Reviews

it's rare when the sequel is better but here we are

production: just what you would expect on a bl production from korea... nothing too expensive but not looking cheap either... fits the story they are going for. editing could be improved but i don't mind it that much.

story: well, well. i didn't expect to be so invested in the story. i saw some people saying that it's too fast but i disagree... making it any slower will make this show boring like other kbl out there because we don't have the benefit of longer running time so this is just perfect.

acting/cast: omg i love the new guy, he is handsome and he acts well... both the leads complement each other... i hope we sehyun on season 3 again... i think the acting definitely improved. it would've been perfect if the kiss is not a dead fish but whatever straight kdramas do it too...

ost: love the ost! will add it on my bl playlist soon.. i believe there's at least 3 songs and i love them all

rewatch value: i don't really like rewatching even with shows that i love but i'll be for sure rewatching scenes that i enjoyed.

overall: an improvement from the first! it helped that it was all released on the same day so i get to binge it... i think the problem with kbl nowadays is they separate a movie into episodes and the quality suffers... i'm glad that they released it all so i get to enjoy it more... can't wait for season 3!

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If the actors are improving their performances shouldn't they be given better stories???

First of all, I have to congratulate Boss and Noeul's acting and how it has improved since LITA. It is appreciated, because it is a couple that has great chemistry and it is palpable, but in LITA there were moments when the acting was weak. Here, an improvement is noticeable, although the same thing continues to happen. They are still in the same roles. Boss's character as the protector of Noeul's childish and naive character, which makes me quite angry, since it does not allow us to see the versatility of the actors and the possibility of reaching different characters. It is clear that Noeul can act when portraying a naive and sometimes childish character when in real life his personality is completely opposite. That is why, I wish that in future projects of this couple, they play with other characters and personalities.
In itself, the whole cast is good, but the story does not do justice and does not help to demonstrate their worth.

I really hope Boss and Noeul next project they'll work with a different writer....

The whole plot at the beginning was aiming high and at the end, everything was so rushed leaving too many plot holes and things unsolved. I feel that they 'solved' the problem selling your brother? YES great idea, in one of the parallel worlds, we see Cir devasted and Phu hugging him (we can deduce that is because it's his brother died) but what the hell , I would sell my brother just to spend time with my crush. Also the father appearing like he is going to be someone when in the end is a non player in this whole plot. The second couple they were there just to be there, they weren't important , they develop their relationship in three episodes.... showing how you care about your characters....

I'm fed up with a certain scriptwriter/writer, writing scenes where consent is not respected and perpetuating certain clichés. How can you romantise stalking your crush/partner??? (Girl , if I know that my partner has been stalking me for years I would be afraid and not delighted). Let's see if Boss and Noeul and all the actors in this series manage to get away from this writer... and not make more series with her. The way she made romatising Cir stalking Phu and being obessed over him is something that left me speechless, all I can say: DISAPPOINTED BUT NOT SURPRISED.

The thing that upset me the most is Phu begging and asking for forgiveness to Cir.
How to deal with your stalker: Did you just find that someone has been stalking you five years, what are you going to do?
a) Call the police
b) Leave that person behind
c) The two answers above
d) Ask for forgive because he did it because he love me. (CLEARLY THE ANSWER) .
Take note guys, stalking , enterning in someone house without consent is something right if you do it because you love him/her.

Well, well, let's pray that Boss and Noeul can find a project that isn't written by Mame, that day there will be shooting stars or frogs will start growing hair or whatever weird and strange thing you can imagine.

Last but not least, OF COURSE, THIS BL HAS ONE OF THE THINGS I HATE THE MOST: MISOGYNY. The world of BL is full of misogyny, most of the stories, the women are the villains or characters where they do not let the protagonists be together or it separates them. As a woman, I'm annoyed by the acceptance of misogyny in BLs and how it has been accepted in such a blatant way, when in most cases BL fans tend to be women or the series are dedicated to a female audience. How much longer will we have to put up with women as villains?

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Entertaining while waiting for better drama

I am very conflicted about the rating for this drama. The story was just going downhill from when FL fell off the cliff. But I hung on and watched till the end. Is it watchable? Sure. But was it enjoyable? Was it the best? No. There were moments of shine but overall it was just too convoluted and trite. Everything shown has been shown on CDrama countless times. There's just no surprise.

I thought ok - I will give it an 8 if the ending makes sense. But no. It was just plain frustrating and draggy even down to the last minute. I can't believe these good actors put up with the scripts!

Anyways, I am going to go easy and give it a 7.5 as the ML acted well and FL towards the end was just annoying. You have to ask why she didn't even glance back at the ML as she rushed out of the cage to her master who couldn't be saved. OMG!!! Rolling eyes.


For those who don't like harem stories, this one is not for you. If you want a perfect hero who doesn't have any relationships with other females, this is not for you. The ML has a wife and concubines. This is the basis of the story. All the princes send woman to him to spy/protect their interests.

He's 30 years old and this is ancient China so it's hard to find a guy without wives and concubines.

The story is trite. She is being blackmailed to spy for the queen. She was poisoned so every month she needs a fix. This is a story that's been told many many times! I don't like it, but it works to create a conflict.

The palace intrigues: princes are fighting against each other for the throne is also old.

What's really new is the pairing of the ML and FL. I think they have chemistry.

Another thing is the writer insert an annoying ML's sister. The way she acts and talks, it's tough to convince me that a guy like the 4th prince would like her. He's so gentle and educated. She's just plain childish and annoying.

This drama has been using a tool to create suspense that I don't like. It creates a situation where audiences think that bad things will happen to the leads when in actually, they have a plan/conspiracy in place that we don't know about until they "surprise" us with a successful feat. Then they show the behind the scenes that they didn't show to us previously.

It's the easy way out of making an interesting plot. If you notice, this tool has been used a few times already.
I suspect ML and FL are working together to spy on the 3rd prince.

PS> There are many ways to create suspense. You can google "how to create suspense". The way they are doing it is the easiest: "hiding information from the audience". And then, oh we did this behind the scene. You didn't know about it.

I would rather have the all the clues and decide for myself.

Ep 22 and beyond
Plot is getting worse. Suddenly 3rd Prince in love with evil Empress. Nevermind she looks like his mom. No explanation of their history.
And then the predictable and easy way out of poisoning the King.

I am here because there's no other good dramas to watch. The other drama: A Dream Within a Dream is unwatchable for me.

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Women should not rule the world.

The Legend of Zhuohua is another in a string of recent female empowerment themed historical romantic dramas. The production is upfront that this drama is a work of pure fiction. It is impossible for women to exercise the kind of influence and authority portrayed in this story in ancient Chinese patriachical society. The attitudes and values articulated are also incredibly modern and unsurprisingly, resonate with current audiences. It should be enjoyed at face value accepting that many aspects of it are sheer fantasy.

Titular character Ma Zhuohua flees an arranged marriage to the capital; where she must pass the imperial exams to fulfill her ambition to be a female official. Quick witted and resourceful, she saves Lord Ding, a decorated war hero, when he is wouded in the middle of a clandestine operation. Their fates intertwine as he is the strongest advocate of opening up scholarship and official positions to women. As they collaborate on official assignments and work toward their shared vision of the country, they fall in love. Can their relationship navigate a feudal system that requires women officials to choose between marriage and their career?

The most enjoyable arcs of this drama are the early courtship ones. This is the first time I have enjoyed Jing Tian's playing such a clever, demurely mischevious and independent character. Despite a ghastly white color filter and not the best dubbing, the strong chemistry between Jing Tian and Feng Shaofeng is unmistakable. It is so refreshing and very hot to see such a candid, lively and purely adult relationship dynanic laced with flirtatiously racey dialogue. The humor is very well written and so cheekily portrayed that I laughed uproariously many times, and especially at the dirty jokes. The political commentary and philosophical debates are surprisingly well written, with a sophistication beyond what I would expect of a light romantic comedy like this.

Outside the empowerment theme, the sub-plots are not special but this top notch veteran cast is very charismatic and executes so well it makes up for some of the lack of originality. Both Shi Yueling and Wang Likun in particular deliver formidable, almost terrifying performances as Empress Dowager Zhou and Princess Roujia. I also found Roujia's complicated relationship with Shen Jinghong very interesting. Unfortunately just after the mid-way point, the narrative rehashes tired plotlines including noble idiocy, murder most foul and high treason. In quite a similar vein to Destined, it nose dives into a poorly designed political melodrama and predictible twists. Even incredible acting cannot paper over that this is yet another delusional ends justifies the means antagonist with an unconvincing villain origin backstory.

This would have made a much better 20 episode drama that ended on the intended message that women should seize their dreams. The writers took it one step further into women can also seize the world. And then left us with an unambiguous message that women should not rule the world. The first few arcs of this are worth about an 8.0 but the latter arcs are just 6.0/6.5. I can only give this a 7.0. Its still a quality production with some good laughs to pass some time but it won't rock your world.

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Only for Love has me in a chokehold!!!

I know this drama is not for everyone … BUT for me this drama is sooo amazing and addictive!!! Currently up to episode 10 and OMGGG I am obsessed!!!
- 1st of Bai Lu: I mean absolute Queen!!! Every drama of hers is a slay!! I have read the novel and Bai Lu really did a perfect job portraying ShuYi’s character in the novel!! the cheesy pick up lines, dramatic acting and everything to me was exactly as the novel!! perfection!!!
- 2nd is Dylan Wang: A lot of people are saying his stiff in the drama but I feel like he has definitely improved than he past drama!!! For example whenever his character ShiYan sees ShuYi he’s face brightens up liek a light bulb!! He is definitely a “he fell first and harder”
type of guy!!
Overall, this drama to me has been a masterpiece causing me to giggle like a psycho and blush like a tomato!!!

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Sometimes, you may need to believe in magic to get through dark times and make your life colorful. 

The Sound of Magic is based on Ha Il Kwon's (하일권) webtoon "Annarasumanara" (안나라수마나라). This was one of many dramas I was looking forward to in 2022, and I had high hopes for it. I'm pleased to say that my expectations were not crushed, and that it delivered far more than I expected.


This drama is about a high school girl named Yoon Ah Yi who is struggling to support herself and her sister. Her mother had abandoned her, and her father, who was in debt and had fled to make money. She had to work part-time to make ends meet. Despite having many adult responsibilities, she always managed to get good grades and was near the top of the school. She believed that poverty was the cause of her misery and her ambition was to become an adult as soon as possible and to acquire more wealth.


One fateful day, on her way home from work with her earnings, her money flies and flies and takes her to an abandoned amusement park, where she meets the mysterious magician of rumours, Ri Eul. The rumour was that the park is home to a handsome magician who performs real magic and will ask anyone who visits if they believe in magic. He asked Ah Yi the same question, and the terrified girl ran back to her house. Then they had numerous encounters, which helped him gradually gain her trust. But she still didn't believe in magic, which she thought was childish and that the fleeting joy it provided couldn't change the harsh reality. But, as the end approached, she began to believe in the magician and his magic, which also led her to believe in herself.


Yoon Ah Yi had a rival at school, Na Il Deung, whom she always beat in maths alone. They were in the same class and shared a desk. Il Deng always followed in his parents' footsteps and studied hard not to disappoint them. But, after meeting the Magician, whom he initially did not believe and even resented, he realises how trapped he is. He shows him how cold and dark the path he is on is. Il Deung has feelings for Ah Yi as well.


The mysterious aura surrounding this magician holds us spellbound, making the drama really interesting, and because the magician's true identity was concealed until the end, he poses many questions, even questioning whether all of this magic was truly real. When I first started watching the drama, I was concerned that the story would be weak because there are only six episodes. But this is completely false. The story and script were both intriguing and fascinating! It had the potential to keep viewers guessing about what would happen next.


As a musical, this drama worked well. The drama's start took me by surprise! For a brief moment, I almost mistook this for an Indian film disguised as a Korean drama, because the characters were singing and dancing, as is common in Indian films. In any case, the musical aspect was not perfect because some of the songs felt awkward in their creation and placement. But I really liked the music and the lyrics, which were some of the most meaningful and thought-provoking. Furthermore, the majority of the sound tracks were sung by the leads themselves, making them feel more realistic when the characters sing them.


Should I really bring up the cast? They were, as expected, fantastic! True, there are some scenes that made us cringe in between the songs, but overall, they were fantastic! Ji Chang Wook's performance was the one I most enjoyed. He captured Ri Eul's mysterious aura as well as his childishness.


The visual effects were incredible and mesmerizing! The scenes with the blue butterfly fluttering around are especially lovely. I couldn't take my eyes off the screen because they were so beautiful. This exceeded my expectations!


Finally, I really enjoyed this drama as a whole (very typical of a Netflix drama). Anyone can watch this drama in a single sitting without becoming bored.

P.S. May be edited afterwards.

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Before going straight for the "Not Helpful" button", give me a chance.

Today I read a comment on Facebook that said "Life is too short to say you don't like Taylor Swift" and although I don't particularly care for Taylor Swift, that post directly inspired me to write this review. Because life is too short to say you don't like The Heirs (especially when you love it).

When this drama was announced, to say that we were merely excited would be the understatement of the year. We were anxious, ecstatic, overjoyed. The perfect cast. The perfect writer. The perfect synopsis. Everybody would constantly post things on the page, coming up with various scenarios and plot developments (there was one where Woo Bin ends up with Lee Min Ho, my favorite, haha). It even became the highest rated show on MDL BEFORE EVEN AIRING. With each passing day expectations grew bigger and bigger. And then when it finally aired, they crashed. For most people anyways.

I was getting tired waiting for this "epitome of perfection" show and along the way my expectations dropped and I didn't care much for it anymore because of all the hype. But of course I picked it up (Lee Min Ho and the writer of Secret Garden. The most perfect combination). And I LOVED IT.

The story was a bit cliche but the way it is presented is wonderful. On the surface, it's a story of a rich boy falling for a poor girl. To make things more cliche, the girl is the maid's daughter. And then the maid is mute. Throw in high school bullies, ex-best-friend after the girl (also rich), a best friend of the girl who protects her (but is 'poor', so he is not a suitor). CLICHES CLICHES CLICHES. But the way the story is presented is a breath of fresh air. The kind of humor that is used is just awesome. There are so many instances I want to add here but they would spoil. The humor used here is something you have seen in Secret Garden and A Gentleman's Dignity. The writer has written a formulated story but she is true to her style and that made this drama extremely special. It's like she is saying "Let me twist these cliches around and present them with a new point of view". And it worked (for me anyways).

Coming to characters. This is the difficult part. I must confess I have a huge crush on Lee Min Ho (and admit it, you've had it too at some point of your drama-watching career). Kim Tan is someone you would either love or hate. There is seriously no in-between. You would expect him to be someone like Gu Jun Pyo but Kim Tan is a mature version of Jun Pyo. Somebody who has bullied others in the past but now wants to live a more meaningful life. But the similarity is the kind of devotion to his girlfriend that he brings to life again, that would definitely remind you of BOF. Aside from his atrocious wardrobe I loved his character. Park Shin Hye's finest role would always be Pinocchio. But here, she is not half-bad. I mean, sure, she has been given a typical role of a damsel in distress, working hard, being chased by rich guys. But she is good in her role. It is much better than Flower Boy Next Door. Choi Young Do stole the thunder. I loved Woo Bin in School 2013 but I fell in love with him here. I have lost count of the number of times I wanted him to get the girl or have the happiest ending of them all. He was the rough diamond of the show. The biggest surprise. Had all of us gushing and swooning.

The rest of the characters were also awesome. The adults. The relationship between Kim Tan and Eun Sang's moms was endearing and a high note of this show. But I seriously feel the Kim Tan's "on-paper" mom was wasted here. She was unforgettable in Secret Garden. Lee Bo Na was another amazing character (no wonder Krystal landed a main role right after this drama, she was seriously too good here). I loved Secretary Yoon and his son. I had a hard time seeing Min Hyuk as the smartest guy after watching him in heartstrings but he did a great job. Kim Tan's brother was great, I loved their relationship journey. Kim Ji Won held her own. Kang Ha Neul and Im Ju Eun seemed a little wasted on this show. But overall everyone was great.

The music was something that stayed with me for a long time after the show ended. Usually I download a couple of songs from a drama I love but here I downloaded all of them because I was obsessed with the OST. My personal favorite was "Crying Again" by Moon Myung Jin. And of course it was fun to guess whether "Love is the moment" is going to start playing or "love is feeling" in the background. lol.

I have rewatched this show twice already so the rewatch value is a solid ten for me.

In conclusion, I would like to say that this drama tries to give a lighter and realistic feel to the cliches and shows us non-cliche consequences of the cliches. Like the way Eun Sang's mom uses her notebook is hilarious. A typical drama would portray her as a pitiful character but she is funny and strong in her own way and holds her own despite her poverty. This drama is really great if you let go of your expectations. I honestly feel it deserves a higher average rating than it has, but then again it's just my opinion and everyone is entitled to their own. I can only express how this show made me feel and the feeling is really great.

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Understanding Love

'The Interest of Love' is a well paced, well written drama and the plot is easy to follow. The characters feel real, so maybe that's why some viewers have a problem with watching this drama. Like none of them are unrealistic, and not the candy typical far from reality that Kdramas like. Everyone in the cast is doing a fabulous job portraying their roles. All the emotions, confusion and acceptance in each episode, I love it. This will definitely make your blood boil, as well as make you frustrated. Like all of this workplace bullying, overt sexual harassment, and gossiping coworkers just screams toxic environment. Moon Ga-young, Yoo Yeon-seok, Keum Sae-rok, and Jung Ga-ram are all doing amazing. Fingers are crossed that this ends happily and we don't get yet another sad ending that screenwriters like to do nowadays. For now though everything is going smoothly and I'm genuinely enjoying the drama.

(EDITED)
So I finished the drama, and all I have to say is that give it some time before you decided to drop it or give it a bad rating. The ending wrapped up nicely for me and made sense.

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a rushed finale... at least one episode too short

First of all, that is not your 08/15 BL, if it's a BL at all. The romance is not the focus of the story at all, it happens on the side. We have the prosecutor who is quite the psychopath, but in the end figuring out that he is human after all. And then we have an investigator who was elevated by the prosecutor because he his the son of the suspected murderer of this dad.

This is a proper criminial case, not like "Dare You to Death" where the culprit was clear after epsisode 3, more sophisticated and much more intense. And this case makes sense. Of course we see one of the culprits in episode 1 but it was over in a flash, so it is hard to remember it at all. One negative of that is the first forced kiss, but in the context of the story I got the feeling that the investigator had eyes on him from the beginning.

The only de-rating for me was the finale. First our lovely investigator has a backstory as a police officer, but he was not able to self defend himself properly neither against the culprit nor against the culprits son which was strange. The whole reveal of the culprits son feeled very rushed and that the son turned into a maniac was also a bit off putting imho. While I don't care about the use of AI/CGI in the intro, it was a big negative in the finale on the beach. Yes it costs money to film that properly but to film it at a green screen and put the beach in, was a lazy approach, besides being kitschy as hell because they made the colors quite unnatural, the scene does not fit the vibe of the show. Also negative for the korean viewers is the fact, that Wavve cut the NC-scenes a lot. WTF is wrong with them? They put a gay dating show and now a bi dating show on air, but are too afraid to put the whole NC-scene on the air? That's really stupid.

Our MLs were stellar imho. They did a superb job into bringing their characters to life. Production quality was quite high and there is really nothing to complain about except what I already wrote. The OST was also very nice. But because of the things I pointed out, it's not a masterpiece. It would have taken a bit more time, a bit more depth, To have extended all episodes to at least 30 minutes would have been a good idea but due to the huge cast and extras I guess they run into budget issues, so they had to limit runtime which was not a good decision for the series as a whole. At least I can say, Korea can bring good queer content on the screen and not all of them are only 8 minutes per episode. If you have not watched it, you can without fears of wasting your time.

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Why did I even bother?

Usually hate-watching means the show is so bad it’s actually entertaining. Here, it’s just bad, with the characters so annoying it’s hard to find someone to root for. Truth to be told, if I knew the ending before I started the show, I would not bother with watching at all. I was intrigued by the interesting beginning, and not smart enough to leave when I saw the first red flags warning me, this leads to nothing good. One could say I’m Na Bi, and this show was Jae Eon - leaving me angry, annoyed, frustrated and exhausted.

What seemed like a promising portrayal of a toxic relationship, ended as nothing more than another angsty young adult love story, that is even more pretentious than I could ever expect it to be. When in fact, it’s just fancy trash with pretty actors in it.

The main plot is the relationship between Na Bi and Jae Eon. Here’s the thing though - the relationship makes no sense. At first it’s presented as a strong sexual attraction, but it never really moves to anything more. Whenever the writer tried to incorporate any strong feelings from either female or male lead, it made no sense. What are these feelings even based on? By episode 4, the main romance became extremely repetitive and boring. How many times can we see Na Bi cry and Jae Eon be a jerk?

Na Bi was just painful to watch. By the end of the show I felt like she literally learned nothing. There was no development and no progress. The moment I saw some change, she took a U-turn into a crying mess.

Jae Eon was one dimensional and an empty shell. Don’t know what the writer was thinking, but you cannot develop something that does not exist. Giving him a last minute character development, when from the start he had no character or personality was a miracle in itself.

Bit Na and Gyu Hyun were more fun to watch, since both characters were stronger and had more of prominent personalities, but even they ended up on the rather shallow note. While they could have addressed some more interesting ideas about relationships and be a good mirror to Na Bi and Jae Eon’s relationship, the writer left me with little discussion and no real conclusion.

The only couple I truly did enjoy watching was Min Young and Kyung Jun. They were funny, sweet and relatable in all the best and heartwarming ways.

Except for them, there are exactly two things that Nevertheless, did well - LGBT representation and the amazing soundtrack.

While we’ve gotten more and more gay relationships in k-dramas lately, rarely ever we see lesbians presented in any way. At best it’s vaguely suggested or mentioned as a “personality trait”. It’s good to see a side story that truly explores the romance between two girls, and how they both deal with growing feelings. Sadly for me, I could not enjoy their ploy, since I could not stand Ji Wan as a character.

No matter how much I might dislike Nevertheless, the soundtrack is full of amazing bops. I listen to Butterfly and Love Me Like That daily - some of my favorite songs from 2021.

Overall, I could easily write a whole essay on why this show was basically a writing failure, but I honestly do not want to waste any more precious minutes of my life on this title. Let it die on my completed list, never to be visited again.

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Strong start...ending...sigh

Pros: I loved all the couples in this drama. It was really nice to see a historical costume drama where most of the married couples we see are actually in love. That's honestly rare to see. Additionally, the chemistry the female lead had with the male and the second male lead was nice. I also really enjoyed watching everyone's acting. Lastly, issues that arose in the relationship between GJZ (fl) and CYY (ml) were solved very quickly and not dragged out.

Cons: The plot. Lmao, it's all over the place. They were trying to do so many things with so few episodes. Honestly, in order for a drama to be well executed and have both romance and politics, it needs to have at least 50 episodes. It felt like they rushed through the ploticial stuff at the end. Additionally, some of the deaths that occurred in the last episodes were very unnecessary, and we still have unanswered questions. Did the villain actually die? What's going to happen now in court? Although the emperor has proven to be very smart at such a young age, I don't think he can rule/command the court on his own, and all of Cyy's trusted people are gone. So what are they going to do now? These are the questions I would have loved to see answered in the end, but remained unanswered.

All in all, I loved having a community of people to discuss the episodes with day after day. I'll miss watching this show. Hope to see future collaborations between RM, Cisha, and WW in the future again. The three of them did great, as did the rest of the cast.

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let me get one thing straight about all of your concerns

i saw some one comment and was impressed as they said it correctly bcoz so many out there having concerns with sehun age


there's some actors out there portrayed as highschoolers.
Lee Minho (26) in "The Heirs"
Kim Tae Ri (31) in "Twenty-Five, Twenty-One
Hwang In Youp (30) in "True Beauty
Choi Woo Shik (31) in "Our Beloved
Summer"
Oh Sehun in Dokgo Rewind which was also a teen series
I bet, you've watched some of these written above.


okay so i know the people commenting here doesn’t want us to know that they don’t like a certain actor so pointing out a silly thing as age factor was so useless

he is already way mire famous in the outside media and the director knew this too
nope the director didn’t think oh he was almost 30 no he didn’t bcoz it doesn’t matter

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Overhyped. Quite disappointing. Mostly boring.

I was excited to watch this drama because of the high praise and rating on here. However I was quite disappointed. The story had great potential but fell flat for me. Most of the episodes felt like fillers as nothing much happened to advance the plot. You could probably condense the story into 10 episodes and still get the whole plot. In fact, that would have probably made me enjoy it a lot more.

ML story is the best part of the drama and I enjoyed seeing his journey. Unfortunately I can't say the same for the FL. Known as the greatest assassin, we spend all episodes watching her be a maid - clean, cook and run errands. She does have a sharp mind which she occasionally uses well but even that wasn't enough to make her an exciting character to watch. Their love story is sadly not convincing as I felt little chemistry and most of their romantic scenes were cringy. I actually loved the FL with the SML more and the fact that they had a connection since childhood made their relationship more real, sweet and wholesome. Even the older couple's love story was more enjoyable to watch than the main lead's.

Acting was good. Settings looked awesome. Fight & magic scenes were done nice but not enough. Overall, I would personally not recommend this drama to a fantasy lover. Cdramas (xianxia) are a much better choice in my personal opinion.

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Passionate romance that heteros don't get

Most heterosexual plots simply don't get an exclusive passionate romantic plots like this one. They usually have a bunch of other things going on and a bit of romance thrown in. Not here. The focus is on the ML and his journey to discovering love and himself. And it does make me a tad envious because they really don't beat around the bush in Love in the Big City. They explore friendships which are mostly wholesome and endearing.

The show is not all roses and sunshine though. There are some dark topics explored. However, most of the show tries to be positive because the male lead is a cheerful individual making the best of difficult circumstances. Maybe even a little toxic positivity that can be frustrating or concerning for others around him at times.

The beginning few episodes were funny and enjoyable but somewhere towards the end, the show started to feel slow and dull. Not sure if that was intentional. Overall the characters and situations are mostly realistic.

I wasn't too happy about the way the series ended especially since the last 2 or 3 episodes weren't as interesting.

The opening theme is nice but the OST in particular did not stand out to me.

For the most part it is an easy binge watch with good cinematography, interesting characters, good acting and a job well done by Nam Yoon Su.

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Flat romance, lacklustre politics & ML reduced to side accessory

I usually start my reviews explaining what the drama is about but this one is misleading as hell. You think you get a second chance romance where the main leads rebirth from their late 30s back to 18, work on repairing their broken relationship and the corrupt court. But the story revolves around the past history and family rivalry between the female lead and the second male lead. If you are a fan of Zhang Linghe or like your male leads to be more than a love puppy support role, you will be massively disappointed with this drama.

Even though I very much enjoyed the first 12 episodes, the drama totally lost me afterwards. I was only able to finish it for ZLH, and also because of my NDD + FOMO.

The female lead in terms of her interpersonal relationships is a bully at first and emotionally insensitive to others. Although a smart cookie, confident and authority at court, in matters of the heart, she spends half the drama confused about her feelings. The second male lead has many romantic scenes with the female lead, and the focus is on his tragic first life. The director creates scenarios to make you want to sympathise with him but it all falls short and in fact annoys the audience even more. The male lead’s sole purpose in the drama is to be a love puppy and nothing more.

If the story was actually about the female lead and second male lead, I would have liked it. You have a love-hate relationship, power or love dynamic, family or love themes. I see the potential. But the writers did ZLH dirty by making him a lovesick puppy with no purpose in the plot. The poster of this drama is totally misleading and they should have put the second male lead in there (no hate to the actor, he is super cute) instead of ZLH.

POSITIVE:
- Zhang Linghe (ML). He is hands down the best part of this drama. I loved him in every scene, all his line deliveries were wonderful, he was great at comedy too. His character is a sweet, green flag cutie pie and the actor brings in the sexy factor too.
- Confident and authoritative female lead in terms of court/politics scenes.
- Lighthearted for the most part.
- Flashbacks from previous life are woven well into the story.
- Good comedy for the most part.
- Male lead’s jealousy scenes were 10/10. He cracked me up every time.
- Great acting from the main leads Zhang Linghe and Zhao Jin Mai.

NEGATIVE:
- Second male lead is actually the male lead. First half of the drama he has many romantic moments with the female lead (and even a special OST), and in the second half his story completely takes over the screen time. Giving him screen time is not as much of an issue as the way he was written and portrayed which drove many viewers into angry fits. He became an unwatchable character to the point that a lot of people were skipping his scenes. If the writers wanted to create a tragic villain, they failed.

- Male lead is just a side accessory and has no story arc. His emotional world is never explored. In all the major political plot points, he doesn’t contribute much to anything. His sole purpose is to be a love interest for the female lead. In fact, the female lead treats him badly many times but he still stays madly devoted to her. His mad devotion is never properly explained either which makes his character feel very one dimensional.

- Flat romance. The foundation of the romance is written poorly which didn’t allow me to connect with the couple. The reason their marriage failed in the first life is due to a somewhat silly misunderstanding. Even if I can find reasons why it makes sense, my biggest issue is that in episode 11 the male lead suddenly confesses that he has always loved her. But we aren’t shown why, how or when he fell for her. Aside from 2 second flashbacks where they glance at each other lovingly, we have no substance for this confession. It’s just a fact we are supposed to blindly accept. Throughout the drama he is blindly devoted to her and the writers failed to show me why. So even though the main leads looked good together, even though ZLH delivered beautiful romantic lines, I felt nothing for the couple. On top of that, their one steamy bath scene was abruptly cut, leaving the audience very unsatisfied.

- Love triangle. Usually in cdramas the female lead only has eyes for the male lead so love triangles are not really triangles for me and don’t bother me. But in this case, the female lead has actual confusing feelings for both men and is pondering for many episodes which one to choose. The worst part is that, even at episode 30 the director shows us romantic shots with her and the second male lead. In fact, they even have telepathy scenes where they stare at each other and speak the dialogue in their minds. Total soulmates right. Well, this love triangle could have worked if it was written right. But the fact is that pretty much everyone hated the second male lead and absolutely nobody was rooting for him to get the girl.

- Lacklustre politics. Nothing new I haven’t seen before, very simple and boring at times. In fact, the first life's story has more angst and is definitely a more exciting story to tell than the second life (which is the main plot of the drama).

- No logic. The male lead is the hottest piece of cake walking in and outside the court and the writers tell me that nobody wants a piece of that? (not even his wife for the most part?) #plothole (Ok it’s more of a joke but you know it’s true. It would have been a bit more realistic if he had at least one girl pining over him).

OVERALL:
Even though I didn’t have extremely high expectations I found myself very disappointed and misled by this drama. It’s one thing to highlight a second male lead and deepen the story but it’s unacceptable to reduce the male lead to nothing when he is one of the reasons many people have tuned in to watch. But even without the male lead issue, I found the plot of this drama very forgettable and boring. Nothing much stands out. Considering this is a S++ production (one of Youku’s highest budgeted dramas), this is a fail for me and one of my 2024 biggest disappointments.

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