City of Light: The O.C. Thailand

The O.C., a hit series from Warner Bros., first aired in America in 2003 and became so popular that it paved the way for similar series to become mainstream in the U.S. Recently, One 31 channel acquired the rights from Warner Bros. to produce a Thai version titled Bangkok Rak Stories (or Krungthep Mahanakhon Son Rak). The story follows Ray (New-Chayapol), a young boy traveling from Pattaya to Bangkok, a city of dazzling lights he had never seen before. That same night, Ray gets involved in a car theft case. Fortunately, Saran (Willy McIntosh), an idealistic lawyer working for a foundation helping poor children, steps in to keep him out of jail. Saran sees that Ray is smart at his core and not a delinquent, so he takes Ray to live in Bangkok as his adopted son. Pim (Nusba Punnakan), Saran's wife, has no objection to this.
This changes Ray's life forever. Ray is raised and sent to study at a top-tier high school, with Sun (Mouse-Natcha), Saran's son, as his companion. At times, Sun acts like a younger brother, relying on Ray for protection and help in pursuing Summer (Esther Supreeleela), the popular girl at school whom Sun has admired for a long time. Meanwhile, Ray meets Marisa (Marie Broenner), a beautiful girl next door who is famous in high society. The two are impressed with each other from the moment they meet, even though Marisa already has Louis (Hun-Itsariya), a wealthy boyfriend.
This leads to Ray and Louis getting into fistfights almost every time they meet. Marisa’s parents are Thana (Dom Hetrakul) and Jane (Cindy-Sirinya). Thana owns a securities company but is experiencing severe financial problems. He never utters a word about it to anyone, but when he runs out of options, he decides to borrow a large sum of money from Pim. Pim helps Thana easily, considering their old friendship as former lovers during their youth. The strange, secretive behavior between Thana and Pim makes Saran suspicious. Furthermore, when Jane learns the truth that her husband is falling into ruin, she immediately decides to divorce Thana. This shocks everyone in high society when they discover Jane's new lover is Pichai (Nirut Sirijanya), a famous businessman who does everything for profit—and is also Pim's father.
Before school opens, the high-society teen group plans a trip to a resort in Hua Hin. It is here that Marisa discovers the truth about her parents' divorce and catches Louis cheating on her, bringing Ray and Marisa closer together. However, the chaos does not end there. Problems continue to plague everyone, including the hardships rushing into Ray's life, teaching him that Bangkok is a free city full of hope and crowded with people, but beneath that perfect exterior lies a secret that is not as beautiful as it appears. Watch Bangkok Rak Stories every Monday-Tuesday at 8:30 PM on One 31. The first episode airs on Tuesday, March 8, 2016.