Oxygen Episode 9

Once again I’m a little late for my review. But I hope you guys are still here with me. I hope you are still watching and reading my thoughts and musings. I am enjoying the ride of Oxygen and getting sad it’s coming to an end. Make sure you head over to Krishna’s review and see what she thinks as well.

So what happened to our couples since we left off? Big Mama had passed away and Gui handled the arrangements alone with his friends from the orphanage. Solo arrived and finally Gui had a shoulder to lean on and could cry. Phu and Kao are getting closer. How close? Read on to find out. And what is up with the strange square that is the Petch/Perth/Khim/Khem? The dynamics keep changing, and I’m having trouble keeping up with where they are going with this story. This week I’m going in a different order. I’m going to start with the strange square, then SoloGui and end with PhuKao.

Perth/Petch/Khim/Khem

Let me say that I actively don’t like Petch right now. I think he’s extremely dishonest with everyone around him. He is callous and manipulative. So lets look at his actions this week in terms of character development.

Petch is playing badminton with Khim. She is winning & says she is feeling great physically. He decides to use his position of authority and tell her he will assess her mental health by taking her to do something she enjoys. She is excited about this and asks to go to the temple. He was trying to sneak a date with her, so he is disappointed with the destination. I got angry at his blatant use of power as a trusted doctor to manipulate her into going on a date with him. This rubs me the wrong way.

Then when we get to the temple, he still tries to hit on her. I felt that he was missing the point of being in the temple. It wasn’t so that he could hit upon his crush, he should have spent the time at the temple in prayer and contemplation. Then Khem joins them and he’s clearly beaming at Petch, happy to be near him. They all shake the sticks to see what their fortune is going to be. And they all get the stick that says love is close to them. Khim thinks it must be wrong, Petch is happy and so is Khem. I feel so bad for Khem, who has feelings for Petch. And we don’t even see Perth this episode. I find myself wanting to skip over those parts.

Lastly in their story this week, Khim is given the all clear to go to the waterfall with Khem. Petch is eavesdropping, follows them like a stalker and fakes a phone call so they will invite him on their trip. Seriously? What a weasel! And what the heck is up with Perth? Where is he and how will he play into this ending? I just see heartbreak every direction in this storyline. I don’t care, but I want Petch to realize how wrong he’s been and how despicable his behavior it.

Solo/Gui

So Gui woke up from his bad dream, alone in the bed. His heart is broken with the loss of the only mother he’s ever known. Solo comes in with a, you guessed it, bowl of water and cloth. It’s sponge bath time again. I swear y’all Thai people must think sponge baths are the cure for everything. Got a cold? Sponge bath. Got a hangover? Sponge bath. Are you depressed? Sponge bath. I’m missing out. I think I need to tell my husband that from now on I require a sponge bath when anything goes wrong. Do you think he’ll go for it? 😁

As we go to the village where Big Mama lived as a teacher, you seen Solo out of his element and Gui returning to his. Gui was raised in the countryside at an orphanage so is used to the rural locale, whereas Gui is raised with money in the city. But he tries to help out by taking care of Gui when they get there.

Here we get to meet Moon. I love him. I have been looking forward to seeing him on screen. Moon has stolen my heart. He is such an adorable rascal. He and Solo are at odds because they are both two much alike. They’re little loner puppies who form an attachment to Gui.

He’s also an orphan who looked at Big Mama as his mother too. I don’t want to give it away, but he is a recurring character. Gui, Solo, Kao and Phu all end up acting as surrogate teachers for the school while they are on break. It’s lovely to see Gui is in his element as caretaker and teacher to the little kids.

When they are planting the garden this moment makes me smile and hurts my heart a bit.

Children are so innocent. They ask questions. They have a hard time grasping permanence. So when Moon asks innocently when will teacher be back, Gui doesn’t know what to say, so he stays silent. I hope they give the talk that Moon and I think it’s Solo have about it next week, but. I don’t know. I cried a little. This weekend I went out to have dinner with my sister, her husband, and my niece (3) and nephew (5) with the hubby and my son. We are all sitting and chatting. I haven’t seen the kids in about 8 months, other than a solo trip to their house. But during the dinner, my nephew turns and asks me “Where’s my other cousin?” I looked at my sister who looked a bit panicked, and said sorry, but children never mean to hurt us, they just don’t where people are. So, knowing her beliefs and mine, I turned and said, well he’s in heaven now, and he’s looking down at you and saying Hi Joseph. He nodded and turned back to his food. He just needed to know where, and once he knew, it was ok. Moon is looking for his answer too. And the one he receives is so lovely I hope they will include it.

We end with Solo getting a call from Jay and sitting across from the table from Gui looking unhappy. I think things are going to take a turn for angst in the next episode.

Kao/Phu

Now we end with my favorite couple. They have stolen my heart and I admit it. The side couple is my main couple. We begin with Kao coming alone to the village because Phu had to work. As Solo put it, no wonder you are making your sad bunny face. I love that Phu has convinced everyone to call Kao a bunny. It fits. 😁

And Kao settles in to help teach the children alongside of Gui and Solo. We see that he’s great with kids. They run and play together, come to him for help writing their names. He is surprised and so happy when Phu shows up. During their dinner together the first night, Phu leaves to answer the phone call from his brother. Then we hear Phu asking if his brother has taken his medicine and if he was being good. Kao settles down with him and a guitar after Phu gets off the phone. Kao is worried he’s being too nosy and driving Phu away. Phu opens up to Kao and tells him that he has only brought good things into his life and why would he be irritated at that. So sweet. I love that Phu is warming in his treatment of Kao. Kao is sincere enough to ask Phu if he was pushing too much. Their communication is lovely.

They go to a nearby waterfall and have to camp for the night as they won’t make it back in time for Phu to receive his nightly call from his brother. Kao is prepared, which means he wanted to camp alone with Phu. I love that tricky bunny. 😁

When Phu finally gets a call from his brother, Kao gets up to leave but is stopped by Phu. He sits with Phu while Phu talks to his silent brother. He doesn’t talk at all. But Phu asks about medicines and if he could read the doctors report. At the end of the conversation, it’s clear that Kao has questions. But I love Kao for not pushing Phu in this moment. The pushy adorable tricky sly bunny sits back and waits patiently for Phu to open up to him. And Phu does.

I won’t go into the back story of Phu’s brother, just that my heart breaks once again for Phu and his brother. They both have experienced so much trauma at a young age. And bunny has brought Phu back his smiles. Kao asks Phu if Phu wants Kao to help his brother. He says if you want to. Kao says if you want me to. And Phu admits he wants Kao’s help. Phu is headed back to England to watch over him next semester but can’t be there yet. Kao will help him come back to himself. If bunny can warm Phu’s cold heart, he can help his brother open up and talk again. Can’t wait to see what happens next episode. I am so happy they are progressing as a couple.

So that’s it for this week. Be sure to head over to check out Krishna’s review. I really do think we share space in the same brain. We seem to always be in sync in our likes and dislikes. You never know, this week might be the change to all of that. Please leave me a comment down and let me know your thoughts on this episode. The episode 10 review should be out Wednesday night. 🤗💕 – Jen

Rating: 4.5/5