Work From Heart – Series Review & Episode Guide

Dee is the sole heir of the wealthy Chairatprapasin family. His grandfather is a billionaire who runs many enterprises. This domineering man controls every aspect of Dee's life, from his career to his relationships. Dee resents living obediently than independently. He clashes with his grandpa, who wants him to work for the family business. Dee refuses to follow orders and starts an internship at a smaller marketing agency.

Dee's company, DIFA, is struggling financially. However, the founder is compensated by a generous investor who allows him to sustain the business. This investor is Dee's grandfather, who goes behind the scenes to keep an eye on his grandson. However, he wants to enforce a few rules in his newly purchased organization. Firstly, he insists on forbidding any workplace romances. Secondly, the staunchly homophobic grandpa intends to root out the LGBT+ employees and force them to quit.

The DIFA boss is in a gay relationship. However, he accepts the conditions to keep his business alive. He maintains a discreet relationship with his boyfriend, Noppadol. The other employees aren't happy with the changes, but nobody poses a significant challenge to the new company structure. Dee begins his internship at DIFA with his best friend, French Fries. They meet their various coworkers, each with quirky personalities.

Knight is an employee in the marketing department. In addition, Knight works a side job as a gig driver. Previously, Dee met him during a ride. He's surprised to reunite with his cab driver at the company. Initially, Knight is reluctant to accept Dee as an intern. He seems hostile toward the new employees. Dee's charm eventually wins over him, and they begin working together on various projects. The two colleagues grow close, developing a romantic connection. However, Dee's grandfather meddles to stop his grandson from having a gay relationship.

Meanwhile, Dee is surprised to reunite with his ex-boyfriend, Ohm. His ex is a new client at DIFA. They were previously school sweethearts. Yet, they broke up because Ohm was too preoccupied with work. Ohm wants to get back together with Dee and pursues him aggressively. However, Dee is skeptical and doesn't want to restart this relationship. As Knight observes their close relationship, a love triangle forms between the three characters.

Work From Heart makes me cringe! This campy BL comedy tries to be funny, but I don't respond well to its outlandish humour. I may have laughed once or twice at the silly antics during the entire series. Otherwise, the wacky scenarios, exaggerated stereotypes, and immature jokes leave me unamused. The characters are over-the-top caricatures who act inanely or speak nonsense. Their theatrical reactions give me painful second-hand embarrassment. Work From Heart is constantly awkward and amateurish.

Beyond the cringy comedy, I feel uncomfortable about the offensive storylines. The central plot revolves around a homophobic witchhunt against the LGBTQ+ employees of a company. Unsurprisingly, this dumb, frivolous series cannot handle such a dark, sinister topic. It manages the themes irresponsibly, from sensationalizing bigotry to perpetuating prejudices. Although the ending promotes positive messages, most of the journey doesn't feel empowering. Instead, Work From Heart depicts being gay as a demeaning experience with targeted abuse.

Dee, the protagonist, has romantic encounters with various characters in the beginning. It was almost fun watching him kiss a new guy in each episode. Once his romance with Knight starts, their relationship lacks excitement. This couple is underdeveloped and doesn't receive enough content to highlight their attraction meaningfully. Instead of strengthening their bond, the series separates Dee and Knight as much as possible. They face love triangle conflicts, family opposition, and angsty melodrama, none of which is entertaining to watch.

The leads (Gameplay and Folk) share little on-screen chemistry. Gameplay delivers an okay portrayal, but his costar is lacklustre. It's the second time the actors have worked on a BL drama together, yet they fail to enthuse me. Whether flirting or kissing, this incompatible couple doesn't produce sparks. I was more excited seeing Gameplay with Ohm's performer (Nammon). The unexpected pairing displays an intriguing rapport. Unfortunately, Ohm's character has a creepy and overbearing personality, so it's impossible to ship him with the lead.

Work From Heart features another gay couple, Boss and Noppadol, who are only there to cause drama. There's little emphasis on their romance. The other two straight pairings are unnecessary, taking away precious time from the BL content. Song Thee and Veve don't interest me, but they have cuter relationship scenes than the leads. I wish Dee and Knight were given their material instead. As for Thep and Heya, I can't tell if they're supposed to be taken seriously. It's hard to treat Heya as a believable character when she wears a fetishized maid costume around the office.

Work From Heart wants to be a zany workplace comedy with a large ensemble cast. Yet, the pointless supporting characters only exist to act like noisy distractions and rehash the same old jokes. This series misses the opportunity to expand their personalities, explore the office dynamics, or tell interesting stories. It wastes seven episodes accomplishing very little except for an offensive plot and an uninspiring romance. Overall, Work From Heart is a tacky, lowbrow BL drama. The obnoxious narrative worsens until it becomes almost unwatchable near the end.