Reviews

neo hou is the best in here

so sad for neo, evil editing team program unreasonable, It's very sad that Neo is the most reliable, but he is treated badly here, those who just watch feel tired…..
I hope he won't go to a show that treats him badly like here, it's very unreasonable, I hope the program team doesn't do the same thing in season 7 to other actors.

love for neo
neo, neo , neo , neo,


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Winter Sonata is a beautiful, nostalgic and addictive romantic melodrama.
The first few episodes are really adorable, love the characters of both the leads, I like them both as actors.
Then from the middle to the end (even though its still beautiful) the story drags a lot. The pace is really really slow and situations repeat themselves one way or the other to the point that you have to ff to get on with it.
But for anyone who likes a romantic melodrama, this is not to be missed. I have already watched it twice and probably will next time too when I need to watch a sad and romantic story with a nice ending.
Mind you all the cliches are there, the dreaded love triangle, terminal illness, birth secrets and many more. But still its a beautiful watch.

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no expectations no disappointment

what was this I came to see this because of FLUKE AND NIKE but what the hell this is UGH I want to like it but I just DON'T LIKE IT I didn't meet the expectations I had of it.
What went through the mind of the producer and director when they made it.
An angel coming out of a TREE? I knew that elves, fairies, etc. live in the trees, but this is the first time I've heard of angels in the trees.
The special effects are exaggerated, not to mention the sound.
Not even the NC scene was good angel krit reminded me of pharm at that moment with the haircut and everything and that scene died there and we are talking about FLUKE who can achieve great scenes and proof of this is RED WINE IN THE DARK NIGHT.
I expected something better knowing that it was a series by the same writer as TRIAGE AND MANER OF DEAD and knowing that I was part of the production but this is a total disappointment, if this is the same as the novel I will say that the writer did it in a day where all his imagination had gone to create such nonsense and I hope the next book that is going to be adapted is better than this. It is not worth that it lasts an hour and more than 30 minutes is more than enough for this kind of show. And that I waited for all the episodes to see if it improved but apart from the great performance of NIKE Y PON there is nothing else.

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I came to the show right after watching together with me (the prequel which aired second). The first few episodes were good though it was an adjustment as none of the side characters were present for this season except Yihwa who was the shoes focus. The more I watched, the less I wanted to see. The side characters (meaning the friends) were awful and the villains were ridiculous. Everyone was silly and bordered in stupidity while the main characters (Cho, Yihwa, Korn, and Knock) all seemed serious. It felt like the show didn't know what tone it wanted. Whimsical and goofy or romantic. As others have said there is a mystery element and a plot twist. The twist doesn't miraculously make the show better but by the time I realized I was in too deep I wanted to know who the bad guy was. Korn and Knock are a bit stiff here since the actors weren't as comfortable yet, I assume. The chemistry is still there though so if you want to watch just for them it is a tough but sweet ride. For those coming from together with me just proceed with an open mind and some caution. This is a big step down from together with me but worth it to see more of the characters you liked.

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The Dark Side of the Moon.

This drama is about how a power couple that is well matched in terms of cunning, ambition and capability scale the upper echelons of banking and finance during 1930s Shanghai. The narrative vividly captures the wild, morally ambiguous, highly speculative, wheeling and dealing nature of the mafia dominated banking and finance industries during that early period of industrialisation.

Cheng Yizhi is a scrappy, enterprising, self educated young orphan with a knack for numbers and finance who is raised by a kindly shopkeeper. He starts out in a lowly position at a bank but his talent propels his rapid advancement to become the protege of banking magnate Huang Ruhong. Wu Lizi is the pampered daughter of a distinguished banker whose world falls apart when her father is framed and commits suicide. Hell bent on revenge, she marries Yizhi and ruthlessly uses his access to banking circles to investigate her father's downfall. Mutual lack of communication and a terrible, irreversible decision by Lizi ruins their marriage but leads to a very rewarding business partnership where they build a bank together.

Wu Lizi is one of the most selfish, devious, manipulative, ruthless and utterly charming female protagonists I have come across. It is such a treat to get complex and fascinating female characters like Lizi. That is why I kept watching this even though at one point I was enraged and disappointed to the point of almost dropping. I still don't like how they wrote Lizi to lash out so viciously and vindictively with such heavy consequences but I am glad I kept going because she really moved me with her stoic remorse and acceptance later on. Even though there were some rough edges to Cai Weijing's performance, overall she is tough, willful, curiously vulnerable and so charismatic that I could literally see how she tied Yizhi, Charlie and Xu Du up into knots emotionally.

Zhang Xincheng delivered a most excellent performance in this drama as Cheng Yizhi, a cynical character that well understands the dark side of the moon due to his upbringing on the rough side of town. So he is the ultimate nemesis of dark characters like Huang Ruhong because he can get into their heads and narrowly manages to stay one step head of them. In sharp contrast, he seeks the light in all of his dealings and finances some of the most promising industrialists of the day. At the onset Yizhi goes toe to toe with crooked businessmen and corrupt politicians with equally scheming and wily tactics. But as the story advances and his dark secrets are revealed, the character is whitewashed and becomes too perfect, so understanding with such shiny plated plot armor that I had to roll my eyes. I needed more flaws or to see him be a little bit petty or selfish and to play dirty sometimes. Instead Charlie, a far more interesting and lovable character rises to the occasion to do all the slightly shady things that need to be done in order to stymie their unscrupulous rivals. Nonetheless the lead couple has superb chemistry and the way their relationship blossoms from mistrust and suspicion into an incredible partnership on multiple levels is one of the drama's strengths.

The business subplots are quite interesting, well written and the financial concepts are kept at a simple enough level for laymen. The characters however are less well written and notably Lizi, is not consistently written. For such a smart character she does some retarded things that can only be put down to sloppy writing. Huang Ruhong's somewhat creepy and unfathomable hard on for Yizhe is also unconvincing and not in character for the leader of the criminal underworld. Indeed the true love triangle in this drama is the one between Ruhong, Yizhe and Lizi. This was such a promising antagonist at the start but gets sidelined as the ending arc digresses into yet another patriotic fight the Japanese invaders plot. I would have preferred to see a more satisfying cat and mouse takedown of this smart antagonist play out properly. Towards the later episodes, many key characters are gratuitously killed off to squeeze out the obligatory tears expected of a Republican period drama. This backfires as I only felt very sad for two of the deaths which only highlights that the other characters were two dimensional ones that I never got invested in.

There are many enjoyable and unique aspects to this drama that make it worth watching even though it falls down on messy plot, sloppy character writing and a lame ending arc. Charlie was my favorite character and his wit, style and wisdom saved the show. Overall this is just a 7.5 for me despite strong acting by the leads. And MVP Charlie (Wang Zijian).

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Just completed Moon River. At first I had no interest in watching but after I read some comparisons to Boys over Flowers I had to give it a shot. Yes, there are many similarities to BOF and lots of the elements from their situations, characters and general story line. Did I enjoy it? Yes. At first the toe socks and hair was killing me on the main female lead but I later gave it up and just began to enjoy her uniqueness. The main male leads are cute and entertaining as well and I enjoyed watching their growth. The supporting cast (roommates, best friends, evil friends) etc. were good and each had their likes and dislikes. Some acting scenes were cringe worthy and just seemed blahh "come on what kind of acting is that." But after awhile you just accept it and move on. Lots of fun, funny, cute, life experiences bundled in this series. The ending; hmmmm though OK could have been way better and should have tied up lose ends on other couples. Did not care too much for the ending and think it could have gone the extra mile to wrap things up. Is it entertaining? Yes. Would I say it was better than BOF? Jury is still out. Both had their charms and differences. I think Moon River had less curve balls but was a bit more mature in certain situations. Couple of sweat moments. Not the greatest but definitely not the worst either. I think if you are a fan of BOF, Hana Yori Dango, Meteor Garden tv series etc. I think you would enjoy this type of series as well. It's all about entertainment anyway and the series was entertaining.

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That was a proper rom-com with actual plot, good pacing, characters that you learn to appreciate and relationships you root for. That said, it still leaves me craving for more.

I’m not even mad about bls delivering all the cliche tropes, romances based on misunderstanding, the amazing soft angst, the naive lead falling for the grumpy lead that we’ve got in the post from straight romance stories. These plots sell, these plots attract the biggest audience and these plots are simply entertaining. And this is kind of what we’ve got from the Unintentional Love Story.

It was a fun journey to follow. While Ji Won Young was a painfully frustrating character at first, I cannot deny - this child grew on me. Surprisingly, he delivered some of the best and most mature lines out of all the characters. Yoon Tae Joon was one of the soft emo guys that makes your heart ache just the right way. Dong Hee and Ho Tae were rays of sunshine impossible not to love.

Truth to be told, at some point I started to be more curious and invested in this second couple, and I cannot stop myself from being quite disappointed with the lack of screentime and development, and only hope for a separate show that will follow their story.

The quality of acting depends on which actor you will focus on. Personally I enjoyed Han Do Woo's and Won Tae Min's performances the most (which was also one of the reason I enjoyed following their characters’ story more).

Cha Seo Won did an amazing job with the “I’m hurt, but I want to hide it and control my facial expression, but I still need to show it enough for the audience to see” scenes. Moments when we need to both clearly see what emotions the character is feeling, but also understand they want to hide it. On the other hand, Gongchan delivered a deer caught in headlights acting - mostly looking confused or scared with his pretty big eyes.

The kissing was basically like trying to stick two magnets together by the same pole. I could literally see how much force they had to put into getting so close together. I laughed... badly.

Production was great. Vast improvement from many k-bls. Would appreciate a little bit less smoothing filter on the actors’ faces though.

Overall, for such a nice watch. Not as emotionally touching as I wished it would, but something I for sure do not regret watching and would probably recommend others to check out.

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Almost gave up on this...

Was struggling with this one for a bit and put it on hiatus twice. Only managed to finish it 2 mths after i started watching it. In the beginning this gave me "The Guest" vibes, which i disliked because that storyline just went around in circles for me. And things were a little draggy and predictable with the entire "main characters with parent issues" theme, which i must say seems to be a recurring theme in a lot of Asian dramas.

It wasn't until episode 7 where things got more interesting with the plot. What seemed predictable wasn't, and while i disliked some parts which were over-dramatic (too much screaming...) overall i liked the message that this drama was trying to put across. Which was to make the audience rethink whether it is better to be dead than alive in suffering.

The ending scene was perfect imo and i thoroughly enjoyed the acting from the three main characters. Although I do wish the Professor's character was written to be a bit more eccentric and less whiney rich boy laden with the guilt of his forefathers. His relationship with Ujin could've been expanded a lot more.

I would recommend watching this if you are someone with quite a bit of patience and can get all the way to ep 7...

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Hwayi reviewed by Hwayi hehe

My friend suggested that it would be cute to see Hwayi review Hwayi so here I am.

Getting into this review, for this movie, I did not check the ratings (Like Rated 15+, 18+) and jumped straight into it. Let me just say, I was shocked but not pleasantly. I realized from this movie, that I'm not into really dark things. This was simply way too dark for me.

Story: The story actually wasn't the bad. It looked good. And it looked exactly what I like to watch. However, I was totally wrong. There was too much death. Literally every five seconds a "dad" would die, it felt like. There was just so much stuff thrown at me that I couldn't catch up. And there's a brief butt naked scene where it showed after the raping of a young girl, that literally scared/disgusted me. I really should've checked the rating before watching it.

I feel really bad for Hwayi for having to grow up underneath these maniacs. I do remember liking one of the dads a lot but everyone else was just not it for me.

Acting: The acting was amazing! Yeo Jin Goo pulled off a splendid performance at just the young age of 16. And of course, the other actors as well did amazing.

This is not a movie for people who can't deal with blood, gore, extreme profanity.

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Didn't really like Zhang Yu Jian character in this show. He was too immature and like a child. Yes, there was a gradual improvement in character, but it was very very little. Even till the very end, I did not see a big improvement.

That decision to disappear for 2 years at the end without a word to You You was just plain immature. I admit that the decision to leave the entertainment scene and let the online vitriol calm down was acceptable, but that does not mean you leave the girl you like in the lurch, without any word whatsoever. Love is about facing the ups and downs of life together （有难同当）. The mature thing to do is the talk to You You and discuss with her what he intends to do and see how they can overcome the adversity together.

I much prefer the character Zhang Yu Jian played in LCDF (Yan Mo), where he is much more mature and responsible. Seeing this 360deg change in the character he plays here makes me irritated.

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One of the reasons I loved this drama is because it subtly tackles mental health. Yes, I know this is considered as a family drama but how they personified and tackled depression was so close to reality that it almost hit home to me. Will elaborate more in a while.

I first watched this drama without knowing anything about it except for the cast. I heard Uee was offered the role first as Seo Jian but declined, and no matter how much I love Uee I'm so glad she did decline because OMG SHIN HYE SUN IS GOLD. I really love her acting style. She's an outstanding actress and I cannot imagine anyone else as Seo Jian. The role was made for her. period.

However, I would like to say that I'm not the biggest fan of the love line between the FL and ML. I might even say that I like them better when they were siblings. Not too fond also of the relationship of the second leads. I don't know why, but no matter how cute they were together something felt off for me but I can't seem to point my finger on it. Actually my favorite couple in this series is Seo Jiho and Choi Seohyun. They just look so cute together and they grew their relationship more naturally as they spend more time together. I find it very unfortunate that they ended up as just friends but at the same time I understand also why it must be done as it will just be so wrong if they ended up together because first they will be at the same boat as their older siblings and second they will be in-laws when Seo Jian and Choi Dogyeong gets married. My second favorite couple here in this series is actually Choi Jaesung and Noh Myeonghui because even though they did not have the best relationship during their marriage you can still see that they did marry for love and they still have a bit of respect towards each other during their time together. I personally believe that their greed got the best of them sometime during their marriage and that's where it started to go wrong BUT they still did love each other they just had different priorities in life but I'm glad they found their way back. I mean it's hard to believe that they didn't love each other when you have three children together :)

As I've mentioned earlier, I believe depression was part of the theme of this drama also. Throughout this series, there were three characters who had depression (actually more but will focus on these three): Choi Jaesung - Andropause (male menopause); Seo Jian - Suicidal; Seo Taesu - passive suicidal.

Out of these three, Choi Jaesung was the mildest case, however it only meant that if it wasn't prevented properly there was a possibility that it could've worsen. I deeply empathize with Seo Taesu, as in his case it was built up over the years after his family started treating him different due to the change in their financial position. It was actually sad to see that because he was so down that he wanted to die but in no means wants to kill himself. And Lastly, Seo Jian. She did attempt to commit suicide and I'm glad she did recover fast. It goes to show that all of us are vulnerable it's just that others have a stronger facade than most. Out of all the family dramas I have watched, this drama had the most realistic depiction of depression. So realistic in fact that I think they should've placed a trigger warning for the audience.

Overall, it was fun watching this drama. The ending was satisfactory, it was realistic as I think after everything that have happened they all needed time to heal their own wounds.

PS: One of the worst grandpas ever in a series: Noh Yangho!!!

PPS: Other mental issues I've observed in this drama:

Dependent Personality - Noh Myeonghui, Choi Seohyun
Inferiority Complex - Seo Jisu, Noh Jinhee
Manipulative behavior - Noh Yangho
Victim Mentality - Noh Myeonghui

I believe there are more but I'll stop here for now :)

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This movie is produced for those who keep whining that Japan doesn’t make good romantic stories.

The plot is centered on the Japanese upper class in 1912, an era that’s very rare to find in Japanese or Asian productions in general which made me appreciate its use. Although the beginning was a bit slow, the love story was done quite well and let me tell you, this is not one of those cheesy stories where everything gets resolved with “I love you” and “I love you too”. This is a mature romance that goes in depth of emotions and struggles to reach its peak. While watching the romantic developments, you will get a taste of flowing innocence, painful denial, endless suffering, forbidden encounters as well as hunting desire that led the storyline into dark yet enjoyable corners because it was one of the basic chapters of this movie.

The story’s developments weren’t always right or very well done. Actually, some of them felt predictable and quite bothersome to follow such as familial quarrels and the barriers against the main leads’ relationship. However, if we judge it by the overall atmosphere; the screenwriting was able to pull it off and create a pleasant and mature love story.

The acting department was almost flawless. As usual, Tsumabuki Satoshi was able to get complete control of his role like he always does; that guy is an astonishing actor indeed. It doesn’t matter what kind of role you give him, he will manage to shine in it no matter how badly written it is. On the other hand, Takeuchi Yuko happens to be an expert in romantic stories. Of course, I am not denying her acting skills but if you saw her other romance oriented productions, you will notice that she always manages to create gripping chemistry with her partners and this movie wasn’t any different.

Spring Snow is all about chemistry, so if Satoshi and Yuko didn’t pull it off the way they did; everything about this movie would’ve fallen apart. It was so consuming and very different from other Japanese productions; from now on, that’s how chemistry is supposed to be done. Moreover, the characters’ development was quite neat and enjoyable overall even if some of them felt quite messed up at times.

You should watch this if you’re looking for mature romance, great acting and astounding chemistry. Needless to say, if you’re expecting something fluffy and cute then you’re definitely in the wrong place.

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Better than expected, less cringe than expected and some fluff...

With WeTV it's always a gamble, either we get crap or we get medicore and only sometimes we get something good. In this case I would say it was "good". While the first two episodes did not catch me it got better with every episode after but of course the finale did disappoint me. Not because it was very bad, it was just lazy writing. Solving conflicts with drama and of course the bad guy had to die and lots of fanservice. This could have been resolved in a better way.

In this case I won't be too tough on them, because besides some cringe, they depicted the characters very well, all of them grow throughout the series and there were even subtle moments which I like the most. If facial expression and eye contact can tell a story without words, it's perfect for me. Compared to "Monster Next Door" this was lighyears ahead. Both actors excelled in their roles and they felt so much more into it too. The side-couple was the secret star of this show, because while they had not so much screentime, they did the best with it and the "cat and mouse game" was funny to watch.

Other reviews will depict all the ins and out, but I'm quite busy today so I will keep this short. Cinematography, music, settings, props and so on was top notch. I felt entertained and storywise they put some thought into it. The only shortcoming is the finale which felt rushed in the drama-department, because they needed time for the fanservice. But overall worth a watch.

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How much can one's skin, one's face tell you…

Under the Skin is a crime drama that revolves around two main characters Shen Yi (Tan Jian Ci) and Du Cheng (Jin Shi Jia) and how they solve cases together. Shen Yi was an art professor but he joins Criminal investigation Detachment of Beijiang as a forensic artist and helps them with his great observation skills and his professional art skills. Captain Du Cheng bears a grudge against Shen Yi as he once drew a portrait for his undercover friend who later died.

The balanced tension between these two where one carries guilt and the other carries a past grudge was visible right from the beginning but since this combo was tied together by circumstances it was gonna be fun watching how the latter story progresses. Their bond that develops over time and the trust that comes along as they solve mysteries together is the precious part.

Favorite lines from the drama »»»
—"Humans give intriguing expressions when they're alive but once they're dead, their face becomes so dull"
—"Dead men are expressive too. Sometimes it's even reliable than a living person"

A major highlight of the drama are "portraits". If not for this drama, I could've never expected art is this deep and they can actually recover faces with such less hints. I appreciate the amount of art and portraits in this drama. It made things more realistic and reasonable. It's about the details that makes this drama more interesting.

This has a total of 10 cases including 9 cases of the present and 1 case from past 7 years ago which are intriguing, unpredictable and unique. The best part is that their stories will not disappoint you at all.

Acting — Tan Jianci as the invincible portraitist is the perfect actor for this role. His minute expressions everytime he is drawing or sketching is just flawless. The way he acts as if he is observing things looks so real and he is like totally into his character. Jin Shijia is also good acting as the cool leader of the team. Even all those guest actors who acted only for 2-3 episodes when their case was going on were so on point. I was touched by some of their stories and no doubt their acting played an important part.

Okay so overall, I enjoyed the drama totally. I was looking forward to the revelation of all those cases and I liked the stories in them. The acting is perfect and I recommend this thriller mystery drama that has little sprinkles of bromance along.

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