To start off, I'm not disappointed with this series because of the "slow burn" because I slurp that shit up like butter.

I'm disappointed, because even it did have SOME good qualities, it's overwhelmingly underwhelming and inconsistent. Especially with the directing.

Just a little sad that this series was so promising based the trailer and the pilot series. And at first it did live up to its name. They took steps to make the office setting and dynamics as realistic as they possibly could with the limited budget. And they did SO right with getting Man for the role of Jeng. Putting an actual older man, instead of the usual making a young character age by facial expressions and clothing to look mature, because it contributes to the office setting, age gap plot. But it stops there. It felt like that one step they took; they take two steps back.

Anyway, let's begin. I usually start with the good elements in a series, but this is time I'll start with bad.

Bad:

1. Directing- This is one of the biggest disappointments in the series. And I know this may seem a bit dramatic, but one of the biggest disappointments of the year. Everyone who expected to see a mature, office setting drama will be blown away by how underwhelming this is.

It's always been a hit or miss with Director Tee. He's one of the most inconsistent directors I've seen in this lifetime. I mean he directed TharnType and that shit was toxic as all hell, but he did great with Lovely Writer. And I like how he's taking more mature plot to direct, but all of his projects have always been a hit or miss. Which to me is a little weird. I don't know how he can turn an actual good plot into a sloppy mess.

Attention to detail was close to non-existent. The inconsistencies manifested in every episode, and it's difficult to ignore them because Director Tee gave us nothing to make us overlook those inconsistencies. And I don't think I need to list them out, but some are stated below. (They really thought they could put that "Best Ad Awrad" award on that shelf, and we wouldn't notice. That's a bit insulting as a viewer.)

I know that Director Tee doesn't control the actual plot of the series, but with everything else the director is the final say. No matter what other people think. What we see onscreen is the director's work. That's his vision. He may not be the screenwriter, or the editor, but he has a say in both. And my god the writing in this is underwhelming, not even Man's charisma can help. I get that the pacing was done that way to show that the characters worked with each other first before catching feelings. And I get that it becomes even more apparent because of Pat's character and personality, but it doesn't help the viewers understand him because his reactions and worries only makes him look like a little child throwing tantrums because his traumas weren't explored and translated on screen.

When Pat comes across a revelation, his facial expression IS NOT ENOUGH. And his lines are always so confusing and so uncharacteristic. It's very, very, confusing and the watchers can never actually guess what he's thinking. And this is why I always say it's the director's fault. He could've made it so that Pat has more than 2 expressions- a child throwing a tantrum and an immature man being babied by everyone around him. Even the 2 years did nothing to him. Although this time it makes sense. The reason why Pat is an almost stagnant character is because the root of his problems wasn't addressed, and the people around him still spoiled him. And poor Jeng deserves so much more than that. He's looking for a life partner, not a pretty baby to take care of.

The supporting characters did little to support the narration, and they didn't add value to the plot and the storytelling either. Which is disappointing because we all know they are good actors. Like Krist and Chot. I know it's lovely to see Bruce again and more so that his character is a feminine character that isn't there for comic relief, and Tee even gave him a much-deserved proposal. But it doesn't take away the fact that his partner proposed to him while he's in a hospital bed. I'm not saying marriage proposals have to be aesthetic and grand, but the events before that doesn't give any sense as to why Krist decided to propose at that exact time. I had to rewatch the episode because I was so confused how that ended up to a marriage proposal. And sadly, that moment felt flat. Their acting was great, but again, the scenes leading up to it, and the feeling after that- nothing. Except those sweet lines of assurance from Krist that he's taking care of Chot forever, but it still didn't make any sense. And please don't make me start with JaabJen. That was just another level of disappointment. Even with Jaab's bad acting, they had so much potential. The I-have-a-crush-on-a-taken-man trope is not at all unique, but this has so much room for character development, and their chemistry was palpable, but again, Director Tee did a shitty job on that. Jaab didn't change at all in those 2 years. This is not just a writing problem, nor acting. It's the directing.

Lastly, my biggest disappointment with Director Tee is how poorly he did the resolution. I was willing to forgive episodes 7-11 (even tho those episodes already showed signs how badly the last episode will be done), but man, episode 12 did not disappoint in disappointing.

I know that people have different feelings and perspective, but for nothing to change in 2 years? I know this is fiction, but it didn't make a lick of sense why episode 12 felt like episode 11.

I'm sorry but I think it'll take me another day to fully write down how utterly disappointed I am with Director Tee. I hope he puts in his all in all of his work. I think he still has more in him, but if he's going to make series like these, I think it's time to make way for other directors. I wanted to use a series as reference, but I don't think I need to do that to prove a point.

2. Acting- One of the good qualities of this series is mainly the acting. But my 7.0 rating is for Man and Bruce. Mans must be suffering with back pains with only them carrying the whole series.

I know that Ben and Saint are rookies, but that's not the problem here. The problem is that they were directed so badly that they thought all they needed to do was act immature and try to act cool and weird, respectively. From start to finish.

I have nothing to say more though cause the supporting actors did what they could, but sadly their potential was not optimized.

3. Overall quality- I know that being a smaller production house meant they had lesser budget, but sadly it showed. Not with the location, nor their style. It just showed in the overall quality of the production. The color gradient they used with the film didn't help because it felt like a cheap knock-off. Although, it helped lighten up the over-all mood of the series. It prevented it from becoming dark and heavy.

Okay. On to the good:

1. Office Romance- At least they made it so obvious that JengPat's corporate office romance is guaranteed to have problems because a boss-subordinate dynamic in itself already an issue. They successfully showed the problematic power play that comes from this dynamic. Additionally, the power dynamics, the age gap, and the height difference, was successfully showed on the screen that it will bring problems.

2. Man- I'm sorry but I have to write a whole section for him, because he's such a breath of fresh air. Most series that put in older characters will mostly turn their series to dark or dramatic because romance with older, mature people is usually heavier. But choosing Man, someone who doesn't look too uptight or too sharp, made the series overall lighter.

I think that's it. I wanted to say watch it with an open mind, and just take it as it is, but I'd be a hypocrite because 1 episode took me 3 days to finish. I had to power through episodes 6-11 because it felt like they were going around in circles, and worse was that for the most part it felt like Jeng did most of the loving. So, I think I'd rather watch their interviews or behind the scenes because I do like looking at them. They look great together. You can do the same if you want. :)

Okay, peace!