Minalapinou

Mad respect for director Chen Jia Jie, who can create insanely entertaining shows with shoestrings. His Embrace in the Dark Night was already high on my "low-budget gem" list but Affinity is on a whole new level, pushing limits of what you can do with the short format on all fronts. Saying the plot is bonkers doesn't even start to describe the madness going on : it feels like the brainchild of someone who spent too much time consuming various popular genres like trashy supernatural smut, SF and horror video games and movies, and threw them in a blender without much care for logic. I won't lie, I basked in the nonsensical joy of it all, feeling like a kid at christmas gifted with the biggest, most colorful toy available.
The spice level is insane, clearly the censors were asleep or bribed when this went through approvals. I don't know how I will tolerate basic skinship in shows after this, at the end they were fully tongue kissing, something I've only seen in naughty vertical dramas (before the crackdown, not sure it will happen again). The choreography was also insanely hot and creative, I think I've watched the train scene a dozen times and know I will come back a dozen more. On the writing front the plot might be crazy and twisty but it doesn't keep the emotional beats from working, far from it. I had to take a break around a certain time, I was so invested in the characters, their misfortunes made me too upset to continue. I came back to it a few months later and gobbled up the remaining episodes. Yes, it's brainless but it's not heartless, I teared up a few times and was invested in all characters, even the side ones. The year is not over but it might be my favorite thing 2026 has produced.