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telomeke-bbs · 2 years ago

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BAD BUDDY RERUN SEASON – EP.3 (NOTES ON THE REWATCH)

As we move forward past Week 3 of the Bad Buddy rerun season on Channel GMM25, this write-up is a listing of my observations on the third episode of BBS. (Notes on Episodes 1, 2 and 4 are linked here: Ep.1, Ep.2 and Ep.4.)

Episode 3 starts with another scene out of sequence. We see a relaxed and unblemished Wai calmly talking with Pran as though the bus-stop brawl hadn't happened yet – but it already had, at the end of the previous episode.

(above) Wai before and after the bus-stop brawl

So once again (as with the end of Ep.1) the timeline shimmers like a bit of a mirage – but this scene does make sense if we view it as more of a preamble or a mini-ep within the episode not strictly anchored to the narrative chronology, kind of like a retro TV pre-opening sequence, but flashing backward instead of forward and setting the stage with exposition for what's to come.

This longish opening scene sets up quite a number of references for callbacks in the future. (Actually the whole episode does this.) We see Pran sketching a cartoon face with fierce-looking eyes, and we know who this must be (Pat's fierce eyes are referenced in Ep.1 [1I4] 5.20, Ep.10 [1I4] 12.22 and Ep.12 [3I4] 2.57, which is also a full-circle callback to Ep.1).

Pran's sketch is BBS letting us know that this is how he processes his thoughts and feelings – he doesn't talk about them with anyone, but he sketches out representations of them (meaning that Pat is vexing and dominating his mind right now).

And if it wasn’t clear before that Pran was already in love with Pat, the scene removes all doubt by showing us that he'd already fallen way back in high school, in the flashback immediately following Wai's question at Ep.3 [1I4] 2.00: "Have you not had a secret crush on anyone before?"

We also see more of Pran's propensity for denying his true feelings when he goes "That wasn't a smile" at Ep.3 [1I4] 5.04 in response to Wai's "When you fall for someone, your heart flutters. And when you think about it, you just can’t suppress a smile" (Ep.3 [1I4] 4.51).

Pran's flashback of Pat figuratively sacrificing himself (in the form of his student card) to make a guitar pick for Pran also foreshadows the other instances when Pat selflessly steps up on behalf of others (e.g., before and during the LogTech presentation later on in this episode, especially at Ep.3 [2/4] 7.15, and also when he sticks up for Wai against the gun-wielding rugbyman played by Kim Thitisan Goodburn in Ep.9 [3I4]).

And Pat's comment at Ep.3 [1I4] 4.34: "Stop looking at it" (his photograph) will get callbacks later:

At Ep.3 [3I4] 1.27 in the LogTech lift (when Pat says "You always look at me");

In Pat's theme Secret, whose lyrics describe Pat's point of view in their coming relationship – "So what if you catch me looking at you? Isn’t it you who look(ed) at me first?" (Ep.8 [3I4] 9.38); and

When they visit their old high school in Ep.10 (where Pat says "You're confessing that you always looked at me" at Ep.10 [3I4] 1.00).

When Pran accidentally finds himself at the same table with Pat at the wonton noodle stall, he overcompensates by making a show of checking that no one they know can see them together, giving off the vibe he'd rather be alone. Remembering that Pran's in love with Pat, we can see that he's keeping his emotions hidden while signaling their opposite to the world.

Pat, on the other hand, is quite happy to share the table and even gestures for Pran to sit down (Ep.3 [1I4] 6.20). He also smiles at him (Ep.3 [1I4] 6.30 – not very obvious to the viewer, since he's facing away from the camera, but you can just make it out. And Pran returns the smile too, if somewhat half-heartedly).

Pat is in his Tim Hortons t-shirt at the noodle stall – there's a smiley-faced cookie on the front, and a giant smile on the back.

This is a little ironic, in that it's Pran who's associated with smileys all the time – but they're never on his person (except this one time – yeah so I just noticed – in Ep.4 [3I4] 6.39, that will have significance in Ep.4). They're scattered all around his life (in his sketches, draped around his wall, on his bedside lamp, taped to his door, on his mobile phone, and on his doorhanger) – half-décor, half-hidden symbols of his inner feelings. Meanwhile it's Pat who (sometimes) has them on his clothes for all the world to see (not often though – we see them referenced here at Ep.3 [1I4] 6.17, at Ep.1 [3I4] 3.40 and at Ep.12 [4/4] 1.03 too).

Pat's White Castle t-shirt in Ep.7 [1I4] 13.56 also suggests a smile without actually showing one – the words on the back are "Say Cheese!"😁

Pran surrounded by smileys while Pat having them on his clothes kind of parallels how Pran disassociates himself from his emotions while Pat wears his openly on his sleeve (or his t-shirts 😉).

Pat's t-shirts that reference smiles are also a clue to the origins of Pran's obsession with smileys all around him. One way of reading it is that the smileys remind him of his sunshine boy Pat (who, after Pran's re-appearance in his life in Episode 1 is always smiling) – I think they do, and Pat's three t-shirts do reinforce this point.

But I don't think the reason for Pran surrounding himself with smileys is his romantic feelings for Pat, or at least it didn't start out that way. This is because we are shown that Pran had many smileys on the walls of his childhood bedroom even before they became friends:

I think the smiley faces on his bedroom walls demonstrated lonely little Pran's hunger to surround himself with company (he's an only child after all). This also explains why he followed Pat and Pa to the lake on their bicycles in Ep.1 – he was probably craving playtime with them. And after some time the smiley became the symbol for his ultimate companion – Pat – as well as an outward barometer for his hidden feelings (e.g., when he switches between smiley and frowny faces on sticky notes and his doorhanger).

The noodle dish Pat and Pran seem to love so much is the Thai version of wonton noodles, known as bami mu daeng kiao (บะหมี่หมูแดงเกี๊ยว).

Similar to the versions in Malaysia and Singapore, the wontons, noodles and choy sum greens (ผักกวาง��ุ้ง) are served with charsiu or mu daeng (หมูแดง, red barbecued pork), unlike the original Cantonese version in Guangzhou and Hong Kong, which typically does not come with charsiu. The bami part (บะหมี่) means (meat-based) noodles, and is a cognate with Indonesian bakmi and Filipino mami (etymologically derived from Hokkien/Teochew).

The kiao part (เกี๊ยว) means wonton dumpling, and is possibly a play on words. The khanom jeep that we saw in Ep.2 figured heavily in Bad Buddy's lexical games regarding courtship, as the word jeep means both to pleat (referring to the crimping of the dumpling wrapper) and also to flirt/court (explained here and here).

As kiao wontons are a close culinary cousin of khanom jeep, I'm tempted to read a connection here too, since the wontons and the wonton noodle stall figure so prominently in BBS. Coincidentally (or perhaps not), the word kiao (เกี๊ยว) that means wonton is almost exactly the same as another word meaning to flirt/court/woo – เกี้ยว, also pronounced kiao but with a different tone (the spelling is the same, except for the diacritic designating the tone).

So we can read Pat and Pran as possibly mock-flirting with wontons here, just as Pat was actually flirting with Ink using wontons at the same stall to make Pran jealous in Ep.7.

When Pat and Pran engage in all sorts of combative antics over their noodles though (e.g., chopstick fencing, grabbing kiao from each other, offering wontons – or courtship? – directly from an open mouth), they're re-living their childhood competitiveness once again, and for both of them there are undercurrents of romantic interest (although Pat would not have realized it).

But when the battling ends, Pat goes "That's it? You're no fun" at Ep.3 [1I4] 8.26, and this shows that their jousting was all for sport (a practice they'd been engaging in since childhood). And then he returns a wonton to Pran, further confirming that the games of one-upmanship were more for the interaction, not really about winning anything (and will have significance for the events of Ep.7).

Back at their student accommodation, Pat and Pran take the opportunity to relaunch more competitive rivalry when they race up the stairs (Ep.3 [1I4] 9.55). Pran displays his contrarian communication (as seen before at Ep.2 [1I4] 9.03, Ep.3 [1I4] 5.04 and Ep.4 [4/4] 17.08) when he says "Someone like me doesn’t need to compete for anything with you" – but then he does.

Pat clearly enjoys the activity – it was he who suggested that they race, and he also hoots with laughter as they sprint up to their apartments. And Pran continues the one-upmanship when he refuses to share the black inhaler, and changes the fist bump into a middle finger flip. But once safely inside his apartment – he beams with happiness at Ep.3 [1I4] 12.49, hungrily looking out the peephole for Pat at Ep.3 [1I4] 12.35.

"You always look at me."

Pran obviously enjoys the competitive interaction as much as his neighbor across the corridor; he just doesn't show it quite as openly.

Pat also voices his inner desires for Pran that he hasn't yet learnt to identify or understand when he says: "But if you miss me, don’t knock. Just come in" (at Ep.3 [1I4] 11.54). For Pran, so much in love with Pat, the suggestiveness of this comment cannot be lost.

And Pat will continue dropping (unconscious) hints like these all the way up to Ep.5, which explains why Pran will say at Ep.5 [4/4] 8.57 "Pat, you’ve got to stop doing this to me. We are not a thing", since he would have noticed all of Pat's intimations of deeper feelings even while Pat himself was unaware of their significance.

The tin can conversation (Ep.3 [1I4] 18.13) had me confused when I watched this episode the first time around – if Pran was so pissed, why would he then pick up the tin can after steadfastly ignoring all of Pat's phone calls?

It's only after it was revealed in Ep.12 that this was how PatPran as kids would talk to each other (not having access to mobile phones or landlines), did it finally make sense. Pat can tell Pran is angry and so is giving him space (not climbing across over to his room) – instead, he uses their childhood method of communication because he figures it's a good reminder of their longtime bond that Pran will not be able to ignore. And he guessed right (because he knows Pran so well). 💖

The LogTech lift squash (Ep.3 [2/4] 5.14) is BBS's nod to the BL trope where a couple squeeze together in an elevator (whether by design or accident).

This was called out in Ep.2 [4/4] after the condo viewing, and is also cheered on by the Soon Vijarn gang in the Reaction Video for this episode (linked here: REACTION [ENG/CH SUB] แค่เพื่อนครับเพื่อน BAD BUDDY SERIES EP.3 | ศูนย์วิจารณ์ EP.16.1, timestamp 23.24). When Director Backaof's buddies call out "Cherry Magic!", it's in reference to the sweet Japanese BL that made great use of this elevator trope too. 👍

At LogTech, it first looks like Pat is forced to squeeze into Pran's personal space, and we see that Pran enjoys it (despite himself) at Ep.3 [2/4] 5.34.

Pat then turns it into a goofy prank at 6.04, but I like to think that his being lost in the moment at 5.52 wasn't intentional, that it was really him being driven by his subconscious desires into savoring every precious moment of Pran's proximity (so the answer to his question at 5.22 "Do you think I want to (squash in this much)?" really is a resounding "YES!" 😊).

When Pat says to Pran "You always look at me" at Ep.3 [3I4] 1.27 though, a lot of the spice in their exchange is missing from the subtitles.

Pat doesn't repeat the more common word for look or see (มอง, pronounced mong) that he used in his preceding sentence "You should learn to see what’s around". Instead he uses the word จ้อง (pronounced jong), which means "to gaze/stare".

We know from Ep.3 [1I4] 4.34 (PatPran and the guitar pick) and Ep.10 [3I4] 0.45 (Pran reminiscing about Pat being punished for lateness while at their high school) that Pran loves gazing at his beloved, and BBS tells us that somewhere along the way Pat noticed it too. Here in the lift we see that Pran tenses up slightly at Ep.3 [3I4] 1.30, thinking that Pat has cottoned on to the meaning of his lovelorn looks.

But then Pat switches things up. The word จ้อง (jong) has several meanings, the most basic of which is "to gaze/stare." But it can also mean "to point a weapon" or "to monitor someone or something (especially with ill intentions) for the opportunity to strike at them" – see this Wiktionary link here. (Only Bad Buddy's Indonesian subtitles point out that จ้อง/jong has a double meaning in this scene, but it's simply translated as "to see/to search" and left at that, so the subtleties are not quite conveyed.)

This double meaning is why Pat goes on to call out Pran's jibes of "dog" and "jinx" – he's saying that Pran jongs him (or watches him, en ligne de mire, like a sniper) in order to lob insults at him. Pran then deflates backward onto the rear wall, relieved that Pat (though cross) has apparently not caught on as to why he's always being stared at:

But just a beat later, as Pran says "Well, it's true", they both awkwardly look at each other at the same time, as though acknowledging (and simultaneously proving too) that they're both experiencing matching impulses to jong each other (whether to stare at the other one, or to make a go for him). 👍😍

Pat's ambiguity on jong ("to gaze at") and jong ("to have someone in the cross-hairs") is also another example of him doing the bait-and-switch with Pran regarding their interpersonal dynamics. There will be many examples (including a few in this episode alone) where Pat sets up a reference to some kind of connection or closeness between them, only to subvert it with something else (written up here). More on this later. 😉

This line from Pat in the music shop hits very differently on the rewatch: "When you get into a competition with me, you take it very seriously" (Ep.3 [3I4] 3.59) – especially when you see how Pran is lost for words as he side-eyes Pat in response:

We now know that for much of Bad Buddy, competition is a stand-in for romance – so of course it's no small thing for Pran (who's deep in his unrequited crush for Pat here).

But when Chai suddenly appears and forces them to hide, it's another opportunity for Pat to crash into Pran's personal space, that he craves so much (however unconsciously). There is also a tiny, tiny detail in this scene that reveals the care taken by Director Backaof and the BBS team while painting the backdrop of the main story – Chai and his wife are expecting a baby, and as they approach the store we see her hand on her pregnant stomach, at Ep.3 [3I4] 4.22:

Later on, we will see her heavily pregnant in the hospital at Ep.10 [1I4] 18.55, and Dissaya will also mention their young child at Ep.12 [4/4] 5.11, all subtle markers of BBS's timeline. (This probably means the events at LogTech and the music shop are taking place late in PatPran's first academic year, while Pat's recovery from his gunshot graze will be in the middle of their second year.)

Chai has actually noticed – who couldn't? 🤣 – Pat and Pran trying to hide their lanky clown selves behind that small speaker/turntable, confirmed in Ep.10 [1I4]. But his wife thinks his dogged peering into the store is just him hankering after a guitar, and her words of dissuasion ("Let’s go. We’ve talked about this" and "I know you like it. But we discussed this") suggest that they need to be budgeting for pregnancy and baby expenses instead.

Chai then confirms the coming addition to their family at Ep.3 [3I4] 4.49 – he says something like "I want to buy it for our son" as they walk away (but this is only acknowledged in the Cantonese and Korean subtitles).

The scene at the music shop ends with the first reference in BBS of Pat's own personal foible (that will be popping up many times later in the series as well, all the way to Ep.12) – his love for Pran's scent (that he mistakenly attributes here to Pran's skill at churning out fragrant-fresh laundry 🤣).

I didn't notice it before, but Pat's comment "Do the laundry for me" at Ep.3 [3I4] 5.15 gets a callback in the very next scene at Ep.3 [3I4] 5.46 when Pran (while sketching ideas for the bus-stop design) mockingly says he's doing laundry, in response to Pat's question "What are you doing?".

So when Pat turns up to inspire Pran's design of the new bus-stop though, another exchange that lands with a different emotional weight on the rewatch is the following:

Pat: Are you as hard on your other friends as you are on me? Pran: I won’t be as hard on my friends.

Pran's reply above sounds like a sarcastic suggestion that he doesn't consider Pat a friend. He probably intended for it to sound that way too, and the hurt on Pat's face is visible at Ep.3 [3I4] 6.28.

But the truth behind Pran's words is actually predicated on the contrary. He's so hard on Pat and keeps pushing him away because he thinks of Pat as more than a friend, not less – he's doing all he can to run away from his romantic feelings. (This exchange in a sense also predicts what will happen after the Epic Rooftop Kiss at the end of Ep.5 – Pran goes the hardest he can when he physically runs away, partly because Pat has revealed his understanding that they're more than just friends when he replies "No" to the question "Do you want us to be friends?" 😢).

Back at the bus-stop though, we see Pat good-naturedly breaking down Pran's walls of hostility, and their initial testy exchange soon descends into some cheerful goofball roleplay, followed by a romp around the ruins. And then it all ends up in some heartfelt conversation side-by-side on the road.

As had happened with the tin cans, Pat is demonstrating here that he's aware his persistence and sincerity will eventually break down any barriers that Pran puts up, and he will apply this knowledge again and again with Pran, all the way up to and especially in Ep.6 (when it really mattered to the survival of their relationship).

When Pat says "They will (like it). Because I do" at Ep.3 [3I4] 12.24, the vibes he gives off are also subtly romantic – in Thai the verb chob (ชอบ, meaning to like) doesn't always need an object (see Pat's bedside confession about Ink in Ep.4 [4/4] for another example).

What Pat says here can also mean "They will. Because I like you." Director Backaof mentions in the Soon Vijarn Recap Video (linked here: RECAP [ENG/CH SUB] แค่เพื่อนครับเพื่อน BAD BUDDY SERIES EP.3 | ศูนย์วิจารณ์ EP.16.2, timestamp 23.52) that he shot the scene more than 10 times since Pat was only supposed to be having platonic feelings for Pran at this time, and Ohm's delivery was coming off more romantic than had been envisioned in the script.

But Ohm felt differently about the character, and ultimately what we see at Ep.3 [3I4] 12.25 (and elsewhere in BBS) is his portrayal of a Pat who always had some kind of butterflies for Pran (even if the gold-hearted dumbass wasn't able to identify or qualify what those feelings were before Ep.5 😂).

Thus Pran's half-hopeful, half-panicked sidelong glance at Ep.3 [3I4] 12.29 is even more weighted, since he's an expert at making and reading signs, and must have been picking up on all of Pat's unconscious signaling (which justifies his plea to Pat on the rooftop – "Pat, you’ve got to stop doing this to me" – at Ep.5 [4/4] 8.57 as well 👍).

Episode 3 ends with a scene that not only sets up future callbacks, but also goes full circle with callbacks to previous scenes, and is fully charged with meaning at almost every turn of phrase. When Pran's walls went up again after the LogTech budget cut, Pat stepped up his game and corralled his Engine gang into providing free labor to reconstruct the bus-stop, saving the day yet again for Pran.

This sparks a key shift in the paradigm for Pran, and we see it when he goes to say "Thank you" to Pat at Ep.3 [4/4] 6.54:

The line is a callback to three other instances that show Pran's reluctance to thank Pat:

Ep.1 [3I4] 2.26 – after Pat saves Pran from being beaten up by Korn, Mo and Chang;

Ep.3 [1I4] 9.15 – after Pat buys him wonton noodles;

Ep.3 [2/4] 4.29 – at the LogTech lift lobby.

In the first and third examples above, Pat actually reminds Pran to thank him (which we can possibly read as him needing Pran's validation in his life).

But in the corridor during the closing scene of Ep.3, Pran is on his own and there are no social pressures (or exhortations from Pat) motivating the voicing of his thanks here. Pran has had a change of heart, and instead of pulling away as he had been doing since Ep.2 [4/4] 3.42, he's showing himself now convinced of Pat's sincerity (because of his help with the bus-stop) and is willing to step forward and allow himself to get closer.

In doing this, Pran is actively defying one of his own long-held beliefs – that closeness with Pat will only end badly for him (see these links here and here for more explanation).

Whenever he'd tried getting close before, life found a way to smash him back down, hence his constant and conscious distancing from Pat. (The first two episodes of Bad Buddy were a demonstration of this – Ep.1 showed Pran allowing himself to be drawn closer to Pat, and Ep.2 saw him pulling away when he remembered his mantra of “Things don’t end well whenever I’m close to you”, repeated at Ep.1 [4/4] 3.28 and Ep.2 [3I4] 9.01.) Future episodes will deal with the consequences of Pran's move here in Ep.3 though, and not without drama.

Pat's question to Pran at Ep.3 [4/4] 7.02 – "Can we call it even now?" – is also callback. At Ep.1 [4/4] 9.52 and Ep.2 [4/4] 9.56 Pat references owing Pran for saving Pa at the lake, and for being the cause of Pran's high school transfer. Both times Pran rejects Pat's attempts to pay off the debt, preferring instead that they maintain their relationship that had always been based on some kind of scorekeeping (which ultimately manifests itself as a sort of rivalry, even while they're friends behind the scenes).

But here in the corridor Pran accepts that Pat's debt has been paid, at Ep.3 [4/4] 7.08. And this acceptance also means that he's ready to set aside the constant battling and rebalancing of the scorecard, take things to the next level, and replace the one-upmanship with something less fractious (if not romantic).

He confirms he's ready to abandon the rivalry, stop pushing Pat away, and move closer to him when he asks "Have you eaten?" at Ep.3 [4/4] 7.20.

It's a trope in Thai BL that food is often a stand-in for various forms of love and affection (and BBS plays with it when they flirt using dumplings and wontons, in the various mealtime scenes at the Siridechawat and Jindapat households, and elsewhere too). Pran's question/invitation here is actually loaded with meaning.

All around East and Southeast Asia "Have you eaten?" is used as an informal greeting – in Thailand, parts of Laos, Cambodia, China, Vietnam, Myanmar, Korea, the Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia too. "Have you eaten?" is not just about food, but is also an inquiry into the well-being of the person being greeted.

Pran asking "Have you eaten?" is really a demonstration of him opening up to Pat, showing concern for his (secret) beloved, and is also a request for more of his company.

Pat's response – a little taken aback at the tentative affection shown to him, from the previously prickly Pran, followed by his knowing smile and nods – shows that he fully understands the significance of Pran's gesture here. (For an exchange with similar vibes, take a look at Pat's response to Pran's gift of alcohol for Ming at Ep.12 [3I4] 13.42, where he also shows – wordlessly – his understanding of the cultural significance behind Pran's move there. Explanation linked here.)

The scene then takes a little detour when we see Pat return Pran's salvaged guitar, itself a symbol of the last part of Pran's fractured and unmended heart (his music-making ability), that is intertwined with his relationship with Dissaya, and will only see resolution in Ep.11. (For more explanation on Pran's healing in this respect, see these links here and here.)

The guitar will figure more prominently and with even more meaning in later episodes, but right now it's both an example of and metaphor for the acts of loving kindness that Pat has done (and will continue to do) for Pran. 😊 And its return also segues the narrative artfully into the next significant plot move.

We are brought to what I now believe is the crux of this whole scene (and perhaps the whole episode). When Pran says at Ep.3 [4/4] 8.36 "What a shame! We won’t get to compete in the Freshy Music Contest", we find out that Pat has actually engineered their return to the competition.

The music contest here is a metaphor for PatPran's own relationship dynamic since childhood, one based on trying to outdo each other (but motivated more by the opportunity for interaction, rather than actually winning anything).

Just moments before, we saw that Pran was willing to step away from competitive rivalry in search of a more conventional relationship with Pat (platonic or otherwise) – he's agreed that Pat has evened the score and paid off his debt (which should signal an end to their games).

But Pat now confirms that's not what he wants at all – by his own actions he tosses them right back into their familiar terrain of competing with each other (saying "We're back in the competition" at Ep.3 [4/4] 8.42).

And Pran realizes what's happening when he says: "You seem so happy when you get to compete against me" at Ep.3 [4/4] 10.19 – this is a rephrasing of and a callback to Pat's comment in the music store: "When you get into a competition with me, you take it very seriously" (Ep.3 [3I4] 3.59). This is Pran agreeing that the basis of their relationship (whether platonic, as it is now for Pat, or romantic, for both of them later) is the rambunctious rivalry that they know so well.

The exchange also basically lays the foundation for PatPran's own version of the getting-to-know-you, dating phase of their relationship in Ep.7, that will take the form of a strange competition on who confesses their love first.

The scene begins drawing to close with Pat's final retort before he retires to his apartment: "Also, I just like to see your face – when you lose" (Ep.3 [4/4] 10.27). He starts it out sweetly enough, but turns the "when you lose" part into a trashtalking punchline.

It's the final example in this episode of Pat doing the bait-and-switch with Pran (also seen at Ep.3 [3I4] 1.27 when he turns the "You always look at me" into a call-out of Pran's insults, and at Ep.3 [3I4] 12.24 when he messes with Pran's mind, however unconsciously, with his use of the word chob/ชอบ). There will be other examples in future episodes too.

This habit of Pat's – setting up an expectation, only to subvert it with something quite jarringly different – is also one of the reasons why Pran bolts after their kiss on the rooftop in Ep.5, because he'd learnt so many times that any initial proposition of Pat's, no matter how kindly or benign, should not be taken at face value as it could suddenly switch and leave him out in the cold. (More explanation linked here.)

The episode then closes with Pran retiring to his apartment – and just before he does so, he smiles wistfully at his watch, the symbol of his push-and-pull relationship with his beloved Pat, and flips his doorhanger to symbolize his happiness at finding himself back in the comforting dynamic of competition with Pat again. 💖

As dense with meaning as this last scene is, on the overall I cannot say that Episode 3 is one of my favorites. This is not because it isn't done well; if anything, Ep.3 is a victim of Bad Buddy's overall success (I think this applies to Ep.4 as well).

Part of the reason why BBS is such a satisfying piece of media to consume (queer/BL or not) is because the storytelling is so compact, tightly-woven and holistically interconnected. There is rarely anything up on screen that does not resonate with meaning (or is revealed to have deeper meaning later) because of parallels with and callbacks/connections to other lines, scenes or depictions elsewhere in the series.

It's hugely rewarding to the viewer every time one of these connections crackles into being in our consciousness, partly because it's all balanced out so masterfully. But the resolution of dramatic and other tensions in future episodes requires a great deal of setting up in earlier episodes, which is why Ep.3 has a bit of an inbetweener feel for me, given the extensive groundwork being laid.

Episodes 1 and 2 got to bristle with novelty when the storyline and characters were introduced, but Ep.3 and Ep.4 don't have that luxury. And yet they still have to shoulder a lot of the burden of seed-planting for future plot developments and story arcs. With only a couple of back episodes to lean on, the opportunities for any resolution of tension are far fewer (and it's too early to tie up loose ends anyway).

But while (or maybe because) Director Backaof and the BBS team make Episodes 3 and 4 work so hard in this respect, the payoff in later episodes is going to be mindblowingly good. 👍 Those of us doing the rewatch know this only too well. 😊💖

[Afterpost Edit: for notes on the rewatch of other episodes, see these links here: Ep.1, Ep.2, Ep.4 and Ep.5. 😊]

#bad buddy #bad buddy analysis #patpran #telomeke #bad buddy episode 3

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