Review: Barth might just be the villain in ‘Ticket to Heaven’ episode five

                                     

When Jesus prayed, “And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil,” Barth was thousands of years away from being conceived, but He knew him and the trouble he would foment at Magdalene House.

Ticket to Heaven is a six episode drama produced by Thailand’s GMMTV and available on Youtube with English subtitles. It began airing on May 30, 2026, and has so far received wide-acclaim for its honest cinematography and beautiful storytelling. 

The story centres the lives of two boys, ‘Barth’ Bodin Tangwongwat, a troubled student who is transferred to a Seminary after a violent episode, and Tanrak, an orphaned seminarian whose life purpose is to become a Catholic priest and  make it to heaven to be rejoined with his parents. Barth’s presence, however, begins to test Tanrak’s faith as he struggles to reconcile his innate feelings with his faith and fears for his future. 

At the beginning of the show, one would be forgiven to have thought that Kongkit, the school bully, would be the ultimate villain of the show, unfortunately for him, he didn’t last three episodes before getting kicked out of Magdalene House. Following which, everything seemed to be smooth sailing. But sometimes, smooth sailing isn’t all it seems.

The show is set up such that you sympathise and empathise with the two main characters, Tan and Barth who are exploring love and sexuality within a system that strongly frowns upon it —a catholic boarding school. 

You cheer for them when they first hold hands, when Tan feeds from Barth’s hand, when they become inseparable, when they confess their feelings to each other, when they kiss, have their first sexual encounter in the bath house, their first trip outside the school—alone together in the forest—and spill the depths of their hearts to each other. 

But then you get to episode five, and for the first time, you really begin to see the characters for who they are. The show is famous for using religious imagery in telling the story, and in episode five, I could not help but liken the episode to the fall of man, as depicted in the Bible.

In the episode, Father Arnon is God, Tanrak is Man and Barth is the Serpent.  

Barth, for the first time, aggressively challenges Tan’s faith, shaking what he believes to be true and tries to steer him to an alternative future where Tan chooses not to become a priest and to stay with him —in love. 

At first, Tan is moved, but after coming so close to getting caught by Father Arnon as he moved past the building the two were cooped up in, he’s awash with guilt and tries to hide from him—just as Man hid from God after eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He later buries his face in water seeking to wash away the guilt but it doesn’t work. As a last resort, Tan finally musters courage and faces Father Arnon in confession where he pours out his heart.

I believe Fourth Nattawat who plays Tan deserves awards just for that scene. I was so moved to tears.

Barth as Villain

Barth being the proverbial serpent in episode five embodies all the attributes of the serpent — cunning, wise, seductive. He never actually lies to Tan, he merely probes and prods Tan’s worldview exposing him to a different alternative. 

Yes, swearing an oath of celibacy and becoming a priest as a way of securing a ticket to heaven is not a bad idea, but another good idea is forgoing your oath of celibacy and loving me as much as I love you and let’s build a life of bliss together.

To someone religious, this argument is confrontational as it seeks to undo all that Tan has worked towards for years all for a teenage fling. Barth and his dreams of liberty become the temptation the Bible says we should flee from. It is thus not difficult to see his villainy.

His villainy is not the evil kind, he is antagonistic, prosecutorial, as he challenges Tan and indirectly Father Arnon. He is the Ha Satan — the adversary.

And while we wait for episode six (premiering on July 4, 2026) to see whether Tan eats off the forbidden tree, the depth of Barth’s probing questions will be the defining factor.

Ticket to Heaven is a must watch series for the whole family, a great conversation starter too and I highly recommend it.