Yellen

In episode 2: are they referencing particular lakorns in the scene when Thee asks the chatbot for advice? It is hilarious!

Right? Why do people (like the writer of this article!) assume that if you are single you are obviously sad and want to cry? The writer has not said another word since the comment above: the backlash this article is getting is rather fun to watch!

I am single and proud to be!

I was about to drop this halfway through the first episode and then I glanced at your review and realized I was taking this too seriously: I had trouble dealing with Thee's OTT behaviour! I'll give it another go.🥰
BTW, beautifully written review! Well done! Seems professional....

I am so cringing inside now and I've seen only 5min of the first episode. Talk about a dramatic encounter? Has not happened yet. But the dramatic introduction of Thee? A huge room, a big shallow pool and a bathtub in the centre of it with two servants (valets? butlers?) standing in the water, while Thee, sitting in the bath, is scowling threateningly/seriously/constipatedly (choose the right answer) and we are privy to his glistening muscular body with a dragon/wolf (what else?) tattoo. We are not supposed to take it seriously, right?🤣🤣🤣

No, no, no and NO!
Maybe you do but most people don't. Life is hard enough as it is so we all need something fun and fluffy and happy to make us feel better not worse about ourselves. Unless you are going for the "some people are worse off than I am so there is that!" angle?
Whichever it is, this is not a good valentine's day article! Most of those dramas/films are very good but are definitely not what you'd expect to watch on Valentine's day. Or you should have been more precise in your title adding "for singles who want to cry"!

(spoilered for length)
That's what criticism is like in the 21st century, my friend!
I read what you wrote all right. Yours is the kind of a comment I see often here. "If you don't like the show, don't put it down, don't denigrate it just don't watch it!" I am all for being kind, nice and polite, even when the others are not. When people criticize shows, in their inept, uneducated and rude manner, it is still criticism. The real critics these days are a few and far between, our attention span is worse than the goldfish's (think Dory in Finding Nemo!lol), we speak in short meaningless soundbites. Even on this site, just glance through the reviews of any show especially a popular one: see how many reviews are one sentence or a bunch of emojis.
So they say "this show sucks", and when this kind of comment is frequent, even without any depth or argument, it is an indication for the producers to maybe rethink the way they are making these shows.
There is this saying which goes something like this: "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything". And while it is a laudable emotion, it is not really good for anyone. People need to use their common sense and think before speaking but say things that need to be said, they must. I think.

Surprising secret? Only for Chiaki. We have the Superman/Clark Kent set up here with a wig and of course Chiaki does not recognize him. If only Chiaki seemed nice and lovable but in the first episode he is being a jerk to everyone and his obsession over AE is just creepy, he's scuttling around hunched over....
I am 15min in and I want to drop this: I don't like Chiaki. Not one little bit. I hope he gets better....

On the other hand, if everyone is treating everything positively, without criticism, without pointing the defaults and encouraging them to do better, they'll just keep on doing the same thing without realizing that what they are doing is not up to par? Wouldn't that be worse? Just look at the amount of BLs Thai producers have been churning out pandering to young adult women's tastes with NSFW scenes, hot bodies and no plot to speak of. How many of these BLs are memorable?
Nobody is hating on anyone, just asking them to do better!
For example...
Would you consider me hating you if I pointed out that your syntax is non existent: I was taught that phrases start with a capital letter, yours don't. I do apologize if I am mistaken : it's been a long time since I finished school so maybe English grammar changed...!

I just started it and so far (ep 1) it is cute though full of tropes which I don't mind.
The mother buying the girlfriend off and she accepts! That is not common!
The main couple of actors look like a twin understudies of Ahn Hyo Seop and Park Eun Bin.
Who doesn't like going to the hairdresser's and coming out with exactly the same hairstyle as when going in (same length, same everything) with everyone saying how much better you look now? And do women really wear stilettos to office in SK?
On to ep.2 and they broke up but he came back as her boss and won't leave her in peace. Isn't this workplace harassment? It is supposed to be cute but...HE IS HER BOSS and usually there are consequences when you say NO to your boss.. So she either quits her job or lodge in a complaint of harassment because he does not stop when she asks him to. And then of course our FL had a horrible childhood with an abusive father. This whole K drama representation of parents is worrisome: they are rarely nice, they are either abusive, controlling or overambitious and the kids suffer. No wonder the birthrates in SK have hit rock bottom. Who in their right mind would want to bring the child into this cutthroat world...

I simply abhor the vertical format. And yet, I am watching this. Why? Because I wanted to see Han Se Jin in something else after Nobleman Ryu's Wedding where I found him just outstanding. Here, he is good but too cute and looking too soft...he is more of a comic relief character. Nothing wrong with that!
And the FL? Looks like the twin sister of the actress from Goblin: same round face, same hairstyle....uncanny! So I had a lot of trouble concentrating on this drama....

This is exactly my type of drama! Thanks for the explanation!

I just scrolled down the comments and the drama is unanimously considered excellent: I could not find one bad comment in 200 first ones.
So can someone explain the ratings? Teens not liking it because it lacked romance, flowing dresses and men with very long hair (i.e. c dramas)?

Losing weight for a role when you are as thin (too thin already!) as she is worrisome and extremely unhealthy.
It also says a lot about Korean society and the beauty imperatives for everyone: all young stars, both male and female, look malnourished and even starved. The price to pay for fame? I hope it is worth it for their sake....
This is another toxic gossip article made to influence young people.

Where is this site going to?

Zero chemistry in spite of the cutest man around (i.e. Ikeda Masashi) . He is gay but got rejected in high school so he forswore love (and sex: just see how a 29 yr old man scare-jumps when the other guy proposes a kiss).....dropped! I cannot stand victorian virgin stories!
There are a lot of asian dramas about 30 year old virgin women. So why not virgin gay very goodlooking men?

I have never seen two Korean actors who had more chemistry than these two. This is bromance, chinese style! ;-)

Lovely article, as always, but....
Too many BLs on this list and not enough other j dramas which deserve just as much to be on it! For example: KissxKissxKiss, Double, Midnight Diner (only season 1), Parallel School Days, Nagatan To Aoto, Watashi wo Moratte and , probably the weirdest Japanese drama ever, Gudetama. And of course many more!
It seems to me that only japanese BLs get exposure on MDL which is a shame (because J dramas are an incredible stream of originality equal to none!) but I guess that is what the loudest (I mean, the most active) users watch. And my favourite J drama on your list is Taikan Yaho!
BTW...
Alice In Borderland is not a quick watch: 3 seasons of long episodes. If that is a criteria for a quick watch than every japanese drama fits the bill.

I just watched the first episode but the clichés killed it for me and I was going to drop it, until... it was so interesting to read your review that I realized I may have not been watching it from the right point of view. This is a teen love story not an adult one!

Classic JBL set up: one small (and shy and soft) boy and one big (tall, strong, protective), one is afraid of water falling from the sky (and how right he is: one drop knocks out his contact lenses - I've been wearing contacts for over 30 years, never happened to me! I am not lucky at all!) but the other one swoops in like a knight in shining armour and helps him cross the courtyard....so much heteronormative victorian - in spirit only: they did not have contacts back then!;-) - clichés!
I am loving this! More please!

I've been out of the BL loop for over a year so I don't know what's been released.
That's why I asked! Is this not supposed to be a romance? Or is it just secondary?

I was wondering if this was BL or not since it is not marked in the tags above. But when you open the tags, "gay relationship" is marked as a spoiler?!?!? Why? Is it still worth the watch?