The story is so simple that it looks so cliche but the writing is so direct,straight forward and just sticking to the plot which is just a simple lovestory of two opposite individuals! No angst of third party / mother in law /noble idiocy / misunderstanding. The tone and mode of being light, funny, sweet and romantic is consistent through and through! There are no dull episodes, everything just fall in complete heart rendering moments, true to its premise and promise of a pure rom-com!
The character development of two leads is way perfect! You dont feel any rush or force scene in the loveline, the progression just happen so naturally! The leads are explosive, their chemistry is off chart that you cannot really distinguish if they are just acting or the feelings are real! The actors just played their characters excellently and brilliantly! They are so believable and relatable! Bravo for the 2 actors!
The music is perfect I love it! It makes me fall in love more with the characters and the story! It gives a loving vibes to a lovely and endearing drama already! Feel good music perfect for a feel good drama!
I will surely love rewatching this again and again! This will probably my most rewatched drama after Healer!
I have never crossed a very fun, amazing, light hearted drama recently! IF you are a romcom hooker, you should not miss this once in a blue-moon kind of experience in drama watching -- it will simply delight you!
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I rarely shed tears when watching dramas, but I already sink on the 1st ep. ;(
The story itself is quite tragic, yet the drama leads us to something more touching rather than sad.. The characters are very strong, including the supporting roles.
This is more of a slice of life drama, following the story of the murderer, the victim, and how the incident affects the people around them..
Romance between the victim's brother and the murderer's sister makes the story beautiful. Eita is a very great actor, portrayed an introvert guy drench in guilt, and how he changed from a useless guy with non-attractive appearance to a clean-cut man, haha.. This is the first time I watch the female lead's acting, and I'm quite impressed with how she can easily shed tears in every moment :)
Overall this is a must-watched drama for them who likes drama about life and about moving on from a tragic past.. Excellent story!
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Very disappointing build up
When i started this drama, i had high expectations and somehow in the middle the plot line became boring, draggy and completely flat. And then towards the end the suspense suddenly picked up from nowhere and once again had me at the edge of my seat. It could have well ended with 16 episodes to be very honest but somehow the draggy scenes just kept coming. The story line was good and what kept me going was to figure out who actually pushed the FL's dad to suicide and what was the backstory behind ML's amputated leg.The romance for me felt flat. The kissing scenes between the ML and FL was terrible in the begin and somehow it got a bit better at the end. Their chemistry was off too. By the end i just wanted to fast forward and wrap it up, and that is exactly what i did.
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A Beautiful Story About Healing and Finding One's Happiness
This is a lovely small-town drama. The relationships between all the characters are so interesting and you can't help but cheer for them. The romance is actually quite subtle compared to other dramas, but it felt very fitting. The development of the main characters' relationship is slow but realistic. With an interesting story, complex characters, and beautiful scenery, it was hard for me to wait for the next episode. This show left me with a sense of warmth and content. I would highly recommend it!Was this review helpful to you?
Total waste of time
As we all know C-dramas are notorious for nonsensical or rushed endings. This one takes it one step further, by not having an ending at all.It just simply stops, in the middle of the story without solving any of the questions, redeeming the ML or dealing with any of the antagonists. The writers seem to have confused the notion of ‘open ending’ with half-finished and just dropped the ball after 20 episodes to go on holiday.
I usually don’t expect much from these short-length series, but this one feels like a total waste of time.
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This review may contain spoilers
Forget everything you know about "toxic romance."
Don't worry, there's a way to save the series: JUST MAKE FLINT THE VILLAIN, AND HAVE SUN END UP WITH SOMEONE ELSE OR BE ALONE.Why does Flint keep clinging to Sun all the time? I know that kind of scene is meant to create tension and give us butterflies, but when it happens 5 times in the first few episodes, and it's implied that the protagonists didn't have a history of flirting before, it feels strange. They know each other from the past, when Sun was still in high school and Flint still saw her as a little girl, so it doesn't make sense for her to just start attacking the girl every time she has the chance. It even seems like Flint made some kind of bet or something, because she goes after Sun every time she has a chance, even though there's NO atmosphere for it. And why does Sun always seem to be on the verge of tears? Does she have some past trauma or something? If so, fine, but if it's just to show how fragile the character is around Flint, I didn't like it. In 2 episodes she almost cries about 4 times. Enough already!
Another point I didn't like was Sun explaining herself by saying, "Do you really think I'm that kind of girl?", referring to the fake news that she was seen entering a hotel with a guy. What would be the problem? Couldn't she be dating a guy and go out with him on a date? Please! It's ridiculous for her to say that to Flint as if it were "absurd" for her to go out with a guy. Flint's justification is "You can't tarnish the company's image," so Sun can't be seen going out with a guy, but it's okay if she's seen going home with Flint? It doesn't make sense.
And when Flint keeps interfering in Sun's work? What was that? Please, there's no way to ruin an artist's career more than always having someone behind them, demanding scene changes, script alterations, etc. And the worst part is that Flint believes everyone except Sun. It doesn't matter if the girl says 20 times that she's not dating a guy, Flint always believes others, discredits Sun, and even demands behavior from her that Flint herself doesn't have... Flint is like: "Don't flirt with guys, don't date anyone, don't act in on-screen kisses, don't even let your photographer touch you... but I can do all that with you, even though we're nothing to each other"... But Flint, she already said she's not having a romance with that actor! - "But the actor said he is, and I believe him more than Sun." But Flint, even if she were dating the actor, that's none of your business; it would even be good for boosting ratings for their show! "It doesn't matter! I act as if I'm dating Sun, as if she were mine, so she must obey me, submit to my interference and not talk back... and anyone's word is more important than hers."
And the worst part is that she makes up that she slept with the girl because she was annoyed with Nope! SERIOUSLY? Who's more awful, Nope or Flint? I'm honestly starting to think Nope is a "better" option. How can the show criticize Nope for inventing a romance when the protagonist herself does the same thing?
The only good thing about this show, and what saves it, is the secondary couple!
I wasn't going to say anything, but since it's a sensitive subject, I decided to elaborate: Regarding the "problematic scene," all I have to say is:
* She was crying;
* Pushing the person away with all her might;
* Afraid;
* Asking to stop several times;
* And she says "Yes" at the end because she saw that if she gave in, it would end faster, because there was no way to escape, because Flint wouldn't "hurt her as much," and because she would come out looking "right" in the end.
This is not consent, it's instinct for self-preservation: When we give in to something we know we don't want and that will be painful, but we know that if we don't give in, it will be worse. It doesn't matter if she has feelings for Flint or not, and whoever uses that as an excuse is normalizing marital rape, be careful! Loving doesn't mean having a duty to give in even if you don't want to. If this scene were between a man and a woman, we wouldn't even be discussing it.
And before you say "but that's how it is in real life," "but that's a problematic relationship that will get better later": 1) In what life is this "normal"? In the life of a victim! Because in a RELATIONSHIP this is not normal, and if it is for you, I advise you to see a psychologist urgently. Yes, in real life this happens, and when it does, we call the police, report it, and separate the victim from the abuser. We don't leave the abuser with the victim and say, "calm down, he will improve in the future! Your relationship can still work out." 2) This is not a problematic relationship. A problematic relationship doesn't include a victim and a criminal; it includes two people who have PROBLEMS that can be solved with conversation, therapy, etc. Problems, not crimes. Understand?
It's crazy that in "Call Me By No Name" exactly what's happening now is happening. A woman abuses another woman, but when she reports it to the police, nothing happens because people claim that "this doesn't happen" between women, people don't see it as a "crime" because it's illogical to think that a woman could abuse another out of "malice." It must just be a misunderstanding... So you who are defending this scene are exactly the same as the people who didn't defend the protagonist of "Call Me By No Name"... I never thought I'd see this happening.
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Say what? Ji Soo has a beautiful girlfriend in a show? HUZZAH!
Okay, all jokes aside, Ji Soo seems to be in a couple of kinds of boxes-tragic figure boxes and "the one who doesn't get the girl" boxes. This one is indeed a tragic figure, so whew, at least he has a drop dead gorgeous girlfriend truly deeply in love with him.If you want something that is deeply heartwarming, this show is very much it, BUT only if you can spare some tears and snot for the box of tissues you'll want near you. This is a really unusual series in a lot of ways, the most obvious being that we enter the lead's dreams, dreams impacted by his brain being altered by both disease and painkillers mind you, through beautiful animations-they are straight out of someone's half-asleep stream of consciousness in design/flow, only the person having them is terminally ill, so the fluffy and swooping and cuddly characters and rock robots etc we see and go on an adventure with are spiked with some fear, bitterness, despair, and anxiety.
When not in the lead character's dreams, we see his real world suffering along with the pain his friends and family go through. A new character in the lead's life also comes to us in the form of a convenience store clerk who is transported into the same dreamscape as the lead-it is certainly unusual, but by the end, the least seen character (physically-we see his cartoon form, of course) ends up having one of the most poignant, important roles in the whole story.
Watching this when apart from family during a pandemic is certainly an unexpected situation (the pandemic in particular). With everyone (well, who is conscientious) living a bit more constantly aware of how easily illness and indeed death are taking hold of so many around us, with our lives a bit uprooted in most of the world and our day to day lives quite different from a year ago, the time of release of this could, if it were not so thoughtfully crafted, get a bitter reaction. Instead, though, the creators seemed very aware of how delicately they needed to handle it-the balance of the moments of adventure, the smiling moments, and the tears was important to get right, and by my estimation, they could not have gotten that much better. While not a perfect production (the camera/lighting work made me wish at times it had been a Whynot TV or even Playlist Global production-still, that is a minor detail-especially for a webseries), I was immersed in the story and acting so it only briefly made it a little less perfect than the slicker productions that don't have nearly as intriguing a set up to begin with.
I'd LOVE more animation to be integrated into dramas. I really enjoyed (crime thriller-ish drama) Sketch largely because of the namesake, the sketches, and the animations really made this special; if it had JUST been the humans, it probably would have felt like a Lifetime daytime tear jerker TV movie; instead, it has its own memorable place and the tears I did shed don't feel like someone manipulated me emotionally to make me shed them.
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This review may contain spoilers
After many years of misunderstandings and betrayals, Hwi and Sun finally get a chance to repair all of the hurt between them, giving each other the strength to do what must be done. When I started watching My Country I wasn't sure what type of journey the writer would take us on, I just knew I wanted to watch it since Jang Hyuk was one of the main lead and, of course, Woo Do Hwan. By episode three I knew there was no way this drama would end with both Hwi and Sun alive and understood it would be a very hard drama to watch not because it was poorly made but because it was that good, it evoked serious emotions - everything from joy, pain, deep sorrow, laughter to heartache, I was right but it was worth the ride. Throughout the journey, it becomes clear that the true love story in My Country: The New Age was always the one between Hwi and Sun, they were always each other’s Number One, no matter what happened between them, be it hurting each other physically and emotionally, but whenever a choice had to be made, they choose each other every time. Even though Sun betrayed Hwi over and over again, Hwi never hesitated to go to his rescue if he needed it. As sad as it was, it was just right that in the end, they chose each other to protect and love until the very end.Hwi, Sun, and Bang-won, every actor brought their best performance and I won’t be surprised if several acting awards are handed out for My Country, particularly in the cases of Jang Hyuk (Bong-won) and Woo Do-hwan (Sun). They both portrayed characters that could easily have become intensely unlikeable, but were able to show moments of vulnerability, sorrow, love, and regret even when committing the most heinous acts. Yang Se-jong was fantastic as well, embodying Hwi with a soft vulnerability that he never lost, despite everything he goes through. What I took from My Country is that we all have a country we are willing to risk everything for and that that “country” is the people we love. A story beautifully told, produced, directed and acted!
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This review may contain spoilers
What a gem - great chemistry with an established m/m couple
Overall: I gave this a 9.5/10 because it's from 2009 and it still holds up well twelve years later. Watched on gagaoolala.Content Warnings: none
What I Liked (very minor spoilers)
- features an established couple
- the kissing/intimate scene was on fire, everyone else needs to take notes - none of this dead fish lip stuff
- that Min Soo doesn't apologize for who he is or who he loves, but is apologizing for the way it was communicated
- there is no ghosting or forced separation due to what a parent wants
- shows a bit about military service which I rarely see in Korean rom coms
- (neutral) the intro song and song towards the end were fine
Room For Improvement
- the discussion with the mom and her chest was weird
- I didn't really understand a scene with Seok Yi waiting outside towards the end, I didn't think Min Soo's mom and him lived in the same city..
- dry crying during the the drinking scene
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Takeaway - You will be left with your heart warmed. If you want to see some cute boys, your desire will also be fulfilled. But nothing deep.
Story - It involves multiple issues. Having no money, prostitution, love vs sex, and even a little bit of family problems towards the end. However none of these issues are truly addressed. The movie is somewhat of a comedy and should be watched with a light-heart. The ending is also sort of ambiguious.
Actors/ Cast - Both do their part (there are 2 main characters). There are a couple side characters that serve as cute jokes. The story focuses on Khao the most and his experience with prostitution. Pete is his next door neighbor and in my eyes super cute. You can feel the love between them towards the end of the movie.
Music - Basic music but enjoyable nonetheless.
Rewatch Value: Some day in the future, yes, I would watch it again.
Overall: I RECOMMEND! It was truly an enjoyable movie, and unless you just don't want to see guys having sex, I don't understand why you wouldn't like it?
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I would not tell you more about the plot since there is already a summary but what would I tell you is why I love this lakorn. :)
Even though it was their first time acting together as a love team, Kim & Nadech portrayed their roles well. There was no awkwardness and they really complement each other. I've seen Kim on her other lakorns but I think her role in here suits her, seen as a spoiled brat but deep down inside she's very vulnerable. As for Nadech, he impressed me with his acting in Duang Jai Akkanee and he still did in this lakorn. What I was not expecting also was their great chemistry! They're so cute together and just made me smile everytime.
As for the supporting casts, I could not asked for anything better. I love the bonding between Kim and her family. For the antagonists, acting was good that it will make you hate them also.
For the music, I like it so much that I've kept on listening to them until I've memorized most of the lines.
A must see drama! If you're still hesitating to watch this, just stop and watch this NOW! :D :D
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This review may contain spoilers
Realistic and cute but boring
Obviously calling it realistic is the highlight here and what I mean by realistic is it's a very possibly believable story between two adults, going at a healthy pace, no drama, sweet moments and delicate romance. Which is also the reason is boring for many because there is literally no dramatic element to their romance.Acting:
This is probably the reason the whole dramatic situation was dull. The actors are good-looking and charming, especially their smiles, but they were obviously not professional and their acting was basically on a single note, straightforward and not something unique. Maybe a little flare would have been better but it was alright.
Story:
The premise was good I suppose, nothing groundbreaking. Based on the description, you would assume the drama was surrounding the MC was going to have to put up a fight, persistence and such to convince his love-interest to work with his company but that whole plot barely lasted for a 2 episodes. I feel the story description is misleading. Also, the love-interest falls unbelievably quickly to a guy who's passion is drinking considering how much the love-interest hates drinking and people who drink. Like, come on. At least, props to the story for not including a complex drama of adding any hindering love triangles or love interests. The first episode was so unnecessary in that regards.
Romance:
Okay, yes, the show didn't deliver intimacy. I think we are all generally used to that in K-BL-dramas right now. The leads have good chemistry, but the kisses were weak, barely 2 or 3 times they kissed, no other intimacy. I guess some would consider it childish but I guess if you go past that, they are actually cute together and there is honestly nothing awkward going on considering the zero intimacy. I personally loved their romance. They are simple people, who appreciate food and each other. It's a healthy, supportive, young romance.
Ending:
So the ending... very meh. The beginning and ending of a series is the most important part and they clearly didn't focus on either. While the beginning was unnecessary and a tad bit confusing, the ending was too easy. Like until the second half of ending episode, the leads are just having cute moments and slowly falling for each other and bam, they are together? I guess we watch too many dramas and expect more. It was just too dull for me that's all. But again, it was sweet and realistic. So not bad.
Overall:
I personally enjoyed the show. I feel a lot of shows nowadays are too dramatic and extremely painful over the unnecessary plots and character arches. But this show is good refresher, down to earth and just really sweet. If you just want a simple, quick and cute watch, go for it. I think you might actually enjoy it. I loved it honestly. But if you are looking for something grand and dramatic, this might not be the show for you.
Highlights and reasons you should watch:
1. The best part was definitely the visuals, the atmosphere, the smiles! The freaking smiles and the good looking cast.
2. And yes, the unhealthy consumption of alcohol is ridiculous. But the way the MC loves and appreciated food is so adorable and admirable. The food making part is less but appealing. This is not food based show like many others out there. But they nailed what they worked with.
3. Also, there are not toxic characters! That is seriously something to worship if you are like me and have been dying on the inside after watching some insanely toxic characters in many dramas out there.
4. Is that really the reason the show was rated A in Viki? Because, if you exclude that part, it is an absolutely simple show okay for all ages.
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peak romcom which gave me smile wrinkles :)
Overall: this is a Thai high school BL romcom done right. It deftly avoided several of my least favorite cliches. 12 episodes about 50 minutes each. Aired on YouTube, GMMTV's channel.Content Warnings: mild manipulation, shove, slap, punch, homophobia, non con photo taking, unwanted public outing
What I Liked
- several funny moments that made me laugh, including several subverted tropes
- cute moments
- the friend/band dynamics
- good dynamic with Tinn and Gun
- Gun's mom, Tinn's mom and dad
- they felt like real parents and acted realistically
- Tiw is the best wingman ever
- no cliche one dimensional villains
- solid communication and a very supportive romantic partner
Room For Improvement
- this could have been 8 or 10 episodes, it dragged in some places, or they should have more fully developed the side couples
- Gun's kissing reluctance was odd except that the writers just wanted to save a mouth kiss for the final episode
- I didn't like Tinn's initial "plan" but at least he did try other things first and I think Tiw is the one who suggested it
- the beginning of episode 2 was a bit confusing because it restarted the first episode from Tinn's perspective
- did Gun's mom's money problem just vanish?
FYI - I saw someone explain Gun's outfit (the black tank and shorts) which is in reference to this https://coconuts.co/bangkok/news/wonderful-memes-transport-minister-chadchart-becomes-internet-idol/
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This drama made me appreciate the Thai culture and traditions, it helped me visualise how a normal person’s life must have been back then in Thai. It all seemed very realistic (if you take out the magic mirror and time travel)
I found myself appreciating the struggles Thai people must have faced through the ages and how strong they must have been to still be independent now when so many countries were colonised (like mine).
I appreciated the absence of fierce antagonists. Being fully adverse with Thai Larkons I am quite used to expecting to see screaming second leads ~ this drama spared me.
This drama has such strong women, most of who support each other and help each other grow.
The romance was slow and simmering, I’ll like to credit the Male lead for this because of his quiet, strict, and shy personality as compared to the open minded, modern, firecracker of our female lead. Still, he was fierce and adamant on who he wanted and who he didn’t.
I didn’t want to understand somethings he did in the latter half when the prospect of time travel for the future female lead became more concrete, but I did. And I could not fault him for being desperately in love.
One fault I can find is the lack of goodbyes this drama had for the female lead and ALL her circle of people in her original life. Granted, saying goodbye to her mum was a good treat nonetheless.
All in all, I throughly enjoyed this drama and love it dearly. It’s a sweet, slow, and thought provoking ride.
9.5/10
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