#korn theerapanyakul

[iveneverdoneanythingwrong]

[babyangelsky]

BL Challenge 2k24 ✨Day 7✨

Hello and welcome to @negrowhat's 15 Day BL Challenge! Full challenge can be found here.

Favorite Villain: Korn Theerapanyakul

It isn't often that we get an actual villain in a BL. We have plenty of love rivals but those are rarely ever villains in the true sense of the word. We also have a large, unfortunate array of shitty parents and parental figures, some of which absolutely do fall into the villain category, but they don't deserve my effort or your attention.

But then we have Korn.

Korn is a villain. Make absolutely no mistake about that. This man has dedicated his life to playing 4D chess with everyone around him, including and especially his sons, and he's brilliant at it. There is never a moment where he isn't in control, there is never a moment where he hasn't thought at least five steps ahead, and he has very few blind spots.

What gets me—and what makes him that much more insidious in my opinion—is how he presents himself to the world.

♡ gif by @guzhufuren from this set

"This man, a villain? Never! He's just a nice, soft-spoken dad in a sweater vest! Sure he's a bit intimidating but he's in the mafia, it's to be expected. And just look at how accepting he is of his gay sons! He's looking at a photo of his son and his son-in-law and smiling, isn't that lovely?"

False!

Korn's image is perfectly curated and if you only look on the surface, from the outside that's exactly what he is: a nice dad and a respectable businessman. He's rational, calm, and level-head, especially when you compare him to Gun—which you can't not do. It's impossible to have a conversation about Korn without talking about Gun, who is absolutely just as bad and who I easily could've chosen.

The difference is that Gun's evil is overt and in a way, it's more...honest because of it. He's not out here pretending to be a good person or trying to be anything other than exactly what he is. What you see is what you get. However, I chose Korn precisely because of that insidiousness, because his evil appears so much more subtle but only when it remains in the shadows.

♡ gif by @kinnbig from this set

Because when everything gets brought to light? Hoooooo BOY.

This man kept his foster sister in isolation under lock and key for years after he killed her husband and took her away from her two little boys. Then he left those little boys in the care of a degenerate gambler and watched them sink further and further into debt. And that's only the thin end of the wedge! If we got into all the ways he fucked up his OWN boys, we'd be here all damn day.

Kidnapping on perhaps more than one occasion, a hit squad, Kim's entire personality, Kinn's emotional range, need I go on?

But getting back to Porsche and Chay, Korn could've helped them at literally any point but he didn't lift a finger until they grew up and became useful to him. He could've cleared their debts, paid for Chay's education, provided for them, kept them from getting remotely close to a situation were men were beating them and trashing their home. But he did exactly none of that because whatever sense of obligation Korn might have felt toward them absolutely pales in comparison to his need for control.

♡ gif by @kinnbig from this set

That's what this all comes down to: control. The world is a chessboard and everyone in Korn's orbit is a piece on it. He proposed an outcome for himself and he got it.

He made sure Kinn was cemented as head of the main family and found a way to cement Porsche as head of the minor family. He got rid of Gun and the threat he presented and succeeded in burying the truth of what happened to Porsche's parents with him, because the truth that Korn gave simply is not the whole truth. It never will be because divulging the truth means giving up control, and that is something he will never do.

I could literally talk for hours about Korn. He's a fascinating character. He's got so many layers. Bottom line?

Este señor es el mismísimo diablo. This man is the living breathing devil.

[stolligaseptember]

i love how all happy endings for kinnporsche always come back to "and then they kill korn"

[chalkrevelations]

Proposed:

Vegas and Porsche spend a whole bunch of time plotting to kill Korn, only for Macau and Chay to get there first.

Some intense questioning and emotional manipulation by his Hia finally get out of Macau that he lied when he initially told everyone that he stumbled into Korn and accidentally knocked him down the stairs when Korn grabbed his wrist during an argument, but he wanted to protect Chay. He says that the two of them didn't think people would believe Korn fell accidentally when Chay tried to push him away from Macau, after Korn grabbed Macau's wrist during an argument.

Some emotional manipulation by Porsche does not get anything out of Chay, who just looks at Porsche with big wet eyes from under his bangs and doesn't uncurl from the corner of the couch in Tankhun's rooms.

Some intense questioning by Kim does not get anything more than a "fuck off" out of Chay when Kim 1) calls bullshit on Macau's confession to Vegas and 2) accuses Chay of now taking the rap for Macau because they all know that no one would ever believe it was an accident when the displaced second son of the minor family pushed Korn Theerapanyakul down the stairs during an argument.

(Kim is not ... entirely correct. He's not entirely wrong, either, for all the good it does him.)

Kinn gets nothing out of anyone, because neither of these kids trusts him as far as they could spit. If Kinn was the least bit trustworthy, Vegas would be head of the minor family and Porsche would not - this is something both Macau and Chay have been in agreement on for a long time.

Tankhun takes one look at both of them in tears, Macau practically hyperventilating, just after they're pulled away from Korn's body in the stairwell - these two boys who previously have always been protected in one way or another from the dirty work of this family - and he KNOWS there was nothing accidental about it. He's just not sure who actually did the pushing, so he keeps his mouth shut because he doesn't really care about Vegas's brother, but no one is going to do anything to his baby chick Chay if he has anything to say - or not say - about it. (Pa shouldn't have given him a kid, if he didn't want something more important than Pa in Tankhun's life.)

Tankhun's right about one thing - it wasn't an accident.

Macau never - ever - admits to anyone that they did it together, 1-2-3-go, when Korn made the mistake of turning his back to them while he was at the top of the stairs to Nampheung's garret. Occasionally, Macau will catch Pete looking at him speculatively, head tilted just a bit, and Macau just stares back with the blandest look he can manage until Pete shakes his head and looks away. (These are, in fact, the only times Macau can manage to win a staredown against P'Pete. He doesn't realize how suspicious that is, in and of itself.)

(Macau never, ever, wants Vegas to know that their family - who Vegas tried so hard to protect him from - stained him enough that he could commit murder, even if it was in order to protect his Hia.)

Chay tells Porsche three years later during an argument right before Chay packs his things and moves out of the main family compound for the last time. He doesn't tell Porsche that Macau was the one to first send a significant look Chay's way when Korn dismissively turned his back on them at the top of the stairs. He does tell Porsche that he's the one who gave the final go-ahead nod to Macau.

(Chay absolutely wants Porsche to know that the Theerapanyakul family - who Porsche exposed him to - stained him enough that he could commit murder in order to protect his Hia.)

Working title: Nobody Talks, Everybody Walks

[guzhufuren]

Kob Songsit really said i'm going to make playing supportive father of a gay son into my new career

[laesas]

Keeping up with the Theerapanyakardashians

[leedongwook]

“But I definitely won’t let anyone do anything to VegasPete.”

[lu-sn]

Korn shakes his head in mirth. “It’s hard to believe, isn’t it?” he says, eyes straying to the tablet in his hands. “That Kinn would run into my treasured nephew purely by chance, with no effort on my part.”

“It is, sir,” Chan says.

Korn hums. “Almost as if it were fate.”

A different Chan — younger, maybe — might have narrowed his eyes. As it is, Chan’s face remains perfectly still.

“You have nothing to say to that?” Korn murmurs.

“You’re not one to put stock in fate,” Chan says. “Sir.”

Korn laughs. “No. There is no such thing as inevitability. There is only luck — and luck is fickle.” He unpauses the footage on the tablet, mouth curving into a smile that Chan could almost call fond. “Unless you hold all the cards in your hands.”

He watches in silence for a few more moments, then hands the tablet back to Chan. “I am not convinced Kinn will succeed at bringing Porsche in,” he says. “I want you to make it a certainty.”

Chan had expected nothing less. He had seen the gleam in Korn’s eye as he replayed the footage three, four, five times over. This was something Korn wanted far too badly to leave to chance. “Yes, sir.���

-

#kpanniversary2024 episode 1 + prompt 1: fate

[lilitblaukatz]

KinnPorsche as not so random song titles

+ bonus:

[hamliet]

Kinnporsche: The Symbolism

Not really a meta. More a collection of baby meta ideas I have and/or symbolism I noticed watching the series that didn't make it into my review.

Oh How The Tables...

I'm just saying that it's certainly ironic that Kim's first scene in the show is him mocking Big for his unrequited love for Kinn. He asks Big if he should write Big a song about heartbreak, and ends the series writing a song about his own heartbreak and begging Chay to take him back.

Big and Tawan

In general, I think Big and Tawan were the best done minor characters, and the best done characters in the series, if you look at their complete arcs, after Vegas and Pete (Kim and Chay would be next, but their arcs aren't entirely complete and never will be).

The same episode where Tawan concludes "if I can't be happy, then no one can," and commits suicide (intended murder suicide at that), Big sacrifices his life to save Porsche's, not because of Porsche, but because he loves Kinn. He dies assuring Porsche how much Kinn loves him.

In other words, Big reached the opposite conclusion of Tawan: even if it means he can't be happy, he wants Kinn to be happy. However, the story actually takes a nuanced, complex look at it and doesn't code it as Big=good Tawan=bad; Tawan is framed as tragic instead and you're meant to feel sad over his patheticism, not feel gleeful.

Portraits

Tankhun, Kim, and Vegas all have self-portraits in their rooms, and these portraits are all kind of symbolic of how they see themselves--though not necessarily accurate perceptions.

Well, except Tankhun's. Tankhun's just just a neon portrait that fits with his flamboyant decor. It's in the corner near where he watches his series, and is very straightforward because Tankhun, himself, is pretty straightforward. He's not hiding the same way the others are.

Kim's self-portrait is a watercolor of himself, but you can't any discernible features. Of course, this symbolizes how he hides himself behind many masks.

Behind that portrait, though, is his bulletin board of his family and all the players. Because no matter how Kim acts distant and aloof, he's actually always strategizing and planning to thwart any threats to his family.

Vegas's self portrait is in a secret room that can only be entered via a passcode, symbolic of how it's really hard to reach the true Vegas because he keeps his vulnerabilities locked up. But when you do enter that room, you see a portrait of a misshapen man that looks more monster than human. That's how Vegas sees himself.

Kinn notably does not have a portrait (that I saw), but his walls are instead windows that overlook Bangkok, which can be symbolic as well: that he doesn't see himself fully as a person, but instead as someone who's supposed to be controlling and surveying something much, much bigger than himself.

Kinnporsche Sexy Times

The idea for symbolism here wasn't fully developed, but it's there, so.

The first two times Kinn and Porsche have sex mirror the first sexual encounters with others we see them engaging in. The first scene is the Bad Scene, or really, where Kinn basically assaults Porsche since Porsche is way too out of it to consent. But during this scene, Porsche draws attention to the beauty of the city view, which is a callback to how Kinn's hired prostitute remarked that he wanted to see the entire view (and then opened the curtains to find Porsche there, because Kinn's answer to who he is is more adequately found in Porsche than the city).

Of course it's also kind of a comment on how Kinn views himself in terms of the city, which is not entirely a good understanding lol.

The next time they have sex--and the first time it's consensual--is in the backroom of a club, which mirrors where we see Porsche having sex with the two girls in the series. I'd argue this is probably supposed to be seen as Kinn meeting Porsche where he's at, and to a degree vice versa, but also Kinn's is more morally questionable than Porsche's in terms of consent and power.

Kimchay - The Little Mermaid

I talked a little about the fairy tale motif that was never actually explored in the story despite it having a ton of potential in my review, and I'm going to talk more about it now because I can.

Listen, if Vegaspete and Kinnporsche are both loosely based on Beauty and the Beast (Vegaspete more directly a retelling, right down to resurrection), Kimchay is probably based on "The Little Mermaid," the other story that gets a direct shout-out in text. Here, both characters are both mermaid and prince.

Kim wants to live a life as part of a different world, and uses his voice to get there. In the end, just like the mermaid in the original tale, he loves the prince (Chay) too much to risk him coming to harm, even if that means his own doom. However, it's precisely that selflessness that helps him live above a filthy world.

Chay also wants to live in a different world and uses his voice to get there. Only, despite all he risks to get there, it doesn't quite work out. The prince (Kim) doesn't return his feelings... well, except he does, but he sure made Chay feel like he didn't for awhile there.

Succession: Kinnporsche Version

The novel apparently mentions this but I'm not interested in reading it for Reasons, but I did find it intriguing that the mafia family isn't exactly going to continue considering all five of the current generation (Khun, Kinn, Kim, Vegas, and Macau) are all gay. For all the talk about being an heir and succeeding Papa Korn, it's not gonna go for another generation. I actually like this and think it could be a major thematic point if emphasized appropriately, or brought up at all in the series.

Like. The family burdens the kids because of mafia stuff, trying to pit them against one another and using them to solve their grievances... but love can save the day, and also give life, and quite literally stop the cycle--but it's love that isn't traditional, in a sense. It's queer. This also doesn't mean the characters can't have kids, obviously, but symbolically they have to come up with different, nontraditional ways to do so if they do, symbolic of having to like... break from the traditional patriarchal violence of their mafia upbringings.

The ingredients are there! It could have been a thing!

Namphueng: The King

Namphueng's room has a chessboard pattern on the floor, which ties into the chess motif that Korn was always messing around with. While the audience was led to believe the queen was Porsche in all Korn's playing scenes--and they were right--they were also led to believe the king was either Kinn or Korn. Incorrect. The king was Namphueng, not Kinn or Korn.

The king, after all, isn't really free to move. It theoretically can move in any direction, but only one space at a time. It's quite limited.

I do wonder--not that this will ever be answered--if Namphueng's story is intended a lot more important than just "foster sister." Like maybe her family was wiped out because she was the heir of a far more important family or something.

The Victor Writes History

Or so Korn said. Again, not that we'll ever get it cleared up, and I personally like the ambiguity wherein we don't know precisely what happened between Namphueng, her husband, Korn, and Gun. I wouldn't actually have wanted it perfectly cleared up. Thematic! Complexity!

Gun's memories match better with Porsche's than Korn's do--the cabinet where Porsche hid is open in Gun's memories, but not in Korn's, and Porsche remembers Korn standing while Gun sits, which is what happens in Gun's version. However, whenever there are multiple versions of a story, the truth is probably in the middle, and it's hard to believe Gun, of all people, had purely selfless motives.

My personal guess is Korn did kill Namphueng's husband, but it was less about "how dare you not come back!" cruelty and more a long-game plan to get his and Gun's father to spare Namphueng and fake her death to protect her. I think this fits best thematically with the story and the characters as present in the series, in that Korn's motives can be both caring and selfish and power-seeking at the same time. It's also tragic, because killing someone loved by someone to protect them actually has a way of killing them even if you didn't plan on it. Someone can still be alive but have lost everything, a statement that multiple characters made in the show.

It would also fit that Korn misunderstood the power of love, because he definitely doesn't get it. But he didn't ruin every love story, because Kinn and Porsche end up together.

Whose Handprints?

I am annoyed i never got the answer to whose finger paintings Korn had in his desk drawer (the ones Kim found). I presume it's Porsche and Chay's given that there are two handprints, not three, and one is far larger than the other (plus the emphasis on Namphueng and art) but who knows.

[apathetic-tortoise]

Korn: You’re not good enough for my son

Porsche: You’re not good enough for your son

Korn: Excuse me?

Porsche: You heard me

[live-from-flaturn]

Kimchay ficlet for #24??? 💜💜💜💜

"Whiskey in the Jar" - Metallica

Whack for my daddy-o, there's whiskey in the jar, oh...

---

Korn watches the younger Kittisawat flip and spin a cocktail shaker through the air. It loops flawlessly over his shoulder to land securely in his hands. The boy's grin is blinding; pure, innocent joy and pride in a newly mastered skill. If it were still possible Korn is sure his heart would warm at the sight.

Porchay has been taking lessons from Porsche as an excuse to spend more 'brotherly' time together. His plan is working marvelously and Korn thinks Chay will be a wonderful addition to the Family. Especially as Kimhan's bubbly business partner.

Because while his most rebellious son has used growing fame to wiggle out from beneath Korn's thumb for now, Porchay's grip on Kimhan remains immovable.

No other beast could be so loyal or so fiercely devoted as Kimhan was to this boy. Korn would be impressed if he weren't so annoyed.

Kimhan was his attack dog. He'd done all the training. The discipline. He'd put in all the hard work. And for nothing! This foolish, silly child went and yanked it out from under him easy as breathing. Such charm can be dangerous as it is useful.

"Ta da!"

Korn is whisked back to the present by Porchay's gleeful exclamation. A sweet-smelling concoction slides across the polished teakwood bar and into his line of sight. The opposite edge of his glass is garnished with an orange peel. "What is this one called?"

"It's an, uhm,-" Porchay ducks his head to peer at a notecard "-a Manhattan! Kinn likes whiskey, so I took a shot in the dark and figured you might like it, too!"

Korn chuckles. "Excellent deductive reasoning."

He picks it up, swirls it around, and takes a sip. Oh! His grin widens to match the boy's as he goes in for another. Then a third. By the fourth, however, Porchay's smile takes on a predatory edge. Korn recognizes victory when he sees it. He's worn the same expression before.

"What did-"

He doesn't get to finish the question.

---

For two glorious minutes, Chay watches his almost-father-in-law wriggling on the floor in utter agony. He's filming it, of course, because Kim deserves to see this. But there isn't any need for commentary.

When the moving stops and Korn's face is blue, Chay slowly exhales. He knew the old fart would underestimate him by nature. Nobody except Kim really sees how deep and wide the river of his fury runs. He's grown up scared, lonely, and trying to lessen Porsche's burden. There's no reason for him to be merciful to a man like Korn; sitting in his fancy house making pottery and playing chess with his children for pawns.

In the wake of committing cold-blooded murder, Chay thinks Korn's death came almost too easy. He deserved far worse than what he got. Though the blatant look of surprise he'd gotten eases the sting.

Pride before the fall and all that.

Alright. Game over. Time for a new King on the board.

"Hey, err-" Chay pokes his head out the door and sheepishly wiggles his fingers at the guards outside. "Is there anyone available to help me with some trash? I don't think I can lift it by myself..."

[gulongming]

KINNPORSCHE ANNIVERSARY: tropes (x)

COLLECTIBLES EDITION ▸ binder one binder two

[extrovertedineedofhelp]

The main family: if you hurt Pete, we’ll kill you.

Vegas: if I hurt Pete, I’ll kill myself.

The main family: Not if we kill you first.

Pete: Pleasure to watch you all interact as always.

[iveneverdoneanythingwrong]

[auseyre]

I'm way too lazy to copy that Marvel What If font rn but...what if

What if Korn took Nampheung, not out of obsession or some freaky desire to attic wife her, but to please his father? I think it’s pretty much a given that his recitation of the shooting events is a lie and that Gun’s is closer to the truth. 

In both versions, though, they are there trying to persuade Nampheung to come home again because their dad is insisting. I’m guessing that since Nampheung has yet another son, their father is ready for her to come back into the fold, bringing her kids with her. Korn kills her husband, obviously to get him out of the way. But I think that he didn’t want even more competition against his own sons for a place in the family. Vegas and Macau were enough. So he brings her and leaves Porsche and Chay behind. 

And then he tells his father the same story he told Gun, but in reverse. Gun freaked out. Gun killed Ted. Gun killed Porsche and Chay because he’s obsessed with Nampheung. Gun tried to rape her. Keep her locked away and safe from Gun. It’s enough to make Gun completely lose favor with his father. Nampheung either tries to kill herself because she thinks her sons are dead as well, or Korn just keeps her drugged up. Now he’s eliminated both rivals for the head of the family in one fell swoop. After his father dies, he keeps her because why not? She’s completely under his control and someday he might need her as a weapon/hostage (turns out he does). 

What if Porsche is actually Gun’s son? Gun doesn’t know it, Nampheung didn’t tell him — I’m thinking one night of passion and her realizing that is she was with him, she’d never escape the Mafia life, or they knew their dad would never allow it. So she just ran off with Pat, who married her to protect her and the baby (maybe he was already in love with her, maybe they fell in love later.) But Korn knows it or at least he’s pretty sure of it. It would explain his interest in Porsche but not Chay, who would presumably be more malleable for Korn’s needs. (I know people have explored this possibility in way more depth than I can).

Yes, I know that would make Porsche and Kinn actual cousins, but look, I’m watching a show where a severed head in a box is considered a gift, and a torture raincoat standard equipment. Every romantic relationship on this show is ignoring the guy on the ship waving blood-red semaphore flags in frantic “danger, Will Robinson” messages. I promise you, my line is not a consensual romantic relationship between two blood-related adults who didn’t even grow up together. 

TBH, I’m just throwing this out here because I want Porsche and Vegas and Macau and Chay to have to navigate an enemies-to-brothers relationship. Porsche and Vegas, two men conditioned to love and protect their brothers, having to deal with their super awkward relationship. Chay and Macau, both used to being the adored baby brother, unable to stifle their resentment and confusion. Heck, they’re still babies, so send them off to camp together so we can have a Parent Trap type bonding situation. Y’all I just want one of those cheesy 80s, defensive “that’s my brother!” moments.

What if Porsche becoming Tankhun’s bodyguard was meant to be a test by both Khun and Korn as well as taking Porsche off of the hot seat for a minute? Korn brings Porsche in, is delighted by his moxie, puts him on the board as an actual player, and then he’s just a disaster who almost gets himself killed by the Minor Family. So, letting him be Tankhun’s bodyguard got him out of the spotlight for a minute, long enough for the Minor family to move on to other grudges. And it was a test to see if he had any ambition, any edge at all. That’s why Korn does not want him to guard anybody else when Porsche suggests it. He passed the test and needs to stay in play. 

Khun sees Kinn’s interest in Porsche. After all, Kinn comes personally to rescue Porsche from his fish-killing punishment. Switching Pete and Porsche protects him from Minor family retaliation(because come on, do we really think that Vegas was gonna let that go? If he hadn’t wanted to use Porsche, he would absolutely have gotten revenge.) It also gives Khun a chance to study Porsche and see if he’s worthy of Kinn’s attention. When he decides he is, he nudges him back toward Kinn ...mentioning the meeting, telling him that Kinn said he was useless and would get killed, eventually “giving” him back to Kinn with the flimsiest excuse. 

@iamcon-fu-sion mentions some of these ideas about the bodyguard situation in their KP rewatch and I was so happy to see that because I constantly think I’m over analysing everything about this show(I mean I’m not gonna stop though). 

What if Ken wasn’t the original mole? What if it was a lower-level bodyguard, and he didn’t betray the main family until Porsche came onto the scene? Maybe he’d already turned down the offer before. Then Big gets hurt and Porsche comes along out of nowhere. By rights, Ken should have moved into Big’s spot, but Porsche stops that, humiliating them in the process. Porsche continually fucks up and yet still fails upward. Sure, they made fun of him being Tankhun’s bodyguard, but realistically, Tankhun has the best bodyguards they have other than Big and Ken. 

Arm and Pete are constantly pulled into other missions because they’re so valuable and talented. Maybe no one wants the job, but it’s still one of the most high-ranking. Then, when Ken does get the head bodyguard job, it’s yanked back out from under him. He has no idea that Porsche is getting all kinds of nepo baby/sugar baby privileges, but whatever is going on is enough to leave him bitter, angry, and betrayed enough to go over to the minor family. 

editing this because where did I get Ted for the Kittisawasd dad? I ...have no idea.