The Sand Princess (2019)

"You Make Sand Like Me Feel Worthy" (Kot, English Sub)

This drama is an epic chaotic it is hilarious. I binge-watched episode by episode dying to find out how trio Ji-Kot-Ki would fix the building up mess. I found this drama following the works of March (as Ji here) from Lovey Dovey, and ended up loving Baifern's (as Kot) and Dan's (as Ki) performances too. This trio does not only create messy plot in this drama, they also lift up universal parenting and motherhood issues into a poignant show delightful to watch. Unquestionably it is a unique rom-com, non-typical Thai lakorn, a must watch.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS DRAMA
(+) Fast-paced episodes in the beginning of the drama to established the story of Moji
(+) More slower-paced episodes in the middle of the drama with lots of flirting scenes
(+) Lots of lessons to learn about building a family
(+) Witty dialogues on money, and also the money bouquet
(+) This is probably the only entangled love story that is enjoyable to watch in dramas I have seen. Thanks to the prominent acting of the main characters
(+) The story cleverly highlights the good and bad of both Ki's and Ji's characters. Viewers are divided into whom they want or think of Kot will end up with.
(+) Interesting surprises in the end
(+) Convincing acting of Baifern as exhausted single mom Kot. Her touching crying scenes are heartbreaking. She also established good chemistry with both Dan and March
(+) Remarkable acting of March as the sentimental Ji. He is good in roles with passionate/temperamental characters.
(+) Noteworthy acting of Dan as guiless Ki. I have rarely seen anyone not even an actor who has dimples on both cheeks. Surprisingly Dan is also a director and screenwriter.
(+) Cute Moji and the little actress who play the role
(+) Every important characters have their own advisors: Kot has Meaw, Ji has Bom, Ki has the secretary, Aff has her Dad
(+) Beautiful portrayals of Thai culture and places
(+) Pretty costumes of the female roles

WHAT I DO NOT LIKE ABOUT THIS DRAMA
(-) Scenes and conversations leading to product placement (PPL). I skipped all of them, including the bra talk.
(-) The exaggerating character of Aff, which seems off since other characters seem natural
(-) It seems like the characters of Chot and Kot's mom are unimportant and are brought into the drama only to spice up the already complicated plot.

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It’s not a terrible show, but it wasn’t the best. Though I’m used to pretty cringe slap and kiss dramas, this was a nice twist. It was nice, they beat the cliches, they made it a little different but honestly, I just hated it. Lol.

The story is what it is, one ML is a player and has this baby, the FL raises it, she falls for the ML brother and the rest is history. You end up craving so bad that the FL and ML fall in love because of their history but again... whatever. Lol. The daughter was adorable. Also there was not much context, everything happened so fast, sometimes this was happening and then something else and uh, how frustrating.

I watched this because I’m a huge fan of Baifern and I adore March. I don’t like Dan’s acting. So that was a downfall, liked everyone else though, he really pooped on it.

I liked the opening song so not terrible.

I finished it, but wouldn’t come back. I had high expectations and that was dumb. Lol.

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This is a solid romantic comedy, with a great set up. We get into an intensely ridiculous situation step-by-step, such that by the time the decision that sets act two in motion is made, you agree with the characters that despite being ridiculous, it does also seem like the best way to deal with things.

The angst never gets too angsty; the clingy second lead is annoying and wrecks things, but doesn't dominate the screen time.

I was at first hesitant because as a mom, I find stories that try to combine a romantic plot with a single-mother-of-a-toddler female lead tend to fall short. However, both the emotional and practical effects of the child on all the characters were well done.

There was some bumpiness in the writing around episode 11 or 12 that made it seem like something was resolved and then it wasn't in a way that was not very satisfying and left the story feeling a bit... off. But they got past that bump and ended it pretty nicely.

It's a solid escapism romance, perfect for when you're sick or tired or just need some distraction. Easy to binge watch and cute enough to use as a unicorn chaser for something more serious.

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I know its not time for me to do the review since the series is not yet finished but i cannot wait to write something about it. At first glance of this series, i thought i knew the main actress and i was right she is once the leading lady with mario maurer movie crazy little thing called love.. well anyway, the story is interesting its a light drama with comedy and romance...which is i like.. the actress is so professional and i like her aura in this series.. the main actor is cute, he is like alden richards here in the philippines. . He is also good as well as his brother here.. the whole cast is good.. but the main actress really nailed it.. she is superb.. i just hope she could speak english perhaps like mario maurer she will do some films here in the philippines.., well, i have to end this im stil waiting for the next episodes... Hehehe.. ciao!!! ????

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Fun for Contract Marriage lovers, but disappointing & messy writing in the last few episodes.

If you are a fan of marriage of convenience/contract marriage, “the Sand Princess” is a pretty binge-worthy series. You might have to suspend belief with the initial set up. It’s quite outrageous someone would agree to a deal like this. But if you can accept this fact, “The Sand Princess” is a lot of fun.

I am a big fan of contract marriage and guessing each other's feelings. I am actually quite surprised that this Thai production is quite ‘normal’, as in not lakorn-ish or in a slap/kiss kinda way. You might have seen something similar in a Chinese or Korean drama.

I had a really fun time watching the first 10 episodes. I like the crazy set up and the three-way parenting. The love geometry isn’t too irritating. Kod and Ji have great chemistry as best friends, while Kod and Ki have great chemistry as the fake couple. The little girl is adorable, but was used more as a device to move the plot or as an accessory, instead of fully integrating the little girl. Maybe she’s a little young to really direct her to seriously act.

Kod (FL) is a very likable character and I was rooting for her. Baifern is a great actress and really delivers a great performance as our Kod. Ji, on the other hand, is not as likable. I actually want to punch him in the face in the first few episodes, but he grows on me and as the story develops, he’s better than was originally portrayed. I personally think that March (as Ji) is better-looking than Dan (as Ki). Aside from wanting a more handsome actor to play Ki, I really like his character. I think Dan’s acting could be inconsistent. But Ki is such a good guy. He basically sacrificed his own happiness for the greater good after being lied to by multiple people.

I was going to give this drama a solid 8.5 rating until we hit the last few episodes. Those episodes were rushed when trying to tie all the loose ends. The writing appears messy with loopholes. The romance isn’t as fun anymore. I cannot for the life of me understand how Kod would still think Ki doesn’t like her after he has repeatedly seriously and jokingly confessed, and has set boundaries with his ex. You can’t chalk this up because of her low self-esteem.

Throughout the drama, we have been told repeatedly how unfortunate Kod is to be abandoned by her mother. Oh, where is her dad? But when that situation was resolved, it was done so quickly that I thought I missed an episode. Additionally, what happened to the company’s financial crisis? Aff just dropped a bomb in the end out of nowhere and we’re left with nothing else?

“The Sand Princess” could have been so much better. I was really disappointed with the writing in the end. . The whole plot and how things evolved are pretty predictable. However, I can’t deny I really love the first 8-10 episodes. Averaging the good and the bad, and my enjoyment level, I am giving this an 8.0


Completed: 9/29/2024 - Review #493

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This drama is a perfect mix of reality and fiction, it is sweet close to home and natural, never in my mind would I explain a story of a single mother who is actually not the mother like that, a modern story with real issues, I simply love stories of brothers falling for the same women and this time it is not the simple story we are used to, KOT is fair play to the brothers, I just love the story line so march and it is suitable for everyone in all the different cultures and religion this drama has open my mind and will too for anything willing to invest time in this drama, I actually saw Thai people in a new light, I have been educated in so many things and will recommend this drama to anyone as it one size fits all kind of a drama.

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TL;DR - A predictable but cute story about a makeshift family and how you should take responsibility for your mistakes. If you like drama and chaos, this is not for you. But if you like minimal drama and maximum cuteness, this is a good one for that. Personally, I didn't enjoy watching this. Beware of clingy 2nd leads.

I came into this lakorn after coming off a particularly intense slap/kiss and wanted to watch something fun and easy. This lakorn had been on my radar for awhile and I've always wanted to watch something with Baifern in it, so I decided to give this a go. Needless to say, I got what I asked for although it was unfortunately to a fault and I will explain why below.

One of my biggest pet peeves are 2nd leads that are clingy/don't know when to quit. This was very pronounced in Ji and Aff; two crappy people who both didn't know how good they had it until they lost it. Both were fooling themselves into thinking that the main leads still had a thing for them and relentlessly tried going after them, even when the leads themselves told them to back off and that they didn't see them that way. I could feel more sympathy for Ji (although not very much) since he did do a lot to help Kot, but overall he was immature and I didn't see the point of him going after Kot when the end game was Kot and Kit. He could see that Kot was falling for Kit, and him to her, but still tried to butt in. I just feel in these situations, for their own dignity, that characters should just accept what they've lost and move on. Yeah that might make things less dramatic but I would admire the character more and instead of him being this player, I wish they focused on him being a better person and dad.

The romance of the main leads hit off with a bang and initially I was very invested. It was obvious that they were both very into eo even before they got married, and both have good chemistry with each other. But here's where things went wrong with me; I could see it. About halfway through the series, I could see that Kot and Kit would go through whatever trials and in the end be together no matter what. You could argue that all dramas are like this and I completely agree, but what makes it fun and engaging is the way that we get there. Their relationship got really predictable and unfortunately I wasn't very invested in their romance. When I realized this, I lost interest and just kept watching to see how it ended.

I also wanted to add that there was too much repetitiveness with the 2nd leads constantly interfering with the main leads. It took up way too much time and I felt it should've been for developing the relationship between our two leads.

I liked our leads and I liked them together. They were both honest and loyal with each other. However I didn't like how Kit would wait for Kot to make the first move after an argument, and how he kissed her when she was asleep. This was balanced by how Kit made the effort to make Moji closer to him, and how he made the effort to be a happy family. I also loved the conversation about how Kot felt she was useless like sand, but Kit would disagree and say how sand is really important. They kept each other in mind and I thought it was well done.

I also liked the 2ndary cast, and how each lead (Kit, Kot and Ji) had their own adviser in the form of secretary and friends. I liked how each gave good advice and came to help our leads when things went wrong. My favorite from the 2ndary cast was the kid character; I really liked how they didn't make her talk at all and let her do her own thing. I usually don't like kid characters and was preparing myself for this one, but they let her be and had the actors act around her.

As a side note, I really enjoyed Baifern's acting here. I've heard she's a good actress, and I'm glad I wasn't proven wrong. She's able to make you feel what she feels and can emote very well. Her expressions of sadness, devastation, happiness, being in love and many more are nuanced and not over the top. I especially loved her scenes when she met her real mom and her reaction felt very realistic and relatable to me. That's why when compared to Dan's acting, Dan did not deliver as much as she did. There were times where Dan had the gravitas of a ML, but others where he didn't. At best it was passable. I wished they'd casted an actor on a similar level as Baifern although I'm not sure if GMM could've casted anyone any better.

The music was okay here and played appropriately. I did feel weird that the main theme song wasn't played during the series, just only background music (which makes an already average lakorn not memorable). I wouldn't re-watch. If you like easy breezy, feel-good rom-coms with minimal drama and cute leads, I'd say give it a watch. If you like something more dramatic or are looking for something unique, then I don't recommend it.

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Sand Princess - A Heartwarming Blend of Comedy and Romance

Introduction:
"Sand Princess" emerges as a gem within Thai romantic comedy dramas. Led by the charismatic Baifern Pimchanok, the series seamlessly weaves together humor and heartfelt moments. As a fervent admirer of Pimchanok's previous work, particularly in "Crazy Little Thing Called Love," diving into this series was not just a choice but an anticipation of delightful entertainment.

Plot Overview:
The storyline revolves around Kod, an orphan navigating the intricacies of both school life and employment as a working student. Her financial support comes from Jirapat, a friend who seeks her assistance in various tasks. However, the narrative takes a dramatic turn when Jirapat impregnates another girl and evades responsibility. Kod reluctantly agrees to masquerade as the baby's mother, setting the stage for a series of unexpected events. The entrance of Ki, Jirapat's responsible and understanding brother, proposing marriage to Kod to salvage the family's reputation, introduces a captivating love triangle.

Character Analysis:
Kod: A standout character, Kod embodies strength, intelligence, and diligence. While the notion of raising a child for financial gain may strain believability, the series meticulously justifies her actions through her past experiences and a genuine desire to shield the child from the hardships she faced.
Ki: In stark contrast to Jirapat's playboy tendencies, Ki emerges as the responsible and understanding brother, adding depth to the narrative.
Jirapat: The playboy character, irresponsible to a fault, his actions underscore his undesirability as a romantic partner for Kod.

Acting and Chemistry:
The cast's performances, with Baifern at the helm, are commendable. Her ability to seamlessly transition between emotional and comedic scenes showcases her versatility. The chemistry between the three leads is palpable, adding layers to the love triangle and keeping the audience emotionally invested.

Story Execution:
While the overall plot may traverse familiar romantic comedy tropes, "Sand Princess" manages to captivate audiences through well-executed comedic moments. The series strikes an admirable balance between humor and a touching narrative, ensuring a consistently engaging viewing experience.

Lessons and Theme:
Beyond its comedic façade, "Sand Princess" astutely incorporates lessons about responsibility, enriching the narrative with layers of depth and resonance.

Music and Cinematography:
The music, particularly during comedic scenes, elevates the viewing experience. While the opening song may not be groundbreaking, it sets a lively tone for the series.

Conclusion:
"Sand Princess" may not redefine the romantic comedy genre, but its potent combination of strong performances, compelling chemistry, and the seamless blend of humor and heart make it a standout series. For those seeking an entertaining yet resonant journey, "Sand Princess" proves to be a commendable choice.

In summary, "Sand Princess" emerges as a Thai drama that successfully delivers on its promise of laughter and romance, earning its place among the gems of the genre.

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