The Shipper (2020)

The Most Unpredictable Show I Watched.

Story / Plot and Cast: The Shipper is the most unpredictable show I have ever watched. The show is one of its kind, and only comparable to itself.

Kim played a “double role” in this show. Before the car crash, he played himself. After that, Kim’s soul was probably still in heaven (?) and so any conscious Kim afterwards is expected to have the soul of Pan. I must say that his acting is excellent. He can be very “normal” and then shout at Khett. Throughout the 11th episode, I find it difficult to determine if the Kim is really Kim or Pan. The actor of Kim, First Kanaphan, is eye-catching.

Pan has, technically, not a lot of screentime. But her “soul” played a large part in the progression of the story. Some mentioned the issue of making decisions for Kim when Pan is still inside his body. It can only be said that if things do happen in real life like this, the person indeed has no choice but to decide for the displaced soul for practical reasons. Pan is played by a very talented actress, Prigkhing Sureeyares, which gave the character her own style.

Khett is also another interesting character. He is not directly involved in the soul-swapping exercise. However, he is still closely related. Khett is the younger brother of Kim, and he also has a crush on Pan. Obviously, he has quite a smart personality in this show, as we can see he tried to test (at the beginning) if the Kim is real Kim. I probably don’t need to mention that Ohm Pawat played Khett, as many would have known him from previous shows.

Way has questionable chemistry with Kim. Don’t get me wrong - he is good. I think the chemistry between them is just a bit lacking. Nonetheless, the conversation between Way and “Kim” (and probably Kim, too) does teach something to us. I have to also point out that Way has so little chemistry with Phingphing that they don’t look like they are together! I don’t know if this is supposed to be good or bad for the audience and shippers. With all due respect, the actor of Way (Fluke Pusit) may have to add more facial expressions to make the whole thing less monotonous.

Why do I say this show is unpredictable? There are several major twists. First, Khett is “suddenly” known to be the brother of Kim (Pan does not know this before). Then, Pan discovered, as Kim, that Kim held copies of the exam papers and so suspected that Kim has been cheating to get a good result. This is only partly explained near the end of the show (to help Way to get a better result). (The real Kim never got the chance to explain, too bad.) In the middle, several unusual ships happened like Soda said Khett might have a crush on “Kim”, “Kim” trying to scare off Soda but ended up making Soda like Kim, the previous relationship of the teacher and Kim (not “Kim”). Also, Pan’s soul returned to her body accidentally for once, and then returned to Kim’s body intentionally (when Off, Khett and Way were fighting). The second time she wants to return, it failed. There is still no plausible reason for why the first time succeeded but the second time failed. The end of the 10th episode focused on the motorcycle for no reason. Unfortunately, the motorcycle seems to mean nothing. Of course, the most unpredictable of all is probably the fact that Kim is actually dead.

I am not sure if this is a “happy ending”, but at least it conveyed several messages. For example, the real Kim seems to be much stressed. Someone in the comment pointed out that the soul of Kim probably doesn’t want to live, because Kim stepped forward first when the Death Angel told them to come forward, etc. There is, of course, also no explanation given for this.

Music: The opening theme of the show is a cute, adorable song. The song is แคร์ไกลไกล (Care from Faraway) by La Ong Fong. The ending theme is a moving song with a strong beat. The song is ฉันเป็นของเธอทุกวัน (I am Yours Every Day) by Ford Arun.

Overall, the show will be remembered for its unpredictability.

Leia Mais

Not bad, but the ending isn't going to please everyone

Verdict after watching the entire series:

When the series started, everyone was kept wondering if the series would be BL or have a true BL element. By the end of the series, the answer is halfway between a yes and a no.

So the Way/Kim ship really did materialise in the sense that they do turn out to have affections for each other. However, in a modification of the body swap concept, Kim does not really swap bodies with Pan--it's Pan switching between two bodies, and Kim has actually died. Like the characters, we realise in retrospect that Way and Kim do love each other, but nothing really comes out of this because Kim has died.

To be sure, the ending isn't exactly Make-Our-Days-Count sort of awful, it still doesn't sit that well in a series that has spent most episodes being really fun and lighthearted. To its credit, the ending doesn't is not made to seem all that sad, but it is not really a great twist that Kim is actually supposed to die from the start. Also, everything about his affection for Way is inferred by his past actions, and we don't get to see Kim expressing his love for Way. (Couldn't there have been a couple of flashbacks to the time before Kim dies? E.g. how about a flashback to the time he booked the air tickets and wrote #waykimforever on them?)

Yes, I do get it that there is supposedly some deeper message about treasuring today (not unlike MODC), but is this really the sort of message that will be delivered with impact in this series? In the end, the most interesting thing I can imagine the series doing is to make fun of such messages, like how it good-naturedly makes fun of (or at least have fun with) concepts like body-swapping, BL shipping, etc.

The BL element aside, the Pan/Khet story is cute, with Ohm delivering a show-stealing performance as Khet despite not having exactly a meaty role to play. Khet is the most consistent and believable character in the series whereas something doesn't quite add up with the character of Kim despite all the interesting twists.

I actually think the series has the potential to be a classic if it has a better ending. Even if it turns out that Kim's soul has been trapped somewhere and only returns to his body at the last minute, it will be better than the somewhat affected delivering of some "deep message". I see speculations that there could be a Season 2 with Kim not dying--who knows? It would be hard because Kim's body is either buried or cremated since there's a funeral for him. A further twist is likely to stretch the limits of believability too much or invalidate the good ending for Pan/Khet. (But if you see my comments for Episodes 10-12 below, you will notice that the series does tease us with the possibility of a Season 2.)

Comments after Watching Episodes 1-3

Pan fantasizes and writes BL about her seniors, Way and Kim. Way has a girlfriend PhingPhing, but Pan (as well as her friend, Soda) doesn't care.

I have never watched a series with so many possible ships starting from the first episode. (This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it will likely prevent the series from being good BL if it even turns out to have actual BL relationships, so hardcore BL fans may not want to watch it so quickly.)

There is, of course, the ship of Pan and Soda's fantasies: Way and Kim. Despite the fact that Way has a girlfriend, it is not impossible. (We know how it goes in BL--even two apparently straight guys can fall in love.) There is an undeniably close bond between them: Kim (a star student) threatens to quit school if Way is expelled, Way hugs Kim in concern after an accident, and Kim is conspicuously chill when Pan tells him that she has been shipping him with way. Kim guesses correctly that Pan likes Way very soon after meeting her--perhaps they connect because they have something in common: they like Way and want him to be with someone worthy of him.

But if Way and Kim don't turn out to be a real ship, there are other possibilities:
1. Pan and Khet (her classmate, who happens to be Kim's younger brother): Khet is clearly very concerned about Pan.
2. Pan and Kim: the way Pan holds on to him during the bike ride, and the way Kim treats her gently is a hint.
3. Pan and Way: Pan admits to liking way though she fantasizes about Way and Kim.
4. The series even goes to the extent of having a teasing moments between Kim and Khet. They are supposed to be brothers, but Kim doesn't talk to Khet. It is unlikely, but they could well turn out to be those "brothers" who have entirely different biological parents (think: My Bromance).

In fact, Way and PhingPhing, the only real couple so far, appears likely to break up because PhingPhing is a pretentious and awful bitch (and we know how that usually goes).

BL fans who can't take BL baiting should remember that the title of the series is The Shipper, which most likely refers to Pan. If she is the focal point, its likely that her relationships will be the focus. On the other hand, Pan seems to be spending so much time in Kim's body that the actress for Pan seems to be playing a much more minor role. For better or for worse, what GMMTV has done very well so far is to tease and keep us guessing.

Nevertheless, what I really like so far is Ohm as Khet. Ohm seems to have the ability to play intriguing characters who are not the focal main characters but still steal the show from everyone else. Khet's relationships with Pan and his relationship with Kim are rather intriguing. By the end of Episode 3, I'm more interested in Khet than in Kim and Pan (we see mostly Pan in Kim's body) and even Way (too little is revealed about way so far, but this is likely to improve).

Comments after Watching Episodes 4-8
The series keeps teasing us with more possible ships, including Pan/Soda and even Khet/Way. But the ones we really want to take seriously are probably Pan/Khet (rather than Pan/Way) and Way/Kim.

The number of possible ships is either the most exhilarating thing or the most frustrating thing. Perhaps both--the series is light and funny, but it's probably not the greatest love story ever.

One twist that is keeping everyone in suspense is the revelation that Kim to be a terrible person (secretly dating a teacher and stealing exam questions through her). Is he really such a bad person? The unfortunate thing is there is not enough of First as Kim. Pan is no doubt the main character, but First gets the important role of Pan in Kim's body.

Ohm continues to shine in the episodes.

Comments after Watching Episode 9
The Way/Kim ship seems to be sailing, though it might well be a false start. It's entirely possible that Kim doesn't turn out to be a terrible person and the Kim/Way ship works out together with the Pan/Khet ship, but who knows?

I'm not going to like it too much if Khet falls in love with someone else because if anyone is in love from the start, it's him. If he doesn't end up with Pan, it will be sad. If he falls in love with someone else, it will seem out of character.

(Irrelevant: Episode 9 is also the episode in which everyone can get jealous of the Angel of Death who gets to kiss Ohm.)

Comments after Watching Episode 10-12
Watchable, but Episode 12 is somewhat disappointing, not least because Kim does not have a chance to come back to life. The "deeper messages" that the series supposedly conveys are undermined by the story itself. If we are meant to understand that reality is different from fiction, why do Pan and Soda continue writing (by all appearances happy) BL fiction to console Way? If happy BL fiction serves a function, why not give the series a happy BL ending too?

One way to get past this is to understand that the series isn't even trying to convey these deeper messages but is simply making fun of shows with such messages. After all, quite characteristically, Episode 12 teases us right at the end with a very brief scene (after the closing credits) of Kim in the spiritual world and a voice (God?) speaking to him. This is most obviously a way of suggesting a Season 2 and the possibility a different ending for Way/Kim. There's no indication of which part of the chronology of The Shipper this brief scene is supposed to belong to, however. I recall Way making a wish for Pan in church, asking Kim to help Pan by making a heads-or-tails bet with a coin. The coin magically flips: is it Kim blessing Pan from the other world or is it a conspicuously absent God doing something to help?

Leia Mais

The Shipper worth to watch but not to rewatch

You'll know why it's not worth to rewatch if you'll watch the whole series, its not because it's bad, just go watch it for you to find out. The Shipper is a good series, at first it was a chill, comedic series but then it went ~ didn't expect the ending though :'( but still love it. The cast's acting was fine although sometimes the girls made me cringe but overall it's all bearable to watch. P'Jennie's character was iconic, I love her. Also First, he was really the reason why I watched it and second is Ohm. I love their chemistry but then there character's relationship is a bit complicated. WayKim really deserved more, I'm sad.

Leia Mais

what a delightful surprise! (no spoilers)

When I started watching this series I wasn't expecting anything big, I thought it was just a silly series (witch wouldn't be a problem since I enjoy silly series) but it wasn't. it was that and SO SO much more! The more I watched the more I got invested in the story and in the characters!
If your a BL fan or a hopeless romantic it'll be very easy to identify with Pan and Soda and they're view of Way and Kim. All the main characters are very well written (maybe at the start you might find them a bit 1 dimensional but as the series goes on you get a glimpse of they're lives and are given a chance to connect very well with them)
The plot is just amazing, you get to find out secrets, explore the fictional world, see the characters get into funny misunderstandings and catch feelings up until the very end (It doesn't get boring). Also, switching body's with one of your ships? how crazy is that?? Anything could happen, there is no way to guess what's going to happen next because this is not like any other switching body's series you've ever seen!
I 100% recommend this series, its so funny, heartwarming and just everything! This is without doubt the best thai series I have ever watched :) And the acting is actually really good! (I'm sorry to say this but the acting in most thai series is not very good... not the case here!)

Leia Mais

Best series of 2020

Because this series has really surprised me in a positive way, I wanted to write a short review for everyone who isn't sure if they should watch it or not. My answer is a definite YES!
When this series started, like many others, I wasn't sure what to expect from it. I usually only watch BL series and didn't know if this was going to be BL or not. The first episode seemed a little cheesy to me, but luckily I kept watching and as the story advanced I couldn't care less if it was BL or not anymore, because I began to like the story for what it was.

The Shipper has a very well written story. Every episode is exiting, surprising and unpredictable. It plays with your expectations which makes it a lot of fun to watch and never get boring.
The acting, as far as I can judge that, was also superb. I especially liked First's acting, because he managed to believably portray a girl in a boy's body. Fluke's acting also stood out to me, but maybe just because he was so cute in the series. Overall I couldn't name a single actor who didn't do a great job in this!
I would definitely rewatch this series as I want to know how many new things I'll notice now that I know the outcome of the whole story!

Leia Mais

A pleasant surprise

I was not expecting much from this, honestly. It initially seemed like a silly, over-the-top comedy show with immature, high-school characters. But The Shipper is so much better!

- First of all, great production value! The budget seemed to be quite high, the product placement wasn't too aggressive. The series had good cinematography, a varied setting and a really wonderful soundtrack. The work of the film editors was particularly noteworthy, creating many surprising moments with a clever use of flashbacks and jump cuts.
- The series provided us with a wide range of characters: the inconspicuous nice guy, the mean girl gang, the involuntary bad boy, the perfect student with secrets and the two naive shipper-best friends. The actors portrayed them well. I obviously have a soft spot for Ohm Pawat, and he did not disappoint; even his age didn't seem too far-off for a high schooler, which is mindblowing, actually. Little details in the various relationships shown really made this series above-average. The mean girls writing about each other in various chat groups were hilarious, for example. Adults were not very present, but especially Pan's uncle had some very touching moments. Oh, and the Angel of Death was pure comedy gold, thanks to Jennie!
- After the first few episodes, the character development got (in most cases) surprisingly deep, sometimes in sharp contrast with the overall comedy. We learned about a difficult siblings relationship, about strong bonds of friendship, about unexpected first loves, and about parental pressure. The whole yaoi phenomenon wasn't as present as the title would have suggested, but it was used well to portray the girls' naivete when it came to love. And I loved the audacious gender-bender concept, making all kinds of relationships between the characters possible, disregarding gender stereotypes. I am a little mad however that they went with a male love-interest for Soda in the end.
- I will end with some critique. Generally speaking, the series didn't always get the tone right. By that I mean that over-the-top comedy and very serious issues (sexual misconduct, violence, death) were sometimes clashing too harshly. Leaving the boys' locker room porn crime at the beginning largely uncommented was a very bad move. The Angel of Death's role sometimes ridiculed the concept of death in itself, which is questionable, since this touches upon the very dignity of human life. And storywise it was certainly surprising that Kim was actually dead the whole time, but it ultimately made a lot of the story appear pointless. I appreciate that they tried to fix that problem with the post-credit scene though, maybe we will get a second season (I certainly wouldn't mind)!

If you are looking for a hilarious comedy with great characters, a surprising story and enough emotional depth, this is a total recommendation! Once again a female director saves the day.

Leia Mais

this is actually amazing !!!

STORY- okay when I first watched the trailer and read the synopsis I wasn't planning on watching it, but I wanted to see if it was actually bad and wow its good. Like the idea is so weird but it works for some reason.

ACTING- I mean the acting is really good (side note I love the teacher for some reason), but nobody had been wowing me besides Fluke who portrayed both characters well, and I feel like whatever character Ohm portrays he does a great job.

MUSIC- I mean no comment I did not notice it at all.

REWATCH VALUES- YESYESYES! I am definitely gonna rewatch this, I like how different it is.

OVERALL- If you like thai dramas/ BLs you should give this a try because it is better than you think it is.

Leia Mais

Do Not Go Into This Expecting A BL. It Isn't One.

The title of the show is "The Shipper." Using what you know about titles, it can be assumed that the main focus will be the shipper, Pan. Thus, Way and Kim (the shipped) are still important, but Pan is more important for the story.

Acting: The acting is really good and it comes to no surprise since it has Ohm, First, Prigkhing, Jennie, etc. I would really love to applaud First for being able to act as Kim AND act as Pan exactly how Prigkhing would. The transition between Pan being played by Prigkhing and Pan being played by First is seamless. I had never seen Fluke act before and WOW he's really amazing, especially at crying.

Story: I'm gonna make a separate section about the ending so we'll just ignore it for now. But this show made an otherwise boring concept interesting. I hate body-swapping, but in this show, it just felt so nice and natural. The synopsis makes this show seem to be some weird fetishizer's wet dream, but it isn't at all. This show does really well at showing how shipping real people can be taken too far and the consequences that could happen when it does. The weird incest-feeling moments are eh~~~, but thankfully they don't last long.

Ending: Did I expect Kim to die? No. Did I want him to die? No. Am I angry he died? No. I'm okay that he died. I loved the ending surprisingly. Maybe that's because I had felt that the show was not as happy as it tried to seem. Some people in the comments of this page felt that Pan should've "been the ultimate shipper and sacrificed herself for Kim," but this would've gone against the main lesson of the show: "Everyone deserves to search for happiness." Kim himself even says in the show that Pan deserves to be happy just as much as they do. It also would cancel out the wonderful message of shipping gone too far. Yes, the straight couple gets a happy ending while the gay couple "doesn't" but that doesn't erase WayKim's feelings for each other at all. Just like Kim told Way, even though they are far from each other, they still love each other and that shows how strong their love is. Do some aspects of Kim dying make sense? No, but I'm not too bothered by it.

I would like to end this by saying, if you're unsure of if you want to watch, try to make it to episode five. If you don't like it by then, drop it. If you're coming because you wanna see boys kiss, go somewhere else. I find this show to be worth it, I hope you do too.

Leia Mais

How I Would Rewrite This Story:

So I will be spoiling the basic plot of the story and then make suggestions for how to better this drama. First though, I do want to say that I overall didn't dislike this drama. I laughed a lot. I think though that this drama was heavily marketed as a BL drama when in reality it's about the BL Shipper Pan and her coming to terms with how her shipping Way and Kim stops her from realizing that there was true love right next to her all along. So, this story is pretty much a straight story with some BL themes.

There was also that really awkward incestuous kiss where Pan, as Kim, kisses Khett, who is Kim's brother. We know that it's Pan kissing Khett, but still in the context of the bodies, it was a bit awkward to watch.

Plot Summary: Two girls, Pan and Soda, love shipping two boys, Kim and Way who attend their school. They write fanfictions about the boys and romanticize the relationship that the two may have. Then, Pan and Kim get into a vehicle accident. They both are in limbo. The angel of death says that she made a mistake and vows to send them both back. Pan gets sent back, but she wakes up in Kim's body. While living as Kim, she decides to help develop Kim and Way's relationship. Eventually, we find out Kim actually died, and Pan needs to decide whether to live the rest of her life as Kim or herself. She chooses to live as herself, and finds love with Khett in the process.

What I would change: I like body switching stories. I think they up until the part where they go to limbo was executed just fine. I think they should have both been brought back, bodies switched. It would have given the plot more to work with. While Pan is busy acting like Kim, she learns that Kim and Khett are brothers (this is already part of the story), but her purpose for learning it now is to help them repair their relationship, because Khett never discovers that Pan is in Kim's body. Instead, they play their parts well.

Pan in Kim's body spends more time with Way. At first, she's determined to make it happen even though there was implication that Way actually has unspoken feelings for Kim. By wanting the relationship to work, and by reading journals that Kim wrote, she helps them grow their relationship.

Kim in Pan's body realizes by speaking with Khett, how Khett truly feels about him. He regrets always ignoring Khett and by bonding with Khett. When he returns to his body at the end, he learns how to demonstrate to Khett that he does care about him a lot. He also picks up that Khett likes Pan a lot, so he helps nudge their relationship along at the end.

Of course throughout the drama, there would be a lot of tomfoolery because Kim being in a woman's body, and Pan being in a man's body of course would lead to funny interactions and awkwardness between the two. But those would be funny themes explored in the drama.

The overarching theme in this story though would be that after switching bodies, they learn things about each other, and help both grow as characters and come to their true self. Kim opening up about his sexuality and reuniting with his brother, and Pan discovering that she loves Khett.

Leia Mais

Had it Funny moments

It did have some funny moments to it, but nothing to brag about.

I am 50/50 on this drama, as I only picked up because of Ohm.

The story was your normal basic, school girl with no self confidence in herself, protective boy and bullies. an angle of death mistake and switching of bodies. there was a whole lot going on in this drama, but the funny moments made up for the mess i think it was. The cinematography. The acting. The writing. The music. From a thoroughly dispassionate standpoint, Kim's death was really unnecessary in my eyes. I think it could have been handled differently.

Although seeing OffGun made me happy and seeing Ohm dance in the credits made me smile I don't think these two things are enough to save the rest of the episode.

Overall: This drama had way too many mixed signals and not enough of a good message in it.

Leia Mais

Overused, annoying trope in the story

Alert - spoilers ahead:

The reason I scored this otherwise fun and well-produced series quite low is the annoying "Bury Your Gays" trope - while the general tone of story is light (so, you wouldn't suspect there's a tragedy looming ahead) and the straight couple goes on to live happily ever after, somehow the gay couple does not. It was already an outdated tactic back when Western media often employed this trope, 10-20 years ago, so it definitely shouldn't be adopted into Asian media now.

While sometimes a bit corny, the acting is overall good and the actors chosen portray their characters well. The transitions between the two actors which play Pan are very smooth.

Leia Mais

Loved it but low key grossed out

Story
The base plot is good. Like the whole body switching thing was great. However the ending wasn't my favorite. The whole thing that the brothers had was weird. I don't like it.

Acting/Cast
Now while the story was not it First's acting was amazing!!!!! His crying scenes and how he portrayed a girl was great. It was amazing. I hope to see him getting another lead role soon. Everyone else was good but his stood out to me.

Music
I listen to the OST on replay it is such a fun little song.

Overall
Great!! A little confusing at first but otherwise I loved it!!! Go watch it.

Leia Mais