It was truly beautiful to watch Mark start to discover feelings and emotions he’d never experienced before and see Tong grow and realize he was stronger than he ever imagined.
Joss and Gawin were such a pleasant surprise. Their chemistry is absolutely spot on. They feel so natural together that makes it effortless to believe in Mark and Tong’s relationship. Every scene flows smoothly, never feeling staged or awkward. Plus, both of them exude an insane amount of sensuality, and they mastered non-verbal communication like no one else.
The supporting cast was incredible, but I have to give special praise to Um Apasiri Nitibhon for her portrayal of K’Thara. She brought the perfect villain to life. And lastly, this series has one of the most stunning OSTs I’ve ever heard. It had me hooked from the start with its romantic opening theme, perfectly delivered by Gawin Caskey. But honestly, every song is beautiful, which is rare.
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This Korean Drama has a little bite to it.
This is an interesting drama. How do you categorize it? This is the story about the youngest son of the richest chaebol. He is pampered and a social media darling, but his greatest passion is to be a SWAT team member. This dismays his dad. It stars Ahn Bohyun. He is famous for his sculpted body and it is on display in the drama. That is just the gravy. What I really like about Flex X Cop is the actual Police drama part. Everything looks so realistic and orchestrated to have a real crime scene feel. In addition, the drama has some of the cleanest “fight” action I have seen in a drama. Ahn Bohyun must be a real AMA fighter. His “fight” movement is so authentic and crisp. It did not look forced and pretentious, like regular drama fight scenes do.The drama also has a strong female lead, Park Ji-Hyun. Please, really pay attention to the fight scenes! At first, I was going to pass up Flex X Cop, but this drama really has a little teeth to it. I am going to go with this one. Flex X Cop is interestingly entertaining.
Ahn Bohyun—See You In My 19th Life, Yummy Cells, Military Prosecutor Doberman, and Descendants of the Sun.
Park Ji-Hyun—I love this actress from Reborn Rich, Rookie Historian,The King In Love and Do You Like Brahms?
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Edit: Good enough to enjoy this comedic drama. Don't judge a book by it's cover. ~
This is the first time that I wrote a review here in MDL so if this didn't go well, please forgive me. I give this drama a try because I'm in the mood of light-hearted dramas where the male lead fall in love with the so-called 'uglier' identity (idk the exact term for that, sorry) of the female lead like True Beauty and Accidentally In Love.Plot: 8/10 - I enjoyed the show. I like that the development in relationship of the main couple is slowly processed, not really fast-paced. I had a roller-coaster ride in almost every episodes. However, there's some unnecessary scenes which just made the drama a bit longer, though I managed to watch everything as I'm not a fan of skipping scenes. There are some kind of flaws regarding with the plot, and there are some times that I'm against to what the writer wanted the characters to do. Still love the ending and satisfied with it though, but the kiss is...
( I saw a lot of people who's bothered about the tag "blackface" before (which is removed now) that made others think negatively of this drama. Some are against that tag because they said it sounds like having western-centric mind and white-supremacy something, while some people are not because they said that female lead just did that to disguise herself and blackface is not a bad thing. As for me, no one is wrong. It's just how they see, understand, or how they gave meaning to that word, so let's try to understand and respect each other's point of view. )
Acting/Cast: 9/10 - This is the first time that Namfah became the main lead of a drama, but so far I liked her acting here! She performed her two characters well. August's acting was fine too. I love how she react every time he'll flirt with her lmao, and I love their chemistry too. I just don't like how the main lead tease the female lead so much before, to the point that I'm the one who feel like crying for her and not her herself (which is reasonable). And there's some part where some of the casts are a bit overacted or lacks a bit emotion in a particular scene. I also love all of the supporting characters, this drama is more fun and entertaining with them. Also the antagonist Khun Rika did a great job as well for making us hate her 'til the end but love her behind the scenes.
Music: 8/10 - Nothing to say much, Yak Ja Roo by Ice Thamonwan and Kho Chuea Chai Dtua Eng by August Vachiravit were nice.
Rewatch Value: 7/10 - As I've watched every episode of this drama like 4-5 times already while it's airing and after it finished airing, so I don't know if I'm going to watch it again. But I guess it will still be as enjoyable as before if you re-watch it.
Overall, it's fun watching this drama. I enjoyed the whole month of watching this and it somehow helped me to relieve stress. I got more friends while watching this drama and interacting with them, and they all enjoyed this too! Give it a try and see if it has the charm that's up to your cup of tea too.
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1realistic and well done
Overall: if the premise/summary isn't your thing, I encourage you to watch at least thru episode 4 because this story is like an onion with layers. 8 episodes total about 45 minutes each, 2 aired per week on GMMTV's YouTube Channel (also Disney+Hotstar in some countries).Content Warnings: manhandling, homophobia, death, grief
What I Liked
- Li Ming and Heart were the cutest cinnamon rolls
- Wen was direct and communicated what he wants
- felt realistic which matches the setting/story (i.e. the actors faces have visible sweat and aren't airbrushed/filtered to oblivion)
- touched on power/class differences, poverty, marriage inequality/legal inequality
- step parent shown to be caring and supportive
- Gaipa's mom
- hints about future plot elements
- realistic response with Li Ming and his mom
- avoided a cliche plot point towards the end, characters had good communication
- production value* (music, cinematography - that long take/no cut shot at the beginning of episode 1 part 1 was cool)
Room For Improvement
- several scenes were a little too dim* and the camera is too shaky sometimes
- not a fan of some of the music choices, at one point there was an accordion
- how Uncle Jim himself and other characters talk about him being old when the actor Earth is 28 (and most definitely does not look old)
- each episode appears to skip a month however because we don't see montages or dates it doesn't always feel like that much time has passed
- wish it had been Gaipa that initiated things after the time jump
- I understand them not subtitling what Heart was saying in the beginning to show how Li Ming didn't understand but it was frustrating when they continued to not subtitle everything he was saying later on
- it was not Jim's place to tell the mom about Li Ming, it should have been Li Ming's choice
- I don't agree that "deaf people are the loneliest people" which is a line a character said
- good that actual consequences were shown for drunk driving
- the series title "Moonlight Chicken"
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YAASSSSS
Ok so first I'm gonna say this was so much better than I expected. Idk what I was looking for but I found I and more! If you want something fluffy and sweet? You came to the wrong place. You want something full of deceit, witchcraft and sex? LOOK NO FURTHER!Visuals were amazing and Jennifer is the villain you're gonna love to hate. Story was something I've never seen in a BL with a mix of horror and lust. The ending was too refreshing and I need a Season 2 like...yesterday! Lol
It was short but worth the watch
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2 EPISODES IN AND IT GOT ME HOOKED UP
Absolutely loving everything about the first two episodes of this BL! The chemistry is chemistrying so hard — it feels effortless and electric. The pacing, visuals, and vibes are all on point. Easily ranking this in the top 10 best Korean BLs already.It’s refreshing to see a BL of this high quality. It really feels surreal — like we’re witnessing a new standard being set for Korean BLs. The production is stunning: beautifully framed shots, gorgeous lighting, and a soundtrack that blends seamlessly with the tone of each scene.
Can’t wait to see where it goes next! 💘✨
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I've never watched a programme this amazing in my entire life, it really has changed my perspective on the power of people. I love Kamiki Ryunosuke and he was spectacular in this drama. This is the first time I've ever watched a drama with Hirose Suzu but I now hope to watch more dramas that she featured in as she was simply riveting. Both their words sent chills down my spines, they were such fantastic characters. You must watch this drama, I promise that you will never forget it.
Never be oppressed, speak your mind, words have as much or more power than actions!!!!
I love this drama!!!!!
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This review may contain spoilers
Decent acting didn't make up for weak story
There were lots of enjoyable moments in this drama, so if your goal is to watch a boy's love story in a historical setting, it'll probably be fine (although be warned it's high angst). However, if you are a fan of political intrigue dramas, the plot incoherence will drive you crazy.Vague spoilers ahead:
This is, for example, the only political intrigue drama I've seen where the court is divided into *one* faction. The prime minister is manipulating both princes, but with completely unclear and never-stated goals. It might be a fine plot point if the ultimate goal was to get the princes to take each other out and then seize power, but that isn't the note his character finishes on, so... shrug?
The world building was lazy, with many key elements left out or with contraditory elements thrown in at different times (for example, the leader of a group must be the king's brother, but also leaders can only serve for 10 years... how does that work?). There is a birth secret where the mechanism by which the character's identity changed was never revealed.
Characters constantly made baffling choices (for example: in one scene a character declares that it will be beneficial if X takes the throne and then a few scenes later orders that X be killed).
The ending was also... frustrating. It's like the writers wanted to write a tragedy with a happy ending and ultimately failed to deliver either effectively. I'm honestly surprised at the rave reviews and feel like they indicate more about how low the bar is for bl than how good the show is.
Edited to add: This is not a wuxia drama, if that's what you're looking for. Only one of the mains has any martial skills of note, and we are firmly in the aristocracy rather than the "swordsmans" world. There are very few fight scenes, they are short and not particularly interesting. The show is more of a palace drama, although obviously being BL we don't get harem dynamics and whatnot. More comparable to, say Blossoms in Adversity, where it's about navigating a romatic relationship through political plots (although, again, the political plots were incredibly poorly executed).
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The most Unexpected, Realistic Film ever.
Its truly a unique story telling, many twist that is so unexpected that makes me awe personally. Some few scene has a deeper meaning behind it, few social-political commentary that I personally can relate to. I see that the director has a freedom to create such story that's not your typical K drama, highly realistic on conversation flow, reaction and many more. Acting really good by the cast especially Park Mi Kyung played by Geum Sae Rok.Man, I never watch anything like this before. 15/10 truly a recommendation to anyone.
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One of the Best Romance Drama
This is one of my favorite drama to date. If you having some doubts wheter to watch it or not, just watch it heheh. You'll be suprised on how good this drama is.Story 8.5/10
The premise is kinda weak, but trust me this isn't that usual cringey romance about a girl a turns pretty for his man and a man who finally falls for her cuz she is pretty now. KanoKire really did a great job telling it's story. Making a superficial premise to a really deep and meaningful one. A really well done story about love, friendship, and finding yourself. Also for me this is second to the most romantic love story (the first is Hana Yori Dango). So yes, you'll be suprised on how they turn this chessy premise to a beautiful story.
Acting/Cast 10/10
Perfect. This is the best Nakajima Kento's works to date, he is perfect in this. Kenty and Fuka chemistry also off the chart (their chemistry really reminds me of Matsujun-Mao Inoue). Fuka Koshiba so cute and loveable, I was rotting for her since first ep! She is just so precious! Akaso Eiji is superb, I even not realizing I have seen him in Cherry Mahou before cuz how different he is in this. Sakuma Yui may seem kinda pale at first, but she also did a great job (especially in ep 8 oh god). The rest of the cast also good, Katase Nana as Okajima-san also really left an impression for me.
Music 10/10
PERFECT. I haven't watch drama with such good music in a long time. The op song Cobalt on Summer Afternoon by Awesome City is fun, poppy song and the ed song Natsu no Hydrangea by Sexy Zone (which Nakajima Kento is in btw if you didn't know yet) is perfect heartfelt song for this drama. Also the background music also so good and the way they place it is genius. The music definitely elevate and gives more emotions to this drama. I honestly want to buy the ost album if they release it, that's how good it is.
Cinematography 9.5/10
Adding this category cuz KanoKire did really great job on making the atmosphere to be more. The cinematography gives more emotion to this drama.
Overall 10/10
I give Kanojo wa Kireai Datta a perfect 10, not because it isn't flawed but because it tug my heart so much. The feel and the emotions of this drama is beyond words. A really magical experience for me, I laugh, I cry. One of the best drama I watched.
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The acting of all the characters are top notch and the plot naturally flows from one episode to the other. Certainly it was not light neither heavy it was a balanced between that.
For those who are interested in finding a drama that has romance and without annoying characters, this may be it for you as their characters are mature and take time to think before they act.
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Funny, endearing and romantic
I really love this piece of fluff, and after watching back-to-back only korean and chinese drama for about 4 years I was beginning to sink in a slump. But this Drama plays so well with all its tropes, is unashamedly romantic and has sweet side characters. The main Couples chemistry is so great, both have flaws and they are just on fire with all their squabbling. Definitely a win for me, wish it was longer! Lee Jun Young is amazing as always, I loved him in Love and Leashes and the FL is very good, too. My secret fav is the boxing sister, though. She is hilarious and sweet-ish.Was this review helpful to you?
A Hidden gem
SCOY is the ultimate hidden gems if I've ever seen one. Every episode was really surprising and exciting, never a dull moment at all.I think, before SCOY, I was really in a daze and watched anything BL, no matter how bad. But SCOY has raised the bar for me because it seems like I was in need of a romcom that was actually REALLY funny and not a repetitive tropes that other BLs use. SCOY was genuinely Funny... like Cover your face with your hands/pillow/scarf or anything, with your hands and legs flailing around and Screaming and laughing every few minutes in Every episodes. Now that I've finished it, It feels empty and no matter how much I try to get into other series I missed while watching SCOY, I simply can not get into them.
I will definitely re watch this in a few months.
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It appeared like different theme. The whole story was dark and then surprise! Everything fixed and they live happily ever after. I didn't like that those characters did not take their time to think about their sins... They changed because they were afraid of losing their beloved children or because they finally realized that they didn't live life with their own decisions and rules. I didn't like children's decisions at the end. What a privileged people who born with a silver spoon in their mouth. It seems like all those 19 episodes were written by different person than the finale.
It was really great and i loved it... waste to end up like this.
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This review may contain spoilers
Worth the 1 year wait for me, albeit having some plot inconsistencies
• Read the top part for a review with NO spoilers• Read the bottom part for an in-depth analysis of the plot, comparison with the original novel and interpretation of the ending WITH spoilers
< Review >
1. Storyline
In my opinion, the story was a decent adaptation of the original novel. I enjoyed the novel and the drama, not to the extent that I love it but it was likeable. The story has a lot of sad parts with sweet parts hidden inside. There were some sudden transitions here and there, but overall it was understandable. To me, it was worth my 1 year wait for it, watch it if you think you enjoy a more sad storyline throughout with sweet parts interspersed and don't mind some inconsistencies!
2. Acting & casting
I liked the casting (mostly). I felt that the two main leads, Ju Jingyi and Guo Juncheng did well. Their characters are individuals who speak through their eyes more than their words/actions and I thought they did pretty well in that. I also enjoyed the casting of Song Xinran as Lan Su and Zhang Zhihao as Ou Ya. The duo was very funny and added flavour to the story. On the other hand, I felt Lu Tingyu as Yi er was a bit out of place (?) I think her style suits modern dramas more.
I personally feel that Ju Jingyi improved in her acting from when I saw her in Yun Xi Zhuan. I think Song Xinran is also more natural now. Not sure about the actors as I have never really seen their dramas.
3. Music
I love two of the OSTs - 仍寻 sung by Ju Jingyi and Guo Juncheng, as well as 剪不断 by Jin Wenqi, have been playing them repeatedly since I heard them in the drama. The other three OSTs are average to me.
4. Special effects
Special mention to the special effects team. The special effects are pretty good for a drama!
5. Rewatch value
Frankly, I feel like rewatching it already to further analyse the story and because I was confused at some points of time, so I may rewatch the parts I like to think deeper about it.
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< Analysis >
1. Characters
The characters in the novel and drama are rather different. In the novel, Wei Zhi is someone who is very 痴傻 (silly and persistent; apologise for the lack of a better word, but I'm not very sure how to translate it to the same meaning), in the drama, she is not silly but still persistent, and also quirky and kind. In the novel, Yan Yue is a very cold person, with little emotions who is only gentle (at times) to Wei Zhi, because he is the reincarnation of a land or something. Conversely, in the drama, Yan Yue is more cool than cold and very gentle. All in all, I feel that the drama Wei Zhi and Yan Yue are more realistic to me.
As for the other characters, I think the ones who are the most different from the novel are Ou Ya and Lan su. In the novel, Ou Ya was the one who gave the Qian Ji Luo to Yan Yue and Wei Zhi saw him as a very annoying character who was trying to get close to her. Novel Lan Su also had her marriage with novel Yan Yue cancelled and hated Wei Zhi (this story was not seen in the drama). However, in the drama, Ou Ya and Lan Su were really supportive and nice to Wei Zhi and Yan Yue till the very end, which I found as a sweet adaptation.
Do note that many of the characters are quite different from the novel though, but I won't go into detail.
2. Storyline
I've seen reviews saying that the drama storyline was dragged out, overly tragic and confusing. Frankly, the novel one was even more tragic and sometimes more confusing, requiring a lot of interpretation on my part. Below is a summary of the novel storyline, do note that it is not 100% accurate as I cannot remember the entire storyline.
Novel: Yan Yue sent to the academy to undergo his Qing Jie -> almost killed by Wei Ling Yue -> went to Yao Cheng -> Wei Zhi activated her bloodline for the first time when saving Yan Yue -> at one point, they had to escape because the Mo Zu Da Zun (Mu Nan) was trying to find the phoenix -> spent some happy days as a normal couple, this was also where Wei Zhi transferred the Qian Ji Luo to her body -> thrown into a dangerous desert world by Mu Nan, Yan Yue was severely injured and saved by Qing Huan, and brought into another world where time flows faster to help his injuries heal (around 1000 years passed in this special world for Yan Yue) -> Wei Zhi on the other hand, was taken by Mu Nan (or someone else) and lived 8 years on a boat -> Wei Zhi managed to escape and went to the city Yan Yue was controlling -> Yan Yue told Wei Zhi to leave when he saw her (Imo, he was trying to keep her safe because there is a high risk she may be revealed as the phoenix) -> Wei Zhi refused and stayed on, taking on some position due to her powers -> Things happened here and there and then Yan Yue and Wei Zhi drank a magical wine that made them follow their wishes and they had some alone time together -> Long story short, afterwards, Wei Zhi transformed and Yan Yue became the Mo Zu Da Zun -> She spent a total of around 20 to 30 years in the Mo Jie as a hostage -> Eventually, Yan Yue tried to die together with his father to save the world from his father who wanted to become a God but Wei Zhi came and saved both of them by using his Phoenix magic -> Afterwards, they were reincarnated every lifetime to be together, but with no knowledge that they used to be a Shen Xian or Phoenix
Overall, I enjoyed the drama storyline in a different way I enjoyed the novel storyline. The drama storyline was tragically sweet but the novel storyline was tragically heartrending except for very little sweet parts. I found the romance more realistic in the drama though!
3. Interpretation of the ending
Okay, so yesterday I watched the ending and in my mind I was like "???", so I spent the night and this morning pondering about it and this is my interpretation...
In the ending, Wei Zhi gives her Hua Rong to Yan Yue, which means that she'll die (somewhat like how Mu Nan died after he destroyed his Yuan Shen). 6 months later, we see Yi er becoming Tian Di, Ou Ya lamenting the loss of Lan Su and Wei Zhi's child being born. The story then cuts back to after Yan Yue returned to his own body 6 months ago, it showed Yan Yue sending Hua Rong to the sky and into the Time Palace, and time moves back.
From my interpretation, Hua Rong is the symbolism of peace, innocence and renewal, so by sending it to the sky, it purified the destruction caused and that is why the soldiers' weapons were removed. Afterwards, it was sent into the Time Palace. Remember that before this, Yan Yue said "Life is meaningless without you even if I can live forever, Wei Zhi, wait for me". By sending Hua Rong to the sky to purify the land, I believe that this is building good karma for Wei Zhi, often emphasised in Buddhism/Chinese culture.
By sending it into the Time Palace, I have two interpretations, (1) one is that both of them travel back in time and live in a separate timeline from the existing one the rest are in where Yan Yue never killed Wei Zhi and they live happily, (2) the second is that by turning back time, present Wei Zhi returned to the past Wei Zhi and took over her body as Tian Hou showed us that it is possible. This is because past Wei Zhi has the Hua Rong while present Wei Zhi does not have the Hua Rong. This would mean that past Wei Zhi would be replaced by present Wei Zhi who would go back into the present. And then Wei Zhi would still die in the past as she was meant to in order for everything to happen as it has already happened.
Regardless, it is clear that they are still alive as their child, also a Phoenix was born. We know that Wei Zhi's life is closely linked to her child, so if her child is born then Wei Zhi must still be alive. Additionally, Phoenix is the symbolism of rebirth, so we can take this as a symbolism that Yan Yue and Wei Zhi have found a new life. However, where they are is a big mystery, but if I were them, I would probably just live my own life in peace, to avoid any more tragic events from happening.
Thanks for reading my super long review and hoped you gained something from it!
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