In my review of season 1 of Blank: The Series I noted three negatives of the series: the 16-year age gap between the older Neung and the younger Aneung struck many fans as problematic, the behavior of Aneung was childish and annoying (and her portrayal by Yoko Apasra Lertprasert somewhat one-note), and the subpar English subtitles made understanding the dialogue difficult at times.
Still, I liked season 1 and I’m happy to report that season 2 of Blank: The Series is even better. The subtitles, while not perfect, feature understandable and idiomatic English. Now that Aneung is in university her maturity level has increased, and Yoko’s portrayal of her has correspondingly improved to the point where she’s often upstaging Faye Peraya Malisorn’s Neung. As the plot unfolds Aneung is alternately happy, angry, loving, despondent, or delightfully mischievous, as she goads an oft-reluctant Neung into various displays of affection.
As for the age gap, the story wouldn’t work without it. Its central theme is how Neung is caught between two different generations and must determine how to negotiate their differing demands and perspectives in her own life. Aneung is young but now fully an adult, has made new friends in university, and is confident and secure in who she is (an out lesbian) and what she wants (a relationship with Neung). On the other side of the divide are Aneung’s absentee mother Phiangfa (formerly Neung’s best friend), Neung’s ex-fiancé Chet (who we learned in season 1 has a previously-hidden connection to both Phiangfa and Aneung), and Aneung’s grandmother. All of them have their own reasons for continuing to treat Aneung as a child and (like many Asian parents and grandparents) seeking to control her life as an adult.
Meanwhile Neung, although the same age as Phiagfa and Chet, in many ways reads as closer in age to Aneung: she’s skated through life thus far, rejecting both her privileges and responsibilities as a member of the Thai aristocracy, her slacker lifestyle subsidized by ongoing “loans” from her younger sister Sam. Following the events of season 1 she moves back to her family’s “palace” and begins to assume the position to which she was born. However, at the same time she finds herself being drawn more and more to Aneung. Between Aneung’s entreaties and the older generations’ demands, Neung gradually finds herself entangled in a Gordian knot of irreconcilable expectations, a knot that’s cut by a final melodramatic plot twist and Neung’s and others’ reactions to it.
New production company NineStar Studios has done a stellar job of sanding off the rough edges of Chao Planoy’s source novel and turning out a great adaptation of it on a relatively limited budget (further strained by doing reshoots for parts of season 2). Faye continues to shine as Neung, and as noted above Yoko more than holds her own opposite Faye. The writing and cinematography are generally sharp, with occasional dips in quality (including an odd and confusing flashforward in the final episode) that are more than compensated for by some excellent scenes, most notably those involving a radio call-in show.
NineStar CEO Wanwand (“P’Wan” to Blank fans) is a self-described social media influencer and (judging by her X timeline) a major Becky Armstrong fan. A year and a half ago she was making GAP reaction videos, a year ago she first read Blank, by August she had formed NineStar Studios (with Ice Papichaya Pattaralikitsakul, who portrays Sam in the series, as COO) and was starting casting for the series, and five months later (assisted by veteran production house Moongdoo Production) NineStar debuted episode 1. After a slow start Blank: The Series is now a solid success, with individual episode segments racking up millions of views and sold-out fan meets in Thailand, the Philippines, and elsewhere. I’m looking forward to what P’Wan and NineStar come up with next, whether it features Faye and Yoko or not.
Rating:
Story — 7
Characters — 8
Production — 7
Service — 3
Yuri — 10
LGBTQ — 5 (Aneung to Chet re her friend Yui: “She’s not a tom[boy], she’s queer!”)
Overall — 8
This may be blasphemy to write, but in some ways season 2 of Blank: The Series is a more interesting and emotionally satisfying watch than was GAP: The Series (the previous gold standard for Thai live-action yuri), ditching superfluous side plots and “comic” relief in favor of a sustained focus on the central couple. If you’re interested in Blank but have limited time, you may wish to start with episode 6 of season 1—just go on the internet first to acquaint yourself with the basic facts about the characters.
