Heroin

This series is an attempt to adapt the novel Are You Addicted?, which already has two previous versions: Addicted and Stay with Me, both Chinese. The earlier series suffered from Chinese censorship, leaving the first one unfinished (it only reached episode 15) and the second without a second season (it covers the first book of the novel, leaving the second one pending). Nevertheless, both have established themselves as two important series in the BL industry, with Addicted becoming a cult series and Stay with Me known for its great, great quality. When it was announced that Thailand would be releasing this series, all fans of the novel and the previous series were hopeful that, being in a freer industry, it would deliver a quality and complete series. Unfortunately, things went wrong from episode 1.

This series presents clear problems in both script and direction. The choices about what to tell and how to tell the story have simply been poor. Certain contexts have been prioritized, while fundamental elements that capture the heart of this story have been omitted, starting with the characters. The character of "Pop" or "Poppy" (Bai Luo Yin in the novel) has been reduced to an amorphous character, lacking personality and the defining traits that explain the love, obsession, and relationship with Hero (Gu Hai in the novel). The strength of both characters, their fractures, pains, resilience, dignity, and madness-all the things that build them and make them who they are-are erased in one stroke, making the story, at times, incomprehensible.

The entire story is reduced to superficial scenes, lacking depth and texture, turning this series into just another among many, without any relevance. Adaptations can take liberties and make changes. That's fine, and there are many examples where this is done successfully, sometimes even making the adaptation better than the original novel. But if you decide to tell a story that is not just any story in the BL world, one that already has two previous successful series despite censorship, the challenge is to do it well. In this case, that wasn't achieved. I feel sorry for the actors. I hope they have more opportunities in the future.

Honestly I have no idea why people hate this series other than the age of the actors which even I thought at first it was a bit strange to put a 16 year old but after watching the whole series, i have to say they are amazing actors. For a 16 year old he has a very mature attitude and both actors have great chemistry. There was no explicit/sensual acting involved so most of the intimate scenes didn't feel weird or awkward. Overall the plot and storyline was amazing and the last episode was by far my favourite. I'd love to see another season and a continuation of where they go or what happens. Honestly it's growing on me and since the intimate scenes are more teenage romance friendly, the age slipped my mind!

For those who don't know, Addicted Heroin is a Thai adaptation of the original series called Shang Yin (Addicted), a Chinese BL series. But their government killed that series before it even completed, murdered the actors' career for several years, and tried to pretend that homosexuality doesn't exist in China. And then they tried to make a new series based on it with the title Stay With Me. This version was very good, if you're looking for a series about family drama and bromance. Cause that's what Shang Yin had been reduced into, in order to shake the censorship off of its tail. So you the love you'll find in it is just platonic one. I mean, you can see there's something more going on, but it's unspoken, unexpressed, and thoroughly repressed. So even if the story were great, it's still a disappointment to all BL fans. Especially after they announced that they won't continue making season two of Stay With Me. That's the last nail on the coffin for Addicted. I bet once again their government killed the series. Cause killing it once, isn't enough for them. But what do you know? A few years later, it's being reborn on Thailand.

But enough of the history lesson, lets get right onto my review. There's some changes in the character's personalities compared to Shang Yin (the original one). Hero was shown as more comedic and less intense than Gu Hai. While Pop was made more laid back and less naughty than Bai Luoyin. Some people find it extremely disappointing, but I don't really think so. Just because something is different, doesn't mean it's bad. As for the drama, it wasn't as great as Stay With Me. But seeing how it wasn't heavily censored by replacing the BL aspect with bromance, I'd still choose this one over Stay With Me. Besides, they have made plans for season two. So yeah, I'll stay tune for it!

Oh, and there's some protest about the age of the actor when they started shooting this series. But that part didn't affect my rating. Since I only rate based on performance, not other aspects like the law or politics. Only narrow minded people let something like that affect their judgment.

I haven't seen the original Chinese version, so I can't really compare-this review is purely based on the Thai adaptation. The concept is pretty cliché: stepbrothers falling for each other. Still, I gave it a shot out of curiosity to see how the story would unfold.

Character-wise, Hero is your typical rich kid who constantly goes against his strict dad, while Pop is a self-respecting, financially struggling teen doing part-time jobs to get by. Hero gives off that bad boy vibe, and Pop is the quiet, cold type.

At first, Hero is kind of a jerk-he plays pranks on Pop and teases him a lot. But once he finds out about Pop's situation, he softens a bit. The two constantly bicker, but they're always together... and honestly, they don't even seem to hate each other. I don't know what kind of dynamic they're going for, but it really feels like Hero is totally whipped for Pop, while Pop is just "meh". I couldn't really connect with Pop's character. From episode 1 up to the end, there's barely any development. He stays cold and cranky the whole time-even though he and Hero are always hanging out.

I'm not saying he should fall for Hero right away, but it wouldn't hurt to show a little warmth or softness. And when Hero finally confesses his feelings? Pop doesn't exactly reject him, but he doesn't accept it either. It's like they're stuck in this awkward limbo-kind of like a situationship. Their connection doesn't feel built on trust, and they keep doing things that would obviously make each other jealous/upset. Honestly, it feels like only Hero is in love. I do think Pop cares for him, but not on the same level-it comes off pretty shallow. Hero's putting in all the effort, while Pop keeps putting up walls, lies about where he sleeps, and still stays involved with his ex.

The side characters? Mostly fillers with cringey lines and unnecessary jokes. Both leads did a solid job acting-wise, but I've got to give special props to August-he can really act. You can see it in his body language, his eyes, everything. That said, he's obviously too old to play a high school student. Like, he's 28 and playing opposite someone who's 16? It just doesn't sit right unless they both look the part-and honestly, the age gap made the chemistry feel off.

The series throws in all the tropes: stepbrothers, rich vs. Poor, enemies-to-lovers... and it could have worked, but Pop's lack of character development and the annoying ex-girlfriend popping in kinda ruined it. The ending is also confusing-I can't even tell if Hero's dad accepted their relationship or is still trying to break them up.

All in all, this isn't the worst BL ever made, but it's far from memorable. It's the kind of series you finish and then completely forget about. It also drags like a slow-burn, but without the satisfying payoff. Addicted Heroin Thai Version just doesn't feel well-crafted, and it's definitely not something I'd recommend as a must-watch.

I really love Addicted, I watched all the previous versions and I must say, that this Thai version is my favourite. I really enjoy the story and length and especially the actors. I know August from earlier projects and he is great, but I didn't expect that he'll be my favourite Hero from all versions (Gu Hai, Wu Bi). He is so great in his role and Mac I'm watching here for the first time, but he can express his feelings so well, he is really very good. It's so funny, sometimes so soft and sometimes it shows the difficulties and anger, how it's supposed to be. Only one disappointment there is, that story is not complete again, so I really hope that will be season 2, because I would like to have ending with these two.