“A person’s life is like a book where we are the main characters.”

This quote resonates deeply with the main characters in “Monster Next Door”.

The series follows introverted college student Diew (Park Anantadej Sodsee) and his extroverted peer, God (Big Thanakorn Kuljarassombat). Although they appear to be opposites—Diew, a reserved, organized, and quiet individual, and God, a lively, outgoing social butterfly—we soon discover that the two have a lot in common.

Diew and God’s first encounter happens when Diew returns an item God dropped, sparking love at first sight for God. As fate would have it, God moves into the same apartment complex as Diew, much to Diew’s initial dismay. Accustomed to his solitude and privacy, Diew is not thrilled about having a new neighbor, especially one with God’s loud and sometimes chaotic lifestyle. However, after God apologizes for disturbing him, the two start communicating through adorable sticky notes. These small exchanges gradually lead to heartfelt conversations on their shared balcony, bringing them closer together.

Diew’s MBTI is ISTJ which stands for Introverted, Sensing, Thinking, and Judging. He is a grounded, well-organized, and introspective person. He doesn’t like chaos and is a very detail-oriented person. He is also loyal and caring. His first encounter with God occurs through his simple act of kindness: returning God’s papers to him. He then helps a stranger (who unbeknownst to him happens to be God) move into his apartment by helping him with his boxes.

God is an ENFP which stands for Extroverted, Intuition, Feeling, and Perception. He is a free spirit who loves music, movies, and hanging out with others. He has a boisterous, outgoing personality that naturally draws people to him. And like Diew, he is also extremely caring. In the first episode, he makes himself late to class just to care for injured puppies. He is also a great friend, always ready to lend a listening ear so his friends can express their fears and worries, while he offers them unwavering support and encouragement.

While Diew and God may be on opposite ends of the personality spectrum, they share a deep sense of loyalty and kindness and a mutual love of literature and music. As they spend more time together, they begin to find comfort in each other’s company, gradually opening up to one another. For Diew, this newfound connection is particularly meaningful, because, in his last relationship, he was shamed for being an introvert. But God approaches their relationship with respect and understanding, honoring Diew’s boundaries and moving at a pace that Diew feels comfortable with. It’s refreshing to see this kind of sensitivity in a Thai BL series, as it’s not uncommon for some of the writers of these series to ignore boundaries or push things in ways that can feel uncomfortable.

As an extremely introverted person, I can relate to both Diew and God deeply. Too often, people shame others for being different from them instead of embracing what sets us all apart.

At the end of the day, we are the main characters in our own story and should be free to live, and love, the way we want.

I enjoyed the first four episodes of “Monster Next Door” and look forward to seeing where Diew and God’s romantic journey takes them. (Here’s hoping we also get to see more of Diew’s adorable turtle Shy in the upcoming episodes. He’s so cute!).

You can stream new episodes of “Monster Next Door” every week on GagaOOLala.

Rating – 3.5 out of 5