High School Frenemy (2024)

Fights, Friendships, and Bromance Stuck in a Time Capsule

High School Frenemy is a refreshing Thai drama released this year, offering a mix of friendship dynamics, school life, and conflict resolution, all wrapped in a "troublemaker student" narrative. The show effectively balances its core friendship themes with moments of bromance, although the latter feels outdated and underdeveloped in today's context.

The drama's exploration of troubled youth and their relationships is commendable, but the bromance angle, while initially engaging, becomes off-putting due to its overly restrained portrayal. There are moments that clearly call for deeper romantic elements, but the show hesitates, giving the impression of a 2010-era production rather than a 2024 release. The chemistry between Shin and Saint holds potential and, if explored further, could elevate any future projects they undertake together.

While the storyline occasionally falls into predictable patterns, the characters' conflicts still provide a satisfying emotional payoff. Some situations feel exaggerated but are essential to the overall narrative. The fight scenes, integral to the plot, are decently executed, though still teetering on the edge of cringeworthy at times, they align with the premise and tone of the series.

One standout aspect is the character of Chatjen, who emerges as the glue holding the friendship and the story together. Without resorting to physical force, Chatjen's actions and quiet determination drive much of the plot. Seeing Mark take on this role after his performance in Only Friends is a treat; his acting versatility shines here.

The drama’s 12-episode format is a welcome change from the recent trend of shorter Thai BL series. However, the show suffers from unnecessary filler scenes, making some episodes feel drawn out, I found myself skipping nearly 40% of the content. Despite this, the series is still more engaging than recent releases like Sunset x Vibes and The Rebound, to name a few.

Overall, High School Frenemy is an enjoyable watch with a strong premise, albeit slightly bogged down by dated bromance tropes and cringe-worthy moments. Its solid plot and heartfelt exploration of friendship make it a worthwhile addition to this year’s Thai drama lineup.

Leia Mais

I expected more

The boring version of school 2013

I'm sure many would hate me for this but seriously as much as I wanted to love this, compared to the original this was so lame, and after giving it a few chances, I decided that this version isn't for me.
Now I loved school 2013 (k.ver.) so I somehow unintentionally kept comparing the two in the back of my head, and sadly I couldn't rule out for this version.
The characters are so tuned down, the bullies looks so softie and the bullied characters didn't gain my sympathy, the main thing I was excited for was Foei because I loved his character in the original series and wanted to see his interpretation for the character and somehow he did well enough to keep me watching most of it.
Now, is it a bad drama? No.
Is it unwatchable? Still no, but i had a hard time watching it, what helped big deal was the acting, and the flow of the story, and the fast pace, it manages to help me watch longer than I thought I would.
Still, it failed to keep my attention for a long time, I found myself zooming out while watching and this is probably the worst thing that can happen to me.
Generally not a bad series, compared to the original it's worse, but still watchable, the actors delivered and I would recommend it for the cast, but personally, and judging the drama as a whole I didn't like it very much.

Leia Mais

Delinquents with hearts of gold

I was browsing my favourite dramas (one of which is School 2013) here on MDL when I saw this remake.

I am not above admitting that I squealed (and proceeded to watch all the episodes released).

They made some changes to the original while keeping the most important parts. The change is just enough to make the story seem new to me, without straying too far from the core of the story. I also really like what they did about the class in order to add tension and conflict. (I do however sense that a bit of nuance from the characters have been removed, but I'll take it for what it is.)

The acting is top-notch (the guy who plays Shin? Brilliant. I somehow love Shin even more than in the original). The love-hate relationship is, so far well-executed (I'm at ep 4), especially due to the acting.

The feel of the show is gritty in a way I adore.

Note: you need to suspend some disbelief regarding head-injuries. Most of the characters would be badly concussed in ep 1 if it was entirely realistic. It does have great entertaiment value, no matter how over the top it might be.

Note: they made a character explicitly autistic and I actually quite appreciate the representation. The way the characters act towards this character is slightly infantilizing, the acting quite heavyhanded– BUT they are KIND towards him and welcome him as a treasured member of the friendgroup. And that is really heart-warming, I think, and actually made me feel good about my own autism.

Leia Mais

FAST PACED AND NEVER A DULL MOMENT

If you’re into action series like weak hero or any school setting this is the one. I went into it with little to no expectations BUT i saw sky in the poster and realized this was his first ever gmmtv series and knowing sky from his past series, that man can ACT. i was curious to see what the storyline would be bc sky hasn’t acted in dramas since 2019 my ambulance where he was the ml. then i saw the lineup of casts here and saw familiar faces like nani, kay, aj&jj, june, view, and the teachers maria and foei. story starts off very tense already from the beginning til the end. soundtrack is amazinggg and let’s not get started on the leads acting. we all knew sky would deliver as he is an ex nadao artist but nani, in the past years to me never stood out until this series. Maybe it’s bc he’s now the center of attention in the series but my eyes kept drawing to him. he has shown his skills have improved a lot since his first ever series and i’m so proud. he’s a very hardworking person and i’m glad this series gave him an opportunity to showcase his talents and allowed people to acknowledge him even more for his acting instead of his looks. must i say his short hair is so 🤤🤤🤤. anyways supporting actors are also incredible starting from kay. i knew he could act bc ive loved him since school 2015: who are you. surprisingly he’s in both remakes haha but he’s amazing. the other supporting characters rlly make the series as well, it wouldn’t feel complete without their stories. lastly soundtrack is on top. they chose the most fitting songs for the right occasions. anyways skynani are dominating gmmtv rn and im glad to see bc they deserve it! can’t wait for their upcoming projects together and can’t wait to see them continue to grow as artists :)) please give this a try!

Leia Mais

This is a really great series - I wasn't planning to watch it but was intrigued by SkyNani at the GMMTV 2025 conference, so I thought I would give it a try, I watched the episodes so quickly and couldn't stop watching because it was too good! It seems to be a remake of School 2013 but I have never watched that, so I can't make a comparison. But High School Frenemy is fantastic - almost gives me Weak Hero Class vibes as well, with the fighting and intense bromance. SkyNani have great chemistry here even if it is only a bromance. But I would definitely recommend this to someone if they wanted to start watching Thai Dramas. 10/10 from me. I really enjoyed this series so much - It may just be a bromance but the chemistry was so good both with SaintShin and SkyNani. SaintShin felt more than friends, but less than lovers, more like friends who like each other but will never tell each other. And it had a perfect ending -I'm happy SkyNani will continue acting together. Even if Wu isn't BL and will be bromance again, their chemistry is too good to go to waste. Nani really surprised me tbh with how cute and shy he is irl and how intimidating he is in this series, Nani became my new obsession lately because hes so cute If someone asked me what to watch to start watching Thai series, I will now suggest High School Frenemy. SkyNani got a new fan because of this great series.

Leia Mais

Amazing?

This is the first time I am leaving a review for any asian show in my whole life. The story line was so amazing. Bromance at its peak. Their chemistry was so so good and so real that everyone is rooting for them in real life too. Sky and Nani both are such amazing and great actors that took this series to a top level. Even all other supporting characters were amazing and their acting was great. Ken, the twins, Mark, the girls ,the teachers and yes our adorable chingching were very good. Loved this series to next level. I highly recommend to watch this. I hope we get to see SkyNani in more interesting dramas in the future.

Leia Mais

This dragged for what felt like an eternity

Let’s get spoilers out of the way first: this story is about two teen best friends who used to be in a gang, one wanted to leave to have a football career, the other didn’t want to let him go, so he gave him a “customary” beating, breaking a leg of his friend and ending his football dream. The perpetrator felt ashamed and vanished while the victim felt abandoned. 3 years later they meet again and – instead of clarifying things – begin a prolonged back and forth with the perpetrator wanting to apologize and the victim refusing to listen; they eventually reconcile, but by that time the show introduced several side plots which sidelined the main plot and the series can’t end before those side plots are concluded. At the end of the day we get whopping 16 episodes filled mainly with repetitive content (e.g. in ep. 1-6 Saint follows Shin and tries to talk to him, Shin doesn’t want to talk; they nevertheless kinda talk, but nothing comes out of that – no conclusion nor resolution – so Saint follows Shin… And this happens 2-3 times per episode) or side plot content – about various problems of Shin’s and Saint’s classmates. I admit I got tired of the main plot by ep. 3 and started watching the show on FFDW.

Some claim that this is actually a BL. I guess some people could get this impression as the show was produced by a company specializing in BLs, both main characters are male, young and attractive, and the show’s about their relationship. Others might believe that nonromantic love between males is impossible (hence it’s no “bromance” – it must be a BL) or that the supposed chemistry between Nani and Sky proves that their characters are more than friends. I strongly disagree with the above – and not just because there’s nothing in the story that would imply “High School Frenemy” to be something else than a “bromance”. It’s also the structure of the story. In most BLs (and love stories in general) story is about characters developing their relationship, going from strangers to a couple. This is a gross simplification, but – with a few exceptions – that’s how vast majority of BL are written. “High School Frenemy” is about two characters who already had a strong non-romantic relationship and want to rekindle it – which takes them most of the 16 episodes. I’m not saying forgiveness, healing and rekindling of a friendship are easy nor that they can be achieved quickly, but in case of this show it’s more than obvious that this process was treated as filler for as many episodes as possible. The aforementioned repetitiveness does not result from Shin and Saint needing a lot of time to reconcile (they actually do it in two scenes), but from the show needing content. There’s like 2 hours of actual story and content of the main plot and it could have been told in a concise and emotional way; it loses a lot of emotional weight due to being stretched over far too many episodes, with the few decent scenes getting drowned by constant repetition. The “give up what’s most important for you” thing in ep. 7 is a good example of what this show does to good concepts: it was supposed to display Saint’s sacrifice and importance of friendship, but was executed in a horrible way, ruined by awful dialogue (spelling out what Saint was giving up), poor delivery and dragging it over three utterly pointless scenes, making it lose all emotional charge.

As for subplots, I feel all save one were shoehorned as additional filler. Sure, when you have a school/classroom setting for a story (regardless what the story is about), you need people to appear in the background – as students, teachers, administration etc. What I don’t get is why any of them needed their own small story, which was unrelated (or very loosely related) to the main story.

Ken’s subplot, the only one somewhat connected to the main plot, was stretched just as unnecessarily as the main plot. This had several consequences – we got tons of pointless violence (apparently one fight scene wasn’t enough to illustrate the problem) before characters were allowed to realize that it serves no purpose: neither side could “win”, asserting permanent domination, and even if “winning” was possible – it wouldn’t change much (they would still be students at a high school). Furthermore the show presented school violence (and violence in general) as something ordinary, an element of everyday life – normalizing it. Violence and danger are so common, that the stakes are oddly low: we get a solid beating every other episode, yet it ends with a few bruises, no apologies and no punishments.

The school setting makes sense – but only when viewed from a distance. As someone who does not require full realism I can say that too many things felt nonsensical and were written like that because of plot (and not realism or relatability); I listed some examples of that below.
1/ Teachers (not just Jan and Sung) had no idea what they’re supposed to do, imposing “clever” punishments to force students to think (punishments that no school in the civilized world would dare to apply). The method of tricking someone to change their behavior or mind was also used on one of the teachers.
2/ The principal was unhinged, throwing tantrums and switching between having bright ideas and going hard on students, between being bent on expelling an innocent student and overlooking those that are responsible and applying collective responsibility.
3/ The exam cheating issue was presented in a crude and heavy-handed way, plagued with banal statements by Jan and Sung (which were, of course, made sound like something profound and important). Jan punishing herself/forcing students to “punish” her for them cheating during the exam was pure cringe.
4/ School bullies who associate themselves with criminals were scared of a teacher quoting penal law and threatening to tell their parents about what they do. Were they naughty teens, who can be kept in line by teachers, afraid of getting expelled, or delinquents who don’t care about graduating or their parents finding out that they’re bullies? Which is it – cause it can’t be both, and the show sure wanted it to be.
5/ During the “investigation” into cases of violence (in ep. 6-7) nobody remembered the brawl which resulted in Chatjen throwing a chair through a window nor about the one class member who was recording all the school fights for “content”. And how come virtually all the surveys from class 2 incriminated Shin – did Saint, Chatjen, First, Thiu and Cable accuse Shin of being a violent troublemaker in their surveys?

A few words need to be said about the cast. Most performances are either weak or unimpressive – this includes what both Maria and Foei bring to the screen. Nani’s delivery is pretentious and annoying in nearly every scene, while Sky is stiff and wooden; in all “emotional” scenes he’s reciting lines like an automaton and gets better only during the very few “friendly banter” scenes he shares with Nani. Neither of them can act and they have little chemistry (although these two things are not related – there are many couples and ships with no acting skills, but with good chemistry), with just a few better scenes in later episodes, when Saint and Shin reconcile. The single good performance of the series comes from Mark Pakin – the only actual actor in the cast. I did, however, enjoy Winny’s guest appearance, while Marc Natarit was surprisingly convincing in his little role.

I enjoyed some of the music used in the series. The opening theme by “Kong” Jaithep Raroengjai is very good and I was upset upon finding out that it’s only 1:08 minutes long (no “full version” or longer version is available).

Leia Mais

THE BROMANCE WE ALL NEED !!

So first things first ...
Is this a bromance /BL????
Let me just clear this up once and for all .
1.The main characters have confessed their love to each other more than most BLs I've seen 😅.
2.They have more chemistry than most BL couples out there.
Idk which bromance has so many cheesy confessions 🤣

Reasons to watch
1.the electrifying chemistry b/w the main leads ⚡
2.the amazing script and the supporting crew
3.incredible OST
4.Lovable charcters with great backstory .almost all supporting characters have a good storyline and charcter development .
5.great action packed scenes with realistic stunt performances.
6.SkyNani
7.SkyNani
8.SkyNani
9.SkyNani
10.SkyNani

Reasons to skip
1.hate having a good time
2.don't enjoy great dramas

Just go and watch this masterpiece and thank me later.
Imina SkyNani ❤

Leia Mais

BOYS WILL BE BOYS

Guys for CRYING OUT LOUD I guess we should really check out HIGH SCHOOL FRENEMY.

Two stubborn guys,
They fight like a divorced couple,
Make it look like one hell of a Romantic betrayal I can't possibly resist the urge of SHIPPING these guys and trust me you won't.

It feels pretty much like a queerbaiting show,
We have two Tops, sure the fighting gets intense, somehow annoying, 99.9% nonsensical but you're gonna pray to see these guys in a BL after seeing them going through the CAT AND MOUSE phase to the HARD TO GET LEVEL.

Never thought that a "PLATONIC UNBROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP WOULD GIVE ME THESE MANY BUTTERFLIES. LOL" 😘

Leia Mais

A Gripping Tale of Friendship, Rivalry, and Redemption

Watching High School Frenemy was a refreshing experience for me, as it offered a unique mix of high school nostalgia, complex friendships, and the dynamics of rivalry. The premise of two rival school campuses merging, with former best friends Saint and Shin forced into the same environment, immediately drew me in. The series does a great job depicting how teenage tensions, misunderstandings, and past grudges can evolve and affect relationships over time. The tension between the characters feels real, and I found myself rooting for reconciliation, which added depth to the story and kept me engaged.

One of the highlights for me was how the show dealt with themes of loyalty, personal growth, and forgiveness. The strained friendship between Saint and Shin, and the reasons behind their animosity, made me reflect on how misunderstandings can often lead to deep rifts. Watching their journey reminded me of friendships I've experienced where small miscommunications led to bigger conflicts, which took time and effort to mend. This relatability is one of the series’ strengths, drawing viewers into the characters' emotional journeys.

Overall, High School Frenemy is a compelling series with strong performances and engaging storylines. Its focus on friendship, rivalry, and self-discovery made it an enjoyable watch. The show goes beyond typical high school drama, highlighting the importance of empathy and understanding in repairing damaged relationships. For anyone who enjoys youth dramas that go beyond surface-level plots, High School Frenemy is well worth watching.

Leia Mais

Beautiful delinquents

After being disappointed by other recent series with insanely high ratings I was a little scared to start this one but, boy I'm glad I did.

I started yesterday and within the first 5 minutes I already knew I was going to like it. I'm 7 episodes in and I might sacrifice sleep tonight because I can't stop, I need to know more.

I assume that at some point Shin is going to forgive Saint and I'll be happy when he does but , If he doesn't Wouldn't be mad, it wasn't a misunderstanding or a mistake nor was he forced to do it, He did it because He want it to because He is that selfish and although He shows remorse and seems to really love Shin, Does he really deserve forgiveness?We'll see...

Also it says Bromance, but, Aren't all bromances just a little bit gay?

Did I end the first half of my review by saying that this was a bromance with a little gay in it??
Because no it is not it love 100% without any doubts these two boys are madly in love with each other and it's so satisfying to watch.

"I'm not mad at you because you broke my leg, I'm hurt because you chose to walk away"...just one of my favorite lines in this show.

Beautiful delinquents is what I chose to name tittle this review, because it's the first impression I got, it's a school full of troubled kids all of them ridiculously good looking it reminded me of when I was 13-14 and turned on the tv to watch Dawson's creek and Buffy (yes I am that old). And it's that nostalgia that first got to me but then I stayed for the story, The characters are all so good I fell in love with all of them.

I watched all 16 episodes without skipping anything, eyes glued to the screen with a big smile on my face.

The only reason I am not giving this show a 10/10 review is because it dragged a bit towards the middle, they kept having the same fight over and over between Shin and Saint, same discussion same outcome every time, insteadbof that I would've preferred to see more of the supporting characters as I said they were all so good, the actors did an amazing job so it's a shame that they didn't get enough screen time. Also we're told that Saint used to be this vicious bully but aside from that one flashback we really didn't get to see him be that horrible person, I would've liked to see a bit more of that in the past to contrast to this sweet puppy faced dummy that we're seeing in the present.

The twins shone here it's the best I've seen of them up until now and I would absolutely love in the future to see either one of them, but preferably both play a main antagonist like the big bad irredeemable people that we can't help Bute hate. I am a 100% sure they would nail a part like that.

In conclusion this show is absolutely amazing I loved it and I would recommend it to people and I will rewatch a bunch of times.

Leia Mais

The SkyNani Effect

Let’s begin by saying that I’ve never watched the original Korean series and solely started binge-watching this after falling in love with several SkyNani edits on social media. And now I understand the hype and became obsessed with their whatevership. This is a bromance with a silent ‘b’.

When we get into the drama’s plot, we have several: tension, character development, bonding, lessons, and, most importantly, love confessions. This show gives me butterflies more than other BLs that aired last year. Saint and Shin are like a broken couple that reconciled and defines that love is sweeter the second time around. Sky showcases how years of experience hone him as an actor. There’s no doubt that he is the main character here, alongside Nani, who also carries out an outstanding performance. Their chemistry is top-notch!

Of course, the success of the series will never be complete without the excellent roles of each of the cast. Everyone nailed their characters. Mark Pakin is also the MVP as he portrayed Chadjen in the most realistic way possible. As a fan of South Korea’s school series (from 2015-latest), the primary goal of their shows is to convey to its audience the heartwarming youthful life of the students. Which, this remake version delivered it with a gratifying overall quality.

Most of us, the viewers, are students once in our life. I know that at some point, we can relate to the story. Personally, during my high school years, school is my home of peace. I will never make it without the friends that I shared joy and laughter with. Teenagers are too young to know everything and the best way to survive is by surrounding yourself with the right people. High School Fremeny is that school-based GMMTV drama that allows me to indulge in the nostalgic feeling of being a student once again.

To Saint and Shin, thank you for the beautiful story of your “friendship.”

Leia Mais