Reviews

Fun Watch, Bad Writing

Was this series easy to watch and have great chemistry? Yes. Was the writing good and did I like the characters? No.

This series was really entertaining if you just turn off your brain and watch without thinking much but the second you sit down with it, you realize how toxic many parts of this was.

I hate most of the time when people say stuff like this, but if Pat was a man she would have been the villain of the story because she was SOOO TOXIC and OBSESSIVE to an unhealthy level. Her character was one of the main flaws of this series but somehow I still rooted for her? So maybe that's an issue on my part lmao.

Pat was also horrible with boundaries and some of her advances came off very creepy and bordered on SA. I also don't understand why GL series still have characters kissing the other when the other is almost black-out drunk, it's 2025, we can do better.

You also couldn't pay me to care about any of the side characters, especially Nam. I was so close to dropping this series at one point because Nam wouldn't leave Pat & Prem alone and it was just getting repetitive and annoying.

However, I would recommend watching this series to most GL watchers just because of how entertaining it was. Despite my complaints, I was sat every week for this mess and I feel like this would be a very easy binge. Also the leads had great chemistry and I hope to see them in a future series with better writing.

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This turned out to be a big dissapointment. I have to say that I really love the idea of the Joalert. Before it was aired, when I read the plot I thought that it was indeed a cool idea and that it would be a great drama. I was thinking that the love alert would have many paths to take( you could make a romantic story or go from romantic to something really fucked up). Indeed, they do throw in some protests or mass suicide or a rapist but they were just a few seconds from a long time of basically nohing.
I see no sense in Jo Jo s family story and trauma. It s true that I haven t seen until now in a drama a kid that survived that kind of a thing but, again, it had almost no connection with the story. Scenes must mesh together but in Love Alarm they are like different stories put blindly together. The evil cousin and aunt, her difficulties and how the cousin kept saying that she killed her parents were ABSURD.
How Sun Oh stole, really stole his best friend s crush was a really bad move, it s hard to love him after he did that as a character. He s lucky that he is better looking so it makes you forget how childish and unacceptable his actions are. I understand a love triangle but that usually happens after each guy crushes on the girl but kinda not knowing about the other or they are enemies. In the end only they fight over her. Here? As soon as he hears about Hye Young s crush, Sun Oh goes immediately and kisses her because??? On what basis did he fall for her? He didn t for fuck s sake. It s something that leaves you stupid. Like what the hell did just happen?
What s the purpose of the scene where after the accident she couldn t contact him and went to his house and everything? I found it useless. Just time lost that could ve been replaced with some full of sense scenes. And after that the breakup. Why? Why?? Jesus.
I really liked Deok Goo though.
Another thing is the 8 episode release. Again. Why? Can t we have it the old kdrama way with 16/ 20 or whatever? I really hate the Netflix involvement here.
In conclusion this is bad. Really bad. I m not sure if I ll watch the sequel (if there will be one). God, I m so upset over it

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I stumbled across this show on Youtube and I have to say, it's scary how well Youtube knows me ...

I absolutely adore this show! In the beginning it felt very much like the stereotypical Asian young-love-drama (e.g. how the two protagonists meet), however, it's done in such an over-the-top way that it's ironic and funny again.

The story is very light-hearted with almost no drama, and definitely no melodrama. The characters are well designed and wonderfully flawed - all of them. Even the male lead (who often is portrayed as flawlessly perfect in dramas) has a number of weaknesses that are believable. Sure, some of those are a bit cliché (the anti-social science genius with an 187 IQ but no idea who the Four Heavenly Kings are; neither in mythology nor pop-culture), but it's still done in a fun and adorable way. A great part of the show is actually about Gu Weiyi trying to eradicate his weaknesses in secret in order to appear cooler and more appealing to Situ Mo. These are often shown in little extra scenes at the end of (almost) each episode and are absolutely fun to watch.

I had a few miniscule issues with the show though, the biggest one being the portrayal of the rigid and overall nasty "Haigui" (=Chin. slang for people who return to China after studying abroad). According to most C-dramas, Haiguis are usually arrogant and aloof. Since I've seen this so often I guess there must be an iota of truth behind this stereotype, though I believe if you're an arrogant Haigui you probably were arrogant before going abroad ... The level of rigidness the Haigui in this drama displays tops even the infamous German rigidness - take it from a GBC ;)

Oh, and lights ... I've seen way worse, but still: PLEASE TURN OFF THE LIGHTS WHEN YOU LEAVE A ROOM! And if you're working at a laptop, and all the overhead lights are on already, do you really need to turn on another desk lamp? #SaveTheEnviroment

Sorry, I got side-tracked ... Here are my top 3 reasons why I recommend this show:
3. All characters are well-crafted and have their individual flaws that they try to overcome, which makes them all the more loveable and relatable. And like in real-life, there are no cartoonish evil people.
2. Since I am horrible at detecting on-screen chemistries, I'll say this instead: the two lead actors work very well together and are visually a cute couple. What's also great is the way they used some of these actors' features like the immense difference in height between the two for comic relief.
1. It has one of the funniest love-confessions I've seen so far, although you'll have to wait till EP 11.

Wow, I wrote way more than I intended ... if you made it this far, THANK YOU very much for reading! Now if you'll excuse me, I need to get a Roomba and name it Yuanyuan (find out in EP 7).

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A Strange Love Story?

What a morose show of human frailties in relationships. This show started and was promoted, as the story of Ji Ho and Se Hee. The beginning was interesting, and I looked forward to watching how they would break through the walls and become a real couple. The contract marriage concept is not new, but I’ve never seen it before with two completely dysfunctional people.

I really liked this show, but the storyline drove me crazy. The Bok Nam scenario was a disaster, just embarrassing and maybe even sickening. It takes up half the show and means nothing. Ji Ho, a college graduate at the top of her class falls into the trap of an obviously creepy younger guy? She tells him about her marriage arrangement and doesn’t even think twice about it. She has little self-control, except with her fake husband. Even though she has already given thought to something being strange about Bok Nam, she sits there on a park bench and drinks beer with him. She marvels over his ability to woo the girls with his cheesy lines. It makes me think she would fall for any guy that has a good line. She’s impulsive and reckless but strong of character? It just doesn’t work that way. They have made her look easy and that’s not attractive on her. It was just as easy to see where this was headed. But, then came the fake husband to the rescue. So, what does this normal sane woman do? She goes back to work at the same place. Sits on the couch with her husband in a conciliatory position and listens to Bok Nam’s dribble. Bok Nam even goes through his stalking and manipulative thoughts, but still, they sit there and listen to him calling them names. But suddenly, Bok Nam is a nice guy again and Ji Ho is apologizing to him. Really? YOLO? Demeans her husband, calls her stupid for being with him, and stalks her, and he is a nice guy again? Wait, he is even giving her love advice? Why in the world would she care what Bok Nam thinks? It makes her look even more clueless and less attractive. Bok Nam spends all his time hitting on Ji Ho and telling her how much he likes her. She knows it, her husband knows it, but she still goes back to work with him on a one-on-one basis. This says all you need to know about Ji Ho’s character. To say a 30-year-old top college graduate can’t find any other job is just not workable. It’s not a matter of whether she has any love for her husband or what he thinks about her seeing Bok Nam, it’s a matter of pride and self-worth. Just come back and let him talk smack to her non-stop? No wait, bring the contract to Bok Nam for him to review. This really makes sense. Everything Bok Nam says she thinks about like it was wisdom from the Dalai Lama. If this wisdom were coming from one of her girlfriends it would have made more sense. But 24-year-old Bok Nam has a special spot in her life? He seems to be wealthy, why not just stay with him and void the marriage contract? Just go the whole way into the abyss. I take so much time talking about the Bok Nam issue because it is a springboard into what follows. All the Bok Nam scenario means is she has no redeeming values.

She meets the female CEO of a new production company (Se Hee’s Ex but we aren’t supposed to know it yet) and spills all her thoughts and dreams on the first night of drinking soju. Jumping around drunk and having a good time was a little strange with somebody you were expecting to work for. Without even being told we know who the female CEO is. Ji Ho is strangely happy just being around this woman. Acting happier than she ever has before. Gay? Straight? Who knows, but it doesn’t make her look more appealing.

I tried so hard to like the female lead character Ji Ho, but she doesn’t feel like a genuine person to me. She develops a head-down mumbling approach to Se Hee that drives me crazy. By episode 14 I can already tell how this will turn out, not well. Their relationship will just keep getting worse, slowly makes the story fall apart. The story started with these two and the story was even promoted with these two. They have no chemistry, and she seems miserable. What’s the point if it just falls apart? She liked Bok Nam well enough until he moved on, which by the way, she seemed disappointed.

Episodes 14 through 16 are just grueling. Watching her stare at the walls in her Room #19 mumbling to herself like the world is against her. She seems to expect something from him that she can’t give herself, unable to tell him she likes him while he sits in Room #19 unable to even comprehend the world much less express his feelings. With every minute I watch the show becomes less appealing. She asks Se Hee’s ex to go on a date with her. Now that’s not too strange, is it? Is it the subtitles making it appear this way? Did she really ask this woman on a date? She is never happy. I’ll be honest I don’t even understand all her mumblings. Ji Ho told everybody else except Se Hee that she loved her husband. I’m beginning to believe there is something wrong with the subtitles. She talks about how deep her love was for Se Hee to her father-in-law and her mother-in-law. Ji Ho never told Se Hee she liked him or loved him. She decided to sleep with him one night then fell asleep on him. The next time he asked, she rejected him. Granted he was a strange individual, but all she did for him was mess with his head, and leave when he started to have feelings for her.

As you would expect, the ending was just as weird. After a year or so in a hospice, or whatever that place was, she goes to his old place to make her move with a day one cake. Has she run out of girls and guys to woo her? She only looks halfway disappointed that he no longer lives there. But finally, the nicest part of the show. A chance meeting at the house on the roof. The chance meeting is nice, and she tells him she loves him, but he’s asleep. Couldn’t they even make him awake for that? Run Se Hee, she could change her mind tomorrow.

Subtitles: I hate to beat a dead horse, but I really think the translation may be off on this one. I think this was one of those shows that were difficult to translate. Nothing she mumbled made any sense.

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This is a makjang drama featuring all the possible common kdrama cliches you can think off, the main offenders being: amnesia, a bitchy ex gf, a second male lead trying to get the female lead, a time skip, and the worst case of noble idiocy I've ever seen in my kdrama watching journey of some years.

The drama starts well, the humor although over the top, is hilarious at times and the story and characters seem to be a good enough reason to continue watching, that is until the male lead's hereditary disease manifests and he loses his memories of the last 3 months as a symptom, those months are conveniently the ones he spent with the female lead of course.

As if that event wasn't dramatic enough, right after the male lead gets his memories back, he decides to go on the noble idiocy route and break up with the female lead apparently to protect her from the sadness of knowing about his disease instead of discussing it with her. But no, that's still not all, right after they break up, she turns around to go back to him but gets hit by a car on the way and loses their baby. That was when I simply couldn't handle anymore ridiculousness.

What comes after is a time skip and after that a bunch of frustrating episodes filled with misunderstandings caused by the male lead's noble idiocy that is still going strong after 3 years. Oh my God.

The only good things about this drama are the acting, some funny scenes and the ost.

This could have been a 16 or 18 episodes drama had they not dragged the noble idiocy plot device for so many episodes, and that could have perhaps, saved the drama from being so hopelessly frustrating in the second half.

Still I powered through those difficult episodes because of the male lead's heartwarming relationship with the female lead's mother and because, despite everything, I grew fond of the characters.

Side note: also the ending was so cheesy, and childish lol

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a well made Korean Noir film in current generation... Song Joong-ki's new side ⭐

-- Korean Neo Noir genre is one of the best genre in South Korea, it's proved again --

➠ Reminder :- Hopeless ( Hwaran) does not allow laughter or hope for a single moment. The dark and cruel scenery of the small town shown in " Hopeless" (Hwaran) and the shameful life of the human group make the audience will feel realistic story. Even the small possibility of the ending is good, so it is even more painful and refreshing.

➠ Theme :- Movies are noir in terms of genre, but the framework of the narrative is close to the story of growth.It is through irresponsible adults, young people who have become monsters themselves to escape danger, and the existence of helpers who cannot lead them to the full sun but sympathize with the pain.

➠ Intro :- " Hopeless" (Hwaran), leaves us deep afterimage in the hearts of the audience with its overwhelming immersion and stellar performance by actors, proved once again the intense ensemble of the two actors, Hong Sabin and Song Joong-ki. Hwaran", which proved to be the best movie in 2023, is a deep and intense noir drama that depicts the stories of characters living in a hopeless world in different ways with solid characterizations.

➠ the story analysis :-
" Hopeless " ( Hwaran), is a movie about shadows symbolizing darkness in art.When the light is strong, the shadow becomes longer behind it, so there is hurt in glory, sadness in joy, and pain in growth.It captures portraits of those born under shadows where light cannot be seen from birth, while at the same time implying that those living in the dark will go toward light and find their image.Rather than the grand meaning of salvation, the power of the two men who dream of rescue in a disaster-like reality is impressive...

➠ direction - cast :-
The powerful direction of the new dire"The film emphasizes that affection and loyalty between people can be the last bastion to overcome even the unbearable pain through characters living in a world without hope in different ways." the energy of the new Hong Sa-bin, who expressed it well, and Song Joong-ki's acting transformation come fresh. Attention is focusing on whether the film, which received great attention in Busan, will create a new wave in the theater district.

✰ Will SONG JOONG-KI got sucess with his transition from Protagonist to Antagonist ???
- Yes, Not all actors can effectively make the on-screen transition from hero to antagonist, so when they do,it’s truly a triumph to appreciate. Song Joong-ki who provide an intimidating, menacing, downright horrifying performance helped elevate Hwaran to the next level " Hopeless " (Hwaran)


brought by - Shinnosuk_Lee
( Personal Review )

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I was entertained...

Overall: this was what I'd call standard Thai BL with an enemies to lovers plot. Though it had some flaws, I was entertained. Watched on YouTube.

Content Warnings: voyeurism, manhandling, fight, non con touch (sleeping), manipulation

What I Liked
- the sweet brother relationship
- the food looked delicious
- the cute moments
- the funny moments
- the dynamic of an aggressive flirt and a feisty guy
- how Poon made Athip see how Athip's niece was feeling
- Athip's assistant (can we get a series with her and the assistant from Cutie Pie?)
- good production value

Room For Improvement
- cliche wannabe girlfriend although it wasn't the worst example that I've seen of this trope
- trans woman used as comedy
- continuity error in ep 3 with stains that magically vanished
- the drama in episode 6 was stupid and Athip was dumb
- brother and niece weren't in the finale
- kiss partially blocked
- the blur filter is pretty high with everyone's faces
- the subtitles said "partner" a few times which is confusing because they could be talking abou business partners however I think they meant "boyfriend"
- odd title isn't explained until episode 4

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Good Enough

Japanese Drama "Rinko-san wa Shite Mitai" is an enjoyable drama. It has a predictable story, sure, but it's a fun ride with a couple that had enough chemistry to carry things through till the very finale.

Probably the only problem this drama had, other than some cheesy twists, was that it needed an episode or two to give the couple more time onscreen. But, other than that, the drama had a nice pace and the timeline was well handled. The romance was also pretty sweet and had a lot of lovable moments. But the best thing this series had was the leading lady. She was fun, energetic and she did a great job with her performance. The rest of the cast was pretty enjoyable as well, but she was the real star of the drama.

So, overall, 8 out of 10.

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The Hong Sisters Have Finally Returned To Wonderland..

For most watchers first looking over the drama, Yeo Jin Goo ( Hwayi; A Monster Boy and Moon Embracing The Sun) would seem to be one to steal the show from his legendary roles in numerous dramas and movies , yet, instead, it is IU ( My Mister and The Producers) ‘s role as the angel-faced yet foul-mouthed owner of the hotel, Jang Man- Wol who instead quickly steals the show from Jin Goo in her glamorous frocks.

From inspired attires straight out of Daphne Du Maurier’s gothic modern romance tale , Rebecca ( 1938), to Katherine Hepburn’s little black dress in a favourite film of the Hong Sisters, Breakfast At Tiffany’s ( 1961), IU
truly embodies the mature and complex core of a cynical female lead who is shaped by her own experiences and choices rather than merely love itself.

Yet whilst the casting of the show is fairly diverse with fellow Kpop costar P.O being cast as the giddy hotel receptionist and Bae Hae- Sun as the strict housekeeper of the hotel, some of the roles within the show (especially the storywriting ) felt slightly lacklustre in comparison. ( Particularly P.O and Kang Mi- Na’s romance as their respected characters, which did have some bittersweet moments in particular to P.O’s character, but Mi Na’s character Soo- Jung had little relatability despite her tragic circumstances).

Admittedly this isn’t entirely the fault of the actors as one noticeable flaw which arose in the drama was how the Hong Sisters had added little complexity or emotional value in regards to the respected storylines of some of the other characters (excluding Man Wol of course). The biggest example of this arose with Jin Goo’s character, Gu Chan-Sung.

Man Wol was supposed to be the fiery ‘Yang’ to Chan Sung’s level- headed ‘ Ying’ personality within their relationship, there was little to actually express or delve into Gu Chan- Sung apart from the evident plot roles. His father dies several years presumably after his first scene in a flashback in the show , yet Chan- Sung neither really expresses anguish nor heartbreak at this fact. Whilst there is the arguable emphasis that Chan-Sung is too rational to break down over these matters, this is greatly contradicted within the scene when Chan- Sung simply loses his composure at a bus stop over thoughts of Man- Wol. Undeniably a heartbreaking scene and a moment of brilliant acting from Goo, this scene just doesn’t entirely add with the intended composure of Chan Sung who in several episodes prior, who didn’t bat an eyelid to the return of his mother as a ghost.

This also moves us onto the other problem of Hotel Del Luna; how the storyline played out. Ironically, Hotel Del Luna’s biggest problem wasn’t trying to adhere to the typical cliches, but instead trying to overcome them at the last minute. Obviously, there is nothing wrong with a drama doing this, however, where the evident flaw lies for Hotel Del Luna is that rather than only doing this a couple of times to mark a red herring by diverting the audience’s attention ( and then deliver an actual plot-twist by moving onto the expected becoming the unexpected), the Hong Sisters tried to do this at every given opportunity during the storyline. Without spoiling anything, I will say this. The novelty of the storytelling becomes less effective when you did this too often, and so whilst Hotel Del Luna was certainly interesting within certain character plot-lines ( particularly Jang Wol’s past), some of the show for a major part felt anticlimactic and disjointed in the long run.

On a more positive note, however, Hotel Del Luna’s magic is greatly brought to life through fairly good CGI and storytelling upon this element. Whilst not entirely touching new ground in the face of predecessor shows like Goblin , Hotel Del Luna still brings its own element of dark fantasy through traditional Korean mythology being brought into modern Seoul. From disturbing evil spirits, bartender ghosts like Kim Seon Bi ( Shin Jung- Geum) to deities such as the mysterious Mago ( Seo Yi- seok) with unpredictable plans of fate for our main characters.

Additionally, whilst the finale of Hotel Del Luna has caused a lot of debate amongst drama fans, the bittersweet ending was surprisingly appropriate for the drama . Overall Hotel Del Luna was an enjoyable watch (although perhaps flawed by some elements of the storyline and certain characters’ contributions to the show )-the elements of dark fantasy, traditional mythology and IU’s stellar performance as the twisted and cynical Man- Wol will keep you captivated. Although not flawless, definitely worth a watch.

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Good, but…

The positive point is that the show is marketed as a horror series, and that’s exactly what we get: real, fairly gory scenes, ghosts, etc. The plot holds up, and the actors are convincing.

However, the series has two flaws. The first is the romance, which is far too excessive and completely off-tone. We have a love story between a cop and the main witness in a series of murders, so you’d expect passion. Instead, we get long, formulaic, syrupy dialogues about love. It feels out of place.

The second flaw is the ending (i.e., the last two episodes), which is clearly rushed and full of inconsistencies. It’s strange that the writers weren’t able to maintain the same level of quality all the way through.

In the end, it’s a series worth watching, but it’s far from unforgettable.

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To be honest, I was most of all confused with this drama. As you can see I did not give high marks (but hey, a 4 is still 'decent' according to MyDramaList, so I'm going with their system of grades).

The story starts out interesting, and to be fair, it had a lot of interesting ideas in it. A lot as in: too much. I always find it a bit painful when I realise what a show could have been, if it was just executed differently. There where some good plots started, but it all felt like 'so much to do, so little time'.

I did not really feel the romance in the story. To not reveal too much, lets speak of boy A and boy B.
I do understand why boy A liked her, because there is some development and some logic to it. I know love isn't always logic, but still. And to me it felt like boy B just out of the blue decided he loved her too.

And the boy she starts a relationship with.. arg... he just goes for it like: bang! I can appreciate that there is some action and he knows what he wants. But to me it felt like he nearly forced her into a relation she wasn't sure of she wanted anyway. I would have felt really pressured and uncomfortable. Isn't there something in between the 'I can't say my feelings' and 'you showed some interest, now you are mine until death do us part'.

And then the girl herself, she is a totally different story: make up your mind lady! The plot just keeps switching and switching and in the end it didn't feel like the choice was actually made...


The parts where she is 'writing her novel' were plain boring. I honestly think this whole subplot could have been erased. It was there that the acting was the most awful and the wigs made it even worse. To me it symbolized what a horrible story she actually must have writing, because the plot she wrote was worse than the plot(s) the actual drama had. Thankfully she had a change of career!

The Gumiho part was a nice twist, but it did make the story more confusing and forced in its plot.

There was only one scene I laughed. And it was a scene where she was crying. Because, you know... one of the boys she liked said he liked her like a little brother! (and not like a girl like she wanted).
Dear Bunny (horrible nickname), if you dress up like a boy, act like a boy, say you are a boy.. you can't expect straight boys to fall in love with you and develop feelings for you other than that of a brother or a friend. The rare exceptions who do develop feelings are what I said they are: rare.
I love the idea of people falling in love no matter there gender. But a straight boy normally doesn't feel attracted to another boy. And if he did say he was attracted to you, you would have a completely different problem: what if he only likes boys and he finds out you are a girl...

Anyway.

The music. Uhmm.. I just watched the last episode and I can't remember it. But it didn't bother me, so that's a pro.

I somewhat enjoyed watching it. But that is not enough. I normally love gender-benders! This one.. well.. this one was just there. I started really enthusiastic, watched it, got a little bored, skipped a little, watched again, felt confused, felt more confused, felt confused but also a bit amused by the confusion and then I was relieved the ending was there, because I couldn't take any more episodes, but at the same time I realised it should have had a few more to just explain all the story lines, and... well.. you understand.

Please like my review. Reviewers need love too! For more reviews: http://reviewasianseries.com/

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The lack of affection is sad

Not a fan.

Bad bits:
1. Tine and Sarawat - might be the least convincing romantic pairing I've ever come across. Before becoming an item there was (a little bit of) potential, but once they got 2gether they displayed zero affection- it was bizarre. Are they supposed to be in a loving relationship at the end? If so that makes me sad! I liked the actor who plays Tine but the actor playing Sarawat sneers a lot, gives off an arrogant vibe and seemed uncomfortable in the role.
2. Bit troubled by the portrayal of Green's character (rapey, or what? the one "obvious gay" character doesn't need to be forcing himself on frightened straight men...) and how he was treated (like shit). It is a light-hearted drama but that was a bit of a dodgy storyline- and just inserted as a device to get the leads to fake-date.
3. The music is not my taste.

Good bits:
1. Fong [Tine's friend] - for no particular reason - he just seems a sweetheart.
2. Man [Sarawat's friend] - he only had 10-15 mins on screen but made a better romantic lead than Tine/ Sara.

I should have stopped watching a third of the way through - I stuck with thinking it would get better, but it never did. I saw reviews for "still together" declaring it an improvement, and I'm a glutton for punishment so gave it a go. I thought it was marginally better, but not good enough to stick with so I dropped it (very proud!) before finishing the first episode.

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