Reviews

I appreciate this movie

The film is very similar in theme to another Korean film, Suddenly Last Summer, which is repulsion and attraction. But here, the director of such excellent and award-winning films as Night Flight and No Regret, this theme is upgraded almost to the maximum. Two young men have an intimate relationship during their military service and release their sexual energy. Youn Young has now left the army and is not so sure of his orientation and no longer wants to be in the presence of Gi Tae-ho, who has to stay in the army and is very uneasy about losing Young-a. A psychological drama ensues, the plot of which I will not describe, but I want to highlight above all the good work of both actors, they reached almost to the bottom, not only by being naked, but also by rolling in disgusting mud. Life is often cruel and when we lose someone, how often does it make us act desperate, and for that I appreciate the film.

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First Arc Stronger Than Second

Picked this up on a whim as a lot of the cast was familiar to me and I wanted to see an ancient crime solving drama. The storyline seemed to hold up for the first arc. Unfortunately, the second one was much weaker and the ending was sort of left on its own.

Pros: I enjoyed very much the chemistry between the FL and the SML and this had to be one of the stronger second male lead syndromes from a show that I probably had in a very long time if ever. I would have to say the ML had a good heart, but for the entire first arc was a spoiled manchild that you just wanted to throw away. The storyline was pretty good. I liked the strange cases that they all had to solve and how that little yamen became like a little family and they all took care of each other. The FL had a very rough childhood and didn't remember a lot of it, but she was very strong and very smart and relied on herself a lot sometimes a little too much because she had no fighting skills and would get herself into situations that she needed others help, but because she was stubborn, she wouldn't ask until unfortunately it was either too late or someone had to run in and rescue her.

This was another show which focused on women essentially being nothing more than window dressing, but with an FL that was strong and capable, and willing to do anything and everything it took to regain her freedom, even when it seemed impossible. I really liked that about her a lot. The other characters (other than the leads; even LW grew on you towards the second arc) that I enjoyed were the rest of the yamen crew, 2nd and 3rd Qi brothers, LS (kid couldn't read the room to save his life but was funny), JMC though tragic as her life was.

Cons: I have to mention the FL in the cons as well because I feel that she was miscast in this role. The actress herself is 32 years old and she's supposed to play someone who's 18 and a virgin. Most of it was very unbelievable. It was obvious that she was very intelligent and could get herself and other people out of situations that an 18-year-old usually would not be able to. I had seen the actress previously in a modern SWAT military type thing and she did a great job there. Here I felt that she was emotionless even when she smiled or cried, her face didn't move that much and when she was angry, other than raising her voice, it didn’t translate. I think that it could've been handled better.

I also didn't feel any romantic connection between her and the ML even after everything was explained and done and we understood why she couldn't be with SML or vice versa but the whiplash of her emotions from SML to ML was instant almost and was very unbelievable. They had enough episodes to make it better and flesh it out in a way that would make sense for the audience.

Most of this was in the second arc, which was very weak, especially where all of the antagonists were concerned I didn't feel like any of the antagonists were believable or people you could legitimately hate as antagonists, other than the obsessed creep QY. On top of that, said obsessed creep wasn't even given a proper death. He just fell into fire; you could call it symbolic, considering that he was the one who killed her parents through fire, but I felt he needed to suffer more. What he did throughout the entire show was just too disgusting to have him end so quickly. Furthermore, the other two antagonists were given ridiculously light sentences. Just because LW showed that her father could be reformed. Meanwhile, her father was essentially responsible for the deaths of over 250 people and multiple communities starving. Furthermore, the ML was punished for trying to save people. It did not make any sense to me. The end was almost deflated, felt a lot like the directors just threw their hands in the air and said "let's just end it however and call it a day" which was sad and the entire second arc brought the score down for me.

Would I recommend it? Honestly, if you want something simple to watch without investing emotions into it, this is a good show.

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A special which was not special at all...

Oh, MDL woke up and put this page on... But when you have already seen all the episodes, this episode does nothing except killing Ken off... Of course he must be killed off, because the thai police is so incompetent they can't catch him... And they are good in delivering cheesy lines. And having a ten minute discussion if the toilets should be painted green or not. Of course there must be a NC scene in said toilets, because a special without fanservice is not a special.

The only thing I can say is, watching this is a waste of time, it feels not special, it does nothing special, it's just watchable and boring and that's it. In this case I have not more to say because I already forgot everything else besides what I have already mentioned :)))

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Visione consigliata ad un pubblico dai 3 ai 9 anni...

Step By Step Love è un rom com drama , categoria business romance con Zhao Zhi Wei e Lu Yang Yang fatto talmente male, sia a livello di sceneggiatura che recitazione (meno pessimo tra tutti è il man lead) da risultare una perdita di tempo, forse perché girato a basso budget.
Racconta la storia del freddo presidente dell'azienda Lu Chen Yang, orfano con sete di vendetta nei riguardi della Yihua, un'azienda concorrente. Alla fine assume la nipote della proprietaria dell'azienda nemica, la designer Bu Ran, e se ne innamorerà (ma dovrete attendere tipo 20 ep perché questo accada).
La trama di per sé potrebbe anche risultare interessante ma la storia è realizzata in maniera talmente approssimativa e prevedibile , con recitazioni molto stentate, dialoghi poverissimi e cambi di rotta improvvisi da chiedermi come la gente abbia potuto valutarla così generosamente. E allora mi viene da pensare che la cosa riguarda solo i baci un po' più spinti di un episodio sul finale. Io l'ho iniziata perché mi ricordava "well intended love" ma a confronto quella è una serie da oscar.
Al di là di una storia noiosa realizzata troppo male per risultare credibile ( architetti che presentano progetti nel 2023 a mano come disegni di bambini di prima elementare, che usano il metro a nastro invece del laser che si usa per progettare spazi, sangue arancione, ragazze di 27 anni che agiscono come bimbe e non hanno mai frequentato nessuno, idem uomini di 30, antagonisti che per dichiararsi usano obbligo o verità, case ristrutturate senza niente di speciale o notevole da meritare encomi, orfanotrofi con 8 bambini ospiti .... , conversazioni in inglese che feriscono le orecchie con pronunce improbabili che affermano invece di negare) , i personaggi sono caratterizzati davvero male, la FL sembra iniziare a bomba e alla fine è solo una ragazzina abbastanza brava nel proprio lavoro, sempre imbronciata e priva di qualsiasi altra espressione, non si capisce davvero perché il ML dovrebbe innamorarsi di lei (solo perché progetta bene?).
L'antagonista sembrava sarebbe diventato un antagonista anche nel privato professionale e invece è un ragazzino senza alcuna intraprendenza amorosa o personale che fa caffè e si lamenta, non aggiunge davvero niente alla storia, neanche il suo modo di corteggiare fa rimpiangere o dispiacere la sua "disfatta". Prima premessa tradita.
Il padre della FL, inizia bene, tanto che si sperava in qualche colpo di scena o che potesse davvero ribaltare la situazione invece svela già dopo 8 ep le sue carte e si eclissa per diventare figura di sfondo, inutile anche lui.
Le donne qui, a parte FL e madre, direttrice orfanotrofio, sono descritte TUTTE come delle megere arriviste, non hanno nessuna complessità o storia che giustifichi la cattiveria, vogliono solo dei soldi o un uomo ricco (che tristezza).
Colpi di scena prevedibili, nessuna crescita per i personaggi: il ML ha 30 anni ma la maturità emotiva di un bimbo di 5, il suo modo di corteggiare è fare i dispetti , la FL non ha davvero una e una sola caratteristica per cui dovrebbe piacere o interessare a qualcuno e non riesce a tirarsi fuori da sola dai guai nemmeno una volta. La salvano puntualmente i suoi spasimanti, lei non brilla né per intelligenza, né per astuzia né per intraprendenza. Cambi di rotta improvvise, storie e colpi di scena create sul momento...nemmeno qualche bacio più spinto può salvare questa tragedia.
Musiche gradevoli ma neanche Hans Zimmermann avrebbe potuto dare intensità ad un lavoro così improvvisato, mal congegnato e maldestramente reso.
PASSATE AVANTI!

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hidden gem?

While I realise that this is a GMM series so it can't really be a hidden gem because it was WILDLY popular at the time it aired, this series to me was first not really that appealing.

In fact I disliked the first episode so much I dropped it for a year and I didn't think I would be coming back to it. But here we are!
Disclaimer: I did watch most of the episodes at 1.5x speed.

I quite enjoyed the story, although there were some plots that weren't necessary for my enjoyment imo. Some of the scenes dragged on and on and some good editing could've helped the episodes flow better. Most of my complaints are minor and bearable if you know thai BL. Plus it also hugely improves watching everything in at least 1.25x speed and only slowing it down for the emotional scenes. Speaking of which: the emotional scenes are amazing! The acting from both couples was great and tugged at my heart strings.

I really liked the cast as well! Shoutout to Louis <3 !

All in all, I'm glad I watched it but it's not mindblowing and I won't be rewatching it.

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Enchanting and mentally stimulating artwork, great in every aspect

The first drama I've watched (and rewatched) from the first to the last second, intro and outro included. Excellent direction, pacing and balance between suspence and distension, care for details, lights, settings, camera frames...

The plot is apparently simple: after discovering his ex is missing, an underdog (blogger with passion for investigations nicknamed Da Hui Hui) starts to suspect she was killed by a renowned ceramic artist and a rising young prof (Zeng Jie) with "tending to perfection" as his Leitmotiv. DHH befriends a policeman (Li De) who believes "only in evidence" and initially doubts his "logic behind truth" (which is also the name of DHH's blog-channel) but is intrigued by his sense for details and deduction methods based on clues, assumptions, leads and circumstantial reasoning. Their explicative dialogues are intermittently inserted in action scenes regarding mainly the life and the personality of the artist DHH intends to "debunk" and DHH's flashbacks regarding his ex. Gradually, DHH discovers that behind the well-cured image of a sophisticated artist "tending to perfection", self-confident and socially respectable person, ZJ is an insecure person, womanizer, social climber and money-grabber in an unhappy marriage with a rich woman who helps him to maintain the respectable image in public, but belittles him in private, triggering his terror of poverty and aggressivity. The life of this couple (and in particular the life of ZJ) is meticulously scrutinized and displayed through numerous flashbacks, containing incredible findings, twists and clues, steadily complicating the story, like drops of rain gradually enlarging the crater and flowing further on.

Fluid elements are omnipresent and aesthetically excellently employed: the rain scenes, the ocean light effects in DHH living room/studio, close shots of intoxicating liquids being poured in glasses... conveying the sense of slippery, of danger, of a vague dream and making us doubt of what we see. To pay his tuition, ZJ painted countless copies of Monet's "Sunrise, impression" - ofc. the choice of this painting wasn't casual: its unique haziness inhences the sensation that the reality we see is just a blury vision of what impressed us the most.

All scenes are perfectly lighted and staged, cured in details, often set as theatrical stages with all actors performing great. But there's ONE...

UNFORGETTABLE scene: ZJ's monologue, brilliantly delivered by Wang Duo, in the shed where he painted Monet's reproductions. Young and poor ZJ gets drunk for the first time. He has just won his first important award and heard that his hard-working father was celebrating it with his colleagues in a distant place where he worked. He buys a bottle of cheapest booze, returns to the shed, gets stoned seeing the sea from the painting pouring down and talking to himself, disjointly commenting who knows what (the painting, his poverty, his parents' unreasonable ambition?), creating the following couplets: "Harmony blending light with dust/ Dust blinding my vision /Vision blurred by arrogance". That's the moment in which we realize ZJ is a true artist, he is not just posing as one. Vulnerable, desperate and drunkly aware that recognition seeking will be his curse. A rare moment in which he is truly himself, not pretending. Smth truly memorable, a must watch scene.

The choice of music is not extensive but is good, in particular the melanchonic song in English.

Ofc., there were certain "blemish flaws" even in such a "tending to perfection" drama. The story covered a good part of ZJ's life but left certain "tiny holes" (why his parents were so ambitious, expecting from him to sacrifice everything and everybody, even them, for success? his inspirations and creativity remained blurred, as well as his relation with the older rich lady in a moment of his crucial characterial transformation...). The ending report of trial verdicts was totally unnecessary. Besides, one in particular, containing a HUGE legal error, got on my nerves. Hand-made reproductions of famous paintings ARE NOT ILLEGAL as long as the original work is in the public domain (and all Impressionists' works are sufficiently old to be in public domain), and can be legally copied, even for sale (ofc. as copies not as originals, selling them as originals would be a fraud). So, the sentence inflicted to the painting village was not only unnecessary but silly, laughable! Whoever added those sentences misinforming about the legality of this line of work should be fired if not sent to serve exactly the same punishment.

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This drama is a gold standard of police procedural comedy. It established classic tropes that procedural J-dramas still rely on to this day but it arguably remains superior to most of its successors.


The 90-ies were a hard time for Japan. The bubble economy had burst and old values were constantly challenged as younger generation grew more and more disillusioned. The dramas of that time either depicted the bleak reality with ultra realism or completely glossed over it. Odoru Daisousasen, on the other hand, walks a fine line between staying an uplifting comedy and acknowledging the grim reality.

The drama's main character Aoshima becomes a police officer after getting fed-up with the way corporate Japan operates. He wants to make the world a better place and, maybe, to take part in some cool car chases and shoot-outs (American movies about hard-boiled cops were all the rage). To Aoshima's disappointment and to the viewer's amusement, though, it turns out that police is no different from the corporate: one needs to go through bureaucratic hoops to perform even the simplest of tasks, nepotism and inertia are ubiquitous, and the most excitement Aoshima can get is to drive the higher-ups places.

Most importantly, Aoshima wants the soulless system of the force to recognise humanity both of police officers and of those they serve. But heavy machinery of the system doesn't allow for such niceties and, moreover, doesn't care for the opinions of its cogs.

The face of this machine is Muroi, a big boss from HQ, who has no regard for the "grunt" workers of the small precinct and their initiatives. Muroi with his cold demeanour, perpetual frown, and lack of social graces is a perfect foil to affable and enthusiastic Aoshima. They embody two sides of the central conflict of the drama: the cogs vs the wheel, the human touch vs the bureaucracy.

What's brilliant in this drama (and what's rarely found in its successors) is that the conflict is very much real with no obvious winning side. It's true that taking care of the victims of crimes is important but it's also true that police force lacks resources for that. Bureaucracy is ineffective but it also protects society from power abuse by the force. As much as main characters want to make suspects cooperate by roughing them up, we as the viewers from 2020 know that this method cannot be condoned in 21st century.

Strengthened by the thematic conflict, the tense confrontations between Aoshima and Muroi are among the most dramatic scenes of the drama. Aoshima is no naive young man he seems to be - after all, he was a top performer of the sales department he worked in before - and he uses his wit, boundless enthusiasm, charm, and occasional guilt trips to gradually weaken Muroi's defenses (that poor tsundere guy).

But Aoshima is no Mary Sue and when he goes all out, the drama becomes uncomfortable to watch - a marker of good old Japanese storytelling that makes the viewers bite their nails as they watch a hero doing the right thing despite very obvious, very immediate repercussions.

The day-to-day life of police officers is shown very candidly and with great humour. The drama illustrates how Japanese police solves cases by throwing huge teams at them and how most cases are routine and simple affairs. The focus is often on the everyday heroism of ordinary officers which is to be expected from the country that doesn't believe that there are unimportant jobs however insignificant they may seem.

The drama was made in 1997 which excuses some of its old-fashioned elements (sexism, simplicity, and Showa era nostalgia). If you could watch Gokusen, GTO, or Hero without rolling you eyes, you would easily watch this too. Some things of the past like tamagotchi or fledgling internet are, on the contrary, are nice to see (if you lived in 90-ies). Hilariously, there is an episode that depicts younger generation as introverts who are obsessed with their gadgets which would have been Millennials bashing if the drama had not been made in 1997.

This drama was the first in Japan to realistically portray the life of police officers. Thus, it established many tropes for the genre. Most notably, the intense antagonistic relationship between the main character and another more competent or powerful officer has appeared almost in every police drama since (see BG, Bitter Blood, Tokyo Dogs, S Saigo no Keikan, etc). Seeing the drama where this trope originated really opens one eyes to the shortcomings of the successors.

Arguably, Odoru Daisousasen works so well because it was made in 1997. It was cutting-edge drama then which many modern dramas of the same genre fail to be.

I can't recommend this drama enough and I gave it 8.5 instead of 10 in order to be fair to other timeless classics. But for me personally it's a solid ten.

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Preciso de mais!

Foi muito bom acompanhar a trajetória da Yumi. Dessa vez foi a Yumi com o Babi, que foram incríveis e muito bem representados por Go Eun e Jinyoung.
Amei ver o crescimento da Yumi, em seus relacionamentos, quanto em sua vida profissional.
É claro que teve umas coisas desnecessárias, mas deu bastante entretenimento.
Assim como me decepcionei com o Woong na primeira temporada, acabei me decepcionando com o Babi na segunda. Mas como a própria Yumi disse: "Um rompimento não significa necessariamente o fim de uma conexão com alguém!" E ambos apoiam muito a Yumi como escritora!
Vou sentir muita saudade das células, amo cada cena que elas aparecem.
Eu quero muito uma terceira temporada, não apenas pelo Soon Rok, mas pela Yumi e pelas células maravilhosas. Eu realmente desejo ver a Yumi em um vestido de noiva!

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"Why is it so hard to lead a simple life?"

I went into Scent of Time without reading the synopsis. I was more than a little trepidatious when I discovered in the first episode that it involved time travel. The Chinese government’s rule against hopping through time meant that it wasn’t going to really be a true time travel so I braced myself. That’s not a spoiler, that’s the sad fact with the current state of affairs. How the writers worked with and around the regulations would determine how satisfying it would be.

Hua Qian has made some poor choices along with her family that has led to the deaths of nearly everyone close to her. As she collapses after being captured, she hears a voice asking, “If you had the chance to start over, would you change anything?” She says yes and awakens 2 years prior on her wedding night. From that moment on she endeavors to be a good person and to find a way to save her family and herself. She’s helped on her quest by her right-hand woman Qian Zhi, bodyguard Hua Rong Zhou, and the lord of an incense empire-Zhong Xi Wu. The damage to others from years of conniving behavior will have to be undone with few people willing to give her a second chance.

I thought this was an interesting take on a typical romance and historical drama. The scheming 2FL from the original story was given a redemption arc and the chance to put things right. Hua Qian methodically planned to save not only her family but also that of her rival’s, Mu Yao. After two years struggling to survive, she came back with new skill sets and sympathy to those in lower social positions. Because of her new life or death goals, romance was not on her list of things to do. That didn’t keep at least two men from falling for her---hard.

Zhou Ye brought a wide range of emotions to Hua Qian as the reformed selfish social climber. Wang Xing Yue also made the most of his portrayal of Zhong Xi Wu. The two had great chemistry even though Qian’s responses let him know she was aware any chance of them ever being together was remote given the social circumstances which kept her at a distance. Peng Chu Yue’s Zhong Ye Lan and Zhang Yi Jie’s Hua Rong Zhou were rather flat, both the acting and the characters. Zhao Qing didn’t create any depth to Mu Yao either. Zhou Ye, Wang Xing Yue, and the older cast provided the acting chops for this drama.

It took around 8 or 9 episodes for this drama to sink its teeth into me and once it did, I was hooked. Scent of Time was addictive even without much overt romance. I do love redemption stories and Qian was a young woman for whom suffering and loss became harsh but invaluable teachers. The ending I feared would “incense” me due to censor restrictions turned out to be tolerable.* (Thoughts on ending and TROP connection below) This drama may not have been “scent-sational” but it was entertaining.

21 July 2024




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Spoilers for Scent of Time and The Rise of Phoenixes

Hua Qian and Hua Rong Zhou’s relationship felt a little like TROP fan fic if Feng Zhi Wei and her bodyguard Gu Nan Yi had developed a relationship. Zhong Xi Wu had the same, “the business/country comes first” platitude that Ni Ying had which was detrimental to relationships. ZXW became rather overbearing in the rerun life near the end as well. Story-wise, Hua Qian should probably have ended up with Rong Zhou and stayed in the alternate timeline with him or had him available to go out into the vast world and start over with when she woke up. Overall, those writing choices would have made better narrative sense. Chemistry-wise Qian and ZXW had way more chemistry though not enough scenes with her showing she cared if they were truly endgame. By having her awake from the coma, she had to deal with the consequences of her actions which was decidedly painful but more realistic. Though it did make the prior 29 episodes feel irrelevant. I suppose the rerun life gave her life training lessons on how to be a better person. And realistic is a relative word, without feeding tubes and IV’s Qian would not have survived 26 months in a coma. The esophagus closes when a person is unconscious, making force feeding impossible. Despite logical and narrative lapses, I “whiffed” through this drama and its tantalizing “bouquet.”

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I am so happy that I decided to watch this drama despite all the negativity it received. Undeservedly I must say. Yes it has some drawbacks but it's not so bad! Really!
As for story. It's not something special, it' s the same triangle, same love problems, same truth. It's no different from many books, films and even dramas. But what I can say about the story it's that it intrigues and catches attention. For me crime story was less interesting than love story. And to contradict with the negative reviews. I don't know why people said that there is no final point in the crime story. It's been resolved! Why can't you see it? It's real life. Never will you find a man who will tell you about whos and wheres, in real life you must think, you must decide for yourself because you will never know the truth. In real life there are people who have feelings that influence the decisions and the life itself. What I liked about this drama is that it's fictional, but it's fiction about life. There are no perfect people, there are no crystal clear stories. There are no bad guys. If the realtionship fails there are 2 people to blame at least. And this drama shows us once again that to make it work, to save love, you have to make decisions, you have to make choices, difficult ones. I liked how every character is unique and has it own approach, thoughts, desires. I hate that people don't see beyond the destiny of these characters. Jo Sung Gyeom is not just a nice guy. Didn't you see his progression? His pain? His desire? His lost love? As for Nam Sang Hyo and her crying. I'd like to see you in this situation. The situation when you don't know what is better or who to choose. The situation where you relive all the best moments of your life and you know that it won't happen again. And you feel pain and loss and regret and hope that is killing you. If it's so simple for you, then human feelings are simple too.
Acting was superb. I may be a little biased. I like Yoo In Na. I think she is the cutest actress, but at the same time she is believable. The greatest quality of hers is that you beleve that she's in love. Her story with Jin Yi Han you could see the love in their eyes, moves, voices. I felt the love in the air! Jin Yi Han was my discovery. I'm dying to watch something else with him in the main role. I fell in love with his eyes. So expressive! And his dialogue in the episode 14, I rewatched it and cried, it was so true, so real and so heartbreaking! And finally Nam Goong Min. I adore this man! He is fantastic. He played his character super well! I dream of the main role for this guy, because he is worth it. He is candy for eyes and balm for a sad heart.
Music was awesome, it fits the drama and the spirit. Appreciated the music a lot.
Rewatch! I will rewatch it when I will need some time to evaluate my feelings and to see a silver lining.
This drama is not for fun, it's a serious drama about relationships, about hardships, about taking into account your feelings and feelings of other people. It' s just life.
So I will advise to try it and give this drama a chance. It may seem repetetive. But actors, story and emotions are worth your trying, Don't drop this drama and have your own opinion of this work. It's a beautiful love story that I'd like to cherish.

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A gripping journey to love, friendship, and growth

"A Journey to Love" is the last drama that I completed in 2023, a few days before the new year. Initially, I was thinking whether to continue after 8 episodes, because I had a vague idea of the ending after seeing some comments in passing. I decided to carry on, and I'm glad that I finished it!

Story and Production:
1) The storyline is intriguing and not very common since a big part of it is focused on the mission to rescue the hostaged King of Wu (Wu Di), the obstacles the rescue team faced along the way, and how they overcame them. As a result, their relationships grew stronger and they gained a better understanding of each other. On the side, there were some mysteries that needed to be solved.

2) There is great camaraderie and friendship among the Liu Dao Hall members. It's touching to see their loyalty and brotherly love for one another, as well as their commitment to protect Li Wang/Yang Ying and the entire rescue team.

3) The drama showed different kinds of relationships – leader and subordinate, master and disciple, friendship among peers, and love between man and woman. These are common in costume dramas, but I think they’re well done here.

4) It took the rescue team quite a number of episodes to finally arrive in the state of An, so I found myself getting impatient at some points in the drama.

5) There are incredible fight and battle scenes here! The choreography and stunt work are great, and the cast look so cool and amazing in these scenes.

6) Generally good soundtrack! My favorites are the opening theme, “Offer” (奉上), sung by Liu Yu Ning, and “Standing Sword” (立剑), sung by Zhang Jie. I also like the background music played in some of Ren Ru Yi’s fight scenes; it’s a haunting prelude on what’s to come next.

Cast of Characters:
The entire cast was great, I like the main leads, but my favorites are Yu Shi San, Yang Ying, Li Tong Guang and Yuan Lu:

1) Ning Yuan Zhou (Liu Yu Ning) and Ren Xin/Ren Ru Yi (Cecilia Liu) – Both their characters have excellent martial arts skills and are respected and feared by many. NYZ is level-headed, mature and a good leader. RRY is precise, appears cold and can be ruthless, which fits her character as the number one assassin of An. Between the two, NYZ was more used to working with a team, while RRY was more used to doing things on her own. When RRY joined the rescue team, it took her some time to adjust to “group work”. I couldn’t imagine other actors playing them.

2) Yu Shi San (Alen Fang) – He is funny, witty and a vain ladies' man. He gave me a good laugh many times! Alen Fang is such a revelation here, and his character is so different from the one in The Long Ballad (can’t help comparing them, because Liu Yu Ning and Alen Fang are in both dramas). He’s so good in comedy, but also delivered in the emotional scenes.

3) Yang Ying (He Lan Dou) – She transformed from a timid, shy young lady to a confident, smart, brave and decisive Li Wang/Princess Li Cheng. What she said to NYZ and RRY about herself is very fitting, "You have transformed a small sparrow in a cage into an eagle; I can no longer go back." I like He Lan Dou’s portrayal, she’s so good, and one of the few actresses who, when dressed as a man, is actually convincing.

4) Li Tong Guang (Chang Hua Sen) – He is capable and ambitious, but also obsessed and unpredictable at times. His character is complex, multifaceted, and have a lot of potential for growth and development, but I feel these were not maximized. They focused too much on his obsession with RRY. I think Chang Hua Sen nailed the part.

5) Yuan Lu (Chen You Wei) – He is a smart, loyal, jolly and kind-hearted fellow. It’s easy to warm up to him. Chen You Wei was able to bring out these qualities.

--- Some SPOILERS below ---


Some OTP/Pairings:
1) Ning Yuan Zhou and Ren Ru Yi – They are the power couple! Their relationship was not perfect, there were some amusing things that happened and bumps along the way, but they got around to it.

2) Li Tong Guang and Chu Yue – I was rooting for them since I can feel their chemistry, although they were hostile to each other in their first few meetings. And when they started to be cordial to each other, they had some sweet and cute scenes, so I was hoping for a love line to develop. But alas, the ship didn't sail!

3) Li Tong Guang and Yang Ying – In the earlier episodes, I had entertained the idea that they might be paired together, but I was still mildly surprised when it happened (I guess I was still reeling from the LTG and CY pairing). Don't get me wrong, this is a good pairing and they have chemistry too, so I started to ship them as soon as I feel the plot going in that direction, because they actually complement each other. Both LTG and YY are smart, capable and ambitious. However, LTG is temperamental, impulsive at times, and not yet mature emotionally; while YY has a cool head, emotionally stable, and has matured a lot in her journey. She would be a great help to him in his role as Regent of An.

4) Yang Ying and Yuan Lu – Theirs is a friendship that was comfortable, supportive and dependable. It could possibly have been more, but it was not meant to be.

Other Comments:
1) I like the development arc of Wu Di, how he changed from a reckless, arrogant, and unwise ruler to one who realized his mistakes and actually did something to atone for them. He could have been a great king if he returned to Wu, so it’s a waste what they did to his character.

2) The ending and the last few episodes could have been better executed. It's like they rushed these scenes and tried to cramp the remaining details to fit them into 40 episodes.

3) I wish they included more scenes of LTG and YY in the ending, how they progressed as a couple and how they’re helping the young King of An. There is mutual respect between them, not to mention respect for both RRY and NYZ. I would like to think that in the long run, they would fall in love with each other and grow as a couple, even have children of their own.

Final Verdict: This is a gripping drama and a good watch for me, so I would gladly recommend it!

Leia Mais

The second installment was not as dramatic as the first, not as action packed as the first… but it definitely had substance in it. What got my attention during the whole movie was how the characters showed how to make a REAL man out of a MAN. If you do get what I mean.

So who was the best example in the film to show how a real man should act? It was Genji's father. Damn! I so love the old man.

Rival gangs are always not my cup of tea when watching violent movies but CROW ZERO II worked on me. BIG TIME. There was still a lot comparison from the first movie and so many differences, yet it still worked. It was still as good as CROWS ZERO I can get. If not the best it is really GOOD. Oguri Shun still got to me that he now holds a real special place in my heart. His character as Genji-san shall never be forgotten.

The soundtrack was perfect even for the fighting scenes. I love how they have incorporated the music in crucial moments. That's one thing that I love with Japanese films, they use the music in the right moments.

Although there was a tiny speck of dust that I didn’t like in the film, it still made me understand that without it the whole new story for CZ II will not start. So I am letting that go.

Leia Mais

Truth be told, I wasn't planning on watching this anytime soon and only did because it was short and I knew I could finish it within a day. But even after only 2 episodes in, I knew this was going to be a good drama.

You get drawn into the romance aspect of the drama pretty quickly, but don't worry-- it's not an overly sappy, boring love story. It has a few cliches here and there, but not in the negative sense. The business aspect of the drama is equally great.

The acting, music and overall storyline were well above average and very enjoyable. The last few episodes were very up and down and nearly had me change my view of the entire series, but thankfully it ends on a very happy note.

All in all, if you're looking for a lighthearted, somewhat short drama that involves a good balance romance, business and drama, you won't be disappointed.

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Gems hidden in a pile of rocks

I really liked some of the stories, especially the ones about characters who were living in desperate situation, and had to make desperate decisions to stay alive. The comedy episodes were unfortunately very boring. I didn’t find the behaviour of the characters funny at all. I am surprised that Silence of the Lambs won the contest because it didn’t really build up to any climax, and the story felt very flat to me. The Steam was probably the most complete story, with suspense and plot twist to keep me watching. Unfortunately, the idea has been done before. Perhaps my favourite is Strangers or 19 Otters. The plot lines were interesting and original.

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