Reviews

The Best KDrama I've Ever Seen- detailed character analysis below

Scarlet Heart: Ryeo was the first Asian drama I ever saw and since then I have never seen anything that has topped it in my heart. No other show has made me cry as many tears, think back as longingly, analyze as critically, or rewatch as many times as Scarlet Heart. Watch out, this review is gonna be long.

STORY:
Frankly, to all those who say the plot was choppy and didn't develop the characters, I don't understand you. I could write a critical analysis describing the trajectory of every single character. Literally. All of them. Every character has someone they want to love and protect, and ultimately someone they lose (see my list of the full cast at the bottom). And therein lies the tragedy to me of Scarlet Heart: There is no single villain bent solely on hurting other people, and yet there is also no one who achieves a happy ending. Moreover, there is a lot written in the small moments, in a single shot that may not seem relevant on your first watch. For instance, *MAJOR SPOILER* in episode 3 or 4 when Chae Ryung if being whipped, the 9th prince looks worried for a moment. Why does the camera pan to him? How is he relevant? It is not until the last episode that you learn the 9th prince and Chae Ryung were in love throughout the show. *END SPOILER* But it is small details like that that flesh out the characters, their relationships, their hopes, and their dreams. To me, the plot is entirely character-driven, focused on the decisions each individual makes rather than external incidents, and that's one reason it's so captivating.

CHARACTERS:
HAE SOO. MY PRECIOUS. I see a lot of reviews on here saying she's not empowered/strong, and that she's only happy-go-lucky with no other personality. Have you watched the show??? First of all, her "cheerfulness." People can have cheerful personalities without being naive, and I think Hae Soo showcases this excellently. Moreover, her fear, trauma, and depression increases as the show develops, until *MAJOR SPOILER* she literally dies of heart break and stress. *END SPOILER* Second of all, something I LOVE about this show is that an empowered woman does not need to be the smartest or the physically strongest or the cleverest. Hae Soo respects herself, and she respects the people around her. As she says in the first episode, "I'm smart, and I learn quickly." She adapts to her circumstances while protecting herself and those she cares for. She knows what she's good at and she uses her skills to affect her circumstances. Hae Soo is not a character who waits for people to save her, who just docilely goes along with what she's told. I mean, in episode 5 *MINOR SPOILER* she literally almost kills herself rather than marry the king. *END SPOILER*. She does not know martial arts. She is not politically savvy. But she doesn't let people walk over her, and she holds true to her values. *MAJOR SPOILER* She leaves the palace in order to free herself from a terrible, toxic relationship, even though she is still in love and does not want to end the relationship. *END SPOILER* To me, that is the epitome of strength, far more than the KDrama cliches of a woman who is in the top of her field in order to be "empowered."

Wang So- Wang So does carry a cliche of mommy problems. But what I love about SHR is that he doesn't "get over" his issues when he falls in love with a "nice girl." The intense abuse he suffers at the hand of his mother and adopted parents carries through all of his decisions, ultimately leading to *MAJOR SPOILER* his toxic relationship and breakup with Hae Soo. *END SPOILER* He does have a good heart, and he wants to be loved and respected and do the right thing. However, when he feels that love slipping, he grasps onto it however he can, even though that may hurt people, because he is so viscerally afraid of being abandoned and made an outcast. And though he originally seeks the throne for love, if that was his only reason he would have dropped it. Rather, as the central theme of Scarlet Heart portrays, eventually the throne casts its spell over him and he succumbs to pure and simple greed, fooling himself all the while that he is doing it "for love" or "to help people." No, babe. You're doing it cause you're greedy, and that's why you ultimately lose so much.

Wang Wook- I was in love with Wang Wook episodes 1-11. That's more than half the show. However, I eventually realized that Wang Wook is a coward, and then I see his cowardice in all his actions. Yet just like Wang So hid his greed under "true love," Wang Wook hides his cowardice under "doing the right thing." *MINOR SPOILERS* If Wook really wanted to do the right thing, he wouldn't have pursued Hae Soo while married. He would have married Hae Soo sooner after Lady Hae's death. He would have told Hae Soo honestly, "Hey, my sister has black mailed me, and so I can't protect you or continue this relationship. I'm so sorry." (hello Hae Soo would have understood and respected him for it.) If he wanted to do the right thing, he would not have used such awful, jealous, petty methods to chase the throne. *END SPOILERS* Rather, Wang Wook is always afraid to make a ripple, always afraid of how people will view him, and he is always afraid of losing his comfort and security. He hides behind books and righteousness to keep from having to make choices and actions, and this becomes the pattern that leads Wang Wook into a greedy, selfish mindset himself.

Aside from the three main characters, all the other characters have tragic desires and losses as well that I could examine in full detail. Instead at the end of the review I listed all the characters along with what they fought to protect, and what they lost.

To me, this is the romance and the tragedy of Scarlet Heart.

OTHER NOTES:
Music - This is one of my favorite OSTs ever. I think the rapping adds a harsh element to the scenes, and it's not like the characters hear the background music, so I don't see why it's a historical inaccuracy. As many mentioned, I Will Be Back rings like the tolling church bells whenever a character dies, adding a somber tone and a moment of reflection for every major death.

Directing- I took off half a point for acting because I do think the director does too many facial close-ups during non-dramatic scenes. I think that even though the actors were all great, highlighting their smallest facial movements like that is a disservice to most of them.

Court Lady Oh + King Taejo- I want to mention these two specifically because I think their love story is the most tragic in the entire show, even more tragic than the main characters. I also think their story is incredibly important, as it is essentially a foreshadowing of Hae Soo and Wang So. We learn about Court Lady Oh and King Taejo's romance right at the turning point between Wook and So, right at the turning point where the story begins to take a darker note. At this point, Court Lady Oh essentially tells Hae Soo (and the audience) outright what the outcome of the story will be, but Hae Soo (and the audience) are convinced that she can do it differently, that this time it will be okay. Whenever I rewatch SHR, seeing Court Lady Oh and King Taejo makes the entire series flash before my eyes and I feel this sense of inevitability, that even with this explicit warning, the characters still took the paths that led to their demise.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Scarlet Heart: Ryeo is a story about inevitability. It is a story about everyone trying so desperately to protect their loved ones that they lose themselves in greed, cowardice, and denial. It is a story about how flawed human nature can be, how good intentions does not mean there will be a good outcome. In my opinion, Wang So and Hae Soo loved each other truly, but you know what? Their relationship was still toxic. Just because love is real does not mean it is healthy, and Hae Soo was right to leave. And in the struggle for power, there are no winners, only losers.

Character List:
Wang So - wants Hae Soo, loses Hae Soo
Hae Soo - wants Wang So, loses Wang So
Wang Wook - wants Hae Soo, loses Hae Soo
Wang Yo - wants his mother's love, realizes he never had it
Baek Ah - wants Woo Hee, loses Woo Hee
Wang Eun - wants a carefree life, is caught in political intrigue
Wang Jeong - wants Hae Soo, loses Hae Soo (he comes the closest to happiness though)
Wang Mu - wants to be a good ruler, loses all of his sense in ruling
Wang Won - wants wealth, respect, and Chang Ryeo, loses all of the above
King Taejo - wants Court Lady Oh, loses Court Lady Oh
Empress Yoo - wants the king's love and power through her sons, loses all of the above
Princess Yeon Hwa - wants to protect her family, loses all respect and love from her family
Choi Ji Mong - wants Crown Prince Mu's happiness, loses Crown Prince Mu
General Park Gyeong - wants to protect his daughter and his kingdom, loses his daughter and watches the kingdom's downfall
Shin Ju Kang - wants power, is killed off as a traitor
Wang Ryeom - wants power, is killed off as a traitor
Park Yeong Kyu - wants power, is killed off as a traitor
Court Lady Oh - wants the king, loses the king
Empress Hwang Bo - wants to protect her children, watches her children destroy each other
Lady Hae - wants Wang Wook's love, doesn't receive it until after her death
Park Soon Duk - wants Wang Eun's love, doesn't receive it until her death
Chae Ryung - wants Wang Won and to protect Hae Soo's friendship, loses Wang Won and hurts Hae Soo
Woo Hee - wants Baek Ah and to protect her kingdom, loses Baek Ah in order to protect her kingdom

Read More

Money, Power , Betrayal and a bunch of really angry women

This is a pretty short drama showing the viewers that it is pretty tiresome for women to live in a world where men utterly suck... Can lead to a whole lot of frustration... And a feeling of wanting to get back at them by any means.

As we gather some petty creative woman who will stop at littearly noting to get what they want or more like to get their revenge...Blackail, framing, embezzlement, marriage,, calling rape... And more or less anything else you can imagine. There is truly nothing these angry woman are not willing to do to get what they want or kill them all while trying.

What I love about this drama is the pure evil, the corruption, the twists and the feeling of wtf... and can a person really be that evil (apparently yes). All keeping my interst to click on that next episode and binge it in less than a day. However I did feel that the ending was a little bit predictable and kind of rushed and would have wanted another episode or two to wrap things ups a bit better. Another thing I did not like about this drama was the crying rapa narrative, as these types of things often discredit woman who have actually been raped as most women will not report this patly due to fear of accusations of crying rape.

I find it kind of cute that a man who says he only sees women as vessels for sex, somehow is the most allegeable bachelor out there... That woman, mothers heck politicians keep fighting for. While there actually is a rich, handsome guy out there who nobody seems to want to give the time of day? However for a drama not listed as a romance it actually has some pretty decent romance, feelings and unrequited love here and there. At least if you are willing to believe these people have the ability to love which I am not really sure of... Not really the type I would want to be part of but entertaining to watch.

So to sum it up, this very short drama delivers what it promises, has some pretty interesting characters and is indeed fun to watch. It may not always make sense and it may not be a masterpiece but it does the job and will cater for all your evil, corruption and revenge needs.

Read More

If only a time taxi existed irl too...

Each episode features a different character attempting to change their regrets. I must admit that, in comparison to other episodic format dramas, I did not enjoy the majority of the stories. I thought they were over-the-top, and it was difficult to root for many of the clients. Episode 3 & 9 stuck out like a sore thumb for me the most.

In episode 3, we follow the life of a woman who is aware that the man she is dating is married but is indifferent. Throughout the episode, it's shot as if we're supposed to feel sorry for her.   Why should we, though? I would probably feel bad if she didn't know he was married, but she did. She even spoke to his wife a few times! Even if you felt sorry for her, your feelings were obliterated the moment she revealed she wasn't pregnant. Like ma'am????? 

I didn't like episode 9 for one simple reason: I didn't like the humour. There was too much back-and-forth, needlessly stretching it out to the 45 minute mark. I believe this is Japanese humour.

For the most part, I thought all of the actors/actresses did well. I wouldn't say there is a standout because they all appear to be on the same level. This does not diminish their acting abilities, but I found some of their voices extremely annoying to listen to. But not Takenouchi Yukata's voice. His voice is extremely soothing.

The opening sequence encapsulates the essence of this drama really well. The colours blended nicely together. I also liked the "Start" and "Retry" text. Small details like this increase the appeal of watching.

I enjoyed the jazzy music. Every time it was played, I vibed.

The concept was great, but the side plots ruined it for me. It was interesting to follow some morally ambiguous characters, but they needed to have at least one redeeming quality for me to root for them. Unfortunately, I couldn't think of a single positive trait for most of the characters here.

aight byeee~

Read More

Take the time to watch this.

It’s a feast for the eyes - it has a film noir feel to it. Filmed a lot in shadow, with brown/dark tones. Everything has been well thought out, the rooms, the clothes and the makeup all flow seamlessly together, with nothing out of place. The use of closeups was very well done, especially when the bartenders were mixing drinks. The two female leads work like yin and yang, one extremely overtly classy, selfish and insecure, the other more understated and comfortable with herself. The entire cast was very good, and they were working from a great script - a lot packed into five episodes, with no wasted scenes. The music added to the overall feel, from the pounding techno, to the use of a single, droning beat whenever someone entered the bar. This show was a joy to watch!

Read More

A mature historical kdrama - might or might not frustrate you.

My Dearest is a epic masterpiece most of the time - with beautiful cinematography, interesting plot and amazing acting. Set during 1600s when Qing declared war with Joseon, it tells the tough violent times with many innnocent lives lost, killed in brutal ways… In midst of the tragedy, there is Gil Chae, who started as an arrogant, spoiled young woman from a noble family, but who is forced to mature quickly because of war! And then there is the cynical realist Jang Hyun, who has seen it all. He”s a mysterious man with a dark past who is fascinated by the bold Gil Chae, she who has many men drooling after her because of her beauty and is disliked by other women because of jealousy and because she is not ladylike and is quite ”scandalous” known for flirting around. But she is in love with the scholar Yeon Jun, she tries everything to get his attention, but he’s engaged to her only friend - Eun Ae. Anyways everything is peaceful, but then war starts and it changes everything forever, Jang Hyun falls deeply in love with Gil Chae, Gil Chae however is confused by her own feelings …

My Dearest is somewhat loosely based on the classic Gone With the Wind, but it grows into its own unique story without much common with Gone With the Wind anymore. My Dearest is a serious, dark ”proper” historical drama, not one of those youthful lighthearted historical dramas with idol actors. The acting here is amazing and of highest quality, the quality overall is on the same league as Mr. Sunshine! Definitely not a cheap drama! Characters are multidimensional, flawed and complex. Both main leads - Jang Hyun and Gil Chae are very interesting characters. Jang Hyun is anything but naive, he doesn’t live in some bubble, he knows How dangerous, powerful and strong those ”barbarians” are, and that the Joseon men fighting in the war will most likely lose. Because he is not unfraid to be brutally honest, he is not popular among the others. Besides that, he has this playful nature, in order to hide his dark past. He is a womanizer who never wants to marry and he lives without a purpose. Just like Gil Chae, he is concidered ”scandalous”.

When Jang Hyun meets the much younger Gil Chae, he experiences true love. He loves teasing her, which often makes her angry. Just like the others, she looks down on him and is quite mean to him too, he is far from her ideal type…but when war starts she sees another side of him, and gets confused by her own feelings. Gil Chae, who has been in love with another man for years, refuses at first to admit her growing feelings for him, not only because she is in love with someone else, also because she doesn’t see him as serious since he teases her a lot and not wanting to ever marry.

The other characters are interesting too… we have Yeon Jun, an idealist who has studied confucianism all his life, he has been taught to put the King first, having him as the first priority, he is engaged to Eun Ae, an soft gentle young woman who is great at reading other people and a great observer, unlike Gil Chae. However, she is not nearly as strong as Gil Chae.
She loves Yeon Jun, despite not putting her first. But does Yeon Jun truly love Eun Ae?? Or is he with her only because she is the safe choice, while he has feelings for Gil Chae, but won’t act on them because she is too strong-willed for him, not some ”proper” lady. Then there is Ryung Eum, a legendary singer and Jang Hyun’s friend, he has a big Secret that he keeps to himself…

Despite the big age gap between Namkoong Min and Ahn Eun Jin the chemistry is AMAZING! I love their characters banter, how they quarrel and How both are so strong willed, refusing to back down! Sometimes Gil Chae gets a bit too harsh and mean to Jang Hyun, but we see she cares for him a lot. Jang Hyun sees Gil Chae for who she truly is, he admires her strength… would Yeon Jun admire Gil Chae’s strength? I doubt it,while he likes her he doesn’t want to a bold woman, he wants someone submissive. Anyways, Jang Hyun is willing to go so far for Gil Chae, and yes it’s frustrating because she doesn’t know that… but it’s not really her fault, because he never tells her how much he is willing to sacrifice for her. By the way, it’s such a delight to see how Gil Chae develops so much, how strong she actually is… at first you think she is quite stupid, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth… when it comes to surviving she is very smart. I love that.

Jang Hyun really grows on you, at first I didn’t know really want to think of him although I admired him for his brutal honesty and for being a realist, but I ended up really loving him and feel for him. He is without a dobt the best character in My Dearest, for me, and one of my all time favorite male leads in dramaland! Behind his playfulness he is quite vulnerable, all he wants is Gil Chae’s love! Namkoong Min does an outstanding job, he plays his character with so much depth. I’m glad they casted him, besides his outstanding acting he has a mature face, which in my opinion is important , because his character is supposed to be older who has been through a looot, I’m thankful they casted him instead of some younger baby faced actor. And Ahn Eun Jin is also outstanding! She plays her character so well, I’m glad she’s getting more popular. All actors are amazing!

This drama is very realistic, the sword fighting is great and the makers of this drama has done a great job potraying the uglyness of war, how it affects people, how it destroys them. Since My Dearest is for mature audience, it can get very brutal and violent. But that’s How it was during the Qing invasion of Joseon,people were tortured in the most horrific way possible, women were raped, etc. What I love about this drama is that the makers are not obsessed about having the actors look like flawless dolls, the make up artists actually makes them look dirty/ messy. Just as it should, there is no way during wars that they looked perfect and flawless, with make up on. Kudos to the makers of this drama, the make up artists… and kudos to the actors for not being scared of not looking perfect all the time!

Many says that ep 1-2 are not that interesting, that its not until ep 4 this drama gets VERY interesting! I liked ep 1-2 but yeah, it definitely got more interesting in ep 4. But it was important to introduce the characters in the first 2 episodes, so that we get to know a bit what they are like. My Dearest is a very tragically beautiful drama with lots of heart put into it, it’s a roller coaster full of emotions! I have to keep my breath sometimes, it’s a stressful drama because you never know what will happen and you fear for the characters, etc. it’s far from a predictable story, far from being cliche. I love that this drama is quite fast paced, I never feel bored!
Thanks to this drama I learned a lot about Korea’s history, I had no idea prior to this that there was war between Qing and Joseon. And learning about Khan, Mongolians and Manchu people was really interesting, it was interesting to see actors portraying them. They could be really brutal!

Honestly, tho … the love story can be very frustrating , because Gil Chae… For part 2- hopefully it will have the same high quality in part 2 too, which I think it will, because supposedly they split this into 2 parts so that the quality wouldn’t be less. .. I just hope that Gil Chae will realize how much she loves Jang Hyun, who’s done so much for her. So overall, a great watch if you can handle some very frustrating moments.. sometimes I felt like banging my head into wall to be honest, but the greatness is far stronger …

Read More

Man gets a Harem

Let me start with saying I just can't get enough from time travel shows, so perhaps I'm biased with this series. Still I recommend Man Comes to Tang Dynasty. The time traveling aspect is more about adapting to life in the past, and less about changing, or going back to, the future.

The Good

Just like the female leads in Faith, Scarlet Heart, and Cinderella Chef, the star of this show earns a lot of respect and love by using his modern knowledge for solutions to ancient problems. It's very funny to see how he develops from some kind of loser in present times to an intelligent hero in the past. He's also adept in living the ancient life of officials and people at court. He takes in concubines, he dabbles in ancient politics and schemes, which is very refreshing in comparison to other heroines of time travel shows. Those girls were always on the verge of a nervous breakdown, because of these nasty pastimes of the past.

The Bad

Okay, this is not an elaborate or luxurious production, so don't expect authentic costumes and such. The intro-music is modern too, sounding like a smooth singing boy band surrounded by girls, which is actually compatible with the harem-theme of the show.

I don't know if this show is somewhere to watch with English subs. Last time was on Viki, but these episodes have been deleted. The raw version is still on YouTube and there are subs available on Subscene. Anyway, if you like a lighthearted romcom that is set in ancient China, this is for you.

Read More

The best cdrama I’ve ever watched

We love to see a good thriller, mystery drama where romance is not hugely part of the plot. The cast was amazing, everyone did such a great job at acting, especially the villain (scared the heck out of me). This sort of plot where it involves timeloop is not easy at all to keep the audience interested/engaged BUT the writer(s) somehow managed to do it. This drama deserves nothing but praise, the quality is also fantastic. The two leads have such good chemistry and I would definitely support their future works. I love the FL, her personality is not too extreme. She is not the typical weak, naive airhead character or is not too unrealistically strong, she is in the middle. She is strong and smart but she is not savage (some dramas make fl just savage and call that empowerment, which looks stupid to me).

Read More

I watched this drama so you don't have to!

Fans, I apologize! I give it a 5 out of 10.

Is it just me, or do you think the casting and acting are the weakest links in this production?
I noticed the actors smiling in scenes where they shouldn't, so I'd like to point out that it also has the worst directing and editing. The director should request that the actors redo those scenes, or the editor should remove them. I patiently watched the first four episodes before moving on to the eighth. Continue to press the forward button for 10 seconds unconsciously.

The problem with the story is that, well, I don't like goblins. Maybe that's why I don't like this story.

Isn't it rather predictable? An unknown deity was killed off in a clumsy manner in an early episode because the scene was just a conversation, "Hey, I heard X was killed off." The sentence is obviously only meant to hint at what will happen to the main character in the final episode. However, it merits more than a sentence in a brief scene.

My main beef is with the male lead. He doesn't do a good job of portraying the deity's character. According to my understanding, he should be extremely arrogant, but I see him as a nice, quiet, average Joe from next door. He emits no God-like energy. I'll admit it.

Perhaps it stems from the characters' designs, which contain some flaws:
1. They are not supposed to show human emotions to their subjects, but they behave in a childish manner among themselves.
2. Is it possible that the characters of deity 1 and deity 2 are clones? Isn't it true that drama revolves around the various characters and their interactions? For example, the two male characters in Goblin, for example, have good chemistry. To be honest, the bromance in Goblin shines brighter than the love story between the male and female leads.
3. None of them have undergone any character development.
4. Bad writing It was the Makjang drama scene from the Sky Castle and the World of the Married parody, which was supposed to make me laugh but didn't.

Read More

My favorite Kamen Rider show of all time!

This is one of the first Kamen Rider shows I watched. Before watching this, I've seen Dragon Knight and I enjoyed it so I decided to check out their counterpart since I enjoyed the adaptation a lot. This show was so fun to watch, I would watch more episodes after another. This show is the reason why I stopped watching Power Rangers lol, I find it more interesting because I like how the story was handled. Speaking of rich, the story is great, I think it's a tad bit better than Dragon Knight to be honest, and I like the characters like Ren, Shinji, Shuichi, Miyuki, and Takeshi. The fight scenes are pretty fun to watch, especially when they go to the mirror world to fight. Whenever I think about Kamen Rider, I would always think of Ryuki because it's iconic to me. I recommend Ryuki, it's worth the watch.

Read More

First of all, I am going to start with the story. I am totally confused, taking into account the story as a whole and cannot comprehend why did they drop to give an answer to the mistery with whom episode 1 has begun despite prolonging the drama for 2 more episodes. Also, it was obvious that the main focus was randomly changing, from episode to episode. As if they had 4 different plots and were randomly picking each one for each set of episodes.

One of the things that gave this drama its charm was its actors. I would not agree that all of them were perfect in fulfilling their given role. One of the reasons would be the beforementioned fact that the story itself was sloppy, many of the questions drama had opened at the very beginning and promised to answer were not answered and roles of certain characters, who had the most impact on the story - were changing according to the story segments and figuring characters truly out was one of the most anxious things along with following the story. All of the main actors remained faithful to their own acting style and there were many scenes that made me truly laugh but then again, there were many "wtf" scenes that somehow made me question if writers were constrained with some type of pressure in terms of the finance, production, public opinion, etc. One of the reasons I felt like that, was the fact that even after revealing all the evil and illegal business the empress dowager had conducted - I still thought of her as a silly woman from 20 smth episodes before the last two episodes. Furthermore, killing off the main character because of conflict in actor's schedule contributed to the overall confusion added to the fact that some of the characters ended up being randomly added to the story based on the fact that even though they stepped in to reveal something rather big - their characters were unprepared to jump into constant segment changing and their significance was lost. They kept stepping into unnecessary melodramatic dangerous cliches that held my attention on their existence and that had given me another level of "wtf" face expressions.

When it comes to music, it was really solid and it was perhaps the only criteria in my opinion that deserves to be rated with higher than mediocre points.

Anyhow, I would recommend watching this show regardless of my overall review but be prepared for a "wtf" rollercoaster. Yet, it was a drama with great potential in my opinion.

Read More

A Heart has a soul

i liked the all setting of the drama the story line the characters most especially the female leading who is my best actress
the drama was very cool though the ending is not nice
i liked the music it was mactching the historical setting of the drama
the acting of both the male lead and the female lead was perfect
the pairing was on point.
Lee Jun Ho was a huge stand out with his nuanced and emotional acting. He thoroughly immersed himself as Yi San - a character filled with raw loneliness after decades of emotional manipulation. Someone who bears an immeasurable burden left by the ghost of his mentally unstable father, all while struggling to hold on to his birthright against scheming enemies. Jun Ho completely smashed the stereotypes of "weak idol acting" as he convincingly balances the expected gravitas of a duty bound royal, with the sensitivity of a man who is devoted in love after finding the one person who becomes his “light in the darkness”.

Lee Se Young was also just as impeccable as the intelligent and strong willed court lady Deok Im, who strives desperately to retain her identity and the little sense of autonomy that a woman might ever deign to desire in an ancient patriarchal society. Her constant craving for freedom struggles fiercely against her blooming feelings for someone who is entirely entrenched in everything she is trying to stay away from. Se Young's delicate micro-expressions and befitting body language documenting the push and pull she felt in every episode, is product of her long experience in acting and she was just completely masterful.

Read More

オレンジ

I have read the manga and when I saw there was a movie, it instantly became my favourite to watch.
Orange is about a sweet love story, one day Naho receives a letter from her future self, the same day a new student transfers into her school. His name is kakeru and he is so handsome. Naho reads the letter and gets very supriced, but things go slow and exactly how the letter is written for Naho and kakeru.
Tao tsuchiya is so pretty and is an amazing character for this movie, kento is also very handsome and makes a great couple with Naho-chan. I like how their romance is going slow and humble.
The movie is sad but also it makes you realise how much you can love a person.
I higly recommend this movie ♡

Read More

It has more story than the anime

Cast/Acting:
I think they picked the right cast. Honda tsubasa really fits the role of Futaba in my opinion.
In the manga Kou was fighting for Futabas love more than they did in the live action, but I think the actor did still play a good role.


Story:
I have collected and read all thr manga and I think the live action does follow it most of the time, but some scenes they took from the manga and changed a bit, so that it would all make sense.
Considering they (only) had about 2hrs of screentime I think the story prgressed well...


Music:
For me the Anime/Movie OST is one of the most important things about a movie and I think the ost was pretty good


Overall:
I think the live action is good, cause it has more of the manga in it. The anime sadly only consists of the 1st 3 volumes of the manga. I collected all the volumes and know that the whole plot comes in kinda later on. I think it's a great story, but the anime itself is dry. I really like the live action though.

Read More

A TOP-TIER BL SERIES

Excellent from start to finish, My School President is a BL masterpiece! The youthful plot, pure and innocent romance, and charming actors come together in perfect harmony.

My School President's brisk, energetic narrative will quickly captivate you. I was hooked from the first episode, which introduced memorable protagonists, fun rivalries, and heartbreaking stories. The series' breezy momentum never flags.

Although My School President has numerous strengths, its most outstanding quality is the charming lead actors, Fourth and Gemini. The two leads, Fourth and Gemini, deliver thoughtful performances and perfectly embodied their roles. Whereas Fourth exudes vivacity and fun charm as Gun, Gemini gives Tinn's character understanding and subtle compassion. Off-the-chart chemistry? They got it!

NOT ONLY THAT, but this series subverts the typical BL cliches with original twists that break the mold. My School President is self-aware and genre-savvy. The writing is excellent, flowing smoothly from serious drama to cheerful humor to moving emotional scenes. There is also a charming secondary couple (Win and Sound) and third couple (Tiwson and Por) who are developing a warm romance. From the flawless cinematography to the sumptuous OSTs, all these aspects are conveyed through smooth, steady, and magnificent production values.

Overall, My School President surpasses my expectations and sets triumphant, green flag standards for this genre. I genuinely believe it's one of the best BL dramas in my lifetime. 10/10.

Read More