Reviews

Battle for Bosi

Omg I have no words how disgusted I am with Jiang and ChenXi. 🤬They made a mockery of his wife so he would look like a human instead of a shark. That she came up with that idea makes it even more unpalatable. These two deserve each other. I really loathe both of them as much as Liang Liang. He promised those green companies they could stay intact and then halted production because he and PengYu are in a race to see who will have majority shares to get Bosi. They both are neglecting all other projects to have maximum holding of shares in a race to see who will gain the stock advantage. We get the backstory of PengYu’s dad who used to be a friend of Jiang. They were in business together until Jiang used him as a stepping stone to get Lysen. He undercut the business transaction so that PengYu’s dad was put out of business by the ‘friend’ he trusted the most. Like LiangLiang he uses all around him as stepping stones to claw his way to the top. He does this brazenly making no apology for his actions and no remorse (other than for show) for the people who become collateral damage. I don’t think he takes pleasure in it like LiangLiang does, but he heartlessly accepts that as the price to continue his climb. He proves this sentiment in his talk to Ren on handling YuCi if she doesn’t come back to Lysen. He wants to be sure she cannot work independently away from him. He is a disgusting piece of work and that painting behind him is so truthful of his real character. LiangLiang has double pronged the attack by making PengYu close down the street vendors renovation project so he can use her Bai stocks to beat Jiang in getting Bosi. He is so caught up in revenge for his father that he gladly accepts the condition and all the vendors are homeless. This is how Lysen conducts business. They make an offer too good to be true and then yank the rug under the ‘commoners’ expecting their very small portion of the business deal as promised. The promise is only valid til the paperwork signed and then they are pebbles to be tossed away. YuCi is out of hospital and has quietly looked into things. She doesn’t conduct business like Lysen and she is determined to see her two projects put back on track. She has a very candid conversation with PengYu’s mom hoping she can push PengYu into doing the right thing and reopen the street vendors location. His mom gives YuCi the Readers Digest condensed version of her history up to MuRan’s suicide. She doesn’t see them as enemies but she also makes it clear her son makes his own choices. She is willing to wait to see how the Bosi battle plays out. YuCi hopes for the best but she is a bit stunned with the closure. She knows who is behind it and has to be careful with moves because Gma Bai is included in Liang Liang’s actions. Chen Mo tried to talk her out of doing more for the vendors and to just stay out of it entirely and live a happier life. She refuses to let them be collateral damage and is well aware she and LiangLiang are not done yet. Her parting letter with Chen Mo is read again. She has tried to cut ties. She says he will be a weakness if they continue, but she is protecting him and distancing herself from everybody. She has been warned this round will be personal and the street vendors eviction is the first salvo. Jiang meets with PengYu and really thinks they are going to shake hands and be friendly. I do wish PengYu would have brushed him aside but not look like a petulant child while doing it. The gloves are off and it’s unclear where YuCi will position herself while these two enemies exact their own revenge. I am curious if she will be spectator or add her own nuance to the battle and who she will side with? I am thinking Jiang doesn’t consider PengYu an enemy. He is of the mind ‘it’s just business and nothing personal.’

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A Quick Death and the Infamous Kiss!

Episode 33 of Pursuit of Jade kicks off with Xie Zheng putting Li Huai An on notice for teaming up with Qi Min, and honestly I’m sitting here like… sir, why are we doing this detour arc when we all know your moral compass is set to “justice and peace only”? It feels like a classic “for the plot, we suffer” moment because deep down we know he’s going to boomerang back to Xie Zheng and Chang Yu anyway. Speaking of chaos, Qi Min versus Sui Yuan Qing finally happens and wow, the cinematography during the soldiers’ deaths was straight up tragically gorgeous, like a grim painting you can’t look away from. But Sui Yuan Qing’s end? Way too quick, almost blink-and-he’s-gone, which feels off for someone built up as both a filial son with a vengeance and a full-on unhinged menace. Him asking Shi San Niang to pass evidence to Chang Yu with his last breath had me going “huh?” because last I checked, that man was not on Team Chang Yu, but I guess revenge against mom’s killer overrides all grudges. The self-neck-slice plus Shi San Niang cradling his head was lowkey shocking for a costume drama, so kudos to the show for daring to go a bit gory, even if from a polite zoomed-out distance. Then the emotional whiplash hits as we jump into sweetness with Yin Gong Sun and Qi Shu, plus Xie Zheng and Chang Yu playing ultimate wingmen like “go confess, king” while their own love life is already thriving, because yes, giving advice is easier when it’s not your own heart on the line. Yin Gong Sun’s confession and proposal felt very them, soft yet grounded, and both Li Qing and Yu Zhong Li really sold that yearning and sincerity, with Li Qing flexing his duality between playful flirt and earnest lover like it’s second nature. Meanwhile, Xie Zheng and Chang Yu are out here serving quiet romance with that blink-and-you-miss-it caretaking during the banquet, which made their chemistry feel even richer. And of course, the kiss, the moment we’ve all been camping for since the pre-release buzz, delivered in a more aesthetic, cinematic way rather than full-on firework explosion. Zhang Ling He and Tian Xi Wei brought the emotions, no doubt, with hints of hunger here and there, but the scene leaned more into artistic framing like clasped hands and silhouettes instead of going full spicy mode, which lowkey made those fan-shot previews feel like the hotter director’s cut. Not complaining though, it was still beautiful, just not the feast I mentally pre-ordered. And just when you think the episode is done, the drama sneaks in a cheeky epilogue with maids casually snacking while the main couple kisses and a poor bystander from the Pig Butcher Squad accidentally witnessing it mid-pee, which is the kind of chaotic humor I didn’t know I needed but fully enjoyed.

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BRO IM SUCH AN IDIOT I WATCHED EP 12 THINKING IT WAS EP 1

its acc really GOOD but I watched ep 12 first thinking it was ep 1 so I spoiled it for myself so Ik myunghee dies and heetae thinks she's still alive until they recover her body in a construction site 41 years later, BUT OMG SO FAR SO GOOD I love soo ryeon’s giggly personality and I love how she made myunghee go to the blind date with heetae so that after sooryeon would pay the airfare for myunghee so she could go to her abroad uni but for heetae I have sm questions like who's the patient he’s trying to transfer from Seoul and his dad seems like such a bastard like I think he”s tortured people before and he’s probably a dirty politician, and at first I lowkey thought soochul and myunghee would get together but NOW ITS HEETA AND MYUNGHEE EEKK and she lowkey has such a cute face aswell eheh.

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Realistic but painful to watch

This episode was so hard to watch. Somehow it felt like you were witnessing a part of your mother’s or grandmother’s life. It’s painful as I know that during that era, women would never dare to divorce their husbands once she had a child, even if the husband was totally a jerk and beat his wife on a daily basis. Even nowadays, I’ve still met a few women in my society with the same mindset. That’s why, even though I wish Oshin would leave her loser husband so bad, I know she would never do that. And it’s so painful to watch. 😔I also wish the best for all the great women who have been helping Oshin. I’ve always loved Taka and Someko, and I really appreciate what they’ve said to Oshin in this episode. And a big bravo to Someko for standing up against Ryuzo for Oshin’s sake. I love these women so much! Meanwhile, Oshin still thinks it’s her fault for hurting her husband’s pride. 🤦‍♀️ It’s understandable for women at that time to think that way, so it’s even more painful.

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Starts off with such plot-induced stupidity

The fact that Gang-Tae shows up alone, without police help is just so stupid. Immediately proceeds to turn his back to a psychopath as he goes to check on his brother - more stupidity. Proceeds to think he can talk and rationalize with a psychopath - despite having years of experience in mental care - more stupidity. Watches as the psychopath picks up a weapon - more stupidity. ( Aside: Flashback to 20 years ago shows FL's mom using a laptop that looks far more '2019' than it does '1999'. ) Then lets her totally push his buttons like he was still a little boy and pretty much invites her to stab him. Which she does. Granted, the ML never seemed to be the smartest kid on the block at any point in this series, but this sequence seemed just too stupid even for him. And all that is on top of the absurdly unrealistic idea that the FL's mom survived all this time in the first place. So sad ho much this series has jumped the shark over these last couple of episodes.And man, frankly, I'm really tired of Gang-Tae. He's so emotionally locked up he's near useless. Thank god Sang-Tae had the common sense to just knock the witch out. Sang-Tae (who also saved Kang Pil Ong in an earlier episode) is definitely the hero this show desperately needed, since the ML certainly never was. And of course the plot then leans into the cliche' trope of the FL rejecting the ML 'for his own protection'. As if that really makes any sense given that her mom was finally absolutely caught. Come on, writers! Do better.And then what's up with the silliness of Jae-Su and Sang-Min not telling the others the truth about what happened? The witches arrest is now a police matter and thus a public matter! What are they being deceptive about it for? And then this doesn't even seem relevant later on.Oh well. Despite all the flaws in the plot, the actors and production crew all do a marvelous performance at delivering within this mess of a script. They are all still wonderful to watch. And Kang Sun Deok is still the best mom character ever! Once again she comes through with a clutch base-hit, this time in helping overcoming the aforementioned FL 'rejection' plot-trope.

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