Reviews

Another BL With NO Communication!

The idea behind this series is creative, original, and noteworthy. And its execution has elements of brilliance, poignancy, and also agonizing frustration that in a few spots I threw a proverbial rock at the screen. Why? Because it is the same issue over and over in these series, especially Thai BL series. COMMUNICATION! To be more precise, exchanging information in a clear and precise manner forthrightly. If this had been done near the beginning of this story, we could have had a real classic on our hands. Instead, it became yet again another ‘safe’ Thai BL series with a good premise but less than memorable delivery and a whole lot more angst than is absolutely necessary.
You can read my full review of this series at BLBliss.com.

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Part 3 of this series didn't disappoint either. It gets better and better, because we learn more and more about the character, it's getting more tragic, more intense, as a viewer you're more invested with every episode. I'm not sure how popular this series is since it took forever for a second season, and they even changed two of the main actors, which honestly is a crime, but for me this series is much more enjoyable as other very popular shows like Game Of Thrones for example. This is indeed my favorite fantasy series, and everyone should give it a try. The writing is really good, and the actors are phenomenal. It's just hard to get into it, but it's worth it.

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Review

Th e drama was going really well hut in some scenes I thought of different conclusion but the scenes in the drama were totally different but the thing is that everything about this drama - I LOVED
But why did the lead die in the end I cried my heart out I was broken by the scene that I was depressed for about 2-3 months
My bestie really regretted suggesting this drama to me but I was happy except that one heart shattering scene...
After this drama a knew drama with same main lead cast has been brought out NAME- "Forever Love 2023", please do watch that drama, at least that drama has happy ending.

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Just Spoiling You

What a doozy!

This is a "get the Crazy Tropes List, pick 20+ and let's write a script".

'Just Spoil You' is a short episode drama. Approximately 10 minutes of viewing time with about 1.30 minutes of intro. It contains a few characters and a ridiculous plot.

The couple was separated for six years and met each other again for her son's medical treatment and work. The ML is the über wealthy guy who will solve everything. FL is a single mother that everyone either wants to hurt or protect. Others characters are: a child, an annoying family friend, a loyal bodyguard, a foster brother, and a manipulative mother.

Within a span of three episodes, he slapped her, she slapped him, he asked her to strip, and her child got in the car of a stranger. Other crazy tropes are:
- physical violence: slapping, pushing, grabbing, stabbing
- sexual violence: from the ML to the FL, a secondary character to the FL
- crazy mother disguised as a caring mother
- crazy family-friend-who-wants-to-marry-him-because-she-loves-him 
- a ridiculous amount of hospitalisation of the main characters

This drama makes the 'Well-Intended Love' series a masterpiece. 

And yes, girlfriends, I did finish it and fast-forward some bits because this lady is waiting for her other series to release new episodes. 

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anarasumanara, Do I believe this magic?✨

I like the musicals only when the magician was involved. Out of all songs, "The Curse of Asphalt" is the only one I think it’s a standout masterpiece. Regarding the themes and characters.. It has a Disney-esque quality that enhances its fairytale vibe. The female lead is so resembles Cinderella, and I was never a fan for this archetype. The magician, Ji Chang Wook, he was magnetic, funny, and weirdly sexy with that shaggy haircut and a top hat. I like his portrayal of this weirdo-Willy Wonka-like magician. He did sort of react in a childlike or immature manner through his jokes or laughed or just reacted to the female lead. But his character was disturbing, I was creeped out by his action cause there’s a part he got so violent and I just couldn’t justify that! I don’t like how this character is written despite his well done performance.

As much as I enjoyed its themes and fairy tale aspects, the characters' backstory are somewhat disappointing and predictable. At the end, it was also just a practical closure, there’s not enough characters arc from all, so I wasn’t satisfied nor believe in the whole “anarasumanara” thing.

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A summer I wouldn't want to remember.

Initially, I didn't want to watch this drama while it aired. But after I knew that Okada Kenshi is in it, I wanted to check it out. .... And I regretted it. And since no one has written a review about it yet, I'm writing this one. Be forewarned, I may be brutal and biased in this review. And it might be longer than expected.
Story:
The story is character driven. The characters have their own stories and love triangles. And my problem is, every girl or guy is in a love triangle somehow. I don't mind if a series has multiple pairings. But when everyone is in a love triangle, I just end up not caring for who ends up with who. It's bogus at that point. They messed up the "childhood friend having unrequited love for the main character" trope. At first, Natsumi was in love with Takumi (which was fresh and interesting cuz it's usually the other way around), but Takumi was chasing after his high school teacher (who is already married). Weirdly enough, they somehow made it seem like that Takumi loved Natsumi all along, even after he told Natsumi in episode 1 that he didn't see her as a woman and he spent the first 3 episodes or so chasing after his teacher. But after meeting Kento, Natsumi's feelings changed and she got over her feelings for Takumi. Not to mention, that even after Takumi realized his feelings for Natsumi, which happened around episode 4 or 5, he hesitated for many more episodes, and finally confessed to her (the friend who he had rejected 6 episodes ago) around episode 9. And the results were not surprising at all. Oh, and it gets worse. Takumi saves Natsumi from a (completely avoidable) road accident and ends up getting injured. I don't even get how that accident was so bad that the doctor told him that he has to quit his construction job even after he heals. So that just adds to Natsumi's guilt. Takumi also tells her to support him in what I understand a platonic way, as a platonic friend. There was nothing romantic involved in that request, as far as I understood. And for some ridiculous reason, Natsumi thinks that she should break up with Kento in order to platonically support her platonic childhood friend. Yeah, that's bogus to me. So the main pairing is a total failure in my book.
The love triangle centering Airi is pretty weird too. I don't know, I probably should have liked Airi's story more. But I didn't. And I was so sure she would end up with Mamoru. Not that I cared either way. Like I said, this drama has one love triangle too many. At least Airi's reasoning for choosing Osamu made some sense. She was looking for honesty, and apparently she got it from this snob who has zero emotional intelligence. Why she chose a jerk over a sweet guy- that makes comparatively less sense.
Risa also (kinda) had her own love triangle. She was struggling to decide what would be best for her and her kid, Haruki. What surprised me is that she was willing to get involved with someone else despite having a kid, even if it was a one time "no strings attached" thing. I mainly watched the drama for the Risa-Hayakawa pairing. But too bad, this drama ruined this story too. It was messy. I wish Risa and Hayakawa's first meeting was different. They made it seem like they slept together even if that route was totally avoidable. Then after that actually happened, Risa hesitated the whole time, even if their attraction was mutual and Hayakwa was truly a sweet guy. Obviously, this pairing was the least important pairing in the drama, but even so, it was handled poorly.

Cast/characters:
I liked Natsumi. Her family wasn't rich, but they were a happy family. She took care of her father and brother really well. She was an amazing girl and friend. I don't have any complaints about her character traits. But definitely don't like all her decisions. I wish she was honest and straightforward about her feelings towards Takumi. But maybe it's expected that she would be afraid of rejection. I didn't like that instead of facing Takumi properly, she ran away from him to Kento. Say whatever, I don't think that was the right call. Now being with Kento itself, that's a different story. And I already talked about the part where she broke up with Kento just to support Takumi and how that makes no sense. Takumi is one of the characters I didn't like at all in the drama. He is a good friend to Natsumi, and maybe there was opportunity for him to be more. If only he didn't waste his screentime being the guy watching from the sidelines. I thought it was refreshing to see Kamio Fuji as the second lead for the 3rd time, since he's mostly the first lead in dramas where I always end up rooting for the second lead. And in this drama, I ended up not caring for anyone at all. Oh, well. Kento was meh. Mamoru was probably the best guy in the drama, aside from his lying habits. He was always sweet towards Airi. And I was almost 100% sure he would end up with her. Airi was a decent character too. She willingly tried to befriend and date the most unsociable character, which was nice of her. But I don't understand why she was annoyed because Osamu would call her every day. Osamu was literally the least likable character with (again) zero emotional intelligence. But we did see his growth. Credit goes to that bit at least. That should be a good thing. Risa was a mom. So that's the biggest aspect of her. I wish she didn't hesitate when making up her mind about Hayakawa. He was a good guy. But he rushed things too much, which is overwhelming for a woman with a kid. Not to mention he was not considerate of Risa's situation and circumstances. The acting was alright. They're all experienced actors, they delivered just fine.
The Music:
This was probably the only good aspect of the drama. The theme song and endings were both sweet songs, very catchy, stayed stuck in my head for a while. The BGM was also alright.
Rewatch Value:
Not worthy of a rewatch. Like I said in the title, I'd much rather forget about this drama.

Conclusion:
I think I had high expectations from this drama, mostly because the cast was promising. But this was a big letdown. I won't recommend this drama. 3/10.

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Messy writing for Ja and First again

I really wished that for once Ja and First would get a good script for a show, but sadly it wasn't the case. This show violated the most basic rules of writing: Show, don't tell; Delete any unnecessary crap that doesn't serve the plot or the characterisation; don't leave or start random threads that lead nowhere or have no starting point. Achi remained characterless without any backstory, there were so many unnecessary scenes, stuff was brought up out of nowhere and lead nowhere and the issues created and resolved were confusing as hell. The story between the doc and Mueang was making the most sense and 90% of their scenes were NC scenes.
The story between Achi and Punn could have been good, if they had leaned more into Punn waking up from his idol worship and realise who Achi really is and if he liked that person just the same (or more) because of his flaws. This was all they needed to set up a good plot. Instead, we still know nothing about Achi and who he is- aside from being famous, Punn is still a weird fanboy and they created this weird "he took notes" issue that made zero sense.
Writing wise, as well as directing wise (where did this weird overacting scene from First come from in ep 12? Achi barely showed any emotions for 11 episodes and then he acts like this out of nowhere? Wth?!) this show is a mess.
The only thing they didn't do wrong is paint abuse as romance, so they get a star for missing that trap.

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Someone decided to make a Kdrama out of Tokyo Revengers, Steins;Gate, Erased and Your Name combined.

So someone watched Tokyo Revengers, Steins;Gate, Erased and Your Name and decided to make a KDrama out of these shows and I love it. The plot sounds simple, and in a way it is simple and generic, in terms of the time travel trope. I think the brilliance lies in how this trope is executed; after all every kdrama utilizes a subset of the already established tropes and what makes the memorable ones so good is how the trope is utilized and made effective. Perfect execution with the best parts of the shows without the drawbacks of each of them. However to understand what elements of each and in what linear combination, give rise to this show, you will have to watch it for yourself!

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A remake surpassing the original in length

The Korean remake of the Thai Bl original is surpassing in all aspects you can think of the original pruduction from Thailand. Comapred to the Thai production the Korean production is straightened, slimlined and on the point. The Thai production dragged on and on and seemed to lead into ... I don´t know where. It looks in retropective to me, that the Thai Bl needed nice boys of all kind to get a wide enough audience to get their advertising (productplacement) done.

2 couples and their struggles to get to each other is by far enough.

I like the professionality of the Korean productions to be honest and prefer them. And I really hope that the Korean BLs don´t become such a mass MeToo, fangirl catching, klick baiting, low level production.

The cast: great
The acting: plausible and good
Storyline: straigthened and slimlined, á point
Directing: good
Rewatch value: top

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Very enjoyable, great performances.

This was a great little movie. Note that it starts off in B&W, but switches to color shortly. While in large part a comedy, it deals with a few serious matters also, and does so very well. The performances of the two leads portraying each other were superb, in my opinion,...their mannerisms, vocals, and responses to different situations. Side characters were present, but not really developed much. I think this was the right call, as the time was much better spent focusing on the two main characters. I tend to really like Japanese cinema from the early 80s, and this somewhat quirky little film epitomizes it. Thumbs up.

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Women should not rule the world.

The Legend of Zhuohua is another in a string of recent female empowerment themed historical romantic dramas. The production is upfront that this drama is a work of pure fiction. It is impossible for women to exercise the kind of influence and authority portrayed in this story in ancient Chinese patriachical society. The attitudes and values articulated are also incredibly modern and unsurprisingly, resonate with current audiences. It should be enjoyed at face value accepting that many aspects of it are sheer fantasy.

Titular character Ma Zhuohua flees an arranged marriage to the capital; where she must pass the imperial exams to fulfill her ambition to be a female official. Quick witted and resourceful, she saves Lord Ding, a decorated war hero, when he is wouded in the middle of a clandestine operation. Their fates intertwine as he is the strongest advocate of opening up scholarship and official positions to women. As they collaborate on official assignments and work toward their shared vision of the country, they fall in love. Can their relationship navigate a feudal system that requires women officials to choose between marriage and their career?

The most enjoyable arcs of this drama are the early courtship ones. This is the first time I have enjoyed Jing Tian's playing such a clever, demurely mischevious and independent character. Despite a ghastly white color filter and not the best dubbing, the strong chemistry between Jing Tian and Feng Shaofeng is unmistakable. It is so refreshing and very hot to see such a candid, lively and purely adult relationship dynanic laced with flirtatiously racey dialogue. The humor is very well written and so cheekily portrayed that I laughed uproariously many times, and especially at the dirty jokes. The political commentary and philosophical debates are surprisingly well written, with a sophistication beyond what I would expect of a light romantic comedy like this.

Outside the empowerment theme, the sub-plots are not special but this top notch veteran cast is very charismatic and executes so well it makes up for some of the lack of originality. Both Shi Yueling and Wang Likun in particular deliver formidable, almost terrifying performances as Empress Dowager Zhou and Princess Roujia. I also found Roujia's complicated relationship with Shen Jinghong very interesting. Unfortunately just after the mid-way point, the narrative rehashes tired plotlines including noble idiocy, murder most foul and high treason. In quite a similar vein to Destined, it nose dives into a poorly designed political melodrama and predictible twists. Even incredible acting cannot paper over that this is yet another delusional ends justifies the means antagonist with an unconvincing villain origin backstory.

This would have made a much better 20 episode drama that ended on the intended message that women should seize their dreams. The writers took it one step further into women can also seize the world. And then left us with an unambiguous message that women should not rule the world. The first few arcs of this are worth about an 8.0 but the latter arcs are just 6.0/6.5. I can only give this a 7.0. Its still a quality production with some good laughs to pass some time but it won't rock your world.

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Very sweet, slow-burn (even though only 5 episodes)

Almost perfect!
The acting was awesome, very natural. Both actors were nuanced in facial expressions, tone of voice, and body posture. It was a joy watching them interact as their characters.

The show had a positive message and multiple thoughtful and memorable quotes.
There were a few comedic moments that made me legitimately laugh out loud.
Music was unremarkable, but didn't distract either.

The story felt a lot more rushed in the last episode than it had in the previous four episodes. For this reason, I wish they had made it six episodes. The ending wasn't completely satisfying because of this, in my opinion, and brought my rating down. I think it still has high rewatch value though.

SPOILER ABOUT ENDING:
... ... ...
After all the tension and build-up, having their first *mutual* kiss at the end interrupted left me feeling frustrated and disappointed, lol. I wanted that sweet resolution to go with the relief and happiness.

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Drama of Delight :)- UPDATE !

I only watched 4 episodes, yet I decided to write a review about this entertaining and positive drama. This drama brings a smile to your face:)

The chemistry between the main characters is absolutely terrific, and most of the scenes are about them - I assume they won't be able to live without each other soon , as Ml is always looking for ways and excuses to be with the FL :)

I'm just hoping for a happy ending now , because the drama is about time travel, PLEASEEE at least not a tragic one! . This drama came to me unexpectedly and made my evenings more pleasant. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did:))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

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UPDATE:
Here's my short summary of the drama :)

- The female lead was the most annoying, fickle, indecisive female protagonist I've ever watched this year.
- I kept watching primarily for the male lead; he was the redeeming factor.( i think I dropped this drama 5 times;)
- The antogonist was the most evil and handsome I've seen and I found it unrealistic how quickly he turned from good to evil
- At the beginning, I gave it a 10, but I must correct it to 7.5. However, I'll round it up to 8 for my patience in watching it until the end and for the ML. LOL

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I shake my head and roll my eyes throughout the drama - Messy and Too much going on

If this were a full-length drama, I would have given this a less than 5 rating. I am going to be a little more forgiving as this is a low budget drama. But this drama still cannot be compared to another web drama, “Provoke”. “Provoke” is so much better.

The plot here is ridiculous and full of plot holes and unrealistic ‘twists’. They try to jam too many things into this short drama. I think a fake/contract marriage + enemies-to-lovers + revenge should be more than enough. But no, they added politics. The acting is decent, and the leads are a good-looking pair. The chemistry is pretty good in the beginning but the leads got together way too early and then the chemistry is gone. We do have a couple (not enough) shirtless hot abs scenes, but not passionate or good kisses (FL needs to work harder). The cinematography and production value aren’t that great, more on par with “Maid’s Revenge”. I am blinded by the super bright/white backlighting and camera flashes.

I can’t help but shake my head and roll my eyes when watching this. The good-looking male lead and the pretty female lead are not enough for me to recommend this drama. I have to force myself to finish watching. I enjoy watching this LESS than “Maid’s Revenge”, even though it’s about the same quality. So, I feel I need to rate “My Everlasting Bride” a 6.5 and not a 7.0.


Completed: 9/19/2023 - Review #356

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One of the best movies with a excellent acting I've ever seen!

I am unable to be interested in watching movies since a long time. I watch like 2 or 3 movies a year but I could watch this movie in one go. The emotions and acting made me cry a lot throughout the whole movie. The main lead did an awesome acting (I want to say this 1000 times) , I could feel his emotions deeply. The little girl also slayed her acting. Not to mention the whole supporting characters did very well too. The story was very well written. I'm not good at writing reviews but had to write it anyway cause it's too good! Thanks a lot to the whole cast and crew of the movie! I found this movie a very inspiring and motivational.

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