my favorite dramas

by no means is this reasonable. but i absolutely love it. my favorite episodes were the ones where xufeng and jinmi went to the human realm. i even specifically noted which times and episodes those scenes are when i went back to watch them because they give me so much comfort in the middle of so many complicated things. i cried, i laughed, i enjoyed. i enjoyed my time watching it through and through, even when i hated some characters or thought the plot was unreasonable.

i finished this within a few days, even with some episodes being almost 2 hours, and boy was i attached. i loved how daring they were with the main characters [esp at the end when that happened :')] i thought they would either be like every other drama or actually be different for once. they did not disappoint! i got so emotionally attached to the side characters, esp the ajummas up north. when they all gathered around the one woman's house with food in support, i teared up at how touching it was. i don't usually cry at dramas because it's hard to build an emotional attachment but when scenes like that show the togetherness of humans, i find it so beautiful and amazing (even irl).  it has to really build emotion to make me cry, even if it's not initially meant to be a cry scene.

i really don't like the whole girl chases guy thing but the whole concept of the cybersecurity game, ctf, and the adorable background boys got me hooked. i mainly watched it because of yang zi then got myself a li xian obsession oops. i really liked yang zi in ashes of love as she could play a serious character and a happy-go-lucky one easily. she was quite soft in this and juxtaposing that with li xian's gloomy self made for great contrast. allowing yang zi's character have her own background rather than being a flat, dumb, boy-crazed girl made things so much better, along with the whole parental approval. not to say she isn't boy-crazed as that's how they, sadly, portrayed her even though she could make a strong character herself if only they elaborated her own singing career rather than make her life revolve around han shangyan. i tried to rewatch but the mom's butting into her adult daughter's life really hit a nerve. it made the initially really unrealistic show have some realism because, let's be honest, i don't think either of our parents are gonna say easily yes to us wanting to marry a s/o that's 10+ years older but it still didn't sit well with me, same with han shangyan just going along with the lie his cousin told in the beginning that started the whole mess with the parents.

some reviews made me realize how not as great this show is compared to what i first thought BUT just because the characters or plot are messed up or weak, does not mean i will not enjoy it everytime i watch shijin bamboozle moyeon with his smooth moves.

one of the, if not the, most realistic highschool based dramas i have ever seen. it took the romance slowly and played out each of the character's struggles beautifully without undermining others. i loved the character moonbin played, the one who had trouble with his sexuality. it allowed for a blossom of lgbt+ in korean media. the second male lead on the cover gave me so many mixed feelings but played out his struggles incredibly well. all in all, such a great drama that really touched my heart, whether or not the story was good enough for others.

i don't even need to add a comment to this. you know why it's here

i've read the novel, seen the drama, followed the actors, watched the anime, listened to the audio drama, and looked through the author's other works and this all sprung from one picture i saw of two guys on my friend's insta story. i'm not saying it's rational or realistic because it's not. but i truly love the story and the concept. it takes all kinds of complicated directions that end in a path that leaves me satisfied with not many lingering thoughts of potential plot holes but rather thoughts of how the characters would carry on with their lives. the sfx were weak, but given the production budget, it's understandable, and the novel was better, which is to be expected, but still worth it if you're a fan or want in on the fun. a whole emotional ride

i watched this when it first came out and almost cried. i really want to rewatch. update: rewatched it and lord. it's full of emotion but the way the leads act sometimes is truly stupid but at the same time understandable. it's a fun watch but also sad at times and i love shows that can find a balance in that [*cough* most of the dramas on this list *cough*]

this is BY FAR by most watched anything. i've seen this fully around 4 times. even if the number seems low, seeing this more than once and especially more than twice makes it totally worth the watch every single time. the story never gets old. rather than being stuck in the world, she's constantly going in and coming out of a popular comic [that, tbh i'd like to read]. [addition] on my fourth watch, I finally got past the high this drama gave me due to the constant plot twists and engagement, which is why i love it so much. i've realized that some of the romance is weird (mostly when the comic restarts back to before things got messed up), as in the lack of development i guess, and the fl was rather flat (plus ljs's cry scenes, i love him but man). every drama has its flaws and this one does too but i will still watch it to no end despite it.

if (when) i rewatch this more recently (so i'll be more familiar with it rather than writing a review and vague memories), i'll actually put something here lol

rewatched it and guess what? i continued loving each and every character with my full heart. even though there are some incomplete or unsatisfying plotlines with side characters, it doesn't mean i'll let it take away from me experiencing lee jong suk act goofy with his uselessly long limbs alongside suzy, whose personality in this is lowkey personality goals.

i cried at this ending, oh lord. it was such a perfectly vague ending and the drama had so much going on which made me think about it even when i wasn't watching which i liked. the story was fit into those 13 episodes well and the depictions were awestriking. it's definitely one of the best productions on this list.

rewatched this because of yang yang. the girl's character seems really plain and subdued which i didn't enjoy but i loved the concept. the gaming and their majors that made weiwei more interesting, the execution and the basketball games ? it was an adorable fluff that makes me lose myself.

i had a hard time finishing this and when i came back to restart, i put the speed at x2 and i think it was simply because of how frustrating things were and everything went upside down all the time which made me want to break some things. i really thought "what's the point" a lot but in the end, i loved it. i teared up. i was wondering why so many people want a s2 and i get it now. i was wondering whether or not they had just completely erased the modern life of hae soo from the beginning and got annoyed but the way they wrapped it up left room for a possible sequel and if not, it ends just fine that way. i still have some questions out of just curiosity, not that they're about huge plotholes but just some things that i couldn't quite catch or weren't entirely clear (despite being quite irrelevant)  

oh. my. god. when i found this, i thought it would be just another c-drama that i'd end up dropping but it dished out the same interest i had in ashes in love and kept me HOOKED. the emotional rollercoaster occurring was true entertainment for everyone reading my posts on my spam account. i even sat in my dark hallway at night just because of how angsty everything was getting. (post watch) a lot of xianxia have the same problem, the fl is annoying and there's unnecessary hate. they tend to improve the fl but it drags out their flaws and takes away from their strengths. this happened here and aol as well as others i've dropped due to this problem. the ml in this drama held me out until the fl improved, which was worthwhile.

i loved this. i mean, i don't think irl they'd let people get away with what yang jong hoon did sometimes but it made his character incredibly intriguing and entertaining. some things felt undeveloped like the whole "mastermind" thing at the end (maybe it was a joke though it felt like more). i love how they made time for every character by putting them in the spotlight across episodes. i don't care about the real culprit being anticlimactic because this isn't a thriller, it's a law show. we were supposed to be led to the culprit. if there are constant plot twists irl during cases, it would make things difficult as practicers of law are to build upon facts, what they know and can guarantee. all in all, good watch for someone who loves law work though i do wish sol a and joonhwi were endgame canonically.

i just finished this within the last 3 days and truly an amazing drama. i agree that the ending was pretty out of character for jisoo because he was really just tryna get by in life, live out his simple dream. the characters could've all had better development (maybe if it was a bit longer) especially gyuri, though i surprisingly ended up liking her even with all the mixed emotions her actions give me (many people will disagree. objectively, she's def not a good person). i loved the emotional connections they made without any sort of explicit say (minhee and mr. lee, jisoo and gyuri, the teacher who cared for all of them) which both could've (and should've) been elaborated on more before [REDACTED]. overall, an amazing drama, definitely recommend for a step away from romance and for psychological/crime (my top genres). 

no offense to all the other e-sports shows i've seen (almost all of the ones on mdl) but this one is superior. the fl is involved in the e-sport and it let the audience get more involved in the game with some visuals. the relationship moved at a great pace and the reoccurring characters actually have personality. they made the ml open to emotional occurrences and held the fl accountable for something that she should be held accountable for (tho i would've done the same in her situation, not a good thing). they all have their own lives and are much more mature. they don't let love guide the way or drop everything for their lover but have a balance. no unnecessary breakups either. i'm in love guys. maybe when i'm not high on serotonin i'll think different. [update] i've rewatched this so much, it's one of my comfort dramas (along w most on this list). it's genuinely such a great watch.

i can't believe i forgot to add "because of meeting you" to this list because that is the drama that let me get into the world of overdramatic, over 40-episode Chinese dramas because they are INCREDIBLY worth it. this drama is like bomy but even better honestly. i was looking for something similar to watch because i just didn't want the stress that came with bomy and this was beyond perfect. it has similar aspects with the fashion and romance but far from frustrating like bomy. everything is resolved well and the relationship is a healthy one, no random breakups. the female lead is who i aspire to be: someone who knows what she wants, will stand her ground, passionate, doesn't get easily trampled by people, and won't wrap her life around a man. she's career-oriented and realistic, knowing that even if her and mingxuan didn't work out, she would still have herself and her career and wouldn't throw it away for a man. mingxuan is a reasonable man that listened and stood a fair ground. he didn't let his personal business and work intertwine and i LOVE how he doesn't get mad at xiaoyu for his grudge against him despite the fact that it really isn't mingxuan's fault. a patient, compassionate man who knows what he wants career-wise and love-wise. incredible story.

as mentioned under "sunshine of my life", this drama brought me into c-dramas. i watched it while it was airing which made it easier to digest the many, many episodes and plot. i honestly forgot how good it was on my first watch because i was more into light, cliche dramas then with no seriousness but when i showed it to my sister one binging summer, it got me obsessed again and her completely hooked. we watched a lot that summer but my sister think of nothing other than bomy when thinking of dramas. it was so, so, so frustrating to watch all these characters like guo guo's adoptive mother and sister who never improve and her bio-mom who had a horrible history with yunkai's aunt. the only adult that i could whole-heartedly love with no doubts was yunkai's aunt. she never had her own kids but loved guo guo and yunkai and treated them so well. i don't remember as much as i should to write a review but i do remember the feelings i got and god i love when i can remember the feelings i get from a show. there's nothing more important than getting emotion across in acting. this is my deng lun obsession origin story.

so non-toxic, beautiful relationships with amazing communication. god it made me so happy. all the people and scenes had important roles in the end and while i wish some characters had better endings, they all end up happy whether they got relationships or not. i finished it today though so there may be a lot of bias in this. i'll probably rewrite this a few months from now after reflecting but currently, i'm not sad about being rejected by my ED college because of this show.

recently rewatched this because i wanted to see lee seong kyung act again after finishing "sh**ting stars" and i knew this was a great drama. i almost forgot that ahn hyo seop was in this because he uses so much more raw emotion and subtleness to display his character's personality in this compared to "business proposal". i genuinely love dramas like this (s1 and s2) because they don't pretend the characters and story from s1 don't exist and have a clean, smooth storyline. i watched this initially because we were in online school and i had rewatched s1. i rewatched it for reasons stated above but apparently there's a s3 coming out soon and god, it better live up to the first 2 seasons. i love all the characters and how they each have their own significance and unique personalities. definitely something i will continue to come back and rewatch many many times.