It's a coming-of-age, very slice-of-life story of friends to lovers.

Fight for my way centers around two childhood besties Ae Ra and Dong Man, who are chasing after their dreams in their 30's despite their lack of the best resumes. Dong Man is a retired Taekwondo fighter and Ae Ra works the information desk at a shopping mall but her dream is to become an announcer.

The first thing I want to mention is the heartful performances of all the cast. The characters are so well suited for one another that I forget that they're acting. I think this is another best performances I've ever seen from Park Seo Joon since Itaewon Class. It's not over the top but it's just so believable and realistic and subtle, really brilliant! Each character is written to be very loveable, everyone is very flawed and they make mistakes, which makes me eager to watch their journeys.

However, the storyline around the first quarter of the series seems to have no reason to be there, I didn't feel its urgency and they have no arc at the end of the series. Because of the pacing and progression of the plot and all of the subplots is very loose to me. Had it been tightened up a little bit I think I would have enjoyed this much more. I wish they would spend more time maybe focusing more on the impact that Dong Man's sister had, knowing that he's losing the competition for her health because I was so interested to see this storyline being developed a bit more. I feel the ending is rushed and thrown out there, so it doesn't give a satisfying conclusion.

I ended up watching all of it because I really like the characters and their chemistry, both between the leads and also between the side characters. They're undeniably very interesting and fun to watch. I like how they emphasize the start of their relationship, their cute childhood scenes, and then the ending or potential ending of one. I love when shows do that, it reminded me a lot of "Because This Is My First Life". This is not a high-stakes romance drama, but more about the adorable romance of characters with big personalities and big goals of theirs. The true progression of friends to lovers is one of the best I've seen. So overall, this was a really entertaining watch, just expect some plot detours. :)

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Wonderful but my boredom when watching it is significant. Chang Hee is my favorite part.

My Liberation Notes is a slice-of-life drama about three siblings and their mysterious neighbors; who are dissatisfied with life in one way or another. They live in the countryside about an hour outside of Seoul. The show is showing the character's journey that was so refreshing and realistic. Liberation is a journey of identifying and persevering to keep working through it. Identifying your struggles and finding the root cause is a hard thing to do. Acceptance and taking action to make things better is even harder.

At first, I watch this because it has a similar premise because My Mister also followed the lives of three brothers. In My Mister, they come together to help each other heal along with the FL. Then also its' deep exploration of the character's mental states. But the main difference, at least this is my opinion, is while both shows are character-driven, My Mister has much stronger external plots and twists that make more eye-opening action scenes, much more than My Liberation Notes. In My Liberation Notes, the story progresses by following the daily lives, like the vlogs of these characters. So if you enjoyed My Mister, you may or may not enjoy My Liberation Notes. Don't expect the same exhilaration you get from My Mister here, but surely, both series present the same level of production quality and character arcs. I like My Mister better, but there were many good thought-provoking aspects of My Liberation Notes.

The first pro I want to mention is the comedy. I absolutely love how this series handles funny moments. It comes from a quiet moment, there's no dialogue happening and it's funny due to the previous or next scenes. For example, the part of Mi Jeon demanding Mr. Gu to worship her and the scene of Mr. Gu alone realizing the word worship means and seeing his reaction. My favorite one is when Chang Hee has done something to Mr. Gu's car and Chang He's about to confess but instead of wearing his slippers, he decides to wear his runners instead. It was so funny! Because you could see what the character was thinking without them saying it.

Regarding the plot, I thought the first four episodes were exciting. then it got super slow midway and then the last four episodes were so beautifully done. They give a very satisfying arc to every single character, and even if they didn't end on a completely happy note, I felt hopeful by the end. It is worth mentioning that the dialogue is so heavy all the time, the conversation these characters have is telling me some sort of message across. It's very tiring to pay attention all the time, so this show is not binge-able, but more of one episode a day watch.

Speaking of the characters, I was invested not so much in their character but more in their fantastic acting and their story and growth. Each character is carefully described and redeemed. I love how all the siblings would talk about things that most people I think would be ashamed and sometimes embarrassed to admit. I loved Mi Jung's inner strength and how she takes the initiative to liberate herself. I found her relationship with Mr. Gu is very unique and unconventional. I warm up to Mr. Gu throughout the story, but I am slightly disappointed that his alcoholism is not handled. But the best part for me is Chang Hee. Watching his scenes at first I feel already connected to him. Then I'm so happy that in the last four episodes or so, the story focuses a lot on him. I loved how his monologues came out and how he become more mature, his story was just beautiful. I'm thinking of rewatching the show only for his scenes.

I want to praise the OST and sound effects. There's a heavy focus on a lot of ASMR sounds, like people walking, eating, breathing, and sighing. Because this screenplay focuses so much on a character's introspection and how they're feeling emotionally, it's really really nice to have it paired with silence and ASMR sounds. OST was just so beautiful and peaceful. It fuels me to continue watching when I kinda doze off when watching too much heavy dialogue and mundane scenes.

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I like how authentic and vibrant Yumi's cells are, only the story is a bit lackluster

Yumi develops a crush one day, long after being dumped by her boyfriend. This awakens her love cell, which sends her to literally run after him. Our story continues as we see Yumi's cells embracing her new love with the ups and downs of her emotions.

I like the creativity of Yumi Cells for these personified cells with such diverse emotions and that they are given a real city. They even got a legal justice system and my favorite is the endorphins band stage! So epic! The fun color tone also adds to that youthful kind of bubblegum fun feeling.

At first, not all the cell moments land because they ruined the emotional momentum of the real-life scenes. But as the show went on the pacing and the balance between characters and the cells really smooths out. I’m having fun with Wung cells' teamwork and his algorithms towards unexpected situations, they were so random yet unique 🐻 #IYKYK

No doubt acting is excellent, but I’m not so happy about the romance arc: it’s too youthful; with strong egos, naive, miscommunications, which is not a bad thing IF they resolve it. The two supporting girls who were jealous of Yumi are very annoying like nasty mosquitoes… and their roles suit best as a spice to develop our lead's growth, but they weren't really use this potential.

The ending is proper but feels very incomplete. I don't think they're given enough closure, besides getting to know Yumi and the people around her, and their flaws.

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A promising premise but unfortunately the romance overwhelmed the mainplot.

After watching Extracurricular, I was intrigued to find a drama with a similar vibe. So I was excited to see this drama.
The first scene of episode 1 got me intrigued and I was ready to see more. However, when we got to investigate the lingering mystery and back story of our characters, I quickly got bored by the mundane fighting scenes or high schoolers' interactions.
There were a few beautifully shot scenes and warming family time that our male lead spent, which reminds me of Reply 1988 moments, but the execution of the main storyline is not as exciting to watch (for me). It doesn't build up properly toward the climax. The ending was also underwhelming and I finished the drama feeling so unsatisfied.
I'm sorry, but I just can't like it. The quality and character portrayals were not hitting me at all. If you know any shows with similar vibes that are executed very well, please let me know!
Have a nice day!

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The women are way too overpowered and that makes it boring

Namsoon is born with a superhuman strength from her mother's blood, but she went missing as a child in Mongolia. When she grows up she comes to Gangnam, South Korea to find her parents. Her mother tried to find her while also tried to live a righteous life with doing good deeds, but her family is involved in a drug case. A young detective join forces on the drug case to solve it together...

First impression 4 eps in, too much overacting in my opinion and I wasn't in the mood for it at that time, So I pause it and caught up on the final week it's airing because I do like how the story focused on the women. You get to see them all in their different personalities, and how they use their strength and how their strengths are perceived by other people in their lives and around them... Namsoon and her interactions with people in her life is beautiful. This part is cute and fun but it doesn't really move the plot. Apparently the women seem to always win and while it is cool to see it makes it kind of boring. No tension in the fights because she will definitely beat them, it's like Tom and Jerry. I need my hero to struggle a bit in dealing with challenges.

Ong Seong Wu… He's in his coming-of-age phase and wuaw, so handsome! His acting impressed me in Moment of 18 but unfortunately, his character here is not very interesting. I feel no romance chemistry between the leads – but they're very good as friends. The only character who is most interesting throughout is the villain. Some characters has no real purpose in the story. It's fun to watch if you enjoy a cheesy & campy superhero story, but that's it.

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This drama follows a really bumpy relationship between a dating coach and her editor at a publishing company as she is in the midst of writing another romance / self-help book while dealing with a really harsh breakup. I will say that it did take a two episodes for me to warm up to these characters as they're not initially super likable off the bat. But I get totally got on board with all the characters even the side characters are so fresh, bubbly and funny. Also the fashion is an eye candy and OSTs were sweet.

This series does give you a nostalgic kdrama formula: being a very modern and a breath of fresh air in the way that it depicts a really sad breakup and portrayals of people dealing with heartbreaks in their own ways, One moved on way too quickly, one felt like the world was ending, one didn't even care at all, and one was suffering alone. But the post break up part drags too long. The part when she announced her break up news in public, who viewed her as a dating coach, and made a show was over-the-top. They show so much of her spiralling down and jeopardizing her career and health. Later on, I got so bored and frustrated, when they go back and forth with old relationships. I also wasn't a fan of the second lead romance, they seem to young for this story. I put this drama on hold for months, but after a long pause I finish it to support Yoo In Na. Overall, it has its' flaws but I appreciate them showing that communication and boundaries are important and that though time shall pass.

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Enjoyable and cheesy, a guilty pleasure of randomness

As you can guess by the title, our male lead is an alien who landed during the Joseon Dynasty period. Three months before his return to his star, he met and fell in love (?) with the biggest Hallyu actress in Korea.

I want to start off by saying that the set up is very well done, I get invested with the leads instantly with iconic personalities. I was very invested with the concept with this drama, being opposite attracts.

At first I wasn't sold on Jun Ji Hyun's character, I feel she's a bit overacting. But as the story goes on, I really settled in with her character and her acting is so charming that i don't even feel it's overacting anymore. She's just this really comical really kind of cheesy actress. She really disappears into this role and contribute to most of my enjoyment. I also enjoy Kim So Hyun's stoic character, even though he's not doing much. I love his forth wall breaking scene in the latter part of the story. However, the romance later on was lackluster, I dislike how he treated her and being ridiculously secretive towards her about his identity

Besides the leads, the suspense elements within the show actually really surprised me. I think there are many moments where I'm genuinely hate our main villain. Although I wasn't appreciative that this villain was really one note, I don't understand the motivations for being a villain. Without giving any spoilers, the ending is very weird, I believe they can do better.

PS: The OST is very good, especially the main song "My Destiny" is beautiful but it's very overused in the later episodes.

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The great mother vs. one-note villains

A story about the effort and sacrifices of Queen Im Hwa Ryeong to protect her royal family in the middle of palace intrigues

So, first of all, the good: I’m really happy to see a sageuk representing a strong female lead in the Joseon Dynasty. The acting is phenomenal. Kim Hye-soo portrays the Queen as a warm-hearted mother yet a strong woman who can stand up for herself and her loved ones well.

The story is so good up until episode 7. This drama is really compelling, and I’m already attached to the characters. Hwa Ryeong really takes action to protect her sons. She storms through the palace at a breakneck pace. The palace intrigue develops as fast-paced as her footsteps and I’m on the edge of my seat! I love how it highlights the claustrophobia of the royal court.

Afterward, I was severely disappointed with the very monotonous conflict resolution: all about survival in a cutthroat court. Although it makes an interesting premise, the plot is not satisfyingly executed. There's really not much to tell than the usual jealousy between Hwa Ryeong and the villain characters, it wasn't an equal match. They do not give threats to our heroes. Another thing, I don't understand what message they want to tell regarding the story of the prince who seems to be a transgender.

If you're not a fan of sageuk, this drama might catch your interest. For me, the conflict resolution is a bit lackluster, but the pacing is great. The side characters have their own unique stories. The political intrigue wasn't complicated; the writer does well showing what's going on.

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It’s a mature and melancholic love story so worth the watch!

I adored the calming vibes, soft music, the poetic dialogues, the wonderful aesthetics and most importantly, our heartwarming main couple; Jin Woo and Mo Eun are both flawed and have their own struggles, so empathizing with them requires zero effort. Although the pacing is quite slow, it's never boring as their relationship develops in a very natural way.

Of course, they have doubts and anxiety of not understanding each other, especially when they start seeing how different they are. Miscommunications in personal feelings, family matters... are unavoidable, but it never feels long-winded and frustrating. Watching them interact is just beautiful. Jin Woo conveys his emotions through impactful sign language and his thoughtfulness are shown through his care towards Mo Eun. Then, Mo Eun, even when she cannot exchange dialogues with Jin Woo due to her shortcomings in sign language, she makes efforts to comfort him. Their story gives me all the feels and that's all I could ask for. The drama overall left me feeling hopeful.

-Jan 2024, Yovita
Find me on Instagram: @kdramajudge

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Unique and very twisty!

After being traumatized by her parents' death, Jian was raised by her uncle Jinman (Lee Dong Wook). Years later, Jian (Kim Hye Joon) receives a call from local police informing her that Jinman is dead, so she's left on her own. She's about to investigate who is responsible for his death but has to defend herself from an unknown enemy who's suddenly attacking her. Will she survive and discover the truth?

This drama has a very unique storytelling and the characters setup. The cool thing about Jian is that she has the ability to think and act in crisis, even though she was a normal girl who live with her uncle who isn't the most loving-parent figure. Jinman demanded her to be very independent on her own.

The first two episodes were purely shown through Jian’s perspective, focusing on a big mystery surrounding her uncle. At first, I was feeling a bit lukewarm to how they're playing with time, switching between present and past without knowing the full context of the story (and gunfight scenes are not really my taste, but they’re actually very cool to watch if you’re a fan), but I’m fully on board later in episode 3, when they showed twists and clues about Jinman and the other supporting characters. Some scenes were gory, mind you, but it doesn’t really detract me from watching. The suspense and the intrigue are compelling enough to feel connected to the story, that the journey to revealing what's going to happen is just as enjoyable as the final reveal.

-Jan 2024, Yovita
Find me on Instagram: @kdramajudge

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Gang Doo and Moon Soo shared traumatic experience when they were both young; They were trapped in the same area together when a mall collapsed on them. Thus, they both are severely traumatized and broken from this experience and later they reconnect as adults and this drama is about them working together to heal and pick up the pieces of their life. This drama has a gritty & grounded-in-reality tone to it. It's quite depressing but at the same time have a very uplifting hopeful vibe to it. The OSTs are gorgeous, they have such meaningful lyrics and give more depth and insight to the story.

Another thing I really loved about is the chemistry between the leads and their romance story. It was a beautiful slow burn, where two people grow individually and together. Acting is outstanding, the way the two portrayed their characters was so sincere and natural that it touched my heart. I think Junho as Gang Doo really carried the show. I liked the female lead, Moon Soo, a lot more in the beginning and as it went on I kind of lost a little bit of interest in her and really invested myself in Gang Doo. His story is also a little bit more interesting as he's definitely far more traumatized by the whole event. He's given so much character development. I also adored the other characters, especially the spunky grandmother, played by Na Moon Hee. She was such a wonderful and welcomed surprise. One thing I don’t like is the plot twist that happened around the finale, but the ending is fine.

Dec 2023, Yovita
Find me on Instagram: @kdramajudge

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Almost paradise but not perfect!

19-year-old girl Eun Tak does her best to survive her monotonous life with her aunt and cousins. One day, she blows out her birthday candle and accidentally summons a goblin. Not just any goblin, but a world-weary 900-year-old immortal Goblin named Kim Shin, for whom she is fated to remove the magical sword from his chest and finally let him rest in peace, or else death will come to her instead. Kim Shin wanted to end his immortal life but in order to do that, he had to give up his only love and then he had to end his life to save her. Now, how can this end happily?

At it’s core, Goblin is a high-stake romance with unsolved past conflicts that centers around death, reincarnation, grief, and forgiveness. Not only it's hilariously charming, it’s also painfully soul-crushing. Watching each scene feels truly magical and for me it is thanks to the God-tier OSTs that are played in the scenes so flawlessly, it amplifies all the emotional beats. Other aspects are also top-notch: acting, characterizations, camera work and cinematography. My favorite part is, of course, all the bromance moments between Kim Shin and Grim Reaper, their funnies and their long-lasting bond. They gave fresh comedies that I love to rewatch and laugh again.

That said, I'll always be a little bitter that they wrote Ji Eun Tak as a high-schooler who wears her school uniform with her freaking bowtie most of the time! I never understand and I feel really bad about it. Plus, Kim Shin is just a very immature rude jerk at first. I see Goblin and Eun Tak as friends more than lovers. This is why romance is not my main enjoyment watching this drama, and while the chemistry between Sunny and Grim Reaper is unmatched, they deserve more couple moments! It’s a bit waste of potential and frustrating to watch them meet and part ways repetitively just for exchanging biodata and unrevealing a tiny bit of mystery. Regardless, I recommend Goblin to anyone as plot is uncomplicated and you’ll be amazed by the beauty of it.

Dec 2023, Yovita
Find me on Instagram: @kdramajudge

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"I just can't wait to be king" Ta Gon and "I just can't wait to be queen" Tae Al Ha^^

Two tribes live in a mythical land called Arth; the red-blooded humans who can't dream and the blue-blooded humanoids who can dream, and who are also faster and stronger than humans. A war for resources breaks out between the two and the humans end up winning the war through some trickery. Years later, the struggles and greed of power continues...

This drama is unique, it brings you to the bronze age. There's a lot of knowledge on anthropology, evolutionary biology, politics, civilization stages, farming, domestication, religion/mysticism. More than just entertainment, they kept me occupied intellectually. I appreciate them to realize this daring concept into a drama. The story itself is using the common fantasy trope; like a prophecy, a mysterious barrier between two tribes, and it's very plot-driven.

The characters are a lot of fun, especially Tagon, the human leader, he's morally ambiguous and dignified, at the same time he hides a dark secret which is a real high stake. I have to say his younger self gave me chills more than the adult version, he had a very cool charisma; great job Moon Woojin, I always admire you, also in It's Okay to Not be Okay, The Devil Judge, yeah). This is also my only favorite Song Jong Ki drama so far, he's magical in his dual twin roles, together with the irreplaceable Kim Ji Won. There's a lot to enjoy within their relationships and dynamics.

Overall,I think it's a really darn good fantasy. I wanted to know more, the characters surprisingly got stuck with me personally, like I think about them when i'm not watching. The first season is laying a wonderful groundwork for the 2nd season.

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Promising premise but drag midway too much

San Young ended up being possessed by a juvenile ghost when she touched a cursed inheritance. This ghost takes control of her body, acts beyond her consciousness, and separates from her body to commit murders. A folklore professor Hae Sang, who is able to see ghosts met her and try to get rid of this ghost.

Revenant is a supernatural thriller drama with a promising premise set up strongly in the first 4 episodes. Besides our male and female lead investigating these based on the folklore pov, the two police officers investigating them through logic pov. I like how both of them were coming to the same conclusions despite working in very different ways, but I wish that they interacted a little bit more.

Production-wise, the camera angles, lighting, and the sets are creepy yet intriguing. Kim Tae Ri's portrayal of San Young is perfect; whiplashing between her character and being possessed. The folklore aspect are described with clear rules and they follow these rules. It’s very important to the story so I appreciate the writers for that.

But the plot is super slow after 6 episodes. It’s like watching the same episodes, and our protagonists are mostly bark but not bite. Each case did give clues, but they were repetitive and the lessons about folklore is a bit preachy.
They conveniently wrap up well, but left some loose ends.

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A refreshing slice-of-life take on high school romance!

When Chinzhilla band is threatened to get disbanded by the student body president, Tinn (Gemini Norawit Titicharoenrak), the lead singer of the band, Gun (Fourth Nattawat Jirochtikul) is desperate to save his band. Unknown to Gun, Tinn has a secret crush on him and Tinn soon learns that Chinzhilla has a rule that the band members aren't permitted to date until they win the Hot Wave Music Contest – so Tinn becomes supportive of the band and will do whatever it takes to make Gun fall for him!

This show gave me all sort of entertaining jokes. It was funny, slap-stick, silly, cute, swoony, and just a bit of cringy. The plot is simple but the execution is refreshing that it's surprisingly hooking. The whole cast were so expressive and lively, some of the scenes were them imagining, dreaming or reenacting some situation, these scenes were ha ha hilarious! XD. It got a bit mundane in some serious aspects but for the most part was still very entertaining and fun.

Despite the premise hinting enemies to lovers, the enemies part were very mild and brief... The relationship progression of Tinn and Gun was healthy and innocent. They embrace first loves awkwardly, but always support each other through all their ups and downs. Their flirting was so cute and making me wish they went a bit spicier. Yes, this drama is not spicy, not that I mind it as I'm satisfied with their romance. Also, they have the most adorable wingman, Thiu! That's another plus point about this series, that each character was appreciated and wholesome.

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