greenteaberry
I wasn't expecting much of character development because it's so short, but I was honestly blown away by the script and by the chemistry.
My first encounter with Jaemin (since I don't really know the members of NCT) and the way he looks at Oh Mi Ri---- I screamed SHIP within the first scene.
Not going to tell you which confession but there's also one particular confession that fits the drama's motifs very well that I really liked!
Second male lead is also very cute :)
(Just tbh I'm not a fan of the female lead actress in general, hence the acting score overall is a bit low.
If you have two hours to spare and want some fluff and some fangirl feels, go ahead :)
Was this review helpful to you?
The first half is, as they said, is the highlight in terms of plot flow. It's because you're getting used to the unpredictability of the drama and the quirkiness of the setup. It makes fun of regular rom com / romance manga tropes while presenting a very real conflict for the main characters: Dan Oh wants her own life, apart from what the writer set up for her. She doesn't want to die. Yes, Dan Oh is a bit stupid and naive, and her voice and actions are very stereotypical of rom com female leads, but that's the only character setup that really bugged me. I mean, yes, the lines are cheesy sometimes, but again -- take it as satire.
As the story goes on, you'll realize all the surrounding characters undergo amazing character development and are not who you originally thought they were -- but the change doesn't come suddenly, you'll be able to pick up hints from the way they look at other characters, the way they say their lines, the way they react, etc. So watching this show quickly became a detective game of "guess what happens next" -- and the results will surprise you. The plot twists and turns into something much more interesting than you could imagine, with a very logical resolution phase at the end. I don't know what people are talking about re: plot holes -- I thought the open questions presented throughout were answered just fine.
Anyway, quite highly recommend for the cute plot line and the uniqueness of the setup. The actors are also incredibly good-looking, if that motivates you :)
Was this review helpful to you?
Cute coming of age youth drama!
Another cute high school to college entrance exams dramaCome for the youthfulness
the friendship
the family lines
and of course this "brother/sister" relationship
but don't expect any hardcore romance (must be because the female lead is too young)
I'm amazed at how young this female lead is -- she definitely held her end of the show with adult costars
10/10 acting points go to the male lead's eyes
if you watched him in Maiden Holmes you'd know -- great casting for "protective male lead" role
I look forward to watching him in more romance-heavy shows later
PS: I love how there's a scene showcasing the young leads' relationship with the child actor/actress at the end of every episode -- so cute and adds quite a lot to the storytelling imo
Was this review helpful to you?
35 episodes of pure enjoyment (and no draggy garbage!
It's rare that I would enjoy a drama that's so long, because I get super annoyed by the stupid drama tropes... glad to say this drama is 35 episodes of pure material with no draggy parts, making it super enjoyable to binge-watch in a day or twoThe plot is very interesting -- we have lead characters who have so much chemistry, as well as some additional touching family drama parts for those of you who get weak when it comes to parent-child relationships (like me
And let's just say the chemistry is REALLY THERE.
I also like how the drama was laid out -- bits and pieces of "present day" at the beginning sprinkled in to give us a big picture
then later on reminding us where those pieces lie within the timeline and stuff
It's so sweet you'll get diabetes
but not overly sweet that it's only fluff no substance.
Also, extra points to the male lead's cold humor. He really made me laugh.
Was this review helpful to you?
A good premise that got wrapped up too quickly
This is a very real drama about what it means to be a mother, whether all women need to be mothers to live a complete life, and how a modern woman can live a fulfilling life (with or without kids).Many quotable moments in the drama without anger-inducing draggy plotlines (if characters make you angry, it's because they are realistic and you know friends who have family members like that)
Only complaint is I thought it was going to be longer, so it felt like ep 15's finale was super rushed. As a result I don't really understand what happened and why that time skip.
The first 14 episodes are really enjoyable nonetheless. Would recommend to anyone who wants to explore modern woman issues.
Was this review helpful to you?
-because if I'm watching Mulan, I'm watching an authentic one with a Chinese creative team-
The storyline stayed true to the original poem, painting Mulan as an ordinary girl who worked hard to become an extraordinary hero. She's a flawed character that developed throughout the (very fast-paced) movie. Everything she did, she did because of love for her father, for her fellow soldiers, and for her country. The movie is very down-to-earth and realistic, in the sense that you can't even see the main characters' faces clearly for a large part of the movie because they're all covered in dust and dirt from being at war.
The first 30 min of the movie gets a bit choppy, but sets up the stage for the immense emotions and character development to follow. And then the lead characters' bravery and comradery got me hooked throughout the whole thing. At the end I was so touched by Mulan's lines that I was pretty much in tears. I think the story ended at an appropriate place, leaving a whole bunch of mixed emotions behind in my heart. BRB still trying to get over the movie--
The beauty in this Mulan is she is human. Actor Chen Kun said that she embodies the spirit of a nobody, just like you and me. That everyone can be a Mulan if we are brave. Director Jingle Ma said that we can find Mulans everywhere, even nowadays -- the grassroot girls working multiple jobs to support their families are all modern-day Mulans.
For those choosing between Disney and this:
2009 Mulan is an authentic take of the classical Chinese Mulan poem. Because Chinese people wrote/produced it, the heroine does not have culturally inconsistent superpowers/symbolism (cough cough, Disney live-action). Instead, the film was created only with respect for Chinese history, culture, and values. If we want to even out the playing field for representation, we should be encouraging films written/produced/acted by Asian people to take the spotlight. Like The Farewell. Or Parasite. Let films about other cultures be in their own language. Let them truly shine. Non-English speakers have long relied on dubs or subtitles to access English-speaking films. If English speakers would also do the same, their eyes would be opened to so many more amazing cultures and films out there (to paraphrase what Parasite director Bong Joon Ho said at the Oscars).
Was this review helpful to you?
I quite like it honestly. Despite that special supernatural spin, the main story is still dependent on natural laws only and hence can be deduced by regular detective work.
My first time seeing Kamiki as this sort of character... really refreshing haha
Now tempted to go back and watch his Tantei Gakuen Q again just as comparison XD
Also, Yamada Anna! I was wondering why the girl looked so familiar. She's a rising new actress that I really like.
In conclusion, would recommend if you have 2 hrs to kill and want some fun logical deduction. :)
Was this review helpful to you?
Reasons why I liked it:
1) Decent plot with likable characters: People don't make stupid decisions or get into huge misunderstandings because they don't communicate, and so the plot doesn't feel draggy at all. There's no kimchi slap or water spillage scene from a chaebol mother, nor is there some "let's break up and not see each other for a loooong time (while the secret reason is I love you too much)"... best. I'd say the only *big* drama cliche is... #MaleLeadShowerScene
2) The cast! Everyone fits into their role super well (even in the high school scenes) and their chemistry is amazing. Especially in love with the girl who played Jamie Chien; can't believe she was considered a rookie.
I lowkey fell in love with Bruce after this drama... I didn't realize he was this cute in the coffee movie or More Than Blue.
3) Comedic timing is super on point: just when you think something is going to happen... nope! The director has fooled you again! If you're a huge main lead shipper though, you may get frustrated... :P
4) Music: there's really only 2 songs but they're both great. Chillaxing is such an earworm and the ending song is by one of my favorite singer-songwriters so YES.
Was this review helpful to you?
I really like the way the story is told -- with every episode, we get to learn a little bit more of what happened in the past, then at the end everything comes together. The 1930's arc is super well-done -- I may even like the characters there more than their present-day counterparts.
Plot-wise, the only thing I wasn't a fan of was the later villain arc. It was kind of unnecessary?! Oh well; it didn't take away from the main story that much.
The main characters' chemistry is fabulous. The only thing I was concerned about is, since a lot of the story depends on their past lives, the present-day chemistry might be lacking a bit. But the past life makes up for it I promise! I got (good) goosebumps all the way!
Everyone's acting was also on point. Especially the way 1930's Yoo Ah In looked at his comrades -- best. His eyes would tell you everything.
If you just listen to the OST you'd feel it's a bit dull -- but when paired with the key emotional scenes, it really adds to the story. Yes, the story is a bit dark and stays pretty dark (with really rare comedic relief), but it's a beautiful ride that I hope everyone would attempt taking.
I think it will take a while for me to get over this drama. My heart <3
Was this review helpful to you?
Started strong, disappointing final few episodes
If you want historical/cultural/logical accuracy, you can skip this drama. The history fanatics complained about the costumes and some character settings being inconsistent with the time it was set in and stuff. If you're in for witty leads and cute lead chemistry, read on.What I really love about this drama is even though it's about the stereotypical ancient Chinese drama "battle of the wives," each arc is relatively quickly resolved and to our leads' favor. For once we had a husband who wasn't stupid!!! We don't really have detestable second leads who can outsmart our lead characters here either (that's what I hate most about typical drama tropes)... so it's just arcs and arcs of how the female lead wittily overcomes problems, sometimes with the male lead's help. Cute interactions.
However, the last 3 episodes definitely made me angry in how random the conflict was... as if it was just there to drag the show longer. The way they depicted the characters in this arc was inconsistent with how they were depicted previously (personality / choices wise) so I definitely wanted to throw things at the scriptwriter. The writers also settled for the tropiest trope of a grand finale, with the typical time skip (wtf was wrong with those fake moustaches omg ew) and the "everyone gathers together in harmony and chants some uplifting adage in unison" scene (rolls eyes -- I didn't know those still existed, I thought those were stopped like 20 years ago). That final final scene also reminds me of Under the Power, if you watched that too... but at least in Under the Power that banter was witty and funny... here it was just very cheesy and sappy :(
The story had so much promise given it's amazing cast and the lead chemistry (though there isn't as much chemistry here as there was in Under the Power... sorry that previous Seven Tan drama set my bar real high). However, the writers really just gave up and didn't keep the delivery consistent, so the drama lost some points there. One difference with Under the Power is at least Seven Tan uses her original voice, so anti-dubbers may appreciate this one more (though Wallace Chung is dubbed because he speaks Mandarin with an accent...)
The songs are amazing though! All 5 of them. Zhou Shen is ultimate period drama OST king <3 And we got Seven Tan and Wallace Chung each singing a track... and Yisa Yu is a very established singer who contributes amazing drama OSTs... and I don't know the singer of the insert ballad but the song is good too!
Rewatch value wise... no scene really stood out as "classic scenes" to be rewatched over and over again, unlike Under the Power (omg I still love rewatching certain romantic scenes from that one).
Was this review helpful to you?
I'm a huge fan of the drama trope memes they inserted here and there, including a guest appearance of the Temptation of Wife OST somewhere when side characters were breaking the fourth wall.
Forget about the romance though. Honestly I couldn't find much chemistry between the two leads, and the second female lead arc went on for wayyy too long (and the second male lead arc way too short! I had severe second male lead syndrome for that guy but he didn't even put up a good fight)
I would recommend this for the laughs, especially if you're a kdrama veteran and can see through their play on drama tropes (though they end up committing a few themselves)
Was this review helpful to you?
I had high expectations because this is Kim Soo-hyun's long-awaited comeback after his military service, and let me just say the cast, the story, the production have all exceeded my initial expectations by many folds.
Story: It is marketed as a dark, healing drama from the start, but while the characters have a dark history and are working towards overcoming their trauma, the plot is full of lighthearted comedy both in the characters as well as the cinematography. Because the main character is a children's book writer, each episode is also centered around a fairy tale theme (and if none exists in the real world, the drama created a few very interesting fairy tales to fit the storyline too). Thus, the story is filled with references that will make you rethink what fairy tales are and what message they mean to convey. In particular, the fairy tale of the first episode really highlights what this drama is about -- learning to live with your most traumatic memories as a means of growing up. As a story about growth and healing, the character development is phenomenal... the script touches upon multiple concepts of self-identity and values, and the use of them as motifs driving the story progression was A+. While the villain is truly scary and bad and I usually hate villains, I just couldn't stop admiring how much the characters added to the story-telling. Everyone had a purpose -- no matter it was to drive the plot or to make us laugh -- and boy did we laugh, HARD.
Also, this is a masterpiece from the literary point of view -- as I said, the self-identity/values/worldview motifs that keep coming back really drive home what the scriptwriter wants to convey through this drama. Many funny lines / scenes in early episodes also keep on coming back in different shapes or forms, and the way the scriptwriter used them as comedic relief has me down on my knees.
Cast and cinematography: The lead characters AND the supporting characters all added flavor to the story, and everyone suited their role so well. I'm particularly a fan of the publisher duo -- they were so funny! (If you see Park Jin-joo in a drama, you know it's going to be hilarious). It was my first time watching Oh Jung-se (Moon Sang-tae) in a lead role, and his (as well as the child actor's) depiction of someone with ASD is really touching.
As the story is about fairy tales, the production really took a liberal approach in cute animations, outrageous special effects, as well as lens filters to create a "story-within-a-story" feel to the drama. The animated leads are so cute! Honestly, even if you aren't sold by the storyline or comedy (which I think you should XD), I would highly recommend this drama just for the acting and cinematography as well. The artistic value of this is BEST.
Music: Right music at the right spots; really adds to the drama. I would put the OST itself on replay. Enough said.
Rewatch value: Sooo many scenes that could become instant classics to be watched again and again. I look forward to when other kdramas start referencing It's Okay to Not Be Okay. It's going to be as meme-y as Secret Garden was 10 years ago I'M EXCITED.
TL;DR: It's a drama I would recommend you watch by yourself, with your fellow fangirl friends, with your significant other, with your family, with people at work... with everyone. Definitely something you could talk and rave about for the next few months (I know I will)
Was this review helpful to you?
A cute coming-of-age drama with added nostalgia of the early 2000's!
This drama is such a cute coming-of-age storyspanning from the main characters' high school days in the early 2000's
to their professional careers in 2011.
Main characters are chasing after their dreams as well as after their loved ones
And while there is this VERY MINI sad part in the middle, most of it is cute and happy (for those of you wanting a light-hearted watch)
Beware of second male lead syndrome though, some people caught it real bad (I was team First Male Lead :P)
For those of us that grew up in the 2000's-2011, this will be a nostalgic tour through:
- phones
- QQ messenger
- famous Chinese bands/singers, as well as song lyrics
- the development of music from cassette tapes to CDs to streaming platforms
I wish there was a bit more of the pop references, though XD
It's quite a good watch if you're in for some fluff and want a trip down memory lane.
Don't expect overt-sweet romance; this is a youth drama :P
Was this review helpful to you?
A fantasy melodrama that will have you bingeing in one go
I put off this drama for the longest time because I heard it's very heartbreaking and I was not ready for heartbreak. However, once I started I just couldn't stop, and finished the whole thing in two days.Story and execution:
Due to the time travel nature of the story, its timeline jumps around a bit, but don't worry because the team makes it very clear *who* it is and *when* in time they are at, through the characters' hairstyles/outfits, microexpressions, as well as more obvious plot clues. They also put a lot of effort into symbolism and major motif recalls, making the whole watching experience like peeling an onion... there's always more if you go one layer deeper, and you cry.
I want to say Chen Yun-ru probably had the biggest character development line, and the conversations she has with Huang Yu-hsuan are really quotable. The ending also wrapped up the story really nicely, and if it's not satisfying enough, do check out the extra scene they quickly put together as a thank-you to the viewers. That warmed my heart.
Bonus points to the cultural references, relatable for every 90's or 80's kid. Like Wretch.cc, the blog website everyone went on in the 2000's, or the highly-masked SARS times at one point, etc.
Acting:
We have 35-year-old Alice Ke playing a 17-year-old high school student, and there is 0 weirdness to it. When she acts Chen Yun-ru, she looks Chen Yun-ru. For this I gotta applaud her acting skills and the makeup artists/stylists' efforts. This is also Greg Hsu's first male lead role, and he managed to play 17-year-old Li Zi Wei to someone in his near-40's perfectly. Patrick Shih was a great acting find as well. Also, the villain here actually creeps me out.
OST:
We'll all get Wu Bai's Last Dance stuck in our heads after this LOL
I'm not a huge fan of the opening song, but the ending song's lyrics hit me hard every time. It was really made for this drama.
Also, the insert songs are apparently super character-specific, like Mayday's Hug, or Nine Chen's I Hear Your Voice... if you pay attention to where they were played, you'd know they really put an effort into making a good OST for this drama.
TL;DR: A literary masterpiece. Must watch.
Was this review helpful to you?
Meh drama saved by the leads' acting/chemistry and the OST.
The script and the production value were meh. Your typical period drama with politics and that whole "someone's dad killed someone else's family so the kids can't be together" sort of trope. The CGI was TERRIBLY done. The cases were also pretty meh and didn't have a crime drama thrill to it. The only thing that really kept me going was the leads' chemistry, but I knew this going in anyway (because I read reviews here) so I just soldiered on.That being said. The leads' acting. Seven Tan IS Jinxia (you'll see the resemblance to her character in Go Ahead), and Allen Ren's versatile acting skills made him the perfect Lu Yi... age 8 to 22 (you'll see what I mean when you get to that arc OMG HIS EYES.)
The leads' chemistry was really A+. Like we almost feel bad for shipping the two because the male lead actor, Allen Ren, is happily married with a kid in real life -- so the bunch of us fangirls are like SHIP THE CHARACTERS, NOT THE ACTORS the whole time. Like there wasn't a lot of real hardcore skinship in the show, but the rumor is that Allen Ren's eyes can make any scene seem like an intimate bed scene. The way Lu Yi looks at Jinxia already makes my heart flutter like crazy. And his lines... he somehow makes very sappy lines sound... sexy?
Let's talk OST -- we got period drama OST god Zhou Shen's opening song, and Allen Ren himself sang the closing song... and Seven Tan also sang one of the insert songs (named after her character, Jinxia/"this summer")
Songs are amazing and worth looping even after the drama ends. Also, I'll be rewatching some of the leads' romantic scenes... my heart <33333
Also, highly recommend watching the behind-the-scenes if you speak Chinese. Lu Yi was dubbed, and Allen Ren's real (younger-sounding) voice gives Lu Yi's lines a whole different *ADORABLE* feel. Oh my god he is so cute.
Was this review helpful to you?
