This review may contain spoilers
What makes a good killer?
A Shop for Killers is a very unique take on the contract killer plotline. It was a show that I was very excited to start, especially as a fan of Lee Dongwook, and it was very entertaining all the way through. However, I felt like there were a few parts of the show that felt off. The first bit will be free of spoilers, so I'll mark where they start.The opening scene of the show has Jeong Jian, our protagonist, getting shot at in her home. A very striking opening scene that had me excited to see both what happens next and how we got there. However, it's the latter that I have to complain about. This show jumps back and forth a LOT between the present and the past. Jian has an uncle, Jeong Jinman, who seems to be up to some shady business. These jumps to the past allow us to understand what exactly that shady business is, and how it concerns her. However, it is very non-linear in its storytelling. I think the one thing that bothered me the most about this wasn't the fact that we kept jumping between times, but the fact that they replayed scenes we had seen before so many times to orient the viewer in the timeline, but it was just excessive and unnecessary most of the time. The replayed scenes were so much longer than they needed to be, especially because this is an 8 episode series. If you've forgotten THAT much of the show when it's so short, it's probably because you weren't paying attention.
Another fault brought about by this non-linear storytelling was the fact that the viewer didn't get to learn the truth alongside Jian, but rather knew before her. You learn very early on about Jinman's career as a contract killer, but you have to watch a confused and scared Jian learn this WAY later than you do, at which point it doesn't pack the same punch. I will say though, watching Jian go through so many emotions in the span of just a few days is an incredible watch, and the actress did a great job portraying her.
**Spoilers start here**
My last and biggest issue with this show was the ending. What a copout! You get to watch Jian go through all this internal turmoil of should I kill or should I not, how could I ever run this business, etc. just for all that to go out the window because Jinman is ALIVE?? The entire story could have been avoided. You could argue that that's what makes Jian such a tragic character, but I thought that leaving the storyline right before they introduced Jinman at the end would have been a perfectly fine ending - a young girl, left to figure out the world with no one on her side. Could Jian become a killer like Jinman? Does she have what it takes, or is she only fueled by the rage that her parents' and uncle's death caused? I guess these questions don't really matter, because she doesn't need to be on her own anymore!
Overall, it was a good show and an engaging watch. Besides some issue with the storytelling and the ending, it was very interesting to watch the plot unfold both in the past and present. Frankly, I think this could have have spanned two seasons, with one season being all about Jinman and one about Jian, but the back and forth didn't get too messy. Worth checking out if you like short and dark thrillers.
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One of the better K-BLs I've seen
Love for Love's Sake surprised me a little! I had gotten a few clips of it on social media, specifically the fight scenes, and assumed it would be a high school romance with the classic K-drama-style bullying in it. When I started the show, I realized it was much more than that.Our main character Myung-ha gets transported into what seems to be a video game, and sent back 10 years to when he was 19. The game gives him a mission: make Yeo-woon happy within 300 days, or receive a penalty of death. Myung-ha is able to see how much Yeo-woon likes him, which should be helpful, except for the fact that this score starts at -20. Myung-ha has to attempt to make Yeo-woon happy, but tragedy seems to strike at unexpected times. Myung-ha is simultaneously dealing with his own feelings towards Yeo-woon, as well as school-related issues now that he's in high school once again.
This show was much more emotional than I expected it to be, and it worked in its favor. I did find the ending to be not quite what I expected and not in the best way, but overall it was a super solid show that was very enjoyable to watch. The actors did a great job portraying these characters, and I feel like their growth worked really well even in this shorter series. My biggest complaint about the show was the Myung-ha got a bit frustrating to watch as the main character, as it seemed like he was always unwilling to deal with his own feelings, even if it would be to the benefit of everyone involved, including himself. It sometimes seemed like he didn't really like Yeo-woon all that much, even though the viewer can see he clearly does. Besides this, the show was a great watch and visually very pleasing. I thought the different aspect ratios used throughout the show helped to capture the emotions and the difference between the previous and current life that Myung-ha is living. As far as Korean BLs go, this is definitely one of the better ones!
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Wanted it to be better
As a huge fan of crime/legal dramas, I was really looking forward to this one! Especially since one of the main characters is a lawyer, I was thinking we would get some good courtroom/law scenes that we just...didn't get. I understand that the plot of this one was about figuring out how to catch a killer that has way more power than the victim, but a lot of it just felt like it had been done before in so many better renditions. Plus, the relationship didn't seem to develop all that smoothly? It seemed like at one point they hated each other and then all of a sudden they were together? It felt like a show that could have been done really well if given the proper time and budget, but it just fell a little flat in both the romance and the murder storylines.Was this review helpful to you?
Underwhelming
I LOVE crime dramas and law dramas. Unfortunately, this one failed at both. Do Kyungsoo does a wonderful job portraying prosecutor Jin Jung, who is more than willing to bend the rules in order to punish people for their crimes. As a new prosecutor, he tends to get easy cases that don't involve too much digging - but when a seemingly clear-cut murder case comes across his desk, the more he reads into it, the more complicated it gets. However, it seems there are a lot of people that don't want this case investigated.In the classic "prosecutor takes on the Ultimate Bad Guy" fashion, Bad Prosecutor is set up to be a very enjoyable show where the villain and protagonist go back and forth on who has the upper hand in their series-long battle. However, there a few things that this series got wrong that just made it significantly less fun to watch than most other crime/law dramas I've seen:
1) Predictability. There were very few times in this series that I was actually surprised by a twist (and liked the twist). Most of the time, the ending of the episode could be predictable by halfway through the episode, and that made what should have been cliffhangers underwhelming.
2) Protagonist. While Do Kyungsoo did an excellent job portraying Jin Jung, I still didn't love the character. I was hoping for a morally gray prosecutor who didn't care whether he was breaking the law to get what he thought justice was. Instead, we got a prosecutor willing to go around the law, but still abide by it when push comes to shove. In his eyes, "Justice = Laws", which I feel could have been played around with more, especially with the horrible things the villain in this series had done.
3) Law. Considering the title, I assumed there would be a lot more courtroom scenes in this show. While I still enjoyed watching them chase after the villain, I think my expectations were a bit different considering Jin Jung is a prosecutor, not a cop.
4) Outcomes. There were many times where they could have had bigger and better (or sometimes, worse) outcomes for a character's actions, but they seemed to downplay any repercussions that should have occurred to both the protagonist and antagonist. I was waiting for the ending battle to really kick in and it never really did. It was much more anticlimactic in that sense than I expected.
If you enjoy crime/law dramas, you'll probably still enjoy this! Just beware its more of a cop show than a courtroom show, and you might be able to sense exactly where it's going (and be right 95% of the time) pretty easily.
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WAY better than I expected
Even though I have seen this drama recommended over and over again, I kept putting off watching it because I don't like hospital dramas typically. But then I started watching it and was HOOKED. This isn't your typical hospital drama with the focus on a patient every episode. It's so much better.Tin is a third year resident doctor in the ER. His job is busy - there's constantly people that need his attention, whether that be for some scrapes and bruises or for CPR emergencies. When he's not dealing with that, he has to deal with Professor Sak on his back about prioritizing the right cases and sending the rest to him. One particularly busy day, Tin gets multiple life-or-death cases, and he attempts to help a college student named Tol who was in a car crash. No matter how hard he tries, Tin can't save him and the student dies. Then, when Tin wakes up before his shift, he realizes that he's living the same day over again, down to the last detail. When Tol shows up in the ambulance once again, Tin's attempts still fail to save him. How many times will Tin have to relive this tragedy? How can he change it, and what repercussions will these changes have?
The way that Tin and Tol's relationship develops over the course of the show is absolutely spectacular. It's not the main point of the show, but rather a secondary plotline that helps build the characters they're playing. Watching Tin get closer and closer to Tol, but still having to watch him die over and over again is painful but amazing to watch.
I was worried that it would get stale and that watching Tin repeat his days would get too repetitive but BOY was I wrong! Tin's character continues to find new ways to attempt to save Tol, but this can lead to unexpected consequences. The further he goes back in time, the closer he can get to Tol, and the larger the impact of his actions on his future. This was a series that surprised me throughout the entire show and is not one to miss.
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Better than Cutie Pie!
Personally, I didn't like Cutie Pie. I thought the only good thing about that series was ZeeNu's chemistry. The plot was bad, let's be honest, and most people probably only watched it for the 18+ scenes. However, Cutie Pie 2 was honestly way better than I expected it to be. Still not a favorite of mine, but the conflicts were much more enjoyable than whatever happened in the first season. If you enjoyed Cutie Pie, you'd definitely like this. And if you're like me and just barely managed to get through the first season, you might still enjoy this if you liked Zee and Nunew.Was this review helpful to you?
I thought this was a cute and happy show. I was wrong!!
I LOVED the best friends to lovers plotline. It was done so well, and the longing that Eiw felt was portrayed so well. THe dynamic between Cake and Eiw was done perfectly, and the actors had amazing chemistry.I did think that they could have sped things up a little bit. Earth cried SO much in this series, and while he's a great actor, at some point you get tired of a character constantly being upset about the situation. But honestly, it was so well done that I didn't even mind much. One of the BEST scenes addressing what it feels like to have to come out to people and not know if they will accept you or not. Many BLs don't address the internalized homophobia aspect of this, and it's done so well in this show. The time jump was seamless and perfectly placed, and helped the show a lot. I think the last two episodes should have been moved up by one so that we got a finale centered around the relationship and not external issues.
Overall a fantastic show. Definitely worth the watch!
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Classic hookup-to-relationship plot
Bed Friend could have been so much better than it was! We start off with the classic (but over-done and annoying) hookup scene that kicks off the relationship. Once it's established that King and Uea will be friends with benefits, things start to get more and more intense, especially since they work together.WAY too much back and forth between the two male leads about what they were. If you're hooking up and also exclusive, how are you not dating. Come on. But at least we got to see them be happy!
Also WHERE was Tutor??
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It's not a good show, but man is it funny.
As a serious show? It's not good. They could have totally done more with the internalized homophobia bit but they just didn't. Instead, Type never really seems to get over his homophobia, and claims to hate all gays except for Tharn which doesn't really solve the issue here.As a comedy? It's kind of great. The acting isn't the best, the writing is much worse. The sound effects went crazy for no reason. Questionable consent throughout the first season but MAN did they mic them up for those make out scenes. Why? I don't know. But I did have a good laugh at it. The conflicts are repetitive and unnecessary. We get it, you're homophobic.
I can't really recommend anyone to watch this seriously. It's not good. But man, it's fun to make fun of.
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Homophobic stereotypes but in a BL?
Definitely not a bad series, but fairly mediocre. The two leads kinda seem like best bros instead of a couple, which defeats the whole purpose of the plot.Normally, I like a good fake dating plot. But the reason behind the fake dating scheme they come up with seems oddly homophobic? The stereotype of "predatory gay guy" coming on to a guy that has already rejected him in hopes of him becoming gay is just gross and unnecessary.
Then, once we start the fake dating plot, they are supposed to develop real feelings for each other (duh, that's the whole point) but it feels like that never really happens and they just keep pretending. Overall, fairly enjoyable but not one of my favorites.
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Frustrating conflicts but interesting relationship
The amount of BLs that begin with a drunken/mistaken hookup only for one of them to fall in love is a little alarming. Vee, who has a girlfriend, hooks up with Mark, who is too drunk to recognize who Vee is. Bad start.The building of the relationship is actually pretty good in this one though, and I enjoyed it for the most part. The chemistry between the actors is great. Unfortunately, the one major conflict throughout the entire series is the conflict presented in the first episode: Vee has a girlfriend. But somehow, Mark seems to be the only one that cares about this?
I feel like this would have been better as an 8 episode series, where they could have resolved some conflicts earlier and let them be happy for a little while. It got repetitive and frustrating after awhile. Definitely an enjoyable watch, but I feel like if I was watching this weekly as it aired I would've been frustrated enough to drop it.
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LOVE
High school dramas can be either really good or really bad. This is one of the really good ones.Both characters are easy to identify with and you sympathize with both of them for different reasons. Akk is the prefect president, who carries the weight of the school on his shoulders. While it may not seem like it, he struggles to keep up the "perfect child" persona he's always played. Ayan, the recent transfer, seems to be a rebellious troublemaker that Akk is tasked with keeping in line. However, Ayan's true intentions were never to cause trouble for Akk.
Not sure if you could really call this enemies to lovers, but they do start off as rivals of some sort. Akk and Ayan seem to be polar opposites, but slowly realize they find comfort in each other. This series also deals with issues of internalized homophobia, as well as outward homophobia from peers in school. The "Suppalo curse" storyline is a little unbelievable at times, but the way it is executed and the twists involved make up for anything it lacks.
My one complaint is the dream sequence. Why did they do that to us. Regardless, the tension between Akk and Ayan is perfect, the actors have great chemistry, and the pacing of the relationship is well done. One of my favorite BLs to date.
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People only like this because it's OffGun and you can't convince me otherwise
The only thing that made this worth watching was OffGun.Khai (Off) is a total player that Third (Gun) has been in love with for years. Unfortunately, Khai isn't into Third at all and refuses to date friends. But when Khai starts acting differently towards Third, he starts to believe that maybe Khai does have feelings for him.
Yeah the whole conflict between Khai and Third is bad. I get the whole idea they were going for, but they dragged this out for way. too. long. I don't know how someone could watch this and not be frustrated with Khai and Third. The classic miscommunication trope is always bad. If they just sat down and had a conversation, this show could have been half the length or shorter.
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Can't complain!
This show was simple. It was cute, fun, and lighthearted. No conflict lasted long and the relationship was a fairly happy one.I can't complain much about this show. Nhai didn't think he liked men, but when Ai and him become close, he starts to question himself. To see if it's true, he decides to move in with Ai as a trial run.
Nothing too special happened in this one. Gay people got to be happy and that makes me happy. There's no question of whether or not you'll be accepted for being gay when you've got two dads, so homophobia was never really an issue. The plotline between Ai and his mom was a little bit odd, but it didn't make a huge dent in the show anyways. Overall an enjoyable and easy watch.
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Slowburn but great development!
While I do think the relationship developed a bit slow, it was very cute to watch. Tian, who recently got a heart transplant, follows in the footsteps of the heart's former owner and become a volunteer teacher in a small village. There, he meets Phupha, the chief of the forest protection service. Tian learns that his heart donor was in love with Phupha, and realizes that he may be falling for him too.I loved seeing Tian's growth as a character. From a rich kid with no cares in the world, ready to gamble away all his parents money, to an independent adult who decides that he should use his time to be around people that he cares about and help others. Seeing his relationship with Phupha develop was very satisfying and enjoyable to watch. Though there are moments of heartbreak and conflict, the dynamic between these characters is wonderful to watch unfold.
It did feel like a lot of the show was spent waiting for Tian and Phupha to finally be together. If you don't like a slow burn romance, this one is not for you. Personally, I enjoyed watching each character grow and change after meeting the other, and seeing how this change finally led them to be together was very satisfying.
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