Angel Beside Me (2020)

Although originally not expecting much from it, I liked this series from the very beginning and have even become somewhat obsessed with it towards the end. Therefore I believe it deserves an in-depth review.

Story
---
It seems important to me to look at the two main aspects of the story separately. On the one hand, there is the story of Lin and Somchai, who happen to meet and develop feelings for each other. On the other hand, there is the story of Lin being courted by an angel and by the devil, thus a human torn between good and evil. From the trailers, I expected to see mainly the first aspect, with the angel concept having only little impact. However, the second aspect has (at least for me) quickly become the dominating part of the story.

First some thoughts about Lin and Somchai. I must confess that I have not been much invested in their story at the beginning. It already sounds very cliche: two strangers meet by accident, need to spend time together and at some point start to develop feelings, even though they have never really thought about love before. Very predictable, not very original, and at odds with the second aspect of the story, that is very much based on the defining difference of angels and humans. However, Somchai and Lin were undoubtedly very sweet together. I still wasn’t convinced by their affection for each other, until the final episode hit me really hard. Never expected such a tearjerker, but here we are. Everything about Michael’s struggles when discussing with Gabriel and his final talk with the Lord was so nicely done, emotional and wise at the same time. Thus, although the ending was ultimately predictable, I must admit that they managed to create the ideal happy ending for this aspect of the story. Love is indeed stronger than anything.

Moving on to the second aspect. I was seriously blown away by how well they handled the eternal battle of good vs. evil and by how seriously they took the angels theme. It’s hard to tell what angel mythology the authors have based the story on, with Christianity being anything but mainstream in Thailand (in any case, they mixed in some clear Buddhist elements, making it even more interesting). I have looked at it from a Catholic background (plus I’m named after an archangel, so I’m really invested in the topic) and was amazed how well they actually depicted the angels’ hierarchy and even tried to enact the mythical fight between Michael and Satan. There have been a few theologically questionable elements which I will point out later, but overall they managed to not only use the angels as a funny supernatural gimmick, but as a serious framework for discussing problems of good and evil in our daily life and beyond.

Lin was shown as a weak character, not surprisingly so with all her terrible experiences as an unloved child and her permanent daily struggles, and therefore she was a perfect prey for the devil. I don’t think she was ever supposed to be a likable character, but she seems very relatable. Michael’s strict principles and his initial naivety in looking at mundane problems contrasted very strongly with her negative views on life. Throughout the series, both of them went through important learning processes: Lin learned to believe in good again, made real friends and reunited with her mother; Michael learned that principles can only be a guideline, so by simply evaluating people’s merit points and granting wishes solely on that basis, Heaven misses out on the concrete circumstances of individuals’ lives. Along the way, under Michael’s influence also several side characters underwent very positive developments: Lin’s mother, her landlady, her co-worker (and modeling agent) and of course Punpun. All of this provided for many memorable heartfelt moments, raising important moral questions.

Now, for this second aspect to fully work, I feel like the series could have ended with ep. 11; it is hard to imagine the Great Michael taking the kind of radical decision he took in the finale (if they had used just any angel instead, it would probably be more fitting). Alas, I think we should weigh both aspects of the story evenly, and therefore I can certainly overlook such little problems.


Theological problems
---
I will now briefly address three of the theological “problems” I encountered.

First, Lin’s suicide attempt. Since it was basically the beginning of the story we didn’t get much information about that particular moment of Lin’s life; however, Satan admits that he pushed her to commit suicide in order to drag her to hell. Now, it is imaginable that the act of suicide could be the final step in a series of developments that Lin underwent under the influence of the devil, and having Michael doing everything to save her displays how her “good side” is unwilling to let her end her life. But throwing in the suicide without a deeper reflection on it leaves us with the brutal suggestion that committing suicide is necessarily an act of evil and an automatic ticket to hell, which is a very old-fashioned teaching not broadly supported by modern theology. The repetition of it in the finale made it even worse, since Satan didn’t even seem to be present anymore (but she still emphasises that she wouldn’t go to Heaven if she had died).

Then, the final confrontation between Michael and Satan. I was looking forward to that moment, but it was acted out somewhat strangely. There is a basic problem in this case (besides the controversy over the very existence of Satan, obviously): true, Michael ultimately defeats Satan in the bible, but only at the end of times, the Apocalypse. The devil cannot be defeated (neither by Michael nor by anyone above him) before the Apocalypse, because only his presence guarantees individual freedom of humans (to choose good or evil). Therefore, the outcome of the confrontation is very realistic: Michael can very well send the devil away, but it is clear that he might come back whenever Lin allows him to (he knowingly says “see you soon”). The part with Michael threatening to destroy Satan and Lin asking to spare him consequently doesn’t make sense, also because destroying the personification of evil cannot itself be an act of evil; the scene serves its purpose as displaying the positive developments both Michael and Lin have undergone, but undermines the good/evil question (not severely though, as one could also interpret it as a test knowingly posed to Lin by Michael).

Finally, it was never properly explained whether Serena’s weird “temptation” of Michael was actually Satan’s initial plan or just part of his effort to confuse Lin. It would have been interesting to see what the devil could possibly gain from such an arrangement.

Besides these “problems”, it is worth pointing out that the depiction of Michael and his incarnation is clearly modelled upon Jesus (filling in the blank they left with not clearly identifying the Lord of Heaven). Making him walk on water in ep. 11 was a nice hint at that. In that sense, Serena’s temptation could be taken from the bible, only that Jesus in contrast always knows the identity of his tempter.


Technical aspects
---
All actors did a decent job, only a few were a bit overacting (Police Angel, talking about you!). Of the three mains, JJ was obviously the shining star, I can’t criticise him in any way; what a wonderful performance! Mek was incredibly cool in his role and only got better towards the end. Jane … I don’t know, she was certainly weaker than her co-stars, but I guess that fits with her role.

The way the story was told was pretty conventional; no special camera or editing techniques were used, the storyline was very linear. I wish they had tried to hide Luke’s identity better, that could have provided for more surprises along the way. The overall production value was okay; the special effects in ep. 11 were visibly cheap, but I think they did the best they could.


Conclusion
---
Long story short, this series has it all: good message, relatable characters, humour, romance, plot twists and drama. It takes its guiding themes very seriously and embeds the story into an incredibly well thought-out concept. Sure, it is not perfect. The middle part could have been accelerated a bit (10 episodes would overall probably have been enough), some silly humour could have been toned down, the depiction of the devil could still have been improved and the two aspects of the story could have been interwoven more neatly. But let’s face it: for an all-ages GMMTV show this is really outstanding! And why am I not surprised that once again the director is a woman?

I can only recommend this hidden gem to everyone, particularly to those of you looking for “simple but catchy storylines” (as pointed out by another fan of the show) with relatable characters and a good message. I loved it!

Lees verder