Perfect until the rushed ending...

This drama is one of those dramas that is perfect until it suffers from a rushed ending. Actually, the story had so much amazing thickness to it that it could have had double the episodes and still wouldn't have suffered from it dragging! I loved this drama so much. This drama it essentially like two-in-one with how the story is set out. The first part was absolutely perfect in my eyes, with the second part almost perfect (I'm so happy with this by the way as I had such a bad feeling the story was going to turn into a catastrophe in the second half). I loved the story, characters, acting, directing, settings and OST the most. The drama is very easy to watch too, therefore a high rewatch value was given. I'm not sure about the adult ML casting choice (I love the actor but I feel as though someone else would've been better portraying the character, although I have no evidence to back this up).

The story was unpredictable, which I did love. The good characters had flaws and the bad characters had glimpses of goodness in them, and essentially the moral I got as a vibe mostly was that life is life and no matter what, people don't change. However, through hard work and determination, you can succeed no matter what. A couple of scenes were hard to watch, and maybe a hint of cringe here and there but it worked, if that makes sense. I also loved how the writing team incorporated minor/supporting characters in the first part to reappear in the second part. I love when dramas do this, it feels as though I'm watching a drama full of Easter eggs (the video game kind, not the chocolate kind, although I do love them too!).

Overall, I highly suggest watching this drama. It does have a few themes here and there that may be a little hard to swallow for some, but it's a drama that everyone should watch in their lifetime.

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Started and ended well, but the middle...

Mirror of the Witch is one of those dramas that started and ended superbly, but had a few episodes in the middle that were quite boring and slow, meaning it was a slight chore to get re-invested into the story in the later stages. However, thankfully, I was re-invested into the story and I felt quite emotional with the last episode. However, this does not mean the story is perfect. It's not. It's quite confusing at times. However, when it wasn't confusing, it was a great story. The acting was perfect, and whilst I was unfamiliar with some of the main and supporting cast, I instantly became a fan of all. The OST was really nice to listen to. The rewatch value is just low because of the aforementioned 'slow and boring' episodes in the middle (I want to say roughly episodes 9 to 14, but I can't guarantee if it was all of these or a combination of these).

I really liked the cinematography and costumes in this drama, and the SFX weren't too bad either. The fighting scenes left a little to be desired, alongside the editing, and there was one minor plot hole I unfortunately managed to find in the last episode. However, I have noticed quite a lot of the hate that this drama gets is unjustified, in my personal opinion. This drama isn't perfect, but it's definitely not bad. It could be argued that the FL could have been older, but surely the casting team would have casted an older FL if they desired to show physical romance. I personally preferred it like this, where the romance was basically all hinted or done in non-physical ways.

If it wasn't for the boring middle, I'm confident I would have rated this higher. I still recommend people to watch this, but are 'in the know' of the slowness of the middle.

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Great from start to finish! Although, not perfect...

'Live Your Own Life' is a great drama from start to finish, although it isn't perfect. It involves many different story points, truly unpredictable plot twists, themes that I loved, characters that were either really interesting, funny, relatable and/or worthy of being shown. The cast and acting were incredible by (nearly) everyone alongside an OST that was incredible in every song. I always wonder regarding pacing with big dramas with such huge episode sizes and episode lengths, however, for this drama at least, it was never an issue. Perfect pacing is hard to come by, and is what I thought would be impossible with such a big drama like this one. I think that's why I've given a high re-watch value compared to my usual ratings for that sub-rating.

Whilst I do absolutely love this drama, I should point out the negatives. There are a couple of really overbearing characters (although really well acted). Some of these characters were so overbearing that at a few points I considered dropping the whole drama because of these characters. Another negative was the acting of a few supporting cast members, although since they didn't have much time on screen, wasn't too overbearing.

In terms of the story, I really liked how fresh it kept on becoming. Instead of moving from one story point to another in a chronological fashion, everything kept going smoothly as though it was just one long story from start to finish, which is exactly what I want from a drama. I also really liked the filming locations alongside the camera work and fashion choices (which I don't usually pick up on).

Anyways, I do definitely recommend everyone to watch this. The FL was actually relatable in terms of this, and I will give you the message now to! Live Your Own Life! Watch this and your life will be better!

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Awesome!

Let Me Be Your Knight has the right amount of different genres (drama, music, comedy, romance) that blend together nicely, compared to other dramas that try and do these things but end up mashing them together in the worst way possible. I think what really helped to enjoy this was that it was familiar type of storyline but done in it's own unique way, alongside some unexpected plot twists which made the story more unpredictable than expected. I am also a genuine fan of every song in the OST. Since the drama is heavily focused on music, I was expecting to not like a song or two since there would be many songs. However, not only did I like all the songs involved, I LOVED all the songs involved! Also, even though episodes were roughly 1 hour long, most felt a maximum of 20 minutes.

When it comes to the negatives, I would say the main negative would be the acting of a couple of supporting/guest characters. I don't like naming names as I am talking about human being after all, but some performances left an eyesore. Another negative would be the directing at times, especially with positioning. I don't usually notices things like this but there were definitely a few scenes where the positions of characters made absolutely no sense.

However, I would definitely recommend this drama despite the flaws. After all, the positives definitely outweigh the negatives, and for a drama of this type (music genre based), it was a nice pleasant surprise to watch. Let 'Let Me Be Your Knight' into your life! You won't regret it!

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Great, but I think a different direction could have made it perfect.

Psychopath Diary is a great drama that successfully manages to blend thriller, drama and comedy together, which is something more difficult to do than it seems! The story was complex, but everything made sense and was interesting throughout. The cast was sublime and acting from each and every cast member was at least on the 'great' standard. The OST? Addictive and full of amazing tunes that I will definitely be listening to in my spare time! The re-watch value is higher than I expected, to be honest. I think I decided to rate it higher than what I usually do because I absolutely loved the bonds that the different characters made, alongside the wackiness of the story from start to finish.

So, you are probably wandering why I rated this a drama a 9 out of 10 instead of a 10 out of 10, right? Well, here's when I have to dive into a little bit of a spoiler-filled reason, so if you don't want to be spoiled, just watch this drama anyway because I recommend it no matter what!

The two negatives that made me rate this lower than what I wanted: the 'stupid' or 'illogical' police or police procedures. Normally I don't notice these sorts of things, or if I do, it is usually months after watching said drama. However, for me anyways, it stuck out like a sore thumb. The other thing isn't a negative per say but it's a slight twist of the story that I thought was going to happen, but didn't. I was expecting when Seo In Woo saw that Yook Dong Shik had one of his diaries, he would actually think that diary was not his, but it belonged to Yook Dong Shik, therefore thinking that he had found his 'murdering soulmate' i.e. someone exactly like him. I was then expecting a villainous bromance to evolve from this where they help each other murder etc. and that it would eventually stop with the help of FL and romance. I know this idea sounds a little loose, and it's hard to describe exactly what it is, but hopefully you understand! (I don't usually like thriller and romance mixed in, but I would've liked a romantic hint in the last episode).

Anyways, I totally recommend Psychopath Diary! A definite 'must watch'!

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Is it about the journey or the destination?

Padam Padam is one of those dramas that gets you thinking about which is more important: the journey or the destination? No matter your answer, however, it still is a great drama that should be watched. It has 20 episodes, and actually, I think it should've been the usual 16 kdrama-length episodes, because episodes 17-20 were unfortunately my least favourite. I think Padam Padam is a drama with a great journey but eventually becomes a tad repetitive and too much of a 'slice of life'. However, episodes 1 to 16 were absolutely amazing.

The acting and OST were pretty much perfect, almost faultless. I really enjoyed the different types of characters and the mix of different genres in the storyline. I think the crime based storyline was my favourite but I still thoroughly enjoyed the other parts, too. I really liked the bromance and family-type friendship and bonds the character eventually came to have.

I wasn't a fan of the directing, and the English sub translation provided by Viki was unusually weak, but that gives me more motivation to learn Korean. On the positive side, I now have some new favourite actors thanks to these great casting choices, and I also have another great OST to add to my playlist!

All in all, I recommend Padam Padam.

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Big Bet 2? Big Yes 2!

Big Bet carries the greatness of the first season over to this second season. Big Bet Season 2 has a fantastic story which was structured almost perfectly (a few complex points which were a little difficult to understand), an amazing unpredictably story that kept this thick mystery in every episode, some great acting performances alongside editing, cinematography and directing. Again, with the first season, every episode felt like a blockbuster. The one glaring downside I think for this season was the repetitive dialogue, especially with the first half of episodes. The SFX was very hit-or-miss, too.

Even though I loved all the episodes, I feel like the second half of episodes were stronger than the first. The bromance between certain characters was a joy to see, and it was also nice to see, in my opinion, a phenomenal final episode, which I think was a perfect ending.

I suggest everyone to watch Big Bet Season 2. Of course you should watch the first season before this one, just in case anyone asks that!

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Big Bet, Big Yes

Big Bet is a very good, unpredictable, interesting and gripping drama that is very loosely based on real events. While I do know it is loosely based on something, whenever I know something is 'based' on a true story, it does help me focus on it more than usual. I'm saying this here because I actually found (I believe) the second and third episodes were a little slow, but I wanted to power through. From episode four onwards, each episode was really interesting and easy to binge watch. I actually really liked the first episode too, although the 'going back and forth' timeline was way too much (and confusing at points too).

The characters are really good in Big Bet. All have great big personalities and feel blockbuster-movie level. Each character has their own story, and the way they intermix with one another is really interesting to see. I also really like the presentation, costumes, SFX, directing and cinematography in this, I thought they were outstanding.

Nice OST and a high re-watch value is also with this.

All in all, Big Bet is a really great drama.

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Best Friendship-themed Drama I think I've ever watched

United Win is the greatest friendship-themed drama I think I've ever watched. Sometimes, it's the small imperfections that make things perfect, which I think is applicable for this drama. What I mean by this is that, sure, there were a couple of things I would have liked: slightly longer episodes for greater character development (for the supporting cast), perhaps more 'sports' scenes in the first half of episodes, a slightly slower pace. But when I think about these things I desire, and then I think about the tone of the story, I think United Win did something very clever here.

The characters were perfect. They were acted amazingly, and despite the short episodes, you could really feel the emotions they wanted to garner from the audience. Another thing was the story. The friendship was absolutely unreal in this one. It really felt like I was part of the team. Whether you call it bromance or more than that, that's up to you to decide. But yeah, this drama made me feel really happy at the end of it all. On a side note, the supporting character Tian Xin (played by actor Kang Qi Xuan) is perhaps my favourite comedy character in dramaland of all time. Yes. He was that funny. I'm not saying he's definitely my top spot, but my goodness, he's definitely in contention. While I did say I would have liked longer episodes for greater character development for the supporting cast, this doesn't mean I didn't like them. On the contrary, I loved all the characters. If we were given more, I would have perhaps loved them even more!

Music reminded me of a throwback playlist I would listen to back on the Xbox 360 days in the years of 2007-10, when social media was less dominant and good times were more likely. Re-watch value is very high here, just because of how much I loved the friendship in this one, but also due to the short episode length, and the easy accessibility.

I highly recommend everyone to watch United Win!

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Binge-worthy, but..

Air City has an interesting premise: a drama based in an airport-setting with characters that have different personalities (the story is confusing so it's best not to explain too much, but although the story is confusing at times, at other times it is very fun and enjoyable - I would say the story is stronger in the first half than the second half of the drama however). I was a fan of the stunts and perhaps this played a part of me giving the re-watch value a higher score than I predicted?

Story does lack that little bit of logic - e.g. if you are a secret agent, you wouldn't let that not be kept a secret etc. However, it was interesting enough to kinda turn a blind eye on the lack-of-logic.

Acting was good from nearly all main/supporting roles.

Casting... was great! I was unfamiliar with the FL but I liked her. The two ML's I am familiar with however and they performed greatly once again, no surprise here.

OST was amazing.

All in all, this is more of a drama you should watch instead of read me explaining everything about it.

Do I recommend Air City? Yes. Interesting premise, characters, stunt/fighting scenes. Does lack that bit of logic and the second half is weaker than the first, but I still recommend it!

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Great Start, Boring Middle, Decent-ish ending

Sandglass had a great start, a boring middle, and a decent-ish end. There is a political theme throughout, which I think was more interesting when this was inter-mixed with action and slight romance, but when this wasn't present, was quite boring to follow. Another thing that I wanted to say: Sandglass has EASILY my most least-liked FL (so far at least, although I think this will be very hard to beat). The FL's character is absolutely awful. The actual actress is good, so nothing against her. But the character she played... will, no matter what, be one of my least favourite characters in general forever (I think, anyways!).

Apart from this, I really found the bromance between two of the ML's an absolute pleasure to watch. I also found the politics (when done right) really interesting and gripping. The action scenes were absolutely amazing too, whoever co-ordinated some of those scenes especially must have received some applause after this came out back in 1995. And I really did enjoy the characters in this (except the FL) and all the different relationships and dynamics each had with one another. The OST was legendary, just too overplayed throughout.

All in all, however, I do recommend this. Sandglass is a definite watch. But the first portion is definitely the best.

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Almost Dropped, but thankfully I didn't.

I almost dropped Triple. The first few episodes were an absolute chore to get through. However, I can assure you that after those few boring pieces of slowness, a good story appears. A good story, a fantastic cast with some good performances, a good OST and surprisingly high re-watch value considering the slowness at the start makes Triple to be a surprisingly good drama - especially considering the overall rating on the MDL page is only a 6.2!

I really enjoyed the characters and character development. The way the characters transformed, the way they interacted with one another, the way that they all had their own story, it was really nice to see. I would actually say it was close to perfection. The story was also unpredictable, in a good way. There are a few times where I thought it would be steered into a, let's say, more 'controversial' direction, but I'm glad it didn't. Apart from the poor episodes at the start, I also thought the editing was quite lacking. Don't get me wrong, this was made in 2009, so I wasn't at all expecting a technical masterpiece, but there were a few glaring errors to things, especially when it came to some camera work.

All in all, I definitely recommend this. If it wasn't for the horrid start, this would have been given a higher rating. I still recommend however for you to watch this. The story becomes really interesting and enjoyable.

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Great acting, questionable 'story'

Warrior Baek Dong Soo thrives in having an amazing cast, likeable and/or brilliantly written characters, some really good acting performances, great bromance, great sismance and greatly built relationships. It also has a story that at times is quite confusing, whether it is because there is not enough story, the story is confusing, or that there are too many plot points which then makes it feel like there's no real story at all - if that makes sense. So, it's one of those dramas that doesn't really thrive in story, but the acting and characters make up for it.

I also wanted to point out that I really enjoyed the action scenes in this drama. The action scenes here felt really innovative at points. They must have hired some real pros in the stunt co-ordination scene.

This was 29 episodes long, and whilst some episodes felt quicker more than others, I don't think it will necessarily be something I will re-watch anytime soon. However, I gave it a little higher than anticipated because the unknowing direction of the story would probably lead me to want to watch a certain episode or two (basically, I wouldn't have to watch this methodically if re-watching).

All in all, I do recommend this. Whilst the story is questionable, the acting performances were a sublime delight.

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Good but difficult to rate

Whilst I was a fan of this drama, I found it very difficult to know how much I liked it. This has probably been the drama that I have found most difficult to rate, perhaps ever! Just Between Lovers has an amazing story, with perhaps one of the greatest couples in dramaland, with a sublime OST, 70 minute episodes that usually feel more like only 30 minutes, and also showing that a story that I thought had quite a basic concept, not be dragged out but instead kept interesting over the whole amount of episodes.

However, one thing I had realised by perhaps the mid-point was that I felt like the story gave the vibe that the viewers should only really pay attention to the couple, and none of the supporting cast. Perhaps I only felt that way, but yeah, the vibe I had just gotten was that the supporting cast was only really there to add numbers and I guess just to make the story more whole. Either that or I was just uninterested with everyone except the main couple. I guess that's why I loved the drama, but couldn't give it a higher rating - I guess it would have been a lower rating if the supporting cast had been given more time! This isn't to say the supporting cast acted poorly - all of their acting was great!

I still highly recommend this drama and I believe it is a great choice, especially for those in need of healing, or those who just need a change of scenery in their lives. I felt like I really needed to watch this drama at this specific point in my life, so perhaps some other people will also feel like this.

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Great Acting, Story wasn't

Connect succeeds in having a great cast that give great performances, alongside great characters that are well-written or mysterious enough to like to an extent. However, the story is easily the big let down here, with almost plot-hole filled plot twists that almost ruin the story? I mean, I didn't really notice this pop up until the final two episodes, which, as you can tell, where the reason why I put this in. If the two final episodes were different, there could be a chance of this having a higher overall rating.

Other positives include the cinematography, directing and the majority of the SFX (although some of the SFX were not that good at all). The OST was pretty nice too, although a little repetitive. Some other negatives would be an uninteresting opening credit scene, some repetitive dialogue, and repetitive action scenes.

I also really liked Kim Hye Joon's character, and the characters in the 'Gang' the most, they were both mysterious and well written (from my perspective, at least).

I would still recommend this, but do not expect a masterpiece.

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