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Completed
The Starry Love
3 people found this review helpful
Mar 13, 2023
40 of 40 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 9.5

Two sisters. Two husbands. Their fates intertwined.

This is the first cdrama I've watched and I specifically made an account here to express my love for this show. It's actually an obsession right now and I have serious withdrawals. There was something so exciting watching this on release days as I would wake up every morning and smile knowing I'll watch a new episode of this drama. I don't know what to do with my life now that it's over.

This drama has truly everything - love, friendship, family (sister's love), action, magic, amazing costumes. I truly fell in love with the sister's story, cinematography, music and acting. Everything is so well done and balanced. One minute I would laugh like crazy and the next I would cry my eyes out.

I have to admit that the second lead couple stole my heart (mostly Chaofeng) and they are the main reason I started to watch this drama. If you love an innocent girl and a mortally grey (bad boy with a good heart) type of vibe relationship - you will enjoy this drama so much. Having said that, the first lead couple also has great moments and I very much enjoyed seeing the development of their relationship + honestly all and I mean all the side characters and couple are amazing in this drama which is rare to see.

It has an open ending which makes sense to me and I love that we have an optimistic look rather than a sad ending as I wouldn't have been able to handle that. I still hope we will get a special episode or season 2 because 40 episodes was surprisingly not enough for me and I want more of all the cast.

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Completed
Maiden Holmes
2 people found this review helpful
Jan 22, 2024
32 of 32 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 1.0

Historical rom-com love story with extremely boring investigation cases

This drama is about the female lead who joins the investigation bureau pretending to be a man in order to gain access to the secret documents related to her painful past. The male lead, who has a hidden identity, joins her in unravelling the crime cases.

The first 10 episodes were engaging with a meet-cute love story and mysterious cases on the side. However, with each passing episode, the drama became more and more dull and boring. There were around 5-6 investigation cases in total. The first 2 were ok to watch but afterwards the investigations became too repetitive and predictable. The female lead would touch objects, ask a bunch of questions, walk around and bam, case is solved. I somehow managed to get to episode 24 and then I pretty much skipped 95% of each episode just to see how the story ends.

I loved the male lead. I watched the drama for Zhang Linghe and he did not disappoint me. I love that his character felt unique as he had eye sight problems. At times he reminded me of the cool Daredevil superhero when he was fighting while blindfolded.

The romance was cute and at times felt like a rom-com with many funny moments. It had a strong start but quickly fizzled out. The male lead is a green flag and a feminist who fights for women’s equal rights which was nice to see. But the plot of the drama was all about the investigation cases which were boring and irritated me too much.

POSITIVE:
- Intelligent female lead.
- Green flag male lead who fights for women’s rights.
- Hot kisses between the leads (not a lot but those that were shown were good).
- Sweet romance.
- No love triangles or side characters obsessed with the main leads and trying to break them apart.
- Mix of investigation, romance and comedy.

NEGATIVE:
- Boring, repetitive and predictable investigation cases. Since the plot was all about the cases it made the drama extremely difficult to watch.
- Not enough angst. Plot was boring. Side characters were boring. Love story had a strong start but quickly fizzled out.
- Second couple was ok but nothing special. The drama would have been the same without them.

OVERALL:
This drama was not my cup of tea but it doesn’t mean it was bad. If you like investigation cases with lighthearted romance you might enjoy this more than I did. However if you want to watch an older drama of ZLH, I'd suggest you see Love Crossed instead.

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Completed
A Familiar Stranger
2 people found this review helpful
Sep 13, 2023
18 of 18 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Best short drama!! A male lead who falls for the female lead's heart and personality, not her looks.

"Her looks aren’t imprinted in my eyes but in my heart". If you want a male lead who falls for the female lead's heart and personality, not her looks, this drama is for you.

The story is about a female painter who wakes up to find that another girl has swapped her face with hers in order to escape her arranged marriage. To her even bigger surprise, the husband is a man she met years ago.

POSITIVE:
- Cinematography is top-notch.
- Main leads are super likeable. Their romance is the main focus of the story and I enjoyed everything about it.
- The second leads add a good angsty vibe.
- Well developed plot and engaging story.
- Kiss scenes are great.
- No fillers, no stupid or annoying characters.

NEGATIVE:
Nothing!!! I absolutely loved everything in this drama.

Basically the drama has everything you need. Cute romantic scenes, intrigue, sensual scenes, scheming, mystery, light comedy. So if you are still reading this just go and watch the drama right now!

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Completed
Wulin Heroes
2 people found this review helpful
Apr 13, 2023
22 of 22 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 6.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 4.0
Rewatch Value 5.0

Romance is a 10, the rest is skippable

I was very conflicted on how to rate this drama. I found the romance of the main couple very cute. It gave me all the right feelings of sweetness and a little spice. I'd rate the romance scenes a 10 because they are totally rewatchable. However the rest of the plot and characters are totally skippable. I watched the first 5 episodes and then literally skipped all and I mean all scenes except those with the main couple (and I didn't miss on anything because nothing really happened).

None of the characters were interesting to me. The plot was non-existent - just random characters and random stories put together so there is something to watch when the main couple is not on screen. There was a lesson about loving yourself first and not being too trusting but I didn't like how it was executed.

Overall the drama is very lighthearted and fun to watch when you are bored or tired. I'd recommend watching the scenes with the main leads and to skip the rest.

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Completed
Only for Love
3 people found this review helpful
Nov 26, 2023
36 of 36 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 1.0

Fantastic cast. Horrible script. Lighthearted mindless watch.

I’m only giving it a higher rating because of the actors. I don’t recommend this drama. I usually start my reviews by writing about the general plot of the drama. But the plot is non-existent here. Not only that but the main romance is so ridiculous! Adults who are in the most superficial relationships and communicate like teenagers. It saddens me to say that the script is trash as I love the actors but their talents were seriously wasted here.

POSITIVE:
- Easy to watch before you go to sleep or if you’ve had a long day of work and just want to relax.
- Fantastic cast (literally the only reason I didn’t drop this drama).

NEGATIVE:
- Superficial relationships with childish communication.
- Conflicts that could have been solved with one sentence dragged on for many episodes.
- Stupid “romance” consisting of texting 24/7 of small talk and staring at each other for no reason.
- Zero character development. Zero deep conversations. Just extremely shallow relationships.
- Non-existent plot. Literally nothing happens in this drama. Nothing! All they do is stare at each other, have small talks at dinner, text useless things and go to boring work meetings.
- Kiss scenes were cut! One in particular snowy kiss of Bai Lu and Dylan was shot for 3 hours but on screen shown for 2 seconds.
- BTS of Bai Lu and Dylan are better and cuter than the whole drama which sounds crazy to me when I write it but it’s true.
- Business talks were ridiculous filler scenes.
- Too long and draggy (it would have been better if it was only 24 episodes). I’m sure the 36 episodes were done for more money.
- Underwhelming ending. After 36 episodes you don’t even get to see the wedding of the main leads unless you watch the special episode.
- Secondary couple with the biggest commitment issues was depressing to watch most of the time.
- Weird camera angles. Horrible white filter that makes the actors look like vampires (this might have been fixed by the network later).
- Aesthetic wasn’t appealing. The outfits and the settings were not nice to look at.

COUPLES:
Main couple: their romance was just texting stupid things 24/7 and having small talks during dinner. In 36 episodes they never had even ONE deep conversation about life. This made their relationship feel extremely superficial, shallow and meaningless. Their chemistry was kind of on and off. When he was assertive I liked it but when she was chasing him, it felt forced. At some point when the female lead continued to chase him after many rejections, she looked like she had no self-respect.

Second couple: they started off as the hottest and sexiest couple in the drama but ended up being the most depressing one. Their fun cat and mouse game turned into seeing them depressed 24/7 as they both had commitment issues. Just like the first couple, their relationship had zero communication and felt very shallow.

Third couple: the niece and professor were the best couple for me. Although too repetitive at first as the girl chased him (just like the female lead chased the male lead), their relationship developed more organically. They actually TALKED like normal adults. And resolved conflicts better than the other couples. Unfortunately they didn’t have enough screen time which is a shame as they were the most likeable characters.

OVERALL: If you want to watch a lighthearted mindless drama before you go to sleep, without any character development and adults who communicate like teenagers, this is for you.

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Roses & Guns
2 people found this review helpful
Sep 10, 2024
18 of 18 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 8.0

When a femme fatale spy meets a bad boy

She is the rose. He is the gun. This mini drama is about the female lead who is a femme fatale spy on a mission to avenge her family while the male lead happens to be connected to it all.

POSITIVE:
- Morally grey main leads.
- Hot kiss scenes. The male lead actor always delivers. Trust me on that (I’m looking at episode 2).
- Manipulative, deceptive, femme fatale female lead.
- Bad boy, obsessive and a bit of a red flag male lead.
- Sensual and a bit angsty vibes (it’s definitely not as toxic as typical republican dramas).
- Engaging undercover mission/revenge plot. The focus is on the plot rather than the romance. Yes the story is fast paced and may feel rushed but for a short drama I was happy with the script.
- Lots of gun scenes (staying true to the title).
- Nice cinematography. I liked the colouring, hair, make up and outfits. The female lead is absolutely stunning.
- Mr. Wu, clearly an actress playing a man. She even has make-up on. Certainly a very interesting side character especially for a cdrama.

NEGATIVE:
- Obsessively in love male lead. His love confession in episode 2 is very abrupt and feels too insta-love. We do get a flashback later and explanation of why he fell for her but still, his strong love lacks depth. He does kind of hate her afterwards so at least the tension between them is on point.
- Funny car accident in episode 2. You just have to close your eyes at some of the “logic”.
- Final episode is an epilogue which is ok but kind of pointless. Instead of that, I would have preferred an episode where we see more of how the main leads fell for each other.

OVERALL:
Don’t expect too much. If you want an entertaining mini drama with undercover spy plot + hot kisses, watch this.

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Completed
Reset
2 people found this review helpful
Jan 16, 2024
15 of 15 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Time Loop Masterpiece!

I didn’t have many expectations starting this drama but it freaking blew me away. This is a masterpiece (and I don’t use that word lightly) that I will forever recommend to everyone! The drama is similar to groundhog day concept where the two main leads repeat the same day in a time loop. The main leads keep waking up during their bus ride and need to save all passengers in order to stop the loop.

I was worried that 15 episodes of repeating the same day would be boring but NOPE. Every day the leads do something differently and the outcome is different. The plot twists are so good and intense that I was literally gasping in shock while watching. Time flew by while watching this, even though every episode is 40 minutes, for me it felt like 5 minutes!!!

POSITIVE:
- Unpredictable and fabulous plot twists (one of the best I’ve ever seen).
- 100% angst, suspense and mystery vibes.
- Subtle, slow burn romance that is a cute bonus to this masterpiece.
- Intense level 100%. The drama keeps you at the edge of your seat the whole time and you can never guess what’s coming next.
- Acting, editing, music, honestly everything is 10/10.
- No filler/boring or draggy parts.
- No plot holes. The mystery about the villain is explained well and solved.
- Strong-willed, intelligent and selfless female lead.
- Supportive and smart male lead.
- Heart-warming side characters (all of them have amazing stories that add depth to the drama but at the same time they are short and don’t drag the plot).

NEGATIVE:
- None. Literally. None. Well actually there is one small thing at the end of the drama. It’s a spoiler so I can’t write it here. I understand why it wasn't included but I kind of wish it was? Anyway, it doesn’t really take away my enjoyment of the drama.

OVERALL:
I feel like everything I’ve written above is not enough to describe how much I loved this drama. It made me FEEL so much. The plot is perfection. I was so immersed in the story that sometimes I literally forgot I was watching a drama. My emotions were so heightened that I felt I was IN the drama. In that crazy bus ride alongside the main leads. Until the very end, I was cheering for them so hard to win. I was screaming at my screen when they were hurt and when they weren’t receiving the help they needed! I gasped in surprise, I laughed during cute moments and I literally cried because I felt so connected to all the characters!

If you want a mystery/thriller drama that is filled with angst and unpredictable plot twists AND If you want a strong-willed, intelligent and selfless female lead with a subtle/cute romance with her supportive male lead - WATCH THIS DRAMA NOW.

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Completed
Miss the Dragon
2 people found this review helpful
Oct 4, 2023
36 of 36 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 7.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 10
Rewatch Value 7.5

Emotional & romantic love story that could have been great

The drama tells the love story of the dragon male lead who falls in love with the mortal female girl and spends four lifetimes protecting her silently with the hope that one day he will be together with her. The story starts beautifully, like a fairytale. The first 10 episodes focus on the main couple falling in love, and if you are a hopeless romantic you will definitely love this part. Then we have a separation as the mortal girl is reincarnated which is fine at first. Until she reincarnates again, and again. What could have been a sweet and romantic love story turns into a repetitive plot with zero development between the main leads after episode 10.

THE SECOND COUPLE IS WORTH TO SEE:
The love story of the second couple was perfect. "I-love-you-for-a-thousand-years" vibe. They have the perfect organic development and steal the spotlight especially in the second half of the drama. We see them bickering, we see them becoming friendly, we see them falling in love. We see them as the perfect star-crossed lovers. They had the sweetness, the angst, the fire chemistry, the grumpy/sunshine trope, cold man with bubbly woman.

HOW I RECOMMEND TO WATCH THIS:
I'd recommend watching episodes 1-10, then only watch the second couple while skipping the rest, and then finish the story with episodes 29-36. You won't miss anything plot wise because nothing happens in the 2nd and 3rd life. Honestly, if this drama was only 24 episodes with only the 1st and 4th life it would have been perfect for sure. Not that the 2nd and 3rd life are bad, if you watch them as 4 mini dramas they are interesting but the fact that for 17 episodes there is zero relationship development for the 1st couple is just horrible writing.

MUSIC:
I have to specifically mention that I loved the OST and I played the ending song on repeat non-stop. If you drop the drama, at least listen to the ending song as it's perfect.

THE FOUR LIVES:

1st life: ep 1-10 (10 eps)
- FL is an orphan, working as a maid. She is soft hearted and helps animals. This is where the main leads fall in love and it's done really well.

2nd life: ep 11-17 (7 eps)
- FL is hard-working, independent and head-strong. She is bullied by the village’s annoying girl. Honestly nothing much happens and you can totally skip this life (but watch the second couple scenes).

3rd life: ep 18-28 (10 eps)
- FL is a general and the strongest in the army, she is giving Mulan vibes.
- The best villain of the drama is here.
- Great war and fight scenes.
- Feels super draggy with boring side characters. The plot doesn't move forward. Zero development for the main leads. You can totally skip this (but watch the second couple scenes as they are amazing here).

4th life: ep 29-36 (7 eps)
- FL is born into a wuxia sect that fights demons. Everything is revealed here and we have a great final battle (it's low budget but still done well).

OVERALL:
I did enjoy watching this but I'm disappointed because the plot had great potential for the main leads but didn't deliver. I still recommend people to watch this but skip the parts I mentioned above. In terms of acting, I was very pleasantly surprised by the FL. She was phenomenal in playing 4 different characters. ML was a bit stiff but somehow it fitted his character. The second couple were perfect in every way.

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Completed
Poisoned Love
1 people found this review helpful
Dec 27, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 8.0

Destined Love rather than Poisoned Love

The drama tells the love story of a man and a woman who are destined to be together no matter the odds. The female lead is a voice actor who suffers from a rare illness (similar to sleepwalking). She meets the male lead who can help her cure her illness however she mistakes him for his brother.

The first half of the drama is very lighthearted with tons of rom-com vibes. I was smiling all the time while watching. The second half of the drama is more angsty and deals with male lead’s darker past and the female lead’s illness. It felt a little draggy and boring at times.

"We met each other the first time
It was a coincidence
We met each other again, the second time
It was inevitable
If we meet each other again, the third time
I’m sure that it must be destiny"
- quote from Poisoned Love

Throughout the drama, the theme of destined lovers is always referred to and we are shown many times that the main leads are meant to be together. I’m scratching my head why the title has the word poison. The romance is soft and the male lead is the only person who can cure her illness. A big part of the plot is the involvement of the second male lead (who the female lead initially believes is the person who can cure her). He is a bit of an obstacle between the leads. But I wouldn’t call it a love triangle since the female lead only likes the male lead.

POSITIVE:
- Fun rom-com vibes.
- Nice and supportive male lead/second male lead.
- First half of the drama made me smile all the time.
- Sweet and soft romance between the leads.
- Romance is the main focus.
- No filler scenes with stupid work stuff.
- Sweet kiss scenes.
- Support cast was good.

NEGATIVE:
- Second male lead’s love for the female lead can get annoying towards the second half of the drama. It's not a love triangle for me but he does get in between them. But he also gets redeemed in the end, so there is that.
- Second half of the drama felt draggy and a little boring.

OVERALL:
If you are looking for a fun rom-com that shows two brothers who are kind and caring towards the female lead and help her heal from her illness, you will enjoy this drama.

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Completed
Moonlight
1 people found this review helpful
Nov 5, 2023
36 of 36 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 5.0

Cute rom-com with a slice of life about book publishing

This drama tells the story of a female lead who begins working at her dream job as an editor and a male lead who is a promising new author. Male lead decides to accept the female lead as his editor when he discovers that she is the online friend who he has been talking to for years.

The first 20 episodes were fantastic and engaging but afterwards the drama got a little boring and draggy, mainly as they focused too much on the book publishing and not enough on the romance. The work conflicts felt very similar, the characters didn’t have much development and the romance died down. I feel like if the drama was shorter, these things wouldn't have been such an issue. Despite all that, I still enjoyed the storyline, characters and romance.

Many comments say the male lead is childish and I agree. In real life I would have been annoyed but in the drama it was the perfect comedy relief and I absolutely loved him (I might also be biassed because I love the actor and he is the reason I watched this).

The second couple was a nice watch but very typical and cliche storyline. I feel like it would have been a stronger storyline if they ended up with different people.

POSITIVE:
- Great insight into the book publishing world. As a book lover I loved seeing that and the plot felt very realistic regarding that.
- Cute romantic scenes between the leads and second leads.
- Good balance between comedy and slice of life maturity.
- Hard-working, career focused and independent female leads.
- Light-hearted for the most part.

NEGATIVE:
- Too much about the book publishing in the second half of the drama which made the romance die down.
- Not much character development.
- Female lead was a bit too focused on her career and sometimes I felt she didn’t care/love the male lead.
- Too long and draggy. Drama would have been better if it was shorter.

OVERALL:
If you are a big fan of the book publishing world and want a bit of romance thrown into the mix, you will definitely enjoy this light-hearted, slice of life drama.

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Completed
Ancient Love Poetry
1 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
49 of 49 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 7.0

Like a real folklore tale filled with romance, emotional scenes and epic magic battles

I decided to watch this drama because the sequel "The Last Immortal" will be airing soon. This drama tells the love story between two Gods who go through many hardships and work together to protect the realms from the war between the immortals and demons. The story is about Gods and takes place in the God & Immortal Realms. These realms always felt very real. The characters felt real. And at the same time, the story felt like a real folklore tale or what some might call an ancient love poetry.

POSITIVE:
- Emotional scenes HIT YOU HARD. One of the best emotional-romantic scenes I’ve ever watched in a xianxia.
- Amazing acting from the whole cast. Especially the acting during the emotional scenes which brought me to tears multiple-times.
- Very well developed characters, and I especially loved the strong female lead.
- Engaging story with multiple layers.
- Romance is always the main focus. Even though there are lots of side characters, the main leads are always at the forefront.
- Many God/Immortal realm battles.
- CGI is great. Costumes are nice. Set designs are beautiful, especially the God Realm.
- Absolutely loved the second male lead (the second male lead syndrome was very strong here).

NEGATIVE:
- Lots of screen time is given to side characters (no wonder the drama is so long). At first I found it annoying but later I got to enjoy the screen time of the characters I loved. Even though all the side characters connected well with the main leads, I still found myself fast forwarding some scenes of the characters I didn't like.
- Certain episodes made the drama feel dragged out. Even though there are always things happening, the plot doesn't always move forward. Sometimes I felt that episodes were fillers and if certain things didn't happen, it wouldn't have made a difference in the plot.
- Lack of kiss scenes. I’m trying to remember if they even had kisses. Maybe one or two max but for such a long series I would have liked to see at least a few more.
- Sometimes I wanted to see more passionate intensity between the leads. I felt they loved each other deeply but that sparkling fire felt a bit like it was missing.
- Wigs of some of the characters were not visually appealing.

The drama tells the three lifetimes of the main leads:

First life, episodes 1-16:
This can be seen as the prologue of the story. It starts slow but still engages you. For me, after episode 12 it really picks up the story and it has an epic god realm battle in the end. Male lead is a typical cold and stoic character and the female lead is a spoiled princess type. At first glance this arc is nothing too exciting however I feel like I got to truly appreciate it, only after I watched the second life as you see all the parallels later. So in terms of story and character development, it's a very important arc to watch.

Second life, episodes 17-42:
This life is the longest and what the drama mostly focuses on. Instead of Gods, both main leads are only Immortals. Male lead is less confident which makes him more human and relatable. He is warm, affectionate, insecure but also protective, strong and loyal, so a very green flag leads. Female lead is more mature. Compared to her first life where she mostly cared about choosing pretty dresses, this version of her is serious about her cultivation and studies. She is strong-willed and less romantic. Side characters are well developed here so you learn to appreciate them as the story progresses. There is a second couple in the story too. For this arc, I felt episodes 33-38 were draggy as nothing much happened in terms of progressing the plot forward.

Third life, episodes 43-49:
This life is a mix of the first and second. Without spoiling anything, all I can say is that I loved almost everything about it. There were some boring scenes of the side characters but the scenes with the main leads were really good. I have mixed feelings about the ending. I understand it but at the same time I almost feel it wasn't that greatly executed.

OVERALL:
If you want to watch a high fantasy (xianxia) drama that has a strong female lead, with many epic magical battles, emotional scenes that hit you hard and a love story between two immortals, this drama is for you.

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Completed
Yesterday Once More
1 people found this review helpful
Aug 25, 2023
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 8.5

Emotional time travel story about selfless love

I'm a huge fan of time travel movies and when I saw it has romance with two main leads that I really like, I was instantly sold to watch it.

The story is about ML who is working really hard but struggling to pay his father's debt and FL who is striving to open a bakery shop despite her parent's disapproval.

Without spoiling much I can only say that the movie is more angsty than romantic. It has a great lesson about love and a happy ending. But 90% of the vibes are gloomy and emotional so don't expect a rom-com vibe to it.

My main issue with this movie is that it felt too short for me. There was so much about the time travel aspect that we didn't learn about. We were shown a particular thing about time travel and yet it was never explained! This lack of explanation lessened the emotional impact on me as it didn't feel particularly real. It was just too convenient and odd at the same time. It just all felt very ambiguous to me.

There is a side couple story that felt a bit unnecessary. I would have liked if the focus of the story was kept on the main leads only. ML's character, backstory and motivations were explored well but I feel FL should have had more screen time to deepen her character. She has a very important role towards the end of the movie and yet I felt the set up for her character wasn't particularly good to make the scene really impactful.

Overall, if you can look past the lack of logic and explanation about time travel, it's a nice and entertaining movie about the importance of selfless love.

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Completed
Believe in Love
1 people found this review helpful
Aug 2, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 8.0

Nice, romantic drama to pass the time

It's a nice drama to watch while you are waiting for your top dramas to air. It's lighthearted and romantic, not to be taken too seriously. The story takes place on an island and I enjoyed seeing a historical setting but with summer vibes and more revealing outfit choices.

The story starts as ML’s father dies and in his will decides that ML as an Island Master will get power to defend the island only if he marries FL. So ML tries everything in his power to marry her. First half is FL falling in love with ML and about her heart disease. Second part is about ML’s parents' connection to FL, also about ML and FL connection from a past life.

FL is very silly and childish and ML is more mature and handsome, they have plenty of romantic scenes together which is the highlight and main focus of this drama. There is a side couple that gets together in the second half of the drama. I enjoyed seeing them even though their relationship didn’t get enough screen time. The side couple starts with unrequited love but unlike most dramas, instead of obsessing over the FL and ML, they actually move on and fall in love with each other.

The ending is happy which is rare these days for a xianxia. It's not a bizarre ending but there is unusual magic involved in defeating the bad guy. Overall it's an enjoyable drama to pass the time.

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The Long Ballad
1 people found this review helpful
Jun 5, 2023
49 of 49 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 5.0

High production historical drama but romance is sub-plot

I started watching this drama because of the high praise even though I'm not a huge fan of war dramas. From the start you can tell it's a very high production, with amazing actors, set designs and costumes. The storyline and characters felt very realistic for the time period it's set in. But be aware that romance is a sub-plot so you might be disappointed if you are mainly watching for that. The beginning of the drama is very slow and I'd say after around episode 12 is where it started to get really interesting.

CHARACTERS:
There are lots of characters that we follow throughout the story but I'd say mainly we see the story of the two girls who grew up together as best friends. The first princess is the female lead who is a tomboy, very skilled and intelligent. She is betrayed by her uncle at the start and looks for a way to take revenge for her family's death. The second female lead is her best friend (and uncle's daughter) that reluctantly becomes the new princess. She is very sweet, gentle and sensitive. Both have huge character developments and go through many intense challenges. In fact the storyline of the second female lead is one of my favourites as it's done so well. There are also three male leads that are love interests and closely connected to the war storyline.

ROMANCE:
I'm a huge fan of romance so naturally my enjoyment will highly depend on the romance aspects of the drama. Even though I loved the romantic scenes in the drama, they were not enough for me. Main couple is mostly about saving each other from life and death situations and the second couple has kind of a love triangle (but it's done really well, without jealousy or annoyance). In fact, the second couple has a more romantic feel to them but towards the end of the drama. There are no proper kiss scenes so as mentioned above, if you are mainly wanting to watch a romance story, you might be disappointed.

OVERALL:
It's a very well done historical drama, the war scenes are not too much or intense. It's about personal growth, overcoming challenges, friendships, finding love in the most unexpected ways and fighting for justice and peace. If you are not craving a lot of romance, this drama is perfect for you.

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Completed
Intense Love
2 people found this review helpful
Oct 14, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Silly, cute & lighthearted rom-com

The drama tells the love story of a famous actress and a doctor who, despite initially refusing their arranged marriage, fall in love. The story is sweet, with minimal conflict, and the conflicts that arise are quickly resolved. There are no stupid love triangles, no exes coming back, no second male or female lead trying to break up the main couple. Aside from the romance that’s the main focus of the drama, we also get a lot of scenes about the entertainment industry. I don’t know how realistic it was but I could imagine the realness behind the scenes of filmmaking and variety shows and it was super fun to watch.

COUPLES:
- The main couple is sweet, kind of a slow burn romance. The female lead is doing lots of seduction and the male lead pretends he is not affected but he totally is. They are opposites in many ways but somehow work well together as they compliment each other's personalities. Her overly silliness at times balances out his overly reserved nature.
- The second couple is fun to watch, especially if you love the bickering type, love-you-but-you-annoy-me vibes.
- The third couple is a very unexpected and sweet story about a fan girl who's favourite artist falls for her.

CHARACTERS:
- Female lead at first glance can seem silly and childish when trying to seduce the male lead which could annoy some people but I personally found it really funny. Her actions are done more as a comedy relief than for plot purposes and should not be taken too seriously. In fact when dealing with her career and other characters, she is very mature and down to earth. Her best quality is definitely always uplifting women around her and her kindness to those that did bad things to her. Even though she is an actress in the drama, they really portray her as a girl simply living her life and that felt very real to me.

- Male lead at first glance seems cold and reserved but is in fact soft and caring. I started the drama mainly for the actor and I felt like he did great with what he was given (which wasn’t much). His character doesn’t stand out much and I blame the script. The actor’s micro expressions are always on point. In general his character is a sweet, smart, caring, protective, patient, gentlemen-like husband that all women would love. His only big flaw really is that he is reserved and has a hard time communicating his feelings or knowing what to do in a relationship but it's all redeemable.

- Third female lead is the male lead’s younger sister. I’m specifically writing this because she is one of those rare characters that annoyed me like hell at first but I ended up really liking her by the end. She is a graduate student but at first acted like a 12 year old spoiled brat. She was clearly placed to create unnecessary conflict between the main leads. Her character got super fun to watch when she got a love interest and her focus shifted on her love story.

OVERALL:
I absolutely loved this silly, fun rom-com drama and I highly recommend it for those that want something light-hearted and silly to watch to relax and smile after a long day of work.

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