That perfection lays heavily on all of the actors in it. There wasn't a single actor who wasn't phenomenal, the kid actors especially. And while I seriously worry about the hydration needs of the actors, their ability to have me crying right along with them every single time was just amazing. Even the supporting cast was superb, especially Jung Woo's partner/wife and Soo Yeon's mother. Her scenes were some of the most emotional and the actress deserves extreme props for pulling it off the way she did.
This story is definitely not all puppies and rainbows, it gets amazingly sad and intense and you will want to shake the characters back into their senses on more than one occasion. I wanted so much to hate Harry, especially after the incident with the can, but my heart just broke for him over and over again. As it did for so many of the other characters.
Your heart will feel like it's been put throug a wringer by the time you finish it, but it's an emotional roller coaster you seriously don't want to miss. And for all of the sadness and heartbreak, there is a lot of happy and cute moments. It's a group of people that you just want everything in the world to go right for them, but people and situations just keep getting in the way.
If you want something that will keep you on the edge of your seat and truly make you fall in love with fictional characters, then I definitely recommend you pick this one up ASAP. You won't regret it!
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This review may contain spoilers
This drama is set in the early 2000s where all the wonderful Taiwanese groups and artists were quite popular during this time! Jay Chou, F4♥ aka JVKV F.I.R., and S.H.E.!!Aside from my fangirling of these legendary artists, the overall drama plot was very pleasant to watch and quite refreshing. I just finished it raw about half an hour ago.
Typically the female lead will work hard to grab the attention of her first crush from the start of the drama. However, the main female lead's love shifted throughout the drama. Its not your typical love story. It goes from bickering enemies, friendship then love relationship. Towards the end, the main couple had some bumps in their relationship but of course it doesn't stop there. The side characters' love story were very interesting to watch, some were relatable as well.
There's a relationship that began from playing games together and finally falling in love in real life. Then there's the heartbreaking unrequited love from another side character.
The thing I did not like about the drama is the main female lead who plays San San. Something about her acting was very awkward and unrealistic to me. The transition between her lines seems a bit off as well. Maybe it's just me but I really did not enjoy her acting. It's awkward to the point that I don't really see the chemistry between the main leads. It just seems one-sided from Zhao Yi Qin who plays Lan TIan Yi in the drama. Which by the way, he looked very much like the early 2000s Jay Chou - I couldn't stop thinking about that! I digress however I must say Zhao Yi Qin did a wonderful job with his role.
Overall the drama had a happy ending for everyone. It was a great ending. I would recommend if you like high school, college life, and adult life drama because this drama went through all three phases. It was overall cute and adorable drama.
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The thing with Binggeure also bothered me, because he was obviously going through a dilemma the show never really addressed before it tied it up nicely with a bow. 1994 had amazing heart and great characters, but the writers decided keeping the viewers in the dark was more important than telling a good story. (Let's not forget that basketball suddenly disappeared, and there are several episodes where a certain baby isn't even mentioned. Plus, what was the point of the scene with the teen in the present talking to that girl?)
But, again on the plus side, a good story is here nonetheless. It;s worth watching. There will be parts, however, where you are banging your head against a table.
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I hate judging something without giving it a try so I watched the remake; At first I was confused about the cast, it took me two episodes to get used to it then as the episodes went on I had great feelings for this drama: it's much faithfull to the manga than the original.
There were some personalities that differs from the original one ; some were great and some weren't, I didn't get disappointed while watching plus the ending was a little better than other versions.
Anyway , seeing Hana Kimi's story all over again deserve wasting my timee on it so don't care what people who haven't watched it say just give it a go and make your own conclusion.
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A moderate teacher does not really a good match with A nasty man with an affluent background. BUT, this drama challenge the social acceptance. Both boldly admit they won't fall heels over head with one other. Love comes not at the right time but destiny and grandfather effort give them a chance to know one another.
I assure you this worth of your time in front of the computer!
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Story: SIMPLY BEAUTIFUL and full of emotions... emotions that I've never seen in other dramas. It felt like watching something real something I need to watch and learn from, it didn't feel at all like a "drama" for entertainment. The story has everything you need to learn about life, about people and understand what trust means what betrayal means, and why people act they way they do, how to look beyond what you actually see or what seems to be right and how to forgive...etc For a change there wasn't evil characters, crazy characters, annoying characters, weakling characters, cheesy characters...etc NONE of the things which exist in other Typical K dramas were here in MDSY.
Acting: The whole cast showed an amazing acting skills from small characters to the main characters... I have seen Lee Bo Young 2 times before I never did admire her as an actress I was wondering why give her such a huge project the girl can't even act... well SHE proved me wrong !! No one would've done Seo Young any better !! my 2nd surprise was Lee Jung Shin this is my first time admiring an idol's acting skills !! I'm definitely looking forward to their next projects !!.
Music: The instrumentals were so beautiful went very well with the story... my favorite OST is "Melody Day Like Back Then" I can't stop listening to it
Rewatch
It's a family drama and family dramas usually are re-watchable in general so I'm giving it 8, but as for me I'm not sure if I'd re-watch it again I don't re-watch dramas except for really few special cases.
Overall
Are you looking for a good family drama? With slice of life? This is the drama for you it's one of the best family dramas that I've seen. Don't let the length scare you it is really worth the time
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This review may contain spoilers
Go watch Hidden Love now!!!!
It's a beautiful series, and I think it deserves all the hype. I love how all that ends up, and without a doubt, it is one of the most outstanding cdramas in 2023.Story:
In this story, a girl named Sang Zhi falls in love with Duan Jia Xu, her brother's best friend. Jia Xu regards Sang Zhi as a sister, yet Sang Zhi has started having feelings for him. As time passed, he developed feelings and fell in love with Sang Zhi.
The various periods of Sang Zhi and Duan Jia Xu are depicted throughout the plot, which is very well developed, from when they first met to when they started dating. It is very light and airy and shows various stages of relationships.
Cast:
Zhao Lu Si (Sang Zhi) and Chen Zhe Yuan (Duan Jia Xu) worked effectively in depicting their personality. They have fantastic chemistry on-screen and off-screen. They are the greenest of green flags, and their relationship is healthy. The series gets better because of the characters' excellent communication and comprehension. ZLS demonstrates how Sang Zhi matures as a character. Victor Ma also did an excellent job of portraying a brother who is a bother to his sister and still cares about her no matter what.
Twenty-five episodes is most certainly insufficient for me, but rather, it's without a doubt the ideal length. I, as of now, need to watch it again as it is beautiful, as it were. I strongly encourage anyone who hasn't seen it to try this drama—it's a warm and beautiful work of art!
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This review may contain spoilers
Starts good but goes for a free fall in the end
Started good and strong but went straight down hill in the last episode. Till E5 she was just one greedy woman who wanted to earn lots of money but in the last ep they turned her into a cheating woman too who blames and gaslights ML for her sleeping with the ex bf. Instead of talking with her husband for lack of intimacy she cheats on him and then calls him out for not being good enough. ML suffered the entire show for her greed and all he gets in the end is this. The best ending would have been them moving on separately but NO they just get back together like nothing. Ruined the entire show and character for me.Was this review helpful to you?
And since I mentioned the shirtless LMK earlier, I should warn you (or entice you, depending on what you like lol) that the shirt is not the only MIA piece of clothing... try ALL of them! His interview during the press conference made me wonder why would he be so wary of the public opinion. Watch the movie and you'll get it! It's more than your regular bed scenes, so I wouldn't recommend this movie to those that dislike mature explicit content. I had no problem with those scenes, I do however have to say that Lee Tae Im, the only actress in this movie, seems to have been cast purely for this purpose. And it somehow annoyed me. Talk about sexual objectification of women. Not that I have a feminist out of place moment here. It's just that her character is anything but 3D, to say the least. Yeon Soo or an air doll, all the same...
The story is nothing much, rather filled with cliches. It reminded me a little bit of A Bittersweet Life, but you need to be drunk or extremely lenient to put the two movies on the same page.
Park Sung Woong is right on spot, bringing his character to life as perfectly as expected. His reserved, classy, poker faced gang boss Sang Ha shows great chemistry with the loose cannon, enraged, horny and blood thirsty Yi Hwan, the character played by Lee Min Ki. I think that's one of the few things that I enjoyed while watching the movie.
Long story short, For the Emperor doesn't have much of a statement to make. It's your regular action flick, with lots of blood and over the top steamy sex. The story line is very simple and predictable. The characters not too complex, the soundtrack nothing much. Lights and cinematography, few memorable scenes. Rewatch value? Unless you wanna play on repeat the few bed scenes or action ones, I'd say no one would bother revisiting this movie.
Watch if you are a Lee Min Ki or Park Sung Woong fan, if you like violent action movies and you don't care too much about intricate plots.
Don't watch if you dislike mature content, graphic scenes or if you think Lee Min Ki's hairdo resembles a bird nest or next door ajumma's perm.
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Seung Yoon's acting was bland. She plays a girl who has fallen in love with a co-worker who doesn't believe in love. I felt bad for Jong Hyeon (He plays her co-worker she falls in love with.) you could see he was trying to make the drama more exciting and more interesting acting wise but it just didn't work out.
Jong Hyeon and Seung Yoon were a very awkward lead couple. During some scenes I couldn't help but cringe. I don't know why it was like that...maybe it was because Seung Yoon had the same type of expression throughout almost the whole drama? I don't know.
Now on to the plot. Hmmmmmm....how can I really put it into words? Well I felt it lacked something. The whole plot was basically about there romance and the only thing which kept the story going was there trust issues with each other. Even till the last episode they still were worried the other person was getting involved with someone else (That's never a good sign in any relationship).
The ending was cute. I will say that.
Do I recommend watching this mini drama?
Not really. I would say there are a lot better mini dramas out there.
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Cherry suffered a lot while chasing after Jiang Qiao, but despite everything, they still found their way to each other. Ling He perfectly portrayed Jiang Qiao's difficult period in life. His character had his own reasons for doing what he did, and his childhood was challenging, so it's understandable that he didn't want to involve Cherry in all of this. But it was so hard for Cherry during this period, she was completely in the dark.
The ending is beautiful and happy, but it would have been nice to have one more episode to show more happy moments.
I really enjoyed the friendship between the characters, they always stuck together and supported each other!
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STORY (No spoilers)
For the C-novel readers:
To manage expectations, I'd like to take a short section to address those who've read the C-novel on which this drama is based and are thinking of watching this show. Firstly and most importantly, please kindly put aside your preconceptions because while this show does follow the novel, it does it in very broad strokes. Key events and key character actions are retained but the journey/ route to those events and actions can be very different. This might disappoint some of you if you're going into the show thinking that it will be a completely faithful reproduction of the novel. In order to help you enjoy this show, I'd like to encourage you to watch it with an open mind. If it helps, I personally found that by doing so and by following the story the drama itself is trying to tell, the plot-threads and character portrayals all hold together very well and this show becomes a more substantial adaptation and, I'd even venture to say, a more glorious homage to its original source material.
For non-novel readers & newcomers:
This show is more than just a pure xianxia romance. I was pleasantly surprised with how meaty and more substantial this show was, and how multi-faceted it can be. It will surprise you with its twists and turns, and with the evolution of our main characters as it progresses. Love (particularly star-crossed love or ill-fated love) and obsession are key themes but they are not the only ones. Themes of filial piety, integrity, loyalty, ambition, vengeance/ revenge, sacrifice, atonement and redemption are also wonderfully built into this show. This is a dish of many flavours. It's not pure sugar though it may start off on the sweet side. It will surprise you with its turns of fiery spice, bitterness and sweet-and-sour, with a touch of savoury thrown in.
Also, to help you understand a bit of what the show is like so that you're prepared, here's a broad outline:
The first half is full of sweetness and comedy, light-hearted and fluffy with some small build-up of plot threads. The romance development here is eminently ML-focused (he falls in love first and fast) and it runs the gamut of playful to moving as it progresses.
The 2nd half will start to bring together several plot threads introduced in the 1st half and so side characters have more screen-time as the show fleshes their story arcs and motivations. The main couple will also encounter love trials along the line of star-crossed love/ ill-fated love (hence the Romeo & Juliet premise). The trials have sound basis and foundation though, so it's not stupid misunderstandings and noble idiocy type issues. But the trials eventually prove and confirm their love and in the end, they overcome them for a suitable end.
I'd really like to encourage you to watch this show as it is quite amazingly crafted and if you like romance shows with a bit more complexity to it and to have more substance to it, this will suit you very well.
ACTING/ CAST
With over 60 episodes, this show's cast is not small. Screen-time for our characters will fluctuate depending on the plot thread in focus at the time so please don't expect our main characters or main couple to continuously dominate the screen. The show takes some pains to explore and flesh out some of its key side characters too, which is really great because it makes the show less riddled with one-dimensional/ cardboard cut-out characters. Even our 'stock villains' are given realistic internal motivations and drivers, and the 'comic relief' characters surprisingly have a core of values in them too. I personally found myself growing fond of many side characters (e.g. Yuanji Immortal, Moon Immortal, Yan You, Water Immortal and Lian Yuan) which makes this show extra enjoyable/ watchable to me. Love them!
Spotlight on our main leads:
DENG LUN as Xu Feng (aka Phoenix), the Fire Immortal. C-novel readers will probably be a bit surprised at Deng Lun's portrayal and take as our God of War, but I liked this different characterisation of our main male lead in this drama. He's not your perfect male lead, not by any means, but he has a strongly loyal, warm and loving heart. This central and core aspect of his character is wonderfully and consistently portrayed throughout the show and Deng Lun's less imposing physic and his warm voice (I just loved the fact that he voice-dubbed his own character!) makes him a more approachable and less dominating character than his C-novel counterpart.
Acting-wise, I think Deng Lun did well in portraying Xu Feng's emotional and character development. I think he does his character justice and that's good enough for me.
YANG ZI as Jin Mi, our Little Grape and Flower Immortal. I personally think that this is not an easy role for any actress to portray as her character undergoes a lot of ups-and-downs, internal conflicts and changes in this show, but kudos to Yang Zi for being able to make her a naively cheerful Little Grape at the start, and to showcase her evolution as the show progresses. She had me invested in her character and in her character's story and progress throughout the show.
LEO LUO YUNXI as Run Yu, the Night Immortal. Like Jin Mi, his character also undergoes a lot of ups-and-downs, internal conflicts and changes in this show and I have to also hand it to this actor, he rose to the occasion in this drama. As one of the 3 main leads in this show, he certainly has not been overshadowed by his fellow co-stars on the acting-front and some of his key scenes really brought the emotions out through the screen.
I personally think that our 3 main leads were well-balanced on the acting-front. No one consistently overshadowed or out-acted the other, everyone was on more or less equal footing in terms of screen-presence and screen-impact, to me. The well-balanced nature of it made the show good, because there is nothing worse than to have a co-star consistently overshadowing or out-acting you in front of the screen, making the scene imbalanced and making the actor and character being overshadowed to be out of place.
MUSIC
There appears to be 3 theme songs for this show (male and female version of the opening, and the ending theme song), and while they are lovely and beautiful in their own right, and when well-employed in a scene they really elevate the moment, I personally felt that the limitation of songs later on became a bit of liability to the show as, with over 60 episodes, there is going to be inevitable song-fatigue. I personally think that this is one area in the show which could really do with additional work and improvement to make it truly great, but well, it is what it is.
RE-WATCH VALUE
I personally loved the first half of the show to bits and can see myself re-playing a lot of it in future. The second half where the real business end of the show starts picking up steam is compelling and addicting to watch for the first time because of the breathless anticipation of wanting to know what happens next. I am not sure how re-watchable this section will be in future once the suspense and excitement is over but it doesn't make this show any less impressive on its own merits.
EDIT: Since writing this review, I've re-watched almost the entire show twice more so clearly my fears about the watchability of the 2nd half was unfounded. In fact, a lot of the emotional scenes in the 2nd half were some of the best scenes in this show.
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Forgettable
No problem with the slow start and story build up so that wasn't an issue for me watching this drama.Liked it very much in the beginning actually.
It somehow started to get dull especially around episode 36-40 though.
The story lose me when they can't communicate with each other and the only option is a break up or divorce. Yeah, it didn't last long, but why even put that in the script? When ml knows his wife did so much for him and was ill herself. He doesn't think twice before making that dumb decision. It was disappointing.
Cheng Lei big fan of his work, but his character in this drama was not my favorite. I don't know if it's because of the writing of his character or not.
Just wasn't excited to see him on screen when it showed him. He did have a few cool scenes I give him that. It just wasn't enough.
Bai Lu and Cheng Lei had cute scenes together at first. Later it felt like they were saying their lines. Don't know how else to explain it. Wasn't excited enough about their characters relationship anymore.
Glad everyone else enjoyed it! It just wasn't my favorite from the leads.
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A Satire of the Ming Dynasty Society
Watching this drama from a satirical perspective of the society during the Ming Dynasty, when Confucianism was practiced at its utmost height, decorum and protocols were strict, harsh and repressive especially for the women, makes it a very enjoyable watch for me. Seemingly unlikely, we get a couple of very strong female characters in particular a know-it-all Mary Sue who always saves the day. All the characters and their relationships have realistically captured life in that orthodox and conservative society, and that can even be relevant in today’s world.This story takes a bold look into the Ming dynasty society, its orthodoxy and conservatism, its inequality, protocol, manners, expectations, and consequences, with the hidden criticisms that all these had led to the slow decline of the society and the ending of the dynasty.
Accordingly, the drama draws its inspirations from the great classical “Dream of the Red Chamber” with several of the characters deriving their names in a combination of words from the classic novel. The whole story revolves around the high status, wealthy and powerful Sun (pronounced Soon) family, narrated from the perspective of the youngest son, Sun Yulou (Wang Yizhe) who has a high powered father, a doting mother, three brothers and four sisters, each has a story to tell.
Like in the classical “Dream of the Red Chamber”, this story also hints at “truth becomes fiction when the fiction’s true; real becomes not-real where the unreal’s real” by the use of a puppet show in telling the story. Cleverly constructed, there are hints and cross-references to hidden (and obvious) meanings throughout. Truth and falsity, reality and illusion are constant displays.
Undoubtedly marriages by the order of the parents tend to be the most painful experiences for almost every couple even in a society where filial piety is held as the highest order of all. In the high society, statuses and face are always the forefront consideration of any marriages which are used to advance the careers of family members, usually at the expense of daughters, though some sons don’t fare too well either. The consequences are expected: extra marital affair, adultery, love triangle, elope, rebellion - all brilliantly captured in the story.
Sun Yulou rebels against his stern father and the social barriers of the time. He and Lin Shaochun (Bai Lu) pursue individual freedom, gender equality and to marry the partner of one’s choice. This couple has an initial sense of democracy, a rebellious spirit and courageous pursuit of love. Though well-read with traditional books of morals and ethics, Lin Shaochun toes the line from time to time. She convinces Sun Yulou to pass the Imperial exam so that he could become a government official and ask for her hand in marriage.
This is the first drama for Wang Yizhe as the main male lead. Many viewers don't feel he deserves such a role. For me, I would like to give him a chance without looking at him through tinted lenses. I feel his acting has brilliantly brought out the youthfulness of the character. He can look serious when he needs to, but in front of the family, especially his wife, he's just a big sunny boy that can be silly and Wang Yizhe delivers. Despite this being a main lead, it feels more like a supporting role because of how the character is being written, shot and edited.
Many viewers feel the main couple don't have the chemistry. Though they are both of the same age at 18, Lin Shaochun is more mature compared with Sun Yulou, and he always lets her have the final say. With that, it does feel that Sun Yulou a little brother who depends heavily on Lin Shaochun the big sister. For me, the lacking perhaps lies more on Bai Lu as she seems to be less enthusiastic and doesn’t share the same adoration and affection towards her supposedly husband as he has on her.
My Verdict
Despite some flaws here and there, this is a very enjoyable story with a series of side stories which are very well developed and in fact more interesting than the lead couple’s story. It consists a blend of realism and romance, psychological motivation and fate, and daily life with a grand plot hidden and span across multi side storyline. It can be hilarious at times, yet, bitter and resigned when it comes to the fate of some characters. The first episode is comedic and funny. I thought it's going to be light and laughable, but by episode 8, it becomes heavy and bitter.
This is a satire about misogyny, hypocrisy, class system, conservatism, inequality, all told in a very humorous way. Some parts are so funny that I laugh so hard.
The final narrative about how people make choices that determine their eventual endings: take kindness one ends well, take hatred one loses everything, seems to be a just decoy for the deeper meaning of the overall story – a silent criticism of the paternalistic system of the country.
Great story telling. Don’t miss it!
BRAVO!
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2A rich tapestry that frays at the edges.
Set during Tang dynasty, Brocade Odyssey 蜀锦人家 follows Ji Yingying's journey to the top of the Yizhou silk industry as she seeks to clear her father's name and to reclaim her family's reputation as preeminent weavers of the prized Shu brocade. This drama paints a realistic picture of women's roles in feudal society and the intricacies and cut-throat competitiveness of the ancient silk trade. Her path to "having it all" is littered with obstacles, betrayals and setbacks; her triumphs come at great sacrifices; she loses her first love, a few true friends and supporters and for some time, even her freedom.This is not a light or fluffy romance drama. The main characters are dark and ambitious and some of their overlapping entanglements are messy and complex in a way that won't appal to viewers looking for more straightforward storylines. It is like a rich tapestry that frays at the edges in its over ambitious exploration of too many complicated themes. It is obvious from the start that both Yingying and Zhao Xiuyuan had ambitions that had the potential to get in the way of their relationship. While I didn't agree with Xiyuan's choice, I understood why he did it and I felt quite sad for him. While the digital face swap was surprisingly well done, I think Zhang Haowei would have better conveyed this role. What I didn't like was how when cornered, Yingying makes the exact same decision yet she had no insight from it and her attitude towards Xiyuan continued to be hard and unforgiving even though she had no real moral high ground. She just got super lucky with Yang Jinglan.
The cast is strong, and most of them are able to dub themselves and deliver commendable performances all around. It is difficult to find fault with Tan Songyun's empathetic portrayal of Ji Yingying's ambition, familial obligations and emotional conflicts. However, between her tomboyish girl-next-door look and simply dreadful styling, she does not convey the allure that draws multiple suitors, making the romantic subplots unconvincing. Zheng Yecheng really brings an exciting dynamic to the drama with his physicality and charisma. It is so rare to get such an excellent actor who is also properly trained in martial arts. The production took full advantage of this with many long, exciting, fast moving, muscular and flinch-inducing action sequences. It is a huge upgrade from all quick cuts the slo-mo posing and spinning that we normally have to make do with. I enjoyed their chemistry as a couple and how their relationship evolves organically from that of an alliance into a couple that complements each other in so many ways. Yet I wouldn't say that this is a CP that made a lasting impression on me.
Despite a solid start, this is yet another entertaining Chinese drama that self destructs in the completely unnecessary final Nanzhao arc. It was clearly meant to give Jing Chao, who is a fantastic actor, his own arc. Unfortunately, it is too late in the narrative to force the audience to reinvest in a whole new set of characters and political dynamics. I would also have preferred to see Cheng Fengze remain as a good frenemy, a business rival who valued Yingying for her talent and business acumen alone rather than turning him into yet another delusional suitor. Many of the conflicts that arise in this arc feel forced and all three main characters end up doing stupid things that are out of character. It took me twice as long to watch the final ten episodes as it did to watch the first thirty. There were also a few undeserved death that really made me want to flip tables. Even the terrific end fight scene could not make up for my dismay.
Overall, this is not a bad watch for the fight scenes alone and it is much better if you stop at about ep 30. It is thematically rich and explores female empowerment and the ties that bind in a complex and realistic way. I can rate the first 30 episodes an 8.0 but unfortunately the final 10 episodes are barely worth a 6.0 so my overall rating is 7.5/10.0.
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