Reviews

Don't do it. Just don't - no matter how cute you think it is.

No. Just no.
Please do yourself a favor. Do not watch this. You will be sucked in by the cute and the fluffy and the sweet! It will go on for about 13 and a half episodes and you will love it.

Then apparently the writer started smoking crack.

I've never been so angry about the ending of a drama in my life! The 5 stars is completely for the acting and the music and the 13.5 lovely episodes. (Although the writer still may have been a bit high writing all of it to be perfectly honest because at the end you realize how much nonsense is in this show. It was just hidden by the sweetness!)

And I couldn't even rage quit this show because by the time they have enraged you with what they've done --- boom! It's over. The last 3 minutes gave me a total rage fit. I was prepared for a sad ending - I sobbed for the SAD ending and then came to terms with it even though I hated the way it appeared they were going to end it. But this....this was just....wrong. So much wrong. They did those characters dirty. They did the audience dirty. They did those actors dirty.

Leia Mais

Hopeful Bond Against the Dark Odds

“It bothers me when one out of every seven of us is missing. I don’t know why, but I just don’t like it. I hope we can be all together. When we are all together, I don’t even think about wanting to die.”

This drama is an adaptation of BU and I'm glad it's really good. Despite some changes, they did an excellent job on the build up between the characters and their relationships, along with the actors' portrayal and chemistry. From the awkward first meetings to building trust with each other and getting closer together. I love watching their friendship and brotherhood despite their different backgrounds and problems. They unite to become each others' ray of light amidst the struggles they faced during the darkness of their separate lives. This drama is so heartwarming with the precious found family trope. But at the same time, the dark themes about their childhood traumas and family secrets are so emotional and intriguing.

This drama is so meaningful and deep while tackling various social issues about dysfunctional family, mental illness, discrimination, poverty, politics, education and more. The mystery regarding the past of their parents and connection to the principal shows how generational trauma starts and their children bearing the pain of their mistakes. Innocent teenagers are forced to suffer due to the evil adults that comes from each of their different environments. This drama is a reflection of reality that conveys important messages while providing consolation and angst to the youth who are beginning to face the world.

From the original BU storyline, this drama acts like a prequel that introduces the 7 protagonists while adding more details about their backgrounds and families. Eventually, this drama left with an open ending where the fantasy aspect of time travel only begins at the end. Hwan, the oldest of the group, carries the weight of responsibilities and guilt, so he goes back in time to save all his friends and prevent them from their tragic fates. He sacrifices himself while being stuck in time loops. This leads to suspicions and demands for Season 2. There's no official confirmation yet, but I hope they really make it happen so the boys' stories can continue.

Leia Mais

RUSTED SPOONS

The biggest flaw of the story is giving out way too many golden spoon, it kind of reduced the importance of an otherwise powerful selling point.

I will be honest. This is the first Yook Sung Jae series that I have completed (I tried his last show but i cant get past the second episode). This guy is handsome and has the acting chops to boot. Here, as Lee Seung Chun, he caught me in his trap from the very first episode. Something about his pain from being born poor felt effective and believable, and you want him to get out of his desperate situation even if it means somebody else will suffer in his place. As a viewer you'd want to give him the best too.

To be rich, he has to take the place of Hwang Tae Yong, who at first, seems like a despicable character. After a few episodes he managed to switch places, unfortunately for Seung Chun, it is not all greener on the other side as he found out that even the rich Tae Yong has his own personal challenges and demons of his own. Even more unfortunate for Seung Chun, Lee Jong Won's good performance as the new Seung Chun is even better than the original, that you cant help but root for him even more than Sung Jae.

Golden Spoon has managed to convey the rich versus poor comparison very well, albeit, they showed it in a way that poor is synonymous with good and rich is synonymous with evil.

We later found out that there was not only one but quite a few of these golden spoons, which, like I said in the beginning, kind of reduced the importance of the show's most powerful selling point. It felt like a lazy attempt to build the show's tension, to the point that when the last spoon user was revealed, it didnt have the imapct they hoped to create and my eyes just rolled up too high thought it left my skull. It was a waste of cameo from Na In Woo.

Has anyone noticedbhow the seemingly good hearted granny selling these golden spoons is nothing but a creepy Rumpelstiltskin-like character. She just doesn't give a sh*t if the spoon destroys lives, just as long as you buy the spoon. I would have wanted to see her true evil colors, and that she gives all those who used the spoons get what they deserve in return, which comes to that ending that I hated - Seung Chun should have been punished (or at least got the karma he deserved) but instead he got out almost unscathed and looks like he will manage to win the girl after all.

Overall, im still giving it an 8 out of 10. Would i rewatch? Probably not, although Im looking forward to seeing more of Yook Sung Jae and Lee Jong Won's other works.

Leia Mais

A really fun and enjoyable watch, must watch for people who enjoy this genre!

First thing first, I did come here for the trope of marriage (of convenience?) and I wanted to see them explore that relationship with their work and life. Sure, they had a nice relationship (I'm a fan) but I feel somehow misled by the synopsis and the few beginning episodes here because there is no marriage. I get it, they were practically married only but they were not. I was looking forward to something complex like say a break up (just an example), etc. Honestly, maybe that's why this is not a perfect 10 for me because this is not what I expected going in.

But facts be facts, what we do get in actuality is absolutely beautiful and amazing. This show has given me three of the healthiest relationships or approaches to a relationship (with the best friend) I've seen in Cdramas for a very very long time. Nobody is perfect and neither were our characters here. I was pissed with Xiao Ning for the blind date, I have been mad at Yu Heng for his absolutely poor communication skills and Rao Jing came off as very offensive at first. But how the show slowly unpacks all these characters, their quirks and individualities is beyond amazing. I have enjoyed watching the relationship develop between our leads and how they've constantly supported one another, resolved their issues like mature adults and maintained their work-life balance. Similarly, Rao Jing and Zhao Fang have given me some of the most hilarious moments in this show and their banter is really fun to watch. They complement each other perfectly and it's nice to see how ZF helps RJ heal her wounds. Lastly, for the best friend, I loved the mature take on the relationship. I agreed 100% that neither of them was wrong and for them to acknowledge that and face reality needs strength. Sometimes you just need to prioritise yourself and your own morals/dreams/desires. All in all, we see three healthy relationships where they tackle issues instead of running from them.

The other aspect I quite enjoy is how they've not shown women as these pseudo-intellectuals. We finally have female friendships where their advice to one another is well thought out, practical and actually helpful - instead of being super toxic. Also how none of the women overstepped their boundaries and gave the leads (in their respective stories) the decision-making power without influencing them. I liked this mature and more realistic take on friendship. No one really has the time to gossip with friends every day after a tiring day at work and no, you do not let your friends dictate every single step you take in a relationship - good on them for portraying that!

Another thing - usually shows with 32 episodes become a drag. I did not feel that way with this one. The story flew very nicely and coherently and not much felt like it was out of place. I'm someone who likes business plots, so I've enjoyed the business aspect, team bonding, and how they worked together as well.

I also think all the actors have done really well in their roles. Xiao Han made me despise her character and the parents were entertaining to watch. Everyone has worked well!

Overall, this is a really great show with a good storyline (though misleading), a nice soundtrack, brilliant acting and a good pace. I've not seen Karlina's works before and I have to say, I've become a fan. She's so stunning and good at her work. You should definitely give this one a try, it'll be worth your time!

Leia Mais

A Fresh Breath of Air (no more c-drama cliches)

Rattan introduces not only a new type of genre (science fiction/fantasy) but completely new character dynamics. We truly have a strong female lead here, someone whose backstory and motive drives the whole plot. In fact, the male lead is more a side character who simply accompanies her on her journey after her revival. Some people might be put off by the foreignness of the drama, the fact that there are no old tropes, and I implore those people to spend a couple more episodes watching before coming to a conclusion. At least make it to the halfway point before giving a critical rating.

For those who are confused about what the plot is, or feel there is no plot, the drama is also of the mystery genre. Over half of the 30-episodes are focused around discovering who the female lead is and why she does what she does. When the audience finally does discover all the information, the second half of the drama leads the audience to a much faster paced plot where Si Teng meets her goal and deals with the obstacles (or rather people) that arise as well as her budding feelings for Qin Fang.

Even if you're not here for the mystery plot, there's still much to savor from the drama: the beautiful scenery, Si Teng's stunning wardrobe, and the adorable slow-burn romance. A lot of the scenery is very uncommon in Chinese dramas, where instead of the old traditional architecture or modern skyscrapers, they filmed in Xinjiang and remote places like Shangri-la City.

ACTING/PRODUCTION:

The main actors, Jing Tian (role Si Teng), Zhang Binbin (role Qin Fang) and Zhang Yichi (role Yan Furui) are all great at their craft and the interactions all feel very natural. Even the child actors for Wa Fang and young Si Teng act very well. If there are complaints about acting from second leads, I do want to remind that the production team for Rattan doesn't have the extensive budget of other dramas like Eternal Love or Ashes of Love, so please be more lenient. In fact, Bai Jin is even acted by the director himself. Even so, the team went through a lot to get good scenes i.e. for the first scene when Qin Fang revives Si Teng, they filmed at a very high altitude, where it's very cold and they had to bring oxygen tanks.

Not to mention, the two leads have great chemistry. Their off-screen interactions are absolutely adorable. When they first appeared in public together to promote the drama, they looked so happy together that the search Jing Tian and Zhang Binbin acting like newly-wed couple was one of the top 5 searches on Weibo that week. There's also a Happy Camp episode coming out soon if you want to see more of them together!

Interestingly, Rattan was a surprise drama, no one expecting the popularity that it currently has. On Douban (the Goodreads of Chinese cinematography), not only does it have a 7.8 rating, it boasts 140k reviewers (most dramas have around 60k and a 6.5 rating; anything over 7.5 is extremely impressive and rare). All of these are testimonies to the greatness Rattan is.

CONS:

Personally, the main issue I have is that the plot can be very confusing, which knocked down the overall rating from 10 stars to 9. The drama is based off of a novel written by Wei Yu and so sometimes knowledge on text doesn't translate well visually without narration. Especially near the end, where it picks up pace, it can get very confusing what is happening and why it has occurred. I feel like more time could've been taken to go over these scenes and the backstory. There are also some unanswered questions like: did Qin Fang ever realize who Shan Zhigang was? Why does Bai Jin hide the fact that he has powers and what exactly is even his role? etc. I didn't mind as much since I could get the general gist, but I can understand how that may be frustrating to others. The drama may have benefited from extra episodes or cutting out whole sections of plot, instead of following the novel religiously (like the last 2 episodes were kinda unnecessary and made me much more confused).

ENDING:

Finally, about the ending, some of you are worried about it having a sad ending. The director actually filmed two endings. The one in episode 30 is more "sad", i.e. Qin Fang and Si Teng don't end up together in the traditional sense (I still don't think its sad though, it has a nice cause and effect circular nature to it), but there's also a special, which provides another ending, which people have enjoyed much more, where Qin Fang and Si Teng do end up together, so no need to have qualms about that if you don't like tragedy.

CONCLUSION:

WATCH THE DRAMA. Whether or not it ends up following your preferences, I believe the freshness of the plot/setting/characters are all worth a try.

Leia Mais

The mountains are high and the emperor is far away 山高皇帝远.

Under the Microscope takes a detailed look at some of the ancient financial shenanigans that eventually collapsed a dynasty. It is an adaptation of a documentary written by Ma Boyong based on rare ancient folk archives from the Ming dynasty. The Ming dynasty's demise was in large part due to the inability of the government to properly manage its finances, particularly with respect to tax revenue collection. The mountains are high and the emperor is far away 山高皇帝远/shān gāo huángdì yuǎn; thus local fief lords and officials in remote locations were able to do as they please. Social unrest frequently erupted as a result of local officials' failure to carry out central government directives due to both incompetence and corruption. That is the backdrop against which this ancient tax puzzle cum murder mystery unfolds.

Shuai Jiamo is an orphaned peasant and a math savant. He is known in Renhua county as a simpleton and is probably either Aspergic or mildly autistic. He makes a simple living providing field measurement services. In his spare time, he counts cards for his only friend Feng Baoyu, playboy and scion of the prosperous Feng's Ham Shop. He is obsessed with accuracy and when he discovers discrepancies in land records, he tries to track it down. In the process, he stumbles across a misallocated tax that awakens long-dormant memories of the day his whole life changed. Without considering broader consequences, he obstinately decides it must be made right and single-mindedly sets out to rectify these errors. All sorts of vested interests from fief lords to various county officials are affected and conspire to frustrate him. First they turn Chen Renqing, a wily lawyer whose justice and honour can be bought by the highest bidder, loose on him. They also inflame peasants across all eight counties of Jin'an Prefecture, ensuring that chaos, murder and mayhem ensues.

Zhang Ruoyun steps out of his comfort zone in this role of a character that is not always in the moment and relates to others in a different way. Although he seems to over-act in places, the brilliance in his overall interpretation is how insidiously he plants the seeds of doubt. Is the over-acting deliberate and in character? Is the real Shuai Jiamo the one who chastises Feng Baoyu for not paying more heed to his sums and observes that he will soon have a brother-in-law? Or are the glimpses of cunning, empathy, even wit and humour just inconsistent characterisations? Is Shuai Jiamo really that simple and traumatised or does he have complex hidden motives? His nemesis the shrewd and cynical Chen Renqing certainly believes the latter. Leaving these questions largely unanswered makes this yet another fascinating and memorable characterisation by Zhang Ruoyun. His incredible chemistry with Wang Yang thrills and delights in new ways as their roles here force them to connect across entirely different wavelengths. Wang Yang is always at his best in morally ambiguous roles and delivers a wicked and empathetic performance as this lawyer on a white horse. It is also nice to see the limelight shared by Fei Qiming (Feng Baoyu) and Qi Wei (Feng Biyu), who also deliver hilariously engaging portrayals.

This is a beautifully shot production with a detailed eye that captures the humble, tattered and vivid humanity of the common people and the contrasting texture of their venal overlords. The devil is always in the detail with these kinds of accounting and mathematical puzzles that do not lend themselves well to screen adaptation. But this production creatively and humorously dresses up the inherently dry subject matter and does its best to avoid too much exposition. The plot is well paced and the conspiracy builds to a climax that shook me and left me speechless with my heart in my mouth. The villains are well foreshadowed but the reveal still satisfyingly ties up loose ends. Some bad guys got off too lightly but this is realistic and somewhat dictated by historical fact. This is a superbly well-written and entertaining ancient grassroots story that will appeal to anyone on the lookout for fresh themes and stories. 8.5/10.0.

Leia Mais

This darn tear-jerker.

If you're looking for a real horror, this isn't it.
If you hate crying, this definitely isn't it.
I'd say for this movie, it's tragedy before horror. Sure, there are some horror elements, however- it's really more sad than scary.

The story is subtle. It's not deep. I have to remind you that this show's literal title is TRAIN TO BUSAN. It's a whole show about characters doing their utmost best to reach the safe zone- Busan. On a train. It lived up to its title, i'll give it that.

The acting and characters were great. Gong Yoo's acting is excellent, as expected. His character's development was amazing. He went from a selfish to selfless man that learned to truly care for others more.
Ma Dong Seok's character is as likeable here as his character in Bad Guys. You'll get fixated with his character for sure. This actor deserves more recognition.
And the most unexpected- Kim Soo An. She's an adorable and talented little actress. Then again, most Korean child actors and actresses raise the international standard for acting capabilities amongst children.
Kim Eui Seong's character is extremely unlikeable, proving that he played his role well.

The music is good. It's suitable when it's suitable.

Rewatch value: 10
Heck yeah i'd watch it again.
I can tell you that I am definitely not a fan of zombie movies but as I said earlier, it's more of a tragedy than horror. So if you're a major zombie-apocalypse-kind-of-movie fan that finds value in the horror aspect and expects this movie to fulfil it to its best, don't expect too much. The makeup is realistic and well-done.

Even if I cry my eyes out again, it's worth the watch.
If you enjoy a little bit of horror, action, thrill, a little wincey bit of comedy and quite a bit of tragedy, give this movie a go. It's one hell of a ride.

Leia Mais

Powerful plot. Solid & unique. Four-dimensional. An enrichment on the KDrama crime thriller market

A solid thriller, laid out across time and space. The fourth dimension has a hand in the investigation. There's a bit of magic involved too.

You can expect an suspenseful, opaque story with edgy characters - in particular a cheeky, blustering, stroppy anti-hero as male protagonist. As a writer he is ambitious but probably rather untalented. However, he is also someone who doesn't easily give in and doesn't like to be fooled. And there is this delicate, gifted, mysterious stranger crossing his path…

The criminal act and the perpetrator as such may seem rather familiar, sort of. But pretty much everything knitted around this crime is off the beaten track! With strong characters and powerful plot. An enrichment on the KDrama crime thriller market! With time and space becoming relative...

Leia Mais

Bad Buddy is the BL drama that WILL END ALL BL DRAMAS!!!

ALL ELSE BEING EQUAL, this is the BL drama that will end all BL dramas – PERIOD! No one or not everybody will agree with me but if you look again closely at all those previous (and watch future) “popular” BL dramas and compare them with Bad Buddy, you can tell the difference (truly no offense meant to the fans of other BL dramas). I thought Dark Blue Kiss was my all-time favorite UNTIL I watched Bad Buddy. Bad Buddy is unique by all accounts and I will not elaborate this because if you are truly a Bad Buddy fan, you know what I am referring to.

You can start combing through any discussion threads/comments/etc. (in all social media) about Bad Buddy and 99% of all the comments are in unison having the same voices and sentiments THAT... (1) You can’t or don’t need to watch another BL drama after watching Bad Buddy because it will be very difficult for you to move one AND (2) You will need another BL drama that is “better” than Bad Buddy before you can get over Bad Buddy drama, but it’s highly unlikely. Bad Buddy drama has set the bar so high that you will not watch any other BL drama if its not as good as (or better than) Bad Buddy!

It might be too early to consider Bad Buddy drama as PEERLESS, but it will be!!!

All our lives, we thought the best things that Fridays can give us are rest and enjoyment (after studying or working hard) BUT Bad Buddy has totally, immensely, and overwhelmingly changed that!!!! Fridays will never be the same again after watching Bad Buddy drama!!!!!!!

Watching Bad Buddy is a marvelous way to end 2021 and start 2022…

Leia Mais

You can't bring a sword to a gun fight.

Like many wuxia fans, I consider Jin Yong / Gum Yoong (Cantonese) the greatest wuxia writer of all time. Side Story of Fox Volant 飛狐外傳 is one of his early works. It was written shortly after The Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain 雪山飞狐, which is both a prequel and a sequel. Unlike many versions that combine both novels, Side Story of Fox Volant is adapted as a stand-alone story. Despite some meaningful changes, this adaptation captures the essence of the original story, the spirit of martial heroes or daxia/大侠 and the vagaries of jianghu/江湖.

The drama is action packed with fast paced, intense, starkly violent and brilliantly choreographed combat sequences that will satisfy any hard core wuxia buff. Slow motion is used sparingly for maximum brutal impact. No one has magic qigong or special powers. The main fighters - Hu Yidao, Miao Renfeng, Hu Fei and Tian Guinong are swordsman with distinct combat styles and battle advantages. When they clash it is very muscular and lethally up close. The nimble Yuan Ziyi's weapon of choice is a whip, which minimizes close encounters to compensate for the physical disadvantage of being a woman. With each episode I think the action has to be as good as it gets but to my surprise and delight, the production keeps delivering into the final wulin arc. The wulin arc in terms of both plot design and action is the best I have seen. While Miao Renfeng and Hu Fei's martial teamwork in episode 22 may be the best of the best, the ending battle encounters are inventive, exhilarating and savagely satisfying. The action scenes are this drama's strongest point and are worthy of multiple thrilling re-watches.

I am not a fan of the trend of whitewashing characters, especially Jin Yong's characters. Jin Yong is the master of multi-faceted characters. His heroes are flawed. His villains have redeeming features. Nobody is perfect in the Jin Yong universe. So when writers have the audacity to tweak his characters, they usually muck it up. When it comes to earlier, less refined works like this, I don't mind so much as there is room for improvement. While this version does a good job with Yuan Ziyi, Hu Fei is disappointingly adapted beyond recognition. The attempt to make Tian Guinong and Nan Lan empathetic is nauseating and boring. This is one of the four don'ts Jin Yong specifically warned against in the preface to the latest edition of the novel.

This is one of the author's darker, more cynical works. Most of the characters love too well but not wisely - Hu Fei, Miao Renfeng, Cheng Lingsu, Ma Chunhua, and Nan Lan. The heart wants what the heart wants, consequences be damned. Nan Lan and Ma Chunhua are selfish and don't care who they hurt in the process while Cheng Lingsu, Hu Fei and Miao Renfeng are noble idiots. They all pay a terrible price for following their hearts. Yuan Ziyi is the only exception; she dares only to hate but not to love.

Yuan Ziyi is one of Jin Yong's most under appreciated and saddest heroines. She is the only heroine who is not an extension of the hero; she is on her own independent path to salvation. Born from an act of violence, she is consumed by self loathing; doomed by unkind karma to seek justice and then live a life of atonement for the sins of her father. In the context of her beliefs, if she breaks her solemn oath she will only prolong her bad karma. In the novel, she acts out and does very controversial things. These actions drown out her piteous backstory and make her a widely disliked character. This adaptation deftly writes out those events, enabling us to see her in a more empathetic light. Her shifu should have been left offscreen as her pressure obscures Ziyi's own resolve to keep her vow. I always feel terribly sorry for Ziyi; she never had free will. She is alive but she does not live. I am not sure that chanting sutras into oblivion is a better fate than death, which is final liberation from all suffering. I don't love Liang Jie's acting but her Ziyi impressed me. The slightest shadow of regret in her eyes in a stone cold face and her ability to convey so much beyond her words moved me to tears several times.

Even though Cheng Lingsu is a clever character, I never found her relatable because her entire reason for existence is Hu Fei. But to my surprise, I like Xing Fei's warm and personable rendition of Lingsu. Her Lingsu is devoted to Hu Fei without coming across as a doormat and she gets him out of many tight spots with her quick thinking. The complex entanglement between the three of them is well portrayed. Hu Fei's chemistry with Ziyi is tangibly different from his dynamics with Lingsu, making it immediately obvious who he loves and who loves him. He is much more of one heart with Ziyi and they instinctively act in unison with little need for communication or explanation. Whereas Lingsu is constantly reining Hu Fei in and giving him instructions that are at odds with his natural instincts. When he can't help disobeying, he appears reckless and unintelligent. This character flaw arguably contributes to what happens to Lingsu at the end. There are better ways to show that Hu Fei is less in sync with Lingsu without throwing his character under the bus.

Lin Yushen's Miao Renfeng steals the show in this drama. Criticism that his Miao Renfeng is too much like his Yang Xiao in Heaven Sword is fair but he is so cool and he pulls off the character's inner conflicts and emotions so well that I don't mind. This performance anchors the drama for he is the martial hero of this story, His code of honor demands that he does the right thing even when it is the wrong thing for himself and those he loves. I wouldn't object if they call this the Legend of Miao Renfeng because of this compelling portrayal of what it means to be a daxia. Even though he is movingly handsome when he is suffering, the story wallows in Miao Renfeng's betrayal and loss for too long. The tawdry Nan Lan/Tian Guinong arc is a boring extended digression. The opportunity missed is that Hu Fei and Miao Renfeng do not get enough scenes together. They have remarkable combined chemistry and their joint fight scene is the one of the drama's best.

As for the titular character Hu Fei 胡斐, (which is a homonym for fox volant or flying fox), I always loved his character design. Far from being infallible, he is a work in progress - young and smart with tons of potential but a bit hot headed and too idealistic. He is the people's hero; the guy who demands justice for the underdog regardless of the cost to himself. His best traits, this strong sense of righteousneous and his willingness to fight the unfair fight is dumbed down to recklessness and even stupidity in this adaptation. He is written off as a bull in the China shop whose hot headedness could wreck the Red Flower Society's mission to save wulin. He doesn't accomplish much on his own and without Ziyi and Lingsu, he'd have died many times. It does not help that despite his phenomenal acting, Qin Junjie looks a bit too mature to play an 18 year old.

Despite good pacing, the plot digresses into too many dull sub-plots and arcs. This is an issue with the original work, which this adaptation already cleans up considerably. The Nan Lan and Poison Valley disciple arcs are the least interesting and Hu Fei deserves to be less peripheral in the reveal of the conspiracy behind Hu Yidao's death. The wulin arc brings the story to a climax, one that exceeds that of the novel on some fronts but is a let down in other aspects. Good characters die in wuxias, it is par for the course. But their deaths must be worthy and not gratuitous. What I dislike most about the ending is that it unnecessarily sacrifices a knight errant after they capture the king. It is a futile sacrifice because you can't bring a sword to a gun fight. Sadly, the advent of guns heralds the demise of jianghu and martial heroes.

This is a good adaptation overall that is limited by original works that lack the finesse of Jin Yong's subsequent masterpieces. The novel is already too dark and unbalanced. It is not necessary to outdo Jin Yong in how incredibly cruel he is to Hu Fei. Despite its darkness, the novel still ends on a note of optimism because Hu Fei's journey continues. But in the drama Hu Fei seems to be left to live largely in the past with two women, one too old and too icky for him and another so young it would be too icky. Thus to me this is at best an 8.0 in terms of storytelling that I bump up to an 8.5 for the not to be missed fight scenes. Nonetheless, this wuxia takes you on a stirring and addictive journey that is well worth it - as long as you do not need a Disney ending.

Leia Mais

Cute!!!

This is such a cute drama, the kid alone makes it enjoyable to watch. The mains chemistry is great, their interactions are adorable. They are also quite natural with their roles. It is quite cliché but whatever, you will find yourself grinning. Extremely fluffy to say the least.

The editing is crap tbh, the characters are not realistic at all. Such as the things they do concerning their occupation is beyond questionable. I'll just say that the Aunt is pain! I find it frustrating to watch couples break up after confessing, makes the ending feel rushed and unnecessary plot device. There are inconsistencies but other than that, it is a good watch. I suggest switching off your brain cells tho.

Leia Mais

I do not usually watch dramas with more than 30 episodes but when I saw Smile, You I got curious and I just clicked on the 1st episode for a try until it moved to 2, 3, 4 and I didn’t even notice I was nearly done watching it..i was totally captured with its hilariousness. It really filled my 5 days with so much fun and excitement.


Superb!!! The story revolves around the 2 families which under unfortunate circumstances had to try to get along with each other. Through fights and more fights they were eventually drawn closer as one real big happy family. Each family member has his/her own story to tell and you will love everyone of them. Romantic relations were comically and beautifully grown amidst the chaos in the family. The chemistry between the main couple was awesome, it felt real and not just acting. All the characters were so funny that you will burst into laughter every second of the episodes. But its not just about being funny it also has a huge amount of crying moments, laughing and crying with only minutes of interval. I even found myself laughing and crying at the same time, it was like a roller coaster ride watching this drama.
Overall I give this a rate of 10 :)

This is my favorite drama so far..
Don’t hesitate, WATCH IT! You wont have any regrets..

Leia Mais

this drama was surprisingly addicting
It has the overused tropes that most kdramas always has; college setting, hate to love, opposite attract. But it's developed really well!

The acting was good
Tbh PJC's acting was kinda robotic at some parts, but i think it was part of his character so it doesn't bother me much. Main leads chemistry was amazing.
The pacing wasn't rushed like most kbl does. The cinematography were well done
Music was good, my favorite would be Romantic Devil by Coldin.

I don't usually rewatch dramas. But this one is an exception. There's not much episode, so i could finish it in one sitting.

Overall -
If you like to watch some light hearted romance with overused tropes, i recommend you this

Leia Mais

Why can't people seem to appreciate flawed characters?

This review won't be a review per say but moreso another perspective of the show when compared to the majority of the negative reviews on this site. I feel the need to do this especially because a handful of these reviews almost made me decide not to watch this show. I won't go into a lot of details regarding the storyline since so many reviews have already done so. However, I'd like to leave my two cents here because most of the reviews shown here are negative and most of them are based on two things - Joe's naivety and Ming's toxicity.

One thing about this series is that it depcts toxic relationships with very flawed characters. It's been advertised since the beginning, it's based in an infamously toxic chinese novel (by an author who's well known for her toxic main leads), there's sinopsis, tags, trailer, etc. And yet people still seem to be hiper fixated in complaining about it, as if it hasn't been advertised at all.

Don't like these themes? Don't watch.

This is the same issue with Kinnporsche (which has two directors in common). So many people review bombing with negative ratings regarding the toxic storyline. There was even a review that complained so much and at the end considered this one of the best series of this year - giving this a 6. At least be coherent with your words and your scoring.

I understand the issue people have with Ming, he's an obvious red flag who is toxic from the beginning, a very flawed character who is depicted since the beginning as such. Flawed characters have existed in stories, series and movies for a long time and oftentimes they give way to intrigue storylines and help capture the viewers attention to try to understand how this person behaves the way they do. Flawed characters are real and human and I don't understand how so many people fail to appreciate that this type of representation is needed in art too. Yes, Ming is a huge asshole and a toxic narcissist. That makes him an even more compelling main character.

As for Joe, he's an absolute cinammon roll. He's someone who falls in love with someone he shouldn't. I see so many people stating how he's naive for liking Ming and that it's not realistic. Excuse me? How many people end up in toxic relationships despite the clear signs? How many people fail to see the red flags because of the rose-colored glasses? It's as realistic as it can get. Fortunately, My Stand-in still manages not to be as toxic as some relationships in real life get - and not as toxic as the original novel, thankfully. I feel like this show actually managed to tell the story really well, they allowed for Ming's character to grow and for Joe to realize that no matter how much he tried, he couldn't escape his feelings for Ming.

Sure, y'all can say Joe's dumb - he is. But it feels weird to reduce his feelings and struggles to just that - naivety and stupidity. Joe and Ming are such complex characters and to reduce this complexity to just being dumb or toxic is like missing the whole point of the show. The story isn't told just by dialogue or just by nc scenes. There's so many small details the directors focused on to conect the storyline. The actors were amazing too, the change in Up's eyes depending on Ming's emotional stability in different parts of the show was mesmerizing to watch - he's such a great actor. Poom was also absolutely amazing as Joe, reflecting his emotional maturity before and after his death.

Flawed and difficult characters are extremely complex. They're harder to understand, harder to act and harder to love. It's a challenge for the actors involved in these storylines and it's a challenge for the whole team. Yet, they're the most intriguing, the ones that make our brains work to understand, to fill in the blanks. There's a reason why we love villains. It's the same train of thought. Flawed characters are relatable, even if only a tiny little bit. Sure, in Ming's case, I really hope he's not as relatable to everyone out there, but there's realism to his character, like it or not.

This is why I don't understand the hate. I understand the constructive criticism and I have my own too, but to review bomb a show like this based on something it has advertised since the beginning? I don't get it.

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