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KINNPORSCHE | 1.06

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I NEED HIM

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MILE PHAKPHUM as KINN & APO NATTWIN as PORSCHE KinnPorsche The Series (2022)

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Symbolism in Shine

The Moon

We have already seen two Trin looks that feature a moon pin 🌙

Thanwa's band is called Moonshine, a name that could refer to the light of the moon but is also a term for high proof liquor, made and/or distributed illegally. Traditionally it is brewed at night to avoid suspicion but I think the subterfuge nature of Moonshine also matches the themes of queer love in that time period.

The Shine OST by SlotMachine is called Far Side of the Moon

We hear Thanwa say "welcome to the other side of the moon," when he meets Trin. That sounds like a reference to Pink Floyd's album The Dark Side of the Moon which came out in 1973 and addresses issues like conflict, death and greed among others.

I also think of the song The Moon Represents My Heart, originally sung by Taiwanese singer Chen Fen-lan but made famous by Teresa Teng and also by queer icon Leslie Cheung. Apo has sung this song before accompanied by Mile on guitar 😊

There is also the Japanese saying "the moon looks beautiful tonight," which is an indirect way of confessing your love for someone.

All that to say, the moon is a very romantic symbol 🤍🖤

Now I shall ramble a bit about tarot card meanings for the moon and the sun which I shall put under here ⬇️

Tarot Card Meanings

The Moon: 🌛

This card can represent that something is not as it seems in your life. Pay attention to your dreams as your subconscious may be trying to tell you something. Trust your instincts to see past illusions.

The card can also indicate that you are letting fears or anxiety overwhelm you. Mental health issues may arise through dormant insecurities or repressed feelings.

The Sun: 🌞

In contrast, the sun card represents optimism, positivity, freedom and fun. Success and freedom and generally happy vibes will draw people towards you.

It indicates feelings of liberation, a carefree and self assured attitude.

Trin and Thanwa

I included the sun as well because on a surface level at least, it looks like Trin is the moon and Thanwa is the sun but I suspect that there is a lot more overlap between them than initially meets the eye.

There are a lot of other places to look for moon and sun interpretations, such as depictions in mythology for example and it is not lost on me that Apo's designs for his Skechers collaboration feature sun and moon motifs as well 😏 but I think I have gone on long enough 😅

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In the trailer for Shine, the moon is a persistent, almost haunting image. Thanwa is the lead singer of Moon Shine. He welcomes Trin to his hedonistic paradise with the words (translated): “Welcome to the other side of the moon.” The OST features the track “The Far Side of the Moon,” and Trin himself wears a moon-shaped pin on the lapel of his jacket.

In Thai literature and poetry, the moon carries layered meanings of love, longing, illusion, and impermanence. In Western lit, we recognize Juliet warning Romeo to not swear his love by the inconstant moon, and rightly so. Its phases reflect life’s rhythms in its tenderness, its betrayals, and its inevitable transformations. People come into our lives and people leave. Nothing stays the same.

We see the moon’s face, trace shapes and stories into its surface, but there’s always a side we cannot see, even as the sun illuminates it.

That hidden side—unseen, yet always present—feels like the heart of Shine.

It’s no accident that, during one of the most turbulent periods in Thai modern history, the moon emerges as the story’s central metaphor. It mirrors not just national upheaval, but personal revolutions as well.

Every character in Shine is changing - falling in love, breaking apart, becoming someone new. There is the change society sees, but there is also a transformation happening in private, far from public view.

We’re not just watching a love story. We’re watching people fight in the light while wrestling with their fundamental desires in the shadows. Society is in turmoil. Ideologies are in upheaval. The only constant in the lives of these characters is that by the end, they will be transformed, and nothing will ever be the same.

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What’s completely wild to me about Shine is how it explores deep ideological divides, each embodied by privileged men —hedonist, capitalist, journalist, military leader, and foreign-trained academic— who are also grappling with their queer identities during a time of political upheaval.

The voice we don’t hear? The people. Student activists stand in for them because institutions of that era didn’t give ordinary citizens a say in what happened to their lives. The same institutions that, directly or indirectly, each of these men benefit from.

Shine feels like it’s weaving a charged, emotional tapestry, where the personal and the political collide in the lives of queer men. I’m so excited to see how this series holds all those tensions together and manifests them on the screen.

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SON YUKE as KRAILERT

SHINE ชาย (2025) dir. Pond Krisda Witthayakhajorndet, Ning Bhanbhassa Dhubthien

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Y'all 👏🏾 better 👏🏾 serve 👏🏾

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MILE PHAKPHUM as THANWA & APO NATTAWIN as TRIN Shine (2025)

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Shine Press Conference

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MILE PHAKPHUM & APO NATTAWIN Shine Press Conference

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June 11, 2025 | Mile Phakphum - Shine Presscon

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MILE PHAKPHUM as THANWA Shine (2025)

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Everybody Is a Star - Sly & The Family Stone

I was so excited after watching the Shine trailer I had to make something!

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We love. We fight. We shine.

Shine The Series Poster

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EURO YOTSAWAT in SHINE ชาย — 2025, dir. Pond Krisda Witthayakhajorndet, Ning Bhanbhassa Dhubthien

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Mile Phakphum as Tanwa and Apo Nattawin as Trin in Shine the series