A let down

I generally love crime thrillers but Decoy bored me so I will just list some of the reasons I disliked the series first.

1. There is so much back and forth time jumps. Aft first, I found it hard to keep track on how far they were going back as the story takes you back to different years following the story of both the victims of the scam as well as the fraudsters. After a while, I just stopped caring and just wanted the story to move forward.
2. Most of the story takes place in flashback. It would be easier if we got the back story and then saw the person in the present. They would show you a dead body and you would have no idea who they are. Then after awhile they would go backwards in time with reference to the dead person and I found myself thinking. "Okay, this person is dead so why do I need to care what their role was?" I wasn't invested in them anymore. I wish we got to see their back story first.
3. The whole tone of the show is dull. The scenes shot in the present have a blue filter and the past is in a yellow/orange filter. The way the actors speak all feel a bit monotonous especially our lead detective.
4. Again because the story is working backwards, I didn't feel a connection to the victims early on. I wasn't fully empathetic to their suffering. Instead I was impatient to figure out if they will get their justice in the present but instead I was forced to go back to the past every time something interesting happened in the present.
5. It also adds to the frustration that the lead detective keeps undermining the victims of scam saying it's not a big deal compared to murder and refusing to look into any possible connection to things happening in the present. At the same time, he wants to get information out of them while also name-calling them. The last thing you want the male lead to be is a jerk and those are the vibes that I got from him.
6. Just when the series was getting somewhere in the present, it ended. I am okay with splitting shows up but for Decoy, it doesn't work in it's favour. Maybe my impression of the show would be better if it was complete rather than being divided in this way.

What I liked:
1. The female lead who plays the reporter. She is clearly a smart character. Smarter than the detective in fact and she picks up on things fairly quickly. Acts in the nick of time and was the main reason I enjoyed this series.
2. The only person I developed some sympathy for was the "oppa" of the female lead even though he didn't get much of a role. Rather there were only glimpses of him.
3. No Sang Cheon, the con artist. Loved his character. He feels more like a grey character than a pure bad guy. To some extent, I admire his wits for catching on to a scam. That's a different matter that he turns into a scamster himself. He also seems to be the only character that actually portrays the widest range of emotions and has enthusiasm when he speaks.

Even 6 episodes took me a long time to cover as I would start feeling sleepy so to prevent that I had to watch the show in 2x. I will watch part 2 just for the conclusion and I hope it will be more focused on the present for a change.

Read More

A beautiful drama on family

This might be my first romance drama that I am rating a 10 maybe because it is more about family and that is what I loved most about it. It's not a proper comedy or romcom but it does make you smile and laugh as much as it might make you tear up. It is endearing as a story about family and I genuinely wanted to hug the male leads several times for struggling so much as kids. I loved their bonding through their individual struggles and looking out for each other. I am glad I started watching late and binged it because it made it more enjoyable than if I had to wait weekly.

Sometimes kdramas get boring but I didn't find myself bored with this one at any point. I loved it from start to finish. There are plenty of cute romance moments but it was really the trio that I fell for. The cast was exceptional in their portrayals. I felt their emotions and found myself relating to how they were feeling in that situation I loved the dads and every kid would want fathers who can take on a proper role of childcare and bonding with their children without relying on remarriage to another women and pass on their responsibilities to her in such situations. It was quite wholesome for that reason.

Although the child actors are only seen in the first 2 episodes (if I am not mistaken), they did a wonderful job as well and were truly adorable.

The OST is quite nice even and enjoyable though I normally don't like slow Korean songs.

If you don't mind getting a little emotional and a plot about family with a slow build up to romance, Family By Choice might appeal to you as much as it did to me.

Read More

Captivating Story-telling

DP Season 2 has certainly outdone season 1. The way they have shed a light on the horrors within the military service in South Korea, I don't believe any country has even attempted such stories or would ever be inclined to attempt to admonish the evils within their military. For that, I have to applaud South Korea. Without checks and balances, the system perpetuates injustice.

This series is a dark one but the directors have managed to bring some humour and light moments in between into the story-telling. These are stories of different individuals in difficult circumstances. They didn't choose to serve. They were forced to and what's worse is having to deal with humiliation and abuse on a regular, if not daily basis. Their only choice is escape. The DP team are not actually heroes. They have just one job. To force the deserters to return without actually rectifying the situation that causes many of the deserters to flee in the first place. However, this season seeks to change that. After seeing the errors in the way the military functions and the worsening situations of the victims and the results of the violence and humiliation they endured, the DP team starts to see a real problem with the way things are run and the corruption within the system that is creating more and more victims by sweeping incidents under the rug. However, in the process of creating a change, there are still many who could not be saved.

Every story is heart-breaking. But there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Even if it is a flicker.

Hope everyone looks beyond this as a story and considers what stories are not being told in our own countries and how many victims are created because of lack of a voice and change. This series certainly made me think beyond what was depicted.

It is not an easy watch, but DP Season 2 certainly is a must-watch.

Read More

Great but incomplete

I honestly enjoyed every minute of the series except maybe for the very end. We waited so long for the conclusion of the series and they leave some questions unanswered in anticipation of another season which I suspect might never get made. That is why it makes me more annoyed that the current season got split up to begin with. It might have received a better reception as a whole.

I genuinely loved the character development of all our three leads as well as the student. A depth is added to their personalities and the story continues. There is no romance but there is chemistry between Van and Won Min Ho. Plenty of nice action sequences especially including Priest Yohan. Really good CGI. The story moves faster for the most part.

The biggest drawback is that we get left on a cliffhanger so it's not really a satisfactory conclusion although it's not as bad as to feel incomplete either. I just wish all lose ends were tied up in a clean way.

The series is quite enjoyable. I hope more people view it so that we can all ask for another season with a conclusive story line.

Read More

Funny and addictive

Ignore the cheesy title of the show. I found the drama by accident and was hooked instantly. The female lead plays multiple comic book characters usually as the evil secondary character except due to a bug she enters a romance story as a sad and pitiful female lead. Being the vamp that she is, her fiery personality leads to the plot going haywire while she tries her best to fix it.

If you're tired of the usual romance drama tropes then you'll love watching 'Night Of Love With You' tear into them mercilessly and will make you laugh.

This female character is certainly a breath of fresh air compared to the innocent goody two shoes plain Jane female leads. Sit back and relax and enjoy this gem of a drama.

Read More

Lacking compared to part1

My review is for the second half of the drama rather than the entire drama. I quite loved the first half (part 1) but this second half (part 2) was so much more weaker.

The first 3 episodes are decent, there are light moments (when you compare to the tragedies of the first part) and hope. But episodes 4 - 9 were such a drag to watch. You get brief moments of happiness and then problems. To the point that it seemed like a never-ending mess. I was prepared for a tragic ending. Apart from that, the story was really moving slowly with not much happening. You can easily watch these episodes on 2x because everyone talks so slowly.

Some of the characters really annoyed me. One being the king. He was so hell bent on retaining power and his position that he lost trust in everyone including his ministers, his son, and his people. To target his own people who already faced so much was simply unforgiveable according to me. What does loyalty mean if the other party unreasonably wants to sentence you to death in order to feel "peace"?

The other character was the scholar who acted all noble and could see that the king's fears are driving him to cruelty and he made the same exact choices by giving into his unreasonable fears. Though it just proved that he was always a cruel man and he never regretted his part mistakes. He would repeat them again without much hesitation.

Finally, it was Officer Gu, who we all knew was not worthy of marrying Gil Chae.

It's easy to blame the "barbarians" for the sufferings of the people of Joseon but this part highlighted that the people of Joseon were far more cruel to their own. They abandoned their own family and wives and sisters and daughters if they deemed them to be "tainted" and were obsessed with keeping Joseon "clean". They were willing to kill their own by labelling them as traitors without proof. They forced women to kill themselves. They humiliated anyone who survived. They truly disgusted me because instead of easing each others suffering and giving each other comfort after all the hardships and sorrows, they rejected and ridiculed them instead. They didn't allow their own people to heal. So the real traitors were the ones who escaped "unscathed". Problem is, I don't know if majority of the audience will understand this because of the way it was presented. Unless you can relate to being "othered" in your own country, it's unlikely that most of the audience will understand this aspect of the story because of the way it is presented. It will probably get sidelined as an aspect of war.

The last two episodes were the best compared to the rest of this part. Though there are again unnecessary hurdles and part of me wanted to know what happened to all the politics that we were forced to suffer through, I am glad we were not forced to suffer more on the leads' story front. If not for the last 2 episodes, I would have certainly scored this part lower just for those middle episodes. The male lead also said and did all the right things and he truly was a blessing for everyone. The growth of the female lead was also nice to see and a good contrast between part 1 and 2.

One aspect they glossed over is what exactly happened to Ryang Eum.

The OST of this show continues to be enjoyable.

Read More

Thrilling start to finish

Basic plot: Why Her is the story of a talented lawyer Oh Soo Jae who rises to fame in TK Law Firm. However, her story is not simple. Her journey was one of a righteous young lawyer who goes through tragedy and hardship and makes revenge her ultimate goal by turning herself into the most sought out cut-throat lawyer that that clean up the messiest of cases. However, due to the shocking death in a case, she is forced to take time off and become a professor at a law school. This is where she meets an eager and helpful law student, Gong Chan. As fate would have it, this is not a chance encounter and they would discover just how they know each other while working together on cases.

Review: This is a rare drama where the thrill is maintained in every episode.

Oh Soo Jae is an elegant lawyer who knows exactly how to deal with misogyny in the workplace. She knows she is the best out there and she doesn't care for the opinions of others. She keeps her cards close to her chest. And her character is true to life in many such work places that are dominated by men.

Perhaps the noona romance is not to everyone's liking, however, both characters are adult and the attachment of Dong Chan to Soo Jae is understandable and justified. Similarly, Soo Jae is actually very lonely even when she may not show it and this romance depicts a softer side to her. Dong Chan gives her strength. However the romance element is not a huge part of the show even though I would have loved to see more of it. There is also an additional element of a love triangle with Choi Yoon Sang. His attachment is also understandable as they have known each other for long and he also plays a stong supporting role. My only disappointment was that this character was cut a bit shorter than I would have liked.

Choi Tae Gook is the main negative character. He is also owns TK Law Firm. This is a powerful and daunting character. My only criticism of this role is that we do not see him in action in any case whatsoever. He merely pulls strings in the background in his favour. He along with Assemblyman Lee In Soo and Han Seong Beom plot and plan and help each other rise further in their career ambitions. However, the brains of Choi Tae Gook are unmatched and he has other plans.

The show also has a number of lovely supporting characters that give life to the drama.

Final points: I for one do not understand the harsh criticisms of Why Her. Feels almost like they watched an entirely different show. The finale also keeps you guessing whether the show will end the way we want it to. I hope this review allays any concerns about the show and helps you decide to watch it. I have tried to provide just enough information without giving anything away. I would definitely give this a watch again.

Read More

Missed Point

The title doesn't really make sense since the crown prince isn't missing for many episodes. It could have had a better name for one. The summary of the series was also quite misleading.

Though I felt bad for the Queen and the FL's father but they were unnecessarily evil. The king, the crown prince and the rest of the people had nothing to do with their circumstances.

The fortune teller was another pointless character.

As a political historical drama, it was decent. The music was good but there wasn't much chemistry between the ML and FL. The series has very little on the romance front.

Acting is decent. Didn't really wow me since the characters didn't allow them to have much range. At first I enjoyed the strong FL but she later became a helpless character which was unfortunate.

I didn't dislike the show but it didn't impress me either.

Read More

Good Attempt But Confusing

If you looking to watch Shadow because of the horror or BL element, then better skip this. It is neither. Might be slightly scary in the beginning but for the most part not at all. And this is coming from someone who avoids horror like the plague. It's strange because Thais are supposed to be amazing at horror.

The mystery element of Shadow is good but the problem lies in never understanding and solving the mystery till the end. Mainly why the shadow is obsessed with Dan. There were quite a few things about the shadow's behaviour that didn't make sense. And some of it got very weird (sexual). Trin's character was also a confusing one in some moments.

The actors did a good job overall but the story could have been laid out better with at least the main answers. The ending was interesting which begs the question if we will get a follow up season to this. If yes, then I hope they tackle the doubts left in people's minds. Although I believe this show meant to end at a shocking note.

It's good for a one time watch. The OST at the end of each episode is nice. The VFX are also decent.

Read More

Perfectly Sweet Revenge

Thoroughly enjoyable series. Maybe found one episode that was a bit weak but otherwise, it's a really fun ride. Didn't expect much when I started but I'm glad I picked it up!

The FL is an exceptionally talented artist who was adopted into her family and always felt like an outcast. One day after being betrayed by her step-mother, she ends up in an accident, passing away and waking up 1 year in the past. She becomes determined to rewrite her mistakes and get revenge starting with cancelling her wedding. The background set in the first episode felt a bit tedious but has relevant information that the FL later uses to exact her revenge.

The ML is a welcome green flag and made the perfect partner in crime throughout the series.

All the actors did a great job, especially the negative characters that brought the necessary spice to the show.

The ending was so perfect. Almost like a fairytale. And yet I didn't see it coming. I loved the plot twists the show introduced and the theme song is catchy as heck!

Definitely recommend watching this series!

Read More

Incredible!

I didn't know what to expect with Moving since I hadn't read the webtoon but what a pleasant surprise it turned out to be! I can't believe it's already come to an end. Every episode offers so much detail to the plot.

It is a well-rounded show with loads of action, special effects, sweet romance, heart-wrenching emotional moments and beautiful stories of parents and their children. There's also a sprinkling of humor here and there. In short, it has something for everyone. There is an excellent development of characters with their backstories including many of the negative ones. That was an especially nice touch that we don't commonly see.

The only drawback for me was sometimes I felt the story was moving a bit slow for my liking (pun not intended). And maybe some might find this to have a lot of gore. Some of the fights can be a bit brutal and hard to watch. But the way the individuals use their powers to their advantage really made the action sequences both shocking and entertaining.

All the stories come full circle in such a perfect way towards the end however it also leaves us with some shocking revelations.

The score and the OST was quite good.

There's a deeper political message that raises the question in minds of the audience - who's battle are we really fighting? I hope more people add this to their watchlist. It's worth it!

Read More

Fun Prosecutor but the ending needed work

Bad Prosecutor was actually a welcome drama when everything else in the genre was so serious and tense. I quite enjoyed watching it and the jokes and the fight scenes. Although there is nothing unique about this drama except that it is a fun and exciting ride so it's a very easy watch.

My only issue is with the ending. The 11th episode felt a bit like the writers were dragging their heels in order to do a quick finish and that annoyed me a bit. There were moments where I felt like the could have taken the bad guy down if they just talked less and took a few more precautions.

Park Jae Kyung was such a dull character. I can't believe he was a prosecutor.

There are some very predictable elements to the story. That's why I can't give this show a 10 star rating. For the most part, I loved it.

Read More

Flawless and a surprise package

When thinking about how I should rate this show, I couldn't find a single fault and had to go with a 10.

Definitely Not Today might seem like a depressing story or some kind of typical romance drama. It is neither. The way dark issues are tackled is a breath of fresh air!

Mi Chong is a young 29 year old male who has lost all of his family. Being alone in this world and trying to deal with grief has sunk him into depression. One day, as he is about to commit suicide by drowning, he sees a girl jump off a bridge into the same body of water. He gives up his plan to die in order to rescue her thus beginning their strange journey. Zhi Liao is an angry young woman who has surrounded herself with a dangerous gang of men which gets her in trouble. She inadvertently ends up having no where to go but to stick with her saviour, Mi Chong, for safety while maintaining her brash attitude unbeknownst to her that her presence is getting in the way of his plans of dying.

The way this show tackles dark topics like suicide, sexual assault and still manages to bring in light elements and comedic moments is invigorating. With just 20 mins, each episode wins your heart and surprises you. The pace of the show is good and there is never a dull moment. Every instant teaches you more about why these two characters are the way they are.

I also enjoyed the inner monologues and the little scribbly animations brought a cute element to the show. The OST is nice. The show has an indie vibe to it with muted tones.

With only 8 episodes, this series is worth a shot. You won't regret investing your time!

Read More