BLISS RATING: ★★★★+
“May all the clouds bear witness to the love between us that never wavered…Take my hand and stay with me until the end of time.” – Quote Crazy Love, Moo Moo
This is such an adorably funny creative non-sensical series that if one did not appreciate it, then you have no funny-bone to tickle. One simply cannot take this series with any serious intent. It is satirical; a comedy through and through and I laughed consistently. Honestly, Thai BLs that are ‘comedies’ are exceptionally rare and ones that are done to near perfection are even rarer. This IS funny. It is presented completely in a tongue-in-cheek fashion and I for one utterly enjoyed every minute of it. The whole premise is unmitigatedly absurd, and it was meant to be from the beginning. Although there are certainly poignant moments speckled throughout the series, they become merely more highlighted by the silliness around them.
Fu (Boss Chaikamon) is madly in love with his childhood friend Moo (Noeul Nuttarat) who has soundly rejected him completely. Moo is only interested in guys who are not Chinese-looking and Fu because of his Chinese descent is too Chinese looking for him. That premise is of course frankly a smoke screen because Moo, or if you prefer Moo Moo, liked Fu but had been indirectly rejected by him when he was in high school and Moo never forgot that wound. And would never let it heal. Fu’s continued pursuit of Moo is beyond legendary; it is almost fanatical.
Fu has two other brothers. One is Tai (Turbo Chanokchon) who also happens to be one of Moo’s closest friends. Fu’s youngest brother is an adorable, precocious young man named Tee Lek (Poom Wachirapanya) who is at that awkward stage in his life of doing everything wrong to gain attention. He has become intrigued, perhaps romantically so, in a fellow student named Jaeb (Effect Narawit) but does everything he can to drive him away because of his constant teasing and torturing. As hard as he tries, Tee Lek simply makes things worse until he comes to the realization that he could lose him completely.
The real charm, of course, is the bedlam relationship between Fu and Moo. Fu, an otherwise smart, astute businessman, is a juvenile, pubescent pursuant when it comes to courting Moo. He simply is incapable of hearing ‘no’ and is constantly wooing Moo. While Moo certainly pretends to show distain for him, even outright rejection, but when Fu is not around to bolster him, Moo panics. He has gotten so used to Fu being there and constantly supporting and nurturing him that when he is not, his foundation, his rock, crumbles.
While it has taken many years for Fu to wear the façade down of Moo, he finally begins to shatter the walls around him and the two of them eventually become a couple. And what a joy ride it is to watch these two go at it. The rom-com around their romance is genuinely rather funny and I laughed a lot during this whole series. The two of them have perfect comedic timing in delivering their lines and more importantly their sincerity factor is off the charts. Even for a comedy, we can see a natural progression to their love expansion through humor and fun. And they express it with unabridged warmth and kindness.
Who really S.T.O.L.E. this series? This is surely an ensemble cast, but my heart was won over by the talented youngest member of the Tong family. Poom Wachirapanya as Tee Lek is pure joy. Not only is he the forced center of attention at his school, but he is also a manipulator and a hustler, always negotiating with Fu to get money from him. He is just so adorably cute and bubbly and likeable at the same time he is irritating and shrewd. While he has ‘feelings’ for Jaeb, he is not quite sure what those sensitives are. His nickname for him is “Little Chicken” and, while he thinks it is endearing, it is not so with Jaeb. Tee Lek gets very upset with anyone else who dares call him that as then it is derogatory. That is his special name for him only. His portrayal of sweet young innocent ‘puppy-love’ is just so cute, and he makes it feel so genuine and cute. Perhaps not so for Jaeb but for the rest of us, it is a pattern of behavior that is rather easily recognized as an attraction for another.
Conceivably, this is one of those series that will be seen as either loved by some while disliked by others, maybe in equal numbers. Perhaps because of the way the series is laid out. Although it is presented in a comedic approach, its staging might be confusing because the method of comedy is not the same. It did not stick to merely one type of comedy. While mainly situational comedy, it did incorporate several other types as well. Mixed in were a lot of rom-com scenes within the situational comedy that might have gotten lost. You had several examples of parody comedy as well and a prime example of farcical comedy with the wedding scene with the over-the-top exposure of drugs and crime scenes and the high-pitched voice of the groom. I was simply howling at the parody of all of that. That was funny and utterly farcical. The audience had to be observant as the comedy and humor was all over the place interspersed with the serious concepts. This is way more than a romantic comedy. Additionally, it does tackle some serious and significant concepts as well.
There were a lot of clear messages in this series. Fu pursued Moo exclusively for love and unequivocally so and Moo began to see that his love was in pure form. When Moo’s friend Tian (Donut Suppawit) thinks he can charm any male with his sexual prowess, he is rejected, ironically by someone whom he finds truly fascinating. Tee Lek begins to realize that he might be pushing the limits as to how far he can ‘tease’ someone before they reach a breaking point and frankly the very thing he is after is the very thing he will lose. This also shows, in a lighthearted way, how relationships can develop naturally, without fanfare, romantic interludes, or unnecessary silliness. The way it is presented here feels more real and genuine than in most BLs. There are no fluff or artificial barriers to their development; it is lighthearted and gentle, seemingly more natural.
In addition, there is only one serious relationship developed while all the others are merely ‘teased’ as possibilities. But they are done so, with solid cornerstones to them and with a sense, a gut feeling, that they could develop into something more permanent. They are going down a slow and methodical path.
This is not a series that will move mountains, but it is endearing, fun and very, very entertaining. We see both a serious side and a silly side to a protagonist which I thought was refreshing and different. And we saw another protagonist see what he had known for a long time but was too arrogant to admit to himself in the first place. These are matters that happen to us in real life.
This is an enchanting story filled with a variety of different forms of comedy that I, for one, deeply appreciated their efforts to convey. I hope you take the time to enjoy its humor too.
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