Stalker (2022)

An absolute hidden gem of a series!

So I was not at all planning to pick this up. The synopsis did not interest me, nor did the trailer, but on one random day when I had nothing to do, I decided to give this a shot, and boy am I glad I did. The first two episodes were a little hard to get through, but after that, this entire show was just such a delight.

First, for the plot, it is not terribly deep or intriguing but I never felt like it was boring either. The point was to tell the story of various people discovering themselves and falling in love in the process and I think they did a great job with that.

What I absolutely loved though, was the characters. Every single one of them was so unique and dynamic. There wasn't a single time when I wished anyone would get off my screen or things would move along. Gosh, Toh was such a weird little bug, but Nuea was just as weird in his own way, and they were adorable together. In the first couple of episodes, I was creeped out by where I thought the story for them might be heading, but they ended up being super sweet and healthy, I was shocked. The character development was just *chef's kiss*!

And ugh, Sky and Jao!!!! I don't even know where to start with them. They made me squeal and cry and laugh, and I just couldn't get enough of them. Sky is a walking green flag, who knew what he wanted and did mess around to get it. I loved how he was so respectful of Jao's boundaries but still being straightforward and reassuring, that yes, Jao is the one he wants. Even when Jao gets insecure or unsure, he just listens to Jao's concerns and doesn't berate him or call him silly for having them, and I love that. And Jao, that sweet lil bean. Oh, I love him. I loved watching him grow from someone who hid away in corners, to someone who is openly able to express his affection, it was beautiful.

Of course, how can I not mention Intouch and Daisy???? They were so sweet!! AHHH!! Every time Touch saw Daisy, his smile would just light up the whole room. I am not kidding, it was blinding. And he was so respectful of Daisy and the way they identified themself, I was in awe. He wasn't ashamed or hiding his affection, and he made sure Daisy knew that. He made sure Daisy was unafraid to be themself, and I almost cried every time I saw them together. I really really wish they had more screen time because they deserve it! Here's to hoping for a spin-off.

I also need to talk about Toh and his group of friends! I just, I don't think I have ever seen a more supportive loving group of friends. They really were a found family, and you can see it in the way they really cared for each other. There was this one scene where Som (whom I freaking love, omg, like the coolest chick ever) was telling Daisy not to force themselves to be anything they don't want to be, and I was in tears. It was probably, the highlight of the series for me.

Other than the characters, what I really really really loved though, was the representation. This is an example of how a show can do it right. Where the gay or trans characters are not a plot device or comedic relief, but real people with real feelings, who deserve to have their stories told. It wasn't preachy or weird, it was just there and natural and beautiful.

I do have to say though, that as much as I loved this show, each hour-long episode took me two to watch, because of how much I had to pause or rewind. I don't think I have ever watched a show that gave me as much second-hand embarrassment as this one. Not even 'Fish Upon the Sky'. I even think my immunity and ability to watch embarrassing moments went down not up lol. That being said though, I do not regret watching this one bit. It was a joy to watch, even if I was watching through my fingers.

Lire davantage

Don’t let the first episode scare you off.

This had a very cute, weird but cute, story concept. I started watching this with the mindset of a sitcom. I know it’s a comedy, but watching it as a sitcom made it more enjoyable for me. Although it had a few weak points, the script was very different and uplifting. The first episode is a little bizarre due to the heavy stalker element of Toh. However, this element is toned down in following episodes. I usually don’t like series with a big cast, but they did a good job with keeping you interested. I actually remember who they were and started to care about them. The group dynamics of both groups was great and they were very supportive of each other. Their teasing can get a little out of hand at times, but they were always there when someone needed it. The actors were incredible and did a great job making you care about their characters.

Random Note (Added on 3/4/2023): I strongly recommend watching this on Idol Factory’s YouTube channel, if you can, instead of Viki because the English subtitles on their channel is definitely a lot better than the ones on Viki.

Lire davantage

One of the Best Sleeper HIts

I was going to pass on this because I thought it was going to be a zany comedy, full of sound effects and idiocy. I was wrong. I think that Secret Crush on You (SCOY) is one of the best series made. It shows excepting your flaws, being open to love with an unexpected person, This series also focuses on the bonds of friendship and being there for each other.

The major strengths in my opinion were that Nuea treated Toh just like he would a female partner (meaning gender wasn't an issue). He took Toh home to meet his family, and the family accepted him. Later, Toh took Nuea to meet his family. Toh had already told his mother about Nuea being his boyfriend, so the parents knew about their relationship before Nuea met them. Yes, there was some "drama" but it ended up being as quirky as the rest of this series is.

I was somewhat disappointed that Daisy turned out to be transgender, rather than a fem man. I think that BL at times creates too many straight passing, gym bodied men, and the industry doesn't pay proper homage to the fem gay man. I loved the character Daisy, but spent most of the series thinking she was a man, only to later learn that she is trans. I still love Daisy, though.

My favorite character was Toh. To me, Toh is the person who is saying aloud what many of us experienced during adolescence. I think this is why many people find Toh very cringy, because he reminds us of our most cringiest thoughts and behaviors while growing up.

I will rewatch this series because I love all of the characters, the friendships and the relationships.

Lire davantage

WHYYY???

WHY is it that some people told me not to watch it because it would ruin my BL watching streak? Like this is the kind of SHOW that I LOVE. Non toxic, open communication, The underdog in other series becoming the Main "dog" I guess lol. But honestly why are some making this show seem like the worst thing ever created when it is the most heart warming and Loving and just beautiful series that I have never ever expected from BL before? Are we so into toxic masculinity and aggressive relationships in BL that we can't appreciate when we are given such a beautiful story?

Also wtf is going on with the rating on here? There are so many shows that deserve low ratings but This series is not one of them. Y'all need to fix this! WTH! Anyways, I suggest for everyone to start watching it before y'all decide to not like it because there are so many that I've seen talk about how the premise of this series is not their cup of tea when they have not even started watching it! It's embarrassing.

Lire davantage

ONE OF THE BEST BL SERIES 2022, UNIQUE FUNNNY AND INTRESTING COUPLES THAT ACTUALLY COMMUNICATE.

The story might be weird which makes viewers skip the movie but the actors nailed it especially seng he was able to play and capture the character Toh which I believe would have been genuinely hard.

The story is extremely cringed (that's the whole charm ) If you are not afraid to break the boundary of stereotypes then this movie is for you.

My best couple is the main couple NEAU and TOH, they are just unique and when they started dating I truly respected and loved them because of the way they communicate unlike other bl couples their misunderstanding hardly last for 30 minutes before they solve and apologize to one another. They understand each other even without talking and they voice their complaint if they don't like what their partner is doing.

I have watched many bl series but this series has a special place in my heart no matter how cringe it is because that is the genre of Romantic- comedy, second-hand embarrassment, lighthearted that will make you laugh your heart out.

It gets better with each ep just survive the first three ep and you will later like the character Toh. There are also many beautiful normal couples like DAISY and IN-TOUCH and SKYJAO. We have the weird couple, the pure couple, and the cute visual couple.

Also, the friendship in this series is epic both in Toh's gang and Nuea's gang.

I binge-watched it even after watching all the episodes.

Lire davantage

14 hours of torture

I don't know what is more absurd. The drama romanticizing stalking or the so called BL lovers rating it 10 to pull it out of the bad rating. This is 2022. Falling in love with your stalker is not cute anymore. This is not a Wattpad story. A whole series with full production house. How did they make something like this? And all the 10 ratings givers saying "love is for everyone " multiple times. Please consider consulting a psychiatrist nearby. You have got some serious issues.
And the acting. I don't think I saw this kind of acting even back in 2014. They portrayed the gays in very stereotypical way. Anyone except fetishizers would find it appealing.

Lire davantage

Now my standard for BL

Not sure when it was but this series got me. I never like watching a series while it's airing because I dont want to wait for episodes every week. And I was right because I dont know how those watching this series waited every week because my Heart could not possibly handle it. How can every episode gets better than the last one? I've never had an experience like this with any series/drama BL or non BL... EVER.

When I saw the trailer I thought it was another romcom but It was everything and more. I just finished a few days ago and had to gather my thoughts before posting here to tell everyone to watch it. Yes it's cringy, you'll get 2nd hand embarrassment and you will LOVEE EVERY character in the show, protagonist and antagonist alike. I say this because I wasn't sold on the characters until ep. 2 lol even then I had my doubts but by the last episode, I LOVED all of them. It's a reality most of us have gone through and they dont sugarcoat it, that's what I love. It made me feel like I could be their friend.

It's the best series I think I've watched in such a long time. WRU and Bad Buddy were up there for me but now SCOY has taken it's crown ... as it should.

Lire davantage

It gets better with each episode!

To find enjoyment in this series since the very start, it's quite necessary to not get into it with the same mindset as with other BLs.
The first 3 episodes aren't really introducing the romance, but rather all the characters and friend groups. This may seem like a waste of time in the beginning, but turns out to be a key point of enjoying the story since it's really not all about the romantic relationships even if they're still the main focus.

Another important aspect is that this drama needs to be treated as a pure comedy. Most dramas are majorly focused on serious storytelling with the use of comedy as a way of lifting the mood and making it more light-hearted, but SCOY deviates from this pattern. It does get serious later when there's a need to address something, but the first episodes are made all for laughs and not too much realism.
This is also the reason why Toh's issue with collecting things shouldn't be treated with too much negativity. Not only is it the kind of overexaggerated trait which should be taken as comedy, but it's also not as creepy as some people make it out to be. Toh doesn't actually steal any of Nuea's belongings, he only takes trash as memorabilia. This whole thing doesn't get brushed off and is properly addressed and explained in the second half which makes it even more justifiable.

What makes this drama special is all the LGBTQ+ diversity and the way all of their identities are treated with upmost seriousness. At first I was really worried about Toh, Jao and Daisy being used as comedic relief with all stereotypes related to their identities, but this turned out to be so far from truth. Toh and Jao are actually stereotyped less than a lot of gay characters in other BLs.
Also this was the first time I didn't mind a BL using the term "wife" when referring to a partner in a same-sex relationship because it was made very clear that the intention was not to imply same-sex relationships follow the roles of traditional heterosexual couples. In this it really felt like it was the character's conscious choice to be called a "wife" as he felt comfortable with the label instead of the writers forcing that role upon him. Which I think is one of the examples of how well this drama managed to portray the LGBTQ+ themes.

And the most important part is all the healthy communication and consent between the couples! Issues and misunderstandings are talked through and immediately solved, there's a lot of support and understanding coming from both partners and an absolute lack of non-consensual drunken kiss scenes with no repercussions. The relationships develop organically without the use of certain tropes commonly used to speed up the process or needless sadness and arguments.

What I didn't like was the editing which sometimes made it difficult to figure out whether some scenes were imagined situations or not. I also thought some of the plot arcs dragged on for a bit too long, but that might've only been an issue with my personal preference.
As the biggest disadvantage I'd pinpoint the feature of too many couples with an unequal amount of screen time. This can work well of the viewers who come to prefer the main couple, but from what I've seen a lot of people were dissatisfied with how little some of the couples were featured.

Overall though, this BL is one of the best I've seen this year so far and I hope more people can give this a chance and watch more episodes before deciding their judgement of it.

Lire davantage

Cute, quirky, sweet, considerate... Special!

This series said respect and proved it in every sense!!

Now that I think about it, this series reminded me of the very first Thai BL I ever watched. Not because the plot was similar or the actors or anything but because of the feeling. At first I felt estranged, trying to grasp what exactly I was seeing, like discovering a new genre. So just like when I first discovered the BL genre I gave it another chance, trying to fully understand how it worked, this time too I think I saw this genre being rediscovered in this show.
The story starts off in a way lots of BLs do, with secret admirers and fans all over the place. What differentiates this series from any others is that it takes the characters that are usually the comedic relief, or the outcasts, or the antagonists and gives them a voice and a story. BLs tend to offer us unrealistic perfection when it comes to their characters. The main leads are usually hot, popular, rich, successful, smart and cool with little to no exceptions. It is often hard for people in the LGBTQ+ community to identify with these characters because, um, not all people are the same and in real life all these characteristics combined are hard to find (and that's the beauty of being a human, being imperfect and unique). I really appreciated and enjoyed that they addressed issues such as body-shaming, cyber-bullying, trans identity issues and even more common but important points like friendship and found family, honest communication between couples and building strong support systems. Really this series was a delight to watch because it was serious when it needed to be but almost always was funny and relaxing.
I am fully aware that this series was not perfect and I struggled to find the "right" rating. I think this series will excite some while others will simply hate it. It is provocative in its own sense and not everyone's cup of tea and that's okay! I am usually generous with ratings but I often think that giving a series a perfect score is a serious business, as I am afraid to be unfair to other potentially better works. However, I still gave it a 10 because this is a piece of work that is indeed worth it. The plot is fast-paced enough with no annoying back-and-forth between the MLs, the couples are explored in a satisfying way and the side couples are cute and wholesome. There were a lot of characters but they are easy to remember and not some dull foils, only there to fill the episode or help the MLs shine. I especially loved Daisy's character and would have loved to see her experience being explored even further.
All in all, I will give the advice almost everyone that loved it gives: Give this series a chance! The first couple of episodes can be a little bizarre and you might get some second-hand embarrassment but strangely this is the charm of the main characters and you will be rewarded for your patience by the series as a whole. Hope to see the issues addressed here in even more series, with the same respect and diversity as displayed in SCOY! ~

Lire davantage

Hold your breath and clench your butt

SCOY is something that is not often touched upon in recent Thai series. It has effeminate gay leads, a trans character with a love interest, a side wlw couple, and incredibly goofy, downright bizarre humour. These types of shows are not to my taste personally, however, I was interested seeing how the industry has exhausted the tropiness of shoving in these types of characters only for comedic value. This series actually gives these characters "life" to them , if you couldn't believe.

What's bad?
The main issues I have with SCOY are editing and plot conflict. The editing is noticeably lacking in a good portion of each episode, often overdone with certain effects I am not a fan of. There's too many times than I can count where they cycle through music too much in short amounts of time, which is distracting. As for the plot conflict, there's some things that give you an eye-roll because it's "here we go again" all over again. It weakened the storyline to me, and would've improved more if they cut those parts out to leave room for how the relationships develop. There's also a lack of screen time for certain characters which I feel were falsely shown as something big incorporated to the story.

What's good?
It has a diverse landscape for every relationship. It doesn't treat the mains as some "background" nonsense, they actually give story and development in one way or another. Both main friend groups are a joy to watch with their interactions. It's hilarious and KNOWS it's making fun of itself. I'll admit there were some scenes that made me bust a gut laughing. There's nothing remotely homophobic - some parts may allude to it, however the main focus is how each character grows as a person. There's some decent coverage on sensitive topics like body dysmorphia/shaming and bullying. The translations are helpful. Instead of "insert character dialogue here", they actually provide context for certain scenes which is a big help for those not fluent in Thai and just goes to show how mindful they are of their audience.

If you can manage cringe, please give SCOY a watch. They worked hard to create a story that represents a minority group WITHIN a minority group. It's something you don't often see so do support the series and hopefully this is a gateway for more stories with effeminate leads, trans characters, and GL side couples.

Lire davantage

Onslaught of emotions

STORY: 6/10

The story is very simple, bordering on weak. In essence, it doesn’t really matter where the characters are or what they’re doing there. What matters is what’s happening to them. This is certainly a character-driven drama. And while some characters may be an acquired taste, I believe they’re interesting enough to entertain you on their own. Once you get over the second-hand embarrassment, that is. Tone changes between melodramatic and more serious scenes are present, but usually handled well enough. Some subplots are rushed, though, especially later on in the series.

There are five pairings in the show – NueaToh, SkyJao, Intouch+Daisy, Kongkwan+Fon and Tor+Som. Out of them all, only NueaToh and SkyJao get adequate amounts of screentime.

NueaToh is your main “secret crush” romance. What I liked about them is that they stay true to themselves throughout the series and don’t feel the need to change for their partner drastically. What I didn’t like is how unrealistic they seemed at times, even though they were portraying a clear message. There is also certain power dynamic in play between them, but it felt fairly balanced to me and not concerning.

SkyJao is basically a watered-down version of NueaToh. It’s presented more one-sidedly than the aforementioned, but ultimately it’s just a slightly different perspective of the same dynamic. Instead of providing a contrast for the main pairing, they’re used more for a quantitative comparison.

I won’t touch up on the remaining 3 relationships, since anything I want to say would be too spoilery. I don’t believe the production had a chance to balance them all, and they haven’t even given an impression of intending to do that. I just wish they would have given one of them a proper progression, at the expense of SkyJao development.

POTENTIAL TRIGGERS (with minor spoilers included) :

Stalking – This one probably won’t surprise anyone. I believe it was dealt with quite well. It’s not dark enough to be truly uncomfortable, and we get *some* reasoning behind it. So unless the theme’s pretty close to the heart for you, I don’t think it will be a deal-breaker.

Body image and identity struggles – I hoped they would go deeper with those parts. It can certainly get uncomfortable at times, but it’s not prevalent enough that you wouldn’t be able to get past it.

Hoarding/object collecting – SCOY really dropped the ball here in my opinion. It’s very present in the story, inflated for comical relief and the resolution leaves much to be desired. This is the main trigger I could imagine someone quitting the show for. I will leave a very spoiler-filled comment under this review talking about my view on it (along with the "stalking" aspect), for those who are done with the drama. I don’t recommend reading it before finishing the show, since it partially dissects the whole subplot.

(Public) intimacy – It’s certainly an 18+ drama, no way around it. At least, the official youtube version (available for free on “IDOLFACTORY OFFICIAL” youtube channel) is. I heard there is a 13+ cut version being broadcasted in Thailand, but I’m uncertain of how to access it. That said, it’s not so obscene it should be a problem for mature audience. What I personally don’t like about it is the public involvement in some romantic scenes. Love declarations, kisses and touches are often happening in front of the whole friend group, which gets annoying real fast (at least for me). As for consent, it’s generally fine. There is at least one scene with dubious consent (intoxicated person), but there are no lingering regrets and the intention for it was established beforehand from involved parties.

Jealousy, mild possessiveness and forceful courting - It's there, especially in SkyJao plotline. I haven't thought much of it at first, since it fits the overall tone of this drama . But for someone who's sensitive to it, it might be too much (both main couples show signs of "macho seme" going after "smol uke", even if said uke doesn't appreciate it). It's less of an issue (more two-sided) between Toh and Nuea, but still present.

ACTING/CAST : 8/10

All actors felt natural for their roles to me, no problem there. They are also all good-looking, as is customary in BL shows. I’m not sure if I’m glad for that or a bit disappointed, considering the themes of SCOY. But in the end, it turned out pretty good. They might seem overacting at times, but it fits well in the story.

MUSIC: 7/10

The songs they use are pretty good. But there’s only 2-3 main songs being repeated all over, so it gets tiring and sometimes doesn’t reflect the tone of a scene. I guess that’s a budget problem, but I would wish for a more varied soundtrack.

REWATCH VALUE : 8/10

If you enjoy it the first time, you will most likely want to watch it again. If you only finish it to tick off a box on your list, there is no reason for coming back to it in my opinion. Certainly not as far as plot is concerned.

OVERALL : 8/10

It’s pretty enjoyable and mostly inoffensive experience. It’s not challenging, but rewarding enough for the effort it requires (which isn’t much). I could imagine myself watching it again. Especially when I need a mood-upper. Or when I’m drunk. It might not work very well as a background noise, since it can get loud and OTT. But it’s light and silly. I certainly recommend giving it a try for few episodes. Just be aware it can be a lot, both visually and auditory. So maybe watch it alone or in a very close company.

EDIT: After taking some time away from it and watching other dramas, I decided to change the overall score from 7.5 to 8. The main takeaways stay the same, but I appreciate the positives a little more now.

Lire davantage