Forever_Shawol
Somewhere in drama land
honestly I am not a huge fan of this type of drama but somehow this one appeals to me
the girls in the drama wasn't annoying and I liked that they played nice side characters
Shiiba is such a nice character and this drama is basically all about how he never gives up
I marathoned this drama all the way til the end and enjoyed everything
The fights scenes were great
alot of Bromance
and there was a hint of romance but not that much
If you liked something like Gokusen I would say this is something you would enjoy
I LOVED the soundtrack the music in here rocked!
It's really fun to watch the main 4 fight and it never gets repetative
The main 4 were such great actors all in different personalities too
This is Highly recommended so 10/10
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Strong Start, Beautiful Production, Terrible Pacing and Mediocre Performances
As a long-time Yang Mi fan I was so disappointed, I feel like the best scenes we got from her was the archery and battle moments in the earlier half. The romance and longing plotline was basically all in her mind til halfway through, the performances were ok, not bad, but not their best at all. William Chan's flat hair was annoying at first but you get used to it and he goes back and forth between the bun hairdo and the longer one with the 2 side pieces. He's attractive, but it really diminished his beauty in some scenes. The music isn't the worst but after watching all the eps it barely registers in my brain and is not a stand out for sure. I feel like it's overrated because there's a lack of high budget costume dramas released this year, and after next year when a lot better ones air people will go back and be like yeah this is over rated, but I get how people are overly generous on this platform. I thought by far the 2nd couple's story was the most interesting, mainly just the Emperor's character. He's so interesting and intense, plus has the biggest character developmentNot the worst drama but not the best. Am I harsh because I am a long time Cdrama viewer and now don't have the patience to sit through and enjoy dramas as I once did when I was newer and doe eyed? Sure, but even objectively this drama is a 7 at BEST. There's highs and lows, but in a couple of months I probably won't think twice about this drama, and any drama that I don't think about after it finishes is a BIG MEH to me. If you have nothing else to watch then by all means watch it, but don't go in with high expectations
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I really didn't like the story at the first 3-4 episodes but I soon loved it and It started being so addictive! The main 2 are such amazing actors! I love Vanness Wu so much and I don't know how many times i replayed the song It's so catchy! I actually searched it up later !
You should definitely watch this and the fashion is so awesome too!
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It was good but the writing got messed up
First of all I was absolutely hooked during the first 20 eps, the acting was good, music and costumes were great as well. However the love triangle is such an old trope that got annoying after a while. It was good but the last 10 eps had lots of writing issues and pacing issues. I still think it was worth finishing, I didnt hate it, but it was a bit disappointing.I'm very impressed with the Duanmu Cui's actress since I've never watched her other dramas before, but she impressed me. She was badass, funny and cool. Darren's character was alright, nothing memorable except for him bejng a nice guy the entire drama. CGI wasn't bad so at least the budget made everything look good.
THE TALKING BOWL/CUP WAS ADORABLE though.
Probably wouldn't watch again, but it was decent overall.
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Cast: Amazing I love Son Ye Jin and the guy that acted as Joo Ha was just awesome! Sang Min's character...well we didn't see alot of him until the end , but I think he was good too. Tae Soo was well acted too.
Music: The instrumental is so beautiful I really love it , some what heart breaking and somewhat relaxing?
Rewatch: I will difintely re watch this someday but...Next I have a bunch of other K-movies waiting like A Moment to Remember or My Sassy Girl!
Overall: Everyone should be watching this, I loved the cute scenes in the rain as well as everything else. It all made sense in the end.The power of love :D
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The acting was beautiful I cried at happy times and sad times, the romance was out of this world. The script and lines they said were beautiful. The rush I felt while watching this drama, after like 5 episodes in I couldn't stop. All these words can't explain it all...Did I mention all the amazing twist in the plot? at the end of each episode making me watch more!
The cast: I loved everyone in this. Every episode I would say to myself wow such amazing acting! This is a pretty long drama and for me to watch 24 episodes in 3 days non stop was incredible and the little girl who played Ah Gang is so cute!
The music: I loved the song by Baek Ji Young and One Day Of Love :) The other song called destino is so catchy too!
Rewatch: Yes! I loved it soooo much....i don't re watch things the only thin i've re watch is city hunter to be honest :P
OVERALL: 1000000000000000
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One of the best time-travel dramas!
I AM A SUCKER FOR TIME-TRAVEL DRAMAS, but sadly there's only a handful that reaches my expectations because it's hard to tackle without getting too confusing and messy! But this one is GOOD REALLY REALLY GOOD!HONG KONG DRAMAS WHEN THEY HIT, THEY HIT HARD! THIS ONE IS SO GOOD!
- I have always seen Vincent here and there in dramas, but this began my obsession with his dramas, this is such a hard role to nail, he does it all, from comedy or convincing jerk character to the sweetest in seconds! (It proves the range of this actor is big and he portrays all these different sides in one drama!)
SO GRIPPING
- SO I've watched over 600 dramas in the past 12 years, which means I usually can predict most drama plots, but this drama surprised me on multiple occasions
- It's fast-paced, the characters are endearing, and my favourite part? THE CREATIVITY!
-The plot is WOW!
Rewatchable? Yup! I rewatched half of it in one day recently with my parents, totally fun to watch with friends and family. Highly recommend this!
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Good concept Poor execution
This drama has such a good concept and should at least be the typical bl drama length of 8 eps which most K-BLs always suffer from rushing anyways, I get that these are low budget dramas but if you're gonna do it, try to do it right. It cannot compare to other K-BLs that's doing it better sorry, It's still not the worst one I've seen which is good, but after completing it, feels like I couldn't care less about the characters. Sorry if you like BLs and you're new to watching dramas you might enjoy it a bit more, but for me who watched dramas over the past 10 years and support and like trying out new BLs this one isn't worth your time. Go watch Semantic Error or other BLs to see how you can make short eps work and feel natural.Was this review helpful to you?
A refreshing heartwarming Family drama
Despite the "weirdness" you have to deconstruct yourself from notions (mostly western) that highly sexualizes everything, with an open mind and thinking about it from the standpoint of a pure story this is a story about grief, and how a family heals after losing a loved one. A miracle happens where the mom appears with her memories in a girl's body. It's wild and crazy on the surface but it's SO INCREDIBLY acted (even more than many adults actors) it's INSANE the range the child actress can pull off, you really get sucked into the story and believe her due to her actions, tone, micro-expressions etc. And along the way as you get to know each family member and their stories and flaws more you just love everyone. This one has some really heartwarming scenes that had me tearing up, but also some light-hearted comedy thrown in. A good balance if you ask me, give it a couple episodes and you'll be addicted. It's hard to explain until you click play, truly a wonderful drama that I'm sure is risky but the pay-off is worth it. As a long time drama watcher (12+) years this is definitely a hidden gem and a wonderful delight to see and to think the child actress is only BEGINNING her career. JUST WOW GIVE HER MULTIPLE OSCARS this is so impressive honestly! With an open mind you will see the beauty of this drama!P.S THAT OST is SO BEAUTIFUL
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Acting : I watched it for Song Joong Ki and Moon Chae Won. Song Joong Ki became one of my all time favorite actor after this. His character has so many sides to it. He's super smart and makes each episode have cliffhangers. His character is dark and deep, but he has a lighter side to him as well.
Moon Chae Won has always been my favorite actress ever since The Princess' Man ...the whole cast just brings together the perfect amount of intensity and emotion. Kwang Soo did an awesome job as a friend here as well as Park Si Yeon.
Music: it's XIAH Junsu and Song Joong Ki of course it's a 10. The opening is pretty epic too.
Rewatch: I hate rewatching but I will watch this again one day
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AN UNEXPECTED GEM
PACING: This drama has natural pacing, there are slowish moments and it would have been perfect as a 40 ep drama, but this is one of the most addictive and well-written dramas I've ever watched. When you watch this drama you can tell how much the scriptwriters care about building this world. There are little details like the neighbours or family moments that WOWED me!- I love it when dramas don't have to establish all these extra characters, but put so much thought into them anyways, it makes this drama come alive, and the world feels realistic, most of these people also get referenced throughout the drama
CAST/CHARACTERS: The cast is phenomenal. The acting is so convincing! (Especially the main 3 leads, plus the entire 2nd police squad)
-The characters are complexed and not one-dimensional, there's so much character development.
- GU YAO DONG IS ONE OF THE NICEST CHARACTERS WRITTEN. His character stays consistent the entire drama, he will always pick to do what's morally right even against all odds which is so hard to do in the chaotic era that this drama is set in, so the ML is so likable and it's hard to play these kinds of characters without annoying, props to Li Yi Feng!
-the female lead is loyal, smart, badass. The romance is slow, but for me, it's a good thing since it allows the relationship to progress naturally
- Ji Cheng is probably my favorite character, he's so charismatic and I love every scene he's in!
THINGS I LOVED:
- The heartwarming family moments, and bromance between the chief (Ji Cheng) and Yao Dong, basically all the relationships in this drama are so well written and tugs on your heartstrings!
- THE DIALOGUES are SO INTERESTING! (Similar to Nirvana in Fire, this drama is more character-driven and the most intense scenes for me wasn't the action or spy scenes, but actually the schemes and mind games between the officers and the main characters
-THE GU FAMILY ARE SO PRECIOUS
MUSIC: I made fun of the op song so much the first time I heard it but after 20 eps it started to feel nostalgic and suits the drama, I actually started humming it myself xD and by ep 51 it's like the national anthem where I can't skip anymore haha xD
Hopefully there will be proper eng subs for such a great drama! When there is make sure to give this drama a chance and have patience since this drama might not have the fastest pacing, but I swear the payoff if worth it! IT IS A BEAUTIFUL, HIDDEN GEM.
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Started Off Good But Got Slow
First off good styling choices, ML looks amazing in the fur! Ding yuxi is a good actor but his dramas are hit or miss. This one is somewhere in the middle but his character? 10/10 acting!FL is new to the scene Deng Enxi said in an interview it's her first romantic kiss on screen and she was nervous but Ding Yuxi coached her through and lead the romantic scenes well making it less awkward. I think their playful bro/sis relationship translates into a fun dynamic on screen and i commend them for that, but BEWARE IT IS A SLOW BURN
THE MYSTERY ISN'T GIVING
- I'm sorry but the writing for the politics and the cases were hit or miss, but after the first 12-15 eps it was not capturing my attention enough and this made the ending felt a bit rushed
- Truly the writers should have just made this more romance heavy if they didn't know how to write a coherent political plot. There's no shame in that, but the attempt here? some of the cases were a snooze fest if i'm honest
Altogher the cast was good, romance scenes were too but is it going to be a long-lasting impression drama? NO
Honestly trim the eps, make the side characters unique and have more screen time maybe then we will care more about the whole climactic showdown at the end which fell a bit short
Not bad not great 7/10?
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A CLASSIC, NOT FOR BEGINNERS THOUGH
I would say Hong Kong Newbies might feel put-off by this drama if they haven't seen a couple of TVB family-based dramas before. I recommend checking out a couple of dramas with similar themes or cast before, you will definitely enjoy it more!The story THRIVES in the CHEMISTRY and FAMILY RELATIONSHIP DEPARTMENT. It's so easy to fall in love with the main cast from episode 1.
Melodramatic? YES
The pacing isn't fast either, but I still love it more than part 2! I absolutely LOVE THIS CAST!
I rewatched it in 2020-2021 (a bit of episode here and there) and it's still great, but obviously, there is a HUGE gap in technological advances in the 2000s vs. dramas now. The editing is choppy, the background music is too loud and distracting from the story, but IT'S STILL WORTH IT! It's understandable why this can appear off-putting to non-long-time TVB viewers.
Music? THE OPENING SONG IS STUCK IN MY HEAD FOREVER.
Rewatch value- ENDLESS? I feel like this is the heartwarming family/melo-drama I want to show my kids in the future.
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I just finished watching and I really have to say that you have to watch it til the end to give you that OOMPH impact this is one of those dramas where I recommend not putting down just after the first 2 episodes and I haven't gave anything a 10 for a long long time so this is saying a lot
I started watching this because of Push (the actor) but stayed for how amazing the acting and writing is, this drama does have a bunch of cute and sweet moments, a gorgeous female lead actress and an interesting plot but it's so much more than that
ALSO THE SYNOPSIS IS CONFUSING AF BUT IF YOU WATCH IT, IT MAKES MORE SENSE
It's mainly about the protagonist's growth and dealing with trauma, being trans and its so much more than what I can tell you in a review, but what I love is that the layers unfold gradually as you watch it, our female lead tries her hardest to find happiness, and we as the viewers follow along, during scenes when she's having a mental breakdown you feel exactly how she feels like the walls are caving in, it's hard to breathe and painful to watch but so well executed
STICK WITH IT EVEN IF CERTAIN CHARACTERS MAKES YOUR BLOOD BOIL OR MAKES YOU WANT TO PUKE
It is so worth it in the end,
PROS:
THE SIDE CHARACTERS ARE AMAZING (From the hilarious and loyal duo/her sidekicks, to the doctor and the housekeeper)
-TOP NOTCH ACTING PERFORMANCES ( Baifern especially and even to the evil people which really managed to get under my skin)
-THE MAIN CHARACTER IS SO COMPLEX AND WELL PORTRAYED (the backstory is fleshed out and her state of mind in every scene she's in)
- DEALS WITH HEAVY AND DEEP THEMES WITHOUT FEELING LIKE IT'S FORCED
- the taboo topics are handed so well and realistically
- IT'S ADDICTIVE AF (I spent 2 days just watching this and doing nothing else and I have no regrets)
-THE SWEET BONDS OF FRIENDSHIP AND FAMILY MAKES YOU TEAR UP
-THAT ONE OST IS SO GOOD I found myself singing along even if I cannot speak Thai lol xD
CONS:
- I feel like it could have been cut down to 18 episodes, at some points the evil scheming characters had too much screen time so I had to skim through
But I don't feel like my rating would change it was between 9.5-10 because of that one con but overall the last episode made me love the drama and appreciate it as a whole so much more so I will leave it at a 10
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It's more of a drama until ep 4-6 but WORTH IT!
So a misconception is that this will be full of action all the way through and fast-paced due to 6 eps, but I think that's where the brilliance lies the first 3-4 eps focus on the build-up making sure we all know who is who, their motivations and it's to build up the stakes and tension the final 2 eps I was literally sweating cause it was so intense and great. The action and acting are incredible. I mean look at that cast.It was so well written! I love how morally grey and f*cked up the whole situation is seeing the male lead try to go for the lesser evil just trying to survive being tossed around and told to the beast that he became by the end, such a good character arc that he went through. The way he averts sticky situations will have you holding your breath, The pastor is no dumb typical villain stereotype either, he is literally suspicious of everyone and everything making it all the more exhilarating. The desperation and final scenes were so well acted, I loved that it was a long final fight without too many cuts or distractions between Kang and the villain. I don't understand why people aren't enjoying it, I would say just go in knowing that the character development and acting are top-notch. The china town leader is well-known in China for films, same with the ML in Korea so coming in for a short series they usually only pick high-quality projects and it shows
Furthermore, the cinematography. is beautiful, especially china town shots. It's also crazy to think it's based on a true story
Another plus is no characters feel out of place the back and forth with English which I believe is not dubbed over is great, they owned it and never made me feel cringe which I do with many actors forcefully using English. Even the foreign actors work cause they restrict their dialogue and it's much more subtle than those ugly rich jerks in the squid game.
Overall worth the watch and I believe is one of the best short Kseries Netflix put out in a while but for sure you will be disappointed if you go in thinking it would be mindless action.
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