The story was simple, but quietly and effectively told. If you are adverse to mature scenes, this will not be the movie for you. While there is not much in the way of skin shown, a couple of scenes are pretty explicit.
They are not gratuitous, though and they are integral to the story we are being shown. Jang Hyuk's character finds himself in quite the predicament for a moment's indiscretion. His student swiftly spirals out of control and so does his life. I can't give away what happens, but the buildup of tension and ultimate climax (no pun intended) left me with my jaw hanging open.
Acting was sensational. The actress that played Young Eun gave me goosebumps. Her portrayal of YE was the best performance in the movie.
Music - don't really remember the music, so it didn't stand out
Re-watch value - marked lower because the punch is gone once you've seen it.
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This one didn't rise well
Bake Me Please is a rather watchable BL. It could even have been quite good for those who do not mind predictable stories. However, certain weaknesses in plot development affected the characterization.Shin is a baker in a bakery he has started with his friends, Oab and Guy. One might wonder how he even had friends to begin with because of his cold demeanor, but we can overlook this. Oab's mother makes his brother, Atom, join the bakery, and Atom in turn pulls his friend, Peach in. As you might guess, Shin and Peach fall in love.
The story doesn't quite impress with originality, but to its credit, it doesn't. It can be a fairly good run-of-the-mill BL. Unfortunately, some flaws do compromise the watching experience. Some parts lack coherence in somewhat bearable ways. Peach's grandmother has been clearly open to Peach and Shin having a relationship, but Peach behaves as though he is surprised when his grandmother is totally fine with it when Shin announces that they are dating.
The worst moments in the series are the rather forced turns in the behaviors of the characters to fit rather forced turns in the plot. The first of these turns is when Guy quits to join another bakery, tired of playing second fiddle to Shin all the time and probably because he is jealous that his crush, Peach, is a couple with Shin. Guy is a fundamentally good person, so it is odd that there is no sign of hesitation or struggle when he does some of the less than honorable stuff he does. Then there is Shin's behavior. Although he is socially inept and even harsh with his words, he is not an unreasonable person, especially after meeting Peach. However, he refuses to let Peach continue his friendship with Guy and breaks up with Peach simply because Peach goes for dinner with Guy. The poor plot development mars the characterization as well.
I think the writers should have opted for the feel-good factor throughout by developing the plot in a different direction. The story does end pleasantly, which salvages things somewhat.
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Slow burn excellence
I was a little nervous about the leads' relationship — after all, the characters have a TEN year age gap. But this turned out to be one of the sweetest, healthiest, most mature relationships I've ever seen and I can't put into words how much I loved seeing their feelings slowly develop. The chemistry was absolutely there but even individually, both the ML and the FL were given equal time to shine. They were such well-rounded characters with their own stories, and their relationship was built on supporting and caring for each other during those journeys. There were no stupid misunderstanding tropes and the honesty was just so refreshing. The FL is exactly how a strong female lead should be written, and the ML is respectful and kind.The second and third couples were okay; I liked them as characters also and think the relationships also made sense, but they weren't as fleshed out and sometimes there were developments I wanted to see that I feel like the show skipped over.
But they were still good additions to the cast, and plot-wise the subplots of all the side characters were intertwined with the main one relatively well. It's interesting too to realize that there are really no clear-cut villains in the story. There are some people that are selfish and money- and power-hungry, but ultimately they didn't become "evil" and things were never that black and white. It made the drama very relatable and true-to-life.
I know some people complained that the drama started out slow but the pacing of the entire show was just perfect for me. We got to see what the characters' original lives were like, what traumas they had, who and what was important to them, how they handled conflicts, etc. It makes seeing their development at the end mean so much more.
Whether you typically watch sport dramas or not, this is one I will 100% recommend.
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Cute story of friendship and love blossoms :)
Love this drama. such a cute , short and simple story of about five friends who grew up together. It talks about them going through life in high school, talks about family. Another plus for me is that it was set back in the 2007/2008 which was around my high school time. it made me reminisce / wish my high school times were like this/ had the friends to do stuff with :(16 episodes was definitely the perfect amount. The whole was really cute and light hearted and did not drag at all. The female lead is super cute ! she looks like shen yue ( chinese actress) . Her personality is quirky, loud, and cute. She and the male lead are a bickering couple. They fall for each other towards the end. Its amazing to see such a close knit friendship between the five. It talks about them going through life in high school, going through exams, celebrating holidays, coping with a loved one, reunion of family member, and along the end with some romance.
The male lead and female lead chemistry is so good. they are such a cute bickering couple, always yelling at each other/ fighting with each other. lol that is how their relationship blossoms. Although the main part of this drama isnt the romance, there were still really cute romantic scenes at the last ep.
One regret of the story was how one of the other friend also likes their other friend but their story never got any further plot development. :(
I would totally recommend watching :)
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The story centers around the relationship between Tak and Da In and how far their love really goes. As Tak relives the same day over and over, he realizes that Da In is at the epicenter of it. Although it does have its cliches, the story impacts your heart strings on how Tak truly opens his eyes to the girl in front of him. It portrays their love as a rocky rollercoaster that finds its end, in it's own twist and turns. It brings along flashbacks that show how they first met and how their love slowly blossomed, which I believe added to the ending of the story, one that I was surely not expecting. Love and heartbreak are a destined pair for this romance, and its something you don't want to miss in a way.
NOTE: you will cry, at least I did.
The acting, oh the acting. I've known L as a member of INFINITE and an amazing actor - he didn't disappoint me here either. He portrays Tak so perfectly in every way while executing the emotion of the character with precision. I also can't forget Yoon So Hee who plays Da In. She does have moments (for me) where her acting is kind of bland and basic but then she slaps me back in the face with spectacular acting. The role of Da In and Yoo Tak surely wouldn't be the same without these two, that's for sure.
I'm not really a indie or rock person but boy did this drama turn me right around. The soundtrack per say is filled with amazing songs that I will be listening on repeat (as I ugly cry) for a while. L has a blessed voice and its a blessed part of this drama that he plays the lead singer of the band.
As for rewatch value, I always say "I don't usually watch dramas again but this drama-" but I actually am not kidding with this one. It's got this spark that drew me to it (as I hope it will to you) that just wants to replay in my head no matter what I do. So yes, this is personally a drama that I would gladly rewatch.
To end this review, like I do with all of my reviews, I encourage you to watch the drama yourself.
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Overall it was okay but I dislike having miserable leads. Although successful, living a melancholy vibe.
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A Memorable Welcome with Asadora
I didn't know there was this type of drama before and surprised of how many the episodes are. After realizing how short the duration per episodes, I decided to pick up this series and I am really happy with my decision. Okaeri Mone is my best pick to get into Asadora world.Like many other Asadora, Okaeri Mone followed the pattern of heroine's struggle at work started from childhood, teen, and adult. What I like the most from this series, the background character of Mone, her families, and her friends that lived through the big disaster of 3.11. There was no literal scene of the disaster, but I could imagine it as I watched a lot of documentaries and articles about Tohoku earthquake. But they really pictured really well the hard working moments, the overcoming traumas, and moving on of the victims.
Mone is a well written heroine that I have met so far. I relate so much to her emptiness, her failure, and getting back strength to move forward in a realistic way. Her times in Tome as forestry worker teach me how we as human, have to give back something to nature as they give a lot to us. The drama explain the nature well, how the sea, the sky, and the mountain linked to each other as one and we have to keep it in harmony. The learning doesn't stop there but still goes on until the end by every supporting characters in the drama. What I like the most beside that is the job of weather forecaster in Japan. I actually first watch this series for the romance, but Mone's urge to study and work as weather forecaster made me stay. By watching Okaeri Mone, I noticed Japan is 10 times ahead in disaster warning system than my country lol.
For the romance, I really love how the ML is written, how the character can push the heroine and how they respect each others time and space. Beside that, the supporting characters are also interesting and have depth. Every roles that went through the same event but had different overcome stories and how they supported each other. From episode 1 until 120, you can tell each characters development as if you grow with them.
I hope more people find Asadora and come to watch it, especially Okaeri Mone. There are many good dialogues to empower people in life and you learn a lot from it! The production team also did a really good job to shoot beautiful scene of nature's environment and you will get healed by those.
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It´s a series to ENJOY if you let your guard of "I need high content" down
YES, It was not high quality, I do admit that but after all, this series made me light up. I really liked the easy storyline and the almost parody-like "twists", it really made the whole series so unique. Why do I think so?There are some "bad" (BL) dramas out there, which don´t seem to have much effort included during filming BUT this series feels like, they didn´t have much but they created something beautiful with it. I mean, it was extremely fun to watch. I was wheezing because of some scenes. For example, the perspective when they had beaten someone up, the perspective. Quite hilarious. It had some emotional scenes as well but in the end, the plot cracked up, after all, it was such a relaxing time to watch.
Nevertheless, the chemistry between the actors was very charismatic and they must have had fun filming it. You could see it. Except for the -clapping- part, that must have been a little awkward.
After I had finished it, I realized that sometimes the quality doesn´t matter as much as the effect it has on you. For myself, I am going through a lot, but watching this was cheering me up. Also reminded me of my short movies when I was younger.
I believe that, in the future, there will be even more Chinese BLs to be proud of! Cheer up everyone.
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the level of the twist was vernica mars s4 level.. and I actually think this season felt more scripted and that they had more adlib in the 1st season. I mean, it's not a drama, but it's not a variety show..
the camera work sucks and and editing was too rushed during the solving of the puzzles.. it's not all bad per say, but I prefer crime scene (which I highly miss) and the great escape.
the cast though were 10+ everyone did great, especially the girls❤ the best part is that they actually let them have their own characters. and sehunnie baby did great too!
it's kinda smart that they used high skilled actors for the side characters, it almost felt real ;p
my rewatch values are either a 1 or 10, and this is fine with one watch ;p
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Good Cast, Average Series
I didn't think I was going to watch a fantasy series for a while after I watched A Korean Odyssey but whatevs. I wanted to watch a LMH series and the last 2 he's done are fantasy.This was an average series with a really good cast. I thought the storyline was interesting in the beginning but then it started to get a little boring for me just b/c I was getting a little tired of the parallel/past life storyline of the characters. At any rate I think it's a good show to watch once even though the ending and more accurately episode 20 I didn't care for that much at all.
What I loved of course was LMH. The rest of the cast was really good too. I have never seen the FL, Jun Ji Hyun in anything else but she was really good here as the mermaid. She and LMH had really good chemistry and they look good together! I really adored Shin Won Ho as Tae Oh, cutest hacker ever and Lee Hee Joon as Nam Doo. There were some really good comedic scenes and as usual the wardrobe department was on fire. Really loved the Joseon Era clothes as well. I really liked Yoon Ah, the little girl and the homeless woman who become FLs friends.
There are some really standout episodes like episode 6, episode 9, episode 11 and episode 18. Unfortunately, episode 20 is a letdown but we do get our happy ending so I will leave it at that.
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I understand that this is a movie were the actors are the actual Hong Kong baseball team and I must say that the acting was quite good for their first time on camera but thats pretty much what I can say about this.
I found this movie in a Yaoi forum, but it came as a surprise:
There is nothing Yaoi in this, just a couple of male butt-slaping that's it... the rest of the relationships on screen are straight, so if you came here looking for a good Yaoi movie and you are not happy woth wasting your time waiting for the homo-stuff to happen, then this is not the place for you.
Yes, I liked it, not as a movie, but a short story.
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started from the top.. now we are here
This drama started off incredibly strong. So much so that the latter half of the drama dropped my rating from 9.5/10 to 8.5/10. 8.5 might seem a bit high considering how annoyed I was at times but these characters grew on me so much that I simply can't bring myself to give this a lower rating.The writers were the ones who honestly f'd up a big time. Haeng Seon and Chi Yeol are one of the best couples I've ever seen. The actors have great chemistry and my heart fluttered so much at their scenes. I truly want a love like that for myself.
But the cons of this drama really started to overshadow the chemistry at times.
The murder mystery got wayyyyyy too much screentime considering that there was no mystery. They revealed/ made it insanely obvious way too early. I was getting annoyed at how it was dragged out more and more.
And while the murder mystery was getting dragged on, they also had like 20 different characters who had ongoing stories but all of those were left unfinished and/or unpolished. Sua was the one that pissed me off the most. Did she even end up getting therapy ? or did she magically heal from those hallucinations because why were we even shown those scenes?
Hui Jae and his family were also shown a lot but somehow they didn't give any of these characters enough time to redeem themselves. I pretty much liked the last episode but I have to admit that this drama tried too much.
Way too many characters who needed serious therapy but somehow everyone was doing okay at the end..
sigh
It's a bit disappointing to admit that with these actors and their chemistry, this drama could have been so much more if the writing was a bit more consistent.
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What a Wonderful Drama!
There have been so many disappointing dramas lately, that start off fairly good, but then go down the drain due to poor screenwriting, directing and storyline, but this is not one of those. Kudos to the screenwriters, Director, and the exceptional ensemble cast for creating such a beautiful, heartwarming story!It may first appear to be a very simple story, but as it unfolds, you can enjoy the richness of the characters of this community.
We get to know the characters in a very natural, flowing way, which made me care about each and every one of them.
The scenery and cinematography are travelog worthy and had me checking the map several times as I planned a potential trip to the area in the future. Cultural traditions are honored and presented in a way that we can appreciate all that is involved in preserving a cultural heritage.
The rhythm of life that is portrayed in the drama, affected my daily rhythm in a positive, healing way, and I actually slept better while watching this drama.
The characters are a delight, from the youngest children to the oldest grannies, and of course our main young couple, whose romance was beautifully developed.
I generally do not rewatch dramas, but I will be rewatching this one. Rewatching it will be like going to visit some dear friends. I wish they were planning a season 2, but I have not heard anything about that.
This is a beautiful drama, and I highly recommend it!
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The Regnant Queen
Queen Seon Duk is a critically acclaimed epic sageuk production that continues to be held in high regard even to this day, since its release more than a decade ago in 2009. It has taken me just as long to finally watch this remarkable drama as part of my classic watch project, and what a fulfilling journey it has been. All the plaudits rained upon this production have been well deserved indeed, where it has won numerous awards, including honours at the 46th Baeksang Arts Awards.The Story
The drama is partly a biopic, which cleverly fuses fact and fiction. Set during the turbulent period of the Three Kingdoms, the premise is based on the official records of the Samguk Sagi and Samguk Yusa. However, the storyline is primarily driven by the events chronicled in the controversial Hwarang Segi. The screenplay is infused with much creative liberty, thanks to the writing flair of dynamic duo Kim Young Hyun and Park Sang Yeon, who have written countless epic sageuk including Jewel in the Palace, Tree With Deep Roots, Six Flying Dragons and Arthdal Chronicles.
Queen Seonduk, the first female sovereign of Silla, and her achievements have been celebrated through the ages across all historical texts. On the other hand, historians have argued whether Lady Mishil, her arch enemy, had existed in the first place. Nonetheless, regardless of the historical accuracy, the characters and events are magnificently depicted in this incredible story of love, revenge, betrayal and sacrifice.
The Production
For an MBC drama that was released back in 2009, the general quality of production is worthy of praise indeed. Filmed on location at MBC’s famous outdoor film set, Yongin Daejanggeum Park as well as Shilla Millennium Park, thus reflecting the high levels of authenticity in its set designs. The costumes in the drama, particularly those of the Hwarang, are deserving of acknowledgment.
On the other hand, the cinematography feels quite dated in terms of the camerawork and the typical overuse of close-ups, which is prevalent in older sageuk dramas. You really do get to see actors’ microexpressions up close and personal. The action choreography is not the best, in terms of the swordplay and fight sequences. Interestingly, although this is a sageuk, there are elements of wuxia blended into the choreography. Perhaps this is influenced by Hwarang Segi’s almost fantastical account of the legendary powers of the Hwarangs of Silla.
The Characterisation
This is one of those rare occasions where I actually root for the bad guys instead of the good guys. Although this drama is focused on the character development and accomplishments of Queen Seon Duk, I was won over by Go Hyun Jung’s characterisation of Lady Mishil. She successfully encapsulated this larger-than-life figure who is arguably the epitome of female empowerment, charisma and wit, despite being the ultimate villain. This woman has screen presence and gravitas aplenty, and I honestly feel that she carried the entire show. Other character portrayals that I have enjoyed include Kim Nam Gil’s extraordinary interpretation of the complex and layered anti-hero, Bidam as well as Jung Woong In as the somewhat amusing and rather fun Misaeng.
On the contrary, I feel that Uhm Tae Woong’s depiction of Kim Yoo Shin is a bit flat, where he wears the same lifeless stoic expression throughout the whole show. Meanwhile, Yoo Seung Ho’s Kim Chun Chu is rather one-dimensional. I do think that Park Ye Jin’s Princess Chun Myung is more convincing than Lee Yo Won as Princess Deok Man and later Queen Seon Duk. I know Lee Yo Won has her admirers but I think she was outshone by Go Hyun Jung who went on to win the Daesang at the Baeksang.
Music
The original score, composed by Eom Ki Yeop, is exceptional for a production of this magnitude. Most sageuk soundtracks tend to be inspiring and surreal, which is the case here as well. The main title, comprising upbeat orchestral music, is an absolute favourite. I also love Mi Shil's Theme (미실 테마), an evocative operatic aria. Viewers may not be aware that IU contributed a song to the soundtrack, the lighthearted and catchy To the sea (아라로), which is a fusion of traditional instruments and pop music.
Overall
Queen Seon Duk is actually composed of three major arcs - the first 25 or so episodes before Princess Deok Man enters the Silla palace, the beginning of the palace politics that transpire in the second arc, and the final phase after the key events that take place in episode 50. I personally enjoyed the first arc, which had a measure of action, adventure and excitement. The second arc feels somewhat more regal and solemn in terms of the court machinations. The last 12 episodes probably could have been set aside, since I’m rather torn with the ending especially for one of the characters in question but, suffice to say, all loose ends are neatly tied up.
For fans of epic sageuk, this drama is certainly worth your while to check out. It might be a little old, but this is definitely gold.
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