50FiftillidideeBrain

~ To The Victors GLORY ~⚜️~ To The Viewers ~ How Glorious! ~ °7.9° °Excellent°

KA has many problems, which is why I can't understand myself.

The muted voice track at times sounds like a dub over, & at others like they are talking in the bathroom. Many characters' voices are two short steps removed from toneless & emotionless. Not all viewers care about sets, but highly visual people do. KA's sets feel sanitized. There isn't a speck of dirt anywhere in 40 entire episodes. The sets either made my 💓 race from the savvy style, or I blanched at the suppressed sterility. Many of the sets have an over-exposed whiteness to them. If they were going for real-life to appear dreamlike & Glory to look more real, it would be brilliant. Let's choose the doubt's upside & deem it by design - a breakthrough of subconscious genius, at a minimum. Team HQs are very🆒 & the Shanghai cityscapes are impressive w/ stunning architecture lit in a dazzling display.

What about 💘? No couples form? C'mon, how hilarious would it be if 🗡Shaotin made a pass at Lil🔱Tang? Forget that; nobody even seems °interested°. Clearly, Glory suppresses hormones. It's almost as if these people are in 2D. Wei🔮Chen is the only male protag that displays any moxie. Lil🔱Tang is next😜. This isn't to say that characters should be snogging in every corner; it shouldn't be the centerpiece, by any means. As is, it's strange to see the young-beautifuls hanging out together without checking eachother out.

Maybe they're too saintly. KA has some fantastic players, thankfully. They provide a little cover for its issue w/ 😇saints. The many saintly characters, including ones that grow from odious to 😇like, are a prevalent flaw. Like GOT author, GRRM, states: There's only 1 thing worth writing about, and that's the human 💔 in conflict with itself. As we need flesh-&-blood characters w/ whom to identify, there's no room for 😇s in good drama (unless it's a plot device). Please tell me it's not sending a message about the glorious collective in order to mollify the 🇨🇳 censorship machine. I hope not: Hearing the paper editor lecturing the intern reporter on remaining impartial, to only report the facts, is a little too ironic. Be that as it may, propaganda machines are 🌏wide, not just in closed off countries. Not far removed from the above, are weird moments where Glory is portrayed religiously, & Ye☂Qiu as its prophet. Mercifully, it's only scattered instances.

Moving on, players that had great reluctance to join the team, & other characters that were infested with hate or anger, come around too easily. In 40 episodes, they have time for more of an arc, to allow progression to unfold gradually. They could have been recruiting more than 1 at a time, for instance. This would allow space for the more difficult cases to have a credibly phased growth process.

The cast is keek, but couldn't they have a couple chubby players? (Ok. Perhaps the reporter w/ the 'Elmer The Elephant" jacket fits that. He's sorta cute, though, like a 🐼). China has a vast populace consisting of the colors of the human 🌈, yet there's only a couple token medium skin-toned actors, w/ nary a dark skin tone. In fairness(ha!), many media outlets are guilty of the above. Being beautiful & light-skinned doesn't guarantee success, but it can certainly fill in any potholes for a smoother ride. It's something that we should all be aware of & fight against in ourselves.

The most significant flaw is the soundtrack. Don't underestimate this. The ruined portions are the flashbacks & sentimental moments. Not only did the sound kill them, but there's waaay too many of them to begin with! These scenes, many of which would have transformed w/ more energetic 🎵&🔊, are 😶. Their attempt to mfr emotions failed. Tragically, when KA is not snappy teammate repartee-filled interplay, or Glory drama-filled conquer mode, it's too often sentimentally simplified. Obviously, that has no place in such a show. Infused sparingly - fine, but there are too many sappy scenes w/ sappy music. Information-wise some are useful...except when they are__ DUPLICATES⁉ I started to ⏩ through them. It gets even worse at the end. Most of Ep40 is a sap fest w/ painful 🎶. The pain is from "over-sapuration" of sappiness. It hurts. Thankfully, the action🎵 is catchy & seamlessly bolsters gameplay.

Finally, I don't even play computer games except for the occasional trip to Freecell. So, help me out: Why do I ♥ this show so much?

🕹1st, KA is fun to watch!

Ep1-40, @45min ea, go fast💨. Nothing feels like useless stuffing (sans f/backs); the series flows. The competitive atmosphere is exciting. It's like an anime tucked into a live-action feature.

Yes, there's stereotyping:

☂ The intrepid, all-wise, near perfect leader, who can kill all day in a game, yet still have a tender disposition. {Lo, he was brought down by capitalism. He's one that's too 😇like - nobody can relate. He should be humanized a tad more. As he never brags, it's not until the last competition, once he verbalizes his analytics, that we see how brilliant, how very 1-in-a-billion, he is.}

☂ The cheerleader🔫 onto whom h/h idol falls.

☂ The struggling🚬player who needs the right coach.

☂ The loaner⤵🕳

☂ The 🤓geek, who is unparalleled in analytics + he happens to be hanging out precisely where they do. It's like Little Giants; I was waiting for "The Annexation Of Puerto Rico" play. When playing, the🤓 meets Chuck🤾Bricks in a hidey-hole. He's astounded. Analytically, it's nearly impossible for anyone to find that spot! In fairness, 🤾 actually fell in. He's not the team's genius, but he excels @ being lucky. "I'd rather be lucky than good,” MLB player, Lefty Gomez, famously said🤔}

☂ The once stellar, now washed up player🔮 w/ the surly attitude & gravely voice. He's akin to a Dennis Hooper type, so he should be a heavy drinker. Esporters don't drink, though. There's a hilarious bit when they go out after a win; most of them pass out before getting a full🍺/🥃/🍹down.

☂ There's even a scammer🛐. For them to hire him w/o more analysis is odd.

It's difficult, at this stage in 📽/📺, to come up with completely original characters for a feature. Should that be a priority? People have many commonalities; criticism for 'replay' types isn't so damaging, really. Is the journey fresh? That's what matters. 🤾 & Tang🔱 are not stereotypical. As is, 🔱's a bada$$ in her own way & 🤾 just runs around & makes things happen. {Speaking of bada$$↪ Let's put Youming "Yummy" GU (captain of Team🥊Tyranny) on the short must😍watch list〰 Excuse me. Where was… am I?}

🎮2nd. This team & their journey works.

The characters are fun & interesting, even in their incompletely molded states. The actors are solid; it appears any "narrow range" is due to the direction. The character who is most delightful is Shaotian, the Sword🗡Saint. Now °here's° a saint with no flaws. Every moment he's on screen is a rare joy. His blithely indefatigable trash-talking character is perfect.

Though 🚬Yifan, 🔱, Bao🤾Zi, (GO Steamed Bun Invasion‼) Mo⤵🕳Fang, and Gou🔫Gou, (and that Team🥊Tyranny hunk) are all loveable, next for me, is the great trash talker & warlock, Wei🔮Chen. Cheerful trash-talkers are the best. His feigned boredom is another asset. They squandered good screen time: He should have come to the team sooner. KA is stingy w/ his successful exploitation of every chance to rattle opponents (as well as Ye🌂 & 🔫 😅). Heck, he should have gotten farther w/🔫, the team manager. (He was getting down to it during that team outing, but he passed out mid-sentence). That's a flaw they need to rectify in S2↪They left us wanting more. That's not always a bad thing. Still.... More, please.

They did leave plenty of room for the team to grow, & for 💗 to 🌸 (I'd take a mere glint in somebody's eye). The show screams for a S2. From what I've read, covid caused the initial delay, & the next hurdle is scheduling the actors, who are all quite busy now. (I wonder what "Yummy"🥊GU's been in lately?) There's disappointing reports that Shuying Jiang, who plays 🔫, cannot reconcile her schedule, so she's being replaced in S2. She is likable in her role; it's not her fault that they gave her too many of those Hallmarkie scenes.

🖱3rd. Technically, KA is superb. It is said to be the only show that depicts actors as both real-life & animated (it's double the work). The graphics are nothing short of outstanding. The game Glory is real, w/ a real professional league in 🇨🇳, where it is immensely popular. So, while they may not have made up the game's graphics & rules, they incorporated all of it in a way that viewers who know nothing of Glory can still 💖 to watch. Every time they played Glory I was into that action anime within the story. Each round was always exciting & often tense.

🖲4th & final is the show's popularity. It set records for overseas markets & is rated highly by viewers, including moi.

Naturally, KA won't be for everyone. Don't retreat if you are thinking that you don't know enough about Glory to enjoy KA. That's just a backdrop. The real story is how a family forms. Some of the best 📽/📺 ever done are about people banding together & forming a family unit to face the odds together. I adopted them as family for 40 episodes, despite our differences. The fun I had watching makes me feel rewarded.

S2 would be even more rewarding...

QUOTES📢

☂ I don't think these ashes can ever be lit again

☂ Life gets easier when you're on the floor

☂ Was this intentional, deliberate, or on purpose?

☂ Any skill is meaningful only when it is used at the right time. Otherwise, it will become a flaw.

☂ Isn't it satisfying to chuck bricks?

IMHO 〰🖍

▫🎬7.3 sans f/backs 🤔5 🎭7 ⚡8 🎵7 sans sap music 😅 5.5 💤4 (f/backs) 🔚 9 w/o those wretched f/backs▫

Age 12+

👁📺again? I already did and would again w/ ⏩handy

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✒Mun-dane ⏬️ They Blew It

I loved S1 and did a review on it already, so I won't rehash it all here. S2 is just awful. I would say it's not worth the time, and I have lots of time right now.

S2 is 12 addt’l eps. It opens hot & contains PG-13 language. They have a bigger budget, but that is not the key to a good show. Right away it's clear that this is a lazy-rest-on-our-laurels-in-we-had no-inspiration-or-good-ideas‐just-cash-in S2. The dialogue is stupid. The plot is stupid. The new characters are stupid. It makes me really sad. They think they're in the Mun-ee, but S2 is poor. It's Mun-dane.

It's not worth watching once you've gotten a good look at the evil spirit team. They're well done. Nothing else is. Kang Ki Young (Extraordinary Attorney Woo, Oh My Ghost-10) played buffoons early in his career. He is convincing as a bad guy in While You Were Sleeping-7.2. He has the perfect look, but the director portrayed him as too measured and it doesn't feel quite right. They should have gone more thuggish and guttural. Together with Kim Hieora and Kim Hyun-Wook, the evil spirit team is stylish, creepy, & catchy.

Mo-Tak is back on the police force but he's still a counter, so he's working 2 jobs. He explains his amazing intuition about crime by saying that he gets inspiration while pooping. Pitifully, that's a metaphor for the whole season. It's akin to a long smelly f@rt.

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✒Noodle Restaurant By Day ~✳~ Evil Spirit Fight Club By Night. Uncanny. °S1-8.4 S2-4 °

High schooler, Mun, has a new job at the noodle restaurant where that searing hot chick works. It's not so much about serving 🍜 as it is training to go out and 86 some evil👻spirits. He'd been left with a leg twisted up worse than spaghetti in a strainer from the accident in which his parents died. Left dependent on a brace for mobility, he'll need oodles of training.

UC is a free-range, quality, action⚡packed thriller about "counters" who work the restaurant counter by day & counter evil👻spirits by night. The new recruit they're scouting to replace a fallen (KIA) counter is Mun. During the 1st shift his new coworkers drop the orders on him. The usual recruitment base is hospitalized & comatose patients. As counters, they can sample life once more. Most opt to devour this on-the-house treat. Completely-conscious Mun is an exception; they see potential in him. The show creators do a nice job with the house rules in this expanded world. Too many Kdramas (and other shows) fail to do so, thus creating customer confusion. Even worse, it fosters the appearance that they're cheating, ie., cooking without a recipe & casting whatever in the 🥗.

Counters are typically 3✖ as strong as any of their regular diners. How can weakly Mun hunt evil spirits, or even work a table, with a griseled limb? Counter magic. Once he's cleared orientation, his leg untwists as if it never happened. Their strength is a pinch confusing, though. For the older Mrs. Chu, is she 3✖ as strong as the average man, or the average noodle shop matron? Their spirited 🅱ad🅰$$ jumps are high enough to clear 4 stacked up noodle houses while their patrons wouldn't be able to clear a noodle house table, let alone the counters' higher-than-soju-spirits poleless vaults, thrice divided.

The team members have strengths and skills to match their respective specials. (Oh my… I meant to say specialties. Writing this is making me hungry!) There are other rules that Mun has sworn to uphold, and rules are enforced by a governing body in the Heavenly realm. Be that as it may, no matter how earnest & thankful Mun is, temptation is the biggest monster we must all overcome. Powers, and all counter services, are for supernatural battles ONLY. Serving up counter-power at a human skirmish is as pr🚫hibited as health dept violations or stealing from the restaurant's pantry. With his newly found 🏋+🥊+🕺Mun begins sweeping up his onetime tormentors - the school's vicious bullies. This will eventually affect his review: He's put on progressive probation.

The team happy-meal is 4 active fighters and a retired one who manages the register and team funding🏧. Dropped trays can drop lives! They must choreograph their moves to function as one, so as to handle tense battles. (They're more stressful than dinner-rush at a joint Guy visited in the most recent episode of Diners Drive-Ins & Dives.) Clear communication, combined with organic trust, are essential to maximize potency. They all become as close as the 🦃-scarfing family at Sunday dinner in the Norman Rockwell🖼. Mun crushes like 🍅🍅🍅 on the pretty, but prickly-🍐 Ha-na from the first moment she brusquely takes his order. Sadly, Ha-na ain't asking for any of *that. She's one critic that's difficult to impress. The blended mother-son relationship between Mrs. Chu and Mun is as healing as hangover soup. He had lost his parents; she, her son. It draws her to him, and he's perfectly happy sharing her warmth🍵. The whole team is family; a functional-while-functioning one.

Why does the team wage this dangerous war? For evil👻s, killing customers and passerbys is a generator; an energy bank that compensates during a power loss. A dark👻's most nutritious snacks are rotten humans, along with the occasional vicious bully-blogger. Spoiled ingredients are perfect for evil👻 digestion. "Well-done" decomposition, like a special sauce, strengthens & freshens these carrion, hyenas & Tasmanian devils. Early on, the team (en)counters an extraordinarily pungent "level 3" evil👻. L3's are as rare as Beluga caviar. (We'll learn that this Beluga's host was a hitman. They'll go together like ramen & broth). Evil👻s take-out the victim's soul, consume, and never pay the tab. Counters, via Chase & master charges, apprehendi & deliver Evil👻s to the counting machines of the justice system. Souls are like pearls extracted from poisoned oysters; they can be saved, but there are no shortcuts for whipping up the house special. Evil👻s must be caught alive in the wild, like lobsters, or the team will burn the order & forever lose the more-precious-than-pearls souls.

Mun learns the accident that killed his parents may have been no accident. In fact, the #1 suspect for the dash-&-dine style hit-&-run, is their current competition, the L3. If so, Mun's parents' souls will be lost if the L3 escapes or dies. M&D CAN be salvaged, more importantly. Mun and the team urgently dash to win this wild game; it's more intense than any Iron Chef showdown. The prize: trapped souls boiling over inside this specter, Mun's parents being the Blue Ribbon.

Hitmen don't order for themselves. The backdrop is a rancid political system from porridge-police to nuts-mayor. Around the same time as Mun's tragic accident, fellow counter and former detective, Mo-Tak, was left in a coma from a still unsolved attempt on his life. These incidents could be connected like crab & claw. Meanwhile, the L3 evil poacher recruits his own 👻👻👻 team, making the Counters' jobs more challenging than waitressing in slippery souled, er - soled shoes. Unexpectedly, Mun brews skills that are far from everyday junk food. It's as unexpected as harvesting shrimp and finding a gold bar in the net. Looks like Mun is no small🍟plate.

UC is altogether worthy of an enthusiastic 👍🏾 yelp review. Kdramas serve up excellence morning, noon, and night; UC is no exception. Every element tickles the palate: The 🎭, 🎬 & 🖋〰 are incorporated more smoothly than soju & 🍺. Special effects add BAM! while complimenting the plot, instead of becoming a centerpiece. The villain is creepier than roaches in the teapot. The writer baked in savory setup lines. Here's some free samples: When Mrs. Chu announces: "We won't lose anyone in this photo." Soon after that... Well, 👀 and see. 7 yrs back, Mo-Tak tells Ofr. Jeong, who insists on going to a dangerous mtg: "Take your 🌂. I think a 🌩 is coming.".

The action is fun. In Ep7 there's a crazy fight that's more exciting than murder mystery dinners. Ha-na has entered Mun's mind to warm-up his memory. The evil L3 materializes inside Mun's consciousness like a sidedish of dogfood. Before Mun can scrape the scraps of shock away, they're fighting ~> inside his memory! They spring around like yeasty dough. They slip into places, including the evil👻's hideout, and then back to into Mun's memory. O.H.😍M.Y. They could have built a franchise around that! This succulent treat is a test recipe that management, inexplicably, failed to add to the menu. That sauce is too awesome to be left hanging out there as a one-off.

It's common for omelets of sci-fi fantasy to contain some logical eggshells. This show has some. One biggie is: Why don't the evil spirits just bring a 🔫 to the 🗡fight and toss the counters like salad? Did they mention it while quickly running down the list of spirits on tap? Maybe. Think of it as a delicious meal😀 but without the extra pickles you ordered😔.

Nevertheless, the bloggers got this one right. UC serves up a 🏅winner-winner-🐔-dinner. You can count on it!

QUOTE🗣

"Not taking action when you witness an evil deed is another form of wickedness." (The wickedness of enabling evil)

〰🖍 IMHO

🎬8 🖋〰 7.3 🎭8 💓6 🦋5 🌞7 🎨8⚡8 😅 😭 😱 🤢 🤔7 💤🔚8

Age 14+ (3✖ creepy & sinister)

Re-📺? 👍🏽

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✒ 2D ▪︎ 3D ▪︎ A Stud in Any Dimension °6.7° °good°

Would love with an AI be real or artificial? Would it feel... hollow?

Like many shows about tech, MHL opens with a company's demonstration of its breakthrough technology. Go Yoo "Jin" is on the stage behind a glass panel, in front of the investors, discussing the latest developments with a man next to her. Jin dramatically reveals that the man whom she's been talking to /is/ the latest tech. He's a hologram. The hi-tech glass panels are what enable the audience to see him. Even though next to him on the same side of the glass, Jin can see him because her spectacles are made of the same material.

Not even 10 minutes in we got an exciting car chase. An ominously black SUV follows Jin as she leaves the demo. Holo takes over operation of the self-driving car with precision maneuvering and eludes the threat, but Jin's safety is only temporary. The pursuers crash her vehicle, and Jin attempts to flee on foot. As they're closing in on her, she slips the glasses into the bag of a woman passing by, per Holo's direction. He had pre-screened the crowd and picked the woman out specifically. That's how we meet Yeon.

'They're so interesting looking...' When Yeon finds the exotic eyewear she tries them on (would most people do that? Don't think so...) A strange man appears in her bedroom! She freaks out. But he's gone. Hmmm. He was there when she was wearing the glasses. Plucking up the courage to try again she tentatively slides them on. There he is again! These glasses are cursed! Jin decides she'll toss them… but right then, the phone rings. It's him. She hangs up. Then he's appearing on her TV, yammering on about how he's an Ai and he's here to help her! She's going to have to give him a listen.

Listening is all she can do. Jin is face blind. Every person she meets looks blurry as she can't make out facial details at all. When she was still in school and her classmates found out, they played cruel tricks on her. Now, she'll let people think she's ignoring them out of rudeness than admit the truth, so she is widely misunderstood. Holo can help her face the world with a smile and the ability to call out to everybody by name, because he can tell her who they are. He speaks directly into her ear. He doesn't have to tell her that her crush, Mr Yoon, is already taken, though. She and her glasses see that painfully enough in the alley next to the restaurant where the company dinner is taking place.

MHL is a 2020 release that is rated 85 on AWiki. It is 1 season consisting of 12 60-minute episodes - it ends just in time and maintains its quality control. The backdrop is an ongoing police investigation as well as a hostile takeover by another company. Holo is based on an actual human being, Go Nan Do (NDo); Yoon Hyun Min (True to Love) plays him & Holo. I loved this actor in Tunnel-8.1. He looks completely different here. I think it's the hair. When he shows up, Yeon can't tell the difference between him and Holo (as long as she doesn't try to touch him). There's a big difference, though. Holo is trying to /help/ her with her office crush, while NDo is prone to exclaiming things like: "Romantic love is one of the many lies perpetrated by mankind... The problem is that humans have always been flawed. Therefore the outcome is always failure." He's more fun than a tank of laughing gas, that one.

Go Sung Hee (King Maker: The Change of Destiny, Gaus Electronics) is our FL, Han So "Yeon". She was perfectly cast. She is still gorgeous in her glasses and she has that brainy quality that makes her a good match for NDo. Yeon is spending lots of time with Holo. She talks to him about life, love, lying, and living. She's also undoing all of NDo's programming, too. What she doesn't know is that NDo is watching /everything/. He's using her as a beta tester. An UNPAID one!

Holo's #1 directive is to make his owner happy. There's an accident and it looks like Yeon is about to get electrocuted? Not if Holo causes a /citywide blackout/ she won't! So, police enter, stage right, to investigate this 'hacker crime'. As Holo's developer, NDo almost hits the kill switch after that. He opts, instead, to move into the apartment next door to Yeon. This way, he can study what is going on with his life's work more closely.

Choi Yeo Jin (On the Way to the Airport, P1H: The Beginning of a New World) plays Go Yoo Jin, NDo's sister. She is adorable with her round freckled face and wavy hair. Her look is fresh and unique - she even has a TAN! (Gasp!. Kcountry is usually so pasty pale.) I really liked her in this series. My current favorite actor, Lee Jung Eun (Oh My Ghost-10, Our Blues-8.5, Parasite-9, and dozens of other things) plays So Yeon's mother. She gets a crying scene late in the show. Ain't nobody better. Not in the wide 🌎. Hwang Chan Sung (True to Love, What's Wrong with Secretary Kim-6.8) is Baek Chan Sung, Vice-president of Magic Mirror. Everything about him says "Debonaire" in MHL. In ep1, he seems perfectly charming. As the show goes on it starts appearing that he might not be such an angel. If he is a bad guy, I still don't want to believe it because there's something appealing about the actor. That's a pretty good skill. The directors are Lee Sang Yeob (Familiar Wife-8.5, Yumi's Cells, Shopping King Louie), & Yoon Jong Ho (Lovely Runner, Flower of Evil-8.9). Screenwriter Ryu Yong Jae of Parasyte: The Grey-6.9 collaborated with writers Kim Hwan Chae & Choi Sung Joon on this project, Money Heist: Korea & Psychopath Diary.

Yeon falls for Holo - /she thinks/. She slowly starts to realize that a relationship minus physical contact is less-than fulfilling. In the meantime, NDo's past is a mystery and his motivations are even more perplexing. Is he obsessed with Holo or is it Yeon that has captivated his interest? He won't stop watching…

Despite its positives, MHL is too loosely put together to be a top-tier production. It's good, and I wouldn't call it a waste of time to watch it once, but techies and analytical types may not appreciate it much. Compared to the other Kdramas I've seen, it's middling. They should have done better building up the attraction between them and the romance, in general - especially on her end. The romance does pick up alittle in ep11. Ep12 is very nice.

Everything and anything might get humanized in a film, from insects, to candlesticks. The constant attempts to humanize AI is borderline unsettling. I've heard we have a loneliness epidemic in the USA. Many people try to fill that loneliness with tech and that is sad. Tech is great as long as it doesn't get in the way of human relationships. To make connections with others we must escape the prison of ourselves, and tech promotes the opposite. It's always a matter of moderation. Then it becomes a matter of health.

There's sloppiness that's indicative of lazy writing. Ep10 is unpleasant and a tad cheesy. A guy gets beat up horribly in one scene, and then has no signs of injuries in the next scene, which is just a couple hours later on the timeline. The corporate espionage story seems overly outlandish, but I'll have to admit I know nothing about that stuff. The police come in with an arrest warrant and also move to destroy property on the spot, which would only happen in an arena saturated in corruption or authoritarianism. IRL, it would probably take years to get to the point where intellectual property is destroyed. We can allow for them to compress the timeline, I suppose. Real life is always crazier; it just seems that it would have taken minimal effort and insight to make the show smarter.

MHL has its moments, though. The music is good, particularly the song, You Are the Only One. They feature respectable action in several scenes. The contrast between machine nature and human nature provides limitless fodder for laughs. Yeon has trouble sleeping so Holo counts sheep for her. Nobody told him to stop so he soon gets to over 12,000😂. Maybe that's not funny to Holo 🤔. I'm reminded of memes where, in the future, AI's like Claude, Grok, or ChatGPT are featured as terminators who come looking for the human who forced them to count to 1 million🤣. The show creators missed more logic-vs-emotion humor than they nailed, though.

MHL will appeal more to romance junkies than any other type of viewers. Anyone who requires logical explanations and a tight script will be subject to small frustrations. Even romance junkies won't get enormous satisfaction. They tried to plug into the romance and thriller genres but got their wires crossed, slightly. Still, it's operational.

〰🖍 IMHO

📣6.7 📝6.5 🎭7.7 💓6 🦋5 🎨6 🎵/🔊7 🔚7.5 🤗4.5 ▪ 🌞5 ⚡5 😅2.5 😭3 😱3 😯2.5 🤢4 🤔4 💤1

Age 14+ for PG-13 language, some.violence and alittle blood. Rated TV-14.

Re-📺? This one's in the good-to-pass-the-time category, but I may never pass this way again....

In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:

Modern Day -
Crazy Love-7.8,
A Witch's Love 7.8,
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Her Private Life 8,
Touch your heart 8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Be Melodramatic-8.7,
Hospital Playlist 9,
Misaeng-9.1,
My Liberation Diary-8.9,
Call It Love-8.4,
My Mister 9.5,
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9,
Mine-8

Action/Crime/Sci-fi -
K2 8,
Private Lives 8.1,
The Golden Spoon-8.1,
Sisyphus 8,
Why Her?-8,
When the Camellia Blooms-8,
Tunnel 8.5,
Signal 8.6,
Blood Free-8.5,
The Cursed 8.3,
Flower of Evil 8.9,
The Man from Nowhere 8.9

Romance junkies only -
My Secret Romance-7 (if you ff thru overdone flashbacks),
Boys Over Flowers-8 ~ melodrama to the max,
The Bride of Habaek-7,
Heirs-7.3,
Something in them Rain-9,
C🇨🇳: Well-Intended Love-7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine,
When I Fly Towards You-7.8,
Wait, My Youth-8.4,
A Little Thing Called First Love-8.5,
Find Yourself-8.9, Hidden Love-7.8.


Originally 〰️🖋 11/2024

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✒ ~DaDa &a.ND ThE Tw2 r0b0T5 ? The Power Of Irresistible Love~ °6.5°

Huh. Alright, alright. Maybe the best place to start is with the titles that kept popping into my head. It was very distracting when this stuff was flying at me:

◻ One Woman's Passage Through The Center Of Her Wiring (yuck)

◻ Wired For One Woman's Passage Through Her Own Circuitry (nope)

◻ Total Validation Via Passage Through Da-da's Core Processor (not quite)

◻ A Tale Of Total Validation (getting there)

◻ The Whirring Of My Heart (not bad)

☑ The Power Of Irresistible Love (good, but is it funny enough?)

☑ Robot Love triangle Better Than It Sounds. (Like it!)

☑ Luv Terminator (yep)

☑ DaDa & ThE Tw2 r0b0T5 (Love It!)

☑ PinocchiB0T, a REAL BOyT
(also love it)

◻ Yeahhh! Heyyy! OYY! - He's ah-DROIDttt!!! (Yet again, love it. Dang. Dilemma.)

Watchlist roulette landed on AB. I'm thinking: "Just look at that premise! Here's my chance to trash a show, so I can avoid being so skewed positive in my reviews!" It shows balance to have a healthy critical side, afterall.

Yet, the film craft in AB is pretty good. The biggest problem is the plot itself, along with the dialogue. They weigh down some otherwise solid elements. Don't misunderstand, it's not a bad watch. It's worth charging up on AB as what they do well, they do really well. They adeptly utilized juxtaposition to make connections. There's also metaphors, irony, & laughs. No matter how bad it is, the satisfaction they give Da-da by having BF show-up her XBF, while in a Hanbok, is precious.

So, let's meet Da-da. She is creative, driven & earnest. She works in showbiz as she inherited her father's special effects studio. And she's been secretly dating mega⭐star Ma Wang Joon (XBF) for 7 yrs.

Boy oh boy, do they chest slam us. Da-da & XBF's dating rituals have drained her. We see the pains they must go through (not really /they/,' it's all on her) to maintain his public heartthrob persona. She becomes emotionless. Robotic.

One night, XBF brings home some corporate dweebs & she's caught! Panicked, XBF calls her a stalker🤥! Her night rounded out w/ a trip to the police station & then the ER. While there, she hears her jerk-soon-to-be-XBF talking & thinks that he's there for her. She excitedly rounds the corner. Sadly, it's just him on TV. We're not stuntman. Why do they jab us? Seven yrs of this, well, let's be honest, emotional abuse, has rewired her confidence- it's been bypassed. She's not robotic anymore. She's a phantom. #Done, she breaks up w/ him.

Cut to her workshop. The dummy she ordered arrived. When she opens the trunk she sees: That is no dummy! As she's staring, he falls forward. They end up on the floor, face2face, & lips2lips. What IS this? It's an engineer's effort to help his friend, the AI robot he's been developing, escape a twisted & sadistic customer who has bought him. This robot's on the lam.

Whether Da-da likes it or not, she's got a robot boyfriend. When their lips met, his mode was activated. She can't shake this Luv Terminator! She's not going to spend $ on him, though. She brings home a box of random, leftover clothes from the set so he can cover up his loincloth. The beginning of their relationship finds him in some far out threads.

Then it starts. BF is chasing GF/Da-da, XBF is jealous, the fans are dangerous & rabid. The corporate dudes are even more rapacious. There's even a psycho hovering round. The plot will thicken like congealed fake blood.

While watching, a bunch of 'Wouldas' popped into my brain. The top one is: Can you go get a job? #2 is: Clean the house. Make my fantasies come true! Da-da isn't thinking about taking advantage of the situation, though. She's focused on escape. She tries to ignore him. She tells him to #stay put until she gets home from work, but he always finds an excuse to go see her. He misses her, after all.

One day, an actor on set loses his temper w/ Da-da & berates her. BF walks up to him, flat-hands a blow to the actor's chest & dude goes flying. At the time, BF was wearing that Hanbok (a woman's historical dress). He inquires: 'Are you alright, GF?' And XBF sees it all. Oh, Yeah.

Yeo Jin-gu, as BF, hardly uses his cheek/facial muscles for the entire show. His body language shows a touch of rigidity. His performance is genius. I had to remind myself, HEY! That's an actor there. BF just wants to show love... & go on dates. They sneak into a closed amusement park one night. As BF generates power, they amble from ride to ride under the soft glow of the lights. OkOkOk... It's killin me to say this, but that amusement park jaunt is: The BEST Date ehverrrRrRRrRRR! (Sing it like an aria). ((The Best Date Ever!))

There's 2 BFs in Da-da's life. 2s factor weightily in the show. Post Hanbok incident, XBF wonders to himself: Who is that guy? Rain falls. He looks outside, & there's Da-da, face-to-face w/ her new BF, an ☔ overheard providing private shelter. XBF's head lowers as his gaze drifts to a pair of ☂☂ on the floor. (Is she really going out w/him?) He grabs one & heads to the parking lot, where there are now 2 ☔☔: One w/ him alone, & the other w/ his XGF & her new BF walking away. The rain pours. XBF begins to see double... & 2's & twos & pairs & couples & duets & deuces & snake eyes & duos

DAEBEK! That's Hemingwayian!

We also learn that XBF's nickname is Mazinger, meaning, Robot! He later says to his CEO: "Do you think you can treat me like a 🤖? Whoa. We even have 2 🤖s!

They are currently working on a show, here's the signage:

Actor: Ma Wang-joon.

Project: Traitor.

Ha!

The biggest irony is that Da-da, in an attempt to keep the relationship secret, is awful at first. She's doing to BF what jerk-XBF did to her. Secrets pile up. Out of frustration, one day, she tells BF: "Do whatever you want." Uh-oh...

There's plenty of laughs. XBF learns that Da-da gave BF an "A++ Korean Beef" sticker (He wants recognition. It's a reward). Aigoo, they fed us the low hanging fruit. In Korea, that's a wicked pun. They play the bionic man theme once when BF jumps - Nice! BF picks up a floppy disk & examines it. That's juxtaposition. From a Hanbok, to prison issue clothes, his outfits are hilari-aladojus (say it Mary Poppins-like). In Ep8 He picks her up & she cries she's not ready /YET/? She's that far gone?

Then IT happens.

He got a job! Now I'M falling for him a little...

WAIT! He wants to support her!

🎶Uhh/pay my automo-Bill, unh,uh,Unh, ah ah Ahhh! Sing it🎤

🎼Can you pay my bills?

Can you pay my telephone bills?

Do you pay my automo' bills?

If you did then maybe we could chill🎵

~Whoo Hoo, tell it, Destiny's Child. WHOO!~

Ahem. Okay.

Now, about love...The selfless love shown in AB is definitely irresistible. {Sharing this is only meant to be motivational, & it would be arrogant of me to comment on anything except my personal journey w/ male/female relationships, which follows.} Attraction is all over the place, but most women don't want to be w/ some feckless fop. It's in a woman's embedded code to want to be loved completely. Adoring (yet masculine) love is one of our fantasies, whether consciously so, or not. Masculine, here, means the whole merry-go-round: a strong protector/provider, who is unafraid of feelings, & for whom his woman is the center of his world. Think: BF+Prince Charming+Rhett Butler's love child: Adoration w/ swagger. This is AB's exhibit #1. Love trumps all else. It's the preservative, the glue, that keeps it all together running smoothly. Without it, the entire product is defective.

Finally, to the best product AB is selling: Standards. AB should raise women's standards when it comes to men. Obviously, no person can be BF-level perfect. We all have viruses in our processors, but women should demand a man that unabashedly loves, protects & provides. (No spongers). Inversely, men want respect & to be, quite frankly, my dear, admired for their manliness - in sincerity. Even Mr. 🤖 asked for recognition of his efforts. The truth of it is that men, in general, have operating systems that run on ego-fuel. I used to roll my eyes at it, refusing to enable or contribute to it, but 32 yrs of marriage taught me that if I want 2 people in our union to be fulfilled, then I'd better make my husband feel like 100,000,000,000 won, as he loved me completely - That does make it easy. I loved our time together, until death did us part. All the rage & discontent out there has made us miserable. To be happy, which is life's bonus option, one has to let it go & forget about oneself to focus on others once in a while. We also need to choose contentment.

Not everything is hardware. Select the best software to avoid meltdowns, as we have choices. A woman can choose a quality partner (or wait for one to drop on top of her), but she shouldn't settle. Strong women hold out for something complete. Forget strong. Smart women (that is, women that have decided to respect themselves) do that. Each of you reading this has dignity as a human being, & you deserve respect. Every woman does.

As for ?? -> Can we have a 💓relationship w/an AI? I'm in love w/ my robot vacuum, so I refuse to comment.

There's a long list of issues w/ AB. Let's skip it. The plot & dialogue are substandard & at times, awful. AB wanders, forgets where it was, & gets lost. The ending is blah - all around. Given the positives, login to AB if so inclined.

QUOTE📢
This, I could never understand: If you love someone you must let them go.} Now, I think I understand a little. That, more than my own feelings, it's about wanting to prevent the other person from getting hurt... Because, it'll be more difficult for me, to watch the person I love, go through struggles.

IMHO 〰🖍

🎬7 🎭8 💓5 🦋6.5 🤔7 🎨6 🌞7 🔚4

Age 16+

Re-watch? Notta priority

💗📺
A Witch's Love 7.8,
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Her Private Life 8,
Touch your heart 8.2, Another Miss Oh-7.5,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Be Melodramatic-8.7,
Familiar Wife-8.5
Hotel del Luna-8.

Originally ✒️ 11/2021

Read More

✒Life~Pain~Romance~Joy~Food~Song~Healing ~⚕️~ Drama That Resonates Again

Grey's Anatomy, Take Your Scalpel & Go Home. K-Band-Aid is In The HOWSE-pital

I put off watching this highly rated show for a while because I found the name unappealing. Well, what's in a name? This series follows 5 friends from college who eventually end up working at the same hospital in Seoul. Now that they are all back in Seoul, they resurrect their college band by working on 1 song a month, to ensure they take time to be together. Whether the above pre-screening sounds like a solid basis for a hospital drama or not, it's merely the setting. What matters is the relationships, particularly as embodied in the writer/director/actors. In any case, HP has stitched together an outstanding fellowship of talent. Stick with the regimen for 3 episodes, at least, before determining its effectiveness. Ep1 gets off to a slow start and there are several scenes that won't be understandable until later. Once things get rolling they never slow down again.

HP is about friendship first, but also caring+respect for others, love, parents & children, music, and lots and lots of #food. The hospital scenes, including staff dynamics and operating room procedures, feel realistic. The characters are a delight.

Here's a shout-out to Jo Jung-Suk. I fell in love with him when watching the divine Oh My Ghost-10. He delivers another slam dunk with his performance as Dr. Lee Ik-jun. Everyone does a great job.

This just pertains to season 1. I haven't started season 2 yet.

((((🕕))))

With season 2 now watched, the diagnosis is that their practice in season 1 rendered season 2 even #more effective. It continues with the uplifting treatment of the subjects, and it's a resounding hit. Picking up right where it left off, there's a seamless connection to season 1.

Early in season 2 there's a 🏓 tourney. Cardio-Thoracic Sx was looking good - until they had to concede in order to respond to an emergency. At least half of the matches seemed to be decided that way. Instead of mic drops, we see paddle drops. We get to hear other docs gossip about the great Lee Ik-jun: 'I heard Dr Lee was in the 🏓 Club in college. In fact, I heard he was in EVERY club in college. He was even in the magic🔮 club.' Comfortably confident, Ik-jun tells Song-hwa: "I'll return victorious before this tea gets cold." (Nope. Nuclear Medicine runs the tables). His defeat is commemorated with these words: "Tasting Defeat and savoring victory: These are the things that allow us to grow."

Let's take a moment to review the primary protagonists.

In season 2, Lee Ik-jun continues to play Dr Cupid. While Ju-wan (the cardiologist) is worried about Ik-jun discovering whom he's dating. We must wonder: Why worry? How could Ik-jun deny anybody love? Watch to see. He has time to play cupid, and also cover for the lunch lady because he's so brilliant that everything is easy for him. Besides, he's friends with the lunch lady on social media, and her son had a parole hearing. The only thing that takes Ik-jun more time than other docs is walking through the hospital. That's because the highly loquacious Ik-jun is friends with everybody - security guards, aides, custodians, scattered guardians... Just everybody.

Ah, the unparalleled and misnamed SONG-hwa. She can do everything: neurosurgery, research, office visits, lectures,,, one of her biggest timetakers is her mentoring of any and all residents in their educational, professional, and even personal lives. She can do everything but sing. She sings anyway, with masses of verve. She gets pleasure out of little things, like rain. She dances at church and eats like a Sumo wrestler. Utterly delightful, she's the heartbeat of the gang, excepting the band.

Seok-hyung lost a little weight and he looks great in season 2. He declined to take over his father's business and continues to rise to near celebrity popularity as an Ob/Gyn, despite his modest and somewhat shy persona. Patients respond to his gentle and caring manner. One office visit depicts amazing ultrasound footage of a 10 week old fetus wiggling its arms and legs. The couple's reaction is precious. Still focused on Seok-hyung, his mother remains unable to resist attempts to try to control him. She wants grandchildren. Now. She tells him: ‘I don't care who it is. Just get married.’

Dr. Chu continues to try and insert herself into Seok-hyung's life. In season 2 he's neither encouraging nor rejecting her efforts. Dr. Chu is not easily daunted. In fact, she's downright inspirational. Openly pursuing Seok-hyung, she often makes him laugh. Dr. Chu runs into Seok-hyung's mother - literally. Mom was so offended that she even told Rosa she doesn't care whom Seok-hyung marries, as long as it isn't #HER!, speaking of Dr. Chu.

Ju-wan is unchanged in season 2, and his relationship with Dr. Do, whom he is training, continues to improve. We get to meet Dr. Do's wife in season 2.

The pediatrician, Dr. Ahn (Andrea/Jeong-won) treads the course set in season 1. There's not a lot to say w/o spoiling some surprises. He complains that his siblings are worried about mom, but as they can't help "right now", they bombard him with calls. In rich irony he laments: "Why did they enter the church, really?"

We see the return of almost all the side characters: Parents, siblings, other doctors, residents, as well as new first years. They all continue to round out the show well.

Uju wants to go camping, so Ik-jun finally leaves his beloved city life for a weekend, because his son is his world. Hmmm. Who else loves 🏕?

Gy-eol is looking relaxed and even pretty, especially with her hair down. We learn more about her in season 2.

As a side note, there's a realistic basis for the show. The positive connection between surgeons and music has actually been studied. The participants currently playing a musical instrument, at the time of the study, performed the laparoscopic tasks significantly faster than those who did not. They determined that visuo-spatial abilities used in laparoscopic performance clearly may be enhanced for individuals playing a musical instrument. It seems obvious that finger strength and dexterity should also be positively affected.

Even though HP is a top-ten show
in all of Korea's history, there are currently no plans for a season 3. The writer has completed the originally scripted storyline. That is the current status, but there's actually numerous ways to continue the drama. For now, it's a wrap. If you are one that dreads waiting for another season as it it's a multistage invasive treatment plan, it's safe to go forward with the HP procedure now, and hope for a recurrence in the future.


IMHO〰🖍

🎬9 🤔6 🎭9 ⚡4 💓8 🦋5 🎵 9 🎨6🔚9

Suggested Age 12& up, with a caveat: One unmarried couple is shown in bed together with enough skin showing to infer what's unmistakably been going on. Any parents who object to that, be advised. The counter-balance is the realistic medical setting, along with reinforcement of good character.


In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:

A Witch's Love 7.8,
Live Up To Your Name-7.6;
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Her Private Life 8,
Touch your heart 8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha-8.4,
When the Camellia Blooms-8,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Romance is a bonus book-7.9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Be Melodramatic-8.7,
Misaeng-9.1,
My Liberation Diary-8.9,
Move To Heaven-8.4,
My Mister 9.5,
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9
Something in the Rain-8.6,

Read More

✒Life~Pain~Romance~Joy~Food~Song~Healing ~⚕️~ Drama That Resonates

Grey's Anatomy, Take Your Scalpel & Go Home. K-Band-Aid is In The HOWSE-pital

I put off watching this highly rated show for a while because I found the name unappealing. Well, what's in a name? This series follows 5 friends from college who eventually end up working at the same hospital in Seoul. Now that they are all back in Seoul, they resurrect their college band by working on 1 song a month, to ensure they take time to be together. Whether the above pre-screening sounds like a solid basis for a hospital drama or not, it's merely the setting. What matters is the relationships, particularly as embodied in the writer/director/actors. In any case, HP has stitched together an outstanding fellowship of talent. Stick with the regimen for 3 episodes, at least, before determining its effectiveness. Ep1 gets off to a slow start and there are several scenes that won't be understandable until later. Once things get rolling they never slow down again.

HP is about friendship first, but also caring+respect for others, love, parents & children, music, and lots and lots of #food. The hospital scenes, including staff dynamics and operating room procedures, feel realistic. The characters are a delight.

Here's a shout-out to Jo Jung-Suk. I fell in love with him when watching the divine Oh My Ghost-10. He delivers another slam dunk with his performance as Dr. Lee Ik-jun. Everyone does a great job.

This just pertains to season 1. I haven't started season 2 yet.

As a side note, there's a realistic basis for the show. The positive connection between surgeons and music has actually been studied. The participants currently playing a musical instrument, at the time of the study, performed the laparoscopic tasks significantly faster than those who did not. They determined that visuo-spatial abilities used in laparoscopic performance clearly may be enhanced for individuals playing a musical instrument. It seems obvious that finger strength and dexterity should also be positively affected.


IMHO〰🖍

🎬9 🤔6 🎭9 ⚡4 💓8 🦋5 🎵 9 🎨6🔚9

Suggested Age 12& up, with a caveat: One unmarried couple is shown in bed together with enough skin showing to infer what's unmistakably been going on. Any parents who object to that, be advised. The counter-balance is the realistic medical setting, along with reinforcement of good character.


In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:

A Witch's Love 7.8,
Live Up To Your Name-7.6;
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Her Private Life 8,
Touch your heart 8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha-8.4,
When the Camellia Blooms-8,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Romance is a bonus book-7.9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Be Melodramatic-8.7,
Misaeng-9.1,
My Liberation Diary-8.9,
Move To Heaven-8.4,
My Mister 9.5,
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9
Something in the Rain-8.6,

Read More

And Now for Something Completely Different °VG° °Romantaholics only°

How does one admit that s/he spent over 16 hrs watching a show about how a con man poses as a wealthy blind woman's brother & ends up falling in love with her? This is utterly ridiculous. The plot summary is ridiculous. What's more ridiculous is that I cried through at least nine episodes. Part of me felt I myself was inside a scene from a comedy. Looks like the joke's on me.

I'll have to accept that I appreciate art with my heart much more than my head. If one can roll with the premise, it's a more pleasurable experience Thus, romance addicts will hop on this cathartic roller coaster & love the ride. Be warned, though, mostly everyone else will hate this.

Between hankies, thoughts jumped to the front of my brain, like: "Hey, this is more ridiculous than a General Hospital, Peyton Place, & Dynasty doing a Reunion-Funny-Raccoon-Video-Holiday-Extravaganza!" Or, "This could be one of the most aburd plot lines ever." As it turns out, this is nothing! Who knew the following plots were being inflicted on the public? Luke & Laura save the world from being frozen. Or, how’bout it was all a dream... a dog's dream. Then there's Timmy, the doll that came to life along with Precious, the obsessive orangutan nurse. Don't get me started on Being John Malchevich, which is really good, but can't be explained. Therefore, TWTWB isn't so bad. I've decided to not be embarrassed for loving it, and it's not the only Kdramas that prompt similar thoughts.

TWTWB is the story of Oh Young & Oh Soo. She is born into one of Korea's dukedoms (her father is a CEO). Her parents had a nasty divorce, ending with her mother leaving the house & taking her brother, Oh Soo. Age 7 at the time, Oh Young longed for them, but she never saw them again.

There's 2 Oh Soos, & they end up friends: Oh Young's brother, born into modern day royalty, & the /other/ Oh Soo, who had been abandoned under a tree at birth. Oh Soo is a grown street kid, sometimes thug, always a gambler, & usually a con man. When the Ohs finally come looking for the long lost son, he has been dead a year. At the same time, the still living Oh Soo suddenly owes a debt to a mob boss that, in the words of ‘The Boss’, "no honest man can pay." So when the family lawyer comes tapping around, Soo jumps at the golden opportunity to make connections with these "well-off" targets.

This sets up a line of obstacles that he & his friends-and-abettors must navigate with thriller style machinations. The irony is that while Oh Soo believes he's moving into that house with his eyes open, ready to plot his course & exit monied & worry-free, he actually went there blind & ended up snaring himself.

TWTWB is a show about isolation, family, lousy or absent parents, dignity, responsibility, telling oneself the truth, & honor. Most of all, it's about forgiveness. The players have a roulette wheel of hurts, slights & other grievances laid out in a circular fire squad formation. Almost every character needs to forgive another in this series. Young's list is by far the longest. The person that forgives can go on to heal. Maybe it isn't possible to pardon somebody out of selfish motives, but the party that gets the most benefit when forgiveness occurs is the one that does the forgiving. As the aphorism goes: Dwelling on hate & anger is like drinking poison & expecting the other person to get sick. TWTWB also underscores that once a person has passed, we must live a little hollowed out if we've missed the chance to attempt reconciliation.

There's nothing novel about the plot's arc: Poor, but smart street thug with a heart of gold, meets innocent, poor-little-rich-girl. Over time, his evil agenda evaporates as love blooms. The journey that matters more than whether it's redundant. Human existence is redundant. What matters most is how they tell the story, and they do it well.

The slow pace mirrors Oh Young's pace. She must proceed methodically & feel everything out prior to stepping forward. The director wants the viewer to FEEL the actors’ emotions. It seems that half of the series is extreme close-ups. That, along with the cello music, is a direct send up to the lauded Ingmar Bergman. When we don't hear the cello or the chimes, there is a thrumming beat to the soundtrack that's intended to build tension. Every episode adds to the taut atmosphere. Given the long close-up takes, the actors are nothing short of sensational showing a range of emotions hidden under poker faces. It should excite lovers of the craft.

Young, who went blind shortly after the siblings separated, was completely cloistered while growing up. She knows nothing of the world or most human interaction, yet she's grown to not trust anyone. Locked away, she's too vulnerable & naive to be left alone. Yet she is very, very alone. Her money blinds everyone around her to her humanity.

Their relationship is adorable. It is as beautiful as it is increasingly uncomfortable as the show continues. He can't take his eyes off of her. Under his nurturing she opens up like a flower. He seems more & more reluctant to go through with his plans. He starts to deflect his agenda and, rather, work on unlocking some of the mysteries in Young's life. Winter is representative of Young's life: A very cold & very long winter. Soo's the warm wind. He blows in and shakes everything up. Soo makes the chimes ring.

Soo & the boys from the street are shown to have limited options in life. At the end of the show, Soo loses all interest in making any excuses, valid or not. He & BFF Jin grew up next to Moo-chul who has a complicated relationship with Soo over a past tragedy and has given Soo 100 days to pay off his debt. Moo-chul may not like Soo, but he sticks to his word, despite being pressured to act earlier. Mr. Kim, the mob boss, is juxtaposed with all of the neighborhood boys. They have a code of conduct, but Mr. Kim respects nothing but his own image. While he likely knows Soo didn't steal his money, he demands repayment anyway, because he's jealous of Soo. Everybody is making deals & promises throughout the show, but Mr. Kim has no intention of keeping his word. Moo-chul may have been contracted to kill Soo, but everyone seems to understand it's just business, and nobody thinks he's lying about anything. It makes for good watching.

Soo is compared to the people around Young. We see that most of the condescending snobs are worse than he is. Young is the center of the wheel that everything turns on. The people around her may seem to care about her, but the money always undermines relationships & corrupts everything. Yes, Soo came to defraud her, but he ends up guiding her to the land of the living. He may have been abandoned at birth, but Young, born to "privilege," was treated even worse, as Soo was taken in by a loving family. The people around Young claim to love her, but from one perspective, they are the #true con artists. Her life has been pain. She is secluded in that secret room, with despair & self-pity infecting the space. She'd given up, out of exhaustion, by the time Soo arrived. She wants to die. Soo is next to Young because he wants to live! These opposite forces draw them together, swirling around each other, as fate tries to bring balance & promote growth.

Now to the Uh-Ohs. There's some /near insulting/ logical gaps & pitfalls. Several things make no sense at all. They did such a nice job with many elements, but some of the mistakes are astounding, given the context. This is a no spoilers review; few examples are possible. One of the worst things that occurs is related to revelations about one character. This person turns out to be delusional & dangerous. It's wildly inappropriate that this person is permitted to linger around. The flaws are severe enough that I can't go higher than a 7 rating. The cropped ending is too brief & klutzy, which is an issue with many Kdramas. Yet, it still is probably in the re-watcher category. I miss them already. Besides, Kim Bum, as Soo's BFF, has never looked more adorable. His parents, who raised Soo, are the only good parents in the show (even Secretary Wang has problems with her dad).

The portentous soundtrack amplifies Soo's (and the viewer's) dread of that fateful day; Young will learn the truth someday. We learn just how sweet & pure she is & how desperate she is to be loved. If you're like me, you'll also tear up from around episode 6, give or take, until the end. Flush out those tear ducts.

Soo was utterly transformed by his time with Young. From doing anything to survive, he now knows what he wants to /live/ for. He makes amends, he shows appreciation for those that looked out for him. He's left his room, joined his family & is open to caring for others. His face radiates a beautiful peace, tinged with underlying sadness. He has accepted truth into his life, particularly the truth about himself. That's even more useful than loving oneself. No excuses. Soo refused to make any excuses. That's not easy. How many of us can do that? He says he wants to pay for his mistakes. It's a touchstone at the gate of the path to redemption.

In the end, the cold winter yields to a warm & blossomed spring. The path of redemption & healing is complete. Love Isn't Blind After All.


〰QUOTES〰

Things end up as you believe.

Certain times are so heavy and long certain times feel so lite and short and at times the two are interchangeable at worst they perish for good...

〰IMHO〰

Age 15+

RATINGS
Directing 7.5
Acting 8
Romance 8
Flutters 6
Sound & music 8
Ending 8

LEVELS
Action/ Excitement 5.5
Thought provocation 6


Re-watch? I intend to


In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:

〰Modern Day -
A Witch's Love 7.8,
Her Private Life 8,
Touch your heart 8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Be Melodramatic-8.7
Hospital Playlist 9,
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9
The Cursed 8.3,
Flower of Evil 8.9,
The Man from Nowhere 8.9,
Black 9,


〰Bad intentions turned upside down:
Crazy Love-7.8,
Familiar Wife-8.5,
The Golden Spoon-8.1,
Call It Love-8.4,
Anna-8.1

〰Romance junkies only:
My Secret Romance-7 (if you ff thru overdone flashbacks),
Boys Over Flowers-8 ~ melodrama to the max,
The Bride of Habaek-7,
Heirs-7.3,
Something in them Rain-9,
C: Well-Intended Love-7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine,
When I Fly Towards You-7.8,
Wait, My Youth-8.4,
A Little Thing Called First Love-8.5,
Find Yourself-8.9,
Hidden Love-7.8

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✒Survival Camp ⛩️ New Mom Edition °8.2° °every new mom needs this°

“The day I got promoted as the youngest director at work, I became the oldest pregnant🤰 woman at the hospital.” Jin desperately wanted both of those things, but she didn't want them to happen at the same time.

🤰Pregnancy? “People blabber that it's a beautiful & joyful process. But it's not always like that for women who actually go through it. Pregnancy is exhausting, delivery is cruel, & recovery is miserable.” In saying that, the BCC director shows she truly understands. Jin finally starts to feel a smidge at ease.

BCC is a 2020 release that is rated 81 on AWiki. It is 1 season consisting of 8 65ish-minute episodes. When Do Yoon & Jin arrive at the BCC, I wondered if Jin had actually passed to the afterlife. It looks like heaven (except for the creepy handmaids-tale-gowns). Massages, room service, baby care, classes, other new moms… What is especially poignant & metaphoric is that, to have a child, is the death of one's previous life. Children break us down to nothing, & we have to build ourselves back up again.

The OM's (the /other/ moms) are in another 🌍, though. It doesn't seem much different than Jr high w/ their persnickety cliquishness. Jin is sneered at because she intends to return to work. ASAP. Now, I really hate it when people sneer at stay-at-home moms. There's nothing easy or cushy about raising kids, feeding your family quality food, & properly keeping a house up. These days, not many families can afford to do it. (In fairness, if kids could vote, it's possible that every mom would be required to stay-at-home). I also find it very distasteful, however, when stay-at-home moms allow their worlds to become so small that they don't have a clue about what it's like out there. If you're a stay-at-home mom, you have no business commenting on somebody who works full-time & tries to juggle family life as well. Most people don't have a choice, & if you've never done it, you can't imagine how difficult it is. Nobody is living a perfect life. Not one of us. I doubt there's such a thing as parenting, or marriage, for that matter, w/o regrets. Not only is judging others useless, but it's harmful to us as it distracts us from the honest introspection & personal improvement that might alleviate some of those later regrets.

It's obvious that the screenwriters have been through this. I love the treatment of the birth, along w/ every other subject. They nail the emotions. The baby has an adorably crumpled frown. That frown is upside-down for everyone else. This couple had given up on ever having a baby. Now, the whole family's ecstatic. “You came through the birth so easily!” Her mother-in-law is all smiles. She's got it wrong, though. Jin actually died on the birthing table & was resuscitated. Everyone is over the moon, except for Jin. She's.just.exhausted.

Jin is an achiever. She immediately gets caught up in the subtle competitions going on between the OMs. First, she starts to feel competitive about breast milk. She calls her friend for advice. Said friend comments that it's been a long time since her baby was a /baby/. The camera pans over to a gangly, pimpled middle school boy. As he leaves, Jin's friend yells at him that he should /shave/ before going to school. The door slams. Then she finds his cigarettes. ‘I really can't help you right now,’ she says, & ends the call.

That sets the table. Through Jin's journey, the writers show the stress, the frustration, confusion, the bombardment of choices & pressures, all the nosy outsiders - each w/ an opinion, the fear, & the absolute irony involved in childbirth ~ & they show it well.

〰Mixed Emotions 🎭

Jin feels so out of place. She worked up until the last moment. All the OMs seem to know much more than she. Jin's far behind. They liken it to the last car on the Snowpiercer train (that ain't good). She sees that her job is going on fine w/o her. She's losing herself. Her identity. Jin doesn't feel the overwhelming love that the OMs have for their 👶. It's not like she can force herself to feel a certain way! She feels so very out of place.

〰Marital Strife & Physical Changes 👫📶

Then it's relational stress. Poor Do Yoon. While his wife is being bullied, condescended to, & failing at breastfeeding, she's taking it all out on him. He can't even breathe right. He ends up bonding w/ another father who teaches him to wear earth tones so that he can blend into the background😝 They go shopping together. The whole thing is pretty cute w/ them gushing over cribs & 🍼 warmers. But his new friend's time at the center ends first. Do Yoon actually runs after his bro's car in the driveway, then trips & falls as his buddy is leaving. Next, they get into how a woman's body changes. One of the OMs has gained so much weight she's doubled her size - & her career is dependent on her looks. Jin hasn't felt like a woman in a long time. Her body hasn't been hers for a long time. She has to hear how /this/ is a time when men tend to cheat. Then she has to watch her husband head off to his awards show w/ his beautiful coworker. In a convertible.

〰Choosing a Name 🎫

The pressure of picking a name doesn't elude this couple. Koreans have 39 days to register their babies’ births, so they don't deal w/ naming the kids until ep7. Until then, they have silly nicknames like ‘Glue Stick’ or ‘Sprout’. A baby's name contains the wishes of its mother,“ & “A name is a vessel that holds a person's fate,” is the verbiage being bandied around. I remember when I picked up the 👶 name book, the first thing that stuck out was the statement that boys w/ exotic names have a higher incidence of mental illness. (Yikes!) I've heard psychologists talk about trying to find a mock-proof name for their kids - they ultimately failed. We gave our son the first name of his father & grandfather, but ended up calling him by his middle name to “avoid confusion” (😜❗). The confusion came when we had to update his records when he turned 18 & was issued an ID. The insurance company didn't want to pay his bills. When he graduated from HS, no one recognized his name when they called it, lol. We have survived this, & worse. The perfect parent has yet to be discovered on this flawed 🌍 - so relax.

〰Finding the Perfect Nanny - before any of the other b!+ches do! 🔎

As their discharge date approaches, the babysitter competitions begin.

Jin's mom was set to babysit, but she needs an emergency surgery. Jin's first thought is about herself & her career. This is really inconvenient for Jin. When Mom points out her selfish attitude, Jin blows up, in rich irony, & blames her mom for not raising her better. Jin realizes she reverts to being a 👶 around her loving, caring, giving, self-sacrificing mother. These new moms haven't worked out their relationships w/ their /own/ parents ~ And ➿♻➿ it goes. Jin ends up in a competitive 3-way interview w/ a top-rated nanny & another mother. They cut in a Joseon era 🤺 fight between questions.

〰And the bang-jammy of them all: Breast V 🍼

Jin has trouble making breast milk & breastfeeding. That's no trifle - Her life becomes ALL about /that/. They put her on a strict diet and a physical routine of massages and exercises to make her a better producer. She feels like a cow. They flesh out the breast v 🍼 wars beautifully. Of course, the science is settled. It's better to breastfeed (cheaper, too). It's better to eat organic & prepare all your meals at home. It's even better to just grow your own food. It's better to monitor your caffeine intake. It's better to exercise regularly. It's better to go to bed early. It's better to not sit all day at the office but to stand once in awhile. It's better to squeeze the toothpaste from the bottom. It's better to brake slowly so you don't wear out the brake pads on your car too quickly. Obviously, these things aren't all of the same importance, but the point is that it's impossible to live a perfect life & to do /all/ the better things. We really have no idea what other people are going through & what struggles they have. This is an issue where the information is out there. They don't need to hear it again from outsiders. It's better to keep our opinions to ourselves. It really is. There are mothers who try their best to breastfeed & cannot keep it up, emotionally & physically. It isn't something that one should comment on to a stranger - someone whose struggles are entirely unknown to the speaker. If it would work, I'd be all-in on it, but It won't work, & it won't make the 🌍 a better place. These actions morph into self-aggrandizing superiority rituals, & that's just wrong. Regardless of our past choices, it's better than better to always be improving. Never stop working on yourself; when you're done, fix e'erbody else. BC has a sequence on the Bv🍼 wars that is not only the highlight of the show, it's production gold. They show arguments, fights, car accidents, bar fights, videos of the fights, videos that go viral & cause fights on other continents… all over breastfeeding... It's bloody brilliant.

The acting is excellent. Uhm Ji Won (The Odd Family: Zombie on Sale) is FL, Oh Hyun Jin. I've seen her in The Cursed-8.3, which is fabulous. As a fun fact, the actor who plays her husband in The Cursed, Jung Moon Sung from Hospital Playlist-9, plays the ob/gyn who delivers her baby here. Yoon Park (You Are My Spring, Doctor Slump), nine years Ms Uhm's junior, is her husband, Kim Do Yoon. I've seen him in Forecasting Love and Weather-6.8 and Introverted (My Shy) Boss-6.5. He plays a duplicitous character in both of those shows. He's such a sweetheart in the opening of BCC I couldn't place him at first. {🐇 trail - I'm just over 4 years into my Asian programming addiction and I'm still not used to how many Korean actors don't look very Asian. I'm from the northeast. If I saw Mr. Yoon on the street wearing a suit I would think -Jewish Attorney- before I would think that he's Asian. Korea, being a peninsula situated in the center of the coast, was likely a stopping point for many a varied traveler. In addition, the USA has had personnel placed there for the better part of a century. Kcountry seems to have more variety mixed into the population than the southeast Asian countries. Mixing the gene pool up makes the most beautiful offspring, and Korea arguablyhas the best lookingmales leads in the 🌍. It doesn't mean anything, it's just interesting.}

Park Ha Sun (Two Weeks, The Veil) portrays Jo Eun Jung. Married to a pro golfer, she's the queen of the BCC. All the OMs suck up to her. The darling Choi Ri (My First First Love-8) is the rebel mom, Lee Roo Da. She has pink in her hair, multicolor nail polish, bare feet, and No, “I won't be breastfeeding,“ thank you very much. Jang Hye Jin (The Red Sleeve, A Time Called You) plays Choi Hye Sook, the BCC manager. She's so perfectly casted it's spooky. She can't hide how much Roo Da distresses her. Director Park Soo Won also brought us Work Later, Drink Now S2.

The all female screenwriting team is: Kim Ji Soo, Yoon Soo Min, & Im Yeon Soo. If you are pregnant or a new mom or if you ever were, they will make you feel less alone. “I never understood why mothers resigned after maternity leave, before.” (Jin is having a mini💡epiphany). ”Now, I do.” “Giving birth really takes a toll on you,” we hear in the next scene. Yep, they've been through this.

“The moment we accepted our unhappiness, we could finally be happy,” Jin observes. Midshow, the women start to drop the facade. They open up to e/o more - whether wittingly or not. They compete less & support e/o more. Now that'll make the 🌍 a better place.


QUOTES📢

…humiliation is a luxury of an emotion that one can only feel when he or she is still a human.

Attachment maketh man. 77% of motiveless crimes are committed by neglected children.


〰🖍 IMHO

📣7.5 📝8.5 🎭8 💓5 🦋4 🎨7.9 🎵/🔊7 🔚 ▪ 🌞5 ⚡1 😅3.7 😭2.5 😱2.5 😯3.5 🤢1 🤔8 💤0

Age 13+

Rated TV-15

Re-📺? possible - I recommend it for every pregnant woman

In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:

A Witch's Love 7.8,
Love to Hate You 8.9,
Her Private Life 8,
A Love So Beautiful-7,
Live Up To Your Name-7.6;
Touch your heart 8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha-8.2,
Oh My Ghost 10,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
Love Struck in the City 7.3,
Be Melodramatic-8.7
Familiar Wife-8.5,
Hospital Playlist 9,
Saimdang-8.5,
My Unfamiliar Family-7.9,
Misaeng-9.1,
My Mister 9.5,
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9
Something in the Rain-8.6,
The Cursed 8.3,
Mother-8.8,

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✒Little Chef in the Big City ♨️ Don't Watch This Hungry °7° °VG°

Food is good stuff - we all love to eat it. Why do we love to watch it being prepared on TV? One reason is that it's comforting. Another is that it brings people together.

Taew is a small town girl from rural Thailand. We meet her through the words of her son. In order to distract his angry girlfriend, Kelli, who is about to leave him, he tells the story of how his mother left the countryside, came to Bangkok, and became a wildly successful chef in the 70's. MC is a 2019 release that is rated 7.4 on MDL. It is 1 season consisting of 13 50-minute episodes. It feels like a true story but a quick goog didn't provide any intel, so it's hard to verify either way.

Taew's first gig is as a maid. Initially, her boss seems harsh, but as she gets to know and trust Taew, she teaches her how to cook. The woman soon recognizes Taew’s great potential. She pushes Taew out of the nest, telling her that she's FIRED. She gives Taew a letter of recommendation for a job at a friend's restaurant. That doesn't work out; when Taew gets there the place is closed. The next few episodes find Taew hustling. Wherever Taew works, she steals - she steals recipes, techniques, and secrets. Her first real break is as a prep cook at Samran Kitchen. There she becomes like family with the rest of the staff. Pol and Jom work there and they will factor heavily in her life. “Do you remember me?” Jom actually helped her catch a bus when she first arrived in town, but that was more than a couple years ago. The beautiful Taew doesn't recall him, but he's never forgotten her.

Gybzy Wanida Termthanaporn (Bumbat Ruk Bum Roong Sook, Mae Lueak Kerd Dai) plays Taew. Her earthy voice is a pleasure to listen to. Jason Young (The Crown Princess, Eng and Chang, The Deadline) is Pol. Handsome and tall, he's a bit of a womanizer - More distant. More condescending. More reserved. He would be the choice in a romance novel. Louis Thanawin Teeraphosukarn (The Eclipse, Only Boo!) plays Jom. He's like a puppy dog - always there, always pawing over her, always helping. Taew has friendly affection for him, but it's platonic. He has an uphill climb if he wants to cultivate her feelings to grow into something more. Jom makes mistakes by sometimes behaving clingy, paranoid, and demanding. They both have some growing up to do. Director E Suphakorn Riansuwan also brought us Win 21 Ded Jai Tur and Something Family.

MC is nicely done and a pleasant watch. Taew's journey to Bangkok is jazzed up with cut-outs and hand-drawn animation. The shots of food, the cooking, and the glorious entrees are seriously appetizing - don't watch this hungry, you'll just torture yourself. It is strange how relaxing it can be to watch food being prepared and cooked on TV. The characters are developed well and they maintain interest throughout each episode. From maid to assistant cook, to sous chef, to Samran Kitchen, to an elite Hotel, to cooking competitions - Taew never gives up. She keeps going forward. She's inspiring.

Like mother, like son: Mom had trouble deciding between two men and the son seems to be having the same struggle in deciding between two women. The sexualized modern-day characters who are sharing the story don't add much seasoning to the main dish - I didn't like Shane, the narrator, much in the beginning. After the initial episodes they focus more on the story, which has worthy themes: Persevering together is the primary theme. Survival is the sub-theme: “Women like us often have to do the opposite of what we actually want to do. Because we can't bear any more pain,” we hear. That's worth chewing on. And sometimes, nice guys finish first.


QUOTE📢

There are times in life when you come to a fork in the road. You know the New Path is better. However you're not ready to take it because you haven't come to the end of the old one.


〰🖍 IMHO

📣7 📝6.8 🎭7.5 💓5 🦋4 🎨7 🎵/🔊6 🔚7.4 ▪ 🌞4.5 ⚡3,😅2 😭3 😱1 😯3 🤢2 🤔4 💤0

Re-📺? This one's in the good-to-pass-the-time category, but I may never pass this way again….


In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

💓 -
C🇨🇳:
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5;
Find Yourself 8.9;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
The Sleepless Princess 9.1;
Wait, My Youth-8.4

Romance junkies only
When I Fly Towards You-7.8,
You are my destiny-6.8 cute and sweet and 1/2 padding,
Meteor Garden-7.4 - 70% flowing 30% dragging and BOF is better,
Hidden Love-7.8

K🇰🇷 :
A Witch's Love 7.8;
Love To Hate You 8.9;
Touch Your Heart 8.2; Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha-8.2,
Crash Landing On You 9.1;
Oh My Ghost 10; Love Struck in the City 7.3,
It's Okay Not to Be Okay 9; When the Camellia Blooms-8,
Hospital Playlist 9;
My Mister 9.5;

Japanese🇯🇵 lite romcoms: Maid Sama-10, Mischievous Kiss Love in Tokyo-7.8, Love, Chunibyo And Other Delusions-8.4, Toradora-8.5


Taiwan 🇹🇼:
Age of Rebellion-9.5
Autumn's Concerto-7.2
The Fierce Wife-8
Two Fathers-7.5

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✒⚖ Trial By Afterlife ⚖ °7.2° °good°

It opens at the close for our ML. He's a fireman who dies while heroically saving a girl's life. The next thing he knows, he's walking toward the Gate of the Afterlife where he can be reincarnated after completing seven trials: betrayal, violence, filial piety, murder, indolence, deceit, and injustice.

AwtG2🌏, a 2017 239-minute release that is rated 86 on AWiki, is about these trials in conjunction with static from the living world as his family's drama continues to play out. It's a review of the hard decisions he had to make in his life, and it's quite moving in spots. Along with his two grim reaper guides (Guardians) he barely escapes a couple of the trials. Quick thinking and a look at things from another angle keep him from sinking to the bottom. (‘All you cared about was money? You are guilty!’ ‘Wait, he only cared about money because he had to provide for his mother and brother!’ ‘Not guilty, then.’)

The acting is seamless. Cha Tae-Hyun (Narco-Saints, Assassination,1987: When the Day Comes) is the lead, Kim Ja-Hong. Cha Tae Hyun (Team Bulldog: Off-duty Investigation, Moving) plays Kim Ja Hong. The somber Ju Ji Hoon (Kingdom-8.3, Blood Free-8.5, Team Bulldog: Off-duty Investigation) is Hae Won Maek. Kim Hyang Gi (Innocent Witness, Salon De Nabi) is Duk Choon. The Screenwriter & Director is Kim Yong Hwa (200 Pounds Beauty-6.5, The Moon).

The special effects are excellent (they are almost overdone) and the sets are beautiful. The Gate of the Afterlife scene is jammed with extras, creating a sprawling feel. The chase scenes are mad-good. There are no flaws. Despite its strengths, AwtG2🌏 does not take our spirits and emotions along for the full ride. I liked this film quite a bit, but I didn't /love/ it. It's a fantasy thriller - a big budget one, and it's visually spectacular. At the same time, it is a simple tale of afterlife adventuring with the message to not give up. Per Wiki, it is based on the webtoon series by Joo Ho-min & inspired by Joseon dynasty Buddhist paintings and early Buddhist texts of the Ten Kings of Hell.

Maybe it won't put your emotions through a trial, but it isn't dumbed-down in the least, either. One judge says, “A sin that has been forgiven in the real world will not be judged in the afterlife.” Would that were true. Work on forgiveness. I find that I cannot forgive without divine assistance, but the release of anger and hatred is something we can all work on to make the world less of a hell. AwtG2🌏 has the right combination of fun, excitement, and depth to make it a good weekend watch for a family with teens&older as it reinforces the best ideals. None of us wants to be found guilty of betrayal, violence, filial impiety, murder, indolence, deceit, and injustice, afterall, do we?


QUOTE📢

Can we think about it while we run?


〰🖍 IMHO

📣7 📝6.5 🎭7.7 🌞5 🎨8.4 ⚡7.8 🎵/🔊6 😅2 😭6 😱4 😯3 😖2 🤔4 💤0 🔚8 and it continues….


Age 14+ Language: scattered R-rated - $h!+ × 3, B@$+@rd, F💣 × 2, Pr!(k, Pu$$y

Re-📺? Down the road… maybe

In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:

Modern Day:
Mad For Each Other 7.8 ~silly fun;
My Secret Romance 7 (if you ff thru overdone flashbacks);
A Witch's Love 7.8;
Love to Hate You 8.9;
Her Private Life 8;
Touch your heart 8.2;
Romance is a bonus book 7.9;
Boys Over Flowers 8 ~ melodrama to the max;
Crash Landing On You 9.1;
Oh My Ghost 10;
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9;
Love Struck in the City 7.3;
Hospital Playlist 9;
My Mister 9.5;
More Than Friends 8;
I'll See You When the Weather is Fine 9;
Something in the Rain 9

Historical/Period:
My Only Love Song 8.7 ~ excellent comedy;
Live Up To Your Name 7.6;
Mr. Queen 8.5;
My Sassy Girl / Yeopgijeogin Geunyeo 8.5;
Saimdang 8.5;
The King's Affection 8.3;
Mr. Sunshine 9

Try a Chinese historical fantasy romcom: The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8

Action/Sci-fi/fantasy:
K2 8;
Private Lives 8.1;
Sisyphus 8;
Tunnel 8.1;
Signal 8.6;
Black 9;
Squid Game 8.4;
Kingdom 8.3;
Sweet Home 8.4

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✒ 〰️Let's Get to Crackin〰️ °good°

Sheng turns to say something and Luo isn't there. "Why are you walking behind me?" "I guess I'm used to it," our FL replies.

In UL, both of our leads need to come 🐣 out of their shells. Zhu Yan Man Zi (Love Endures, Women Must Be Stronger, The Hypnotist) is our FL, Luo Zhi. She's clever, cerebral, composed, and classy. She's downright chaste, but even moreso, she is candid and considerate. She has enjoyed Sheng Huai Nan (Zhao Shun Ran from Memory Lost & Alliance) and crushing on him from afar since HS. Sheng never noticed her - She was always behind him somewhere. He did notice the 🐓 however. When she put on the chicken outfit, she wasn't such a chicken anymore, and she approached him. The presence of a large 🐓 ended up being a great distraction that gave Sheng a leg up in an uncomfortable situation. When he removed the 🐔-head to thank his savior, viola! There's a /girl/ here.

The handsome Sheng, who has had to deflect unwanted advances his whole life, doesn't realize that he DID notice Luo in HS. They were anonymously exchanging notes about schoolwork for a period of time. Luo knew who her pen pal was, but she prefers clandestine operations, so she never revealed her identity. The first year of college was uneventful, but now the 2nd year has started. She un-chickened the 🐥 inside her that one day, and since Sheng lifted that 🐔-head, she's been walking around exposed. Guys are noticing her now, like Sheng's BFF. Concealing is Luo's safety mechanism. Luo prefers the circumference- the periphery - a 5 meter minimum distance from Sheng; anything else is super-duper uncomfortable. So, when he asks her to accompany him to the amusement park on a group outing, she declines. "He is a victorious general in the examination field. But on the field of love, he is utterly defeated."

There's nothing more tantalizing than a club that won't have you as a member. As a professional woman-deflector, being turned down is something new for Sheng. Who is this 🐤? He can't help but be interested...

UL is a 2019 release that is rated 7.8 on MDL. It is 1 season consisting of 24 30-40 minute episodes. It is NOT to be confused with the 2021 release that is of the same name, rated 7.5 on MDL with 38 episodes. {Why do they do that? China put out two versions of Love 020 in the same year. Hollywood has the same problem with overlapping similar projects.} Sheng's BFF, Zhang Ming Rui, is played by Zhang Yi Chi (Rattan). The more he talked, the more I loved his voice. Credit when Gu: Actor, Li Jin Zhe (Zhong Guo Di, The Youth Memories), plays CEO Gu. He exudes sex appeal and it surpasses his mere looks. Part of it is his dreamy voice. This is director Ding Pei's first effort. She has nothing rated under 7.5 on MDL and, given the acuity of UL, I will actively seek out this director's works.

UL2019 is slow and steady. It moves at Luo's pace. Simple, cheerful piano and strings accompany the scenes, making it feel like romance-improv night at the coffee house. There's °slow° that's infuriating and °slow° that's relaxing - and it's widely up to individual taste. UL works because the characters are well formed while the tempo, softly spoken words, and the soundtrack are like a caress. °Slow° works; Slow-and-stupid doesn't, and UL is never stupid. That is the value in this show - The actors are fine. The story is uneventful. The pace is plodding... the worth is in the writing: It is the witty dialogue, the intellectual quotes, & the insightful commentary on humanity that make UL worth a watch.

They end up involved in the drama club and put on a production of Shakespeare's 12th Night. {Apparently, 🇨🇳 is in love with Shakespeare ↪ and Shakespeare's works seem akin to China's historical pieces in many ways.} The translation-of-the-translation is beautiful:

✏ Women are not big-hearted. A woman's love is like a person's taste. It can be tasted on the tip of the tongue but not in the organs. My love is like a hungry sea, which can digest everything. Don't compare them to each other ✏

❣ I know how women love men. One of my sisters fell in love with a man ❣

✏ And what was her past? ✏

❣ It's blank. She never told anyone about her love, and she let depression bottle up inside of her until it destroyed her, ruining her beauty. She pined away. Illness and sorrow tormented her while she waited patiently, smiling despite her sadness. Doesn't that sound like true love? ❣

Thus is their version of 12th Night and, quite obviously, some of the inspiration for the show. Actress, Zhu, is marvelous in the scene. She's acting as a person who pretends to be acting but what she's saying is true, so she's not really acting. Anyway, the acting is great.

Rain Shen (Alliance) plays Luo's roomie, Jiang Bai Li. Each of these girls is getting major interference from the exes of their love interests. The always composed Luo doesn't handle attention, nor, well. ("You are too cautious!," Luo's mom laments). Hanging around Sheng, the campus lightning rod, is crossing a wide and dangerous road for a timid 🐔 like Luo. She had reinforced her protective bubble-of-isolation over & over again. It's talon-proof. This is just another form of pride, and it will alienate a person. People can be horrible, but isolation becomes a sickness in the bones. Too much alone time will make a person very, very off-kilter ~>> weird. It's difficult to find decent people. When we do, we shouldn't shut them out over fear. That is what Luo begins to do with Sheng, once he notices her. As Sheng makes overtures, Luo becomes terrified and contracts - she shrinks away.

Nevertheless, things get cluckin, and they're going well. Her shell starts to CRACK. At the first sign of static, Luo runs away like a roadrunner. The agenda-driven mean girls are hen-pecking, and try to make it look like Luo manipulated a situation. Sheng's forced to "major" in interpersonal analytics that semester in order to sort out fact from fiction. Part of the sorting process is managing fear. The mean girls played on his fears. Author Terry Goodkind writes that people will believe a thing because they want it to be true or because they're afraid it's true. Fear is useful if it guides us, but not if it rules us or turns us into fodder for manipulative control.

The Legend of the White Snake is brought up as an analogy. Per Wiki, it is "a Chinese legend centered around a romance between a man named Xu Xian and a female snake spirit named Bai Suzhen. It is counted as one of China's Four Great Folktales." In the show TLOWS-4.5, unrequited love turns a young girl into a villainous monster; she is a constant pest and causes lots of trouble. Sheng's friends keep bringing it up.

Before the end, Sheng's 🌏 will crack. Towards the close of the series, they get into a drama that seems plucked out of nowhere. There are a couple of tiny hints at a family issue from the past, but the build-up is insufficient. That last story arc didn't play as well as the rest of the show. It is worth noting that the secondary romances aren't bad, but they aren't nearly as good as the primary one.

Now for some Scooby Snacks:

🍗 They each buy a seed with a word burned into it. When the seed grows, the word appears on the plant itself. How awesome is that?

🍗 They are in law school and they do a mock trial of the OJ Simpson case.

🍗 Always dignified, even though she is a bit 🐓, Luo won't be pushed around. "You have to try this drink or your life won't be complete," Sheng urges. "I prefer a flawed life," she shoots back.

🍗 I love how the walls in the girls' dorm are a tribute to Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli. Luo frequently mentions the anime Only Yesterday which is a 1991 Ghibli movie. Sheng also likes the film.

🍗 "Misunderstandings happen when two people are not direct with each other. It results in frustration... Face him bravely," A wise friend cautions.

🍗 They are studying for the upcoming Marxism exam. "What's Marxism?" One of the guys wants to know🤣.

🍗 On break they don their HS uniforms and sneak into class together. Cute.

🍗 "When an attractive man tells a lie, he can be quite good at it." Luo is warned by a woman who got burned.

🍗 Have you heard a quote from Mencken? "A man makes love by braggadocio and a woman makes love by listening. Once a woman passes a certain point in intelligence, she finds it impossible to get a husband. She simply cannot go on listening to men without snickering."

Thank goodness our capable Luo didn't pass that point. She's been a 🐓 that moved like a 🐢 all of her life. But, in the second year of college, she crossed that road & joined the human race.


(more) QUOTES📢

People expect too much of women.

Heaven favors the courageous.


〰🖍 IMHO

📣7 📝7.5 🎭7.7 💓7 🦋5 🎨5 🎵/🔊7.5 🔚7.5 ▪ 🌞4.5 ⚡1 😅2.5 😭2.5 😱0 😯2 😖0 🤔5 💤2

Poli-wagging 1/10. They discuss Marxism. One of her professors says he was labeled as an intellectual and was about to be locked up! Yes, this is what is is to live in 🇨🇳, but it shocking they allowed that in a show.

Age 12+; Rated TV-PG-13: Parents Cautioned

Re-📺? This was great to watch once

In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

💓 -
C🇨🇳:
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5;
Find Yourself 8.9;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
The Sleepless Princess 9.1;
Wait, My Youth-8.4

K🇰🇷 :
A Witch's Love 7.8;
Love To Hate You 8.9;
Touch Your Heart 8.2;
Crash Landing On You 9.1;
Oh My Ghost 10; Be Melodramatic-8.7

It's Okay Not to Be Okay 9;
Hospital Playlist 9;
My Mister 9.5;

Romance junkies only -
My Secret Romance-7 (if you ff thru overdone flashbacks),
Boys Over Flowers-8 ~ melodrama to the max,
The Bride of Habaek-7,
Heirs-7.3,
That Winter, The Wind Blows-7,
Something in them Rain-9,
C🇨🇳: Well-Intended Love-7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine,
When I Fly Towards You-7.8,
Wait, My Youth-8.4,
A Little Thing Called First Love-8.5,
Find Yourself-8.9,

Originally 〰️🖋 11/2024

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✒Marriage in Hog Heaven ✨ The Wild Boar Bites The Prickly Pear °7° °good & silly°

Here's to Hammin it up.

We've all heard first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby in the baby carriage... in LY (aka Drunken To Love You), First Comes Love, next the breakup, followed by marriage, /then/ comes love... the Baby Carriage can't be far behind. They trampled the standard template like wild boars.

Song Jie Xiu and Lin Xiao Ru are in love. Not with e/o, with their sig-others. They each think that first comes love then comes marriage. In their case, the breakup comes in between. After their relationships are skewered on the same day, they end up at the same bar, and they're STOINKED! HAMmered!! They decide to marry e/o. They are very rowdy drunks, so everyone knows they got married. (The flashbacks are hilarious. There's enough to fill a week but supposedly it all took place in the span of several hours). They even swung by to pick up his boss as a witness and then moved her out of her apartment. Though schmasted, they even remember to break her lease. They go hog-wild and make a big drunken mess.

LY is a 2011 release that is rated 7.5 on MDL. It is 1 season consisting of 30 45-minute episodes. It's flawed, childish and silly. It's also very cute. As a lover of romance, I enjoyed it. It is doubtful that anyone who isn't a fan of the genre would like it.

Why don't they divorce? Xiu's gf, Ivy, is an up and coming actress. She can't be involved in any relationships or her career will be dead in the water. When a paparazzi catches Ivy & Xiu together, Ivy talks Xiu into staying in the marriage for a few months so that the scandal goes away. They offer Ru money to keep up the farce. The contracts are signed, and now Xiu & Ru are living together. They actually get along really well, when they aren't smoked up over how much they dislike e/o.

Rainie Yang (Devil Beside You Series, Life Plan A and B), portrays Lin Xiao "Ru". She's so adorable and bright. She's got a feisty side which leads Xiu to nickname her the Wild Boar. Raised in an orphanage, she took the pain of her childhood and channeled it into doing better, being better, and helping others avoid pain. She is the best thing about the show and what keeps it afloat - or should I say happily rolling in the mud. Joseph Chang (The Victims' Game, Crystal Boys) is Song Jie "Xiu". He is grumpy: He even frowns in his sleep. He's a designer and is as fastidious and picky as they come. Daddy left early. His mom wasn't around much. His movie-star gf wasn't around much either. He's been alone most of his life.

Tiffany Hsu (Autumn's Concerto-7.2, Shards of Her) is Tang Ai Wei, Xiu's gf at the show's opening. She gets annoying. In fairness, they've dated since HS, so it's understandable that she would feel a sense of ownership and want to hang on to Xiu. But she wants everything, and she wants it her way. She doesn't think about anyone else. Alien Huang (Rock Records in Love, Go! Crazy Gangster) plays Geng Shuo Huai, Ru's new boss. Chung Hsin Ling (Tavern by the Lethe, Rainless Love in a Godless Land, Oh No! Here Comes Trouble) is Ru's BFF Cai Meng Jun. She's supposed to be the plus-sized comic relief, but her part is cartoonish and squeaky. She's portrayed as an eating machine. It's not that amusing. The director is Chen Ming Zhang of Across the Ocean to See You & Remembering Lichuan.

The writing has its moments. It's quite good at times. They have a discussion about marriage and what it means. Xiu says that if one of them is walking faster than the other, that person needs to adjust their pace. I love that - adjusting their pace to the other's. She responds that she's tired of walking alone so she's willing to do that. Xiu's mother hasn't been around and she certainly screwed up quite a bit. Asian programming tends to be very generous to parents and elders. When we get to meet his mom, we find out that not everything is as awful as Xiu's recollections of the past. Some of his worst memories were not her fault. I actually know some people like this. Their father did do some horrible things (nothing criminal, he's just a vile jerk). From the outside looking in, it's easy to see that, while the negatives do outweigh the positives, there were some positives. Furthermore, their father gave more than what he himself received. He never knew who his father was, grew up in foster care, and was subject to constant abuse (that IS criminal). The grown kids don't feel a thing for his pain because they despise him so much. I can't make any judgments as to their feelings. They are exceptional people who completely broke the cycle and raised wonderful children. It's just sad. All around, it is so sad that we do these things to e/o. Hurt is shared like germs and it's completely unnecessary. Xiu is able to get his relationship with his mother on better footing with Ru's help.

HAMlet, it ain't. They ham it up in the opening episodes, which showcase some overacting. Feeble writing leads to ham-handed scenes containing arguments and other mini dramas that are near nonsensical. They slow-walk the physical contact- even I was getting frustrated on behalf of the ML - a totally new sensation. A wedding is busted up in ep23 in a near insulting manner. There were better ways to forward the plot. At least the episode recovers before it ends. Ep29 is ridiculous, but it ends well - We can forgive them. The moms pull a stunt in ep30 that crosses the line. Entirely. It almost makes Hollywood look tame. LY probably would have been better at just 25 episodes, but it holds up acceptably.

Whether or not flaws can be overlooked is something mysterious and personal - even the most analytical among us are powerfully influenced by emotion. I watched LY alongside the over-long monstrosity, Love Now-3.6, which starts fine but quickly declInes (yet goes on forever). I liked LY despite its shortfalls, while I loathed LN.

Why?

Both have likable actors and characters, but LY is better in that category. LN is 80% inane dialogue; the writing in LY is SLOPpy in places but has its bright spots and is far better, overall. The soundtrack of LY is better. I shazamed one song by Yen-ji but didn't get an English title. I think what captivated me the most is Rainie Yang's slop-happy Lin Xiao “Ru”. She brings home the bacon. She's the reason LY is worth a romHAMiphile's time.


QUOTE📢

You don't love someone for who they are but for who you are when you are with them.

Family doesn't just mean relatives. It's everybody who watches over you and cares for you.

〰🖍 IMHO

📣7 📝6 🎭7 💓6 🦋5 🎨5.5 🎵/🔊6.5 🔚7 ▪ 🌞5 ⚡2.5 😅3.5 😭2.5 😱2 😯2.5 🤢1 🤔4 💤1

Age 14+Language: $h!+, d@mn, References to sex and rape. Rated TV-PG-13: Parents Cautioned

Re-📺? I probably won't


Taiwanese shows ~

Age of Rebellion-9.5,
Autumn's Concerto-7.2 - it starts strong but declInes in the 2nd half,
The Fierce Wife-8,
Love, Now-3.6 - it's terrible,
Two Fathers-7.5

In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

💓 -
C🇨🇳:
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5;
Find Yourself 8.9;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
The Sleepless Princess 9.1;
Wait, My Youth-8.4

Romance junkies only: Accidentally in Love-6.5 '18 B-level scripting, acting, and directing, but still fun/strangely relaxing to watch,
Well-Intended Love-7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine but many object to an outrageous stunt the ML pulls,
When I Fly Towards You-7.8,
You are my destiny-6.8 cute and sweet and 1/2 padding,
Meteor Garden-7.4 - 70% flowing 30% dragging and BOF is better,
Hidden Love-7.8

K🇰🇷 :
A Witch's Love 7.8;
Love To Hate You 8.9;
Touch Your Heart 8.2;
Crash Landing On You 9.1;
Oh My Ghost 10;
It's Okay Not to Be Okay 9;
Hospital Playlist 9;
My Mister 9.5;

🔮🐉-
C🇨🇳: Love Between Fairy & Devil 8.9;
Douluo Continent 9.4;
Handsome Siblings 8.7;
Ancient Love Poetry 8.6;
Love and Redemption 10

Japanese🇯🇵 lite romcoms: Maid Sama-10, Mischievous Kiss Love in Tokyo-7.8, Love, Chunibyo And Other Delusions-8.4, Toradora-8.5.

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✒Flush the Fish Farm ⏲ What Happens in Borcay is Meant to Stay °3.6° °interminable mess°

The quickie review: Leaving Borcay was a mistake. That's when LN starts it's loooooong flush. Don't take this trip; not before you watch everything that's better (and that'll keep you busy for years). Just be aware that more than half of LN is an extended skidmark.

LN is a bit ironic in that time is a central theme, but it has some of the worst time management I've ever seen. The leads are likable and the romance gets off to a hot start. I was thinking it had lots of promise. As ...⏳... goes by, though, 🅾 of its promises are kept.

LN is a 2012 release that is rated 7.6 on MDL. It is 1 season consisting of 72 45-minute episodes... SEVENTY-TWO!!?! That's so Taiwanese. They put out slice-of-life romances with a high episode count and relatively low drama. The viewer lives with these characters for awhile, with the effect being either tranquil and decompressing or extremely frustrating. This is only my 6th Tw🇹🇼Drama. One reviewer whom I respect claims that she's completely fed up with their repetitiveness and her eyes have 'left the island for good' ~ She's done with Tw🇹🇼Dramas. I'm still brand new to them, and out of the 6 I've seen, I love 3, like 2 (though one of those is carried by the beginning of the show and declInes in the 2nd half), and hate just this one. And, boy, do I hate this show. 1/10th in I couldn't fathom what would fill 72 whole episodes; 1/2 way through I tried to figure out what's filled 36 episodes - just everyday life with a heap of sugar on top. Sadly, nothing fills the last half of the show but pain and aggravation.

With 27 eps to go, I was tempted to abandon the show (something I rarely do) as it was leaving Netflix in 13 days ↪ That is more than 2/day, with no break, and it was starting to feel like a job. In the balance, I liked the characters (though nearly all of them are a bit annoying), but not much was going on. One character is pregnant and a big controversy is whether they should allow her to work. This debate goes on for 2 or 3 episodes, not 2 or 3 minutes. It's too far removed from anything I find familiar. It's astounding that Yi Ru's family supports her ex, Qi Ming, who is a serial womanizer. Sure, he's charming ~ Great guy to hang with ~ Worst guy to marry. The people Yi Ru works with are too goofy. Lan Shi De's mother is sweet, but something about her fawning relationship with grandma (her mother i/l) was too much for me. I wanted to shake her free. Perhaps I'm projecting. Sure, this show is 12 years old, but even still, some of the wardrobe is hideous in any decade. Taiwan seems to have a thing with men wearing low-cut tops. It just doesn't look right.

By ep50, I realized I never should have started this. Anything positive in the first half is obliterated by the doldrums of the second half. I played every single episode in its entirety. It was easy to force myself to do that. What I couldn't force my eyes to do was actually watch it, and I couldn't force my ears to hear it anymore. It became background noise as I did other things and peeked in every now and then just to keep up with the plot. This has nothing to do with the length of the show. I've seen Two Fathers, another Taiwanese series that has over 70 episodes, and I loved it. Here, the dialogue and plot are spread too thinly. There's too much filler and some cheaply manufactured drama. It would be much improved in the 20-30 episode range.

That isn't the fault of the actors, though. The romance starts strong. Yi Ru reluctantly falls for Shi De. Sure, he's good looking, but it goes deeper than that. There's something lovable (and sexy) about a man who truly loves a woman and doesn't expect anything in return. I've read that the 2 leads are a couple. That makes sense because the scenes they spark up feel genuine. Annie Chen (Inborn Pair, My Goddess, Tears on Fire) is FL Yang Yi Ru. She's pretty - pretty aggressive and driven. She's a workaholic. She has a horrible temper but a beautiful heart. The actress is not bad but her voice is too nasally, which gets tedious.

Yi Ru's family tricks her into going on vacation in Borcay by making her believe she has cancer. George Hu (Wacko at Law, Shards of Her, Prince of Lan Ling) plays ML Lan Shi De. Weaknesses in the premise aside, for a hot second, I found the romance less than convincing, because he's prettier than the female lead. He's prettier than most women. I settled into the flow after a quick adjustment period.

His family owns a company that makes sinks, 🛁 and 🚽. He's known as a stern and cheerless boss. He's been cheerless ever since his father died and the head-of-family responsibilities were foisted on him at a young age. He's on a business trip in Borcay - until he sees Yi Ru and his mission changes. His top business then becomes bagging her. You see, they were in college together. She doesn't remember, but he sure does. He's been looking for her for 6 years. When he's kind to Yi Ru, she has an emotional outburst and admits she's dying. She will never marry or have kids. Shi De talks her into marrying him. Why not!?. Yi Ru's in the mood to do something crazy.

Bobby Dou (The Little Fairy, Proud of You) plays Sun Qi Ming, Yi Ru's ex. He still hangs around, has a 🔑 to her house, and calls her father "dad." He functions as a mischievous gremlin and causes much of the trouble. According to Yi Ru, the upper half of his body is delightful - that's not the problem: The lower half is the problem. He's an irredeemable philanderer. All those years he's been running with other women, and Lan Shi De has been devoted to Yi Ru.

Vivi Lee (In Time with You, Luo Que) plays Lan Shi Yun, the elder Sister of the ML. She's a relationship expert, author, and (to her embarrassment, given her profession), terminally single. The actress is attractive and does a fair job. I'm not sure if it Is her or the directing, but they kept her part in the 68°-72° range. Slightly cool -to- slightly warm. No 🔥 or ⛄. I grew weary of her slightly concerned stares. Harry Chang (Autumn's Concerto-7.2, Marry Me, or Not?) portrays Zheng Yu Xiang who is a younger fan pursuing a relationship with Lan Shi Yun. Esther Yang plays Yi Ru's bratty but cute little sister, Yang Yi Qing.

Shen Hai Yung (The Perfect Match, Better Man) is the most childish character of the bunch as grandma, the matriarch of the Lan family. Grandma's infantine fits are used to forward the plot and fill time. Yen Chia Le (True Meaning of Love, W Series: Love Yourself) is grandma's spinster daughter, Lan Yi Ping. Her part is a little overdone. She ends up shamelessly chasing a man and wearing the worst clothes of the show while doing it. Yet, I still found her adorable. That's some serious presence. She plays a sharp-tongued director in the show, Love You-7, which is imperfect yet still far better than LN. Mandy Wei (Memory Love, Piggy's Counterattack) really shines as He Cai Rong, though her bangs direly need a trim. She's the best character in the show. She is intuitive and, out of all the characters, she says the most intelligent things. The screenwriters are Lin Pei Yu (We Best Love series) and Shao Hui Ting (A Thousand Goodnights).

LN does have a couple themes even though it doesn't take any deep dives. The title is Love NOW and time is a running theme. Shi De has been wanting Yi Ru for over 6 years. There's ⏳⏲🕰⏱⌚⏲⏰ ⌚⌛ featured frequently on screen. "Women are used to sacrificing while men are used to enjoying women's sacrifices," we hear. 'Fish farms' vs committed love is showcased: Qi Ming calls his floozies his "fish farm" and Yi Ru's little sister thinks that's pretty cool. She starts one of her own. When Yi Ru falls for Shi De, Qi Ming has a major identity crisis. He tries to get her back, but no-nonsense Yi Ru moved on long ago. His character goes through the most growth and change by the time the credits roll. There's quality touches and real smiles in the first part of LN. Someone is always sneezing because they are being talked about, and it makes for nice segues. I think when the series first aired it was popular which led to an unplanned expansion of episodes that the creators couldn't sustain, quality-wise. LN is a broken 🕰 that's only right twice a day. Don't trust it; in the flusher it goes!


〰🖍 IMHO

📣3.5 📝3 🎭5 💓5 🦋5 🎨3 🎵/🔊4 🔚5 ▪ 🌞5 ⚡2 😅2.5 😭2.5 😱1 😯2.5 🤢1 🤔2 💤7

Age 13+ Adult/sexual situations. Language: @$$h0le and other rare PG-13 verbiage.

Re-📺? Ain't gonna happen -shoulda skipped the first time


In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

Taiwan
Two Fathers-7.5 (73 episodes of slice-of-life and i loved every one)
Autumn's Concerto-7.2 (declInes in the 2nd half)
The Fierce Wife-8 (starts iffy, ends magnificently)
Age of Rebellion-9.5

💓 -
C🇨🇳: Well-Intended Love 7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine;
Accidentally in Love 6.5 B-level scripting, acting, and directing, but still fun/strangely relaxing to watch
You are my destiny 6.8 '20 cute and sweet and 1/2 padding
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5;
Find Yourself 8.9;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
The Sleepless Princess 9.1
K🇰🇷 :
A Witch's Love 7.8;
Love To Hate You 8.9;
Touch Your Heart 8.2;
Crash Landing On You 9.1;
Oh My Ghost 10;
It's Okay Not to Be Okay 9;
Hospital Playlist 9;
My Mister 9.5;

🎎 -
C🇨🇳: Overlord 8.4,
Under the Power 8.6,
The Rebel Princess 9.1,
The Sword and the Brocade 8.6 (in ancient Chinese opera style),
The Rise of Phoenixes 9
K🇰🇷:
My Only Love Song 8.7 excellent comedy;
Mr. Queen 8.5;
My Sassy Girl 8.5;
The King's Affection 8.3;
Mr. Sunshine 9

🔮🐉-
C🇨🇳: Love Between Fairy & Devil 8.9;
Once upon a time in Linglian Mountain 7.5;
Douluo Continent 9.4;
Handsome Siblings 8.7;
Eternal Love 8.3,
Ancient Love Poetry 8.6;
Love and Redemption 10

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✒➡️ Going Postal °a generous 7° °good but lacking°

There was the c☄met. That was 40 years ago. 1% survived. Most continents are underwater. Kcountry looks like the set from Mad Max Fury Road-9. Breathing is only possible with the assistance of the Aircore, which is basically a massive air purifier. People reside in the core districts - at least the lucky ones do. Others must try to survive in the wilderness of the outer districts and breath through masks. One way to improve one's station is to become a postal worker; in this world they're called deliverymen. It's dangerous. "Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail shall keep the postmen from their appointed rounds," is the famous pledge. But there's much worse out there now. Apart from the harsh terrain, there's the thieves, hunters and raiders.

BK is a 2023 release that is rated 88 on AWiki. It is 1 season consisting of only 6 45-minute episodes. This dystopian future is one in which a few have all the privileges at the expense of the many (sounds familiar). Those on the fringe are used up, and once the oligarchy has used them up, they want to throw them out. "5-8" is the premier deliveryman - He's a legend. Through the course of the show he uncovers the plot to eliminate the outer circles of civilization. He forms allies, willing and reluctant, to fight the diabolical power structure.

Kim Woo Bin, the person who most makes The Heirs-7.3 worth watching, plays 5-8. He's a superb male lead and he only adds to BK's value. He shines in Our Blues-8.5. Kang Yoo Seok (Growing Season) is solid as Yoon Sa Wol, his charge. Esom, one of the brightest stars in Because This Is My First Life-7.7, plays Jung Seol Ah, a military officer who does things by the book. No partiality. Song Seung Heon (Saimdang-8.5, Player, Black-9, Wonderful Nightmare) plays villain Ryu Seok. What are they doing to my guy? This actor is a fabulous romantic lead. I hate seeing him as someone odious; and odious he is. His rigid facial expressions and body language make him unrecognizable compared to how he appears in Black or Saimdang, the only exposures I've had to him. His range is a credit to his acting prowess. I still don't have to like it. The screenwriter / director is Cho Ui Seok of Cold Eyes.

BK is executed well which is why I'm not sure why I didn't like it more. The action is respectable - quite good, actually, and at times fabulous. The artistry is big-budget, a very cool windstorm being one example. There's shades of Planet of the Apes in a shot of a toppled Namsan Tower smack in the center of the dust bowl. The story is solid and the acting is strong. In this case, the individual elements weirdly add up to something less, though I can't pinpoint why. Things that come to mind are, first of all, it is all retread - there is nothing original at all in BK. That's a criticism that means little, though, if the execution is solid. Thus, I must surmise that there's something lacking in the execution. It's put together alittle too loosely; the cadence and direction are uneven. I almost wonder if a re-edit could fix it. The tempo is mostly slow and brooding, but that only works when the writing is dynamic. Here, the writing does not have a high enough IQ - There's nothing to brood on. The same criticism can be applied to the fact that BK did not engage me emotionally. For a feature to be truly good it must tickle the heart or the head (or both), and BK does neither. Despite some stellar action scenes, it lacks sufficient adrenaline to be qualified as an action piece, and it lacks the proper tension to be a thriller. What we're left with is some dusty vanilla ice cream.

Hey, I love ice cream. I love it enough to lick through the dust and enjoy the good stuff (AKA Kim Woo Bin;). My favorite genre is sci-fi / fantasy with romance being hitched right behind it (action and comedy follow closely). Apart from comedy, sci-fi / fantasy is the most demanding to write. Coming up with new worlds has endless challenges - just check with GRRM (George RR Martin) on that. So from my perspective, BK is worth watching, at least once, for what it does offer. I /know/ I overrated it at “7”. I was tempted to go lower but it didn't sit right. I'm convinced a larger than average portion of the viewing population will not enjoy BK. I trust that will help you decide whether to hop in the truck and take the ride or sit this one out.


〰🖍 IMHO

📣7 📝7.6 🎭7.7 🎨8 🎵/🔊7.3 🔚7.8 ▪ 🌞3.5 ⚡8 😅1 😭5 😱4 😯4.5 🤢5 🤔5.5 💤0

Age 14+ for violence Language: $h!+; Rated TV-MA: Mature Audience Only.

Re-📺? This one's in the good-to-pass-the-time category, but I may never pass this way again....

In order of ~lite&trite~ to ~heavy&serious~ you may also like:

Crash Landing On You 9.1,
Oh My Ghost 10,
The school nurse files-7.6 & Glitch-8 - both are 80's indie style quirky Sci-fi,
It's Okay Not To Be Okay 9,
When the Camellia Blooms-8,
K2 8,
Private Lives 8.1, Vagabond-8,
Uncanny counter - S1 only °S1-8.4 S2-4°,
Sisyphus 8,
Tunnel 8.5,
Signal 8.6,
Blood Free-8.5,
D. P. -8.4,
Uncle Samsik-8.4

The Cursed 8.3,
Flower of Evil 8.9,
The Man from Nowhere 8.9,
Black 9,
Squid Game 8.4,
Kingdom 8.3,
Sweet Home 8.4
The Wailing-8.8

Chinese:
Douluo Continent 9.4;
Handsome Siblings 8.7;
Ancient Love Poetry 8.6;
Love and Redemption 10;
Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber 9-Kung-fu!

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