The best Joseon romance of recent years
Among the current sageuk offerings, dominated by the fluffy romantic comedy fusion sageuk trend, The Red Sleeve is a drama that shares certain elements found in such sageuks, but is truly a melodrama rather than a comedy, and thus, despite some light-heartedness in the early episodes, has a predominantly serious tone. To those tiring of the fluffy trend, The Red Sleeve may prove a welcome respite that offers some of the gravitas of a more classic sageuk, yet it is also enough in the realm of the romance-focused, youth-oriented sageuk that it will likely appeal to those who are fans of the rom com in period dress genre. It is not likely, however, to satisfy fans of political sageuks, as this is a drama primarily concerned with its romance.Lee Jun Ho’s portrayal of Yi San was truly excellent. This was quite a nuanced and multifaceted character, and I found him compelling in all aspects. Though this character is certainly an idealistic, intelligent, and benevolent man, who has a strong sense of duty regarding his role as a ruler, he is not the sort of adorable, fluffy Joseon royal I have seen in many sageuks of late. There is a real edge to this character that at times borders on genuinely scary. Lee Jun Ho succeeds in both bringing some sweetness and charm to his character as a besotted lover as well as imbuing his portrayal with enough power, command, and charisma to be a convincing ruler. He made me feel this character’s pain acutely, whether that was heartbreak or the suffering of a traumatic family situation. And he had a superb intensity in some of the romantic scenes, conveying to the viewer a very palpable sense of his attraction.
I liked Lee Se Young as Seong Deok Im. I think her mannerisms and bearing are well-suited to this sort of period piece in a court setting. However, compared to the male lead, both she and her character left somewhat less of an impression. This is not to say she was bad in anyway. I definitely thought she was good, just less of a stand out. I did have some trouble getting a sense of this character at first, in part due to not immediately realizing that when Lee Se Young was initially introduced, she was playing a 15-year-old. (The male lead was also only 16, but his character was significantly more mature, thus his behavior felt less mismatched to the actor’s age.) The character does mature, though her core traits remain the same. (I think both actors did a good job and subtly aging up their characters over the course of the drama.) She is bold, principled, and strong-willed. At times her behavior is not really congruent with what I would expect from a Joseon court lady. The drama finds a balance between making these aspects completely anachronistic and unbelievable and making it seem somewhat plausible in her specific circumstances (e.g. her young age at the beginning, leeway afforded her due to Yi San’s favor).
The second male lead is an interesting character, though perhaps not a very likable one. However, I felt he was somewhat underutilized. I think they could have done more to show the viewer the bond between him and the male lead, and it seems we may have lost some of his character development in a time-skip. Although Kang Hoon’s performance did not particularly stand out to me, I have no complaints regarding his portrayal.
Along with Lee Jun Ho’s Yi San, the Lee Deok Hwa’s Yeongjo was the performance that had the most impact on me. This character had a duality, sometimes a kind, grandfatherly old man, sometimes a dangerous ruler prone to bouts of rage and suspicion. The gravitas Lee Deok Hwa brought to certain scenes and the relationship between grandfather and grandson was one of the most engaging aspects of this drama’s early episodes.
Regarding the story, it has earned a place on my list of favorite historical romances. The romance does start off with some rather standard tropes, but it’s a well-executed version with a lot of charm. As the relationship developed, I felt that it began to differentiate itself from the tropes and offered up incredible chemistry as well as some truly memorable scenes. My emotions definitely became caught up in this relationship, as it succeeded being both heart-fluttering and heart-wenching. This drama really put me through a lot, but I take that to mean that it was very successful in drawing me into the story.
That being said, this romance might not be to everyone’s taste. Firstly, despite the more light-hearted tone at the start, overall, I would describe the drama as “nearly continuously angsty.” I’m a sucker for the emotional torture, but for those looking for smooth-sailing, happy romances with minimal pain or conflict, this is not the place to look. Even the happy moments sometimes have a bittersweet tinge. A second point of potential discomfort for certain viewers is that there is a very large difference in status between the leads. Although the male lead often treats the female lead as more of an equal than their respective statuses would dictate, he does not necessarily view her as one and is not entirely above using his power over her. This is a dynamic many period romances tend to ignore, as it isn’t congruent with contemporary relationship ideals. Personally, I think the way this drama walked the line of not being too offensive for a contemporary viewer while also not entirely disregarding the power imbalance between a ruler and a court lady is one of this drama’s selling points and something fundamental to the themes it examines. Perhaps for some, though, it would cross the line. The third and final point is potentially a bit spoilerly, depending on what you consider a spoiler, so skip to the next paragraph if you’d like to avoid. Although it is up to interpretation, I think this is, to a certain extent, a story of a one-sided love, which is not to say it’s entirely unrequited, but I’m not sure the degree of feeling was equal on both ends. I think this is something interesting to explore, but it makes this relationship less idealized than the standard romance offering. If you're looking for a "perfect" couple, this isn't really it, but I think the story is better for that.
Now for the aspects of the drama that I felt were weaker … At the beginning, I thought the politics had some potential. They were not the main focus, but things were gradually developing in the background, and doing so in a way that seemed well-paced and well-conceived, if pretty standard. But at some point the plot just became something of a mess. It spices things up with intrigue that, to me, felt unnecessarily over-the-top, and yet it pretty much skips over major events that I kinda felt like we should have seen. There definitely were moments of true suspense and excitement, but also parts that completely lacked any impact, because we weren’t given proper development (or shown them at all). These aspects surely would have been better had they just followed the history. Truthfully, I think this drama was essentially using the politics to create situations of character conflict, with little regard for the merits of the plot points themselves or the overall trajectory of that story aspect. It also seemed averse to introducing any plot line where the female lead could not somehow be inserted into the political maneuverings, despite her lack of status and power (a choice which seems somewhat contradictory to the drama's larger theme of how little agency Joseon palace women were afforded). I can accept this, as I knew from the beginning that this was primarily a romance, not a political epic, but it does somewhat lessen my regard for the quality of the drama’s overall execution. I would have preferred it to simply avoid dealing with politics, rather than give them some focus, but not enough to do it right. Still, it certainly didn’t stop me from obsessing over the main couple and anxiously waiting for the next episodes. If you’re looking for a romantic drama, rest assured, this one will not bore you with lots of scenes of old men discussing tax policies. I also think there was some lack of clarity regarding the timeline. It is not always easy to tell how quickly time is going by and at one point I realized that many more years must have passed than it had felt like when watching the drama. Since this drama covered such a long period of time (pretty much the entirety of the lead characters’ lives), I think it probably could have been longer.
It was definitely a visually appealing drama with beautiful costumes and lovely cinematography. The composition of certain shots was quite striking. Although the soundtrack did not leave a profound impression on me, there were scenes I felt were very much enhanced by the music choices, and I don’t remember any point at which I felt the soundtrack didn’t fit.
This is a drama that had some outstanding moments where all the elements came together to create a breathtaking tension that kept me completely captivated. What happened between those scenes is starting to blur together a bit for me, perhaps because some of the conflicts could be repetitive. Still overall, this is not a drama I will forget anytime soon. Despite its flaws, it was entirely successful in bringing across the emotions and making me invested in the romance. Moreover, Lee Jun Ho’s Yi San is now my standard for idealistic Joseon royal males that all future depictions of this character type will have to live up to or be somewhat of a disappointment. I definitely recommend to fans of historical melodramas.
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1A little bit of sugar won't give you diabetes and might enhance your platter <3
I don't know if I can find any bad part in this BL even if I search with my magnifying glasses on...all I can see is spotless acting and raw transparent adult emotions with relatable characters to swoon over.YES it's cute, fluffy, refreshing and calming.
For me the most beautiful thing is that Togawa didn't forced his feelings on Nouze-san, this story happened naturally. Being single and close to 40 Mr. Nouze must have felt his life boring and uninteresting. At that time Togawa came into his life like a breath of fresh air. They both understood their boundaries as subordinates.
They are adults in love and but can giggle like a child over little things.
I can conclude this as a healthy BL to feed on whenever you're tired. Plots like this tells us that love at first sight still do exist and stays for a longer time, which makes me wonder why something like this doesn't happen to us :')
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The only thing about it is that I really wish that the director made it longer in episodes. With only nine episodes, I feel like it had too much going on in the plot and too many characters for just nine episodes. It's hard to focus on all that's going on in a short matter of time. Other than that though I really love the plot. At first, it seems predictable and generic especially with the main character Natsume. But there are plot twists that happen and things that make it more interesting along the way.
The soundtrack was very very good, it really does fit all the scenes. In my opinion, it's very memorable and I love it so much. The acting was also very good, everybody played their characters well and I really loved the lgbtq+ stuff they added in this series. I really love the cast too.
I really would consider rewatching this show again. I also doubt it but I am hoping for a season two.
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really good drama, eng subs don't do it justice :(
Prior to this drama's release, I had heard about the cast and filming of it. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed the drama, the cast's chemistry, the storyline, and the soundtrack. The writers did an amazing job adapting the novel to the screen, maintaining many key moments from the novel and the two main characters' relationship, while making minor changes to plot and character backgrounds for better story flow and progression. The drama covers the story of romantic, familial, and friend relationships.I think the story portrays a very realistic relationship between the two main characters. The male lead, Li Xun, and the female lead, Zhu Yun come from very different family backgrounds and experiences, Li Xun a more tragic and Zhu Yun from a loving, well-off family. The story starts as more of a friends-to-lovers trope, but it's very clear how quickly they fall for each other. Zhu Yun, having always been an obedient daughter sees a side that she desires to be in Li Xun, and by being with him, she can rebel and be her "true self." The leads are not actually together for much of the drama, however, the team did a great job illustrating the push-pull of feelings prior to the actual relationship.Both characters have flaws--Li Xun is too closed off, a bit arrogant, and impulsive, but both love each other immensely, shown through LX pushing away ZY to protect her, and ZY still trusting him all throughout. Aside from the obstacles in their relationship, The college segment of the drama was so charming; all characters were lovable and the interactions and work they did remind me much of my own college experiences.
The distinction between the college romance and workplace romance is something I really enjoyed; there was a very obvious character development and while things seem different, they still are the same. LX and ZY still love and trust each other, continuing off from before, LX is still pushing away ZY to protect her, but ZY comes back stronger and determined to help him win his life and dreams back. I really love ZY's character in the way that she is strong and does everything in her power to protect LX because she loves him. I also think that the other coworkers at Feiyang are so funny a highlight of these emotional first few episodes of part 2.
Both lead actors portrayed the characters so well, I truly believe that they were meant to play them. Through behind the scenes clips, you can tell how hard they worked on bringing Li Xun and Zhu Yun to life. Chen Feiyu and Zhang Jingyi had amazing chemistry--there were so many moments in the episodes where they improvised and their interactions felt so natural.
I watched this drama completely in Chinese and had read the novel prior, and the Youtube English subtitles don't do the lines justice, often translated too simply or cliche/cheesy. Many of the lines hold deeper references to the novel and directly relates the personality and character progression, which is lost in these translations. Lighter & Princess is so much more than your standard idol drama; there's a long time span, imperfections in characters and relationships, and growth. While I feel like the ending few episodes of Lighter & Princess were a bit rushed, I'm still amazed by the closing scene, quoted exactly from the novel, with the carousel turning back time through their relationship, the coded heart stops beating, Li Xun's breathing, up to where they first met in college--this time from Li Xun's perspective. Though it's a happy ending, I can't help but feel a little sad every time I see that last clip. I will definitely be rewatching.
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The title alone ought to be enough warning but as much as I hate to say it I actually enjoyed the movie. It riled me up, it had me on the edge of my seat, it made me mad, furious, it made me sad and emotional. It accomplished the goal all movies ought to - it provoked a reaction and emotional response in the viewer.
That said, however, this is not a light movie to enjoy between your favorite BL drama hiatus or while you're waiting for a new episode or series or even a movie with that general vibe.
"Lost to Shame" will make you upset, especially if you're part of the LGBTQ+ community. If you're heterosexual and a cisgender person you might still enjoy it and even relate to any of the characters or the plot and maybe, hopefully, get some new insight on how this community feels, but I doubt that's the case and if the movie was even aiming to do that in the first place, which it isn't, the parallels between the movie and real life would be ironic to say the least.
The movie's lead is a straight man, an actor, who's playing a transgender woman on a play - his first big role and his first breakthrough in the business. We follow this man through this journey, while he discovers a newfound acceptance for the LGBTQ+ community and in the end... it's up to you to decide how to feel about it.
I'd say this movie follows the structure of a tragedy but that might be me trying to reach too far. I felt honestly upset at the ending, not because it was bad but because it was too real...
This movie appeared as a recommendation when I wanted to follow up "Method", a movie with a similar vibe which I enjoyed a lot. Maybe because I watched "Method" first my analysis of "Lost to Shame" is a bit biased since I'd actually recommend "Method" to people and I even rewatched it, but "Lost to Shame" is a one time experience.
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Loved....
1) Chemistry! They both atract to each other. I not sure how many kiss in this lakorn... Thaywa really used any opportunity to kiss Raveet. And Raveet cant help to play along.
2) Raveet as strong woman. Breek up with Niman is nothing, she can move on easily. Smart and confident. Pring can't never be a winner even she stole Niman.
3) Family, Thaywa and Raveet have loving family. They support each other, respect their child opinion. Not just arrage marriage for their child like most of lakorn involve big company.
Hate...
1) Pring! She never grateful for what she have. Always want what Raveets. Not smart woman, the only thing she have her body. She used only that to get anything. What can I say, her mother thought that.
2) Da, she really unstable woman. she sick, I mean she mentally sick. She most fragile person. She can be manipulate easily. She can't be leave alone, she gonna suicide.
Summarized... Love this!
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This drama made me become a fan of Gong Hyo Jin and it also proved to me how much of great actor Gong Yoo is. Also, I really liked the idea of this drama. This is what made me want to watch it. I like the whole "I'm a teacher and I'm going to change these kids life" story they used. And I liked the dynamic of the older woman younger male relationship (I don't know why but they tend to be my favorites like Dal Ja's Spring and Queen of Reversals. I must be a cougar at heart. Lol)
I loved the relationship that Gong Hyo Jin's character Na Bo Ri grew with her students. I think it was one of the best things about the drama. This drama is not just about her babysitting Park Tae In. This drama focuses on the other students as well and you get a new story each episode. This was something that I looked forward too the most. Expect to laugh and cry while watching this.
You have a great story and great cast with this drama and you'll truly enjoy it. I have re-watched this drama a couple of times and I really think the re-watch value is good. Biscuit Teacher and Star Candy isn't one of those overly emotional dramas where you feel like it was too much to watch again. BTSC is really funny majority of times.
Also I want to mention that Gong Yoo once again does a great job portraying his feelings. It's another reason why I loved him so much in Coffee Prince. His feelings showed throughout this whole drama and I truly felt like I saw him fall in love with Na Bo Ri. So if you like to see a drama where the guy falls helplessly in love with this girl then this is the drama for you.
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“like a softcore porno but without the porn.” – Love movies, drama reviewer
Love lost and found again is the foundation of this drama. A cute boy with mysterious origin ties the many threads together. It has a good-looking cast of young actors and the lead’s do have some chemistry, but it is not very convincing. It was shot in Xi’an but it has a Taiwanese feel to it. This review is pretty trippy to match the ambience of this short drama.This show is like a game of pin the tail on the donkey. It lurches all over the place but never stays long enough so that you can pin a label on it. For instance, it is quite racy at time, but you won't see anything explicit. It tests the boundaries but never crosses them. Some of the dialogs are very awkward but you can’t say that they are nonsensical or offensive, just cringey, stilted and non-PC.
The dubbing swings between functional to embarrassing. The acting go from reasonable to super cheesy. Every scene can bring its own surprises, and most don’t even involve the script. Ditto the production value. It can be decent one scene and amateurish the next. So much of this show is vexing. Consider how simple and tropey the A-plot is, this is no mean feat.
Some of that can be attributed to its short run time. Officially, it is only 20 x 10 mins long but once you top and tail them, they clock in closer to 8 mins per ep. Thus, the show moves at a cracking pace. I can imagine the editing room floor being littered with scenes they had to cut out. Editing and flow do suffer because of that. It does settle down a bit towards mid run and we can catch our breath but the home run is back to breakneck speed.
The script is humming a tune that sounds familiar but there are many dissonant chords. Cliches are everywhere. Like single use plastic items after a picnic. You might as well get used to plot holes because they are part of this gurgling witches’ brew. I can foretell much toils and troubles.
With a score this low, my modus operandi would be to cut my losses and drop the show but I couldn't. It is like watching a train wreck. You are mesmerised by the impending doom. You are shocked but also awed. As expected, a HEA ending was airdropped into place in the dying minutes of the show. All’s well that ends well.
This show is dire, but not so awful that it becomes a cult classic. It can even be unintentionally funny. In the end, it is a curio that will soon be forgotten. It did pique my interest and it might do the same for you. Heed my warning, gentlefolks. It is hard to stop once it hooks you. I binged it in morbid fascination with barely a pause. But I can never watched it again.
Maybe this is art. Maybe I’m a bowl of petunias. Peace out.
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This review may contain spoilers
unnecessarily slow/too many flashbacks
Overall: all of these stories could have been told in half (or less) of their time and they needed to air two episodes per week instead of spreading the series out over 6 months. Some episodes had way too many flashbacks as well. Aired on iQIYI and re-aired on YouTube.You Are My Soul Mate eps 7 & 8, 8
A standard Thai BL. Had some stupid poor communication but decent kissing.
Lucky Love eps 9 & 10, 7.5
Standard enemies to lovers. Wanted the new partner to be less aggressive with someone who just got out of an abusive relationship. Content warnings: intimate partner violence, sexual assault, punches/fight, vomiting
Fake Love eps 15 & 16, 7.5
Start at 38:30 in episode 15 and then watch all of episode 16. Standard aggressive pursuer/reluctant pursuee with some nonsense plot things. Content warnings: blackmail, stalking, vomiting, manhandling, non con touching, fight off screen, blood
Marry Go Round eps 3 & 4, 7.5
Nice to have an established couple but we needed more of them and less of the invasive fujoshi character. This is a crack comedy that didn't make me laugh. Note there is an ending scene after the initial credits. Content warnings: homophobia
The Camp Fire eps 11 & 12, 7.5
Slow pacing with some jump scares throughout (you could start at 30 minutes in episode 11 and miss basically nothing). I'm not sure how to feel about the end. Same actors as Love Stage (Thai version). Content warnings: brief scary images/jump scares, death off screen/death/blood (it's complicated)
Right Time, Right Love eps 5 & 6, 7
Bad that his friend asked him to talk it out with his abuser. They really needed a time skip to give some healing time between starting a new relationship. Content warnings: past intimate partner violence, manhandling, mental health struggles
Pisces of Me eps 17 & 18, 7
The incorrect subtitles made this more confusing than it needed to be (ie should have been "our mom" instead of "my mom"). The two guys are fraternal twins, I didn't get incest from the plot. Start ep 17 at 47 minutes and then start ep 18 at 35 minutes. Content warnings: non con kissing, blackmail, fight, a little blood/small injury
1626 eps 19 & 20, 6.5
Way too many flashbacks/forwards. Not a BL unless they were saying "I love you" in morse code.
I Wish You Love eps 23 & 24, 6.5
A guy gets a magical mirror and tracks down the guy who he sees in it, start ep 23 at 25 minutes. No idea why 2 people can't contact each other for years (social media, common friends, going to old addresses, etc) but I set that aside. Confusing way to start the second part. Wish they had made the ending more clear but I can guess what happened. Content warnings: illness, death (implied)
Refund Love eps 21 & 22, 6.5
Flashbacks made up 75% of the plot. Skip all of ep 21 and just watch ep 22. Did like that there was some GL but needed to have more sweet moments/relationship development and less constant flashbacks.
Casanova Begins eps 1 & 2, 6.5
Very confused with who was who and their relationships. Good attempt to try something different but the exposition dump and some nonsense things didn't hook me. Content warnings: death, attempted suicide, manhandling
Friends Forever eps 13 & 14, 6
This is not a romance story but a morality tale. I would have rated this higher if they had tightened the story up and removed the never-ending flashbacks. For the good, a character got actual consequences for his terrible actions. Content warnings: murder, intimate partner violence, coach/university student, drugging, manhandling
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Strong in the first half, but becomes confused about the story it wants to be.
The Journey of Legend is a bit of a frustrating mess, in all honesty. I can’t say I didn’t enjoy watching it as there was a lot that I liked about it, yet I also can’t say I finished it feeling satisfied.You see, this show starts out to be an interesting adventure. Xiao Ming Ming ends up pulled into the AI written world of the martial arts online game he’s been writing for. He becomes the main character Xiao Qiu Shui and, in the traditional style of transmigration stories, has to find a way to work through the story whilst also working alongside the game world’s rules. He sets out on a journey to change the fate of those who end up suffering in the story, but slowly begins to loose himself more with the virtual world and the struggles faced within it against the powerful Power Sect.
The story carries a lot of potential within it and, for about the first half of the story, is rather engaging and interesting to follow. Yet I felt that as the show entered into the later stages it became confused as to what it was trying to tell. The Power Sect (and Xiao Qiu Shui’s adversary, Liu Sifeng) suddenly take a backseat while a bigger plot emerges, and the show decides to bring in a storyline that carries from Xiao Ming Ming’s outside life that … really feels as if it comes from nowhere with how late in into the series it’s introduced. I found myself asking somewhere in the 30’s episodes where Liu Sifeng’s plot had suddenly disappeared to, and why he was suddenly forgotten by the story. Other character storylines are either abandoned or wrapped up in ways that feel less than satisfying, and the main plot the story tries to settle on ending with feels rushed due to its late introduction to the story. In a nutshell, the story just becomes messy, as if a ball of wool had unraveled and upon trying to wrap it back up became tangled up.
The cast themselves do their very best. The characters themselves are intriguing and fun to follow, which is probably why I felt frustrated that their endings seemed as rushed as they were.
Unless you’re a fan of a particular actor or actress that stars in the show, The Journey of Legend is not a show I would recommend. There are other shows of the same genre that deliver a better and more satisfying story.
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But though the drama teased at a richer story, it failed to deliver. There are many reasons for this but the major one would be that the writing failed the story and the direction didn't do great either. The actors, bless them, tried but when the source material is so cringe-inducing, there is little you can do. A lot of the scenes could have been fleshed out more, elaborated upon to harvest as much emotion out of them as possible but alas. The dialogue was truly atrocious and there was not much of a story once the romance had been established. I feel like KSH got the short end of the stick once again as the female MC had no character/personality beyond the superficial positive/cheerful girl as seen in so many other dramas. There's no depth to her and this is not the actor's fault, mind you. In so many scenes, she has nothing to do but smile and she does so, prettily, but there are only so many scenes this will work in.
Do Joon's character, on the other hand, is richer, more dynamic and grows exponentially from the beginning to the end. Geu Rim, on the other hand, becomes the wish fulfillment of Ji Sooho's character. She has opinions but doesn't voice them and goodness, the romance could have been so much better had the actors been allowed to let their natural chemistry shine through. Instead, whatever chemistry they had was suffocated by the bad dialogue and unnecessarily melodramatic conflicts. However, KSH's inexperience with romance is pretty visible in her acting and I reckon, once she has been in a relationship or two, her acting will improve dramatically. Right now, it felt like she was grasping at depths she didn't really comprehend, if that makes sense.
The love triangle--let's not even speak of it. I feel like this could have been a much drama than it ended up being. Let's hope that whatever KSH picks next delivers what the script offers.
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Great visuals but no plot?
I don’t usually write reviews but I felt like I needed to do it for this one, since I really don’t know how to feel about it...After watching the trailer I was really excited to watch This movie and in the beginning I did also really like it. The visuals are absolutely *chef’s kiss*. The cinematography, set design, special effects, and styling works really well together to bring this univers to life and I instantly fell in love with it.
I also instantly fell for the main character. He is very charming, which might in part be because Xiao Zhan could make a rock seem charming, and with the introduction he was given its hard not to immediately start rooting for him. However, as the story went on I started getting increasingly more and more frustrated with how passive he is. The main character never seems to really DO anything. Instead things juste sort of happens to him and he never really questions it.
I was also happy to see that the story has several female characters, but all of the side characters feel very underdeveloped. Some of them weren’t even introduced until the last third of the movie, where they were only given a few minutes of screen time.
My biggest problem with the story is the plot - or lack there of... I had to pause the movie somewhere in the middle to go and read what the movie is even supposed to be about, but even then I was watching the movie and thinking “that isn’t what is happening though?”, and when there was only 20 minutes left of the movie I still wasn’t sure what the plot was supposed to be. I spent the whole movie just waiting for it to begin, and it wasn’t until the last 10-15 minutes, that I felt like things were finally starting to get somewhere. I’m excited for the second movie, because the first one left on an interesting note, but I don’t think that this one stands very well on it’s own. I haven’t seen the series, but I definitely got the impression that this story is better suited for a series format rather than for movies.
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It exists . . . awkwardly
If I want to be generous, I can call this show a fluffy rom-com. However, that will be doing a disservice to the readers of this review. The premise of this show is a rom-com but what is delivered is subpar at every level.The main story line is awkward. Bits of cliche plots are cobbled together. It feels tired and predictable. You could call it a labour of love because a bunch of people certainly worked hard to deliver it even with all its problems. Unfortunately, the core concept is not particularly funny nor romantic. I get that they want to get some laughs out of the struggling dating show but you are more likely to gag than giggle. The pacing is also inconsistent. Some plots feel rushed while others just meander along.
This is not helped by the OTP having little chemistry. Their whole love line felts contrived. It was a bad case of puppy love when they were young teens but their feelings for each other is unchanged for 20 years. Ok, it is a bit of a stretch but this trope has worked in other shows so it can work here too, right?
Yes, it can work and they say that they have resolved their issues and they are all lovey-dovey. Yet the same issue caused them to breakup again before the love bite had time to fade. Have they learnt nothing? Are they 34 or 14? The fact that the issue can be resolved with some straight talking is totally ignored. Some of the later dialogue doesn't make much sense. It is the classic "Do as I say, not as I do". I know the happy ending is mandated but it is one audacious piece of writing.
In terms of acting, the FL is prone to overact because her character is quite exaggerated. I have to give her credit for acting like a fool at times just for laughs. The ML pulls his weight but he can't carry the whole show and his character is a bit nebulous. Support cast is patchy. Lots of one dimensional characters. It feels like they are trying to be a caricature of themselves.
To be honest, I am a bit numb after watching this show. It is not so bad that you want to throw things at the monitor nor is it good enough to be truly enjoyable. You keep watching while clinging onto the hope that it will get better. In your heart, you know the actors deserve better, the crew deserve better, WE deserve better!
It exists . . . awkwardly. Enough said. Peace out.
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This drama was one of the best I've ever watched, and every time I hear the music, a wave of nostalgia comes over me. So what if this drama doesn't adhere to the original BoF plotline? There have been so many versions of the same story already, and I think it's great that this Chinese version is bringing something new to the table!
I've watched the Korean version and this version, and honestly, I think they're both amazing (but I've watched Meteor Shower 2 many more times than BoF!) Zhang Han and Zheng Shuang who play the two main leads are a great on-screen couple, and you can really feel the emotion and love they share. The side characters are all great and many times entertaining. Duan Mu Lei, especially, was cast perfectly and his story is heartbreaking and inspiring--and in my opinion, he's much more attractive than Kim Hyn Joong in BoF :)
I loved this drama much more than the first one (Meteor Shower 1). All the actors are so much more attractive in Meteor Shower 2 and the storyline is more gripping. I think that if you want to get into this Chinese version of BoF, start with this sequel instead of from the beginning.
This drama is the perfect blend between light-heartedness and seriousness--it's not completely a sappy melodrama but it's also not a fluffy, light rom-com drama. It's a great watch for anyone who loves romantic dramas and Boys Over Flowers!
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Not Good Enough
Korean Drama " Dear. M " is a Global Playlist drama, in the series of the Love Playlist.However, it is nothing like the previous ones. The main problem with it is that it's boring and predictable. Pretty much nothing happens, with the characters simply going through their college life, with some ups and downs in their romantic lives. The big mystery with the mapple posts, often being forgotten when it didn't serve anything to the plot, was not interesting to keep things entertaining and its final conclusion was nothing to get excited about.
Probably the only thing that was interesting was the rivalry between the two ex classmates, but that's about it. No surprises when it came to the romance, some half baked plots, and a few unlikable characters. Especially the main lead was too much of a plain jane acting like a child all the time.
The performances, moreover, were decent.
So, overall, three out of ten.
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