Were I to judge The Eclipse only for the first 10 episodes, or in a situation where they had paced the last two episodes better, my rating would have been higher than a 3.
The show is set against an elite all-boys school, Suppalo, where following the rules is not only mandated and socially sanctioned, but any transgressions are seemingly punished by divine intervention. There is a “curse” that is afflicted upon anyone who breaks Suppalo’s rules, including a trio of students who are protesting against the restrictive uniforms. Akk (First Kanaphan) is the head of the student prefects tasked to maintain Suppalo’s rules, and he clashes with new student Aye (Khaotung Thanawat), who questions their school’s authority at every chance.
The Eclipse had a lot going for it in the beginning. Both First and Khaotung are some of the best among the current crop of rising GMMTV stars. They know how to play the screen to their advantage both in their scenes individually and with each other. They share excellent chemistry, something that had been obvious from the moment the pilot trailer had dropped almost a year ago, which had made The Eclipse a series to watch out for.
However, any amount of chemistry cannot make up for bad writing. Aye fluctuates in his motivations depending on when the scene requires it. Akk, while having a consistent characterisation, doesn’t really change and realise the error of his ways until the absolute end when he suddenly does without enough of a build-up to his shift to make it make sense.
The Eclipse was however, still in the running for one of my most favourite series of the year, until the last two episodes. They revealed what was perhaps a flaw of the series from the beginning, but what hadn’t been evident earlier, that the plot beyond the relationships of the main characters wasn’t very fleshed out.
Don’t read more if you haven’t seen the last two episodes, because my review (and a small rant) contains spoilers.
What was covered (and arguably rushed) in two episodes deserved at least four. You get plot twists and reveals that needed more development and deserved more than a sudden mention. One twist in the 11th episode in particular, really soured my feelings towards The Eclipse in general and towards the character, Thua, in particular.
Mistreatment was unarguably meted towards Thua’s character. A quiet but supportive friend who was learning how to navigate his own identity as a queer person in an unwelcoming environment, who was shown to be (seemingly) interested in finding out the truth behind the protests at Suppalo, was revealed as the perpetrator behind some of the attacks on the protestors, and outed Akk and Aye without their consent. It seems as if the creative decision to make Thua the orchestrator of everything was more for shock value than anything else.
Not that it mattered either way. Thua and Akk were forgiven for their actions faster than I could blink and comprehend what was happening. Wat’s interjection of “This was all a documentary” and the sudden shift towards them actually getting together and making a BL semi-documentary came out of the left field and left me confused for the remainder of the episode. Parts 3 and 4 felt like they belonged to two entirely different episodes; there was an underwhelming resolution to one of the biggest revelations, it was brushed off almost completely after that if I am to be honest.
The final episode was spent trying to tie up all loose threads and end the series on a satisfying note, but it still felt as if they had finished for the sake of finishing and not because the plot resolved neatly.
I am disappointed more than anything because The Eclipse had such great potential. However, they perhaps bit off more than they could chew with the complicated plot and ended on an underwhelming note.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Where to Watch: YouTube
Krishna’s Sidenote-
☆ First Kanaphan & Khaotung Thanawat were recently featured in Posh Magazine Thailand.
☆ First & Khaotung were also featured in popular magazine, Praew
☆ The Eclipse stars First Kanaphan, Khaotung Thanawat, Louis Thanawin & Neo Trai were featured in Kazz Magazine
The BL Xpress 
completely agree with the disappointment- First has shown he can do comedy and serious material. The plot sounded interesting- but like most GMMTV series this year- the pace was slow and the script redundant- the director instead focused on fan service of endless gay panic/aggressive pursuit by the main couple.
With (much) better script and direction- this could have been the BL version of the Gifted.
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There will be spoilers.
I enjoyed watching “The Eclipse”. I also agree with your 3 of 5 rating. But I could also see giving a lower score.
My issue with the story is that the wrong characters are the main protagonists. We see main protagonists confront and resolve their individual issues. It is entertaining. But they resolve these issues at the expense of the three “Jams”. The main protagonists should be the three Jams.
These three young men are bullied by their classmates, teachers, administrators, and even the main protagonists. And they continue with their protest. They are terrified that there is a real curse. And they continue with their protest. They are threatened with expulsion from school and the associated issues that expulsion will cause with their families. And they continue with their protest.
I want to know more about Jamnan, Jamnong, and Jamnian. How did they come together as friends? What gives them the strength to continue in spite of death threats – via the curse, and bullying from classmates? What is it that allows them to say “I’m scared” but still continue their fight?
My favorite BL “Drama” of all time is “Meow: Ears Up”. And so, I don’t think every story needs to be an issue driven sermon. But this story of this curse had the opportunity to entertain and inform. Instead of “Three friends bond together to fight against gay bashing and bullying in their school”, we get “I witnessed a guy try to hurt you several times, and I didn’t do anything about it. He is my boyfriend now, so…. Sorry, My Bad!”.
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