THAMEPO HEART THAT SKIPS A BEAT – 2025 – Thailand

BLISS RATING: ★★+

“I’ll love you through every chapter of your life.”  –  Quote from ThamePo

Perhaps I am becoming so jaded by the similarities in Thai BL stories that I found this series to be yet another standard typical cliché-driven saga. Except that the protagonists, of whom there are many, were all drop-dead gorgeous and this time did not lack talent in singing and dancing, which made it more entertaining to watch. Again, like so many of these series, either I do not understand its aim, or I am in a glazed over state of mind that I just did not get the message. But perhaps I am projecting my own prejudices upon a culture that I do not fully understand. Admittedly, I am of a generation that does not regard the dynamics of the generational infantile and juvenile behaviors of the times as normal. However, I did finally get to comprehend and understand the deep encroachment that fans have on entertainers. It becomes clear why the term ‘fanatic’ is attached to the term ‘fan’.

Po (Est Supha) is hired by Oner Entertainment to film the last concert of the musical group MARS before it is disbanded. Its main singer, Thame (William Jakrapatr), is going to debut in South Korea soon. Needless to say, the remaining members are not happy, and each seem to be in his own little world. While Thame is not content either, he is being shielded and therefore powerless to stop it.

Po obviously has a crush on Thame and almost from the beginning so does Thame have one on Po. The story gets convoluted in intricacies as both secretly and clandestinely work together to get the band back together, since none of the members want to really disband. However, Pemika (Namfom Kullanat), the CEO of Oner Entertainment, has other plans and thwarts their every effort and outmaneuvers their attempts to maintain MARS.

The relationship between Po and Thame is really a slow burn and one that never seems to be honestly fulfilled. The story is way too laughably scattered to make any sense by the end, except that it seemed that Po had to forfeit his job for the group to maintain itself. That is a big sacrifice that is not fully compensated for at the finish, as the band, including Thame, happily whisks off to part of the globe that does not include Po, even though he gave up a lot in the process to save them. Meanwhile, Po goes back to sewing buttons at the tailor shop. Did not seem like a fair exchange to me.

Here again the two main protagonists are insufferable bores. Po, seemingly competent in his job, plays the usual wallflower role, always looking confused, with an expression on his face that says should I or should I not. I am so weary of seeing these characters that have no relationship backbone gumption or ginormous doubts about what is obvious to everyone else in the world. Can you please do something else with these characters? The same concerns can also be said for Thame only add that he must hide and be more discreet from fans and paparazzi.

And then one must go through endless trials and tribulations, silly misunderstandings, petty jealousies to finally have a love scene only to be disappointed with its lackluster intensity that is obviously well rehearsed though. Nothing feels real or deep in any kind of true or honest sense of those words. Cute to be sure but forthright, no.

Who really S.T.O.L.E. this series?  While the story mostly centers around Thame and Po, the real leader of the group and the mastermind of manipulation is Jun (Nut Thanat). Being Thame’s best friend, Jun is really the brain behind the group trying to remain a boy group. He also is a skillful reader of people and their emotions and figures out rather quickly the impacts each of the relationships that their individual connections would have not only on the group but on their reputations. Of all the characters, Nut gets deep into his character to show a genuine understanding of people and events and was pretty accurate on how he saw things turning out. Several times in this series, there were hints, that he might have had some romantic affections for Po, but it remained subtle and always underneath the surface. Unfortunately, towards the end of this series, he seemed to play more of a secondary role, and he felt diminished to me. He was a strong character and one that I wanted to see get more involved in the dynamics of his own relationship. He was a very complex individual, much more so than in most Thai BLs and certainly more so for a secondary figure. Nut made Jun stand out a lot.

Since I know nothing about the music industry, I could not appreciate all the manipulations that the members of MARS were doing to uphold their identity and retain their name. But how they did it generally seemed implausible, and something made up to show for a happy ending.

Underlying all the fluff in this series were some serious issues that I wish were addressed with more intensity and with further scrutiny:

1. The idea that individual members of a group, in this case a musical group, could not have individual relationships is parochial thinking. Whether conceptualized by either contractual agreement or by tacit understanding because of the nuttiness of fan reactions is unrighteous. This extends, I am sure, (by default) to those who perform in BLs as well. We do not and should never think we ‘own’ performers. We have no right to determine or dictate for individual performers who they can or if they can, be with a person of their choosing. They are merely ‘acting’ and doing their job. Beyond that, our involvement in their lives should end. However, all performers must also realize that once they become a ‘public’ figure, they open themselves up to public scrutiny. For better or worse, expectations of them are personified. That comes with the territory; each individual must learn to deal with that on his or her own terms.
2. While I understand the obvious need to make money and show a profit, there is also a moral and ethical standard to make sure that individuals and groups are not exploited only for the sake of profit. Frankly, I found the actions of the CEO of the company in dismantling MARS to be absolutely despicable and her methods ruthless. What the CEO did to MARS, was repugnant, but made to look altruistic. While you own the quantity of a product, you do not control the quality of its output. That is in the sole possession of the performers. That part seemed to be missing in the understanding of what a good manager, or director of a group, does. They are not nor should they be considered slaves or pieces of property. Their well-being internally is also what makes the intrinsic parts work as well.
3. This series certainly pointed out with clarity the vulnerabilities of each member of the group and the difficulty of trying to make it all work together. Some are way more self-centered than others while others are quietly altruistic. This series only partially delved into that aspect of the functioning of the group. I know that this was a BL, but it was a BL involving, for better or worse, the interactions of all its members under one umbrella and one cause – and that was to maintain the group. This would have been a good opportunity to see this be an integral part of the story.

Ironically, the best moments in this series were with the straight couple. Pepper (Tui Chayatorn) and Gam (Fah Yongwaree) provided the most sincerity and intensity of what happens when you allow the fans to take ownership of a fantasy world of their own creation. Pepper and Gam’s ‘breakup’ felt real because it was real to them but lamentable and shows clearly the price of fame and the cost of being in a business where one is under the microscope. Their dynamics and relationship were much more interesting to watch and although brief, showed passion and a deeper sense of commitment to one another than anything I saw between Thame and Po. Thame and Po’s were filled with so many unnecessarily contrive moments and Pollyanna cliches in nature.

I know this series has gotten a lot of significantly positive reviews, but I am not one of its fans. The story is so uneven and belabored. And looking back, there is really no significant intensity between Po and Thame. Their whole relationship is bland and frankly uneventful. It follows the standard formulaic sanitized version of what a ‘gay relationship’ needs to be in a BL.  All unicorns and moonbeams. Sex is non-existent and we must not bring up anything remotely connected to passionate or erotic messages between male lovers, otherwise we shall spoil the fantasy notion of what BL perfection is. All of this is just getting so stale and overused with nothing becoming original or creative anymore.

Understandably, I am not the demographic market that this is produced for. Nonetheless, it should still be seen for what it is.  Sooner or later, my concerns will be recognized, and these types of stories will no longer be pulling in positive remarks. Viewers will want quality as well and will tire of its insipidly. Overall, this series is good, but not great and is forgettable. The story is stale, superficial, and as usual treats gay relationships like you are reading a manga.  It is about time to give us something a bit more challenging to view and more memorable coupled with a quality storyline.