When last we left our cursed student and the man who won’t help him, one was drowning and the other bleeding.
Get ready to be in the past A Lot
Starting now. Grandma Si brings Paran the same kind of sweets that sent him to the floor. He feels he’s not living up to his grandfather, and she reminds him that no one is born a master.
In an echo of that scene with Prim, he thinks he shouldn’t have feelings. Eventually, he accepts a hug from her, crying because his Mom never got to see him become a Shaman. He wants to make Grandma Si proud.
Of course, she’s already proud of him. She sings to bring back his vital force while he cries in her arms.
Present-day, he sends Ake and Thong to help Khem, who is still being strangled by Ramphueng in the water. At the station, Monk Kasem arrives, and he already knows something bad is happening.
Now we go further into the past, as Ramphueng reveals what happened to her
It’s 1767, and Khem’s spirit is in Krongkwan, the young daughter of a Lord.
It’s polygamy time. The Lord’s main wife, Ketkaew, is pregnant with his son. Ketkaew is mean, spiteful, and determined to provide her husband with an heir.
Unfortunately, his mistress, Ramphueng, is also pregnant with a son.
This Ramphueng is kind, sweet, and naive. But when Ketkaew’s son dies and hers lives, she realizes the danger. She accepts Krongkwan/Khem’s mother’s offer to help hide the baby away.
Unfortunately, Ketkaew intercepts her, throws the baby into the water, and has Ramphueng arrested.
The Lord is told the opposite happened: Ramphueng had a stillbirth and murdered Ketkaew’s baby. Krongkwan and her mother know the truth but lie, because they’re scared of Ketkaew.
So Ramphueng curses them all, before she is taken away and beaten to death.
Spirit Ramphueng forces Khem to watch
Khem sees the curse, which kills the sons and dooms the daughters to heartbreak, strike the Lord, Ketkaew, Krongkwan, and her mother. Then various Khems and Khemmikas suffer and die.
Ramphueng says that Khem is the last one to meet his fate, and her hatred will finally fade.
Back in the water in the present day, he hears Ake and Thong calling him. He escapes Ramphueng, but she goes after them.
Monk Kasem revives Paran, and everyone heads to the lake. Khem gets out of the water, and Paran goes in to find Grandma Si. Ramphueng makes Thong vanish before Paran makes her vanish.
Grandma Si is pulled from the water, but despite Paran and Khem’s best efforts, she’s gone. Everyone is devastated.
Khem won’t join them at the memorial. Likely, Grandma Si’s heart condition killed her the night before, and Ramphueng took over her body. But Khem still feels it’s his fault.
More crying, because Ake doesn’t want to be here without Thong. Before they go, they comfort Khem that Thong did what he wanted, and it’s not his fault.
And Paran lets them go to be reborn, while Khem and Jet cry.
These are romance-lite episodes
Jet and Charn agree to be best friends for now, and Khem is leaving Paran for his own good. Paran has no one left and wants Khem to stay. They hug, but Paran is weak from dealing with Ramphueng. Khem gives him the BL sponge bath.
Paran asks him not to leave. Khem doesn’t answer, but pinky flirts.
Once he’s asleep, Khem kisses his cheek. When Paran wakes, he’s gone. A note thanks Paran for loving him. He promises he’s not giving up, but he’ll find his own way so no one else gets hurt.
Paran cries as he reads it.
Back to the Past
To see Jet and Khem become friends at the beginning of college. Jet saves Khem from death by flying paint can. Then he flirts with him. But mostly, they bond over both seeing ghosts.
Jet promises to help Khem with his curse and feels Khem will bring good things into his life.
Present-day Jet won’t let him leave alone. But Khem knows Jet lost Grandma Si, Thong, and Ake, too. Jet loves Khem, but Khem hates himself. He hasn’t brought good things to Jet’s life.
Jet reminds Khem that they’ve had a lot of good times, and being there for Khem makes him feel so appreciated. Jet and Charn won’t let him leave alone. Group hug!
Jet and Charn get to sleep on the floor again
At Khem’s place in Bangkok. Khem’s birthday is in 7 days. If he makes it to the 8th day, the curse will be lifted.
Khem wants to go back to school for his last week alive. But as he leaves, Charn saves him from death by car. So he’s stuck in his room, with Jet and Charn watching over him. The days creep by. Charn and Jet do purifying rituals and flirt. They set up a shrine on the roof.
And then it’s the day before his birthday. They light a lantern on the roof as part of a protection ritual. Group hug, and Khem is crying.
But Khem has been lying big time. Ramphueng has been in his head the whole time, torturing him since he’s been back. She’s still planning to kill him..
Introducing: Zombie Khem
His eyes are white, and he eats something bloody from the roof shrine. Charn’s amulet from Paran wakes him, and he uses it to wake up Jet. When they get to the roof, Khem is standing at the edge.
They can’t stop him from falling backward, taunting them.
Don’t worry, it’s just a premonition. Paran wakes up, and we get Phuchong the snake guy again! He’s here to repay a very, very, very old debt.
So we’re going back a thousand years in time
The heavens are going to punish Phuchong for some transgressions by shattering his soul so he is no longer reborn and fades into the void.
Paran, who at this time is a gorgeous Naga named Phuchagin, interrupts to take the blame. The heavens throw Phuchagin/Paran back into the cycle of rebirth. Phuchong is sent back as a black serpent to the forest to start cultivating all over again.
Phuchagin/Paran is cursed to always be mortal and to sacrifice for others.
Present-day Phuchong is here with Phuchagin’s sacred weapon for Paran. The heavens knew Phuchagin was lying because he wanted love, and wouldn’t find it while guarding underworld treasures as a Naga. It let Phuchong have the weapon.
But Paran must be careful, because his human body is not meant to use such a powerful weapon.
Paran pulls out a cell phone, plugs it in, and calls Kachen
We’ll meet Kachen later. The villagers sing Grandma Si’s vital force song for Paran as he leaves.
Jet and Charn have abandoned Khem because he’s alone when Paran magics his way in. Khem’s in bed, but his spirit is in a nightmare forest, with Ramphueng taunting him and attacking with forest monsters.
Paran tells him not to give up yet and puts his hand on Khem’s forehead, chanting.
Khem hears Paran, but gets tied by vines to a tree. A vine noose drops in front of his face.
Khem has given up and puts his head in the noose, but Paran arrives before he can hang himself. This is Khem’s dream. He can control it and cast out anything he did not let in.
Ramphueng vows he’ll get no mercy and vanishes.
Paran and Khem are FINALLY back together
Still in the dream world, Khem asks Paran to let him go. He doesn’t want to live anymore. Paran won’t let him die. He needs to live for his friends, parents, and Paran. They must stay together in this life.
Paran tells Khem to trust him, and the forest sparkles away the gloom. Paran vows that no matter what happens, they’ll find their way back to each other.
Kisssssssssing! Khem must be feeling better, because he initiates the next kiss! Then hugggging.
And more hugging back in the real world. This makes up for the lack of together time earlier.
The next day, they destroy the shrine and find… meat inside? With maggots on it. Paran says it’s not a spirit shrine, but a gate linking Ramphueng’s realm.
Paran mentions his vision, but can’t say that Khem would have died. Now he has a plan, but they’re just waiting on someone…
Jet and his sister already know who he would have called. It’s Not-The-Next-Prince–King! Or Kachen!
This is the rare case where I get the noble idiocy
Again and again, Paran didn’t want to get involved with Khem because of the risk. Then, when he got involved, he lost Grandma Si, Thong, and Ake. It’s not Khem’s fault, but I completely understand why Khem feels that he caused Paran’s worst fears to come true.
At least he didn’t lie to Paran.
I’m not even sure it’s noble idiocy. Despite what he wrote to Paran, I think Khem might have already started to give up then. He loved Grandma Si, Ake, and Thong, too.
Their swoony reunion was wonderful, but I am hoping for more romance. And will we get to see what Paran did while Khem was away? Maybe all he did was mope.
While I wouldn’t mind more romance, the show is strong outside of the BL part. Ramphueng’s actress is believable as both an innocent victim and an evil villain. She adds dimension to the character. Grandma Si’s singing was beautiful. Naga Paran was hot, and his costume was great.
And I always enjoy seeing anyone from To Sir, With Love appear on my screen (the Lord and his favored wife).
I’m bracing myself, because I have a feeling the next two eps will be INTENSE.
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