The Eclipse Series - Tumblr Posts

First encounters

Rage Against the (Expresso) Machine

TLDR: An Age of Enlightenment

The teachers' questions are targeted toward Ayan, not just by asking him, specifically, to respond but in the questions themselves:

Teacher Waree’s questions deal with political constructs and control, something that they want to do to Ayan

The language teacher is asking about the sun and the moon, which symbolize Ayan

The chemistry teacher is asking about boiling points and why substances dissolve, which could allude to Ayan breaking down

Ayan finds a sense of safety away from school in the café, which has a history in the gay community and invites Thua into that space to reward his help.

*Disclaimers – Long post that is coming from a western perspective, so implicit biases can exist. Call me out! If you see something, say something. Also, everyone doesn’t mean everyone. In the 18th century, the only people who could work and own property tended to be white men, so if everyone is stated, it usually means everyone in that specific group. Finally, chemistry is not in my wheelhouse.

The Bad Place

We continue to get shots of Ayan between bars at school as if being imprisoned

Yet the questions Waree asks Ayan are about philosophers who are key players in the foundational beliefs of democracy. All lived under a monarchy or dictatorship, yet wanted people to be free to decide how to be governed. They are from the 18th century, which is a period known as The Age of Enlightenment where individualism, logic, and cynicism of the law were heavily encouraged. These men also indirectly contributed to the United States Declaration of Independence and Constitution:

Politics

Thomas Hobbes believed that everyone was equal and should pick their ruler, but he also believed that once picked, that ruler had absolute power; therefore, everyone made an agreement within the group to give the ruler his power, and also to abide by it. Hobbes wrote a book called Leviathan, named after the biblical creature that brings chaos to people and can only be slayed by God. God created everything, so he created this creature and could be the only one to destroy it – absolute power. (USA connection - Election of leader and social agreement of the group to abide by his rule)

Charles Montesquieu believed that power needed to be divided to remain balanced. Each section could monitor the other sections with an agreed-upon system of checks and balances to maintain law and order – legislative, executive, and judicial branches. (USA connection - U.S. government)

John Locke agreed with Hobbes that a ruler should be selected by the people, but believed that the agreement was between the group and the ruler. If the ruler did not fulfill his duties, the group did not have to abide by the rules. He also believed that everyone had inalienable rights – life, liberty, and the pursuit of property, that the ruler could not deny resulting in no absolute power. (USA connection - Thomas Jefferson changed it to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" in the Declaration of Independence)

Side mission – Jean-Jacques Rosseau isn't mentioned, but he is the fourth pillar in the democratic foundation and was the most radical. He didn't believe in rulers but facilitators. Everyone gets to vote, and the majority wins instead of having elected officials make decisions on behalf of the people. If a person did not abide by the laws laid out by the majority, that person was free to exit to the left.

Language

The subtitles clarify that “Phra Arthit” is the sun; however, “Phra” denotes that the teacher is asking about the GOD of the sun, not just the sun. She follows this question by asking about the moon god. Ayan and Akk represent the moon and the sun, but she, as a character, doesn’t know this, and Ayan and Akk aren’t deities. However, in a very simplified version, Phra Arthit (Son God) and Phra Chandra (Moon God) conflict with Rahu (solar eclipse) and Ketu (lunar eclipse), so if the lesson continued, the focus would be on the chaos the eclipses cause, which would remind Ayan and the class of the curse’s ramifications.

Side mission - Rahu and Ketu’s orbital cycle takes 18 years, which is a saros, so it's been either eighteen years since the last curse or one of the boys turning 18 triggers it.

Another side mission – Dika warned Ayan to know the true meaning of words, which is probably why he excels at this questioning.

Chemistry

The boiling point is based on the internal forces of the substance while solubility (capability of dissolving) is based on the substance's ability to bond with the external substance. Water holds both negative and positive *energy* (not the right term, but chemistry is not my thing), so to bond with other substances and dissolve them, the other substance must also be polar/have negative and positive instead of absolutes.

The teacher could be asking basic chemistry questions, but because the other two teachers' questions were pointed, a quick analysis of these questions could reflect that the harder Ayan resists, the quicker he'll break down and conform(?).

Comprehensive Exam

All in all, each teacher attempts to exert some underlying knowledge over power/control, the curse, and breaking points, yet each time, the opposite can be seen; Waree’s lesson highlights how people should have the right to decide how they want to be governed, the language teacher shows that the eclipse isn't something to be feared, but a natural occurrence, and the chemistry teacher shows that breaking down and bonding can help create new substances.

Side mission - Thua attempts to help each time by trying to answer the questions or not making these moments into a spectacle like his peers.

For his help, he is granted access to Ayan’s safe space.

The Good Place

Pride is celebrated in America in June because that is when the Stonewall Riots (1969, New York) happened. It was started mainly by trans folx (Their names are important! Go learn them!) throwing a brick while at the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar.

Gay bars tend to be the popularized safe spaces in media for the gay (not queer) community, yet, historically, they have been rather exclusive. These spaces often weren't accepting of the trans community or people of color. Intersectionality is always at play even in spaces that should be open to all in the community.

However, three years before that, trans folx started another riot by throwing coffee at police officers, which is known as the Compton Cafeteria Riot (1966, San Francisco).

During the 18th century (full circle moment!), in the Age of Enlightenment, the creation of coffeehouses rose. They were seen as an alternative space for sharing ideas, holding intellectual conversations, and participating in political discussions outside of the university that were available and open to everyone regardless of education. These reasonings automatically lent themselves to the “gay agenda” (organize the community), so queer cafés have existed just as long, if not longer than gay bars.

The choice to make the show’s safe space a café could be because the plot revolves around high schoolers who can't legally drink, so a bar would be inappropriate, but…the show has proven to be more critical of the way space is utilized. Making the safe space a café calls back to the coffeehouse’s origin of being a space open to everyone to share, learn, and organize. It also reinforces that the space is inclusive to EVERYONE in the community.

The choice of making the wait staff dress in maid outfits seems to refer to the maid cafés that are spread across Asian countries. In those cafés, the maids are always women who are held to stereotypical beauty standards, and their job is to help their patrons. Neither of the wait staff seen in the café display those stereotypical beauty standards, which highlights the core functions of the establishment – to be open to EVERYONE and provide help for all who enter, even those who aren't out.

Side mission - It could simply be the way the building is, but it is interesting that when Ayan entered, he was shot with the door behind him since he is a passage for Thua and others into this place, while Akk and Kan are seen with the wall of cameras behind them because they are there to watch and monitor and can't be free since they believe someone is always watching them (e.g. Kan's "if we stay, we'll be stereotyped too).

Random musing - The irony that now breweries and coffee shops are the first signs of gentrification is a strange transition of our time. However, they are more expensive than their humble counterparts (bars and coffeehouses), so they are meant for a more leisurely crowd with disposable income. Although Ayan and Thua are the more “out” boys, which is why they are in the safe space, they are also the more affluent, which is why we see them with drinks, perhaps.

Very excited for next week and the show’s handling of the open discrimination of gay men who present characteristics outside of traditional masculinity (i.e. femme traits).

"I will kiss you" (threatening) - A Meta on Ayan's Flirting

I feel like in BL there's sometimes these characters who'll immediately make flirty comments to their love interest from the start (often even before the characters have really connected) just because it’s a BL and needs romance and flirting by force of genre.

And that usually tends to annoy me bc it often just feels so forced, but this time I absolutely LOVED Ayan’s flirty behaviour towards Akk all throughout episode 1. Because unlike most BL characters, Ayan isn’t being flirty for the sake of being flirty. Neither is he trying to make Akk fall in love with him. No, on the contrary: all his flirty behavior is a strategy with the aim of getting rid of Akk.

Hold on, I’m gonna elaborate. (And buckle up, because this is going to be long.)

So, the series immediately establishes the two opposing characters:

Akk – the rule keeper

Ayan – the rule breaker

We immediately know there is going to be a conflict of interests between them and that the story will take us to them resolving this issue.

Part 1: Teachers’ Bathroom scene

I want to start with the scene in the teachers’ bathroom. Yes, I know Ayan doesn’t actually make a flirty comment in that scene but I think it’s still an interesting scene to take a look at as it’s their very first interaction and introduces us to their dynamic in this episode. And what is their dynamic? Well, Ayan is just minding his own business and it’s Akk who keeps bugging him, threatening him, attacking him, never leaving him alone. Which leaves Ayan in a position where he has to defend himself.

We immediately get introduced to this pattern in the scene in the teachers’ bathtroom. Although really we have to go all the way back to the car accident. As it’s only been one episode, we as viewers don’t yet know what Ayan was really doing and whether he had a hand in the accident or not, but for now we can assume he was minding his own business and definitely wasn’t bothering Akk personally. It’s Akk who spots him and immediately has it out for Ayan, running after him, following him all the way to the toilets and snapping at Ayan for breaking a school rule first thing as soon as he’s caught up to him.

This is “attack” no. 1, initiated by Akk. However, Ayan remains completely unimpressed and sasses back. So Akk “attacks” again: “Why aren’t you wearing your school uniform?”

Ayan is still not having any of this “you gotta follow the rules” shit, so he firmly informs Akk that he has no interest in doing so. With that, the conversation is over for Ayan and he pushes Akk aside to exit the bathroom.

However, Akk isn’t yet done with the conversation, so he starts round 3 of “attacks”, trying to establish his authority as a school prefect.

So once again Ayan is forced to defend himself against Akk who just won't leave him alone. He does so by getting sassy again and bringing up the car accident from earlier.

Three times Akk was bothering Ayan, three times Ayan needed to find a way to make Akk lay off him. This is a pattern, that will follow us throughout the episode.

Part 2: “Catch me if you can”

Now here is where the flirting starts.

Turns out that Ayan will be in the same class as Akk and Akk immediately requests that Ayan shares a desk with him. Thanks to the incident in the teachers’ bathroom Ayan is very well aware that Akk’s offer didn’t come out of the goodness of his heart, but Ayan accepts the seat nevertheless. And Akk doesn’t plan on hiding his intentions anyway. In fact, he very explicitly threatens Ayan: “Whatever you’re here for, I’ll be watching you. Keep that in mind.”

This absolutely is an attack on Ayan’s boundaries of personal space, and now Ayan’s had enough. You wanna get all up in my personal space? Fine, two can play at that game.

I love how you can just see the moment he takes the decision to play when that tiny smile that forms on his face.

And what does he do?

He puts his hand on Akk’s thigh, turning Akk's threat into a challenge: “Catch me if you can.”

And it works. Akk is quick to push Ayan’s hand off, looking kinda uncomfortable. Ayan smiles smugly. He's won. And now he’s got a weapon against Akk.

Part 3: “You punch me once. I kiss you once.”

The scene starts out with Ayan about to enter the school. He’s standing there, minding his own business, lost in thought when–

Akk strikes again. Still bugging Ayan about the school uniforms. Ayan, rather annoyed, retaliates by questioning Akk’s world views. This pisses Akk off and he aggressively grabs Ayan’s collar.

It’s the first incident of physical violence between them and it’s initiated by Akk. Even Ayan calls him out on it: “Is the rule keeper breaking the rule by using violence against me now?”

And seeing as Ayan definitely didn’t like having violence used against him, he launches into a counterattack. However, he doesn't punch back, he doesn't use violence in return. No. Ayan has just figured out a weapon and he’s going to use it: “You punch me once. I kiss you once.”

Weaponized flirting. We love to see it.

Anyway, he makes some kissy faces at Akk to really drive home his point, trying to get Akk to let go of his hoodie. And while Akk isn’t pushing Ayan away, it still works insofar that Akk completely freezes. He goes into error 404 mode and finally shuts up.

Then the school announcement calling all the prefects cuts through, which pulls Akk out of error mode and makes him look away towards the school. He still hasn’t let go of Ayan, though, and when Akk turns back, Ayan is still leaning closer, challenging him. Now that Akk is able to move again, he finally pushes Ayan away. He finally lets go of Ayan's collar, resulting in a satisfied smile on Ayan’s face.

Ayan has the upper hand. Akk can’t quite accept defeat just yet and threatens violence again: “If I didn’t get called, you’d get hurt.” But as usual, Ayan is not impressed and only taunts him: “What a shame. You just missed a kiss from me.”

This exchange keeps going for a bit, with Akk threatening violence while Ayan keeps behaving aggressively flirty:

Akk: “What a jackass! You’ll have to deal with me one day.” Ayan: “Bring it on. Right here. Right now.” Akk: “Shut up. Don’t you think I wouldn’t hit you.”

With that last sentence Akk gets physical again, pulling Ayan’s hood with force, still not leaving Ayan alone.

So Ayan doubles down. He plays it cool, stands his ground and gets even more into Akk's space than before: this time, he’s the one grabbing Akk by his collar, pulling him closer as he goes “I just love people who are cocky.”, blowing another kiss at Akk for good measure.

This time Akk doesn’t freeze but pushes Ayan away immediately and walks off.

Ayan has won. And to rub salt into the wound, Ayan calls after Akk again to make one last kissy face at him.

You can tell it’s a strategy, because Ayan completely drops his flirty demeanor as soon as Akk is out of sight and goes straight back to business, back to where he was before Akk had interrupted him.

Part 4: Ayan writing into his notebook

I was actually gonna skip this because not much is happening here. But in the end I did quickly want to point out that here we have once again the pattern of Ayan minding his own business (writing into his notebook) and Akk interrupting him (showing up with his friends, bugging Ayan about not being in class). Ayan defends himself with a sassy comment. Lucky for Ayan, Akk and his friends leave shortly after that as they get distracted with prefect duties. Ayan doesn’t get flirty with Akk in this scene, since Akk doesn’t bother him long enough for Ayan to be forced to bring out the flirty weapons in order to get rid of Akk.

Part 5: notice board scene

This scene is actually kinda funny, bc Ayan’s flirt-to-get-rid-of-Akk strategy works, but entirely on accident.

Anyway, let’s start from the beginning. Ayan is minding his own business as usual, looking at the flyers on the notice board when Akk (who followed Ayan after class) disturbs his peace again, this time by getting physical right away, grabbing Ayan’s shoulder and turning him around while asking “What do you think you’re doing?”

Ayan is startled and you can see how for a moment he tries to figure out what to do.

In the end he decides to stay friendly, telling Akk somewhat of a truth: “Just looking at these leaflets. They’re interesting.” But in the end Ayan can’t help himself but irritate Akk just a little bit after all. “The World Remembers gang is so cool. The next Hyde Park is going to be so much fun.”

This irritates Akk indeed, who snaps at Ayan: “Don’t you even think about joining them.”

Ayan retaliates by implying feelings. “Are you worried about me? Are you afraid i’d be cursed like them?”

This starts an argument between the two of them. Akk voices his suspicions of Ayan, Ayan questions Akk's views on rules, Akk isn’t having it and deflects with “Who sent you to mess with this school?”

And this is where it gets funny. Because this comment makes Ayan roll his eyes and then he’s ready to get into some more arguing… except he suddenly notices Akk’s tilted pin and gets distracted. He’s like hold on, I really gotta fix that before we can continue our argument, but what he doesn’t expect is that this first moment of genuine connection, this first display of care overwhelms Akk. Akk quickly leaves the scene. You can tell that Ayan didn’t mean to fix the pin in an attempt to get rid of Akk from the way he watches Akk walk away with a confused face all like Huh?? Weren’t we in the middle of a fight just now?? Aren’t we going to argue some more??

Compare this with how smug he's looked so far whenever he was flirting on purpose.

Part 6: Foreign Language Department Scene

Ayan is off doing his own thing again, looking around the foreign language department and actually acting kinda shady for a change. Akk finds him in the hallway and calls out to him: “What are you doing? What are you doing here?”

For once, Akk isn’t just a minor annoyance in Ayan’s life but rather in that moment Akk’s appearance is very inconvenient for Ayan. He needs Akk gone asap, so instead of arguing or making up an excuse Ayan immediately launches into a flirt-attack, so that Akk will leave quickly as he’s done all these times before. “You’ve been following me everywhere. Are you into me, prefect?”

Spoiler alert: this time this strategy won’t work.

See, the thing is that Akk actually kinda is into Ayan now, whether Akk is aware of it or not. He’s been obsessing over Ayan all episode, constantly searching for him, researching him, thinking of him, getting close to him. And then the pin. Something happened to Akk when Ayan tried to fix the tilted pin, and it affected Akk so much, to the point where he couldn’t focus on his homework while the uniform with the pin was still in sight.

Plus, by now Akk has also gotten used to Ayan’s flirty comments. They don’t hit him out of nowhere anymore.

So when Ayan asks if Akk is into him, he does take a moment, still unsure how to deal with it, but he doesn’t look very surprised or shocked.

He swallows, and then decides he won’t be backing off. In fact, he even takes a little step closer to Ayan when he says “I’m not a friend you can play with.”

Ayan still needs Akk gone, though, so he tries again: “Do you think of me as more than a friend, then?”

And Akk falls back into his old habit of threatening violence again. And it’s actually pretty funny because he tells Ayan “If you don’t shut that foul mouth, it will get punched by me.” knowing full well Ayan said he would kiss Akk if Akk were to punch him. And Akk's saying this in the context of something LGBT having already happened to him during the pin-fixing moment, too. (Wanting and asking for a kiss much @Akk? lol)

So we get this bit of fun dialogue where they’re partly bickering and arguing, partly trying to win superiority over the other (Ayan needs superiority so that Akk will leave, Akk needs superiority so Ayan will comply to the rules and respect his status as a school prefect) and partly genuinely flirting while also slowly moving closer and closer into each other’s physical space as both of them refuse to back down.

Ayan: “Do you think of me as more than a friend then?” Akk: “If you don’t shut that foul mouth, it will get punched by me. You’re small but talk so big.” Ayan: “I’m small and what? What can a big guy like you do to me?” Akk: “I can do more than you think.” Ayan: “Do you even know what I’m thinking?”

It’s only when someone walks past that Akk pushes Ayan away. However, Akk doesn’t leave, not this time. He stays right there in order to continue arguing and to continue bugging Ayan: “What are you doing in a teacher’s room this hour?”

I know I just said something about them “genuinely flirting” while the entire point of this post has been all about how Ayan’s flirting is a strategy to get rid of Akk. Let me tell you, there’s no contradiction here, though. I said what I said. While their little exchange from above might have ended with an air of genuine flirting, the reason why Ayan started flirting in the first place was definitely to make Akk leave. And how do we know? By what comes after.

Because during that little exchange from just now Ayan learns that the flirting is no longer working. Akk isn’t backing down, he’s not running away this time. So as soon as their bickering is interrupted and Akk starts the entire argument anew by asking Ayan what he’s doing there, Ayan drops the act and changes his strategy. From then on Ayan doesn’t make a single flirty comment to Akk for the rest of the scene and tries different things instead.

First he tries a believable excuse, claiming that he's seeking advice from an English teacher. This strategy doesn't work either, because Akk calls bullshit on this claim and doesn't believe him. They bicker, then Ayan brings up the flower pot and the school curse to rile Akk up. Ayan also insults the school, which pisses Akk off and he falls back onto physical violence again, aggressively grabbing Ayan’s collar, pulling him closer and snapping at him.

Akk continues to ask “Seriously, what did the school members ever do to you? What did we do to you? Why are you ruining our reputation?”

And now Ayan is angry. Instead of trying to make Akk leave, Ayan now shoves off Akk’s hand and walks away himself.

In conclusion:

All throughout Ep. 1 Ayan was flirting with Akk with the purpose of pushing Akk away. And I cannot WAIT to see him go from

“I will kiss you” (threatening)

to

The Revolution will be Queer

And everyone has a roll to play in it.

The World Remembers are the people who cannot hide. They are the ones that will be seen if they revolt or not so they might as well fight, they have to fight, they will stand out and they will be seen and they do not have a choice in this battle. They are often the frontlines of the revolution and they must be honored.

Ayan is the leader of a revolution but he is the leader in pain and he is what happens when trauma crystalizes inside you. He is pain that turned outwards and turned against and he can lead and he has turned his screams into a battle cry and his wounds into a battlefield. His past leads him to this but also holds him back because he seeks revenge more than he seeks revolution and he may have to choose someday.

Thua is the one who can hide, the one who can be neutral, the one who is afraid of his voice and wants to live a peaceful life but also sees the ones who cannot and hurts. Thua is the one reluctant to join the fight, with a whisper in his voice, but he is also the one who will join the fight in the end, who will find his strength and find his noise,

Akk is the one who questions himself, the one with a spark to light or to smother. He is the one unsure, the one who starts off hostile but asks questions and learns answers and discovers himself. He is the one that stands in the past but is brought into the future by the one who lights his spark, who brings him out of the darkness, who shows him the beauty and the pain of the world that he must learn to fight.

Kan is the one who hurts and lashes out and represses himself for the sake of old laws and older traditions. He is the one that fears the change and fears a future different than what he knows and will hurt himself to keep those in power in power because he doesn't know what else will change. He is the one the revolution helps the most because the tradition must change for him to change, for him to grow. Kan is the one who fights the revolution in fear but will find acceptance if he can only open his eyes.

And they are all needed.

We need the ones who can hide and the ones who can lead and the ones who support and the ones who can be found and the ones who hurt. We need them all because the revolution is queer and the revolution is for all of them, even the ones who seems to take the other side. We may fight them in the moment but we also fight for them.

The revolution will be queer.

I scream. You scream. We all scream

TLDR: Maybe You're The Problem

Thua’s stepdad is verbally and emotionally abusive, which is why Thua is an obedient son

Kan and Thua serve as a parallel to Akk and Ayan’s dilemma in this episode

Papa Don't Preach

In the previous episode, Kan mentioned Thua’s dad while threatening him. Kan mentioned that Thua’s dad is an alum of the school, which is mentioned again in this episode when Ayan offers Thua a ride home after overhearing that Thua’s mom can’t come pick him up.

Your dad who’s an alumnus here as those guys said? He wanted me to go here, like him. Are you okay?

Thua’s stepdad has placed expectations on Thua to attend the same school he did knowing about the curse. Perhaps he simply wanted Thua to continue on his legacy or attend a prestigious school, but, most likely, he wanted to scare Thua straight.

Ayan is aware that Thua’s dad is abusive, which is why he asks if Thua is okay with him picking Thua up. Ayan knows this because he witnessed Thua’s intense reaction to The World Remembers getting verbally ridiculed and publicly humiliated

Ayan observes that even though Thua is extremely upset about it, the way Thua handles these situations is by keeping quiet because Thua believes that riding it out is safer than fighting back (a common response to abuse).

Ayan encourages Thua to find his voice instead of keeping quiet about the injustices.

Ayan also sets up a meeting with Thua and his mom to discuss the abuse.

Ayan arranges the meeting in a safe space, a place that is openly queer and is knowingly being followed by Kan and Akk. The mom states that the place is comfortable and seems aware of what the space represents. Her coded language also acknowledges that she is aware that Thua is gay. Feelings are often associated with feminine qualities and several times Ayan and the mother refer to Thua as repressing his feelings.

Thuaphu is always a helper. He really is a great man, but he likes to keep what he feels inside just to make other people comfortable. Thua, whatever you think or feel, you can talk to your mom. Ever since I got remarried, I've never seen you express any feelings.

During this discussion, Thua looks panicked and tries to stop the conversation several times. Ayan and the mother are wearing red (the color of passion) while Thua wears blue. The color could mean various things, but in the context of the show, blue is the school which is order and control.

Dad is…nice to me

While Ayan and his mother want Thua to speak freely, he is conflicted and remains restrained. He hesitates to speak ill of his stepfather, instead opting for a neutral “nice”

He is so different from your real dad, isn’t he?

The implication that the stepdad’s method is abusive is reinforced by Kan’s facial expressions upon hearing the subject of the conversation

I know my son is patient and strong, but you have the right to express your feelings.

Once again, his mother’s use of coded language saying that Thua should be able to express “feelings” underscores that Thua should be able to express his gayness. However, in the preview for the next episode, we hear a male voice, which is most likely Thua’s stepdad, state:

Men won’t think too much, Thuaphu. You’re girlish. That’s why you’re always bullied.

The Feels

Kan doesn’t want to be in that café, but he stays for Thua.

Kan tries to protect Thua by fighting the 11th graders in the bathroom for calling Thua the f-word. However, he still demeans Thua by calling him a nerd, bossy, and rude, and is hostile towards the openly gay students.

Kan tries to atone for his actions by providing treats (pink = feminine) but always resorts to distancing himself from Thua immediately after and aggressively responds to accusations that he cares for Thua.

Kan isn’t abusive towards Thua, BUT his behavior of dismissing and belittling Thua only to claim he is protecting Thua is…the norm for a character in a BL drama? No. It is consistent with what Thua probably experiences from his stepdad. From the quote in the upcoming episode, Thua’s stepdad believes, much like Kan in the first episode with The World Remembers, that Thua is to blame for his treatment.

Even if Kan isn’t aware of how bad Thua’s stepdad is, on some level, he is aware of the control Thua’s stepdad has over Thua’s life, which is why he mentioned him in their fight in the library. Based on Kan's reaction to Akk stating Kan’s parents spoil him, he might be more aware of Thua’s treatment than he would like to acknowledge.

Either way, Kan knows he is partially to blame for Thua’s repression, which is why he looks so guilty.

It’s also why Ayan has willingly allowed Kan and Akk to follow him – they must see the consequences of their actions. Akk didn’t want to admit that he was part of the reason Ayan was being punished, so he seeks out Ayan. Even when questioned, Akk acted as if he knew nothing. Due to his guilt, he allows Ayan to grab his wrist and rest his head on his shoulder. He also gives him a treat – the drink, yet all Ayan wanted was kindness.

Kan does the same here. He seeks out Thua on the beach but acts as if they just stumbled upon each other. As before, Kan tries to mend the friendship with the promise of sweet treats – ice cream. He grabs Thua’s wrist and even allows Thua to reciprocate the touch when cleaning up the ice cream.

Kan knows Thua is gay and Thua knows Kan is gay. It is unspoken truth between them. Thua realizes that Kan doesn’t want to be seen as gay, so he keeps his distance from Kan. Each time, Kan refutes the distance, but as mentioned above, his actions reinforce the separation.

In the safety of the lifeguard tower, Thua launches the truth – they are gay - at Kan once again preparing for Kan to deflect. In the silence after his confession, while waiting for Kan to produce his usual responses that skirt around Thua’s admission of gayness, Thua exhales as if relived to stand in his truth…

However, this time, instead of Kan threatening, dismissing, or stating Thua needs his protection, he offers Thua something he wants – his voice. 

Instead of defending, Kan gives Thua the opportunity to talk about his father, his fears, and his feelings. They share a *look*, but it is broken by Kan realizing his ice cream is melting down his hand, which is symbolic of his demeanor melting and his feelings pouring out for Thua.

The shift in Kan’s openness with his emotions is reinforced by the next scene being the eclipse, which we’ve seen during other moments of awareness.

And also by Kan’s pajamas. Previously, we’ve seen him in white and blue pajamas, but following his beach walk with Thua, he is wearing red, the color of passion.

Similar to the ice cream, Thua’s feelings are going to cause a mess now that they are out, but with Thua by his side, both boys will find the courage to use their voices and love themselves.

*The fact that I haven’t made one comment about iced coffee should be applauded.

They can share the night

Just a small town boy livin’ in a lonely world

Just a city boy born and raised in South... Bangkok?

A discussion about socioeconomic status

This discourse comes up often in regard to intersectionality in the queer community. When it comes to queer experiences, race obviously is a factor but so is wealth. People with higher socioeconomic status have more freedom, in a sense, to go against societal pressure aka be gay. If people have enough money, they don’t have to worry about job discrimination due to biases (based on being gay). If they have enough money, being given a fine for a “lewd act” or protesting is insignificant to them compared to someone not as well off which could be the difference between starving and being homeless due to the amount of the fine. Everyone can be discriminated against regardless of finances, but social standing and money allow certain ease in navigating the repercussions of such acts.  

Class & Power

Ayan has been to three schools. Regardless if due to his own choice or not, this clearly displays he has options if one doesn’t work out.  

Akk does not appear to have this same grace. Teacher Chadok implies several times that if Akk can’t get control of the situation, he will have no options for schooling.

Although there is some personal desire behind Akk volunteering to help Ayan in judo class, his statement rings true – If Ayan doesn’t do well, the whole class will suffer, something which Ayan doesn’t even think about, but is at the forefront of Akk’s thoughts. 

Ayan also has difficulty with the class because it requires following certain rules, like not touching your opponent's face and Ayan clearly doesn't have to follow the rules.

We see this play out with the class discussion as well. While Ayan argues with Teacher Waree which results in everyone having an additional assignment, Akk tries to deflate the situation so nobody suffers.

They had a discussion in the first episode about who exactly complacency helps, but we keep seeing Ayan’s actions being selfishly motivated.

Ayan has no friends and even his interactions with the protestors come across as helping him further his own agenda. While Ayan has the freedom to only think about himself, Akk doesn’t.

These implications highlight why Ayan is more prone to rebel while Akk is obedient. Akk needs this school, while Ayan can find another. Akk's life and future are tied to the school, while Ayan's future can be whatever his money can afford him. Akk must watch out for everyone while Ayan only has to watch out for himself.

Connections

This dynamic is also at play with Teacher Sani. Her backstory hasn’t been revealed, but she seems to NEED this job.

If you want to work here for long, don’t get involved with anything that isn’t your business.

Teacher Waree is wearing satin with pearls ($$$) unlike Teacher Sani who is wearing a cotton suit with a discrete necklace. Sani doesn’t come from money; therefore, she must abide by the rules or lose her job and livelihood.

Wealth & Power

Ayan has a car and his own apartment, while Akk has to get a ride from Kan and although he might live in his own space (Kan and Wat are always in it in their pajamas, so this is not clear), it is only a room and not a full apartment.

Although his intentions don’t seem overtly devious, Ayan drives Akk to his place and suggests Akk spend the night because, in a way, it’ll make Akk stuck. If Akk didn’t have a pre-determined escape plan via Kan, Akk could have been stuck at Ayan’s if Ayan decided he didn’t want to take Akk home. He can strip off his clothes in his own house, and Akk has to witness it. Akk can't leave. This isn’t an intentional display of power, but it still is a display of power. 

Even though Akk has the power of authority offered to him by his position as Prefect President, Ayan has a superior power – the power of resistance. Once again, what are rules to someone who doesn’t need to abide by them? As Frank Ocean sang in the excellent 2011 song “No Church in the Wild,” “What’s a king to a god? What’s a god to a non-believer?” Ayan’s position in life allows him real power by simply making everything he deems as a hindrance insignificant. He can be openly himself (gay or not) because he can resist consequences. Akk can't. Ayan can escape to his apartment off campus. Akk can't.

Ayan is here to solve a mystery that took someone from his life, but this directly conflicts with Akk’s LIFE, as a whole, not just a portion of it.

Ayan wants the school to burn, but he’s going to realize that means Akk will go up in flames too.

What are you doing to me?

Who filmed the protests?

Kimlock Holmes here again delivering another theory based on nothing but my instincts and caffeine.

In case you missed the previous ones:

Akk & Ayan are the eclipse

Namo is the one causing havoc

Kan's arch will be tragic if he keeps using his defense mechanisms

We are being shown many perspectives of the queer experience

Teacher Chadok was in a relationship with Dika

Or at the very least betrayed him because Dika was helping the protesting students

Now for today's installment, I'm going to make some guesses about the person behind filming the protest:

The social media age is garbage. The video has gone viral.

*This protest is from the very beginning of episode one when the car almost hits them. There is also a blue prefect armband, so the filming had to take place near a prefect.

Random Student

Remember that random student that Namo took the phone away from in the first episode? The one who told Namo this?

Well, he was present at the protest, and is at the correct angle of the filming

But, as we see, he is in front of the prefects, doesn't have a phone on him, and his phone ended up in the Student Welfare Office, so even if he did film it, he couldn't upload it because his phone was confiscated.

Also, he doesn't have a name, which seems vital to being the suspect.

Possibility - 2/10 Kim Possibles - He is safe...for now

Thua

As class president, instead of snitching on Ayan's phone use, he warns him to hide it better, possibly because he, too, knows a thing or two about hiding (his phone) because..

Homeboy was PISSED when they were reciting the pledge. This behavior is unexpected from Thua considering we have only been shown that he is passive when it comes to conflict.

In fact, Ayan even points this out by saying that because Thua "plays it safe," he is no better than the power-crazed dictators, which Thua responds

However, he followed Ayan in the first place to warn him about his phone and throughout the conversation is pretty opposed to the idea that he is playing it safe, almost as if he has been fighting back in his own way...

He was also at the protest

but like the random student, he doesn't appear to have a phone and he is in front of the prefects.

Possibility - 3/10 Kim Possibles - Keeping an eye on him

Ayan

We know Ayan is helping the protesters. We know he wants revenge. We know he recorded everyone reciting the pledge.

We also know he has used his phone at school to take photos of the Christmas flier.

He was present at the protest, which was noticed by Akk

BUT he was in the corner, which is not the correct angle at which the protest was filmed.

Possibility - 5/10 Kim Possibles - Akk already has his eyes on him

Wat

This episode had a lot to say about Wat. He is an all-around great student yet is noticeably unhappy most likely because he wants to go into Communication Arts, but his family would disapprove. And the reason he wants to go into the Arts is because he likes films.

And...he likes to film.

Kan even believed that Wat was filming a short film for his admission's portfolio.

Throughout the first three episode, we keep getting scenes that look as if someone is observing the scene aka being filmed.

And as unware as Wat might come across, he seems to be more than observant of what is happening around him, such as his friends' growing attraction towards Ayan and Thua. He seems to encourage their attractions (which gives off ally-vibes and could extend to the protestors).

Wat is good at observing without being noticed and even observed the protest.

It's not clear if he has his phone, but if he does, he could be filming slightly behind Kan which is the blue armband we see in the viral video, but even if he doesn't have his phone, we have been shown he doesn't need to be holding the camera in order to film.

In the 21st century, recordings have become a pivotal element of the justice system. Without recordings, many crimes would go unnoticed and unpunished. Even with recordings, sometimes justice is not served, but the opinion of the public is forever changed due to video evidence.

Wat's family is full of doctors and engineers. If he wants them to take his passion seriously, he has to focus on a serious subject, and nothing is more serious than justice.

Possibility - 9/10 Kim Possibles - Wat has his eye on all of us

The revolution will not be televised. It will be live streamed.

#smitten to the max.

— AKK in THE ECLIPSE (2022), episode 5

Neo Trai as KANLONG THE ECLIPSE (2022)

Hey gmmtv stop making a forced outing plot lines- I will get on my hands and knees and beg.

It's not fun it's not 'different' and you make the characters forgive the person who outs them way to fast as well as make them the victim.

As if because I didn't want to tell you I was dating the boy you HATE is a reason to put /my/ life at risk.

As if because I did bad things you deserve you out me as queer /after/ you exposed me for the bad things- when me being queer had NOTHING to do with it and put /my/ life at risk because you were upset as if you weren't also hiding your relationship with your boyfriend who also wasn't ready to be out.

As if because my parents are business owners and mafia /I/ had something to do with how they fucked your family over when I'm not even involved with the business yet and because my mother did something to upset your family you decided to put /my/ life at risk

Because outing someone is /always/ putting their life at risk. You know NOTHING about how their parents will react; how their friends or classmates will react; how THEY'LL react.

Outing kills people. It's not a plot line for angst and conflict. It can be real life or death situations and I'm done with the MCs just forgiving the people who out them within the week. If you want to use it as a fucking plot line at least give us the satisfaction of them having to deal with the consequences of outing someone not this 'it's your fault I outed you! You need you apologize to me!' fucking bullshit.

I'm not saying they can't be forgiven. I'm saying that that level of betrayal can take months if not /years/ to come back from not a fucking week. it takes time to build up that trust again and outing someone should never be your reaction to being upset at them. Ever.

Sincerely,

a queer person who was outed to their grandmother by his own father

so that's what the kids call it these days

“your secret island is beautiful.”                                         “i told you it’s beautiful.”