People who want to have action and an amazing story which is not really connected to the world where we live will be disappointed.
However I loved how realistic it was. From beginning to end I was excited, shocked and realised that just little things can change a whole matter, your whole life, your character and surrounding.
This drama has a really good ending.
The acting was amazing.
The music fits really good.
... and I will rewatch it to unterstand it better.
Money can drive people crazy and these nine episodes are the proof.
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The drama centers around a group of friends, struggling with the pressures of adulthood, but not quite ready to give up on the dreams of their youth. The four leads have great chemistry from the start, and I really felt like I was watching real friendships. I think that's this dramas appeal. Of course, it's also a romantic comedy. The rom com elements center mostly around close friends who begin to realize/admit they have feelings for each other, but there is also a complimenting storyline of a longtime couple who's relationship gets tested. Both couples are really realistic, even dealing with some super corny and cliché moments.
I've seen Park Seo Joon in quite a few dramas now, where he definitely knows how to turn on the charm, and this role is no different. He plays fighter Dong Man, who leaves the sport behind after a fight leads to controversy, and is just making ends meet with an annoying job and without any passion. Kim Ji Won plays Choi Ae Ra, his girl bff, who has a natural talent for public speaking, but can't seem to find a way to make her announcer dream come true. Before watching I heard a lot about their chemistry, so I was excited to watch, but in the beginning I wasn't impressed. I thought she was annoyingly bossy, and he was so dopey, that their moments together seemed more childish than romantic in any way. Eventually, as their silliness grew on me, so did their romantic chemistry, and I was suddenly completely invested in their relationship. I also loved that they were so comfortable with each other. As their passion for each other develops, so does their passion for following their dreams, and both were inspiring to watch.
Song Ha Yoon and Ahn Jae Hong were endearing, and sometimes heartbreaking, as Seol Hee and Joo Man. There were times when I cared more about their storyline than the main couple, and they definitely made me much more emotional. I laughed, cried, and yelled at the screen over their relationship. I will say that I think Jae Hong is the MVP of this whole cast. She has a seemingly simple, and passive role, but she brought so much depth to the character that she brought me to tears.
The supporting cast was great. I adored the kid versions of the main characters, and thought the supporting cast had some pretty memorable characters (I loved the coach). Even when the writing was lacking, the characters pulled it off and made me keep caring. I do wish that Kim Sung Oh and Jin Hee Kyung had stronger storylines, and think that some talents were wasted by bad writing.
The writing is my biggest problem with this drama, especially towards the end. The most frustrating for me was that Jin Hee Kyung's Landlady character deserved a much better storyline, and they took too long to get into it, so the ending felt way too rushed. The land lady's son also wasn't given enough time to develop into someone I cared about at all. The Fight story was completely predictable, even if the fight scenes were entertaining, and hearing Ae Ra complain, and Tak Soo scheme started to get way too repetitive for me. The ex girlfriend seemed almost forgotten about completely at one point. The sister looked like she had the potential to be interesting, but was more like a glorified extra. I do have to give the writer some credit, because with each episode I was still entertained, and couldn't wait to watch the next episode... for the most part. The last two episodes, however, were pretty disappointing, and although it was a satisfying ending from the character's standpoint, I was more aware of how many loose ends or weak stories there were. The last scene was cute, but ridiculous, and felt like they just didn't know how to end it and gave up. I almost think that the drama could have used an extra 2 or 4 episodes to tell all the stories well, or cut the extra stories out completely and maybe make the whole thing shorter.
Overall, this is a fun drama, with a good soundtrack, and likable characters, so it's hard to complain too much. Also, I wish I had that secret rooftop bar in my life. That may be my favorite thing about the whole drama! I could watch "Fight for my Way" again, just for the interactions alone, but it's not high on my rewatch list. I think it's easy to relate to, so I understand why it has such high ratings from viewers, and I definitely recommend watching it if your expectations aren't too high. This is definitely the kind of cast you will want to cheer for as they fight through quarter-life-crisis feels, and support each other along the way.
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Morticia Addams is now killing demons!
I was about to give this drama a 7.5 score unfortunately the last 3 episodes made it a 7.This series is pretty enjoyable action drama.
A secret society has being fighting demon like creatures for centuries but now a new menace is on the horizon. Pretty simple and straightforward.
Nothing groundbreaking plot wise but the series has a good pace (and relative short episodes) which makes it enjoyable.
The characters have an interesting backstory and ark. The romance is there but is not overbearing.
Funny to say giving the fact that the series is based on a "fighting organization", but the actual action scenes are the greatest.
They are not cringe, on the other hand they are not mesmerizing as well. The camera tries to cut away many times to avoid showing the audience how the characters is moving.
Another point to make, but maybe this is just me, is that the explanation of how the creature are created or transformed in the show is muddy. I didn't quite grasped it. It gets more clear near the end but during the drama I was confused.
As I said before, until the last 3 episodes the drama was engaging and interesting but after the "big fight scenes", we get 2 episodes with characters rescuing others and the last 2 episodes add cliques...
The female leads loses her memories which is so clique.....
Other footnote is that the drama sometimes forgets characters and don't mention them until 10 episodes later..
If you are looking for something other than Rom coms this is a good show.
P.s. I loved the female lead and her Morticia Addams vibes.
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strong start, rushed end...
As typical of a JBL we get an interesting premise, we get an serene atmosphere and quite a slow pacing. I just feel the end is rushed, another episode should have extended the end which was overly fast and breaks with the overall pace of the show. Especially they introduced the "Konno goes abroad" thing which is not in the original manga and which did not make much sense especially when they were limited on episodes anyways. To introduce drama is not always a good choice, this series could have done without it.The cinematography was top notch, the actors did a good job, except with kissing. What's the point of close ups "kissing" when the lips are only touching for a "endless" time. Besides that, I have nothing to complain about. So overall a good BL which started much stronger (the first two episodes were just perfect) and gave us a weaker ending. The series is extremly short, only about 24 minutes per episode (except the finale which is about 30 minutes), so you can easily binge-watch this and have a better flow and not a week long suspense.
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Acting/Cast: I was glad to see that Danson Tang came back to the TDrama scene with a bang. His depiction of the main character was brilliant. I love how Danson was able to act out such a wide range of emotions on his face from sombre, mad, in love, sad, naughty, teasing to just being plain cold and arrogant. His was my favourite character in the drama. This brings me to my least favourite character in the drama - coincidentally, the female lead! Do not get me wrong here. Ivelyn Lee acted brilliantly and delivered an excellent performance. It is her character that I disliked. What I disliked about Ivelyn's character of Guan Xiao Tong was Xiao Tong's cowardice and indecision when it comes to love relationships. She tends to over-analyse everything (like the psychologist she is) and tries to predict how the relationship will end. She failed to just enjoy being in a relationship and just let things develop naturally. She's always putting one foot in the relationship and another foot out (just in case things go wrong!). Therefore, she would always take the first step to end the relationship before she would really get hurt beyond repair. It did not matter what the man did for her or how much he had expressed his love for her...she has her own agenda and has already decided how she will end things with him. And once she had ended things with him, she started to over-analyse and regret her decisions in her past relationships.....the indecisiveness of her character totally makes me angry. Hers is like a pendulum, always swinging back and forth, always trying to take the middle ground but failed. Personally, I dislike ppl who are indecisive and have insecurity issues. I am glad that towards the end, she learns from this flaw of her character and grows more mature in her relationship with the male lead. It is because of my personal dislike of indecisive characters that I rated this drama 8.5/10 instead of the 9/10 I gave for its story. A stronger female lead character would be more to my liking.
Music: Lovely music but I've heard better ones before.
Rewatch value: I love all the lovey dovey scenes and the scenes where Danson acted the jealous and naughty man going after the girl he likes. I am a traditional person when it comes to love and appreciate it when the man is the one who goes all out after a girl and makes it so very apparent to all and sundry! To me, that is very flattering to the woman and very romantic as well. Therefore, this drama has a high rewatch value for me because of all of the romantic scenes between the leads.
Overall: It has been a while since I'd watched a TDrama. The industry has experienced a slump of late but once in a while, you'll find a gem and as of July 2015, this drama is the gem of 2015 TDrama for me. If you like romance dramas with mature story lines with a hint of mature comedy such as 'In Time With You', 'I want romance', 'Gentleman's Dignity' etc - you'll most likely like this drama as well.
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a healing journey indeed
first, if you are here for the actor kim jae yong, he does not get so much screen time which is understandable. The story revolves around our main character Yeo Reum, about her own self discovery journey. This drama is slow paced, healing, and more focused on sceneries and human emotions.what i loved and you might love:
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1. Yeo Reum is rather a relatable character. she is trying to find herself, yet she seems to be more of a background character=not special(as many of us feel sometimes). Her goal is to find her own place in the world.
2. her growth does not involve only personal struggle, but also continuous learning from her clients that she substitutes. Those are people with nuanced stories and lives that we, along her, get a peak into. we learn about their past. regrets, and their life lessons
3. the sceneries are no joke, especially if you are like me and trees are your spiritual animal lol
4.no fully-fledged romance but we get crumps dont worry lol! i think the director felt that going for a full romantic story might overshadow the depth this drama wanted to convey. it could have also undermined the sense of self that kang yeoreum has been trying to establish throughout her journey.(maybe that is reserved for the s2)
what i disliked and you might too:
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1.as i ve mentioned it is understandable but maaaaan, i missed kim jae yong while watching this drama lol. i ve been anticipating when he would show up but let s say i was disappointed enough times before making peace with the dramas vision
2.the end was a little bit ummm...it closes with a cliffhanger. i mean it s a so so for me.
3. i wanted more from kang yeo reum more nuance let s say. i still felt like we are just scratching the surface with her.as i mentionned she grew vicariously through her clients, but i would like to see more going on in her own life.(maybe in season 2 )
4. i love this actress yet she sometimes fell short in depicting despair and sadness. she seems a little bit disconnected or flat for me.
overall, a good drama to heal your soul. It lets your mind wander about the meaning of life and success, while you enjoy breath taking landscapes and you get engaged in the human experience. A moment of mother nature's beauty comforting you.
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NO WORDS TO PRAISE THIS MASTER PIECE.PLEASE WATCH
Wohhhhh!I found a gem!Thank god its a happy ending.i wasnt a fan of school dramas. But this one is mind blowing. How both male and female lead can act so realistic?!Hats off. Acting, Makeup, Music, emotional content, story everything on point. Thanks MDL for helping me to find this movie.
How young actors are this much skillful?!!Its not at all like watching a movie, Its kinda watching them in real life. The scenes where both male and female leads talking through eyes are touching and realistic.
Its not a lovely cute drama to watch. Might not be everyone cup of tea. But a quality movie lovers will cherish this movie.
Dont skip this movie.
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Still Walking centers on a particular day in the life of an ordinary Japanese family. While they try to maintain a semblance of normalcy on this day, the occasion cannot allow it to be wholly so. It is the memorial of a tragic death, and so even the most errant of relatives have come to call.
The story is told through beautifully written, but realistic conversations and domestic interactions between characters. While they cook, play, eat, or chat together, the dynamics between them slowly but surely unfold. We see fondness, pain, nostalgia, resentments, and all manner of feeling bubble to the surface. But none of this is done in the usual bombastic way, lending the entire piece more relatability than one might first imagine. It’s all very Japanese, but very human as well; how often have you swallowed a hurtful comment or urged yourself to forget it… just because of the ties that bind? I saw parts of my own family in Still Walking, little bites of conversation I've spoken myself. It leaves one with much to think about.
My chief issue would be that, while slow films rarely bother me, this takes a little *too* long to launch. Still Walking requires the viewer to see every minute to feel its effects to the highest measure. The ending also feels a little incomplete, but that can be overlooked; Still Walking is meant to portray life continuing under the cloud of death. We don’t always get perfect conclusions in real life, do we?
Calling out a particular actor or actress for an exemplary performance would be difficult. The entire ensemble works together so well they give the solid impression of an actual family, bitterness, warmth, and all. If forced to choose, Abe Hiroshi might win as the most easily recognizable among them; much of Still Walking focuses on his Ryota, and he’s arguably representative of Kore-eda himself. Kiki Kirin is also remarkable as Toshiko, the talkative and smiling mother who hides her many battle-scars behind polite words. She sometimes reminded me of my own mother, which was a little jarring.
A particular piece of music that sticks with me after completion is Blue Light Yokohama (Ishida Ayumi). If one has never "heard" nostalgia, this song will change that. Despite being quite the “oldie,” its inclusion is just exquisite. Common sounds are used effectively also; such as overlapping talk, popping and sizzling in the kitchen, etc.
Please note the interesting shots used in Still Walking. Detail in them is astounding, from hallways to individual rooms. The cinematography here lends an air of tranquility, of reality, of home…. My weak powers of description are not enough to describe the effect. One must truly see it for themselves.
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SHORT AND SWEET
Four (technically five) short easy to watch, fun and sweet episodes.I enjoyed every minute with Sky and James although i have to say that the time spent with the girl characters to provide comic relief were all wasted - time that could have been better spent in further developing the 2 leads' love story.
However with that said, even though i am left wanting to see more, i still feel like the story of James and Sky is complete enough and i am glad they didnt leave any unfinished story. This is a good series and i felt like my heart was lifted after the last episode.
Kudos to the team and to the actors. Overall rating 8.0.
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Best K-POP variety show
Going Seventeen has been my source of happiness since 2017. From just the behind-the-scenes videos to a legend variety show. Nothing can beat this show. Thank you for an amazing year. It has been a really fun and wonderful year with you, GOING SEVENTEEN! If any of you reading this, you guys probably hesitate whether it is a good idea to start it but for me personally, if you ever find yourself into SEVENTEEN or just want something entertaining to watch, GOING SEVENTEEN, is the way to go. I really highly recommend this. Fyi, you don't have to be a SEVENTEEN's fan to watch the series. Seventeen have two separate fandom which is Cubic a.k.a just regular viewers of Going Seventeen, so don't feel burdened you can get to know them slowly one by one as you watch it. So have fun binge-watching these. I hope you can discover new happiness while watching it.Was this review helpful to you?
Tofu exists to tell us that miracles (rarely) happen
A fantasy show that explicit real-life matters in the most accurate way. The kind of drama who uplifts, inform, educate, and enlighten the general public about the world of a person falling in love with the same sex. It was reported to be the first-ever Lakorn BL that aired on a national television channel in Thailand. Which took the chance to build a new bridge on bringing out the difficulties, barriers, and emotional distress that criticism works on gay people. Exhibiting that generation gap is one of the biggest factors why most older people are homophobic. They are against seeing two male individuals being in love simply because of how society told them to be. In contrast to the people who borned in the earlier generations, who are more introduced to the freedom of choices that allows them to identify their own gender by themselves. Yet, LGBTQ+ community is far away from living in a world without experiencing a brutal approach, discrimination, and hate-crime from these anti-gay people.A perfect portrayal of this is Nut’s unhealed wounds from the past that he carries all throughout his life, not until his miracle happens. Living in a dysfunctional family, he surely suffers a lot. His father is a prideful man with toxic masculinity who physically and verbally abuses him. However, it's also frustrating that the one he considers to be the closest to, his mother, pushes that his son is like any other normal boy out there. Disregarding the child’s much-needed acceptance and support. Leading Nut to hold grudges and distance himself from his mother.
Fortunately, the appearance of Tofu slowly calms down the chaos from the house and closes the gap between the sour history of the mother-and-son. All thanks to the fantasy that I never expected to be this great, with the rarity of showcasing fresh ideas that I never yet seen from others. The level of imagination in creating talking objects from the strong emotions coming from humans. A well-appreciated flow of mysteries that is both entertaining and sentimental.
Tofu being one of the most selfless characters and cutest human-teddy in the history. His willingness to be hurt and sacrifice himself for the sake of the happiness from the people he loves is annoyingly making me all tear up. When Tofu put up with any kind of pain, I wholeheartedly wish that he became selfish for once.
Phenomenal acting on every dramatic and confrontation scene coming from Mrs. Na and Nut. You can feel the tension of their emotions ranging in their hearts by only looking at their eyes. We witness the importance of conversing in one’s life. The exchange of words and being honest can help to release the uneasy emotion that keeps dwelling inside. There’s nothing more touching than to finally witness Nut and his Mom embracing a new start in life. Tears can’t stop from flowing, especially the scene where they took a family picture. The journey towards reconciliation took so long but all’s well that ends well.
Theories are all over your mind once you start watching this. The drama that makes you feel excited for more since it triggers your brain on the possible outcome that the story may end. However, during the last few episodes, plots are predictable but who cares as long as they consistently display a fine job executing the storyline.
It also delivers a variation of big emotions. A feeling of warmth and comfort from Gen’s family. An open-minded parents letting their son decide for his own path in life. Their entire family conversation is extra-sweet and loveable; a real gem. The feeling of happiness on seeing the appended hole between Song and his Dad. The eighteen year old boy comparing himself to his deceased brother is sadly unavoidable. Perceiving favoritism is what makes Song unhappy as for the reason that his dad remembers a lot more things from Neung more than his living son. The realization of the dad was a joyful conclusion of their character development. Song and Gen’s family picture at the finale, draws a curving smile on my face.
Kuenchai is hailed as the cutest, fluffiest, and most intelligent dog in Lakorn. He outshone real human actors with his excellent acting skills as a supporting character. A bright ray of sunshine and the couple’s number one third wheel. His whole existence contributes a lot from the show, most especially his relationship with Tofu. Even when Tofu came back to his original form, Kuenchai wanted to play with him and keep him company from time to time. Tarn on the other hand is the person who colors the gloomy world of Nut. The bittersweet high school love story is a good memory. Nut lives in a depressing world at his house before but Tarn makes him feel the exact opposite.
The actress playing as Jan deserves praise as well. She did well on being firm to her character as the obsessed love antagonist. Saen as the greatest pretender was somehow expected since they didn’t have enough characters to be suspected for the crimes he did. It just felt so weird that Sean and Jan blamed each other before for Tarn’s incident and they ended up being the suspect.
The show also emphasizes that marriage is a life-time choice; marrying someone you truly love. Along with it, the artistic writing technique and the uses of idioms in life is an effective and affectionate way of storytelling.
In Sarin duality from this show is insane. Him as Tofu is full of cuteness while Nueng is full of manliness. You can easily differentiate the two from having distinct vibes. Also, I’m living my best life by seeing a lot of skinships and skin exposure from the series. It may not contain heated bed scenes but it is more than enough to say that the main leads are bathing in sexiness.
And yes! The episodes prior to the last, tried to prepare the viewers for the tragedy. I anticipated this ending but it still hurts me a lot. Conveying the message that fairy tales don’t exist and we will eventually end up going back to reality. I break down when Nut and Tarn bring back the tragic romance they had before while Tofu is happy enough to see Nut in a good situation.
This drama inspires and pushes me to start writing my own novel and I’m currently having a fun time doing it. I love that the show doesn’t only center in a love story but talks about various topics surrounding societal problems that mostly revolve around the family.
Tofu, your whole existence to the show doesn't end in a tragedy. The best version of yourself remains in everyone’s memories. Thank you for allowing us to witness a miracle in life. You deserve the whole world. You deserve a Tofu in life too.
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7 years ago STH was my first journey into dramaland and even now when I hear "Bogoshipda", there's a quick bittersweet tinge of feeling. A must watch! Just select lighter fare after STH.
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Aside from the plot being quite well put together, the last episode was extremely good by Kdrama standards (and if you watch a lot of Kdramas you know what I mean about their endings often being a trainwreck). And this also belies the plot being well-thought out.
I also liked the actors. I didn't see great chemistry between the leads but it was enough to find them a cute couple and individually I liked their characters a lot. In particular I liked (and was surprised by) a decision made by the female lead near the end that I really didn't expect, and how that decision bolstered the theme of the entire show. The theme and "lesson" of the show regarding the nature of marriage/romantic relationships. I'm not going to say what the theme was, but suffice it to say it was strung together throughout the whole drama in a nice way and they never deviated from it, which is why the plot feels so cohesive.
All in all, this was never "must watch" for me, but on the other hand, I really appreciate that it did some things right regarding theme and plot that so many dramas fail to do.
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NOT a cliché catastrophic love story but in fact a marvellous jewel.
I have never been a fan of “love stories” or any dramas that have been set up in 1970/1980s. I prefer modern or extreme historic dramas but this one is so different then many other that I’ve watched.
Story/Plot:
Youth of May- the name itself signifies the story of the leads. It’s a love story taking place in Gwangju during the 1980s in the midst of the democracy movement. The main love story isn’t directly connected to the movement but plays a big role in the story. The basic plot of the story depicts Hwang Hee Tae, who comes from a well off and well known family but hasn’t lived the best life. On the other hand, we have Kim Myung Hee a kind and selfless nurse who although is very strong, tries her best to not show her weak side. Although many might find the story a little slow paced, I in fact adored how beautifully we could see the chemistry of our leads grow scene after scene. There are many life lessons of this drama that truly did catch my attention in many ways.
While focusing on the leads, I loved how the support cast was had their fair share in the story and none of the support characters were “useless”. All the characters played an important role and made the story what it is.
Acting/Cast: (EXCELLENT AND OUTSTANDING)
Each and every cast member did an outstanding job in portraying their roles. The most notable actors for me were lee do hyun- I’ve seen him in many dramas playing totally different roles in all and he has scored each and every one of em’! He’s definitely one of the most remarkable actors of the generation. Go min si- I’m shook at how versatile she is. From love alarm to sweet home and now THIS- they are all completely different roles and yet she’s portrayed them flawlessly!
Geum Sae Rok- this is my first drama with her and man I’m in love with her skills! It doesn’t look like she’s acting and that’s how real she is. In fact she’s definitely my favourite character!
Choi seung hoon- I’ve followed this little man in a few dramas and man he’s good. He depicts the emotions of his character extremely well! He’s pretty talented!
Characters: (of imp roles)
Hwang Hee Tae: I think it’s safe to say that he was MADLY in love with Myung Hee, which is why he could be considered somewhat selfish. I mean love does make one selfish- which is why his top priority had always been to make sure that Him and Myung Hee were safe and together. I loved how he was EXTREMELY respectful and gentle. Genuinely, he’s not a man anyone world wanna lose. He’s playful yet sad- he’s perfect with all his imperfections!
Myung Hee: I love her. She’s tries her best to live with honesty and her selflessness is very attractive. She’s the kinda person who’ll risk herself to help a stranger. Although she does have a hard life, she’ll never show herself being sad in-front of the people who care for her. She’s an extremely strong woman, which is why I respect her.
Soo Ryun: I started from strongly disliking her to absolutely loving her. In the beginning, she was selfish and not the most honest person- but I get where that came from. As episodes passed, I understood her more and I absolutely loved and adored how she didn’t give a damn about her love life and dedicated herself to her country and citizens. She’s extremely strong and doesn’t need anyone to take care of her, which is why she’s my favourite!
Hwang Gi Nam (Hee Tae’s dad): Annoying, hateful, cunning, merciless, disloyal and if I could- I would love to kill him myself.
Overall: Truly a masterpiece and definitely worth a one time watch. It has it’s own fair share of tears (a river or maybe a sea) and happiness! I recommend this to everyone if your looking to watch a drama that’s of high quality and amazing presence.
Rewatch Value: If your strong enough, then yea go for it! Watch it again! I personally wouldn’t rewatch it except for a few scenes!
Edit: Yayyy! I’ve been analysing and writing this review since episode 1 and now I’m finally here!
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