Reviews

Good ideas and characters, but lacking production

Just binged this show last night, and I enjoyed it. The characters were fun, the comedy was good, and the story concept was compelling. Sadly the execution was lacking. The first three episodes were incoherent and the viewer is left utterly confused as to what the h*ll is even happening. Luckily it does improve a bit after that little hump, but the storytelling and plot are still full of holes throughout the show. A very fun game to play while watching this drama is find the boom mic. Clearly the poor sound crew holding the mic got tired arms, and for whatever reason they just didn't bother reshooting the scenes or even removing it in post.

On to the characters (slight spoiler warning here)

I enjoyed the first couple. They were very cute. Their storyline could have been more fleshed out and better executed, but it was interesting none the less. The actors did a good job with pretty much everything except the kiss scenes. Those were, sadly, dead fish kisses. Based on the other kiss scenes in this show, and other k-bls, I will assume the reason for this is that one of the actors in this pairing is an active kpop idol, and the company only allowed the bare minimum kisses.

The second couple are by far my favorite. I'm a sucker for a friends-to-lovers cliche, as well as the classic black cat x golden retriver trope. Ma ru was by far my favorite character in the show, and I enjoyed watching his antics. Overall the actors did great and had no dead fish kisses to be found.

The third couple. Probably my least favorite couple (but the teachers assistant was one of my favorite characters). Their relationship just felt a little toxic to me. That being said, the actors were not lacking in chemistry, and once again, no dead fish kisses.

Overall it was a fun watch. 4/10 for production/writing but 8/10 for enjoyment.

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Ao Haru Ride’s Best Live Action

Let me start with stating that I was a fan of the anime, and quickly pick up the manga right after, and unfortunately did not end up as one of my favorites due to many frustrations, but I was super excited about this live action since the trailer came out, why???

THE PERFECT CAST! like I was so surprise of these cast. I have also previously watch the live action movie version, and that pale into comparison with it’s casting especially for the main leads. I expected myself to be attracted to Kou, but never expected myself to be more attracted to Futaba on this version, the actress is such a delight to watch, and she wasn’t just pretty, she absolutely nailed the character, it was such a natural to watch her.

Season 1 only has 8 episodes, compare to anime who has 13 episodes, and the anime did not even get to a point where the main leads had their first kiss, so that being said a lot had been skipped. This live action was more fast paced and only focus on the highlights of the story, I would have like them to have spend more time on the friendship side too, and here I am suddenly wishing JDrama would have more episodes on their season. Probably the only cons I could point out. It would have been more flesh out relationship/friendship wise if there were more episodes to show the interactions.

Despite it being felt short, this version was definitely worth watching, the cast brought in their characters on a silver platter, they like came out of the pages, and portrayed their part beautifully.

The chemistry between the leads was great! I wish to see more and more of them, and I cannot wait for the season2. I need the sweet couple moments!

IF YOU ARE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE STORY:
The premise was amazing, the story is truly a classic romance story with all the drama if you like drama. Childhood friends/crushes who parted ways due to unexpected situation, and met again when both aren’t the same person as they used to be, and despite that changes, managed to still fell for each other the second time around and mixed it with drama.

I used to be very frustrated with Kou like I wanted to shake him so badly, but with this version (at least to what has been shown so far in terms of Kou’s attitude with Futaba) it’s been tone down which I appreciated so much, and the portrayal of the actor makes me understand his situation and his actions, his eyes are very expressive that hold such sadness, and all kinds of emotions.

With more drama coming their way on season 2, I would like to separate that second half of the story from my rating, season 1 served well and big thanks to the cast, I enjoyed every part of it.

THE OST WAS SO BEAUTIFUL! I’m addicted to the ost, it has been on repeat.

P.S. big thanks to the subber that subbed the show, she didn’t want to be linked but you’ll see her watermarked at the credits, it’s been amazing watching fansubs again, it takes me back when subs are done so beautifully matching the fonts, subbing all parts.

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Beautiful drama, but badly produced!

Let me start reviewing this drama by saying how this drama could have been much more popular and highly rated if the authors and producers had done a better job. That's it.

The story is rather the same drama fantasy cliche, extraordinary gifts, a murder plot, and a steamy office romance, mixed with childhood lovers. It had so much potential, the story is actually entertaining and the leads have a marvelous chemistry, so what went wrong?

The drama's story was all over the place. There is no development. There is no background history and suddenly the leads start liking each other. There is no connection between the characters in the drama and simply they exist because they had to. This lack of coherence is what made the drama poorly executed and less intriguing to the audience.

The leads have one of the most beautiful chemistries and there are many Romantic/steamy scenes but without any development. They could've used the fantasy element as the focus of the show and let the leads roll around by it. The second leads and other supporting cast simply show up and are done!

It doesn't seem like a low-budget drama but again, weak execution makes everything bland.

Overall, if you love romance and can simply watch a drama for its romance, then you will enjoy this drama! just don't get too deep into the story and let it roll :)

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Tropey but with some modern tweaks turned up a good series

Is this series tropey? Absolutely. Is it bad? Absolutely not.
It's actually adorable tbh. Let's break it down:

THE GOOD:
- The MC's are likeable and dorky with good humor and the ML actors have great chemistry and they vibed really well in their dorky, awkward, tropey roles.
- The tropes are easily bareable, because it's like, in between each trope, there's a moment of modern clarity. The best of this was seen in the final ep, where Shunyu explains his tropey nervous, confusing behaviour up to that point and we promptly see that once he's sure about Shangzhou's feelings, the confidence we usually see in him around colleagues quickly rears up. Also, he points how ridiculous it was that Shangzhou's mother slapped him, twice 😂 saying what we're all thinking, really.
- The extra cast members were likeable too, no one was hateable, not even Shangzhou's overdramatic mother.
- Production value was quite good, mostly suitable. Good aesthetic.
- The post credit kiss scene of the final ep is officially in my TOP 10 BL kisses, it hit just right at exactly the right time and the kiss came across easy and natural. I loved the lingering smile on Shunyu's face.
- It's funny, like I lol'd a lot, and that always raises the bar for me. The scene with the Shunyu, Shangzhou and the condoms was pretty hilarious, and the company trip, moving the decorations off the bed😂 very 'comedy relief'.

THE (not really) DOWNSIDE:
- The story is made up of tropes unfortunately, however, this didn't bother me so much because it was modernized and updated in a nice way.

The BL is not something deep or tackling any major or complicated issues, it's sweet and fun, amusing and well acted. I'd recc it for something light and enjoyable.
9/10 because the BEST thing would have been to remove the tropes completely. It's 2023, we don't need that ish.

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Well not bad I guess but little boring

finally finished this drama for 3 days. What I can say about this drama is that it was good at the beginning of the drama but in the middle it was quite boring. The story begins with FL father being involved in a case and being accused of being the cause of the deaths of many people in the factory he works in and the person judging him is ML father who was bribed. The story is very monotonous because it is easy to predict, like FL doing law counseling and being helped by ML and so on until the end of the drama. The romance isn't really felt in this drama because from the start there has been a very long time skip from teenage school days to work, so ml and fl already know each other and the romance approach isn't really felt because ml already had feelings from the start and fl had feelings at the beginning. At the start of the episode, it can be said that everyone likes each other, which is a bit of a shame because the romance genre and the law genre, as usual, don't really match because the law is more pronounced in this drama than the romance genre. Overall I gave this drama a score of 7-7.5, even though in the final episodes like episode 14, 16 I skipped a lot of scenes because I was bored, but in the end I was able to finish this drama.

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Bittersweet Love Story

**Brief Synopsis**
B (Gangster): Ze Rui
T (Student): Bai Zong Yi

- Beginning: T is an honour roll student with aspiration to become a doctor and B is a mafia he saves one day and brings home to heal. At first, their relationship is pretty cold with T keeping B at arm’s length. But the more time they spent together, B starts to open up and T starts falling for him. T immediately confesses but B is hesitant to accept love from someone so young so flees.

- Middle: They are reunited when B had to infiltrate T’s school. T ends up bringing B home again and this time, his confession works and B agrees to date him. They have their first kiss.

- End: However, before they could have their happy ending, enemy mafia attacks them and T is injured, losing his chance at medical school. He doesn’t give up on B though, deciding to open a desert shop while waiting for B to return to him. B on the other hand first loses his memory and after regaining his memory, he is so ashamed he avoids seeing T. But T finds out about his recovery and forces himself back in to B’s life. The show ends with them finally back together and happily dating with blessing from B’s family.

**My Opinion**

WHAT I LIKED ABOUT IT:
- The actors playing B and T. Their chemistry was amazing and their interactions were cute and sweet. They also do a great job in portraying the affection between the characters.
- I love how someone younger is the dominant in this relationship, changing the dynamic of their relationship.
- I love how T never gives up, even when the whole world seems to be trying to split them up. If he gave up on B, this series would 1000 times more angsty. But because he doesn’t give up, the angst is only temp.
- I love seeing B a lot more open by the end of the show and learning how to rely on T.
- I really like their reunion scene and their confession scene. Despite the scene not being super intimate, it is extremely impactful and hot.
- The writing is pretty nice despite the plot being predictable and cliche. The pacing is nice and the characters likeable. Their interactions are also very sweet and we can feel the affection between them.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE ABOUT IT:
- Very tame intimate scenes which can be a disappointment.
- Angst comes from B constantly denying his own feelings which is an overused trope.
- The show is constantly playing with your emotions which means it can get a little tiring to watch.
- Some scenes outside romance scenes can get a little fake (gang scenes).

**Conclusion**
An OK watch but will probably only be revisiting the two scenes mentioned above.

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A little cheesy, A little corny, A little embarrassing but quite Addicting!

Subjective Gut Rating: 7.75

The general plot of “Romantic” aka “Love Strikes Back” is pretty simple. These mini dramas are getting quite popular. You can binge it all in less than 4 hours. YouTube (US) has the combined version for all 22 episodes, so that makes it easier to watch.

A few quick notes on the drama:

1. Good-looking leads - Pretty lady in pretty clothes + Handsome guy with hot abs (just too much make-up).
2. Good chemistry between the leads.
3. Kisses are a little awkward. I expected more from them.
4. Acting is pretty good for a mini drama since the main leads are experienced actors.
5. A lot of slapping each other's faces..
6. Second-hand embarrassment and a few funny scenes - 2ML’s dancing and 2FL’s bubbles from her mouth.
7. Many slow mo romantic scenes with songs playing at the right ‘romantic’ moments. Songs are quite overplayed.
8. Many accidental falling into ML’s arms.
9. Too many flashbacks, especially in the last third of the drama.
10. I enjoyed the first half more than the second half.
11. FL is being saved way too many times by her bodyguard.
12. I think the actors use their own voice, which I GREATLY appreciate.

This is not a bad watch if you enjoy mini dramas. A lot of the things I listed above are not enjoyable, but for some reason, I had a good time watching this drama and it’s quite addicting.



Completed: 11/11/2023 - Review #376

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Venus in Retrograde

It's always disappointing when a drama doesn't live up to expectations, but usually there's at least something redemptive about it. Venus in the Sky though just bombed and it bombed hard. It's glacially slow with episodes that are far too long with far too much repetition. And once the leads finally get together, we get multiple NSFW scenes that seem more about pushing the limits than showing that these guys are actually in love. I just did not feel the chemistry. It's a pity because it did have the potential for more.

The story is lacking severely. There's not much of a plot and the drama suffers because of that. Venus and Sky were college friends until Venus confessed that he had feelings for Sky which Sky didn't reciprocate. Venus's response was to block Sky and cut off all contact. Three years later they meet again by chance at which point Sky has realized that he actually does have feelings for Venus and sets off to win him back. The first episode isn't bad. It sets things up decently, though there's some confusion regarding time frame and what's past and what's present. From there though it becomes a slog of increasing repetition as Sky tries to win over Venus and Venus repeatedly rebuffs him. It would have helped if there was a bit more variation to how Sky goes about this, but there's not, and it's not until around Episode 7 that things start moving along which is far too little, too late. While Sky does eventually wear Venus down and they do get together, the story continues to drag as repetitive drama with the side couples is brought up and Venus and Sky act like horny teenagers. It's tedious to say the least. I suppose the ending could be considered cute, but I was so done with everything that frankly I was just relieved to be done with it.

I didn't find myself particularly interested or attached to any of the characters. I generally liked Day, Bom and Kla, but not to any real degree. They just served as the occasional pleasant diversion from the constant annoyance of Sky and Venus. The characters lacked depth and it made them feel quite superficial. Venus's anger towards Sky felt excessive. I get it, he broke your heart, he was giving mixed signals previously (they really did act like a couple, so I get that Venus thought Sky might reciprocate his feelings), but three years is a long time to hold onto that much anger. And even if he was hurt by Sky's rejection, it wasn't as if Sky deliberately led him on. Without a better reason for his anger, it created a disconnect for me as the viewer. Otherwise, I just did not find him to be a particularly compelling character because there was so little to him. He was boring to watch and his reactions felt repetitive. Even after he and Sky got together, I just could not bring myself to care about him. Sky spent most of the time acting like a whiny child. I was over him within the first couple of episodes. He had zero respect for Venus's boundaries, physical or emotional, and essentially stalked him. Maybe it's because I'm a woman, but I found his approach to be disturbing and deeply concerning. And his pushiness continued after they were together. There were times where it felt like he cared more about his physical needs than what Venus actually needed. The scene where he lets Venus initiate physical intimacy while he's sick and doesn't stop him is a prime example. There was also the element that his feelings for Venus were not well explored. The realization of his true feelings obviously came after Venus cut him off, but was that the catalyst for that recognition or was it later? I think that's something that should have been given time to look into. The communication between the two of them was alternatively decent and then completely lacking. Sky had a tendency to misinterpret situations and then go sulk about them without actually discussing anything with Venus. The side couples really didn't interest me much. I initially liked Janus, but eventually got tired of the repetition with him promising to tell Bom about things and then proceeding to tell him nothing. That inevitably led to a fight and Bom storming out the door. I did like Bom. I appreciated his patience and kindness. He was a sweet guy and I felt bad that he had to deal with Janus's determination to take everything on his shoulders. Tong and Kla were even less interesting. Again with the repetition of not communicating and then getting into fights. Kla was a cutie though and he did try so hard to make things up to Tong and make him happy. I will say that the side couples did have some good conversations and at least with Tong and Kla there felt like there was progress made in the relationship on that front. Janus and Bom also made some progress, but part of me wonders if Janus really learned his lesson.

For all that they had some very steamy scenes together, I really did not feel the chemistry between Tod and Cheque. Part of it could be that I simply did not like their characters, but I also found their acting lacking. Neither one showed much range. Cheque seemed to alternate between looks of condescension and scowling and maybe two other expressions. Tod was either overly perky, moping around, or sleepy and he just cycled through those expressions as needed. They were just boring to watch. Most of the other actors struggled with the same lack of variety of expression.

While there is a fair amount of product placement, it doesn't feel too in your face mostly because of the way it's promoted with Janus's business. It still took more of a priority than it should have though. One thing that really stood out to me and that was off-putting was the almost complete lack of background characters. Sky works in a hospital, Kla works in a hospital, Janus owns a 7-Eleven, and yet the hospital always looked practically empty, we never saw any other doctors or medical staff aside from the main cast and one or two nurses who were there and gone and there were rarely any customers show in the store. It made the world feel very isolated and unreal.

There is nothing about Venus in the Sky to recommend it. It's a long slog with very little reward. If NSFW scenes are your thing, I would recommend watching Episode 1, maybe 2, and then jumping to Episode 7 or 8 through to the end, you won't be missing anything by skipping the rest. Otherwise, I would say best to just avoid it.

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Confusing but interesting mythology

Pretty early on, I realized that I felt the same way about this drama the way I felt about Goblin. While I thought the lore was well thought-out and it was really cool to see Amis mythology translated into a Taiwanese drama, I felt it very difficult to emotionally connect to the characters.

The pacing is quite slow at the start — it feels like you're dropped into the middle of a situation that doesn't change or explain itself for a few episodes, and even when it did start to develop, it was difficult to understand where the story was headed and why. The dialogue feels kind of vague and abstract sometimes.

The side characters are also okay. There are some that have interesting stories that do tie into the main plot but I felt pretty apathetic about most of the characters as a whole. In a sense the female lead felt very isolated from the more down-to-earth characters who I wish were taught the myths; it might've helped explain the story in a more understandable way while also bringing the mundane and the fantasy worlds closer together.

I did like the environmental themes here but I don't think it was as prominent as I expected; the romance definitely took center stage and once again, I cared about the romance more as a concept and not really because I was genuinely emotionally invested in it.

The ending...is actually fine to me, but I think it would've been better if they'd dedicated more time to it because it felt very sudden. The ending is probably the biggest place where I could recognize that the writer of this drama is the same as that of Someday or One Day.

Overall, not really for me (hence the lower than average rating) because I found it difficult to emotionally connect with it, but I still think it was worth a watch for the mythology.

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The earlier episodes were great then it got worse

I don't have a lot to say about this series, but I did really enjoy the early episodes; it was just that it went downhill after that. I don't know what happened to the plot. It just got worse.

For Sailom's (Chimon) character, I didn't feel his chemistry with Kanghan's (Perth) character; it felt like he was too uncomfortable with him doing some of the romantic scenes. 

For the other two characters, MarcPawin (I forgot their name in the series), I really did enjoy their scenes and chemistry, and for me, they carried the show more than the main couple.

This is just my opinion based on what I've seen from the first - last episodes, so I hope you don't get mad at me.

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Simple Sweet Story

- Genre –
Contract Relationship/Romance/TV Star/BL

- Brief Synopsis –
Protagonist A is a failed mangaka and B is a meteorologist. A and B have a contract where B gives A food and shelter for free and A has to do everything B tells him to do, even if it involves sex. At the beginning, A is visibly uncomfortable with the sex because he doesn’t feel anything for B, but slowly changes as he spends more time with B and starts falling in love. While the summary might initially suggest a potentially abusive relationship between the two, it is not like that as B is in love with A before A falls for him so he treats A pretty well. The only angst in this story comes from miscommunication or lack of communication as neither A or B likes to tell the other what they are really thinking. This however improves with time and the story ends with them finally begining to embrace the nuances of being true, loving partners.

- Plot and Storyline –
This plot does not contain any plot twists that would make the story memorable in any way. The core of the story revolves around the characters grappling with their emotions and navigating the process of learning how to becomes lovers. While formal confessions might not have taken place, the sweetness of their interactions, tinged with both affection and sensuality, serves as a compelling testament to the depth of their evolving connection.

- Character Development –
A learns with time to open his heart to B and both learns how to communicate.

- Acting -
The two actors delivered commendable performances, effectively conveying the nuanced emotions between the two characters. Their acting prowess was compelling enough to authentically capture the tension between the characters and convincingly depict the evolution of their emotional states throughout the narrative.

- Production Quality -
Decent production quality with somewhat realistic sets and props.

- Writing and Dialogue -
Writing is okay.

- Pacing -
Pacing is good.

- Themes and Message –
The biggest theme is miscommunication. For a healthy relationship, you need to communicate with your partner and not assume you know everything.

- Audience Appeal -
N/A

- Standout Moments -
N/A

- Criticisms -
N/A

- Conclusion -
While the story may not be particularly memorable, lacking the emotional impact of some other shows, it still manages to offer a sweet and succinct tale. Despite not leaving a lasting impression, the narrative holds its own charm, providing a brief and enjoyable viewing experience.

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A Binge-Worthy Feel Good Series!

Well, I don't think I need to elaborate much. It was surprisingly a good watch. I haven't seen the two leads before nor have I heard of them but for amateurs, they did a pretty convincing job.
The story of course isn't something new, I mean for a high school/college-themed BL I suppose you don't need to complicate it anyway. You will get the usual cliche BL tropes but everything balances out cz the two leads have amazing chemistry.
It's a short series that will make you smile ear to ear at the end.
Can be watched in one sitting cz the episodes are only around 15-20 minutes each. It'll surely boost your serotonin levels and will leave you wanting more.

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