Reviews

You are only skin deep

If short clips series are becoming a trend, this series raises the bar among the lot.

Although this series is short, each character has a personality and motivation that bring its own color to the show.

Shi Qi is the loyal, determined female lead who values relationship and integrity above all else; while Shen Qin plays the foil to Shi Qi's light, a woman who equally puts love above all else, though has walked the obsessive path instead. As for the male leads, I like Xiao Han Sheng's premise, who trust his instincts above all else; and King Ning rounds up this cast perfectly with his obsession of an "impenetrable front", only to reveal a vulnerable soul within after getting hit by our Shi Qi - literally (in one of the scene) and figuratively (referring to his "front").

Familiar stranger has the familiar troupes, pun intended, we know well. Shi Qi and Xiao Han Sheng are the fated characters who shared a short, unforgettable encounter in the past. which eventually blooms into a love that transcend physicality. i.e. Xiao Han Sheng is able to recognise Shi Qi at the core of who she is despite black magic is not something that is common in this world's setup. Prince Ning is the typical frivolous second male lead that wants the 1 girl who sees him beyond his status of King and who he is within the tough front - a vulnerable, lonely soul who pushes everyone away. And Shen Qin's questionable acts have a proper link to her childhood days, as revealed during the climax.

Familiar stranger shows that what audience laments about familiar troupes ain't because they are familiar, it's about the execution - the care it gives to the characters, the care it gives to a well woven plot, care it gives to find a cast who can act their roles proper. When proper care is given, familiar troupes be damned, I will watch your drama and rate it well.

The intensity of a complex plot and dark villain (she does use black magic after all) is balanced well with supporting cast who has a more lighthearted personalities. I love love love the banter between Xiao Han Sheng and his military advisor. And yes, even if I know it's another cliche, I buy-in the adopted cute daughter as our main leads' romance catalyst.

All in all, if you like suspense romantic drama but don't have much time, this short 10 mins of18 episodic series will serve you well.

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A Dish Served Best In Longer Runtimes

Many who watched this probably had similar thoughts to mine. These are like 15 min eps and they are TOO SHORT! But the production quality is still SO GOOD! Dammit Korea lol. They really need to stop with these and continue with the full length series. It clearly worked with "Light on Me" and it'll continue to work moving forward.

This series was still alright though. My first thoughts were: Okay why was him pulling him around and towards him via the belt on his apron hot AF (lol). This is cute I like the dynamic, though I have no clue how these 2 are gonna end up lovers lol. The ways that they finessed these 2 together were alright considering the lack of time to do so. They had me hooked enough to finish the series! But it made me want more and disappointed by the rush in conflict by the end. There's been better Korean BL series, even with shorter run times. However this one is somewhere in the middle.

Also Jung Woo wearing that purple floral granny hat was everything, while Do Gun be chasing him with a literal kraken. That I will keep in my heart forever

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Saved by the long haired devil in Prada.

This is one of those dramas with many, many flaws but somehow still manages to be so very enjoyable to watch that it commands higher ratings than it deserves. It is also one where for me, a secondary lead playing a dark character completely steals the show and wins my heart.

This is the story of Hua Qiangu (Zhao Liyang), a cursed orphan who has a tendency to attract demons. She is rescued from angry and fearful villagers by a powerful immortal Bai Zihua (Wallace Huo) who after many trials, reluctantly accepts her as his disciple. Of course they can't help falling in love but if the master disciple relationship is not obstacle enough, she is also fated to be his calamity and it is his duty to suppress the demon goddess within her by killing her. They come regularly in conflict with factions of the Demon Sect, who are out to steal a number of magical artifacts that when put together unleashes the demon forces. When her master Bai Zihua is mortally injured, Hua Qian Gu goes on a quest to recover all of the artifacts regardless of the consequences. This is a result of the machinations of a mysterious antagonist that results in a good surprise plot- twist.

As a couple Qiangu and Zihua would have worked better if Wallace Huo had not appeared to be icy-faced practically all of the time. He is a good enough actor that he must have just been a bit lazy in this role. As a result, his Bai Zihua came dangerously close to crossing the line of being cruel and indifferent to Hua Qiangu. I was still rooting for them as a couple but there were many moments where he really angered me. This made Hua Qiangu seem a bit silly for being so devoted to such a cold fish when she was surrounded by so many other more worthy suitors. Huo's rather flat performance left the door open for the secondary leads to steal the show and indeed they did. Andy Zhang was really very convincing as Dong Fang but it is Kyle Ma's Sha Qian Mo that shocked and awed.

I would probably have given this show a 7 or 7.5 without Ma's Sha Qian Mo. He was equally compelling as the fearsome and deadly Demon Lord as he was as Hua Qiangu's tender and protective Sha Jiejie. He is a total fashion diva that embraces his feminine side, pulls off these colorful, exotic and unambiguously female outfits and hilariously exchanges beauty tips with Qiangu. He would sadly advice her not to love her callous sifu so much despite sagely knowing she wouldn't be able to help herself. This was one of the characters from the show that really resonated with me and saved the drama. I'd like to see this actor again in some better roles!

The overall story-line is very interesting it moves at a nice pace for the most part and then at the end the story gets garbled, a bit confusing and then it ends abruptly. It is as if they ran out of time or something. This is really absurd because they wasted hours and hours on this super annoying, whiny CGI caterpillar character that turns into a noisy, talkative and thoroughly irritating girl. The directors and scriptwriters really deserve to be spanked for wasting time they did not have on this now hopefully unemployed actress. This could have and should have been a much better show. Still while rushed, the ending was not as terrible as some have described as the two leads did manage to click well in the finale. Its is still overall enjoyable and worth watching.

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Soo sweet the cotton candy turned in to goo

Any review of this drama can probably not include spoilers as this drama is pretty much the type to spoil itself with so many known c-drama tropes you will feel like you are watching all the c-fluff dramas you have previously seen all at once. As even the product placement of Rio is back alongside fluffy feathery snow.. .

The male lead is the typical icicle god. A swimmer who only has eyes for the female lead, completely lacks verbal communication skills but does seem to have some kind of basic respect towards women when he is not jealous.

The female lead is the typical insecure bubbly lovable gal who if you put aside her self doubt is actually pretty smart and funny... giving us a lot fun scenes and some pretty amusing lines a long side the misunderstandings and very odd assumptions.

The rest of the characters range from so annoying you want to shove them off a cliff to smart and pretty decent some will go between these two, while others are consistently annoying witch it too bad.

What ups the score is the ab-humour, abs and the female leads overall lovability. What keeps it from going up is its draggieness predictability and the over use of gestures and cheese turning this cotton candy fluff piece in to melted goo... covered in cheese.

So if you are in need of som goo and a lot of cliches + can handle over acting and annoying characters come along this is the place to be. If not then I suggest you move along and watch something else.

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NEW favorite BL series!

I usually don't write reviews, but this series is too amazing.

The story may sound boring, like it's been done before. BUT Nanon and Ohm make this series SPECIAL! First the acting was top-notch. Nanon and Ohm are such great actors with great chemistry together. You can really see it throughout the series. The whole cast did a great job as well. This show breaks the stereotypes! P'Aof did an amazing job directing.

The music scores in this series were beautifully done. It fit the mood of the scenes so well. We have 3 OST's. I loved them all. Definitely check those MV's out!

I would totally rewatch this series. It is now my comfort show.

Overall, this show can join ITSAY as another masterpiece. ( for me at least). If you haven't watched the show, I highly recommend watching this series!

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Reunited.

From beginning untill the end, it was confusing. It could have been a beautiful love story, but it wasn't.

The ML loved the FL so much that he could not bear to be without her. He felt guilty , because he didn't protect her as well as he wanted. A high priest granted him a second chance to do better.

I wanted to know the ending. If it weren't for the handsome ML, I would have stopped watching after a few episodes.
It was a mess and that is an understatement.
In the end I was angry for wasting my time. The ending was so bad, I don't even want to watch Chinese drama's anymore. That's how disappointed I am.

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Beautiful Depiction of the BL Industry

Right off the bat, Lovely Writer did an incredible job at drawing light into the toxic world of BL. I loved how I was able to enjoy this series while also able to learn and grow in my knowledge of what these actors have to go through, Kao and Up created a magical on-screen chemistry accompanied by an awesome supporting cast and an amazing production team.

Let's Dive In.

Let's talk about the complexity that is the characters. The writers' room was filled with geniuses, I swear to god. The character development that EACH person has was brilliant. Up's personality was the most noticeable, along with Beu's. I liked that these weren't just one-dimensional characters, or that they were set up to have no story whatsoever. A huge pat on the back to the writers of this series. Next to the wardrobe. Perfection. Each character had such a set style and it was a beautiful mix of colors designs, and patterns. By far Hin was dressed the best. Onto the plot. It was beautiful. It depicts such a truthful story to what it's like for BL actors when it comes to real-life relationships and fans. I just hope that this was enough to teach the overzealous BL fangirls that what is on screen is for entertainment and entertainment only. Nothing is for real, and no BL actor should have to put their love life on hold to please their fans.

The acting was immaculate. This was Up's first main leading role, and he did an amazing job. Episode 9 and 10 was by-far the best episode of this series, and that's all due to him. I literally cannot wait to see him in future series. Kao was so precious here. He played a completely different character here than on UWMA, so it was a great way to see how versatile he is in his acting. Him and Up had great on-screen chemistry, the Viagra plot was hilarious (also kind of bad, but good thing it was just a joke) and led to a beautiful intimate scene that was so sensual and romantic ( also super consentual. CONSENT IS SEXY). Aoey, Tum, and Tiffy were excellent supporting roles. I found myself drawn to Tum and Tiffy's story more than I ever had on any other straight couple in BL. I genuinely loved their relationship, and yearned to see them more. Bruce (Aoey) did an incredible job. While his character needed some serious therapy, Bruce was able to bring about these emotions that I've only ever seen a few BL actors be able to pull off. I expect to see some much more from him in the future, and hopefully soon. With that being said, my favorite character was Hin. He was adorable, he was charismatic, and I loved that the series gave him his own little mini plot and we get to seem more of him in the end. His actor's performance was perfection, and I want to so badly see more of him.

While I did love Sib, he felt a bit clingy at times. I just wanted him to give Gene some space, especially at the beginning of the series when he was acting strange and obsessed with Gene, even when they weren't that close. I think it was a poor desision to have Gene forget who Sib was. In the flashbacks, Gene looked way old enough to remember, unless he went through some traumatic head trauma and forgot. Talking about the flashback, just how old is Gene compared to Sib? While the actors playing them young did a good job, the age difference was a bit startling. Sib was literally no older than 7 while Gene looked like he was about to start high school. While I can understand the age gap as an adult, it looked strange and off when they were kids. I would've loved it had they changed Sib to be a bit older or for Gene to be a bit younger. Episode 12 felt really off, as in, it didn't feel like it belonged in the series. While it wasn't bad persay, it still just didn't fit in my opinion. Them breaking the 4th wall was definitely the worst part of it all. Could have done without that awkward look my way for sure. Whatever happens to Aoey? Whatever happens to Mork? What was the underlying relationship between Gene and Sib's brothers? What when on with Gene and Sib's dads? Where does Tum and Tiffy's relationship stand? So many plot holes left open, so hopefully those go away in the special episode, or maybe even a second season.

Overall, I loved this series. The way they called out so many problematic subjects in BL was legendary. This series needs to be watched by every single person just for the sake of keeping the humanity of the actors and the fans. A definte recommend.

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This is my first ever Japanese drama. My friend recommended me this drama so, I watched it. I liked the storyline but I guess they rushed up things a lot in the start. I mean literally a lot happened. And It is a romantic drama but It has a lot of romance which might be I guess inappropriate for some people who are expecting a clean drama or maybe a romantic drama but not this much intense. The acting of the actors was average tbh. The female lead was kind of a doll till the end as she doesn't have much prominent scenes. The acting of the rest of the cast was also good. In the start. you would be confused that why the male lead likes the female lead I mean who asks someone to be their girlfriend just after they have met but as you would proceed with the drama you would come to know all about it. So In all It was a good drama but I guess the watcher should be 18+.

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This is one of the best dramas I have seen in a long time for several reasons.(I don't even ususally write reviews but I made an account just to rate and write this because this drama was so good)

This drama has everything: lovable chraracters, great humor, deep meaningful plot, interesting supernatural power usage, wonderful character development, cross dressing, love triangle and just completely entertaining from the beginning to the end!

If you are a fan of high school dramas this is a must watch, you will love this, I can't wait to rewatch this unsubbed once my Japanese is better

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The Story Has Its Flaws But Ohm and Nanon Carries The Show Effortlessly

I’ve been reading some of the other reviews to ascertain where I stand in terms of Bad Buddy as a whole. And after all that back and forth – reading both the negative and positive reviews, I can objectively say, with definitiveness, that Bad Buddy is the BEST BL that GMMTV has produced so far. Relative to other BLs produced by other studios, Bad Buddy easily soars up high in the list. Now, this isn’t to say that Bad Buddy is perfect, if anything, it tries to be (and it almost comes close) but is held back by a few faults of its own, but not for lack of trying.

MUSIC
I don’t think I need to say a lot in this aspect. We had three original soundtracks created specifically for this series, and that alone is enough to tell you that the music is on point (as it should be for music created for this specific show). One genius move they made was to hold back the lyrics of the opening melody until the very last episodes. This was a pleasant surprise for the fans as the song had been hiding under their noses!

ACTING/CAST
If I were to specify the one thing that carried the whole show from start to finish, it would be Ohm and Nanon, and I’m not saying this lightly. Both Ohm and Nanon have received praise for their acting chops in their previous work. And so it is no surprise that a combination of them is deadly. With their experience and being friends in real life, their chemistry could only have been absolutely and effortlessly phenomenal, and it is. They have delivered what is arguably the best kiss in a BL, and more! As for the other casts, aside from the older actors and Love, it's just that their characters and the story did not lend them enough screen time to flesh out any outstanding performance, but that isn’t to say they’re bad.

Ohm and Nanon’s chemistry is unquestionably the best asset of this show, but you would be pleasantly surprised about Ink and Pa’s chemistry as well. Although they only have a very limited amount of time, it wouldn't be easy to miss and feel that spark between the characters. And of course, we got a tease of WaiKorn, but I never expected that ship to sail anyway. Overall, aside from Ohm and Nanon, the acting and cast were ok and are nothing to worry about.

STORYLINE
The story is nothing new. And where Bad Buddy stumbles (sometimes slightly, sometimes on its face) is in its story. The first few episodes were the weakest (no surprises there) with the seemingly incessant and objectively childish quarrels between the two gangs. The story tries to subtly redeem these characters through dialogues that try to correct for what we would consider toxic traits and mindsets in today’s world. Ultimately, we see the culmination of this Act as a way to bring the two lead characters closer together.

In the latter parts of the story, we are introduced to the conflict arising from the two characters hiding their relationship from their friends. Wai’s redemption arc is another matter that sparks debates even among avid lovers of the series. In my opinion, the resolution to this conflict was ok yet unsatisfactory, it leaves me on the fence.

The main thing that keeps on coming back, the biggest outlier is the seeming resolution of the conflict with the parents plus (*gasps*) another time jump. This is also not surprising given the fact that our expectations have been set from the beginning that this familial feud is the root cause of their rivalry in the first place. For some, time jumps are lazy and most of the time jarring.

I have some misgivings about the time jumps if I'm being honest to myself... But if it serves to move the story forward, then so be it... But I need some morsels and crumbs, please? My only wish is that we’d been given more time to see the parents’ relationship progress. Alas, I also understand that it may have been too wieldy (story-wise) trying to fit all these sub-plot points into what is already a dwindling number of episodes. And even now as I write this review, I'm conflicted about how I feel about it. Leaving this to the viewers' interpretations maybe is its biggest shortcoming.

Stumble it may, Bad Buddy redeems and picks itself up and brings itself up to new BL heights through the subversion and callouts of some of the most common tropes and stereotypes in BL (and did I mention the insane acting performance and chemistry of Ohm and Nanon, yes).

It rightly calls out and corrects the errant ways of previous GMMTV BLs when Pa explicitly takes a jab like “I’m straight but Pran is the only guy I like.” Its side female characters diverge from the usual and tired trope of a crazy ex-girlfriend or a secret admirer; the show instead turns this on its head by creating them to be wholesome supporters and reliable catalysts for the lead characters’ relationship. It also pokes fun at the seme/uke/top/bottom/wife/husband expectations in a queer relationship which is inherent in a heteronormative society – “Does calling me a wife make you feel superior?” Its GL side couple is given space to breathe and grow and not serve as fillers.

Moreover, and this is VERY important, there is no homophobia in this show. What this does is it normalizes queer relationships as if there’s absolutely nothing wrong with them, which there isn’t (not debatable)!

I know that I’m missing many more points that I could add to tell you that this show is worth your time. But to summarize, Bad Buddy’s flaws and imperfections are totally outweighed by all the positives about the show, chief among them Ohm and Nanon’s performance. There may be times when you may feel slightly disheartened by the turn of events but Ohm and Nanon are sure to compel you to stick to the ride for the rest of the way.

OVERALL, Bad Buddy is a show that puts a spin on the old Romeo and Juliet story, doing it well enough and in a queer context at that. It gives you enough and may leave you wanting more. IT'S A DEFINITE MUST-SEE!

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In my opinion, the first part of the drama, which focused more on Lee An and Jae in's romance and back stories was boring, but that was because I didn't like or care that much about both of them although they are the main leads. But then on episode 7 or so, the plot started getting more intense and it got more interesting to me.

As mentioned before, in my eyes the main leads weren't my cup of tea, they weren't able to captivate me. The secondary leads (Seong mo and Jisoo) were more charismatic. And it didn't help that Seong mo's story seemed to be the central plot of the story and Lee an's could as well have been a secondary plot. Seong mo was a better main lead material.

Sadly they did my 2 fav characters dirty...

I felt indifferent towards the romance between the leads (and that's a rare thing to me because i'm a romantic at heart) and felt that some of the romance scenes were unnecessary.

Two things annoyed me: The show seemed to like to remind us that Lee An is dumb, I guess they thought it was funny but I just cringed every time there was a scene showing that. And the second thing was the two leads' recklessness (going to places on their own without calling for help).

In my opinion this drama was just okay: Not good enough (imo) main leads, wasted potential of the second leads, some parts of the plot were confusing and the first and second part of the drama seemed liked 2 different dramas, it should have found a balance (the first part was more light-hearted with hints of comedy, and the second part got too serious and dark out the blue).

This drama doesn't have a happy ending at least to the one character who deserved it the most, considering what he went through his whole life, so beware of that.

I'd save myself of the pain had I known before I started watching this.

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Perfect female lead

Female lead is perfect almost like Mary sue but
As a princess, Her difficulties lies in planning revenge against emperor , so she cannot be not perfect when facing them . She is kind, calm , smart and plan many steps ahead , so without martial art she still badass. She is the best physician but got framed in lots of life and death situation from minor to the biggest.
So, Male lead who is martial art and equally smart as her should be the one who will protect her when she is in tough situation.

FL is perfect that she is also loved by other three men which means it is unique in this drama .All men are likeable ,each with their own style. Here, FL has married thrice before ML that we can imagine as three life time in Xian Xia , just kidding.

Chemistry between leads is amazing ,
everytime ML suspect her as chu jiu Ling ,not only sparks flying between the two, it looked like it is rolling inside of them too
Jiu Ling keeping emotion in and ling jiu letting emotion out. Haven't seen such an intensely emotional scene based on convincing conflict in a long while.

There is no misunderstanding between leads not even a bit, only joking about how they jealous each other unlike other drama which they put mainly a little.

It was really worth watching!
Highly recommended !!!

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so this drama was amazing. its the first cdrama to ever make me cry, its a feel-good cdrama and you can’t stop watching it. the cast was amazing, acting, everything. though i wished that lu xia and ying ended up together. its a cliff hanger and i need a season two real bad. you wont regret watching it. the cast are really cute and handsome, acting is on point, music makes it better (emotional, victory)
please watch it, its really really really worth your time. the matches are really good and makes you feel nervous and proud at the same time. its literally the best cdrama of the year. the plot was good, just like the anime. i dont really like sports dramas but this made me woosh bc its so good. please support this drama and love it with all your heart. tyy!!!

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