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tsuyoi_hikari
Secret Forest
One of the Greatest Love Stories Ever Told
I really love this drama. Its literally the greatest love story ever told in the history of movies/dramas imo. Forget Romeo & Juliet, the Shakespearean tragedy is so paled in comparison with this one. The level of heartache (lol) that I suffered when watching this drama is like what I have never felt before -- it makes the drama highly addicting and engaging. No wonder that this drama is the most watched television series in China as per this moment despite the many flaws that it may had.Yang Mi as Bai Qian as a character is very interesting and fun. The kind of dedication that she showed and how headstrong she is in everything despite never act recklessly that can ruin her Master's sacrifices are really admirable. Plus, she got all those legendary script which is hilarious and funny as hell like when she tell her Master Mo Yuen having the face of a Boy Toy in stage plays as he is so handsome or telling Ye Hua she has no problem in having lots of children after they are married as long as Ye Hua is the one who gets pregnant lol. Her character is so savage and she didnt back off in facing evil people either makes her character as someone easily to root for. The fact that he actually propose twice to Ye Hua says everything.
Mark Chao as Ye Hua/Mo Yuen is really fantastic in my opinion. I'm actually really amazed with his acting skills. Both Ye Hua & Mo Yuen, despite having the same face, really feel like a different person since they totally have different vibes and mannerisms. His crying scenes are really well done that you can literally feel his heart is breaking everytime that he cried. He didnt care how he looks when he cried so you feel all those raw emotion even more. He didnt hold back, that is why you can feel Ye Hua's deep love to Bai Qian in another level. I have never seen someone love as deep as Ye Hua loves Bai Qian. The things he has to go through, the waiting, the sacrifices that he made for her are really selfless. The things that made Ye Hua really iconic is the fact that it one of a rare occasions when you can truly feel his deep love. Ye Hua actually wants Bai Qian desperately and sincerely and it shows in all his actions and words. His love is selfless, it didnt matter if he got her or not but as long as she is alive and happy, its all that matters to him and it is enough -- it is enough for him. That is why his love is great while at the same time sad as well. The writer made a good job writing such an excellent character and Mark played the character to perfection like he understood the very deep of Ye Hua's soul. And I love despite how much he loves her, he still never neglects his duty as a Crown Prince which in turn making his character as a whole really admirable and awesome. Or the fact that he is a great father to A-li -- who play with him, tuck him to bed, hands on towards him and give him warm childhood that he didnt have just make him even more dreamy as a character.
While I love the drama and understand the popularity behind it, the drama itself is not without faults. The CGI in particular are horrible and mostly all characters aside from the leads are merely a tools that do not have individual character's arch -- its like they are just there either to assist of hinder the leads from each other. It makes them one dimensional and uninteresting. But the biggest major complain about the drama that I have is that they shouldn't put A-Li in the equation as the writer wrote Bai Qian as someone with literally zero motherly instinct. While I super love the love story between the 2 of them, A-Li's story arch leave a bad taste in my mouth with how indifferent Bai Qian is towards him. My guess is the writer is not a mother thus she didnt know the natural instinct that all mother should have towards their children.
But despite it, the drama deserved 9.5/10 for the beautiful love story and 100% rewatch value. It is without doubt love with many trials & tribulations but stood the test of time.
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Xing Zhaolin did a very good job portraying a peculiar, weird and confused Zhihao who hates touching people due to his germaphobia. But later, all the sweet things he did to accommodate his shortcomings are really nice to watch. And I love it how he didn’t need words or explanation later to understand Shiya's love towards him -- he is the one who felt her sincerity thus other people words didn’t convince him otherwise.
Zhang Yuxi as Shiya is just super lovely! She's pretty, insane, fun, cute and overall just really lovely. I understand why Zhihao falls for her since anyone would. Her imagination, persistence and lack of self-control always made everything more hilarious. The scene that got me the most is the ones where she needs to use children's song in order to stop her sexual frustration lol. And her fashion! My goodness, all those one pieces, dresses and evening gowns are just so pretty. Shiya’s fashion is truly A++ in this drama - the best dressed Chinese lead female actress in my book as for once, a gorgeous person is dressed gorgeously with very pretty hairstyles.
I actually enjoyed a lot of monologue in the drama. The one that I like the most is when Zhihao said that ''He likes being alone where no one disturb him, he has a lot of time to himself -- until Shiya comes into his life and change everything. Then he realised that kind of life actually an extravagant to him thus he dares not to dream about it -- not that he hates it. But now he has felt it, he wants to continue living this new life with Shiya.''
Apart from that, what I love about this drama is the very pretty cinematography and directing. Mostly all of their romantic scenes together are just like a perfect picture with very nice props and background. The drama is like a collection of many beautiful pictures put together. This is one of the dramas where you realise how important is the directing as the director used a lot of props to make everything looks so pretty, beautiful and breath-taking. From the usage of umbrella, hanging lights on trees, lamp posts light at night to theme park or garden backdrop, every of their romantic scenes together are so pretty and perfect as a photobook material. Coupled this with the leads' attractive features and Shiya's great fashion, each scene is like a beautiful photoshoot pictures.
And the OSTs, its really perfect and just beautiful. I don’t know why but C-dramas OSTs are really my cup of tea -- from the sweet melody to the heart-breaking lyrics, everyone seemed to have their own theme song -- even Shi Huan (I didn’t expect the 2nd part ending song is actually from his POV). :D
And the revelation at the end of the drama is really nice and unexpected. Everything makes sense after that -- on why Shiya attracted to Zhihao and why there are always this strange & explanation connection between them. Not only because Zhihao taste delicious but because they are connected together since that day -- as her body remembers his touch and it was his touch which save her from that dark incident. A perfect ending to a complexly fun drama. All around an enjoyable and entertaining production – the one which is perfect for a rewatch everytime you want to have a good and amusing time.
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A Near Perfect Romance Drama!
Seriously one of the best romance T-dramas out there. Full of lovable characters, interesting plots and a lot of sweet and heartwarming scenes and not to mention amazing OSTs with awesome lyrics that fits the story perfectly. I actually have low expectation when I watched this drama but I was pleasantly surprise with how much I love it and not wanting for it to end.Jiro Wang is so so so lovely as Michelin. He has those tough & brute look but he has a heart of gold and always always smiling. I cant say in words of how much I am in love with his character in this drama. His easy to embarrassed self, and not to mention blunt & honest personality was a delight to watch. But most surprise come from the leading lady Genie Chuo as Xiao Shu. I love her character so much! I usually find it hard to like leading ladies in romance dramas since they always portray as dumb or weak but she's none of that. I love how kind she is and most of all that overflowing confidence, despite being blind. And how smiley she is in everything -- for someone who cant see, she is very positive making everyone around her falls for her despite her disability. And I understood why everyone willing to sacrifice for her since she is worthy of all that. And another pleasant surprise also come from the 2nd male lead Danson Tang as Leng Lei. He has a lot of screen time as well and I love the fact how he is not petty despite he loves Xiao Shu as much as Michelin and the one who has been waiting for her for years. We can see different kind of love from him which I find really refreshing.
My only complain would be involving the plot regarding Leng Lei's father but everything else was near perfect. I love that the last episode made me cry and I was touched when Michelin said he used all his lifetime wishes for her in order for her to be healthy and happy -- those kind of selfless love is a really beautiful thing to experience. All in all, it was a perfect romance drama which love good plot and storyline.
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This review may contain spoilers
9/10 - Okay, I kid (lol) but the first 10 episodes of this drama really deserved this kind of rating so I rate this drama based on that perfection alone. :P Just watch the first 10 episode and the last 5 minutes of the drama and you can thank me later since this drama would be the perfect romance drama for you. It was a really perfect rom-com -- utterly sweet, heartwarming, funny, romantic and super cute. There were many problems that the two leads have to face together but it is just them against the world and their deep understanding to each other. What made a love story great is when two persons in love fight for each other equally -- and that is exactly what the 10 episodes of the drama is.
I really like Eason confession to Ming Ming;
''Wang Ming Ming, I like you the way you are. The you that’s a little cowardly, often confuse, artistically talented and a little bit vulnerable. I like you just the way you are.''
And yes, all those seemed imperfection qualities made her really lovely as a person. Her cowardly nature made her extremely understanding, her confusion made her utterly likable while her vulnerability made him wanted to protect her even more.
But somehow after the 10 episodes, Ming Ming made a 180 degrees change that made her totally unrecognizable as her initial character supposed to be. I have no idea what the writer is thinking but it was truly a mess after that. The once lovely, likable, relatable and understanding girl become someone unreasonable, demanding, cruel and ridiculous in the face of love.
What I don’t understand is why she is so mad at him and keep rejecting him. He is just honestly helping a friend in need (he was sleeping at the cold balcony for the whole night for God's sake) and he was kissed forcefully by someone and he explained and apologized for it repeatedly for 18 DAMN EPISODES. And he keeps saying sorry for doing that and go up and beyond to win her back but she just keep rejecting him again and again and again. To be rejected multiple times with really mean words over and over again when she was so nice to everyone (even to the girl that destroy her relationship) is just weird. The irony for the whole situation really makes this drama a really frustrating one to watch. She loves him deeply and cant forget him. Yet, everytime he tries to win her back, she rejected him cruelly. She just didnt trust him, think badly of him when he only has her in his eyes from the very beginning and never waver -- not even once. That is why this love story is a very hard to watch. Since you only see his efforts and sacrifices but he didnt receive the same gesture from her. Everyone around her can see his sincerity -- everyone but her.
And I thought the tone will change in the last episode of the drama -- that it was her time to fight for him but noooo, until the end, he is the one who do all the efforts. :( So 5/10 is the real ratings I gave this drama as a whole. They should have stopped at 13 episodes like other Taiwanese dramas out there. What a missed opportunity. It could be THAT perfect rom-com that everyone going to remember for a very long time.
And great soundtrack BTW. Jiro's song 'I Should Love You' is both perfect in melody and lyrics! Its my lifetime song and it will always be perfect no matter how much I listen to it.
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This review may contain spoilers
This drama is my all time favourite Taiwanese drama without a doubt! It is freaking hilarious that made me laugh like crazy and it made me sob like a baby as well. Jiro is literally perfect as Naite -- he is probably the most handsome actor that I have seen in any drama lol. I'm usually not superficial, but I can’t get over how literally perfect and handsome he looked here -- from that flawless perfect face to that perfect body (haha). He basically can't cry even during sad scenes as he is a robot but his facial expressions gave you thousands of reasons to cry for him -- what an excellent actor. Despite the premise of this drama seemed to be without substance -- I mean, falling in love with a robot? Come on! But I'm surprisingly astonish to the depth this drama went through with this concept. Ever heard the saying of 'Memories Resembles Love'? This drama went through a great length exploring this idea. Not to mention the morality aspect of 'Artificial Intelligent' in human lives and why this idea is dangerous. And not to mention that you can copy everything but you can’t fake sincerity -- that memories made who you are and contribute to your personality that made you special that other people can’t copy. What set it aside from the Japanese version is that this drama also explored the ethics aspect of falling in love with a robot. Would it be the same even if you copy all the robot memories into a new robot with the exact same face and body? Would it be the same? I'm extremely satisfied with how this drama explore all these themes & subjects that I didnt view it as silly or cringy anymore by the time the drama ended.
The only downside of this drama would be having Go Hye Sun as a leading lady. The over the top acting was pretty hard to take but she tone down a lot as the drama progressed so it was bearable somehow. But Jiro is going to take away most of your attention anyway since he hard carried this drama alone so I guess this is the only minor thing that you had to overlook.
And this drama has such a great ending! It was perfect and make sense and didnt leave any room for something more. I love the fact that the drama gives us a lot of time for Naite to say goodbye to Xiao Fei and all the complexity of having him malfunction and deteriorate slowly one by one -- thus the impact leading to the ending left a deeper scar to the viewers. It had me crying like a river and I'm in an absolute mess but the last 10 seconds of the drama was the ultimate hit in the nail for me -- I'm totally left heartbroken. You know the hauntingly beautiful yet heartbreaking scenes that's going to stay with you for a very long time? This drama totally nailed this part when they showed Naite's memories for the last 10 seconds he had left -- one by one. I didn’t realized it at first that they were counting those memories by the seconds one by one so when it finally hits me, I was crying so hard so it was hard to even see the screen -- just like Naite's fading vision as well. It was an extremely well done scene that's going to left you heartbroken for a very long time. And due to this scene alone, this drama simply deserves 8.5/10 in my book.
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I shed tears many times for which I didnt think is possible when I started this drama. I mean, its a fantasy drama with magic, flying and stuffs so to shed tears for this kind of stories is kind of impossible for me but it did and because of that, it deserved a special place in my heart. :D
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This review may contain spoilers
One of Hyun Bin's finest performance of his career.
Have you ever watch a show that is good but you are puzzled why it is not more popular? Have you watched a show that you literally want to share it with everyone else because how it affect you emotionally? Have you watched a show that you find it hard to finish each episode because you keep rewinding your favourite scenes over and over again? Have you watch a show that you can literally start again just after you finished it? And have you watch a show where it satisfy you through and through? This is Hyde, Jekyll, Me means to me. I wanted to rate it 8 (due to some of the drama's imperfectness) but the show seriously connect to me on spiritual level (lol) so it deserved an 8.5. I literally cried the whole last 2 episodes since its really too sad for me. I cant believe how good and addicting is the drama. It had interesting plot with brilliant ending and I like how everything come like a perfect puzzle at the end. Great character developments and the twists was revealed in a nice and smooth way.Hyun Bin is really great as both Seo Jin & Robin. I'm surprised to read that some people thought playing 2 characters are too much for him. Both Seo Jin & Robin are literally two very different person in mannerism, tone, vibe and speech pattern -- it seemed like it is played by 2 different actors -- thats how good he is. I thought he did an outstanding job when he had to act as one personality trying to pretend to be the other. You can see how the other personality is struggling and Hyun Bin did it with you knowing exactly that. Only great actor can do such a thing and Hyun Bin did exceptionally well here. Robin had me at hello so he will always be special in my heart (yes, he's my soulmate lol!) while Seo Jin's arrogant and cold personality to coat his vulnerable side made him so attractive. Han Ji Min is really lovely as Hana and imo they did everything right with her character and it made sense why both Seo Jin & Robin falls in love with her.
Now regarding the issue that many people has problem with this drama. I personally thought many people seemed to misunderstand the message that the writer trying to tell us. BOTH SEO JIN & ROBIN IS THE SAME PERSON. Hana didnt settle for Jekyll because Hyde and Jekyll happen to be the same person. The writer keep highlighting in the ending note in each episode on how the two of them will become one;
'The silent moment when I become you, and you become me.'
'The more I keep trying, the more 'me' I end up discovering.'
'Somehow, you and I have become us.'
Even Seo Jin realised that Robin is after all him when he saved Hana at the warehouse. Usually, all DID related movies/dramas just removing/letting go all the different personalities at the end and but this one it combined them together because they are the same person. Seo Jin created Robin as a defense mechanism to cope with his self-blame and cowardice. And for years, he hated and wanted to destroy Robin. But it later changed when he realised that Robin is after all him. Aside from getting Robin memories one by one, Seo Jin's mannerism changed and he become happier and gentler just like Robin as he is receiving his feelings as well. Robin is just like a dream that he cant remember. And Hana is the cure of that when she made him remember all those dream when he was Robin (like he told her in the end).
The dissatisfaction that many people have towards the different treatment between Seo Jin and Robin should not exist as they are one person at the end. The way to see this drama is that you should not be jealous of one part of yourself as you are the same person. That is what Seo Jin decided to do at the end. He accepted Robin as he knew Robin is after all him -- you can see that Seo Jin no longer sabotaged Robin & Hana's relationship because he knew that Robin is him. Memories are what makes a person. Without memories, a person will be empty. Seo Jin having all Robin's memories and feelings (note how he even tear up suddenly at the bridge) at the end indicates that he is after all Robin. Robin is Seo Jin and Seo Jin is Robin. They are the same person.
Now regarding the criticisms that Hana is getting from many viewer, Hana has always like Seo Jin -- she will never go that length to protect him just out of pure compassion and she definitely didn't settle for Seo Jin because Robin is gone. Like Seo Jin said, she is in love with Robin but she also love him as well which she didnt deny. The writer go through a great length to prove that Hana is also attracted to Seo Jin so I really wonder why many people seemed to missed that part. I find it absolutely ridiculous how people said she is greedy and selfish. She is actually the opposite of that and she handle the 2 personalities with such class and kindness. How is she undeserving of Seo Jin when she practically protect him since they are kids (heck, she watched over him for 1 whole year afraid that he might commit suicide), she risk her life to save him plenty of times, she overcome her fears to help Seo Jin find Dr. Kang, she suffers multiply abusive words from him, she cares for him when he's sick, she cooked for him, she stopped Robin from going public, she stopped Seo Jin from destroying his life, she's mad at him for deciding not to cure his illness and the list go on. I mean, she literally the person that cure his DID -- the one that made him realise that he and Robin is one person. Yet, she get all of this shit just because he happen to fall in love with the good guy (first time in Kdramas that a girl actually fall for the nice guy). I find it absolutely ridiculous that some viewers mad at her for being a loyal and kind just because she didnt happen to fall head over hills with the main guy. However, despite she is in love with the other personality, not even once she allowed Robin to compromise Seo Jin's life and position knowing Seo Jin is the main personality. And the writer cant make her having a relationship with both Robin & Seo Jin because that will make her a player. And she only decided to love Seo Jin in the end because she realised that Robin & Seo Jin is the same person. She didnt know that they started to become one after the warehouse incident and she only know it when Seo Jin told her that he has all Robin's memories. For Seo Jin to have Robin's memories, talents as well as feelings (as Seo Jin even feels what Robin is feeling -- his love, fears & sadness), it means that he is Robin as well. She loves both of them. And at the end, she got the best of both world when they merge to become one person. The writer was very adamant in letting us know this so I really wonder why many people seemed to missed that.
I know the drama is not perfect but it certainly didnt deserve all the hate that it is getting. I'm glad that I give this drama a try without reading any reviews. It makes me able to appreciate the drama as it is. Hyun Bin is definitely fantastic in here and it sadden me that he never properly rewarded for his performance in this drama.
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This review may contain spoilers
I don’t know how much crappy endings that I can take before I finally gave up Kdramas for good. I watched the drama knowing everything that’s going to happen just by watching the first few episodes. I know the destiny that awaits both Dong Soo and Yeo Un -- I can predict everything that’s going to happen to the very last scene that Yeo Un will (and need to) die in Dong Soo’s hand in the drama climax in the end. I was hoping that the scriptwriter will be creative and for once and give us a satisfactory and good ending but I know it’s only a wishful thinking for my part. I never imagine any drama can topped ‘The Legend’ disappointing ending but somehow this drama managed to do that.Overall, the drama has many potential to be an excellent drama. Eye-candy good looking actors, excellent fighting scenes, interesting & mysterious characters, good plot (my goodness, King Yi San & Crown Prince Sado story is in here too), great chemistry between the two male leads and beautiful sceneries and settings and outstanding soundtrack to accompany the drama. But unfortunately, bad script writing and predictable storyline totally ruined the drama great potential. The script somehow seemed to be written by a first-timer here -- the plots are uneven, many undeveloped storyline and ridicules at times. At one point, it being too ridicules and weak without any basis that it’s hard for me to even swallow the plots anymore. I feel the urge to quickly finish the series to take it out from my system once and for all. The many underdeveloped plots make me frustrated to no end -- I was hoping for Crown Prince Sado’s dream to be carrying out but it startled me when the writer just cut the story off when Dong Soo destroyed the map on Ji Sun’s back. What’s the point of Sado’s saying his dying wish if it will be left untouchable right until the end? I can list one by one of the disappointing plot developments for the drama but I guess it will leave a long rambling on how the story failed so much at being coherent.
But despite that, the drama is gifted with such many talented actors. Ji Chang Wook is super adorable as Baek Dong Soo. His love and hate relationship to his bestfriend; Yeo Un is a joy to watch. He is an idiot who is full of himself right until fate forced him to be out of his happy small world to protect the ones that he loves by becoming stronger. While Yoo Seung Ho as Yeo Un is the true gem in this drama -- yes, the boy is so pretty and it’s a privilege for us to see such a beautiful being graced our screen with his glorious gorgeous hair. His conflict of trying to embrace his destiny as an assassin and his desire to protect the one that he cared for is so heartbroken to watch. He is a silent hero is this drama – thus his cruel ending in the drama is so hard for me to take. Yoon So Yi as Jin Joo did an excellent job too. Her crying scenes are amazing and her miseries when her parents die is to look out for. Unfortunately, her love for Dong Soo is left undeveloped that it makes you left wondering what happened to the marriage proposal that happened during their childhood. And Shin Hyun Bin as Yoo Ji Sun is pretty disappointing to watch. Her screen time has reduced so much that she doesn’t seemed to be one of the leads here. Her existence is solely used as a tool of weakness to both of the main leads which I found utterly unacceptable. While the rest of the sub-actors did a good job for their roles. I particularly attracted to the amazing aura of the Sky Lord and Jun Kwang Ryul did a good job as the Sword Saint. And I on the other side very happy with Oh Man Suk’s brief appearance as the Crown Prince Sado. Although his time in the drama is brief, he made his character unforgettable and memorable.
What left me even furious with this drama other than bad scriptwriting is its poor & disappointing ending -- the unjustified death of Yeo Un. I know this is historical drama and somebody ought to die in the end and we can’t actually expect a happy ending but why it has to be as messed up as it is? We all know how much Yeo Un has to suffers and how lonely and miserable his life is. The guilt and longingness that he has towards the people that he hurts and his attempts to make everything right is just left unappreciated and unacknowledged. While everyone brags how wonderful and awesome is Dong Soo (which he truly is), Yeo Un is left in the dark – although in fact he is a better swordsman, martial artist, strategist, leader, mastermind and a friend. Without his clever strategy, Dong Soo will never be able to bring the Defense Minister down. The bad guys have always one step ahead in everything and trampled the good guys but with Yeo Un, he makes sure he is two steps ahead. And yet, all the secret good deeds that he done from the beginning either to keep his friends safe nor saving the day are left unknown to everybody right until the end. In reality, the good deeds that he done far exceeded the evil ones. But why he deserved such an unfair and unjustified death? There’s nothing heroic in Yeo Un’s death, it is just a sad and lonely death that he surely doesn’t deserved. And what makes it even sadder is that he died believing that he doesn’t deserve to live -- that his death will makes the world a better place even to his friends. And what’s more disappointing is how everyone seemed to carry on living happily after his death like nothing happen -- like he doesn’t matter at all. I just don’t understand how the ending can turn out like this. Defying fate supposed to be the main theme of the drama but why the production team decided to throw it out of the windows in the end without acceptable explanations? Are they really desperate to kill one of the characters to give an impact for the ending to make the drama more memorable?
And I hate the double standard and contradictions that seemed to always plague Korean historical dramas. Why good guys always die while the bad guys seemed to have many lives? Why Ji Sun managed to defy her destiny while Yeo Un who tried the hardest to defy them left with a lonely and sad death? Why Hwang Jin Gi, who lives most of his life as an assassins and bandit can be forgiven easily while Yeo Un who has spent more time saving people secretly than killing them doesn’t being given the same chance? Why Dong Soo successfully protects everyone while Yeo Un who is dear to him died by his hand? Why bad guys being given the chance to redemp for their sins and died meaningful deaths while the good guys always died broken hearted with unfulfilled dreams? I swear the storyline for all k-dramas are so predictable that it seemed all the scriptwriters graduated from the same school with the same underlying themes and concepts. The pattern for all the stories is too familiar with each other -- with the same formula with no creativity. It’s just utterly disappointing.
In the end, the drama left me irritated and annoyed. Ridicules and unreasonable ending the drama has to offer makes me wonder what’s the point in everything that happened when the character who deserve happy ending the most die feeling sad and unwanted while everyone move on with their lives like his existence and contributions (NOBODY even know all the contributions that he did in saving their lives or the day) seemed doesn’t matter at all. The ending could be grand and unforgettable but it settled with a questionable ending that everybody in the end left wondering why the writer bothers to tell a story when he/she wanted to end it like it did. What’s the point of pointing out how martial arts is too save people when it is so contradict with the end when Cho Rip betrayed his friend and Dong Soo used martial art to end Yeo Un’s life…
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This review may contain spoilers
Penned by the famous writer of Jewel in the Palace & Queen Seon Duk, this drama is guaranteed to be amazing and it certainly didn't disappoint. It is honestly one of the best written script I have ever seen from a Kdrama -- it is clever, intriguing, interesting and heartbreaking at the same time.I truly enjoyed watching this. Like other Jang Hyuk's post-army dramas, it is high quality with engaging plots equipped with excellent acting from all the casts. I enjoyed the 10 episodes where the mystery is about to be revealed one by one (my fave part in watching Kdramas where its all fun and awesome -- not too sad or too tragic) before it become more addicted in the remaining 14 episodes. Before I knew it, I become attached with lots of side characters and cried when they meet their ends (especially the Crown Prince's death). I guess this is a bonus point I have to give to the screenwriters for writing engaging side characters that you feel attached and sympathise with. I didn't feel it with The Slave Hunter but I definitely feel the opposite in this drama.
Jang Hyuk again continue his streak in acting in top quality productions that won award in Screenplay categories after Thank You, The Slave Hunter and now this. He is again mesmerizing and full of emotion as Ddol Bok / Kang Chae Yoon and I did the right thing to stan this man since his acting is just sooo good and passionate. Han Suk Kyu won a Daesang for this role and in my opinion he couldn't pick a better role as his comeback work in the small screen than his role as the remarkable King Sejong. Shin Se Kyung surprised me the most in here since she is good in her portrayal as Dam / So Yi. I guess she being surrounded by all these veteran actors make her acting improve as well. I'm highly amused since I can feel emotion during her sad scenes and I like So Yi as a character since she is amazing and strong that assist or inspire people around her instead of giving them troubles or as tool of weakness to the main characters.
I thought the ending is great even though it is sad. Sad to think that all the main characters died except the King but I think it is important to show how releasing the 'letters' and creating an easy written language where common people being able to read required THAT MUCH SACRIFICE. All deaths are justified and despite the tragic ending, the great cause is achieved in the end.
It's particularly sad in the ending scene where the King narrated:
"For decades, I must have gazed thousands of times. Yet, I didn't know a wild flower like that existed. That the sky atop the palace was so blue is also something I never thought of. This place is too wide. A place too unfamiliar. This is a place absent of Moo Hyul. This is a place absent of So Yi. This is a place absent of Ddol Bok as well. This is a place so unfamiliar as if they may never have existed once..."
I like how the writer emphasis how the usual place become unusual or unfamiliar to you once the people you love or close to are no longer there.
In the end, it is a powerful drama that brought a powerful message as well that great things can't be achieved without great sacrifices. I love it when my Kdrama teach me valuable lesson like this that I don't regret spending 24 hours of my life dedicating in watching it.
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This review may contain spoilers
One of the best written Jdramas!
One of the best written Jdrama that I have come across in recent years. The script is very thought-provoking and deep and I'm actually surprised that all these amazing dialogs keeps popping up in each episode. Nojima Shinji has always love to touch the darkest subjects of human nature in his dramas and he did exceptionally well in here.Yamapi did great in this role. I always admire that he's willing to shed his image and play this challenging type of role once in a while. He was convincing as a disable person and also convincing as a genius. I think I practically cried the whole way through the last 2 episodes lol!
For those who are confuse with the ending:
It was unfortunately implied in the drama that Sakuto lose all his memories of Haruka (before the surgery) and basically all his previous memory when taking ALG. He probably read his note and expect the crying girl is Haruka thus following it and ignoring her before turning back and give her the earring as the earring make him happy (as the old Sakuto always thrive to make people happy).
About remembering Algernon's grave, Algernon is his friend way before the surgery and he drew the map to his grave on his notebook. When the genius Sakuto bring the glasses guy to bury Algernon, he is burying Algernon at the warmest place in the forest from his memory as the old Sakuto. The old Sakuto is great with road and that place is probably one of his fave place on earth -- that is why him drawing the simple map to Algernon's grave making sense as he is familiar with the place (and his friends knew about the place as well).
And the fact that at the end he said back to God how he wanted to become clever all over again cemented this theory. Since he lose all his memory before taking ALG, he completely revert back to his old thinking of wanting to be clever again. If Nojima Shinji follows the original story and made Sakuto remember everything, then he will surely run away from everybody since the thought of remembering how he got genius and become disabled again is too much for anyone to handle (In the original, Charlie move away since he remembered everything thus making him embarrassed to meet anyone). So, when Nojima Shinji made him forget everything, he thus giving the story a happy ending on how Sakuto become happy all over again like in the beginning of the drama.
Plus, the drama's script is one of the greatest thing that made this drama so great. There are a lot of thought provoking scripts that question many things that involved our nature as a human. We get numerous times of the old Sakuto hating his disabled self and calling him baka but at the end, the genius Sakuto himself realized that the old Sakuto is not stupid at all and was genuinely happy as a person -- that his laugh is not as a defence mechanism. And with all those conversations, we learned how the old Sakuto has always been the reasons why everyone around him is happy. So at the end, we got exactly what it is implied throughout the drama -- the script is very consistent throughout.
And Haruka cant be together with Sakuto as he did not have the ability to love her as a women thus they are not together at the end. However, Nojima Shinji did give us the silver lining about those two by not disclosing what the 3rd option is. The 3rd option will be the option that he left the viewers to decide on their own -- but one thing for sure, the 3rd option was implied as a happy ending for the two of them as Haruka looks optimistic when she thinks about it. My take is that she and the doctor will again come out with a new drug that is more effective that is why she is still working at the lab.
For those you are unsatisfied with the ending, you guys need to understand on why Sakuto chose to save Rio instead of himself. Bear in mind that his nature is like his father, where they have this selfless attitude that like to help people. While Sakuto battled with the thought of becoming disabled again, Rio in the other hand risk of being unconscious her whole life. He knew that he will regret either decision but at the time, the more important thing to do is saving Rio as it is a matter of life and death for her (and in the process helping other people like Rio in the future to ensure that he & Algernon's existence made a difference) rather than a gamble of saving his intelligence where he explained that testing the ALG beta on another mice will get them back at square one.
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Another one would be is that they follow exactly all the things that made the K-version very lovable but added a few more cute & memorable scenes (a lot of new added scenes like the MV filming & etc) that made this version even more enjoyable and unforgettable. I kinda have no expectation watching the drama but I ended up loving it more than the original. This is one of the rare occasions where it is worth to watch both versions as both are very good and entertaining.
For me, the scene they outdid the most would be the MV making scene since that stuff is hilarious! And not to mention the original songs for this remake; 'Half of Me' & 'Can't Stop Loving You' -- this 2 songs simply outshone the songs in the original imo.
The only thing the Taiwanese version lacked would be the role of Jeremy which was played by HongKi in the K-version -- HongKi made Jeremy too iconic that no one can actually fill in the shoes for the character.
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I actually a bit skeptical to see Zhaolin in another similar roles like his roles in Lucky's First Love and You Are My Destiny (rich, handsome & cold young CEO). But being the good actor that he is, there is not a bit of Xi Yi or Xia Ke that I seen in Yi Cheng. While Xi Yi and especially Xia Ke are undoubtedly cool, confident and dashing -- Yi Cheng in the other hand is a bit embarrassing, uncool and childish which make him more hilarious to watch. So instead of laughing with him, you are actually laughing AT him.
While Bambi Zhu as Lu Li is in for a surprise for me. The last time I've seen her is in Ten Miles of Peach Blossom and God know how I hated her character there but I really like her as Lu Li. She is lovely, sweet and brave. I liked the she is actually really capable as a programmer and contribute to Yi Cheng's company growth. I liked it when female character is not a doormat but rather someone with opinion and strength. Plus, she looks very pretty with her hair in a bun!
Things to love in this drama; how it realistic that Yi Cheng keeps pointing out to Lu Li how she looks like a girl when he cosplayed as a guy at the beginning of the drama. In dramas, they usually like to gloss over this and expect us to accept that the girl looks like a guy but for a first time, this drama didn’t. I lost count on how many people especially Yi Cheng likes to point out how Lu Li looks like a girl all the time. When she said; 'My card ID is so ugly since it made me look like a girl.' and he was like; 'You think you look like a guy??' lol!
I also love the creative idea regarding the normal romantic scenes and the way the drama handles it and making it inventive and refreshing. I LOVE their game arcade wedding photoshoot and how fun it looks. The blueberry wedding ring is another plus and not to mention the watermelon birthday cake that Yi Cheng made for Lu Li and lastly, the virtual world wedding proposal that he prepared for her. All of this aside from being romantic, is such great scenes and lovely.
Both of Yi Cheng and Lu Li's families’ relationship is another plus. Yi Cheng parents’ relationship is very amusing especially the part where the Father said to the Mother; 'You are the Queen, and I'm your pawn. I will move according to your instructions.' XD Some stuffs that they did are borderline illegal and cruel but I can’t deny that they are such a fun family underneath all that.
For the bad part in this drama, it got dark and frustrated near the end but the earlier episodes and last episodes are so much fun so you kinda let it go. Pain and suffering are important for character developments so whether we like it or not, it will come but once the water is clear, then it’s all fun back. But the drama is still 80% extremely fun thus the rating is 8/10 from me. Again, any RomCom by Zhaolin is usually entertaining, enjoyable and hilarious so it made a good rewatch value.
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More Hilarious and Heartbreaking than the Previous Seasons
Definitely a solid 9/10. This season continue that best thing the drama is famous for; full of fluffs from beginning to end. And what more surprising to me is that this season didn't disappoint at all and in my opinion more hilarious and heartbreaking than the first two. The 2nd season to me, is still the best romance drama in my book and this season followed a close second.I love love love Lian Cheng's bewildered face everytime he turned back to the 8th Young Master after their kisses and I love how Tan'er remains positive, lively and all around playful and shameless in the pursuit of him. I personally feel that there are so many memorable romantic scenes particularly the veil wedding kiss (how awesome is that?) or the confession scene under the cherry blossom tree where Lian Cheng hangs the 100 reasons why he loves Tan'er. I have like 2345624 other favorite scenes from them in this drama but let’s not go there lol. I think this drama will always be a winner in term of coming out with sweet, creative and out of the world romantic scenes from other Xian Xia romance drama of the same genre.
Aside from that, since the drama is set in alternate Dong Yue where the women rule the government, this matriarchal system settings set some refreshing ideas that the couple has to handle. Like the usual kabedon was done by Tan'er instead and the 'Not Satisfy' trick that Lian Cheng did in the previous season was done oppositely by Tan'er. Other than that, issues which are usually women's problem and duty such as virginity, shaving, serving husband as well as managing the household are tackled excellently which cause huge embarrassment for Lian Cheng especially the shaving part. He totally didn't deserve it but the hilarity the whole plot caused is just too priceless. I also like the fact that aside from seeing it from men' POV, they also show how when women are the leaders, they have to handle money as well as difficult states' issues (which is not Tan'er's forte :P) and I like it when Lian Cheng pointed out to Tan'er that last time when she wants to indulge and make him happy, she only has to chose 'Love' and now she has to chose between 'Love' or 'Money'.
This drama has been a stress relief for me since S1, and S2 and S3 follow the exact same formula that I love. For me, it’s a first time I encountered a drama which is just full of happiness from beginning to end. Even when they face many tragedies, you know its gonna end well since they basically facing all adversities together and relying on each other. That kind of understanding is rare and this drama portray it really well.
Rewatch value is 100%. I don't think I will ever get bored watching this no matter how many times since its just full of pleasure and hilarious! Even the filler episodes are hilarious as hell. It’s like a go to drama when you just want to feel happy and relax. Lian Cheng is Lian Cheng which is a King of Teasing with or without his memories and Tan'er, is Tan'er. :D
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For all those confusion regarding the identity of Lian Cheng and Tan'er, they are all the same person for all the 3 seasons. The drama is very straightforward so if you understand the concept of parallel worlds, everything is very clear and easy to understand.
Mo Lian Cheng is the same from S1 & S2. Except this time, he is with amnesia. But he is still the same person. Young Master Lian Cheng in this new Dong Yue is the one who drawn. I guess we will never got to know him since now Lian Cheng from S1 & S2 has occupied his body in this season. While Sir Lian Cheng the doctor is Mo Lian Cheng's past life. Mo Lian Cheng has his memories as well when he went to Xianlung Continent at the end of S1. So, he is like 3 in 1 = Original Lian Cheng + Sir Lian Cheng when he got all Sir Lian Cheng's memories + 8th Prince when he combined with his body in S2. They are all the same person.
Qu Tan Er is the lady from Qu Family who is in love with Mo Yi Huai. Qu Xiao Tan went inside her body and she died at the end of S1 so this Lady Qu is no longer in the equation. S2 Xiao Tan is without memories but she got her memories back when she was kidnapped by her father at the alter and the orbs made her remember all back. That is why in the ending of S2, she mentioned Xianlung Continent to Lian Cheng to show to us that she has gotten all of her memories back. So at the end, S1 & S2 & S3 Xiao Tan is the same person. Tan'er is Qu Xiang Tan reincarnation and in this Dong Yue's timeline , Qu Xiang Tan did not die and establish Dong Yue instead of Mo Yi Feng, That is why only Lian Cheng is reborn this this timeline (Young Master Lian Cheng from Mo Family) and not Tan'er -- the body that Tan'er occupy this season just happen to have the same face as the Empress since they are Aunt & Niece but she is NOT her reincarnation as Qu Xiang Tan did not die in this timeline.
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This review may contain spoilers
Goblin is actually a melo fantasy drama that disguised itself on the surface as a funny/hilarious drama. Despite the drama ends with a happy notes to all the characters, the ‘happy ending’ leave a bitter taste in my mouth tbh. Kim Eun Sook made Shin such a sad, pitiful and full of misery as a character. All he ever did from the beginning right until the end is waiting and waiting. He waited 900 years for his bride, he then waited another 9 years in coldness and nothingness yearning and trying to get back to her, and at the end, he waited another 60++ lonely years waiting for her to be reborn again. What kind of lonely and sad fate is that? There’s nothing cool or poetic about it. The writer just want to make the ending more ~dramatic~ but it turned flat instead.But despite the bittersweet ending, I love the drama as a whole. It did have its flaws and questionable plot line like Eun Tak being a 19 years old high school student but the drama as a whole is hilarious and has amazing cinematography consistently throughout. It was beautifully shot in all angles but I do feel it is so slow sometimes. I still cant believe that this is the same writer who wrote the disappointing 'The Heirs’ and the embarrassing 'Descendant of the Sun’. I just cant believe that the same writer is capable of writing such a good drama like this. Her usual style of writing which focuses on pop-culture references (Eun Tak asking Grim Reaper to name himself Park Bo Gum which means 'Precious Sword’ to tease Shin was brilliant), amazing bromance between the male leads and interesting 2nd leads’ love story can be seen in this drama but somehow she has upped her game when she wrote Goblin – its like she has matured in her writing style which is very surprising and unexpected.
I thought Gong Yoo did an excellent job as Kim Shin. His loneliness, sadness, sad smiles and happiness can be felt when you see him on screen. I understood Shin’s loneliness and desperation clearly and all of this thanks to Gong Yoo amazing portrayal. Many people have complain with Kim Go Eun as Eun Tak but I really like her. If other actress is playing this role, I would definitely find them annoying but Go Eun played this role naturally. Her crying scenes are amazing and as usual, she always play all of her movies/dramas’ characters differently each and everytime. Whatever wrong decision or bad acting Lee Dong Wook made in the past (ehem Hotel King ehem Blade Man) is redeemed in this drama. I feel like I cry with him everytime he looks at Sunny and all the sadness he feels inside. I don’t know he has it in him so I’m mildly surprise. And what can I say about Yoo In Na? She just look extremely gorgeous in this drama. Her hair flip, lips, and everything just look totally beautiful and her monologue when she is writing the letter to the radio shattered me. Sung Jae as Yoo Deok Hwa (reference to Andy Lau and Infernal Affairs) is just hilarious. He’s my fave character in the show and he got the best scenes in the whole drama hands down. I’m so proud of him!
Generally, I just dislike this whole next life/reincarnation thingie. It made people didn’t live their live to the fullest with the hope of meeting each other again in their next life. Its your own life, you can control it so throw all of it out of the window and be happy. You don’t have to live a lonely life longing for each other and hope that your next life will be better – I’m looking at you Wang Yeo and Sunny. But despite that, I found its interesting how their love starts. While Shin and Eun Tak rely heavily on destiny (her as his bride) and memory, Wang Yeo and Sunny will fall in love with each other at first sight each and everytime. No matter which life times, they just attracted at each other without any reasons at all – that 'one look’ sealed all the deals for them.
What I find most interesting while watching this drama is that the ability of it to made me shed tears many times. I just randomly shed tears at random scenes or at random script. I cried a lot watching episodes 15 & 16 which is crazy lol. I shed tears at the blind man and his dog, the soldier and his wife and at other random scenes. And the scene of Wang Yeo meeting Sunny after 9 years, Sunny’s letter or when Eun Tak remembering back all her memories, all of it made me cry like a baby. I certainly didn’t expect all of this. Due to this fact alone, I give the drama 8/10. The drama has its flaws (King & Queen underdeveloped relationship, everyone reincarnated with the same face, everything still look the same even after 100++ years has passed & etc…) but the good feelings it gave is unforgettable and as much as I hate to admit it, the script has many magic lines and it just worked in the right scene and at the right time.
The OSTs hasn’t impressed me much truthfully. But I totally love Crush’s Beautiful, Urban Zakapa’s Wish & Han Soo Ji’s Round & Round. Beautiful & Wish are melancholy beautiful (with awesome lyrics) and upon watching the MVs after the drama ended, I just realized how the drama has so many sad scenes. :(
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This review may contain spoilers
I love this drama! Particularly since the concept is great – in and out of the 2 worlds and the readers of the manhwa actually see how the characters deal with the fact that they are in manhwa and how they come to term with it, how Yeon Joo’s dad gave his face to the killer and the consequences of it and how they tried to end it (you literally can read from the manhwa how Kang Cheol discussed the ending lol). Its pretty cool if you think about it. How exciting to read that kind of manhwa in real life. So I ended up really like it a lot. I want to be entertained while watching a drama so I ended up enjoying lots of the plot twists – it is enjoyable when you can’t predict it. And I understand all the rules and concepts of the manhwa world so I pretty much understand why this and that happened so I didn’t end up hating the plots.But it seemed many people didn’t understand the concept of the W world since many keep asking if the world keep spinning when Kang Cheol is no longer there. The writer pretty much explained everything in the drama. The W world is just another world that moves on its own. Yeon Joo’s dad only control the lives of the main characters of the manhwa through the tablet and his drawings. But despite that, these manhwa characters can control their own destiny as Kang Cheol managed to save himself many times despite the countless of times Yeon Joo’s dad tried to kill him. So with or without Kang Cheol in the W world, the world still exist and everyone is living there normally. The concept is that the W world is just another world in another dimension. It moves on its on with or without Kang Cheol.
Many were also confused on what happened to Yeon Joo’s dad. He died/disappear as Kang Cheol is the one who survive the end. It is the last chapter, so one of them needs to die for the manhwa to end. He supposed to kill Kang Cheol to survive (noticed how the Dad’s hands stop disappearing when Kang Cheol was shot) but since he killed the congressman and let Kang Cheol survive, he will cease to exist because of that. Why one of them need to die? It got to do with the fact that they keep disappearing when they are not doing anything – it indicates they need to end it properly for one of them to survive.
Its understandable why people lost interest in the second half of the drama especially when it got confusing. But this drama still score high on my list for its creativity and pace alone. Not many Kdramas as unpredictable as this so I enjoyed this one a looooot. And I finally see the fuss on Lee Jong Suk. He is an amazing actor without a doubt. The revelation scene between Yeon Joo’s dad and him is very memorable. How his expressions change from sad, disappointed to angry is just amazing.
I thought the scene when Kang Cheol was waiting at the Bus Stop was particularly heart wrenching – how he kept calling Yeon Joo since he knew he’s running out of time and when Yeon Joo come back to the real world before reaching him was brilliant as well.
As someone who have been watching Kdramas for more than a decade, I’m really tired of watching sad or plateau endings in Kdramas. I’m glad that it is not the case for this one. Its a happy ending and a deserved one at that considering the main character had suffered so much – being shot, stabbed, beaten, prisoned, family killed, realization that he is just a character and etc… He’s just very pitiful and I’m glad they give Kang Cheol a happy ending. :D
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