This was probably the most twisty-turvy drama I’ve ever seen. Just when I thought I had it figured out, it turned out I was completely wrong. And I had to pay very close attention to what was going on on-screen to not miss any clues.

There’s some really nice whump in this drama and the found family trope is positively glorious! Dong Baek’s, the main hero’s, team loves him like their son/older brother and they don’t doubt him for one second, not even when it looks really bad. They trust him with their lives. And Han Sun Mi, the main heroine! At first you don’t get why she’s the way she is, so seemingly cold, but as the story progresses you get why and you get her. And you realize just how much she cares!

Also, surprisingly to some, this drama has no romance. None. What the characters share is a genuine friendship and that’s all. So, if you’re looking for something sweet and romantic, this one is not for you. If you want a dark and twisty thriller about telepaths, then this one is for you for sure!

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Personally, I didn’t really feel the romance but everything else about this drama was just about perfect. The characters, all of them, the friendships, the mother-son relationship… Thun had, hands down, one of the best coming out episode I have ever seen. Yes, pretty much a whole ep was dedicated to him coming out as gay to his friends and the girl who liked him and his mom, and it was one of the most wonderful, most wonderfully acted thing I’ve seen.

I adored Thun’s friends, how much they all genuinely loved Thun, how worried they were about him keeping secrets from them, how they were willing to face his wrath to get him the help they thought he needed when they convinced themselves he was on drugs, the way they went above and beyond casual friendship “duties” for him.

And his mom, his mom deserved a Mother of the Year™ award. She was so incredible, so fantastic. No wonder Thun grew up to be such an amazing boy with a mom like her. They pushed all my parent-kid buttons with their love and care for each other. That was beautiful.

Also, the mystery was so intriguing! I genuinely didn’t think that it would turn out to be that particular person, the murderer. Huh. I adored the whole reveal scene, the way Thun kept pushing and pushing and pushing to get to the truth because he promised Met to figure out what happened to him!

The ending felt a bit like a cope-out, TBH. I think I would’ve preferred if Met reincarnated and went looking for Thun as an adult. But that’s just me…

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Hands down, one of the best Kdramas I’ve ever seen. I mean it. Sweet, touching and heartbreaking, a slice-of-life series about people dealing with the fall-out of a terrible accident. It has everything, including physical and mental whump, PTSD, you name it. It’s like one of those amazing, 50+K slow-burn fics that break you and then piece you back together only to repeat that process over and over again… Incredible!

Lee Junho’s Lee Kang Doo is one of the most amazing heroes I’ve seen to date. To watch how his integrity and brash honesty changes those around him and all that without him even realizing how important he’s become and to how many people is a thing to behold.

The acting is simply phenomenal and I really hope that Lee Junho sticks with it. Not that he isn’t a great singer but I think he really found himself as an actor and I can’t wait what else he has in store because so far, all his series have been big hits for me, personally.

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This was a very sweet drama about friendship and family - with a smidgen of soap opera - whose ending gave me warm fuzzies.

It’s no secret that I watched it mainly and mostly for New Thitipoom playing Teedet and I really loved his character. I loved his love for plants and small animals, his almost terminal foot-in-mouth-is and his determination not to suffer any BS from anyone. Also during Teedet’s monologues, Newwiee’s voice was so wonderfully warm and soft.

It was cute - but too short!!! - and you could see how much the actors enjoyed playing their parts and acting together because, though they’re the original pillars of GMMTV, some of them never had the chance to act together. I guess this was their last stab at playing students for GMMTV before they jump to adult roles. And no wonder, considering that some of them will be 30 next year. I hope we’ll see them in something else together in the future but if not, then this drama was a wonderful gift to the fans of the three Royal Couples.

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The Most Wonderful Bromance

This was a wonderful series. The last time I was so caught up in watching a Cdrama was during The Untamed craze. Tang Fan, Sui Zhou and Wang Zhi, these three and their odd friendship made the drama for me. For once, though, it wasn’t just the characters but the story itself, the cases, the plot what caught my interest because the storytelling was wonderfully smart and woven together with meticulous care which at the very end bore fruit when the various people our heroes met during their previous cases came together to help them save the emperor and the whole Ming Dynasty.

So yes, the story was so good and the characters - the found family trope - were the sweet cherry on top. This drama was based on a BL book but because of censorship, the love story between Tang Fan and Sui Zhou couldn’t be portrayed as such. Instead we got the most wonderful bromance with deep devotion and much care - but mainly, no shoehorned love interest for either. So, just like in The Untamed, the leads might not have kissed on-screen but their love for one another was undeniable. And the characters were portrayed just wonderfully by the actors! Kudos for the excellent job they did!

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This was a great series. It seemed like the plot was simple but then came the big twist at the end and it left the plot open for a possible S2. Will there be S2? Did they plan the whole thing with the idea of another season already in mind? Or did they leave the ending open just in case it was a hit, so that they could bring it back if need be? Who knows? Not me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

There were two things that I truly loved about the series: the casting and then the music.

The drama introduced me to Inukai Atsuhiro and it showed me a very different side of Suzuki Nobuyuki whom I knew from High & Low and Tokyo Revengers. And I became a big - or a bigger - fan of both. I love when that happens, when I find new actors to follow. So... nice!

And the score! The score was so good. Unlike movies, dramas rarely have a great score but this one did. And for me, it certainly added a lot to the experience.

I'm very happy with how the drama turned out. The development of Shiro & Ichiro's relationship was simply amazing. The way they went from a simple cooperation/cohabitation over friendship to something much deeper was a thing to behold. The depth of their trust and love for each other... mwah! Outright romances have less romance than this drama. Their looks, their little touches, the things they did for each other, that all honestly gave me butterflies! So good.

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This was a cute little drama. At first, I wished it was longer, both the episodes and the drama itself - 12 eps, each 20 minutes long, didn't feel like enough - but now that it ended, I think it was just right for the story, which was very simple and kinda thin for anything longer.

What really kept me watching was the relationship that developed between Doo Shim & Woo Soo. The way he became so smitten with her and the way she slowly returned his feelings, her relief that she wasn't alone in this shaman business anymore. That was really great. And also the fact that Woo Soo wasn't just an innocent bystander but that he got powers of his own. That was really cool.

So, yeah, a nice little series. And I do hope that there will be S2, this time with a deeper plot. Then I would wholeheartedly welcome 16 eps, an hour each!

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It’s a campy romp with a smidgen of horror and amazing music, though rather too modern for the setting, I didn’t mind that at all, though, because it certainly put me in the right mood for the whole thing. I laughed and I cried, it was funny and it was sad.

The main duo’s bickering was hilarious and their chemistry wonderful. And the ending open enough for a possible continuation. I loved the Netherworld setting, it was very moody. The story worked really well with themes like reincarnation, grief and letting go. Quite unexpectedly, I loved the character development of the villain’s family, the “evil” mother and her neglected stepdaughter’s relationship. That? Was very unusual, how it turned out. And I loved it.

Apparently, this series is based on a book and a movie and those who loved them, hated the series, it seems. But since I didn’t read the book nor did I see the movie, I didn’t care. Personally, I liked it. It’s definitely one of the best TW dramas I’ve seen.

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Honestly? This was the closest that I’ve ever seen a Cdrama get to an actual, honest to gosh threesome. I mean, certainly, all of the scenes where the two generals ended up in one bed together and cuddling where played up for the laughs but considering the requirements of censorship in China, I do think that they did the utmost to imply that, yeah, if the filmmakers were allowed? Them three would be an item.

This was a comedy drama. But as much as I love comedy, this was too much even for me. It bordered on parody so even those moments that were supposed to be taken seriously, I simply could not do that. Which is too bad because the main story of the two generals from opposing sites becoming good friends - at the very least - was quite an interesting one!

Best scene in the whole drama? The one where the main heroine and her husband, the general of the South Kingdom, helped their lover… err, best friend, the general of the North Kingdom, escape under the noses of both sides’ spies. That was just awesome. That they went that far and that he trusted them not to betray him.

I’m not using their names because a) I don’t want to spoil it too much and b) their names changed and then changed again so many times that it was hard to keep them straight.

So, yeah. The idea was great. The execution was… lacking. Though I still do hope that they will make S2, as implied at the very end.

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A great little drama literally murdered by horrible subs by MangoTV.

This is Mr. & Mrs. Smith wuxia style. They adore each other, bless their little hearts, but he's the palace's secret agent and she's a gun for hire - so to speak. And they don't know that about each other.

Goodness gracious, the shenanigans! Not only is the writing truly hilarious, the actors play their parts perfectly which adds to the overall funny - and yet loving - tone of this web drama.

It's too bad that Mango butchered the subs so badly. Because of it, the overall plot with the palace intrigue and whatnot is literally lost in translation. I kinda doubt that the visiting... official or whatever was really a "proton" ?

Also, the ending song is truly lovely.

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This felt... way too cutesy, I must say. Don't get me wrong, I love me sweet fluff from time to time but this felt too forcefully cheerful and cute. IMO, they tried way too hard and the end result just didn't feel really natural.

Which is too bad because the boys' back stories could've made for a really interesting drama otherwise. The found family trope was strong with this one and it's too bad that the writers didn't let that speak for itself. And when I say family, I'm not talking just about the four boys at the inn but also Yakyo and his pâtissier, Eisuke. Or the other restaurant owner, his little daughter and his clumsy help.

In the end, I found Tokitaka's backstory the most intriguing - and his relationship with Sui the most interesting, that everyone called them "mom" and "dad", respectively. But also Eisuke, whom I couldn't stand at first, turned out so fascinating! Especially his relationship with Yakyo.

Still, because of its overt sugary sweetness, it felt a bit boring. Too bad...

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Holy smokes! Wow. This must be one of the whumpiest dramas I've ever seen. And definitely the whumpiest Jdrama. Like, holy smokes!

The sword fights here were absolutely amazing and Saotome Taichi swinging a sword and kicking butts was smoking hot, like wow.

As I've mentioned, since Kakeru is the sword swinging hero here, he's the object of so much whump like you wouldn't believe. And because the drama is all about found family - Kakeru, Sho and Karen grew up together, the sword master, his partner destined to kill him one day and the scabbard maker, respectively - they all adore Kakeru so the whump is really, really satisfying, the way they worry for him and do all they can to protect him and keep him alive, even risking their lives and going against centuries old traditions and powerful supernatural stuff. And it's what saves Kakeru's life in the end, their love for each other. It's so beautiful!

If you like action driven dramas with the found family trope in abundance, then you will love this one. I'm all a-giddy about it!

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The cases in this drama honestly surprised me. They never turned out the way I expected them to. Totono-kun's observation skills were simply awesome, not just regarding the cases but also people, simply people. He might've been a loner but he knew about people. I loved that, yeah, he was annoying to some but when he started talking to the culprits or to the victims, he truly got through to them and made them see reality as was, not just the way they thought it was.

Suda Masaki was fantastic as Totono-kun. I saw him in a few things already but he has never really caught my interest, I was always all, "Yeah, and so-n-so was played by Suda Masaki. Alright." But here, he was truly marvelous. The way his Totono-kun was a loner, a bit weird but not in a bad way, a walking encyclopedia but also someone who just walked in the rain, singing a song about potatoes, who was all excited about a bento and an impressionist exhibition, who never, ever wanted to get involved in the cop's cases and yet, when push came to shove, he always helped... Yeah, that was cute.

Also, Totono-kun & Garo! Wow. I'm so curious where that is headed and I hope that there will be S2 that will explore their relationship!

Overall, a great series. Funny but also so intriguing!

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