Kate

Covid driven horror stories? I guess it can work...

Bad luck is a bitch
I think the first story had the most confusing message. What was I supposed to get from it? Don’t always help people who claim they are in need because they can screw you over? Don’t break covid isolation restrictions by letting strangers stay at your home?

It was fun and wacky and the emo teen magician shaman boy got me dying from laughing, but I’m just not sure what the writer wanted to tell with this one…
Also, excuse me, but why was this story so dark? Damn, I could barely see anything.

Nothing beats meat
Decent story, but I’m not sure I like the black and white aesthetics. It was also way too short to have any meaning or impact. Felt a bit like an ad break. I understand it’s linked to all the fake covid medication and how not following the actual doctors’ advice and listening to random people with their great healing stories can screw you over, but… it kind of felt flat in presentation.

Shit happens
I did not think the title would be literal… I need a white truck of doom to give me amnesia asap. Oh gosh… why? When I thought it couldn't get any more gross, guess what. It got more gross.
The message is there - mistreatment of patients, overworked medical staff, desensitization to other’s suffering - great and strong messages, but why did they have to literally cover it all in shit?

HM?
Job insecurity during the pandemic was a big problem and the consequences are still here and with the current market, I don’t think they are going away anytime soon. The desperation of trying to earn money in any possible way is something many people could relate to. I’d say this story had the most clear direction and storytelling. When you feel like you won’t be able to even feed your child, you would ignore potential dangers with the hope of getting that coin.

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A few too many boobs shots.

That’s your typical, dumb and sexualizing women comedy… That is not funny. Such a dumb jokes I don’t even know how to comment on them.

I was watching and I felt my neurons dying and IQ decreasing. I’m not even against dumb parody movies - which this tries to be. The execution must be good though and the jokes take a jab at the well known cliches in a clever way. This had none of it.

I guess the best part of the movie was the relationship between the brothers. It was well established, had some nice moments and a solid conclusion. The acting was also decent. Not from all the actors, but the main cast did fairly well.

That would be the end of compliments I have.

Sure the scenery and views were pretty and the makeup for zombies was not that bad. But it also was not good enough to recommend anyone to watch the movie.

Basically speaking - you won’t miss anything if you skip this movie.

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While the twists were interesting, the idea behind the movie is not quite clear. Who was the true instigator of all the bad events? How did they even happen? How was the supernatural element present? There were many questions that I feel like got confusing answers.

While the story itself was quite interesting, presenting some twists I did not see coming at all, and making me question which characters are involved and who is the bad guy, I wished they gave us a little bit more detail.

It was a fun and interesting watch, the performances were good, characters; motivation was vague at best, ridiculous at worst. The overall reasoning of the events happening did not have that much reason in it.

Overall, I don’t regret watching, but it’s not exactly something I would go around recommending.

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Horror elements that ruined the movie.

This would be such a good thriller mystery, but the extremely cheap horror ruined it. Samara meets Sadako and the killing hair. The effects and the ghost design were so bad I honestly wanted to skip all their scenes.

That said, the story itself was quite compelling. The writer was able to form a close connection of the tragic story for the female lead and the main victim of the events from the past. The story had quite a few layers and the pacing of showing them one by one was rather well executed.

It’s for sure more of an investigation than a horror though. Majority of the movie is just the detective work and solving the murder cases happening.

Arang, by the end of the runtime, presents a good, unexpected twist (tho if it was that unexpected I am not sure, since I might have just not paid that much attention to figure out the plot for myself).

The acting was great - given for such a cast.

Overall, someone should make a cut version of this movie, removing all the cheap on budget Ring moments.

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Confusing motivations…

I did not really understand any of the characters - the ghost included.
It does have a semi interesting start, that sets the tone for the rest of the movie - desperation and cheap jump scares. Sometimes this is all you need in a horror movie. Why was the female lead so invested in that uni movie was stupid though.

I get that she needed a horror story for her own movie, but with all the effort she put into the “investigation”, I’m sure she would be able to write something herself. Not to mention, was she both screenwriter and the director?

Then there is the ghost lady- why did she do all the shenanigans? They did not really explain if it was curse, vengeance… Sure, I can explain it myself with my little theories, but the movie did not, and that’s my point.

What I enjoyed - build up tension. Honestly believe cutting out all the jump scares would actually make the movie scarier. They ruined the atmosphere with how comedic they were… The pure investigation moments had me invested, but then a typical black hair lady jumped on the screen and I could not stop myself from laughing.

Performances were great. Loved how Seo Yae Ji’s character was so unaware how abnormal her behavior was, calling others crazy, when she herself acted in the most irrational way.

Overall, it was a decent watch. Would be better as an investigation horror game.

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There is nothing truly wrong about it… but it’s not right either.

This should not have 24 episodes… but it also should have more. It makes sense in my brain, truly. On one hand, the show was simply boring because of the lackluster storytelling and constant time jumps - nothing was established well, which resulted in me not caring about anything, so why make it so long? On the other hand, giving it more episodes could potentially make the show better - making the pacing more even, not skipping a few years every 5 minutes of screen time.

What was that “each episode starts a few months later” deal. They literally kept starting from new moments in lives, with no closure to the previous ones. You will literally have to write 80% of the plot in your head yourself, fill all the gaps. It's literally like a YouTube compilation of the drama highlights... but it's actually the whole drama.

The thing is, I would rather watch 24 episodes of behind the scenes, than the show itself. Last few minutes of the last episode, showing some NGs, was truly the best part and I could not stop smiling and laughing.

The characters? I don’t even know. Heon was all over the place, but I blame it on Yo Han’s delivery. At the same time, there were few moments that truly made the character awful… But Sol-i? At some point she is 30 in the show, but acts like a middle schooler. There is no development nor maturing with her character. She acts exactly the same in the opening episode in high school, and fully grown up in the last episode.

Who I liked? Ha Young and Jin Hwan. They were so adorable and entertaining to watch. Seo Ji Soo also did not get enough screen time. I would not mind her becoming part of the friend’s group. She would fit perfectly.

Onto the acting. People think playing an emotionless, cold male lead is easy, but it’s not - it’s an art of its own, and sadly Yohan did not master it. I guess one could say the acting is actually quite balanced - So Ju Yeon was overacting…and Yohan was not acting at all, barely reading the script.

OST wise, except for the intro cover, which was loveable, great and always made me happy, I don't remember even one song.

Overall, it’s just painfully mediocre. It’s basically fast food entertainment.

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When the villain is miles ahead of the heroes.

Saying it was not an exciting watch would be a lie. Saying it was more fun than frustrating and anxiety causing would also be a lie. It was a thrilling ride, but can I say it was enjoyable?

I honestly loved all the characters that were part of the Avalanche. Perfect mix of skills and personalities. Their interactions were genuine, emotional and fun. They were the driving force that made it possible for me to finish the show. What I also liked was how I honestly questioned some of the characters’ motivations and the possibility of them betraying the team. The storytelling was strong enough to make that a realistic twist that could have happened.

Avalanche had also one of the strongest villains I have seen in a show. Truly always a few steps ahead of the team. While it was a good point about the drama at the beginning, at some point I got exhausted with how weak the heroes seemed in comparison. “Can they even win?” was a legit question I was asking myself. The stakes kept rising, and the conclusion left much to desire.

Last two episodes had many turns and twists, for me, maybe a few too many. No denying it was exciting, but a bit more exploration of the aftermath would be appreciated.

The performances were phenomenal. Watabe Atsuro as Oyama Kengo? So evil and so punchable. Great actors know how to make the audience hate them.

Ayano Go and Kimura Yoshino aced the roles. Habu was a fascinating character with so much emotional baggage and how much it affected him was all slowly revealed through the acting. On the other hand Yamamori Michiyo was a character with just as much personal stakes, yet so much harder to read. Kimura Yoshino's portrayal of the head of Avalanche could not be better.

Production wise - great. It was visually pleasing, but not over the top, where the visuals become distracting. I appreciate rather realistic blood and injuries make up.

Overall, it was a tense and thrilling show, but the unbalanced fight between the good guys and the villain made it impossible to to enjoy it at times.

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There were things to love, there were things to question, and there were things to criticize.

Objectively great rom-com, subjectively I had a few beefs with certain aspects. Specific parts and elements were perfect, but they did not quite make a perfect picture. Be in the characters, plot, set up, twist - some imbalances and conflicts just made me roll my eyes a few times too many. I had fun while watching the episodes, but I was never truly excited to start them.

Se Gye was the true unrealistically perfect male lead. His undying love for Seo Ri made all the best men on the planet combine seem mediocre. Handsome, hot, devoted, rich, smart and dedicated, but also willing to show vulnerability to the person he loves. As a romantic interest, he did not have any flaws. The man that no one deserves. What’s more? I adore how the moment he figured out he likes Seo Ri (which did not take him that long), he did not act dumb and was not led by his ego - he acted according to his feelings, did not hide them, did not pretend like he was not interested. Do I want one for myself? Of course.

As amazing as a romantic lead he was, it’s not the same story outside of the lovey-dovey scenes. From the start he was set up to be a masterclass of manipulation and schemes, a fool only to the woman he loves. So why did he keep making the dumbest mistakes over and over again by the end of the drama? You want to tell me that this man with what they claim is a working brain would not take precautions against whatever wild plan Mun Do might have, being fully aware his dear cousin had no issue killing people? Apparently, the moment you drove your enemy into a corner is also the best time to be alone at night in the dark parking lot, asking to be stabbed. He kept underestimating Mun Do without proper explanation, while also writers claiming he can predict every step Mun Do makes to bring him down… so which one is it?

Then we have our lovely female lead Seo Ri - I love this woman as an individual. From the opening scene I knew her story was worth following. Strong, brave, smart. Caring for people she loves. Her strong will to survive and lead a good life was truly inspiring.

I was excited for Seo Ri's scenes outside of the romance. Her slow journey into becoming actually content and confident and not just putting the front as a defense mechanism. Her search for who she was and how to navigate in the “new” world. Her growing career and how she slowly took the spotlight with her sheer talent. Her story was truly amazing.

As for the dynamic between the main characters vs their individual stories… For most of the screen time I did not care for Cha Se Gye as a character outside of his romance with Seo Ri. I did not care about Seo Ri as a character inside her romance with Se Gye. And that clashed badly. I was half excited for the romance scenes, because of Se Gye. Seo Ri gave me the bare minimum, and the last two episodes with grand gestures and sacrifices were not enough. Yes, I loved the last two episodes, but that does not negate the lukewarm romance I’ve got from her in the previous 12… Only in the last two episodes they tried to switch the focus for the leads - we dived deeper into the company politics and schemes on Se Gye’s side, and Seo Ri’s love and devotion to Se Gye. Too little, too late.

Their relationship just felt painfully uneven for most of the drama. She was his whole life, but he was not hers. They made him unrealistically perfect, and made her beautifully realistically flawed. And these two writing types do not match well together. It makes the viewer frustrated with the well written complex character, because they keep hurting the unrealistically perfect one. So when she blamed him for her own mistakes, or pushed him away, I kept thinking - do I even want them together? When he is always the one giving in? It’s kind of annoying to watch. If we talk about character writing she is so much better and more complex. But if you talk about my delulu feels, Se Gye is the gold standard. Love her as a female character. Love him as a love interest.

And I want to state it clearly - Seo Ri’s behavior was valid and made perfect sense. I understand why her character was written like that, why she made the choices she made. Does not negate the fact their relationship did not feel equal up until the last 2 episodes. For quite a big portion of the story she was too self-absorbed. For valid reasons. But one can be right for themselves and that makes them wrong for another person. Too many times she did not learn from her past mistakes at all, did not trust him no matter what he did for her and how open he was. And again, all valid behavior taking into consideration her past, but it's also true that it was all unfair towards Se Gye.

Still, the last episode was so strong, they did make me momentarily forget about that tiny frustration I felt when watching the show.

For the other characters, the two I was especially happy with their developments: Mo Tae Hui and Cha Dal Su. For my girl - I love how they did not let her burn and become the evil second female lead. She fought as long as she thought she had a chance, and when she clearly saw it wouldn't work - she gave up that romantic relationship and entered partnership. I loved that for her. She would work hard for a man, but she would not destroy herself for one. As for Cha Dal Su - obviously an asshole, but in a realistic way. I was scared they would make him oblivious to Mun Do’s schemes, so knowing he was up to date with the shenanigans made me happy.

On the other hand, Mun Do was a huge disappointment. Flat, poorly written, annoying. A lot of things shown about him made no sense. Did he even do any work himself? He kept spying and following Se Gye and Seo Ri personally, as if he would not have people to do it for him. I wish they explored his relationship with his son more - 2 or 3 phone conversations about the kid is not enough to validate his last scene with Seo Ri. It had no emotional impact, because they did not set it up enough.

Moving strictly to the plot.

What I love about this show is how unpredictable it was on a tiny scale. You had all the cliches and they all got a royal twist to them. The scene starts, I recognize the pattern I have seen 938475645987654 times in other dramas, I know how this ends... and then it takes a sharp U-turn. The end of ep 7 and beginning of ep 8 was a good example of that: you expect them to announce they are dating and even if not announced, this coming out in public as gossip. Nope. Seo Ri had a different plan to calm the media and explain the situation. Lead up being exactly what you expect, the conclusion not so much - love it.

On a more technical part of the storytelling and choices made - love how Seo Ri did not adapt to modern time on day one. She kept the speaking mannerisms of Joseon till the end - even if it became less and less obvious. And how Se Gye was just okay with her weird behavior. For the longest time he did not know about her time travel, he just thought she was strange like that and vibed with it.

Sadly, the whole past storyline was a complete flop except for the opening scene in episode 1. Underdeveloped and honestly inconsequential for the modern story for most of the show. They went with "past is mimicking the present" and not "present is mimicking the past" and it completely changed the viewing experience.

Less of the drama flaw, more of a difference in perspectives, but I always feel so conflicted about this whole "scarifying yourself for the other person's life" plotlines... It's hard to call it selfish since the character is giving up so much, but also... it is by all means selfish. Because if they were in the position of the person "dying" they would not want their loved one to give up anything for them. So at the end of the day they are choosing what will be easier for them - give up what's important to you, save the person you love, instead of living alone with the guilt of them being gone. What the "saved" person wants and decides is not even part of the consideration. It’s a well known trope and plot development, so it’s not necessarily a dig against My Royal Nemesis alone, but I wish if the dramas decide to use it, they would present it in more depth, as a moral dilemma it is.

For the big plot twist of Seo Ri from the past actually being the original Seo Ri from the modern times - great idea, mixed execution. I wish they actually set up the existence of said twist better. For most of the drama, the majority of viewers did not even consider the possibility of the twist existing and for me that’s a bit of a failure for the storytelling. It means the twist was simply not set up, just revealed in its full glory when the timing was right. It felt more like a cope to give a happy ending, and not the well developed part of the plot.

I am also honestly shocked how much I loved the last episode. Even though I am 100% confused about the past storyline… I guess that past story has an open ending, we are not meant to know what happened to them. The little “flashback” is more of the imagined ending by the leads, and not a confirmed conclusion. Still, what a solid last episode. I am so used to being disappointed by the last episodes of the drama, I am shocked with my current level of enjoyment. Not gonna lie, the angst desperate era Se Gye went through was everything I needed in life. Seo Ri stepping up and matching Se Gye’s dedication was also something I kept craving to see. The bad guys being published, the good guys moving on with their lives. Loved the details like using the deepfake team from earlier episodes against Mun Do. Little moments that put a smile on my face.

We obviously, as always in any drama in existence, had a whole set of dumb choices from not caring for danger, misunderstandings, miscommunications, saying you will be honest with each other, to lie and hide shit next scene - the usual sins of kdramas. Things we slowly learn to accept, ignore and move on.

As for the performances - bless Im Ji Yeon and Heo Nam Jun. Will start with Heo Nam Jun since it will be shorter - this man knows how to act in love. There are some actors who are so good at showing love with their eyes and micro expressions I could easily be fooled to believe they actually love their co-stars.

As for Im Ji Yeon, this was an extremely hard role to deliver. She truly had to give us everything - tragedy, comedy, romance, mystery. She had to feel strong and imposing because of her Joseon back story, but also vulnerable and delicate because of her modern circumstances. The slow changes in her behavior, mannerisms, way of talking, moving, addressing people. Showing how the character slowly adapts to her situation while not losing the hints of the past life impact. She did not miss one beat, not one scene seemed off.

For the production - this is a typical case of good, but not memorable. Do I remember one moment that stood out because of the scenery, set design, editing, camera work? No. Be it in a good or bad way.

Side note, can we get a new hair stylist for Se Gye. Heo Nam Jun should have his hair either all up or all down - this weird side bangs… not it.

Overall, a really enjoyable watch. A lot of unexplored potential might be the reason I did not rate it higher. I was good, but it could have been great. There are some shows that exist for pure entertainment and nothing would fix the plot to make more than that. But I feel like a few changes here and there could make this drama great.

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A rare case where more jumpscares would benefit the movie.

It’s based on a really simple concept filled with really effective jumpscares, and then made it more complex and took away the majority of the potential jumpscares and I’m not sure how I feel about it.

I don’t think it gives me enough substance to see the potential depth and build that psychological horror of the situation and male lead’s real life circumstances, but since it also took away a lot of the typical horror elements, it also does not quite serve as a good horror movie. It balances between simple, but effective and complex and reflective and does not really hit a homerun in any direction.

If I had to guess? Analyze? I’d say the theme of the movie is dealing with regret and guilt. The loop is not just about checking for anomalies, but also about dealing with your inner struggles. Male lead regretted his hesitation after hearing the news from his ex-girlfriend, he regretted not helping the mother in the subway. He regretted his inaction. Hence the ending somehow makes sense for me. It’s left to various interpretations though, there is no clear cut idea what it means. And that’s kind of how the whole movie rolls - throwing stuff at you without explanation, things that feel related, but not quite. You kind of get the full picture, but not really.

Ninomiya Kazunari did a great job as Lost Man, but I have to say my favorite performance was Kochi Yamato as Walking Man. Be it for his creepy blank expression, or even creepier smile. Or his desperation and regret, fear, anger. Such a tiny bit of the plot, yet such an expressive performance.

To be honest I feel like the movie was both too annoying and not annoying enough. I should feel the frustration of the lead being stuck in the loop, but I don’t feel like he was stuck in it that long… The number of mistakes he made was minimal to what would be expected, knowing how minimal some anomalies are. At the same time I was so annoyed, because he kept lingering a bit too long in the corridor even after noticing the anomalies. What are you exactly waiting for? There is no new development going on - you see something off, you turn around right away. And yet this man was checking them all out as if he was in a haunted house in an amusement park.

It was a decent movie, maybe the issue were my expectations.

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This is what happens when the side characters and the couple are more interesting than the leads.

Itt and Pai just acted like children, when whatever misunderstanding was going on, could have been solved with one conversation (which was also proven later in the series). Like, why is a university student acting like an elementary school kid bullying his crush? Their plotline was simply not interesting, especially if we compare it with Pure and Folk.

This could have been better if either we got Pure and Folk as main characters, or if they didn't give such an interesting backstory for Pure. But what we've got was a simple main plot that felt like filler, and a complex underdeveloped side story, which felt rushed because of the lack of screen time. I truly believe there was something interesting going on with Pure. It could easily be a series with the premise of "your past mistakes don't define who you are right now, as long as you learn from them". There was some depth in his character that could have been explored more.

One thing I for sure liked is the clear message about safe sex. I truly appreciated all the "sex talks" we've got and that the characters actually went to the hospital when they thought there might be a problem. This should not be a taboo and I loved how straightforward they were about it.

The acting was... meh? Again, I was not convinced by the main couple. At some point I was sitting in front of my laptop watching an episode and said "wow... They are about to kiss. They hadn’t kissed before... had they?". I literally did not remember a kissing scene in a romance driven show, which tells me I was not convinced by whatever was happening on the screen.

Truth to be told, I dropped the show, but after some time I saw a few screenshots of Pure and Folk and picked it up again for them. Do I regret it? Not really. Do I think I would miss something if I didn't watch it? Nope. Do with that information whatever you want :)

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The good parts were truly good, but the bad parts were so awful I was annoyed more often than not.

Both the premise of the corruption and the way good guys dealt with it had a nice and refreshing twist to it, but how some extremely cliche and sometimes senseless plot points were introduced ruined the experience for me. Does it matter how good of an idea you have if you surround it with bullshit?

By episode 9 I suspected where the drama was going, but some scenes did not make any sense with my prediction. It would make the characters look too dumb, so I dropped that idea. Guess what... it did happen at the end. By episode 13 I figured out the biggest plot twist and it just got me angry, because it made no sense. And I'm not some genius for figuring it out. The writing was just predictable.

As for the characters, some were great, some were bad, some barely existed. I definitely enjoyed the detectives’ team, and the investigation aspect was my favorite part of the show. Jin Kyung and Ho Gyu stole my heart and became my favorites. Jo Tae Shik was your typical hero cop, and if it was not for Lee Min Ki's acting, I would not pay that much attention to him.

The biggest let down? Kim Seo Hui. She just never learned from any of her mistakes, jeopardizing the investigation too many times to count. For the majority of the show she had nothing to do. I am quite honestly convinced this drama could have been more or less the same even if we write her off completely. If you ask me, she should be relegated to supporting character and her image should have never been used in posters.

The big bad wolf was boring and obvious, but then it's not like they tried to hide it. I did enjoy Dong Gu quite a lot though. His desperation was interesting to watch and I wished we had seen more of him on the screen. Other shady characters were... there doing shady things? I don't know. I hated how there were excuses and explanations made for some bad characters, but not others, when they were all equal trash.

Overall, this could have been so good. There were some episodes I actually enjoyed a lot. The dynamics between detectives was gold, the rivalry between Dong Gu and Young Min was exciting, but then they ruined it all with some really cheap and lazy writing and directing choices that I just couldn't ignore.

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Tragic tale disguised as a romance.

*The title is not a spoiler. The tragedy came from the journey the characters took, not necessarily the conclusion we as viewers received. To see the conclusion, you need to watch for yourself.

Visually stunning with mediocre main characters, a villain that stole the show and side characters that saved the production. That’s how I would sum up the whole experience.

Honestly speaking, the plot was truly interesting and investing. Every character was connected to the story and had an impact on it. There were many different motivations, expectations and goals the characters wanted to achieve. The lore was surprisingly rich and well explained, compared to other Korean fantasy romance dramas. And yet, Hwal and Sang Un were so boring and poorly written, they drained all the energy out of me, no matter how exciting the events themselves might have been.

On paper, it was a gripping revenge story, showing the dark and twisted sides of fate. How far can you go to avenge the death of people you love? What if the past you thought you knew was just a shred of the whole story? Sadly, thinking and discussing these topics was more interesting than watching it on screen, because the main characters just did not deliver the emotional impact the story carries. (On that note though, I want to thank Poia for the chats that made me appreciate that aspect of the plot more).

Dan Hwal started as an interesting gray character. Nothing outstanding, not too much depth, but I could easily see him lead the story and make it believable. Sadly, each “plot twist” and explanation of past events slowly stripped away all interesting aspects of his existence. Lee Jin Wook did what he could, but the character was just a walking stone with no emotional depth, so there was not much acting needed in the first place. The complexity we saw in the past storylines was completely lost in the present one.

Sang Un was simply a saint with Stockholm Syndrome. How to describe this character? Nice, good, protective, impossibly dumb? There is “being a good person” and there is “completely disregarding your own safety, because you see the good in a person who hunts you, kidnaps you and wants to kill you”. There was nothing novel about her. She was there to be good and pure. Her priorities were often misguided - while they were supposed to present her as a kind and empathetic person, often they revealed her total lack of comprehension of any given situation. Kwon Na Ra did well acting wise, but not even an Oscar worthy performance could have saved that character.

For the romance, there was close to no chemistry between the leads. The love story we’ve got just made no sense. Why did they like each other? I can rationalize it from Hwal’s perspective. He was desperately clinging to his humanity, so Sang Un being kind to him, not treating him as the monster he was, made him care for her. What did Sang Un like about him though? The girl has some massive issues, rock bottom standards for men, or both. While the love story might not be THE focus of the show, it was a leading story between the female and male lead, and for me, it was a waste of time. It was not enough for people who want an epic romance fantasy, and too much for people who wished to watch a revenge tale.

Then we get to Ok Eul Tae, who was the most vibrant and interesting character from the whole show. The only one whose motivations made sense from the beginning till the end. I want to congratulate the writers for writing such a compelling villain, I ended up actually rooting for him and not the main duo. Lee Joon was born to take this role. The emotional rage he showed was just amazing. Whenever it was confidence, anger, fear, disappointment, desperation or hesitation - I bought it and believed it all.

The whole cast did such a good job with portraying all the supporting characters. The duality they had to present between the past and present reincarnations was not an easy job. The reincarnations had to be different enough to incorporate the external circumstances that shaped them, but also similar to each other for viewers to believe these are in fact reincarnations of the same people.

The chemistry between the cast (with the exception of the romantic aspects between the main leads) made me truly invested in the found family trope this drama presents. Watching them slowly learn how to trust each other was truly the heart of the show. I’m a sucker for the found family trope, so this was a delight to witness.

The writing was sadly not daring enough for me. The show opened with an amazing conflict for the main couple and novel perspective for the villain, but with each new revelation, new flashbacks and plot twist, they removed every refreshing element of the story, making it into the tale we already heard many times in a similar fashion. Luckily, some revelations in the last episode saved the script for me at least a little bit.

While the conclusion was disappointing, the journey itself was quite enjoyable. The writers used the trope of reincarnation to the fullest potential, giving the story many layers that were slowly discovered and explored in the episodes. They were revealing enough information for the audience to build up their own theories, without exposing the whole plot from the start. It made me as a viewer engaged, trying to puzzle the background of the character together myself.

It’s not a show that serves all the answers on the plate. They don’t give you narration with heavy expositions and explanations. The characters don’t always say out loud why they do what they do, what motivated them to behave in such a manner. The storytelling is not linear. They show glimpses of what happened in different timelines, and we need to put the whole story together ourselves. For some it will be one of the strengths of the show, for some it will cause confusion and frustration.

That said, I wish we got to see more flashbacks of the past time lines and reincarnations. Cutting down the screen time of the different monsters and using it to explore the past a little bit more would not only make the plot more digestible, but also allowed me as a viewer to understand and empathize with the characters more. It would also enhance the emotional impact the story had.

There were a few plot lines that for me became either plot holes or dead ends, but that was the result of me usually overanalyzing the plots and dramas I watch. I’m confident in saying most viewers won’t be bothered by them, maybe won’t even notice them. While they caused me a little bit of frustration, overall, they don’t take away much from the quality of the show.

Bulgasal: Immortal Souls served me a visual feast. I have to admit, the first two episodes were a little bit too much though. Most scenes had this painting quality to them, but at the same time felt visually empty and too staged - often they lacked dynamics. They became beautiful screenshots, but they were less appealing in motion. The more modern approach in later episodes fits my taste better.

While the soundtrack was not memorable, all the songs did match the scenes they were played in, elevating the mood and creating the fitting atmosphere. 4MEN’ “Leave” became my favorite song from the show, thanks to the amazing vocals.

Overall, it’s a high quality production with decent writing and good acting. It could have been an amazing tale with truly interesting and tragic conflicts, but fell into the clichés and safe storytelling in the 2nd half, trying to bring all the novelty in the last episode. It’s a show that improves from discussions and chats with other viewers, as it introduces many interesting topics that are worth taking a deeper dive into.

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It’s not even fun bad… It's just bad.

How they got this cast to do this movie is beyond me. The best part were the bad subtitles that kept calling Hyeri “he” and later Yoon Gyeom “sis”. There were just so many writing and directing choices I did not understand…

First of all, there is no set up for anything. They don’t tell, they don’t show. Half way through the movie you will still not truly understand the past events, current characters; motivations, who is on whose side and why. Not explicitly telling every little detail about the plot is fine, most viewers can put two and two together. Here… they told me close to nothing. I feel like I had to basically write 50% of the plot in my head, to make any sense of it. The vague idea of the plot in Monstrum is interesting, but that’s it - just a vague idea, a first draft of the plot…

I can't really comment about the acting, because the characters were so painfully one-dimensional a brick wall could play them and the result would be similar.

The comedy was also misplaced and just in poor taste. This is not a slapstick sitcom, so why are we getting fart jokes?

Overall… It’s been a while since I watched something so bad I was actually annoyed watching.

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"You know... I always keep to the side of the road as I walk and I sit at the back end every time I take a bus. And I always choose the corner table in a restaurant because I hate making contact with people. I'm afraid of being noticed. You wanna know why? Because I'm afraid that I'd die right after I open myself up to someone."

Honestly speaking, I knew exactly how the movie was going to end from the start. It’s a story that was told one way or another countless times. Does it take away from its quality? No. This is not a mystery thriller that relies on plot twists. It’s a story that serves as a reminder to cherish what we have, seek happiness, be open to others and fight our fears.

It’s a moving tale of a boy who was so scared of dying, he willfully gave up living and settled on just existing. Then Ma Xiao Yuan, one could say, forces herself into his little bubble, slowly making it bigger to the point when it bursts, letting him see all the things he was missing out on.

Is it a sad movie? To some extent. The topic is, what it is. Unless you want an unrealistic fairytale, it will have its ups and downs. Somehow, it was still able to end on the uplifting, yet realistic note. It helps you see all the little great things you have in your life.

The acting - amazing. Both Jackson Yee and Liu Hao Cun truly aced the delivery, with the depth and emotions that would touch any viewer.

The directing was truly great. I especially enjoyed the adventures montage - it brought a smile to my face and tears in my eyes at the same time. Such a moving and uplifting moment.

Overall, it’s for sure a watch I would recommend to everyone. It speaks of a tragic topic with such a delicacy and tact it does not leave you depressed by the end.

“Everyone in life experiences losses, which we’re all afraid of. Yet when it happens, the most powerful weapon we have against it is to live each moment to the fullest. Every second counts.”

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Overcoming yourself, striving for improvement over glory.

A story worth checking by all young and older viewers, that shows the importance of striving for improvement, patience, healthy rivalry, friendship and many more life lessons that one is never too old to be confronted with.

The main plot lines of the show are Shi Guang slowly discovering his love for Go, his rivalry with Yu Liang and Chu Ying’s search for The Divine Move. The main stories are surrounded by countless amazing side plots that make the character grow, mature, learn and reflect on their actions. We witness many different hardships characters have at different points of their lives - each serving us important life lessons. I feel like I learned so much, not only from the main characters, but also all the supporting ones.

While I enjoyed most of the stories told, I could not help but feel disappointed with how The Divine Move story was concluded. Loved the message behind it, and it truly fits the show perfectly, but the execution seemed lacking - it did not impact me as much as I hoped it would.

All characters were unique and served a purpose in the story - it goes not only for main ones, but all the supporting, or at times even guest roles. Ones that showed up for two or three episodes had a visible impact on the main characters and the plot even long after they were gone.

Shi Guang was a hot tempered and impulsive child - this being both an advantage and a disadvantage of his, depending on the situation. Sometimes making decisions on the spot is the only way to move forward, but at times it might lead to severe consequences. Watching this kid mature, gain more grounded and reasonable confidence in his skill was an amazing journey, full of emotional scenes that made me cry my eyes out a few times.

On the other side, we had the complete opposite - calm, collected and reserved Yu Liang. Probably my favorite from the show. His character development was less extreme and, for lack of a better word, dramatic, but I admired his love for learning. Watching him put developing his skills over pride of winning matches was in some strange way touching, since many of us would not be able to do that.

Even though these two barely shared screen together, their chemistry as characters was undeniable. I am truly amazed how I could still see the massive influence they have on each other, on the decisions they are making and progress they are striving for, even when they did not really see each other that often.

Behind a lot of the developments was Chu Ying - true master of Go. His admiration for the game was inspiring. With his guidance, Shi Guang was able to improve, while he himself was able to rediscover the true joy and meaning behind the game of Go. That said, he was one of my least favorite characters. At times, his childish behavior was too much, especially since he was supposed to be older than the two main teenagers. I was also truly not on board with some decisions he made, as the consequences were mostly negative and could have been avoided.

Acting wise - truly phenomenal. Especially Hu Xian Xu. I was amazed by his performance. Not one scene, not one line, not one emotion was a misdelivery. The diversity in his acting and the natural way he presented the internal conflicts the character was facing just blew me away.

The whole cast did not disappoint. Even the supporting and guest cast presented the level of acting worthy of the main characters. Sure, the children acting as the young main cast could have been more natural here and there, but for such a young cast, I was still truly impressed with what they presented.

I have close to no complaints in terms of production and directing. Some CGI seemed excessive and the makeup on Zhang Chao was a bit distracting, but except for that - everything just clicked well together.

“Our Adventure” is such a bop, every time it played at the end of the episode I wanted to drop everything and go on an unknown journey. Just the initial tune had quite an impact on my mood, making me want to try a bit harder in whatever I was going to do - be it work related or even a simple hobby.

Overall, I would not say it’s a must watch for everyone, since there is no drama that fits all tastes, but it’s for sure a must try for everyone. Whenever you feel like it’s something you will enjoy or not, give it a shot - you might be surprised with the result.

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