Jack and Joker (2024)

Yin & War will steal your heart

The best way to sum up this show is to say it's a breath of fresh air. I know we've gotten quite a few action based BLs ever since the Kinn Porsche hype, but none of them really held my attention for long. This show, on the other hand, has me squealing, crying, and more invested in the lives of fictional characters than I probably should be.

It's not a perfect show, but it doesn't really matter because it has one major thing going for it: the acting. Honestly, everyone is great in their roles, but the stars of the show are undoubtedly Yin and War. I knew they were solid actors with decent chemistry, but in this they're phenomenal. They both embody their characters so well, portray emotion in realistic ways, have so much charisma, and fantastic comedic timing. But what's even more impressive is their chemistry. It's been quite a while since I've witnessed that much chemistry between two actors. There aren't just sparks, no. These two could burn a house down. And the best thing is that they don't even need scenes that rely on physical intimacy to portray that. All they need is talking to each other (or well, fighting with each other because damn, they were just flirting), and sparks are flying left, right, and centre. It was obvious from the first scene they had together (their conversation at the bar), persisted through the scenes where one hated the other (without the chemistry diminishing the conflicting emotions), and is still going strong by the end.
Another special mention goes to Pee as Hope. While he does get some sort of redemption arc, he was horrible for the first part of the show, and I wanted to hate him. I really did. It's just that Pee makes him so charming and charismatic that I couldn't. I call this the Vegas dilemma, because Bible made it impossible to hate that guy, too.

I will say, if you're looking for a BL with a lot of romantic scenes, you won't find it here. At least not at the start. Because they go through a journey from instant infatuation to hatred to trust and love, there aren't many "fluffy" scenes in the first few episodes. Episode 6 then makes up for all that by giving you all the domestic wholesomeness, and I was eating it up. Their relationship definitely isn't smooth sailing after that, so there are a lot of angsty scenes instead of romantic ones. But even if there aren't as many cute scenes as in a campus BL for example, it doesn't really matter, because Yin and War make every scene they share together electric. So I'd rather have a few really solid romantic scenes than drawn out, washed out, lacklustre scenes with zero chemistry like so many other BLs tend to deliver these days.

Another thing to love about the show is its characters. Specifically them feeling like actual people with actual feelings and lives, not just walking stereotypes. Jack and Joker are obviously the most fleshed out, but most of the side characters also get more than just one defining trait. It's also refreshing that most of them are morally gray. This makes the whole show more emotionally complex, and makes the viewer think about some moral dilemmas. It's not the height of complex characters, but if you compare it to the standard most BLs have, it feels like these people are deep as the Atlantic Ocean, honestly.
But not just the characters, also their dynamics are interesting. Of course there's the whole forgiveness arc between Jack and Joker, but there are also interesting parent-child and friendship dynamics. I also really liked the dynamic between Jack and his coach. Granted, most of those aren't explored as much as I would've liked, but at least there was an attempt.

If you're a lover of action in shows, I'm not sure whether you'll like this. The heists they pull are fun to watch for me, aka someone who doesn't really care about the ins and outs of robbery etc. But even I realise that a lot of things don't really make all that much sense. There's a severe lack of security cameras and guards, for example. The show also uses Hannah Montana logic, because apparently if someone is wearing a wig and sunglasses, you won't recognise them anymore. For me, it's easy to look past that because it's entertaining, but for some it might be really bothersome, so I figured I'd mention it. There's also the problem that severe injuries are treated as minor ones. Characters who get beaten black and blue move with ease the next scene. That sort of robs you from a bit of suspense, because you know when someone gets smashed up, they'll be fine the next day.

I do think that the first half of the show is stronger in what it's trying to do. It does get a bit repetitive after that and a bit unhinged. Though Jack continuously trying and failing to get out of the criminal cycle he's in does feel like a somewhat realistic portrayal. Still, I think the show would've been better if it were only 8 to 10 really good episodes, instead of starting to meander.

I've seen many people discuss whether the humour of the show is a good or bad thing. Personally, I enjoy some of it but it does get a little too cringe at times (like manic, evil cackling). Personally, I like when an otherwise heavy/dark show throws in enough humour to lighten the whole thing up a bit. I appreciated it about Kinn Porsche, and I appreciate it here. However, some of it does clash a little bit too harshly with the otherwise grittier vibe. For example, I think that Arun is a bit too over the top, kind of like Tankhun from Kinn Porsche. I was kind of disappointed by how they handled his character since they never really committed to exploring the troubled relationship with his father, and he got adjusted to a life without money way too easily. Speaking of Kinn Porsche, though, Vegas' dad would definitely get along swimmingly with Arun's dad. Maybe Arun and Vegas could start a support group for children of abusive mafia fathers.
When I talk about the "grittier" vibes, I mean the show not shying away from depicting the reality of poverty and other social issues. Obviously, it's a bit extreme and sometimes very unsubtle, but it feels nice to get a more realistic depiction of the world than all the perfect utopias many other BLs create for their characters to live in. Seriously, the worst thing that can happen to most BL leads is a bit of rain that leads to a cold. Which would lead to a homoerotic sponge bath, and who would want that, right? Speaking of sponge baths, this series doesn't rely on old, tired BL cliches and tropes which also makes it feel unique and fresh.

Another positive is the beautiful styling and cinematography. The series is shot beautifully, and the editing is on point, too. No needless flashbacks for once, which I appreciate. They started the story where it needed to start, then flashed forward to where they needed to be, instead of filling the whole damn thing with flashback after flashback (I'm looking at you, First Note Of Love). There are some fun twists in there, and the show moves at a pretty decent pace, though sometimes it is a bit fast for me, and I would like some more downtime for the characters to just build their bonds. And it does fall off its course a little by the end, if you ask me.

Even thought there are flaws, I was thoroughly entertained, and each episode, I fell more and more in love with Yin and War. They were always on my radar, but this show has catapulted them to be my second favorite BL ship currently (only second to FirstKhaotung, because they are my one true loves). All in all, I had a great time with this series. It's not a perfect show, but in the sea of the same stories being told over and over again in Thai BL, this feels different enough to stand out in a positive light. And since I'm a very chemistry driven BL watcher, this one is a massive treat. Bravo!

Lees verder