My Oxygen – Episode 1

I’m so excited this series is finally here. I am doing another joint review with Psycho Milk. I can’t wait to see what Krishna thinks of Oxygen the series as well. We will be releasing our reviews at the same time. So please read both of our reviews to see a different perspective on the series.

I have high hopes for the series since it’s directed by Jane Pongpisit Bottasri who directed Sotus S the series and Our Sky. These two were excellent, so I feel that Oxygen The Series is in good hands.

Disclaimer : I’ve read the translation of the boys love novel by Chesshire. So I go into the series with a background knowledge that new viewers may not have. The translation was allowed by the author, so if you google it, it’s easy to find. The translator asked for no public links to the work, but you shouldn’t have issues finding it. I loved the novel, so I’ve been eagerly awaiting the series for some time.

Also I’m going to include a link for the OST, which is adorable. I can’t help smiling. It’s pure candy floss, or cotton candy if you are from the US, and I love it.

It is sung by Nut Supanut Lourhaphanich, who plays Solo in this series.

Synopsis

Orphaned at a very young age, Gui, a fourth-year engineering student, has had to work hard and earn for himself for as long as he can remember. Still, through the test of time, he still has a soft demeanor and a smile on his face. Solo, a freshman in the Faculty of Music, can get anything he wants with a flick of his wrist. Money, fame, good looks, the boy has everything, except his smile. When Solo’s mother passed away, she took with her his smile. Nothing could fill this missing hole in him… that is — until one day when he sees a smiling boy working at a cafe. One night the two worlds collide in a small coffee shop. For a cup of hot milk and a warm smile, Solo finds himself back in the cafe every night. For a soft boy who reminds him of a husky, Gui finds himself waiting for a late-night visitor with a cup of hot milk, night after night. Night after night, the two boys continue to meet. At the same spot, at the same time, until they soon come to realize that they have become each other’s breath. A necessity. Just like Oxygen.

Source: Soju at MyDramaList

I know you want me to hurry and get to the good stuff, right? Well to bad because I have to tell you who’s who before we begin. 😁 Anticipation is everything, right?

Characters

Solo Siwarokin (Nut Supanut Lourhaphanich)

Solo is a quiet freshmen who stands out because of his handsome looks and apparent wealth. He doesn’t interact well with other, but has a few close friends. It’s also rumored his father is not only wealthy but shady too. He’s serious, loves music and has a bad case of insomnia.

Gui Jirayu (Petch Chanapoom Thenwong)

Gui is a fourth year engineering student who works in the coffee shop. He’s the light to Solo’s dark. He’s outgoing and beloved by all. He is friendly with everyone and great at making people feel at ease.

Kao Ashira (Boss Thanabat Ngamkamolchai)

Kao is Solo’s best friend and his complete opposite. He’s charming, funny and rarely serious. He’s a freshman who is majoring in Music.

Phuri Drake (Phu Phubeth Tharathonchanakul)

He’s a senior majoring in international business. He’s related to Solo in the show, but not in the series. (I believe, it’s been so long, so don’t quote me….if I’m wrong tell me) He’s very quiet and serious with an intimidating air around him. He’s the son of a very important businessman who is said to be shady.

Khim (Natty Thanyanan Pipatchaisiri)

She’s a barista and university student as well. She’s the bl shipper in all of us and runs the cute boy coffee shop social media page.

Dr. Petch (Kun Kunchanuj Kengkarnka)

He’s a handsome pediatrician and frequent customer of the cafe where Khim and Gui work.

Dr. Perth (Yuuki Durongsang)

He’s a handsome surgical specialist and close friend of Dr. Petch since high school days. They frequently are seen together, causing Khim and others to ship them together.

Review

We start off with Solo waking from a nightmare. His dream is of his dad burning the guitar his mother played for him as a child. We can assume the relationship between Solo and his dad is tense. He calls his best friend Kao who falls asleep with the phone to his ear. I’ve been there, falling asleep on the phone. My grandma would call me in the middle of the night in college when she was upset about something. She was bipolar and I loved her very much. When she was good, she was wonderful. But we all know the flip side of bipolar can be extreme. So I would listen to her vent and fall asleep with the phone to my ear.

You didn’t need to know that about my grandma, but there you go. It’s the little details that make life interesting. 😁

Solo can’t sleep and see’s a late evening coffee shop open and wanders in. The chemistry is there when they lock eyes. Solo looks tired and Gui is very good at taking care of people. So in order to help Solo rest easier, Gui makes him a warm milk instead of the espresso he asked for.

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We move on to the next morning at the coffeeshop. Then there is a special guest appearance in this scene. We see Kaownah and Turbo, who were supposed to have their own series My Umbrella but it got cancelled. Kaownah previously played the role of Lhong in Tharn Type the series. Turbo starred in the series Heart by Heart. The two are close friends in real life. I enjoy seeing their playful interactions, so when they appeared onscreen as themselves I was delighted. Even if it was a brief cameo they made me smile.

It’s funny, I usually take very detailed notes about the shows that I’m reviewing while I’m watching it. But this time, I couldn’t stop smiling and only ended up with one brief page of notes.

At the coffeeshop, Gui is asked to deliver an order to the Campus Moon pageant rehearsal for the freshman. He notices that one person ordered warm milk, so he think it must be Solo from the night before. He smiles at the memory of their first meeting. He’s happy that he’ll able to see him again.

We then shift to a night scene where we see an unbothered Phuri who avoids women trying to hit on him with an aloof air he stride away. He’s secretly watched by Kao, Solo’s best friend. He ends up rescuing Phuri, and develops an immediate crush. Their book is Nitrogen but it looks like it’s going to be included in the series, even though the events take place after it in the novels.

Meanwhile back at the cafe, we meet both Dr. Petch and Dr. Perth who are talking together about a recent surgery while sharing a cake and getting secretly recorded by Khim.

Meanwhile on campus Gui brings the order and personally delivers the milk to Solo, telling him that he was special because that isn’t available on the menu. So begins the cute love story of Gui and Solo.

And now you’ve been introduced to our main couples and side couples. I love each one of them. From the best friends to maybe more trope to the love at first sight trope, it could become cliche. But it doesn’t.

Somehow it’s charming and feel good. Each couple has their own quirks that make them stand out. The lost puppy vibe of Solo and the caring big brother vibe of Gui are obvious from their first scene together. We have the stoic bad boy vibes of Phuri paired with the extremely happy go lucky vibes of Kao. And then we have studious and serious Dr. Perth and charismatic and kind Dr. Petch introduced at the cafe. We get their personality traits immediately, which helps us connect to them.

Everything works so well together in this first episode. The aesthetics are on point with colors, setting, sound, and costume choices. Gui in an apron is downright adorable.

I wasn’t going to give away spoilers, but there is one cute moment when we have an indication of how syrupy sweet this show is going to be.

I enjoyed this show immensely. I know I’m biased since I have read the story, but even if I hadn’t, this first episode is stellar. I’m so in the mood for a sweet fun show that I can sit and smile through. I think after the year we are having we deserve to loose ourselves in something happy and sweet. This show is definitely going to make us feel good. That’s not to say their story goes without bumps in the road, but hang in there because the story of Solo and Gui is worth watching.

I’m going to give myself a little wiggle room in the ratings though.

Let me know what you think. Are you as hooked on the series as I am, or was it too fluffy for you?

Also remember to go check out my colleagues fabulous review on Psycho Milk’s website, and leave them lots of love and comments. The link is up above.

Rating: 4.5/5

Til next time peeps. 🤗💕 – Jen