Ton Hon Chon Tee (2020)

Read all the bad reviews and watched it anyway

It's pretty clear that YMMV with this series. I thought I was gonna hate watch it, but it became more nuanced than that.

Chon's mom and his friend Na are basically BL unicorns. There's also several other supporting characters who add a lot of comedy.

TW: attempted rape--One big problem that I didn't see get resolved was any consequence for Nueng. It's disappointing, but pretty much what happens in real life for the vast percentage of rapes. Even if criminal charges had never been pressed, I would have liked to see them confront Nueng for his actions beyond that punch Ton threw.

The homophobia is present throughout. I don't see it as much of a negative because the series does portray Ton's father as the one with a problem, and he does get a vicious comeuppance from Auntie Nam. The writing did feel a bit rushed at the end, but meh. I also was not as put out about Miriam acting as a surrogate. Hell yeah she chose an option that got her millions and a nice house. That's her agency at work, y'all.

Probably the most annoying thing about this series was the evil ex-girlfriend. Can we get more evil ex-boyfriends? Or just, you know, move away from evil ex plots in general?

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Not the greatest plot but very addictive

I believe that it's not a waste of your time to watch it because the addiction has its mindblowing. you can easily connect and get shivers while watching. It is true though that the script and the acting is kinda..... let's say not oscar-worthy but I really enjoyed and definitely recommend it. They both are so cute together that you just cannot stop watching the show because it so short you don't realize it.

The best character is definitely chon's mum, you will love her because she is sooo iconic and has a few remarkable quotes
Heads up: Maybe my good review is determined by the fact that this is my first thai bl drama

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Just go watch it u won't regret it .

This show is so underrated , i literally didn't watch it for a long time because of the reviews but if you have seen tharntype and theory of love and liked it u will enjoy this show much more . Ton acts homophobic no doubt but I think he has solid reason to it if u see his dad's reactions after he discovers the truth u will not be that mad at ton . It's not easy to ignore your parent's ideologies especially when u r not yet independent and sometimes u just give in . But chons love helps ton grow as a person , become braver and kinder .As the series progresses it's obvious ton is not nearly as homophobic as he acts he not only chooses his friends and chon over everything he doesn't think twice before apologizing .Chon is adorable and loyal but towards the end he shows he can be bold and feisty when he wants to be . Chons mom is one of the highlights of the series .She is a total badass. The show isn't typical bl , its one of the very first romcoms and that's why it has its own set of flaws . But if you r not too sensitive u will find this show fluffy and cute and hilarious . Ai and ni have such cute chemistry u want them to have there own seperate series . Na is love perfect boyfriend material . Pang is the best friend everybody wishes for protecting chon even when she's drunk , I don't care what people say these series hit me in all the right spots . I m sorry I m not good at writing reviews but I just want to convince everyone to go watch it .let's be real we have seen more than enough imperfect bls and we have loved them .

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There were some good parts, and I liked a lot of the characters, but honestly for a gay show it was really quite homophobic lol, especially the finale. The instance on using female/male gendered terms for mlm couples, Chon being 'godfather' to Ton's child, Ton being 'straight except for Chon', the very bizarre redemption arc for Ton's dad where he said it was okay for Ton and Chon to be together as long as Ton had a child, and everyone suddenly forgiving him and doing exactly what he wanted despite his aggressive homophobia through out. The storyline had potential. Chon is a really likeable character, his friendship with Pang is very sweet and Ai, Ni and Miriam worked well as side characters but besides that the rest just really fell through.

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Frustration The Series

So this was a very complicated series for me. Some choices made in it I loathed, where others I quite liked. It was literally like a seesaw, going back and forth between lows and highs. One of the most significant problems with this show was in fact the pacing of it. It was sooooo bad. There was so much unnecessary filler that could've been scrapped all together because it didn't influence the plot or characters at all. It was mostly done (I think) for fan service or comedy? But it didn't land. We didn't need so little of progression and then in 1 episode BAM everything gets going at full speed. It was a weird choice and could've been fixed fairly easily.

When the show started I was into the premise. I loved that we got a solid cast of side characters. Ai and Ni were great, but what else do I expect from Mike & Toptap lol. They had so many good moments in this show together as a steady couple, they were so much fun to watch. You better smack your mans ass on the dance floor lmao! I also really liked How Chon, Na and Pang were a trio. Like he had a good support system backing him up the entire time. Chon's mom and Miriam were also great, what sassy queens they were! Then we get into Ton himself, which is where a huge chunk of my problems with this show surface from as well. I absolutely hated him for 95% of this show straight up (the character obviously not the actor, him I love). His dialogue for awhile heavily consists of homophobic and sexist speech, while also being way too abrasive/handsy. He was rude and super disrespectful at times to people around him including Chon. He also became very VERY possessive and violent which we don't vibe with. Jealousy can bring out stupidity, however Ton had literally zero say over who Chon associated with/dated and his toxic attitude got on my nerves. I understand a lot of it can be chalked up to internalized homophobia, the homophobic dad putting pressure on him and lack of coping skills when it comes to his emotions. But even with that in mind it was too much and I didn't like him. Sure I didn't like other characters too like the ex girlfriend, but she's meant to be hated throughout.

There were serious times where I said out loud I would've preferred Chon having ended up with Na instead. It started with him taking the drinks from Chon that were being forced on him. Super sweet. Na's character actually ended up becoming my favorite! At first he was kinda obnoxious, but in a funny way. Then we see him develop into a kinder person, who gives out food to people in need. He uses the "rich" thing as a way to try and make friends and be wanted. Which I freaking called from the start! Honestly, Na deserved better in this series. He got the 2 leads together with his speech, he got his heart broken for the sake of his also best friend, and he's a pansexual king. We stan. Like I said before, Ton I still didn't like by literally episode 7. Dude was an airhead pouty b****, but like I said before there's an episode where it literally goes from 0 to 100 so quickly and that's when Ton and Chon actually get together. So that happens very quickly, which wasn't the worst. However, Ton's character does a literal 180 and it bothered me. He becomes super cutesy and extra, I didn't like that all of a sudden were supposed to root for him. I needed more time to warm up to the idea of forgiving him for everything else. It doesn't just go away once love "blossoms" or whatever.

So because there's so much filler in this series, I literally have to skip so much unnecessary trash and get to the finale. In few words, it sucked really badly. It was weird, confusing and uncomfortable to watch. We all of a sudden are supposed to accept that a surrogacy is happening with Ton's baby. What in the actual f***? It's literally done to "appease" Ton's disgusting father. Like it literally made my skin crawl. And what's worse is Miriam is the one chosen to do this. We literally get a flash forward of 3 years and she's pregnant. This is done like she was kinda forced upon it by the father and I hated it so much. The situation with the heir was messed up to begin with and the fact that it takes THAT for the father to accept them. While also not even considering if Ton wants to be a father at all! Or how he basically shoves the "responsibility" of grandkids onto his daughter too. Gross. I especially hated that because as a woman who doesn't ever want children it's infuriating to see it play out like this. None of this was acceptable and its played off like it was such an easy solution. Then THEN the father has a stroke and apologizes? Like wtf 100 to 0 real quick and it just didn't make any sense at all. He's unforgivable, period. The only good parts about that finale was Na getting a manz and Chon's mom wanting to whoop Ton's fathers ass.

I also wanted to mention another huge issue that I had with this series. So we had a great discussion about why it was wrong for Chon to kiss Ton while he was asleep. It was brought up and the mom set it straight. However, then we also get in this series a literal scene of Chon getting assaulted in the bathroom by an upperclassmen. And nothing happens from it. They just gloss over it and move on. NO, absolutely not. There should've been repercussions and that character is seen again so it's not like it's just a random plot device (which is also wrong). How frustrating this series was. Like I said some things I enjoyed, most of them being the lighter hearted stuff. But the heavier subjects were handled awfully and I don't think I can just look past them. I will leave with a quote though from the show that I liked.

"Being different isn't disgusting, but the one who hates the one who is different is the one who is disgusting."

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Very Cute

Khaotung was adorable. He usually plays the quiet, wise support buddy in my experience and here he really showed a bigger box of acting tools. He managed to give Chon the perfect tone of sweet, innocent and smitten without him seeming like a pushover. In fact, Chon came with spunk! (And a good right hook!) I was pleasantly surprised by the way his role was written and Khaotung did a great job.

Pod did a really convincing job with the whole "I'm oblivious to the fact that I'm gayishly bi, under the illusion (delusion?) that I'm utterly straight" trope. Even though it turns out the truth of Tonhon is a lot more complex than that, Pod brought a genuine sense of cluelessness to the character. He also sold the whole toxic masculinity thing pretty well. So, overall, his performance was solid.

Pod was also just a perfect physical foil for Khaotung. Khao looked small and cute next to Pod, who was absolutely hot in this. And somehow it managed to avoid being weird and ended up working with their dynamic.

The theme song was nice at first, but ultimately not anything special and after a while it was plain annoying.

The comedy was well timed and though it was a little heavy handed, I laughed a lot.

The sets were varied enough to keep me oriented. (Something lacking in BL's occasionally. Hello 'Manner of Death'. I'm looking at you.) Overall the visuals were best described as predictable but very solid. The ocean scenes were gorgeous. I think my favorite set was Chonlatee's home. And is it me or do most BL's use the same white sedan and black SUV in every damn one? LOL.

The villainess was just as awful as any out there. Really terrible. More so than usual it seemed, in fact. You really got an endorphin kick out of hating her. Happily, it's her own personality that's the rock in her road to getting the hero, not her gender. She really is a repulsively narcissistic, bitch. She was so entitled I wanted to strand her on some place desert Island, without a cell phone. Just for a day or so, until the polish was gone off that bad apple.

There were some really unexpected things in the show, like Chon's upbeat mom, whom he was utterly "out" to. She was a lovely fount of wisdom. (With a pretty voice!) Really just the best sassy mom character! The overall abundance of fun female characters was nice. Chon's best friend, Pang. The villainess, Amp. Miriam. Oh, and the sweet prostitute turned nail technician! Lots of great female characters.

The momentary stop-over to get Chon laid "to man him up" was a first for me in a Thai BL and was hilarious. The side story of Tonhon's brother-in-law was uncomfortable but in an interesting manner that added to Tonhon's not-so-new gay crisis.

And most importantly perhaps, I was impressed that non-consent was addressed as actual NON-CONSENT! Too often lack of consent is fetishized in TV. I know a lot of people think it's BL's only, but if you think that, you didn't watch the same Game of Thrones I did.

It was also really kind of adorable to see Toptap and Mike back together in the same BL again. Sigh... They need to be a main character pairing together in some drama.

And Na was simply adorable. I never rooted for him but I can understand why other people watching the show might have. He was cute, ready to absolutely be there for Chonlatee and underneath the fronting he was very compassionate.

What didn't I like? I think they wrote Ton and Chon's first time having sex as really rushed. It was abrupt and verging on trivialized and not the least bit romantic. It came across as Tonhon resolving his sexuality crisis so suddenly he shot himself at Chon like a Chippendales' Stripper bullet.

The only other thing I feel was missing was the character Nueng paying for his part in things. That's my biggest complaint. He was a villain sidekick who didn't really end up having to deal with any consequences for his downright scary behavior.

I will say it was interesting to see how SOTUS was employed in the plot. As a whole, it's a system primed for abuse and we get a mild taste of that in this drama with Amp.

So overall I thought this was abundant in pleasant surprises, Comfy BL tropes, solid performances by actors I've grown nostalgically attached to, some great sassy girl-power moments, and a few less unresolved toxic behaviors than I've seen in some BL's (or even your average male targeted fantasy genre piece in Western media).

Watch this one. And then watch it again with a friend. Bring hot chocolate and your favorite lap quilt. It's a fun series to unwind to.

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Good drama with enough humor

I really enjoyed the entire (first) season. There are plenty of things to enjoy in this show. The two leads have great chemistry. The supporting players are good too, special mention has to go to the vharacter Na who starts out as a spoilt brat and I ended up rooting for.

The opening scene was brilliant. It was surreal, funny, charming and completely bonkers. It did kind of set the tone.

There are only a few things that were a bit disappointing, Amp was way too intense, they should have toned her way down. She became less believable as time went on.

The last episode was good but felt kind of rushed. There were a couple of scenes in the last episode that would have worked better if they had spent more time on it. I did like why the dad didn't approve of the relationship and he was rehabilitated by the end.

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Love it!!

To some the story wasn’t all that great but in my opinion it was a great watch. It shows that even when you love someone for years you might have to act as though you see them in a different light. For those who say that the story went to fast without chemistry, there was a lot of chemistry but if you have never been in a situation that is similar to their situation then you can’t really have a say. Their relationship may seem rushed but this is what goes on in this day and age now. Time to live in this New Era.. I’m still hoping for a season 2 eventhough I know there will not be one

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mmm

I never thought I would hate a series so much as LBC, but AH!.
This series was POORLY executed, the writing was a mess, the direction was a mess, and GMMTV needs to stop this. The pandemic is not an excuse to have such a bad series. I can sit for a whole weekend and fix everything wrong with this. First of all, the writing, SIR! this is 2021! WE NEED TO MOVE ON FROM THESE STEREOTYPES. I hate the way women are portrayed and gay man, homophobia is something real BUT WHY WOULD YOU MAKE IT INTO A COMEDY IN THE WORST WAY POSSIBLE. There are a lot of ways in which you can turn this plot into a valuable lesson, with comedic elements, but not this series, no. The direction, I shouldn't be surprised by now since GMMTV directors are like... the same? WHY DO Y'ALL KEEP SWITCHING CAMERAS LIKE-- THERE'S NO NEED TO SEE A SINGLE SHOT OF EVERY PERSON IN A TABLE. And you might think, "well that's stupid, why are you criticizing this lol?", well, you have actors that are criticized every time a new series comes out because there's no time for them to shine in their scenes. and why is that? well, the director's fault. Watching this series is like a gamble game, you never know whose turn is to show on the camera. The plot was not new at all, aside form, you know, yeah, nothing. It is just the same recycle formula, homophobic manly dude "falls" (cause boooooy, that was sooo not well written) for his friend (who is gay and has been in love with the other one for like ever), you know, the basics, some yelling, a lot of homophobics jokes with no flavor, and by a lot i mean A LOT, no lesson at the end of anything, like seriously, and a poor guy who is in love for real, for real, but is use as bait by the guy he likes. *sarcasm*

Anyways, if you are new to bl, this is NOT the right one. If you are planning on watching bls, skip this one, skip "love by chance". Khaotung is the only saving grace here, (yes, everybody else got crappy roles and acting so) and even then, I feel like he needed to turn this one down. Down in history as one of the worst bls I've been seen.

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Homophobics and the heir obsessed prejudice

Just finished the last episode and what a mess that was; I don't buy the plottwist about Tonhon always loving Chon since childhood with the way he acted throughout the series. Also the message that it sends about women; How Tonhon's dad spoke to the daughter and telling her to focus on making him grandchildren..didn't sit right with me and how he looked down on Miriam for being a call girl at one point. The only ones I could truly stand were Chon most of the time, Pang, Miriam, AiNi and Na. By the end I was over Amp gold digging, self absored ways and didn't care what happened to the father who apparently knew about Tonhon anyways but yet had such a visceral reaction. Hell I was even enjoying Chon giving Tonhon a hard time and calling him out on his ego satisfying. I only cared if Na was going to end up happy or not.

As far as actors go they all did great, they have no fault for the terrible writing. I very much enjoyed the friendship side of it.

Soundtrack is great also.

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What a mess

Chonlatee was honestly a mess. The show had a strong start. Interesting characters which had their quirks. Na (Neo) was my favourite so adorable and funny. Production wise the show was pretty good. I had no problem with the quality of filming. The script started off alright but unfortunately went from worse to disaster by the end of the show. Quite bad pacing. Character's unrealistically changing or accepting situations no mad person would accept.

What completely destroyed the show was the ending for me. It was as bad and problematic as you can get. The resolution to Ton's homophobic father is finding out he just wants an heir, so Miriam has a baby with Ton as sort of a surrogate to satisfy him but Ton and Chon can be together. It's honestly fucked up. Also Chon is the god father??? Like idk what sort of family they are planning to raise the kid under and the relationship Ton and Chon would have. Who will parent the kid, Mirian, his parents, Ton and Chon??? It is framed as a happy ending but honestly some deluded person thought this is an uplighting way to end a comedy. I would have preferred Ton and Chon not end up together honestly or they could have adopted when they were ready to have kids??

There were many other issues but I've seen other reviews cover them.

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not everyone's cup of tea, and it is okay if you like the show

By all means, this review is a personal opinion. For future viewers, read this at your own risk and this review should not make you watch the series or prevent you from watching it. To be honest, I watched this series weekly and I admit that it got boring at some point but I did watch this again from episode 1 until 9 just before the final episode and I have to say that the story was better when I watched this series continuously.

What I like about the show:
1) It may be weird to some, but I kinda like the OST, it does relate with the story.
2) The acting is above average, not too bad, not too great since I can say most of the actors are "experienced" actors. Some actors did show well how the characters supposed to behave like Khaotung playing as Chonlatee (a cute and innocent guy) and even Pod is great in this (that's why most people hated him because he managed to show how Tonhon supposed to be from the novel and screenplay). I like Na and Aunt Nam characters the most.
3) The whole "satire" idea of this story. And here are my takeout from this series:

The intro of this drama (The Untamed parody) showed that this drama is completely a satire and a satire is “the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity or vices” (https://literaryterms.net/). This shows at some point exaggerated some issues like homophobic character and crazy ex girlfriend to a point that it doesn't make sense. And for me, this is exactly what this shows want to show to the audience and it was executed brilliantly. One example that I noticed and I am also not sure about this (this is random observation) but remember how Miriam kept on telling people that she is virgin? And in the end she is pregnant and assuming that she is still virgin at that point, what she will be called when she delivers the baby? Exactly, a virgin Miriam (LOL). Okay that is not a main issue. One of the main issues is Ton's father being homophobic entire 10 episodes just because of heir issue and at the end surrogacy is the solution to this? Exactly, this is ridiculous. You see, being homophobic is ridiculous and sometimes people become homophobic because of ridiculous reasons. All you need is a solution to make people understand and the solution can be any (in this case, they propose an extreme solution which is surrogacy).

Like I said, not everyone will like this because of the "stereotype and cliche" plot and the drama showed a lot of heavy issues (such as effeminate villain character, crazy ex girlfriend, homophobic characters, toxic masculinity, attempted rape and etc). For me, all issues were addressed well in the drama, you may need to pay a little attention to what the characters said in the drama. Whether or not you think the issues were properly addressed, you already have the answer. Watching drama is supposed to be as simple as this: "Oh, this character behavior is bad and he is homophobic". Good, you notice it, don't be like them. And if you like the character because they show good behavior, it's great, be like them in real life.

I learn and gain something, well kinda a lot from this drama. In short, I am a simple person, if I like what I watch, give me good times and I laugh out of it, I am happy. Because life is too short to take all things seriously. And sometimes, I need this kind of drama to remind me that these people and even these issues exist in real life. As open as Thailand can be, there are still people who are homophobic and prejudice towards gay people, it is a never ending problem. But just like they said in the series, gay is not a virus, it is not infectious. Live well!

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