Heracin

Office Japanese BL with a friends-to-lovers trope that could have been exploited better

This Japanese BL set in an office settings depicts the romance between 2 former friends that find each other back working for the same company. Even though the premise of the series does not seem particularly original, I really liked the first half of the show which provided the context and the background to the beginning of the relationship between the two main leads, back to when they were in middle school. It gave a very painful and real feel to the friends-to-lovers trope as there are a lot of trauma and social pressure faced by the characters at a pretty young age as they are trying to figure themselves out.

However, I was less enticed by the second half of the show which focalised a bit too much on an external conflict with an office manager villain...I'm really not sure if it brought any additional value to the relationship. Given the shortness of the show, I would have preferred the adults version of the characters to spend more time on dealing with their past trauma and handling the internal conflicts than on all the office drama. For me, there was a bit of a missed opportunities in terms of romance, passion, pining and as well as mental health conversations.

Overall, the chemistry between the two main lead was quite average even though they share some relatively noteworthy scenes. I found myself being much more interested by the performance of the actors playing the part of the characters younger. Maybe because that was the part of the story that I found the most compelling...In any case I think they did a good job and were more convincing than their adult counterparts.

The production value was pretty standard for a BL Japanese office drama. Nothing stands really out but it does the job. Similarly, the music was not very present and not that noticeable neither in a good or bad way.

I would recommend this to people looking for a BL office romance. It has some defaults in its storytelling and does not exploit all of its potential but it is still a pretty compelling watch if you like friends-to-lovers trope.

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Sluggish plot saved by strong world building, production, characterization and my love for the cast.

Let's face it : this series is not without flaws : the main one being its lethargic pace. It felt so slow at times that I am pretty certain that putting the show in speed ×2 would make the dialogs seems to be at regular speed....The scenario is not dense enough for the duration of the drama and the story could have been covered in 8 episodes of 1 hour rather than 12 episodes of 1h10 to 2h. Despite me loving the main cast that I first encountered in DoMunDi Friendship reality show, I couldn't help feeling their acting was also a bit unequal depending on the individuals.

Having said that, I LOVED the atmosphere, the world building, the soundtrack. This series has its own color with a real artistic vision. Its esthetics felt very cohesive and the various special effects, costumes and make-up were solid. It is really setting itself apart from other BLs I have seen and felt fresh. The overall story was really interesting even if slow-paced : for once, I felt that redemption when offered was deserved as it was the outcome of well-written ill-fated relationships. The karmic burden, the white and black magic, the previous lifes : it was captivating. The opening generic as well as the soundtrack were work of art in themselves, setting up perfectly the small traditional village and fantasy atmosphere.

The chemistry between the main couple Peem/Khem (played by Keng and Namping) as well as the secondary couple Chan/Jet (played by Tle and FirstOne) was also great, with the secondary couple being my fave of the series. I feel the characters of Charn and Jet were the heart of the drama, they were animated and charming : their bounds really made me swoon so much. I cannot wait to watch Tle and FirstOne as main leads in another work : both their chemistry and acting was super convincing ! Peem and Khem had also some very nice and hot moments but I was less invested in them than in the secondary couple. It is partially due to their characters being more closed off but also unfortunately to some less convincing acting, mainly by Namping. He felt sometimes bland here, which is a bit of shame because I expected more of him from the previous title I saw him in. It might be linked to the role/directing, so I will definitely keep an open mind for his future performances.

I would recommend this to people looking for a dark fantasy BL drama. While slow-paced, it takes the viewer into a well-rounded journey featuring characters with motivations that made sense. The romances were very well-built as well, with a lot of fiery chemistry, angsty slow-burn and butterflies inducing moments.

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Side Ep with the "villain" point of view: totally dispensable and less interesting than main series

I'm currently enjoying so much my watch of the taiwanese BL series "Kiseki: Dear to Me" that I was compelled to watch this side episode of 20 minutes centred on the story of Zhang Teng. He is the weakest part of the origin drama, so I was hoping that this special episode would allow some development and nuance regarding this character and his "villain" arc.

Unfortunately, this special episode did not exactly meet my expectations...It is totally dispensable and it did not make me be more convinced by the character of Zhang Teng. I kept also being unconvinced by the performance of the actor playing that part. He is for me the weakest point of the cast but I must admit that the script and filmmaking are particularly cheesy when relating to him and that the issue might be more relating to storytelling than to the acting.

I would recommend this to people that like the main series. It is totally dispensable and you will not miss anything by skipping this. But still, if you are finding yourself wanting more from those characters and their universe, it is a relatively satisfaying watch (despite the repetitive aspect of of some scenes). To be noted, this side episode should be watched after viewing episode 8 of the origin series.

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Would have benefited of a longer runtime

The idea behind this BL story is really good with the fantastic twist that allows the main character to grow out so much. Unfortunately, if I like the concept in itself and I was pretty convinced by the arc of the main character and the office environnment/issues, I think the romance aspect would have benefited from a longer runtime to feel more fully-fleshed.

I would recommend this to people that are looking for an original BL office story. It lacks a bit in terms of romance but the main character arc, which is full of hope and life lesson is really well made.

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Interesting journey of the main character trapped in toxic relationship(s) : a wild ride!

This BL drama features the intricated relationships between Da On, a young and handsome salaryman and Seong Hyeon, Jae Min and Su Hyeon all connected differently to him. It is quite a dark series with a lot of toxicity in the various bonds between the characters themselves. The main character is trapped in his past and present feelings and there are a lot of craziness happening, which I found very exciting to follow as the story progressed.

There are some strong psychological elements underlined in the scenario and I would have loved to dig further into the layers of the various characters as the series progressed. It could have been even more complex and nuanced but overall given the drama's length, I found the overall main character development and narrative around the evolution of his feelings very believable and gripping. There are a couple of elements in the storytelling and choices made by the characters that convinced me less but nothing dithering my interest for the drama as it unfolded.

The acting was quite solid, especially Kim Jun Seo who played Da On. He was the center part of the story and it is him making his character so attaching and touching that made the series so compelling to follow. Next to him, the three others actors did a good job showcasing properly real range of emotions : from sunshiny to batshit craziness. There were a few instances were I felt they were a bit strained / rigid in their acting but they all fully committed to their parts which I appreciate.

There was clearly not a huge production budget and sometimes the sets felt a bit lacking and poor. But there were some interesting ideas in terms of directing to effectively display the main focus point of the romance(s): the best metaphor for me being the scenes with the ring(s). Such a statement of what worked and what did not work in the relationship(s). The background music could also have been better, it was a bit too heavily handled on top of some scenes. I enjoyed some of the songs but I did not find any of it memorable.

I would recommend this to people looking for an intense BL featuring toxic relationships coupled with some crazy twist and turns. I wish some parts would have been developed more, and that the ending would have been as captivating as the build up to it, but overall, I think this watch is a wild ride well-worth the time.

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Enjoyed the ride but will not make it into my top favorites rom-com if I'm honest

This rom-com series features one of my favorite trope: "friends-to-lovers". I really enjoyed the romance and all the build up that was made around the main couple, they successfully managed to make convincing the shift from friendship to romance. In terms of writing, the first half of the series is the most substantial one and clearly the most heavy.

There are a lot going on in the life of the various characters and I think that some stories have a strong resonating power and will not leave the viewer indifferent for sure. I enjoyed to dip my toes into slice-of-life territory with the characters but I regret also some shortcuts taken by the writing regarding some storylines. Despite that feeling, I think that pacing could have been tighter (with definitely shorter episodes) and that the overall drama could have benefited from some streamlining. I feel that the mix of genre between rom-com and slice-of-life elements could have been better balanced and spread through the duration of the series.

The acting was very good with solid chemistry from the two main leads. I really loved Jung Hae In and Jung So Min pairing, I will keep catching up on their respective works. The ensemble cast was pretty great as well: the actors and actresses playing the parents and neighbors really insufflated life in all the family background of the main characters. In terms of production and filmmaking, it is quite standard for a rom-com. I found it pretty and colorful but not really impactful. I have similar feeling regarding the OST, it is already fading away from my memory.

I would recommend this to people that are looking for a rom-com with substance and good acting. If you enjoy slice-of-life stories, this might as well be a good fit for you. It is more heavy in terms of topics it approaches than the poster and title would left supposed. So if you are looking for simple fluff and light romance, it might not necessarily the one to pick. In my opinion, it is definitely worth a try despite some weaknesses in the writing.

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Not perfect -but for sure an epic watch with memorable visuals ~

Was this perfect ? No. Was it at times overtly complex for the sole sake of complexity? Yes.

Was I systematically entertained and marvelled at the great sense of esthetics, the acting achievement and high production value ? Yes, definitely !

I really enjoyed the journey on which the series took me, with its layered lore and amazing gallery of characters. Even if towards the end, it got a bit too convoluted and heavy to digest, with maybe some more apparent weaknesses in the writing, I did not mind it at all as I was really deeply immersed and invested into the storytelling of the romances and all the relationships.

This series is also (and maybe before everything) a feast for the eyes. The camera work, the costumes, the way they found interesting ways to sell the story was impressive. The fights scenes were good as well with enough variety and balance to never feel repetitive. I also really enjoyed the music, it was always hyping (or soothing) me at the right moments.

The casting was also amazing : the four main leads did very well as well as all the secondary characters. Tian Jia Rui did once again stand out to me, thanks to his ability to shift and morph himself into various persona, as well as shedding some of the prettiest tears to be shot on screen. Ju Jing Yi, Joseph Zeng, Chen Du Lin and Yan An also had all at some points some incredible moments. I'm finding myself very curious to see more of them all, as well as Wu Han who had an excellent debut role here.

I would recommend this to people looking for an epic journey featuring awesome characters, extensive lore, skillfull camera work and esthetics at all time. Even if the last arc could have been better articulated, the powerful storytelling and the characters build up makes definitely up for it.

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Uninteresting police work that got dumber in the final arc

This mystery BL drama is centred around a duo of investigators : Thup (played by Pooh), a citizen who shares deep knowledge on paranormal local folklore and detective Singha, a non believer in the occult powers.

The duo is working well and the actors have stepped up a bit their acting games since their last series. However, if their overall acting felt better, their chemistry in this drama felt less good to me. I honestly felt the romance was not organic enough, often awkwardly set up in the midst of dark crimes...Instead of bringing light and happy parenthesis, it made them often looks like not focus enough on the criminal case.

I had real trouble to feel invested in the story as it features a lot of quite mid and uninteresting police work which got dumber as the story progressed, cumulating into pure idiocy by the end. The investigation felt very draggy : it was impossible for me to get invested into the resolution of the mystery. Even worse, I never could get onboard with the secondary romance. Their minimal backstory made it impossible to root for them. I also think actors playing those roles have a much more limited / interesting range of acting.

The production value was super good with very well made horror and visual effects, making it even more annoying to witness the illogical reactions of the characters that makes no sense. In addition to the ghosts being quite frightening, the dark magic was gritty and believable, and there were a couple of very effective jump scares. The OST was alright overall as well (while maybe a tad overused with its violin theme)...It is therefore very frustrating to see how the writing brought the level of the series down.

I would not recommend this to people. Despite the core idea of the story and the reasoning behind the crime being gruesome and interesting, the writing was quite weak with some very frustrating and poor police work, showcasing characters repetitively making very dumb choices ad nauseam. The romances were also a mixed bag with average chemistry and a useless secondary couple. Pacing was also a weak point : the series would likely have benefited from a tighter 8-10 episodes format.

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Memorable movie...even if the plot never fully reach destination

I truly loved this movie centred around 2 ballroom male dancers, one (Sugiki) being specialized in "standard dances" and the other (Suzuki) specialized in "latin dances", as their rivalry relationship evolved as they work teach each other. It is very much a characters-centric film with the main focus being on Suzuki and then Sugiki. I loved to see the ennemies-friends-to-lovers bond that formed in a very organic way, even if the reason for them to work together is a bit forced.

I loved the production value, there are some memorable and impactful scenes, with the chemistry being excellent between the two main actors. Overall, the cast did a great job at emoting and at dancing and showing proper dance stances and figures. The two secondary female roles were ultra interesting and it is a bit of a shame they are not put in a more central position in the movie.

My main regret regarding this movie that I truly enjoyed is that the main characters never reach the destination of their journey. The movie never got to the 10Dance event and the other competitions felt a bit like a letdown. I also had the feeling to always watch the same kind of dances rather than the full variety of each of the style. It is understandable as the cast are not professional dancers and might not have been able to carry more challenging moves or to cope with a lot of variety in addition of showing properly emotional luggage of their characters. Still, I would not have minded a bit more of variety in the dances themselves.

I would recommend this to people looking for a ennemies-to-lovers BL with a dance twist. Despite the fact I found some elements odd or contrived for scenario purposes, the payoff was worth it for the journey that the characters are going through... Even if the destination (with the goal of the story set up from the beginning) is never really reached.

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Sweet and youthful story but strong deja vu feeling

This SP drama of about 2 hours features the encounter of high school girl Jang Dan Bi who on her way to pass her college exam is by magic brought back into the past, in Joseon Kingdom, where she met with King Lee Do. This drama requires quite a bit of suspension of disbelief regarding the survival of the heroine in the rought past, with her thin knowledge. The humor helps a lot as it makes it pretty clear that nothing should/can be taken seriously, except maybe the budding feelings between the King and the high school girl.

A lot happens and the SP is overall well paced, but I must admit that it took me several sittings to watch it because of a lack of investment in the fates of the main characters. It was pretty obvious where everything was going and the fact I saw similar stories in the past did not really help me in grabbing my attention. I felt no angst at all regarding the characters as the solid rom-com tone made it clear that no worries were expected from the viewer.

Acting was good and chemistry worked, even if probably not as much as I would have wanted. It was my first time seeing the leads and I cannot say they left me a super strong impression but it was a real pleasure to see Ahn Hyo Seop in his debut role, bringing eye-candy to the screen. The production was good and I quite enjoyed the OST with his modern songs, very fitting the "fun" vibe they were going for.

I would recommend this to people that are looking for an historical rom-com with a fantasy twist. If you enjoy back to the past romances like Scarlet Heart (much more serious and dramatic) and "Queen and I", this might be a good pick. It is very light with little surprise but it is a sweet watch.

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Too predictable and bland, where is the needed angst ?!

This harem (?) BL was super average overall and brought nothing new to the table. I was overall happy with the endgame because the chosen guy was my fave among the suitors but too be honest the competition was quite bland and it is mainly because I enjoy the trope of the "main" relationship that I rooted for the endgame pair.

It lacked surprise overall, with the main character Do Ha being a super innocent pushover... The series tried to show his progress and growth but overall, it felt very flat and easy, with him being super passive, dragged from one guy to another before finally "deciding"...But the choice lacked angst and passion, even if I still think it was the only one making sense given the relationships dynamics and what was shown from the four main protagonists.

Acting was average, I liked a lot Cha Se Jin (very charismatic) as well as Cha Yu Hyun but I found Jung Su Bin and Lee Do Han too meek and monotonous in their expressions...It might be because their parts were the less interesting ones but for sure it would not have hurt to see them demonstrate more variety in their approaches of their respective roles. Production felt very standard for a South Korean BL, very proper and colorful, without anything really outstanding.

I would not recommend this to people because overall it is just a basic run-of-the-mill BL. I also feel that the harem factor was not exploited well enough to make it interesting, which is a shame. However, it is an easy watch, with some hot actors, so you might want to give it a shot if you have run out of option in the genre or if you are looking for something harmless that will put your brain at rest...

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This SP lost all the entertainment value from the main series

It was so boring !!! Part of what made the main series entertaining was the high level of toxicity, the gaslighting and the overall mess. Here, what remains in this SP is empty storylines, cringe, poor acting and NSFW scenes which felt honestly lacking compared to the main show. Sorn, one of the ML, also became tamed and lost (most of) his unhinged and toxic side which was making the show crazy but entertaining.

The directing and filmmaking was very poor and the hair styling crew kept failing with their work on the series being even worse in this epilogue than in the main series, which I did not think was possible.

I would not recommend this unless you loved the main series and are just looking for something to watch with the actors serving some steamy scenes. For me it was even more a miss that the main series because of how tamed and empty it felt. The unhinged and entertaining factor went missing...And when that's gone from a trashy show, there is nothing left to have fun with...

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Audacious proposal but deeply flawed. Hua Yong is such a memorable character!

How astonishing is it that we got a CHINESE Omegaverse BL ?! It was on the 2025 bingo card of no-one and still here we are...Kudos to the production team and cast for this wild proposal.

Having said that, was it fully successful? Unfortunately, no. There were a lot of issues with this series and if I can give flowers for the daring choice to bring to light that relatively obscure universe, I cannot go past through some fundamental issues that hindered my enjoyment of the story overall.

There are some major issues :
- Pacing is atrocious. The series spent a tremendous amount of time on business talks rather than on the relationships progression.
- The secondary relationship is frustrating and has little to no screentime to the point I'm left to ponder if the series would not have been better without it.
- Ending is a real let down (and even more a deception for the ones that were fan of the secondary relationship).

There are also some minor flaws :
- The series does a commendable job explaining the lore as I found it pretty clear while being a complete newbie on the topic (beside just having watched Pit Babe). However, it felt a bit too much like a tutorial than really well interleaved into the story.
- Some of the special effects linked to the genre (the marking, the scent...) as well as the few fighting / action scenes felt really cheap and poorly executed.
- Casting is a mixed bag : Huang Xing (playing Hua Yong) is clearly the MVP of the series. He literally carry the show on his shoulders. It is a shame that I cannot say the same for his three costars that ranged from average to mediocre in terms of acting skills...

Of course, not everything is negative and there are quite a bit of positive as well.
- Following the series while it was airing was really entertaining.
- The universe in itself was quite interesting, even if I am still on the fence on some aspects. It was intriguing and felt fresh to me.
- Hua Yong character with his unhinged and obsessive love was amazing !
- Chemistry was quite good with the main couple. Even if I feel they tamed down some of the NSFW scenes, passion and feelings were quite believable.

Given all its flaws, I would not necessarily recommend this to people unless you are a fan of the genre and want to see it live-action. With a better pacing, less useless business stuff, more consistent storyline for the secondary couple and overall better writing, the quality of the series would have drastically increased.

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From entertaining to super bland... Disappointing...

This drama was so entertaining with its first arc : it had everything for a fun watch...
- Cold office manager aka hidden Yakuza-Boss? Checked.
- Unhinged and entertaining moments with an overall cheesy vibe? Checked.
- Entertaining story with a cheating boyfriend and devilish colleague? Checked.
- Hot shower scene showcasing a tattoo as well as glasses and office tailored suit fashion? Checked.

But then....Past the halfway mark, it became super bland... While the heroine was kinda a Mary Sue / blank canvas from start, the male lead became super tamed. From being a spicy and domineering Yakuza boss to a standard basic male lead from any average middle-of-the-road romance... I would have loved for the hero to remain on the ruthless outlaw side of Yakuza night life and to bring the (bland) heroine into the dark side...But the script decided to remove any darkness from the main lead and to absolve him with a conclusion that felt really too easy, which was really disappointing.

I would not recommend this to people as I found it to be so bland past its half-way mark. The heroine is kinda a wet towel of nothingness but it could have worked if the hero would have maintained a dark and unhinged yakuza side. Unfortunately, he became tamed and his hotness did not manage to save the series which became boring.

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Low budget BL with unhinged Didi obsessed by his adoptive Gege : poorly produced & written

Let's start with the few positives : I enjoyed a lot Liu Xuan Cheng playing the role of an adopted little brother, madly in love with his big brother....He is super charismatic and I'm looking forward to see him in more roles. The series was very short and despite its numerous flaws, I was never bored. Its bite-sized format made it a very easy weekly watch. That's about it.

The production is really bad : the budget is seemingly inexisting so I cannot fully blame the production crew. However, there are some huge issues : the dubbing is just atrocious and worsen over time, the whole sound layering is really not well made, you truly feel the sound is not connected to the scenes played on screen. There are some fight scenes or others where characters are being hurt that are just school drama play level and laughable... The acting is difficult to judge : it is really a mixed bag, with the bad dubbing and script not helping at all.

I would definitely not recommend it unless you are a huge fan of toxic obsessive relationship between brothers and don't mind chopped editing and very low production value. Its ending also kind of left the viewer hanging, with no resolution brought to anything, in a pretty frustrating way. It is super short, so you might want to give it a shot to see the train wreck. Having said that, if there is a season 2 (which I truly doubt), I will likely watch it to get to the bottom of the story. If you want to watch series that handled thousand times better a similar premise, you can definitely give a shot to "Unknown" and "Stay With Me".

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