Vingo
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High budget hot mess letting down talented actors
I got on this ride with no expectations. The good: I really enjoyed the lead actors, the bad: atrociously bad script. I originally got off at episode 7, there is ZERO character development due to rubbish plot. They learn each other's hidden lives...and still can't communicate. I mean, it's lazy plot where good actors are reduced to characters forced to go round in circles. I really wanted to like this, I rarely drop shows (I'm careful what I watch) but the leading actors just couldn't save this high budget hot mess. I've sincerely seen superior plot and character development with significantly lower budget Thai dramas. Incredibly disappointed. Give this a skip, but keep an eye on the actors future projects, they have real talent, don't blame them for writers who can't...well...write.It would have been MUCH better if the ML's figured out a relationship normal and the plot moved on to challenge that normal instead we're reduced to a repetitive circular plot with zero communication and characters acting irrationally.
Update (elaboration):
I dropped then returned to this. Such a big struggle. I love the ML actors, they do wonders with an incredibly poor script. So 8/10 for the actors but a woeful 2/10 for plot, character development. I wanted to like this, but I just can't. Toxic relationships whose problems could all be solved with a 20 minute private conversation. The ending was...dragged out (Kuea and Lian's issue at the end - their entire 'problem' - was just a result of a script writing team with a dearth of ideas. Seriously, Kuea & Lian could've wrapped up their issues by episode 7). Furthermore, the ending does nothing to resolve the fundamental issue that Lian's character a worrying control freak and Kuea's character is reduced to having the emotional capacities of a child. I'm still left scratching my head at how a good music score, good budget, solid pro-gay rights message and excellent cast was so let down by shoddy and unimaginative script writing. Frustrating in the extreme, big let down for me.
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Great concept crammed into too short a format
The concept is a really interesting one. Monos stuck in a world of greys, blacks and whites who have a person who is their 'probe', able to trigger a 'colour rush'. As a concept its great, with plenty to offer.Problem is, its too big a prospect for a miniseries with only 15m per episode. Only 8 episodes total leaves the story feeling rushed and underdeveloped. There just wasn't enough time to dig deeply into world building, where monos risk becoming obsessed and possessive of their probes or on the other hand probes abusing the inherent power they would have in relationships with their monos. Equally, the whole idea of a 'colour rush' raises the comparison to a drug addict desperate for his next fix, is that what probes are to their monos? The probe is the drug they grave even at the expense of a loss of personal agency or rationale thought?
Then what about wider society? Is there discrimination against monos? To regular folk able to see colour fear them? The mono protagonist in our story at the outset actually mentions to us in his thoughts he thought monos and norms (especially monos and probes) should be kept separate...a longer format with more time per episode could dig into the idea of equality, tolerance vs segregation and fears of 'the other' who are not 'us'.
As I say, great concept but they just didn't have the chance to truly flesh it out due to the lack of time per episode. Not enough episodes, and the episodes we do have are much too short to do the concept justice.
That said, the acting is great and the music (such as there is any) is completely fine. Terms of re-watchability, not sure I'd re-watch each episode in full, but I certainly enjoy a few moments. This has charm, and is certainly worth a watch if you haven't seen it before, just know going in that this is a good example of a great concept squeezed into too short a format - it simply can't completely deliver on the prospects it raises, nevertheless great acting, solid cast and enjoyable enough for what it does accomplish.
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Saebit Boys' High School Council
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Well handled coming to terms with yourself gay romance
A charming series which responsibly explores the difficulties of facing your own sexuality, coming to terms and finding love with another (and learning to love yourself)Story & character development
I read some reviews criticising how the love triangle was solved, but I disagree with them. One of the main drivers of this plot was focusing in on the fears of facing your own sexuality and the challenges of finding that special connection amid the maelstrom of a school life in a culture unfriendly to gays.
Take a case in point which I think was extremely well handled. Many criticise the decision to wrap the plot up with Tae Kyung
choosing Shin Woo over Da On. But they miss something extremely important. I write from personal experience as someone who came out as gay later in my life, mid twenties. I can assure everyone that that first year was horrendous (in my case not because of any issues with family members not accepting it). The entire dynamic of my life radically and irretrievably altered. The very thing I had spent my *entire* school life running from, hiding, being ashamed of - was just there. When a gay man (even moreso for gay teenagers) actually face who they are, it takes a long emotional process to find that new equilibrium in your life.
My point here is, Da On's character needed to take time to face himself - his real self - having taken the courage to face it openly despite the myriad challenges he would be facing subsequently. His character needed Tae Kyung as a friend, there to help him in what would be a tough time ahead. Believe me, in real life the first year you're out is often not a time you want to spend wooing a first love, it's a brutally draining emotional journey. Da On's character needed to take time for himself and that ending seemed correct to me.
As for Tae Kyung, what he needed was someone to love him, give his character the attention he so obviously yearned and craved. This was simply not a role Da On's character was in a position to give him. He was now finding a new balance in his life between the work he genuinely loves, learning to love his new self and there just wasn't room in his life at that time for him to meet Tae Kyung's needs.
Whereas Shin Woo was someone ready to be what Tae required by the end. Shin had already faced Da's journey prior to the beginning of the series, and had found a balance in his own life. He was emotionally, personally ready to be be the romantic partner Tae was searching for.
A love triangle done right for once:
To my mind this love triangle plot is a rare case of one being done extremely well. And I say this as someone who actively dislikes love triangle plot devices, but in this case it fit in perfectly with the character development in the story.
Teaching profession:
Another good aspect was the role they had the educator play, dishing out advice and wisdom free from judgement. It sends a message about the importance of educators in our lives. I recall a time when one of my Chinese first year uni students came to me after I finished teaching a module, burst out crying and asked me advice about if she should tell her parents she was a lesbian. I still - years later - think about that conversation, and the advice I gave. I LOVE the subtle emphasis on the importance of our teachers and elders. The role these people play has impact on the students they teach, those who look up to them and also stays with the teachers themselves.
Charming series, well executed. My 7.5/10 represents a comfortably above average gay romance which tackles important subtleties known to gay people very delicately and sensibly. If what you're looking for is melodrama, or some bullshit fan-shipping opportunity this series isn't for you. But if you want a charming, well paced (maybe sometimes slightly slow at points) story which can provide a small insight into being gay, coming to terms with this and facing public ridicule with courage then this is for you. That this was a South Korean production makes me very excited for the future, given it is a country with a notoriously conservative culture regarding gay rights and romance.
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