Hometown's Embrace – Series Review & Ending Explained

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The storylines in Hometown's Embrace are a mess. It actually doesn't bother me too much that they lifted the plots from A Tale of Thousand Stars. The interpretation is going to be different, which could still be interesting to watch. Unfortunately, Hometown's Embrace is missing the nuances that make these stories so enjoyable in A Tale of Thousand Stars. It's like they copied all the basic elements, but lack the substance, the character development, and the emotional impact.

For the village saviour storyline, the plot rehashes everything I've already seen in A Tale of Thousand Stars. Than is like a very pale imitation of Tian's character, but with a lot less personality. Although Than talks a big game, he doesn't really do anything groundbreaking to help his village. His heart is in the right place, but I don't think his contributions are all that substantial.

As for the schoolteacher storyline, I found all the events to be really banal. Nothing substantial happened throughout the eight episodes, other than some annoying relationship drama with Kon's ex-girlfriend and the other teacher. All the scenes in this plot are as generic as they come.

Revenge storyline

None of the three main storylines are particularly good, but at least the schoolteacher and village saviour plots seem grounded in reality. The same cannot be said about the revenge plot, which is simply outrageous and absurd.

The plot is too much, going overboard in its brutality and severity. The story begins with the protagonist's parents getting assassinated, which is supposed to be traumatic, but I just found the death scenes really campy instead. One moment, the mom is having a pleasant conversation with her son. In the next second, she's spitting out blood and dies right on the spot. I feel dumbfounded, unsure whether I should go WTF or LOL.

I'm perplexed by how these evil gunmen are murdering people in broad daylight without any consequences. Their homicidal rage seems so arbitrary. Every time someone does anything slightly disagreeable, the gangsters just pull out their guns and shoot the victims dead.

It's also confusing that they must blur out beer cans and cigarettes, yet all the graphic displays of violence are shown in their entirety. Help me understand the logic behind the censorship please. 😓

Product placement

Normally, I wouldn't consider the product placement as part of the story. However, the marketing in Hometown's Embrace is so aggressive that it cannot be ignored. They find a way to advertise the soap, the pills, and the hot sauce in almost every episode. It's a really, really hard sell even for a BL series. If I was the advertiser, I would be overjoyed with how much visibility my products are getting.

Since a soap brand is one of the product placements, this leads to many gratuitous shirtless scenes with the actors taking various showers. It doesn't matter if the shower scenes have zero relevance to the plot, as long as they get an opportunity to plug the sponsored products! With that said, I'm not complaining at all. In fact, these shower scenes might be one of the highlights in Hometown's Embrace. Go ahead and lather yourselves up with the soap, guys! The actual plot can wait~

Generic romances

The romances in Hometown's Embrace feel shallow. Most of their relationship scenes are either product placement plugs or cliché BL tropes. Even though the characters often make googly eyes at each other, I don't sense any romantic spark between the pairings. There's a lack of passion in all three romances.

The lack of physical intimacy is also a letdown. I'd like to see the couples show more affection than just holding hands. Kon pecks Mek on the cheek for a split second, but that's pretty much the only amorous interaction in the entire series. Even if you don't want to show kissing, at least have them embrace each other in the final episode.

I feel like Kon's ex-girlfriend, constantly asking to see the relationship receipts. Are you guys really a couple? Because I wanna see more!

Than and Din

Out of the three couples, I actually like Than and Din the most as characters. I also appreciate that their relationship seems more dynamic, so they don't fall in love right away like the other two pairs. There's more of a journey with their romantic arc as Din slowly warms up to Than.

However, Than and Din have the weakest romance in the series. Simply, they just don't have enough romantic moments together. Since the two of them were introduced first, you'd assume they would be the main couple of the series, but that's not really the case. In the end, Than and Din got the least development out of all three pairs, and their romance barely progressed. It's a shame because I think there's an interesting dynamic between them, but the potential is underrealized.

Kon and Mek

Kon and Mek come the closest to being a real couple. We see an attraction developing between the two characters, so it makes sense when they get together in the end. My problem is that I find all their relationship scenes so generic. Their entire romance is like a sequence of overplayed BL tropes. I don't feel excited when I'm watching them.

Kon's ex-girlfriend and that other teacher are also unnecessary distractions, adding a complicated love triangle that nobody wants to see. These two characters don't add much to the plot, but they take away valuable time that could be used to focus more on this couple.

Dan and Khet

Based on looks alone, Dan and Khet might be the hottest couple in Hometown's Embrace. These two actors have a raw masculinity that makes them quite physically appealing. Unfortunately, their storyline is so bad that it brings down my investment in their romance. It's hard to think about BL when the characters' parents are getting shot dead left and right.

On paper, I do think this couple has potential. Two guys from different walks of life come together to avenge their parents' deaths. Their relationship dynamic sounds interesting, but the romance doesn't feel compelling due to the poor execution. Their scenes are too disjointed, not getting enough focus and development because they have to share screentime with two other pairs. With better writing and stronger actors, this couple could've been a hit.

Amateurish acting

The acting in Hometown's Embrace is weak. There's a good looking cast, but they are inexperienced and it shows on screen. Worst of all, the script highlights their weaknesses. Why are there so many crying scenes when the actors aren't capable of pulling off these emotions?

The best performance comes from the actress playing Din's grandmother. It's impressive the way her eyes filled with tears as she talked about her grandson. She's definitely one of the best characters in Hometown's Embrace, elevating the storyline with Din and Than.

Happy ending

All the main characters band together to fight the bad guys in Episode 7, where good triumphs over evil in the end. The final showdown is a hilarious farce, and Jidlid takes down an entire crime syndicate with an online live stream. Yes, the evil gangster boss is defeated by the power of an Instagram story. No, I'm not making this up. 😅

After the evil gang is taken down, the three couples end up together more or less. Only Kon and Mek seem to be in a committed relationship, with Kon's parents giving their blessing in a sweet moment. The other two pairings go largely undefined, but we assume they're staying together at least for the short term. Overall, it's a happy generic ending for everyone involved.