71
142
14
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
2
This review may contain spoilers
A great drama that will keep you wondering even if you know how it will end
This was definitely a ride... I wouldn't say roller coaster but how about a dirve far upp in the alps or any other really narrow, steep and curvy road, the type where you are not sure if the car ahead of you is heading away from you or toward you.Before entering this ride I had been warned that I would end up crying, I think i held on for a long time but towards the end the tears just wold not stop falling down so even my top got wet. But enough about the end, here is more about the way there. This is probably one of the worst love storys ever written, but a great story about deception, betrayal, how power ruins everything and the fragile male ego all in the name of love...
The pace in this drama is really good and consistent. I can really not say i experienced a dull moment, even when I thought it would start getting dull, I was confronted with a new twist and I was back wondering what would happen next. I spent a great deal of time trying to figure out who was good, who was evil and in what order the people (mainly the princes) would die. I did not get a singel one right, mostly because this was a story involving humans that where ever evolving and subjected to change. So even if I was waiting for a sad ending I really had no clue in what way it would end sadly ( you would be surprised over how many ways my mind could come up with).
The characters in this drama brought the 10th century in to the 21st century... With most probably 0 historical accuracy. And I cherish them all. While many dramas use annoying characters for comic relief, here the comic relief came from smart and sweet characters that made for a good balance without being ridicules or annoying, so big + for that.
The women in this drama rock, most of them are evil and scary as hell but all (except for one) had great acting skills and where very convincing int their role. They probably had the least character development though they stood for quite a few twists and I thought for the longest time that this drama would end up being about how men got the credit for the evil deeds of past women (I´m not going to tell you how accurate I was).
The princes different personalities and talents reminded me of boys over flowers but way cuter and in a kind of waiting to die/ kill each other way. It was also interesting to try to figure out who wold be involved in the love star (I have named a love triangel with more then three people for a star, I do not know if there is another term for this, maybe love tangel....but I like star so I´m keeping to it).
IU was amazing all the way! I loved her ok, I did not love all of her characters choices but her acting was flawless and she was as bad ass as always.
The male lead prince no 4, was a typical wounded sole waiting to be rescued, however he had severe trust issues and really did not grasp the notion of consent, but I guess that is to be expected of a prince 1000 years ago but he did make some attempt at gaining consent but really did not stick to it witch was really to bad. He was however mostly kind, and really did go out of his way to protect the woman he loved, and seemed to have a constant struggle within himself protect-own-protect-own her. He probably had the weirdest character development that made it hard for me to love him in the end, so I guess i ended upp feeling sorry for him.
I had mixed feelings about the second lead, I don´t know about you but there is something in the line I am going to love you the way I could not love your (dead) cousin (that was like a mom to you)" just douse not really scream love of my life for me but hey, who am I to judge. He is also the character that surprised me the most and was probably the most interesting male character of them all.
The princess had an interesting character development and was both smart and driven, this drama would definitely have been boring without her. a perfect love to hate character and probably oddly enough the perfect match to the person she ended up with.
Prince no 10 was so sweet and adorable his interaction with IUs character was adorable and stod for the humor in the drama.
The generals daughter was so cool, both loving, funny and reminded me little bit of Do Bong Soon from (SWDBS).
Prince no 13 was sweet but probably had the least character development, this was however not Nam Joo Hyuks best acting.
Prince no 14 grew on me with time and is probably the most admirable prince of them all.
So in short this is a great drama that will let you experience a range of emotions that will most probably surprise you even if you have read this review that tells you that you will most probably cry in the end.
Was this review helpful to you?
Love is not really all you need... but its nice to feel loved
If you are looking for something that will make you feel good, have your heart flutter and I don't know make you just all warm inside then back away... and go watch more or less anything else.This is a drama that you watch for its dialog, its monologs, the subtle slightly dark humour, sound of silence... and so on and so on. Beautifully filmed extremely well casted I am not really sure what story this is here to tell or how lovable the characters are but one thing I do know is that this is a drama packed with humans, the type of humans you can relate to, The type of humans that you may even dislike from the bottom of your heart yet still find yourself rooting for them since they are just so easy to relate too and present the more common not so lovable sides to being human that you, or at least I rather not admit to.
Not a single person here is pure, good or positive all the way, nope not even the motherly figure, every one has their flaws and struggles and I may not love them for it but I love the drama for this beautiful display of lacking and overly honest figures. There are several annoying characters that bring out ones angry side (in a good way), but not a single comic relief with too big gestures type of person.
This is a true slice of life presented in fragments with an unclear timeline, even if there are no mind blowing twists ala I am actually your childhood friend, we where separated at birth, he killed your father, let me harvest your organs type thing...
Having the timeline being presented in fragments not knowing what is past, future or present has a dare I say mind blowing affect of keeping the viewers brains activated and curious throughout out the whole drama.
I love the way this is filmed, the angles, the lighting, the huge amount of shots of peoples reflections in some type of surface... I am sure there is a whole lot of artistic symbolism that I may not fully get... but it is definitely there and I like it...
Bingabilaty: high, it can be hard to follow if there is too much time between episodes.
Interesting: 10
Heart flutter: 7
This is definitely my type of drama, but I am pretty sure this is not for everyone as I said most of the characters are not very lovable, the romance is sloooow, and it does require quite a bit from the audience making it more a turn on than turn off your brain type of drama...
Was this review helpful to you?
Mouth watering sweet n comforting
This drama is really sweet and offers both adorable cast and mouth watering moments, lots and lots of mouth watering moments....While I admit I do have some issues with some of the highly unnecessary s scenes including a trip abroad that brings nothing to the story but leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. And some slightly over simplified mental issues. The over all feel to this is that they tried to convay some kind of come as you are, you are worthy of both love and a job...
I love the leads and the sides, and even thought there is an episodic element to this it does not take away from the romance and the characters development... So basically this could have been an 8,5 or even a 9 for all the yummy and sweetnes this offers I can not fully forget episode 7 ever happened so I settled for an 8.
Was this review helpful to you?
Pretty,Powerful and Evil
This was a pretty powerful binge, one with great a mounts of beautiful blood splatter, explosions, conspiring, evil, more evil and a huge show of evil, more evil, most evil... confused identities, interesting (also confused) motives and very few genuinely good as in evil vs good type of characters.The type that may make you loose hope in humanity as well as wonder if the herbs where better in the past as well as be amazed by the healing power of the young and the fearless.
The build up of the first 3-5 episodes is better then the remaining ones, I am not saying it goes down hill from there. It more of an evening out of the field.
The chemistry between the characters is really good. I love the male lead (not only because he is played by Lee Jae Wook, but also because of the way he is written. Fun, faisty, smart and all round a pleasure to watch. His interactions with the female lead are both playful and will make you go wait what, is this okay?
The female lead has a bunch of moments of bad ass cool, fun, confused done well. But also a few really how can she be so stupid, as well as make you wonder how many lives she (and the rest of the cast) has. That said I loved every bit of her screen time and would love to see her a gain.
All in all en interesting watch, the type to cater to all you romance, gore and evil needs.
P.S This is not a drama that will give you SLS at all... At least not me
Was this review helpful to you?
Too small slices of life
This drama has great promise with an amazing cast and not to mention the director and writer who have delivered some of my personal favourite dramas.The acting, dynamics, music, direction, cinematography and stotylines are all pretty decent, fine they just had to add one of my personal pet peeves showing dialog with ghosts and inner younger selves, but tother than that the delivery was really good. The characters are all fun to watch, given they are recognisable from previous characters played yet with a slight twist that shows the actors range. I guess or something like that.
However there where just a few to many stories and to few episodes to fully be able to deliver the emotional roller coster I was hoping for. As they prioritised shots of pretty scenery and pauses before dialog and digging deep in to the minds of our characters. Leaving just a little bit to much unsaid.
Leaving me with a sense of neither feel good nor feel mad, or sad just oh, ok I guess that is life. And to be honest a part of me thinks that was what they where going for. So if you are in it for the feels this may not be the right place to find it but if you want the reals and under-explored this is a good place to find it.
Was this review helpful to you?
The story is not as beautiful as the leads but ok
This is one of those dramas that offers great leads, amazing chemistry, golden light for as far as the eye can see making you feel all warm and gooey inside... All with the added bonus of a fluffy can and a fish tank that reminded me of dramas past...It is also one of those dramas that you just you know got though censorship without a hinge, yet managed to keep it kind of subtle compared to others (focus word kind of) somewhere right in the middle of a scale from Road to Patriotic bordom (or Home) to Addicted heroin.
The friendships and side characters to their jobs without becoming to annoying, some twists or moments of affection are hinted just a little bit to much by bad directing. But other than that the sides even have some really good moments.
However I could not have cared less about the business slightly preachy (hens the I am sure it passed censorship well). It just prolonged the episode count and had me lower the score as some of those parts where so boring i almost fell a sleep. Luckily interactions between the leads where never far off.
So a decent watch that made me want to press that next episode button from start to finish, but also had me wanting to skip some scenes.
P.s. I am reallt bias about the two leads, but then again how can you not be with those smiles, abs and delivery of lines.
Was this review helpful to you?
Kisses and a bunch of people with hidden agendas
This drama has one good episode, a decent female something and a bunch of really well executed kisses... and well that is about it... As slightly annoying guy has a crush on an amazing girl but gets douped by a guy with a hidden agenda on their way though some misunderstandings and the feeling of trust no one as they may or may not have a hidden agenda but honestly they all just fall flat.I was almost going to give this a 7,5 for the kisses, the good episode and the girl plus lack of issues to complain about but then a whole bunch of cringe happened and dragged down the score. Conversations with parents that had me gaging and just a whole lot of oh come on.... Seriously are they going to throw in that annoying trope. And well at that point I felt a 7 was a kind score.
So what can I say the romance has its good times and again great kisses... but honestly it is just not enough to make this a good or even a watch worthy of your time. But if you do not mind the lack of plot and cringe and have some time to kill go for it or just fast forward to the kisses and the scenes with the girl.
Was this review helpful to you?
A decent sequel
This was an enjoyable watch, while I admit it dit not really add much closure to the first original series it was fun to see the characters in a more movie like pacing and setting.Had I seen this a year after the first it would have been a lovely reunion, but since I saw it right after the series Ill just say it was nice to see what would happen 3 years on, aired in October 2020 I could not help but wonder if it was filmed pree covid or if they made the coice to just ignore it. Still I enjoyed watching it.
Was this review helpful to you?
Bridget Jones meets Sex and the City in Japan
Tis is a fun combination of Bridget Jones meets Sex and the City in a Japanese more down to earth context, shorter, less flashy, beer instead of cocktails. Adorable instead of super sexy. Also with very lovable characters and cute illustrations. The friendships are top, top, top, makes you wish you had your own group of girls nights. The male sides are truly there just as side characters all have their own charm and are truly fun to watch. Some make questionable choices and I am not 100% on board with every message in this and I also admit most of the plot twists can be smelled an episode or two away. That said I really enjoyed this binge.Was this review helpful to you?
50 first days goes sad, teen Asia
This movie takes amnesia and instead of laughing at it or turning it in to comedy it makes it relatable human and full of teen cuteness. It is in no means perfect but I do believe I shed a real tear which is kind of rare for me making me instantly rate this a bit higher.Pacing is good, acting good, friendships are lovely and the character development and puppylove well cute as puppies.
A decent watch, just mind the tears and pain.
Also I have not seen the J version, my gut says it is probably better but I couldn't find it...
Was this review helpful to you?
Blurred lines can be hard to read
This is an interesting story, that brings out a whole lot of aspects making me feel very uncomfortable most of the time as well as thinking what the h*** did that person just say? And trying to figure out how this alines with my personal morals. To be honset I have issues with the leads relationship the age gap 12 years is a real age gap and though he is not under age the whole tutor student part as well as the way she treats him at times like a child other times like a love interest really makes me uncomfortable while at the sam time she has a lot of good to say and parts of me love both of them, as well as their chemistry. So I guess it is complicated in a confusing way.There are a lot of awful just awful characters in this, and the way they talk about hosts, host addiction and power relations makes me guess what yes very, very uncomfortable.
That said the drama is interesting, it kept my attention and told a slightly different story then the usual age gap, boy falls for his teacher... Definitely worth a watch just prepare for moral corruption and ambiguity...
Was this review helpful to you?
Could have been great but I guess I am not the forgiving kind...
This drama has an adorable main couple, interesting side characters ans a whole lot of fun and good to it untill we get to the main plot-lines that pretty much killed my interest half of the time.In the begining the drama felt a bit like Gilmore girls meeds Dharma and Greg in a Thai LGBTQsetting, had it kept this mix and added its own fun twist then thi could have been an 8,5 or even a 9. The romance has so much potential and could have been so much more if they focused on the mains relationship and the friends instead of constantly getting sidetracked by anooying plot-lines and awful just awful characters who supposedly have some kind of checter development leading to all being forgiven... And well I am just not the forgiving kind.
The quality of acting varies a lot, and there is a lot of cringe and over acting moments, that said out male lead is more or less perfect in every way. Papa Grace is a bit to preachy and forgiving but such.a sweetheart. Saving this from getting a lower score.
An okay watch that could have been grate, but just wasn't.
Was this review helpful to you?
Beige contract Cinderella
this feels a bit like a role reversal contract marriage done beige, very, very beige.While the male lead is an adorable little puppy , the female lead is a bit of an over acting bulldog scaredy cat combo.
The male leads styling is completely off , it takes talent to put a cute guy guy in a suit and make him look less attractive. The female lead has more moodswings than a swing on a school playground adoring break time. They seem to try to make her look independent but fail at every turn...
An okay watch, that is a bit different than many others like it but sometimes different does not mean actually good.
Was this review helpful to you?
Meeh
Ask not who you kissed last night but who you want to kiss tonight. if only our male lead would have done that we would not have anything to watch.Honestly I am not sure that is a bad thing...
While there are some nice shots here and there, and the guys are pretty cute. The male lead lacks any form of expressions looking like a lost kitten from start to finish. I really do not get what the three guys see in him or why he is so confused about the kiss he baerly remembers.
S
Was this review helpful to you?
Good start but inconsistent and annoying towards the end
It started off pretty okay, the romance is nice, the friendships are lovely the villains are idiots and the families are adorable... But then it became slightly repetitive, annoying and took some kind of turn from business/romance to undercover patriotic justice warriors... Bringing in all the things I have come to accept (unwillingly) in C -dramas and just can't take in my K's. This change har me rolling my eyes so many times it became ridiculously painful to watch towards the end. The pace is so off, the way things wrap up is not the least bit satisfying or in anyway given proper closure to the build up. And there are so many things that make no sense at all about the villains. It is as if they cut out their scenes to spare us the misery they bring .So why the high score?
Again the characters friendships and first half of the show sores between an 8,5 and a 9., as for the rest it does have some moments of fluff and sweetness between the eye rolling moments.
Was this review helpful to you?
