Reviews

Hell

Cyber Hell is intensely powerful and not in a good way, it's horrifying and mind overwhelmingly maddening. I couldn't stop crying, actually bawling tears of rage. I have never felt the way I did as I watched this, and that says a lot as I am an avid true-crime documentary watcher. The thought that human beings can stoop so low as to terrorize other humans (children not older than eight years old, teenagers, and women), the way the criminals depicted in this documentary did is unimaginable to me -- words fail me.

A true-crime documentary recounting a South Korean case in which chat room operators blackmailed young women (more like teenage girls) into sending explicit videos between 2018 and 2020 is tormenting. The thought that while I watched and filled my eyes with beautiful k-dramas, adolescent girls and women were experiencing the horror of this documentary is unspeakably horrific to me.

The synopsis described this case as a sexual slavery ring, an understatement. That it took place almost exclusively over Telegram, where thousands watched, shared, and reshared images of girls and women forced to send demoralizing pictures of themselves so a bunch of cowards could advertise and sell them for money is hard to accept even as one watches it unfold. To say that a bunch of soulless men and boys, for that matter, thought that it was perfectly okay to humiliate and demean someone's sister, daughter, cousin, and friend is what I struggled to reconcile as I watched the events of what I can only describe as ineffable.

Just thinking of this case fills me with rage—shame on the blackmailer(s) who started such an atrocity. But God heavens, those who participated, enjoyed, and perpetuated the actions are the actual monsters -- the depravity is unimaginable. It leaves me thinking about how, why, and when such young people lost their humanity to the extent that they believed inflicting the type of atrocities as the likes depicted here was fun. It's beyond anything that I have ever heard of or could imagine.

I commend everyone involved in bringing this case to light. Those who produced it to the whistleblower, reporters, tv producers, civilians, well-intended hackers, and the police who worked tirelessly to shut down this demeaning crime. But most importantly, the victims who endured the degradation and humiliation of their souls. If this documentary highlighted anything, it's that women are dramatically less safe and private on the internet than men, the mothers, sisters, aunts, cousins, and daughters of society. They are the true heroes of this documentary.

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Watch Coldfish with classic Sono Sion style in mind. Dark comedy, jarring music, long cuts and blood. After all, Sono is known for the extreme weird and freakish themes in his films. But this film is not for everyone. It's for the gore-seekers, the midnight madness, the avid supporters for cult-cinema which can either be a hit or miss audience to satisfy. With that though, Sono proves himself a master at his chosen niche market, though not perfect but shown with satisfying quality.

He opens the film with fast cuts paired with marching music that immediately sets the tone and the setting. The plot develops not through the revelations (the cliche way) but through dialogues, action and small details wrapped around in one perfect blanket. The clever way of using music that contradicts the scene is very Sono style but nevertheless, effective in bringing out the scene.

Dark, gray tones dominate the film with lots of red. Still, tropes like the typical-weak-salary man is still played and stretched towards the end that somehow makes the film repetitive. And with a 140 minutes running time, it's too long for a crime-thriller drama of this sort. The pacing is just too long, the narrative too dragging that at times, you just want to get to the excitement (and they aren't many). Expect blood and guts but don't expect excitement. Expect weirdness and undermined representations of women but don't expect excitement.

I'd praise the actors for their excellent portrayal though. Veteran actor, Denden plays the energetic-everyone's-uncle role so well mixed with humor and sadistic tendencies. Asuka Kurosawa (whom I've seen play a similar role in The World of Kanako) plays the seductive wife well and Mitsuru Fukikoshi plays the pathetic average man so well and that transformation at the end. Silent but deadly. He played it well.

It's more disturbing that the film is loosely based on the "Saitama murder of dog lovers" as you watch the film and have that in mind (though Sono makes a point that it's based on a true story in the beginning), it helps to establish the "credibility" and "sincerity" of what you're actually watching rather than just a make-believe murder tale because murder can be overrated.

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Does it deserve a ten? *thinks for about 3 seconds* Hell yeah, it deserves a ten.

Of course, no drama is perfect, and Coffee Prince isn't either by virtue of belonging to the category (of a more broader category, which is - all things in life). But does it stand head-and-shoulders above the other things I've seen so far? Damn straight.

The first refreshing thing about it was the absence of villains/antagonists who stole valuable screentime with their sleeked up hair and inane filler intrigues. No such filler here: all the characters were loveable (more or less so), the story got you invested in their arcs and you genuinely cared about them as much as they seemed to all care about each other. Though I liked all of them, two stood out particularly - Gong Yoo's Han Gyul and Lee Sun Gyun's Han Seong. I literally could not decide whom I liked better: I have thus far never fallen prey to the second male lead syndrome, but in the beginning of the drama I was all about Han Seong (possibly because he reminds me so much of my own boyfriend). As the story progressed, Han Gyul caught up in my affections and they ended basically tied. Both actors inhabited the roles flawlessly. My heart broke for Han Gyul when he found out about the deception, his pain and disappointment was so genuinely portrayed, with such evident vulnerability, I felt like hugging my laptop. On the other hand, I smiled every time Han Seong smiled because.. how could you not? That smile!

I have to mention Yoon Eun Hye here as well: she was believable as a boy, and I found myself even forgetting on several occasions about the whole gender-swap plotline, it was that realistic. The way the story progressed between Eun Chan and Han Gyul was consequently also realistic: from their interactions, I could see why he became attracted to her even up to the point of being ready to accept that he was in love with a male person. (Can someone say swoon? That scene in the coffee shop, HEAVENS. The tension between them was palpable, and organically built up to that inevitable moment.)

The final solutions for both female characters were also something I appreciated in this drama that I rarely see. They made their own choices, grew as independent people, and were the better for it. Kudos to the writers for this. Another separate kudos goes for the realistic depiction of adult (kind of) relationships, with all the s-e-x and other stuff, even if with the added cuteness/drama that I wouldn't expect to see between a 24-y-o and a 30-y-o or however old Han Gyul was supposed to be. They still followed through and I was both amazed and extremely happy that they did.

Lastly, as a side note: I loved the music in this drama, it had a great vibe, from the Kings of Convenience I heard (if I'm not mistaken now) to all the rest of the soundtrack, it got me to discover some great music.

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Turbulent, sweet & sour

*Heart house participants*
The guys and girls who participated in this season are pretty good, in terms of inteligence, looks and personality.

*Compared with previous seasons*
A couple of them are really outgoing more so than previous seasons. And not overly focus on 1 person (like last season). I enjoyed seeing everyone's effort and growth.

*Heart signals*
There were indeed moments where someone's gesture for the other person was thoughtful and moving. Theres some thats fateful as in they share a common interest. Theres others that came about from effort and courage of putting yourself out there

*Format*
If you watch previous seasons you would find the later participants actually came a bit earlier this time around and I think thats good. Gives the later people time to get to know others.

*Panel*
Unfortunately they were the weakest of all seasons. Either their deductions or comments werent deep enough. Or sometimes they werent personal enough, and felt distant. Or not as colourful or funny as some previous panelists.

Lastly i hope cp fans or extreme fanatics would stop putting hurtful remarks on heart participants' weibo. Life including love is not the same for everyone. For some its simple and direct like Simon and his approach works. For others like Orange who is guarded and passive, her response or lack of is make or break to others. Noone is wrong. If its the right person, the timing would be right. Their happiness isnt limited to the show. Remember Fu Pei? She found her guy eventually, someone outside of the show. But the memories for the time they spend together here would always be special.

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The revelation drama of 2023

This for me is the revelation drama of 2023. A compelling story, new because the protagonist is far from the stereotype of the spotless hero who never makes mistakes. He is a hero because to save people and his great love he risks everything by discovering even his uncomfortable truths. It is an original drama because even talking about gods and demons it highlights the most human truth made of light but also of darkness The story is well told and the love story is the one we should all live. An overwhelming, sincere, passionate, moving love. The cast choice is perfect. The two main characters act divinely. Mimicry is perfect, Ma Tian Yu and Angela baby have crazy chemistry, they keep the viewer in suspense, together they are electricity, everyone realises it. The outfits are also beautiful (Ma Tian Yu's ones one more beautiful than the other). And finally the soundtrack is beautiful, romantic and catchy. Absolutely recommended, this drama is a jewel.great work! For me 10!

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By the way, the machine translation of the original name gives the variant 'scion' and not 'childe'. Considering the outline of the story, I'd choose this option - it reveals a bit the irony of the drama, because the main character is also in some way... an heir.

The drama itself is exciting, but not for 'kitten lovers' - it has 18+ rating and lots of blood and brains on the walls. And an absolutely gorgeous main character, portrayed by Kim Seon Ho.

Kim Seon Ho was the main reason I watched it, if not for him, I'd never dared. I was mainly focused on him, because there was a dramatic change in the character - from smartie Han Ji Pyung in Start-up and adorable Hong Doo Shik in Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha there was a 180-degree turn to the role of almost invulnerable, a slightly crazy terminator nicknamed Nobleman. The hero's wide, mad smile is mesmerizing, his movements are fast and precise, he sneaks imperceptibly, like a shadow - it is impossible to break away from the screen. At the same time, the character is written out with a fair amount of irony - you can see it from the general attitude and attention to the things like his expensive suit ... and, well, he is going to die soon, which adds to Nobleman a kind of romantic flair. But if you watch till the very end... boom!

Kim Seon Ho's Nobleman is an ideal hunter, and like a magician he can do almost anything. More precisely - literally everything within the drama plot. And this role is an excellent proof of Kim Seon Ho's victory over rumors, gossip, scandals and accusations. This is a real triumph. Moreover, for myself, I consider the character as a message to the spiteful critics: if you show off, Kim Seon Ho will come to you as an Nobleman and do about the same to you as he did in the first 5 minutes of the film with a gang of thugs.

With such a protagonist, the rest, frankly, look a bit pale. Only the director Han , portrayed by handsome Kim Kang Woo, is trying to keep up - but more likely for lovers of cruel crazy guys. Another main character Marko (Kang Tae Joo) - plays the role of an almost wordless fowl, simultaneously chased by Nobleman, director Han and the 'Wonder Woman' Yun Ju (Go Ah Ra). But why they are chasing him - you'll find out if you watch the movie.

In general, chases and fights are the strongest part of the movie. Breathtaking dynamic shots, excellent angles, well-directed battle scenes - the cameraman and stunt coordinators did a great job. So, if you miss the good old action film with noir elements, hurry up and watch The Childe, especially if you are fond of Kim Seon Ho.

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This was the most devastating, realistic, hopeful, peaceful yet so full of tension, dread and fear.
It felt as real as the event itself. Sure actingwise only a couple of the kids had talent, like teil and mark felt like they were the kids they played. But the awkwardness of the others actually carried the realism of normal kids stuck at a cave. It almost felt awkward seeing the real pictures at the end cuz to me they were them


The world is a horrible cruel place but to think of how one disaster untied so many different countries, cultures, social standings, a governor, a weather analysts, a ranger, a diver and so many different people became one. each and every one of them is a hero and may the one that passed away saving those kids rest peace as well.
Trash like squid games don't deserve hype, this drama does. I do remember hearing about the incident, I actually hate the news so I stopped my mom whenever she talked about it until she told me they were all saved, so I never knew how long and how difficult the whole ordeal was
Like beside it being a real fresh global news, the filming was able to look beautiful, charming and devastating at the same time. I do think the time the kids stayed in the cave before food came was glossed over too fasd, even the final rescues, 5 hours for the 1st kid, 12hours for 8. Though understandably this wasn't a documentary
I sincerely hope everyone got paid well while the rescues got medals and idk superhero capes with golden planks that has their name on it
You can't rate the story low cuz it's literally based on a new worldwide disaster, tho directing, it wasn't bad also. It balanced well between each event the only shortcomings was the newbie acting


Also, this might fall under "music" but I watched this dub, I'm not used to thai and this was a heavy drama, but I do think the English voice actors did a better job at delivering the emotions. Their tones moved well with every tension, hope, sadness and anger.
The korean dubs sounded like news and the thai was flat

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Closure.

I watched both Season 1 and Season 2 and so, I had to watch Season 3. It was, perhaps, not as entertaining as the first two but I felt that it provided closure to this drama. Essentially, all three seasons make one whole drama and so, I’d recommend watching all three. :)

What I liked:
- Ending provided closure for the two leads.
- Happy ending for most characters.
- Ending showed the sadness of the FL as she had to be separated from the ML whom she loved deeply.
- Ending showed that true love will overcome obstacles and that true love doesn’t run smooth (?). ML’s memories to do with FL were erased as FL had to go back to the real world (and exit the reel world). But, he still had lingering memories of her. Eventually, he remembered…
- The leads loved each other truly.
- FL and ML still met in the real world.

What I didn’t like so much:
- Slightly repetitive in that there were quite a bit of recaps. (But understandable.)
- Ending was a bit slower and less fun / entertaining than the first two seasons. (But understandable too.)
- The ML had to die/ would die as long as she remained in the reel world.

Overall, still a nice enough watch and I liked the closure provided.

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Some Deleted Scenes and Bridal Photoshoot

"Our Secret" The best youth drama for me. A very realistic plot that surpasses other youth Chinese drama. The chemistry between Xu Mengjie and Chen Zheyuan is really really good. You will never get tired of it. TRUST ME! :)

Our Secret Extra is an special episode of the drama including deleted scenes from drama, some bloopers and Bridal Photoshoot. There was nothing special to watch in this episode except where Ziqi proposes to sha Di.

Overall the drama was quite good. I definitely recommend you to watch this drama, and about extra episode if you want to watch this extra episode, you can watch it as you wish. I don't love Extra episode much but I don't hate it either. It's more of a so-so.

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A cinematic masterpiece

NO-SPOILER REVIEW

This coming of age story is more like a high-quality movie divided into multiple parts rather than a typical drama series with many episodes. The story, acting, and cinematography are all outstanding.

Pros
- Simply unmatched cinematography compared to any other series in this genre, and better than many Hollywood movies.
- The casting, acting, and chemistry between the leads is superb.
- Skillful storytelling techniques that enable deep messages and feelings to be conveyed without the need for explicit vocalization or overt flashbacks.
- The story touches on powerful human truths in a very natural and organic way.

Cons
- As this is a coming of age story you need to think about the characters and their motivations from their point of view. For those of us who are far past this stage of our lives, their motivations and actions can seem frustrating at times.
- There are a few moments where the acting is so intense that it can be a bit unexpected or jarring.

Overall
- A simply stunning series that has set a new bar for the genre.

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A Century of Cold Hearts and Warm Acceptance.

This is San's story of his century-long quest to find his love or 'reincarnated' love, Wat. The narrative was compelling, heart-wrenching and full of lakron-ish vibes.
It had melodramatic elements like the famous characters often finding themselves in very dramatic situations, accidental kisses or the main character fighting 10 men together and winning. Though overall it added an entertainment value (at least for me).

San is portrayed with a mix of coldness and vulnerability. I could sympathise with him and his cold demeanour because living for a century and seeing people close to him dying is a hard thing. I loved the dynamics of his found family with him! And Tao as his friend/advisor was such a support for him.
San’s initial reluctance to accept his feelings for a man and his disbelief about Vee’s true identity did spice things up and brought an intriguing dynamic to their overall relationship. To be honest San’s behaviour was a point of concern at the start, but this was somewhat understandable given his century-long lifespan. His outdated views did make sense but at last he did come around!

The fantasy and mystery elements of the drama were engaging but nothing groundbreaking or new but executed well enough to keep you hooked for the next episodes.
What I found disappointing was the undeveloped antagonist's role. The motivation and backstory weren't clear enough and felt underwhelming . Their presence seemed more like a villain requirement than a substantial threat. I missed the overall tight tension of a good villain in the story.

Coming to acting, Daou and Offroad's chemistry was very evident and so palpable. Their acting was so much better than Love in translation, especially Daou's. Honestly, their acting made me believe Vee was made for San. Them being around each other made everything more alive for San. The performances of the supporting characters especially Ju’s added a positive and entertaining aspect to the story.
I felt Third's character in the story was very insignificant. If he contributed more to the story ,it could have added an extra layer of drama and more cohesiveness to the reincarnation angle.

Overall, I’d recommend this if you enjoy soap opera-style dramas with strong chemistry to drive the story forward.

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Usually Filipino dramas are so long and sometimes over-dramatic but this one is a very realistic one. The story is long and has lots of twists and turns but it shows reality. If you love romance that will make you feel 'kilig' this is the right one for you. It also have that dramatic side and it made me cry few times throughout the drama because it will really make you feel what the characters are going through. It gave a new light of what Filipino OFWs have to go through while working overseas while still having that romance in the story.

The casts are well-picked. Aside the fact that I love JaDine, this drama is actually well acted by the real life celebrity couple. The second lead Paolo Avelino also portrayed the role very well that made the story successful.

The theme songs that were used intensifies the emotions of the drama. Some can make you feel the 'kilig moments', touching moments, crying moments and all the other emotions that are incorporated within the drama.

After you're watching the drama, you'd still want for more. I almost wanted to watch it again soon after finishing all the episodes. This drama overall is awesome.

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I present to you one of the wonderful actors in Japan Matsuda Shota. I and some couple of friends were waiting for this movie to be subbed since it's release last year. It got subbed sometime this year.

Here, Shota plays the role of a loner, he was quite cruel and brutal also. This movie has no plot, there's no particular substance to this movie. It just tells a story about the kind of world Gu (Shota's character) is living in and it shows a some particular events that happened to him. I'm going to quote what a friend told me hehehe ''Don't expect a happy ending''. That's what she actually told me hehehe.

Gu is surrounded by gangsters and he's a gangster himself, he doesn't just belong to any gang. In his world, there's the issue of doping, pimping of teenage girls, unnecessary fighting and all.

Some minutes into watching HR, I gave up on the happy ending thing..... then towards the middle, I actually had some kind of hope....... but that got blown away before the end of the movie.
I didn't feel an ounce of pity for the casts in HR, including Gu himself, like the saying goes.... How you lay your bed, that's how you lay on it.

So, if you're a fan of Shota and you want to see how dynamic and versatile he can be, then you definitely need to give HR a shot. For those looking for something light...... this isn't something light, but you can also give it a try.

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Loved it more than i thought i would

I’ll start off by saying i’m not a big fan of body swap and i was one of those who was concerned when this was announced as EM’s next project. But surprisingly i loved the show more than i expected i would.

STORY : My main concern was Win being in Lins body would limit the interaction and screentime between the 2 leads, hence why other people were afraid if this was a real BL. But they were able to make it work since majority of the time was just the 2 of them travelling and since Korn knows its Win, he and us viewers sees Win too (i’d say 90% it was still EarthMix/KornWin interacting). Lin mostly just appears when theres other people or if the scene required Lins body. I wasn’t too concern about Korn being confused of who he really likes because it was pretty obvious from the start. This was a story of them having to be brave and confront their feelings for each other because both of them are scared of losing whatever they have (friendship or more) if they confess.

As i’ve said before i would’ve preferred they didn’t add the kiss scene in episode 8 but watching the last 2 episode made sense. It was a built up for the arranged marriage plot which i thought they removed from the book. I suppose it was a creative/change decision by the team behind this. I think alot of people hating on the kiss and the marriage was those who read the book and was comparing it to the source material. But if you watch this as a standalone piece without any background from the book it all made sense, the story and flow. That’s why i’m not being so hard on this, as someone who have a brief idea on the source material. I have some things i would’ve preferred they didn’t change but i’m rating this based on the show alone and not in comparison with the source material. Although i do feel episode 9 was a bit draggy and slow but episode 10 redeemed it for me.

PRODUCTION: I’ve some issues with some color grading and sound choices for some scenes but nothing too major. This show had the rare chance of fixing some minor problems before the youtube premiere so i hope they take it.

ACTING : is on point from all three main leads, i felt bad for Mix in the beginning having to shout and being angry all the time and i agree that its the directors job to see if how he portrays the character is right. Mix wasn’t cringey or bad acting like a loud asshole, that was what they and his character asked of him and he was just doing his job. You can see he can act angry/sad without shouting in episode 9, something i was glad they changed from the trailer because he was shouting at that scene too originally. The switching between Mix and Jan was another highlight, both were good, acting as themselves or the other. Earth was good as well, balancing the sweet, patient but sometimes already at his limits Korn. White had so little screentime but still very likeable, he looks so cute with his hair btw.

MUSIC: I was already getting LSS from the OST played in the trailer so i know i’ll love it, although only 1 was just released i’m already playing it on repeat. The lyrics were specifically written for their characters so it made it more melancholic and gave you more feels. Can’t wait for the other OST to drop. I also love the song Just Being Friendly played in 1 scene, it was definitely an earworm.

REWATCH : I’ve already rewatched some scenes and i’ll definitely watch it again at GMMTV YOutube premiere on sunday.

OVERALL : I definitely recommend this for people who wants a lighthearted with a bit of heavy drama towards the end. Give it atleast 3-4 episode watch so you can decide if this might be it for you or not. This is definitely not perfect and has its flaws but it worked for me and it might work for you too.

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