Love triangle done right

As weird as it may sound, I think one of my favorite things about this show was its score. All the instrumental songs were just so good and added an extra layer of emotion to the show.

Also, Hye Ri's facial expressions ranked high up. I think "scared" was my favorite, exasperated and mischievous being close behind. This was my first time seeing her work, and I very much look forward to watching more of her stuff.

The love triangle deserves an honorable mention, I think. Never before have I low-key rooted for both guys to get the girl. Typically I can't care less about the guy that's the proverbial third wheel, but here I just felt so sad every time either Woo Yeo or Seon Woo got upset over Dam.

I really liked that Dam and Woo Yeo had pretty honest, open communication. Sometimes, it took them a little bit to get there, but in the end honesty always prevailed.

Also, I really led the development of the second couple. Hye Sun was so jaded when it came to men and relationships, and Jae Jin was a patented sweetheart. I feel like they complement each other well, and I liked the slow burn with them. It felt appropriate given their bad experiences with love in the past. They were adorable together.

Lastly, I really loved Dam's relationship with her BFFs Jae Jin and Soo Kyung and her younger brother.

Doom at your Service still remains my top favorite fantasy k-drama, but this one was really good too. A lot lighter and fluffier by comparison, but still great.

Read More

I wish the main couple had more of a spark

This drama is suuuuuper cute and a lot of fun! It also has plenty of hilarious scenes.

Honestly, there wasn't much plot to it and the last three episodes were pretty much a super long epilogue, but if you're in the mood for a light hearted drama with lots of laughs, a crazy amount of couples, wholesome friendship and even an epic bromance, this is the show for you!

When it was good, it was great. But I was a bit let down by a few things, the biggest being that, yes, Han Byeol and Tae Seong were super cute and adorable together, but when they kissed I didn't feel like there was any attraction between them. Most of the time, it very much looked like they were kissing because they had to and not because they wanted to. I wanted be convinced they were mad for each other, and the vibes weren't there. But maybe that was just me. I loved Weightlifting Fairy so much that it's hard to ship Sung Kyung with any other co-star that isn't Joo Hyuk.

P.S. for all intent and purposes, this drama doesn't have a villain or antagonist. There was a lame attempt at it, and tbh that was the weakest aspect of the show. Still a good watch experience overall though.

Read More

Solid enough, but could have been better

The pacing was a bit wobbly and the medical side felt extremely under-researched. Medical dramas are one of my passions in life and I've watched pretty much all of them this side of the Greenwich meridian. And I'd like to believe I've gained at least a little bit of knowledge through the years, so them doing open surgeries during this show without using any blood or fluids other than saline, people getting up and walking around after undergoing major surgery, and the fake ass organs they used were quite glaring and difficult for me to overlook. I wished they'd done more research and allocated a bigger budget for the practical effects.

But the cast did a great job. Honestly, Eun Jae was a bit exhausting in her "I don't need anyone and can do it all by my self" attitude, but I really liked the rest of the characters, and in any case Ha Ji Won still did a fantastic job. I feel like Eun Jae was what her character in King 2 Hearts should have been. And Kang Min Hyuk! OMG was a precious little mochi ball. The kindest, sweetest most adorable fictional doctor to ever grace my screen. He deserves more roles as the main character in more romance dramas.

In conclusion, it was good, but it could have been better. But, if you like medical dramas with a side of romance, I think you'll enjoy this show.

Read More

Don't even waste your time with this.

I expected something scary and fun, but this turned out to be so much dumber and unnecessarily gory and grotesque than I could have ever guessed. Doing things only for shock value is the trademark of a crappy plot. You don't bash someone's skull in unless you're a psycho who enjoys killing. It literally makes no sense to have an average high school kid do those types of things when there are so many other much less violent and bloody ways to kill a person (particularly if they're ASLEEP!).

So the parents of a girl bullied to death created a whole ass game, kidnapped a class full of kids, and have been keeping them hostage and unconscious (for goodness knows how long), so they can be killed again and again inside a simulation? The "they were trapped inside a game" trope has to be even worse than the "it was all just a dream" one. Oh, my god, I rolled my eyes so hard at that revelation, I may have permanent damage. Even the "ghost and other supernatural crap" would have been a much more preferable explanation.

Kudos for the actors for actually doing a super solid job, particularly the main girl. But someone come scrub my brain clean of this lame-ass show. I want my seven hours of watchtime back.

Read More

Don't mess with the pidgeons!

This show was very enjoyable to watch. Super binge-able and it wonderfully straddled the line between serious and silly. The important moments hit hard but there were also some very funny (and some absolutely hilarious) moments of comedic relief to lighten the mood.

The acting was fantastic all across the board, from the leads, to the villains, to the all of the tenants. Same with the directing. There were so many beautifully framed, visually interesting, dynamic scenes. And the writing, with the dark/fun duality, the surprising twists and reveals, the slow character-arc builds, and pretty much all the episodes ending in mild and not so mild cliffhangers, kept me hooked throughout.

And shout-out for having a hot, young villain! That should definitely become more of a trend ?.

P. S. I'm still very new to Korean, but I'm so confused why the show is called 빈센조 (bin-sen-jo) and not 빈첸소 (bin-chen-so) which is actually much closer to the Italian pronunciation of the name. If the Korean alphabet has the necessary phonemes to very closely pronounce the name as it is in its native language, then why "koreanize" it to sound different?

Read More

Negative outweighed the positive

Well.

The writing sucked. It was like this was penned by a teenager using chat GPT. Very debut author YA fantasy. The plot was lazy and repetitive, with characters being wishy-washy and similar events being recycled. Editing wasn't much better, with scenes just cutting out in the middle of them and the characters continuing their conversations somewhere else. The dialogue was also fairly cringe, with lots of yelling to assert dominance and show power, like any good makjang should have LOL. Perhaps the webtoon was better, I wouldn't know.

But the soundtrack was fantastic, and the filming and acting were quite good. I wish there would have been a more consistent difference between Hyeon and Ak Hee's personalities, since at times it got difficult to tell them apart, but I still think Park Ji Hoon is amazing given his young age and newness to the world of acting. And I'll always applaud a production that can flawlessly and convincingly turn a single person into two, fighting scenes included and all.

Read More

This made me wanna watch Soundtrack #1 again.

The vibe and directing were super different, but this second iteration had the same simplicity and realness of the first one.

However, I do have a major gripe with it. Hyeon Seo's inferiority complex was such an important part of the story, I feel like more time should have been spent on her figuring it out—at least, the last two chapters. Su Ho totally captured their personalities in a nutshell when he told her he walked around with his head high, enjoying the stars and rainbows, while she was constantly looking at the ground.

Her inferiority complex was the defining factor in her breaking up with Su Ho after all, and something that was very intrinsic to her character and which she'd been dealing with for a very long time (tied to what the friend had pointed out about her being unable to accept help). I don't like how they rushed it and suddenly she was magically ok. I feel like those life changing realizations should take more time and introspection. It would have been much more poignant if it'd happened—even off-screen—while she was doing the Santiago thing alone, to kinda mirror what Su Ho had done.

A bit of a disappointing last episode, but I liked the series overall, and hope Disney will continue making more of them.

Read More

It made me feel all the feels

This drama is a wholeass experience.

The non verbal storytelling was some of the best I've ever seen. There was so much that was said without uttering even a single word, case in point: the little, seemingly unconnected scenes at the beginning of each episode. Pay attention to them. They may seem inconsequential, but tell a whole story of their own when analyzed in the context of the ambiguous ending of the show.

So too was the case with how the passing of time was subtly but distinctly conveyed not only by the clothes the actors were wearing, but also by looking at their environment. I genuinely wonder over how long a period of time this was filmed, became the production crew can put actors in shorts and short sleeves in the middle of winter and pretend like they're enjoying a nice summer day, but how do you transition from bare branches, to trees in full bloom, to verdant and lush foliage to falling leaves? You can control wardrobes, but not mother nature.

I loved the OST, the plot of the drama, the cinematography and especially the main couple. They had such intense chemistry, and Se Jong in particular just blew me away with how much he could emote just by minutely changing his facial expressions. I liked him in Still 17, but he was amazing here.

Read More

Loved the ML

It's kinda hard for me to rate this one. Up until around the halfway point, it was quite good and I enjoyed it (7/10). Then, things started going downhill FAST. It was like the story was already over, but since they still had 6 more episodes or so to do, they started creating dumb drama only for drama's sake. To the point I actually rage quit it, and it took me nearly a week to come back to it. All the characters became idiots (4/10).

Also, this show has to have one of the most selfish FL I've ever seen in any romance drama ever. I found her character to be extremely unlikable. Especially when contrasted with the ML who was a selfless, vulnerable, considerate little fluff ball of chaotic sunshine.

The last episode partially made up for all of the bad writing decisions, since it was a festival of cuteness and had me smiling basically the whole time (8/10), but not enough for me to actually recommend anyone watches this.

Read More

For a comedy, this show made me cry way more than it made me laugh (be sure to have some tissues handy, especially for episode 10, that's a rough one).

Also, I unexpectedly ended up liking the secondary couple more than the main one (they were so freaking adorable!)

This was my first time watching Seo Hyun-Jin, and I gotta say she's an amazing actress. I don't think I've ever seen anyone else cry so convincingly! The bad side to that was that by comparison Lee Min-Ki seemed really wooden and dry. And while I get his character was supposed to be stoic, I feel like Park Seo-Joon played that type of character much better in What's Wrong with Secretary Kim. He was a bit of a disappointment to me.

Another disappointment was how weakly the very last conflict was approached. It was basically thrown out there and then resolved with lightning speed. Made the last three episodes seem a bit pointless.

But the drama was interesting enough. I loved all the little side adventures Se-Gye did while her face was different. And the soundtrack was awesome, too!

Read More

OST FTW

It's weird how overall empty this season felt given that it spanned eight hours. Like, nothing much happened. She met a guy, started dating him, they broke up, she kinda got together with the other guy.

However, I was engrossed and thoroughly invested throughout. None of the episodes felt boring and long, which is often the case when stories don't have much going on. But I was hooked.

I especially loved all the autumnal colors. Gold and red leaves everywhere. Aesthetically gorgeous. And the music matched the tone of the show very well, too. Very mellow, chill songs.

Read More

Chemistry FTW

Loved this drama so much! Both leads are superb. Acting-wise they're magnificent. From comedy to tears, they've got the whole spectrum down! Also, their chemistry is amazing. But, for me, the best part was how real, playful and intimate their relationship was. They were so believable! I would totally believe it if someone told me they were also a couple in real life. There were hugs, tickles and lots of little affectionate touches, which is so not norm when it comes to k-dramas. I'm so used to leads being bashful and shy around each-other, that the relationship portrayal here completely blew me away! Loved it.

The supporting characters were also all very good (so many talented people!), and the subplots all end up making the story so much richer and real.

This one is definitely worth watching.

Read More

A well deserved happy ending

Absolutely loved the premise! The fact the Cheol was, initially, a fictional character inside a webtoon, then, one day, he becomes aware and free will starts coming into play against the webtoon's creator wishes.

Honestly, it was amazing and flawlessly executed. The "cartoonization" was so incredible! I loved all the special effects and transitions that were added.

Both leads were great in their roles. I especially loved Kang Cheol's character. It's not everyday one comes across a k-drama lead who's comfortable in his sexuality and an outrageously charismatic, arrogant flirt. The main couple had great chemistry and were so earnest and emotional in their performances. I couldn't help but root for them and shed a few tear during the heartbreaking moments.

The drama was insane and never ending. And it'll all get worse before it gets better. Like, way worse than you'll imagine. But if nothing else, this show guarantees you a crazy, entertaining ride.

Read More

It's been a few months since I enjoyed a drama as much as this one.

The main couple is the main reason for that. They had such good chemistry and were so sweet. I'm a sucker for the "enemies to lovers" trope, which was executed so very smoothly. I also really liked the relationship between the producers for the variety show. Joon's manager, wardrobe lady and Geoun Young's parents were very likable characters, too. The parents had a few hilarious scenes, and it was cute how Ji Hyang was their first shipper.

On the negative side, the second couple was so very toxic. Which was only made worse by the fact that they were two sides of the show's love triangle. It, perhaps, would have been better if JJ died. He was such a mean, manipulative and emotionally abusive character, and I don't think he deserved the weak attempt at a redemption arc they gave him. He was nowhere near damaged enough to justify him being that absolutely awful to other people. In Hyung was not much better. So pitiful for no apparent reason. She made her choices, picked her path and then refused to take responsibility for her own life. I don't really like "woe is me" characters who don't do anything to change their circumstances.

But, all in all, this show was extremely bingeable and so much fun! Would recommend.

Read More