Tard Rak (Slave of Love) review
Cherry is so gorgeous in the lakorn even though she's in slave garb half the time.
Synopsis and cast information by wishboniko
What I liked:
* Fairytale romance. What? Didn’t I just say I don’t do fairytale endings in my last post? Well, it has to do with expectations really. I know I’m getting a fairytale here so bring it on. Betrothed at birth? Check. Separated by circumstances? Check. Meet without knowing real identities? Check. Bound by destiny at every turn? Check check check. Prince Darb is the role that made me like Mart despite his limited acting capabilities because he was the only who loved without any hidden agenda. He thought he had fallen for a prostitute and while he often struggled with this fact, ultimately he chose to give up not just money but also his pride as a prince for the woman he loved. A fair warning though, he does act childishly sometimes but I still wanna squish him. :p Now for the other person in this relationship, Princess Aeyawade. In the first episode, I thought for sure she’d be the character I’d hate the most because I have low tolerance for sweet, naïve and saintly types but turns out, I kinda like her! She is a borderline saint who repays evil with kindness but she does fight back when pushed too far. Cherry was superb as Aeyawade, bringing both commanding royal presence as well as vulnerability to the character. Their romance is fluffy Disney stuff, nothing epic that burns your heart but sufficient to make me smile and go awwwww [I watched Tard Rak and Mae Ka Khanom Wan back to back so I was awww-ing over the Mart/Cherry pair for quite some time. They are now my third favourite koo kwan after KA and Ateam.]
* One of my biggest lakorn peeve is the one dimensional third party(ies) that we get in 8 out of 10 lakorns. Not that we don’t get scheming exes in dramas from other countries but most of the n’rais in lakorns exist solely to be the bitch-that-ruins-everything so it was refreshing to get a ‘third party’ in TR who has her own life and own story. I guess Ward is technically one of the lead characters but I still appreciate the fact that her motivations for getting in between the royal OTP is well-developed and understandable for her character. Out of the 4 main characters, Ward goes through the most changes and is the most well written character to me. She’s so human in her struggles and failings that I can’t hate her even when she uses dirty tricks to get Prince Darb.
*The side-kick. Again, another standard character in lakorns used primarily to provide comic relief but more often than not just end up annoying me with their over the top antics. Yet when used right - like Kom in Sood Sanaeha - they are icing on the cake. Prince Darb’s servant Kharn is hilarious with his deadpan replies and not only is he a faithful servant, he is an intelligent one and I enjoyed all his scenes. The Queen’s servant Nim can be occasionally grating but she gets some pretty funny lines too.
Kinda iffy bits
*The overall plot is on the weak side because Aeyawade's many poor decisions are used as the main driving force for the plot instead of other more believable circumstances. Also, Aeyawade is one hellavu lucky princess, getting incredible breaks no matter how bleak the situation looks. It's no wonder Ward complains that some people get all the luck!
* The 'civilian OTP' of Aong Din and Ward had the potential to have more depth to their relationship but in the end it fell flat. I felt Aong Din's change of affections from Aeyawade to Ward was too sudden and not explained properly and Aong Din ended up a confused character for me.
I rate this: 3.5/5
Lame plot devices aside, the pacing is fairly brisk and things are continually happening which made me want to watch the next episode to find out what happens next and the interaction between the 4 main characters are well-written. If you're still not feeling this show by the third episode though, it might not be the lakorn for you.