Reviews

Lots of Cabbage Layers of Conventions Done Educational

This is a story about Cabbage and Conventions as we get a window in to the oh so easily forgotten A in LGBTQIA.

A big part of this drama is educational, this could be due to lack of representation and basic awareness the A in LGBTQIA as well as the existence/difference between the orientations A-Sexual, A-romantic etc. Showing viewers both the journey to come to terms with ones sexuality, outing, family pressure and what not.

We also get to meet a bunch of people who are trying to find their own place in the world and the balance between having to shut them selves in a cave, succumb to society pressure, accept the things they can not change... Find happiness and a way to live in a way that is true to themselves. As well as the all time dilemma Is it possible to both have both family and a career one enjoys. What actually makes a family? Is it living together, romantic connections or could there be more ways to create a family? Or does romance just complicate and ruin things?


This and a lot more is covered in this drama with great lines that question conventions over and over again from different angels and basically makes you go boom take that... Normative society that keeps putting people in boxes, as nobody puts Sakuko and Satoru in a box.... However they may be able to put them in a cabbage patch.

Cabbage is your friend and you will probably feel like eating cabbage once you watch this so if you do not like cabbage, can not afford to buy cabbage, or just do not want to buy in to the cabbage convention of this drama I suggest you ignore the cabbage and watch it for the lines, female leads smiles and slight grumpiness of the male lead.

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DRAMA REVIEW Coffee Prince

I watched several dramas before this but this might be the first drama that had me smiling, crying, angry, all in good way.

The Story: 9.5
The typical square-love story we had in dramas was made interesting when the main guy falls for someone who he thinks is also a guy.

The story is about Go Eun-chan, a hardworking breadwinner of her family, who acts as the boyfriend of chaebol Choi Han-kyul and soonafter work at his flower boy coffee shop. Choi Han-kyul is a third-gen chaebol of a food company established by his grandmother. He is irresponsible and all so when his family asked him to find a suitable wife, he went around showing people that he is gay by hiring “boyfriend” Go Eun-chan. Go Eun-chan has a crush on Choi Han-kyul’s cousin, Choi Han-sung. While Choi Han-kyul has a long-term one-sided crush on his cousin’s ex-girlfriend, Han Yoo-joo. Yeah, it’s complicated. Ha ha.

I love how each of the characters were given their own stories to tell and that each character made this whole coffee prince universe a more colorful and lovable place. There were times in the story that will really make you feel good and sometimes tear your heart apart. And in each of that moment, each character gave more meaning to it. It felt like this is not just a drama to watch but a real story to tell. The story is sometimes lighthearted, heartbreaking, but most times, heartwarming as coffee.

The Cast: 9.5
I adore Yoon Eun-hye here. I first watched her in Princess Hours and she definitely is the most feminine kind of feminine. It's amazing how she give life to our hardworking Go Eun-chan.

And Gong-yoo is sooo amazing in his role as Choi Han-kyul. He is kind of the manly man for me so whenever he grins and smiles childishly at Eun-chan, I just melt. He is my forever love.

I even love Chae Jung-an and Lee Sun-kyun here in their roles, This may also be the first show in Korea where flower boys are gathered into one coffee shop. Even the older characters are adorable here and you understand where they are coming from. Sometimes even if the characters something unlikable, I still love them.

Music: 9.5
Having a music producer as one of the characters of this drama sort of automatically calls for an amazing music in this drama. Needless to say, I love the music here. I love almost every song in their Original Soundtrack and I still do remember the songs.

Rewatch Value: 9.5
By now, I am not sure how many times I have rewatched this but the emotions I felt have not yet changed. I still laugh at those funny moments, cry at those hurtful times, and feel kilig for our main couple.

The drama is not that old but this is a classic for me. It was kind of the first love I had for dramas.

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South Korean heartthrob, Won Bin and Kim Hye-ja, typecast as an archetypal mother figure star in this mystery-thriller drama. While its premise sets it up as a typical find-the-killer, the film focuses more on the dynamics of Bin and Kim’s complicated mother-son relationship.

Kim Hye-ja displays a reverse Oedipus complex, protective of her son. Bong's attention to detail is prevalent, using Kim's acupuncture needles as symbolism for males' genitals to reserve the male-female role. Do joon (Won Bin) also highlights a complicated male-female relationship when the murdered girl questions his masculinity, resembling when his friend questions if he has even been with a woman and replies in an outburst.

Much more daring in its use of violence compared to Bong’s similar films like Memories of Murder, Bong’s signature dark aesthetics and gritty tones is a plus in the film’s overall mood. Brutally endearing and heartfelt performances fill this feature.

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I cannot believe this drama was not on any to watch list until now..... this awesome drama is so freakin underrated.
I just finished it and I wanna watch it again..

The classic Queen band songs take on such a major high...I am still quivering as I write this, I want to jump and shout and tell everyone to watch this amazing drama...!!!

This drama is a total human emotions drama, such a roller coaster of emotions and this is 2004 ppl...so way before anything that was gr8....this story is where it all originated from...

From ep 1-8 , I was on this major roll, pumping with emotions as I watched, 8-10 was a little slow so cut half a score only for that but come 11 ep, especially the end and this is my current state as I type... sad that the drama is over and totally euphoric!

The best part is the video quality is awesome...this feels like a jdrama with an imternational today's vibe. Watch it if u like real romance and gr8 chemistry!

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So this drama is amazing listen to me. I loved this drama it is my favorite mini drama ever I really loved te story it had a great story their acting was amazing. This is the first drama I have seen from both of them. The ost of this drama is unbelievably good the songs are really amazing. I rewatched this drama twice you can totally rewatch it. Overall I recommend this a lot you would love this drama trust me. I would like to say that this drama hooks you in the beginning I really liked their relationship they were so cute together and I love all the things the main lead does she so pure and be only wants the best. I highly recommended please watch you won’t regret.

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Nice crime solving mini-show with lots of magic

This is a nice lighthearted mini-show. The storyline is mostly crime solving and the art of magic. In that way it’s quite unique. Sadly the subs were pretty bad so a lot of the dialogue and thereby explanations were nonsensical. Sometimes the scenes made sense even without good subs but often they didn’t and I guess I might have missed a few points along the way. What a pity.
Character wise:
FL is street smart and cunning. A rare kind of FL that I actually like. She is too childish for my linking but her abilities make up for that.
ML is clever and observant. He might be a little stiff but his ability to solve crimes is great.
Acting wise this is a good show. I did find that FL was a bit over the top perky but Chinese shows love to make FL perky and childish in order to be “cute”.
So, if you like crime solving and magic, this is actually worth watching.

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So I just got over with this drama today and i must say it was indeed quite impressive. Honestly speaking it wasn't one of the best for me but it was good. I enjoyed watching it for the past few days. It was a typical rom-com. It indeed taught me family values and how hard it is to not be privileged enough to get enough attention from family, and not be guided properly by proper guardian. It was a cute drama I'd definitely recommend to anyone whose a fan of rom-com. But the only disappointment i faced through out the whole serie is that it sort of dealt with the same problem all over and over again. But i must admit the kissing scenes were great, not the typical korean lip-on-lip style it had a bit more lip-lock (lol):P. The reason i gave the re-watch value a 7 is , if you'd ask me i'd probably not watch this more than twice. But it had really good music which is still buzzing in my ears for quite a bit of time. Overall it was a cute drama altogether i didn't get bored of it at all. If you can't access viki.com due to region problem you are sure to find it in dramacrazy.net. Thank you! I hope my review has encouraged you to watch this adorable drama.

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All I want is to be Loved

This is a fantastic series. It fulfills the hypothesis of the story in its’ entirety. The series deals with real societal issues without dodge anything. It illustrates how parental actions can truly and deeply affect a child and their surrounds, especially when adults do not own up to their own mistakes and blames the child(ren). It shows blackmailing and manipulation of a child to their adulthood by a parent, which runs parallel to the parent that wants to care and does care for the child to their best ability. In this series, a mother emotionally blackmails and traumatizes her son, while a father within his own capability joins forces with another single dad to give his son all he can. The care of both fathers is admirable. The story is neatly weaved, which makes the display even better. The other angle which is shown is a divorcee scared and chasing life until she realizes her biggest mistake was running away from it and abandoning her son. The series also deals with stigmatism of two non-official adopted children relationship the extends beyond siblings. This shows that sometimes adults and the best of adults fail to recognize the seriousness of a child’s decision at the very moment it is made. It teaches us not to assume that everyone in the relationship feels the same way. Loved the fact that Ling Xiao not only followed his heart but fought for it because his love and courage are one in the same, Li Jian Jian. The bonding between the different characters is absolutely amazing. Sometimes we tend to ignore the obvious, like when Ling Xiao bought a lace bra for Li Jian Jian. A “brother” adopted or not, will not go out and by his sister a bra. Everyone in the room missed the elephant in the room completely. The development of their romance is subtle, sweet, and funny.

Heart wrenching when Ling Xiao spills the entire turmoil of his life, heart, and soul and she hugs him asking are you sick. This scene truly demonstrate how damage Ling Xiao is by his mother’s actions.

The two fathers, He Zi Qiu, Ling Xiao, and Li Jian Jian could not have survived without each other’s love, support, and care.

The entire team, not just actors and actress, is t be congratulated for a phenomenal job, congratulations!

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this has been one of the most amazing dramas i have ever seen. so different from the ones airing right now, with a story that grips you, takes you along a journey and teaches you so much in the short span. the end became unbearable for me as the drama condensed into its few last scenes. the sheer beauty of it left me speechless. the script, the themes of family, love, hardships were so beautifully portrayed in the small span of the show itself and nothing felt incomplete, no loose ends. absolutely beautiful. it may not appeal to all audiences but i believe it deserves a watch from everybody. stunning and amazing.

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Some shows are created great, some achieve greatness, this one needs to try harder

Let’s start with the good bits. This Show is watchable. It is not too long. It has swoon worthy moments and a bit of skinship. The ML is handsome and charismatic. The use of antique restoration is an interesting backdrop. If those statements feel a bit like faint praises that’s because while the Show does nothing drastically wrong, there is little substance to sink your teeth into.

Now let’s move on to the not-so-good bits. While the Show is watchable, the plot is tropey and uninspired. It started well enough and there are some nice plot developments early on but then it got tedious and is not helped by some loose storytelling.

There is an overarching thread about antique fraud, but it is not hard hitting at all. To be honest, it is fairly amateurish in execution. Any twists are telegraphed well in advance. Some side plots and scenes feel like busy-work as if they are drawn randomly from a shoebox of plot ideas. Can a show suffer from FOMO?

While the ML is handsome and charismatic, his role suffers towards the last 1/3 of the show. After his confession, his character becomes a bit capricious. I get that people can behave a bit “funny” when they are in love, but his portrayal is stilted and hammy. I’m inclined to blame the director for some iffy instructions. The personality shift does not sit comfortably with his style.

The FL has the feisty, street-smart girl role down pat. Unfortunately, she doesn’t have the experience nor the range yet to give her role real depth. She can smile and cry on cue, but you can sense that she is being told what to do rather than owning the role. This contributes to my next point.

I don’t ship the OTP wholeheartedly. The script would have us believe that they are madly in love, but I don’t sense a strong chemistry between them. Yes, they went through all the typical rom-com tropes, and they say all the right things, but it is not convincing. I also dislike the script’s propensity of leading the actors to the brink of confession and then pull back hard only to have the leads suffer from some misunderstanding in the next scene. All that can be avoided if their feelings are clear. Once more around that blasted mulberry bush we go. As someone who wanted to ship them, it is frustrating and unrewarding.

Speaking of CP’s. I can see the writer wants to push the opposite attracts trope so 2CP is a mismatch and tiresome to watch. Of course, they will get together in the end, the drama gods have spoken! I get more chemistry while watching dough rise.

Sometimes, a show can be lifted by a good ensemble cast but the secondary characters here are problematic. The 2ML won’t take no for an answer and is delusional. The cousin of the FL is the main troublemaker. He is not evil, but he is stupid, greedy and inept. Yet the Show paints him as a loveable rogue. Even though he does so much damage, he is always forgiven and handled with kid gloves. Most of the secondary characters are one dimensional and farmed out to actors with limited abilities. It is not a happy confluence.

The antique restoration theme is largely used as a plot device. They try to make it educational, but the titbits of information soon feel superfluous. They should put a disclaimer before the show to make sure viewers DO NOT try this at home.

Am I being harsh? Yes. I’m not mincing words because the Show is not trying to do better. You can find B grade shows that is hitting above its weight or really awful shows that should never be made. It is the crowded middle that is a quagmire for mediocre shows to sink out of sight.

I don’t believe in dismissing shows just because it doesn’t have top stars or a big budget. I have been pleasantly surprised by a number of second or even third tier productions. Nevertheless, It is a waste when you pair decent actors with a decent production and you still ended up with an insipid mishmash.

OST is serviceable. Rewatch? You jest. Peace out.

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Why make it so complicated?

I will never understand why Korean writers are so obsessed over adding so many external conflicts to every drama ever, while also making them so over the top and not relatable for the majority of their audience. Love in Contract is a rom-com, not a business politics drama, we do not need this much focus, or even any focus on the shenanigans of the chaebols.

I honestly think removing the whole aspect of the “rich elites” from this show and making it at best 12 episodes long would vastly improve the quality. The whole second half was just a dramatic mess. All the important bits about learning how to rely on others, trust them, move on from past traumas, heal, find your own dreams and goals - drowned in the pool of misogynist powerful men and overprotective mothers.

That said, the first half of the drama was a blast to watch. Choi Sang Eun is a great female lead with a strong personality, clear views that impact her behavior, but also a solid dose of insecurities that we get to explore as the drama progresses. Jung Ji Ho, being one of the most unique male leads in dramaland, had some of the most solid character developments - improving his communication skills, creating social connections, improving his understanding of other people’s views and perspectives, while still keeping the core of his persona true.

Out of all the supporting characters, I for sure enjoyed Jung Ji Eun the most. Appreciated her understanding nature and willingness to improve and not just be a menace to the main couple. And it would be a crime not to mention Woo Gwang Nam. I have to say, that’s honestly a solid representation - a character that is gay, but his whole existence, personality, internal and external conflict do not only resolve around his sexuality. He was neither comedic relief, nor the typical tortured soul. Easily the most complex and well established supporting character this drama had to offer.

Would be lying if I said I was impressed by any of the performances, since I feel I have seen similar characters from these actors in their previous roles. I’d even say it’s impressive how type-cast the drama was.

I have little to nothing to say about the production value. There was nothing bad, nor outstanding about the directing, editing, soundtrack, set design. Sure, the female lead’s outfits were amazing, but that’s not enough for me to praise the overall quality.

Overall, the show was simply basic. It had great moments, nice supporting characters, but when it’s surrounded by mediocrity, I question if it’s worth watching the whole show for scraps.

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JUST WOW, I HAVE SO MANY WORDS AND YET NONE AT ALL!!

I didn't have any expectations going into this because I hadn't read any reviews myself nor had I really seen anyone talk much about it. I just saw someone recommend it on tiktok and decided to take a leap of faith and give it a try. I really didn't think it was going to be that interesting and it was my first time ever watching a Thai drama. Most of the one's I had watched before were Korean dramas so I just wasn't sure if I was going to like it. BOY WAS I SURPRISED. I really need for my fellow friends that enjoy this genre to watch this. I watch a lot of Boy love, LGBTQ+ or whatever you wanna call it, in both anime form and live action.. and this is by far one of the best ones I've seen. Like probably top, number one. It didn't have any overly toxic characters, no boring side stories, no fillers, and no uncomfortable sex scenes(as in borderline rape scenes cause I've seen that in a lot of dramas but don't get me wrong, there's a little spice in there. Just not uncomfortable spice lol). Not to mention the main characters have a pretty healthy relationship, unlike most other BL's I've seen. I mean literally whatever little rivalry they had in the beginning was squashed in the first episode. This series is just so sweet and heart-warming. The crying scene's aren't sugar coated or made to look pretty. There is just so much pure and raw emotion involved in this series that it's hard to look away. I binged the whole five hours of it and regret nothing.
MANY things about it really drew me, even from the very beginning. A lot of the dramas I watch are kind of short and rushed but this one was completely opposite. They took their time telling the story(which is a great plot) and it starts way different than other ones I've seen. The build up in their relationship, exploring their love, their sexuality, and feeling the heartache they share of being LGBTQ+ in a society that doesn't really accept them is just so beautiful and relatable it hurts. It shows that its okay to be confused and its okay to be who you are. There are always people who aren't going to accept you but there are always going to be people who WILL. I appreciate that there are very supportive side characters(like family and friends) which is awesome because it makes them more relevant in the story. I have re-watched this series about 6 or 7 times now and I plan to continue to re-watch until I literally can't stand it anymore.
This drama is in another league than others I've watched and it makes me hold everything else to higher standards.
I'm so insanely excited for Part 2 that I've pretty much decided to wait until it's fully released to watch it because it's agonizing to have to wait for it every week lol.

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Did I have high expectations for this one? Yes. But they started quite good just to end up crashing.


The plot was a cliché, but still promising. The first episodes were good but then it stopped there. In mid-way there was no further development.

I believe both actors are straight and new to BL acting (not sure though). They seemed to have chemistry at first when they were faking the relationship (and didn't really have to act as couples do), but once they were dating for real it felt as if the actors had some type of problem with showing affection as a couple.
I'm not talking about kisses or sex like "TharnType", that's not necessary to show two characters in love. But what they did here is plain bromance, not BL.
I compare "2gether" with "My Engineer" which is still ongoing. In "My Engineer" the main couple didn't kiss (yet) after 12 episodes, not sure if the series will even have a kiss scene between the leads. However their actions and the emotions that the actors put on the characters are enough to make you belive that they are in a love relationship. The same goes for the other couples on the show, having their right amount of screen time despite not being the leads.
Those are things that are missing in "2gether".

I've read on some comments that this is Win's first BL drama and it shows. I watched a video of Win and Bright reacting to one of the episodes and Win seemed to be more focused on making clear that Tine is not him than to watch it, while Bright looked way more relaxed and chill. What makes me wonder if Win is ashamed of being on a BL drama...

The acting, excluding the lack of chemistry to make the audience belive that there is love, is not bad. I've seen worse.
The music is nice too. Maybe they pushed Scrubb too much but it was okay.


Worth to watch again? Not really. It goes on the bottom part of my list. Not the last spot but almost.


Looking forward to the whole cast's next project and see if they improve.

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