Incredibly....fine
Peach Trap was a show that I seemed to forget about every week. While I did enjoy watching the three potential love interests fight over the mc (and frankly, was surprised by who won him at the end), this show REALLY lacked any character development, ESPECIALLY for the mc! He had three men fighting each other trying to win him over, and he is the most BLAND character ever.Doha is wrongfully fired from his job. His supervisor feels bad about this and tries to help him get a new job, while also flirting with him. Meanwhile, Doha's childhood best friend has been secretly in love with him for years, and the barista at Doha' favorite coffee shop has been crushing on him too. The three men all try to win Doha's heart, while Doha tries to find a job.
I still cannot understand how three men are all SO in love with the mc. Doha truly had no personality besides a couple of tears shed here and there. The only character trait he really had was "unemployed"! That being said, I really enjoyed the three love interests, and was pleasantly surprised by how it ended. However, with not enough time to give any characters real development, and a main character that's boring as hell, this show didn't really do it for me. Not the worst watch, but not the best.
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Great Chemistry, Too Short
I had heard a lot of good things about this show and put off watching it simply because of my dislike for the Korean BL format (why are they always so short!), but I finally decided to give it a try and it did not disappoint! As always, things felt a little rushed, and major conflicts felt too fast and too late in the series, but I still really enjoyed watching it.Jiwon is a former Olympic gold medalist who retired from gymnastics, but is still too well known by the public for his liking. Now at university, he tries his best to hide from the spotlight, but ends up befriending Jeongwoo, the university's top basketball player. While the two of them start off as friends, it seems they both feel something more, but aren't quite willing to admit it - both because they're scared of the response, and because the relationship could ruin their reputations.
Overall, this was a fun and cute drama. I never know what to expect with KBLs in terms of chemistry (I've watched enough old kdramas with horrible kiss scenes....I don't need any more) but this one knocked it out of the park. The main actors did a fantastic job. I especially loved how both characters really had their own, conflicting inner struggles that played out over the course of the show. My biggest complaint is that the conflict in the last few episodes felt a little rushed and I wanted more time after it was resolved to see the two main characters together, but that tends to be the case with this show format. Still, it's definitely worth watching.
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Cutie Vampires!
I watched this show like a movie (which isn't hard, considering how short it is) and quite enjoyed it! I thought the casting was great, and the storyline wasn't overly complex and managed to fit everything into the short time that they had. Did I want a proper neck bite? Of course. Do I love domestic found family vampires? Also yes.When Dongha signs a lease for a shared apartment, he has no clue that he's moving in with four vampires - in fact, he doesn' even know that vampires are real. Three of his new housemates seem thrilled that he's there....perhaps a bit too thrilled, in fact. However, the fourth roommate, Joowan, is not nearly as welcoming. Dongha is determined to get on Joowan's good side, but Joowan is adamant that Dongha move out. As Dongha and Joowan grow closer, Joowan's cold exterior melts away.
This show was super cute and sweet without drawn out conflicts. It was predictable but fun, and the actors did a great job. If you want basically a bunch of cutiepie vampires living as a little family, a cold vampire x sweet human romance, and a heartwarming gay story? This is a fun time. Don't go looking for anything much deeper - just enjoy the fun!
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Good, if you're already a fan
I watched the Given anime awhile back, and figured I may as well give the live action a try. I'm not sure WHY they thought they could condense the already short series into something even shorter, but I was quite disappointed with how much nuance of the original story you miss out on by watching this version. I definitely didn't dislike it, but I think the only reason I enjoyed it was because I was thinking about the anime the entire time.If you're already a fan of the manga or anime, I'd say give this a watch if you want something fun and fast to remind you of it. However, I would advise people looking into watching this to watch the anime instead - it's not much longer, and it's significantly better. The ending of this show was so....nothing. Plus, I think the best part of the story is Mafuyu's backstory, which you get some of, but not nearly enough to truly understand his character. Plus, with such little time, Uenoyama came off as way more rash and jealous in this version. Trying to ALSO tie in Akihiko's storyline felt like they were just adding easter eggs for people that were already fans, because there wasn't enough in this version to put together any cohesive storyline with that. Overall an okay show, but not if you're unfamiliar with the story.
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A Shining Political Tragedy
Shine was so much more than I expected it to be. I think the best way to describe this show is a tragic political drama - not because there wasn't romance, but because the romance feels secondary to the building political tensions throughout this show. I think my only complaint was that Mile and Apo's roles and romance as Tanwa and Trin felt almost unnecessary to the larger plot, but it was still an incredible watch. Plus, the directing and music were outstanding.Economist Trin (Apo) travels back to Thailand from France after the loss of his love in French protests. There, he begins to get involved in politics, as well as work as a professor. He meets Tanwa (Mile) first as a laid-back musician, son of a politician, and then as a 10th year college student. The two opposites slowly attract while working together. Meanwhile, Trin's uncle Krailert (Son) is a colonel, and in charge of some major political deals. Political reporter Naran (Euro) has been digging up dirt on him in an attempt to reveal the corruption in the military and their politics. Unknowingly, the two start communicating via newspaper column music reviews, and when they finally meet in person, the chemistry is undeniable. The political opponents fall in love as a rebellion is brewing, and being on opposite sides of a country nearing war is never the right place for love to thrive.
Truly, Son and Euro STOLE THE SHOW! The TENSION and the heartache was incredible - what's more heartbreaking than a love that seems impossible? In my opinion, some of their scenes were....unnecessarily long and explicit, but the directing was so wonderful I can't even really complain. The politics involved in their relationship was absolutely incredible to watch, and their backstories only added to the complexity of their relationship. The biggest downside of this show in my opinion was that they weren't the main characters. While I love Mile and Apo, their relationship didn't seem all that important; particularly, Mile's character seemed to play very little role in the plot besides being Apo's love interest. Their relationship was still great to watch, though I think the fun in it lied much more with Trin's slow realization that he was into Tanwa than with the relationship itself. Still, this show is absolutely worth watching, and props to beoncloud for making a show that is so unique!
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Rushed Ending
I was really intrigued by the beginning of this show where we got a bunch of episodes that each explored a different character, showing the highlights and downsides of their special ability. However, as the show progressed I felt like we were rushing the later plot points.I honestly did not mind the ending, but I felt that the climax happened too late. That being said, it was still a fun watch. I just think if they sped up a couple of the middle episodes, or extended the show 2-3 more eps, it would've felt much more complete (and frankly, wouldn't need a s2).
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Circumstance Determines Fate
"Good people aren't always good, and bad people aren't always bad" seemed to be a very central theme to this show. While I appreciated the nuance it tried to have, I found that the drawn out timeline and poor character development took away from it. As the show went on, I liked it more and more, but I found the beginning to be overly drawn out, and eventually felt like I didn't really have anyone I was truly rooting for. I liked this idea of two brothers who, when treated totally differently by their father, end up on opposite paths - one a cop, and one a criminal. However, I felt that the execution left some things to be desired.Win (Perth) and Korn (Ohm) are brothers. Korn was born during a hard time for the family, and his father thought him a jinx that could only bring bad luck; Win, on the other hand, became a golden child destined to bring good fortune. Their father constantly abused Korn while praising Win, though the two brothers managed to have a good relationship with each other. However, as time goes on, Korn ends up involved with a drug smuggling gang, and Win follows Korn's original dream of becoming a cop, putting the two brothers on opposite sides of an investigation.
I thought Perth and Ohm did a good job in this show, but I just felt that the writers could have done so much more. I wish we got even more on Film's character Rung, who was important to the brothers' relationship, because I feel like her arc was super important but lacking details to make it stand out. I know that the entire premise revolved around this idea that no one is truly the "good guy," but I honestly wasn't really rooting for either brother. I felt that this took away from a lot of scenes where the two of them have these kind of stand-offs with each other - I wanted to feel so much more for them than I did! That being said, I still enjoyed watching this show, but mostly because I liked the cast.
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A Perfectly Paced but Short Mystery
Dalah: Death and the Flowers was a super fun watch because of how well paced the murder mystery was. While it wasn't the most complex story, I thought that for a 6 episode show, it was super nicely done.As Dalah prepares the floral arrangement for a wedding, she meets the bride Narisa, daughter of a wealthy businessman, and the groom Ohm, the soon-to-be prime minister. The marriage seems like a perfect transaction - and from the outside, the bride and groom actually seem fairly happy. That is, until the day of the wedding when the groom is found dead at the floral studio. Family secrets on both sides unravel as the case progresses, and no one can seem to figure out how Dalah is involved in all of this.
I thought that this show was a super engaging watch! I LOVE some rich family drama, and this one sure did deliver. I genuinely was surprised by a lot of the twists, and while the ending reveal wasn't unexpected, it was still a super fun watch. I thought that the way the viewer was walked through the twists in each episode was super well done, and the way it unfolded was done so well over the course of the episodes. While some things were left a little open ended or slightly unfinished, I felt that they did a great job for the time they had. Absolutely worth the watch.
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Fun characters and fights, but missing something
Study Group takes a much more fun twist on the classic kdrama plot of high school gangsters. I was pleasantly surprised by how light they managed to make the show feel considering how heavy the themes are. While I wouldn't consider it the best drama in this category, it was still a super fun watch.Yun Ga Min's goal is simple: he wants to study and get good grades. However, he sucks at it. In hopes of moving towards the top of his class, he transfers to the worst school he could find - full of gangsters that spend all day fighting instead of studying. But still, he can't seem to make any progress towards becoming a better student. He decides to start a study group, and even though at first no one wants to join, he eventually is able to pull together some students to join him; this does, however, put a target on their backs. Luckily, Ga Min is secretly the best fighter there is, and uses his seemingly superhuman fighting skills to protect his new study group friends.
The fight scenes in this show were surprisingly fun to watch, not because they were realistic, but because they were so over the top and dramatic that it made me laugh. I was hoping for a bit more depth on the characters' home lives and some of the trauma that was alluded to in the show, but the characters were still super interesting to watch. I do think that Ga Min was a bit too perfect, in the sense that we never really got to see him crack the way I wanted to. Not to mention, all the study group members clearly had issues with their families, but only a few of these were actually touched on. Still, it was a fun watch, even though I wish they could've given me a bit more from the characters themselves.
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Excellent for the time they had
Wow. I always worry about Korean BLs that are so short because so often they try to do too much in too little time. A Breeze of Love was the perfect amount of character and relationship development for the length of the show!When the basketball team is in need of a forward, the team manager scouts Dongwook to play for them. However, Dongwook and the team captain Dohyun know each other, and don't seem to be on good terms. The show plays out in a dual timeline: Dongwook and Dohyun's current "enemies" to lovers college relationship builds as you get flashbacks of their high school relationship that ended in a bad falling out.
I love the way that instead of telling the story in chronological order, you get bits and pieces of what happened between them in high school as you move through the show. Also, I'm really glad they didn't try to do too much with Dongwook's insomnia, and kept it simple considering the length of the show. All in all, this was a lovely movie-like watch that was cute, comforting, and worth giving a shot.
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An Episodic Suicide Prevention PSA
I went in to Tomorrow with an open mind, excited for the idea of grim reapers that don't actually guide dead souls, but instead prevent them from dying in the first place. However, I found that the mostly episodic nature of the show ended up making it feel repetitive and uneventful.Choi Joonwoong (Rowoon) nearly dies when preventing a suicide - a suicide that was supposed to be prevent by the Risk Management Team of grim reapers. While in a coma, his soul enters Jumadeung, a company in the afterlife filled with grim reapers. He is told he can work with the Risk Management Team for 6 months and then return to his body in the world of the living. Joonwoong then spends his days preventing suicides alongside other grim reapers on the team.
I felt like I was always waiting to get more back story on the grim reapers on the team, as well as get more drama from within Jumadeung. While we got to see glimpses of it, it felt like it came way too late in the show. Instead of dragging on a single case for multiple episodes, I wish we got to see more of why the other reapers hate the Risk Management Team, the stories of the other reapers and how that affects them, etc. but they didn't truly flesh that out until the end of the series. I understand they wanted to portray these different suicide cases, but it started to feel a little heavy handed with the suicide prevention psa. I think if it was more balanced between grim reaper drama and the cases themselves, it would've been a much more well-rounded show.
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Coming of age without enough time
With a cast like this, I knew I had to watch Summer Night. It was a very fun show to watch and while I enjoyed watching it weekly, I would guess it's better watched in a shorter period of time. I wouldn't call it slow, but it did feel like a lot of conflicts were drawn out a little too long, especially when it's obvious who Star will end up with.Lune (Phuwin) has always been a loner . After getting bullied at his last school and then transferring to a new one, he's become fine with this fact - and is also fine with simply admiring his crush Star (Parn) from afar. That is, until White (Dunk) decides he'll do whatever it takes to get Lune to join his friend group. Lune starts becoming closer with White, Star, Ivy (Lookjun), and Jewel (Ryu), but when White reveals his secret crush on Star, Lune feels obligated to hide his feelings. He feels even more obligated to do so when it turns out Star might have those same feelings for him. Faced with either losing a girl or his new best friend, Lune tries to please everyone and ends up doing quite the opposite.
I really enjoyed Lune's arc in this show, even when he was a bit stupid at times. However, I felt like the relationship between Lune and Star could have been so much better! It felt like there were so few scenes with them being happy together. Plus, the overly drawn out jealousy plotline got annoying real quick. With all the characters in the show, it felt like they were trying hard to balance out screentime, and it got the best of them. Honestly, if this had been a 12 episode series instead of 10 they might have been able to do a bit more, but it just felt like some things were rushed while others were too slow. But still, the cast was great and it was definitely enjoyable.
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An emotional story disguised as a comedy
Based on the description and the clips I've seen from this show, I expected it to be very silly. And while it starts off that way, the plot quickly deviates from the description and turns into something else that is much more emotional and serious - all while trying to keep a light tone. I think I would have enjoyed this more if it either took itself more seriously and explored these more emotional aspects more, or kept it light and fun throughout. I honestly only watched this because I'm a big fan of First, and it was definitely an experience.Pan and Soda like to write fanfiction about Way and Kim, which causes some bullies to attack Way, calling him gay. This fight gets Way threatened with expulsion, and Pan, feeling bad about this, apologizes to Kim. Luckily, Kim seems very nice and offers her a ride home, only to crash on the drive. Then, the two end up swapping bodies, but Pan's body is left in a coma. Pan, in Kim's body, searches for a way to get back to her own body, all while learning things about Kim that she couldn't imagine. Her idealized version of him from her fanfiction quickly crumbles, and even as she tries to right his wrongs, she fears what will happen when his soul returns.
Body swapping plotlines aren't typically plots I go for, and while this one had interesting dynamics with it, it still didn't quite get me invested. Of course, a major plotline is Pan trying to get her body back, but there were some dumb decisions made on her part that left me frustrated. However, I really enjoyed the ending and thought that the twists in the story were actually very interesting. As I said, I think that keeping with either the emotional or light tone throughout the series would've made this feel much more cohesive. I do wish I didn't have to ask the question, "is it technically incest if you kiss your brother, but it's someone else's soul?" but here we are.
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Watch for Daou and Offroad
I'm going to be honest, I only watched this because I liked Daou and Offroad in Century of Love. I didn't expect too much from this one, and it was exactly what I thought it would be - a sweet, cute BL with not too much going on. Based on the title, I did expect a little more.....translation? Or miscommunication because of language? But none of that happened.Yang (Daou) is opening a business in Thailand, but because he's Chinese, he needs a business partner. He ends up in a partnership with Phumjai (Offroad), and though the two get off on the wrong foot, they end up opening a convenience store together. Phumjai just has one condition: Yang must teach him Mandarin so he can impress the popular Chinese influencer Tammy. As they work together and Phumjai tries to win over Tammy, feelings between Yang and Phumjai unexpectedly emerge.
Honestly, this show wasn't anything special. It was cute, it was fun, and hit a lot of major tropes in Thai BLs (including kidnapping.....which I still feel was unnecessary). Daou and Offroad have great chemistry, and I didn't feel like any conflict was too drawn out. If you're looking for a quick and light watch, this is a good one, but don't expect anything more than that.
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A Win for Win
I LOVED seeing Win in a role like this. This show was dark, freaky, supernatural, and INCREDIBLY well done considering it's so short. I really thought it was going to feel unfinished, but it's the perfect level of complete to be satisfying, while also gearing up for another season. The only critique I have of this one is the relationship.At a competitive all girls high school, the top students start dying mysterious deaths, starting from the top ranked and moving down the list. Fa (Prim), ranked 3rd, starts to think that these "accidents" are anything but, and can't help but to notice they line up with the arrival of the new teacher, Mr. Ajin (Win). Thinking he has something to do with it, Fa starts investigating, and gets herself wrapped up in a world she wasn't ready to uncover.
In only 4 episodes, they managed to provide the perfect amount of background information and build the story at the perfect pace. You learn alongside Fa what is happening and how everything is connected, which was super fun to watch. My only complaint is a big one though - why WHY do we need any romance between Fa and Ajin?? I don't care about technicalities of how old they are or whatever, they meet as a HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT and a TEACHER. Luckily, any romantic feelings Fa has toward Ajin don't matter nearly as much as the horrible occurrences at this school. The horror elements are done way better than I had expected, and it had me captivated the whole time. I can't WAIT to see what season 2 has to offer!!
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