Often based on real-life events, Girl From Nowhere – a Thai mystery thriller series that has released two seasons so far – tackles a wide variety of issues that plague modern high schools in Thailand, from academic dishonesty to hazing. Following the second season’s release on May 7, 2021, the series was the most-watched Netflix show in Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

The story follows Nanno (Chicha Amatayakul), a mysterious girl who transfers to different high schools around Thailand. In each episode, she seeks out wrongdoers in her new school – students and staff alike – with one end goal: to punish the guilty. Nanno often uses powers to come back from the dead and seems to know how events will play out before they even happen. But this doesn’t stop her from making mistakes. Sometimes, her careful manipulation can lead to collateral damage, and cause the audience to doubt the morality of her actions.

For example, in the fourth episode of Season One, Hi-So, Nanno tricks a boy named Dino into learning a lesson about spending his parents’ money to impress his rich peers. However, her punishment involves Dino’s innocent parents, who have done nothing but care about their son. As the audience debates whether Nanno’s punishments are too light, too harsh, or fitting, the show raises questions about who is allowed to enact vengeance – and who is allowed to decide what is right and wrong.

In addition to moral discussion, social commentary is woven into every episode of Girl From Nowhere. The series is inspired by true stories of victims and perpetrators within Thai high schools. The most prominent example of this is in Minnie and the Four Bodies, where high school student Minnie kills four people while drunk driving. Her wealthy and influential parents pull strings to help her dodge the consequences, and Minnie herself refuses to own up and apologize for her mistakes. So, as a result of Nanno’s supernatural influence, Minnie sees traumatic visions of her victims at school. Minnie’s real-life parallel, Orachorn “Praewa” Thephasadin Na Ayudhya, caused the same accident – killing nine, not four – but rather than being haunted by her victims like Minnie was, Praewa was sentenced to 138 hours of community service.

Girl From Nowhere includes many areas of discussion. But aside from that, it is a dark and gripping watch. When Nanno carries out her next scheme, viewers are left feeling satisfied, excited, or tense, depending on their level of sympathy for the wrongdoers.

One of the most memorable things about the show is its enigmatic and calculating main character, Nanno. As she schemes against her victims, Nanno maintains a deceptively passive, innocent, and hapless demeanor. Once she gets the upper hand, she drops the act to show her “true” self: confident, vengeful, smug – often accompanied by deranged laughter that almost makes her sound like a villain. Another intriguing question follows Nanno around: Who is this titular Girl From Nowhere? And what does she want? While Nanno starts out in the role of the victim, she reveals herself to be an inhuman entity that enjoys the suffering of others.

The show also has some drawbacks, including moral ambiguity which can be frustrating if the audience disagrees with the severity of her decisions. Nanno also doesn’t act anything like a teenager, remaining unnervingly calm as chaos unfolds around her. Although this is intentionally done, it means that despite taking place at a high school, the only people who act like typical high schoolers are her classmates. Finally, her easily recognizable laugh is also jarringly fake. There’s an explanation – Nanno’s not human, so she doesn’t know how to laugh genuinely – but that doesn’t make it any less painful to listen to.

It’s also important to note that Girl From Nowhere was rated TV-MA (intended for mature audiences). It contains a lot of content that is unsuitable for younger viewers, including graphic violence.

To say that everyone will encounter unfairness throughout their lives is an understatement, and it’s easy to wonder – even for a split second – what it would be like to have the power to enact revenge on those who have wronged you. But the chaos that Nanno’s interference causes reveals the bloodthirsty and questionable nature of vengeance, showing that it’s dangerously easy to take things too far.

Although this show might not be for everybody, its clever and unique portrayal of justice and vengeance certainly make it worth a try.