Third time's the charm? Not here.

They say "third time's the charm" in English, so I watched it up to the third episode. I won't watch any more.
This is now almost to the one-third mark, and I still have made no emotional connection to any of the characters whatsoever (maybe the hat guy, but that's just because I like hats).

The script is formulaic -- there's the secret crush from highschool, the womanizing tsundere alpha-male-type "top", the spurned ex-girlfriend, the comedic sidekicks, the engineering setting, the sick family member and subsequent money troubles etc.
The acting is bland and uneven -- it's probably mainly the script, but also I think directing choices.
The sets show the low budget, especially in the university spaces.

The GL couple also feels as if someone said: "Oh, GL is all the rage now, let's put that in." and nobody gave even the smallest thought on how a girls couple could work. All their interactions are so ... bizarre.

The roles for the main actors feels like they tried to squeeze into ill-fitting jackets -- especially for Konprot, who they tried to make into a typical "bottom"-type of character with his gentle demeanor, soft voice and the haircut. Thing is, he shouldn't have to: "Manly" men can also have secret crushes, and just because one is the "alpha-male" type, doesn't mean the other cannot be. (That's not to say that bulky and tall men can't be soft-spoken or gentle or shy or whatever, it's just so obvious that the people responsible here thought there should be a stereotypical "bottom").
I wonder what happened here. Did they not find other actors for the script? Did they not find another script for the actors? Or was it initially planned as a parody, and that information got lost somewhere?

Because this series could have been a great parody of the Thai college BLs of past years. Everything is already so over-the-top stereotypical. Then you get a cast that is actually not at all suited for the roles -- which could be played as a strength in a parody. If the director and the actors would have been just a bit more daring to really get into the absurd side of things, I would have had a great time.

As it is, this series is one I won't finish.

Edit: Please note how I did not say a word about subtitles -- even if those were better, the drama's problems would stay the same.

Edit 2: I watched episode 8 with half an ear. "I like women. I like Konprot now." The writer *actually* did a Gay For You and wasn't even ashamed to let Pluem say it out loud?! Unbelievable...

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Might be better for viewers during a second watch

tl;dr: A simple story told in very subtle ways, with excellent acting and interesting camera work.

The first episodes make this series seem like a more depressing version of "BL Drama no Shuen ni Narimashita" but it is not -- the dynamics and the background stories are very much different.

It's a slow-burn romance and does have the often used tropes of non-communication, self-deprecation and mutual pining -- so if you're not a fan of these tropes, you might want to give this one a miss.

The narrative choice to tell only Shirasaki's point of view first and to show Hayami's story then only later, in episodes 7 and 8, is something we've seen in other J-BLs (Mr. Unlucky, Senpai This Can't Be Love or the newer Living with him come to mind). Usually, it works fine. In this case though, I think it was not a good choice.
When we meet Shirasaki first, he is at his lowest, full of self-deprecation -- he is not at all a reliable narrator. Hayami, on the other hand, is quite unreadable -- not because the actor is bad at his job but because this is part of the character (Hayami's friend tells him exactly that in episode 7). So, for the first six episodes, we only get one (skewed) side of the story.
Because of real life issues, I had to take a break in episode 8 -- and after that I restarted the whole series. With the knowledge of Hayami's backstory, I was able to see things differently -- and what seemed depressing and a bit flat the first time, was actually just very subtle acting by both main actors.

Regarding the acting, the main actors are, in my opinion, excellent. Minuscule movements and facial expressions show the inner life if a viewer cares to look closely. Quite a few scenes have been taken in one single shot -- which shows the how good the actors really are.

Speaking of shooting the drama: I was intrigued by some camera angles -- we look through windows and through cameras, sometimes we are in vey tight spaces, feelinga bit claustrophobic -- and then some sces are wide-angle shots, and everything is only seen from a distance. Use of hand-held cameras in some scenes show the instability of the actor's emotions. Even just finding out how these choices relate to the character's emotions would make a rewatch interesting.

While I don't like the opening song, I do love the background music -- the piece itself was lovely, melancholic but strangely uplifting at the same time. Silence also played a big part in enhancing the scenes.

Overall, I think this series is not one to watch and forget immediately, rather it is to be savoured, and deserves a close look at its details.

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