Reviews

A bit angsty with drawnout teases! haha Worth watching ;)

Now, to prepare you... it's a little strange that the whole time they have us falling in love with all the characters (for me in particular it was Wayu ;)), while one character's face is completely unseen! I mean, they did a great job on that and not even a slip up or distinguishing mark could be seen to tell him apart from a random stand-in or just in case one of the other characters filled in for as his back haha! But the thing that's sad and troubling is the constant pain Wayu's in with splashes of happiness. In truth, some breakups are never clean or easy nor do they all mean the person hurting does reckless things or drowns themself in alcohol or drugs to cope; this series let's us see that through Wayu's experience. The mysterious Pha's actions starts to feel possessive, almost toxic to me... I found that very refreshing and despite the takes around the rain & shower scenes near the beginning, Wayu actor Bass does an amazing job displaying the emotions of his character. He has an amazing voice too... boy can sing to me anytime!!

Hey, also if you've endured the torture of wanting & watching your two favorite characters almost kiss and think you can tackle the same for nearly 4-5, 60+ min episodes straight, then baby, this right here's a teasing pleaser!

Overall, I love the inclusiveness of the stories, circumstances of all the characters and commend the writers, cast & directors/producers for keeping all the stories distinct & clear. The chemistry & cohesiveness of the cast makes me want to see the behind the scenes clips even more!! The star couple, Mark & Kit, I just love them and then there's a hint of something else with Sandee... He himself indirectly gets told "not everything is as 'he' himself sees it," nor is it set in stone. lol yes these are my words summing up an incident that I felt had meaning. Specifically, it felt like a warning that he shouldn't take actions himself... but he does y'all & if you watch it, you'll see what I mean. Well, I hope this helps & you enjoy the series as much as I do/did! I'm always happy to talk about whatever you've seen that stands out too!

Happy viewing!

Read More

I watched both Seasons back to back and can say this, in terms of story wow, not seen things a story like this flow so well, many other shows have a tendency to have seasons somewhat self contained but this show picks things up from last season almost effortlessly.

That said there are some issue, while the inevitable cast changes from season 1 to 2 had to be addressed, the need to have one of the season 1 character's most identifiable quirks replicated by what is made to be a totally different character, only serves to remind me of that season 1 character and how I liked that character more.
Other issues I had with this season is how it almost pays no attention to the main character at the most important moments and how many events that are meant to be a challenge to her or even overwhelming tend not to be shown in any way thankfully this is not the case at the most critical story moments and does not hold the season back from making its impact. My Other issue with the main character is that in this season she is anything but, now while this is not necessarily an negative, it resulted in the the main character having little character development beyond maturing as a prosecutor.

Some people may take issue with the main Doctor in the show as he is appears to be nothing more than a autopsy machine, Literally I just watched the show and cannot recall seeing any emotion emanate from the character beyond suspicion and I must complete the task at hand. That said without spoilers there is a reason for this that can only be appreciated by watching the season to its end.

Really hope that there is a Season 2.

Read More

Dragged, plotholes and a downgrade from previous season.

I really liked the first season of Arthdal Chronicles, found it entertaining, the lore was interesting and it kept a very decent pace considering the length of its episodes.
I had seen the change of actors and I was slightly skeptical just simply because I was not sure if the characters would be able to keep the consistency they had being different actors. This was partially true.
I like both Lee Joon Gi and Shin Sae Kyeong but after watching the season I'm still left like I'm not quite sure how I feel about them in the roles. For the most part I think Lee Joon Gi did a good job as Eunseom but I was not feeling it with Saya. This could be totally the fault of the writing though so I do not blame him for it entirely. Samely, I felt Shin Sae Kyeong did a good job for the most part but the character felt very unemotional and superficial compared to the characterization I remember from the first season, again, it might not be her fault, but it's how I felt it.

For the most part I think the worst downgrade in this season was the writing and plot in general. There were a few problems I found in the cinematography as well (like the weird blur at times) but I can give those a pass. The plot though, it was absolutely dragged to fill episodes to get to the minimum. Back and forth constantly to then a rushed ending that could have been gradually done in a couple or three episodes instead of condensed in one. There were very weird plotholes and bad execution. For example, there is that time when Tagon wounds Yangcha and Tanya has a mini conversation with him and I guess Tagon was waiting in the background looking at the watch and waiting for them to have their moment or something... That was not the only instance of something similar happening and it was very sloppy.
The plot was not as solid as the first season, I guess they couldn't keep Tagon in the grey area anymore because otherwise it wouldn't make of him the pure classic evil to be dethroned, but I thought it was cliché and overall generally boring. His relationship with Taealha was weird as well, one second they were going to kill each other and then they're ok the next, there was not enough insight into it to understand fully how they could be normal when two seconds prior she was going to stab him or something.
I think they had enough time to do a decent prologue instead of an open ended hint to a possible next season that who knows if it will happen. Also what happened with the prophecy that said about the three of them together? I was kind of confused really because the ending suggests something very different, and I was disappointed that they were taking Saya in that direction, repetitive? boring? cliché? I don't know, I liked the first season because it was a bit fresh but in this one they were falling into very repetitive stereotypes. Saya was a very interesting character but in this one I couldn't care less about him.
Then you have characters that appear suddenly at some point and it's like major reveal but you're like "what's the point of you being here now", like most of the momo tribe for example, ones save the day and die, the others appear only in the last episode.
I kind of wish also they had gone in a more mysticism way at some point, not so much what they did with the gods and Aramun and all that that got repetitive real quick, but I would have liked to see a lot more of the neanthals living in nature for example. I remember more of that and a lot more lore in the first season as well.
Apart from the couple of neanthals that I always liked to see, in this one I generally liked Yangcha and Nunbyeol as characters the most.
The acting was generally good, there were moments that were cool, characters that I liked, production was generally decent enough and I'm ultimately happy I could see this story to more or less an end.
I'll rewatch the first season at some point but I probably won't bother with this one.

It's watchable and if you have watched the first one and want to know how it continues then this is for you. If you haven't watched the first season I would avoid this one since it's a downgrade, writing is worse, it's slow and not much really happens when you strip it from their back and forth. Go watch the first one instead.

Read More

The Villain Won

God where to start....
I usually don't write reviews, but I need to rage. This made me what to scream my head off!

I thought I was going to go insane before I even finished the story and only finished it out of spite. The entire show is essentially everyone abusing the female lead, Pan, and taking her for granted. The first part where the two leads hated each other was bearable, but after they got married is really when my blood started to boil. Pol was her abuser there is no other way to say it. He is a criminal just as much as the villains. I don't even want to mention what happened after the time skip. Everyone literally gaslighted Pan into getting back with her abuser. Even the kid annoyed me. I don't think I had a single character I liked. I also don't know how Pan managed to stay sane. Anyways this is not a love story it's horror and the monsters won.

Read More

Firstly thank you for the sub
It is really a beautiful and light drama .they didn't showed much college scene .how much they need they showed that much .then there is no competition between brother for love ,no sacrifice only compromise I like these word then I felt very sad when ye lincame to her dream and he also cried in her dream try to touch her but compromise and left ,really a big hardship faced by female actor and secondly there is no story of hatred ,generally had found in many Chinese drama that love story start with hatred but such things is not there .ye miao trust her till end and support her .that is called a true love That inverted kissing scene is wao.no flaws in the drama .everybody did a great job.

Read More

While My Mister was on my to watch list for a very longtime, I decided to finally give it a go and I was happy I chose to do so. I have rarely watched a drama that was as good organized as this one in which two characters, who both hit rock bottom, live a life and due to bad circumstances are in touch with each other which develops into a lovely relationship in which both profit and cheer their life. The only thing I would've liked to see being developed more was the cause of the relationship between jung hee and gyum duk.

IU did a excellent job at her acting as usual, but I was positively surprised by Lee Sun Kyun, who did a thorough job as a sad, yet quiet person. The music was also of a very high level, so I would definitely recommend you all who did not watch it or are doubting to watch it, simply to watch it!

Read More

A struggle to watch

All of Us Are Dead is South Korea's latest entry into their increasing array of zombie productions. The hype surrounding this drama since its teasers and trailers was real, further proven by the amount of enthusiasm shown by worldwide viewers as the drama was finally released on Netflix. I, myself, was among those who were excited for this drama's release, but after watching the entirety of its episodes, I found it disappointing to say the least.

The main problem I had with this drama is its writing. It has major issues— full of plotholes, repetitiveness, inconsistencies and wasted potential. I was most disappointed with how they didn't utilize Nam Ra's abilities as a half-zombie well enough. Instead of letting the group face the same pattern of finding a safe place to hide, having them argue with one another and moving to another safe place over and over again which eventually got really tiring to watch, they could've made room for a more dynamic plot by having Nam Ra use her abilities to help them escape the school earlier. This would've allowed some extra time that can be used to further develop the characterizations which fell shallow for some of the characters. Until the end, I wasn't able to sympathize with a lot of these characters despite having went though 12 whole episodes full of tragedy and loss alongside them. I had a big problem rooting for the female lead in particular due to her general blandness. Her character wasn't interesting nor engaging enough even compared to several of the supporting characters, such as Jang Ha Ri and Park Mi Jin.

There was also a lot of pointless plotlines throughout the drama. To name a few, Gwi Nam's revenge against Cheong San (did he seriously think the police were still going to sit behind their desks processing reports when the entire city has gone to hell ?), the assemblywoman who served absolutely no purpose whatsoever, the hunt for Lee Byeong Chan's laptop because he claimed it contained the key to finding a cure when it turned out to only be a recording of him saying there was no cure, and even On Jo's father's dramatic yet HIGHLY PREVENTABLE death.

The drama also tries to address real life issues such as bullying, sexual harassment, academic and social pressure in attempt to create a woke statement of some sort but it doesn’t add to much. It’s just there to be there. I think having Eun Ji epically stand off against the bully, both as half zombies, would have helped in this aspect, as little as it might.

It wasn't all that bad, though. I enjoyed the action sequences. It's obvious they spent a lot of effort and budget into creating those scenes. The props, makeup, and choreography for the zombies were amazing. Though having some noticeable mistakes and inconsistencies, the action was gripping and suspenseful enough to push you to continue watching. Characters such as Nam Ra, Su Hyeok, Cheong San, Ha Ri, Mi Jin, detective Jae Ik, his partner, and even Na Yeon at times helped made this drama more lively.

The acting range of this drama was mixed. As expected, it was a total delight watching Lee Kyu Hyung's onscreen performance. Several of the younger actors did a great job as well, namely Jo Yi Hyun (Nam Ra), Yoon Chan Young (Cheong San) Yoo In Soo (Gwi Nam) and Lee Yoo Mi (Na Yeon). The rest were either okay or lacking.

The finale sort of picked up the drama a bit. It's because they finally utilized Nam Ra's character properly, having her fight in the frontlines instead of standing around in the back.

All in all, All of Us Are Dead is quite mediocre. It was a fun watch to kill time, but nothing more.

Read More

Charming

I placed spoiler alert at the end of this review.

If you are a fan of Cutie Pie, you will apricate the main point of this miniseries. See the spoiler alert at the end of this review if you want more information. It was great to see the cast stepping into their characters which they did a great job with what they were given. Unfortunately, this miniseries also had very little character development. The script was ok, but had some missed opportunity with some of the side characters. There was one editing problem with a backwards time jump in the beginning of the first episode that was not clearly noted.

Random Notes: It really depends on how much you like Cutie Pie if you should watch this.



******Spoiler Alerts******

The main point was to show the fans Kuea Keerati and Lian Kilen Wang’s wedding and stress the legal importance of same-sex marriage.

Read More

This was one of my favorite Anime series I watched back in the day. I have never seen the other adaptations before this. I always wondered how the heck they would translate the main female character into anything realistic but they did here. One word describes this adaptation: CUTE Let me be clear, it wasn't toothache cute, the kind that makes you want to stop watching, no.... It was Cute in a way that had me smiling throughout. On the story itself, removing my anime memory, I loved that the supporting cast had their own side stories vs. just the main leads. The dialogue, the characters, the chemistry between everyone and their looks = cute! What wasn't cute was the music! Bravo & Brava. It was fantastic watching everyone play, especially Shim Eun-kyung as Seol Nae-il. I loved her in Sunny.

One thing they kept too cute was the relationship between the main characters. They could have provided a bit more mature development there. This is one area that made me love the anime. There were a few spots that didn't connect the story well for me and this is why I'm not going to rate it as high.

Overall, the talent of the cast is indisputable. I wanted to see them play more. I thoroughly enjoyed the Mambo performance and hearing the Vivaldi score throughout. (I'm biased, I love Vivaldi)

I recommend you watch this when you want something lighthearted and entertaining to watch. And it's a quick watch...you want to see what happens next.

Till next...drama
- DJ

Read More

"The World That They Live In" takes you to an emotional roller coaster that will make you think of getting off somewhere along the ride, but at the same time, will have you anticipating what's next!

It definitely lives up to its title as it truly takes us to "the world that they (production staff, crew and team) live in", and I think, that's one of the most enjoyable part of the show. It gives us a glimpse of the real life drama of the people behind the dramas we love to watch.

The story of this show does not only focus on the lead actors, Hyun Bin and Song Hye-kyo. It also dedicated some episodes about the supporting actors, which I found fun too! It gives depth to the supporting characters and again, gives us a glimpse of the dramas in the lives of actors / actresses, story-writers, scriptwriters, chief directors... and other people involved in the production as well.

However, the story of the main actors was a bit frustrating! The conflicts between them and within each character seem so shallow, and you would want to hit your laptop screen several times. Still, both Hyun Bin and Song Hye-kyo's beautiful faces and good acting skills will keep you from doing so.

Besides their incredible beauty and acting, Hyun Bin and Song Hye-kyo's chemistry will make you go crazy.

"The World That They Live In" is not perfect. It will also be frustrating at some point, but trust me, the end will make you wanting for more.

Read More

Holy CRAP has it been a while since I've written something like this! I can't believe it's taken me this long to finish a drama I wanted to review. It feels good to be back!


Marriage, Not Dating follows the story of Joo Jang Mi (Han Groo), a woman who has been unlucky in love despite her intense desire to get married. On the night she plans to propose to her boyfriend Lee Hoon Dong (Huh Jung Min), Hoon Dong calls in the help of his best friend Gong Gi Tae (Yun Woo Jin) to sabotage the proposal and get him out of the relationship. Obviously Gi Tae and Jang Mi don't get along from the start, but when Gi Tae's mother accidentally overhears them talking about a "proposal" and assumes Gi Tae has rebuffed Jang Mi, Gi Tae gets an idea--turn Jang Mi into the worst daughter-in-law ever, so that his mother finally stops trying to set him up with women and allows him to live alone forever.


If you're looking for a kdrama without the angst, this is definitely the drama for you. Most of Marriage, Not Dating is hijinks - Jang Mi and Gi Tae pretending to be in a relationship despite not liking each other at all. Jang Mi even gets a crush on Hoon Dong's employee Han Yeo Reum (2AM's Jinwoon), and has to hide that relationship from Gi Tae's family and her own. It's silly, ridiculous, and all over the place. But angsty it is not.


I love the slow burn of this series in terms of the relationship between Jang Mi and Gi Tae. They really do become friends first - because they're not really dating and don't care what the other thinks of them, they find themselves being totally and completely honest with each other in ways they can't be with anyone else. It's adorable to see them basically become best friends before realizing they would also, maybe, kinda, like to make out.


Marriage, Not Dating is one of the few kdrama where the Second Male Lead and Second Female Lead aren't unbearable, either. Yeo Reum has an adorable smile, and is completely aware of what's going on the whole time. He knows when to step back and when to push, and the fact that he has a mancrush on Gi Tae and ends up living with him for a good part of the show just makes for more and more hilarious hijinks. The Second Female Lead, Kang Se Ah (Han Sun Hwa), could've been terrible if it weren't for the fact that she knows exactly what she wants and is the only realist of the bunch. She and Gi Tae used to be engaged, but when she tried to push her worldviews onto Gi Tae, he pushed back and they broke up. She's exactly what Gi Tae's parents want in a daughter-in-law, which is exactly why they can never be together. It's simple, straightforward, and by the way - Gi Tae and Se Ah are actually great friends, too. They're both doctors, they're wickedly smart, and would be terrible together.


I like that the show is also heavily about family. Gi Tae's family appears great on the outside, but is actually a mess behind closed doors. For Jang Mi, her parents fight constantly, but really, truly love each other. The reason Jang Mi agrees to the outrageous fake-dating plan in the first place is because revealing the relationship to her parents makes them get along for the first time in years. And while at first Gi Tae wants his family to disapprove of Jang Mi, he finds himself getting defensive of her actions (often stuff HE told her to do) and finally capable of speaking up about all the fake family business he's had to deal with his whole life.


Marriage, Not Dating is just a breath of fresh air. The main couple is ADORABLE and you can actually see why they're so good together. Their friends are actual friends, not just plot devices in a love quadrangle, and their families aren't two-dimensional Romeo-and-Juliet-style enemies.


Plus, no angst!


(Well, a little angst. But not much!)


Definitely a must-watch.

Read More

Go Kyung Pyo, oh how I adore this man. I'm so pleased that he's finally gotten to be the lead. He plays Choi Kang Soo, a young man who has been moving from neighborhood to neighborhood in the city trying to find his birth mother. He spends two months in each neighborhood then moves on to the next. He makes friends everywhere he goes and generally works as a deliveryman. He moves into the neighborhood where Lee Dan Ah, played by Chae Soo Bin, lives. She's a young woman completely disenchanted by life in "Hell Joseon," where young people struggle and can't find jobs and competition for everything is fierce. Throw into the mix a spoiled party boy rich kid, Oh Jin Gyu, played by Kim Sun Ho and a handful of engaging secondary and tertiary characters and you end up with a delightful rag-tag bunch of young adults facing off against a corrupt corporation.

I was worried that this show would be the usual love triangle (rich boy versus boy boy for the plucky poor girl's favor), but was happily surprised when they veered sharply away from that dynamic after the first few episodes. What played out was a good balance of light cheer and sad drama for a show that ended up being really comforting to watch. I was a little disappointed in the chemistry between the two main leads - but I put a lot of that on the writing and less on the actors. Dan Ah spends so much time being bitter and angry that it can be off-putting at times. There were a couple of places where I felt like plot threads were brought in and then abruptly dropped. I would definitely watch this one again.

Did I mention that I love Go Kyung Pyo? I just want to carry him around in my pocket all the time.

Read More

The story unfolds itself nicely and successfully leads the audience as each layer of the mystery is presented. The film will take you through some twists and turns, and makes you wonder about what is really going on behind the scenes. While the movie is satisfying overall, the major flaw is the lack of depth in character development. With the exception of Choi Min Sik's character, the rest of the cast are underutilized as they play pivotal characters that have very little flavour to them. If I were to interpret this to be intentional, then the archetypal/standard personalities should complement overarching message, or plot (i.e. the trial) - but the plot is too weak to justify that. As for the acting, there is nothing to complain or awe about for that same reason, despite the casting. Choi Min Sik plays the financial overlord, whose character develops directly in parallel with the movie. Park Shin Hye plays an inexperienced lawyer, which serves as a refreshing break (and hopefully beginning) from the mould given to her by drama roles.

If I were to summarize this lightly, I would say that it is worth a relaxed watch, but there is really no need to put your detective hat on during the movie. Enjoy the ride, but know that while they intended to pull at heartstrings, they forgot to put them there in the first place.

Read More