TV Drama Review #225 - Proong Nee Gor Ruk Tur 明天我依然爱你

No.of Epis: 30
Year/TV Stn: 2009/Ch 5
Cast:
Aom Phiyada Akkaraseranee ~ Kaewkunya
Pong Nawat Kulrattanarak ~ Poramin
James Ruengsak Loychusak ~ Peeput
Pin Khetmanee Wutthanasina ~ Putthamart
Mod Kanlaya Jirachaisakdecha ~ Wunnaorn
Fluke Pachorn Tummon ~ Gongpohdin
Oh Anuchit Sapunpong ~ Peerawit
Peemai Sumonrat Wattanaselaratas ~ Pueng
Peck Premanut Suwunnanon ~ Noot
Synopsis: (translated & edited from Thai Style blog)
Poramin & Kaewkunya have been together for quite sometime and they're preparing to get married. Just then, Kaew's sister was shot dead by Por's sister Putt after she was seen lying on the bed with Putt's husband Peeput. Putt was sentenced to jail while Kaew broke up with Por and left the city with her mum & brother, Gong.
Por was deeply hurt but life goes on. After 6 years, Kaew decided to work in her friend, Pueng's working place, but it happens to be Por's company. Por makes Kaew his secretary & plans to take his revenge on her. When Por's girlfriend Wun sees Kaew, she immediately dislikes her & bullies her. On the other hand, Por dislikes to see Noot, Pueng's colleague, chasing after Kaew.
Gong has been hiding the fact that he is a gay. After he meets Peeput's brother Peer, the two of them have fond liking for each other. Gong rejects Peer, but Peer is persistant about their relationship. Finally, they date secretly.
Putt is released from jail and together with Wun, they tried to seperate Por & Kaew by creating lots of trouble. The two ill-fated lovers finally get together after conquering the obstacles, but Wun tells Por that she's pregnant with his child...
Slacker's review:
Pong is back with his 3rd drama in 2009. This time round, he was paired up with Aom, a famous Thai actress from their co, Exact. "Proong Nee" is the usual Thai-style melodrama, and there's nothing new in the plot. However, one of the side plots was interesting...and that's the gay love b/w Gong & Peer. This is probably my first time watching a drama where the gay love was full of developments, and the scriptwriter has no plans to throw either of them a girl. Lolz~ (In this aspect, Thais are more open-minded than other Asian folks). Furthermore, the acting from the two leads were superb, especially Pong, who showed great improvement from his previous roles.
I really heart Pong in this drama. His acting was full of emotions, & I just loved his expressions. He handled his heartbreaking scenes very well as he struggled to control his tears, with faint smile etc. Of coz, the guy looked so cute when he's in happy mood....hahaha! Pong is famous for his "wicked smile" la, and you could see plenty of it in the drama...won't get bored~
I loved Pong & Bee, but Aom appeared to have great chemistry with Pong too! I did not like Kaew throughout the drama, maybe it's because she kept rejecting our dear Por, and chose to "bluff" her own feelings. I just don't like such characters, though Kaew was not a weak person. I liked how she bickered with Por in their usual office bickering. Hehe! There were many sweet & bitter moments b/w the couple, and I could not get enough of them! Ha! Aom's acting was great, but I thought Pong was better. (not that I'm bias~) I think the reason was because Por was suffering more than Kaew, and Pong had more chances to express his emotions through his acting.
Fluke & Oh were the next "couple" who got lots of attention. Ha! This was my 2nd time watching Oh...and he's pretty alright. He has yet to impress me la. As for Fluke, he looked quite different in real life, not the mummy's boy in the drama. Ha! Anyway, his performance was not too bad for a rookie.
Too many baddies in this drama, and I don't feel like commenting. Haha! I hate Jame's Peeput to core, but his acting was good. Lolz~ I loved Mod in "Ngao Asoke", but she transformed into a total evil b**** here! Oh my~ Her evil expressions were damn good, but irritating. Pin's Putt was terrible as well, and I could not sympathise with her, though she was clearly the victim (but being a victim does not mean she can anyhow shoot ppl...)
Support cast was alright, saw that "ladyboy" in "Dum Kum" again! Ha...
Theme song was quite nice, and it's the theme song for the Por & Kaew as well.
"Proong Nee" is easily my favourite Thai drama till now...

TV Drama Review #211 - Dum Kum 黑色幽默

No.of Epis: 15
Year/TV Station: 2009/Ch 7
Cast:
Pong Nawat Kulratanarak ~ Tudtiya
Tangmo Pattaratida Pacharawirapong ~ Dum
Pang Ornjira Lamvilai ~ Dao
Oh Anuchyd ~ Tongrop
Synopsis: (translated & edited from baidu taijuba)
Tudtiya is a wealthy young man who has just returned from England, while Dum is only a village girl. When they are young, their fathers have betrothed their only child to each other. As Dum is reluctant to marry Tudthiya, she darkens herself & wears an ugly wig to scare Tudtiya.
Tudtiya gets into an accident and loses his memory temporary. Dum saves him but decides to play a prank on him by lying to Tudtiya that he's only a worker in her farm. Thus, Tudtiya has to work in the farm and gets bullied by Dum. However, Tudtiya always manages to get people to help him out and makes Dum angry.
When Tudtiya finally regains his memory, he swears for revenge and announces to everyone that he is marrying Dum. Due to pressure, Dum reluctantly marries Tudtiya. The couple's life is still disastrous, but they also fall in love with each other at the same time.
Tudtiya meets Dao at a fashion show and they click well with each other. After Tudtiya went missing, Dao decides to look for him and finds her way to Dum's farm. Dao happens to know Tongrop, who's a good friend of Dum and sparks come off between them soon afterwards.
Slacker's review:
This is my 3rd Thai lakorn, starring Pong, my fav Thai actor. Haha! "Dum Kum" is a pure romance-comedy, and I would enjoy it more if there was full subtitles. Unfortunately, less than 1/3 of the drama was subbed. Though I knew what's going on in the drama, I did not understand the conversations, which is a pity. Anyway, the plot was rather interesting, though it could be lame at certain parts. The drama also featured Katoey (ladyboy) characters, but they were not the slim & pretty ones. Lolz! The storyline took place at the countryside most of the time, which was something different compared to other Bangkok-based dramas. I did not like the ending, rushed and kinda lame. Hahaha.
I liked Pong doing a comedy role. He's great & he could be very funny & exaggerating. I loved his cheeky or up-to-no-good expressions. Haha! Tudtiya was still a rich guy, so it's a very easy character for Pong, coz' lots of his roles were like this. However, due to the comedy factor, Tudtiya was not as selfish, cold or aggressive as compared to other Pong's roles. It has been sometime since Pong last coupled with a non-Exact actress, and I thought his chemistry with Tangmo was not bad. I enjoyed their scenes together, and I laughed out loud when Dum "bullied" our poor Tudtiya after they got married. There were so much fun watching the couple bickering day & night.
Tangmo is not one of the top actresses of Ch7, and this is my first time watching her act. Tangmo's acting was not too bad, but she tend to exaggerate when Dum darkened herself. To be honest, Tangmo looked ugly with that "black girl" look & kampong-styled fashion. (The contradicting thing was Dum looked prettier & smart in blouse & pants when she worked in her farm!) Luckily, she did not get to darken herself too often la. Tangmo's emotional scenes were not too bad too, but there were too many misunderstandings b/w Dum & Tudtiya, which was irritating.
Pang's character Dao was irritating from first epi. I didn't like Dao, and I could not be bothered with her scenes, until Dao & Tongrop started to feel for each other. (partly the reason was because there's no subs for me to watch patiently for other side plots..lolz!) Anyway, I noticed that Pong & Pang had worked in a few dramas for several times, but there's only one drama when Pang & Pong were acting as a couple.
Other cast was alright. Gotta mention that the two fathers in the drama was so funny & cute. Thanks to them, Dum & Tudtiya could get together finally.

TV Drama Review #205 - Buang Ruk Kamathep 丘比特的圈套

No.of Episodes: 28
Year/TV Station: 2009/Ch 5
Cast:
Nawat Kulrattanarak (Pong) ~ Phubodee
Namthip Jongrachatawiboon (Bee) ~ Ornicha
Pakorn Namo (Tui) ~ Tawee
Ornjira Larmwilai (Pang) ~ Giftgay
Chayatorn Setjinda (Ton) ~ Pawat
Sinitha Boonyasak ~ Oranee
Synopsis: (edited from Wiki Sarnworld)
Phubodee is summoned back home from America by his mum Sumon as his younger brother Pawat has fallen in love with a older woman, Oranee, who's a divorcee & works as a seamstress. Phubodee tried to seperate Pawat & Oranee with money, but to no avail. Phubodee then lies to Pawat that he wld be able to marry Oranee if he works in America for a year. To assure Oranee that he is not abandoning her, the couple secretly wed and Pawat’s friend Tawee acts as their witness. Oranee's father suffers from a stroke and his family had no money to pay for his hospital bills. Phubodee takes the opportunity & offers Oranee some money, with a condition that she must break up with Pawat. With no other choices, Oranee takes the money to pay for her father’s hospital bill and surgery. Gleefully, Phubodee lies to Pawat that Oranee has taken his money & she is just another woman who's after money. Pawat does not believe him and wants to return to Thailand to question Oranee. Unfortuanately, Pawat is killed in an accident. Sadden by her husband's death, Oranee attempts suicide, but is saved by Ornicha. Later, Oranee learns that she is 2 mths pregnant with Pawat's child. Phubodee learns from Tawee that Pawat & Oranee are legally married & Oranee has rights to Pawat's inheritance. Phubodee searches for Oranee to handle the inheritance issue, but to no avail. Tawee could not find the sisters too, and finally Giftgay revealed that the family has moved to Maehongsorn to avoid Phubodee & his mum. Oranee later gives birth to Tonklah, but dies from excessive blood lost.
After 5 years, Phubodee learns that Oranee has passed away and he has a nephew Tonklah. Phubodee wants to find him but missed his chances. After her father passes away, Ornicha & Tonklah return to Bangkok with Giftgay & Tawee and Ornicha continues her nursing career. Phubodee finally finds Ornicha & Tonklah, but Ornicha is not willing to give up Tonklah. Since the law is not on his side, Phubodee must find other ways to win his nephew's custody.
Slacker's review:
"Buang Ruk" is my 1st complete Thai drama, but this is not my 1st time watching Thai Lakorn (drama). Pong & Bee are the first two Thai actor/actress I knew many years ago, after watching their 1st collaboration in "Lerd Hong" on a Malaysian channel. Happened to see Pong's drama again when I was in Thailand in 2006. So, he has left me a deep impression ah~ Hehe! Anyway, China has started airing Thai dramas, and I finally chanced upon "Buang Ruk" & this is Pong & Bee's 4th collaboration! Anyway, Thai lakorns are pretty standard in terms of plot & characters. So, their dramas seemed pretty "old school" to me. Haha! I have to say this drama is pretty dramatic, just like any other lakorns. There's constant arguments among the leads, and there are the usual evil daughter/mum stuff going on. "Thai-style bickering" seems to drag longer than normal. There's lots of "physical movements" b/w the leads, and the guys liked to pull the women closed to them & insult them. Ha! (A bit buay tahan la~) I guessed my biggest disappointment with Lakorns is that most of their kisses were fake! (That means they borrowed angles to "take cover" la.) I'm sure there are real kisses in some other dramas, but none for Mr. Pong...sobbzz~
Pong Nawat looks like Chinese, as compared to other Thai actors. Anyway, this is where he stands out from the crowd. After watching "Buang Ruk", Pong is no longer the super nice guy I knew in "Lerd Hong". He has transformed into a bad guy image. (that's what happened to him in his other dramas too...) Well, I thought his transformation is quite acceptable, though Phubodee was quite kns most of the time, as he kept insulting Oranicha & her sis. I'm not too sure if I like Phubodee, but he's quite a contradicted guy la. I loved his scenes with Bee towards the end...Phubodee has finally changed his attitude towards Ornicha, and he spoke so softly to the girl. Haha!
Bee Namthip is a very tall girl!! Luckily Pong is tall enough to match her. Ho! Seriously, I loved Bee's performance, except all her screaming scenes. (Thai actresses loved to scream their heads off~omg!) I did not like the young Ornicha, coz' she's really quite abrasive la. The matured Ornicha was so much better. Chemistry with Pong was great too, can't fault them sia~
I'm glad that Tawee & Giftgay were together in the end, though it seemed kinda sudden that Tawee changed his feelings immediately after he let go of Ornicha.
Ton & Tui are "Exact" (production co.) newbies. Basically, their acting were alright, though Tui seemed kinda stiff (he's too tall la...). Sinitha's Oranee was great too. Plengtai Niyomtai, who acted as Tonklah was a very cute boy! Loved his scenes with Pong & Bee.