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Reviews
Ready, Set, Love (2024)
Weak Storyline, Just Put Your Logic Aside and Enjoy
The production quality is above average for Thai series. The graphics and CG are stunning. However, the storyline is still tacky and predictable like other typical Thai dramas.
The background behind the farm is too weak, we don't know who exactly created the farm and why. What's the cause of the disease? Why do they keep the mothers who are against the system instead of getting rid of them? Where are the fathers of the non-organic? Why didn't they take the fathers of the organic to the Farm? What are the criteria? I wish there were more scenes explaining these.
The fact that Val and the team can hack and spy on everything seems too easy and fortunate. There were many times I thought 'Yo, girl, if you do that in the real world, you would have been caught already' This series is indeed a challenge for viewers to put their logic aside and just consume what they have to offer.
The character is not so realistic. I hope we can one day overcome the 'goofy female lead' culture. I understand that they want to portray Day as a non-privileged girl with a pure heart. Still, I don't think making her overly quirky, goofy, gluttonous, talking to herself a lot, and widening her eyes at the camera all the time is a realistic and natural reflection of down-to-earth and innocence. Day would've been more charming if they let Day be Day without exaggeration.
Other characters like Bovy and Max are unrealistically cringey and cheesy. Some gentlemen's personalities can be developed to match their age. The only character I think is natural, cute, and well-portrayed is May, Day's sister. She does remind me of a lil sister next door.
Chanel's outfits, makeup, and hair can be elevated since she is an 'it girl' Lily (the actress) is very beautiful and chic but her makeup seems too light and doesn't bring out her pretty features very well. She is the second lead but at least her role is an it girl, so giving her better makeup and hairstyle wouldn't hurt.
The city ground seems too flowers and butterflies. It looks even better than Day's flat tbh. If the place to live against the law looked that nice, everyone would have already moved there. The place could look less pleasant since it is a place to hide from the gov.
After all, it's a loosely structured love story with a very light touch on gender equality and humanity that failed to reflect or solve anything. It does have some potential but there are still plenty of spots to work on. The questions I have above, for example. Sun's and Val's families can be elaborated a lot more. Why Chanel's mother is so fixated on getting Son as a son-in-law? Why is Son always the center of all guys? Is it just because he is the most popular or is it because of his mysterious family background?
I believe this story can go much further and give deeper value if additional time is spent on developing the story. It could go super dark with a bigger scale like Squid Game, or it could bring out more action scenes like Black Knight. Ready Set Love's plot already shares some similarities with Black Knight; an unfair system where most citizens are fooled and taken advantage of; the poor main lead is used to promote fake equality. However, with the same core. They take different emphases and give different outcomes and values. While Black Knight focuses on the progression of the main lead who gradually unveils the dirty secrets of the system and takes it down, Ready Set Love focuses heavily on the bubbly side of the game show without providing any solid reasons, motivations, or backgrounds to the root of the Farm.
Based on my taste, it would be a better move to have Val as the main character and Day as the second lead helping her crack the secrets. The date show would be 1/3 of the story and the rest will be about ripping off the mask of the system with more backgrounds of each family scattered throughout the story. They can twist it any other way but I just hope they find a better balance between romance and supporting scenes that helps the story sensible.
Anyways, it's not the worst guys. Easy to digest, perfect for watching while having a meal. Enjoy.