Last Twilight (2023) First Impressions

Last Twilight is another Thai BL from GMMTV starring the pair of Jimmy Jitaraphol Potiwihok and Sea Tawinan Anukoolprasert. I enjoyed watching this couple because of their excellent chemistry. Vice Versa had a unique plot involving alternate worlds.  Last Twilight’s story revolves around losing one’s sight and second chances.

Aof Noppharnach Chaiyahwimhon directs this work. He knows what he’s doing as his previous work includes directing these BLs: Still Together, A Tale of a Thousand Stars, Bad Buddy, and 2gether: The Movie. His previous works are all ones that I enjoy, even if the Bright/Win chemistry is wonky to me. I expect Last Twilight will be another success.

Plot:

Burdened with heavy debt, Mhok, a technical college student, applies for a high-paying job as a caregiver to Day, a badminton player with partial blindness due to infectious keratitis. Day hires Mhok, who—Unlike other applicants—seems to take no pity on him. With so much time spent in each others’ company, the two develop a deep bond. When Day learns he’ll have approximately 180 days until he loses his remaining vision, how will the two weather the trials ahead?

(Source: MyDramaList)

Cast:

Jimmy Jitaraphol Potiwihok is Mhok

Sea Tawinan Anukoolprasert is Day

Mark Pakin Kunaanuwit is Night [Day’s older brother]

Support Roles:

Namtan Tipnaree Weerawatnodom is Phojai [Mhok’s ex-girlfriend]

Film Rachanun Mahawan is Gee [Day’s friend]

Ohm Thipakorn Thitathan is August [Day’s former Badminton partner]

Cream Premsinee Ratanasopa is Ramon [Day’s mother]

Jugg Chawin Chitsomboon is Uea

Kun Kunchanuj Kengkarnka is On [Day’s visually impaired friend]

Emi Thasorn Klinnium is Pla

First Impression:

This review is based on the currently aired episodes one through three. There may be a few spoilers, but nothing significant to the plot, I don’t think.

The story revolves around two men struggling with change and how their lives intersect.  Mhok, the rough ex-convict, and Day, the wealthy former athlete losing his sight, appear as different as Day and Night…oh wait, that’s Day’s brother’s name. 🤣 Yes, the mom really named her kids Night and Day.

Mhok is a hot-tempered man who ended up on the wrong side of the law. During his young adult life, only his sister Pla helped raise him. Their parents were deceased.  Growing up, Pla chased her dream to open a store, but her dreams came crashing down as she was forced to close the shop.  

 Mhok’s girlfriend Phojai found Pla dead by suicide on the day Mhok was arrested for battery and assault.  She couldn’t even comfort him or vice versa because he was behind bars.  He kept his head down in prison and didn’t cause any trouble. Mhok and Phojai remained close, even though he broke up with her in jail. Phojai is the only one who visited him.

He couldn’t find work after his release from prison until the probationary officer removed his ankle tracker. People were only seeing his past, not his present. He tried very hard to get a job to pay off debt, but with his rugged looks and the ankle bracelet, no one wanted to hire him. Mhok. Luckily, Phojai is his shoulder to cry on and encourages him to find work, which leads to Day.

Day is a badminton player, a very good young doubles player with the potential to go Pro, and a college student. During an important match, he loses his sight, and his vision goes super blurry. Day learns that he needs a cornea transplant to see again because his vision will deteriorate until he’s completely blind. Day shuts himself away from the world, retreating to his room.  His famous chef mother continues to hire caretakers to help Day, but he drives them all away. He’s angry at their pity and willingness to treat him like an invalid until Mhok arrives.

Mhok has a maintenance job at the blind association building, where Day and his family interview applicants to be Day’s caretaker. He watches all the applicants go in, hopeful, then out of the room, dejected. He decides to try to interview for it since he needs a job.  The two men are oil and water, fire and ice. Mhok is not soft-spoken or well-educated. He also has no problem calling out Day for his obnoxious and annoying behavior. There is no pity in his voice or his gaze. Day wants to hire him despite his mother’s protest. Day is impressed that Mhok doesn’t pity him. All Day wants is to be seen as a person, not a disability. 

So far, I am enjoying this show.  Jimmy and Sea must have spent time with blind people in training how to walk, talk, and tackle the physical and emotional challenges of losing sight. This detail endears me to the series. All too often, I see disability stereotypes portrayed and not nuanced subtle performances.  I’m happy this shows the differences in how sighted and non-sighted people view the world.

Jimmy and Sea are well-matched. They have an easy camaraderie and chemistry that’s endearing to watch.  Whether acting as Mhok and Day or Talay/Tess and Puen/Tun, they work well together. I’m hopeful that this series continues to do well as it starts.

I’m not sure what will be the main obstacles will be yet. Will it be Mhok’s hotheadedness getting him in trouble or Day’s badminton partner back into the picture that gets in between them? Or will it be something else entirely, like Day’s inability to get a cornea transplant in time? I’m going to keep watching to find out.

Have there been any negatives so far? Just a few.  Night, Day’s brother, seems to both pity and resent Day for many reasons. I don’t know if I’m supposed to like him or view him as cold.  Day’s mom is overbearing, bossy, and a bit elitist, looking down on people she considers lower class than herself. I don’t like her, and one last drawback is Day’s straight-ahead stare. Mostly, they have captured the mannerism of walking like the blind and learning how to feel things and adapt, as well as the confusion and panic when the blind feel helpless and alone.  With all that said, here is a minor quirk for me. As someone who was sighted until recently, your eyes and your face instinctively move to the location of sound, especially when someone is talking to you. It’s instinct, even if you can’t see. You don’t have the same stare maybe of someone who has never seen before. It’s just a minor annoyance so far, and not enough to dissuade me to stop watching.

If you are watching now, what are your thoughts on the show so far?  Where do you think the plot will go, and what will be Mhok and Day’s most significant obstacle to overcome? I look forward to finding out.  Thanks for reading. 🥰💕 – Jen

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. [See our Review Guide]