Reviews

Best 2023 Historical Drama. Brilliant palace politics with dark romance

This drama tells the story of a female lead who goes back in time 2 years prior to her death to change her fate. In her first life, she is a selfish and manipulative woman who uses all means necessary to achieve her goal of becoming an Empress. In her second life, she realises the many mistakes she has made and tries everything in her power to change her fate and right her wrongs.

Note, the main focus of this story is the palace politics (female lead’s redemption and male lead’s revenge). The romance is a secondary focus but definitely worth it especially in the last 8 episodes. It’s reverse harem so there are three love interests. The female lead loves them for different reasons but only one is her perfect match/true love.

POSITIVE:
- Reverse harem romance is done right! We don't see the female lead jumping from one man to another or loving them at the same time. Each love interest has his own time to shine. We are first introduced to her childhood friend that loves her, then the second man who she admires for his righteousness and goodness, and then the third man who represents the perfect enemies to lovers trope.
- No love triangles or stupid misunderstandings/miscommunications.
- Dark romance with VERY hot kiss scenes.
- Main lead chemistry is hot, hot, hot. Did I say hot!
- Brilliant palace politics talks.
- Morally grey female and male lead that are both smart, cunning and wicked in their own ways.
- Male lead who achieves his goals through his intelligence rather than muscles. It’s rare in costume dramas to see a male lead who destroys his enemies with badass strategies without lifting a weapon.
- The most satisfying happy ending. The story wrapped up well and everyone gets what they deserve.
- Top-notch performance from all the cast and especially the main leads Bai Lu and Zhang Ling He.
- Slow burn romance for the main couple that is totally worth it and all the wait pays off!
- No annoying characters, no unnecessary fillers or draggy plot lines.
- Flashbacks and parallels between the first and second life were fantastically woven into the story.
- Great character development for all characters, main and support. Everyone’s motive for what they did and why made sense!

NEGATIVE:
- Cinematography is a let down but it still does not take away my enjoyment! The director really went crazy with the camera lights which irritated many viewers including me. Especially towards the end of the drama where there are many flashbacks, the blinding lights were showing up every 5 minutes which felt very, very excessive. Also, there were weird spinning effects, pink hue filters and unflattering angles as well as random “wind” blowing the actor’s hair even when they were indoors.
- As a hopeless romantic I would have loved to see more romance between main leads (or at least in earlier episodes) as their chemistry was off the charts however with how the story is set up, it makes sense why it was a very slow burn.

OVERALL:
For me this is THE BEST historical cdrama I’ve ever watched. The political plot is executed brilliantly, the dark romance is chef’s kiss and most importantly the drama portrays beautifully the female’s lead story of redemption and the male lead’s story of revenge. You will miss out a lot if you don’t give this a chance!

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"A Predictable Fantasy Romance"

“No Tail to Tell" revisits a very familiar K-drama trope: the gumiho, a nine-tailed fox caught between the supernatural and human worlds. The problem isn’t the myth itself, but how it’s handled here—very conventionally, without originality or depth. This story has been told before, and often much better.

The plot follows Eun-ho, a gumiho who refuses to become human, until an incident involving Kang Si-yeol, a world-famous football star, forces her to live as a mortal. This premise could have explored themes like identity loss, human fragility, and the choice between immortality and love, but the drama settles for predictable situations, artificial conflicts, and a romance that develops without genuine emotional tension.

The writing is shallow. Eun-ho’s transformation, which should be a major turning point, is quickly normalized. The dilemmas exist, but they’re never explored in depth. Emotional scenes lack impact, and several episodes feel more like filler than meaningful story progression.

The main cast does their best. Lomon brings charisma to his role, though Kang Si-yeol remains a stereotypical cold, controlling athlete who eventually softens. Kim Hye-yoon delivers subtlety and nuance as Eun-ho, especially in her more vulnerable moments. Their chemistry is decent but can’t make up for the weak writing.

The supporting cast is particularly underwhelming. Many secondary characters are underdeveloped or unnecessary. The shaman, who could have been pivotal in the supernatural and mythological elements, contributes almost nothing, seeming included merely for folklore flavor without any narrative purpose.

Lee Hoon’s character also had the potential to add real tension or depth but is poorly utilized. His role is minimal, with little impact on the story, leaving viewers feeling like an opportunity for meaningful conflict was wasted.

Even the production can’t elevate the series. The fantasy atmosphere is there, but it never reaches intensity. The drama never takes risks and stays firmly in its comfort zone.

In short, “No Tail to Tell" fails to stand out either in originality or writing quality. The gumiho premise feels overdone, the supporting cast is weak, and certain characters—like the shaman and Lee Hoon—are largely wasted. Despite the efforts of the lead duo, the drama remains bland and forgettable.

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The ending??

I loved this drama even though many people are disappointed because of the story and I agree. The only negative thing about this drama is the story. The story was a bit messy and many characters died for no reason. The end was a bit confusing. I still don't know what exactly happened with the FL and Ml?

I must say that the OST is lovely! Especially all the OST's FL (Ju Jing Yi) sings and the ending theme that she sung with ML.

I loved how the FL and Ml acted. How they portrayed their different personalities. The visual was also on top! The FL and Ml look so good together.

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10/10 for this romantic comedy series, all thanks to JoongDunk as FadelStyle

JoongDunk and FadelStyle made me forget about it. Many other BL fans would come to watch a BL series just for the gay kiss but I even forgot The Heart Killers a BL series. It's like... when you're watching a nonBL nonGL series, usually you want to see the couple not because they're a man and a woman but because of their characters, alongside their own story.

Tbh, I didn't have any clear picture for action aspect since director and the cast have been always consistent said The Heart Killers was a romantic comedy; action was its sub-genre only and presented as this series' concept. But it's surprised me, ngl. In a positive way. I think all of us agree they could have shown Lilly's related plot better, especially the clousure. However, Fadel with his background that forcely adopted under Lilly's wings also ended up as a hitman enduring consequences of his profession, is a very well-built character that has been impressed me greatly. He is the complex character everybody's rooting for. Throw-in Style in the mix, who is another super interesting character with his shameless personality but truly witty, a philosophical thinker behind his dark jokes, there I got a perfect pairing I've been loving so much while enjoying the whole wild ride from this series.

JoongDunk together have done a fantastic job in bringing life to their each character. Acting is about making something believable and they're obviously tailor-made for portraying FadelStyle. I'm feeling proud watching their remarkable progress to reach this far. FadelStyle's story and their dynamic are things I crave and savor every week.

12 episodes of romantic comedy series The Heart Killers. I had good laughs AND, unexpectedly, good cries too, all thanks to JoongDunk as FadelStyle.


***

I posted this on comment section at first, after watching Episode 11, and it's still relevant until the final. The Heart Killers is a highly recommended series if you're looking for entertainment in your free time.

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challenging the idea of normal and does it matter

Overall: This series has realistically flawed characters who are trying to figure out how to make each other and themselves happy. They are challenging the idea of normal and does normal even matter to them and their happiness. If you're looking for a steamy poly relationship or a fluffy romcom, then look elsewhere. 10 episodes, 24 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala.

Content Warnings: non con photo taking, harassment, homophobia, sexism, non con kissing/touching maybe turned consensual, teacher/former student, and there is something and I've put it on a comment

What I Liked
- challenging norms/ideas such as monogamy, how putting others' happiness before your own can actually be a burden to that person, addressing that just because someone wants to be in a poly relationship (and also that they are bi/pan) does not mean that they are attracted to every person
- diversity (polyamory, gay, bi/pan, lesbian)
- Misaki and Yuuki standing up for one another and against the father
- Misaki was smart and figured out who was taking the pictures
- Misaki seeking communication and carefully thinking/changing
- sweet moments
- production value

Room For Improvement
- sub par kissing, 1 kissing partner did not move his lips and it looked strange
- some plot conveniences/wish they had more time to delve into some parts more deeply
- Yuuki's "plan" was terrible in episode 8
- reinforced negative stereotypes about poly relationships (we see so few representations in media, so I was hoping this would play out a bit differently)
- the open ending, it really could go in a number of different directions

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A Dark Backstory Movie, With A Gruesome Duration Length…

Satou Takeru reprises his role once more as the redeemed former-warrior Himura Kenshin, only this time stepping back in time with the events of his past when he went under the alias Battousai. The storyline flitters between the " impending threat" ( though in typical Kenshin fashion, a villain who rarely escapes the realm of memorability after the movie) weapons dealer Yukishiro Enishi ( Araki Towa) as well as Kenshin’s relationship with Yukishiro Tomoe ( Arimura Kasumi).

The biggest thing to say about ‘ Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning’ is that it is arguably more profound and violent than previous Kenshin movies. A particular gruesome scene appears on screen as a man writhes in agony with blood spurting out of his wounds and mouth, whilst the cinematography combines between moody and epic battle scenes, the vivid hues of festivals and the mundane and dull palettes of everyday life in Japan .This is no surprise considering the nature of the themes of assassins, fights and mercenaries found throughout the story but screenwriter Otomo Keishi purposely sets a vast shift and darker tone from previous movies throughout the storyline. Satou Takeru is brilliant as our main lead, adding a notable more stoic, hostile and mysterious ambience as the antihero of the movie rather than the beloved hero we have come to know in earlier ones. En par with Takeru was undeniably Arimura Kasumi as the suave and gradual love interest of Kenshin, Yukishiro Tomoe. The chemistry between the leads was evidently slow-burning and not your typical status quo romance( especially from what viewers can remember from the events of ‘ Rurouni Kenshin: The Final’ and the conclusion of the movie ) , but dynamic , heartbreaking and undeniably the intriguing highlight of the entire film.

On the other hand the storyline isn’t without its more sound flaws. Whilst Araki Towa is a brilliant actor, his onscreen persona as antagonistic weapons dealer Enishi is unimpressive and lacklustre to say the least. The plot threat of Einishi certainly keeps the plot moving, but his actual appearance and memorability do not quite reach their full potential. Adding on top of the trickier issues of the film production was the gruelling duration length of 2 hours 18 minutes which can slowly trial even the most patient viewers’ attention span.

On a more nuanced note it seemed an odd move by screenwriter Otomo Keishi to have released ‘ Rurouni Kenshin: The Final’ before the events of ‘ Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning’. Whilst the movie does help to foreground a lot of the events from the previous storyline in more vivid detail (and understand more about Kenshin’s past), it would’ve seemed arguably a sounder move to have released this prequel movie first in order for viewers to grow sentimentality towards Kenshin and understand the greater impact of the events of the final movie. ( Therefore I’d recommend to newcomers or those still waiting to watch ‘ Rurouni Kenshin: The Final’ , to first complete ‘ Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning ’ in order to understand the events of the former.) However, the finale of the film did deliver a beautiful shot of cinematography which stuns viewers with the shocking revelations and events to follow.

To conclude ‘ Rurouni Kenshin: The Beginning’ delved into the backstory of the beloved hero from the previous films with finesse and darker violence. The movie sometimes failed to reach its full potential or facilitate its antagonist towards being nothing more than a quick plot device and its tedious duration length , but the delivered performances by Takeru and Arimura, the stunningly filmed scenes and pretty much all of the performances by the main cast were well-deserved treats for viewers

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Honestly this drama was great, just plain fantastic. I watched this because I heard Jung Kyung Ho was in it, but stayed because after the first episode it just made me want to watch it some more.

I didn't think I'd be able to finish all 20 episodes and even thought about dropping it. But each episode intrigued me and forced me to keep on watching, it's the kind of drama that makes you hooked just like that. The plot is really great and the characters are even better.

The one thing that's really unique about this drama, is that it keeps you guessing. From the first episode all the way to the last, you never know what's going to happen next. You don't know who the good guy is or who the bad guy is. You don't know if you're rooting for the wrong team or the right one.

And it has everything a thriller needs; from violence to drugs to gorgeous guys in suits (and gorgeous guys out of suits kekeke..). It's a drama worth watching and if you haven't watched it yet, what are you waiting for?!

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An Absolute Slam Dunk of Sweet Victory!

All Xianxias should be like this! PA redemption and a perfect score across the board, which is incredibly rare for me. Obviously watched for both leads in this reunion that blew many dramas out of the water. This was an absolute slam dunk of sweet victory!

Pros: Literally everything! Though I never read the novel, those that did made it obvious that this series followed the novel by about 98% which is very rare. The novel had a solid storyline and this kept it exactly there with apparently lots more comedy. Comedy was good here. Even in the somewhat angsty scenes, it was ever present. Both leads (SL and XZ) delivered stellar performances and their connection started literally from episode one and the mortal realm. Their love transcended all three realms. All of the characters were very layered; though some needed evolution and growth where originally they were annoying. SL playing the powerless chicken while the human XZ takes care of her was just hysterical. Once she returned to the immortal realm, though she still had that prearranged marriage to that annoying FRJ (who up until the end when he finally grew up, I really wanted the maid to hit with her broom), XZ who I nicknamed Mr. Clingy as he clung to her like glue--when he still didn't understand that he was falling for her--and all of their interactions were gold.

There were 3 tragic characters in this story (all done extremely well by their respective actors); MF, and SL's parents. I know people hate on MF about his betrayal but he had no choice as we saw and he explained just before he took his own life. His identity didn't leave him the choice of not betraying her (by killing his own friends in the military but you could tell how much it affected him after the fact) and though at first he was brought up on hatred, it was because of her that he learned about love. But he refused to kill her or harm her and even when possessed fought against the demon FS to help her escape post her "death". If he had the choice, he would have betrayed the demons a long time ago. His own father didn't care about him; which as SL said, he was heartless. MF's only reason for existence according to the two demons was to be a spy and used as a body shell for both. Quite sad and unfair. Her mother was right about being shackled by your identity. Both parents fell in love despite dad being a demon and completely harmless but even they couldn't be saved from the demon emperor. Dad voluntarily had to become the fire seal to keep all the demons in that abyss and mom died shortly after childbirth. Even XZ was shackled by his identity until his death but freed by his long gone friends in rebirth. A fun fact; the actor that played FL or SL's dad, also played opposite ZLY in JOF as someone who was in love with her. And this was also their first collaboration since that show only they played father and daughter here. To have her father save her life through self sacrifice at the end was beyond touching; only time they got to meet each other face to face.

Other great characters were all of the generals, SMY, the maid, lady Jin, Luotian, QY, and eventually FRJ. Each played great roles in the overall story and the lives of our leads. The demon emperor had very few scenes in later episodes and he did ok as a villain; maybe if he played a bigger part in this story, he would have been considered as more but it was FS that offered main antagonist vibes during the entire show. Which being played by this actor who's known for comedic roles was quite a switch up though he was convincing.

Every inch of this show from costumes, CGI, OSTs (LYN's song and two of the BGM's were my absolute favorite), sets, were spot on. Nearly every episode had you rolling in laughter but it knew when to taper that off into seriousness or a bit of angst. I love this modern take on ancient costume drama; the one liners, innuendos, going against the grain, everything was well done and executed. You were invested in the leads and there were no misunderstandings, no annoying guerrilla glue third wheels that spoke in a prepubescent voice and pouted, no tropes, or unnecessary angst. Also no love triangles though SML or MF did love SL, she made it clear right away that no way and that was that. They still fought side by side until the betrayal and even then he was still willing to risk it all to save her. Only other couple were her parents short lived story and the best friend God who was going through trials on earth with the same two women every life cycle but even he was freed. It was so refreshing to see just one couple and the arc of their story as it revolves around times of peace, war, and so forth. Only two full rebirths no more and the ending was great though I wish they spent less time on Lady Jin and her love life and showing them two with her pregnancy and their friends and family in his mortal backyard as it was said in the book. But his proposal and her dropping the baby bombshell leaving him speechless and then chasing her around in the snow was still really awesome. Their love really was eternal.

Cons: I don't think I can call them cons here but more like slight inconsistencies. Like who was MF's mom? Did she even exist or was he born from fire like SL's dad? Or hatched from an egg? The demon emperor didn't have a body towards the end and because MF self sacrificed, his body couldn't be used for his father. But how did he ultimately disappear? Because after FL broke the seal and took off out of the abyss, we never saw him again. Was he in FL's body when he fought XZ and ultimately purified by XZ and SL? Wish that was shown better. And I didn't like the Heavenly Emperor; just as you think he got the point, he turns around and says or does something that makes you want to just send him into that abyss. Only in the second to last episode did he seem to be a bit wiser. Honestly that was it. No other cons.

Would I recommend it? 110% yes! Literally floored me from start to finish. I didn't skip a single thing. An absolute must watch if you want to laugh, giggle, cry a bit, and just enjoy yourself. One of the best dramas I've ever seen out of any country. Forever put into my watchlist.

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This drama should have been named “A Stockholm syndrome handbook“.

This drama is a showcase of dissociative identity disorder characters and a demonstration of exemplary Stockholm syndrome case.

Plot: 4
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★★★★☆ Main idea:
--> I liked the overall idea, but the idea sadly wasn’t able to save the catastrophe that followed.
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★★☆☆☆ Logic:
--> The drama started of pretty good, introduced characters were intriguing and so was the initial plot. Because of the promising start, it was watchable up to episode 13, but then all the atmosphere and logic were thrown out the window and all the drama was left with were stupidly acting characters and no plot at all.
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★★★☆☆ Pace:
--> I got bored about halfway through.
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★★☆☆☆ Impression:
--> Not much intrigued.
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★★☆☆☆ Skip rate:
--> I skipped a lot in the second half, since the plot and characters has become so chaotic and hystericall, It wasn't worth the time.
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★☆☆☆☆ Annoying factors:
--> The number of irrational twists gradually escalated as the drama progressed, in episodes 13 to 16 the number of nonsensical plots reached its peak and finally ruined the impression from the whole drama.

Characters: 2
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★★★☆☆ Lead 1:
--> The ML is introduced like a dangerous and clever man. But the cleverness of this character fades out immediately once he abducts an art student, expecting her to become an economic mastermind overnight. When she gets scared of not being able to transform to a completely different person with a completely different education, skills and hobbies, instead of I don’t know, maybe help her a little, he just intimidates and chokes her every chance he gets – gee, I wonder why would she be scared, right? But even this intimidating part of this character fades pretty quickly as he turns in a caring and protective fiancé in a matter of literally one day… Hey man, do you have a split personality disorder or something?
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★☆☆☆☆ Lead 2:
--> The FL seems clever herself, but then she gets caught up in danger because of her similarity to other person and for some reason she feels guilty for surviving, agreeing to follow a strange and abusive man, leaving her family behind… Why…? Just why? I don’t call this clever at all, just call the police next time. Things get even funnier, when this intimidated art student with zero experience in management solves an economic crisis in the company - she has a supposedly ultra-clever and powerful man by her side and an army of employees to back her up, yet it’s her idea, what get things done, hooray! Oh, and the fun part continues – this one success leads her to a Stockholm syndrome, falling in love with the very man who abducted her, claiming he is the only one she has left – girl, what about your friends and family then? Oh I get it, you fell in love with him, because he stopped choking you? Yes, that must have been it.
And the first thing after she is allowed to return to her former life and family? A hysteric scene over losing the love of her life – wow, this man abducts her, threatens her, she is forced to near death situations because of the mess he drags her into, he almost kills a man before her eyes, but she’s hysterical over the fact she can’t be with him anymore? Not even mentioning how rude was it towards her family, not explaining a single thing to them, just be hysterical over some stranger. A really serious Stockholm syndrome here, you need a psychiatrist, girl.
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☆☆☆☆☆ Overacting:
--> There was no annoying overacting in the beginning (except for that pretty stupid FL friend), but from episode 13 it was like the drama was infected by some strange overacting disease, because several characters started acting up, stepping totally out of their characters just to throw a tantrum, both FLs decreasing themselves from grow up woman into 15-year-old hysterical fan-girls, who got dumped by their idol on valentine. It has become even worse towards the end, soon every single character in that drama was acting hystericall.
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★★☆☆☆ Acting:
--> I enjoyed the acting of Fan Zhi Xin – although the character he played was a showcase of dumb and dumber, he was able to hold just the right atmosphere for a pretty long time. I considered other actors skilled at first, but as the plot progressed, they just acted more and more hystericall, including Fan Zhi Xin, such a schame.
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☆☆☆☆☆ Annoyance level:
--> The most annoying thing about this drama was the inconsistency of its characters. Many characters were introduced one way, just to flip to a completely different personality in a whim. Clever people turned into clueless, abusive into caring, strong into pitiful, shy into commanding – almost every lead character went through at least one polar opposite transformation.


Background: 9
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★★★★☆ Soundtrack:
--> Liked it.
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★★★★★ Visuals (camera, scenery, visual effects, ...):
--> Absolutely loved it.
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★★★★★ Wardrobe (costumes, hairstyles, makeup, ...):
--> Absolutely loved it.


Rewatch value: 2,5
I assess this value based on impression, skip rate, annoyance level and overall preference.


Final verdict: 4
Despite everything, the drama had a right atmosphere and I pretty enjoyed it up until episode 13. Episodes 13 to 16 were a total cliché catastrophe, every second choice those characters made was worthy of a Darwin award for extreme stupidity. It totally ruined the drama for me. Towards the end all those characters just became more hystericall and those plots made less and less sense. Every episode closer to the end I was lowering my rating even further.

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rain, rain, go away. come again another day.

if you're giving this a go with a thought that this drama will tell you well-written stories about love and all that fancy stuff, you might want to think again. 'love in the air' attempts to depict two couples with interesting themes but fails to feel like a solid drama.

now, let's jump right into the couples
phayu x rain:
one thing i'll have to say is that there is no logical progression whatsoever in their relationship. besides the questionable actions of phayu wherein consent gets glossed over, as the episodes went on, their relationship felt like a compilation of sweet and intimate scenes but there was no proper story. the timeline itself was iffy.

what made their story a mess was the editing. it was nonsensical to the point that there is no telling what scene the viewer will see next. while that might work for something else, the way it's done here makes it seem as though the drama was jumping from one scene to another with little to no explanation what happened in the previous scene. one example is a cute scene when phayu asks rain to wait for him so they can have dinner together. it then abruptly cuts to a whole different scene and sets a completely different tone leaving the viewer with no time to adjust.

despite the negatives, this couple actually deserves better. the relationship dynamic was pretty good and phayu grew on me as the episodes went on. the actors did super well to make their chemistry work on screen. the intimate scenes had me pausing every second because whew it was a lot to process. make sure to have your earphones on.

prapai x sky:
another one bites the dust. in the beginning, the consistency of prapai not understanding how important the word 'no' is really frustrated me. just because they had a one night stand (which btw sky was pressured into it) doesn't mean prapai has the right to get into sky's life. clearly, there's a fine line between 'love' and 'harassment' and i think pai sort of falls under the latter.

what sky really needed was a proper support system and lots of therapy. on the topic of support system, he has his parents and his friends who could lend him an ear or two when he needs it. however, the bl formula is to skip the therapy and rely on a handsome hunk is the best way to go. in other words, he can 'fix' him. in the end, sky still has to live with his traumas and having no control over them.

despite prapai frustrating me with his actions, i can't deny that those sweet moments the two had in the last episode made me almost erase everything else. i feel like prapai in the last episode was the best prapai out of all the episodes. however, the message that love can somehow eliminate your traumas is absolutely bullshit.

even though i didn't enjoy this couple as much, the pacing and progression of their relationship was much more developed and smooth. there were still some problems with transition of scenes but it was not as bad. at least prapai x sky story was easy to follow through and there were less jumping of scenes.

so... what bothered me the most?

both couples have different feel to them. their stories have interesting themes that can branch out into a very engaging drama. however, what i was served is half of 'what could've been'.

one thing that everyone must've noticed was the constant raining that made some scenes 100x hilarious. the use of the main couples' names were evident throughout the drama and in some way, i feel like it was overdone. there were at times that the sound of wind added to the scene minimised how impactful that scene was. thankfully, peat did well to portray his character's traumas. though i wasn't a fan of fort's acting, he nailed the emotional scenes.

honestly, i have no clue what goes on with the production quality in this one. the background music was at times distracting and not fitting to the scenes. for some scenes, the music would go on longer than it should and it almost overpowered the dialogue of the characters. the voiceovers were poorly done. for real, i hate to say it but the editing team did a lackluster job. while the pacing was odd for payu x rain, the production quality got worse for prapai x sky.

this is one of those dramas where i can't help but complain over the quality of the drama because there were so many factors that bothered me that usually doesn't bother me in other dramas.

overall, there was so much potential with this drama. if more time was given to the production team and tweaked the parts that lacked coherence, 'love in the air' would've made me like it a tad bit more.

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As a BIG fan of the manga, let me start by saying that this version presents Sano+Mizuki romance the best way out of all the versions there are (and, yes, believe me, when I say, I have seen all of them, and not only seen but completed!)

As this drama is an adaptation of a Japanese manga, please, don't be angry with me, because my review is going to contain comparisons, but I promise, only between this version and the manga, I won't be dragging in the other versions (the first paragraph was the introduction ^^)

Th story: Of course I did not expect the Korean producers/director to take and copy out the manga, which is most of the time good point of Korean drama makers, BUT, let me just point out how much this drama suffered from the unnecessary improvisations of the screen writer/whoever. As the manga is a school life/sports there were a lot of points that the Korean version could use in the sense of the characters, events, even little moments. For example taking out/ignoring the character of Kayashima(the ghost seeing guy), only because the guy (Infinite's L) couldn't play the specific role was just NOT RIGHT! The character added a lot to the manga and would be a very good addition to the drama. I would also appreciate more interaction between the dorms, they lost so much fun~!

Other points that I would like to point out lie in the existing characters. It can only be my impression, but the Korean version just made everybody so average and ordinary, while in the manga they are awesome to extreme points! Nakatsu's love for Mizuki - too extreme and so cute! Nakao's love toward Nanba senpai - so extreme and so childishly cute, Nanba senpai - being the hot player, Kayashima - seing the ghosts and auras... and many other points. It feels like by trying to make the characters more down-to-earth, the crew forgot that they were going to shoot a youth oriented drama - the crazier the better~ so the story suffered from it... BUT, the crew remembered to turn to the manga at some moments, which had me caching my breath, there lines right out of the manga, and SUCH lines~ bellissimo~

Cast/Acting: I should honestly say that after this drama I am a VERY BIG FAN of Choi MinHo~ he played the most real Sano ever created out of the manga! His anger toward JaeHee at first, then his melting heart, his caring, his jealousy, his friendship, his love, even when he freaked out because of a cat... everything was perfect~!
Sulli did great too, she deserves a lot of compliments! I loved her JaeHee, though sometimes a little slow and dense, she was cute, brave and played her role just fine~
Lee Hyun-Woo - not the Nakatsu I would imagine, but his EunGyul was very much fun to watch too, I enjoyed his caring for JaeHee and his undying friendship, I just couldn't bear his puppy eyes when he was sad! Don't be sad EunGyula~

The music is very-very good! Though I am not a big fan of SM music (except for SHINee's some songs), hese OSTs are fantastic~! I especially enjoy Taeyon's Closer and J-Min's Stand Up~

Next time somebody decides to remake HanaKimi, PLEASE, include the ball scene~, onegai~

Overall, I enjoyed this drama a lot, it's funny, it's very cute, it's romantic. I will be missing this fun of Wed/Thu-s...

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Hidden gem!

I didn’t look for the title, the title found me. And simply, if you liked WWW, you will love this one, me thinks. It’s not sugar coated romcom, and it’s beautifully written, directed and acted. A gem!
The series give you very well developed characters, the actors for me portrayed the resolution and hope of youth and the struggles and complicated world the older generation have. It created a circus of relationships, clashing those, who always have everything, their games, and contrast this world with the one of other people. They both have their struggles and truth and it’s interesting how you are guided to also the see both side fairly.
Despite all, there is a simple, pure love born out of being connected, truly connected, with someone. Haven’t finished the drama(2ep to go), but I loved it so far.
Why not 10 for me - mainly because I’m a bit tired to be shown that we have to bare the responsibilities of age - we all need to be free at some point, to hell everything else, we need to breath (I secretly hope that’s what will happen in the last two episodes) So I’m holding my horses:-)

(By comparison with Now we are breaking up, 100% better!)

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I had high expectations for this drama due to the cast and the seemingly different storyline and style of editing, but I guess I shouldn't have because it's one of those dramas that changed according to the viewer response each week. I mainly ended up continuing with this drama because of the diversity of the side characters and the overall comedic timing.

Kim Soo Hyun was downright hilarious and really showed his worth and growth as an actor. IU was excellent as well, and even though I didn't expect much from her, I can totally see why they cast her; she was perfect. Cha Tae Hyun and Gong Hyo Jin didn't get to do much with their characters after all, as the focus was increasingly put on Kim Soo Hyun and IU due to viewer response and a commitment to fan service. Kim Soo Hyun ended up with the majority of the screen time, followed by IU and Cha Tae Hyun.

Gong Hyo Jin's character is surprisingly irrelevant for most of the drama, except the romance. This drama seemed to concentrate too much on the story of a pop star (IU), and any work-related problems for the female PD (Gong Hyo Jin) were relatively nonexistent for a drama about the work environment of PDs.

I don't have much to say about the romantic scenes; I ended up skipping most of them because I just wasn't entertained (and this is coming from someone who barely watches anything but romantic dramas). The acting, the comedy, and the sound track are on point so I gave this drama a pretty good score, but I wish there was more of the unique documentary-style editing which they decreased once they switched directors. I expected something fresh and different, but this ended up being pretty stale and it gave in to cliches. I think someone commented somewhere about how the world in which the characters live is pretty boring and slow-paced, and I would have to agree.

I wouldn't rewatch it as a whole, but some scenes are good enough to go find to make GIFs for tumblr, if you know what I mean (lol). Basically, I don't recommend this drama unless you're a die-hard Kim Soo Hyun or IU fan.

BUT THAT'S JUST ME...maybe you'll enjoy it more than I did!

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Interesting premise but struggles mightily with setting a consistent tone and story.

Taxi Driver had an interesting setup and premise. I really liked how it highlighted a vigilante taxi driver and his squad out for vengeance to defend the helpless. I loved that the cases were based on real stories which did well to ground this drama.

Yet this drama had a hard time creating a special tone for itself. I’m thinking that it’s because I expected more grit from this drama, and it had settled on giving more #SquadGoal vibes.

Around the second half, the overarching story went a bit off the rails, and I don’t feel like it was ever able to right itself. I personally think this drama would have done much better if it stuck to its more episodic arcs focused on real-life cases. Those cases were all heart. In contrast, it tried to develop an overarching baddie, that took the drama into eyebrow-raising unbelievable territory. I also think with the exit of the original writer, the second half lacks a lot of focus and purpose. Unfortunately, Taxi Driver left a lot of opportunity on the table and veered away from a lot of what made it fun and magical early on. Quite the shame!

If you are looking for a crime drama, this may fit the bill. Alternatively, if you are looking for a drama that is offering something new and never been done before, I may suggest looking elsewhere.

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well, the only good for this drama is the OST.. BTOB did a good job on the remake of the haru OST by SUJU.. when one of my fav OST is being remake, i'm sure loving the remake version also.. both are just soothing to my ears..

even it is hard to watch all those cringe scene and script but i manage to pull through this drama solely for park so dam and jung il woo.. i always love their drama..

the character was meehhh~~ but i did jump like 6 y/o when those cute scene between ha won and ji won.. the hardest character that i was forced to accept was hyeji, my god~~!!!! the development of the character was shit!!! i'm wondering what are the writers thinking during the development of the character.. it's like the writer are so diligent in the 1st halve of the drama and gettin lazy by the end of it~~

well, the most character that i like is *drum rolls* YOONSUNGie~~~~ why?? because he just too gorgeous when he smile.. not to mention, among 4 of them, he is the truest knight (for me) XD

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