Our lead, Armin, is the center of attention at the 2025 Crown Awards and wins Best Leading Actor.
But this is not a drama about a man enjoying success
Before his thank-you speech, he touches his watch and thanks “TD”. On stage, he only thanks “all of you” and his lover, Charlie.
The mysterious “TD” looks disappointed and leaves. Armin is handed a bouquet he left behind, but when he asks if he can meet “TD” just once, he gets no answer.
At the after-party, Armin prepares to tell a million reporters about how he’s going to retire. Next, he has a run-in with a coughing caterer who hates him, Phat. Then a mysterious bottle of champagne arrives, and he shares it with Ren and Pharit, two actors who lost the award to him. Armin is the only one we see drinking.
Then, Armin overhears Charlie cheating with his best friend, Sam. He confronts them, feels sick, there’s a fight, and he accidentally goes over the railing with his award trophy. Everyone gawks as he lies dying on the ground.
And then it’s 1999, and he’s on set
Terrified and confused, he steals a car and drives off on the wrong side of the road. He crashes and stumbles from the car, thinking he’s in the afterlife. Before he can get run over, “TD” yanks him out of danger.
Armin wonders if this isn’t a reset. Then passes out.
At the hospital, Phat reveals that it’s 1999 and takes him back to his rented room. He finds a tape recorder with a recording about his job as an extra. He’s upset about being reset, because he doesn’t want to live his awful life again.
The mysterious “TD” is mysterious
Even to himself, because he’s not sure how he knew Armin was in danger or why he revealed himself. Later, he’s shirtless with a cello player who gave “TD” his body for fame. The cello player wants to know why he doesn’t do the same for “this one”.
“TD”’s father is the president of Crown Enterprise. “TD” might be president, too. The subtitles are confusing, but he’s important anyway. After an embezzling situation with his step-mom, his (step?) brother, Thiwthit, vows revenge.
Armin gets his second second chance
Acting against future fellow award nominee Ren, he stuns everyone with his death scene. The only one not impressed is his agent, Lily. In both 1999 and 2025, she’s more interested in promoting another actor, Aichi, who follows her around like a puppy.
Armin still struggles with what’s happened and why God would give him a second chance.
Instead of answers, he finds “TD”, who he doesn’t know is “TD”. Armin gives him a “thanks for saving my life” beer and says confusing things about not knowing “TD” from his future. “TD” refuses to give his name.
Later, Armin remembers that the voice recorder was a gift from “TD” to help with his acting. Armin reflects that his life went so far astray last time. This time, he has to do better.
Starting with this awful wig
Armin learns he’s been invited to a wrap party he didn’t know about the first time, and cuts his “hair”. Looking much better, Lily berates him for coming, but he’s upset she kept the party invitation from him. And is horrible to him.
Realizing how all the people acting nice to him are fakes, he drinks. This reminds him of drinking the champagne in the future, and he realizes he might have been poisoned. His death might not have been an accident. He throws up and is dizzy and disorientated.
“TD” nearly runs into him and then finds him as he collapses into his arms.
Mysterious “TD” is Still Mysterious
Armin wakes up in a strange room and sees “TD” in the pool outside, drinking from a wine glass. “TD” dares him to get in the pool, and Armin gets in because he wants answers about why he’s always helping him. “TD” enigmatically tells him that he wants to protect him, and introduces himself as Tada. I’ll call him that from here on out, too.
Armin is confused because he didn’t know Tada in his past life, but he feels familiar to him. Tada says he’s always felt that way about Armin. Tada wants a kiss, but Armin still wants to know who he is. Armin seems unnerved and leaves.
Armin’s list of poisoning suspects is everyone
Though he X’s out Phat’s name and crumples up the post-it with Tada’s. He hopes Tada is a stranger, since everyone he knew betrayed him.
Thiwthit gets an important position with a rival company to Crown, Venus, and Lily wants to sign up her talent. To her distress, Thiwthit is interested in Armin.
Armin is overwhelmed with emotion when he sees Phat’s mom, Jeed. She dies in the future, Phat blames him, and he feels responsible. He tries to force her to eat healthier. She gives him a speech about living happily every day with no regrets.
He seems to take it seriously, but still wants her to cut down on the sodium.
Armin meets Pharit two months early
So the original timeline is changing. Because of their awkward meeting, they’re in the news together, and people insinuate Armin is using Pharit’s fame for attention. Lily is ready to help Venus fire him, and Armin fantasizes about shoving his contract in her mouth.
Instead, he swallows his pride and apologizes, because in the original timeline he got blacklisted after tearing up his contract. Still, he worries that even though he’s changing things, he’ll end up in the same place.
Tada finds Armin and tries to help him with an elaborate dinner thrown with considerable effort from his assistant. Armin recognizes that the chef will be famous one day, and when he talks about knowing the future, he confuses Tada.
When Armin realizes Tada knows what happened with Pharit, he’s upset that people will believe the news. Tada reassures Armin that even though he had to apologize, he still has dignity. Armin seems to feel better.
Lily accepts an audition for Armin while constipated on the toilet
But she takes Aichi to the job instead, while Armin obliviously goes to help Jeed.
Tada, who set everything up, learns what happened and rushes to get Armin to the audition. On the way, Armin realizes this is where he met his “best friend,” cheater Sam. He hesitates, but Tada gives him a cross necklace as a good luck charm. Armin agrees to go, but will come back for answers from Tada.
While Armin waits for his turn, Sam introduces himself. Overwhelmed, Armin flees, but remembers how last time, Sam asked for help and got the part while Armin got nothing and stayed a background actor for years. With the cross as his good luck charm, Armin wonders if God didn’t send him back to get revenge on Sam.
Determined to change things again, he goes to audition but discovers Aichi has replaced him. By luck, they see him and pull him in. Lily makes a big noise about how she did this for Armin’s good. He vows to define his own future.
A short end scene reveals that “TD” also sent him to martial arts lessons, so “TD” was always by his side.
These episodes are packed with names, information, and mysteries
I’ve done my best to include anything that might seem important. And since I don’t know exactly where this show is headed, everything feels important.
I’ve only watched two other shows with similar set-ups (Marry My Husband and Perfect Marriage Revenge) and Armin’s reaction feels the most realistic. While I’m not religious, a lot of people are, and it feels fair that this is the type of situation where you would wonder about god.
Also, Armin doesn’t know who killed him. He’s not even sure he was killed. Because of that, so far, this story belongs in the mystery genre.
Speaking of mystery.
Tada/”TD”’s ability to show up and be there whenever Armin needs him feels supernatural. It can’t just be because he’s rich and powerful, right? There has to be more to it?
It’s nice to see Thi from “I Will Knock You” here as Thiwthit, though I do prefer seeing him being cute. Is there a reason he’s dressed like it’s the 70s?
Also, why does Armin have a poster for Anaconda on his wall? All the other posters appear to be well-regarded classic Hollywood films. He wrote his poisoning questions on the back of it. Does this mean something?
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