Reviews

Han So Hee killed it in this drama

Han So Hee blew me away! She showed a wide variety of emotions and she nailed each one every time. She finally got rid of her blank expressions which were noticeable in her earlier works but I didn't see one blank expression at all in this series. She has grown so much as an actress in such a short amount of time. She's no longer just a pretty face and her acting skills has definitely surpassed her visuals. I truly believe she deserves an award for the way she portrayed this role. Outstanding to the point she outshone PSJ on several scenes, eventhough PSJ was excellent as well. Love love love this drama. although it's fiction , I really felt like the dialogue had more meaning as if giving a tribute to what happened in the past in real life. You can feel the injustice and pain of war's victims while watching this drama. Excellent cast, very good script, outstanding acting.

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So high review but it wasn't 10/10

Story was great and there relationship from start to end was Great too

They wasted lot of time on her BOSS. 20 episodes, trying to make her cindrella and then got denied..

Real flirting started from 21
Relationship started at 27 episode out of 35
Other then her childhood divorced sweetheart there was no villian

she did not let him even kiss her,
She did not introduced him to her friends herself he went there and she has to....
She was smart enough to understand YUTAO was a scambeg but she keep in touch with him and let him manipulate there relationship.
FL Asked him to kept that from her mother but he went on to tell her
He look down on FL and insulted her
But she just accepted all that because he is her childhood sweetheart ? Ugly look sweetheart.
She don't ask her mother who told her about how is her boyfriend ?
At least a SLAP he deserves from FL.
In e 34
I did not get it why she even accepted yutao call and even going to meet that lowlife, if she have that much free time then she should spend that with her boyfriend then a lowlife...

GU YU TAO DESERVES A HARD SLAP

Boring for 20 Episodes

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"Marriage is war without guns"

Angsty domestic drama doesn't get any better than this. I loved how this was able to deliver jaw dropping twists and capital D drama while also providing the audience nuanced characters and enthrallingly thorny, complex relationships. You also get excellent SKY Castle-esque social commentary about how soul destroying it can be to have to constantly maintain the facade of perfection, the "show window" life.

I would feel shock and excitement but at the same time each character's behavior was always understandable given their psychological make up and background. Since the characters remain in constant forced proximity at home and work and can't just switch off their emotional and logistical ties to each other no matter how badly things go awry, so many scenes crackle with tension. The dialogue is sophisticated and clever but what remains unsaid as the leads try to retain some element of public decorum is also powerful. Even the corporate maneuvering is riveting.

I loved everything about this and can't recommend it highly enough.

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Fun Time Travel Romance

This was a very fun drama! I enjoy time travel romances such as Live Up to Your Name and Mr. Queen, so this was a nice new drama in the same vein. The main couple's relationship development was really well done, moving from initial dislike to eventually being head over heels for each other. The secondary couple was adorable and hilarious as well! I loved Sa Wol's character. I also really liked Tae Min - I appreciated the development of his relationships with his brother and SIL.

I also liked how Tae Min's mom wasn't pigeonholed into being a complete villain and was portrayed as a three dimensional, believable character. I'm happy that things worked out for her in the end. I wasn't super happy about what happened to the grandpa since it didn't feel completely believable - it was very makjang imo.

Characters aside, I thought that the past and present life's parallel storylines were quite well done. The reveal that the grandpa was the real villain was decently built up. I also liked seeing the differences between the first and last episodes. The lady with mystical powers was a good plot device to tie things together. Finally, Yeon Woo's arrival to New Joseon was absolutely hilarious and really made the first few episodes for me! Dol Se the vacuum deserves an honorable mention for his sacrifice.

Overall, despite the large amount of chaebol infighting, I thought that this was a fantastic drama. The acting was excellent, the romance was sweet, funny, and believable, and the storyline was fun and exciting. The balance between humor and seriousness was also really well done throughout. 9 stars.

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Love it or Hate it

I feel like this is one of those dramas you either love or hate. On one hand, I found it entertaining. On the other hand, the plot was full of holes. It's a fish out of water story that involves a Joseon girl time traveling to modern day Korea. Unlike most leads in a fish out of water plot, FL is a quick study and adapts to modern life very quickly to the point that it's kind of unrealistic (but so is time travel so who am I to say anything). I found this drama to be mediocre, especially with the business succession part of the drama. However, I loved the cast, especially the lead actress (Lee Se Young). The main couple was also very cute together, but how they meet and fall in love is a bit cliché. The outfits were one of my favorite things about this drama. FL's outfits were simply gorgeous. I also loved the dorky secondary couple who acted as comedic relief. The last few episodes were a bit draggy which lowered my rating a bit. It's not a bad watch and even entertaining if you shut your brain off and enjoy the show. They even throw in a few good twists. Don't ask me how or if they make sense. I personally was satisfied with the ending, although I know a lot of people were disappointed. They certainly leave a lot of loose ends.

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Good chemistry, plot holes, unsatisfying ending

Positives points :
- What I love the most about this drama is the chemistry, dynamic and relationship of the leads. I continued mostly for that.
- I love the comedy and the friendship
- the cinematography is beautiful
- the second couple, they are fun to watch

Negatives points :
- the plot was promising, but in the end not that good for me and boring for some eps or moments. I actually wasn’t that hooked after the first 2 eps. But some thing still surprised me, I actually didn’t see it coming that his grandpa was a bad guy.
- Could stand ML’s brother for most of the drama. For me, he was a creep, weird guy for many eps. His comments or reactions regarding FL and mostly his liking for her made me uncomfortable and that was weird.
- the plot holes, feel like things weren’t explained or didn’t make sense
- how the time travel plot is written
- the ending is surely the part that made my rating go down a little. Didn’t like it. Waste of time, why made her stay in the past for the entire ep. It was just sad moments and uninteresting for me since she didn’t want to have a relationship with past him, she loves present ML. I found it weird people wanting her to stay in the past, have a relationship with past him. I just wanted more moments and a good ending in the present. She could have gone back sooner, like 20-30 min before than end so we can have a good and satisfying ending. We also didn’t see her reuniting with her best friend. But no, they went with the 1-2 min reunion. I’ve seen that annoying ending enough in Cdramas. First time I see an ending like this for a kdrama, expect my Dearest ending maybe. For me an ending like this seems like just wanting to dump a « HE » for the viewers. Also, the whole thing with the 2 Tae Ha and the kinda love triangle was weird. Plus, I agree with some comments that they could have made her appear in the pool and recreate the first ep.
Yeah, they added like 2 more minutes at the very end with the wedding. Cute, but still not satisfying. I would have like better to see more of them living happily for like 20 min or with kids or what happens with her career than seeing a wedding again.

Overall for the romance, it’s a good watch, so I would recommend even if I didn’t like it that much. I was expecting something better before starting.

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Great drama. Don't miss it! Beware! Wrong title!

24 episodes 15 minutes each.

I always steer clear of short episodes as I find them too shallow and unfulfilling. However, I recently stumbled upon a teaser of this intriguing drama on YouTube. I watched the first episode and was immediately hooked. Despite the fact that episodes 15 and beyond were not available anywhere else, I subscribed to Youku because I knew I had to watch the full drama - that's how good it is.

Of course, there were some inconsistencies in the story, such as the title of the drama itself. The main character is an eunuch, not a governor, but my guess is that Chinese censorship had a say in it. Even though it's a possible Chinese taboo to imagine an eunuch in love, this drama managed to execute the plot without making it feel cheap or tacky. The actors were brilliant and the storyline was captivating - I couldn't ask for more from a drama.

In conclusion, I highly recommend this drama to anyone who wants to watch something that is well-produced and engaging.

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Looks Beautiful, Feels Hollow

I don't like the categories for rating on here. My 4 categories are Acting/Cast, Writing, Direction/SFX/Music, Entertainment Value.

After I had binge-watched this drama in 1 day, I was left with mixed feelings. I spent some time reflecting on it to better understand what I liked and didn't like about it. By the way, I have not read the webtoon that it is adapted from.

Acting/Cast: I literally only wanted to watch this because it had been a while since I've seen Suzy in a drama. Don't let that fool you though - I actually don't think she's a good actress. Everything I've seen her in, her acting is subpar. However, she's one of the few actors that I still enjoy watching despite their acting ability. Instead, I like to watch her for the sake of nostalgia (Uncontrollably Fond -- my 1st K-Drama, Dream High). This drama was no different for Suzy; her acting was still lacking. But even so, I was glad to see her. On the other hand, Yang Se Jong (양세종) is a good actor. I've only seen him in one other drama (Thirty but Seventeen -- one of my top 10 K-Dramas) and I loved him in that one, so I was relieved to see that he would be playing the male lead in Doona! I knew Suzy would need the help and I was right - he was great. They worked well together and I felt their chemistry. The side characters were interesting too. I thought I wouldn't like them and I didn't at first, but they ended up being a fun addition. I actually wanted to see more of them. 5/10

Writing: This is the difficult part...this is the part that left me with this hollow feeling. It's as though I walked into a building that was still under construction. The foundation is set, the support beams have been erected, the walls are starting to be built up, and I can see signs of some great craftsmanship and beautiful architecture. But, the construction was left abandoned...I guess because the architect thought it looked more meaningful this way. I can't say that more episodes would have fixed this problem, because it seems to be an artistic choice. I felt as if the writing was skirting around the issues, afraid to really delve deep. I saw the potential for the drama to get into more of the psychology of Doona -- to really understand not only her, but others in the entertainment industry that may be facing similar problems, but it just didn't happen. This hollowness was even felt with the side characters. It seemed like they were just thrown in without much character development, which is a shame because I actually ended up liking them. The chemistry between the 2 leads helped to sell the romance in K-Drama world, but it didn't feel like a real-life romance to me. Observing it realistically, Doona would be the type of girl you'd expect to be (to put it nicely) a serial dater. She would have eaten that sweet guy alive in reality -- completely crush his heart with no remorse. So, while I was watching, I was very scared for him...I mean, she's just one giant red flag. But anyway, I'll stop here so I don't give any spoilers. 1.5/10

Direction/SFX/Music: Easily the best thing about this drama. It is very pretty, very aesthetically pleasing. Great ASMR mic quality. Great cinematography all around. I even like some of the music. My favorite songs on the OST are The Universe by Kwon Jin Ah and Still by DVWN. I think this is why it was so easy for me to binge this drama - it was just so nice to look and and listen to. 9.5/10

Entertainment Value: I found myself hanging on the every word while watching this drama. Even rewinding if I missed a sentence. I only do that when I'm genuinely enjoying a drama. However, by the end, I was left dissatisfied and wanting so much more. Maybe a bit confused, too. Towards the end it became somewhat frustrating to watch. I myself wasn't even sure of Doona's feelings... 4.5/10

Overall, I gave this drama a 5/10. It was difficult to put a number on it since my feelings about it are all over the place. Would I recommend this drama? Probably not... unless you're a fan of one of the leads.

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Overall entertaining

Good points: I enjoyed each cast performance, it was action packed without any dull/ boring moment, drama managed to deliver multiple genres action, thriller, melodrama, romance while bringing up heavy society issues in just 8 eps.
Bad points: Drama was too gory for my taste in some scenes and i`m fed up with cliche psycho chaebol villain. I saw some comments of some people having issues with ending message, but i`m just taking whole drama at face value. It`s fictional story about one character and his journey. Viewers shouldn`t expect drama to be realistic or solve society issues

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IMPORTANCE OF LIFE AND SELF VALUE amazing portrayal

Death game is not for the weak, it showed me a very different side of the human species that we do not see portrayed in everyday dramas and movies. It has shown how important our life and memories as well as experiences are equally important and how we take for granted our time with our loved ones and everyone around us.

Storyline:
The story line was much deeper than i had expected starting this show without reading any kind of description beforehand, it shows the true meaning of life and death and how we often live life assuming well wake up the next day, Our struggles do not define us and life will never be lived out in a straight line we have to let time and our own actions heal our struggles and difficulties in order to reach the light. That suicide is not harmful to ourselves in a physical way, it was the family members, loved ones, humans around the deceased that were harmed and battling with loneliness and guilt throughout their lives during the aftermath. THEY are the true victims of the crime. Seeking light may not be easy and there are many lessons to be learned in life but as long as we let our bodies and soul continue on this green earth we have to believe and have hope that we WILL end up ok.

Actors:
The cast truly astonished me with the performance of every character, they understood the brief, the story, theme and timeline were very well shown throughout the drama.

Ending/MY THOUGHTS:
Notice how "Death" Gave Choi Yi Jae a second chance at life after he had realized how wronged and ashamed he was to commit and leave his loved ones and life behind, This shows that even in the FACE and "punishment" of "Death" God shows him light and he then gets to truly understand beautiful life is and how much it means to him after trial and error. It was beautifully played out. After living through different bodies of life and going through their experiences he then realized how he himself as a person needs to live on, living as another being even if that meant his own mother, he was not able to truly live as himself. Just as Ji Soo says earlier says in the series, You are not fully living if your not living as your true self. This really, it also makes me think of how hard we human beings try to be happy we can never truly feel full when pretending were ok, we have to genuinely be ok to feel ok. We will never know what will happen in our lives so we must keep riding along if we want to find out. No matter what obstacles we come across we must stay strong with our bodies, with our loved ones anf take pride and be grateful for the light the lord has shown us so far whether that be in the form of health, in the form of accomplishments or in the form of ability and capabilities of our own bodies the lord has made for us. Seeking darkness and being afraid of failure is tiring and will come to haunt us. Self sabotage WILL sabotage us if we LET OURSELVES BELIEVE IT, IF WE LET OURSELVES LIVE IT.

REWATCH VALUE
the only reason i put this point at a 1 star is only because it is a lot to take in and can be hard to process more than once.

CONCLSUIONS
Don't show yourselves only darkness, try to seek light in the face of darkness,
Allows yourselves to feel
To feel free
To feel stressed
To feel happy
To feel loved
To feel brave
To feel relieved
This is what it means to live.
Be there for yourself and for your loved ones
Learn what life is all about and how you want yours to look like.
Don't get caught up in the act of trying to find reasons why you don't deserve to be happy.
Don't get caught up in seeking A THING, you will simply not find it.

Live life with your own PURPOSE
Don't live life looking for one.


You are enough.
You are ALIVE

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Funny and Cute

I heard this drama was filmed over six years ago. So I know the story is old, the fashion is old. But to my surprise, the acting is delightful because the actor and actress are so cute, and the story is funny. To kill some time and feel amused, this is a good show. Please don't be too serious about it.
I am also happy to see Chinese and Korean actors and actresses collaborate in the drama. It must not be easy to act when you don't understand your partner's language. I wonder how these actors and actresses react to their drama six years later. Will they feel funny and awkward to watch themselves acting six years ago? Anyway, I like drama, especially the main characters, who are all handsome and beautiful. It helps me destress.

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Great start but hated the ending

Spoiler Alert!

Really enjoyed the start, liked the sister relationship, got invest in FL’s relationship with WJG, she was so invested in then she ends up sacrificing WJG, giving him to her ssiter, and falling for the General (nothing against his character who was the only one who stayed true to character) and sister ended up with WJG. Argghhh! And because of how they paired up so rushed at the end, the relationships ended up feeling forced. Was so angry with the ending. Sister relationship at the end was disappointing too, it got tiresome with FL constantly helping the sister and felt as if they both betrayed each other’s feelings and couldn’t face each other at the end. Sister stayed with WJG. SML changed his mind but he didn’t seem totally happy. The relationships felt so forced and their love so wish washy with no loyalty at all. It wasn’t a happy ending. So disappointed and angry I wasted my time on it.

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Prepare those tissues!

This review covers both parts of The Blue Whisper.

The show, in many sites are shown as 1 with a total of 42 episodes but it's separated into 2 parts, first part is 22 episodes and Part 2 is 20 episodes. The entire series is a recommendation, if you love fairies, immortals, mythical beasts etc. The story line is nice and amazing, alot of teary parts - hence the reminder to prepare your tissues. Throughout the whole series, both Part 1 and 2, there are alot of emotional moments that somehow feels like it could just rip you apart. There are also many funny moments to be found but alot of sad and betrayal moments.

The casts did a splendid job on this series, both the Male and Female Lead are superb. They really did a great job portraying their characters, especially the merman. The innocence along with all the other mix emotions from happiness, sadness, betrayal etc has been portrayed remarkably by Ren Jia Lun (Male lead). Dilraba also did a remarkable job - at times, you don´t even know if she really meant what she said or was it just a plot to get things done.

The soundtrack for both parts are quite nice. Although the beginning song for Part 2, in my opinion, was just too shrilly. I love the song that Ren Jia Lun sang - The merman song - but unfortunately couldn't really find that song with him singing it instead of the original singer.

I would recommend to watch, if you like the synopsis after reading it. Rewatching wise, well, that would really depend on individual opinions. But I have watched it more than twice already. xD

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Prepare your tissues..........

This review covers both parts of The Blue Whisper.

The show, in many sites are shown as 1 with a total of 42 episodes but it's separated into 2 parts, first part is 22 episodes and Part 2 is 20 episodes. The entire series is a recommendation, if you love fairies, immortals, mythical beasts etc. The storyline is nice and amazing, alot of teary parts - hence the reminder to prepare your tissues. Throughout the whole series, both Part 1 and 2, there are alot of emotional moments that somehow feels like it could just rip you apart. There are also many funny moments to be found but alot of sad and betrayal moments.

The casts did a splendid job on this series, both the Male and Female Lead are superb. They really did a great job portraying their characters, especially the merman. The innocence along with all the other mix emotions from happiness, sadness, betrayal etc has been portrayed remarkably by Ren Jia Lun (Male lead). Dilraba also did a remarkable job - at times, you don´t even know if she really meant what she said or was it just a plot to get things done.

The soundtrack for both parts are quite nice. Although the beginning song for Part 2, in my opinion, was just too shrilly. I love the song that Ren Jia Lun sang - The merman song - but unfortunately couldn't really find that song with him singing it instead of the original singer.

I would recommend to watch, if you like the synopsis after reading it. Rewatching wise, well, that would really depend on individual opinions. But I have watched it more than twice already. xD

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