"Ready, Set, Love" is a romantic-comedy series exclusively available on Netflix. The story is about an epidemic outbreak that affects only males which makes the number of men in the country almost non – existent. Consequently, a facility called “The farm” is established by the government to gather all the remaining men and take care of them. Once the men at the farm reach adulthood, they are referred to as "gentlemen" and participate in a variety show where women compete for the opportunity to date and marry the man they like.
For me, e me, who isn't typically a fan of Thai TV series, “Ready, Set, Love” stands out due to its concept, which is rarely seen in Thailand’s drama series industry.
Promotion
“Ready, Set, Love” was released on February 15th, which is during Valentine’s day. People are enjoying the month of love and this series is about dating that attracts people to watch this series. They promoted it by allowing some viewers to flirt with the male actors. And also following various trends in creating content on online platforms. This increases the desire’s people to watch it, including myself, who watches this series because of the promotion activities.
Concept
The variety show in the series has a concept similar to "Squid Game" , a highly popular series. Despite these similarities, this aspect makes the series even more interesting for Thai’s series industry. With staff members wearing cartoon masks and an AI serving as the show's host, the series takes on a uniquely exotic quality.
Production
I truly admire the production team; they really made it. From the scene design to the realistic CGI and the investment in real locations, it's all commendable. Additionally, the color tone is colorful, such as the gentleman, they have their own distinct color palette, which fits them well and makes the series even more enjoyable. The soundtrack is also fantastic. One song I especially like is ‘Beyond the wall’ , which was made specifically for this series. For me, I think this song reflects on men who have been living in a place created by the government since birth. Even though everything seems to be provided for, they have never met their real family. Wouldn't it be better if they could escape beyond the wall and live a life of their own choosing, rather than one dictated by others.
The storylines
For the story, I admired how the issues in Thai society are portrayed. If you only watch the teaser, it only focuses on the love story of men and women. However, after watching it, I realized it also includes the love story of LGBTQ, which the actor performed smoothly and without interruption, which really impressed me. In addition to the love story, there are also political issues. Including the government that pleases and benefits only the elite. And it also contains the truth of the world. Furthermore, the actors performed well, including new actors whom I had never seen before, but their performances were excellent, the chemistry of the main couple is very good. All of the characters are unique and have their own stories. For example, “Chanel” who initially appears to be the villain of the story, but the way she does because of her family. And in the end, she turns over a new leaf, which makes the audience feel sympathy for her. However, there are some scenes that seem to not make sense and leaves me feeling dissatisfied. For example in the scene of the Snakes and Ladders Game, the leading man passes the game easily while others struggle, So I felt like it’s too unfair. Additionally, some scenes are intended to be funny but it isn't that enjoyable. Also, the plot development is good in the beginning, but in the near-end part, it progresses too quickly, which also leaves me feeling dissatisfied. (For me, this series, if you watch this series for entertainment, you shouldn’t take it too seriously.)
Overall
I would say that I’m impressed by this series. Both the concept and production were great, and the high quality actors. And for the story, I hope the next season will come out and be even better. But overall, it is excellent, and I would recommend others to watch this series.