maybe just listen to the ost!!

i was extremely excited to start hierarchy. i was in korea when it was released, and i really enjoyed watching the first few episodes and uncovering the plot. sadly, this didn't last long, and i think the main reason is how long it feels.

the visuals are all very similar and the episodes just felt dragging. i do think this was part of the point of the show, as to explain the type of environment jooshin is, but it just made each minute feel like 10. there were times i was 15-20 minutes into an episode, but it felt like 40. this is honestly the sole reason it took me so long to finish the show. i started it at release, and it took me almost 5 full months to finish it. the scenes that felt the most refreshing were the scenes at jaei’s beach house and when the main cast was in the city together.

alongside that, the plot was handled poorly. they really did have EVERYTHING to make an amazing show: good music and actors, beautiful set, and a plot that could have been amazing. in a way, they focused too much on the aesthetics and less the actual plot. the relationships felt undeveloped and the absolute full plot explanation within the last hour of the show was extremely disappointing to see. even though all of kangha’s motivation stems from inhan, it felt like in half of the show he was an afterthought. for a show that spent so much time with all the characters, i feel like i know nothing about them and their relationships. while this could be intentional, it makes too big of an impact on the show to were i can’t think that. the only thing strongly revealed was the hierarchy of the school, which does make sense in the context of the show, but i would love more.

the characters also made me mad. i went from liking people to hating people to liking them again. i do like that everything was wrapped up, like kangha getting closure on his “relationship” with jaei, hera and jaei becoming friends again, and rian and jaei semi-fixing their relationship. woojin felt extremely underutilized, like his only point was to be dating a teacher and pining over hera (which felt like a reallyyyyy unnecessary arch). i really wish time was spent developing them more, instead of focusing on messy relationships and extravagant party life. i assume some of this was the point of the show, but it still is annoying.

onto the thing i actually love: the music. i don’t listen to osts often, unless someone i know is in it, but this is one of the best osts i’ve listened to. just from the intro with cocona’s ‘holler time’, i was already in love. next, junhyeon’s song ‘ruin life’ is amazing when it appears in the outro. aside from holler time, my favorite song is probably ‘paradise’ by xydo. if you haven’t listened to this entire ost yet, i would definitely recommend it! out of all the aspects of this show, this ost is the thing that fits along with the visuals. i felt much more emotion from this ost than the show, and if you don’t think you want to watch the show, listening to the ost will give you a similar feeling.

anyways, did i enjoy this show? yes. do i think it has a high rewatch value? no. now that i’ve seen it and i’m done with it, i’ll probably not revisit it. i’m happy i finished it though, and it’s clearly a labor of love from everyone involved.

Read More

love is a poison, but this show is an antidote

i don’t normally watch japanese shows, but i’m really glad i watched this one! i loved every minute of it. the characters are sweet and have good chemistry, and it’s decently light-hearted, even in moments of drama. it’s an easy watch if you’re stressed or in a bad mood, i watched this in the week leading up to and my week of finals, and it was a great break.

love is a poison is a really short watch. there are 12 episodes, each about 19 minutes long, so the show only takes about 4 hours to watch. they do get a full show with developed characters and a tied up plot at the end of it, so props to them! i will say, most of my complaints do stem from the fact that there isn’t enough time to develop the characters properly.

haruto’s past wasn’t handle in the best way to reveal it. it all came out within the last 40ish minutes of the show, and is mentioned very briefly, almost like the only point was for it to be used in the trial against his dad. i really wish we could know more about him and his life, especially when they mention what happened to his mom. i want to mention i haven’t read the source material, so maybe that stuff is mentioned. i also feel like i know basically nothing about ryoma other than the fact that he wants to be “the Guardian of the Law”. that’s okay, i guess, but saying that he’s the main character, it’s a little disappointing. that is another thing that’s bad about shorter shows, all the characters don’t get to fully be known, especially if you’re an side character.

the characters do seem unrealistic at points. i know it’s a drama, but still, does ryoma shiba seem like the kind of guy to be comfortable with a strange man? as i write this, i realize that it’s probably to go with the theme of how love poisons you (which ryoma acknowledges even in the ending episode) but sometimes it does make it unrealistic. this isn’t a full grievance, more of a “huh, this really wouldn’t have really happened, right?” that occurred after the show is over, but i kind of enjoy that.

the plot, of course, is rushed. it also isn’t the best too, but it works for the show(?) if that makes sense. the team involved in production really made the plot they had work with everything else. i really would love to know more about the teens that haruto was taking care of, they were so sweet. then again, it’s a 4 hour show, so i’m glad they were there.

finally, the music. i’m only going to really talk about ‘love toxin’ by wanuka (the intro song) because i wasn’t the biggest fan of ‘geometric’ by osage (the outro song) (i don’t have a real reason- it’s a good song, you should listen to it, but it’s not my favorite). the song perfectly encapsulates what love is a poison is about. the intro portrays this well; it’s an upbeat song that sounds perfect for both ryoma and haruto’s love story and a big city romance. this song is a really great highlight song for the series and i would play the intro just to listen to this song. i want to listen to wanuka more because of this now.

overall, a fun and short story with a few flaws, but it’s a great show to watch if you have some freetime or need a pick me up!

Read More