As I’m sure you’ve now come to realize, I am just burning through these Thai BL dramas like they’re going out of style. But from what I’m understanding, they are only getting more popular. I decided to go back a year and watch an old, but popular series, The Eclipse, along with its special episodes.
Something I’ve come to realize is that GMMTV pumps out the BL shows at an insane rate, but I’m not even remotely mad about it. Anyway, I first came to hear about The Eclipse after looking into some of the other work from the actors in a series I just finished, Only Friends. The actors go by the nicknames First and Khaotung, and the internet is ablaze at their chemistry. I have to agree. So with that, I decided to give their first series together in main roles a go. I did find it interesting to learn that the met about six years ago in an acting workshop, became friends, and have wanted to work together ever since. Well, it turns out their chemistry finally caught the right person’s eye, because I think they will be paired together in a lot of projects for years to come!
The Eclipse takes place at an all boys private school in Thailand, where a group of students, referred to as “the prefects,” harshly enforce the rules set out by the principal. Of course, like any natural environment, there are a group of students actively against these rules and spend most of the season protesting the dress code (of all things). An eclipse is coming, though, meaning the school’s curse is back in full force. Making matters worse is the mysterious arrival of new student, Ayan, who is hell bent on ruining everything for head prefect, Akk. Ayan’s pestering soon morphs into a full-blown crush, but that doesn’t stop him from supporting the protesters.
Everyone’s got some fishy motives in this show, and there was one reveal that actually made my jaw drop. Do I think all of these reveals really needed to be stretched out over twelve episodes? No. The main conflict was not that complex, so the twists could have been introduced much sooner. Aside from the main character’s chemistry, I found myself most drawn to one of Akk’s close friends, Wasuwat and their teacher, Sani. It’s clear the former had a small crush on his teacher, but she was so nice and supportive of his desire to study film in college. He was also the most level-headed of everyone in my opinion.
The show itself wrapped up nicely, but then we were treated to two special episodes as part of Our Sky2! This time around, a year has passed since the events of The Eclipse, so everyone is enjoying some time off before starting college. They all agree to help Wasuwet finish his short film, but there is some tension among the pairs. Akk seems to think that Ayan is self-centered, while Ayan think Akk spends too much time caring about other people. Okay. To no one’s surprise, everything is reconciled and full of love by the end. And for those that felt there wasn’t enough kissing in the series (cough, me), they make up for it in the final special episode.
Not the best BL series I’ve come across, but it was nice to see these two actors get more dedicated screen time in truly lead roles.