Reviews

This movie was pretty much non-stop, on the edge of your seat thriller! I had the fortune to watch it with two amazing ladies, Akumi and Little-Dream, and all three of us seriously loved this movie. It was a dark, terrifying look at fame and the crazy people that are attracted to it.

From the getgo, this movie is dark, starting out with a murder, and quickly escalating into the kidnap/breaking in scene within the first 15 minutes, so it doesn't waste time on back story.

The characters in this movie are, for the most part, extremely intelligent. I usually hate watching thrillers, because you are always screaming at the dumb woman on the screen to stop being so stupid and getting everyone killed. And while the characters did make mistakes, and you did yell at the scream from time to time, I was really impressed with how well the characters handled the situation they were in, none moreso than Eun Soo.

Eun Soo has had surgeries and has some kind of affliction that has left her without a voice. The terror that this little child actress was able to emote without the use of a voice was just incredible. The terror on her face was enough to evoke terror in the viewers heart and feel so incredibly sad that she couldn't even scream or speak to alert anyone to the villain in their midst. It made the situation all the more terrifying.

The adult actors were equally impressive, Yoo Ji Tae in the role of the serial killer was absolutely amazing though. He played crazy perfectly! Soo Ae was really amazing as the mom, enough so that I am now looking through her filmography for more of her!

All in all, if you like thrillers then I seriously recommend this one! It wasn't so twisty that you couldn't follow along, but it was suspenseful enough to keep you on the edge of your seat the whole time! Definitely worth the hour and forty some odd minutes :)

Leia Mais

that was cute ... in 16:9 format ...

What's really sad is, that MDL has no structure with putting uncut and cut versions together or seperate it and in this case, the re-edit would warrant a new entry for sure because now this show now is a) like any other show and b) can reach a much wider audience. So I have to write the review here which suxx...

While the reel was not bad itself... it's a pain to watch. Thankfully GagaOOLala picked up the series with an horizontal re-edit, giving us 6 episodes of around 17 minutes each... And that changes the vibe of the show dramatically in my POV. Some cut's are still rough because such a reel has episodes of around 90 to 120 seconds, but most of the time you will not notice it.

Both leads did a very good job and the story progresses naturally and with the usual BL tropé of "should I do it or not". There is not much drama in it. It's just mostly smooth sailing which will bring a smile to your face. Of course it's also not an earth-shattering story but everything felt so in flow. This is a nice vibe show, you can forget your worries and just enjoy it. And that is, what I did. And so, if you have a chance, grab this show on GagaOOLala and forget the shitty world for around 100 minutes!

Leia Mais

This series was absolutely amazing. The story was very well written the chemistry between Offgun and Gawinfirst was freaking incredible I loved everything about this drama and the actors did an amazing job. Not to mention this was my first introduction to Offgun (I watched the first 4 eps before I watch Theory of Love). The aesthetic of everything was stunning and the way that Gun can switch between two completely differently personalities was incredible. The fact the drama was not just about two guys falling in love it was about how unfair society is and what fear can do, GMMTV did BL in a different way and I love it. THIS DRAMA IS A FUCKING MASTERPIECE.

Leia Mais

Sign was a drama that I watched a while ago and I just finished re-watching it.

I absolutely adore this drama because it goes over darker subjects such as disability, death, and family problems. It really shows you how hard reality can be and I wish it had more episodes. The saying "short and sweet" isn't what I would use to describe this drama because it is by no means "sweet" in terms of gumdrops and rainbows after a storm. You will cry and even though problems are solved you may still not be completely satisfied.

The acting overall is okay but this drama was filmed with a lot of newbie actors so I was able to tolerate it and actually warmed up to almost all of them. The music was extremely repetitive for a music/dance drama and it almost made me drop the drama but don't let that discourage you from watching it.

I do still re-watch my favorite parts every now and then because the fact that the main character is deaf really intrigued me, I wish more dramas could expand on the idea of disability for the main characters. The trouble and difficulties he faced being deaf, overcoming those difficulties and finding joy in something he can do even if he is deaf.

This drama is extremely short and is a perfect filler drama if you have to wait for an episode for a "currently airing" drama to come out. I'm happy I watched this because it was something I happened to stumble upon and something I happen to really enjoy. It was a great surprise and you won't regret watching it. Thanks and enjoy!!

Leia Mais

An Excellent Whodunit

Not all dramas with famous actors are good and not all dramas with relatively unknown actors are mediocre. This drama hasn’t got the big names but has one of the best story writing, directing and performance in recent drama history. It is unfortunately not under many viewers’ radar on MDL, hence not receiving the due attention and ratings it deserves. The story is set in later Tang towards the end of the dynasty (within 5 decades) during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong II (r. 846 – 859).

This is a fictional story based on historical events and figures (though not explicitly mentioned). Emperor Xuanzong II was said to be the last capable emperor of Tang as the succeeding emperors were either too young or controlled by the powerful and corrupt eunuchs. With that background, the power struggle between the ruling royals and the eunuchs can be seen here in this drama, and has set the major plot of the story.

Chu Chu (Su Xiao Tong) is an aspiring coroner. She’s come to Chang’an to get certified as an imperial coroner. Here she meets Xiao Jinyu (Wang Zi Qi) who is in charge of the Federal Investigation Unit. He also has the title as the Imperial Prince of An. Xiao Jinyu is very impressed by Chu Chu, as her knowledge and intelligence are beyond anybody else he knows. She becomes his coroner, following him solving criminal cases.

There is a huge conspiracy, counterfeit money, mysteries involving the background of Chu Chu and Xiao Jinyu, even the legitimacy of the Emperor is in question. Chu Chu and Xiao Jinyu are embroiled in solving the crimes and linking all the pieces together, and at times, they walk right into danger. With a champion chess player’s mind, Xiao Jinyu tends to see steps ahead of their antagonists, and with a meticulous mind and intelligence, Chu Chu sees what others don’t with the dead. Amidst all these, humor is not lacking.

I love the Chu Chu character. She is sensitive, observant and intelligent, and yet she is also pure and innocent. All she wants is to become the best coroner in the land. Su Xiao Tong’s acting is close to perfection here. With an innocent look and a girly face, she brings out everything Chu Chu is, with a-matter-of-factly demeanor. I really love the natural acting of this young actor.

Xiao Jinyu loves Chu Chu for her competence and pureness. With an intelligence beyond everyone around him, Xiao Jinyu manages to piece things together quickly and correctly, hence solving any crimes most people are unable to. I have never watched Wang Zi Qi’s dramas. Here, I’m falling in love with him. His somber charisma elevates him from the others, giving him the air of nobility and authority. Bravo to his fabulous acting.

I find the chemistry and dynamics between Chu Chu and Xiao Jinyu so wonderful that I cannot have enough of them. Subtle and devoted, I simply love this type of relationship. I also love the dynamics between Xiao Jinyu with his brother Xiao Jinli (Wang Yan Bin) and Jing Yi (Yang Ting Dong). The comedy here is cute and subtle. I love the play of words and accents, such as, Xiao Jinyu also sounds like “little gold fish” as Chu Chu initially thinks.

My Verdict
This drama sounds serious with a very serious opening music, and yet subtly funny too. I like how each episode is laid out, with the beginning recapitulating the previous episode. I also like how Chu Chu and Xiao Jinyu reconstruct each crime, explaining the details graphically to the viewers.

The script writing is compact and clear, and the logic is natural. There is no unnecessary filler to make the series longer. The opening music is dark and mysterious in the beginning, then turns grand, uplifting and bright, giving the listeners a sense of a hideous crime being solved. This is a brilliant use of music to cast the mood of the story.

This is a must-watch for all. Two thumbs up! BRAVO!

Leia Mais

A Nearly Perfect Descent Into Imperfect Love

I absolutely loved this! Far more than I expected to if I’m being honest. I went in with some apprehension after being somewhat underwhelmed by the scripts of the past few CBLs, but this one pleasantly surprised me. The writing was tight, and both the acting and the chemistry were impressive. Scenes that could have easily fallen flat or failed to land emotionally instead carried real weight, largely because of how well the actors sold the gravitas of those moments. I think these are my favorite parts.

That said, I do have two main complaints.
First, I would have loved more of the “I hate you, but I hate myself even more because I still love you” energy during the divorce era arc. You Shulang felt emotionally defeated for most of this arc, when I desperately wanted him to be angrier, uglier, and more volatile (yes, the bat swinging was immaculate but I needed more of that damn it!). I wanted him to stay with Fan Xiao while actively resenting him—lashing out, saying things he couldn’t take back, hurting him precisely because the love was still there and that made everything worse. Give me the mess. Give me the toxicity. Let him struggle, fail, and spiral instead of quietly enduring and turning into an empty shell. Don’t get me wrong I understand the pain You Shulang felt like a shock to his system and left him drained and I feel there is a place for showing that side of his emotional state but initially I wanted to see more venom from him.


My second complaint is that the drama really could have used one or two additional episodes to fully explore the final arc. You Shulang “learns” about everything Fan Xiao did for him almost entirely through other characters. I would have strongly preferred more showing than telling here. I wanted to see You Shulang experience Fan Xiao in a new light—grappling with his feelings, wrestling with the past and the present, trying, and failing, to let go—before being told outright how deeply Fan Xiao loved him despite everything.


I love toxic, morally gray (even red and black), deeply flawed characters, so this drama was very much to my taste. While it didn’t go as far as I might have liked in certain areas, it still delivered a lot of what I enjoy, and I’m genuinely glad I watched.

Leia Mais

Cant stand losing was pretty good, definitely worth a watch especially if you are a fan of Yoon Sang Hyun. As in the synopsis this story depicts a married couple's love life, its ups and downs, and definitely playing up how men and women are so different. There is a lot of repetition in issues that they have, some watchers didn't like that but I did because it lent itself to authenticity. There are a lot of comical parts, a lot of arguments with everyone, some tragic parts as well, but not a whole lot of romance.

The actual story concept was a good one, 'how married lawyers would fare working with each other day in and day out'. I felt like the writers must have changed somewhere in the middle of the drama because initially the focus was on the couple and their work, and soon it changed to the couple and their inner circle. There were a few holes and discrepancies in the story, some people just suddenly had a additional kid, other characters who had a fairly decent sized role disappeared. (I am trying to avoid spoilers) . The main idea was always there but feel and pace of the drama started to change.

There are a lot of twists, in some cases you know whats going to happen but you still want to see them do it. Yoon Sang Hyun was awesome in this role. He is totally believable! Choi Ji Woo did well but I didn't like her as much as I liked some of the other actors, she really started to get annoying. There weren't any evil mothers, or vengeful sisters but a lot of the couples tearing each other apart. (like in real life).

I liked the ending but it kept me wondering as to what happened. It doesn't happen a lot where a whole episode is dedicated to closing it up so I have no idea how they seemed to leave strings still hanging. There are lots of side stories and tragedies to keep you interested, if you can stay with it for the first 4 episodes you will want to see how it turns out. The story slowed up in the middle, but trudge on with it- its really interesting to get a bird's eye view of relationships.

p.s. its more like a tragic/life drama not so much romcom

Leia Mais

A Very Realistic Contemporary Drama

This drama was everything it promised to deliver, we had the free spirited female lead, the supportive family and 4 different male leads

Pros:
1. the Story was executed very well and it was extremely realistic
2. Many opportunities to analyze psychology behind the character
3. Real life issues faced by women all over the world
4. Beauty comes with many many benefits but also just as many complications
5. great osts
6. Excellent cast - they executed everything to the best of their abilities

Cons:
there are 2 reason as to why this was not a 10 star watch for me:

1. The open ending did not make me feel content and the younger male lead was unnecessary in my opinion, his character was not done justice as he only got around 3 eps of screentime. I wish they gave the viewers closure on whether she is eventually happy ( more details on her ambitions for her future) or if they chose the romance route I wish they showed us who she chose and whether she remains single

2. THIS IS THE BIGGEST REASON WHY: The male leads (rose's exes) never fully move on from her, although she is able to leave them in the past they are always held back by the memory of her. This is very unrealistic, although ZGD being single makes sense (him being career oriented) , i don't see someone like FXW staying single for over 6 years just for her. In reality although it takes time to move on, you don't always stay in the past, whats more surprising is how only she moves on

Overall a great watch if you can deal with mature romance and love psychoanalyzing things

Leia Mais

I know Call Boy is suuuuuper pornographic but doesn't lack depth. Seriously there was more character growth and development of story and a touch of psychological drama than most mainstream stuff. Matsuzaka Tori played the main lead Ryu so well and with so much heart, none of the pervy scenes were lewd or unnecessary. The story is about a boy who was left behind one night by his mother who never comes back. As a result even though he tries to be a good, loving boy like his mother told him to be he ends up becoming rather cold and lacking in social grace especially toward women and confesses that he finds women boring and takes sex as just some annoying way to procreate. Until the day he runs into the owner of a underground club and meets the female owner who is in her late thirties. She challenges Ryu's view of women and sex by asking him to work for her escort service even when he's clearly lacking. And so begins an unusual journey where not only does Ryu start to find women exciting but also gets a thrill from sex and starts enjoying life in general. But it all goes downward when he falls in love with the owner who isn’t the least bit interested in him, and his friends find out he's a prostitute and shame him for it. Ok, so I truly appreciated everything about this film and how it basically humanizes people with sex perversions. I don't think any other film I've seen so far does this in such a beautiful way. Ok so because I live for BL interactions lol my favorite scene was between Ryu and Azuma. But ok if you get easily offended this is really not for you though.

Leia Mais

It starts off cute, but goes down hill. Ultimately this drama had way too much rape, child abuse, and domestic violence. Even characters that are initially likable turn into rapists and abusers. Also, all the rapists and abusers have no accountability for their actions, and end the series undeservedly happy. It was a train wreck.

I kept waiting for someone to point out that maybe someone who kidnaps, beats, and rapes women is not good relationship material, but as the audience we're supposed to believe that he's a great guy, and just needs to be paired with the right woman.

I was really looking forward to all the evil characters getting their comeuppance, but I never got the payoff I was hoping for. It would be one thing if it were a redemption story, where the evil characters learned the errors of their ways and became better people. But there's no real redemption, no consequences, and no accountability. They just get their happy ending even though they don't deserve it, and the main characters are all okay with that, and we as the audience are expected to be okay with that too.

Train. Wreck.

Leia Mais

I was intrigued by the drama title when I first came across this and I'm glad my curiosity got the better of me. This year has been super difficult, but watching this drama every week really helped lift my mood. It was just so sweet.

I loved the family and work dynamic, and the acting was great. Felt very natural. There is not a single character to be disliked. I'm glad the cast was selected for this series, especially the actress who plays Hinako san.

Prepare your tissues if you're one to get emotional as there are some tough issues covered.

But, overall, time well spent. Totally worth checking out.

Note: although, my rating for the music and rewatch value are much lower compared to the scores for story and acting, my personal overall score for Neechan no Koibito would still be 10. It's just that good.

Leia Mais

Life Changing

I suppose I have to write a review for GAP. I have said it in the comment section already, but this show was life changing to me. I have never seen a story that cares so deeply about representing the joy and beauty of being a woman in love with another woman, even in the face of adversity. Sam and Mon's love story is accurate to the real life sapphic experience in so many ways. From the way they show affection, the difficulty to comprehend their feelings at first, to the feeling of relief and plenitude when they finally allow themselves to feel what their hearts want to feel.
I understand if it doesn't resonate with some people the way it did with me. It can be cheesy, the situations might seem absurd and exaggerated at times, the characters actions might not be the most logical, the side characters are not the most complex. But everything made it all the more delightful in my eyes. It is ultimately a fun, colorful story, that eventually deals with some more serious topics.
Give it a chance, especially if you are a woman who loves women. Even if you don't love it as much as I did, I believe you will at least have a nice time watching these characters fall in love.

Leia Mais

Is this worth the hype?

Story : It's really great, although another drama had the same concept but this is way better and refreshing, I didn't had much expectations from this drama but I'm glad that gave this a try. Acting/Cast: It's great in my opinion, many are criticising Kang Daniel for his acting or saying that it's unfair for the female lead as she is a experienced actor but I personally think both of them are doing great, Kang Daniel might be new in the acting industry but he did do justice to the character, his character is kinda serious also he had less screen time in the first few episodes but I think his character is developing, love the cast. Music : I loved the ost, I have nothing else to say. Rewatch Value : For me I can watch this as many times I possible can, It's great, no matter how manytimes I watch it, it's still refreshing, Love it. Overall : Great one, if you are not watching this drama then you are missing out big time. Highly recommend.

Leia Mais

Realistic acting with exceptional storytelling. The drama is a story of love, sacrifices and forgiveness.

Everyone of us goes out everyday, carries the risk that we are unable to go back home. If you think of it that way, knowing you do not have much time left to live is a blessing, given you can overcome the fear of leaving your loved ones. Having a heavy philosophical content, the drama manages to deliver the growth of each characters and valuable lessons without preaching.

As everyone is connected, one's significant life event does not affect that person alone but everyone around them. The same thing happened to successful single mother Han Seung Hee. Her health situation urges her to reflect on her life and widen her social circle as she realises her old way of living cannot give her son another mother. As a consequences, She makes her choices that impacts all those around her. Whether her choices were right or wrong, I believe each one of us has their own judgements however it is undeniable that everything she did was out of love for her son. The most important thing is that she is a mother. She grows as a mother and everyone else also grows.

The beautiful thing about the drama is that it is realistic though the plot exaggerates at some parts to highlight the moral lessons to be learnt. Life goes on, everyone has to part and everything changes. That is the reality. As much as the story is about Han Seung Hee who is a dying mother, it is also about other people and how they prepare to move on with their life after she dies. I love the ending because it shows life continues and even though it may be incomplete, love and forgiveness fill up the space.

Overall the casts deliver solid and convincing acting, especially Song Yoon Ah. I truly lived in their world. Yoon Chang Young and Hong Jun Hyun did a great job as sons, gave audiences the alternatives and outcomes of different choices made by mothers. Other actors performed well though I believe there are room for improvements for supporting actors.

It was a fun rides with lessons to learn on the way. I recommend anyone who are looking for a slice a life kind of story. For people who are scared of the sadness, personally the reason I cried while watching was because it is touching, not because it is sad.

Leia Mais