Reviews

Kian IS bizarre,Ji Ye Eun shrieks like a water deer,the B&B is hard to navigate & Jin Shines

well "bizarre" is right but it was Kian, not the B&B that was bizarre! From bad hygiene to using his shorts (that he was wearing) as a sort of kangaroo pouch to carry odd things [like an eating bowl ] we get to see him realize that the fun house (s) he imagined are in reality impractical & a pain to navigate, much less live in. He's not actually that funny, yet he laughs off each of his many misstep, while the poor guests plaster on smiles because they are on camera. For his age (40?) he came off childish & not in a cute way. Things get better as the episodes go on, but this is a specific kind of humor that you either enjoy or loath. Ji Ye Eun spends the majority of the show laughing to mask her discomfort & it gets old REAL fast. Her shrieks that lead into a laugh are grating & she does it over & over & over & over again. Thankfully by the last few episodes she's too fatigued to do more than emit a weak chuckle. Netflix (seemingly) chose the guests & they did a decent job, except when they added a chubby guest who must have felt humiliated to find himself needing alot of assistance with climbing a rock wall as well as a fireman's pole. Kian & Ji Ye Eun don't actually have the personalities to pull off a show like this on thier own. What with the bathroom cleaning getting way too much screen time [& supposedly being comedic ???] and people gagging in a smoke filled rooms due to lack of kitchen venting (???? why) this show could have tanked if not for the unexpected blindingly capable Kim Seok Jin. He's rarely shown a mature side (except infrequently in BTS's In the Soop" series) & even though he's the eldest of his group, he's not even the leader of BTS. Seeing him step up & become the "adult" one was not something I anticipated. He really gives it his all here & works really hard to give the guests good food & a good time. He's also the one who insists that Kian not cut corners for the sake of comfort, but stay with his original rules for the B&B [as he knows a good bit about what people are interested in watching {from experience!} ] sadly, You get the feeling that this might be a dreadful nightmare for him as he gets a bit of military de ja vu - 24/7 having no privacy [even in his sleep] & having to cook, clean & do a whole lot of back breaking physical activity . The last few episodes have him rather haggard & clearly pushing himself to the finish line . Really, he is the glue that holds this show together & why the show works. He endearingly underplays his celebrity status & tries hard to make the people around him comfortable. Cooking, cleaning, serving, & putting up with Kian & Ji Ye Eun would test anyone's patience & he comes out looking like a hero .

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Heavy on the melodrama , light on the romance (not many warm fuzzies)

I was reluctant to watch this because it was 50 episodes, & I had a hard time finding it to be able to watch it, but I find both IU & Jo Jung-suk very appealing as actors so I slogged through this. Despite the cheerful perky intro, this is not light & fluffy. This is a heavy family drama & that where the focus of the story is, NOT on any romance. The romances in this are weighted down with obstacles & misunderstandings which drain the romances from being fun. It seemed like there were 2 episodes that gave warm fuzzies for the main couple & not even whole episodes ! This was a painful series with SO much crying & SO many characters that you wanted to slap. I frequently found myself narrowing my eyes & mentally calling the MANY female antagonists "__ __ __ __ __". To be fair, I loathe family dramas & this had at least 5 families going full drama all at once. I did not like most of the side characters & though this has a good theme & things are resolved for most characters with the focus on repentance & forgiveness, it's too emotionally heavy for me & I found it more annoying & painful than I like my entertainment-which I want to be escapism- not a reminder of how awful family can be. IU did a very good job here & Jo Jung-suk play the same character type as he did in Hospital playlist and Oh my ghostess character's personality but there isn't enough of screen time for them & they are not enough to save this from being drudgery to watch.

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Jang Keun-suk & OST are great

I've watched this 2 times & I liked it enough to buy it but end was very typical for K-dramas, but for me, not enough romance & concrete resolution as I would have liked. Music is great . Real reason to watch ? Jang Keun-suk ! His, facial expression are captivating.This was one of the first K-dramas I watched & what drew me into the genre. On second viewing I was disappointed that it wasn't as wonderful. Lead guy is really harsh (even though why he's like that is well explained) Lead girl is over the top clumsy & it grated on my nerves as I don't enjoy that kind of comedy in large doses. The sadness of the second lead (guy)pursuing & breaking & rebreaking & rebreaking his heart over lead girl was not great. The only consolation the viewer has is that he's available for the viewer to love without competition ! The music was good . Ending is SO typical for this genre & left me flat. Still, this series holds a special place in my heart because it was a first love when I was first introduced to K-dramas & really it's a classic, but I will wait another 5 years before watching.

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SO much drama, so much crying & the end is ridculous

OST: so annoying they repeated the main song so often.Some one please fire the wardrobe person that dressed a main romantic lead guy in a shirt that said "sexual fantasies" (in English). One of the girls went about in a daze most the time with her mouth open like a fish & bangs that were a joke, (that none of her friends ever cared enough about her to tell her it made her look like an idiot).I found this series tedious. Soooo many back stories, SO much drama, SO much crying, like it's an automatic bonding thing ? By the end there wasn't one single character that I actually liked. The guys were idiots & were sidelined. All of them seemed un necessary to the girls, like an accessory, (like a purse or shoes.) All the characters were seriously messed up. The end was ridiculous. This was such a waste of time. I don't enjoy shows where it's all about the female friendships & the guys that like them are senselessly devoted. This really isn't deserving of the time it's taking me to write a review.

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Light on the drama & relatively "fluffy" & smile enducing

I have watched this 2 times, this is my first review 1/2020[update will follow this review]I watched this because I read reviews that said it was light on the drama & a relatively easy going "fluffy" escapism series. now that I've seen it I have to agree. I rank it up there with Love Cuisine in the light hearted category, but not as "fluffy" as Love O2O , which I consider to be the ultimate easy going, no stress drama series! There are 4 negative things about Shopping King Louis that keep it from being a 10. 1) music: English is my first language , so the English songs were really, REALLY cringey, annoying, & embarrassing . 2) main couple plot stalls completely somewhere after episode 13 & suddenly the plots of most all the side characters are focused on (but alot were un resolved!). This diverted the momentum & the last episodes seemed to drag on.3) unattractive eating: the characters stuffing their faces in messy way-disgusting, not cute.4) the plot points you are most interested in are not satisfactorily resolved.(specifically the ending)Rewatch value: I would/ will : & I bought it! read on if you want to read****Spoilers*****WHO hit the burglar over the head with the hammer? & the burglar was not trying to hurt Louis, he was (should have been) looking for Louis' treasure box. Also, Louis never really seems to become an adult . Instead he comes across as a bit mentally challenged, like he's seems stuck in 6 year old mode,(though his body IS very manly & he does want to be intimate.) .There is a happy ending as there is a proposal "of sorts", but there is no grand romantic gesture or soaring romantic ending, just a quiet ah, isn't that cute moment. 2025 Updated Review:Yes, the English songs DO still annoy me, especially when they are used at odd times for example: Sinatra's song My Way, was not appropriate for a memorandum montage for the character it was used . Louis hits his head an alarming number of times-it was like" ah let's have him hit his head & get back a few more memories ! [Yikes!] Yoon Sang Hyun, (the second male lead), starts out as the best second lead of any drama- recognizing that he is NOT "the One" before the leads figure out they are in love,& he seems to take it like a man & be on thier side until the writers decide they need more episodes, so they make him pathetic, goofy & hastily give him a female lead doppelganger for his very own at the end.[By the way, He CAN sing !!]The amount of flashbacks can be disorienting & sometimes I started an episode & wondered where it was in the time line as new episodes do not pick up where the last episode left off.The last few episodes try WAY too hard to make connections for the lead couple. i could have stopped happily when the whole group was in Busan at the dock where emotions are high as the end is sweet but doesn't leave you on an emotional high. Seo In Guk is brilliantly engaging , they just didn't let him "evolve" enough/ Regardless , the leads are a delight & a treat to watch. Seo In Guk especially expresses himself extremely well.

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know everyone else is elated, by the new persona…

know everyone else is elated, by the new persona Xiao Yuan has taken on. personally i don't - cause he is manipulating Wei Qian & idk how i feel about it. i guess Wei Qian needs a push to move forward. but is that a good thing? it's very complex & sometimes people like how things r, rocking the boat isn't always a good thing. ****************************************************but i guess, as this is adapted for a novel written by Priest, who tends to write pretty x-rated, hardcore BL's i kinda know where this is going. manipulation, gaslighting r insignificant compared to what passes as romance & wooing in her books. ************** ****************************************************************************************************************************************regarding Wei Qian reaction to finding out that his sister & bff r dating. logical reaction. they lied to him & his sister is significantly younger then his bff, who is older then even his own damn self - so of course he would be seeing red wondering when his friend decided to target his sister - when they got together etc...

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from what "ailment" is Wei Qian suffering...…

from what "ailment" is Wei Qian suffering... like plz don't tell me this got a sad ending, cause ima riot!!! cause i don't want anyone to die like plz & thank u - enough watching the "brother's" suffering through all this angst cause of their relationship & their feelings. anyone normal will have major problems flipping from family almost a parental figure mode to lover. so Wei Qian taking time to accept his feeling isn't unrealistic. even now idk if he is ready to be with Xiao Yuan s more then siblings. he for sure misses him & loves him. but does him telling Xiao Yuan "come back if u miss home" equate to i love u too!???!? idk...

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Political shenanigans

The autopsy of the governor had interesting results. It is a left handed swordsman/assassin and not the governor. So how good is the governor at martial arts? He accidentally showed himself to his daughter who passed out at the sight. It is put into question if she is really his daughter. If not, then who? The caretaker is mute but not deaf. He is well aware of what is going on but can only be understood by a few. The minister of justice seems to be the only one trying to get to the truth of the matter. Everybody else is falling in line with whatever the temple tells them. That fake activity behind curtain. Is like wizard of oz…pay no attention to the man behind the curtain😂😝 The followers choose to be stupid and go along since the alligator guard can eat any opposers. They use it to extort ‘tithes’ from the merchants and subdue the people. There is another in ministry like Fed lamenting the loss of the famous wine. It used to flow abundantly as part of their trade and now has become nectar to the god so only a few can partake. Lu Yong confessed to trying to murder the governor, but also brings up the records he gave the administrator. The official promptly lies and betrays the efforts of the rebels. He is not backed by Su or the minister of justice who has now been tagged to help Su take care of ghosts. Su visits Lu Yong in jail and confirms the assassin was in the coffin. Lu LiFeng shows up timely to help Ying Tao get rid of other would be assassins but ends up yet again needing treatment from Fei to save him. This time is alligator bite. Our team is united and not. Lu at least says he is not leaving and stays by XiJun’s side openly. XueHuan runs off to get him some hot water for his feet. And we get to celebrate the team is at same place. I like that Lu did recon prior and had established the lay of the land. He already knows things are off and here a strong arm is needed. Scholarly Su would already be dead if not for the swordsmen around him. Which does make me wonder why the princess has cursed him with promotions that don’t really suit his skillset. She has cursed him as much with his job as she has Lu removing his. She is a devious royal with more smarts than the prince. Is she using them to clean house in the region or to get rid of competition?

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aish what an ep - but we knew it was a long…

aish what an ep - but we knew it was a long time coming & Xiao Yuan himself said he would go crazy if Wei Qian found himself a partner. i get Tan Yu caring so much for Wei Qian, he wants to help him even without being asked, but him telling Xiao Yuan "...do u know what a tough life Wei Qian has had..." & i am sitting here scratching my head - wasn't Xiao Yuan the one sleeping on the streets?? did he have it bad???? ***********************************************************************************************this is why at the start of this, was wondering if Tan Yu & Wei Qian were a couple. cause he not related & yet he acts like he is a part of their family - when he isn't, even friends don't get this involved - not on their own accord. ********************************he more or less got the ball rolling & Xiao Yuan who was sick & hearing all that gossip & seeing Feng Ning act all cozy with Wei Qian, add the wine & then we get what we got. **************************************************************************************ironic & yet not shocking that Xiao Yuan had nothing to fear as Wei Qian had NO intentions of being with anyone, i have said this before (idk what his mother has done to him) but he has a phobia of women, so i doubt there will ever come a time where he is ready to commit to one. using his younger sibling was an excuse.******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************the train-wreck was emotional mayhem to watch, i got why Wei Qian was ghosting Xiao Yuan, he might have started off angry but he was more worried & terrified about what to do & how to deal with the situation & he couldn't come up with any solution's, other then Tan Yu suggestion to get Xiao Yuan to move out. what else could he do, then run away from the problem.*Xiao Yuan on the other hand - poor soul, my heart went out to him - how can u blame him??? of course one would love Wei Qian, he didn't just give him a home, he - when he was a child himself, took him off the streets, gave him education, a roof & then saved his life & got beaten to keep him safe. what Xiao Yuan must feel for Wei Qian is beyond gratitude, not even being indebted covers the debt he must feel, he wants to take care of his savior & being gay of course that also translated to attraction. or so i think...

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