Completed
Love Yunge From the Desert
18 people found this review helpful
by Ling
Dec 1, 2015
45 of 45 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 4.0
I did not watch Sound of the Desert or read the novel before watching this, and to be honest the only reason why I was interested in watching this drama cause of the romance & the cast. I didn't have high expectations going into the drama, but after the first 10 episodes or so, I was thoroughly enjoying it.

It wasn't until towards 20+ episodes that I noticed how everything was dragging on. I also started disliking Yun Ge as a character. Meng Jue, Ling Gege & Xu Jiejie were the only characters that was worth watching to be honest.

I must give credit for how beautiful and visually stunning the setting, props and costumes were. The OST can get repetitive throughout the drama, but it got really addictive to listen to after awhile. I really wish the story was better and the ending left me with a lot of questions and frustrations. Overall, it was an okay drama, but I don't think I would recommend anyone to watch this to save them the pain and frustrations they will have to endure from watching this.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Occupied Heart
18 people found this review helpful
Oct 19, 2020
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 9.0
This review may contain spoilers

Amazing!

The idea of bird nests business is just amazing. I appreciate the production team for portraying this kind of profession. The scenery (forest, beach) is also beautiful.

The story is well developed. I enjoyed the part when they stay in the island. The conflict is unique & already intense. When they move to the city, it's getting more intense & complicated with the involvement of ex-wife, troubled husband, & another woman (it's typical conflict in lakorn, but i still could deal with this, hahaha)

I also love the main leads' character. Weir is strong & tough, but he can also be jealous of unnecessary things, & be like a kid when he's sick. It's really cute actually :) While Thisa, she's smart & tough when facing her 'enemies', but she's just like any other woman who's easily touched when a man does good things to her. I also like her way of slapping. Instead of just using her palm, she uses all of the energy in her arm. That's why it looks powerful. LOL.

The chemistry? It's beyond expectation. Weir & Thisa are perfect match. They show their feeling by taking care of each other. It's not a one-sided love story where only the FL or ML is aggressive towards another. I can say that now Weir-Thisa is one of my favorite on screen couple.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
An Innocent Mistake
16 people found this review helpful
Sep 29, 2014
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 7.0
I liked this drama a lot more than I had anticipated. It doesn’t have that many reviews and not many people have watched it, but I am certainly glad I decided to. The synopsis doesn’t really give the drama justice. It makes it sound like Man Qing, our female lead, didn’t get enough love from her adoptive parents and leaves home to find paternal love elsewhere, when that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Rather, what we have is a set of interwoven stories between Man Qing’s life and the choices her mothers made and Yu En’s (our male lead) life that was inversely affected by his father’s and stepmother’s choices.

The drama’s title, “An Innocent Mistake” (or the Chinese title “A Beautiful Sin,” which also sounds like “Most Beautiful” when spoken; a nice little pun ^^) doesn’t make sense until the very last few episodes of the drama in its explosion of a climax. But everything leading up to there was, to me at least, wonderfully engrossing and intriguing. There are times I couldn’t believe how twisted the drama was presenting itself as, yet at the same time appreciating the places it went. It definitely didn’t hold back on the darkness lurking beneath the drama’s surface plot.

I think the main point of the story is how two people being in love will always somehow and in some way hurt another person, whether that love be paternal, maternal, romantic, obsessive, idealized, etc. It also addresses how easily it is for that love to transform into hate; and how, in order not to hate, you have to take the situation you saw before your eyes and see it in the other person’s shoe too. The plot was magnificently layered in that way. More that that, it also had a logical beginning, middle, and conclusion, as well as probably one of my favorite TW-drama endings yet. It wasn’t even draggy, though it was a bit slow moving. I felt the pace was just right to build up to the ending. (I should probably point out that the version I watched was 26-episodes at 40 minutes a pop, rather than the 16-episode, 90 min version listed here). It also has some melodramatic elements, but nothing too unbelievable.

The other part of the drama I’d like to gush about are the actors. Not every single person who appeared on the screen was brilliant, but the main cast and most of the supporting cast definitely were. Mo Zi Yi as Yu En had all my feels the moment he fell for Man Qing and you could see every conflicting emotion playing on his face. Lin Chen Xi as Man Qing was an excellent choice to play a stoic young adult who is, basically, a classic tsundere-type character. Mo Zi Yi and Lin Chen Xi as the leads also had incredible chemistry together, which made the drama an even more joy to watch.

The three actresses playing Man Qing’s mothers all filled their roles very well as seasoned actors. They acted so well it felt like they really were surrogate sisters who were healing their broken pasts by living with each other. About the only weak link in the drama both story-wise and acting-wise was Chen Yu An as Zhang Wei Wei, who was used mainly as a plot pusher and whose acting was noticeably weaker than her co-actors. But she only appears at the beginning of the drama then is pushed to the background, so you don’t have to endure her to too long, thankfully.

The music was also not something to exactly write home about either. I liked the opening song well enough, and the ending song had some nice lyrics, but it was just... ordinary. I did like that the drama didn’t overuse those songs like other dramas do sometimes, though. The directors knew when the use the lyric-version and when to use the instrumental-version.

There aren’t that many negatives in this drama, so I’m not sure why it’s so under-watched. It’s not exactly a light and fluffy watch, so I guess that’s kind of a detriment. I would suggest to only watch it with an open mind and being able to have persistence even when the drama feels like it’s going way off onto the weird track. It gets back on the right track with all the finesse a drama with depth should.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Cheese in the Trap
18 people found this review helpful
Feb 13, 2025
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 8.5
Rewatch Value 8.0

Interesting characters & plot with a unique red flag male lead....but lacking romantic chemistry

Subjective Gut Rating: 8.25

Red flag male leads were ‘hot’ in 2024 and this trend might continue into 2025 so far. I wonder if I would like this drama less if I were to watch it back in 2016. Yoo Jung (ML) is not a likable character and would be considered a super red flag that you need to run away if you meet him in real life. But since this is drama-land and grey characters are ‘in’ and more acceptable and favorable’, I had an enjoyable time watching this very controversial drama.

I quite enjoy the interesting individual characters in this drama. Aside from Baek In Ho (2ML) played by the ridiculously handsome Seo Kang Joon, and Kwon Eu Taek, played by the ridiculously adorable young Nam Joo Hyuk, I would say none of the other characters are truly likable. However, I still like male lead, Yoo Jung. I am always curious about what he’s scheming up in his cunning mind and how he’s going to make someone pay for mistreating him or his loved one.

Park Hae Jin is incredible in this drama. He could be manipulative and calculating with evil eyes one second, and then in another moment, becomes smitten and shyly in love with Hong Seol. The only bad thing about him is that Park Hae Jin looks way too old to play a college student. Kim Go Eun as our female lead Hong Seol did pretty well too. Her character isn’t super likable either and is somewhat awkward. There’s no way I don’t love Seo Kan Joon when he’s so handsome and plays such a lovable character as well. As viewers, we witness Baek In Ho’s growth and character development, and can’t help but cheer him on every step of the way. A young Lee Sung Kyung playing the crazy and loud Baek In Ha is quite a sight to behold. I have to admit she brings some fun into this drama. Unfortunately, she’s a little too annoying for me to love and I feel that Lee Sung Kyung overacted. If she toned it down a little, I would have loved her craziness.

Despite liking Park Hae Jin and Kim Go Eun’s acting individually, the chemistry is just not there. I like the writing of the characters, but not the romance. It’s hard for me to believe they would fall in love. Kim Go Eun has better chemistry with Seo Kang Joon, but I am still rooting for Yoo Jung as the male lead to be with Hong Seol. Hong Seol and Baek in Ho seem more like great buddies who are super comfortable with each other. So, no second lead syndrome for me.

“Cheese in the Trap” is not a romantic comedy and it touches on some darker mental health issues. I think it did an OK job in showing us some of the family background history, and how each character unintentionally and unknowingly hurt each other, or being manipulated by others. Seeing how every relationship and the development of events are interconnected, was interesting to me, and a big selling point of this drama. However, I can see how others are dissatisfied and might have expected something different.

Overall, I have a pretty good time watching “Cheese in the Trap” even after avoiding this for years due to its lower rating and mixed reviews. I’m glad I watched it because of the Clown Bingo challenge, otherwise, I would never have picked it up. I ended up liking this a lot more than anticipated. Despite a somewhat disappointing romance, if you are interested in a different kind of love story with a real red flag male lead, this could be a unique watch.


Completed: 2/12/2025 - Review #543

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Love O'Clock
18 people found this review helpful
Jun 21, 2021
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 7.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 7.5
Music 6.5
Rewatch Value 6.5

Cute, fluffy but with being cringey...

It wasn't bad but wasn't good either, a okaish drama.. which is almost on the edge of becoming so bland having many unnecessary things almost stuffed in it. So if you are expecting something really good..
Firstly if you are looking for a good fantasy and stumbled upon this, don't have high hopes you'll end up being disappointed. Fantasy its just a very little aspect of this that actually works only as catalyst to get leads together in the initial episodes and after that.. writer almost forgot that plot, and I guess they again remembered it near the ending so yeah you'll just get a bit of fantasy in the start only.

This was definitely weak writing, many things were unreasonable.. there are some incidents that I was expecting some explanation or understading but they just remained as unanswered questions. Well okay I can endure that much but its being so predictable, all twists being so unsurprising and adding some very annoying characters bothered me a lot. I guess the plus point I see is the cinematography was very decent, the leads chemistry was bearable and they actually looked good as pairing. Side character were okay and I'm also not complaining about their screen time as they were so cute together.

The main problem with it is though it have some twists but they aren't unique or shocking and that's why it felt so plain and bland... I won't recommend to watch it, might be good as light watch but not more than that for sure!

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
After My Death
18 people found this review helpful
Feb 16, 2020
Completed 1
Overall 9.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.0
“I really want to die first," said a girl. Her teacher reacted by hitting her head.

The story is about how people react after a girl died by suicide and her friend is suspected as the ‘culprit’. The plot focuses on this friend and how she copes all those blames plus there's the mother of the girl who died who feels so guilty and miserable.
Special props to Jeon Yeo-bin (as Young-hee) and Seo Young-hwa (as the mother) for amazing performances. Jeon Yeo-bin didn't exaggerate the emotion and frustration yet these two actresses perfectly display all the hurts just through their expression, to the point it made me speechless.

This is the movie I've been looking for: bitter and realistic. After My Death addreses multiple social issues around us like, how adults tend to underestimate suicidal teenagers, school bullying, and so on. It feels raw and relatable and I felt a strange feeling after watching this.
What I like more is the movie doesn't try to explain why the characters are suicidal. Everyone has complicated problems and accumulated stress that we will never fully understand. There's no a single, all-in-one, conclusive reason behind it that people like to guess.
After My Death has broadened my perspective and I’m grateful I watched this gem.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Veteran
18 people found this review helpful
Dec 1, 2015
Completed 1
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 10
Veteran was such a wild ride. It's a David and Goliath setup surrounded by great acting, great writing, and great characters that I felt really invested in. I watched this on a plane and got weird looks by the people sitting next to me when I sobbed and laughed at the same time.

Bottomline: A wild ride supplemented by stunning performances. I had an adrenaline high after I finished watching.

Acting: With a cast boasting names like Hwang Jung Min and Oh Dal Su it feels like you're watching real life play out in front of you. Yoo Ah In was a standout for me whose role I imagine wasn't an easy task since he was acting opposite Yoo Hae Jin. His performance as Cho Tae-Oh was spine-chilling but nuanced. He was a monster, but he had shades that were achingly human. It was a villainous role that made you angry at him but also for him and that's really a stunning feat.

Writing: I love adore crave stories like Veteran. Is it new or original? No. But the best thing about Veteran is that the script takes roles that have already been set and makes them human, makes them more. Everything is driven by them, their motivations, their desires. Hwang Jung Min could've played a good lawful cop who always does the right thing, but instead, the script throws that archetype right out the window in the stunning opening scene. They make him compelling: idealistic but realistic, someone who fights for what he believes in but in underhanded ways, a knight in rusty armor. Yoo Ah In could've played the spoiled son of a chaebol, an archetype we've seen a million times and then some. But here he plays someone so truly and deeply frightening that you think, this is what evil is. I read an interview where Director Ryu Seung-wan stated he wanted to look at the humans involved in this sort of story rather than the story itself. And the way he did is a beautiful thing to watch.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
President
18 people found this review helpful
Feb 7, 2014
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 7.0
Stimulating. Addictive. Endearing. These words describe what every drama aspires to be, and what President most definitely is. How surprising that something so fun is also little known! "But wait," you say, perhaps suspiciously. "How can a show about a political campaign be anything but stodgy?" Don't run. Hear me out.

While a good portion of President does revolve around politics and the campaigning process, much more can be seen than that. After all, this is the tale of deep and involving characters, each with their own fleshed out philosophies, backgrounds, and behaviors. These deal with and engage in various conflicts and intrigues, some scandalous, some campaign-crushing, others life-ruining. So what does such an atmosphere produce? High stakes conflict, with constant twists and turns. The viewer never knows what might come out of various happenings, even until the end. There were times I held my breath, totally drawn in, or even cried, having become so involved in this bitter battle.

Another strength rests in dialogue, a major point for scriptwriters. Much like in another surprisingly fetching drama (Empire of Gold), conversations are strong and memorable, if not as literary. Several speeches served up goose bumps, especially those delivered by Jang Il Joon (Choi Soo Jong).

Despite the deep praise I have for much of President, problems do exist in the narrative. There were times, if only on occasion, I found certain events unbelievable or a little “too much.” More serious might actually be the inclusion of Yoo Min Ki (Kim Jay), and the overall pacing of that character’s subplot. Two romances exist on top of this, yet only one works well; the other feels shoe-horned in to hook unsuspecting romance fans.

Acting! Why not start with the best? Jang Il Joon might be one of the most fascinating characters ever written for a drama, and Choi Soo Jong brings him to life with overflowing charisma. Is this a good man, a bad one, or a bit of both? This unforgettable portrayal deepens as our knowledge of Jang Il Joon does – and what an electrifying effect! His voice especially gave me the impression of a true leader; I could listen to this man speak all day, yet always be moved.

Other fine performances belong to Ha Hee Ra (as the deliciously complicated, unscrupulous Jo So Hee) and Kim Heung Soo (brilliant advisor Ki Soo Chan). The majority of Jang Il Joon’s competitors and campaign workers were great too, though particularly Hong Yo Seop (playing noble Kim Kyung Mo). I honestly wanted to give this section a perfect score, but unfortunately several young cast members prevented me. These include Kim Jay and Wang Ji Hye as the biggest offenders, but their scenes are mercifully short in comparison to the rest.

Two great vocals are provided by Super Junior (“Biting My Lips”) and 4MEN (“To Go and Die Alone”) respectively. This second touched me the most; its lyrics suit Jang Il Joon and his upward struggle to a magnificent degree. Otherwise, most incidental music worked fine or was at least unobtrusive, though both the “love ballad” and campaigning tracks were not to my taste.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Not Me
18 people found this review helpful
by Saikai
Oct 21, 2023
14 of 14 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 8.0
This review may contain spoilers

I feel a bit unsatisfied?

*happy ending for two couples*

Dont get me wrong. The acting was superb. Especially Gun my gosh. I think this series showcased his acting really well. It made me even think that Black is really another actor. I completed watching this just because I really loved Gun's acting in this one.

The ost? The best. I thought I will never find a more better ost than never let me go, but my boy. This got the best. They also incorporated some songs I also heard in never let me go. Save the spotify playlist. Def recommend.

The story is 10 out of 10 as well. The conflict the suspense, the cinematography, everything is the best.

However down to the last episodes, I had to skip some scenes? I dont know why it became boring in the latter episodes even though the romance and the action is in the last parts.

I think OffGun's off screen chemistry is not much shown in the series unlike TOL. Maybe because this series focuses more on the plot of fighting for what is right. Rather than the romance part. It became so not focused that I dont mind leaving the romance between OffGun. Heck, I felt more on screen chemistry with YokDan.

Another reason I think that I am unsatisfied with is becauseI didnt see or realized when Sean fell in love with White. I felt how conscious White is to Sean but not the other way around. There are some moments but I didnt feel that it was tense in a romantic way. Next thing I know he already kissed White.

I just felt overall that the romance and the plot is unbalanced in a way. I just hoped the build up is introduced all throughout the series and not just the almost last part.

Overall, this is one of the best series out there in terms of plot and execution. Must watch but know that the romance is not much the focus of this series.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
The King: Eternal Monarch
18 people found this review helpful
by Ivy212
May 30, 2022
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 8.5
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 10

One of my most favourite dramas that I can watch again and again

First of all I dont really write reviews but since there are a lot of negative comments I decided to share my opinion. I absolutely love the story. Its not a drama that you can relax while watching. Its exiting and there are not any plotlines left opened. It kept me hooked from the start to finish. I cant really understand why anyone would hate this drama but perhaps it was not easy to understand the plot bc it was very complicated. You can get better understanding of it if you know at least a little bit about the butterfly effect or have an opinion on time travel. Perhaps marvel fans will understand :) It is science fiction after all.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Plot Love
18 people found this review helpful
Apr 25, 2021
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 3
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 6.0

A fast-paced yet cheesy drama with ALLL the tropes

This one is an ultimate trope land, but for some reason didn't get disgustingly draggy midway?
It's like the scriptwriter looked at the typical tropes romance dramas have
realized 24 episodes is barely enough to contain all of them
so we just got all them tropes one after the other

The storyline is a bit choppy at times and you'll wonder if you missed half an episode somewhere
And really there are way too many villain arcs in this drama for it to make sense (both business and love line villains)

But overall I really liked the cheese component of the story
The two leads had a pretty good love line with many "vinegar-eating" scenes and steamy kisses
And the secondary couple are like enemies-to-lovers which is yet another well-loved romance drama trope
And everything moves at such a fast pace that well, at least you won't get bored from a slow draggy mid-late drama (you know those dramas where there's one misunderstanding and the leads don't talk for years)
And the business line is cool too if you let go of your logic a little bit.
If it weren't for that last episode I would give it a 8.5, but that final villain arc was just way too much

And if you like to see child actors, you'll enjoy the kid in this show. He real cute. The character kind of reminds me of the kid in Begin Again?

Final verdict: watch it to kill time, don't watch if you've got better things planned.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
The Love You Give Me
18 people found this review helpful
by Simone
May 14, 2023
28 of 28 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.0

A light hearted Romcom, with lots of comedy . Just the right mix

Watching a drama and loving it are two very different things and not always a drama hits the right spot.
I loved it .

It was funny, cute, interesting, sometimes, somethings did get boring, but they sort of resolved it kinda well. This being a cdrama with 28 episodes, some cliché stuff did happen, which could have been bypassed, had this been a kdrama. For a 28 episode long drama, sometimes , it did feel like they stretched the story, but the best part is , that they managed it really well.

The story is not an entirely new concept, but the way it was portrayed was kind of really really sweet. The thing that really surprised me was this drama had 3 couples. Ive seen dramas mostly with 2 couples, but the way theybalanced everone onscreen was just awesome. Ive seen dramas, where the support lead couples have a pretty boring story , to the point where one can totally skip them, but this one's so very different, in that aspect. No couple other than the lead was not worth watching, each of them had their own story and the way it was perfectly blended was justamazing. At no point it felt that thesupport couples were stealing main couple's screen time and it was just perfect. There were times when it got a little repetitive. Iwont lie, i did skip few scenes of support couples, because all of them had a common thing that was "fight and then reunite", which did felt a little boring , but all three couples have their very different stories going on at different pace & different problems to deal with (The lead couple had a kid and a past traumatic history, another couple, where the female didnt want to get married, and another one where the doctor guy played hard to get, but eventually, had to pursue, the love of his life in the end). Anyhow, things turned out well.
I absolutely loved the family interactions (main couple). .

Coming to acting and chemistry. The lead couple was mind blowing. Imean, they had such a good chemistry, a lot of scenes gave me butterflies 🤭, it was brilliant , even the 2nd couple (cao mu x chen) were pretty good as well. Acting wise, everyone did a good job, but for obvious reasons, Quanquan stole everyone's ❤️ (i guess). He's been phenomenal. His dialogues, acting, expressions, everything's been amazing. It was just so cute seeing Quanquan and his papa play . My heart went Awwww.... seening how cute and sweet they were. Even support characters like Hardy &Cindy were pretty cool, nobody felt boring or overdoing. Oh yes ! How can i forget, the conversations between the lead couple. They were so sweet , them talking about their work, life , future, the lovey-dovey talks. Beautiful. the FL is so pretty. LOVED every bit of the drama.
Music was pretty fine. Cinematography was great too. And yes I loved God of Wealth's house (it was awesome) .
Overall, its a really good drama , where emotions, comedy, love, business, everything's pretty well balanced. If you're looking for a light Romcom (that could give you 🦋 butterflies ) , you're at the right place .
Watch it . Its good.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
All About Eve
18 people found this review helpful
Apr 29, 2014
20 of 20 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 8.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 6.0
I really really like everything about this drama! The plot is not groundbreaking but feels refreshing somehow, probably because doesn’t have too many of the classic kdrama tropes: the most amazing thing is, for once, doesn’t have your typical leads. There isn’t a cold jerk male lead, nor a damsel-in-distress female lead. Wow! Other thing, they don’t have a love-hate relationship, nor do they spend time bickering endlessly. Instead, you have a pure and beautiful romance that unfolded between two people who start as friend and later develop a more deep relationship. No Father/ Mother -in-Law from hell either. Amazing!
From the beginning, the story put the focus more in the relationship between the female leads, Sun Mi and Young Mi, both had strong ambition, career-wise and everything they did was an effort towards that goal of becoming anchor-women. But is Young Mi jealousy of Sun Mi’s seemingly perfect life which causes Young Mi resolution to steal whatever Sun Mi has or wants. Their rivalry was a refreshing and intriguing thing to watch.
Throughout the drama is shown the contrast not only between this two women, but also in the romance between Sun Mi-Hyung Chul and Young Mi-Woo Jin, the sweet and pure romance vs the antagonist’s dark and tragic one.
As for the characters:
Sun Mi: she’s cute and bright without feeling annoying, and is by no means perfect, she’s gets upset and angry when provoked, and she even gets jealous.
Hyung Chul: Such a lovely leading man, his character was calm, honest and gentle. He’s true in his love and stayed true no matter what.

As for the character of Young Mi, I always enjoy a twisted and complex villain. Ultimately I have no sympathy for her but at least I get to understand her character and motivations. Her romance with Woo Jin is intense and dramatic, but dooms to fail due to the very insane and obsessed nature of their love: Woo Jin wanting to posses Young Mi and Young Mi willing to do anything to steel what Sun Mi cherish the most.
The acting: everyone did a great job portraying this rater complex character.
The music: true to be told, I don’t have any recollection about the sound track… :(
Overall, I would recommend this drama to everyone!

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Once upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain
18 people found this review helpful
by Kotori
Apr 19, 2020
37 of 37 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.0
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 10

A drama that lightens up your day and absolutely deserves a 2nd chance!

Once upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain (let me shorten this to Lingjian) is a funny and lighthearted drama that will cheer you up in every possible way. At the same time, you will be seduced by the delicate balance between BG and BL romances between the characters. I can really recommend those in doubt to stick around a bit longer (after episode 12-13) to give it another chance. You will not regret it!

I started Lingjian when it was airing around the end of 2019 because it had a high ranking. Similar to many others, my mind was full of "WTH is this?..." I found Sandrine Pinna's acting too exaggerated and the jokes very forced. I also could not stand the cheap-looking CGs and sets. So I put it on hold at around episode 12 and gave it a 6.5. The fact I did not entirely drop the ball is because I did not completely dislike it. Fast forward to early 2020, out of curiosity, I picked up the Legend and fell under the charm of Xu Kai. After also watching YanXi Place and Arsenal School of Military, in which Xu Kai showed utterly different sides of capabilities as actors, I just had to pick up Lingjian again. And I did not regret it. On the contrary, this has become one of my favorite c-dramas. I even watched it twice and I rarely do that with any dramas.

Let me start what I absolutely love about this drama: the courage to make a fool out of itself entirely. The origin of Lingjian is a very long but famous web novel that was adapted into a manga and an anime. The scriptwriters of the drama did their best to mimic the characteristics of the Shonen manga: serious and original main storyline but funny mixing with foolish connecting dialogues. The serious main story touches on relationships, love, family, friendships, loyalty, effort, immorality, and the constant fights between good and evil, questioning what considers as right and wrong in this world (sounds familiar?!). I have not seen many drama adaptations daring to mimic this style because of one simple reason: they are afraid to lose the audience by appearing to be too foolish. Real actors simply cannot make the same funny faces and turn themselves into walking emojis and animated characters! But the makers of Lingjian did it! They deliberately broke walls (e.g., Wang Lu mentions the names of Wei Ying Luo from Yanxi Palace or often declares he has the "protagonist aura"), incorporate parodies from other dramas/famous mangas (e.g., Naruto and Dragon Ball) and even Asian dramas (e.g., Meteor Garden and O2O) and request the actors to showcase the most improper expressions one can recall. Indeed, this is something you need to get used to. But once you do, you will start to adore this drama and be entertained through and through.

The other excellent watchpoint is the sweet combination of BG and BL romance. The brotherhood (BL) relationship between Wang Lu and Hai Yun Fan is something that did not exist in the original story but added by the makers. And they are so sweet. Their bond is very strong, and the two have the most beautiful moments together. I am amazed that some of the dialogues and scenes can even passed the Chinese censorship screening!
Many scenes made my BL-loving heart aching like crazy as there are some unexpected turns towards the end of the drama (I am not going to spoil more, but in my view, they even crossed the level of Untamed!)
Again, hats down to Xu Kai's over the top performance as Wang Lu! Unlike many other young actors, he showed he could step out of his comfort zone and display all types of expressions without any shame. But at the same time, his performance is to the points for all the serious scenes. In terms of the "wifey", I had to first grow into Zhu Yuan Bin's performance as HYF at the start. But as the show goes on, I liked him more and more. HYF has a charming personality but hides some darker obsessions within (does it remind you of someone?!). ZYB was able to show both sides convincingly. I will be looking forward to his future performances and his growth as an actor.
In terms of the GB romance, Wang Lu and Wan Wu's chemistry is not the strongest, but you can understand why and how they are falling for each other. Their romance is very subtle, and even towards the end, it is not very obvious whether there is a mutual feeling towards each other. Therefore this does not interfere with the BL aspect. I have to admit that I needed to get used to Sandrine Pinna's interpretation as WW (esp. the dubbing did not help!). But also here, you begin to like her after a while, and soon you cannot imagine someone else playing WW other than SP. She would just make expressions other pretty Chinese actress would not dare to do, and that is what makes out the charm of WW.

Finally, I would like to mention a few last arguments: the supporting characters are adorable. Wen Bao is absolutely my favorite here. I also really like Zhu Qin. The fighting scenes are surprisingly well made; combined with the FX, they mix well with the humorous side of the drama. The drama has a digestible of 37 episodes. Except for the first few episodes, there are limited fillers, and pacing is good. Finally, I like the ending! We know that many C-dramas have a lousy tail. Though many viewers complain about the open end, I find it just about right. It features a great and unexpected climax in the last few episodes and leaves us viewers wanting more. I really hope they are going to produce a second season! Otherwise, I am going to complain about the hell out of the studio!

I already mentioned a few improvement areas at the start, so I will not repeat them. Also, there are a few unlogical character development and storylining to create a dramatic effect. But ok... this happens so often in c-dramas that I start to ignore them.

All in all, this is an excellent drama that deserves a 2nd chance. In this time of global chaos and downturn, let Once Upon a Time in Lingjian Mountain and its cast lighten up your day.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?
Completed
Stranger
18 people found this review helpful
Jan 26, 2019
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

A Perfect Ten! No Weakness At All In Term of Quality, Acting & Production Values

I never give any drama a perfect 10 but this drama 100% deserved it.

This drama is seriously amazing. I have watch like gazillion of Kdramas for the past 15 years and I can safely said that the writing for this drama is the best that ever comes out from Korea. It is intelligent, excellently written and the clever details is just mind blowing. The writer is great at constructing plot without leaving any minor details. The script is tight, solid, complicated without plot holes and full of characters with great depth and personalities without including any questionable or dumb plot in its storyline. I have high expectation before watching the show but this drama truly exceeded my already high expectations. The writers made everyone, including the main character as the possible suspects and yet, she is still able to surprise us with the ending.

I feel like no other investigation dramas can hold a candle to this other than Signal. Other law or investigation dramas always bother me with the inaccurate technical practices and details but this drama have none of those and it didn't insult you intelligent either. It's simply a brilliant cat & mouse chase drama where both the good and the bad guys are clever.

SECRET FOREST IS PERFECT IN QUALITY SENSE -- I dont even know it is possible until I watch this drama. There's nothing to complain about the script, plot, directing and acting as it is that good.

Read More

Was this review helpful to you?