tl;dr: JoongDunk chemistry elevates this underwritten and troubled show – it was their dynamic which made me watch all 12 episodes.
Acting
Joong’s acting may not always be on point, but he was still superior to the rest of the cast. Dunk did his homework in this department too; his abilities are still limited, but he was nonetheless able to portray a new character, different from “Star in My Mind”. Both actors give their characters qualities some would attribute to the actors themselves: Joong’s Joke is effortlessly cool and nonchalant, but also caring and a tad clingy, while Dunk’s Zo poses as timid and withdrawn, while being perfectly able to stand his ground. Also, they get intimate quite often and seem very comfortable about it; no forced, non-consensual nor awkward kisses here!
Script
My overall reception of the show suffered due to weaknesses of the script.
My biggest complaint regarding the show is that it feels messy, but also bland, lukewarm, at times even boring. It’s not hot nor cold, it leaves you with a “meh” feeling. No idea how this was accomplished, as the script includes two plots to win someone over involving the main characters, a stalker pestering one of the main characters to get back at the other main character, strained relationships with a demanding parent, a past heartbreak, a side couple with their own problems and drama etc. etc. The content is clearly there – but it doesn’t translate to a captivating story.
As with many other BL’s this one doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be about. Is it a rom-com? A coming of age story? Family drama? Thriller (see the stalker episode)? You can include elements of all of those in a show, but you have to be smart about it – otherwise you’ll get a tonal mess. "Hidden Agenda” has this problem – it’s all over the place.
Hard to say what the titular “Hidden Agenda” really was/was supposed to be. Was it Zo’s attempt to win Nita over? Joke’s attempt to get Zo? BTW: depending on how you judge Joke’s motives and actions (and some reactors claimed that Joke didn’t do anything wrong – any normal person would act in a similar way) the hidden agenda may not exist; even if it does, it’s not important enough to have the show named after it. Spoiler warning: both the initial trailer and the official trailer are misleading, as the whole “Joke helps Zo to get Nita in order to get Zo” gets resolved in something like 3 episodes; the rest is about a variety of other issues, like family, ambition, friendship, competition, communication and so on.
The script introduces several important issues, like Zo’s relationship with his mother and Joke’s with his father, pretty late in the show. Since both issues seem to be late additions they do not appear to be important. It’s a shame we didn’t get more of both these storylines in earlier episodes. This would allow them to grow naturally, would explain more of Joke’s and – more importantly – Zo’s backstory and motivation, would show Zo and Joke as more than just students in love. Balancing every important aspect of the story, introducing them in the right moment, giving them more time to breathe – all of that would greatly improve the show.
Pacing
Pacing is generally okay and helps the show; only ep. 2 felt redundant (the “Joke gets into Zo’s club” storyline could have been a subplot in a different episode or be omitted entirely – have Joke be a club member when the show starts).
Cast
The support/secondary couple (Aou’s Jeng and Boom’s Pok) felt unnecessary. With only a handful of scenes (I think it was less than 1 per episode) we didn’t really get a storyline with them; it’s not clear to me what was their purpose in the show.
Same can be said about several other characters. Only Nita, Pat, Joke’s grandma and father as well as Zo’s parents do things that make the story progress. I loved to see Pod, Guy, Arm and AJ, but they were heavily underused and their characters didn’t have much to do.
Music
Both songs (“Hidden Agenda” and “Your Smile”) were decent, with nice MVs. Joong sings a bit in this show and he’s rather good at it. I enjoyed most of the background and ambient music used in the show, both the subtle emotional vibes and the cool electropop used to good effect throughout the series.
Favorite scene
I wanted to end my review with something good from the show. It has its moments – I enjoyed most scenes with Joke and Zo as a couple and plenty of other things (like Joke’s grandma – she’s a treasure), but the grand prize has to go to the finale of ep. 9. It actually moved me to tears. Joong’s delivery – quiet, but deeply emotional – was nearly perfect. Dunk remaining silent for the whole scene and non-verbally expressing Zo’s doubt, hesitation, sadness and how moved he was – great. To top it all the scene was shot in a very smart way, with Joke and Zo in the same room, but staying apart, with Zo packing his things and Joke trying to bridge a gap between them in one last attempt. That scene alone let us glimpse what this show might have been – and that JoongDunk can do magic. Would love to see them again in a BL as the main couple – this time with a good script.