Queen Seon Duk
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1Brilliant. Timeless epic quality of emotionally processing the life of 2 historic heroines
This KDrama tells historical heroine stories for a change. (Yes: female AND plural.) On top of that, enriched along the way with some highly topical insights and a vivid examination of management systems - what does the common people need? How does it want or have to be lead? In this respect, the 2009 series has not lost any of its topicality. But above all, "Queen Seondeok" brings the viewers closer to the earlier (not so well represented in KDrama and KMovie) Korean history of the Three Kingdoms.Here, history is presented in 62 episodes in a moving manner and in dazzling characters, while offering valuable historical input. 62 episodes should not frighten you. This is perhaps more like 5 or 6 seasons western style. You don't have to go through all the episodes in one go, (but you can of course). To be honest, the number of episodes and the rather stiff-looking poster with a heavy crown kept me from watching the series for a long time. But that was a big mistake. This series is wonderful in view of the wealth of impressions, personal processes of the protagonists, and the profound examination of the attitude and philosophy of rulers. Also funny in places. In any case, an impressive piece of Korean history that is told in a round, rich and colorful way. The KDrama leaves nothing out when it comes to being human and being a hero - it presents all of this in various dramaturgical entanglements and depths, with twists & turns and deep feeling. (Swords, bows and battles are also included.)
This is about real historical personalities from Korean history, who made remarkable achievements in their time. First and foremost Queen Seondeok. She was the first Queen of Silla and the first of the few female heads of state in Korean history. If one considers her progressive achievements for her people, she must have been a charismatic personality in order to be able to place herself in the first, officially leading position in this feudal male world. Her life, but also that of other contemporary significant, history-shaping people in her environment are prepared dramaturgically lively and unforgettable. Admittedly enriched with a bit of poetic freedom in the service of a compelling and exciting story. However, in the historical drama orbit, it seems to me quite acceptable to bend the facts here and there in order to create a vivid impression of the character of the historical figures and their work instead. This is much more memorable (in passing) than exact chronologies. In addition, the actual valid sources that can be evaluated are limited. Even historiography has to do a bit of guessing every now and then to understand where, for example, a woman at that time got the vision, the strength and the courage to put men in the second row - and at the same time intelligent, visionary and with respect for the people, to rule in an almost idiosyncratic way.... In my opinion, the fictional plot does not damage the essential impression that one gets about life and challenges in the Silla Reich, about the charisma of the historical personality of Queen Seondeok and the historical figures around her plus her achievements for her people. The KDrama draws a memorable, unforgettable character portrait of the Silla Empire in the 7th century. In doing so, it brings the bones of the queen lying under one of the burial mounds in Gyeongju to life again.
Good to know: The Silla Empire was not yet under the influence of Confucianism, which clearly defines the man as the head of the family/tribe. Among the noble Silla families there were also those in which descent on the mother's side was decisive, or women were considered the heads of the family. At that time, matrilineal and patrilineal tribal structures still existed in parallel. Therefore, the respect for women and their functions in society was comparatively higher overall - but still not a matter of course.
For me, what is valuable about this story (and at the same time the timeless quality of the KDrama) lies in the juxtaposition of two very different, each impressive, intelligent female figures of their time: Princess Deokman (Queen Seondeok) and the noble concubine Misil, who hardly had an influential king or leader of the Hwarang left out during her time in order to directly influence political events. In fact, the two women did not live at the same time, but poetic freedom overrides this and juxtaposes the two as equal antagonists. (Extremely successful!)
The KDrama "Queen Seondeok" is characterized by a timeless epic quality in the emotional processing of the historical events. Brilliantly done in places, quite funny at times, with colorful vividness and everything that life usually entails: plenty of drama that stirs the spirits and also touches the heart. An exciting script (which in the second half has to work through a little more historical facts), and a colorful dance of highly inspired mimes, reviving those distant 50 years in the past 7th century. Not only the later queen and the concubine Misil get a memorable profile, also the men around Queen Seongeok - Bidam and Kim Yushin - are noticeably filled with life. Love story included - it's more of an encore than the main thing when it comes to the entire story, but it refreshes the second half as a balance to the historical ride through time.
By the way, the ratings literally went through the roof at 43.6 percent when the series was broadcast on television in 2009.
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Fogos de artifício do meu coração
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Love at first sight, reconcile 10 years later between two Individuals of Noble Profession.
It’s love at first sight for ML in their teenage years, both 19. FL reciprocate the love but wasn’t brave and strong enough to defy her family. She left him but her heart never love again. ML tried but FL’s family is powerful, influential and did some unscrupulous act to harm ML, leaving him broken. But he also never gave up on his love for her and he choose to never love again. Till they reconciled by accident 10 years later, she is a medical doctor and he is a firefighter. Fate and time and time they were brought together and their love for each other continues to grow. FL wants to pursue ML but she still struggles with lack of bravery and courage to break her family ties thinking she is indebted to them. She is an adoptive child and was grateful of her adoptive parents providing for her, hence she struggles with intense guilt, till she discovered what her adoptive mom has done to harm ML and their love for her is conditioned and not genuine. ML is also an adopted child by his uncle’s family. His own father was an alcoholic who died in accident and his mom abandoned him, however his adoptive family provides secure and healthy love allowing ML to grow up with a lot more courage and resilience, hence he understands FL struggles and wanted to be her strengths. The catalyst of their relationship happened from ep 25 onwards, due to a major earthquake, both learnt they can’t live without each other and reconciled finally. After that, the rest of the series, there will be a few more incidents involving change in FL’s adoptive brother and parents. I love that at least this drama didn’t make an ultimate villain out of FL’s adoptive family. It gave the audience a chance to learn how they can also change and reconciliation is possible. Both leads’ love strengthen over time and their passion in their profession continue to flourish.Although the romance is the core, it’s not the only emphasis here, be prepared for the slow burn, but worth the wait as their romance from ep., 25 onwards is steaming hot!
Verdict:
A well written story of growth, finding your own voice and believing in love. Of all the other drama with firefighter as profession, I would say this is the best! With brotherly love, family values and love, relationship and character growth, as well as believable rescue mission. Of course strong message on the pride represented in the profession too.
Some thoughts:
Faithful love is hard to come by. It does feel that the story stemmed from showing the FL’s perspectives as victim and flaws in her character resulting in her needing ML more. ML is just purely one track mind and obsessed with her. That’s the only part I find unrealistic, ML’s obsession for FL, he can easily find another woman, but he didn’t as script requires. He just have eyes for her, and it does feel that his existence is a blessing for FL as he truly rescue her from her dysfunctional family and help her grow. As a viewer I can see that FL has strengths but was uncovered because of ML. As mentioned in the drama, at an earlier ep. 11, FL feels and said she doesn’t deserve him, and she will harm him as she is not brave enough, which is very insightful and true in some perspectives.
However as the story progresses, it shows her growth in character and strength, learning to attune to her own needs and learning to love, as well as learning to be an independent adult through various events and experiences of her profession. ML to me, written here was flawless, I may be bias as because he is Yang Yang. Lol! Although ML was slightly rebellious in young age, he grew to take responsibility for self, family and the profession he hold prideful of.
Both Yang Yang and Wang Chu Ran are a beautiful pair. Chemistry is great.
The drama does have a lot more emphasis on the firefighter profession and medical doctor. Seeing so many of these theme in drama recently, I can’t help to wonder China really needs people to be inspired to take up this profession. the rescue mission were quite well filmed and realistic. The cameo of many familiar faces from cast of Glory of Special Forces were fantastic, can see their good teamwork with Yang Yang. And then the surprised good few episodes portraying strong brotherly relationship between Zhang Bin Bin and Yang Yang were very heart warming.
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Last Episode was a Bomb!
Until the very last few minutes of the final episode, I would have given this Kdrama a 9.5 rating. The ending, although not sad, was lack luster and NOT worthy of all the previous wonderful moments. So, so sad! Why, why, Writers, didn't you have a better, romantic, full-of-love, live-happily-ever-after ending for the two main characters? You gave all the other characters complete happy endings.......in fact, there was too much focus on the auxiliary cast vs the main characters............Again, so, so sad! P.S. The astroturf in front of the Monthly Magazine Home building was really sad....shame on the set designers.Esta resenha foi útil para você?
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One of the points that makes it a substantial drama is its characters. Kokoro is your typical happy-go-lucky girl, a point mentioned throughout the drama as a joke. What makes her different though is that she never imposes her solution on others. Her job in the drama is to watch the people around her, as we the viewers do until the characters find their own solution. This brings us to another great point in the drama, where even though it seems we have a weekly lesson learned, problems are ongoing and don't get magically solved by the end of the episode it got introduced. We do get the episodic focus, but issues do get revisited later as we see where the characters are headed. This gives us better-paced character development, as the characters make decisions about their work and their lives. Another element I'd like to mention is the way the drama peaks into the characters' lives'. We don't get a full explanation and detailed background about them, we just get enough to know how this is affecting their current lives, views, and work. We only know what we usually know as we get closer to our colleagues at work. To this end, this is a drama about work and career.
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I feel this drama represents not only how publishing works in Japan, but how the entertainment industry works there overall. It is what makes Japan produce these artistic works while hand-in-hand producing the usual predictable easy-to-sell works. The episode focused on Yasuda Ken's character Yasui-san emphasizes it most, but we do explore that theme more than once. I won't go into detail as to what it is exactly, I will leave it for the viewers to discover. I'd just like to add the way the drama itself is produced is representative of that idea. As I mentioned earlier, it looks and sounds like those typical dramas, but just by peeling that layer off, you find something deeper, as each episode goes by.
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I have to mention how much I loved all the characters here; Takahata, Yasui, Numata, Wada-san, Mikurayama, Koizumi the lovely Iokibe to name a few, and the cast did an outstanding job no matter how much or how little we saw of them, but my most favourite by far Nakata Haku the disturbed aspiring manga artist. Nagayama Kento played him to perfection. The whole cast did an outstanding job, but I just love how that character was handled. I wish we had seen more of Narita, the character played by Kaname Jun.
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Do give the drama a try, and give it at least 3-4 episodes and you will understand the gem I'm talking about. If anything the eye-candy in here will sure keep you entertained ;)
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Bad try...
The main issue with this drama is that it really wants to be deeper than it is. It’s like that one friend who insists on wearing sunglasses indoors to seem mysterious, but in reality, just bumps into furniture. In an attempt to be as enigmatic and "artsy" as possible, the show throws the viewer straight into the middle of the plot without a map or even a vague sense of direction. Explanations? Pfft, who needs those? Character introductions or motivations? Absolutely not—figure it out yourself by squinting at cryptic expressions and awkward pauses, and maybe, just maybe, you’ll piece it all together.We’re presented with three main characters, and the storyline juggles between them with the grace of a toddler trying to juggle flaming torches. Add in some random time skips, and you’ve got yourself a thoroughly confusing start. But surely, you think, surely the middle part will make everything clearer, right? Wrong.
Take, for instance, the mysterious "crime" that Cha Jung Woo committed to be banned from writing under his own name. Everyone in the drama talks about it with such cryptic vagueness, you start to wonder if even the scriptwriters know what happened. The more you think about it, the less sense it makes. In the age of digital printing and self-publishing, this whole "banned writer" storyline crumbles under the weight of its own illogic. What’s stopping him from publishing a blog? Or an e-book? The drama seems to think that being vague equals depth, but really, it’s just confusing.
And as for the romance—well, let’s just say you can forget about that entirely. One day, they wake up and decide, "Hey, I think I want to be with that person," and poof, we’re supposed to believe there’s a grand romantic connection. But there’s no build-up, no sparks—just two people suddenly deciding they’re in love because, well, the script says so. It’s about as romantic as accidentally grabbing the wrong person's hand in a crowded elevator.
There’s nothing particularly memorable about this drama—except, perhaps, for that one song they use repeatedly, which might just get stuck in your head whether you like it or not.
Overall, I’ve seen worse dramas, but I’ve definitely seen better ones too. If this show didn’t spend so much time pretending to be more profound than it actually is, it might have been a far more enjoyable experience. As it stands, it’s like a shallow pool trying to convince you it’s the ocean—just don’t dive in expecting depth.
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Many things about A Love So Beautiful was a surprise to me. I'll be the first to admit that I harbor a real prejudice each time I enter the realm that is a Chinese drama - watching them throughout my childhood, they were unfailingly littered with a) tragedy, b) horrible CG, and/or c) gagworthy storylines (typically, an entertaining combination of all three). And quite honestly, few nowadays seem to impress me. Call it bias, but I still think the Mainland has much to learn regarding what constitutes a good show.
A Love So Beautiful was different from the moment I picked it up. It does not present melodramatic conflict for you to brood over, but instead focuses on the innocence of a teenager trying to get through the struggles of school and first love. I did not grow up within the Chinese education system, but there is something incredibly charming and nostalgic about seeing a group of five friends trudge through their high school years. Having teachers scold you, finding unpredictable friendships, secretly liking someone...A person is only naive in such a way for a small amount of time, and this drama perfectly captures that foolish yet heartwarming attitude of youth.
It only helped that the cast consisted of young, yet capable actors. How annoying is it when you watch a show about high school and the actors are in their mid- to late-twenties? And then you spend the entire duration brooding over how old they look and how nothing about them reminds you of a cute teenager. A Love So Beautiful never suffers from this issue; because not only do the main actors look young - they are. They act their parts perfectly, accurately presenting the turbulent feelings of their characters and how they grow over the course of the drama. It's difficult to find five lead actors who interact with one another with so much natural chemistry that it's hard to believe that they're acting.
But turn on the sad music - I'm done gushing about all the things I absolutely adored. Here's what dragged it down from a perfect 10: as soon as the characters left high school, the plot began to wander. There is a distinct imbalance between the warmth that is their high school lives and the confusion that is their "growing up."
I would like to ensure you that I don't hate the fact that they got older. It was the delivery; how the writers depicted their "maturing" that was irksome. What I found particularly problematic was how you spend over half of the drama watching them in high school - and you love it to pieces - but then you have less than eight episodes to watch them speed carelessly through cliche relationship problems and time skips. The transition is rough and the trip doesn't get any smoother. It would have made far more sense to me to either limit the story of this show to their high school years, or add more episodes to spread out their time as they age past university and through adulthood.
I simply didn't feel the magic in the latter part of the drama, which follows their post-graduation lives. It's still fine to watch, but it just isn't the same. I wanted to see the ways they carefully sort out problems between themselves and thus mature, not watch as they get angry at one another and resolve it merely because - well, merely because that's the way the writers want it to be. I did not feel as connected to their characters; not because they aren't bubbly teenagers, but because the story slowly becomes more about their problems and less about who they are. To me, their characters are one of the greatest strengths of the plotline, and as it fades throughout, so does the show's primary charm.
I would feel bad shutting this drama down entirely, since that would be unfair to the refreshing fun that it brought to me as I marathoned it. It is not without its flaws. However, it made me remember my first feelings of romance and filled my heart to the brim with both happiness and bittersweetness. It's hard to find a drama capable of such an effect on a viewer - and I'm glad this one found a way.
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I kinda prefer it to the anime XD
the actors were amazing and made the characters really believable
I gave this 10/10 because it is truly an amazing drama
lots of love for the story, acting, music and characters :D
Definitely recommend to anyone!! :D
It made me laugh and cry and is hilarious at points :3
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What to expect: a festival of backstabbing.
Don't watch it if you despise convenient plot points, because almost every single twist and turn here is exactly this.
Imagine a storyboard, an intricate and tensed network of possible outcomes. As the story flows, it forces some lines to close down. Some chess pieces are bound on their positions, limiting the movement of others. Some are taken down (destroying evidence is a recurring theme of the first half or so - which, realistically speaking isn't a wisest move on a characters' part, but it's necessary for the plot to move forward; once a deal is finished, it's impossible to restore the former status (but hey, there's a twist on this too!)).
The first episode is a gateway of sorts, filtering out the viewers who aren't for this kind of story (the controversial part is even in the official trailer). A journalist gets killed, his friend framed for it, and a judge known for his integrity blackmailed to announce him guilty. Framed man's daughter seeks the judge's help, but feels betrayed in the end and sets him up, trying to create a pressure point on him. He ends ups tangled between Taebaek law firm's all-reaching influences and her blackmail, facing an impossible choice. Sprinkle with hints of latest political scandals from real life and you have a Taebaekgate of your own.
WORLDBUILDING
There are no right choices here. It's a bleak and ruthless world in which power overcomes truth and justice can be bought. Everyone important knows each other and sits in Taebaek pocket. The law firm serves as a symbol here: it recruits its employees from the elite lawyers, prosecutors and judges by orchestrating their downfall from behind and generously offering them a place to stay. Then it feeds on their former reputation and abilities.
Many people complained that a hero introducted as just and incorruptible breaks so easily and turns shattered and 'spineless' during first few eps, but that's the point. 'Whisper' suceeds in creating a sense of encirlement, hopelessness and inevitability.
CHESS PIECES
Characters' cunnery manifests in being in right places at right time with right people and smirking knowingly. They're smart enough to forsee one or more moves of the opponent ahead, but it doesn't mean they don't lower their guard from time to time. And yes, deadpan and smirk (and furrowed brows…) are dominant expressions, but first, I don't think it was actors choice, two, there's much more to it (a honourable mention for Hyung Mook, let's hope to see more of him in the dramas).
There's no clear, progressic character development, only people being poked from different angles and reacting accordingly. In a sense, it's not about Dong Joon and Yeong Joo substantially changing at all, because those two (especially she) were badass from the start, only their means were limited. For them, it's about achieving their goals. They come to their original point, only stronger and calmer. What changes the most is everyone around them losing their comfort, realising that the rotten world they know so well affects them too, that they too could also fall prey of a betrayal, not just stage it for others, and that people they trust and love won't always put their good first. All the sense of comradery in crime falls apart.
ROMANCE TAG
There's a love line and it stopped me for some time from even starting this. (Two, actually, but I don't want to completely rob you out of feeling smart and perceptive in a first few eps.) Its existence may or may not feel a little forced. It develops gradually and for the better part of the show consists mainly of male lead spacing out watching female lead being awesome, his gaze tinted with guilt. If you don't feel like watching a drama with a romance tag, you can safely ignore that for the first 12 episodes or so and pretend they're just partners with a hostile start, reaching an adorable intimacy later [here would be a gif of Dong Joon stealing a bite of Yeong Joo's salad from her plate].
However, the important part is: they both have agency during the show, can act separately and aren't overly protective. In the end, them developing feelings for each other serves as just another pressure point.
I could say there's a 'strong female lead' (and it applies to both to various extent), but the thing is, not a single character is gender-limited to begin with. They aren't forced to act or behave like males or females at all.
Also - the poster is right. It's not about main couple and their vengance only, all four characters are equally important. I'd even argue that the other two carry the story once the things between the former are roughly settled.
What it doesn't depicts, are four fathers. There's a rivalry and resentment between Choi Il Hwan and Kang Yoo Taek and it cast a shadow on their children. Lee Dong Joon has family issues too. But all of this is treated as a mean to a purpuse.
17 HOURS OF YOUR LIFE
I tend to avoid crime/law/suspense/mystery/… dramas longer than 10-12 episodes, because stretching it further calls for people running in circles like a headless chickens and creating misunderstandings that could have been easily avoided if they just stopped and used their brains for once. Not a case here. On the contrary, obstacles come from constant betrayals on every front and people trying to protect oneself on other's expense. The pacing is fine. It takes some time to dismantle stalemates within stalemates and get enough power to force the truth. When this drama does prolong some event or a threat, it does it in such a manner to close all exits but one. For example, you can see someone soon-to-be framed for something at the beginning of the episode, but it takes some preparations to make sure that person will have little to no possibility to get out, and if s/he was taken sooner, s/he could save him/herself much easier (enters a fire destoying what little evidence have left). It's logical and kinda mechanical.
Anyway. I didn't skip a scene, which is something to brag for me these days. There was a week-long break forced with the presidental election coverage, but it's not noticeable. Recaps and flashbacks are minimal if any during the better part of the show, but there's more towards the end, because it was originally written as a 16 episode drama.
It's not super realistic in details, but uncanny in essence. The story is cleared out of all the accidental clutter and wholly focuses on the main plot and connected subplots showcasing the main players. Don't expect much of legal cases or police investigation. They do work, but it mostly serves as a setting since they don't meet mundane problems or unrelated cases. If something comes up, it's used as an exposure point, to reveal something from the past or to create a new problem that can be used against someone. Characters have only skeletal backstories - and for me it works. For many it doesn't.
Generally speaking, if you don't feel an urge to cheer for your characters, but rather shake them, throw on an arena and see who'll last, you've found yourself something to watch.
MUSIC
Tolerable and sparsely used for a kdrama standards, mostly instrumentals and background noises (clock ticking etc). Main theme is a latin chorus (with a hint to an early plot point), but it's nowhere near as pretentious as say, K2.
VISUALS
That's the biggest forte for me. First, it's stylish, two, it's fitting. It heavily relies on contrasts. Taebaek resides in a fortress-like building, a huge grey cube with slot-like windows. (Of course it has an open roof for dramatic conversations in the wind, duh.) It's interior is all glass, chromium, highly polished marble and some rough stone on the walls. Tight, dimly lit corridor leading to the owner's office ends with an anti-chamber filled with a terra cotta army and two hostess taking away all electronic devices from the guests. It's an example, but there are many locations and they all match the common theme. Interior decorations items are used within the plot. People mostly wear elegantly matte fabrics and everyone is coordinated for the sake of coherent screencaps. Even PPL doesn't hurt the eyes that much. The lighting is cold, blueish and artificial and it bonds all the scenes for the scale I haven't seen before in a kdrama. It's on par with Cruel City's grittiness and darkness or W clear division between two worlds when it comes to a coherent worldbuilding.
HUMOUR SAMPLE
'My father is not here today, they are having a praying meeting in their community, so the embezzlement of the temple funds won't be found out.'
Pros:
- Highly motivated, flawed, charismatic characters
- Reasonably smart intrigue (forming alliances and shuttering it, finding weak points and exploiting it)
- Good acting
- Even pacing, engaging power struggles, focused storytelling, clear and somewhat elegant structure
- Visually pleasing (and it's an integral part of the worldbuilding)
- Comic relief isn't overused, neither is the story too dry and serious
- not makjang.
Neutrals/cons:
- Convenience everywhere. Some things that never have any business be written take tangible form.
- Music fits the mood and action, although it ranges from forgettable to 'dear lord, not K2 again'
- Romance feels forced an unneeded.
- Not very engaging on an emotional level (there's a lame attempt of holding the viewer hostage with making one character badly sick in the middle, but I still don't really care for anyone or anything). It brings out repulsion, pity maybe, a satisfaction from people meeting their end and justice triumphing, but that's it.
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Anyway, this is my first time seeing Eugenie Liu and I instantly like her, I'm always into badass, femme fatale who can kick ass and wouldn't go into the damsel-in-distress route once the 'prince' arrived.
She has a good chemistry with Jasper Liu, and their kissing scene is bam! Maybe because this is Netflix, so less of those frozen lips kisses and this one has been pretty satisfying. This is only the 2nd Jasper Liu drama that I've seen, the first one is his first drama with Puff Kou. I think that he has matured as an actor, and if he's given more chances to do more variety of roles, he'll be one of the best.
The other characters, especially Din Din and Angie's right henchmen, Liu Guo, gives the comedy relief for this drama. It was a surprise that they were given their own storyline, which makes this drama funnier and 'more open' to other love possibilities.
Angie's fiance, Eddie Kim, is pretty hot, and the twist at the end could mean that we'll be seeing more of him if there's a second season. BTW, he also the right chemistry with Angie and you can see that sparks did fly when they meet again as adults, if I'm not so biased with Jasper, I think Eddie and Angie's storyline has a great potential.
The story might be trite, but this drama is overall fun, something that will warm you up when its cold and would give enough sunshine during gloomy weather. Since this is only 6 episodes, might as well binge-watch this.
Oh....it also has a cool soundtrack, particularly the english song they played. Anyone knows the title?
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What I most enjoyed? Kim Rae Won's character, Sang Min, is probably first place. Afterwards, Moon Geun Young. It's funny, because at first I hated Bo Eun for the way she treated Sang Min. But at the end, you can really see she regrets what she did, and manned up to it. Also, her acting is really genuine. I haven't seen many dramas or movies, but I can still say that her portrayal has been my favorite. No exaggerated facial expressions, thank God!
And finally, the story itself. I didn't see any over-the-top "comedy" scenes, or those crazy dramatic scenes you see in most dramas or movies. This was the light-hearted story I've been looking for ever since I started watching dramas. Seriously, if you're doubting about watching this, then don't. I recommend this to anyone!
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This may be the only drama, after Goblin, that made me cry- and I'm not much of a weeper!The story line was new and refreshing, and it was filled with moments that were relatable, hilarious and heart breaking. After watching the final episode,I came to the conclusion that this was, in my opinion, one of the many masterpieces of Korean television. The actors all had great chemistry together, especially the main leads. I really liked the way each relationship was explained and portrayed. Because if this, the last episode had me bawling my eyes out as we said goodbye to each of the staff members. Also, the ending to me was brilliant. The way that they all were connected in their next lives made me so happy as I felt like they all got the happy endings that they deserved, especially Man Wol and Chan Sung.
Don't even get me started on the OSTs for the drama. Although most of them were quite slow and emotional, each artist brought their own flavour. My personal favourite was Done For Me by Punch as I really enjoyed the music, and the lyrics had so much meaning behind them.
Overall, I can say without a doubt that this drama is an incredible story, and is now one of my all time favourite dramas ever!
P.S. I really wish that Kim Soo Hyun's cameo in episode 16 was a hint at a possible season 2?
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BEFORE YOU CONSIDER THE MDL's RATING...
I liked it. You might like it too. It's a hit or miss.The major let down for most people who didn't enjoy this was the pacing of the story. The answers to the snowballing mystery were initially given too slow. And when this happens, the audience are bound to lose their attention and forget what the original suspense was about.
I personally did not mind this. The writer still managed to hook me into the mystery. and as each week passed, I found myself growing more and more ravenous for answers. For some, this will deter them from coming back to watch it due to the lack of trust in the plot as the answers to the mystery weren't delivered in a timely manner. But for myself and others alike, this will compel us to drop all our work and chores to stream it the second it the episode is available.
This show is definitely a hit or miss. It is one that requires patience to be enjoyed. The story slowly builds up with suspence and only rewards the audience with answers until the last remaining episodes. It is really down to preference, but for me, when the answers to the main mysteries were rewarded (after sitting through 10 episodes of confusion, frustration and having absolutely no idea to what is going on in this unpredictable plot) it felt very liberating.
The acting was decent. I liked it. This wasn't a surprise as I was familiar with Cho Yeo Jung from Parasite and Kim Young Dae from Extraordinary You. I haven't heard of the other lead actors until now, but they did a good job.
The show didn't have a particularly wide range of music scores, but regardless I found the OST enjoyable, especially the ending theme 'O.V.E.R.' by Suran. The song gave me a lot of sweet psycho vibes, which suited this drama very well.
I'd say give this show a chance. As I said, you'd either really like it if you have patience, or drop it. I mean, the worst possible outcome is that it's not your cup of tea, and that's okay, at least you gave it a shot.
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STORY
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When three unrelated strangers, Shin, Neo and Miw, were forced to run together from a gang due an unexpected incident occurred. Is it luck that one of the three is the son of the gang leader (Shin) that is after them? Or will the other two (Neo and Miw) take advantage of the son of the gang leader to gain the upper hand? That seems to be the consistent theme all through out that will make you think, is the son will betray his new found "friends" to gain his father's approval? Or will he help his friends to eventually escape the gang who is after them? So how unrelated the three truly are when you learn that there is one person among the three that is common to the other two. Is it really that fate that jokingly put them together, or it is just a matter of time that the paths of the three will eventually crossed?
On the surface this would be a typical gang-related series that you took one of ours, then you should be eliminated. But that is not the case here. You will realize that each of the 3 has a past that is somehow connected to a family member that led to their current state of "misery". And as the saying goes, "misery loves company". All of them has this unspoken goal: to prove to the world that I am more of what is my past. It is through this misery that they find comfort and sees each other eye to eye. But will this bond be enough to get themselves out of the hole they are in? Or will this gathering will be their demise?
Truly, this is a series of crime committed after the other and seemingly unending violence, loyalty and standing your friends, making up for the mistakes you made with your family and achieving a dream. All of those inter-woven in a seemingly complicated plot. But once you were able to figure out what and where it needs to go, you will see perfectly created canvass of real life SURVIVAL.
After the violence and deaths that had happened, will there still be a happy ending for anyone? And will anyone be truly free from their past to build a new future? This what you have to find out.
I deliberately left out the sexual relationship among the 3 as for me, it is not that important than what was formed among them. And that is what I want for the viewers to focus on. The sexual tension is just an icing on top. To mellow down your adrenaline pump and redirect it into something equally exciting. Can it be left out? NO. As it serves the catalyst of the whole story, beginning for series of unfortunate events.
ACTING/CAST
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Let me start the review of the cast and their acting from MY most favorite to the least.
JENNIE as MAE - this is definitely a breath of fresh air. For the longest time I have been watching Thai series, may it BL, straight or mixed, this is a first that humanizes a trans-woman and gave some sense of dignity. Unlike what I watched before that a trans woman often gets ridiculed, a butt of jokes, mocked and treated like lower than a second class citizen. Here, you can see that a trans woman also have a dream, gets hurt, struggles, fight back when pushed against a wall... just... like... any... other... human. Jennie gave life to Mae, her chasing an identity she had dream for so long, the pursuit of what she thinks can make her happy, pay back the kindness of the people that shown it to her. Her character is one of the most develop in this series. She starts of with a meager job and when the unfortunate happened, she "man" up. As the series progress, she becomes tougher and tougher, often times at conflict with morality where is currently placed herself in. Can she attain "justice" by inflicting injustice to others, this the main theme of her character. And she has the most important role here! For that, kudos to the team behind this!
GUNsmile as TER - Is another character that transitioned well. From playing Prem in SOTUS with anger management issue, to a wacky ghost friend in He's Coming To Me, he is turning into one versatile actor. What helped his role here as Ter is his role as Prem. A no non-sense guy that is willing to do anything and everything to complete the task he was given. And how he takes care of Mae here, reminds me of how he treated Wad (Fluke of SOTUS) after both of them were engage in a fist fight. It started as a promise with a friend that eventually led to something more. His role turned a mere "baby-sitter" to protector to a support buddy. You can clearly see as well how he changed from a strong-willed gang member that nobody can changes his mind if he sets his mind to it, to being influenced in thinking things through with logic and sense of responsibility. And he is so handsome in the last episode, Gunsmile should smile more!
TAY as SHIN - If you have been following him, you most probably know that he is connected to New. And perhaps you seen his acting developed from to Kiss Me Again, to the Our Skyy special, truly he can deliver what is required in acting in a romantic role. But this time around, it is way different. Here, you can see a nerdy looking, naive, detest violence and to a degree, a gullible guy. If you watched him first here then watch him paired up with New, all of the characteristics of his role here is the exact opposite. And that speaks volume on how good an actor he is. Shin character here is torn between friends and a father. Often times you can see him struggles and even second guesses his decisions. One can also see the situation he is in, a normal life or a life of a gangster. Early part of the show, it is establish who he will chose between the two. But towards the end, you might think otherwise. It is only in the last episode that was clearly shown who he choose between his friend or his father.
MILD as MIW - I watched this girl first in Kiss Me Again as Sandee, you can see her assertiveness in getting a thing done. Bossy at times. But lack of airtime can make you wonder, "Is that all she got?". Then I watched "Happy Birthday the series". Oh boy! I was impressed how she transitioned her character from Sandee to Tharnnam. From then on, I know she is a versatile actress that dares not to be stereotype as far as a character that she can play. Her role here as Miw is an edgy, sassy and you can see also a vulnerable side of the character which she gives justice. Now as she reprise her role in "Dark Blue Kiss", personally, she sets up a high bar that she needs to overcome; but I don't mind being the good old friendly Sandee to Pete and Kao. It will speak the consistency of her acting. Miw here is constantly veering away from an ugly past, trying to prove to others that she more than what she was used to be. Often times, you would see her "battle" through to prove her worth, and in the end, she did. With her looks here is inconsistent in what she is trying to be. It is a demon that she is constantly trying to get rid off. Nothing but praises for Mild's portrayal of Miw.
JOSS as NEO - To be honest, this is the first series/movie I watched him act. And I am impressed as well. His acting as the leader of the group was done with credibility as he shows when to stand by his decision, when to level with his friends, when to be soft and caring. He is the perfect lead role an action themed series or movies as he got the looks of this bad boy image, the body and his height suits that kind of character. I hope to see him more acting with a similar theme like this one. What I like also about the production team is how they make Joss looks like, with little or no make-up at all. You can see numerous close-up scenes the blemishes on his face which makes the character more credible like who wears make-up in a gun fight, right?
TOPTAP as PP - For two series I watched him appeared, Water Boyy the series and SOTUS, you will develop a feeling of disliking the character. That is no different from this one. BUT WAIT! There is definitely more than being disliked. and sure enough, he can be adorable too! When a role demands to be hate, like Joffrey Baratheon, and viewers hate you, then you are doing a great job. But his angelic face does not really suits a role of an antagonist or to be disliked. He needs more role of a bubbly, adorable roles that when he smiles, one can melt easily.
PRAME as LUANG - When he appeared as Nack in The Gifted the series, it felt that he could have shown his acting more, only if he was given more airtime. But given what he has in that series, he was able to show a couple different side of the character. But for Luang, it is just a one layer character, it lacks diversity in his emotions even a back story is not that solid. Even when Luang is one of the important character that helped the 3 extensively.
MUSIC
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I really don't expect a memorable music or song from an action series, after all, the show needs to pump as much as adrenaline into your body and not a second to waste mellowing down, smelling the flowers on the roadside. However, how I wish they production team put more of the heartbeating background sounds that will leave you at the edge of you seat waiting what will happen next. There were a lot of gun pointing scenes, as expected from this genre of show, but you know already what will happen next since it lacks the suspense factor of a background sounds.
REWATCH VALUE
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It is really hard to rewatch something that there is a definite ending. All lose ends are tied up and when mystery that was set early was completely resolved. BUT, it doesn't mean that you will be wasting your time watching this.
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The story obviously isn't original- this drama is made with all our favourite drama tropes in mind- but the format made it very entertaining. I'm actually really surprised this doesn't have higher views on here, how many times have we watched a drama and had second male lead syndrome? Well with this drama that's impossible, as you can make your own ending.
Will she go with the cute underclass-man, the childhood friend who would do anything for her, the cool school sports star, or the protective bad boy? You decide!I watched all the possibilities but my heart is with Jooho as I'm a sucker for the bad boy type.
Random dance numbers aside, Click your Heart is a well put together drama. It's short, sweet and easy to watch. I really hope there are more like this in the future.
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Story: While it's your standard normal-guy-turns-hero-to-save-the-world tale, each character's history and individual story arcs are noteworthy. This drama is very character-driven, which makes for very passionate touching scenes, but also very whimsical humorous scenes. Be prepared to laugh and cry with the entire cast. I repeat: Laugh. Cry.
I'm a sap so I might be the only person to cry, but the brotherhood, loyalty, and romance in this drama had me in tears. The number of reincarnations takes a little getting used to, though. There may only be a few characters, but there will be twice as many names...
Acting/Cast: This is my first time watching Hu Ge in action, and I now understand why he's so popular. It's not just because he's fairly good looking, but because he can ACT. How 'bout that? Not only that, I feel that the entire cast was picked well. They all fit their roles, and executed them so nicely...
Music: Just one sentence: I watched the drama because I came across the soundtrack. (One more sentence: With a soundtrack that good, there's no way CP3 would be bad.)
Rewatch Value: Not that high, because at some points it feels elongated. Fight scenes get lengthy, serious talks get stretched out, misunderstandings between characters wastes some time...But I'd rewatch it if it meant I got to skim through all those things.
Overall: Some characters and their respective arcs get a little too much attention, while others hardly get the screen time they deserve, so I'm a little sad about that, but within that short time you really get to appreciate their character. The slightly-weird CGI may be an initial turn-off, but stick with it and you won't be disappointed.
PS: There may be some plotholes that make you scream "YOU IDIOT, JUST ____ ALREADY!" but thinking that won't change things (unfortunately), so take the plot as it is. It was based off a video game so you might have to give it a little slack when it comes to patching up plotholes... =_=;
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