Academia de Ótimos Homens (2019)

A little drama very pleasant mixed between Moorim School and To The Beautiful You ! So many handsome guys in this lakorn ! Even they are so young, they're so cute.

I really like this story about this girl who will be able to realize her wish to see her star Vier.

This drama is very funny, appealing and touching. I really like the bromance between these characters. Sean, Love, Nuclear, Menn, Vier, Tangmo ! Whaouh !

Big crush for Tangmo ! A pain in the neck at first, but he become a funny and appealing guy.

In conclusion, this drama is a must-see !

Leia Mais

I have watched a lot of thai dramas, particularly BLs. They’re usually just romance dramas, but I had never watched a fantasy romance drama before. I was a but hesitant, because fantasy has never really been my thing. But I’m so so glad that I decided to watch it!!

Story:
When you first watch, the story does seem a little bit cheesy and stereotypically fairy-tale like. But as you continue to watch, especially as the first episode ends, you learn that there is so muvh more to the story than a girl turning into a boy and a magical unicorn. It tackles love triangles, pressure, troubles in friendship, selfishness and lots of very complex plot points that I really got into! The story is easy to follow along with, and you really get into it. Personally, story is very important to me. Especially with BLs (I’m not sure if this counts as a BL or not, but regardless I will continue to refer to it as a BL because it a lotnof the demographic is BL fans) I always feel like they focus more on the romance and fanservice rather than the plot which really bothers me! The romance is accompanied nicely with a good plot that keeps you entertained and interested in the story. I was also worried about how the representation would be considering Love is a girl in a boys body, but I’m really happy with how they conveyed it! This could’ve been problematic, but the drama settles on the idea that love is the person, and not the gender. Kudos to the writers, I wish I had more words to describe how much I love the story haha. I do feel as though Good’s relationship with Me was a little bit pointless, but nevertheless it added a little bit of wholesomeness. I also found myself cringing a little bit at the tournament the first time I watched it, just because of how different it was from the rest of the drama. But after watching it again, I realise that it is really well done. It’s not my favourite part of the drama, but it is really good for character development.

Acting/Cast:
The acting is spectacular. This is another problem I sometimes face with BL dramas. (Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of BL dramas with great actors!) But the acting is sometimes cheesy and forced. I’m not sure if its just me, but I sometimes struggle to see the person on screen as a character. I see them as an actor trying to play a character, and saying lines meaninglessly. But the acting goes way beyond that in this drama! Especially with the actor who plays male Love. I am so impressed. There was a lot of emotionally complexity that he had to convey, and he nailed it. He also did really well showing that he is a girl in a boys body. I am particualrly impressed with him! When you can feel what a character is feeling, that is how you know an actor is good. Tangmo is also perhaps my favourite character in any drama ever. He is easily a fan favourite and you have to love him! The acting among the cast is so casual and well done, and I appreciate it. It reminded me of westeen entertainment. (I’m not saying western entertainment is always better, I just think the standards are a lot higher). Every character has something special about them, and they all did really well. You become attatched to each character, and that’s how you know its a good cast!

Music:
The OST is really catchy and I like how it is used in the drama. I find myself singing the opening tune sometimes haha. Also, the opening credits enticed me the moment I first watched the drama!

Rewarch value:
Considering this is my third time watching it, I definitely think that you would most not settle on watching it once. If I feel an emotional attatchment to a drama, I will watch it again!

Overall:
My favourite thai drama of all time! I love everything about it. There is so much character development and emotional struggles. I couldn’t reccomend it enough.

Leia Mais

This series was a great watch. Although it was a bl that isn't exactly a bl, the storyline was new(at least for me) . Touching the realms of fantasy and virtual reality, this series had drama, comedy and romance, the things you need to make a good movie.
It portrayed a very important lesson- 'the package doesn't matter, all you see when you really love a person is the person (not the gender or the body)'.
The series was short and yet it tied up all its loose ends and didn't leave us hanging, although a second season will not be un-welcomed by me, we could find love interests for other guys in the series ??.

Leia Mais

I don't usually do reviews so I hope this one isn't bad....

When I first started this series I thought it was going to be extremely generic. To be honest I only chose to watch show because I had nothing else to watch and wanted something comedic and fluffy...Great Men Academy was that and MUCH MORE! The plot started off so simple: Girl likes extremely popular boy. Girl goes to great lengths for him to love her. But it unraveled into one of the most well-written BLs I've ever watched. (Right up there with Until We Meet Again!) I really liked how the three leads weren't so one-sided. In most dramas, especially the Thai ones, the main characters are remarkably static--even after learning whatever lesson they were supposed to learn. The plot is far from realistic but it works. It does take a while to take in the unicorn, Hunger Games-type competition (sans death), and futuristic technology (...and the ghost). But none of it diminishes the quality of the series.

Cast?
Love (Boy & Girl) - Absolutely pure of heart. Love is a genuine character who puts aside their wants and needs for other people. Love didn't let their goal blind them from acting as an ally to the cast and helping them through their issues. No matter what you're first impressions are of Love, throw them out the window, because Love is the sweetest cinnamon roll ever and is 10/10 the best character! James acting...GIVE HIM (THE THAI EQUIVALENT OF) AN EMMY! I laughed when he laugh and SOBBED when he teared up.

Tangmo - Wildcard! The show kind of sets him up to be a side character--the goofy best friend. But you begin to see that there's more than meets the eye with Tangmo. Tangmo learns that life can have a purpose if you give it one. JJ was definitely a good choice for this role, I don't think anyone else would have been able to portray such growth.

Vier - Kinda the anti-hero of the show. He most definitely let's his goal of winning the tournament blind himself. He makes poor decisions--which they don't REALLY resolve, kinda forgive and forget--and honestly, nothing against Ice, I really hated Vier. He was just and a**hat that everyone fawned over.

Sean - TBH completely irrelevant. No purpose. Had little emotional connection to any of the characters (sans Vier). He literally just snooped around and/or stood there awkwardly. The whole show could have been done without him idc what anyone else has to say. (But i do love Captain so :D)

Good - Big Brother Goals!! For a side character, he makes an impression. I would have liked to see more of him in the series, gave me more of a story arc.

Nuclear and Menn - As much as I loved them, they're scenes just ate up time. Both of their storylines started and reached a dead end so quickly (within the span of one episode if I'm not mistaken). I liked how they were Love's support system @ Great Men, I am always for best friend content. But in all honesty, they were just...use them or lose them TBH.

Music? Could NOT get that theme song out of my head. It's so catchy, I hope it's on Spotify or something.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND you take the time to watch this series. It's way better than expected and the cast did a phenomenal job!! The ending could have gone either way and I would have been just fine.

Leia Mais

Well here in my country it was badly banned the episode 1, situation that really pissed me off. However, I whented into internet and found it. Is very important to see since the very beginning to understand the strong reason and determination of ´Love´, at the beginning to get close to her platonic love, then the warning of stay as a boy and finally the huge significantly decision to stay as she wanted to do not stay. Great Men Academy touches determination tu achieve what it's been a desire and to follow a dream that also can change and it will cause and introspection about goals and the acceptance of the unknown and to be true for the good.

Leia Mais

Unexpected Transgender Representation

To be very honest, I wasn't expecting a body-swap show to be accidentally(?) trans-friendly. The anxiety that Love portrayed whenever she has to rush to the lake every night, as well as her identity getting found out by the people closest to her is similar to the feelings of those who are still in the closet. Out of al the letters in the LGBT community, I feel like trans folks would relate a lot to the feelings of love in regards to her worries about her identity. A really great way to show non-trans folks how is it like living as a trans folk who is still in the closet juggling with their "double life".

This aside, the storyline is really cool. The school itself is so unique already, which makes me want to enroll there xD. The visual effects for the unicorn, the holograms, is just perfect. Games and activities in the show are also unique and never seen before. Really amazes me to see how everything played out.

Leia Mais

Not too sure on this one!

I did enjoy most of this.

The premise was good, the actors were all very good, but the series just fell short. I think this was not a strong bl, more like a friends disguised as a bl. There were a few too many characters, I think the story would have been stronger with a little less going on. Also, one of the main characters went back and forth, doing good, then bad things. I didn't feel like he was the type of person that would do the things he did, so it did not sit well with me. And strangely, I found myself wanting him to fall in love, so I was disappointed at the end. Maybe I took this series too seriously...lol

This series does not have a high rewatch value for me, but I watch most bl's at least once, as I come across them in various lists.

Leia Mais

This is a must watch series. Im not fan of a SciFi yet this series gives a unconditional effects that attracts the viewers. The plot itself gives several lessons about friends, love and family. There are some scene that hits the heart of the viewers. The actors are all good, they portray their characters very well. I can say that the producers did a good choice of cast, all are handsome and beautiful. If this series comes with another season, i must say i will watch it.
As suggestion, in case there is another season, can you back the character of Sean and Rose, I can say that they need some spotlight — such a good actor and actress.

Leia Mais

I was on board for its surprisingly quirky style and cheesy plot. The premise for this show was very intriguing. They greatly deviated from what I envisioned, though, and not to their credit. The writing was clumsy, cliche and consistently fell short of exciting. Down to what should have been the most thrilling scenes in the series, the competition itself, all action scenes were lacklustre, anticlimactic drags.

The acting is superior to the writing, particularly that of the leads Love as Played by James and Tangmo as played by Jaylerr. I'm amazed that James is the same actor who played Pat in Bad Genius. Total transformation. Paris as Vier was fluidly cool. Captain was, well, overacting but that's what I've come to know and love.

Leia Mais

Take aside the very important fact that this show is absolutely ignorant over transgenders/transexuals and lowering your expectations towards a very coherent story, this series is really fun. The acting is good, the scenarios are extremely beautiful and dreamy, and even some futile but still somewhat relevant aspects like the level of beauty of the cast, which is very high in comparison, all of this help you get into the universe of GMA.
The screenwriting is obviously the weakest link, the dialogues are pretty much okay, but be careful expecting something you should not. The story is deliberately dreamy and unrealistic, and you have to remember that every episode. Anyhow, the relationships feel very real and you might get caught rooting even for the supposed villains (Sean deserved better).

Leia Mais

I would start off by saying you need serious commitment to watch this show

first, I would like to say I did not like either of the main characters because love was basically a lost dog when it came to vier who treated her like trash

second, I hate how vier just realized he liked love after tangmo confessed and also how he used love for his own benefit

I was kind of hoping that none of them ended up with anyone or each other because I thought it would have been toxic but actually watching the end changed my mind I like the show but it was really disappointing and annoying

Leia Mais