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i watch too many dramas

in my Pillowfort

i watch too many dramas

in my Pillowfort
Completed
He Is Psychometric
0 people found this review helpful
Apr 7, 2024
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 6.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
I watched until episode 11 -- then I struggled for one-and-a-half years to even pick it up again. I finally managed to work my way through the last episodes in the course of another six months.

One main reason for this is the main male character, Lee Ahn, who I thoroughly disliked. He is cocky and self-assured without having any abilities to support it -- and it feels that he thinks it's enough that he is himself and has this psychometry to be allowed to flaunt rules.

Another is the romance, which felt forced and superfluous. Is it not enough to share the same traumatic childhood exerience? To have the same goal? Why does it have to be romance, when partners and eventual friends would have made enough sense?
I did not feel any sexual or romantic attraction between them. For the longest time, Jae In seemed to be more annoyed than romantically interested.
They wouldn't do a romance arc if the young people had the same gender, so why force this into a good mystery?

Because the mystery plot was quite good otherwise -- the storyline of the dangerous stranger whose identity is slowly revealed and how he connects to the mysterious Kang Seong Mo was delightfully muddied by the storyline about corporate fraud.
It seemed that we knew everything already in episodes 11 to 13 or so (which is also part of why I had trouble continuing at that point) -- but then there's a surprising plot twist!
(The story telling though was a bit too slow in the last episodes.)

Kang Seong Mo was by far the most interesting character, and his actor subtly portrayed his emotions -- emotionless robot, even though it seems to the other characters, he is not. Without him, I would probably not have made it through the drama.

An honourable mention for Jae In -- one of the few female characters in a drama who can hold her own -- yes, she "needs" to be saved by the male lead at least once, but other than that, she is indispensible to the plot, and actually more competent than Lee Ahn.

Overall, it's not bad -- just not something I liked. If you don't mind romance in your mysteries, cocky male characters and slow pacing, then it might be for you.

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Completed
The Mystic Nine
0 people found this review helpful
Apr 7, 2024
48 of 48 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 5.5
Rewatch Value 2.0

Compelling -- until episode 42.

If they'd stopped after episode 42, this series would have earned a solid 9 from me. As it is, the last story arc was crammed into 4 of the last 6 episodes, with the last 1.5 episodes dedicated to flashbacks and battle scenes. That last story arc had scenes cut, which made it almost incomprehensible. I wish they'd cut some of the romantic flashbacks, of which we had entirely too many, instead.

Other grievances:
* The show is, like all of the Lost Tomb series, quite misogynistic. All of the women are only there to serve the men's plot, one of them is even a classical case of fridging. At least they put the female characters in less revealing clothes, but that was probably because of the historical setting.
* Clichéd depiction of non-Han, "tribal" minority groups. Why would you think that they all dress the same? And what's with the face paintings? (Although, tbh, C-Dramas tend to be Han-nationalist, so it's not every surprising.)
* I would have liked to see more of the other families. Why is the drama called "The Mystic Nine" if we see three of them only in few short scenes?

But:
* The sets are better than some C-Dramas, the acting is superb, the mysteries are compelling -- all in all a great watch. If you liked the other Lost Tomb dramas, you'll like this one.
* Ba Ye and the lieutenant held the story, they are hilarious together.

Recommended, if you like action and mystery and also don't mind some romance or if you want to collect all you can from the Lost Tomb Universe.

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Completed
Healer
0 people found this review helpful
Apr 6, 2024
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
I enjoyed the series, which was good but a little black-and-white.

What I liked:
* The main lead's acting. I loved how he portrayed his character's emotional turmoil and, especially in the first half, his confusion about his feelings.
* I liked the pacing overall. There was a bit of a drag around the 2/3 mark, and the last episode felt rushed, but I really liked how the story, the parent's history and the love story, unfold.
* The action scenes were well done, and there was no excessive violence, only what was needed by the plot.
* I like the underlying message. Namely, that a free press (Free of politics and free of commercial restrictions) can be very powerful and that is why we need it.
* Something which I loved: At the beginning of each episode we were shown the last scene of the episode which came before -- which is not that new, but that scene always had something new, either just an extended version or the pint of view of another character, which sometimes even made me re-evaluate what I saw before. I don't think I've seen that done before, at least not that consistently.

What I did not like:
* Maybe I'm spoiled by dramas like "The Good Detective" or "Stove League", where there are multilayered characters and no clear line between good and bad, but I was disappointed by the "mystery", which was basically the "evil group who controls everything with an even more evil leader" trope. That trope is old and overdone, and I think audiences can and should expect more respect for their intelligence.
* I especially don't understand why they had to introduce a new plotpoint in the last two episodes. I'm sure they wanted to resolve the "item" and the murder of the first episode and maybe they wanted to finish with a bang, but it did not feel as an organic part of the rest.
* The female characters (apart from "Ajumma") also stayed remarkably passive during the whole show. The plot was mainly driven by Healer and the male reporter, while the young female reporter and the lady in the wheelchair usually followed behind, although both women's lives were equally, if not more, affected by the bad guys. Also, they are meant to be reporters! I expected them to take the lead at least in the later episodes.

All in all, it wasn't a bad watch but I'm not sure if it's worth a rewatch.

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Completed
My Sweet Dear (Movie)
0 people found this review helpful
Apr 5, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 4.0
Story 1.5
Acting/Cast 6.5
Music 4.5
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
This is so short, it was possible to watch it to the end, without getting tto annoyed.

What I liked:
* Jang Eui Soo's (Chef Choi) acting. He did what he could with his script.
* The waiter and the sous chef were not just there but had their own characteristics, at least as much as they could within the short time.

What I did not like:
* Almost everything else. Examples:
* Empty scenery: Empty restaurant, empty beach, empty luna park... Where are the people?
* Overexposure does not make scenes romantic if there are no feelings. Same with montage + music.
* I think the main problem is that the script was faster than my emotions while watching. We have the rivalry / antagonistic beaviour in the beginning, that's okay. But when chef Choi acts like an arse during the first meeting and is shown to be the one who will maybe end Chef Yoon's employment, we, as the audience, need something to empathize with Chef Choi. We did not actually get it. I still don't know why Chef Yoon would fall in love with him.
* I have no idea why Laura (the restaurant's owner) wants to get rid of Chef Yoon. She says she wants to expand (he doesn't) but he's the one whose dishes people like?
* There's not enough restaurant and kitchen scenes -- show us how they work together, how they get closer doing their work.
* If the restaurant's so busy that Laura wants to expand, why are there no customers, why do the two main leads have enough time to hang around beaches and amusement parks and so on?

Both the world building and the relationship building is severely lacking in this movie. If I can empathize with the waiter and the sous chef more than with the couple, then something is very, very wrong.
It wasn't bad enough to stop me watching, but there wasn't anything to like it either.


Not recommended.

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Completed
Semantic Error: The Movie
0 people found this review helpful
Apr 4, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 9.0
I watched the series and the movie version side-by-side. Apart from one scene that's not in the series and some minor editing changes, they are identical.
So, if you want to choose, I think the movie is a bit too long to watch it in one sitting (it's easier to find your place again in a series). Forthe series, I found the flashing light and the electric noise at the start of each episode grating, especially when I have a headache.

Things I liked:
* To do an "enemy-to-lovers-trope" is not easy. You can easily draw things out too long or have a power imbalance -- if the relationship reads more as "bullying" than as "mutual antagonism" it's really hard for me to understand how they would ever end up as lovers. (Looking at you, Make Our Days Count) But here, it ends relatively early, both give as good as they get -- and especially Jang Jae Young as the first instigator backs off when he realizes that he's crossed the line.
* I also loved Chu Sang Woo's character, which reads as somewhere on the autism spectrum for me. It's done better that in the original material, imo.
* The supporting characters were great in rounding out the story.

Things I did not like:
* I think I'd have liked to see the discussion about excavators and the subsequent drawing of one on Chu Sangwoo's arm (rather than the ugly veggie thing).



Overall, the pacing was good, and even if the general storyline was predictable (which is par for the course in romance dramas), the journey of both protagonists was lovely to follow.

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Completed
99.9: Keiji Senmon Bengoshi
0 people found this review helpful
Apr 3, 2024
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 3.0

A court / crime drama that combines serious cases with slapstick humour.

Does the combination of serious cases and humour work? Yes, for the most part.
If you don't like the Japanese style of comedy and typical Japanese acting, then this show is probably not for you.
There are a few scenes when the slapstick comedy is a bit too much for me, but I thoroughly enjoyed the puns.

Things I liked:
* The cases are not too simple -- although the clues are usually quite obvious, it's not always clear on the details, so they stay interesting.
* This does not matter actually, since the main point of attraction are the lawyers and their team of paralegals and how they interact with each other.
* Especially Miyama and his "boss", Sada, who absolutely do not like each other at the beginning, start to respect each others strengths, even though their professional ethics differ.
* Regarding Miyama, the show manages to balance on the fine egde between making him eccentric and unlikeable -- usually landing on the side of eccentric. I think the humour in this show makes his quirks endearing rather than obnoxious.
* A huge plus is that there's no romance plot. Yes, there are two people with enormous crushes on another person, but these are only played for laughs, and it's very clear that the other party will never be interested.


One minor thing I did not like as much: The prosecutors' side stayed too one-dimensional; I would have liked more development for them.

Recommended!

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Apr 2, 2024
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 4.0
This second season had an overarching plot, unlike the first season.
You could probably understand most of what's happening without knowing the first season but I'd recommend watching season 1 first, as the regular customers are I introduced there.

The food, the acting, and the general atmosphere ware delightful again.

There are a few minor things that made me subtract half a point:
* I felt that in season 1 the customers interacted a bit more. The Izakaya felt emptier and not as lively. In season 1 it felt like a centre of a community.
* It felt like the food had less variety? I'm not sure why though.
* The hairstyle of some characters looked more anime-ish than in season 1.
* I missed the characters from before, especially Nikolaus. But I liked how they gently wrote most characters out and did not just let them disappear.

Overall, another mouth-watering, light and mostly fluffy series, a great watch if you just need a diversion from the Real World.

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Completed
Miss Hammurabi
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 31, 2024
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 1.0

A drama about contemporary societal problems not only in South Korea

Topics in this court drama are sexism, corruption, greed, power imbalance and the question of how to make a just and lawful decision.

I think as a European person, I probably was not able to understand the intricacies fully. South Korea is still young as a liberal democracy, but within an old, patriarchial and strictly hierarchical society. So, some themes, like how the old order between younger people (and people in lower status) and people with more seniority (higher status) clashes with a new system of ethics, where everyone is equal in front of the law, are things I will probably never really understand.

What I liked:
* I loved the team dynamics, and that every one of the recurring characters had their own personalities.
* The romance between the judge of court 43 and the secretary was cute. I liked that they both changed for the better during their courtship, and neither of them -- especially not the female character -- lost their core personality traits.
* The cases were, for the most part, interesting.
* It was also fascinating to see how the judicial system in S.Korea works. According to Wikipedia, the script (and the book it was based on) was written by a senior judge himself, so I don't expect there to be any glaring inaccuracies.

What I did not like:
* The last episodes were too cheesy for my taste. That happy ending felt too forced for me. Two main points:
* Especially the relationship between Ba Reun and Oh Reum could have remained platonic -- until the second to last episode, I loved their dynamic, and how they were learning to listen to the other. Sometimes love remains unrequited, and men and women can work together as nothing more than colleagues.
* They could also have left the story arc about NJ group more ambiguous. In real life, you don't have this kind of closure.

All in all, I don't regret watching it, although the last episodes made me change my rating of a solid 9 to a disappointed seven.

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Completed
Roppongi Class
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 30, 2024
13 of 13 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
I have not seen the Korean drama or read the original webtoon, so I cannot compare them to this Japanese version. Nevertheless, this version has a distinctly "Korean feel" to it. Especially the love triangle (quadrangle?) and the fight against a power-hungry chairman of a huge conglomerate are plot points I've seen in several Korean dramas.
(But I trust that the story was Japanese enough for the Japanese producers to make an adaptation.)

I liked the basic idea of a young man seeking revenge for a wrong done to him and his father -- with the help of friends he makes along the way.
(I wonder; if this had been an original idea, what would a Japanese writer have done with it? More friendship and group action, less love triangle, I hope.)
Also, the pacing and story managed to keep my interest until the four-year time skip. After that, I found a lot of the plot points superfluous and the rest dragged on.)

--spoilers start here--

I also did not like most of the characters:
* Aoi who was introduced as a high school brat, is suddenly a more than capable manager? At twenty? I find that not believable, especially as her main motivation is her "love" for Arata -- which feels more like a childish crush to me.
* Arata who is supposed to have strong morals, and put people before profit in the first episodes, becomes more and more ruthless and lives only for his revenge -- he even has no answer to the question "What are you going to do after?" for most of the series. That character devolpment could have been interseting but then they should have addressed it more.
* Riku, who was fine as a character, but until her surgery looked more like a FTM transgender person than a MTF transgender person. Also, why did they choose a biologically female actress? Were there no adequate male actors willing to play her? (I have no idea whether there are actual transgender actors in Japan who could have taken the role, which would have been the best choice.)
* Yuka was interesting for a lot of the episodes, because her actions were rather ambiguous. She was a character with shades of grey -- but unfortunately she was also too passive, waiting for Arata to "save her", whatever that meant.
* Ryota, the ex-criminal, had not enough screen time to develop his character. He's an example why I am not fond of time jumps -- what happened to him in the time when RC grew and he had to change his position? He started a an uneducated ruffian -- how did he manage to change to managing director?
* The one I felt the most sympathy for was Ryuji, who was the most likeable among the bunch. But why does his only reason for doing what he does have to be his "One True Love"(TM)? There are so many other motivations than that!

The Nagayas (father and elder son) were fantastic enemies though! No complaints here!

All in all, I do not regret watching it, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to others -- there are better dramas out there.

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Completed
Mr. Heart (Movie)
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 28, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 9.5

A light-hearted, cute simple little love story about two marathon runners in college

While this is not my favourite BL of all time, it is one of the go-to BLs whenever I need a short pick-me-up.
The series and the drama are identical, there are just a few scenes swapped around where the episodes end / start, probably for narrative reasons.

What I liked:
* They chose a story line that is adequate for the length of the series. Anything more complicated, and it might have become frustrating (again).
* The series is focused on the two main leads, which are supported by only a few other characters, which also fits the drama's length. I loved all of them, the coach was like an exasperated but loving uncle, the friend insightful, the two loan sharks hilariously cute.
* They did almost everything to keep the story light-hearted, from the sometimes cheesy dialogue to the upbeat music.
* The story, though straightforward, shows quite a bit of character development for BOTH main characters.

What I did not like:
* To keep it consistently light-hearted, I would have liked if the scene with the loan sharks' boss could have been less violent -- I'm sure there was another way to put pressure on SangHa than to beat him up.

Overall, a sweet and short drama.

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Completed
Behind Cut (Movie)
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 25, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 3.5
Story 3.0
Acting/Cast 4.5
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
This is oe of the worse short K-BLs I've seen. The premise is fine, but how they told the story in the second half made it fall apart completely. Did the people who were responsible not get feedback from someone else?

What I liked:
* I loved the relationship between Yeong Woo and his father. Even if there are only a few scenes with them both, I have a distinct impression on how growing up must have been for Yeong Woo with this father, and for the father, raising is son to be an independent, and kind person. You see, it IS possible to establish how people feel about each other in just a few minutes of screentime!
* Stories not set in college or high school are always a plus for me. I liked that Yeong Woo was of a lower or middle class background. I also found it very relatable that he did not know what to do with his life.

What I did not like:
* The two main leads got too close, too fast for my liking. I've never talked to people I've only met three or four times about my most initmate dreams and hopes for the future.
* The show seems to follow the precept of "show, don't tell". The thing is, if you show only fragments, and we, as the audience have to guess what is going on, we won't be very satisfied. This becomes especially clear just before and after the time skip, where we only get to see disjointed scenes, sometimes without context. If we don't even get clues to guess, then it only becomes an exercise in frustration.
Some examples: Why the crying at the traffic lights? Where was Ki Jin during the time skip? When did Yeong Woo become a model, and how does he balance this with his delivery job? Where is his mother? Why is the friend also back? Did they ever talk about their breakup? What happened between Yeon Woo and the friend in the past? (Were they lovers? Friends? Rivals? Just classmates?)

I don't get why "follow your dreams" and "be with the one you love" have to be an either-or-decision. Long-distance-relationships? Talking about things and then compromising? That's apparently nothing that exists in this world.

All in alll, the drama feels more like an outline for the first few episodes of a longer story, not something you would consider complete and fit for release.

You can watch it, if you like, since the show is rather short, but I'd recommend to give it a miss.

[This is a slightly edited version of the review I posted on Viki.]

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Mar 24, 2024
10 of 10 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 6.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 2.5
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers

The premise is great; the runtime too short.

The idea to blend an office setting / a boss-employee-dynamic with a fantasy plot of reincarnation and curses which have to be broken, is interesting.

Unfortunately, the boss-employee-dynamics with its inherent power imbalance is only kind of important in the beginning -- for me, Dong Baek was much too accepting of Yu Dam's story. But that may be because I did not feel a connection between the director and his employee. The director was so standoffish at the beginning, and then suddenly, he is concerned annd worried? The employee is confused and more than a bit uncomfortable, and then, suddenly -- love? A bit more time for character development would have been nice.

I think there's a lot of more character back-story and world-building here than we get to see; and this is what makes the whole series feel unfinished. It is as if we get an incomplete puzzle and are asked to fill in the missing pieces ourselves, and the pieces that are there are just the people, and none of the surroundings.
We don't know why it was so important that the "child of god" / "the kid who grew up in the shaman's house" not get a name. We don't know who it was who shot Dong Baek (looked like Dennis, maybe?) and why. We don't know what kind of curse it is and how exactly it can be broken. And we don't know how Yu Dam knows. We don't know who is was who possessed Dong Baek that one time. We don't know anything about Dennis, and why he thinks so lowly of Yu Dam.
The list could go on and on.

I don't understand why those who were responsible chose this story when it was clear that there's not a lot of time to fully explore it. Even a 10-episode drama of 25 to 30 minutes per episode would have been enough to at least explain the most pressing questions.
But if you know that you don't have the time, then why not choose a much simpler story?

As it is, most of the episodes felt rushed or disjointed (or both); which is a pity since the acting and most technical aspects were fine.

The ending .... is probably something people love or hate. It's open-ended bt hopeful; and I think it fits so I like it.

If you're interested and have the time, you could watch it -- it's short enough and certainly not bad enough -- and form your own opinion.

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Completed
Ocean Likes Me (Movie)
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 20, 2024
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 6.0
Rewatch Value 7.0
This review may contain spoilers
I watched this and the series version side-by-side. Apart from a few scenes that were switched around, both versions are identical; the movie feels more like a cohesive whole since it isn't interrupted every few minutes. If you want to watch this, you should choose the movie if you can.

What I liked:
* the beautiful scenery at the ocean
* the simplicity of the story
* Han Gi Chan's acting
* Also, stories that are not set in highschool or college are always welcome.
* The Ex-boyfriend. It was a nice touch, not to know at the beginnning what to expect from him, and to discover in his third scene what he is actually like.
* The story didn't make use of the typical BL tropes, only standard romance tropes. The gender of the two protagonists actually did not matter much, which is always nice, if you want a light romance.

The story though has some qusetionable parts:
* I have so many questions: Where does Tommy come from? What is his motivation in staying with Ba Da? -- Why is Tommy there, right behind the car, at the beginning? Was it an accident, did he get in the way intentionally, did he just lie down there? -- Why does a chef buy at the grocery store?
* The gap year -- Why should two adults not know to try a long-distance relationship? What did Ba Da do while he was not at his small establishment and why did he decide to come back? What was the motivation for Tommy to return, and why at this point of time?

Holland's acting is, unfortunately, not suited for his role. I'm sure he did his best, but it seemed stiff to me, and even after rewatching I'm not always sure how his character feels. Especially since we only get Ba Da's POV, and Tommy doesn't really talk about his life, we have to rely on body language. I didn't, for example, notice that Tommy actually comes on to Ba Da until I watched the story for the third time.

Overall impression:
This is a nice and simple story, that focuses on few characters, sets and a single storyline. It didn't waste time on too many flashbacks or scenic shots, just enough to set the mood. The makers obviously used what they had wisely and tried to make a good story within the short time of an average movie.

I still would have wanted more info, be it explicitely stated or implicitely shown, to understand the motives of both main leads. Things are often too subtle to see them during a casual watching, or did you notice that Ba Da says in minute 33 of the movie "I didn't come here to do this?" and probably means that he notices a certain kind of attraction to Tommy? I didn't, and there are some other points where I'm really not sure if we get the intended message.
That subtlety doesn't mix particulary well with Holland's acting style.

Still, it's a nice movie to spend a lazy afternoon or evening on, even worth a rewatch or two, if yu need to shut off your brain. It's not an outstanding masterpiece but certainly better or at least not worse than some het romances.

[This is an edited version of the review I posted on Viki.]

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Completed
HIStory5: Love in the Future
0 people found this review helpful
Mar 5, 2024
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 5.0
Story 5.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers
It feels like the writer had four or more different ideas for a story, couldn't develop any of them enough to fill all the episodes, and then decided to just throw them all together like Dr Frankenstein when he created his "human being".

The four stories are:
* A silly time travel story with supernatural elements
* A story of corporate intrigue
* An office romance
* A story about finding yourself and your place in life.

I loved the first episodes (Time-travel story with lots of silliness and over-the-top acting) -- loved many of the elements, such as the deities using modern communication, the inclusion of Covid, Ho Bo Wei's attempts to return to his time and the developing relationship between Ho Bo Wei and Hai Yi. I wish they had shown more scenes of Ho Bo Wei marvelling at the development of his hometown, of him using his ability to find anything and everything, and more of the supernatural elements (I would have liked the god's backstory and how the Jade Emperor reacted to his mistake).

But then this plot is (almost) completely dropped and the second story about the corporate intrigue starts. Both main characters seem to change their whole personality -- Hai Yi turns into a closed-off, workaholic person (which, at least, is explained later) and Ho Bo Wei is suddenly a whining guy, whose only goal in life is to get together with Hai Yi. The sexual tension that had been building up completely disappears in favour of one person lying and not telling important things and the other (of course) completely misunderstanding. These episodes made me dislike both of them, and I almost gave up.
This story, too, could have been something good -- but on its own, not in conjunction with the time travel part, and without so much one-sided lying.

It is only in the last two episodes that the first story is taken up again, and underwhelmingly "resolved".

Some other minor plot points that are dropped, and sometimes picked up again -- the god, who is responsible for this whole thing, shows up and disappears again; the girl disappears for several episodes, shows up briefly because they needed a female person who can play pregnant, and disappears again; Covid plays an important role in the beginning but then everyone just walks around without masks or anything -- except when it is needed for the story.

The parallel story of the second couple does not have this problem of trying to tell two stories in one, but I hate how the managing director lies to his future partner from the very beginning. He does explain his decisions at the end, but it still doesn't sit right with me, and I don't think it's a good basis for a balanced and trusting relationship, especially as there is somewhat of an age difference.

I think this could have been much better if someone else had a look at the script and made a more cohesive story. Or, alternatively, go back to the roots of the HIStory shows, and tell one story in just a few episodes, like in HIStory 1 and 2.

Since others seem to like it, go and try for yourself, but I won't be coming back to this show.

[This is a very slightly edited version of the review I posted on Viki]

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Completed
Meow Ears Up
0 people found this review helpful
Feb 22, 2024
8 of 8 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 6.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 3.0
Rewatch Value 1.0
This review may contain spoilers

Cute cat-boy story about a lonely man finding his family

If you're famiiar with "cat boys" and all the tropes that come with it, you'll already know how Meow will be portrayed: as a naive and innocent, sometimes childish, always playful, very young-looking boy with a slight build and a smooth and soft face.
If these stories about cat boys (whether in fan fiction or in manga/manhwa/manhua) do not devolve into straight-up porn, they usually stay light-hearted, soft and very, very cute. This one stays consequently on a PG level of intimacy, there's some toe holding, hand holding and one cheek kiss (where the kisser has no romantic intentions).

Content warning for some animal abuse, although we don't see any bodily harm.

First: The acting is okay. We are used to the newbies in Thai productions. and this is a bit above average. The main characters' actors, James and Gap, are more than above average, Gap did well in portraying his change from lonely artist to overwhelmed room-mate to a guy who is very much in love. James is a perfectly innocent cat-boy, showing every bit of his emotions very clearly, but without more exaggeration than the genre needs.
Second: The intro song is annoying, but bearable, the rest of the background music non-remarkable.
Third: I liked the sets, the locations and the editing. Not outstanding, but never empty and always realistic, fitting to the genre.
Fourth: I would have liked the ears to look a bit more realistic, and there were some instances when the actor's earlobes were visible.

Regarding the story, the series shows its manhua roots -- I did not find much about the original material; it seems that the manhua is at least 68 chapter (or books?) long; the few episodes of the anime version that I found were only a few minutes long. I suppose (and I just extrapolate from other manga and manhwa) that the oringinal material is one of those episodic endless manhua that never go anywhere, have little to no character development, and have no "ending", because if the couples would become official, the seres would be over. I guess that this is the main reason that this live action series's ending is more open. (Also, would anyone call someone their lover if their relationship is still unclear? Of course they don't.)
I would have loved to see more backstory for Meow, and I'm unsure if it's because of time constraints of the series or if the original did not provide more info? I do wonder why Meow is more childish than other members of the Ear People -- he's obviously slower to learn, but it also seems as if he's been sheltered from the wider world by his adoptive family? There's been some allusion to mistreatment as a little kitten but that doesn't explain everything.

Considering all the couples have the potential for power imbalance (adult / child-like cat boy, student / teacher, boss / intern) -- there's no need for concern here. The partners with more power never misuse this to push anything. The female couple is the most balanced -- while one is the bss, the other's compliments and clear adoration always melts the boss's heart. The second male couple also has its balance -- it's the student who would like to have more intimacy and tries to get closer. /Also, I think that Evan is more of an assistant than a full professor?)
Considering the main pairing: Even though Dermden (the adult artist) feels some kind of attraction in the first episode already, which evolves into love, and even though he would very much like to have a romantic relationship with Meow, he never acts on it. He even avoids situations where he could potentially cross boundaries, to Meow's great confusion. In the end, Dermdem is just happy that he has Meow in his life, and he'll take anything he'll get.

Overall, a nice and light watch, if you can accept all the tropes that come with cat boys and if you like some innocent romance.

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