BAD BUDDY - Ep by Ep Snarkfest
Not sure if this will be a trash watch or not, but are you ready for this?
But first… I thought it might be fun to see what my predictions were back in 2020 when GMMTV first announced this show.
I should acknowledge that I publicly stated, many times, that I thought Nanon would NEVER do a BL. So this is me eating crow:
Origin: Book (Behind the Scenes) adaptation of a enemies-to-friends-to-lovers, Romeo & Romeo, secret relationship, university sports setting y-novel
Wait I’ve seen them do BL before? Seriously? Fine. Nanon Korapat in My Dear Loser+ like everything GMMTV not BL. Ohm Pawat in He’s Coming to Me, Make it Right 1&2, Dew the Movie, The Shipper + like EVERYTHING BL.
Side dishes: Drake (My Tee, 2gether, 1000 Stars) and Marc (My Gear and Your Gown)
My 2020 Predictions: It’s from GMMTV with BL director Backaof attached (1000 Stars, He’s Coming to Me, Dark Blue Kiss, Still 2gether), so it’s gonna happen. Both actors and director have a history of picking quality projects with decent scripts, and production values are likely high. Should be excellent but low heat. Ohm will have his shirt off a lot.
Episode 1 - Oh well, fuck me, it’s actually great
They had me the moment Pran took his earbuds out and put them carefully into a case before going into battle. This show is fantastic.
Officially, as of this moment October 29, 2021, I’m declaring there to be too many gay engineering students in BL for me to keep track of anymore. Bad Buddy has defeated me. It is the gear the broke the smock-covered back.
Pat’s little sister is my spirit animal I LOVE HER. I’m sorry tho, I can’t call her Pa, so I’m changing the spelling to Pah henceforth. (It’s Thai to English, all spelling is merely a figment of your deranged imagination anyway.)
The pace was great, this was a FAST moving opening episode. Ironically, that means I’m now concerned about pacing - a lot happened already, how are they going to daw this out into 12 eps unless it’s super slow burn? Then again, this is based on a Y-novel, so should be better than normal Thai BL (although the horrible looming shadow of My Gear and Your Gown is RIGHT THERE) so trust is thin on the ground.
All that said, we are off to a GREAT start and so far I’m loving this show. (I would have bet good money Ohm would be topless first, tho.) Also, yes we all GOT the Romeo & Juliet bits GMMTV, thank you for clipping us upside the head with those. Is Drake actually playing Tybalt? In which case, who’s Mercutio? (Randomly: does the kid playing Wai look like Heeseung from Enhypen to anyone else, or is it just me?)
How cute was that bit where they subverted the wound tending trope though? Pran was like “You must be joking.” I got quite a chuckle out of it.
Little to no seme uke with these boys, which is good, suits the actors’ dynamic.
Looks like GMMTV is gonna both start (1k*) and end 2021 on a high note. Fingers crossed. Honestly it just so nice to have them back in the game.
Episode 2 - Damnit, It Continues to be Good
The first quarter of this ep, with them trying to keep their friendship groups apart is so flipping funny. And then I remembered, the best of 2gether was when it did stuff like this. (That drunk scene with Fong flipping his shoe, Gunsmile in the dolly, and Tine driving air still makes me laugh). GMMTV’s stable excels at this stuff, it’s how School Rangers kept going all these years. And Ohm and Nanon are two of the best. It makes me feel like I am in safe hands when they do a montage run like this.
Also, seriously, the amount for flirting these two do over text is off the chart. And should we talk about the epic eye fucking? Eh, probably not, it speaks for itself. Or doesn’t speak per say… just eye fucks.
Epic Eye Fucking is the name of my punk band.
Amused to see the combined the mistaken identity game with the rooftop trope. Oh and post-it love note, haven’t seen that trope in a long while.
I hate hate hate the scene with Heeseung - sorry, Wai - at work at the bar. Which means i really hate Pat’s friends now too. In fact I hate all their friends, this is a blanket statement - GMMTV rectify thyself. I want to love friendship groups in BL, not hate them. V annoying. I hope they all get booted from school for egregious shed collapsing.
FOLK my love! I have missed you.
NO SINGING. Thailand, we have talked about this at length!
So they were separated eternally for being in a band together?
I get it. They were singing in a BL. I’d have done it too.
Meanwhile tickle is apparently a good word in every language. Although in Thai strawberry will forever be my favorite.
BL = closing elevators on the good stuff since Cherry Magic.
Episode 3 - Is this the one true scion of SOTUS?
I’m getting a serious “inheritor of our SOTUS forefathers” feel from this show (NOT a bad thing) but I’m not entirely sure why. It’s not the narrative, maybe it’s more an aura of confidence that’s the result of a combo of capable acting & solid production? Maybe you lot can help me figure this out?
How smooth was the guitar pick student ID flirting action? Also a never before seen love offering. Adorbs. And then Pat paying for both their noodle bowls later.
Also, word’s second most handsome pick. First one? Here:
I love Pat & Pran’s dynamic, it’s this perfect combative competitive flirtation. Reminds me a bit of PeteKao at the beginning of Kiss, although with less of an edge to it.
Also reminds me of grade school. Honestly, when is Pat just gonna pull on Pran’s pigtails and dip them in ink? Break a slate over his head?*
* (10 points to anyone who gets that reference.)
This is a damn good script.
It lets Pat, in particular, push right up to the edge of confession and then backtrack or turn it into a joke constantly (maybe intentionally, may unconsciously). This has the effect of jerking Pran around, but not maliciously. It means, i think, if they ever are going to actually get anywhere as a couple it’s gonna have to be Pran who really makes the first move, since he’s the only one who has the overt capacity for sincerity.
It’s very clever. Makes me wonder if the original y-novel was this well done or if this is part of Ohm and Nanon’s dynamic coloring their characters.
Is “fighting with chopsticks” the new euphemism for “dueling with swords”?
Oh and here’s a reminder, because I keep needing it with Pran’s friends.
Apparently Episode 3 feels compelled to do a major TROPE DUMP.
The appearance of the meet me in the library trope made me especially happy. Romance in libraries is a favorite setting. Also them pressed together in the elevator thing is fun, doesn’t pop up often in BL these days (Cherry Magic excepted). Plus some more predictable BL tropes:
stare from a close distance,
black & white striped shirt,
central aperture framing,
On a serious note, the way Pat & Pran’s friends are driving them right back into the corners that their families did as children is really fucking sad. But it sure makes for excellent external tension.
Looking forward to another week of all I care about is Friday, and not for the normal reasons.
Episode 4 - annoying friends remain annoying
Look they’re starting to really bother me in an imma fast forward kinda way, they’re no longer adding to the story. Although it is fun to see them tricked into working. But I like to see anyone tricked into working. Leave me alone with a child and I’ll have them conducting regression analysis in about half an hour. (That is NOT a euphemism.)
Pat wandering into Pran’s room and then just grabbing a book and setting up residence made me think that these two are also a puppy/cat pairing.
I like the not-a-faen-fatale but more a friend from their past who knows who they are to each other. Cute twist on a tired archetype. Also I am fining myself basically delighted whenever Pat’s sister shows up. Why are sister characters such fun in BL?
Yes but also… tiny impossible but very cute girl ship has set sail!
Okay but how many times is Pat gonna call Pran cute or his boyfriend in this one episode? I mean boy actually couldn’t flirt any harder. And then to pretend he likes a girl. Tut to the tut tut.
Pacing on this one continues to be excellent I’m still excited for where the next one is going. So far, this show is a win.
Meanwhile someone asked me to go into why Nanon’s acting is so amazing, so I donned my professional-esk hat and had a stab at it here.
I’d like to see them start redeeming the friendship groups at this point. Pat’s should try helping him win the girl and Pran’s shoudl recognize his misery and try to cheer him up. They can remain at odds with each other, but we (the audience) really need to like them more now.
See you next week! Same Pat time, same Pat place.
Episode 5 - they boyfriends
These two are basically boyfriends already. I can’t take the morning routine cuteness: pet names, ordering each other around the kitchen, stealing food.
Thus the terrible date with The Girl ™ was appropriately terrible and meanwhile…
So Pat finally figures out his feels, isn’t jelly of a girl (is jelly of a boy). I kinda like that the jelly is being used to determine identity rather than just as a dumb plot device.
This is a clever little romance.
Thank goodness we only had to listen to one song tho.
Meanwhile Pat is like, oh shit did we actually fall in love in high school and I never realized it? I love this kind of trope. Himbo alert! Big dumb bi boy utterly out of touch with his feelings is just too delicious. Also Ohm got to be subtle for a change, showing this whole remembering of old heartbreak just with nuances of facial expressions at the music concert.
Question: At the Wai Pat confrontation scene, how did Pat end up on the ground? Did he just decide to fall down in the middle of a fight? I’m confused.
Finally… GREAT FUCKING KISS.
Look I was gonna give kiss of the year to SamYu (and I still will because, frankly, Taiwan is just better about this stuff) but this one was REALLY good. Much more than I expected of GMMTV, although not from Ohm.
We all knew he could kiss like a dream from Make it Right, and he was fricking 16 in that series. Apparently some things DO improve with age.
Anygay, VERY nice boys. Thank you.
And then Pat’s face. That tiny lost smile: absolute joy and then crushing disappointment in knowing reality won’t let them be together - almost in the same breath. Beautifully done.
(A DM ask about this kiss has made me natter more so here it is…)
I don’t analyze the experience of BL as a watcher all that much (more just type out my snarky reactions) but I was asked, so here’s more about Ohm and the kiss.
I think that smile was a bit of everything: euphoria at having his feelings returned but also the hopelessness of their situation and also a brave front and also first love nerves. It was very complex. Ohm knocked it out of the park this ep but I’ve seen Dew so I had absolutely no doubt he could do it.
I love that the director and story had Nanon carry the weight of the emotional burden for most of the first half of the show and now suddenly Ohm has picked it up. It’s very cleverly done and could only happen with two extremely good actors.
I do think we are in for a very bumpy ride going forward as a result though. Both of their reactions to the kiss are foreshadows.
How will they cope with the pressure of friends and family and secrecy if/when they are in a relationship?
Will they smile or wince or both, like Pat?
Will the joy of first love be enough to keep them on the metaphorical rooftop together?
Or will one of them run, as Pran did?
If production is smart with the talent (and clearly they ARE), we’ll get flip flopping of who carries the emotional burden of the narrative for the next 5 eps or so until The Dreaded Episode 11 ™.
Pacing is different in this BL though (this kiss came early) so DOOM might descend at ep 9/10 or even sooner. It’s hard to predict, this one. Yet another reason just to sit back and enjoy the ride.
Pat & Pran’s language with each other: pronouns, honorifics, and endearment/insult teasing.
More about the kiss and the dialogue on the rooftop and queer identity.
Moving on from The Kiss That Broke The Internet.
Episode 6 - Show Me the Seme
I was thinking Bad Buddy was pretty much was not going to have a seme/uke dynamic (Thailand’s skipped it before), but in this episode we got us a classic seme active pursuit vrs tsundere uke resistance - so I guess for now, we back to normalcy.
Director Aof pretty much dropped in half the tropes of the Thai BL arsenal into this one episode, so my heart is full, but I think that was mostly to keep the pacing on point since this ep didn’t advance the story much:
touch my lips and think of kissing,
boys contemplating water.
The parents are whack immure arses but hay, Love Sick started that nonsense - it’s a grand Thai tradition.
I kinda love Pat showing up on the bus. I literally said, “You little shit” while I was watching. Also, how much do I love Ohm’s “I’m a self satisfied little shit” face? SO MUCH.
The dealing with sulky boyfriend at the marketplace was adorable, because of course Pran likes the bits of Pat that are most unlike himself, like the sunshine teasing. And Pat is just learning how to activate that to get his boy into a better mood.
We ended with the best confession that isn’t a confession meets flirting but make it ridiculous scene in BL. It was great. Pran basically said,
“Boy, you wanna piece of this, you gotta court me proper.”
It was adorbs. Also, his smile when Pat calls him his boyfriend in the stinger = fantastic!
Finger licking good, one might even say.
I am anticipating these two giving us one of the best and most dramatic public claiming sequences ever.
Don’t disappoint me, Bad Buddy.
Next week…. secret boyfriends trope launches at last.
Episode 7 - Oh They Trope-Verse Seme-Switches!
Okay I figured it out with this episode, Pat & Pran are classic example of no seme/uke, they’re also classic trope switches. I’m glad that’s settled in my brain now.
I’ll talk about how I came to this conclusion in a moment, but FIRST… we need to talk about these two:
I’m not sure GMMTV has the guts to give us a full on GL sub plot, but they are absolutely setting one up. But then they throw Wai with a crush on Pah into the mix, so ???
This will get v messy for Pran & Pat no matter which direction Pah goes with her choices. Which is very clever of the writers. I love it. I am ALWAYS in favor of clever writers. And you know I like messy. So I’m looking forward to wherever this sub-plot goes, GL payout or no. (Although I recognize there are gonna be some seriously disappointed tumblr rants if there is no actual GL.)
Pran unleashing his pent-up flirt is a thing of beauty. Also the not-dating dating musical montage was adorable.
Okay, so, secret boyfriends gave us all the tropes in this one, interestingly if you assume Pat is the seme from the last ep, these all largely subverted that dynamic.
your relationship with that water bottle (standard seme execution, but I think they just wanted Ohm’s shirt off)
wound tending (subverted)
caged wall lean (subverted)
sponge bath (turned into product placement, very clever GMMTV)
baby is a messy eater (subverted)
(Here’s the post where I talk about how certain tropes in BL basically “belong” to either the seme or the uke and that we should pay very close attention when the dynamic is flipped because the narrative is very much trying to tell us something about the motivation and complexities of the characters. A pair that does this while maintaining seme/uke but using it to show us how very soft that dynamic can be are SolorGui in Oxygen.)
And then Bad Buddy used the cheek kiss, boyfriend peck kisses, and makeup removal trope to show Pat & Pran both pretty much doing this to each other at the same time. That’s basically screaming out that these two are narratively verse.
So yeah, I’m calling it for no seme/uke in this BL. In fact this episode could be a master class in how to use BL trope expectations to counteract seme/uke standards. It was basically Thai BL undermining Japanese live action yaoi. It’s kind of like:
Look at how far we have come! These boys will use your tropes for a verse agenda, thank you very much!
Which I of course flipping loved. (You see what I did there - FLIPping?)
You know what else I loved best in the world? This line:
Because it reminded me so entirely of Seryo in Seven Days:
You know I love anything that reminds me of Seven Days.
Yet again Bad Buddy kept the tension up with no slump in engagement despite this being (on paper) a pretty basic filler episode 7, thin on narrative. I must applaud them. I’m looking forward to more secret boyfriends next week. But I do think someone is gonna find them out. The question is… who?
In other news: the mom character, instead of gay for you, she’s homophobic for you. Thank you thank you. Trope abuse is my forte.
Episode 8 - Shirtless Secrets
Finally the episode where Ohm spends most of it shirtless. The gay gods applaud you, GMMTV.
So right, the breakfast in bed was so adorable. These two are the biggest flirty teases ever, Pat & Pran are both such good secret lovers.
The fucking holding hands thing is going to wreck tumblr for days. Are you happy? I hope you’re happy. GMMTV what have you done to us.
Odds on a shot of Pat miserable and cuddling this T-shirt after the inevitable break up? Come on, you know they wanna do that to us.
I love the character trait of Pat being obsessed with the way Pran smells, speaking as someone whose partners have historically been dictated almost entirely by smell.
Meanwhile the lesbians got the wound tending and the shrimp peeling trope - a rare but very important one, IMHO. (Thank you AePete. Incidentally the Thai polite style of peeling shrimp, with a fork and spoon, actually works REALLY well. I taught myself how to do it and am now a bit of a fan.)
I actually don’t have a trope board for this one since it’s pretty rare.
Did I say already that this show is written like, and reminds me a bit of, fan fiction? The way it’s paced, very nice.
Episode 9 - Wooing a Friendship Group (or 2)
I thought this episode would have a lot more doom, I was pleasantly surprised by how soft it was. A ton of cute tropes were casually dropped: hair dry, face cradle, significant hand hold, the lying loom, boys in black & white stripes. Still, Pran’s friends, especially Wai = the biggest arses. I wasn’t sure they could redeem Wai’s character (and I’m still not sure they did although they gave it their best shot).
Look, I’m only gonna say this once.
If you make it hard for someone to come out, you don’t get to blame them for hiding themselves.
Doesn’t matter what form that coming out takes (secret relationship or queerness). There are countless ways to demonstrate trust-worthiness and allyship, especially around your friends. The onus is on us to be the safe person, not them.
Nanon playing crestfallen is ADORABLE though.
Did you hear Korn use “nong” in this scene to mock flirt? It’s very very funny if you understand the implications of the term “nong” under the context of Korn & Pat’s friendship (equals and age mates) and Pat pretending to be jealous of Wai in order to cope with how much Wai is hurting his boyfriend. Korn is doing it to cheer him up. It was sweet and hillarious.
Who knew Korn would turn into the biggest PatPran shipper?
Meanwhile Pat chucked his crown into the ring for Bi King (gonna take a lot to dethrone Neo, Leon & Na, though.)
(Shut up, I am beyond chuffed with myself.)
This is, in part, GMMTV making an obvious effort to correct for some of the great sins of SOTUS in particular and the BL genre in general (gay for you, wifey terminology, punching down humor, and poor GL rep). Marvelous that they are using their flagship show and its massive platform to do so. We of the Queer Normalization Brigade salute you. (Our uniforms are FABULOUS.)
The GL ship got pushed a little out of port.
Do I think there might still be some issues with the GL supply chain? Why yes, yes I do, but it’s still very nice to see an attempt made at delivery. (See what I did there?)
Anygay, we got the friendship groups to come around and now… the parents! How much you wanna bet this drive the break up? Also I really hope the boys uncover a really good reason for the breach between the families, it’d be a lot better if they gave us a solid external stressor.
Episode 10 - Wai’s Lesbian Redemption
Honestly this ep started with the public claiming sequence to end all public claiming sequences. This may win this trope category for all time.
I really appreciate the continued efforts to keep this drama light - much lighter, in fact, than it has any right to be. I think I have laughed out load in pretty much every single episode.
Similarly I appreciate the ridiculous care and thought they are putting into crafty product placement. It’s almost like they are making fun of the way this was handled in 2gether. I wonder if it will spawn more of this kind of mockery in other Thai BLs going forward?
There is a literary technique called light housing, which is when writers take a flaw or inconsistency in a text/narrative/plot, and instead of trying to burry it, they highlight it and call attention to it, sometimes with 4th wall breaking, sometimes by ostentatiously turning it into a plot device or pivot point. The way Bad Buddy treats product placement feels like that. There’s this attitude of “well if we must include it, instead of trying to hide it let’s make it a party. It becomes less clumsy and shoehorned in (like in Kdramas or other Thai BL) and more an extra playful perk, like a cheerful garish bauble.
It suits the Thai style to approach product placement this way.
Could we talk about the Wai giving up on Pah sequence?
Good, ‘cause we’re gonna.
Far be it for me to turn the lesbian arc into a chat about the straight dude in the mix, but that’s what is about to happen. (Probubly my most anti Bechtel moment, ever.)
First of all, Pat’s attitude is aces, let’s just put that out there. For an older brother to say about his younger sister (in Thai culture), “I’m gonna let her make her own romantic decisions” Is fantastic. And maybe wouldn’t have happened if Pat hadn’t been through his own conflict over romance and identity.
But we gotta talk about Wai.
This was actually one of the best redemption arcs possible or Wai’s character and one of the most queer moments we’ve gotten in what has been, so far, on of the queerest Thai BLs.
There is along and very storied history of straight dudes (patriarchies, whole cultures) not believing in lesbian relationships because “real love” and “real sex” must involve a penis. Gay sex and relationships have historically been treated as taboo, disgusting, or sickening - but true. Lesbian relationships and sex on the other hand, have mostly been treated as laughably impossible or inconceivable.
In the past, this leads to things like Boston marriages, where women spent lifetimes together as partners and were tacitly permitted to do so simply because “romantic love and sexual interest between two women is simply not possible.”
(When I harp on about queer being a feminist issue this is one of those aspects.)
So the way Wai just instantly notices and believes that Pah has a crush on Ink and that this crush is not only valid but OUTRANKS his own is INSANE. Like never before seen on screen.
He accepts that it is her right to like whomever she wants, and if the one she likes is a woman, that’s not important because it’s just as valid of a choice.
I can’t tell you how important this kind of scene is in film. And how much it redeems his character.
This is a HUGE queer statement being made by this narrative. It’s unprecedented. And it’s specifically one of lesbian support.
Also it goes up against h BL notions of the prioritization of a crush over mutual affection. Wai backing down is also a way of saying not only is queer love as valid as het love, but that a crush is less important than a return of feelings.
Meanwhile, Ink’s stink eye is the best.
Ink asking for permission is even better. Gotta love consent. Not to mention cheek & forehead kisses.
Also the return of dark room romance!
Anyone else getting PickRome vibes?
Of course it all turns out to be the sins of the father. What did we expect?
Although, honestly, it’s a bit rich (pun intended) for someone in such a fancy-pants outfit to be complaining about having her life ruined. Things seemed to have, frankly and fashionably speaking, turned out okay for Pran’s maa.
Next week is ep 11, but who the f knows with this show? It seems to be specializing in non-standard BL behavior patterns.
A sort of achey wistful episode 11, because we know, right along with the characters, that Pat & Pran’s attempt to escape the family strife is, in fact, doomed.
This whole honeymoon sequence (including the shoehorned allegory about Junior not wanting to go back with his mom + Uncle wasting his life on ideology) is just another one of those coming of age moments. Running away and still staying part of the world isn’t really possible, even if you don’t like the world or can’t fit into it (the world doesn’t like you).
For me the saddest part was at the end when Pat & Pran stand in front of their respective homes crying, because the idea of going home should feel good, and safe, when for both of them it’s the opposite. That is such a queer experience - it was like a gut punch.
And suddenly this show is reminding me of I Told Sunset About You.
I’m now going to speculate on the time jump final ep.
If they really are going to go there, that is a VERY Kdrama tactic. Under the auspices of the tropes of those dramas (and not BL) the following can happen:
the ending is left up in the air but slightly implies that they get back together (see Something in the Rain)
they get back together in the last 10 min of the last ep, in what feels like a super rushed job (see most het romance Kdramas)
we return to the Japanese roots (of both BL & Kdramas) and Bad Buddy doesn’t end with an HEA, but instead with them still apart and a sentimental romanization of lost love
In this last tactic, the romantic glory is vested in the unchanging nature of the memory of having once experienced the true passion of youth. The two characters often reminisce about their past over drinks together. I have been known, at my most acerbic to call this “Arthouse Smackdoodle.”
Now, I am open to being surprised.
In fact, please surprise me.
Because I don’t like any of these 3 options. In my personal opinion, Kdramas are unquestionably weak around endings.
On the other hand, with the increasing quality of the BL and companion talent, production values, and performances we must acknowledge the silly frivolous fluff is going to loose against the compulsion to be taken seriously. Especially in a narrative like this one, that doesn’t have a compelling story, just compelling acting and directing.
So I’m not sure if I should be legitimately scared by the Episode 12 teaser. Or if I’m being expertly manipulated to be scared. Or if I am betraying trust in Bad Buddy by being scared, even though it clearly wants me to be.
Honestly, this whole series journey has been a bit much for me. I’m happy Bad Buddy is ending next week not because I didn’t like it, but because I like it too much.
I need less stress and more poor quality Thai pulp bullshit BL in my life.
I know, I know. Be careful what you wish for. Paint With Love is still airing.
annaxmalina
baratheonpilled
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pixelskylines
dededos
vaporwave
yousharknotpass
turnnoffyourmind
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