Only Friends (2023)

The Only Friends You Need

Talk about a ride! Only Friends was a highly anticipated series and in many ways, it did not disappoint. I had very high expectations for this series, not only because of the stellar cast, but also because the story looked so damn good and messy and intriguing. While it didn't get the perfect 10 I initially thought it might, I still thoroughly enjoyed myself watching it.

Only Friends is not a plot driven drama by any means, but rather is very character driven. There's a very thin plot connected to the hostel and developing it, but otherwise the focus is entirely on the characters, their interactions with each other, their growth, and their relationships. For me, character driven dramas require a truly impressive cast to work because all that focus is on them. They need to have the talent and chemistry to shoulder the entire show and for the most part, Only Friends has that. The pacing of the show was relatively decent. Not perfect, but there weren't too many spots that lagged. Instead the issue was sometimes that the pacing was too fast, especially toward the end. There was a lot going on and it felt a bit frenetic. And because there was so much drama and a certain amount was added towards the end, there were some story lines and characters that didn't get the attention or closure that I felt they should. If there's one major aspect that Only Friends struggled with, it was balancing the drama with the character development. There is a LOT of drama and, in some cases, I think it could have been cut down to allow more screen time for certain characters as well as showing more of that growth.

Despite the entertainment value, Only Friends does actually touch on some more serious topics such as alcoholism, depression/suicide, cheating, and though it's not labeled as such, hypersexuality. Aside from the cheating and the alcoholism though, they more served as plot points than as real points of exploration, unfortunately. Ray's alcoholism is at times concerning to his friends and other times seems to be viewed as a bit of a joke. While they occasionally tell him he shouldn't drink so much, none of them actively seeks to help him that we see. It's not until Sand enters his life and does actively encourage him to go to rehab that he goes and begins making changes. Ray's depression and suicidal thoughts are brought up in a single episode to further establish his relationship with Mew and then are pretty much swept under the rug. Depression is not something you just get over and I think it could have been better worked into the story. The cheating is a focal point of the series and gets the most attention. The various emotions that may come with cheating are explored as well as the reactions and the fall out. Sometimes things work out between people and sometimes they don't. Boston's hypersexuality, like I said, is never really addressed as such, but that's what it seems to be considering he can't seem to go without sex. And while it wasn't a focus, it was shown in the last episode the kind of damage it can do to relationships.

I truly loved most of the characters. There was a rawness and realness to them that made most of them feel very real and very human. Each character had their own demons to battle, some bigger and some smaller. But what I found especially compelling is the way they were filmed. Even though we, as the viewers, knew that their actions were inappropriate or even criminal, there's no judgment and the way they're portrayed makes it harder to judge them. They're not evil, they are simply young men and women full of flaws, faults, quirks, hopes and dreams. I also appreciated that there was none of the gay for you nonsense that still worms it's way into many dramas these days. It was just, yup, this character's gay/lesbian/straight/bi, no questions asked, just the facts. Also had to appreciate having Sand be openly bi as I haven't seen many dramas embrace that. The way the word "friend" is interwoven in their stories is also interesting. There are moments of true friendship, moments where you wonder if they'll ever be friends again, and moments where they teeter on the edge of friendship and something more. It's a complicated word in some ways and I appreciated the utilization of it.
- Mew's journey was an interesting one to follow. He starts out as the sweet, innocent virgin and he's definitely put through the wringer, but in the end, he comes out more world wise, but ultimately still himself. There were aspects of his character that I connected to personally, some his views and opinions. I found the way he handled Top initially to be intriguing with playing hard to get and almost toying with him at times. I did appreciate though his determination not to just be prey and that while he did eventually give in to Top, it was on his terms. His reveal that he knew Top had cheated on him was deliciously devious and while the acting left something to be desired, I liked the scene overall. His reaction to that betrayal felt realistic and while I can't condone his use of Ray to get revenge on Top, it didn't feel out of place either. It also wrought a fairly major change in his character. While he previously displayed a fairly mild personality, post-betrayal he becomes more assertive and confident. He also becomes self-destructive. In his quest to get back at and hurt others, he does damage to himself and those he calls friends. After the Halloween party though, I struggled more with his character as he kept bouncing between forgiving Top and wanting to continue hurting him. I was glad when he finally decided to go ahead and forgive Top, though their reconciliation felt a bit fast as did the decision to move in together. His decision to not rekindle his friendship with Boston felt natural and was understandable. The conclusion to Mew's story felt complete and like he and Top had a solid future together.
-Top was initially somewhat interesting, but he quickly fizzled out for me. Part of the problem with him was just the complete lack of character content. We know he's heir to a fancy hotel and he had a traumatic experience as a child and that's about it. His character's not given the same attention to detail as others are and it shows. I was initially curious to see if his relationship with Mew would continue to be a game or if he would truly develop feelings for him. Given his narcissism and massive ego, it was hard to tell if he was actually capable of loving someone. Even when he started making changes, like no longer taking drugs, it was hard to tell what his endgame was. His decision to cheat on Mew felt weak. He'd proven that he had a solid head on his shoulders so why he so easily gave in to and believed Boston regarding a picture and video from two years previously is a mystery. It was also disconcerting the way he refused to admit to cheating, despite multiple chances to do so, until faced with irrefutable evidence and even then he tried to brush it off and focused more on how Mew got the recording. His decision to win back Mew and the efforts he went to in order to do so felt a bit abrupt. There was less of a gradual change and more of a, suddenly he's a good guy, kind of thing. I will give him credit that he did make changes and he truly did want to be a better person for Mew. And though it was disappointing that Mew had to prompt him, he did eventually apologize to Sand and reconciled with both him and Ray. All that being said, I think the character could have been more effective and interesting in the hands of another actor.
-Boston was one of the most layered, fascinating characters. You want to hate him to some extent, but it also must be acknowledged that out of the group, he is one of the most open characters and least secretly toxic. He calls things like he sees them and he makes no secret of his behaviour. He also has one of the more compelling character arcs as he moves from being a selfish ass to realizing that his actions truly do have consequences. He begins as an emotionally sadistic narcissist who's basically willing to do whatever it takes to get what he wants, in this case, Top. He manipulates Top and those around him expertly, his natural charisma helping to disguise his toxicity. What's especially telling though is when Ray confronts him with the recording of him and Top, he showed no remorse and instead tried to justify his actions. Once his friendship with the others implodes though, he starts to realize that actions have consequences. His confrontation with Mew clearly shakes him, Atom's lies cause his friends to cut him off completely and although Cheum does forgive him once the truth is revealed and Ray eventually does as well, his relationship with Mew is irreparable. His relationship with Nick, which initially seemed like a positive change, also implodes when Boston has a quick fling while out on a date. His ending is left somewhat ambiguous. He does move to New York, but whether he's happy there and how his future looks is up in the air.
-Nick is an easily sympathetic character because of the way Boston uses him. He's obviously in love with him, yet it's clear that Boston view him as more of an object than an actual person. He's convenient and he's willing, nothing more. Yet the more you look at his actions, you realize that he's not quite as sympathetic as he first seems and is, in fact, a red flag himself. He made the conscious decision to look through Boston's phone, not once, but twice, and masturbate to a picture found on said phone. He also took a selfie of himself with Boston's phone in an effort to seduce him which worked, but is left unhappy when he wants more and Boston doesn't. He also chose to bug Boston's car presumably in an effort to catch him "cheating" even though they were not in an actual relationship. And there is an element that he's not actually a bad guy, per se, he just goes about things the wrong way. He places so much value into how he's perceived, more specifically how Boston perceives him, going to so far as to try to emulate Top in terms of his style and physique. There comes a point where, after the recording gets out and Boston has rejected him several times, that he's moving on. He gives one final confession to Boston and seems ready to start something with Dan until Boston shows back up and they get together again. That goes up in flames though when Nick witnesses Boston's fling while they're on a date. It's the final straw for him as he comes to the realization that he needs to focus on himself and learn to love himself more. I'd like to hope that he found his happiness in himself and with someone who would truly appreciate him.
-Ray was riveting to watch. He initially came across as arguably one of the most heartbreaking characters. He had a severe drinking problem that, his mother drank herself to death which he blamed himself for, his father is largely absent, and he's lonely and depressed. He's also been in love with his best friend for at least two years. It's a lot for anyone to handle. He feels deeply and you want to protect him from further pain, but he's not blameless in all of this either. He's a toxic narcissist in his own right with an ego to match. He's in love with Mew, but also falls for Sand and proceeds to string him along, knowing exactly how he feels. He refuses to let Sand go and is possessive of him even when Sand is clearly trying to move on. Things eventually come to a head and they confess their feelings for each other and Ray and Mew acknowledge that they really weren't in love, that Mew had been using Ray and Ray knew it. With Sand's help, Ray finally starts taking steps to heal, going to rehab and working on paying his debt to society following his drunken crash. But their drama doesn't end there as a misunderstanding threatens to tear them apart as does the reappearance of Sand's first love and the ex Top stole, Boeing. Boeing mixes things up and causes both Ray and Sand to question their relationship briefly, until it's revealed that Boeing doesn't really love Sand and is promptly put in his place. This instance is another example though of Ray's self-destructive behaviour, as Sand reveals that if Ray hadn't forced them to kiss, his feelings would have remained buried. Still all's well that ends well and Ray seems on the path to continued sobriety with Sand firmly by his side.
-Sand throws the least red flags of the group. There's a sincerity and simplicity to him that is very appealing. He is who he is and if you don't like it, oh well. He's not rich by any means, he works for what he has, and his love and friendship absolutely cannot be bought. Not that all of his work is exactly legal since he sells alcohol on campus and seems to have some other questionable endeavors, but times are hard, I get that. He's a bit of a hot head, that's made clear based on his interactions with both Top and Ray. He has no tolerance for other people's crap and he doesn't appreciate being used. And while he is mostly a green flag, his betrayal of Nick was definitely a red flag. Regardless of his reasoning, stealing the recording was wrong. The repercussions for his actions personally were fairly mild. While Nick was upset, they quickly reconciled. I did love their friendship and support of each other. Sand served as a good sounding board for Nick and gave him solid advice and when he needed it, a shoulder to cry on. His relationship with Ray was definitely a journey. Sand fell hard and fast and he clearly struggled with where he stood with Ray. I appreciated though that even though he loved Ray, he was not willing to sacrifice his own happiness and self-worth for him. He made it clear that he was not going to remain as Ray's second choice. He proved himself to be a deeply caring and loving person throughout, constantly looking out for Ray and helping him. And while he did forgive Ray repeatedly, he also had his boundaries. Boeing's appearance shook him though, understandably once it's revealed that he was his first love. However, once Boeing's true intentions are revealed, there's no further question in Sand's mind and he firmly stands with Ray. It's clear that they make each other happy and the future for them is bright.
-My thoughts on a few other characters are in the comments.

The cast, by and large, did a phenomenal job. The main reason I was so excited about this series to begin with was the cast, particularly First, Khaotung, Neo, and Mark. These are the most mature roles I've seen any of them play and I am once again just blown away by their talent and chemistry. The tension between Sand and Ray is almost palpable. Khaotung nails every emotional scene. I don't know how, but he just dominates them every time. And he's so expressive, it's fantastic to watch. First is more stoic, but he does so much acting with just his eyes. You can see the emotion in them and it's amazing. Neo and Mark were a new pairing, and as it turns out, a very successful one. Their chemistry was a bonfire and they played their roles so well. Neo is such a versatile actor, he absolutely nailed Boston's character. He struggled a little bit with some of the more emotional scenes, they didn't feel quite as authentic, but otherwise, perfection. Mark is equally versatile and really managed to pull on those heartstrings. He maintained that sweet, innocent appearance despite the crap that Nick pulled and made it so hard to judge him. The only two I was uncertain of were Force and Book and justifiably so. There were times when their chemistry was decent and times when it was completely absent. Frankly, Book had more chemistry with Drake and Mond than he did with Force. Book struggles with consistency in his acting as well, sometimes doing really well and absolutely killing a scene, only to struggle in the next. Force maintained his use of only a few expressions that were recycled throughout. I know the man's good looking, but he really cannot act. Their lack of consistency and chemistry was made all the more glaring by the fact that they were surrounded by other very talented actors and it did create an imbalance.

I really appreciated the production value. The cinematography was great, there are some really fantastic shots and angles. The sets are amazing, particularly Ray's music room at his house. Each character's living space felt distinctly theirs. And don't even get me started on the costuming. I like how each character has their own distinctive style that suited both their character and lifestyles. And last but absolutely not least, the music. God I loved the music and there was so much of it! I found so many awesome new songs and groups thanks to this series. But seriously, it was obvious that a lot of thought and care went into choosing the music and it added just another layer to everything.

Only Friends started out incredibly strong and although it did falter along the way, it managed to come to a satisfactory conclusion. While I may be in the minority, I was glad that it didn't end with all the couples working out. I feel that would have been cliche and the way it actually concluded was more realistic and true to the characters. Truly the highlight for me though was getting to see such talented actors spread their wings and explore roles that were very different from what they'd portrayed previously and kill it. If you enjoy messy dramas, I highly recommend Only Friends and even if you don't, I still recommend it. It's a great ride and I have absolutely no doubt that I will be rewatching it again and again. It's one of those ones that never gets old because there's always something new to discover.

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