Reviews

Scissors... Dog Walks...Riding...and...Mushrooms?

First off, I'd like to apologize for episode 9...blood of the holy ghost, how do I explain that unholy episode to my ancestors? I thought scissors were a device used for cutting hair... but boy was I wrong. Ob-un did all that while having a sword wound!! Child?? And did Ob-un dog walked Shan up those stairs?? Also, Ob-un's villain laughter had me weak, dafug you mean, uhuhum uhuhum hummm. Boy, stop playing.

Listen, these actors are brave. Kudos to them for being able to act these scenes in front of so many crew members. Tutor a better human than me though, cuz after that stone bed scene, I'd have pulled Yim to the side and acted like that one k-drama and go... 'Listen buddy, I didn't want to say this, but like, my family have 30 cows, and my mom knows a monk...get dressed, we getting married.' No but, seriously, how you go back to being friends after all that??? This is the wildest they've been.

And like, as if that scissor scene wasn't enough, we had the dog walk, which imma be honest got cringy in the middle, and that double riding in the finale... Susan, I think someone can get pregnant from all that. And the second leads also had that couch scene which had full on display cheeks and the whole demon lord thing in the finale. How these actors look into each other's eyes after that? Cuz, I can't even make eye contact on public transport, I always have to act all creepy like something interesting is on the floor. Like one time on the bus a baby smiled at me and I tried to hid behind one of them thin poles, cuz I ain't trying to have no awkward stare offs with no baby but like that's...wait, what was I talking about?

Right, mushrooms. yes, I definitely needed whatever mushroom those two took to fully enjoy the first couple of episodes of series. It was soo boring. Before I knew they were on mushrooms, I was like, does TuturYim need paper that much? I’ll start a go fund me, ain't no way they out here on this bus acting a-fool, cuz what in the bloody hell was that? Literally, as writers, I’d assume they’d try to steal a library or type on a rock, instead of acting like frogs on a public bus, the second-hand embarrassed I felt stayed with me until that Thursday.

I had high hopes for BOTW. TutorYim are one of my favs from Cutie Pie, so I'm seated for whatever they do, but this show took some time to get into. I didn't care for the plot that much, and all the childish over the top-acting nonsense didn't help. And what was Shan's work? And was it me or there were too many characters? The writers tried to give everyone their moment, but really, I did not care one bit about that wedding. Up until that point, I'd be lying if I said I noticed him being part of the writers. Her dress was beautiful though.

So yeah, it disappointed me, cuz the plot didn't hold my interesting, and I found it boring in some parts. Yes, the cutsy outfit in their writing space scenes were cute, but I didn't really care for it, but I liked those cute things they had in their hair. and I had no idea what half of the characters were going on about until much later. I did like some things, like the Costume plot. They looked sooo good as ancient characters. Really, I wanted to watch that plot-line instead. Sin and Jingjang's story was cute and I liked it.

CHARACTERS
I liked Shan and Ob-un, there weren't any unnecessary drama between them, and even the 'big fight' when Shan lied about his eyesight ended with a reward so... But I felt the show had too many characters, and I barely remember half of them. That one character who acted like a bad face mask, confessing to Shan but getting turned down and coming back like a bad lunch, trying to pull stuff, like boy be quiet and go hug a tree. Literally, in the finale when he was there during the proposal going 'kiss kiss kiss' I was like.: 'wait that guy is still in the show?' lol.

PLOT & FINALE.
They did have one with Ob-un and Shan's past and everything, then of course them writing that bl. I just felt like it was all done in a jumble. The execution made the plot come off boring in same parts. It felt like after episode 9, they sort of ran out of ideas and we got long 'papapa' scenes and just filler stuff. Literally, what was the point of the finale, and what did we really get? The story felt concluded waay before the finale, so it just felt like a filler episode. Though, I was happy Sin's partner came back.

All-in-all, interesting plot done in a messy way, but as a fan of the leads I still tuned in, and enjoyed some episodes. I recommend it all bl lovers out there, watch it if you have some time or you looking for spicy bls, cuz...episode 9..blood of the holy ghost that ish was wild! I am looking forward to TutorYim's next work, I'll be tuning in, hoping without mushrooms.

Leia Mais

Underwhelming Female Lead Outshined by 2nd Female Lead

I finally decided to watch this old drama since there's nothing new worth watching right now. The biggest issue this series had was that the 2nd lead couple stole the entire series from the main lead couple. The main couple was so bland.

The Good:
- ML (Leo Wu): although his acting was still pretty stiff in this series, I do enjoy watching him. He's grown to be a better actor in his more recent work (Love Amidst in a Snowstorm, Love Like the Galaxy).
- 2nd FL (Zhao Lu Si) did an amazing job. She really portrayed the character development very well from a young, helpless, naive cry baby to a compassionate, determined and capable princess.
- 2nd Lead Couple (Princess Le Le Yuan and the guard Hao Du) were way more interesting than the main couple. Both actors showed believable character development and had great chemistry. I rooted for them from the start.
- The emperor Li Shi Min was very likeable and delivered a solid performance.

The Bad:
- FL (Dilralba) was a disappointing. This actress is better suited for support roles. She's beautiful, but her acting is mediocre. Her posture in this series was terrible, like a turtle with its neck stretched out. It was so distracting. Her portrayal of such a lofty character like Li Chang Ge was underwhelming. She failed to evoke any emotion from me.
- Main Lead Couple: zero chemistry between Ashile Sun and Li Chang Ge. They felt more like an older sister/brother relationship.
- Storyline: overall it was a solid storyline with some plot holes that made no sense. Li Chang Ge character was over emphasized too much that it became ridiculous at times. She's supposed to be a young teenage girl but somehow has convinced experienced generals, royal officials and tribe leaders to follow her lead in major warfare? She was supposed to be a skilled martial artist but couldn't beat royal guards and was always getting captured. She was constantly being saved by Ashile Sun.
- The slave girl (Mimi): how does a slave girl get to roam around at free will everywhere, be arrogant and demanding to people, etc. It just made no sense at all. She was a very annoying character.

OST: It was edgy and fits this type of storyline/series but it wasn't my favorite.

Leia Mais

I didn't like how she was treated at all. I don't get the purpose. The acting was okay, I mostly watched this for NANA.
It was VERY cheesy. Good for young kids to enjoy but not for me lol
This was probably the first time ever in my life where a girl made my heart skip and beat so fast, that ending was amazing and nana is amazing for it.
Huge plot twist and I wasn't even paying attention to the whole thing.
It was more like abuse and weird submissiveness to me that didn't make sense because she could have just said no many times.
Any way I won't watch this again because it's just not my taste. They were too young to act like this and I'm too old to watch youngsters act weird, although they're probably my age today.

Leia Mais

The Cute Kid Carried 2/3rds of the Show w/Help from the Leads

I have seen some of the cast in various shows before but this just looked like a rom-com that I may have enjoyed. To be honest though, it was very underwhelming. The reason it got the score it did was because of how messy the script was and that I essentially had to ffw most of the 28 episodes. The child actor was the best thing out of the entire show and he was smarter than his parents and all of the adults combined. He legit carried 2/3rds of the series with help from the leads.

Pros: Not too many of those here sadly. As I mentioned the kid actor would probably be favorite because he would be the voice of reason for his parents and their constant quarrels. The leads had a great chemistry when they were together and there was decent comedy. The supporting cast was actually good (save for gorilla glue) when they were by themselves. But when the script started throwing them together at random, it went down the drain. The story had a lot of potential from the past to the present and growing and understanding, it just threw too many monkey wrenches into the mix which will be discussed below. I liked the flashbacks at the end of each episode as it explained what happened 5 years ago in detail.

Cons: So much potential in this script but it was wasted. The past and present at first, it was understandable why both leads would be at odds but then once things started to become clear we still had an FL that refused to let go of her narrow-mindedness and it would just be this constant 1 step forward, 2 steps back. The amount of times something needed to be said or a kiss happen and they were interrupted went from silly to tropey and boring. Felt like their second chance start being interrupted by CJJ and back to the bus accident we went was more of a filler then anything else because it brought the leads to odds again and it either shouldn't have happened or placed earlier so it was more cohesive. It was so mismatched and out of place that it seemed like they ran out of how to move onto a proper reconciliation and needed to throw something in there that was already over with and understood.

Both support couples getting together was so confusing and ridiculous. One ran over her younger dude with a car and then turned into a cougar ravenous after her prey and the other happened like a very bad whiplash. One moment SML is finally going to confess to the FL after 4 years of hoping she'd randomly like him, the next he really likes gorilla glue, baby voiced, stalker chick and is ready to turn himself into a pretzel to show his affection when he couldn't utter two words towards FL. It was so out of any realm of understanding and just beyond confusing. I didn't feel chemistry between either couple. They were literal fillers when they--sans one--could have just been great friends and support systems to the leads. This was essentially two very forced romances on the audience that didn't need it.

What in the what was up with the villain? He wasn't even on anyone's radar other then being a lewd and womanizing bastard and then in the last literally 6 episodes they turned him into a viper of a monster that was ready to sexually assault, run over, beat up, harass, extort people, kill dogs, and lord knows what else. That Ding dude was a more believable villain than CQR because from his first appearance until his arrest, he was a predator. But they didn't do that to CQR, who didn't even appear in a half a dozen episodes. There was no evolution to his character, so to go from like 0 or maybe a 3 to infinity in antagonist land in literally under 10 episodes was ridiculous and a disservice for a person playing a supposedly important antagonist character. There were many other plot holes like this.

The literal flip of FL from "we're not meant for each other" to "yep, we're together", was too spastic and sudden. It could have been done way smoother. ML had promised her a zillion times already that he'd take care of her but only when he spoke for her to CQR after she'd beaten him up, then she was like "ok I'm yours." It needed a much smoother transition. No wonder in the last two episodes ML's heart started to give him problems again. She was so busy with her own life and world that it never even dawned on her that he was in trouble, even when his sister told her that he would hide things so not to worry others. Like that angered me because everyone was feeling bad for the FL but in this case, the man has gone above and beyond and you supposedly love him so much but you can't tell that he's not being honest with you? And you know so much about the heart and whatnot? It was quite unbelievable.

Would I recommend it? Only if you like messy plots. But personally only reason it got this score is because of the adorable kid. And I'm not rewatching this again. A lot of folks liked it and more power to them but it's not for everyone.

Leia Mais

If you enjoyed the TV series you will LOVE this movie that is still not subbed. During my stay in Japan I had the opportunity to watch it. Lets just say that the actors portray their characters perfectly, the only character I seem to enjoy the least is Hani, But I have never been a fan of the cutesey type and portraying the massive eyes tiny body thing in reality is a little hard.

The soundtrack was nice and I am planning on buying it from Amazon.jp as soon as I can,
Costumes once again were superb but I didn;t like the small changes they made to tamakis. I think that is because I had gotten so sued to how he was in the series.

I will not spoil anything but I will say that if you are after a few laughs, watching Tamaki be dramatic, the twins being devilish and other such events which you'd expect from the show, watch it ASAP!
Will rewatch this as soon as I can :D

Leia Mais

Blooming like Blueming

The Eighth Sense was a masterful lesson in care and vulnerability that pulled no punches and went all out, not just in terms of outstanding cinematography and immersive storytelling but also diving into the mindset created by depression, trauma, and anxiety as well as the behaviors that result from tackling them alone and with support.

The character of Jae Won embodied depression and trauma recovery so well:

Looking out at the world and your own choices from a fishbowl view. What you want to say and do and what you don't become blurred like water. And even being able to see it clearly doesn't mean you can reach out; grasp it. You're sitting outside yourself, numb to the world and unable to express what you truly want to because everything is just so heavy, and how could you drag someone else into that and weigh them down with you?

And then there's someone like Ji Hyun, not a savior or an angel but a person unexpectedly possessing gorgeous boldness and frankness, who understands and even when he doesn't is there to push when the net is wound too tight and listen when it's suffocating but Jae Won needs to undo it alone.

The Eighth Sense is more than a romance. More than a Queer drama. It's cinema at its finest.

Leia Mais

There's no real plot

Even tho the show is not over I'm over it. I got tired of it very quickly. I just keep watching for Fourth and Gemini.

Fourth and Gemini did a great job with what they were given. They're great actors and I feel like their talent was wasted on this series.

It feels like mlmu was going for a sitcom vibe. Every episode had a different story and an ending of its own. Which is just completely the opposite of the manga and makes a mess. They also cut very important stuff or changed it which ruined the reasoning for the character to be the way they are and act the way they do.

For example Atom not getting involved with food was supposed to be because he got bullied when he was a little kid cause he was chubby. That explains why he has such low self esteem. But they changed it into his mother getting hurt which was so random. If the accident caused scars on the mother's body it means it was very serious and probably traumatizing for little Atom but after he burned the chocolate he was back to his old self which is not how a traumatized person would react after such an experience. That could've been a good moment to let him talk to Kongthap and let Kongthap comfort him.

Also after Kongthap gets upset that Atom forgot about the university he wanted to go to, in the original manga, Atom tries his best to make it up to him and plans the entire trip including booking the hotel. Then Kongthap asks to talk to him about something and Atom is sure Kongthap is going to break up with him cause he always feels like he doesn't deserve him. They didn't show it in the series. So when Atom's mother tells Kongthap about Atoms fear of losing the ones he loves it doesn't hit the same cause we never saw his fear. She said he pretends to be strong and independent but he doesn't. That's the entire thing about Atom. He is a messy cute little fellow, that has no idea what he is doing. He needs others and needs their help.

Kongthap is a simple character so they couldn't mess him up too much. But they failed to show his humanity. Kongthap was studying hard in order to make sure he gets into the university so he and Atom could be together. He didn't rest while Atom studies. That shows how much he loves and cares for Atom.

They cut parts of him being protective and possessive over Atom. Him being jealous that Atom is studying with his cram school teacher and asking Atom to study with him instead. Or even a sweet moment like when Atom hugs him in the hotel. Kongthap asks him to stop hugging him cause it makes him feel things. Atom breaks the hug straight away in panic.

There were moments in the bts that were better if included in the episode but for some reason got cut. Like Atom worrying about Kongthap when he passed out which I don't understand why they cut it out.

And let's not talk about the wasted musical episode which was so unnecessary. The manga is long enough and considering how many parts they cut, they could've used that time for something better. I love the songs but I still think it was a waste of time for the series.

That's about the plot. Now lets talk about the terrible directing that made both Fourth and Gemini look bad. I don't know who thought that getting a camera right in their faces was the right way to go. Or filming from weird angles. And the amount of time that they had their eyes almost completely shut because of the sun so you can't see any emotion whatsoever and they can hardly look at eo cause the sun is burning their eyes. And the terrible editing, sound effects that were too much and the brightening filter that made everything seem so unnatural.

I hope they get a better series next year. A one where they can showcase their acting skills better. A more serious one. A better written one, better directed and better all over.

That's it. That's all I have to say.

Edit after ep 12: this ep was worse than everything before. We clearly saw Atom's mother accepting Kongthap last ep just to get Atom coming out to her in this one. Explain. Also they tried to make her a mean parent only for this ep which made 100% no sense cause she was always caring. When Atom got sick she didn't tell him it's his fault for staying up all night. She isn't a harsh parent so wtf is this nonsense of her telling her son to basically not be a loser. But surprisingly enough (or maybe not so surprisingly because I know his true abilities) Fourth made the coming out scene so emotional even tho it made no sense. His raw emotions and his shaking voice had me in tears. His and Gemini's acting are the only good thing about this show.

Leia Mais

Cuteness Overloaded ;D

Who would have thought I would find myself smiling like an idiot, grinning all time.

If I've to describe it in word one without even thinking... I would say 'sweet.' Of course having a cat as one of the main characters is going to be adorable. But this just doesn't remain cute. In terms of story, its development, how characters are portrayed... how everything unfolds, it sure impressed me as I started it without any expectations.

The best part of the show would be the leads. I loved their characters, personalities. If you see Xiao Xiu (played by Gia Ge) you wouldn’t have to force yourself to believe she is a cat coz it feels so natural, from the very first scene of hers, the way she talks, the body moment, facial expressions even from the small gestures… you got cat vibes. I never expected this level of acting from a rookie actress like Gia Ge. She has only 2 dramas on her name this being her second drama and first time of having such a big role.

The same goes with You Lun I’m the first time seeing him... His acting is just so soo tranquil so is his character, Chi Yan. Chi Yan is calm composed, kind but kinda antisocial (having only one friend), distant from the world.. Living his life alone, and no intention to be different than this. His reactions are precious when Xiao Xu enters his life and makes it upside down and how their interactions happen, how they start to like each other.. The all process of these things happening, a big character development (but in a natural way) is so soothing and satisfactory to watch.

The weak chain of it would be the antagonists, as his character is not fully developed and nor having any proper reason for what he did. In this part, the writing was weak… but other than that there’s almost nothing that bothered me. Side characters, their stories are interesting. But nothing really overshadows the main lead’s story. This is so predictable, the story is simple as like any interspecies romantic story. But the characters, the small details, the acting, execution, the sizzling chemistry everything makes it more special different than usual. And of course, it is filled with sweetness.

Leia Mais

If you're wondering whether to watch this show, let me make it simple: YES. And the biggest reason? HMH.

Neo is the definition of a true gentleman always quietly sacrificing for others. Whether it was giving up watching the Olympic table tennis he was excited for, carrying heavy luggage without complaint, or ensuring Victoria didn't have to wait alone at the museum, his selflessness was evident in every moment.

As the most responsible, sincere, and kindhearted member, Neo went above and beyond to support those around him. From helping Enxi and Zhishan in Chile to leading as a tour guide in France and a group leader in Tanzania, he was always the backbone of the team.

One of the best travel companions, Neo knew how to be present without disrupting others’ emotions. His interactions with foreigners were particularly touching, showcasing his effortless ability to connect with different cultures. Some of the most unforgettable moments include him singing acapella and playing basketball with locals. His warmth and adaptability made these experiences even more special.

Neo is the kind of person who puts others first without hesitation. Traveling with him will be an absolute privilege.

Leia Mais

One of my favorites!

The ratings for this on MDL has made me lose all faith in the rating system, so I am ignoring it from here on out. If this is a 7.8, then I am really missing out on some great dramas by thinking the ratings here have any basis in reality. The Matchmakers is a 10/10 drama with an incredibly tight and complete story that is so well written. There is comedy gold, cuteness, romance, and Shakespearean intrigue. I have never seen any kdrama like this and would put it right up there with Mr. Queen. I actually enjoyed this one more. Just for Rowoon's facial expressions and the brilliant comedic interactions between him and his servant make this worthy of rewatching, but the whole cast was great. I highly recommend this!

Leia Mais

A Drama Which Certainly Doesn’t Have A “ Shining” Charm…

‘ Shining Like You’ is one of those dramas which upon paper sounds brilliant. It isn’t particularly original concept of “female lead goes to art school behind her parents’ back” and the “potentially handsome love interests” but there was still a lot of unlimited ground to explore messages, character growth and social themes. However the end result of ‘ Shining Like You’ is a mixed bag of wasted screenwriting and character writing potential with poor-editing and a discordant buildup.

On a positive note the acting is decent enough ( aside from a few questionable line deliverances) and the drama is a fairly lighthearted watch. The premise isn’t overly complex and follows typically obsequious lead Lu Qi Yi ( Wang Xi Xuan) rebelling against the wishes of her parents to attend a course in foreign languages at university by instead enrolling in arts school. However due to her more timid nature Qi Yi soon finds herself an outcast by struggling to fit in amongst the more expressive and extroverted personalities on campus. After an initial awkward meeting Qi Yi soon attracts the attention of outgoing and popular art student Fang Yan ( Simon Gong).

So if the concept and the acting aren’t the drama’s major problems then what exactly lets down ‘ Shining Like You’? Ultimately the downfall for the show can be found through two main factors; character writing (one of the drama’s major cataclysmic letdowns) and of course plot coherency. To address the former issue it is important to establish that plot coherency is crucial within dramas for viewers to make sense often of a storyline or setup . Of course sometimes screenwriters can purposefully make plot coherency more enigmatic for viewers with the intention of reflecting themes or messages ( dependent on the plot or storyline ). However , in “ typical” romance dramas such as ‘ Shining Like You’’s plot coherency is nearly always quintessential to helping viewers root for certain characters, understand developments of relationships and keep us intrigued with events that are soon to follow .

Naturally ‘ Shining Like You’ isn’t devoid of a basic plot but its descent can be found as a consequence of a mismatched narrative and timeline as a consequence of sporadic subplots , arbitrary jump scenes and disjointed patchy editing. As a consequence a quintessential moment could suddenly be skipped by a sketch scene or an arbitrary moment, which became confusing for casual and devoted watchers alike to keep up.

This brings us onto the second dilemma of ‘ Shining Like You’; the characters. One of the biggest elephants in the room is evidently our female lead Qi Yi. Our main female lead is the epitome of a carte blanche female lead. She’s used by the screenwriter to move the plot along when necessary but she rarely has more definitive characteristics or traits to make her feel sentient. For example considering that it was one of the major focal points of the entire drama, there’s little explanation or depth given to her her goals or raison d’être for applying to the arts school in the first place . Arguably she does make a quick passing comment towards “chasing her dreams” yet it’s hard to really understand or relate to Qi Yi’s drive or exact motives for hiding her attendance from her parents, when the drama has rarely delved beyond the surface of her goals, past or exact motivations.

There’s naturally a big dilemma with the female lead’s “ personality” also. Qi Yi is intentionally supposed to be an “ introvert” but it often felt as though the series was never sure how to present her entire character persona. Introverted main characters can often be tackled in versatile ways by screenwriters from being simply “reserved” to “antisocial”, but opportunities for characters to grow, develop (or at least be explored in more depth) are often key to shaping out an introverted main character as an individual.

To some extent ‘ Shining Like You’ desperately tried to do this with Qi Yi and her “ difficultly to fit in” and “ reserved nature”. She’s supposed to be “shy and sweet” but it was hard to truly feel as though our female lead was seemingly struggling or suffering as a consequence of her personality. Qi Yi was often surrounded by allies or at least close acquaintances and therefore never really felt on the “ edge” of social exclusion ( as the series was desperately trying to make out in the beginning ), she was never really singled-out or excluded particularly by a greater majority of her peers( sans the cliche “ bully group” who picked upon more than just Qi Yi) and when she did exhibit “ antisocial” moments during the series her attitude was often petulant and childlike rather than moody or aggressive. Whilst the drama does try to offer a turn around by Qi Yi suddenly becoming “ prettier and more outgoing” , this was often ineffably unexplained.

Perhaps it wouldn’t be too bad if the series had offered that Qi Yi’s immaturity at times was a byproduct of the way her parents have treated her or her upbringing . However instead of at least giving Qi Yi time to mature or explore her feelings, the female lead was treated in a similar manner to a rag doll ; an object of affection for the male leads , whilst happily obliging to having her emotions torn apart by not just her potential love interests, but not putting her foot down against a fake friend in plain sight also.

This also brings us naturally onto the discussion of side characters in the drama. On one note the show does really shine through at times with how more unlikely characters have difficult pasts or can prove themselves to be true friends in time of need. However like a lot of cliche romance dramas ‘ Shine Like You’ and the dreaded “ best friends formula” is torn apart from “ friends to enemies” with the creme de la creme of cliches; “the dreaded love triangle”.

This brings us onto one of the biggest flaws of the drama between the actual lacklustre romantic series between Qi Yi and Fang Yan. Respectfully the chemistry between Wang Xi Xuan and Simon Gong is hardly passionate, but it is not where the major flaw of the series lies .

Whilst trope-worthy, screenwriters and directors can often strike gold by using time and scenes to allow characters to know one another or feel conflicted with their feelings. In ‘ Shining Like You’ it’s hard to really define one particular moment where these two characters really develop their relationship beyond being classmates or having early impressions of one another. There’s the evident side argument about their gradual feelings and helping one another out when it was necessary for the exposition, but this rarely allowed for more definitive writing opportunities.

Consequently it was bitterly ironic that it is was easier to root for who we were supposed to “ dislike” (as viewers), second male lead Du Ang ( Zhou Cheng Ao) , as he had more initial interactions and chemistry with the female lead. Of course rather than using this as an opportunity for the series to allow the male lead to come to terms with his own feelings or develop interactions between the main love interests, the drama enjoys using this time to make Fang Yan the typical “ moody, short-tempered and jealous potential love interest”. The ending consequently felt disappointing by failing to wrap up some major plot points.

So what is the ultimate takeaway from ‘ Shining Like You’ and is it actually worth watching? ‘ Shining Like You’ tries hard to create a “ lovely and cutesy love story” between our main leads. To an extent the series flourishes with satisfactory performances by our main cast and some more insightful side characters having their own backgrounds and pasts. On the other hand the series has a patchwork approach to storytelling and narrative with a feeling of discordant coherency between characters and the actual storyline. Slow pacing and sporadic plot jumps lead to poor and lacklustre character building and interactions between our main leads. Ultimately whilst ‘ Shining Like You’ might not make a bad binge-watch drama, there are certainly more entertaining, well-written, engaging and classic love stories in dramas to watch than this one.

Leia Mais

I pushed back watching this, cause I don't like immature stories/characters. But then I thought to myself, there must be a reason for all the hype, lets give this a try ... oh well, it was both good and bad, so let's get to it:

I'll write about the good parts first ( so that no one would get too angry at me! ^^) The first half of the drama was pretty good; it was very youthful, and quite unique. It's not easy to create youth, it usually has too much elements or too little, but this drama nailed it. It made me remember my high school, skipping classes, hating some subject/teachers and loving the others, obsessing over things, not worrying about time/health/future, and thinking that everything is possible, that I can become anything if I set my mind into it. The times that I didn't have to think too srsly nor had to take that much responsibility, since my parents were there to take care of it all. However, I liked it even more, because it wasn't all fun and games; it had some darker, deeper elements into it. The writers managed to explore these deeper part of the plot through the older characters i.e. the parents. I loved them so much, they were a joy to watch.

But then half way through the drama, as if the magic was gone, the characters lost their charisma and started to become flat. There was no character development anymore, and the plot itself became one dimensional, boring and in times very very annoying. Remember the darker, deeper parts of the plot that I was writing about in the previous paragraph ... well the writers decided to forget about it, which created a huge problem.

It was as if the writers didn't understand human psychology. They didn't put any effort into changing the characters- which was necessary due to the darker,deeper parts of the plot -. Let me elaborate here: if someone has a problem within themselves that is stoping them from achieving something they want, they have to first recognize that there is a problem and then solve it in order to be able to achieve what they desire. However, in this drama, the writers decided to skip the step of one looking deeper within oneself, pondering, changing and maturing. They went straight to the achieving part !!!!!! Yes, that's all fun and nice ... BUT the thing is, in real life, this couldn't have happened, they had to mature. - side note: maturing is not a bad thing, it's a natural process for humans to survive, and it doesn't mean one cannot keep their inner child, nor that they will be a completely different person -
So yeah, I had a problem with this drama being so unrealistic... and trust me the writers had more than enough time to manage and show some character development, I mean from 1997 to 2012 is not a short period of time.

The acting was very good, I really liked the cast - even though I didn't like half of the characters, I still enjoyed watching it because of their awesome acting & chemistry. Well, if you want to watch something youthful, and give a break to the realistic part of your brain, start watching this right now! You'll have lots of laughter and maybe some tears! enjoy!

Leia Mais

I watched this around 3 months ago,This is one of the most beautiful BL movie that i had never seen..

This movie has 2 part..first part of this series tells about Touji as the junior,who is popular as one-week man,dates with his senior,Yuzuru.Touji always accepts anyone who asks him to go date and will give answer 1 week after.Actually,he has crush on Shino.But as the time goes by,their relathionship getting serious...

Actually i'm a takumi-kun series hardcore (not series 1)..And after long time,this movie makes me get the same feeling when i watched takumi-kun <333


I hope this review will help you guys...don't forget to watch both of part of this movie ^^

Leia Mais

This is not a drama for everyone, especially not for ones like their dramas full of action and fast story development. This is a slow paced drama. However, this is a drama that I truly enjoyed. The story is controversial and many times I kept shouting this is wrong. Having said that I still kept on wanting to see more of it. It's a story of growth from emotional immaturity personality and character flaws. It's a story of love and sacrifice as well as overcoming weaknesses and self doubts; of wondering whether relationships are strong enough even when foundations seem to be breaking apart. I am so happy with the ending because it was not forced and all the characters were given a neat resolution.
The acting was very good and believable. UTW made me feel every pain he was going through without him having to overact. LSH's acting was spot on. His personality suited his role. LSY was able to show me how her character has changed and grown in the 20 episodes of this drama. The supporting actors were also all so good.
I liked the music because it did not take away from the drama but set the mood of the story.
It was a great drama but I probably will not watch it again in the near future because of the slow pace. Watching this drama however made me feel like reading a very good novel by a really brilliant story teller; like Like reading Hemingway.
I highly recommend to anyone interested in watching wonderful story unfolding slowly in 20 episodes.

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