Reviews

Definitely deserves the title of one of the best k-dramas of 2024!!

I had pretty high hopes for this one because of the cast and the unique storyline and I am happy to say it didn't disappoint me till the end!!

Pros:
1) Little to no lagging
2) No overused cliches regarding the backgrounds of the leads
3) real life issues depicted in a comical manner
4) perfect amount of episodes
5) great osts and songs throughout
6) great casting choices
7) morally grey characters finding their place in life
8) teens finding love in a cute way

Cons:
1) the biggest con I had was the superpower with time every little change you make should have huge domino effects but here they pretty much ignore those aspect ig? but we have to understand that a 12eps drama can't cover all the semantics

Overall a great show, its a breath of fresh air as compared to your everyday rom com and it was definitely a great watch, but I have to say that if you are a huge fan of romance and not the angst then you may struggle till around ep 8-9 after that I'm sure all types of viewers will be satisfied

Leia Mais

Must watch 2023 drama..

This time tencent has done a great work with production of wonderland of love. WOL can fulfill any type of thirst of a viewer.... The pacing of show is fast and what I like most is how male leads have most screen time that s why there is not boring moments.

The acting and chemistry is on point between leads. Although this is a quite tragic story because of many deaths but it has a happy ending and little comedy to lighten up overall story...

In terms of story, acting, cinematography and from every aspect this drama exceeds my expectation.
I hope upcoming project of Xu kai are as great as this is...

Leia Mais

Poor writing partially saved by a great cast

This was a real disappointment - the story had potential and some good ideas, but the execution was sloppy and the plot ran out of steam after a few episodes.

The acting is great with First as the standout, and Neo and Louis quite engaging whenever they had screentime. The music is also quite good, with well-chosen and moody background score that supported the story.

The problem was the writing. We started out with good ingredients - a story about tradition and authority vs modernity and individuality. At first it looked like we'd get an intelligent examination, with a quite excellent in-class argument in which the rebellious Ayan manipulates an authoritarian teacher into supporting his perspective while he takes hers - but it's like all the intelligence in the script went into that one exchange because it was never repeated.

Instead, the authors come down heavily on the side of freedom, equating rules with depression and suicide - which might have worked if he rules weren't so mild and commonplace - wear a school uniform like 90% of humanity as mandated by ministries of education, and don't use phones during class. Really? That's it? And the writing contradicts itself, as almost everything bad that happens is due to preoccupation with social media, so maybe phones were the problem after all.

The Curse of Suppalo was another interesting idea, which quickly petered out and became incidents so benign that people's OTT reactions to them were ridiculous.

There is a plot twist in Ep 11 that you won't see coming, largely because it isn't set up in the slightest and ends up requiring someone to behave totally out of character, and everyone else to behave out of character in their reaction to it - and since there are no consequences resulting at all, it's meaningless - just a random twist for no apparent reason.

The relationship between Akk and Ayan starts off interesting, but quickly degenerates into a string of tropes including the most stupid accidental kiss I've ever seen, by far - it's so bad I dropped the series and only picked it up again when everyone assured me it got better. It didn't. There is no real organic development between them - they're pushed together by stupid cliches and tropes, and it's never clear why they like each other, so you have to conclude it's a physical thing. I will say that I liked that they didn't do the seme-uke thing - in fact people in the forum argued over which was which.

This is basically a six-episode story stretched out to twelve. It really has nothing to say, and despite its promising introduction, was basically just a typical formulaic high school BL, albeit set in an all boys school, so we're at least spared the stock evil gf character, and it is refreshing that the characters are actually gay and identify as such.

The last episode is cloying and preachy. Nobody watching BL has a problem with homosexuality, so preaching to the choir is pretentious and irritating - plus the absolute ease with which coming out is accomplished and greeted sends no message - in fact it's a bit offensive in a story that has pretentions of social commentary and in its portrayal of depression and mental illness to just handwave away the most difficult and painful thing LGBTQ+ teens have to deal with.

I'm not sure I can recommend this. If you're a big fan of the cast, then I'd watch it - but otherwise it's a frustrating, shallow, formulaic melodrama. I doubt I'll have any recollection of it in three months.

Leia Mais

I was drawn to this because the vibe seemed so different from most KDramas, and I really liked that, but Itaewon Class is the kind of drama that I think tries too hard to be cool and relevant. I like that it tackled a few topics like race, gender identity, ageism, and social status, but it also does it in a way that was too corny for me to take seriously. I still want to give it an E for effort because I liked the idea of the diversity and inclusive vibe of Itaewon. What initially drew me in about the story was the revenge plot, which sadly got overshadowed by an annoying love triangle... square... pentagon... which eventually ruined everything for me. The only consistent likable thing for me throughout was Park Seo Joon as Sae Ro Yi.

I think Sae Ro Yi is a great character. Watching him navigate epic hardships and relationships with an endearing stubbornness and loyalty was my favorite thing about the show. I've loved Park Seo Joon in so many dramas, he never disappoints, so this drama just solidifies what a great actor I think he is. Surprisingly the one area where he is weakest in this drama is the "romance" aspect, but that's not his fault. From "Witch's Romance" to "What's Wrong with Secretary Kim" it's obvious to me that he is a great romantic lead, but the problem here is that the romance plot is the weakest part of this drama. His relationship with Nara as Oh Soo Ah had an initial spark of chemistry but was soon too repetitive, and I thought his relationship with Kim Da Mi as Jo Yi Seo made absolutely no sense! They had no chemistry but seemed to appease some fans so it felt like it was forced into a story that didn't need it.

More than romance this drama focuses on friendship and loyalty. The cast is full of interesting characters who learn to accept and depend on each other with Sae Ro Yi as their guide. I liked the supporting cast in general, even if their acting skills weren't all equal. My favorite performance of the supporting cast was Lee Joo Young as Ma Hyun Yi, and sadly my least favorite was Chris Lyon as Toni (who's Korean was way more impressive than his acting... but I don't speak Korean so that's just a guess lol). I also thought Ahn Bo Hyun was great and consistently unlikeable as Geun Won, and Yoo Jae Myung was epically evil as Jang Dae Hee, and I love epic villains worthy of epic revenge! I can't really say that anyone was bad, but many in the cast were more decent actors than amazing.

The breakout star is clearly meant to be Kim Da Mi as Yi Seo, but she was not my favorite. She's a great actress, and was an interesting character in the beginning, with her sociopath social media savvy persona, but she soon became annoyingly obsessive and childishly whiny. I wanted to root for her being a young empowered and clever female lead character, but instead, she felt needy, self-involved, and just too hard to like at times... most times. The forced love story definitely didn't help me like her character. I guess some people found her devotion cute, but I thought it was creepy. I think people liked her IDGAF attitude, but I found her selfishness irritating, which overshadowed anything I liked about her initially.

That brings me to the plot, which was just messy! It starts out as the motivational story of a pied piper of misfits bringing random people together to create his dream to fulfill his epic plans of revenge, and suddenly focuses instead on a really bad love story. I can't blame the age gap, because the first drama I saw him in was a romance with a huge age gap. I just think the match didn't work and was so awkward to watch no matter how hard they tried to make it a thing. Then evil characters started to be less realistic and more cartoony, and things suddenly resolved and fell into place way too easily. Even though there are many moments I still liked, overall the script is more bad than good. I waited to watch the last 4 episodes because I stopped caring, and the last 2 episodes were so painfully drawn out and dragged so much that I was tempted to drop the drama with only 30 minutes left in the last episode. Even all of the confrontation and fight scenes that the show was building up to were boring to watch.
This has the same Director as " Big", one of the most ridiculously awful dramas I have ever watched, so maybe this turn isn't surprising after all.

Would I watch this again? Obviously not, and I almost wish I would have dropped this sooner, but I was still too invested in Sae Ro Yi and all he went through to give up on this completely. The ending was good about addressing everything that needed to be addressed and had a few moments that I liked but It still was not satisfying enough to make me like this drama as a whole.

Overall, I was excited by the beginning but the thrill didn't last till the end. Yes, there was an overall message that I am not mad at... about friends like family, what real power is, and what really matters in life, but the weak love story, rushed character development, predictable resolutions, and lack of emotional depth didn't execute those themes well enough in the end. It looked visually cool, but the substance felt too immature and unrealistic for me. I wouldn't personally recommend this drama, but I can understand how people can like it more than I did, especially if they liked Kim Da Mi's character a lot. For Park Seo Joon fans it may be worth it to watch even just the beginning, then decide on your own if it's worth your time. Personally, I wish I could edit out whole parts of the drama to make it better, but instead, I will move on to something better while looking forward to the next Park Seo Joon drama instead. It did make me curious about visiting Itaewon when I finally make it to Korea, because they did make it look cool, so I guess that's a good thing too.

Leia Mais

Honestly, I read the other reviews for this drama and it's not even worth reading.

One, the story is amazing. I mean yeah the plot could have been better written, but overall the story is good. It revolves around these kids who find their true selves in this school that teaches martial arts. But the school also teaches how to find your true self but indirectly. It gives the students challenges that they never thought they would do in their whole life.

Two, the acting/cast is amazing. Lee Hyun Woo is pretty much the main reason as to why most people watch this drama, unless you're new to kdramas and only watch it because of you're a fan of VIXX so you watch it because Hongbin. Speaking of Hongbin, he's actually a pretty good actor. I honestly thought he wouldn't be THAT great of an actor to the other drama I watched him in, but he's actually pretty good. Like his character changes and he shows the character has a bratty rich chinese kid who doesn't really want to befriend anybody but ends up befriending them anyways because of the development of the story. Seo Yi Ji was also an amazing actress because of the way she showed her emotions due to the situations that were happening. As I was watching this, I literally cried every time either Lee Hyun Woo, Hongbin, or Seo Yi Ji cried.

Three, let's talk about the music for a minute. The music is so bomb. Like legit, every time a song was on, I was turning up as I watched the scene happen. It made everything so much better like wow. Plus who wouldn't enjoy osts that are by VIXX? Especially when it was amazing to listen to. Also the song Lee Hyun Woo done also was amazing like damn. That shit was lit.

I highly recommend this drama to those who love either action or love, or even both! I loved this drama because of the way it was developing and the action of it was just amazing. The love also was amazing and I was legit on a rollercoaster ride with my emotions omg. One moment I was feeling this way, the next I was feeling something totally different.

Leia Mais

Till the end of this Mess....

This is more or less what you get if you google random storylines and just randomly mix em up, copy a bit here paste a bit there... cut it in to a bunch of pieces that fade in to each other like a musical medley... add some good cast, bad dubbing, pretty pictures but awful CGI and vwalla you have 40 episodes of what the *** did I watch and why am i still watching this?

However! I am pretty sure the cast had a lot of fun filming this as they got to portray a whole lot of personalities and showcase their range, I am pretty sure they too had no clue about the story so the risk of leaking spoilers was really kept to a minimum. Among these personalities we got cold as ice, hot as lava, toxic, mean, addicted, obsessed, loving, kind, more obsessed... Seriously probably one of the worse cases of obsessed I have ever seen... Healer, killer, lier, backstabber, frontstabber... We have lovers, bromances, the lies for your own good, the lies for the good of the universe, and probably some lies told for the good of some random cat somewhere... Or just for fun... For those of you who love watching actors spit blood you are truly in for a treat as there are very few scenes that do not include the occasional blood spat... It is hard to fit ppl in to a costume drama but I am sure this was sponsored by the cranberry juice and fake blood association of China.

It is probably easier to list what you won't find in here which is logic, consistency , modern stuff, and quality.

But if there is anything else you desire, it is sure to show up at some point or another.

P.s. it has an amazing flaming umbrella

Leia Mais

At first I never expect Mario and Kimmy will have great chemistry as a couple.
I mean, I know they both can act and I love seeing Mario-Davika pair, Kimmy with Mark or James Ma... But after I watch this, I can say that Mario-Kimmy chemistry are amazing..
NongBest who plays Chaba lil sis is so cute and funny.. I love her!

What I like about this drama :
1. It's not just a romance comedy, but we'll get to know about Thai herbs and medication (I learn along with Chaba ;p)
2. The storyline move fast, not like most of dramas, they don't drag the story until we're frustrated (too fast until I don't realize it almost ended).
3. Not Slap and Kiss kinda larkon
4. Great chemistry of the main couple
5. I laugh, I cry, and I smile throughout the drama..
6. Thong Ake character is funny but smart and kind hearted at the same time, Mario plays it very well.
7. Kimmy is out of her the regular brat and spoil character's type, she plays Chaba really well.
8. No crazy ex girlfriend/admirer..

What I don't like...
Well I can say I like most of the storyline.. I don't skip any of the episodes.
Although I think the insertion of Nichkun & Maggie on this drama is not necessary, but it doesn't annoy me (they were there together with Mario and Pat Napapa promoting Dr. J*ll skincare I think).

I just need more sweetness scene on Mario and Kimmy :p

I wish they both can be pair in modern drama (maybe a romantic action comedy will do)

Overall, for you who like romantic comedy you should try to watch this lakorn. Believe me it's worth your time!

Leia Mais

Can definitely be watched multiple times, preferably on a big screen

This was so good. China should be very proud of this movie. The cast, direction, editing, music, cinematography was on point. The movie had great pace from the very beginning. I wish I had watched it on the big screen, what great visuals it had.
I could totally see how well they used their budget.

I love that Yibo is making great choices for his projects. He could have easily kept on doing the same kind of roles in dramas and earn a good living but he chose to take on challenges and work with good actors and directors to hone his craft. It's no secret that I watched this movie coz of him and he did not let me down.
If Yibo was a Hollywood actor, all our media would be telling us how a young actor is so talented and has done such a variety of work...There's no need to write how good Hu Jun is, he is a veteran. But, I've never seen Yu Shi before, he was good.

Lei Yu is scared of dogs. Those who know will know :P
Zhang making Lei eject but choosing to stay back is not fictional. There have been many pilots who made sure their plane wouldn't crash on a residential area, they sacrificed their life to protect innocent civilians. I knew he would not make it the moment they showed his family but damn it hurt. The first time Lei ejected was so funny but this one was heartbreaking.
Lei's mother told us how risky this career is by just 1 dialog, you can't fix the plane while it's in the clouds.

One can't pretend that there's no propaganda in the movie. In real world, China intrudes into the air spaces of another country while the movie tells us how they get worried when someone else does the same. Movies from other countries do propaganda as well. So let's not pretend a Chinese movie is doing something new. We ignore or pretend when movies of our countries do it so give leeway to another as well.
Everyone knows what China has done in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and other smaller countries. I'd like to see someone brave enough to make a movie or drama in China that shows the ugly truth. But we know it's not possible in a country that decides what its adult population should watch.

The movie is about test pilots, what they do, their lifestyle and the massive risks they take. The movie successfully shows it to the viewer. If such a story doesn't interest you then don't go complaining about it. The movie delivers what it promised.
Comedy was at the right time and in the right amount. The CGI was incredible. I didn't care about romance coz I was engrossed in the story of test pilots, thankfully the movie didn't make romance as the core.
There aren't many women test pilots in the real world so I was hoping the movie would have gone a different route. It would have been interesting to watch them make changes to the planes to suit women. Maybe another movie which shows the struggles women test pilots face.
I'll definitely watch the movie again. It was totally worth the wait.

Leia Mais

At first I was planning to watch Emergency Couple only for the leads. In fact, I've had a soft spot for Choi Jin Hyuk since discovering him in I Need Romance and I wanted to see Song Jo Hyo play a happy/funny character. Plus no one can deny they do have some awesome chemistry together. And thankfully the drama didn't let me down. The two actors were great and the development/rediscovering of their love was perfectly handled when it could have been a total nonsensical mess.

Surprisingly, what I really cared about the most wasn't the main couple but EVERYONE. All the characters were important in my eyes *whispers* especially Kim Min Ki. That drama is more than "and they rekindled their romance". It's about accepting past mistakes (yours as well as others') confronting your fears and moving forwards (toward your very own happiness). It's about taking care of the people you love and understanding them.

You will laugh, you will shed a few tears (or buckets) and in the end, once the drama is finished, you will happily say goodbye to these 21 hours of well spent time. Because yes, maybe Emergency Couple is not a piece of art per say but it is the kind of drama that makes you feel good about life, that reminds you that whatever mistake you made in the past, it doesn't and shouldn't define you and if that you try hard, you can succeed in anything.

Leia Mais

A geek and campus beauty story just like any other. It's an enjoyable romantic comedy about a person who cares too much about what people think of her and a guy who just wants the person he loves to understand him. It was funny and sweet and definitely worth a watch with a bunch of friends hanging out because that's the kind of feeling this movie has

However, I can't help but feel like this film was directed and/or written by somebody who does not understand " geeks ". I say this in quotation marks because that's just a negative word for the people who are over zealous in their own hobbies; video games, engineering, art, computers, science,history,etc/ Most of these are actual professions. In this movie, these people are portrayed to be creepy socially inept emotionally weak people who are the vermin of society. Not only this but the male lead is the prime example. Why? Clearly in the real world this is not the case at all

The " twist "at the end was not a good idea and I want to kill the person who thought it was. It's like they took a page straight out of M. Night Shamalyan's films. Forcing a twist at the end of a film just for the sake of having one. Except in this case, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Read further below if you want to find out exactly what I mean




SPOILERS

So in the movie there's this legend that if two people fall in a lake while it is dried up, they will become happily ever after. So the two leads fall in and you see how they end up together throughout the 90 minute movie. However, it turns out at the end you discover that it was all a hoax by the male lead. He manufactures the legend, the draining of the lake, the fake happily ever after stories from the legend, as well as a number of things just so he can get together with the campus beauty. After finding out about this, she breaks up with him. And what does he do? Almost kills himself. Fade out to 7 years later and they're married and together. The End.

What. The. Fuck? If it weren't for that stupid ending, I would have thoroughly enjoyed this film but as of now, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. IM going to washing it down with another episodes of Game of Thrones.

Leia Mais

You won't be prepared for this movie and this might give you some anime-like (Hayao-Miyazaki) vibes.
The story is marvellously written, in the movie the topic that was handeled can be seen in the real life food industry and that makes the story utterly sad. It is an unique movie, because it is realistic in a certain way.
The story picks up fast and in the last hour it leaves out no time to proceed fast, I wished they stayed on some scenes longer to give more of an impact but that is just a minor flaw in my opinion.
The cast was amazing and I really appreciated the collab between Korean actors and American ones. It was difficult in the beginning because Jake's acting was too much, but that is the way Bong Joon-Ho produces its movies and I am happy he stayed true to himself.
The music was beautiful at certain scenes, not all of them.

Overall I really liked this movie, certainly ones that impact me (it left me crying) but also made me think about the food industry. In my opinion I don't see this as a propaganda but as a supernatural movie with a deep message, it makes a valid point.

Watch this and you won't be dissapointed, try to look over the over-reacting actions from some actors but see the message behind this movie.

Leia Mais

Worth the Watch… But Not Without Skipping

The acting was solid, and the leads were convincing in their affection...but I couldn’t fully buy into their chemistry. The plot felt stretched out, especially with 56 episodes, and I skimmed through a lot of filler. The whole immortal-god-falling-for-someone-way-younger trope felt off to me, even if it’s fantasy. I wanted a stronger reason for their bond, beyond power or old debts. I also wasn’t thrilled that the female lead had to struggle so much. That said, curiosity kept me going, and while I didn’t love the drawn-out misunderstandings, it had enough romance to keep me hooked...just not as much as “Eternal Love.”

Leia Mais

Love with Flaws

Here we have a special series, which is defined primarily by its unique storyline.
Unlike the often over-romanticized BLs, both main characters have recognizable character flaws: they are arrogant, selfish and obsessed, but also insecure, intimidated and vulnerable.
This contrast is what makes the series so appealing, because for all their negative attitudes, they remain sympathetic and likable and I always wished them a satisfying love.

Their relationship is neither perfect nor equal and their love hurts others, but that's how it often is and I'm glad that a series shows this without losing sight of the beauty of their relationship.

The acting, cinematography and soundtrack are always on a high level.
All in all a nice surprise at the end of the year and probably one of the best BLs from Japan.

Leia Mais

Healing drama of 2024

Having walked out of a toxic job and figuring life in 2024, I resonated so well with the story, and am so grateful to hear assurance from this show. <3

I would recommend this drama for anyone lost in life, figuring out life, a drama suitable for start of the year. It has a slow, dreamy vibe with soft filter effects that makes it like a film, plus the soundtrack is so suitable for the story. Each character has their own story developed nicely till the end. Some mentioned that main character's story was cut short, but I felt the multiple character introduction makes a good break to develop the story as a whole!

It's not heavy in romance yet some parts makes your heart race - the dialogues, the acting - it makes me want to fall in love again. The life lessons learnt there is a 10/10.

Leia Mais