Director: Kanittha Kwanyu (Fon)
Aired on: YouTube, Line TV
Released: 2021
No. of episodes: 5
Length of eps: Around 40 minutes each
Language: Thai
In my opinion, this is one of the most meaningful tv shows that have aired this year because of the impactful storyline. The acting felt real and each character impacted the overall delivery of the story. There were no unnecessary distractions and the show kept close to the storyline. “The Comments” is a story about the impact of various people on Papang (played by Aye Sarunchana Apisamaimongkol), a high school student’s life ultimately leading to her death.
Although it sounds gruesome, there is no gore or explicit details about her death. This way, the audience picture it themselves without going through the pain of watching the deed happen. The story deals more with the emotional stress and depression faced by Papang rather than her end. I liked this aspect of the story that makes it more interesting and relatable. In each episode, the show deals with a different character’s impact. Although it seems very similar to the US tv show '13 Reasons Why, it is different in terms of character development and the setting, as it is set in an Asian setting.
Papang is the top student of her school. She is considered good looking, has a caring personality and is excellent in sports and academics. This is why her brother, Khan (Played by New Thitipoom Tacha-Apaikun) could not understand why she chose to commit suicide. Since he lived in Bangkok, he had no idea about his younger sister’s life at home, and even when they visited each other, she never showed signs of distress. The police shut the case after the first investigation since everyone’s alibi checked out, and the only reason they could deduce was that it was a copycat suicide committed since Papang’s idol, Gina had done the same two weeks earlier.
Although it seems like a plausible reason, Khan does not believe that his sister would do so just because of a celebrity, so he tries to investigate further. He later finds out from a male student that Papang was actually cyberbullied by a group of people on Twitter. Whenever the school Twitter account posts about Papang’s achievements, a mysterious account would heckle the post and try to worsen her reputation. Slowly many of Papang’s classmates followed in the account’s footsteps and turned against her. They hated her for being a good person and the top scorer.
The show tackles the most important issue in today's world, which is abuse in social media. That each comment has a consequence and a psychological impact. (Spoiler) It is later revealed that Papang’s best friend, Theerata (played by Film Rachanun Mahawan) was actually behind the accounts and caused her this pain due to her jealousy. Moreover, Papang’s other best friend, Nan (played by Ciize Apichaya Saejung) used Papang’s identity to catfish boys on a dating app to feel validated by them. When Papang found out that those closest to her ruined her image and worsened her mental health, she turned to her favourite celebrity, Gina (Played by Jennie Panhan). Gina is a transgender stand-up comedian, who faced a lot of hatred for dating a famous celebrity. She was also cyber-bullied and treated as an outcast. Since she couldn’t handle it any longer, she held a silent Instagram Livestream before taking her life.
Papang felt hit from different sides all at once and started to shut people off. She was removed
from her position as student council leader and class representative as her peers were envious and loathed her. As she did not have her friends by her side any longer, she gave up her positions voluntarily and Theerata was appointed in her place. Finally, as she returned home one day, she saw her mother with a junior’s father. Due to her mother’s affair, she had already lost respect in school, and the junior fought with her on many occasions. Her mother was seen as a mistress but that did not stop her, which only worsened her state.
Although all these reasons felt like valid ones, the real reason was that Papang felt as if it was her fault. In the last episode, Khan receives a letter from Gina's agency. It was the letter Papang left to Gina before passing away. As Khan read the note, he understood that the reason why she committed such a deed was that she felt she had caused problems to each and every character in her life. That she was the reason everyone else suffered and she was guilty.
The story ends here but the problem doesn’t. Many students go through this every year and there are stories from everywhere in the world. It's not just students, it's celebrities, adults, children and all because people don’t control what they say on social media. I would like to end my review with something I heard ‘Don’t comment on something you cannot change in the next five minutes.
Thank you for reading!