This review may contain spoilers
When I started to watch Death Bell it reminded me of Saw for some reason. Maybe because of murder cruel ways used to eliminate students. Maybe because the riddles.Movie has great background music which fit the story perfectly. Acting was really enjoying to watch, actors captured emotions truly well, especially surrounding chaos which took whole school hostage.
Overall I enjoyed watching this movie although there were so common trick which basically directors uses in this type of movies. Like never trust "good guys" or people which say about themselves that their are worthless etc. I was disappointed that murder revealed it self right at the begging. But lucky it did not demanded the story ^^
I have to mention that the last scene with titles in the end made me laugh so hard! This is pure dark humor - and excellent I have to say!
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BaiLu is a great actress who has so many great talents
BaiLu and Dylan wang both are great actors and good looking which makes drama more interesting to watch.Story base drama is good because it’s has love, ambition, passion about work,handling problems with their own judgements,so yes it was pretty good.. BaiLu’s acting skills always makes me impressed..all the characters doing well and perfectly executed whole drama. I like most when BaiLu and wang Heidi romantic scenes,they looks so natural , it’s feel they made for each others I love their chemistry so much. It’s easy to watch them because they portrayed every role very clearly.. Hopefully we can see them as an ancient drama, wuxia, because I think they are perfect. Both had historical successful drama and they are looked so good togetherWas this review helpful to you?
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You won't be able to respond normally to hearing the word "sunny" ever again
Well, this was a weird but fun watch that could only come from Japan!I really liked how, when it came down to it, this was about two kind-of-kinky people who just hadn't had a proper conversation with each other about where they're at in their relationship, with one lead being terribly dense and unwilling/anxious to fully voice his desires and concerns and the other being forward physically all the while desperately craving simple but meaningful things from his lover: quality time together outside of sex, being relied on, being greeted at the door, and verbal expressions of affection.
All in all, I would recommend this sometimes frustrating drama.
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The story is very original and quirky, I really liked it. It was very funny and entertaining. The story also tackles on some very important issues like discrimination, bullying and LGBT, which rarely appear in japanese dramas. What's more, they were tackled with a surprising seriousness, and that was great.
The cast was great. Ryo Nishikido and Hikari Mitsushima were fantastic, as I expected. The rest of the cast was also great, but Yuta Koseki deserves a special mention for his performance in episode 8.
The music was nothing special, but the theme song by Kanjani8 was pretty good.
In conclusion, Gomenne Seishun! is a very funny and well acted drama that also has a serious side when it tackles on some very important issues, which I appreciated.
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It had the potential to be great but it was just mid:(
I like the start of the series. The kids are amazing actors, really so talented. They could really awoke some feelings within viewers. The plot was great at the beginning. I like the concept of family by choice and not the blood.Both father figures were great, you could really feel the love they had for the kids. But both mother were infuriating, i was so mad while watching so yeah great choice of actors on both sides.
I like the cast overall and didn’t mind the time jumpes, but what irks me the most is this - when i read about what this series was about its says that juwon was mad at them for leaving her (as she should be). And then all of this to just resolve in a couple of minutes?! They left her behind for 10 years! And withing (I think an episode) they come back, she stops being angry with them, and starts daring San-ha? Like what?
I get that they could not prolong the plot but still they should film maybe 20episodes not just 16. Everything seemed rushed. It would be way better for them to take it slow i mean we all know san-ha liked her before but it would be way better for junwo to realise her feelings on her own as the time passed. I was kinda disappointed.
I mean she was mad at her oppas and then the next moment she was dating one of them?? Also the description kinda implied rivalry for her love? I was really disappointed.
Also San-ha was traumatized, suffering with ptsd, it was a great opportunity to talk more about mental health but it was just brusher under the carpet. This was another great example of rushing through.
I think it maybe is my fault for expecting too much of it, but after watching love next door and hearing all the praise it got of course i had higher expectations because family by choice also got a lot of praise over social media.
Don’t get me wrong it’s not the worst kdrama i watched but it is definitely overrated and overhyped. But maybe if you don’t have any expectations it could be okay. I dont know.
So to conclude - great actor choice, lovely meaning about family, but rushed plot. Its kinda sad it really had all the potential:(
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Lee Dong Gun, Jung Yong Hwa, Yoon Eun Hye and Han Chae Ah did a great job with their characters. I know that some people have problems with a few of these actors, but I think they all did an excellent job.
The music is annoying.
I won't rewatch this.
I think that if you like dramas that make you think, then this is a good one for it. Especially if you like the thought of time travel and parallel universes.
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The children of Jiwha-dong.
I fell in love within the first few minutes of the first episode of this drama.The drama follows a man who is looking for his long lost sister, that same man shares same emotional state with a woman he recently met.
Yeo Jingoo’s and Moon Ka-young's performance was so amazing in this drama and their chemistry was flowing so well.
This drama gives it all; the thrill, the fantasy, the romance, the mystery all in one go with exact amount of everything.
As much as this drama is interesting, it also shines light onto serious things that even tend to happen in real life:
Domestic abuse.
Murder.
Bullying.
Stalking.
Attempts of rape.
We get to see so many characters in Link and we get to see their daily life and what they go through. We meet the children of Jiwha-dong.
We also get to see the female lead struggling with a few things that I mentioned up there.
Even though she went through such serious topics, we get to see her heal and become stronger than she was before. Aswell as the male lead. He goes through so many rough things ever since he was little to his adult hood.
He deals with his sister going missing, his mother becoming sick and disassociating from the world, his father barely being there for them when needed.
He turns into this cold, distant character that you want to sympathize with. That you want to hug and put into your pocket and keep him safe.
The drama shows us that tough times never last, but tough people do.
It shows that no matter what we can go through, there is still that tiny speck of light that might drop and shine up your life.
Life can teach people to never trust someone again. Whether it being someone broke your heart, messed with your loyalty, did something bad- life can tend to be unfair but once you get to meet specific people that were made for you, you'll see how much it's worth it.
You will lose people along the way, and like the male lead said;
"It’s because we’ve lost someone. We’ve lost someone precious to us. That’s why we can’t hold on to someone. We’re afraid of losing them again."
However everything is going to be okay, we're all human, afterall.
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For this solid work is responsible pair of directors, debuting Kim Byung-Seo and more experienced Choi Ui-Seok (he also wrote script for the movie and previously directed two movies, Make it Big (2002) and The World of Silence (2006)). Starring beautiful Han Hyo-Joo (Always (2011), Masquerade (2012), Love 911 (2012)), accompanied by an experienced Sol Kyung-Gu (Public Enemy (2002), Silmido (2003), Tidal Wave (2009), Troubleshooter (2010), The Tower (2012)), while their opponent is portrayed by Jang Woo-Sung (Musa the Warrior (2001), Mutt Boy (2003), A Moment to Remember (2004), The Good, The Bad, The Weird (2008)) in on of his few roles as an antagonist. The entire cast has done an excellent job and characters portrayed by them seemed very real, so we can fully enjoy how well they are written out. With all this movie was seen by 5.5 million viewers, which translated into almost 40 billion profit won (~$37 million).
The story is not new or revealing, but it is a good and fresh combination of familiar patterns, put togheter into a brilliant whole. A young, slightly neurotic cop Ha Yoon-Joo (Han Hyo-Joo) has a rare 3D photographic memory. To use her talent in the best way, she is trying to get into an elite unit in charge of surveillance and supervision, led by Hwang (Sol Kyung-Gu), and supervises by the chief Lee (Kyung Jin). Hwang after a short test, brings her in to his team and gives her the nickname "Flowery Sow". Each member of the team has a nickname (Snake, Squirrel, Monkey, etc.) and each of them is represented on map of current operation, by custom chess piece in shape of their nickname. Ha Yoon-Joo thanks to her intelligence, ambition and enthusiasm, quickly gains the trust of the whole team. Unfortunately, they will face with the villain other than any they so far had to deal with. James (Jang Woo-Sung), is planning attacks with precision and accuracy of a Swiss watch, and everything is done under nos of Hwangs team. Thanks to the excellent planning and supervision of the entire operation from the roofs of skyscrapers all his operations are performed without any problems and without leaving virtually no trace.
Right from the start you can see that we are dealing with an outstanding thriller that have its calmer moments, but they are only helping to build the tension before another portion of the action. A nice surprise is the excellent use of Seoul and its lack of features typical for a big city (no characteristic skyline). Choi and Kim in an interesting way exploited these flaws to create a maze. The action seamlessly moves from the stairways to the streets, subway tunnels and winding streets of markets. But the real genius of the movie reveals itself not in what it does (and everything it does excellently), but in what it does not do. There are no, typical "hard" guys from opposite camps, no heavy (homoerotic) exchanging of glances, nor melodramatic inserts trying to move and shrug viewer.
Yoon-Joo, at some point, is going through a kind of break and floods in tears, but it is rather because of her impotence to use her talent to catch James, than being a "weak" woman. Han Hyo-Joo very convincingly presents a sympathetic cop, along with her ??annoying tics and flaws, who in fact is defined by her skill and not a pretty face or character. In turn, Sol Kyung-Gu somewhat toned down his character, so that Han Hyo-Joo and supporting cast could shine more. Detective Hwang is not simply eccentric, he is a complex person who manipulates the relationships and emotions of others. However, the biggest surprise is the excellently created James. Jang Woo-Sung in recent years stuck in the role of suffering romatic. In Cold Eyes he is finally able to show that he is better than that. Portrayed by him James, is calm and methodical, and his only pleasure is seeing how his elaborately constructed plan is executed. Hwang at some point defines him as "omniscient author" which perfectly describes his character. However, despite all this reserve and distance, James is still a hard and ruthless criminal who will not leave any loos ends, and his favored weapon is a fountain pen.
It is a little sad that such an excellent thriller, is only a remake, not the original work. It is another sign of the imminent stagnation of Korean thrillers, and if directors won't risk and try to experiment with new approaches, we are doomed to see identical thrillers using the same, old ideas.
Despite all the flaws, this is a great thriller that should appeal to any fan of the genre. Finally there is main female character, which is independent and strong, which should appeal to ladies. I hope that my prophecy will not come true in the future we will get more thrillers at level of Cold Eyes (but I would like them to be the original Korean creations).
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Romance, Romance...Romance!
I loved this very much, I was expecting the romance to be so sweet and captivating, TBH it's the best kisses and intimacy I've ever seen in my Cdrama watching history, the leads had soo much chemistry, if you don't watch this for anything else, the romance alone will keep you, I was at episode 20, and had only two episode left before I realized it was almost done, It's the first I've ever wanted more in a short length series, but that isn't to say it wasn't satisfying, it was simply because I was so into it that I didn't realize I was almost done watching it.The story isn't great, but it was nice, I don't remember there being much or any filler. The acting was great for everyone including the villain, the villainess girl acting was great as well I really hated her character so she definitely did her job, the villain (ML brother) was an idiot, and overstayed his welcome. The CGI was also good, and the costumes were beautiful, especially the FL outfits, she looked great, TBH I even liked the villainess sleepwear when they were in the modern realm, it was super cute haha
The music was really nice for a short length series as well, will be adding the songs to my favorite drama ost list
The romance was the best part of the show, from beginning to the end we get amazing kisses, amazing chemistry, even the villains at one point had a crazy intimate scene haha, as well as our main couple, I usually don't say this, but I would love to watch the leads together again (while waiting or the last episode to be subbed, I watched a different show with the FL and another actor, and maybe because I watched this first and the chemistry was great, but I felt absolutely nothing for them, even though their kiss scenes were good).
of course there were things that I wish was different, the villains stayed way too long, though I know the many chances they go was because of ML useless father's love for his second son (ML brother), and the other thing I thought would have made this better was the fact that throughout the entire thing the FL had lost her powers, so the ML had to save her, but even without that the charm and attitude of the FL made her likeable still.
So again, if you're not looking for romance, those two things alone listed above, you may not like the show. But if you love romance, that alone in the show was worth the watch
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((I've always wanted to say that at least once)).
Story: Some of you may be wondering why I've given the story an 8 when I just stated that I love this show. That being said, just because I love a certain drama doesn't exactly mean I'm willing to overlook all of it's faults. The faults here were pretty obvious, but they didn't necessarily detract from the overall experience.
Originally, this drama was to be titled "Undercover" instead of the more poetic "Heartless City". At first, I assumed the previous title was referring to the main character, Soo Min. After you get about halfway through the drama, you begin to wonder WHO is the main undercover. Seriously. Everyone and their grandmother is undercover. It's like the guy pulling all these strings just decided to shove a whole bunch of undercover agents into the drug business and have them chase each other just to get a laugh out of it. The thing is, you'd expect that after the first few times the viewer would get so desensitized to the whole "undercover" thing that when the next character is revealed to be an undercover agent, the viewer wouldn't even bat an eye.
Ha. Nope. Each and every time you're just completely blown away.
"Heartless City" also did a really good job with the antagonist reveal. Just when you think that the "good" guys have defeated the "bad" guys, you realize that there's someone else behind them. I'm putting good and bad in quotations because there's not really an easy way to label all these characters. True, a few of them are easy to label, but everyone's relationships and alliances are constantly shifting here. Mortal enemies may wind up as allies and allies may wind up pointing a gun at you. This drama focuses heavily on those relationships between the people of the drug world and the law enforcement trying to capture them. You would think that relationships also translated to the main romance between Soo Min and Shi Hyun, but it's quite the opposite. Their relationship sort of took a back-burner to the rest of the plot. While that did make the story more believable, it also makes it difficult to put a label on what Soo Min and Shi Hyun felt for each other. I can't say it was love, or even like. Maybe lust or passion? Either way, both characters were very believable and well written. While Soo Min may be overly emotional and unprofessional, she was very realistic. She was an untrained girl looking to get revenge on her older sister, and it shows. Shi Hyun is more than just the cold leader of his drug ring, and little tiny bits of vulnerability show through.
Acting: Wow. Jung Kyung Ho has quickly become one of my favorite actors. His portrayal of "The Doctor's Son" was perfect and apparently garnered him a ton of critical praise. It's well-deserved, since he was just brilliant here. Kyung Ho pulled off the dangerous and vulnerable Jung Shi Hyun perfectly, and I just can't heap enough superlatives on to him to make you understand how much I loved him here. As far as his chemistry with co-star Nam Gyu Ri went, I think I finally have an actor OTP to rival my ChaeKi ship from "Nice Guy". Which sucks, since that means it'll take a while for me to watch their other stuff without hating the onscreen objects of their affections. Anyway, Nam Gyu Ri's character here is a bit... difficult to connect with. I feel like that's more attributed to Gyu Ri's acting than anything else, since it felt like she was emotionally walled off from me, but she was still pretty good in her role. Lee Jae Won and Kim Yoo Mi were really good here, and I especially loved Yoon Hyun Min's Soo here.
Music: God, that OST. It's been a long time since I was so obsessed with a song that I just had to put it on repeat for days on end, and I still don't regret all 300+ plays of Kim Yong Jin's "Hurt". That song was just so perfect for this drama. The instrumentals used to highlight HC's important scenes were perfect too. They felt a bit like something out of a Bond or superhero movie. Dark and broody- perfect for action scenes.
Rewatch Value: Once you've seen the whole thing once, I kind of doubt anything here will take you by surprise. That doesn't mean it won't be fun, though.
Overall: This drama left me emotionally drained and probably ruined me for other noir dramas to come. I wouldn't recommend this if you're looking for something like "City Hunter", since the two are worlds apart in tone despite their similarities plot-wise. "Heartless City" is a drama that's very unapologetic in whatever it does, and by the end of it you'll probably be sobbing, but I would still recommend watching this.
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First off, it's a low budget production but I never let the budget stop me watching any drama. I simply mentioned this to help people tempered expectation on what this drama is. Also, I'm not sure if it's a budget issue or writing issue but its budget production hinder the drama from being better than it is.
Story
Based on synopsis the story reminds me of Love in the Moonlight but nowhere as good. However it's very different if you look past the concept of a girl pretending to be an eunuch to enter the royal palace. So half of the story is about the romance between the ML and FL and the other half is about his political struggle to go from a puppet king to an actual king in control of his own destiny. What made me decided to keep on watching in the beginning is the ML protraying of a king. Early on, I think the very first episode, the FL disguised as a eunuch straight up told the ML that he looks a guy with power but is powerless to do anything...and that a stab in the ML's heart is exactly the situation he's in. The emotion that he display, the emptiness of his crown, the loneliness and hopelessness...I thought is done well.
He's a young king and the Empress ruled on his behalf as a regent the court is divided into Empress's side which wants to hold power and the loyalist side which want the king to rule on his own. He seems to useless puppet king but is actually really intelligent. So part of the early intrigue for this drama is his struggle to and when he slowly falls in love with the FL, the emotion that he display and hopelessly he has knowing the situation he's in and his inablity to protect people close to him.
Acting/Cast
Ash Zhu (ML - king) - Young king of Dong Cheng kingdom, Empress (not blood related) rule as a regent on his behalf. He has no actual power in the beginning and Empress side is doing everything to withhold power from him. Ran into FL in the beginning and befriended the FL because he found her interesting especially since she didn't realize he's the king. She was unruly but frank with her words, a level of honesty hard for him to see in the palace so he decided to keep her by his side and eventually found out "she" is in fact a women. Despite the fact he's being controlled by the Empress, he secretly building a plan to eventually rule on his own. He's very intelligent at times and very stupid at other times...especially when it's related to the FL. Yea...one of those character.
Ash Zhu not the best looking guy in cdramaland but I thought he did well in the drama. He displayed a wide range of emotion in the drama and his acting in very convincing for the role he's playing. I thought he did well.
Ma Meng Wei (FL who pretends to be a eunuch) - The daughter of a Shangshu (尚书). Her mother is comes from a lowly background so she wasn't raised as a noble lady. Instead she on the street smart side. Came disguised in eunuch to chase after a debt owed by one of the eunuch but instead ran into the king. Initially the she doesn't know he's the king. Despite the fact she's supposed to be street smart...she's the type of character that made a lot of mistakes that gets her into trouble. Now part of it is just the king withholding his plan to her. But other time it's totally her fault. For a person that snuck into the palace pretending to be a women, a crime punishable by death that could even affect her family. She sure act super reckless some of the time.
Now she fells in love with the king...sometimes she's seems very understanding of the situation. In other time, was so reckless she put herself in danger and ML.
She's ok I think. However, my view on her is tinted by the type of character she's playing. Needless to say, I'm not a fan of this type of character.
Lin Yan Qing (second male lead, fiancé of the FL) - He's in love with the female lead. He plays a very righteous character who came from noble family loyal to the crown. He's a noble fool...righteous to a fault. He's deeply in love with the FL but she never reciprocated her love. I know he's playing the tragic 2nd ML with the unrequited love. But I just never care to deeply about him. The tragic part about him is he has to struggle with his loyalty to the king despite the fact the king is essentially stealing his fiance. I thought the actor did well for what he's given. I'm just not too fond of his character.
Gong Zhi Yue (second female lead) - Childhood friend of the king and deeply in love with him. Unfortunately she's the daughter of the general, which is one of Empress's side. She is playing essential the same character as the 2nd ML. Like they're just mirrored image of each other. She's simply more tragic because she's literally in the middle of the power struggle. So she has to deal with her love and loyalty to the king vs her family. She did ok but at times she's just doesn't have a look of a daughter of a military family that's supposedly good at martial art and fought in war. She's more lady-like that the FL.
Empress - Token evil queen mother who desperately want to hold power from the king who's not her blood-related son. Nothing else to say. The problem I have with this character it's a shallow antagonist.
General - He's more interesting in the he's part of the Empress side but has his own agenda and ambition. Beyond that, he's also another shallow, token antagonist. In fact, he's friction and plan for his own ambition and what gave way for the king to take back his power.
Other characters - There are two guards (mainly comic relief) that know the FL and helps her when they found out she came to the royal palace. A 3rd FL (bratty princess of the king, in love with FL's fiance) and 3rd ML (king of nomadic enemy state, in love with the 2nd FL). FL's mother and father...also comic relief. FL's gangs of hoodlums...lol...but they're terribly underused and barely in the drama. An eunuch loyal to the Empress. All actor/actress are just...ok...The most compelling is probably the two guards...they played a pretty dynamic duo but strictly for comic relief
Music
Modern music in a historic drama...ugh. Nothing compelling. Weak overall. I hated the alt rock music that constantly played when the king did something "epic". You'll know what I'm talking about when you watch the drama. I thought some of the music that played in the romantic scenes are nice but it's nothing memorable. So music is lacking
Rewatch Value
Really no reason to rewatch.
Final Thought
Would I recommend it? It seems like I have a lot of negative and very few positive. One thing I like is that some of the voice is not dub. Like ML is original voice but FL is dubbed. Again despite it lousy writing and token character, it is decently enjoyable the first half. I thought second half as pretty lousy. There's a certain mystique to the character when you don't know what's going to happen to them. However, once it's fully reveal...you're like....hmmm that's it. Meh
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Warning: It's not for softhearted person.
If I have to explain how I felt after watching this drama then it would be 'It was an emotional roller coaster ride which was torturing plus great also...' I know it's weird that how can you enjoy and get hurt simultaneously but it's so true about this drama. I am hurt, devastate, heartbroken, crying my eyes out as I just finished watching it but I can't say I didn't like the drama.This is a tragedy between two star-crossed lovers, this is beautiful yet painful. We don't get all things as we want in life even we became the most powerful and successful people, we get what we deserve, if we choose the wrong path again and again to reach our goal then there is no turning back...this is what the story tells us.
I never hated any ML before.... but this time I couldn't stop myself, the hatred I felt towards ML was more than I ever felt for villains he was cruel, so cruel. So hats off to the actor for his amazing job. There were only two characters I adored in the whole drama were princess Xiao Feng and Ah Du. Despite hate towards ML I liked the chemistry between leads but the sad thing is they got so little screen time together, the cinematography was beautiful. It was a great drama... for the first time I was satisfied with this kinda ending.I cried, cried a lot but it was an amazing journey for me, at the end I was heartbroken but the ending was perfect even I felt bad but Li Chengyin never deserved her and happy ending
So it's definitely worth watching ... It was a memorable experience for me but I'm never gonna rewatch it and gonna hurt myself again, but if you like torture and heartbreaking things this is something you shouldn't miss..
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I liked the fantasy/romance storyline, in some scenes it felt kinda disjointed, like they skipped over something, but I didn't mind that much since I still got a sense of what was happening and this made the storyline move along quickly. Afterall, this is less than 25 minutes an episode, so it's more like a 10 episode drama, instead of a 20.
The cinematography was on point, I felt like I was watching a high budget movie and there is a ethereal aura to the filming (it had that Goblin feel to it), The OST was great and went with the drama perfectly. I also loved everyone's outfits, props to the stylist.
What I enjoyed most was the leading female's character. She comes off as this happy go lucky person, but you soon realize very quickly that she is actually very wise and strong from the knowledge/experiences that she accumulated over the course of her 1000 year life.
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This review may contain spoilers
The most satisfying ending
The winner deserved it hands down.Ha seok jin, the problematic man, the awesome actor, the beautiful smart man inside-out. I went into this just for him and man, did he rose all up and above.
I saw him first in his drama, drinking solo and then followed all his dramas, very few variety appearances and of course problematic man. But here, he was the star. He understood the games, showed composure, had no nonsense friends and team, spoke out when it was needed and above all his comradery with see won, OMG!!! I was rooting for both them as I would for any K-drama leads. they were amazing and adorable.
Also hats off to Production team for planning it beautifully and not stretching it more than needed and also for slight twists and turns. everything was well executed.
Honorable mentions to Gulli, he was the brains, see won for her tenacity, dong jae for his approach and boo seungkwan because he is Seventeen and sweet.
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