Little BL lost....

I wanted to drop it but I did not: it was strangely addictive in the beginning and since the episodes are short, I finished it. But I can see why it has such a bad rating: it does not know what it wants to be: 2gether or Bed Friend! So it tries to be both but it is eventually neither!

>It is a story of two university students, promiscuous men, notorious for their one night stands who bump into each other and it is love at first sight though neither is aware of it! But everithing takes place at the university so we are served the complete list of tropes: fujoshi friend posting about them on line, trans busybodies, screaming fans, stupid misunderstandings, nosy best friends etc. etc.

The first few episodes they navigated between the interesting plot with unusual characters and cringy uni scenes. Unfortunately, they continued like this till the end when they sunk into the depths of cringy dialogue of two people in love... The main characters went from cheeky, arrogant Fah and prickly charming Sher to soft sickly sweet marshmallows: it the last episode, Sher scratches his ankle, Fah carries him in his arms (not piggyback!) and then Sher walks around with a crutch. This was the ultimate scratch wound. Sher who was confident and cocky turned into a damsel in distress! And Fah turns from a popularity king into a jealous shrew!

Everything was like this is this drama: every originality was abandoned along the way for the usual university fare! There were two side couples. One of them, best friends to lovers: when they realized they had feelings for each other, they slept together. Few days later, they are sitting in the bed, one kisses the cheek of the other who screams like a virgin! Ridiculous! All the characters had zero development, if not for the worst: they all seemed to become wimps when they fell in love!

I don't know how accurate the translation is, but the vocabulary they used was really vulgar very often when they talked to each other. The bed scenes were frequent, especially during the first few episodes. What surprised me was the choice of music: drums, only drums and it was hot and new. But that happened only once and afterwards they went with the usual soft song etc....boring!

It definitely does not deserve such bad rating, it is watchable, James is excellent in a double role but, all in all, this is kind of missed opportunity!

Read More

Recommended starter watch

Are you new to c dramas? Are you a bit lost with all long haired costume dramas? Never fear! Here is the drama which showcases all different kinds of historical chinese costume dramas.

The story is interesting: fateful but amnesiac lovers in the immortal realm have to go through seven love tribulation. The events take place in different worlds and the pair has the strong impression that there is more than meets the eye.

Every setting is intriguing: from animals to princesses and generals to immortals and demons. There is the running animal theme throughout: a tiger and a hog! The actors are good but are for the most part stone faced and they start thawing towards each other steadily as their memories return. The ML has cute dimples and is so pretty with that long hair... The FL has small, very tiny mouth(bad job, make up artist!).

The problem is that in spite of interesting idea and great setting, it is far too long, it drags on and on and on (so much so they messed up the timelines often and were illogical: so try not to use your brain while watching!)...I don't know how many times I fell asleep in front of an episode and later realizing I had not missed anything! The CGI was pretty. The bad guys wore white and the good guys black. How original though it can be surprising if you do not expect it! Immortals' battles are boring: they stand facing each other pointing swords and lances and shooting energy until one of them runs out, falls over coughing blood. Apparently not everyone has the same coloured blood: his is red and hers is blue. Well, she's an empress, after all!

While watching, I kept wondering: what could those immortals be doing for tens of thousands of years in heavenly realm. There is nothing to do: I guess they go and play in mortal realm. In heavenly one they are just haughty, elegant and chaste...I mean the main couple barely kissed, they were usually interrupted by an event of disastrous proportions every time they started getting a bit frisky!

Still, a nice watch but I will stick to short costume dramas from now on!LOL

Read More

Gruff + brawn = sunset cuteness overload

I have watched too many korean dramas. So much so I recognize the usual tropes and know their outcome. The problem is, I have been applying the same logic to japanese dramas. And have been repeatedly surprised. But still, I keep expecting the korean style outcome when exes or professional rivals are concerned, which luckily, never come. Japanese romcoms are the only dramas/films where the expected evil/mean antagonist never appears!

This one has been the same. It is a story of a burly mangaka who has no life outside drawing mangas. He is stuck, manga storywise and decides to employ a down-on-her luck women to act out different romance situations. At the same time, he is given custody of his nephew. The three of them first clash and then slowly become a family without realizing it.

Frankly, I almost dropped this a few times: the first being 30min into the first episode when her cringy behaviour was too much to bear for me. I soldiered on when the repetition of romance situation under his control in real life become too immoral for my taste. I kept telling myself: this is a drama, it needs ambiguous and difficult situations in order for the plot to move forward. Fortunately, these two issues disappeared after a few episodes and we are left with usual romcom tropes: the ex who comes back, the mother thinking of taking her son away, a rival mangaka, a stalkerish victim of first fake romance situations. Every time one of these characters showed up, I was filled with feelings of foreboding, expecting a difficult and sad outcome. And every time I was surprised when that did not happen.

There is not one single mean character is japanese romcoms. I love it but I don't think I can ever get used to it.

The cast was perfect: the ML is hottest j actor around, his sexy gruffness is so irresistible. Since it was based on a manga, I was pleasantly surprised that the manga mannerisms and exaggerated grimaces were toned down to a bearable level. The kids were the cutest.

This is a highly bingeable drama, I had a lot of fun watching it. I only wished I remembered that japanese romcoms are the sweetest dramas ever and that nobody is really evil in them: that would have saved me from some unnecessary stress! Just watch it if you need a pick me up!!!!

Read More

I started this story three times: somehow the boys' acting in the first half of the first episode failed to grab my attention. So I forced myself to continue watching, and suddenly I was hooked. Though the acting was still pretty bad, I liked this story a lot!

This is one of the more complex and intriguing stories in My Universe collection. It follows two brothers, inseparable fraternal twins who are growing up and starting to drift apart. Kun is the serious, studious and more intelligent brother. More mature as well, used to his happy-go-lucky brother's attitude and the lack of drive and seriousness, Kun is getting impatient to live his own life without trying to always accommodate his brother's desires. The arrival of Tod in their high school will reveal the tension in the twins' relationship and bring it to the breaking point. While Korn is trying to keep his brother glued to himself, Kun only wishes to get a bit of breathing space away from him. And even though it is hard for him, to stay away from his brother too, he realizes that it is a right decision that will allow them to have their own lives!

This is not a japanese drama so I never thought they would go the incest way as the cover image may suggest. They are just brothers, close and loving each other like brothers. No more no less! There is a beginning of a possible romance(Kun & Tod) which does not pan out. But that is not important. The accent here is put squarely on the twins' relationship and their personal growth and development. There is a mini drama involving Pond, a tutor and Korn which was eventually just brushed off. There should have been more serious consequences shown: and an apology is not enough in my book. But maybe the teens are more resilient today and get over traumatic events faster? They should not have introduced this side story as it was not treated correctly. There was enough material for the plot to stay focused on the twins' relationship!

The acting was bad in the beginning but it eventually turned all right. Those young actors definitely needed a few more acting lessons: the story demanded a lot more than standing and looking pretty like in some of the other stories (Fake Love, I'm looking at you!). They tried their best and what they did was correct but...

The title is very smart: Pisces means fish and is as well an astrological sign for those born in March as the boys seem to be. The boys keep a couple of fish in their bedroom called Left and Right and one of the boys is right handed while the other one is lef handed. I don't know if they did it on purpose or it is just the casting accident but it fits extremely well with the whole theme of the story. Pisces also resembles a lot to "pieces" as the boys seem to be two pieces of a whole, or two sides of the same coin ...

Pisces of Me is definitely worth the watch and is probably one of the best stories in this series. And not one single flashback (Fake Love, I'm looking at you!)! LOL

Read More

Stress and colours but no love

Monochrome is being sold as "boys love, lgbtq+, yaoi, gay" on WayuFilms Production youtube channel. I have not seen any of it unless you count a long fixed look between the leads until one of them turns the head around. That is the only moment in the film which could make the audience think that this is a romance, though there might be a whiff of unrequited love in the air!

The story:
White is a graphic designer who, after being scolded at work, loses his confidence and the ability to see colours. His best friend Shield tries to help him adjust to the new situation but White is too frustrated to make a real effort. Until one day they meet a blind girl painting in the park and White realized that his deficiency is not the end of the world and that he can do his job in spite of it.

The story deals with the pressure: the one we put on ourselves thinking we can do anything and the one put on us by the world, the employers and the society at large. We need to learn how to deal with this kind of stress, and the film shows it to us: there are people worse off than ourselves who are doing much better just because they accept themselves as they are and have found a way to make the most of it by taking an alternative path. In this film, the bling girl teaches White to distinguish colours by smell.

The production is, as usual, on a shoe string budget. The best was actually the actress playing the blind girl: I really believed she was blind. The film also has the main character working on a poster for a film/web drama starring the same actress and from the same producers. (On n'est jamais mieux servi que par soi même!!) The actors are rookies who act better when they are not speaking: there is a long montage without dialogue, which I found the most interesting. It seems to me that WayuFilm Productions are rarely going outside these days, filming their short movies in the office. They have lost a bit of its charm: I remember when I first discovered them, the cinematography was stunning and the stories were original. The last few short films have been a slight disappointment: actors learning the trade, boring stories and bad production values.

So, there is no romance here just some wishful thinking from the audience used to better fleshed out stories (Mon & Oak period!) from this director .

Read More

Game of life....

Apparently, I completely misunderstood this drama. To my defence, I never read the webtoon so I judged it upon watching. I don't know if the plot is clearer there but I was quite confused with the ending.



First of all, I loved it: it was beautifully filmed and skilfully acted. The director loves original angles, ceilings and shadow contrast shots: excellent camera work! Actors are just as amazing: rarely have I seen such emotional, true acting in one of these web series. Music was nice and not intrusive, so we could really enjoy the plot and try to figure out what is what! LOL

Secondly, the plot was original, a device seldom used in k drama: transmigration. I said seldom, not never, and not as much as in c dramas. A 29 yr old sad and depressed man criticizes his friend's novel which is about to be turned into a game. After drinking too much, he wakes up inside the game as a 19yr old high school student, but with the life experiences of a 29yr old, and if he wants to live, he has to complete different tasks. When he leaves the game he is deleted from it but a couple of characters still vaguely remember him; How? Why? Then he kills himself (apparently he never learned anything!) and he is sent back into the game.
The biggest part of the series takes part inside the game. That's the problem I had with it: is the game real or is it an allegory for afterlife (since at one point, the ML comes out of the game and promptly kills himself! Or does he?) or is it that his friend based a character in the game on him....I don't know!
I was expecting a different ending. Something along these lines: ML learning to know himself through the game and finally realize that his novelist friend was in love with him (the vibe was of stratospheric proportion in the first episode, the chemistry hot and therefore I suffered from second lead syndrome!LOL That never turns out well in K dramas!).

Finally, in spite of the lack of straight explanation, as I see it, and after being told off, I am just going to take it literally, in the sequence and do not think about it logically! I was told that the game is the afterlife and that the ML was dead from the beginning. That's not what I saw. I'd like to say it is open to interpretation but...forget it!

Read More

Two worlds, one love

You cannot imagine how happy I am to be able to speak French, now! I wish I could speak japanese most of all but since I cannot, this is definitely the second best today. Why? Because I could watch this amazing short drama and the only subs available are in french! So first of all, thank you Rosé Fansub Traduction for subbing this little gem!

The story is about a girl and a boy secretly dating. She is getting more and more frustrated with secrecy that she starts posting on line photos of their moments of happiness(dessert, park bench etc.). Until one day someone recognizes his shadow and he gets angry. So much so that she makes a wish to live in the happy world. And her wish is granted. But in this world, he is unknown. Soon enough, she realizes she has entered the social media world where the pecking order is determined by the number of subscribers in the real world. She is surprised to discover that some very shy and unassuming people in her class have a huge number of followers.

In addition to the sweet romance, this drama mostly talks about social media vs. real life, about being yourself anonymously vs. hiding your real self afraid of rejection. This drama is optimistic, very positive about acceptance: you just need the courage to assume your choices and the others will admire you for the courage. There are a few other examples in this drama: a trans boy and a hidden singer who, to their own surprise, end up being accepted as they are! It would be nice if it were true in reality but hope springs eternal so...Baby steps internet, baby steps fixing hole in the net!

The production is exemplary for a webdrama: the plot is tightly woven, perfectly well written, the acting is top notch and the cinematography is stunning (the light is subtly different in two worlds).

I highly recommend this if you speak japanese or french: it is easily found on youtube! Half a point off because it was too short, I wanted more. Don't worry, the story wraps up nicely but I still wanted more!

Read More

Thai GL version of Dynasty

GLs are few and far between, they should not be judged harshly and given the space to grow. The first thai gl, GAP, I dropped after one episode. This one I finished but only because it was short not because I liked it. I did not. Actually it was bad and boring.

The story of a 20yr old high school student hitting on a 36yr old artist is new and original. And that is all. Everything else is just bad starting with the main characters. They all sound like they came out of a soap opera. So the 20yr old's mother was the artist's best friend in school. She even had a crush on her but when the artist rejected her confession, she slept with a boy who got her pregnant. Later that boy was getting married to the artist but she left him at the altar. They all come from wealthy families.

I would not have minded this soapy plot if the chemistry were good. It was not! The 20yr old girl behaves as if she is 12: baby voice, cutesy expression, pouty, pushy and manipulative. The 36 yr old artist is a virgin, never been in love, usually lost in front of the pushy girl with rare bouts of adult reasoning which is always welcome.

They are making a second season? Please don't! This was bad enough! The woes of rich people are not as interesting as they used to be! On the other hand we may find out answers to some of the questions that have been left open.... but I will have forgotten about those by tomorrow anyway!

Read More

Pretty empty...

Well, here goes another typical korean bl under the belt! Nice production value, warm and rather beautiful cinematography, zero chemistry and a lot of lipstick. A lot!

Jazz For Two was one of the first webtoons I ever read a couple of years ago and I remember liking it a lot. The art was pretty, the story gripping and I even found a playlist on Spotify featuring every song mentioned in the webtoon. What I do not remember is the plot just that it was about two boys in high school bonding over jazz!

The drama is another superficial bl romance koreans are known to produce. It touches upon serious issues but it never tackles them in depth. And issues here were many: homophobia, suicide, bullying, assault. The way to deal with these issues? Love, of course! Love, which magically cures mental problems, behavioural problems etc. etc.

Teens are still children, exploring the world and figuring themselves out, so their reactions towards anything outside the instilled norms may turn violent. Care and kindness are not necessarily the standard. They are scared of being different, to stand out and therefore, when faced with the unknown, they tend to reject it violently! This was shown relly clearly in this drama.

The main characters are four boys in an arts high school who eventually form two enemies-to-lovers couples. The actors were correct, the best being Song Han Gyom(3rd lead) who played DoYoon. The worst by far, Kim Jin Kwon(ML). I had trouble recognizing him even though I remember him from To My Star. The costume and make up designers created an unlikable image: oversized clothes and too much make up (nobody has such red shiny lips naturally: he looked really artificial). Moreover, he had no chemistry with his partner.

I would like to end just with one question: is there such a thing as korean drama taking place in high school but with absolutely no bullying?

Read More

Butterflies inducing hope

Practically perfect in every way!

A butterflies inducing, tears of rage provoking story of two lost men who find happiness and solution in each other's company, with love being the cherry on the top! One, Hiro, is a programmer convinced by his boss(workplace bullying/harassment) that he is incompetent and therefore putting more and more effort into ungrateful work. So much so that he is completely exhausted and drawing onto his last drops of strength. The other one, Kai, is a taciturn man used to being alone and always abandoned, expecting nothing from the world. When these two meet, their worlds slowly but surely start to change and merge, almost unwittingly!

The drama is full of romance tropes: opposites attract, childhood connection but it works perfectly well here. The actors have good chemistry and the evolution of their relationship is slow but steady, with their respective insecurities taking turns in blocking it. Misunderstandings appear but are solved immediately! There was only one problem I found in the first episode: in order to help him sleep, Kai "helps" him release the stress through a handjob which can be seen as SA since Hiro keeps saying No. He does sleep well afterwards but this scene just repeats the aggressive gay man stereotype! I thought we were beyond this!

Kudos to casting director who found young actors who resemble the main actors. I find this often in j dramas: more often than in other countries' ones! They really make it an issue of finding a believable looking young counterparts.

And of course there is food: what would a japanese drama be without it? Love goes through the stomach, everyone knows that!

The opening credits are actually the "happily ever after" sort of compilation of scenes we never really see since the drama stops when they get together.

It is a great watch. Japanese have done it again! Except for the weird title...

Read More

Twists and turns: unexpected!

I usually start a review with a short synopsis but anything I may say can be a spoiler and for the first time ever, I want to keep a review spoiler free. You just need to watch it and enjoy the ride with a satisfactory conclusion!

I have yet to watch a c drama which has a sense of a cliffhanger. Usually they do not practice this art form! Therefore, it came as a huge surprise when practically every episode ended with a twisty sort of cliffhanger. What is even more surprising is that they managed to do it with short, 10 min episodes! Extraordinary!

The story deals with time travel, reincarnation, entertainment industry and mental health. The writing is top notch! I would like to know who wrote this and if they wrote anything else. Because this is by far the most original, interesting and gripping short c drama I have ever watched! Music is the usual c drama songs, heavy on the flute and the cinematography is adequately windy and flowery.

There is romance, there is comedy, there is mystery here! It is easily bingeable! If I have any complaints about this drama is that most of the cast is bland, charisma free except for the actor playing the FL's father: he was somehow different from others, rather remarkable! The drama and the story are definitely worth your while!

Read More

Art or life? Choose! Why?

NB: Thank you for the brilliant subs evasive subs!

I discovered rakugo. I never knew it existed and one episode was enough for me to spend an hour on the internet trying to find out as much as I can about this art. And I discovered many interesting things and not only on wikipedia!

First : the lesson! (LOL!)

Rakugo (落語, literally 'story with a fall')[1] is a form of Japanese verbal entertainment, traditionally performed in yose theatres.[2] The lone storyteller (落語家, rakugoka) sits on a raised platform, a kōza (高座). Using only a paper fan (扇子, sensu) and a small cloth (手拭, tenugui) as props, and without standing up from the seiza sitting position, the rakugo artist depicts a long and complicated comical (or sometimes sentimental) story. The story always involves the dialogue of two or more characters. The difference between the characters is depicted only through change in pitch, tone, and a slight turn of the head. The monologue always ends with a narrative stunt (punch line). Rakugo has been described as "a sitcom with one person playing all the parts". Around 1670 in the Edo period (1603–1867), three storytellers appeared who were regarded as the first rakugoka. (wikipedia)

Second: the plot!

This drama was gripping from the first to the last minute! It tells the story of Bou, a young boy whose dancing career had been ruined and who is sent over to a master rakugoka to learn the craft of storytelling. He meets Sukeroku the first day there and they become fast friends in spite of completely opposite characters. The drama tells the story of their lives over a period of 60 years which covers Showa era (from approximately 1933 to 1997 with the epilogue 16yrs later!). The boys change names as they grow and get promoted within the rakugo association.

I used to watch a lot of western dramas with this kind of basic plot: story of one character's life practically from cradle to grave, spanning a long period of history when major changes happened. Since I usually avoid asian historical dramas as if they were plague, I have never seen an asian version of these life stories. I loved this one, it was gripping, but it tugged at my heartstrings too much in the last episode so I shall probably never watch anything like this again. Too painful in spite of them trying to be upbeat about main character dying of old age!

The plot describes the fight, very restrained and civilized, between the holders of the tradition (masters) and those who try to bring a bit to modernity into strictly coded art (Sukeroku). Yakoumo(Bou) is torn between the safety of known rules and codes and the admiration for the freedom and originality of Sakuroku's performance. And even though for a short moment Yakoumo felt jealous of his friend, he quickly accepted that his art is different, classical not as exciting as Sakuroku's but still admirable. The bond between those two people was unbreakable, they loved and cherished each other immensely and no matter what the world thought , they were there for each other. This was a real bromance!

The problems start when Yakoumo falls for a geisha. When his master asks him to choose between her and rakugo, he breaks up with her. She consoles herself with Sukeroku who was banished from rakugo for insubordination and everything leads to a tragedy with consequences felt for a long time afterwards. This was never really a love triangle and they showed it clearly. The rules and hidden envies ruined lives of three people who starting from that moment just survived and not lived.

The plot is tightly woven and there are no plot holes. The characters are clearly presented and they are fully fleshed out: we follow their growth over a long time period.

Third: the production.

Since this drama is a life story, there are a lot of time jumps so the extraordinary actor, Okada Masaki, first and foremost, had to play the character between the ages of 17 and 70 which is a no mean treat. The way he changed voice and posture and attitude with age is impressive. The actors also had to learn all the rakugo tales and codes of performance as well. Amazing. The only problem i had was the ageing make up (which was expertly done, no details were missed- like hands or neck.): the character who is supposed to be 70 looks more like he's 95, he looks too old for his age. Maybe it has to do with the personality of the character: dry, succinct, cold, unhappy, bitter, restrained so he looks older than he should?
The music is just perfect, with enough pathos to tug at your heart. The time period was rather faithfully recreated.

Conclusion

Drama is about rakugo, an art form thought to be on the decline but still alive and kicking and the people preforming it. it is about people in doing rakugo. As I said, I'd never heard of rakugo before this drama, but it is still easy to follow since it is a human story. Beautifully told story of people trying to overcome obstacles put before them by society, rules and prejudice. Sorry, this review is a bit messy...

Read More

Nice, very nice...

Happy Merry Ending is an edited film version of the webdrama I have not watched. The editing is smoothly done so the cuts between the episodes are not obvious: I could not notice any. The film is nice, nothing outstanding but the actors have good chemistry, the music is very nice and the kisses are correctly done (WOW! a surprise for a K bl!)

Two men meet at a wedding: the singer is a former trainee who was abused by his producer which left him scarred and the pianist is a full time cafe owner. The pianist falls for the singer and pursues him but the producer comes back and throws the spanner into the works. The singer gathers the courage and sends the producer away, stands up for himself but chases the pianist away as well.

The main plot is opposites attract. The pianist is open, cheerful and happy while the singer is the opposite: depressed, lacks confidence and trusts nobody. Slowly the pianist breaks through the singer's walls pushing gently but never crossing the line and always asking for permission. I found that attitude refreshing: No is a No and he accepts it. The pianist seems pushy but he is actually very gentle and respectful.
The drama in itself is nothing new as it goes through all the usual phases: they meet, fall for each other, date, kiss, the ex shows up, break up and get back together. There is a tiny blink-and-you-miss-it subplot with the rotten and creepy producer and the slight criticism of k pop industry.

Everything is very nice about this film version of the drama. Nicely done piece of fluff and respect.

Read More

Be careful what you wish for!

The original plot, no unnecessary time consuming side pots, cute actors (except for one), lovely music and a short duration was what kept me hooked on this drama when I have been dropping recent thai bls like they were hot potatoes!

The main problem this drama has is the casting and it is twofold! Firstly: Why would anyone give Gun a main role is beyond comprehension: he cannot act and even though he managed to tone down his ugly grimacing, it is still there and going crescendo as we approach the last episode! Secondly: Is it really so difficult to find actors who look alike for the characters' young and old versions! Just watch japanese dramas: it is uncanny! Their ability to find similar looking actors is amazing!

Gun with his overacting has ruined the enjoyment of this drama. But not so much as to drop it as I have been doing a lot recently with thai bls! This drama has an original plot idea which was unfortunately undercooked!

It is a story of a magical cafe that appears before you when you are the most desperate and offers to fulfil a wish. There are three at first unconnected, stories being told here. The first one is a woman abandoned by her boyfriend when he discovered she was pregnant. The second one is about Reaow and Mai, a new student in his high school. The third follows a longtime couple whose relationship is starting to fall apart because of work and lack of communication.

The pacing of the drama is a bit off: draggy for the most of it, it feels rushed in the last episodes with all the revelations coming out at a breakneck speed. But they managed to explain the majority of questions we were asking as we watched. I wished that the fantasy element had been more present in the first episodes which looked mostly like a mash up of two dramas: a school BL and an adult bl with a weird cafe owner(she was extremely weird, cackling and laughing like a maniac!) thrown randomly in between.
The two love stories were interesting though nothing new. The final episode twist, which I frankly did not see coming (bad casting!!!!) put a damper on the teen romance and it changed my appreciation of the characters (Reauw unexpectedly turned actually to be an ambiguous and grey character). The teen romance was well presented and Mai's questioning of his own sexuality in spite of his macho upbringing (there is apparently a wrong translation in the crucial scene: he does not say "I am straight!" but he says "I'm a man. Men don't cry!") was very convincing. Are you strong enough to go against your parents when you are 17?
The adult romance was ruined by bad acting and the lack of chemistry though the premise was interesting. Thana has been with his high achieving doctor boyfriend for ten years and the cracks are starting to show in that relationship because he does not seem to be able to keep up the pace with the successful doctor and they do not seem to talk anymore. He meets a young man in the neighbourhood and they hit it off famously: they seem to be on the same level, they seem to understand each other and they definitely have better chemistry.

I really liked the drama a lot and I am a bit disappointed because it could have been something exceptional with this original plot, better writing, pacing and not casting Gun: the rest of the actors were excellent! The cinematography is rich, soft and sparkling. The background music and the final song about forgetting were very nice and fit the drama perfectly.

There are plotholes (how does the café really work?), there are inconsistencies but they just made me go huh! And they were not bad enough for me to drop this which is a good sign! The ending is open and not what I hoped for: I did not want for Thana and his doctor to stay together. In spite of all the attraction they felt for each other, the whole relationship was built on a lie (a wish!) and should have crumbled when the truth came out.

I liked this drama a lot: it is different from the unwatchable fluff and soft porn thai producers seem to be churning out at a scary speed and that I keep dropping even faster! It has an interesting plot premise and I wish they put a little bit more effort into writing and casting which would have made it perfect!

Read More

Defying time

Brilliant idea but lacklustre execution, unfortunately! I was hooked after two episodes, so much so, I subscribed to Gagaoolala in order to finish it. It did not keep its promise, sadly!

There are two different time periods that suddenly due to supermoon, get in touch and two sad men start talking to each other across time! Something happens between them but of course, there are so many obstacles in their way that nothing can come out of their love story. Just more regret and sadness.
The characters are very real and I loved the Wade's mother: open, helpful, optimistic, friendly an ideal mother in short!

The cinematography is stunning. It gives the whole series an out of the world, hazy and dreamy feeling, as befitting a fantasy! Beside interesting camera angles, the two time periods are filmed differently. Wade in 2020, pandemic and isolation, is all white, overexposed and too bright. Jose Manuel in 1974 is just like the Marcos dictatorship historical period: hopeless, dark and sad. The only bright points are JM's T-shirts. Wade's T-shirts also carry a message connected to the story
.
The music is moody and ominous announcing from the first seconds that this is not going to be a happy story! The huge problem is the sound recording: very bad!

The writing is original though a bit draggy and it is not very clear at which speed the time moves. They start communicating through letters: I love that concept. Their ability to communicate is due to the full moon. But that full moon usually lasts no more than three night every four weeks. Here it seems that they talk to each other every day and that there is the full moon in the clear sky every day as well (the shots of the moon are too frequent to correspond to reality!). They talk through the mirrors but sometimes they seem to see each other and sometimes they seem to be talking to themselves in the mirror: so it is not really clear how the whole communication thing works. They can talk to each other every day but they can see each other only when it is the full moon. Maybe I missed something? Another issue I found strange is that Wade thinks of finding the contemporary JM only after he definitely looses contact with him. While they were talking to each other Wade was never curious to find him in 2020?
The writers used the legend of Sidapa and Libulan which is tale of a controversial love affaire of two male deities in precolonial Filipino myth showing how impossible can become possible if you don't give up.

But the most interesting part were the episodes' titles which are the most romantic untranslatable words from a variety of languages:

1. YUAN FEN: (mandarin) fate or chance that brings people together predestined affinity or relationship (Budd.) destiny. Being able to provide explanations in a positive way, Yuanfen has always functioned as an attribution, the psychological process of seeking reasons for particular events.
2. FORELSKET is a Danish word that means in love, enamoured, or in love with. Forelsket is also a Norwegian word for the magical state of falling in love: it is exhilarating partially because it’s so impossible to control. It’s that fluttery, heart-pounding, palms-sweating, complete bliss that you feel when you’re first falling in love.
3. SAUDADE is a Portugese word for the emotional state of melancholic or profoundly nostalgic longing for a beloved yet absent something or someone. It derives from the Latin word for solitude. It is often associated with a repressed understanding that one might never encounter the object of longing ever again. It is a recollection of feelings, experiences, places, or events, often elusive, that cause a sense of separation from the exciting, pleasant, or joyous sensations they once caused.
4. VIRAAG is a hindi word meaning the anguish you experience when you’re physically separated from the person you love. This could mean a wide range of things. Perhaps your crush is in a relationship with someone else, so you’re forced to love them from afar. Perhaps you and your partner are in a long-distance relationship counting down the days until you’re reunited. Or maybe (unfortunately) you’re enduring a breakup and struggling to cope with the idea of losing someone forever. That pain you feel? It’s viraag.
5. MAMIHLAPINATAPEI: derived from the Yaghan language of Tierra del Fuego, listed in The Guinness Book of World Records as the "most succinct word", and is considered one of the hardest words to translate.This word is all too familiar for those out there who are a bit on the shy side. You like someone, and you think (maybe!) (hopefully!) that they like you too. You’re sitting across from each other, hands almost touching, but not quite. Your breath catches in your throat and you’re sure they can hear your heartbeat slamming in your ears. You look shyly at them. They look shyly back. But neither of you makes the first move. This moment--one of joy and anguish, fear and excitement--is summed up by the word “mamihlapinatapei.”
6. ONSRA comes from Boro language of India and means loving for the last time; that bittersweet feeling you get when you know a love won’t last.
7. KARA SEVDE They talk about kara sevda, an untranslatable Turkish concept that literally means “black love” or blind love and alludes to how uncontrollable desire and unrequited love can render someone hopeless and broken. It also means tragic love. It used for a strong, unrelenting and unhealthy crush in tragedies and folk stories.
8. ICHIGO ICHIE "one time, one meeting" is a Japanese idiom that describes a cultural concept of treasuring the unrepeatable nature of a moment, the practice of making the most of every encounter and understanding how important the “now” is.
9. HAPPENSTANCE means something happened because of certain circumstances, although it was not planned by anyone.

There is an unsuspected depth in this story which is unfortunately bogged down with sadness and hopelessness.

Read More