Recap
Jim cooks for Jam at the restaurant on nearly the last night. Jim encourages his sister Jam to let Li Ming make his own choices and promises he’ll be okay without the restaurant. Jam worries about Li Ming, because everyone in this family worries. Jim says Li Ming might do better than either of them. Truth.
Jim pushes Li Ming to spend time with his mom and goes with Wen to see his new condo. Wen wants Jim to be a part of it, for it to be their home. There’s back hugging and Jim smiles.
Jam buys Li Ming shoes and he sees she has a picture of them in her wallet. He wants to be sure she loves her fiance and is worried about people saying things because of her multiple marriages. She tells him that his opinion is the one that matters, and cries when he says he wants her to be happy.
Gaipa, Leng, Jim and Wen are at the temple together. Wen invites Gaipa to the final night of Moonlight Chicken. Gaipa looks between Jim and Wen, seems wistful, and declines.
The last night of Moonlight Chicken is sweet and short.
Wen is at the hospital after Alan gets his cast off, but Alan insists he can walk on his own. Meaning literally and metaphorically.
Li Ming helps Heart explain to his mom that he wants to go to a University for the Deaf in the US. She gives her approval and invites Li Ming to stay for dinner. Another approval basically.
Li Ming and Heart make offers at a temple. Outside, Li Ming borrows a lion danger costume and dances for Heart. After, Heart texts to ask if Li Ming has had a boyfriend before, neither have, but Li Ming declares Heart his boyfriend.
Li Ming checks on Jim because everyone in this family worries. Jim wants to support Li Ming, and Li Ming is more concerned with money than his sexuality. Jim thinks Li Ming might have had an easier time living with other relatives, but Li Ming feels staying with Jim was the best.
Wen and Jim share a beer at the beach. Wen encourages Jim to follow his dream and offers to invest. Jim is going to sell his truck instead. Wen takes pictures of Jim and the truck, and then Jim and him.
Two months later, Wen is told he’s getting promoted and moved to Rayong. Heart and Li Ming are going on dates. Gaipa is dealing with business at Alan’s bank, and Alan lets Gaipa use his pen.
Moonlight Chicken is now a food truck, and Wen is still helping while Leng has a new job. Leng made enough to return the gold necklace to Jim, but wants to work for free food.
Jim and Li Ming take their guys to visit Jam and her family. Jim introduces Wen as his boyfriend.
Li Ming tells his mom about Heart going to America and Li Ming going with him. His mom wonders if Heart’s deafness is an issue. Li Ming says nothing is too difficult and he’s happy when he’s with Heart. She learns to sign ‘thank you’.
Alone together, Li Ming wants to hear Heart’s voice more. Heart says Li Ming’s name, and they gaze at the moon together after some cheek kisses.
Jam thanks Jim for helping raise Li Ming, and gives him money to help with Li Ming’s future.
Back at home, Alan shows up at the truck to meet with Gaipa for business while Wen is working. Gaipa and everyone else invite him to join for dinner. Leng is there with his kid and Praew. Wen serves Heart and Li Ming and signs to Heart.
Jim VO’s about the power of chicken rice.
At Jim’s, Wen has a new DVD player so they can watch Jim’s favorite movie. Wen compliments himself on his persistence, with the DVD and Jim. Wen learns that Jim lied about the ending of the movie. They find Wen’s work badge and flirt about being an employee versus boyfriend. They kiss, and we see that Wen declined his job promotion.
Thoughts
It’s great that Jim lied about the end of his favorite movie like he was trying to warn Wen off and hide his true self. Luckily Wen wasn’t so easily put off.
I can understand why people might find the end of Moonlight Chicken underwhelming, but for me it feels like the perfect culmination of the entire show. Everything that felt like it might be a dramatic conflict just quietly resolves and life moves on and things are okay.
Jim and Wen start with a drunk one-night-stand and slowly resolve their issues and settle into domestic bliss. There’s no big dramatic declaration because that’s not really their style. Wen gets his home and Jim gets someone who supports him and deals with his worries.
The Alan thing had a moment or two, but Alan moved on and noticed Gaipa. Those two actors were together in The Eclipse so everyone was waiting for them to be together here, and I like the taste that was shown. Anything more would have been too much.
I never fully warmed up to Alan, but I can see that he and Gaipa have a similar intensity that might work better together. Gaipa probably wants all the relationship stuff that was too much for Wen, while Wen is happier being with Jim who, despite his worries, is way more laid back.
The big problem of the restaurant quietly goes on too. I was so relieved when that didn’t turn into a bigger thing, a bad loan and money problems. Instead, Jim chose the best option for himself. He started Moonlight Chicken with Beam, and he was able to turn it into something else with Wen.
Li Ming not only gets to go to the US, but got a little closer to his mom, got his Uncle’s support, and gets Heart to go with him. Li Ming got everything he wanted and it was great.
Wen’s potential move and job situation also ended up fine. There was nothing dramatic about Wen’s company being evil and destroying a neighborhood. It might be, but there wasn’t anything Wen could do about that. For Wen, it was just a job, and easily let go when it threatened his love life.
Sure, life doesn’t always work out that way, but sometimes it does. And it’s nice to see these people come up against conflict and figure out ways to keep going. In the end we get Jim and Wen enjoying a quiet evening together on the couch, and that’s pretty romantic.