The Shipper (2020)

Um dos poucos doramas que eu assisti sem perceber o tempo passando. É interessante e envolvente do início ao fim, vai te prender seja pela comédia, pelo suspense ou pelos shipps. Mas ao final de tudo você fica pela história, que é realmente linda e emocionante, cheia de reviravoltas.
Não tenho palavras pra definir o que foi o show de atuação dos atores. Já esperava um nível alto por causa do Ohm, mas o First foi realmente incrível como Kim/Pan. Não posso deixar de exaltar a Jennie também, sempre que a personagem dela aparecia me tirava um riso.
Fiquei um pouco decepcionada com o desenvolvimento do casal Khett/Pan, do meu ponto de vista ficou uma coisa bem jogada e unilateral. Diferente do casal Way/Kim, que, apesar de não ter tido o final feliz que todo mundo esperava, são donos de uma das histórias de amor mais lindas que eu tive o prazer de acompanhar.

Lire davantage

Beware all happy ending lovers this show is not for you..

I have watched soo many series and read soo many books but the one thing I had to do was know the ending before I start the series.
I am a Sucker for happy endings because ik that once you get attached and then when a character dies your eyes are gonna be swollen the next day.
I watched all kinds of series in a lot of languages... English, Spanish, Korean, Chinease and a few more but in all of them I had to check what the ending would be.
Finally I had stumbled upon a bl series that had a good ending and I just thought that since it's about bl a love that's hard to come by, the characters won't die without a happy ending..
But now after watching this series I am heartbroken cause even in bl series they are killing main characters....

If you don't mind getting attached to the main character and his life and then seeing him die before getting in a relationship with his partner, this series is good. If the main character had not died in the end my ratings for this drama would be a 10/10 but now it's -10/10.

Lire davantage

Unexpected pot twists

I have seen a lot of negative comments on this series but to me this series is truly amazing. It's well written with actual good plot twists that kept me on my toes. The actors did such a fantastic job. They truly delivered the emotions well. I laughed so hard at the funny scenes, I don't remember laughing this much for any series. I feel like because it was a lot relatable as a shipper lol. But tbh they portrayed the shipper mentality so well and even though the scenes are super cringy it never made me cringe. I had cried my heart out at the emotional scenes. I cried so much. Every single one of them did a great job. First is such a great actor. The way he portrayed both Kim and Pan in a single story, it's very hard to do. Ohm really knows how to express himself through his eyes. His airplane fixing scene made me cry so hard. Phriking as well. I also wan to mention View and Piploy doing extremely amazing job. I have seen View in different roles and she is a versatile actress. First time saw her as a villain and holy she did so great. I had no idea Piploy is such a great actress. She carried the episodes for me in her own way. I loved the cinematography as well. It's cute. Every episode was unexpected. I loved how they also highlighted how extreme shipping can ruin a lot of things including the shippers. It was such a rollercoster ride with great plot, good acting, amazing scenes,

Lire davantage

if it wasn't this...

I just think they shouldn't have made ohm and first kiss each other because since we know their characters are siblings, it's VISUALLY creepy. they should've done what they did for all the other episodes, which was replacing kim's body for pan's, to represent that PAN is there. so prigkhing should have done the kissing scene, that way it would be WAY less weird. they did that scene just because immoral BL fans would love it, but it was unnecessary and explicit incest, externally at least. Also, I really hoped Kim would end up alive. Way deserved so much better, and I was really sad that he ended up alone. I wish it had a different ending, and I wish they deleted the kissing scene, just that.

(reposted from 2020 bc my old account got suspended)

Lire davantage

Don’t know

I feel like this isn’t a bl for me because kim is death, and Way basically fell I love with Pan that was in Kim’s body that’s how i saw it.

I feel like what they must’ve done is Kim and Pan should’ve both died and then the Angel of Death should send them both back and said, one of you must come back and only one can live, and only give them 30 days on earth to finish they Business on earth, and in that 30 days they both fell in love with people knowing they both can stay and on the 30th day she took one of them back.

I feel like that would’ve been so cool because we don’t know who will live and who will go.

Lire davantage

Help

No. I hate this. thank you. sexual tension between brothers, I cant.

Lire davantage

Not bad, but the ending isn't going to please everyone

Verdict after watching the entire series:

When the series started, everyone was kept wondering if the series would be BL or have a true BL element. By the end of the series, the answer is halfway between a yes and a no.

So the Way/Kim ship really did materialise in the sense that they do turn out to have affections for each other. However, in a modification of the body swap concept, Kim does not really swap bodies with Pan--it's Pan switching between two bodies, and Kim has actually died. Like the characters, we realise in retrospect that Way and Kim do love each other, but nothing really comes out of this because Kim has died.

To be sure, the ending isn't exactly Make-Our-Days-Count sort of awful, it still doesn't sit that well in a series that has spent most episodes being really fun and lighthearted. To its credit, the ending doesn't is not made to seem all that sad, but it is not really a great twist that Kim is actually supposed to die from the start. Also, everything about his affection for Way is inferred by his past actions, and we don't get to see Kim expressing his love for Way. (Couldn't there have been a couple of flashbacks to the time before Kim dies? E.g. how about a flashback to the time he booked the air tickets and wrote #waykimforever on them?)

Yes, I do get it that there is supposedly some deeper message about treasuring today (not unlike MODC), but is this really the sort of message that will be delivered with impact in this series? In the end, the most interesting thing I can imagine the series doing is to make fun of such messages, like how it good-naturedly makes fun of (or at least have fun with) concepts like body-swapping, BL shipping, etc.

The BL element aside, the Pan/Khet story is cute, with Ohm delivering a show-stealing performance as Khet despite not having exactly a meaty role to play. Khet is the most consistent and believable character in the series whereas something doesn't quite add up with the character of Kim despite all the interesting twists.

I actually think the series has the potential to be a classic if it has a better ending. Even if it turns out that Kim's soul has been trapped somewhere and only returns to his body at the last minute, it will be better than the somewhat affected delivering of some "deep message". I see speculations that there could be a Season 2 with Kim not dying--who knows? It would be hard because Kim's body is either buried or cremated since there's a funeral for him. A further twist is likely to stretch the limits of believability too much or invalidate the good ending for Pan/Khet. (But if you see my comments for Episodes 10-12 below, you will notice that the series does tease us with the possibility of a Season 2.)

Comments after Watching Episodes 1-3

Pan fantasizes and writes BL about her seniors, Way and Kim. Way has a girlfriend PhingPhing, but Pan (as well as her friend, Soda) doesn't care.

I have never watched a series with so many possible ships starting from the first episode. (This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it will likely prevent the series from being good BL if it even turns out to have actual BL relationships, so hardcore BL fans may not want to watch it so quickly.)

There is, of course, the ship of Pan and Soda's fantasies: Way and Kim. Despite the fact that Way has a girlfriend, it is not impossible. (We know how it goes in BL--even two apparently straight guys can fall in love.) There is an undeniably close bond between them: Kim (a star student) threatens to quit school if Way is expelled, Way hugs Kim in concern after an accident, and Kim is conspicuously chill when Pan tells him that she has been shipping him with way. Kim guesses correctly that Pan likes Way very soon after meeting her--perhaps they connect because they have something in common: they like Way and want him to be with someone worthy of him.

But if Way and Kim don't turn out to be a real ship, there are other possibilities:
1. Pan and Khet (her classmate, who happens to be Kim's younger brother): Khet is clearly very concerned about Pan.
2. Pan and Kim: the way Pan holds on to him during the bike ride, and the way Kim treats her gently is a hint.
3. Pan and Way: Pan admits to liking way though she fantasizes about Way and Kim.
4. The series even goes to the extent of having a teasing moments between Kim and Khet. They are supposed to be brothers, but Kim doesn't talk to Khet. It is unlikely, but they could well turn out to be those "brothers" who have entirely different biological parents (think: My Bromance).

In fact, Way and PhingPhing, the only real couple so far, appears likely to break up because PhingPhing is a pretentious and awful bitch (and we know how that usually goes).

BL fans who can't take BL baiting should remember that the title of the series is The Shipper, which most likely refers to Pan. If she is the focal point, its likely that her relationships will be the focus. On the other hand, Pan seems to be spending so much time in Kim's body that the actress for Pan seems to be playing a much more minor role. For better or for worse, what GMMTV has done very well so far is to tease and keep us guessing.

Nevertheless, what I really like so far is Ohm as Khet. Ohm seems to have the ability to play intriguing characters who are not the focal main characters but still steal the show from everyone else. Khet's relationships with Pan and his relationship with Kim are rather intriguing. By the end of Episode 3, I'm more interested in Khet than in Kim and Pan (we see mostly Pan in Kim's body) and even Way (too little is revealed about way so far, but this is likely to improve).

Comments after Watching Episodes 4-8
The series keeps teasing us with more possible ships, including Pan/Soda and even Khet/Way. But the ones we really want to take seriously are probably Pan/Khet (rather than Pan/Way) and Way/Kim.

The number of possible ships is either the most exhilarating thing or the most frustrating thing. Perhaps both--the series is light and funny, but it's probably not the greatest love story ever.

One twist that is keeping everyone in suspense is the revelation that Kim to be a terrible person (secretly dating a teacher and stealing exam questions through her). Is he really such a bad person? The unfortunate thing is there is not enough of First as Kim. Pan is no doubt the main character, but First gets the important role of Pan in Kim's body.

Ohm continues to shine in the episodes.

Comments after Watching Episode 9
The Way/Kim ship seems to be sailing, though it might well be a false start. It's entirely possible that Kim doesn't turn out to be a terrible person and the Kim/Way ship works out together with the Pan/Khet ship, but who knows?

I'm not going to like it too much if Khet falls in love with someone else because if anyone is in love from the start, it's him. If he doesn't end up with Pan, it will be sad. If he falls in love with someone else, it will seem out of character.

(Irrelevant: Episode 9 is also the episode in which everyone can get jealous of the Angel of Death who gets to kiss Ohm.)

Comments after Watching Episode 10-12
Watchable, but Episode 12 is somewhat disappointing, not least because Kim does not have a chance to come back to life. The "deeper messages" that the series supposedly conveys are undermined by the story itself. If we are meant to understand that reality is different from fiction, why do Pan and Soda continue writing (by all appearances happy) BL fiction to console Way? If happy BL fiction serves a function, why not give the series a happy BL ending too?

One way to get past this is to understand that the series isn't even trying to convey these deeper messages but is simply making fun of shows with such messages. After all, quite characteristically, Episode 12 teases us right at the end with a very brief scene (after the closing credits) of Kim in the spiritual world and a voice (God?) speaking to him. This is most obviously a way of suggesting a Season 2 and the possibility a different ending for Way/Kim. There's no indication of which part of the chronology of The Shipper this brief scene is supposed to belong to, however. I recall Way making a wish for Pan in church, asking Kim to help Pan by making a heads-or-tails bet with a coin. The coin magically flips: is it Kim blessing Pan from the other world or is it a conspicuously absent God doing something to help?

Lire davantage

This is why I hate motorcycles, girl.

If there's one life lesson I always seem to forget is the one that says that I should not judge a book by its cover.

Honestly, as a gay man, I have always abhorred fujoshi and, most importantly, shipper culture. Usually, these two cultures tend to have the bad habit of shamelessly romanticize people and behaviors that should NEVER be romanticized for their own sick fetishes. So, that being said, my original reaction to this series wasn't very pleasant, but I still decided to give it a chance out of pure curiosity due to a Japanese drama I recently watched with a similar topic and that turned out to be an absolute masterpiece.

~Story:
Here is where it gets confusing to explain. It is a well-known plot and I feel like most of us at some point have read, watched, or even imagined a similar story out of our own volition. And it is not a bad story, but what is important here is not THAT specific plot, but the twist the author(s) added to it. It is important to know that the series becomes stale very quickly, with some unnecessary events getting dragged for too long without providing nothing interesting to the continuity of the story but, if you manage to survive that slow segment, you will be greeted with the best plot twist that makes of this a good show worthy of being remembered by the audience.

I have read some reviewers that shared displeased reactions to this twist and I'd like to differ with their opinions. They say that a twist like this isn't a very "BL" thing to do, but I personally think this is the best part of this series. After so many BL series that are relentlessly reusing the same plot and tropes over and over again, it IS good to have a series that breaks these tiring patterns every once in a while. This was, in my opinion, one of the BEST and most successful ways of making sure the audience remembers this drama.

Going off the topic for a bit, I would like to give this drama the award for the best love confession coming out of a Thai BL. It was, in lack of a better word, heartwarming. Like I said, don't judge a book by its cover. Once we start finding out the real truth, this becomes a very emotional and the most heartwarming moment of the story. Everything else that connects these two characters suddenly turns into a beautiful love story. It made me wish we could have a short second season placed within a parallel universe that dwells into the what-could-have-been.

~ Acting and Cast:
Acting was not the best, but it wasn't the worst either. It is sort of a comedy style acting that I personally didn't like. I preferred those moments where the actors were more natural because it didn't feel forced. Let's talk about some of the actors:

- Pan: I was never a big fan of her. I remember her from "Theory of Love" and that was not a very good memory. She was quite stiff and barely, just barely made it better this time around.

- Way: He grows on you very nicely. Specially because he gradually becomes more involved with the story and develops at the the same pace this is happening.

- Kim: Yes and no. I appreciate that he tried to give you more Pan, but it came out a little too forced and it was obvious he wasn't fully into that "funny" side of her character. His serious moments were a lot better, more believable and natural. Honestly, #WayKimForever. His chemistry with Way was really, really good as both Kim and Pan.

- Khett: A little forced, but passable. I am a fan of this actor from some of his previous works, so I already knew what to expect.

- Angel of Death: Jennie!!! I'm a huge fan of hers and I think she brought good vibes into the series as an actress. She has that good entertaining personality that shines through anything.

If I could change something about this drama it would be the writing itself. Like I previously said, it got stale very quickly and I feel like if they had shortened down the number of episodes and only focused on what's actually important for the story, this would have been delivered more successfully and consistently.

Sis, this show has everything: Problematic fujoshis, school drama, forbidden relationships, tasteless school uniforms, toying with life, body like an angel, gestures like an idol, good inside and out, legendary love confessions, that weird kiss, and ugly facial hair. This is not a masterpiece, but I still recommend it. Good shit.

Lire davantage

The Standpoint of a Shipper

In the following content, I shall review from the storyline / screenplay, acting and OST these 3 perspectives.

I. STORY
From the 1st teaser which shows that this is a story featuring a shipper, I've been interested in it. Because the shipping culture has existed for a long time, however, the fujoshi or the shippers are mostly seen as customers or consumers. The works always depict them as young girls who scream when seeing 2 males being intimate. What digs deep in their minds and life is very rare.
About 2 years ago, I met a 12-year-old girl and she shared with me her favourite BL manga. It occurred to me that with the development of Internet, there will be more and more fujoshis starting at a much younger age, an age that their values are not yet built, and no one can tell what differences will be made.
So The Shipper which tells the shipper, Pan to pursue her own love, is a timely production in my opinion.

This series actually reminds me of my senior high school life, during which stage I shipped my crush with his best friend. Of course it's absurd, but why didn't I just go and tell him "I love you"? I guess it's my low self-esteem, which makes me especially resonate when I hear Pan say that she cannot be compared with Phingphing after she recognized how deep the bond between Way and Kim is in EP10 (or 11) but luckily at the end her ship / crush makes her realize where is her love.

When the series were being aired, I can't help but notice some dissatisfaction about the disappearance of the main character Kim, such as how could he just show up in the 1st episode and then just lies in coma, all the stories about him are told by others.
Such a design, which tells the story of an absent person, reminds me of a gothic novel, Rebecca, though The Shipper is not crime mysterious fiction, this design helps to arouse audience's interest and curiosity. So I like it quite a lot.

There are also some tiny points in this series which make me surprised that the playwrights even paid attention to this?!
For example the "loyal" friendship of Phingphing. I like the reverse with this group: at the beginning, these 2 girls befriended Phingphing because they both tried to court P'Way but in the end they develop sincere friendship with their crush's ex-girlfriend. I've seen so much of the "mean girl" plot and learnt so much about how women fight against each other in some Chinese historical palace drama featuring empresses' power struggle that I came to wonder does there really exist true friendship between girls? The writer of The Shipper shakes my shoulders and shouts: "Certainly there does!!!"
Another point is also shown in EP 3 "Men's Universe". Pan is shocked when her male classmate spread the video

The standpoint of The Shipper's storyline is so good that it inspires me to write a novel in which an 11th grader fujoshi tried to pair her best friend, a boy, with her crush, which is of course irrational. This is just a beginning and I am still working on how it will unfold.

II. CAST
All the actors and actresses are lovely and impressive, Kim, Way, Pan, Angel of Death, cute Soda, attractive Phingphing along with her two "loyal" friends, the meow teacher Ms. Kana, Pan's stepfather, Off the bad guy.

In a interview, when the cast introduced themselves, First Kanaphan mentioned that he played the roles of Pan and Kim. I have to say First successfully handled these 2 different characters. His imitation of girl's emotion and expression is very impressive. I can see that he did learn a lot about the shipping culture (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTv2WF_aKN4&feature=youtu.be)

Fluke Pusit also did a great job in his debut. Although his face is a little bit funny in the last episode where he is saying last goodbye to his lover, generally speaking, he depicted this righteous, naughty, affectionate Way very well.

An interesting thing is, Prigkhing who played the role of Pan in this series ships OffGun in the last minute in the 12th episode, but she also played the role of Fhasai in The Theory of Love. LOL

III. OST
As I've mentioned above, the series intrigued me from the beginning with the initial teaser. And in May, when the MV of the theme song, Care Glai Glai was aired, I was immediately attracted by this song. At that time I was guessing who is this song intended for? Khet's love for Pan? Or Shippers's care for their ship? Or what else?

And at the end of episode 5, which is the famous scene where we see Way set his photo with Kim(Pan) as the wallpaper of his phone, revealing Way's crush on Kim, another song was introduced. I have looped this song since then. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XKaeC5s2Ro) this "I belong to you every day" is a strong supplement to this main plot. It can be seen as both Way's and Khett's feelings towards their love. But I think the lyrics suit WayKim better.


All in all, Kim's pass-away is not so tragic as Lan Yu, Brokeback Moutain, Tea for Two, but sad still. But I'd keep his words of leading my own life in mind, and wish everyone who enjoyed this series instructions on leading one's life.

Lire davantage

Good and must watch!

The Shipper is one of those few BL series that I have watched that has less to no flaws at all. If ever you found one, you can easily get past through it. From the beginning to the end, everything was delivered clearly, each scene was stitched seamlessly. There is only one thing that I don't like about this series and that is the main character's death. I am all for happy endings and feel-good plots that's why I have reservations for main characters dying in the series. Like WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY ??? WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY. I was crying when I found out that Pan changed her mind so that Way will have a full life and finish what he needs to finish here on earth. I was actually half-hearted about that, like, how would pan live for the rest of her life as Way? How would she fill in Way's shoes when he is such a perfect student. He even won a national science olympiad. Luckily she changed her mind. Although I was very heartbroken about that like WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY ???, but I'm glad she did the right thing (but my heart was torn to pieces trying to rationalize this situation ????) Over-all, I am very happy with the series. This is one of those series that I am dying to have a season 2 and speaking of which, what was that scene in the end? Was that a teaser for a second season.

Lire davantage

What first brought me to watch this was the plot, I found it very interesting, it's something that I personally haven't seen before in this format.
I instantly fell in love with the characters and the story combined with the acting it's so freaking funny and cute at the same time, one moment I'm laughing my heart out and 5 minutes later I'm like "Ownnnnn". It's very fresh.
if I have to be honest the story is a little bit confusing because I can't tell where the story is going and I also don't know where I want the story to go, usually, when I watch a tv show I always know what I want to happen, who I want to end up with who, who I don't like, who I like, but in this one, I don't know and if I kinda like this feeling of not knowing and simply enjoying the ride.
The show only has 2 episodes out and I'm hooked I wanna know what's going to happen, what craziness awaits for me in the future.
By the way, check the MV of the OST is adorable!

Lire davantage