Hidden Agenda (2023)

It's over for me!!!!

I don't think I'll watch this series until the end. I finished the episode 3 weeks ago and can't bring myself to continue. I need to tell this "I'm sorry, but it's boring".
When I saw the trailer, I was so excited, because it promised a lot. But the story isn't good for me. I expected things to happen differently. Joke even trying to help Zo with Nita and their feelings developing along the way. I would have liked to see Zo trying to win Nita over, not fall for Joke so quickly.
I like a soft love story with no big drama, but let's be serious, this isn't "My School President".
I like Dunk and Joong, but I don't see the chemistry between them. I didn't see it in their preview series "Star and Sky" either. I always get the feeling that Dunk can't get emotionally involved, that he can't convey the feelings to us, the viewers. When I see Zo, I see Dunk. They have the same behavior towards Joong/Joke.

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I'm sorry, but no

This series is supposed to be romance but the script makes it feel like horror comedy, I had to cover my face due to its cringey-ness and I laughed because some of the scenes just don't make sense

Look, I'm trying to finish this series but after 4 episodes it didn't get better, it just got worse... Joong and Dunk might be not the best actor out there but even this is not about their acting anymore. This is not the case of good story bad acting, it's more like decent acting horrible story. I don't even understand the story progression, suddenly they're here, suddenly they're there, suddenly this happened and boom! they fall in love even harder with each other. It just doesn't make sense, there are so many plot holes and the story feels like a fever dream. It's all over the place. It feels like you're trying to piece a long script from scraps of scenes, it has all the tropes that you would find in a cliche romance story, but even doing all that didn't bring anything to the table. Sad. The dialogues are cringe, their gestures are cringe, their acting are cringe, at this point I feel like this is not JoongDunk's fault, it's just the story and directing is bad. Which is sad because GMMTV had produced better series, and THIS NOT IT!!!

It's actually disappointing because I love Joong and Dunk, I also feel like they deserve better movies because they had the potential as a couple, great chemistry, and both are good looking. They have all the equations to complete the formula to be a big BL couple. But sadly they somehow always ended up doing movies with a bad script. I thought they would get something better after Star in My Mind (which I liked), that's why I am anticipating Hidden Agenda. It has the same story outline like 2gether but somehow this fails miserably. Hopefully, they will got better projects in the future. Good luck Joong Dunk!!!

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A Good Bad Series

I enjoyed this series a lot. It made me fall in love with JoongDunk.

HOWEVER:

1) Imagine if they used "the struggle to make someone proud of you" as a theme throughout the series! It had so much potential, but they chose to use it only at the end of it. WHY?
The wrinting wasn't good. Unfortunately, this has become a recurrent thing in many GMMTV shows.

2) I love JoongDunk's chemistry and I want to see it again in future series, but PLEASE give Dunk more acting class! Chemistry alone cannot carry a series by itself. In some scenes, his acting wasn't good enough. And I was sad to see it. It felt like it got worse since SIMM.

3) WHY THE HELL JengPok had so little screen time??? It's not bad writing, it's a crime at this point. So many series benefit from giving screentime to a second/side couple, but not this show. WHY? Their storyline could be a series by itself.
Moreover, Boom (Pok) acting was so good that it surpised me. Give him a main role!
Another wasted potential!

Despite all the flaws HA has, it was an enjoyable show. It also made me cry here and there!
If you are looking for a series where you don't need to use your brain, I suggest to watch Hidden Agenda.
Especially if you like good kissing scenes ;D

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Don’t understand all the hate

Okay, I get this wasn’t a 10/10 but man people have a lot to say LOL. I actually sooooo enjoy JoongDunk together. They have wonderful chemistry. I ended up watching this after the show finished so for me it didn’t feel boring since I was able to watch back to back. I can understand how if you were watching week to week it could maybe get slow for you mid show. Half of the show was just them being a couple. If you prefer a lot of angst this definitely may not be for you but sometimes personally I just enjoy watching the couple experience. I do feel like there were alot of random plot points lol maybe the writers should have just picked like 2 main plot points and stuck to that.

I agree that the next show they do I would love to see something different and not related to school since this is their second show like that. However, I love them as a couple and how GMMTV lets then explore more!

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The concept was better than execution

From the first episode Hidden Agenda felt like a improved version of Star In My Mind with some elements from Fish Upon The Sky, but it showed some potential having a lot of the situations being solved with dialogue what is something that you don't see happen a lot in those type of stories where misundertandings are the base of the plot. But soon the series became too much talk and little to no story.

The pacing was weird, some things were dealt with too fast and others too little too late, multiple arcs coming and going without a really satisfying conclusion. It is like the writers were rushing in to put all the elements that they had planned without worrying if it would add or not the the overall plot.

They carried the parents approval arc until the very last minute, making it the core of the story, but still were not able to build it up as they should. Introducing Joke's father on the second to last episode felt like there was little thought before writing, making the resolution fall flat and out of place. Zo needing two different talks with his mother to finally accept and understand his feelings for Joke and his mother's feeling for him, looked as if they had wrote two different version of the same scene and in the end decided to keep both instead of bothering to write another one.

Acting wise, it is clear that there was some improvement, Joong had some solid acting moments even if his character was underdevelopted and with little to no space to shine in more dramatic scenes. Dunk would favor himself by taking some acting classes that could help him control his expressions better to learn how to emulate the characters feelings without so obviously struggling to do so. They do have good chemistry what makes me believe that if they were given a better script with better directing they would do much better than they have been doing so far..

The story was all over the place, the second couple was criminally forgotten, the third and possible couple that actually seemed to have something interesting going on were left as a foot note and Nita was there to serve as a type of foil to Zo's character, once as the objection of his affection and later as his rival.

In my opinion the story managed to walk well for the first four episodes but after that it started to go downhill, on the last two episodes it was nothing but a shadow of what it could have been. I can safely say we are tired of this type of story being told and retold thousands of times in the laziest way possible. It's time to write different characters in different sets with different plots and then maybe we can get something good out of it.

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love everything...first impression

the story kinda fresh summer vibe...gives me butterflys<3the actors have a strong chemistry makes u wanna go on with episodes ,everything seems magical idk how but i love it... cant wait for the 5th ep >
maybe the idea of the glasses removed anyoned me bit cuz glasses not a bad thing or bad mejor in look yk what i mean...abit fast but doesn,t really bothers me at all.

><100% worth the shoot to watch and countine untill last ep.

ik abit much for onnly4 eps but trust me in love hooked already invested in the story and the couples...at the end i cant say much and give 100% clear view untill the last ep>

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Re-watch worthy? Absolutely not.

(Please understand that this is my own opinion and what I enjoy and prefer in a series, I do not shame people who loved and enjoyed this series)

I got a suggestion to try this drama and I feel like I have been scammed. Dropped it immediately.

The plot, the acting, and the overall interest and chemistry for me were practically a zero. I couldn't make myself watch past episode 3. I tried to enjoy it and I even gave it chances to be more interesting, but I just couldn't see myself enjoying the rest of the episodes.

The story and the way it was presented was a basic approach and I felt like I had nothing to be excited about for the upcoming episodes. Overall the story felt dry and moving too fast.

The chemistry between the main leads was null and void. I just didn't seem connected enough with the characters and the acting to make me believe in the story that they were presenting as a couple.

Overall the three episodes that I have seen seemed like they were moving too fast for no apparent reason, with no interesting plot and chemistry that didn't even exist.

Would I ever try to watch it again? Absolutely no.

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Warm Heart, Script Hiccups: My Take

I dig the show's overall idea, but they really need to polish up the script, there's this issue of things just popping up out of nowhere in the episodes. If they took the time to build them step by step in the script, it could've made the story so much richer. Personally, I believe you can craft incredible stories on a shoestring budget; it's all about those little details. They had all the elements to create something more compelling. It's just my take on it. I know there are a lot of people who enjoy it. I really liked Joke's character, and I'd love to see Joong in a story with a well-crafted script ♥

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It doesn't matter if some people hate me. And let me be alone here - but I enjoyed it. A series to have a good evening. I was really looking forward to the end of this series so I could watch it later. And I was not disappointed. I really liked it.
JoongDunk acting has improved. And this is noticeable in many episodes. For example, in the episode where Zo and Joke have their first time/first night. I really liked this scene. Zo's embarrassment, hesitation, awkwardness - how well Dunk portrayed it. You watch it and you rejoice that the writers added conversations and such a scene. In most of the series I've watched, the main characters are so experienced and active in their first time/first night. So this Zo and Joke scene appealed to me.
I also liked the scenes with aggressive Zo. It's probably funny, but it is. I think Dunk manages to portray aggression excellently.
The plot itself is filled with tenderness. It really seemed that way to me. Yes, the plot is not genius, but it's not as bad as many people write here. But I liked the idea of the writers about the plot. And I won't even mention the chemistry between the main characters. It's just unbelievable. The looks, the tenderness, the kisses. Haha

Again, I don't understand some people who obsess over these debates. What's the big deal with it? I don't understand comments like "I forgot that Zo is part of the debate club", "the plot is not consistent, I forgot about the debates". I am not in any way condemning these people. I know that everyone has different tastes. But some of them remain incomprehensible to me. The series' plot doesn't revolve around debates. Imagine if they talked about debates every 5 minutes for 12 episodes. People wouldn't have liked it, they would have said that apart from debates, there is no plot. It's the same thing.
I liked how they tried to show the problems between parents and children here, about unhappy first love. Especially in the 9th episode, they managed to show that relationships are not always perfect, any misunderstandings or attempts to hide the truth can have consequences. Zo and Joke showed us that. And yes, I understand that the reason for their fight may seem trivial/stupid to some. But as I already said, it's about relationships, where any small misunderstanding can have consequences. Furthermore, I can understand why Zo reacted that way. He had an unsuccessful experience with his first love. Moreover, I like such scenes in series, they are a kind of resemblance to real life, and about situations that can happen in real life.
Overall, I liked it. Yes, the plot may be banal, but I liked it. And honestly, I can't understand why everyone doesn't like Dunk's acting? Maybe it's because I liked the series, and I liked the main actors, and I just don't notice it. But after watching the series "Sky and Stars," I still don't understand what's wrong with Dunk's acting. I personally really like it. Especially his smile.

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Writer failed

Actually poorly written plot.. firstly episodes are little bit ok but after few episodes drama is droped too much. Actually from episode to episode line up also floping for me.. actually what is that plot dude.. letz say itz ok to not having great story becoz some dramas are light dramas with rom com. But those have great bulid up romances .. this plot is faild to build up romance too... i am sad for this cpl... this drama can not compare with star in my mind not even little bit...in that drama even dunk can not act well story line and joong did not let us realized that.. that is why that drama is really great..
As for acting dunk not inprove his acting skills not even little bit i feel like his acting skill is droped more.. and for joong he didnt had a chance to show his skills with this plot.. so he also kind of boring in this drama..

But even this drma faild thire chemestry is still same i love that.. when they are together still butterflies in my stomach start flying ?

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Fun and light hearted

I have to say I enjoyed it, I can see what others are saying but to each their own. I found it fluffy, cute, and innocent. I enjoyed the cast. I wish the 2nd couple had a little more time to show how they got together, and I wish they had given a little more about the hidden drama between the 2 seniors. feel like that would have been interesting. I enjoy the leads very much as they have amazing chemistry together. I found it gave you a little of everything love, lies, family drama, emotional drama, hiding relations, and stalking. Zo was a bit annoying at times with overdoing the drama, but it was ok. I found the series was enjoyable. It would have been fun to see where they all ended up like 2 years later type of moment. This series has a lot going for it and was a joy to watch.

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Weak start, strong half-time, weak ending

No spoilers:
Overall, this show convinced me because of Zo's character and how the script only revealed his backstory bit by bit, making me want to re-watch the show at least once. Where the show almost lost me was at the very slow beginning and the convoluted end. In retrospective, only episodes 3-9 grabbed my attention, either because the relationship was still developing or struggling. Another thing I liked was the second couple, as they felt enriching to the story and also had an interesting plot. However, one of the main parts (?) of the story – the debating club – I think could've been used more effectively and didn't feel as important as it was supposed to be. For me, the topics they debated were too fictional to take them seriously.

Acting-wise, I do feel like Joong and Dunk improved from Star in My Mind. Especially, Dunk portrayed Zo's nervousness perfectly with his physical responses to Joke's advances. I'm certain that some scenes/situations helped bring across these emotions because it was also their first time shooting scenes like this. However, I see the need for both of them to act separately from each other, so that they can learn from other situations, plots, and more experienced actors. Of course, I want to see them again together in a series, but then it must be outside the uni-context and maybe in another genre – be it action, thriller, more mature or full on rom-com where you sit on the other side of the screen laughing so hard you have to cry.

Let's talk directing-style: I think in the special episode that aired before Hidden Agenda was released it was mentioned that this was the first or one of the first bigger projects for the director and I think you can feel that. Sometimes I felt lost as to how much time has passed (especially episode 7). I was missing transitional-shots or something that gave a clue as to where and when we are in the scene. Also, I'm not a huge fan of this very milky background we got most of the time (again, episode 7) – at some point it felt over-used. It could've had a better/bigger impact I think if it would've been used more sparingly. Additionally, the music often felt quite random. Maybe a bigger selection would've made the job easier and could've improved to convey certain feelings in some scenes.

Spoilers included:
That Zo is a pan- or bisexual character came to me as a pleasant surprise because I read his behaviour when he realized his feelings for Joke as i'm-getting-to-know-my-sexuality kinda thing. As it turns out, however, this was only him dealing with the trauma experienced back when he was a kid, and he had feelings for a boy for the first time. So, now the first 7 episodes change their meaning – at least for me. And I love that we don't have this i'm-getting-to-terms-with-my-sexuality-trope, but rather deal with how-can-I-overcome-this-trauma.
What I also admire about Zo is that he stays true to his principles. He communicates very clear and doesn't make any distinction between classmate, friends, or boyfriend. A few examples: As soon as he figured out his feelings for Joke, he acts on them (the kiss in episode 4). Next he goes to Nita because he realized the difference in his romantic feelings towards Joke and his feelings of admiration towards Nita. When Joke is again pushy with the food, and he gets into a fight with one of Zo's friends, Zo ends the fight and takes Joke with him to tell him off in a mature way. And of course when Joke's hidden agenda gets revealed, and he doesn't apologize correctly, Zo doesn't get weak and waits for Joke to come to his senses and (hopefully) learn from his mistake. Now of course Zo is not perfect as I don't like the silent-treatment he's giving Joke, but again, no person is perfect, and I love it that we see more characters like that.
Joke being the green-flag and supportive boyfriend was a great watch. Even though he really frustrated me in episode 9 when it took him the entire episode to realize what he did wrong – but I'm here for it. What I admire about Joke was his consistent reassurance he gave Zo about his feelings for him. He tried to not pressure Zo which I think is important to show more in BL as there are too many storylines out there where pressure is romanticized. I think we saw the peak of it in episode 8 where we got the super hyped NC scene.
While Zo and Joke were the example for good communication, I feel like the second couple, Jeng and Pok, showed us what happens when you don't communicate your thoughts and feelings honestly. However, their conflict also got resolved in a mature way where Jeng realized how his behaviour hurt his boyfriend, and Pok learned that he needed to communicate his feelings better for Jeng to be able to act on them.
Now the last two episodes felt really out of place, I think that's because Hidden Agenda was originally supposed to run only for 10 instead of 12 episodes? Anyhow, the end felt convoluted and rushed because they squeezed in Joke's family drama and another quarrel between Zo and Joke. It's possible, that if it had been 12 episodes from the beginning they could've built up the Joke situation way better. Now, his family-situation was used to explain Zo's misunderstanding with his mom – a classic “don't tell but show”-situation where the time ran out to show rather than tell what just happened. Because without Zo's explanation, I don't think I would've got his isolation in episode 12. In the end I would've been more happy with just 10 episodes because after episode 9 I didn't feel as excited anymore to wait for each episode.

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