Fahlanruk Series First Take: An Average FWD Story

Fahlanruk is a typical BL series with a campus setting. It has got all kinds of BL tropes. A BL fandom, a shipper, campus idols and beautiful men. There is nothing innovative here and it is just another Friends with Benefits story. It stars Tonkhao Chayuth Nitichakorn and James Thanaboon Wisrungroj.

Here, the relationship goes from strangers to FwB. And what’s noteworthy is that both the characters are flawed; neither of them is a do-gooder. Yet both of them are somehow campus idols (because, obviously they are good-looking). Supporting characters add enough humor, though it falls flat here and there.

In the three episodes that aired, Tonkhao Chayuth Nitichakorn who plays Fahlan stands out. He embodies the character perfectly, though the writing and execution does not seem to help him a bit. His subtlety and nuances really shows his potential as an actor.

All the other technical aspects of this series are below average. Direction and editing makes it very inorganic. Sometimes the characters just delivers the dialogues they have to deliver and moves on to the next scene. There is no organic progression from one scene to another.

Both the main characters have some mysterious quality but the characters are so underwritten that we have a hard time figuring them out. Even though the characters are said to be falling for each other, we do not really feel them or understand them.

It might be too soon to judge but Fahlanruk does not give a great first impression. Hopefully, it can impress the audience in the upcoming episodes.

Arya

Arya is a curious soul and nerd who loves books and cinema. You can read her articles on Medium. You can also follow her on Instagram where she talks about her favourite books and movies.