Boys in Love Review: Stayed for Chokun-Aston, Zoned Out the Rest
Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
GMMTV has tasted so much success with pairing good-looking actors with each other and letting their looks pull the show, that sometimes they don’t even bother with a script. ‘Boys in Love’ is that kind of series, it’s cutesy because of the cute actors and a few fun moments here and there. A lot of it is just a repeat of every teen high-school romance we’ve already seen. Even the refreshing plot about one of the teens being open about his bisexuality and new boyfriend with his teacher mom isn’t as comedic or dramatic as it could’ve been.
Directed by Waa Waasuthep Ketpetch, ‘Boys in Love‘ (เปิดเทอมใหม่ หัวใจหัดรัก) spans 12 episodes and follows serious class topper Shane (Mick Metas Opas-iamkajorn), who is working hard for a college scholarship, as he starts to fall for the rich slacker Kit (Luke Peemsan Sotangkur), whom he has been tutoring for quick money. Yeah, we’ve seen that in 100 shows already, so it gets boring quickly. All the family drama that goes on in Shane’s house with his three other siblings is more entertaining. Another subplot follows Shane’s close friend Kim (Chokun Puttipong Jitbut), a romantic who always has his head in the air, and falls in love at first sight when he sees Mon (Aston Ratiphat Luengvoraphan), a gorgeous new student at their school.
The only reason I stuck around until the end of ‘Boys in Love‘ is because Chokun Puttipong Jitbut and Aston Ratiphat Luengvoraphan made a ridiculously cute onscreen pair as Kim and Mon. Their romance is also comically sweet for most of the series, and their chemistry has an endearing energy. But since there are a total of four couples in this high-school show, Kim and Mon don’t even get adequate screen time. One of the subplots follows an unlikely romance between nerdy math teacher Tan (Papang Phromphiriya Thongputtaruk) and new teacher Nat (Pod Suphakorn Sriphothong), which, although quite nice, didn’t need to be part of the series.
Mick Metas Opas-iamkajorn gives a convincing performance as an overthinking high-achiever, but his onscreen chemistry with Luke Peemsan Sotangkur feels inconsistent (definitely not a pairing I’d be interested in watching again). The last high-school based romantic-comedy BL from GMMTV that was high on entertainment was ‘My School President’. Even their Thai adaptation of high-school romcom ‘My Love Mix-Up’ (the Japanese original ‘Kieta Hatsukoi’ is excellent!) which starred Aston Ratiphat Luengvoraphan as the secondary lead wasn’t as fun.
Well, if you’re looking for a low-stakes, simple romantic-comedy with pretty faces, this show might be worth a watch.
Rating: 5.5 on 10. Watch ‘Boys in Love’ on YouTube.
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