Perfect 10 Liners 1×01 Review: Episode 1

Perfect 10 Liners premiered today, and I am settling in for six months of warm fuzzies and good feelings. With the huge cast (there are three main pairs and three side pairs, plus characters outside the pairings) and the slice-of-life vibe, I am strongly reminded of the director’s previous series, We Are. I didn’t expect much from We Are, and it ended up becoming a favorite. All the same, I’m trying not to set my expectations too high for this series.

I have been ridiculously excited for Perfect 10 Liners for a while, even though the original reason for my excitement – seeing Perth and Chimon again – has been co-opted. (I wish all the best for Chimon, and I’m glad he’s taking care of his health. Get better soon, bb!) So now we all get to witness the birth of Perth Tanapon and Santa Pongsapak as a pair. …Or we will, as soon as we get to that plot line.

This is one of those shows where we’re just going to have to watch and see. I’ve heard vastly different rumors about how they’re handling the three main pairs. And I see the number of episodes is already less than what it was originally reported as (24 down from 30). This is based on three different books, all set in the same universe – much like We Are. Each book centers around a separate couple, all in the same university cohort – called Perfect 10 Liners, as they are all very attractive.

Our first couple is Arm (Book Kasidet) and Arc (Force Jiratchapong). Arm’s peer mentor Pun (Emi Thasorn) runs their university’s “Cute Engineering Boy” page, and wants Arm to take over for her. The only rule is that they can’t post pictures of Arc. Arm immediately forgets this rule and posts a picture of Arc, who angrily messages him to take it down. Unfortunately, Arc is Pun’s peer mentor, and the two are continually thrown into contact at group meetups.

I was under the impression that each couple would get the same number of episodes, and they would be told sequentially. Couple number two is Arm’s peer mentee, Yotha (Perth), and his roommate, Gun (Santa). And then couple number three is Yotha’s peer mentee, Wine (Mark Jiruntanin), and Yotha’s brother Faifa (Junior Panachai). So it makes sense that we get Arm and Arc first, and then go down the list. But then I heard that they weren’t going to do that, because they didn’t want to keep fans of the other pairs waiting for too long. But after today’s episode, I don’t see how there’s any other way to do it. So again… wait and see, I guess.

It’s clear that much of the series will be told via flashback. The episode starts out with Wine being welcomed into the Perfect 10 Liners group, meeting up with everyone at dinner. Arc and Arm, as well as Yotha and Gun, are already established couples at this point. So Wine asks how Arc and Arm started dating, and thus begins our story.

Anyway, back to Arc and Arm. One of the reasons I was so excited for Perfect 10 Liners is because I’m really hoping to finally find a ForceBook couple that I actually like. (Peaceful Property doesn’t count; it’s only one episode.) I love them so much in real life, but I did not resonate at all with Top and Mew in Only Friends, and despite its popularity, I’ve never been able to finish A Boss and a Babe. But so far, I am really digging the dynamic between Arc and Arm. On the surface, it seems very enemies to lovers. Really, though, Arc is, like, immediately smitten with Arm and just has absolutely zero rizz.

Of course, Arc doesn’t know that Arm is the “cute boy page” admin who mistakenly posted his photo – a person Arc is determined to hunt down and punish, even enlisting Arm in this goal. I’d like to think that a secret like that wouldn’t affect their relationship that badly, but melodrama and miscommunication are a huge staple of BLs. And when you think about it, it’s not so much that Arm posted Arc’s photo as it is that he will be continually lying about the fact that it was him. And I can see the lying being the main issue.

Still, I love this first episode. Arm’s first impression of Arc is not good; Arc continually spams him with messages to take down his photo and when he isn’t fast enough, sends him a photo of himself flipping the camera off. And Arc’s first impression of Arm involves Arm doing a spit take all over Arc’s face. But I can’t help but love the fact that Arc took one look at the stuttering mess that is Arm, who literally falls off the stage trying to turn around, and goes, “Yes. That one.”

On one side, you have Arc, who is outrageously flirting while also still managing to look and act like he’s two seconds away from punching Arm in the face. (Seriously, within days of meeting, Arc is like, “Yeah I’m gonna shower in your room and then just hang out on your bed in a towel. This is totally normal behavior.”) On the other, you have Arm, who is convinced that Arc is going to punch him in the face because he knows that Arc actually has a reason to punch him in the face. And he is completely oblivious to the very obvious flirting.

I’m not going to lie, I love oblivious idiots as a trope. Already in this first episode, there are so many moments that are just too funny. Arc literally throws his hoodie at Arm (because Pun asked Arm if he was cold) and then refuses to take it back. And then, for no reason that is explained (because he wasn’t cold, he even said so), Arm is later wearing the hoodie. Later, when Arc is playing soccer with his friends, he leaves before the end of the game to get something to drink (and see Arm), despite the fact that his fans have left various snacks and drinks on the stands for him. I also really loved Arc just smoothly grabbing Arm’s phone and unlocking it so that Arm would call his friends and let them know not to wait for him.

I also love the dynamic between Arm and his best friends Sand (Poon Mitpakdee) and Po (JJ Chayakorn). (Seriously, like half of this cast is the cast of We Are. This is not a complaint, by the way.) They seem to actively share one brain cell, and it’s unclear which of them has it at any given time.

In this first arc, the side couple is going to be Sand and Arc’s friend Pond (Marc Natarit), and I am really excited for them after the way they blew me away in We Are. (That kiss in the final episode is still one of the best moments of that entire show, and it was full of good moments. No lie, though, Marc putting his leg around Poon’s hip lives rent-free in my head.) They haven’t met yet, but with both of them being best friends with the main pairing, it’s only a matter of time. 

So, basically, yes, I am super excited for this show. I am excited to have a “long-running” series to take up space on Sundays for the foreseeable future. And I can’t wait to see what we get from these pairings. I’m not entirely sure I’ll have enough to talk about for each episode, but I’m going to try to keep up with weekly reviews. So something for y’all to look forward to.

Author: Jamie Sugah

Jamie has a BA in English with a focus in creative writing from The Ohio State University. She self-published her first novel, The Perils of Long Hair on a Windy Day, which is available through Amazon. She is currently an archivist and lives in New York City with her demon ninja vampire cat. She covers television, books, movies, anime, and conventions in the NYC area.

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