kitchen and the driver was so unnecessary. But I guess the BL tropes can't help themselves without showing at least one more gay couple besides the main lead. It could be a casual time pass on lazy free evening. (6/10)
Comments
well thanks to timely intervention from you guys here, I never watched Cutie Pie, so I Was saved form that embarrassment ..
btw: I wonder where is Miisu bro these days?
I actually think one episode per day of this series is the perfect timing. Each episode is so good you want to savour it. It's made the same guy who made the great Bad buddy, Moonlight chicken and Gay ok Bangkok. This one touched me even more, went directly in my top3. And the leads aren't even that handsome (... you know I can be all about the looks lol).
If you want to evade long thai BL, I dropped Playboyy after 3 episodes, and Twins has a too messy plot to enjoy the leads (that are touching and cute though). Low frequency is just too slow and boring.