Their personal stories in the waterfall of history

"다 지난 일이야"
You won't find any other drama that was made with such love and tremendous attention as Oasis. You won't find any drama as fine-tuned and organic. You won't find any thing sticking out and spoiling the detailed set or the flow. The first episode rating in Korea for Oasis was 6.3% and the final one peaked at 9.7%. These impressive numbers say it all.
🔹️I confess: I've watched the first episode 3 times simply because it's so immaculate and immersive from the very first second that I couldn't keep from going back to it. That musical sequence in slow motion, serving as a gate to the drama world, is the level above any K-drama we are used to seeing. The creators masterfully weave the music and movies of their childhood and teenage years into the layers of long kept secrets and hurtful passions. As nostalgic as Reply 1988 in some way. They made me fall in love with the music band 해바라기 that was popular back then, they made me explore more Korean movies made at that period of time. (You can find my review on Yeong Ja's Heydays here on MDL and on Letterboxd. That was the age-restricted movie the characters watch for the first time together in a theater) And I am still going through the history of South Korea under Park Jeong Hee and Jeon Doo Hwan, though it doesn't seem like the major historical events affect the story here, only the overall economic and social situation.

🔹️I love the quality of Oasis. I can feel the creators put all their warmest memories and souls in it. Especially the fights choreography is so good! I can track all the movements with my eyes, and camera doesn't shake like if the camera operator had a tremor. The gang wars are rampant and spectacular. Crashing glasses, breaking bones! There is a lot of visual humor: some gangster plays dead to not get his a$s beaten up. 😂

🔹️I tried to track the timeline, which is not always defined. The story starts in the late 70s (I calculated, most probably it's 1975) and ends in 1987, the year the current Sixth Republic of Korea was established and the authoritarian rule finally ended after all the years of struggle. It's a very matching background for the drama story. The unrest in society is passed to the teenagers who are becoming adults and learn to navigate their lives in this hectic environment.

Oh, have I already said that Choo Yeong Woo is an acting genius? Yep, I did. On his debut mini drama. I can't believe anyone else could ever play such a complicated and controversial character as Choi Cheol Woong. I will definitely keep an eye on this shining young talent.

P.S. Goddamn I wish there was a second MDL with only reasonable and mature viewers that I could escape to. Looks like the people here don't appreciate ambiguous characters, only simple entertainment, and for some reason think that the screenwriters have to satisfy their whims. I'm not trying to offend you, only those who wrote the mean comments.

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"나도 계속 살아가도 돼요?"

🔸️With its lurid intro you'd expect the drama to be mysterious, but its quietness turns out to be lifeless, not menacing as it was intended. There is very little to question in the first episodes. The house starts to smell rotten, literally and metaphorically, and the husband acts overly caring for his wife, pushing to take her depression pills. You'd think he has something to do with the smell, maybe he has buried someone in that garden. Guess what? You're totally right, and that's not even a spoiler. Everything plays out just like any other dark thriller about rich people and their skeletons in the closet.

🔸️A lot of viewers didn't bother to watch till the end where we finally get a glimpse on Sang Eun and Joo Ran's relationships. They weren't a mystery but a mess throughout the whole drama with the two women just walking around like zombies and emotionlessly throwing words at each other. How was Joo Ran "not herself" in the beginning? Did she believe her manipulative husband? No. Did she not try to find the truth? No.

I wish we could untangle the lies of emotional abuse as the story goes and cheer for the women to break free of those bonds. Unfortunately, there is nothing to untangle. Everything is as clear as a day for them and for us, therefore worthless.

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"우리가 끝내지 못한 그 재판 우리 아들이 끝내로 갑니다."

🐽 The story of prosecutor Kang Ho struggling with amnesia and the traffic accident consequences gives a slight feel of Woo Yeong Woo but on a pig farm. It is darker than I expected and lighter than I thought.
This is a big step for Lee Do Hyun acting-wise. I feel like he always looked held back and reserved in past dramas, and The Good Bad Mother is finally the room for him to flourish. He has to play three different states of one character: shrewd cold attractive prosecutor, confused childish Kang Ho in a wheelchair, and healthy mother's son in the end after all the challenges he's been through. And Lee Do Hyun does it damn well! The ratings started with 3.6% on the first episode ending with 12% on the final.

"내가 망가지면서 하는 복수는 복수가 아니야. 진짜 복수는 복수하려는 이유조차 생각 안 할 만큼 깨끗하게 있고 보란듯이 잘 사는 거야."

🐽 While the criminal storyline is well-waived, the most heartfelt part of the drama is the life in the village and the characters interactions. I couldn't help but rolled on the floor chuckling anytime Sam Sik or the two Woo Byeok secretaries-turned-salad-farmers appeared on screen. (Yoo In Soo needs more recognition, he's hilarious) I also adore the child actors duo of Ye Jin (Kim So Yoo) and Seo Jin (Park Da On). It's never easy to work with kids, especially to get such a sparkling chemistry from 5-6 year-olds.

The ending didn't make me cry neither of sadness nor of happiness, but The Good Bad Mother will remain one of my favorite dramas memorable for its soft humor, attention to details, engaging plot (who killed WHO?), loveable and energetic characters, and, of course, the cute piglets. 🐖

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To protect my kid, I'm ready to become a monster anytime.

🔸️Do you sometimes have that dream where your body is weightless and you can fly and jump effortlessly? And can you easily manage your movements there? The ability to fly is Kim Bong Seok's secret, and keeping your mind and body under control during puberty is no easy job, especially if there is cute and kind Hee Joo around.

On the furtile soil of North and South Korea's confrontation and secret agencies, engenders and flourishes this inspiring enthralling drama about people with superpowers.

🔸️Althouth the North Korean agents are, as usual, murderous terrorists, they have backstories too. Some of them were regular people before the dictatorship grabbed them in its claws. E.g. the North flying agent merely wanted to earn enough money in the special forces to put food on his family's table, while some North Koreans were threatened to use their powers to "serve the great republic", and "The Big Clap" guy Lim Jae Seok was nurtured into the borderline animal state in a North concentration camp for 20 years. The tall tough North Korean guy breaking down in front of Hee Joo was a beautiful scene too. My only complaint: the captain of the North team suddenly becoming sentimental and sacrificial is too sweet of a tale.

Another great thing about the story, South Korean special forces aren't angels either. They may have climbed up to a high spacious sunshine-lit glass building on the mountain, but they still stayed the way they were founded during the military rule of president Park Jeong Hee "and Co". "We work in the dark to serve the light" - but at what cost? Army and special forces naturally attract more agressive individuals, and that's the fact. The only young person in the drama who came to work for the intelligence agency is Kang Hoon who wanted his dad's criminal records erased in exchange.

You can easily see the writer Kang Full's attitude towards the big government structures and political rivalries between countries: all the "glory" comes at the expense of regular people whose talents and lives are used to destroy, not create.

Most of the episodes are the stories of the parents, and I'd rather like the drama to be more present. Because I can hardly believe two untrained highschoolers can suddenly take out a veteran merciless North Korean agent.

🔸️Moving doesn't create some unearthly different world for superpowers but allows them to exist, gently wraps the non-scented Korean city around them creating a very unique authentic feeling. The cinematography leaves enough space for the light to come through to shape the voluminous world. The numerous stunts and graphics are great (over 7000 CGI shots). No wonder it took 2 years and the record-breaking budget to make.

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?A BL with a red flag

With such high ratings for this BL (8.9 on MDL), the last thing I expected was its worldbuilding to fall apart in the very first episode. And not just worldbuilding, but the basic character development as well. Yeo Woon changing his attitude in a blink of an eye while Myeong Ha, who's mission in the game is to make Yeo Woon happy, keeps treating him condescendingly. I can also recall the choice for Myeong Ha in the game to save either Yeo Woon or the grandma from death, and it makes no sense. Why would the game which goal is to make Yeo Woon happy offer to kill him? Ridiculous.

🚩Another disturbing issue is Myeong Ha's behavior in confronting the homophobic bullies at school. Myeong Ha kisses the offender on the lips saying "Now you're gay too", therefore demonizing the sexual orientation, and by that moment we don't even know if he is gay too or not. This scene hit me in the head with such internalized homophobia and made me feel uncomfortable to watch the rest while that issue of Myeong Ha is never mentioned again. Aren't BLs supposed to be a safe space at least for gay people? Isn't it one of their purpose along with entertaining heterosexual girls?

By comments of confusion from other viewers, I'm not the only one. There is enough runtime for the show to unfold, 8 episodes for 30-40 minutes, but it doesn't use it right. I genuinely cannot understand why the drama has so many fans if the quality of writing is absolutely incomparable with such BLs that are immersive from the very first scene, e.g. The Eighth Sense, 2023, or the shorter one with the similar concept of videogame dating Our Dating Sim, also released in 2023.

🔸The BL K-drama attempts to tackle such topics as loneliness, ability to rely on another person and ask for help, life regret, and even suicide. However it doesn't go further simply stating them, as the writer doesn't have enough skill to unfold such complicated issues. Especially if you're about to watch this BL with the amazing Death's Game in mind, you will hardly be moved by the plot of Myeong Ha making value of his life in other people.

Overall, there are parts to love about this BL drama, like the adorable actors, but the atrocious and problematic writing doesn't contribute to the mood at all.

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"거짓말은 거짓말로 막는 거야".

🔸The 8th episode is when I hoped this burnt cookie flips over and shows us its colorful glazing. Alas! This webdrama seems to arise more questions than answers, and by the middle you don't care enough to unravel them. By "questions" I mean it throws random interactions, circumstances and accidents at the viewer and expects you to edit the drama in your head by yourself. The plot is atrociously incoherent and unconscious. I have never met such disrespectful and humiliating for its viewers drama. Not even Seven First Kisses can compete.

Who want what? Who does what? Why? Why aren't all the students at that school high on those cookies? Or why are they? Doesn't that "application coach" have better things to do? Why does everyone hate everyone at school? Did you really think I was gonna believe that idiotic ending? Did you really think I was gonna empathize with all those detestable characters? What do you think I am?

🔸The reason I'm so furious about this webdrama is that such good actors as Choi Hyeon Wook (right after the splendid Twinkling Watermelon), Jeong Da Bin and Nam Ji Hyeon ended up in the hands of a screenwriter who lacks any emotional intelligence whatsoever. The presence of the director of Youth of May didn't help either.

Undoubtedly, there are many people who thoroughly enjoyed the story, but I took it very personal, as you can see. I just can't battle the detestation that kept arising in me with each episode. I gotta admit, it's harder to explain why a movie is bad than to tell how much you love it. It's still the ground to explore for me.

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Phew... Such a rollercoaster. Of disappointment.

This drama stole 4 month of my patience, so I gonna be brief and pinpoint. I was surprised looking at low ratings when I was on the first episodes but by the end I think that even low ratings are too high for it.

🔸️For me it's obvious that the main character Sa Hye Joon is based on Park Bo Geom, or at least relies heavily on his persona. He just finished his service the last year right after this drama. I was never a fan of him but I see how his fanbase ramped up the ratings. 8.7% wouldn't be possible with such crooked storytelling if there weren't the two Parks (Park So Dam).

Now, facts only:
▪︎Hye Joon's dad looks like Kim Jeong Il.
▪︎After the 8th episode Hye Joon already achieved everything somehow and starts earning millions and riding a luxurious car out of blue because the drama producers have signed a promotion contract with BMW.
▪︎The story goes nowhere after he reaches success. Hye Joon obviously doesn't give a damn about scandals, so why should I?
▪︎Endless dialogues about feelings and morals that sound like even the actors are sick of them. As if the characters were zen Buddhist monks. Cut to 1 hour per episode, nothing to lose.
▪︎Army sucks. Stealing 2 years of life. I got it.
▪︎WTF? "Hi how are u"? This is the ending?!?

I started watching Record Of Youth when I felt bad and needed motivation. Mistake. Please, don't watch this drama if you're having hard times. It's not motivating, it's manipulative.

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Are y'all insane?!? This is the best drama I've seen in ages!

Now, I expected just another All Of Us Are Dead but with aliens, and i never been happier i was wrong! This is not just an action shooter rpg gamelike eliminating monsters. This really is about war. Any war. And it doesn't matter who you fight against in it, it's always the same - crushing people's lives and minds and bringing death everywhere. No rules of an ordinary life work at war, and the show shows it in the best way possible.

🔸️I either was a bit confused by switching the setting in the second part. How could the kids be abandoned by all their commanders? 말도 안 돼. But once you forget about it everything starts to feel even more horrifying. The truth is, you are always by yourself, and having and maintaining friendship in such situation is incredibly hard. And we see that in the drama. I was shocked by how agonizing, wistful and painful the drama is. It's better than Saving Private Ryan indeed. Because I can associate myself with those highschoolers.

The sttudents are portrayed perfectly. They learn to cooperate, grieve and think like adults yet they are still playful and full of dreams. The conditions of the war itself are crystal clear. It's not an offensive but a defensive war. So you can easily imagine moral choices one has to made in it.

🔸️The intro gives me shivers every time. It's tragic, and wistful, and horrifying in a very subtle way with characters shown as columns in an album, with only a memory of their past presence left. Kids turning into soldiers, carrying arms instead of future. And you think one guy going mad is stupid? There are real cases in the army of such "accidents", and what lead to them, both the environment and the mental state, are explored here.

🔸️This drama is much harsher than any drama I've ever seen. Much better written as well. Isn't that what always happens at wars? There are so many of them happening right now, look around! Ukraine is right on the edge of Europe. Seeing kids in full military uniform having fun with guns lying around is not a TV show for some people. The atmosphere of this drama is absolutely unique. I feel like this is something I saw in a dream that I forgot right away waking up.

Masterpiece.

"Why did grown ups give us guns? They had to keep us from getting them."

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사람은 지키질 준 제가 있으면 버틸수 있지 않습니까?

It is such a weird creature, this drama. I'd say, a chameleon. It nearly falls apart for not having a clear distinct theme. It doesn't try to catch attention by any means but develops the story steadily. It could be rather a good point if the drama wasn't so ephemeral.

🔸️The story starts off with a premise of a detective, continues with attempts to get Hwan and Jae Yi together, concludes with restoring historical justice for the kingdom's falsely accused people. It could be a story about a female detective in Joseon who dresses up in man clothes and helps poor people, and we would know what we're watching. And, correct me if I'm wrong, but the motive for the murder of Min family was never revealed? We know who did it, but why?

🔸️Yet the supporting characters in the drama are great, from the ministers to Lee Hwan's closest friend Han Seong On. The couple of Myeong Jin and Ga Ram is genuinely funny and sincere. The actors did a great job. It also put on my radar the young actor Heo Won Seo (Tae Gang role), and I will watch where his career will go.

Overall, Our Blooming Youth feels like a good cupcake without any cream or sprinkles. It might taste well, but people won't eat it if there are more appetizing foods around. The poster and the title are so bland and tell nothing. Even the OST for the drama is almost nonexistent. The finishing music sounds crispy, but there is not a single song, only instrumentals. Having Park Hyeong Shik in the cast is not enough to get high ratings. I have an impression we saw just the first draft of the drama.

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The world without Cheonmyeong or without smoking?

If they had to choose an actor with the most expressive eyes to make us watch him wear a mask, they sure did the right choice casting Kim Woo Bin.

🔸That would be weird to expect another Blade Runner from Cho Ui Seok, known for his (boring) "action-only-and-forever" movie Master, and you lose nothing skipping Black Knight as there is nothing you haven't already seen in Master and Alienoid with Kim Woo Bin. The production design might be good, so as the storyline about Yoon Sa Wol - "from zero to hero" type that is always satisfying - but that's it. I honestly don't give a damn about the "villainous villain" who wants to destroy the world for some reason, or looking for a treatment for his who-knows-what disease, or whatever else he does, ending with a huge exhausting action sequence that has no purpose.

🔸I finished this overly extended movie, and it immediately faded away from my mind. There is no memorable OST, no intro. It is soapy.
The story failed in building emotional connections with it's characters, and I wished for all the refugees to die if they remained so naive, faceless, and didn't try to protect themselves. Theoretically, 5-8, Sa Wol and his company are representatives of the refugees, but de facto they are on totally different levels of intelligence and power.

And, seriously, it's so easy to steal a QR code. Where are all the hackers in that town? Or at least people with smartphone cameras?

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This was supposed to be a comedy, but everything drowns in toxicity and disregard.

🔸️I can't say this drama was offensive for modern days LGBTQ, it's simply not intended for something mean, but gradually it starts to be. The way HanGyul treats EunChan is really disrespectful and toxic. I quit this on 12th episode where all the characters basically spell out to him their (I gonna use they/them here for EunChan) motivation and struggles they face, still HanGyul is irresponsible. With this said, I don't see that motivation to completely abandon EunChan and act like a dick from his side. All this performance feels extremely fake and disrespectful to the viewers, serving only to fuel the conflict, I tried to watch the 12th episode several times but never more than for 5 minutes.

🔸️The drama started out well though. If there was a comedy, it was in relationships between HanGyul and his fake boyfriend sprinkled with 2000s Korean fashion. The financial struggles of EunChan and their hard work were also the part of the good conflict.

🔸️I can't understand what the drama is about because it doesn't hold on the themes it introduces. The challenge to maintain the business is abandoned, the challenge to earn money for the family is abandoned, the challenge to stay in the closet turns into something bogus. Please, tell me, why does EunChan suddenly starts to dress up and act feminine when their biological sex is revealed in the most offensive way? They didn't dress up like that before, so why now?

🔸️I can, of course, put this on the shelf of 2000s. I could, but the rest of the drama is just as inept as the approach to LGBTQ theme. As a non-binary person, I'm offended not by the weak representation of it but of the overall incompetent approach to writing.

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I wish I had a girlfriend like Joo In Hae who can bite a vampire.

Such a shame not to make a sunscreen product placement. Everybody knows vampires and Koreans are suckers for sunscreen. And me too. They literally ducked a golden mine.

🔸They ducked so many more things in this drama, including believable character development. Shin Do Shik starts as a softie, then he is suddenly obsessed by murder, and then he ends up helping poor sick kids. His character was unsuccessfully begging for a moral choice. Director Na is even more messed up.

Yet the actor Park Kang Hyun performs very well despite this unfortunate TV debut. He has both gentle and evil vibes. As far as I know, he acted in musicals before, and he sings one of the soundtracks here. I'd like to see him in a better project next time.

🔸The screenwriters successfully traded all the charm and quirkiness of the first episodes for cheesy tropes and cliches and an intense "dramatic" La Crimosa remix. How come a guesthouse doesn't have a washing machine? It's just because the two leads need to splash in a basin together and make cute expressions for the camera. With such weak writing In Hae would never love so deeply to be ready to sacrifice her life for the boyfriend. No wonder she never offered.

And what's with that craven ending? Why are we supposed to decide the very last minute what the hell is going on if you can't sum up the story well?

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스무살 빚쟁이 이야기

I not gonna pretend I'm an expert in gay mini dramas, but from my experience you can rarely find one of a decent level. You Make Me Dance is among the best of the BL genre (yet. from my experience).

'음악 없이도 춤은 출 수 있습니다. 심장 박동만 있으면.'

🔸️I couldn't miss it out because it's the debut of Choo Yeong Woo (main role in Oasis that I'm currently watching) . And I can't believe it's only his debut, because the level of his acting is already higher than some of the more acclaimed actors. He has a quite powerful warm energy, and potential both dramatic and comedic. This casting is probably the strongest part of the drama as the chemistry between the characters works well.

🔸️While they couldn't miss a couple of unreasonable "taking the shirt off" scenes and tropes, the story overall is relatively reasonable. The dance major student was abandoned by his mother right after attaining full age and left in debt. Shi On was dancing for his mother in hope of her to be proud of him, but soon after she stopped texting Shi On he needed to fill the emptiness in his heart with another person.

And here I would love something dark and toxic. E.g. Hong Seok turnes out to be just the same as his mother because Shi On has attachment issues.
BUT HEY, WHO NEEDS DARK IF IT'S ENJOYABLE NOW?

'나 그 어른이라는 말이 세상에 제일 싫어. 어른이란 말로 통제는 게 너무 많아.'

Yet it's still mentioned how hard it's for Shi On to navigate adulthood. Sadly, this topic is not developed further.

🔸️Overall, the drama is warm, bittersweet, sometimes funny and naive. The acting is better than expected, the third party embarrassment is not strong (so maybe don't go for it if you enjoy extreme lol). The story is not outstanding, but the actor Choo Yeong Woo almost made me cry.

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내가 120살 넘었고 이런 아이 같은 짓이 해야 겠느냐!

A drama about a divine creature nurtured on chocolate bars? The drama about a priest becoming an idol? The drama about the price you pay to become popular? It could be one of the best shows about idols if the screenwriter held onto those concepts and developed a strong story.

🔸️When I watched The Heavenly Idol I saw nothing but the land of missed opportunities. It looks like the creators don't have the concept of the world they're making, no wonder the worldbuilding contradicts itself all the time. Take the first scene at the concert: you could've film it like it's an evil coven for Lembrary, and people jump around like demons in hell.

- 좀 더 애틋하고 섹시한 느낌으로 한 가요?

- 언젠가 이 세상 '섹시란 섹시한' 다 부태워버린다!

🔸️Kim Min Gyu saves the remains of the drama with his charisma. He balances playfulness, quirky habits and serious feelings in his character. Especially compared to the villain played by Lee Jang Woo. The casting has made a terrible mistake on him, not to mention the vaguest motives of the Devil and his vulnerability to domestic abuse.

'절 보고 살아길 힘을 얻는 사람들 위해 아이돌을 하고 있습니다.'

🔸️Despite its childish and irresponsible approach, the drama is still loveable for me. There are genuinely warm and funny moments that don't try to preach the audience, just being in the moment. All the shows Wild Animals visits look and feel fake, but I personally like it because it shows how cruel the industry and fans can be towards idols for a smallest mistake.

'좋아하는 아이돌 사진이랑 영상 보고 힘을 얻는 사람들이 많거든요.'

🔸️I started thinking: who is an idol, really, and why do people like them? They're not actors, not simply singers and dancers but breathing creatures that we want to see as innocent angels. They are meant to be role models for some, entertainers for others, and in my case they're inspiration. I'm glad I can find support in someone's art while going through tough times. I find portraying idols as usual puzzled clumsy people refreshing. Even though we didn't get a chance to get to know all the members, there was a couple of funny moments to substitute the utter lack of chemistry.

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