One of my goals with this blog was to branch out and watch dramas from other countries. I watch A LOT of Kdramas but I also watch other types of dramas. I needed a place to write about them, introduce other people to them and then create a place where people can have conversations about these dramas - whether they liked them or not. BAM THIS BLOG WAS FORMED!
So, when I saw a Thai drama called Bangkok Breaking coming to NETFLIX that was only 6 episodes and had an interesting premise, I KNEW I HAD TO CHECK IT OUT! Did anyone else watch this one? If you did, what did you think?
*Now as per usual with any review I write, I will not be including any spoilers in this review.*
Here is a short synopsis of Bangkok Breaking - This series looks into the crazy world of Bangkok's road rescue services. It follows a man named Wanchai who is new to Bangkok and just trying to find answers about his brother's death. What he uncovers is not just the answers he seeks but a much bigger conspiracy.
Overall, I was impressed with this drama. I knew nothing going into it. I did not know any of the actors. I just watched one trailer and thought "hmmm I think I will like this" and I DID! It wasn't the best drama I have ever seen but it was very entertaining and unique. It wasn't groundbreaking or anything and was somewhat predictable BUT a drama doesn't have to be new and groundbreaking to be entertaining and good.
WHAT I LOVED ABOUT THIS DRAMA
- THE PRODUCTION - Now I have not seen that many Thai dramas so there might be some with a production and budget as high as Bangkok Breaking BUT FOR ME, this drama BY FAR is the highest production for a Thai drama. IT SHOWS TOO! The action shots and just all the effects going into the action shots make this a very exciting drama to watch. I mean if your drama is going to revolve around a rescue team, it has to be exciting right? GET READY FOR LOTS OF EXPLOSIONS AND CAR CHASES! I also appreciate the lighting and cinematography that this drama has. It was a very pretty drama to watch
-THE STORY - The premise of a drama centered around Bangkok's emergency services caught my attention right away. The story, of course, turned out to be more than just about that BUT it made me click play FOR SURE! If you are a fan of ER or like Fast and the Furious, I think you will like this drama a lot. There aren't too many dramas out there with this concept of a story so I found it to stand out in dramaland. The fact that it is also a Thai drama was unique because I, for one, have not seen many Thai dramas so this drama exposed me to Bangkok and another side of Thai dramas that I have not seen yet. I have not watched many crime dramas from Thailand either and I LOVE CRIME DRAMAS! Yes, this has some crime involved with it. As I said, this drama is a lot more than just a drama about emergency services. I also just loved the found family in this drama too but I am also a SUCKER for the trope of Found Family.
-THE ACTING - I have not seen any of the actors/actresses in other dramas so I was new the entire cast of Bangkok Breaking. I WAS IMPRESSED! A lot of talent in this drama FOR SURE! The leads had a sweet chemistry. I loved watching them on screen together. There are definitely some hard topics discussed in this drama and I thought the cast did well with these topics. I thought the cast seemed quite natural in their acting. They seemed comfortable with each other and generally seemed like they liked working together.
WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER
-DOESN'T MAKE SENSE - Now there are some parts of this drama where if you think too hard it does not make sense. Like our male lead ran into a burning building with no training or experience and I just yelled DO YOU HAVE A DEATH WISH!? This drama has a good comparison to the Fast and Furious franchise because we all know when we watch the Fast and Furious franchise, we know that none of the stunts make sense and we just watch it for fun. This drama is the same thing. If you can turn your mind off and enjoy the ride, Bangkok Breaking is a fun ride. THE FIRST EPISODE DEFINITELY STARTS OFF WITH A BANG!
-PREDICTABLE - Now for me who has watched a lot of crime dramas or dramas with corruption, there were some predictable plot points in this drama. Now that is not a bad thing AT ALL! I said above, this drama isn't groundbreaking but still is a lot of fun to watch. I sort of would have liked if this drama had more of a disaster an episode concept which it eventually didn't have because of the whole underlying mystery and conspiracy storyline BUT THAT IS OKAY! Also due to the decision of not going with a disaster/emergency an episode concept, some of the story did drag in parts for me.
-SIDE CHARACTERS - This may be because this drama was only 6 episodes but I finished the drama and wanted more information on some of the side characters. The side characters added such a nice color to the story and drama. I was just left at the end of the drama wanting to know more about them. Maybe this is because I loved the found family in this drama a lot so I got interested and invested in all of the side characters and their stories because they were all a part of this big emergency crew family that was created.
-SEASON 2 - Now there was no cliffhanger or anything with this drama. The drama did set it up for a potential Season 2 if they wanted to do one. I know some people will like that and some people won't. I would totally watch a second season of this drama. I enjoyed a lot of things with Bangkok Breaking.
Rating: 8.0/10 (Streaming on NETFLIX now)
Have you seen Bangkok Breaking?
What did you think of the drama?
Is it on your list to watch?
Will you watch this drama now after reading my review?
WE NOW ALSO HAVE A DISCORD SO TALK TO US ON THERE AS WELL!?