Reviews

Love, Compassion, Inspiring Characters | Best Costume Drama of All Time

To enjoy watching this drama, one has to watch it without any preconception. Discard your logic. Just watch it as it is. Accept the events as they are playing out. Watch out for the beautiful relationships between the leads and beyond. Close your eyes and listen to the beautiful music. Take in the visual of the 2 main leads.

I normally shy away from dramas that are tagged "Bromance", but somehow, I clicked on this one. Since I didn't have a high expectation, my initial impression was like, "Urgh! Another bad Chinese zombies drama" which was in the beginning scene. But to my surprise, it didn't take me very long to get into the hang of the story; I find the story super interesting and the actors super hot. In fact, the good look of the actors makes this drama feel like a manga/manhua; it's surreal, it's beautiful.

I was so hooked to the story that I binge watched all the aired episodes in one sitting. It is really good. Immediately I was acquainted with the main leads, in particular, Wei Wu Xian, who is the untamed one. He is playful, care-free, upstanding and has a heart of gold. Despite all the pain and false accusations he has to endure, Wei Wu Xian remains cheerful, humorous and kind. It is this magnanimous quality that brings tears to our eyes for his misfortune and makes us love him.

Wang YiBo, a very talented dancer, plays the Lan Wang Ji character. Whether on-screen or off-screen, Wang YiBo has that same cold look and therefore making him a perfect fit for the role. His coldness and outrageous good look provide a dream-like visual in the world of cultivation.

The bantering between Wei Wu Xian and the other men/boys is hilarious and cute, which we normally see in romances between a girl and a boy. But in this drama, the bantering doesn't feel distasteful or bad; it gives the impression of true friendship and brotherhood.

Many of the actors, especially the male actors, are so good looking that I find myself attracted to them. All of them are young and talented, and executed their roles very well. The visual of Wei Wu Xian and Lan Zhan is so beautiful - one in white holding the sword and the other in black blowing the flute. I love to watch the flow of their long hair and clothing in the air when they fight. It's simply out of this world.

Though I have not read the novel nor watched the related anime, I find the portrayal of the 2 main characters so amazing - everything about them is opposite to each other. Wei Wu Xian is always warm, talkative and playful, whereas Lan Wang Ji is always cold, solemn and rigid. It is interesting to note that the actual personalities of the actors are reversed off screen. Lan Wang Ji and Wei Wu Xian make a perfect pair.

For me, it's the 'soulmate' relationship that is truly awesome. Wei Wu Xian and Lan Wang Ji know exactly what each other is thinking and feeling by just looking into each other's eyes. They can read each other's mind. It's better than many boy-girl romances where there are tons of misunderstanding, frustrating the viewers. Despite being always expressionless, Wang YiBo brilliantly expresses his emotions without words in Lan Wang Ji. And for Xiao Zhan, he is so brilliant playing the Wei Wu Xian character as if it is written for him.

Their admiration for each other is never explicit, but the look on each face tells a million words. Wei Wu Xian has never imposed on Lan Wang Ji; he lets him make his own choices. For Lan Wang Ji, he is tormented. What is in his heart is totally against what he's been taught in his whole life. He has lived a very strict life with no friends nor any form of entertainment, until Wei Wu Xian appears in his life. Only Wei Wu Xian understands how he feels.

As far as I'm concerned, there is nothing 'gay' about this drama. It's just pure BFF (best-friend-forever) like we have with our own BFF. It is the great companionship one finds in another. The few comedic scenes added to lighten up the whole story are adorable and funny, helping the viewers to take a breather from the zombies and evil spirits.

All the sound tracks are so beautiful either sung or instrumental, each telling a story of a character or a scene. I love visualization the scene when Wu Xian picks up his flute and blows, and Lan Wang Ji playing the guqin. I can just close my eyes and listen to the beautiful tune. The visual is simply so beautiful that no words can describe.

The ending tears my eyes. The sacrifices Wei Wu Xian makes to save others, and in return Lan Wang Ji does the same for him. It's moving and touching. Sweetness comes and I ask for the story to continue.

Many viewers who have read the novel may be disappointed watching this drama that has not portrayed the gayness as it is written in the novel. On the other hand, many viewers shy away from this drama because they do not want to watch "gay" scenes. For me, this drama is beautifully and tastefully done, especially the visual aspect. If you refrain from watching for any of these reasons, you may be missing a lot of the fun. This is a drama that is well worth it.

I strongly recommend this drama to anyone who is still hesitating.

Two thumbs up!

An Update:

After watching this drama during its airing, I re-watched it multiple times, each time picking up certain details I've missed during the first watching. I realized there are many subtleties in this drama that can be missed or not understood in the first viewing. Then I also started watching the anime, and reading the novel. The drama does pretty well in sticking closed to the original story but then, there are also differences and hence provides totally different experiences to the viewers.

Like I said before, I'm normally not a "bromance" fan. But after watching this drama, something touches me. I don't know what, but I love this drama so much that I can't put it down. Even though initially when watching this drama, I felt the relationship was more of a soulmate friendship, but after reading some parts of the novel and watching the anime, I realize it is more than just a soulmate relationship. But this drama has cleverly and carefully tweaked the story to avoid that censorship threshold and yet not losing its heart-warming love relationship appeal. That's what makes this drama so loved and unforgettable. The two main male leads are so good together as if they are made for each other. Since this drama, I realize the misconception I have always on such relationship (bromance) due to our social norms and religious intolerance. I also realize only with an open mind, I can see further and feel more of the things around me.

Despite all the holes and flaws here and there, poor acting by some peripheral actors, hard-to-understand certain parts of the story and logic, substandard editing etc, this drama is phenomenal in terms of its visual appeal and music composition. One really has to sit in, watch it and listen to it, to appreciate it.

This drama has the best OSTs I have ever heard, be they vocal or instrumental, they are so beautiful. The character songs describe each character appropriately. From these songs, I even managed to understand some characters better whom I initially disliked, such as Xue Yang. The lyrics and music in the Yi Nan Ping (Jiang Yanli's character song) is the one that makes me very emotional whenever I listen to it because it is Wei Ying's memory of his shijie (Jiang Yanli); it's so heart-wrenching. The Qing Xin Yin (Clear Heart Tune or Cleansing) with the Luan Po Chao (Muddle Soul) interlude is so perfectly done, that by itself, it is already a master piece. I later also found out that this song is an adaptation from the original song called "You don't understand my heart". Lan Zhan plays this tune consistently for Wei Ying for healing when he is in coma or when he's wounded. The lyrics in that song are so fitting for Lan Zhan expressing his love for Wei Ying silently. The WuJI song, purportedly composed by Lan Zhan for Wei Ying, describes perfectly what happens between them - it is their song, their story. Another song that strikes me most, among others, is the Lotus Cove song. Whenever I hear it, I can feel Wei Ying's fond memories of his growing up life living in the Lotus Cove, so carefree and happy, loved and adored by all, especially his shijie. I can't help but cry for him when he loses all that means most to him.

I have never thought I'd enjoy a drama that shows two male leads in a loving relationship as much as I love this one. At this point, I don't think the label we want to use on this drama important anymore. The most important thing is, most viewers like me have enjoyed it tremendously.

This is a MUST WATCH drama!

Leia Mais

ECLIPSED POTENTIAL

What just happened? Is that it?

The promotions to this show oversold it as a mystery drama - but wat was promised to be an intriguing and unique (crime)unexplained death solving/revenge plot with a touch of supernatural turned out to be nothing but shallow build up.

The only saving grace is the cast - First and Khaotung are both too good for the scenes they could have done it even while sleeping. It is a shame that both stellar actors are not getting the right break to catapult them into proper BL idols, i thought this was it. Oh, I also thought they're too old to play high school, in shorts nonetheless.

Im sorry to say but nothing about the plot is successfully executed - the investigative-mystery solving arc turned out to be nothing but one nephew's cry for attention. The failed attempt of being a gay activism show (un)spectacularly influenced by the metoo movement is just preachy and pointless. The enemies-to-lovers angle was shoved in our faces but isnt even fully developed. Even the second pairing felt forced. And has anyone sensed a creepy teacher to student lovers vibe?

Also, you cannot make a story with two trying-hard psychopaths that put other students lives at risk (to advance their causes) just to literally make them get away with it at the end, there was no consequences and literally no risks. Everybody came out unscathed and everything is rainbows and butterflies by the end. Just no. It made the whole series pointless.

Episode 1 wasnt compelling enough, i stayed because of the cast. I was already too bored by episode 3 and i kind of forgot about it. Came back and binged the next 4 episodes but it didnt get better. I skipped it again and bitch watched (Im sorry, i meant to say binge watched) the rest after the finale aired. Im just glad i didnt wait for it every Friday.

We all know we have too much school BL drama now, and giving it a twist could have been interesting but man it is just a show with big potential but was eclipsed by the shallow execution.

Overall, 6.5 stars. watch it for the main leads otherwise ignore it if you have other things to watch.

Leia Mais

How a leader of men becomes a follower of a woman.

Li Ni is too good to be true: a brave, patriotic, upstanding and brilliant young general who safeguards the border at the kingdom's farthest reaches with his Zhenxi army. He aspires to live a carefree, adventurous life at his beloved Laolan Pass with his found family of merry men, steering clear of his imperial roots. And no wonder; his royal father and two half-brothers are cowardly, venal, ambitious, duplicitous and so dumb they test the limits of the word. But destiny intervenes when a military governor Sun Jing seizes the capital, holds Li Ni's witless father hostage and the imperial grandson and rightful successor goes missing. As the kingdom descends into civil war, Li Ni leads the intrepid Zhenxi army to try to save the day. He encounters the bold and audacious A Ying, a lieutenant at the helm of the formidable Cui family army. At first glance, A'Ying is an awesome character; strong, independent, daring, ambitious and cunning. While they have different visions of the future, they are aligned in the immediate purpose of defeating Sun Jing. They join hands in an alliance that has each trying to out do the other in terms of being the one to seize victory. Sparks fly between them, suggesting a broader and more permanent union could be in the cards.

The political plot is very loosely based on the history of the founding of the Tang dynasty. The writing reflects a shallow understanding of politics and historical reality and just plain laziness. The writer clearly didn't know what to do with the one interesting and smart villain and thus quickly kills them off. We are then bamboozled with a bunch of very tired one-note villain archetypes who are surprisingly difficult to kill dead despite their limited brain cells. They are so done before too many times villains that they are not worthy of mention. The only good thing about the battle for the throne arcs are the action scenes; they are exciting and bloody. Xu Kai always delivers incredibly agile and powerful fight scenes and with a good action director like this, he really shines. The drama peaks at an epic and consequential battle around episode 32 and that is probably the best place to stop. It took me a long time to get through the final 8 episodes that were unnecessary and as bland as tofu.

In terms of the romance, this drama is anchored by good chemistry and flawless portrayals by Xu Kai and Jing Tian. It errs on the side of being overly generous with the fan service sweet scenes, which I only mildly enjoyed. I may have been more convinced had I not just come off watchingJing Tian beam beatifically up at Feng Shaofeng (Legend of Zhuohua) with that exact same limpid, adoring expressions. The bigger issue is that A Ying as a character is incredibly difficult to like. She is strong willed, reckless and has a most unbecoming need to win all the time and especially when she is wrong. She doesn't even "win" with any great, glorious or brilliant schemes; her kisses are essentially Kryptonite as far as Li Ni is concerned. It is beyond infantile that he would cede an entire city for a kiss! Li Ni's wants are mallaeble as far as she is concerned and she takes it upon herself to meddle in high power politics to achieve the outcomes she wants. When she doesn't like the consequences of her schemes, it is inevitably Li Ni's fault. The "dealbreaker" conflict between them never gets solved; their relationship is bailed out by events, which is an anti-climatic writing cop out that left me convinced they will surely end up divorced. She does not communicate with Li Ni, overestimates her ability to handle problems on her own and is oblivious to the fact that a deranged lunatic is after her even though he captures her many times. To my dismay, each of her near death experiences are just near. We are told this is a smart and independent character but we are shown she is not smart and constantly needs rescuing from her own hubris. Their love story is an utterly soul destroying tale of how a leader of men becomes a follower of a woman. The only love story in this drama that actually moved me was that of Consort Xiao.

This is Xu Kai's best recent drama after a string of disappointments and he does a really good job here playing a character with massive hero complex. As for Jing Tian, I didn't love her character but I am sure a less charming actress would have frustrated me into dropping this. Despite the good acting, the many logic holes, pedestrian sub-plots and cardboard characters make for a smooth but bland cocktail. I can only rate it 7.0. Overall it is not a bad watch for the fantastic fight scenes and squeal-worthy flirty moments.

Leia Mais

This will be a very short review compared to my usual fair. I just felt I had to throw this out there. This was a weird drama for me. There were parts in the middle where the plot became so predictable, the lead female so annoying, the noble sacrifice trope so overused, the dialogue so trite and the romance and music so in your face that had it not been for Lee Jun Ki I would have dropped this puppy.

But just as I started it for LJK and stayed for LJK, LJK (with some help from Lee Soo Hyuk and even, gasp, Changmin) saved this one for me. If at any point LJK and LSH, and most of the other actors too, hadn't sold this to the hilt, it could have been the utterly crappy hot mess that Night Watchman was. But somehow their commitment to the roles, even when they got stupid, saved this drama.

But what also saved it was the last 4 episodes. The quality of those episodes clearly showed the writer DID have a plan. The writer just had trouble filling in the bits between A and B. The first 2 episodes were wonderful. The last 4 episodes were also very good. I could probably find 4 episodes in the middle that were not totally terrible. So if this drama had been 10 episodes it actually would have been pretty awesome. As it is, it's only okay, but brought to the level of better than okay because of the acting. If you love Lee Jun Ki as much as I do, you will still find something to love in this drama despite its MANY flaws.

Leia Mais

Can't wait for season 2

I am someone who has little faith in Xianxia genre. Most of the time they ruin the whole story with unnecessary fillers if it's an adaptation. Plus they change the major part of the story that ends up into a cliched, stupid and predictable storyline. Another thing is annoying stupid female that we usually find in such dramas. And the most important part- Rushed ending!!!!

What I loved:
- WHAT A CAST. No over the top acting. ( Special mention for kids). Yangzi killed it with her acting skills here. The actor who play Cang Xuan, man he might not be my favourite character but his acting and the subtle emotions that he portrayed throughout the show is undoubtedly the best. What an amazing actor. Another special mention is for the grandpa. What an outstanding character. Every actor from a maid to all the rulers and side characters behaved like the real person not just some extras.
-Female lead is not annoying ( was not a fan of Yangzi as I have always seen her in bubbly, hyper and stupid girl sort of role.) I didn't know she will become one of my favourites.
- Finally all of them have their own voices. (No dubbing).
-Loved the songs especially the one sung by the actress herself. Background music just adds more beauty to the fantasy world of this drama.
-Only few episodes and you won't be able to stop yourself from watching. The story is really good and connects you right away with the characters.
- Three male leads are there and believe me you will find it hard to choose a favourite. All of them acted so well that you just can't ignore their presence.
- Set design, costumes and overall production is really good. CGI is...okay in some scenes but they utilised the money at the right place and those scenes looked mesmerizing. It again proves that an amazing director can bring so much out from the actors and made sure people could connect to the characters.
I was planning to read the novel (if I could find it somewhere) but it is good I went into it without prior knowledge about the novel. I can't believe we all have to wait for a long time for season 2. But this season satisfyed my thrust for an amazing well paced, edited and acted Xianxia drama. It deserves all the praise. :)

Leia Mais

I really wanted to write a review as soon as the series had ended. Since spoilers are not tolerated in a review, I decided to do a pro/contra list in the comment section containing spoilers because there were concrete things that bothered me a lot and I needed to get them off my chest.

I started watching Hwarang because it is a historical drama and I was interested in the story. I am not an expert when it comes to history, my knowledge on Korean history is particularly poor, and so I read some articles on Silla/Hwarang to be prepared a bit. Of course you have to keep the fact in mind that this is a drama, thus fiction. Some things had to be dropped for sure, and some things had to be (re-)invented to create this drama. I’m saying this because I do not want you to have extremely high expectations on this show being historically accurate. It is not. Personally I did not mind, it wasn't TOO bad for me. I will not compare real historical events with this drama in the next lines for several reasons; instead, I will provide summarized impressions of mine and tell you about the things I liked and disliked.

First of all, what _is_ “Hwarang” in my eyes? It is a historical drama mixed with modern elements, comedy, and romance; action, silliness und suspense included. It is partially somewhat of a high school drama embedded in an earlier century I would say, because you will recognize some types and things related to school dramas for sure. The supporting characters are likeable and enjoyable; I wished some of them were more vivid.

At first I was slightly addicted to this show, and I even stopped watching other dramas because I wanted to concentrate on “Hwarang”. The cliffhangers made me wanting to go on with the next episodes badly, Sun Woo was cool, and so were Ah Ro, Ji Dwi and the supporting characters. I was interested in Sun Woo’s development, but I fell for Ji Dwi very soon, and at some point, I was mostly interested in his fate because I started to see the major flaws. My addiction disappeared, but it still was enjoyable.

I had the feeling the makers were not sure on which aspect they should focus on more: The lives of Hwarang and their impact on society, that one love story going on, political stuff in general, Sun Woo’s story or on Park Hyung Sik’s role. I am perfectly aware of the fact that, usually, a story has several plots being connected to each other at some point. I liked nearly all the plots within this series and nearly all of the characters involved, but the plots are unbalanced. I would not go so far as to claim the first episodes not being important or to count them as dispensable fillers, because that is not what they are at all, but at some point, so many significant things happen one after another that all previous events become blurry. Besides, the characters are not given time to reflect on certain things properly, at some point stuff is thrown at you in raw form piece by piece; sometimes it did not make any sense to me. Instead of 20 episodes, the makers should have either made 15 or 30 episodes to avoid a very slow first half being followed by a very fast-paced second half. As it stands, the relationship between fast and slow is deeply unbalanced and harder to digest.

The thing that annoyed me the most is the main couple. It is hard to explain without posting spoilers, it really is. I did not feel it, maybe you will, I don’t know. They would have been off better as separated individuals and not as a couple because the developers wasted too much time on them instead moving on with things that I considered more important.

I liked the equivalences and symbolism. You will stumble upon analogous and opposite equivalences between human beings, humans and things, humans and forces of nature. To me, these things along with symbolism are important because you expand the meaning to create a huge substantial net without organizing a verbal orgy. The “meaning of something” is relevant to this drama. Two other things I liked are the writers’ ability to generate deep, emotional scenes and character development. Unfortunately, all of this has to face neglect soon; equivalences and relationships are created and then thrown overboard; adequate character development is avaliable in small amounts only. Ji Dwi and Ban Ryu’s progression were the only ones to be witnessed visibly.

I would divide this series into two parts, part A and part B. In part A you get to learn the characters, their relationship among each other and their motivations. In Part B things become… beyond good and evil, let’s put it that way. I really wish there would have been more interactions between all Hwarang in part A. I wanted them to talk to each other more; I wanted them to get to know each other better.

The acting was good. Park Hyung Sik and Do Ji Han’s acting skills impressed me the most. Park Hyung Sik’s facial expressions, his speech, his postures and movements are indeed that of a man of high importance, his face is made for this kind of dramas, and Do Ji Han’s emotions were frighteningly real. The others did well too, except for Go Ah Ra (and Park Seo Joon) in some scenes. I had the feeling that this is not her kind of drama, somehow.

Please do not assume I am here to simply bash her or her contribution to this drama, after all she is one of the main characters and I gladly “ship” her with one of the male leads. As I said before I liked nearly all of the characters, but they aren’t all perfect (putting the fact aside that we did not get to know them well enough). Ah Ro appears to be plain in some scenes, which is a shame. I haven’t watched another movie starring the actress so far, so I do not want to judge her acting skills as a whole. Ah Ro started out as an interesting and funny character, but in the further course I realized she was poorly written. Sun Woo is a rather irrational and static being, too one dimensional for too long, too much overkill towards the end. I think I do understand why they portrayed Sun Woo the way he is. I still think the developers gave him too much credit, even though Ji Dwi and some other boys deserved it as much, but the ending was legit, at least.

I am not sure whether the contemporary musical numbers were chosen on purpose to remind the viewers that “Hwarang” is still a drama and not a historical documentary or such, but I considered the music to be really off-putting sometimes. Sure, after five to six episodes you learn to ignore it/get used to it forcefully, but, eh, it should not be this way.

The last criterion here is “rewatch value”. To be honest with you: The possibility of me rewatching a series with more than five episodes or so is low. But if I were a person who likes rewatching things from time to time in general, I would probably watch this show again one day just to see the scenes that touched me the most/I liked a lot.

I was not satisfied by the final couple and the final scene, apart from that the outcome was appropriate. I had a difficult time while ruminating about a proper rating. First it was 8,5, then 6,5, finally I decided to rate it as 7/10. Episode 19 was a complete mess, and the final scene was screaming bruh, cliché right in my face, they rushed the ending and too many questions remain unanswered, although it is suggested that you will get the answers.* Nonetheless I liked many things about this show.

To sum up, “Hwarang” offers entertainment, some likeable characters; the plots within are interesting but things are solved poorly. This drama is neither extraordinary nor a must-watch (unless you want to get to see your favourite) and has obviously some major flaws. You can say the makers had reliable tools, but they didn’t know how to use them properly. Give it a try if you want to; after all you can still skip stuff or simply drop this drama if this isn’t your cup of tea. I hope this review is helpful!

*I like open ends, and usually I am fine with some things left unanswered AS LONG AS it has a function and is well presented.

Leia Mais

I thought Korea was going backwards while watching this movie

I was going to give it 0.5 stars, but cannot be given here. I'm actually a fan of one of the actors, and also a fan of ORV. But seriously? You've made the entire cast almost hateable because their acting is so stiff. Let's leave Lee Minho alone because he has had a long career here. But the rest? You gave the women unnecessary and disgusting aegyo. It would be terrible if this movie were to exist. I hope the production team is not that arrogant and does not let their biases and opinions appear in this film. You want to defeat Demon Slayer? Marvel? Or what? Very bad. Absolutely disgusting. Honestly, Marvel didn't give Captain America a magic glove like you did to Hyunsung. And bastard, Tanjiro doesn't use a gun when fighting. And is Jisoo too lazy to run? What's with that teleportation skill? You want to imitate Flash or what, damn director?

Leia Mais

How Creepy!

The second season of Utsukushii Kare is an exceptional drama that left a lasting impression on me. The series features the talented actors Hagiwara Riku and Yagi Yusei, who portray the characters Hira Kazunari and Kiyoi Sou with a great deal of nuance and complexity.

One of the standout aspects of the drama is its unique take on the power dynamic between the two main characters. Initially, their relationship appears to be one-sided, with Kiyoi holding all the power. However, as the series progresses, it becomes clear that there is much more to their dynamic than meets the eye.

The line "How creepy!" is so frequently used that I lost count. At first, it was so off-putting to me hearing Kiyoi "insult" Hira. However, as the series progresses, this line takes on a deeper meaning and becomes a symbol of the characters' growth and development. It is a testament to the strength of the writing and acting that a seemingly simple phrase can evoke such complex emotions.

The last episode of the series beautifully showcases the growth and maturity in the characters' love for each other. It is a touching moment that underscores the depth of their relationship and the series wrapped it up with a good, I really mean it, good scene. The subtle shift in expression from worship to pure desire is honestly such an iconic moment for me.

Overall, IMHO Utsukushii Kare Season 2 is a standout drama in the BL genre and one of the best in its history. The only downside is that this series is too short! But with exceptional performances from its lead actors, a unique power dynamic between its characters, and a beautiful story of love and growth, this series is sure to be one of the best BL series for a long, long time.

Leia Mais

"There's no way you can be lost if you don't set a destination"

Mr. Plankton told the story of three wounded people finding love and reconciliation down a messy, uneven path. Woo Do Hwan can make any role compelling and he had some heavy lifting to do in the early episodes of this drama, thankfully he’d been working out.

Hae Jo and Gi Ho run a boys for hire service, picking whatever jobs Hae Jo thinks will be fun. Hae Jo was emotionally abandoned as a child due to a mistake at an IVF facility and seems to have no love to give. The entrepreneurs take on a job of “kidnapping” a bride which goes south really quick and ends with Hae Jo discovering he has three months to live. He decides to search for his biological father to try and make some sense of his life and in the process kidnaps another bride for real. Soon he has the first bride’s villainous gangster groom after him as well as the second bride’s loving groom.

The first few episodes were difficult for me because I had real concerns about the lack of consent on Jae Mi’s part when Hae Jo kidnapped her. Despite having a past, it came across as problematic. Of course, eventually their shared loved and Woo Do Hwan’s gorgeous face and body convinced her to help him on his parental quest, but that doesn’t negate the kidnapping. Jae Mi’s fiancé, Heung, became hopelessly entangled in their lives. I actually liked Heung. While he had mommy issues due to an overbearing mother, he was a good man who genuinely loved Jae Mi and didn’t deserve to have a front row seat to Hae Jo and Jae Mi’s burgeoning love story. Gi Ho, who became embroiled with the gangsters searching for Hae Jo suffered greatly for his loyalty and friendship which went all but unacknowledged.

Now that I’ve stated the things that didn’t work for me, here’s what did. I’m a sucker for reconciliation stories and found families. Once everyone was mutually onboard the crazy train without a destination, the story worked better. Hae Jo discovered that his family was not the only one with problems. Heung began to develop enough confidence to defy his overbearing mother. Jae Mi came to understand that she had worth. And all three would have their eyes opened to the love all around them.

Woo Do Hwan’s performance was mesmerizing even when Hae Jo behaved liked a self-centered jerk. He has a way of making any character sympathetic and did the same here which was a momentous task as Hae Jo spent much of his time hurting others. Oh Jung Se had the difficult job of making a middle-aged man who could not stand up to his mother likeable. Heung was such a compassionate character that he could set aside his own feelings and respect Jae Mi’s choices. The character that downgraded this drama for me was Jae Mi. I found the writing for her and the acting grating. Jae Mi spent much of her time yelling or acting childlike which caused me to hit the mute button numerous times per episode. All three characters were complicated and flawed, having been wounded by their parents. All three were on a journey towards love, growth, and forgiveness. Though much of the growth was understandable, there was some that felt unearned.

Mr. Plankton was an uneven drama with moments of humor, sorrow, and love driven by Woo Do Hwan’s compelling performance. The specter of Death lingered in the shadows from beginning to end. Hae Jo’s vision of what was important cleared as his final days approached. Family isn’t always what we’re born into, sometimes it’s what we make it.

“Never set a destination. Just let your instincts take the lead for you. That way you’ll never lose your path.”

11 November 2024

Leia Mais

A "romantic comedy" with barely any romance or comedy. The business aspect of the drama takes up about 90% of the plot. There was no romance plot development till the very last minute of the last episode. Absolutely frustrating. Most of the characters are extremely unlikable. The second half of the drama gets very convoluted and dumb and by the 15th episode I was very angry and didn't even want to watch the last episode. I only gave this drama a chance because of Siwon and Kang Sora, and if you're in the same boat and thinking of starting this drama because of them, save your time and don't watch this.

Leia Mais

I don’t understand, why all the hype with this drama?? The only reason I watched it, was because I’ve read all these highly rated reviews.,
The main female character was ANNOYING and she’s such an airhead.. Her, running after the guy who hardly looks at her, was humiliating to watch and frustrating.. How can you think that’s cute?? It’s like she had no self respect or dignity..
The poor swimmer friend, he was great and sweet and completely loveable, unlike the lead male!
I honestly fast forwarded through most of the episodes because I got too annoyed to watch it.
The only characters who I thought were great, were both in support roles, her best friend and the swimmer.
Girls just a heads up, it’s NOT cute running after a guy who doesn’t even look at you!

Leia Mais

But seriously, what did I just watch. I need the spark notes.

This drama is messy. "You Are My Spring" is a drama that tries to do too much. It's part thriller and part romance and although they try to link the two it never feels like one cohesive drama. The first few episodes got me hooked. I loved the suspense, the chemistry between the leads, and the cliffhanger episode endings. I didn't love the overload of internal monologues and "deep" dialogue, but I expected the story to pick up the pace and become more and more exciting as it progressed. I was wrong. I ended up becoming more bored and confused, and eventually annoyed. Maybe the dialogue feels different when you actually know Korean but instead of being moved and inspired by it, it felt forced and heavy-handed. I forced myself to finish hoping it would all make sense in the end.

It didn't.

Yoon Park gave the most interesting performance in this whole drama. I won't say much more than that but I will mention that this part of the story needed way more screentime. His part of the story falls under thriller and it honestly felt like they abandoned that part of the plot almost completely about halfway through in order to focus more on romance. The romance is pretty cute for the most part, at least in the beginning. I'm a fan of Seo Hyun Jin and her quirkiness, and Kang Da Jung is the kind of role I like to see her play. She is matched with Kim Dong Wook as awkward Joo Young Do a psychiatrist who analyzes everything at first glance. Their chemistry is ok, but their cute innocent banter got old quickly. Eventually, their romance becomes the main focus of the drama but don't confuse that with anything actually happening. It's still a lot of inner thoughts and metaphors. It was the equivalent of watching two people read their diaries aloud and hoping they will at least hug, or listening to two awkward teenagers recite repetitive poems, even though they are both grown.

The other characters had a cute friendship thing happening but most of them were not that interesting or fully developed. I loved Young Do's BFFs and thought they were great, and I loved Da Jung's mom, but the other characters were just a step above filler. I wish the other romances were either given more time or cut out completely. I wish Ji Seung Hyun wasn't gypped out of a potentially hilarious relationship just to make him pine away for someone far less interesting. Also, the celebrity scandal trope is so tired I cringed whenever that was the focus, although Nam Gyu Ri as self-centered Ahn Ga Young definitely grew on me. She reminded me a lot of a friend I have. lol.

So... would I watch this again? Maybe. I know that's surprising since I disliked it so much but It's driving me crazy that after 16 episodes I have no idea what this drama was supposed to be about. I keep wondering if I missed some major clues in the beginning. Maybe I dozed off during dialogue that actually had something to do with the plot. Maybe it will be less torturous during a second viewing because I wouldn't be waiting in vain for the story to become exciting again.

Overall, this drama was disappointing. Instead of an interesting psychological thriller or an against all odds love story, I feel like I was left with the start of a potentially good drama-filled in with "deep" conversations, metaphorical snow, too many flashbacks, and product placement overload, and characters talking for way too long to themselves. Any themes about forgiving the past, or finding the will to live and love were overshadowed by the sound of me yawning. Yes, curiosity about these character's stories kept me watching, but I had to get all the way to the end to finally admit to myself that I didn't even care about them anymore. I associate spring with growth but my feelings about "You Are My Spring" withered and died.

Leia Mais

extremely adorable and sweet - green flag guys

Overall: this is an exemplar of a romance series. 12 episodes about 45 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/4626/monster-next-door-2024-e01 and WeTV https://wetv.vip/en/album/y1ocjz3bjta0prm

Content Warnings: past death, grief, manipulation

What I Liked
- their dynamic was lovely, very considerate of each other
- mutual want and ongoing physical affection
- sweet and caring moments
- respecting boundaries
- good consent
- supportive friends
- supportive mom/grandfather
- characters were fairly intelligent
- funny moments
- the short flashback in ep 2 set up a character's reluctance well
- Almond & Latte cameo from Knock Knock Boys
- how Diew looked at the book Monster Next Door in the library
- good calling out infantilizing a romantic partner
- the drama between the leads was realistic, they both made mistakes
- talked about how introvert/extrovert are not fixed traits, it depends on who you are with/the situation you are in and can be flexible

Room For Improvement
- bad voice over to set up a character
- plot felt a little drawn out in some places
- nonsense stuff: I'm sure those working in the library would notice students doing that and put a stop to it (and then the explanation in ep 12 was cringey), a university class with 3 students
- some choppiness
- continuity errors, complete daytime and then night in what was happening at the same time, messy hair to perfect hair
- not a turtle expert but that cage looked pretty small for that turtle
- a 3rd side couple was teased but we didn't see their relationship development
- the 'did you get your period' line
- 17 minutes of moping in episode 11
- too much drama in episode 12 should have cut it to just 1 issue, the mom having the epiphany from the random mom/daughter when it could have come from talking to grandpa/Diew
- time jump in the finale was not needed and felt they could have had a better ending scene for the 2nd couple

Leia Mais

Warm, Caring, Supportive Male Lead

Let me start by saying I loved the feel of this drama. The warm undertones and emotional connection between Zhoa Jin and Xu Nuo kept me watching. This drama portrays the growth of the relationship between the ML and the FL. They met by chance and felt a pull toward each other. At the start, the FL was in a long-term relationship with her boyfriend, Peng Yu An who never seemed to have time for her. It is also clear that his father is against them being together and wants Yu An to have a more advantageous relationship with his partner. Without going into details, the FL breaks up with the boyfriend, but he refuses to accept the breakup. Yet, Zhoa Jin and Xu Nuo continued to grow closer and this is the part that made this drama so beautiful.

There is a secondary relationship between the FL's best friend and ML's friend Xu Yang. There is also a touching storyline with the ML's sister and her friend. This drama shows different relationships and motivations. Some relationships are based on dependency and convenience. Some are formed based on what might be considered to be advantageous. And some grow even when up against adversities...this is the slow burn we see with the ML and the FL.

I loved the ML! It baffles me that there are so many negative comments against the ML. He was warm, caring, supportive, considerate, gentle, and smart. His character is appealing because he shows strength and conviction. But even though he appears soft on the outside, he can defend himself. The ex-boyfriend sees him as pitiful as he is divorced and has a younger sister who has health issues. But this is just one of the indications that the ex-boyfriend is overconfident and too much into himself because others see the ML as handsome and wonderful. The ML is the main reason I watched this drama. Zhang Wan Zi is now on my favorite actors list! Sigh...

Leia Mais