sapphic slice of life
I often mourn the fact that lesbian series don't have the financial backing to make longer productions and that feeling just multiplied several folds after watching this drama.Tucked away in some unknown corner of South Korea is a small bar which openly welcomes lesbians; it's proprietress, a lesbian herself, welcomes all with the iteration “welcome to the lesbian bar.”
In these five short episodes averaging six minutes we get a look into four stories of love stories in different stages. The lives of closeted lesbians intersect in surprising ways.
Apart from this we learn how the conservative society of Seoul has affected these women who are simply searching for a way to protect their love. The lesbian bar becomes a cosy nook for them. And despite everything, these women find happiness.
While these are admittedly not cohesive stories, and they left me wanting for more more m o r e,,, but it's a nice way to spend half an hour, especially if your motto is like mine: seeing happy lesbians makes me happy!
And a plus for the butch representation, like thank you!
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Grand Tutor is in the house.
Dearest lovers,How does one become a princess? Find yourself a man who calls you his princess, and you will be one!
The drama ‘Be My Princess’ tells such a tale. What a lucky girl.
He is a famous actor with fame, awards, and money, while she is a part-time actress with none of those things. Jeremy Tsui and Zhou Jie Qiong (Kulkyung) are well-matched in this older man/younger woman drama. It has been mentioned that JT tends to overshadow his female leads. Not here. ZJQ holds her own with those expressive and dramatic eyes.
Anyway, where was I? Ah yes, back to the drama. He casts her to be his female lead in his latest work, ‘Grand Chief Cabinet Minister’, despite her lack of experience. Once the filming completes, he has an accident. It caused him to retain his memories as the character of ‘Grand Tutor’. Amnesia, I tell you dear one, is still in vogue in dramaland.
And this is where the fun begins. As part of his treatment plan, all the other characters must accept him as the Grand Tutor from the Ming Dynasty. We get to see him adapting to 21st-century life, finding his role in society, and taking care of his princess. The other fun bit was watching those around him, adjusting to the new normal – his manager/best friend, the princess, his caretaker and so forth.
I do note dear one, our 21st century Grand Tutor is one sharp dresser with impeccable manners. Oh, how I wish I meet such a man.
A few grumbles from yours truly. The drama could reduce the number of amnesia episodes and a little bit more time as himself in the final quarter. I would love to see him piecing together his “lost memories” as Grand Tutor and winning back his princess. Secondly, atrocious sound effects. The feet sounds are sore to my delicate ears. They were abnormally louder and mismatched. Third, damsel-in-distress. Someone is always saving our princess. Why dear writers? Let her be worthy of that crown. Finally, is the “evil stepsister”. She is so basic, that she simply whines, screams, and stomps her feet. My drama soul just yawns. Oh? Did you know she is meant to be a university student in her early 20s? They dress her up like a total old auntie. Fire that costume person!
Should you watch this drama? For a romance lover, it is a yes. Your eyes will feast at the beauty of the leads, your feelings will get cute warm fuzziness and your brain will have a rest.
Oh, be aware dear heart, episodes 1-28 are the actual story, with episodes 29-30 seen as “bonus” where they stitched the drama our leads were filming ‘Grand Chief Cabinet Minister’.
Signing off and I’m going back to watch my favourite bits,
Lady Ajumma.
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How far will you go and how much will you risk.... for justice?
Is it a matter of satisfying ones curiosity or a quest for justice. A stubbornness not to let go or the conviction that justice should prevail..... What is it that will make someone fight tooth and nail to right a wrong for another man even at the risk of losing everything?The story starts with a man caught red handed with a body in a suitcase at a subway (the train station not the sandwich place) and made a bomb threat in an attempt to escape. Everyone saw it, he confessed to it... pretty open and shut. Or so it seemed. The case that had garnered the public’s attentions and was witnessed by many took a dramatic turn when the confessed criminal denied his crimes in an open court.
The drama revolves around a group of people trying to solve an unjust crime. Two sets:
1. These are the group of people tasked with solving the subway case. A detective known for solving hard-to-solve cases was brought on to investigate the crimes of the man who was caught with a body in a bag but withdrew his confession on his day of arraignment.
2. The second group are fighting to bring to light the wrongful death of a volunteer teacher.
Two sets of people, two different timelines. The drama centered about how these two groups intersect and how one group has to know more about the other in order to solve their own case.
I watch a lot of crime dramas. To say I have watched over a thousand episodes would not be an exaggeration. I have gotten to the point where I can pretty quickly see through the plot, that I now have little expectation of mysteries to surprise me. They rarely do. Instead whether I can see through the plot or not what I care more about now is how well the drama/show executed it. I dislike mediocrity in procedural dramas, and I tend to lose interest pretty quickly. This drama, however, kept me engaged to the very end. If you are someone who might see through the mystery fairly fast than stay for the execution. Each drama has its own unique way of telling a story and sometimes what matters more, what’s satisfying more, is not what the story is but how its told.
This drama was well written and well acted. The way this drama unfolded was by giving you bits and pieces and piquing your interest to finding out what comes next. Much like the torn pieces of photo you’ll come to see at the end of every episode, you can see the plot come together bit by bit by each passing episode until everything was nicely taped together at the end.
Although the overall drama is good, what caught my attention is Bai Yu’s performance. From the wide eyed brilliant and kind law graduate to the unwavering prosecutor to a broken man, Bai Yu’s performance has been excellent and moving. He gave an emotional performance and you can’t help but be moved by the character’s kindness, raise your hope with the characters conviction and determination, feel dejected and indignant at the character’s misfortunes. I could not help myself from shedding a few tears at his wretchedness.
At the end it may all seem unfair and unjust that the people who put everything on the line to bring the truth to light may end up sacrificing more than those who did the criming. But then again, isn’t it the same as reality? Justice doesn’t always mean fair.
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The over-all execution was really awesome, flawless, for me. The flow of the film from the black and white to the colored one was superb. I am not a big fan of bloody movies but I am glad I watched this. I am also very glad that they stuck to the manga as best as they can.
If there is one this I feel that is lacking, it is the musical scoring. I don't know if it was as intended but I felt like some scenes would have been more effective with a good background music.
Full review here: https://elijahmaliksmom.wordpress.com/2017/11/14/blade-of-the-immortal/
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disjointed with little payoff
Overall: there were too many that flitted in and out and the writing didn't make me care about any of them. 8 episodes about 45 minutes each. Aired on SC Flourish Entertainment YouTube channel worldwide cut version https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRPu3eZdevD0uneOl67QZkO__MzzMLdeU&si=Uee0jqd9j2s36QMr and VIU Thailand uncut.Content Warnings: murder, attempted murder, scary images, blood, past: deaths/murders, suicide, drugging, theft, manipulation
What I Liked
- visuals
- supernatural element
Room For Improvement
- the character/world building exposition dump
- was confused by a character introduced in part 2 and then another new character in part 3 of episode 1, characters flitted in and out
- love triangle
- did not feel chemistry
- comedy sound effects didn't make things funny
- character actions/reactions didn't make sense
- even at the end, a character didn't believe what another character experienced
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THE GOOD:
- Baek Chan Mi is a really refreshing & charismatic character. She's basically the violent, hardened, wild-card type that's usually a role occupied by men so it's great to see it changed up here. Choi Kang Hee kills it and is definitely the star of the show. Even better, she's allowed to be soft and cry without it ever compromising what a badass she is. Loved her from start to finish, she has about 4 of my 6.5 stars all to herself.
- The chemistry between the 3 leads which grows naturally and stays strong throughout the show.
- I think Lee Sang Yeob is my favourite (male) actor. I'm just going to say it. He's played such diverse characters in everything I've seen him in & he kills it every time. His character here is the perfect fit for Chan Mi and their chemistry is the cute, lived-in type that's so fun.
- Most of the comedy is done well and is basically all off the back of the idea that this really is just a normal office romcom drama with a spy twist. Every joke begins there and I don't mind it, made me laugh!
- The action sequences. To be clear, I will never *not* be a sucker for ladies kicking ass. I feel both attracted to them and empowered in myself so it's a win-win everytime.
THE OKAY:
- The overall plot is a little weak and only gets weaker as the show goes on, but it's not completely atrocious, everything follows the correct story beats, so I can live with it.
- Hwang Mi Soon is the housewife spy and I mostly really enjoyed her, she's clearly the most experienced member of the team and it shows. But sometimes jokes were made at her expense instead of with her (shitty husband that a spy like her would never put up with; gags about her weight) that I blame on the writers and brought down her character.
- Ye Eun but only at the start when she got to use her skills & her storyline seemed to show promise.
THE BAD:
- Ye Eun when her storyline & characterisation was dropped in favour of just an AWFUL romance plot I started off not giving a shit about and ended up hating. I can forgive her being a crybaby and bad at fieldwork - she's a rookie. But in exchange she's supposed to be this excellent hacker/tech whiz. Spoiler alert: she's not. The team's actual tech whiz is more competent than she is and her storyline ultimately serves no purpose except as props to Chan Mi & WORST OF ALL... Woo Won.
- Woo Won. Hello most pointless character. Exists solely to piss me off. No relation to the main plot. Starts off whiny and immature and stays that way til the end but somehow gets a happy ending anyway? BS. Jun and his beautiful face is the only saving grace here. Nothing else.
- I won't spoil but the finale leaves a lot to be desired. Plus, this show should've been 12 episodes. As with so many kdramas before it, it suffered from its company mandated run-time and began to really lag in the middle-end stretch.
Overall, if you want a female-focused drama with hijinks, a soft male lead and some ass-kicking, check it out! Just be warned that it really isn't that deep and if you want Ye Eun to get her moment or think she knows more about what's happening because they told us she was super smart and you're waiting for that to turn up in the actual show... (it's okay, i'm fine, unfilled potential who?) then give up bc it'll never happen. Not bad. Not great. Only the cuteness puts it a few steps up from ok.
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Its About Rose…
I watched this because I always like Crystal Liu YiFei’s acting, very natural and down to earth. Every role she takes, she is always able to represent her character well, furthermore this show has a few good MLs.The story…of Huang Yi Mei (a.k.a yellow rose).
This is based on a novel and although some small parts of the story is modified to better fit in drama expression but the storyline, characterization and ending is true to the original novel.
Thought also shared this:
Yellow roses symbolize friendship and joy. Often represent feelings that are associated with relatiinships such as warmth, delight, gladness, caring, and affection. These blooms were once used to communicate jealousy, during the Victorian era.
We followed the life of Huang YiMei Rose, our FL, a young vibrant, talented, but still naive, and yet knew very well how to use her valuable beauty assets to trap bees (men).
First infatuation on poor Rose, was by her internship boss (her brother’s friend) who is already engaged and planned to marry a long term girlfriend. He fell head over heels, one-sided love, thinking that Rose will reciprocate his love. He became a scumbag to loser, who broke off his marriage, lost his job and yet he pursued Rose. She openly rejected him, humiliated him and also gave a strong advice to his fiancé. Although many viewers felt he is dislikable because of his betrayal to his fiancé, but I felt he couldn’t help himself, as he is like a fly attracted to lights and willing to die for it. In the story his life destroyed and has to go back to his hometown to start over but he claims he could never forget Rose, a rather self delusional love.
Rose actual love line began with these three other guys that cross paths in Rose’s Journey of life.
Rose first love, Eric, self-centred, narcissistic, self-confident and successful. Their relationship was fiery, intense, passionate and impulsive but ended quickly as he will never prioritize love over his own goals. Through him, Rose was truly hurt but she learnt the important of self-respect and who she wants to be.
Then came along the convenient second guy, Fang Xie Wen. Most hated by viewers because of his character flaws and terrible mother, played by Lin Geng Xin, he did such a great job that many hate him. When he chased Rose, he was self sacrificing and persuasive, not even sure Rose love him but she was at this phase of her life looking for stability. So he proposed and she marries. But not realizing her husband
is the most narrow-minded man, holds a male chauvinistic view with strong insecurity and tends to put a fake front. When Rose marries, she was in a phase of looking for stability, I always doubted that she loves him wholeheartedly but she marries him, thinking it was the right thing to do. Subsequently, Rose became like ‘a frozen rose’, preserved or kept alive in a glass’ without natural sun and breath of live. Rose tried to be a good housewife and mother, that’s where she started to discover her husband’s flaws, his selfishness, insecurity kept her trapped. A struggle that many women fear to do, she made a courageous decision to divorce and fight for her daughter’s custody.
Finally, she met the third guy, played by the actor Wallace, in the show, he is her soulmate, most similar and aligned to Rose’s personality.
But it’s also the saddest part of the story and the peak as well as a turning point of her change and growth. I shall not provide too much spoiler but we all knew it ended because the guy has a terminal illness but their love is the most profound, intimate, an strong emotional connection which every women would long to have.
Although the story ended with possibility of a last younger guy that came into her life, we don’t know as Rose wouldn’t need love to live her life to the fullest.
Our Rose has learnt acceptance of life and letting go.
She develops her true potential in her career and becomes a successful person, living a carefree life and embracing the present moment.
There is also a side touching story of Rose’s brother and his love line which there were also quite a lot of exploration of theme of trauma, abusive parents etc but achieved their happy ending.
In Rose’s life, she has good friends, supportive business partners, parents, brothers who are always there for her despite her struggles.
Personally I feel that not every woman would envy what Rose has gone through but the different phases of Rose’s experience may resonate with some of us, hence this is partly a very realistic healing story. Every sadness there is hope, growth and self-discovery, we can only focus on what we can control and learnt to find the courage to let go of those we can’t. Many chicken soup type of themes, slice of life.
A good watch if you are in the mood for a melancholic journey to a positive message.
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Love, family, friendship, and politics in flames of war and uncertainty
"Love in Flames of War" (良辰好景知几何) is a Republican era romance and political drama that covers the period from 1917 to 1937. It follows the story of Lin Hang Jing and Xiao Bei Chen, their growth individually and as a couple, as well as that of their families and friends as they navigate their way during this uncertain and tumultuous period in China's history.STORY / PLOT 📚:
I finished this drama more than a month ago, and I'm glad I watched it, despite knowing about the melodrama and angst. This advance knowledge is good in a way because I had braced myself for the heavy scenes.
The drama builds up the romance, the political/military development and the different relationships quite well. It kept me invested and interested to know what's going to happen next. Admittedly, the romance and the main couple's chemistry are big factors for me to watch this drama, and they don't disappoint. There is also steady and strong character development. It's interesting to watch their change and growth as the story progresses. Xiao Bei Chen and his friends’ time in the military academy is portrayed well. I like how the drama connects the characters' stories to the political events of the time.
That said, some things could have been better. For one, they could have reduced the angst and misunderstandings between Xiao Bei Chen and Lin Hang Jing, and showed more of their sweet moments. I saw some of these sweet scenes that did not make it to the final cut!
ACTING / CAST 🎭:
Shawn Dou nailed the role of Xiao Bei Chen! I feel like the character is made for him. He was able to show it in his bearing, expressions, proud and humorous personality, and his emotional vulnerability when it comes to Lin Hang Jing. He did some things that he thought was in her best interest, but it caused more rift between them. As Aunt Qi said, sometimes when you love someone too much, you will make mistakes.
Chen Du Ling was able to bring out the naiveté, idealism, strong-willed and sometimes feisty personality of Lin Hang Jing. She is the right choice to portray her. I don't agree with some of her actions (e.g., what she did the night of their anniversary), but that's part of how her character was written. I think she did justice to Lin Hang Jing.
As for the romance, Shawn Dou and Chen Du Ling have great chemistry! They were able to show Xiao Bei Chen and Lin Hang Jing's passion for each other, the angst, their banter, and the push and pull in their relationships. Their initial interactions were not the most pleasant ones; but he fell for her first (fast and hard!), while she eventually developed romantic feelings for him as she got to know him better. Both characters made some choices that are not ideal or the best, but these pushed the story forward and enabled them to grow as persons and eventually strengthened their relationship.
Leon Lai captured the intelligence and humor of Mo Wei Yi, and Ran Xu showed the straightforward character of Xu Ji Zun. They grew up with Xiao Bei Chen and these 3 men are very good friends and are sworn brothers. Their bond is very strong, despite having gone through some challenging situations. I like their camaraderie and loyalty to each other, and how their friendship grew stronger through the years, in good times and in bad.
Zhao Ying Zi was convincing as Zheng Feng Qi, Xiao Bei Chen’s childhood friend who is obsessed with him. Zheng Feng Qi is scheming and pretentious, and quite an infuriating character. I was ecstatic when she was finally exposed for her wickedness and the truths came out. That woman needed to see a psychiatrist!
Another character that has shown a lot of growth is Xiao Bei Chen’s younger sister Xiao Shu Yi, played by Guan Xin. She started out as bratty and quite annoying, yet also funny at times and naïve. What’s good about her is that she dared to confront Lin Hang Jing in defense of Xiao Bei Chen and makes her realizes things. Although sometimes, she goes overboard because of her bias against Lin Hang Jing. As the story move along, her character matured into a wise young woman.
Hu Jun and Dong Xuan are excellent as Xiao Hai Shan and Aunt Qi, respectively. Xiao Hai Shan is a man of integrity, a military leader and the pillar of the family, while his wife, the amiable and wise Aunt Qi, is the mediator and go-to person, the one who holds their family together.
Yuan Hao is Mu Zi Zeng, Lin Hang Jing’s good friend whom she met in Beixin city. He is in love with Lin Hang Jing but she treats him as a very good friend only. His portrayal was average for me. It's not bad, but not great either.
OTHER THOUGHTS 🔮:
The production quality is good. I like the locations, settings, and the costumes and accessories, which are well paired and consistent. The songs are well chosen and fit the mood and theme of the drama.
FINAL VERDICT ⭐️: If you like Republican era stories with angst-filled and passionate romance, great chemistry between the leads, memorable friendships and family ties, and with traces of political intrigue, then do check out this drama. Despite some things that could have been better, it’s still an overall good watch for me.
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This review may contain spoilers
I first saw this on a BL list, but this is not BL if anyone is wondering. There's a rather banal scene in which one of the characters pretend to be the other's boyfriend to save him from a girl's jealous boyfriend, and the boyfriend forces them to kiss to prove it. The "kiss" is obviously faked (by the actors, not the characters) and not very funny though I'm not even sure if the scene was meant to be funny.The story, if we can call it one, is about two friends who start a business. The scenes are rather pointless. It seems to be a comedy at some points, but most of it is not funny. One scene shows some potential to be a funny satire: the scene in which the two characters play the victims on social media after being maligned by a customer. However, the potential is not fulfilled.
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Huh, so that’s what consistency in a period drama feels like...
Occasionally you’ll come across a series that’s so unique in terms of quality, yet for reasons it shouldn’t be the case. The Wind Blows From Longxi is a comparatively short drama that succeeds in everything it goes for, that most period dramas these days fail to.Now before i get into a overview for those that are interested in trying the series without spoilers , a forewarning. TWBFL isn’t for those that aren’t a fan of dramas not trying to grip their audience immediately with bright and vibrant colors, doll like characters, straightforward beginnings, or the trendy dynamic pacing that you regularly see in other series. You’re thrown into a gritty, detailed period setting that takes its time to draw in the viewers at a steady pace with its bold narration and realistic characters that are brung to life by both the great cast selection and airtight writing surrounding their background and motivations.
Wind Blows From Longxi doesn’t hold your hand with simplified explanations nor one layered characters. Which may leave some confused given the seemingly large cast you have to get accustomed to within a 24 episode span. Everyone has a purpose, many having 2-3 faces to achieve their true goals that are revealed over time. But fret not! One of the underrated strengths this series has is the very helpful, humorous, yet repetitive recaps at the end of each episode to assist viewers with staying aware of everything that’s going on that are both told and sometimes not easily shown to viewers that aren’t used to the hidden details and agendas. And ofc it’s optional, if you don’t need any clarification or refreshers you’re more than welcome to skip over them with no effects on your viewing experience.
You’re given a spy story that naturally becomes the focus in a relatively short span after being shown the cause of later occurrences in this drama. Keeping you on the edge of your seat with great fight choreographies, thrilling backed into a corner moments where your intelligence and quick thinking is your only friend, hidden agendas, betrayal, along with its fair share of sudden heart wrenching moments.
The gorgeous,dark, very still cinematography is one of the strongest aspects of this drama, buuut can also be one of it’s weak aspects depending on the viewer. Backgrounds rarely bares the light needed for some to see exactly what’s going on at times, which can become quite bothersome depending on the devices used to watch. An aspect i can for sure say is the weakest that this drama bears is the BGM. Not once, but several times over the course of these 24 episodes the BGM is blasting when it isn’t needed, as if they’re trying to distract you from what’s actually going on in front of you, which is weird...because that isn’t the case, yet it’s there, just to be there? Some times not even matching with the tone of the current scenes that are happening. When some scenes are way better off dead silent or subtle, the bgm rumbles. You become used to it over a few episodes, making you unaware of how often they’re constantly slinging tracks behind the scenes that can break your immersion. Luckily, this is the weakest aspect of this drama. Oh, and there’s Angelababy.. uh yeah.
The Wind Blows From Longxi is likely to be a hidden gem as time past from it not catering to what period drama audiences are now used to and favor , causing many to rather be uninterested in trying out or dropping. What i can say is that for those(like me) that still prefer a well written story with a much more serious tone at a realistic steady pace, The Wind Blows from Longxi is a beautifully handled drama that is most certainly a must try at the very least.
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This review may contain spoilers
main lead is soo stupid
auu bru i got so mad watching ts cz like the main lead be getting me sooooo mad, girl the last time i cud rmbr she was deaf? so y the flip flop was she leaning her head close to her door when do shik was outside the door after he stopped wacking his hammer thing, as if she can hear anything like there was a big enough hole on that door girl he cuda js grabbed u by the neck and killed u on the spot r u that dumbb?? or u js relying on ur “im the main character” incstinct auff anyways i dropped it halfway its too much for me, not to mention all the good actors/actresses on hereee not the best movie i watched wud rate abt 6/10 honestly (no one wud be that dumb irl) pluss does she rly think the guy whos sisters abt to die will rly chose to save her life by putting his and his sisters lives on the edge?? (im rly rly sry for my grammer i was lwky mad writing ts:>)Was this review helpful to you?
sunshine/softie, friends-to-lovers, crush, bisexual identity, out gay, rich/poor
BL grew up with this one - a truly lovely and special little show featuring the extremely rare pairing of sunshine/sunshine AKA the cinnamon roll couple. Mature explorations of relationships using one of the softest, sweetest and most innocent friends to lovers vehicles.Delayed from 2020 from LineTV My Ride has been fraught with production issues but worth the wait. Screenplay by Fluke Teerapat (AKA Wad in SOTUS & Golf in My Bromance) and featuring most green actors, it was a well-paced story with well-drawn characters that shone. Endearing. And I really liked the general earnestness.
Kindly overworked doctor Tawan meets broken-hearted dimpled motorcycle taxi driver Mork in an “other side of the tracks” romance. Also featured a sunshine/tsundere (young/older) doctors side couple, and even a pretty good het relationship side couple with Tawan’s bestie and a local barista.
With great friendship groups, family dynamics, and support cast this show reminded me a bit of Nitiman (in a GOOD way & non-university) only better because the courageous storyline never wavered. We got to watch Mork & Tawan meet and slowly fall in love with each other first as genuine friends, and only later as lovers. It’s quiet, and all the drama feels genuine not manufactured, coming from previous relationships. So we watch these two support each other and build a foundation together, even though they don’t yet realize it themselves.
With older gay rep, in the form of Mork’s uncles (the Gay Advice Dads trope - so vitally queer and so underused in BL), casual references to things like having to care for his alcoholic brother’s child, and coping with being the “other man”, these are grown ups with complicated lives and a adult problems. And yeah, both Mork and Tawan are a little beaten down by the world, but both of them are trying hard and willing to fall in love again, even as they don’t realize it’s happening.
This is a sweet slow burn romance, so all we get are a few tentative kisses at the end, but I still consider it an unexpected gem. With honest queer rep that adds to, but doesn’t impede the story and genuine conversation about the nature of class, wealth, and classism, not to mention communication, honesty, and respect for boundaries, you can’t go wrong with this show. It is, for my money, the best Thai BL pulp we’ve ever gotten.
In other news, I’m a sucker for a single dimple.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
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Love at first F***
He f*** a ghost and he liked it...This is the very short story of the selfish guy who wanted to own another guys body and the sweet kind guy whos body the selfish guy wanted to own + the very fine ghost who was caught between them.
Mr Selfish most probably lonely, two faced hottie acted all kind and all but is actually dark and evil deep inside as he puts a curse on the man he wants to own... And well he does that part really well he does seem sweet, we do get the feeling that mr sweetheart really trusts him and likes him as a friend and he does not come off as evil in anyway. He uses this position to curse him, however the details of the curse are kind of foggy and not very well executed so adding 10 minutes or so to clarify the curse part would have been good.
It is however clear that the curse backfired as it seems to have become love at first f*** for the ghost and everybody's sweetheart instead of whatever mr evil was aiming for... As there is little dialog between mr. ghost and mr. sweetheart most of their screen-time together is very naked and very sexual...
I am not going to say that this short film is tastefully made, good or the type to bring out the thirst in you. It is more of the funny type of sexual content and pretty entertaining at times as well as slightly odd, dark (literately) and different than what I have seen before.
Definitely an indecent watch...
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This review may contain spoilers
There are better ways to waste your time
This drama is a mess. And I tried, I really tried, to give it the benefit of the doubt and watch to the very end. But in the end, all I ended up doing was wasting 16 hours of my life. I'm sure you'll see plenty of reviews like this, so I do want to mention the very, VERY few good aspects of the show as well to be fair.The first 2 or 3 episodes were actually pretty good and I can easily see how the jumbled up pieces of it could have been turned into a really solid drama if it had a much better writer and director. The actors were all good, it was the roles that they were given that created all of the problems we saw and not the actors themselves. What stood out to me in the first episodes was how some things were handled. HBS finding out about OJI's circumstances with her mother was done well. Despite how poorly they got along at that time, he stopped everything to help her get to her mother even while not fully understanding what was going on. It may seem like common sense that you would help someone in a tough situation like that, but it's surprisingly not handled that well in most dramas. Another thing I have to give it props for was the arguing, oddly enough. In the beginning. Not after the stupid break-up episodes. But at the start, when they started to fight there weren't any big blow-ups where one would storm out or OJI would tell him to leave. They worked through it, maybe not amazingly but better than most fights in dramas. So again, props to that. There were some things like these that were handled nicely. In the beginning. And never again.
The drama after the first 2 episodes had no plot. Nothing, not even one bit. The characters would just lamely wax poetics at each other for 20-40min of an episode, we'd get the really annoying side couples to pop in and waste time, an unnecessary love triangle was thrown in to, again, pad run time, and then we had the cliche 'I'm breaking up with you to protect you' mini arch that was about where I had to start skipping through. And I never skim dramas. Usually even the worst trash I'll sit through, but I just couldn't.
The 'disappearing' aspect of the show was both stupid and unexplored. It isn't the first time a drama has given a character who has died or was going to die a second chance with a time limit to do things over and set things right before they leave. Off the top of my head, I can think of Please Come Back, Mister (which had a lot of problems of its own, but wasn't as bad as this) and Miracle That We Met (which doesn't have a time limit but is close enough that I think it could fit). While neither is a perfect show and has problems too, they at least had a plot. They had plot, they had character growth, and they were entertaining, even if some aspects were frustrating. They were watchable. But with Ladylord, after being hit, HBS spends so much time not even fully realizing the situation. It's only around the halfway mark that he even understands that he's going to just... pop out of existence. Which is weird to me. I don't know why they didn't just have him die 49 days later. I guess then they wouldn't have been able to do those weird 'disappearing' scenes... which probably would have been better for the drama anyway. But no, his biological father is apparently an angel there to tell him that doom is at his doorstep and 49 days from now - poof! Gone. Like magic.
That's the problem with the drama. Well, the biggest problem. Nothing is thought out and everything is haphazard. Instead of focusing on the plot and the details of what is happening, it gives us scene after scene of the leads being 'cute' together that amount to nothing long-term. It feels like the writer and director didn't actually care about what was going on with the show or whether their audience enjoyed it. The angel is seen only, what, 3 or 4 times throughout the whole series? The end game is an afterthought. The supernatural aspect of the show never should have been added to this drama because they weren't willing to flesh it out enough to make it a real part of the plot. It was just a consequence. It's just like how the step-father was so heavily in the early episodes and then after the mom found out, they just didn't need him anymore and it was like he never existed in the first place. And it doesn't even matter because he was just playing a cartoon villain anyway.
The writer didn't bother trying to make this drama good. I really feel that there was no effort put into the script at all beyond maybe the initial set-up. They should have tried to add a plot to the characters' everyday lives instead of these one-off instances of drugging and abduction, a dating scandal and a random accusation of plagiarism that came out of nowhere and left into nothing. Their lives had no structure. And it's not like structure can't be added with plots like these (I use 'plot' very loosely here) because we've seen it done in plenty of others. There are really amazing cohabitation dramas. Heck, Lee Min Ki himself was in one that was done really well! And there are plenty of great supernatural dramas out there, too. There are dramas dealing with a character's last days/months alive, there are ones that deal with a second chance of life after death, and most of them are better than this.
I'll stop there before I get more depressed over my wasted time. I've never said this about a drama before, but don't watch it. Don't even try. It's not worth it. The few positive points I mentioned disappear a few episodes in anyways.
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Story- It’s about loss, finding love through that loss, and forgiveness. Really well written in that, the writers managed to balance the love-lines and boxing theme. There wasn’t a single episode where I felt bored and the episodes flew by fast. There were some things that I didn’t like about the story though. This includes all the scenes involving the CF President (obsessed with the female lead character) and also all the angst in the second half of the drama. I really really wish they had only a few episodes where the main female character can’t forgive the male lead character. You have to make it through to the very end before forgiveness/reconciliation occurs. The ending wasn’t bad but it was kind of disappointing for what the writers made us go through with all that angst.
Acting/Characters- Shin Min Ah was perfect and her character development was interesting. She starts out as a likable character but halfway through her character changes physically and emotionally, and not for the better. And Can I just say how awesome Joo Jin Mo is?! He is a versatile and phenomenal actor. I’ve seen him in so many things and this character is just so different and out of the box for him. I seriously loved his character because you could tell he loved the main female so much and my heart kept breaking for him during all the scenes the main female character showed her hatred for him. The other main male actor (who seriously is no rival) was just awful. His lack of acting skills and the fact that the writers made his character so unlikable just made his scenes (unfortunately he has a lot) unbearable to watch. His character wasn’t even that evil but he had no redeeming qualities and I had no sympathy for him at all. I mean he doesn’t even give up the female lead till the very end! He is pathetic and just a worthless character who didn’t offer anything to the drama. On a different note, the supporting cast was perfect. I liked that the writers gave the supporting cast prominent roles and I enjoyed the love triangles of the female lead’s 2 female friends.
Music- Matching angsty music but also has Christina Augielera’s “Stronger” as a running theme which matches the boxing theme of the show.
Rewatch- I am going to rewatch this cause the acting was really good but not for a couple years cause of the high angst.
Overall Punch plays like an extended top quality sports movie. Whether you like sports themed dramas or not you will be able to watch this. Your enjoyment of the drama might dwindle towards the last quarter though, because the female lead character becomes really unlikable and there are misunderstandings and too much angst!
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