This review may contain spoilers
It’s a Love It or Drop it drama
When you watch this drama, bear in mind that it was a low-budget drama that nobody wants to take because the theme is censorship-risk. The actors were also non-traffic actors albeit their long presence in the industry.1. Acting and chemistry between the leads are for me what carried this drama. They owned their characters. I am impressed how Vin Zhang can always make a rather weak or minor character stand out. As a second lead, he always gives us serious second-lead syndrome. Sally Jing is a new discovery for me. I have seen her in other dramas before but most were less than mediocre performance. The chemistry was so tangible that they become one of the most loved real life CP by the general public.
2. Costume is on point. The qipaos and accessories were all personally created by the stylist. Even her modern clothes are modest but tasteful, classy yet conservative.
3. There are plenty of illogical aspect like the plant mutation to human. But hey it’s fantasy? Also, note that the original
material actually describes Si Teng as half-demon. This just won’t pass censorship.
4. PLOT - The plot is not for everyone. Do not watch this expecting a love story. This is about Si Teng trying to make sense of her resurrection and seeking her old power and past memory. Qin Fang is basically a tool to assist her in the modern world. The first few episodes are confusing but you have to focus because it will make sense eventually. If you are confused, it is because Si Teng was also confused. She has fragmented memories, so the plots seems fragmented as well. You may be tempted to drop the drama here.
5. One reviewer said how come Qin Fang just fell in love without explanation. They did not fall in love until halfway through. They were together everyday facing danger with Si Teng being soft and caring inside, saved him several times not to mention ultra beautiful.... why won’t you fall in love? Some dramas have the main leads falling in love at first sight on episode 1.
6. Qin Fang gives you a different recipe of a male lead. His strength lies on his selflessness and kindness not to mention old money and handsome. We usually see rich male leads in dramas acting like ass or the coolest guy in town but in real life, there are people born from generations of wealth who are low-key and humble. They don’t have to try; they were born with confidence that they do not have to prove themselves. The mor regal presence just emanate from their mannerism.
7. Si Teng is not perfect but she has one of the best lines coming from a female lead in any dramas I have watched - I will rather die than rely on somebody else to live. She is strong and saves the ML. Some dramas promise us strong female character who ends up getting in trouble and getting saved by ML at all times. Si Teng’s strength does not rely on her rattan power alone (which has been weakeed) but on her being calculating and clever.
8. Which takes me to the conclusion of this drama. There is still lot of loose ends. However, the ending is what makes sense for the type of character they are - a very happy ending imo. They could have chosen a fluffy ending in the modern world but at the expense of what? Si Teng losing who she is and just relying on Qin Fang.
9. Bai Jing was played by the director of the film. I feel he added unnecessary drama and screen time to himself.
10. I am not an expect on technical details but I must say the director is good. The real life location are nothing I have seen from other dramas. CGi can improve, but the budget is
11. The Xuan Sect members are pulled from the crew to act. Forgive them if they overreact.
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Realistic
Looking for something with high sexual content? LEAVE! Looking for cute fluffiness? WELCOME! Looking for something that tackles real life issues? LOOK NO FURTHER!I've LOVED Kao since UWMA so it was only natural I watch his new series and I gotta say...it was well worth waiting weekly! Obviously, there's gonna be a few bits in the storyline that can be considered "basic" but I promise it's all worth it. I'd recommend to a new BL fan in a heartbeat! There's visuals all around and the kissing scenes are ON POINT! I can definitely sense good chemistry between everyone. The dark side of being an actor (especially in BL) comes to light here and in all the worst ways. Cyberbullying at it's finest and the things it can do to everyone involved shows it's ugly face and it gets pretty emotional but once again, WORTH THE WATCH!
Enjoy...
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In Short: Laugh-out-loud hysterical comedy. I liked the premise, and I loved the characters in this. Gong Hyo Jin is as likable as ever, Cha Seung Won is brilliant, and Yoon Kye Sang’s dorky smile got me every time.
Pros: Well paced, brilliantly casted and truly charming. Ding Dong!
Cons: The metaphor overdose was a bit tiring by the end of it. Also, the time skip past the mortal danger was a bit of a let down.
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Lan Sizhui: He has grown more capable and stronger since The Untamed, but remained true to his character.
WWX: I enjoyed the WWX references and cameo
Wen Ning's song: nice to hear his song at the end credit
What I didn't enjoy:
Subtitle: the text was white which made it difficult to read
Wen Ning: He didn't seem like the same character from The Untamed. He's definitely more mature, intelligent, and serious in the Living Dead, but there wasn't much of an explanation about how his development.
Lan Wangji: There were many WWX references, but only 1 for Lan Wangji. I was expecting Lan Sizhui to mention him at least once.
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"Can you still hear the cry of that deer?"
Because of my love for Shin Ha Kyun I jumped into this drama right after the airing of the first episode. I just had to watch this so badly, even if it wouldn’t be a good production. But really, what else is there to say about Beyond Evil other than it’s the best drama of 2021 for now.The direction is so cinematically poetic, dark, deep, metaphoric.
The story is very well written and kept me on the edge of my seat. Nothing was forced, every episode made sense.
Some people might complain about the music, because it doesn't get every person into a serious mood, but for me it was so powerful it haunts me to this day.
The acting! Oh, the acting is beyond good... Shin Ha Kyun had definitely shown us the creepiest smile with the saddest eyes, so much pain hidden inside. And what’s even more amazing, Yeo Jin Goo wasn’t overshadowed by this veteran actor who always steals all of the attention. He also showed us marvelous emotional performance (especially with his heartbreaking gaze in a few scenes). AND THE CHEMISTRY BETWEEN THOSE TWO. I really don’t know how to say this, but it’s just something we probably won’t see anytime soon in the upcoming dramas. They played so extremely well together that it’s a crime to miss it.
And let’s not forget about the rest of the actors… even they were so immensely great! (Choi Dae Hoon especially resonated with me) It’s scary how I don’t have anything to complain about…
It’s just beyond good. I loved every second of it. This show is epic.
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Unexpected gem with characters we can easily relate to
I really like how the main focus is on the friendship between the main characters. While they go on this mission of theirs, we get to know a lot about each character but we also see them solve many of their problems, even improving their understanding of people in their lives.I honestly gave this series a shot because of Nunew, Tutor and Title, but I really ended up enjoying it. I think all of the actors and actresses have done an incredible job with their characters. And while I know their adventure is supposed to be kind of fun, I still think it’s also a journey to self-discovery of some sort for every one of them.
I think there is a character that each of person, especially young ones, can relate to in one way or the other. I relate to Patty the most, in so many ways. From fear of letting your family down, having to pretend that things are okay, not expressing her feelings openly, being able to stand up for everyone but yourself… I could continue to list things for quite a while. And I’m sure there are people who can just as strongly relate to other characters.
I do like the way they approached fan following. They adressed its positive and negative sides, they also showed how quickly things can turn from good to bad and back. All in all, a lot of it seemed really realistic and I really liked that.
Nanai – there is a lot more to him than just being a sweet idol. I think that is something that we can tell very early on with the scandals that are mentioned in relation to him, but it really becomes obvious later in the show. He is someone who doesn’t open easily, someone who also has some skeletons in his closet. And while in some way he is living his dream, he also misses being just a normal teen.
Patty – her parents are divorced (I think) and don’t really have much time for her, so she turned to the internet, her favorite group, and fanfictions for comfort. I think we can all understand her need to escape. She is getting ready for her entry exams for college when their mission begins. She seems to be very responsible and well spoken, so she very naturally takes over as the leader of their group.
Porpor – he dreamed of being an idol one day as well, but never made it. He works as a food delivery driver. He is very sweet, he does sometimes act without thinking, but he also seems to be the type of friend that goes with all of your dumb ideas. He is very caring too. And his crush on Ainam is adorable. That is the only kind of romance in this series that I am okay with.
Ainam – she is Nanai’s bodyguard or some sort of manager that ends up tagging along, so she can keep an eye on Nanai. She seems to be kind of cold and detached at times, but there are also times where she really shows how much she cares about everyone who is a part of this mission.
Mui – she’s the oldest member of this group and she acts like the fun aunt most of the time. I really do think her spending time with the kids is something that will help her understand her son better as well. She is kind of quirky, but in a very sweet way.
Lemonade – she is known for being a bully online, something that has gotten her in trouble, even with her father who is a cop. She is short tempered and tends to go off before really thinking things through. I do find her interesting. She has this sweet look to her, but her tongue can be quite harsh. I do like the duality of her.
Andy, Summer & Jen – they are Nanai’s group members. I do sometimes feel like they don’t fully understand Nanai or like they don’t fully accept him as he is. There seems to be a wall between the three of them and Nanai that neither of them can really break down, especially the one between Andy and Nanai.
Ninja – the reason for the whole mission. Her story is sad, but she seems like such a sweet and positive person. She knows she doesn’t have long left, but she is not letting that bring her down. She is trying her best to be positive and full of energy for everyone around her.
Porsche – he was introduced as someone we should either hate or pity, depending on what episode we are on. But I couldn’t do either of that. He is much stronger than many could imagine, his words really showing how differently things could end. I simply hope that he can live happily going forward.
This really was an unexpected gem and it’s worth the watch.
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What a disappointing last two episodes
I have such a mixed feeling of this drama. Up to Ep14, it was one of the perfect score 10 that made me cried so many times. However the ending of this drama was total disappointment. That’s why my review is rather low.It is well written family drama, sportsman-women ship, school friendship, teenage first love and etc. However the drama created such an anticipation how it will end, then it crashed me. The final episode was total disappointment, especially for ML. It may have been a bitter sweet teenage first love experience for FL, but ML was already a young adult with hardship due to family issues. That is one of the reason why I hoped the ending would be a happy one. It was too much hardship for young adult to down fall financially at such a young age. It would have been much better drama if ML and FL to stay together by overcoming the difficulties. Such happy ending may be a cliché but I will give 10 if this was happy ending.
Oh boy, I just have such a bad taste in my mouth after watching such a disappointing ending. It is funny thought, I do not dislike bad ending like ‘Moon Lovers’. It was such a heartbreaking drama, But I keep watching the last episode over and over knowing I would cry so hard.
Too bad there is no way to make season 2 since characters are already in 40ish. Especially FL closed her chapter, her true love , at the very end. It would have been better if it was an open ending to bring them back together and makes happy ending at season 2. I would liked if ML meets FL at funeral and finding they are still single. Then daughter was their love child. And she was finding their parents love story in season 1. Hmmmmm I should have been the director of this drama. LOL
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Most satisfying mystery series i have ever watched
Who doesnt want to go back to the past and change something for a better future with our love ones? Though it is fantasy would love it.If a mystery drama can make me want to guess the culprit till the end without getting bored , then it is a HIT fo me. My perfect stranger is exactly that where i enjoyed watching every character , despised few of them, felt pity for few and cried for few.
KUDOS!! to the writer it is amazing how they unveiled the mask of each character and threw them out of suspects list.
Romance is definetly a shortcoming here but all the cute hugs our leads had were way more heart fluttering than anything more spicy
Some noteworthy mention:- FL's younger version of her father is quite adorable
If you are into suspense thrillers which makes you experience a whole lot of emotions with a slight touch of comedy. GIVE THIS A SHOT!!
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Action packed hit
Watched this primarily for Woo Do Hwan since its announcement but the delay of release now made sense because of Kim Saeron's scandal in 2022. Before getting into the short review, honestly have to say I hope she can make a comeback because her role in this showed immense growth since seeing her in High School Love On. Controversial opinion, but there you have it.The drama is far more violent, explicit, bloody and gruesome than anticipated going in, that I felt it should've been rated R. Viewer discretion is advised. Regardless I enjoyed it immensely. Great action sequences, insanely epic fight scenes that got me on edge and fearful at the same time. I loved the minute details regarding the fight from Ep1 in comparison to the one in Ep8, where the dynamics have changed between villain and protagonist.
Woo do Hwan delivered in his excellent performance yet again as Gun Woo and immediately earns sympathy from the viewer. His chemistry with Lee Sang Yi leaps off the screen. I haven't seen a bromance in a while and honestly, it gets better with every episode. Park Sung Woong who played Myunggil was really, really superb and have your blood boil from his actions.
From the scandal, the director had to make the call to rewrite scenes whilst they were in midst of filming, and it's very evident what's been done to accommodate KSR's reduction of screen time. It makes me wonder what the drama was supposed to have been if this scandal never happened because her character was significant very early on in the episodes, and her relation to the main characters was one of the highlights of this drama before it literally fell apart.
I have a strong sense that the archer was never supposed to be there, and it was always meant to be the three of them - Gun Woo, Woojin, and Hyunjoo - since their bond was sealed in the first half of the drama. Despite the great teamwork with the archer, it felt forced that this new character essentially replaced Hyunjoo. After the tragedy in Ep6, it was used a leverage to cut down KSR's scenes by making her "leave" to Rome. There was absolutely no logic to this and she should've been hell bent for revenge (far more, in fact) than Gun Woo and Woojin (whose emotions were reasonable and consistent) and stayed with them for Ep7-8 for the epic and cathartic finale.
Honestly because of the unspoken changes, the effect of last few episodes somewhat dampened the drama as a result and felt very abrupt. They did their best, but Bloodhounds definitely could have been much better especially from episode 6-8. It's not terrible exactly, but you have a sense of what might have been planned beforehand. I don't see the possibility f a S2, nor there is a need of it. Worth watching if you like action dramas, but it had great potential.
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Beautiful story , sad ending
As a fan of Japanese series , I randomly watched it. It’s a beautiful story. At first i thought it’s very erotic but at the same time shows the intimacy growing between two people. I didn’t expected the ending and i felt so sad cause i loved that character. Not giving major spoilers.It’s really beautiful to see , two people, completing each other , finally enjoying their life happily and than something like this happens . I felt devastated and heartbroken. Loved the acting and the couple. ?
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It delivers what it promises
With a title like Peanut Butter Sandwich it's not going to more than a lightweight comedy with some lightweight drama. For eight quick episodes its a worthwhile endeavor that delivers what it promises. Yahagi Honoka does some great scenes with deadpan stares and sort of double takes that add a dry humor to the general goofiness of the PBS setup. I also thought Hotta Akane was excellent as Sayo mixing a veneer of bitterness and denial over the underlying sweetness of her character. Don't expect an epic drama and you'll likely enjoy this.Was this review helpful to you?
Weren't it for a coupla things, it would've been a real gem
I have somehow mixed feelings about this "Don't Leave After School", as there were things I really, really liked about it but unfortunately also a coupla things I really disliked...What I liked:
1) Li Ting Ting: in my 15+ years of honorable Asian-dramophilia, you can guess I've watched my fair share of high-school themed dramas, and seen many actresses playing the role of a high school girl; well, never have I found a performance more convincing, more strikingly natural, more beautifully "realistic", than the one delivered here by Li Ting Ting! She almost made me believe for a while that I was actually watching a real high school girl, with all the quirky details of a not yet fully matured individual, the weird faces here and there, the goofiness etc.; my virtual standing ovation to an actress who doesn't care about "not looking good" all the time, if that's what it takes to fully portray a character! BTW, the fact that some people here criticized her precisely for that, while other people (or maybe the same people, I'm too lazy to check that detail now, LOL) went so far as to actually praise Tan Song Yun's "performance" in "Dear Mayang Street" (which I, on the contrary, just couldn't stand: that one didn't convince me in the least and, as far as I'm concerned, should be a perfect example of how NOT TO portray a high school girl, what with the annoyingly constant Mona Lisa faint smile and the clear "let's give the cameras my best profile all the time" attitude) is just another proof of how true Clint Eastwood's überfamous quote about opinions is, LOL
2) The subplot with Stephanie Xu's and Li Jun Ting's characters (together with Li Ting Ting's and Xiao Yang's, they were my absolute favorite characters, all beautifully written and masterfully portrayed, BTW), which actually got me more emotionally involved that the main plot regarding the leads, honestly;
3) The OST: not only are the credits songs beautiful (particularly "It's Nice That The Wind Blows" by SIS), but the score is top-notch throughout the entire drama, and adds a lot of value to the whole thing imho!
4) Some of the very creative intro scenes were little masterpieces, really! ^_______^
Were it only for these points, I would've given this a perfect 10, seriously!
Alas, the drama also had a coupla thing I disliked, as previously mentioned, and namely:
1) Not all the characters were so well written, quite a few of the rest (like Fiona, Da Meng, Qiao Mai, Li Da Lai, and the blackmailing creep >___<) were actually basically bidimensional, and that actually pissed me off greatly 'cause it showed some lazy writing in what would've been, otherwise, a real gem.../.__.\
2) The constant use of hand-held cameras; I understand it was meant to kind of "bring the watcher inside the action", but it mostly gave me motion sickness...O___o
All in all, the good points beat the bad ones, so I'm giving this a well-deserved 8...and I'm surely gonna watch more of Li Ting Ting's works in the future! ^___-
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Superb cast; sketchy plot sequences
The cast is superb: I love the characters and story lines. And I adore both leads: he is subtle and calm with a wry sense of humor; much of his acting is through his eyes alone. She is adorable and spunky, more than a match for his highness. Their scenes together are funny and touching; the growing affection and mutual protectiveness come through poignantly. Support cast is excellent, and I cared about their characters, especially the 2nd male lead who nearly steals the drama he’s so good. My only complaint is the writing could have been tighter, and the plot strengthened. 16 eps might be better than 20 because the longer series too often flounder in repetitive plot re-enactments and filler scenes. Still, I recommend the series: though for me the series just misses being great, it’s very good, and I’m glad I watched it.Was this review helpful to you?
This drama will take your heart out, crush it, and out it back
as the title says, it'll take a while to heal. it's a running joke in the fandom that years go by and you don't get over this drama. I'm writing this some years after watching it because it still lives vividly in my heart.I'm the kind of person who's very forgetful of what I watch, I could barely tell you the storylines or remember the actors. i'm also quite unemotional so it's *extremely* rare that I get impacted by a TV series.
but this y'all. this is something you watch and then don't remember life before it. the dynamics are great. the OST is great (i can sing the whole theme song in broken Chinese and whenever it comes in shuffle I feel my heart grow heavy). the story is heart wrenching. what's to miss?
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