Freespirit1221

The miracle of love

"The miracle of love."

A gentle, calm and heartwarming story. I loved it. Romantic love is just a side plot of this movie, in my opinion. It's an April Story but very suitable to watch in December for some coziness. Matsu Takano looked so young and beautiful in this movie, and her voice was just so soft and soothing!

My rating might be a little biased, because the 1990s is one of my favorite eras, and I always love stories about shy introverted characters, with lots of books, and a local bookstore hidden in the corner. April is also my birth month. Plus, that introverted character loves sitting on a park bench reading a book, and riding a bicycle around the neighborhood? Perfection.

I may write a longer review later.

By the way, I might also fall for a smart guy who works at a hidden bookstore. :)

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How can I move on from this?

Under the Power is the best drama ever! The leads' chemistry is top-notch that I can ignore any other annoying characters or bad CGI. I can re-watch this drama over and over again.

This drama has excellent acting from the cast, especially Ren Jia Lun and Tan Song Yun as our leads. Just the way they look at each other already melted my heart and killed me. Seriously, if Ren Jia Lun weren't already married in real life, I would think the actors were really in love with each other.

I have so much to say about this drama but I'm not sure if I can thoroughly express it now. I just love it so much. It's a perfect drama. 55 episodes is not enough for me. Please give me more of my Jin Xia and Lu Da Ren! I can watch them forever. There is not a single scene of them that I didn't enjoy, from the beginning till the end. I burst with joy when they were happy and lovey-dovey together, and my heart broke into pieces to see them separated and suffering. There were a few annoying characters but the leads' chemistry is worthy to endure all of them.

Besides the leads' chemistry, this drama also has a unique plot and its storytelling is amazing. It's a great blend of romance, mystery, martial arts and politics, with great story and character development. The leads' romance grows very naturally through their adventures and the mystery cases they solve together. It's not a sudden feeling of falling in love at first sight or out of nowhere, but a slow burn romance built strongly by each episode. This is absolutely my favorite type of romance. It feels so real that somehow it even makes me wonder if Jin Xia and Lu Yi really existed in history. Who knows, maybe they are the ancestors of the novel's author?

My other favorite character besides the leads is Taoist Lan Qing Xuan. He's such a sweetheart! Along with Lu Yi's uncle he was one of the two biggest supporters of our leads' romance. He appeared to be a funny, chill guy at first, so I didn't expect to see him become so determined and serious in the second half. He treated Lu Yi and Jin Xia with sincerity and respect. He wanted to do the right thing for his country and the people, and was even ready to sacrifice his own life to side with Lu Yi and protect the country from the evil corrupt officials together. Although his death was quite predictable from the beginning and it made sense to the plot, it still broke my heart at that scene. His last words were to tell Lu Yi to cherish Jin Xia and never lose her again. Poor guy! And again Lu Yi lost another great friend in his lifetime. This is not so relevant, but one more thing that I like about Lan Qing Xuan is his name. He has the same first name as me, when it's translated into Chinese. :)

By the way, Han Dong, the actor who plays the main antagonist Yan Shi Fan is the one who plays the ninth prince in my other top favorite drama Scarlet Heart. He's also an antagonist there. And Ye Qing, the actress who plays Shang Guan Xi plays his lover in that drama. No wonder they look so familiar. I found it interesting to see them again in this drama, although they didn't have any scenes together this time. Their acting is obviously flawless, especially Han Dong. I was so pissed every time Yan Shi Fan appeared on screen.

I don't think I can move on from this drama, from our lovely Lu Yi and Jin Xia. I want to see more of their future, where they are a happy married couple sitting peacefully in the backyard with their adorable kids running around! Also, if Ren Jia Lun and Tan Song Yun have another project together in the future, even if it's a trashy romance plot, I will definitely watch it!

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Silly and hilarious

The plot is silly but hilarious until it gets messy and annoying at the second half. There are also some scenes that are bullying but then they were ignored afterwards, while some of those actions are just unforgivable.

Although our female lead Qian Qian is childish and stupid and makes a lot of bad choices throughout the show, the leads still have some cute moments together and their two male servants Zi Rui and Bai Ji are the best characters. Their actions alone are already so funny and their bickering interactions are literally the most hilarious parts of the show. The conversations between the female lead and three writers are so funny as well, and the tale of banana, orange, and apple is just iconic.

There are a lot of funny parodies of other dramas and movies and different tales, especially the Hua Mulan part lol. Han Shuo’s parents are hilarious, and their conversation with Qian Qian’s mom is gold.

I couldn’t help but keep imaging how the world would be if such a place like Huayuan City really existed.

Most of other characters are annoying, especially the second leads, and I couldn’t care less about the oldest sister’s story. They should have focused more on the romance between the leads instead of them, as their parts are so unbearable and unnecessary, in my opinion. I can’t understand why the screenwriters must create toxic love triangles and evil third wheels all the time. Why couldn’t they just be loving sisters and a supportive male friend? Seriously, I haven’t hated a second male lead like this in years. For the second female lead, I felt bad for her at some point.

By the way, despite cheap looking clothes and ugly hairstyles, the leads still look pretty and maybe that even makes the show more hilarious.

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Only Japan can make a drama like this

Only Japan can make a drama like this. They are best at bringing the most realistic aspects of human life that a lot of people can relate to, at least it's for me, and they do it so naturally. "Quartet" has a similar vibe with one of my other favorite Japanese series “Life’s Punchline”, which is also a great slice of life drama, with a little bit of mystery elements.

I relate to every character and their story. The series has brought to life the real people, without any filter. They are the people we can meet in our real life, with all their strengths and flaws. Four main characters are a group of oddballs with different personalities. Together, they form a found family under the name of a quartet. I really love their bonding. It is just so beautiful. Their daily interactions with a lot of bantering are the light of the whole series.

What I love the most about "Quartet" is its concept of a found family. As someone who grew up in a dysfunctional family, I always find comfort in the concept of a happy family or found family, and I got sick of the typical trope where 'family is family and we should stick together no matter what'. In this series, there are no toxic family members that we have to meet if we don't want to, just because they are blood-related family members and everyone says you should meet or take care of them. This message is directly implied in the conversation between Maki and Suzume at a restaurant near the hospital where Suzume's biological father is. People around Suzume kept telling her to visit her shameless father, while Maki just told Suzume to go home with her after knowing that Suzume didn't want to do that. She also said that the members of the quartet are family because they share the same house, use the same shampoo and wash their clothes in the same washing machine. How beautiful that is!

I think that one of the reasons why the members of the quartet meet each other and form a new found family together is that they all have problematic families, besides being weirdos. Maki and Suzume were also the ones who ran away from their biological families to start a new life. All of them are each other's home. They are the imperfect pieces in an imperfect found family, yet no pieces should be missed out. Just like how a doughnut can't be a doughnut without a hole, Quartet Doughnuts Hole can't exist without the flaws from its members. Their first meeting at the karaoke is really a destiny.

Another thing I love about this drama is that there is no romantic couple between the main characters in the end. Although it's painful to watch their unrequited love fail, I think it's very realistic. It happens in real life. Not everyone can be with the person they love.

I love that music and food are included in this slice of life series. It adds a lot to the story. I enjoyed every piece of music played by the quartet. I love how imperfect it is, as well as how imperfect and weird our characters are. I relate to them a lot, as I'm a weirdo myself and also someone who chose to stop chasing a dream as an artist and kept it as a hobby instead, with a quite similar reason. In my case, I grew up in an Asian household and was forced to study hard in academic stuff. I love painting but haven't had any proper art class. I don't learn any techniques professionally, and I think my paintings are not something people would want to buy. I also realized my love for art quite late and was stuck with regrets for a while, when I wanted to become an artist but also thought I couldn't live on my art skills. I didn't really want to learn properly either, as I love the way I paint. When I decided to keep it as a hobby, my heart became more relieved. I also met a friend with a similar situation, and we often meet and talk about arts and life. I will call her my quartet sister from now on. :)

At the moment I am still trying to figure out what I really want to do and what I can do well. I'm kind of in a career crisis, and I'm not at the position I really want to be. I haven't found my ikigai. I feel I've been stuck in a comfort zone for too long. I want to start over again, and there are a lot of things I want to try. Other people say I'm not that young to keep experiencing things, but I'm not okay with being stuck like this anymore. My quartet sister says I can do it. She also has things she wants to try. I think we will be fine. I think we might do some workshops together in the future.

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Best of the best heartwarming series!

I love every character in this series. There’s no unnecessary villain or toxic love triangle. They’re just kind-hearted and sweet human beings. And Kurosawa is the greenest forest ever!

I enjoyed the chemistry between Kurosawa and Adachi in this live-action series more than in the anime, which I watched recently. Adachi is such a cutie, and Kurosawa’s eyes and smile when he looks at Adachi just melted my heart. Also, Fujisaki-san is such a living angel! I love her character in this live action much more than in the anime. Her character is much deeper in this series.

The only thing is that I wish there were more intimate scenes between the characters, but it’s understandable in a live-action series and I’m satisfied enough. The second couple’s chemistry feels a little forced too, compared to the anime, but it’s fine as the series isn’t focused on them. The main couple’s chemistry is just top-notch!

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Education is key

- “You don’t have to be perfect. Just do your best.”
- “I’m scared to get scolded when I make a mistake.”
- “If that happens, I’ll be scolded with you. I’ll hold your hand.”

“I believe in you. Know that.”

I believe discipline is necessary for everyone’s growth and development, if it is done right. It might seem strict at first, but eventually it would lead us to freedom. I think these teachers are amazing. They teach the kids about discipline by asking them reasonable questions and reasons, while also keep encouraging them to believe in themselves and be more confident. I think they treat their students equally with full respect and I really appreciate it.

As someone who grew up with typical Asian parenting, who got beaten and scolded unreasonably without any explanations or encouragement, I didn't wish to be completely spoiled by my parents and teachers. Instead, I would love to be disciplined as a child with reasonable explanations and encouragement like the kids in this short documentary film.

“We’re each a piece of a heart. If everyone is together, this is our shape. (A full heart)
If one of us is unbalanced, then the shape is broken. It’s no longer a heart.”

Kids are really the smartest and kindest humans, if they are treated equally with respect.

I’m really impressed by these words. It deserses a perfect score from me.

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The idea is good and the drama is okay

This is my first YoruDora. Overall I think it's okay. There are a few episodes that I pretty enjoyed and I relate to the characters. I also enjoyed the cast's acting, especially Fukuchi Momoko as the female lead. I like her character, and I'm glad the screenwriter didn't add any romantic male lead to pair with her.

The drama didn't really have a specific plot. It's more like a daily recording without a clear start and ending. I think the idea is pretty nice. It's the journey of building a local temporary radio-station in Suzuno town, Noto Peninsula, Japan while rebuilding the town, which was heavily affected by an intense earthquake. It's painful to learn that the earthquake actually happened in real life in 2024. I really appreciate the effort of NNK channel in raising the awareness about the earthquake and encouraging the people to keep going and rebuild their hometown through this drama.

To be honest, I didn't like the female lead in early episodes, and I also didn't really enjoy the first half of the drama. Except for Sakura-san whom I liked from the beginning till the end, other main characters were also not very likable to me in the first half. Their smiles looked a bit fake. I felt like they were trying to hide something behind their masks. However, in the second half, I quite enjoyed watching their masks gradually being taken off. I loved to watch the characters showing their true flawed and vulnerable sides with their own ‘selfish’ feelings. It was heart-warming and relatable. It felt like they were real people, not fictional unrealistic heroes in some fairy tales. That's what I liked the most in this drama.

Somehow I relate to Kanade's story. There are times I also feel so lost in this modern world and feel like everything I do in life is so fake and meaningless. I just want to escape reality and move to a place where nobody knows who I am and hide there forever. Sometimes I feel like I'm not good enough and don't know what to do with my life. A few years ago I actually did find myself a safe place where I lived for a while when I felt so lost. I thought I would live there forever but the pandemic came and changed everything.

Another thing I liked from the drama is how they naturally added 2 weather-warning broadcasts throughout the drama. As someone who also lives in a place with extreme weather and high risk of storms and floods every year, I deeply relate to the panic the main characters experienced in the first broadcast. Somehow I even panicked along with them. I appreciate Kanade's efforts of practicing and I was glad to see her stay calmer and improve herself a lot in the second broadcast. These episodes made me appreciate the efforts of those people who take risks to report weather warnings during severe weather periods.

Some of my favorite lines from the drama:
“People need more than food and sleep to get them through life, right?” - episode 3
“Despite the fact that their hearts tremble with worries… all they ask for is to simply live.” - episode 4

“Mana's life is her own. And I think in order to respect that... We have to make up our minds ourselves & decide what we want to do in life.” - episode 7, said by my favorite character Sakura-san. From what I understand, she was saying only if parents are clear with what they want to do in life and follow their hearts that they can really respect and believe in their children's life choices. I really like this mindset.

Now, let's move to the things I disliked in this drama. There were a few things I can think of at the moment.

First and foremost, the most frustrating thing in the whole drama for me is the man called Matsumoto. He was insufferable to me. I disliked him from the moment he appeared till the end of the drama. There was not a single scene of him that I enjoyed. Unfortunately, he's a main character and he appeared in every episode. He’s probably one of the most annoying characters in slice of life dramas I’ve ever watched. He's also one of the types of person I hate the most. I think he’s so hypocritical. He's the one who started the idea of "Radio Star" and basically he forced Kanade and the others into it. He kept talking about all the great things but always let other people do the job for him. When there's some complaints about the show, it's Kanade who was taking all the blame and pressure for the whole team. Instead of comforting Kanade after she shared that she was in pain and tired of doing the show, the guy again raised his hypocritical voice and forced her to pretend like nothing happened. He then tried to convince Kanade to come back to the show when he realized the show was not fun anymore without her. Then again in the last 2 episodes, he gave himself the right to decide what was good for Kanade’s future and threw her out without her consent and permission. Without asking her what she really wanted in life, he decided what he thought was right for her. What a nice behavior. I hate this kind of behavior the most. He sounds like my mom sometimes, but my mom doesn't sound so hypocritical like him.

Another big thing I disliked in this drama is pretty related to the first thing. It's that Kanade did not continue with Radio Star till the end. Why do a lot of people think it's considered happier and more successful for young people if they keep living and trying to survive in a big city instead of doing something they really like in a small town? I don't like that mindset. I mean, it’s fine if they really want to start building their career again in the big city, for example, Rikuto. He wanted to chase his dream as a comedian again so it was the right thing for him to come back to the city. However, in Kanade's case, she enjoyed being the radio-personality in Suzuno and being a part of the Radio Star team. Why did that guy have to kick her out "for her own goods"? To make things worse, Mana-chan, who is Sakura-san's daughter, came as a guest on a live-broadcast at her new Radio team out of the blue, and asked Kanade about the reason she left Suzuno, as if it was Kanade's fault to leave in the first place. I was so done at that moment. It’s so unfair for Kanade to be treated like an outsider again when she was trying her best to be a part of Suzuno town. Seriously, why did they have to end the drama like that?

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Todoroki and Odajima stole the show

I don't know how to feel about this one.

I didn't really like the plot. It's a bit messy to me. There were many new characters introduced in this movie, whom I didn't really have many feelings about. Since they didn't have backstories that are deep enough for me to feel anything yet.

The main characters' stories also felt weaker than the previous movie. I also think it's probably the weakest one throughout the High&Low universe. I feel like this is not the High&Low that I am familiar with anymore. Most of the fights seem so meaningless now, except for the ones in the second half and the final battle. I feel like they just kept fighting for nothing. I also feel like this is not really a story about friendship and brotherhood, but it's more like a BL movie disguised as a movie about friendship. I don't dislike it, though. I pretty enjoyed it, to be honest. It's just not really the High&Low bonding I was used to.

The fight scenes were still done pretty well, even though they felt a bit more unrealistic compared to the previous movies. I loved the High&Low's iconic theme music and the movie's new soundtrack songs too.

There are actually a few supporting characters that stole the show for me. They are Todoroki and Odajima, and Sachio's brief appearance at the end, who were already introduced before. Todoroki and Odajima were already badass dudes when they were alone. Who can imagine they would become close friends? And that's so perfect! They were such a powerful duo.

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Great character development

The second season wasn't as great as the first one, but overall it was enjoyable. I still loved it a lot. It got fewer fight scenes but every action scene was done well. Also, the brotherhood bonding was still amazing. I believe that's the spotlight of the whole series.

What I loved the most about this season was the character development. It digged deeper into the characters' past and their backstories and explained clearly how they became who they were at the moment. It got so much deeper than in the first season. We got to see Mugen's past and backstories of its founding members. I felt bad for what happened to Kohaku and Tatsuya, but I guess every hero would have a regretful past to bury in their heart forever.

It was also great to see a young and energetic Cobra during his time at Mugen and painfully watch how he became a cold, quiet and reserved leader of Sannoh Hoodlum Squad later on. I also loved to watch Murayama's character development in this second season and how he started to value the strength of friendship. One of my favorite scenes was the short conversation between him and Cobra. I hope they will become good friends in the future.

If only they didn't add so many scenes of Mighty Warriors and focused more on S.W.O.R.D. instead, I think I would have enjoyed it much more. I'm sorry I just couldn't care less about those ridiculous fashion and music dudes. They were just lame. While I kept waiting for the backstories of Rude Boys' and Daruma Ikka's leaders, they didn't have much screentime and barely had any lines. Most of their scenes were just flashbacks from the first season. They should have cut off so many scenes of those Mighty Warriors dudes and gave them to Rude Boys and Daruma Ikka instead.

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Tony Leung and Shu Qi

“You can mess with me, but not my hair.” — Tony Leung’s iconic line came back, and it was still as charming. It’s always nice to watch a chill funny Tony Leung.

This movie also featured one of my beloved actresses, Shu Qi. She was gorgeous as usual in this movie. And the scene where she disguised as a man was perfectly charming.

The plot was basically the same as the original movie, just with different characters as the same roles. Although it still had its moments, I found this one less entertaining than Tokyo Raiders. It’s probably because the storyline was already nothing new, and the fighting scenes also weren’t as good. I think I prefer Ekin Cheng as Tony Leung’s partner. I think they made a better duo. I didn’t feel any found family or partnership vibe among the duo or between Lin and the Korean girls who worked under him. And this was the most entertaining thing about the original movie.

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By the way, this is my first movie of 2026. Happy New Year! 🎉 Let's leave all the bad things behind in 2025 and may we all be blessed with good health, good fortune, and only happiness and great films in this new year. Cheers to 2026! 🥂I wish all the best things to everyone in this universe. ❤️

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Anita Mui was perfectly charming!

I thought there would be a few conflicts between Chow Sing Sing and his girlfriend at the beginning, because of the ending in the second movie. But they decided to skip that part and let them be a normal couple again. I was a little bit disappointed about that. It would be more fun if their relationship were still in trouble while Chow Sing Sing had to go undercover again, and he got to play a husband this time!

It felt a bit lacking without the school setting and Ng Man Tat as his partner like in the previous movies. However, it also made sense to me when he already got promoted and perhaps already married the lady police chief in the second sequel. Meanwhile, to make up for that, I think Stephen Chow and Anita Mui’s interactions and chemistry in this third movie was really great. And another big plus was to see Anita Mui and Charla Cheung as a potential lesbian couple. Too bad that they let a lesbian character be the villain this time though.

I enjoyed this movie, even though it lacked a few things from the original film. It’s still nice to watch as a fun independent movie.

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Love the cast but the plot is just meh

I bet Kang Dong Won chose this movie for the fight scenes, because the plot is totally bull***t. My 2 stars out of 10 go to the cast and the first iconic 20 minutes of the movie.

The iconic umbrella scene was the only enjoyable moment in the whole movie. That’s also how I got tricked into thinking it would be a romantic movie with maybe a messy love triangle, as this is an old movie from the 2000s. But this movie was not just bad. Even though I love Kang Dong Won and Lee Chung Ah very much and that’s why I watched this movie in the first place, I couldn’t really enjoy any of their acting because the whole plot is just gross. None of the characters is likable. There’s no chemistry between the romantic couple, and the man she ended up with is a total jerk, and I have no words for the other man.

OMG. 🫠

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It has a beautiful soundtrack but the story is forgettable

I’ve been listening to its soundtrack song Endless Love for a decade and now finally I’ve watched the whole movie. I can’t say I enjoyed it. I love Kim Hee Seon, and she was so beautiful in this movie. Jackie Chan’s fight scenes were also great. Obviously, he’s Jackie Chan after all. And those were the only three things I liked in this movie. The storyline was poorly written and so was the love story. I couldn’t feel any chemistry between Jackie Chan and Kim Hee Seon either.

Plus, there were scenes that I guess were created for humor, but all I could feel was how disrespectful they were towards archaeology and some cultures.

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