Reviews

Burning ♡♡(*´ω｀*)/♡Noona Romance

Great Drama. Chemistry between the main leads were so great it felt as if they were dating in real life. Maybe?
ML and FL were really passionate in their intimate scenes! Too much skinship!
I highly suspect, if these leads were really a couple behind the camera! It's possible, many movie stars get into relationship, shortly after performing a passionate romance in their movies.
The way ML kissed, on FL's neck, down the neck, touching her lips while maintaining a close eye contact... FL garbing ML's chest, grazing his chest, his collar, touching his lips while speaking.... every thing she does is, she subconsciously giving into her wildest desires! Too many physical contacts, kisses, hugs, touches... When in close ups, FL's eyes are always at ML's lips..... She is crazy for him!

I am 100% sure that both the leads were couple at least during this drama shoot.

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Refreshing like a watermelon

I have no words to express how much I loved this drama. This was like a breath of fresh air for me. The characters are well-written, and the story is so emotional and enjoyable and has so many lessons and emotions carved into it. At the beginning of the last episode, I was destroyed emotionally and cried a lot, but the ending made me so happy T^T.

My only complaint, and also the reason I don't give this drama a 10, is that I would have liked to see more of their lives in the future, both Eun Gyeol with his family and Eun Yu with her mom. Also, Eun Gyeol and his father playing the song they wrote together would have been nice.

This is my first time doing a review, and I'm glad it's about this story. I'm so grateful to have watched such a great drama. It was just perfect. I'll miss them so much T^T.

Twinkling watermelon will always have a special place in my heart.♡

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Ridiculously Exaggerated, Even For A Fantasy.

It's written, acted, and directed like a middle schooler's idea of porn. I barely made it through 1.5 episodes (rolling my eyes almost the entire time) before dropping.

The cinematography is gorgeous but everything else is aggressively awful. The "physical intimacy" is more like an attack by a boy who has never had sex before and doesn't know what he's doing. It wasn't seductive or enticing at all. It further erroded the "I'm a cool, competent, and manly mafia leader" facade they were going for. The male lead is trying so, so hard to look and sound cool that it has the opposite effect and had me laughing. Even for a short format fantasy, the falling in love part is so fast that there's no romance to it. Almost every line is cloyingly cliché.

It was cheesy and horrible but didn't leave any mental scars so it gets a 2.

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Definitely not what's expected–keeps you leashed on like a pleading puppy

This is definitely not everyone's cup of tea. But it's a Binge Show for sure.
I have to categorize this drama more of noir/thriller/mystery rather than something fun-loving. Reminds me of moods in American drama Euphoria but in a completely different setting and storyline. Of course, with all these dramas, you have to take things with a grain of salt. This story definitely exaggerates the lives of influencers and celebrities, and there are some scenes that are quite fake imo; however, it doesn't destroy from a drama that continues to live up to the quote, "never know your next move". It truly was astonishing.

Honestly, I really wasn't expecting to be so hooked with this drama, as I've actually been hearing pretty bad reviews in general before I started, but I'm honestly so glad I finished it until the end. Not quite happy with the ending, just felt like it could've been a bit more rounded off and finished cleanly, but I guess it also helps keep people guessing the aftermath in a sense.

The best thing about this drama was how much it hooked you in. It grabs you, keeps your attention in-line and doesn't let go. And it's like this, Every. Single. Episode. I tried, I really tried taking breaks but it just wouldn't! My eyes would wander off but my brain would continue to think. That's how you know you're gripped in this never ending game.
AKA there is not a single wasted moment in the storyline. Literally everything either takes your breath away or wants you indulging for more, whether it be the main characters or other people. Hence, the writing is impeccable. The only frustrating part, for those who are all in about FL and ML, would have to be a tinge of lack of romance scenes (i.e. there was only one kiss scene throughout this whole show) between the FL and ML. But it's also understandable, since it's not the main point.

All in all, HANDS DOWN TO THE ACTORS/ACTRESSES, literally every. single. one. of them. You have to take credit for loving them, hating them, being suspicious with every character no matter how attractive they are. The cast really made the plot and storyline exponentially better. Period.

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this drama means everything to me.

put your hand up if your the best kdrama to come out of 2023:

twm: 🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌🙌

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Good series but something still missing

The series is fun and has lots of over the top drama. The leads have great chemistry. The story is a bit much over the top at times. I have to say it's a great series in the story idea, but the execution of the series was a bit off. The character of Tinn is the only good guy in this series. Charn is not trust worthy from the start, and to much of a player for my liking. Sadly very disappointed with the story development and over the top acting at times. This could have been so amazing of a series, but the lack of morals and very unrealistic law and justice makes it to be all a big joke. The actors are great but the character development is bad. I really wish they took this series is a better direction. The two girls that are there friends are great characters, and the ex was a nice touch, love them. The second couple which is the son and bodyguard sadly not a fan of at all, their story was dull and lacked real chemistry. Wish they did a better job in the emotion department felt off considering this was all suppose to be about his niece death and yet felt like hardly touched on at all, the story was way to fast in getting them together. Good series but felt flat a lot when it came to morals and unrealistic at times. I do love both of their smiles are beautiful and crazy. The singing is amazing as well.

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the stylist....

I wonder why the main female character's clothing style is really unattractive? I know her character was created as someone simple, but that doesn't align with the image built in the drama. Because simple doesn't mean it doesn't look attractive.

the color of the clothes is very flat for Bailu's character.

I often find things like this in Chinese dramas and it makes me keep cursing the drama stylist, because I see the male characters' clothes are fine.

Even though the clothing brand is expensive, if the colors and combination are not good, this will make it unattractive on screen. Don't forget Bailu's hair style, why not try to make it look more professional like the other characters?

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A nice, funny series with an extraordinary Chen Zhe Yuan

Totally fanciful series on the theme “Beauty and the Beast”.
To appreciate it, thanks to the talent of Chen Zhe Yuan, who literally carries the drama on his shoulders, you have to agree to leave your brain at the door ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

PLOT: The FL, daughter of a nobleman, met the ML 5 years ago, and swallowed his pearl by accident. The ML, King of the Beast Clan, a hidden kingdom protected by a spell, must recover his pearl to save his kingdom. But the pearl can only be retrieved by a kiss from True Love. He kidnaps the FL, forces her to marry him and tries to win her over. He has a human appearance during the day, which FL falls in love with, but a wolf appearance at night. So she does everything possible to push him away.

PROS:
+ light series, no fuss, no painful scenes.
+ Excellent actors, particularly CZY brilliant in this double role.
+ Good quality CGI
+ wonderful (anachronistic) costumes, especially the FL outfits.
+ a few mystery, a touch of suspense, a lot of humor.

CONS:
- Slightly slow narration and some repetitive narrative arcs => skipping ep22-ep25

=> nice, funny series with an extraordinary Chen Zhe Yuan
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Série totalement fantaisiste sur le thème "la belle et la bête".
Pour l'apprécier, grâce au talent de Chen Zhe Yuan qui porte littéralement le drama sur ses épaules, il faut accepter de laisser son cerveau à la porte ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

PLOT: La FL, fille d'un noble, a rencontré le ML il y a 5 ans, et a avalé sa perle par accident. Le ML, King of the Beast Clan, royaume caché et protégé par un sort, doit récupérer sa perle pour sauver son royaume. Mais la perle ne peut être récupérée car par un baiser de True Love. Il enlève la FL, l'oblige à l'épouser et essaie de la conquérir. Il a une apparence humaine dans la journée, dont la FL tombe amoureuse, mais une apparence de loup la nuit. Elle fait donc tout son possible pour le repousser.

PROS:
+ série légère, sans prise de tête, pas de scène douloureuse.
+ Excellents acteurs, particulièrement CZY brillant dans ce double rôle.
+ CGI de bonne qualité
+ costumes (anachroniques) magnifiques, particulièrement les tenues de la FL.
+ un peu de mystère, une touche de suspense, beaucoup d'humour.

CONS:
- Narration un peu lente et certains arcs narratifs répétitifs => skipping ep22-ep25

=> série sympa, drôle avec un extraordinaire Chen Zhe Yuan

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Unexpectedly Charming

I went into this show with little expectations, just thinking it would be another teen love story with a twist. From the minute I started it until the very last episode I got the most wonderful treat. The way Ryeoun and Choi Hyun Wook absolutely embodied their characters, the classic sight gags and overall energy of this show definitely created a different and enjoyable time travel show. The creativity the writers put into the series could be felt and the way relationships evolved. Each one was unique and you could see that. There was no anxiety induced intense scenes that made you question if you should keep watching since the show revolved around the relationships of the teens and not so much the tragic backstory of the 4 main characters. This is definitely at the top of my “rewatch when I’m feeling down” list.

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TE AMO JI JUNXING

Al principio cuando lo vi por primera vez me encantó por lo que leí la novela original pero al leer esta y volver a ver la serie me decepcione un poco, osea yo sabía que la novela era distinta al drama pero no me esperaba que tanto, siento que pudieron agregar muchas cosas y sacar otras cosas.
No me gusta que Lin Xi se enteré después de un tiempo que el que tiene el corazón de su hermano es Luchi y no Ji Junxing cuando en la novela ella siempre lo supo por lo cual su relación nunca fue rara pq ella nunca pensó que era como su hermano.
Tampoco me gusta el hecho de que hayan cambiado tanto la personalidad de los personajes por ejemplo Song Lixue estaba como medio loca pero acá la hicieron tranquila y eso, lo cual hicieron con muchos personajes.
Siento que pusieron cosas no tan importantes de la novela pero omitieron varios detalles que si lo era o escenas muy lindas entre los protas.
Algo que también me molesta es que no agregaron personajes como las compañeras de cuarto de Lin Xi o al tío de Ji Junxing ni a Bai Jun (aunque entiendo que debe ser por la censura pero aún así los puedieron agregar) y agregaron personajes que no aportan nada a la trama como YueYue.

NADA MI GENTE LEANSE LA NOVELA Y VEANSE LA SERIEEE, YO ME QUEJO SOLO PORQUE ME GISTA QUEJARME

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"Twinkling Watermelon" radiates warmth and knows how to touch. Cheers to life. (And to magic, too.)

What a nice surprise in 2023!
Full of heart and love for music, too. Though neither major, nor minor, but plenty of both. Fresh, cheeky, cheerfully playful and yet with complex substance. RomCom inclusive. “Twinkling Watermelon” follows the trend of 2023 productions: time travel. A journey into the past, into the parents' late youth - as a gift that offers the chance to understand a little more about them and thus at best make peace with life here and there. Charming magic is also involved, as life is full of surprises if you just open and follow your heart... that's the wonderful motto that offers balm for troubled souls. Viva la Vida!

In fact, the story's ostensibly cheerful melody is supported by an emotionally serious basso continuo. This gives this KDrama a warm, complex, lasting depth, despite all its youthful playfulness. The protagonist is a hearing child of deaf parents (CODA). He is an extremely talented, eager, responsible, loving son and brother, but he is inevitably somewhat overwhelmed by his responsibilities (as a child), out of guilt loading even more responsibility on his shoulders. He feels lonely at times with his experiences of the acoustic world that he cannot share with his parents. And he also suffers from the social marginalization that he and his family experience.
Eun-gyeol (for all his positive approach to the challenges of his life) embodies the psychological conflicts of any CODA, that he, too, has to deal with by living between the worlds (with and without acoustics). He does it quite well, yet deep down he understandably suffers from the great responsibility he has to bear as a child already. Sooner or later he has to come to terms with this conflict in a self-loving and self-confident manner, so that he may allow himself to go his own way in life, too, despite the challenge. Basically, it is precisely this inner psychological dynamic that is the dramaturgical driving force of the story.
It is not uncommon for CODAs to seek professional support or ask for help, if the emotional burden feels too heavy. (Just like anybody else would as long as they acknowledge.) Here the support comes unexpectedly in the form of a magical journey through time, and there is help, too. But significantly, Eun-gyeol got so caught up in his trained behavior pattern that he (almost obsessively) only sees the time travel as another challenge to prove himself and being in charge - no matter what the cost. It is almost verging on megalomania to believe that he might now be responsible for the fate of his parents in their past, too. (However, throughout the series this aspect opens up room for fun and comedy.) On the other hand, the immense inner psychological pressure that he puts on himself also subtly reflects the sad dilemma that keeps him trapped. (Which in turn latently contributes to the emotional depth of the KDrama.)

In fact, “Twinkling Watermelon” opens up space for even more serious topics in different storylines. Aside from the social stumbling blocks in the lives of deaf people, there are child abuse and suicidal tendency, too. Thus, overall, there are pretty profound themes that the KDrama tackles bravely and plays through with a lot of feeling, yet still in a digestible manner - despite all the seriousness, embedded in colorful joy of life. "Twinkling Watermelon" radiates warmth and knows how to touch. Cheers to life. (And to magic, too, that can re-shuffle the cards of time and space... who knows?)









PS:
Would have, could have... if only the sign language hadn't been processed acoustically... but authentic silence was probably too daring... and would probably have neutralized the lively esprit of the music band's approach towards life... hmm... everything altogether probably doesn't work...

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The best drama of the year

MASSIVE SPOILERS AHEAD

Let me start by saying that I usually hate time travel dramas. They're tropey and tend to follow the same plot. The characters tend to spend too much time freaking out over the culture shock, etc. I also actively avoid shows that are currently airing. I have no patience, and I prefer binge-watching. This drama changed my perspective. While I initially started watching because of the Reply series vibes and Ryeoun's performance in Adult Trainee, I was quickly won over by the cast's chemistry, amazing acting, and the refreshing take on the recently overdone time travel trope.

This has to have one of the best cast chemistry of all time. They felt like childhood friends. The cast's acting was amazing, especially Choi Hyun Wook and Shin Eun Soo's performance. Yi Chan and Cheong Ah were my favorite characters and my favorite couple. Yi Chan as a character was so charismatic you couldn't help but fall for him. His bromance with Eun Gyeol was so funny and endearing. His romance with Cheong Ah was so sweet. You have to watch the drama just for their scenes. Shin Eun Soo shines in this drama with her ability to convey such emotions through sign language and expressions alone. Cheong Ah goes through a lot of highs and lows in this drama, and she becomes her own hero. The writers tug at your heartstrings throughout.

This drama had me emotionally spent by the end. I cried at least once per episode. The writing, acting, and OST worked together to just rip me apart. That ending was beautiful. The return to 2023 was a little jarring. Suddenly everyone was famous and rich. It was too different for me, but that all ended when the parents' friends showed up. Intersplicing the younger versions of the characters with the older ones brought back the wholesome and sweet vibe of the show.

I did like the changes made to Yi Chan's future. He still had his friends by his side and they all learned sign language for him and his wife. I appreciated that he still became deaf, despite Eun Gyeol's efforts, because it wasn't something that needed correcting. Eun Gyeol's impact was ensuring Yi Chan didn't abandon his friends and dreams.

I feel like I could spend hours listing all the things I love about this drama. It was such a sweet story and I'm definitely rewatching it whenever I feel nostalgic for a simpler time. It's one of my favorite dramas of all time.

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Sisterhood, family, love, loyalty and secular prejudice

I loved the drama! It was a masterpiece in every aspect. The show depicted family values, sisterhood, equality, loyalty, and the significance of education in building a better society. Although there were a few inconsistencies, the show was thoroughly enjoyable. However, I do wish that the lead couple had been more assertive. It would have added an extra layer of excitement to the storyline.

One of the things that I loved the most about the show was the positive portrayal of sisterhood. It was refreshing to see women with different personalities getting along with each other without any jealousy or rivalry. The show also emphasized the significance of food, kindness, and respect in bringing people together. Although the show seemed a bit naive at times, I found myself getting more and more addicted to it with each passing episode.

The love story was simply beautiful and developed at a steady pace, with both men putting in their best efforts to win over their beloved. The show was further enhanced by a few comical scenes, adding to its overall charm.

Every supporting character fit like a puzzle piece around the two main characters. I was particularly impressed with the male lead's unwavering love and support for the female lead, who in turn portrayed her role outstandingly. All in all, this drama has definitely left a lasting impression on me.

In conclusion, I would highly recommend this drama to anyone who enjoys a heartwarming story filled with positive values.

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