Hello everyone! Please don’t be harsh with me today. I know some of you like “Highschool Frenemy” a lot, but after finishing it I couldn’t help feeling disappointed. There are many aspects I found lacking, so I’d like to share my thoughts with you.

High School Frenemy (2024)
Country: Thailand
Episodes: 16 (45’ each)
Genres: Youth, Drama
My Rating: 4/10
Adapted from the Korean drama School 2013 (aired on 2012 😊).

School 2013

First of all, let me take a moment to talk to you about the original drama, School 2013, that I’ve watched twice and I love it, for many reasons.

Go Nam Soon and Park Heung Soo were the main protagonists, two childhood friends who had lost contact due to a painful event for both of them. Reuniting at the same school some years later, they had to start communicating with each other again. It was so heartwarming to watch them as they slowly rebuild a beautiful and strong relationship. The scene where Park Heung Soo confesses Go Nam Soon the real reason for his anger, was one of the most powerful and emotional moments, opening the way for their reconciliation.

All the students though, played an important part. Each character had their own story and struggles, but through the series they grow and learn to trust each other. I like the way that Go Nam Soon, even though he became president unwillingly, learned to take initiative and trust his classmates and they all slowly understood that together they can achieve many things.

I loved the dynamic between the female teacher, who was empathetic yet firm, and the male teacher, who had significant character growth. Together, they taught not just through words but actions, creating a mutual journey of growth for both the students and themselves.

I appreciated the open ending, as it symbolized a new beginning for both students and teachers. As for Go Nam Soon and Park Heung Soo relationship, there was indeed, a very strong feeling that they’ll become something more than friends in the future, but I liked that it was no rush into defining their relationship and that you get the idea it was maybe something they will explore slowly in the future.

The Korean version earned an 8/10 from me, but unfortunately, the Thai adaption failed to capture these emotions.

Highschool Frenemy

The main plot was the same with the Korean version, involving the two childhood friends, Saint and Shin, a male and a female homeroom teacher and a lot of students with complicated character. But sadly, for me, I couldn’t bond with none of them.

The Teachers

The homeroom teachers, who supposed to play a big part in the series, were unconvincing both in their acting and character arcs. They lacked chemistry and came across as cold and one-dimensional.

Instead of inspiring or guiding the students, they relied on questionable methods like threats, bribery, and even fighting. The female teacher (Jan) was weak and all her ideas seemed wrong. She was consistently overshadowed by the male teacher (Sung), who often corrected her mistakes, discipline the students because she couldn’t and took control of situations. Also, there was no genuine connection between the teachers and the students, which made the supposed “growth” at the end feel hollow.

Saint and Shin’s Relationship

Watching Saint and Shin getting constantly passive-aggressive to each other was very frustrating for me. I couldn’t feel any character development or bonding between them. Just a back-and-forth relationship with luck of communication.

Saint didn’t make sense. One moment he desperately wanted to reconcile with Shin, and the next, he distanced himself without explanation. Shin, on the other hand, was constantly angry, only to suddenly decide on episode 8 he wants to be friends with Saint again. The long-awaited scene where Shin reveals the reason for his anger was poorly handled. Instead of confiding in Saint directly, he tells the teacher first, so the scene with Saint lost its emotional impact.

Moreover, the reasons behind Saints absence from Shin’s life didn’t make any sense and his explanation (“I didn’t want you to have a problem with your mother”) was far from convincing. Also, it was mentioned that Shin lost a school year because of his accident, but there was no explanation for why Saint also repeated a year.

Despite that, the actors who portrayed them are talented, they look cute together and have chemistry.

The Supporting Characters and Plot

As for the other protagonists, their stories lacked the emotional weight needed to make viewers care. It was frustrating to watch them bond with each other only through physical fights rather than meaningful dialogues or development. Also, Saint almost never took the initiative or stand out as a president and there was always someone pushing him into action.

The repeated use of explanatory scenes—such as characters over-explaining plans or narrating events we had just witnessed—became tiresome. Shin and Saint also constantly repeated the same dialogs, discussing if they’re just friends or that Saint’s mother must not see them together. Got it guys, but I just want to watch the plot plotting, not being explained what I’m watching all the time.

Unnecessary Violence and Problematic Scenes

The overuse of violence was over the top and, at times, laughable. Every conflict seemed to escalate into a fistfight, with the teachers either trying to break it up or, in Sung’s case, actively participating. Very educational, don’t you thing?

One scene that particularly made me angry, was when Shin’s mother immediately slapped Saint after seeing him with her son. Regardless of the reason, it was shocking and inappropriate to show an adult hitting a child so casually.

Some other scenes were also rather stupid included Ken (a student) selling drugs in front of his house, carrying all the drugs with him. Or the scene that both teachers negotiating with the drug dealer to pay off Ken’s debt instead of involving the police, which followed by 20’ minutes fighting scenes at the final episode (poor me). Also, a drinking problem is very serious for a teacher to solve it with just talking with the parent and making him understand. And many more scenes that I could present you, but I believe you understand what I’m trying to point out.

Conclusion

In the end, Highschool Frenemy lacked the depth, authenticity, and emotion of the original.  The repetitive dialogue, unnecessary scenes and luck of education failed to deliver my expectations of a meaningful storytelling.

If you’ve watched the series, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments. And if you liked this review, feel free to subscribe for more.

Thanks for reading this,

Utaku.