Asian Addicts Anonymous

So, my first completed drama of the year in my goal to finish dramas that I start/have already started watching is Thai drama หัวใจเรือพ่วง (romanized as Hua Jai Rua Puang). As for the English title of the drama…I leave you with andochobling’s blog article on it which should make all y’all who know nothing about translating hopefully understand just how complicated it can be. I had to do translations in my Spanish and German classes as exercises in practicing the languages. They are hard, I sucked (and still do). Not just a background in the language is necessary, but cultural knowledge along with idioms and  figures of speech is necessary. I still remember learning a phrase in German that literally translated to something about an egg in the pants…but I honestly can’t remember what that turn of phrase really meant…but it was funny, trust me.

หัวใจเรือพ่วง

Romanized title: Hua Jai Rua Puang
Broadcast station: Channel 5
Broadcast date: 5 June – ? 2013
Episodes: 20
Cast: Ornjira Larmwilai, Son Songpaisarn, Singto Singhharuth Junpukdee, Grand Punwarot Duaysienklao, Gypsy Keerati Mahapreukpong, Karnjana Jindawat
Theme songs: “Time After Time” by หนุ่ม KALA; “หน้าที่หรือหัวใจ” by Dew The Star 9
Synopsis: Pat is a young, single mother taking care of her niece Ran and her son Atom. When Ran starts dating her boss Peet, Pat worries that he is trifling with her niece and disapproves of their relationship. As it turns out, Peet is serious about their relationship, but he doesn’t love Ran. He is only marrying her to be a good son as he learns his mother is diagnosed with cancer and may not have long to live. Enter in the very jealous and possessive wife of Ran’s ex-boyfriend who happens to be Peet’s cousin, and things get crazy with secrets and lots of attempted murder.

So what did I think about this drama? One of my first thoughts was that Son’s acting has really improved since his first starring role as the p’rek in Kaew Lorm Petch. He wasn’t atrocious in that lakorn, but you could tell he was definitely new and I hoped he would improve with time. While Son still isn’t maybe the most amazing actor, he’s definitely grown and his emotional expressions have matured. Always good. Besides the actress who played his mother (Karnjana Jindawat)…I think those are the only two I was familiar with.

Another impression I had was by the time you hit episodes 13-16, I can’t remember which one it was, they could have shortened the series as the last episodes really didn’t have a whole lot of plot progression and focused mainly on the evil Orn [Grand Punwarot Duaysienklao] plotting revenge on her husband’s child and true love with Peet’s enemy Plearn (whose name I’m not 100% certain how to spell). It also got redundant in the fact that when we finally hit the final strides of the show and all of Ran’s carefully hidden secrets come to light episode by episode. And…I didn’t really see the need to drag out the discoveries like they did.

I was happy that you didn’t get to see a lot of mistreatment of women that you can sometimes see in Thai dramas. Sure, we get the normal teasing of the female lead by the male, but not beatings, torture, or rape. I liked Peet’s teasing of Pat as Peet always shows a more mature side, but when he comes into contact with Pat, he’s a playful young man. So…in away, I think Pat let him enjoy himself in ways he probably wasn’t able to do after inheriting his father’s business at a very young age. I also really enjoyed the family bonds in the drama which you knew sprang from real love for one another and not just more of a familial duty to fulfill. Tip’s love for her daughter Ran was very deep and obvious, as was Pat’s love for her sister, her adopted son, and her niece, and Peet’s love for his mother. Did that love necessarily lead to wise decisions? No. But humans are inherently flawed. Even if they are good and smart, different types of love make them do stupid and sometimes hurtful things.

As for my feelings on the major players in the drama, I do have to say that when it comes to the character of Ran [Gypsy Keerati Mahapreukpong] and her story, I wasn’t all that interested and I didn’t really like her. She is not a bad character and I can sympathize with her wanting to create a better life for herself, but I don’t agree with her choice of how to do it. She lies that her mother (who is in prison for selling drugs in order to make money) is dead, she passes off her son as her cousin, and she enters into a relationship with her boss [Son as Peet] since he is well off and kind even though she is still in love with Peet’s cousin Harit [Singto Singhharuth Junpukdee]…although she had no idea that her first love and the father of her child would end up being her current boyfriend’s cousin. She just keeps making bad decisions. Covering up her past won’t make it go away and rushing into a marriage with a man she doesn’t love to use that to officially end her relationship with the man she does won’t make anyone happy. Kudos to Ran for finally doing the right thing. First by accepting her mother and then by accepting her son and announcing that she is his mother. It was about time there.

I did like the character of Pat (Ornjira Larmwilai) for the most part, although I did have a problem with her taking on all the responsibilities of her family onto herself. I understand that Ran was young when she had Atom, but still, to raise the boy as her own… It was very selfless and noble and I can’t fault her for doing that, but I don’t see why Ran thought it would completely ruin her future. So instead of Ran getting the stigma of unwed single mother, her young aunt carries the stigma of being a widowed single mother. People talk behind her back about being jilted, about having a child out of wedlock, etc. Pat didn’t really deserve all of that flak, but I guess, she was stronger at that time than her niece was to accept it all. While I do like Pat, I did find her abrasive at parts and like some other drama heroines, she is quick to jump to conclusions and automatically think badly about our leading man. Annoying, yes, but fairly typical. I do have to say that her character was surprisingly innocent and naïve. Sure she didn’t really date or anything before getting saddled with her preciously adorable nephew, but to think that sleeping in the same bed with a shirtless man = getting pregnant…isn’t that a bit of a stretch for an intelligent woman who lived abroad? It was funny and priceless, but not realistic all at the same time.

I did like that Pat kept insisting that Ran tell the whole truth about herself if she honestly wanted a relationship and to marry Peet. Pat really stuck to that belief and that you can’t run from the past and erase it. Pat always had hopes that Ran would eventually accept Atom and live as his mother…and find love. I did not like, though, towards the end of the series where she did go along with her older sister Tip and Ran’s lies. It really seemed to go against her character since she detested lying (as much as Peet does really). It was really unfair if Tip to insist that Pat convince Peet to marry Ran when (some) of the truth has been revealed even after Pit learns of Pat’s feelings.

Speaking of Pat’s feelings. As cute and explosive as Pat and Peet are together…I’m not 100% certain I buy their chemistry and romance. Or maybe it’s just that the buildup to that wasn’t completely developed. Although, from their first meeting, you could tell Peet loved to tease and torment Pat and if you go by the elementary kid rule of picking on the one you like, then it definitely does make sense. But…again, I though this could have been developed a wee bit more as I thought they deserved more couple-making time. We didn’t need that 1 or 2 episode interruption of Pit begging Pat to forsake her own love to secure a good future for Ran and Pat being stupid enough to do it out of love for her sister and niece. Peet’s idea to go behind everyone’s back and plan his wedding to Ran to get Pat to fess up about her own feelings? Yeah, wasn’t too helpful either.

I can say that Ran and Peet never really seemed to get out of the awkward initial stages of their relationship, so them getting married really didn’t seem realistic, plus we know from the beginning they are choosing to marry for all of the wrong reasons. Ran and Harit definitely had more chemistry. I can’t blame Ran for not listening initially to the reason why Harit abandoned her at the train station. She was pregnant (unbeknownst to him of course) and completely depending on his love and support since at that time she lived with her abusive grandmother (until Pat returned from abroad and took her in). Although…Ran’s visceral reaction when seeing Harit again for the first time seemed way too extreme. What is the point of running away? What is the point of cowering in a corner and shaking like crazy? Yes, it’s painful…but…I did think the reaction way to extreme when Harit only showed her the deepest devotion and love (until he up and abandoned her after asking her to marry him and start a new life with him).

Singto didn’t do a horrible job acting as Harit, but he did excessive facial emotions that didn’t necessarily match the scene as it should. Harit is a typical character. He was driven to marry the wealthy Orn since his mother was going bankrupt. He gets jealous because the woman he really loves is marrying his cousin and he deems its only because Peet is rich. In his relationship with his wife…he does try…on occasion. But you can’t 100% blame him for the failure of his marriage as his wife Orn is completely possessive and jealous and mistrustful. How can he forget his first love and try to love his wife if she’s constantly tracking him and throwing fits? Thus, even though I did feel some pity for Orn, I couldn’t sympathize with her as I hated her attitude and her evilness towards the end. She never tried to understand her husband and never acknowledged her own wrongdoings.

I wasn’t quite happy with how they tried to portray the deep bond between Harit and his son Atom before they knew the truth. I get it. They want to show how alike the two are and show an instant connection that can only come from blood (which, from first hand experience, does not exist between all parents and children). His first meeting with Atom wasn’t too horrible with him helping the adorable boy when Atom was getting bullied by two older boys. But asking for a kiss as a thank you from a little boy you’ve just met? Kind of odd…in my eyes. And then when he saves Atom from getting run over by a horse…whose first reaction is to take the boy back to your hotel room and give him a bath? Again…weird. I found scenes like that just odd and with too much affection for no reason even if there is that invisible bond between parent and child. And for being an adult, why Harit never took Atom immediately to find his mother or to even ask permission to take the boy out is just stupid on his part.

From what I’ve said so far, you may think I didn’t like this drama, but I really did. Sure with the hostile resort takeover coupled with the relationship and family issues, it did seem like a few dramas rolled into one, but the parts really did jive together a lot better than the two plotlines of Korean drama Bachelor’s Vegetable Store. I did fast forward through the remainder of the episodes as, like I said, they did feel more like fillers than anything substantial, but until that part, it was really good, cheesy flaws and all. My favorite scenes are the scenes between Pat and Peet as he goads her and she gets her revenge by stomping on his feet, etc. And even though the little boy who played Atom isn’t the most polished of child actors, he was very cute and precious.

With all those filler episodes, our main couple only manage to get together as Peet’s dying mother sits them down in the spot where her own husband proposed to her and tells them to put everything aside and just go with their true feelings. She then gives Pat her engagement ring. That’s it. No words of love exchanged and our main couple never officially date as after that we have Orn and Plearn’s (yeah, still don’t know if I’m spelling the bad guy’s name right) plot of revenge. After that mess is wrapped up in the finale, we then jump a year or so into the future where Pat and Peet are married with twins (and another baby on the way). I think we could have had a bit more development of their relationship and a little less of the whole family mess with Harit discovering he’s a father, Orn faking a pregnancy to hold onto her husband, etc.

This drama was not a horrible way to start my drama completion project. I do recommend giving it a watch for yourself. Maybe you won’t find the last quarter as dull as I did. But, besides some faults, that did grate and annoy at times, this drama was one I mostly enjoyed. Having Ran mature and Pat doing her best to accept Peet and understand him wasn’t bad. Seeing the adorable Atom and having the comic relief of Ter (Pat’s best friend who runs a coffee shop and is gay) and the other staff at the resort added more enjoyment to the series overall. Plus, I highly recommend checking out Son’s growth as an actor from his first drama to this one.