Reviews

A sci-fi mystery with thumping music

This show has a historical setting with fantastical elements, but rather than typical Chinese “fantasy” (like xianxia or xuanhuan), it feels more sci fi. I think this is largely due to the nature of the phenomenon under investigation, but it’s also partly the vibe set by the music and cinematography. It kind of reminded me of steampunk even though it isn’t really.

This story features a band of friends, a genre I always find fun. They are not actually friends to begin with- for at least half the show, they are guarded against each other and keeping secrets- but I think this made the show more interesting and kept me on my toes.

I especially like how the members of the team all have different relationships with each other. It’s more realistic that each person has meaningful interactions with several other people, rather than, say, just the one person they’re destined to have a romance with (like in too many other shows). It does however mean that no special relationships or themes really stand out, so that all the bonds across the board feel a bit weaker. And as for romance, there is maybe a faint hint of it but not much more.

The characters themselves have distinct enough personalities and roles, though perhaps one too many of the badass type. I liked them all but there wasn’t anyone I absolutely loved. I think they are developed just enough to make you care, but not enough to make you truly attached. I do like that the show is gender-agnostic about who can fight well, and it’s a fun touch that different people have different weapons and fighting styles that fit their background and body type.

The main star of the show is probably Cao Sheng. He is the brains of the operation- excellent engineer, great memory, can see through schemes, etc. He also comes up with the most elaborate plans. I feel like half the show is about his intricate schemes which require lots of planning and preparation.

But Cao Sheng is not the only schemer. This show features tons of intersecting plans and counterplans so that you never really know who will come out on top. And while all these different schemes are flying at each other, our protagonists are trying to figure out what is actually going on.

While watching this show, I felt like I was in a constant haze of confusion. Clues and truths are revealed bit by bit and sometimes they are incorrect. Similarly, the schemes and counterschemes are revealed piecemeal and out of order, with plenty of misdirection in between for dramatic effect. It’s too many “plot twists”- eg layer upon layer of, "But WAIT!!! this side actually anticipated what that side would do!"- it’s hard to keep track of it all. This might make it good for a rewatch, though it’s kind of ironic that a show being extra confusing earns it a high rewatch score.

In some ways the show also feels a little bit slow because it takes so long (almost the entire show) to uncover one mystery. And this mystery is so complicated that there’s no point along the way where you feel settled and solid. Somewhere along the line I just started to get a little fatigued. It was too long spent being confused, trying to keep track of too many things, not sure who is good or bad. And the overall tone is kind of heavy, despite some flashes of humor, so it was a lot of constant suspense, like a background hum of stress.

That said, I still found the show overall entertaining. It is fun to watch the elaborate schemes unfold, and the overarching mystery is pretty interesting. There are even some well-done emotional moments along the way that had me leaking tears, and a bit of existentialism which comes up just the right amount to make you feel touched and a little bit sad. As for that stress- well Cao Sheng is really smart, so things often work out ok.

For the acting, I thought it’s decent. I think some actors tried too hard to be badass, but it’s also partly the ethos of the show. You can see it also in the style and cinematography, like with tableau / frozen moment type scenes paired with thumping music, clearly trying to create badass and dramatic moments. Well, it mostly worked on me, I thought it was pretty cool most of the time.

Speaking of the music, I REALLY liked it. It’s mostly background music (songs are rare) and a fairly distinct style- heavy beats, some of it getting almost techno-y, even songs for happier moments are quite melodic- so it might not be for everyone, but I really liked it. I thought it set the moods really well.

Actually the overall production of this show is a lot better than I expected for something of this length. There are quite a lot of extras, and enough real horses (but all too obvious when it’s faked, lol). I also really like the costumes and styling, which are practical and make sense. The costumes are color coordinated but you don’t get, for example, sparkling bits and jewelry on characters who are supposed to be fighters.

I also like the fighting. I love how all the different weapons are used well and they match their users. Heavy weapons look heavy and the lighter weapons are used with speed. The choreography is good and the blows look solid, if a bit sped up at times.

Overall I think this is a good show. Despite some fatigue from too many disjointed clues and layers of schemes, I still found the overall mystery interesting and the interactions between the group endearing, with a good hint of pathos. It’s also fun to watch this style of sci-fi which is less common in Cdramas (especially historical).

ENDING – READ AHEAD ONLY IF YOU WANT TO KNOW, CONTAINS SPOILERS





If you ignore the post-credit scene, I think this is mostly a happy ending. The seemingly dire situation is resolved with only one big sacrifice (not counting Tongtong, who by the end was kind of my favorite character). It’s Lin Han, who at least seems to find her peace first.

But Cao Sheng’s rapidly worsening and life-threatening illness is not cured. For some reason none of the other characters seem that worried or even mention it.

The post-credit scene sets up for a sequel, by introducing new troubles and intrigue, including Cao Sheng fainting again. I guess the point of making this a post-credit scene is that if the sequel doesn’t happen then you still get a complete show, but I think leaving Cao Sheng’s illness untreated is still a cliffhanger either way.

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Long and drawn out story - disappointing

As a seasoned cdrama fan of 9 years now when I watch one and if it takes me to the end but it drags on to get there then something is not right with it AND i found that with this cdramaa. The main character died so many times I lost count, even for a Xanxia it was overkill of killing the ML. The story was tolerable from beginning but it lost its momentum in the 3rd quarter of episodes when the baddy was reformed, but the real baddy still went on to do his stuff, but then the ML gets to die so many times and it just loses its plausability after that. A great supporting cast, and loyalties among the fractions was great, each actor played their part well, Jeremy Tsu and Leo Lunxi, Alan Feng, all did their roles some honour as seasoned actors would. The biggest disappiointment fo rme was the dragging out of the story to cover 40 episodes , it would have been justfiable to the storyline and the supposed conclusions aimed for quity it at 36 or even 32 episodes. So not a totally great cdrama for me this one even though had masses of potential to be a stunner if the storyline plot wasn't dragged out toooooooooo looooooong

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Tragic but Beautiful

"Are you truly living? No, I am yearning for death in order to truly live."

"In the world made of tears, Will my death truly be the end of it all?"
"Passionately,I listened to the cursed put on my fate. She was the only sade heaven in my life besieged by the devil."

A tragic love story blossomed from the yearning of two people who want to live their life truly without being succumbed to their harsh realities. Life puts both of them to the opposite side of the path they were meant to take ,in order to fulfill their dreams. Kim Woo-Jin,the son of the wealthiest family ,whose education,career and even marriage is according to his father's wishes. Yun Sim- Duk ,the daughter of a financially struggling family, is a saparona trying hard to earn for her family members' well-being. Both of them find new hope in their budding romance. But lastly, life leaves them with only one option that can bring them peace-- death. From the beginning, the audience is aware that this love story is going to be a tragic one,both of them will be dying by the ending minutes of this mini series ,still it grasps you in its hold -slowly, beautiful and sadly melting you in the arms of this drama's story,writing and performances. Such a beautiful drama,with amazing actors and lovely scenes. The main leads' enemy to lover trope,their cute bickerings and slow and lovelyyy romantic sequences,their breaking up,their reunion,their craving for each other and then the last dance.
A must and a beautiful watch.

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The adult way of love

Categorizing this show as BL might actually be an insult to the show since we're not talking about "Boys" here.
It's a story about and between two grown-up men. Two men with their own separate histories and struggles.
They meet,and it's not the puppy-love-fairytale-sparkling kind of romance you would expect from a BL.

It's a beautiful story about two people finding their own way in a modern society while slowly getting to know and learning to rely on each other. No big drama, no burning desire, just two human beings. Based on my perceptions so far, I would say this drama is as close to reality as a drama can be.
Acting and music were perfect for me as I found the whole story pretty convincing and well done.

What I found most interesting as an european was the fact that the older someone gets, the more similar the worries get across all cultures - I could easily identify with a lot of doubts the main protagonists had. That's a thing I rarely experienced with dramas in a younger age group.

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UNDERRATED GEM

"When the court ladies dye their sleeve ends red,it shows that they are the king's ladies."

Yi San:- Do you belong to me?
Sung Deok-im:- "Of course,You Highness.I have taken an oath to serve and protect you forever."
Yi San:- "Then, does your everything belongs to me? Your thoughts,your will and your heart, do they belong to me?"
Sung Deok-im:- "This isn't so , Your Highness. Even a palace maid has her own will and heart. l, even though they may seem trivial to others."

Just finished the drama and there is not a single word that can truly describe what I'm feeling right now. I want to cry so badly and I have never felt like this before in any of the tragedies I have ever watched. I don't know why this drama is not hyped,not popular,not in the list of recommendations for kdrama fans-it should be on the first slot.

This drama was achingly sooo beautiful. It makes you cry so much in its ending episodes. In the episode 16 - It makes you feel so happy that finally the leads are becoming a family but there is this feeling/emotions you feel from the female lead that this is not the life she wants. Throughout the episode you want to feel bad and you want to feel happy. There are sweet moments of their married life, joy of becoming one but then she misses her life, she misses the life she wanted to live. It's just she loved him much more than her life. The scene where her friends are going home during a day off and a past verison of her bids farewell to her -is just so overwhelming that it pains so much.
In the episode 17,the whole world just shatters in front of the leads - it's not that the male lead was bad or didn't care about female lead's intentions- he wanted to protect her,love her and make her his family-but sometimes it's not the only ending a love story demands. Sometimes the sacrifices are necessary for one to live. In this episode how badly you just want to hold the female lead but you are sitting helplessly here at the other side of the drama world as audiences.

And you know ,from the first frame the story was told from a feminist point of view and the struggles the females were suffering from ,the emotions they felt,the life they lived and wanted to life- the portrayal is just insane ,just so humane and beautiful and aching.

You still know that the King too had to suffer a lot - like loosing your One son,then wife who was pregnant- and you are still attending the royal court,meeting your duties, crying inside and suppress your emotions just because you are the King- it's so painful and depressing. Both leads were suffering so much emotionally. They had each other but they didn't too.

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A Must Watch

Cha Mu-hee- "So from now on,you will think about me, whenever you happen to see the Northern lights."
Cha Mu-hee- "Don't be scared the aurora borealis will never occur in Korea."
Joo Ho-jin -"Knowing her, she'll do it in South Korea too."
Joo Ho-jin - "She said those memories would disappear with her."
Cha Mu-hee- "I couldn't let them vanish like that. Because I realised you were in there too."

This drama is just soooooo beautiful. The story is written from the perspective of a girl who isn't that good in expressing her thoughts. She's confused the same way every girl feels while conveying their feelings. She understands but misunderstands, she speaks but expresses less, she gaslights herself a lot, and especially she takes time to love him,to wait for him and this is what many of us do. I loved it so much. It felt like someone is trying to replicate my emotions and my confusions on screen. It was a very creative way to present the two different clashes/dynamics that everyone undergoes psychologically- Do Rami. There are various aspects of this drama that are amazing. This drama is so WELL WRITTEN. Hong Sisters - girls you never disappoint 🥰

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A very good balanced k drama

I usually starts with what I didn’t like in the show but I’m going to start with what I liked because what I didn’t like are mostly spoilers through the story which I’ll mark
1- story
One of the things that I really liked about this drama is the story in general. It have a very well written interesting story that tempted me to watch the show for the sake of story and not only romance. The romantic relationships the character developments all were good. Characters are not perfect and they improve over time. They may look perfect at first sight but when you meet them you saw they are not perfect but they improve during the story
2- romance pacing/speed
This show is one the slow burn - slice of life like romance dramas. Which I really liked in the show. I feel like this is the way that show want to express character different feeling
3- length and ending
The length of the story was just right. 12 episodes doesn’t feel to be short or long for no reason. It was just right. And the ending was really understandable. Even though it have time skip at the end it’s not a weird time skip. The show wraps up everything with a really balanced ending which match’s character personalties
Now I would like to get into what I didn’t like. Be careful around spoilers
1- switching speed of things for 1 episode and just one episodes
[spoiler of episode 7] In episode 7 characters got separated from each other and then FMC discovers how much she love the MC
2- cliche breakups
By cliche breakup I mean when a character decides to finish their good relationship with no explanation to the partner. And the reason behind is “I thought it’s better for both of us”
[spoiler of episode 8] In episode 7 they just got in relationship and right after that in episode 8 “let’s break up” out of nowhere just for the sake of drama and emotional roller coaster. Hopefully all the dramas got handled in a very good way by the story with MC being a person who really loves their partner

This last one is just personal to me and may not everyone be fan of that. I met Shin Hae Sun (FMC) in Mr. Queen and she play her role super good super smooth. The balance between her being funny and serious was very good in that show. We had the same thing in episode 1 that she start with being fun-friendly boss and then she become serious. Imo it was a lost potential for the show but implanting that definitely requires so much extra work for story to much together

Last word: thanks for reading up to here. If you like office romances, or political office fights I recommend this show to you. One of the few good dramas I saw recently

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It's was nice.

I just finished Love Like the Galaxy, and it's truly a great drama. Before talking about the drama itself, I want to highlight the incredible acting performance of Zhao Lu si, which easily contributes to 90% of the show's success. She portrays her character so brilliantly and convincingly!

I also really liked the Emperor's character. It's a refreshing change from the tyrannical and/or overly strict rulers we often see. In this drama, the Emperor is genuinely likable and often very entertaining, which makes him a particularly enjoyable character to watch.

As for the drama itself, I loved watching the female lead with her "I don't know the rules, and I'll do whatever I want" attitude. That's mainly what kept me binge-watching episode after episode. I found the story very interesting for the first 30 episodes, but I lost interest a bit during the next 15. The way the plot developed started to bore me somewhat, but the final episodes were very enjoyable.

To conclude, I had a really great time watching it. It's not an absolute favorite of mine, but it's definitely a high quality drama, carried by a truly outstanding actress.

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Amazing FL, very good character

I just finished Love Like the Galaxy, and it's truly a great drama. Before talking about the drama itself, I want to highlight the incredible acting performance of Zhao Lu si, which easily contributes to 90% of the show's success. She portrays her character so brilliantly and convincingly!

I also really liked the Emperor's character. It's a refreshing change from the tyrannical and/or overly strict rulers we often see. In this drama, the Emperor is genuinely likable and often very entertaining, which makes him a particularly enjoyable character to watch.

As for the drama itself, I loved watching the female lead with her "I don't know the rules, and I'll do whatever I want" attitude. That's mainly what kept me binge-watching episode after episode. I found the story very interesting for the first 30 episodes, but I lost interest a bit during the next 15. The way the plot developed started to bore me somewhat, but the final episodes were very enjoyable.

To conclude, I had a really great time watching it. It's not an absolute favorite of mine, but it's definitely a high quality drama, carried by a truly outstanding actress.

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The chemistry does what words don't have to — I just wanted more time with them at the end

I came to this one having just watched A Shoulder to Cry On, and the parallels are obvious — an emotionally closed-off character, someone loyal enough to keep showing up anyway, a connection built on shared history and unspoken feeling. But where that series spent much of its energy on trauma and the space between the characters, this one closes that distance more convincingly. Ho Tae and Dong Hee actually feel like two people who have been circling each other for years and both know it.
The chemistry is the reason this series works as well as it does. So much of what passes between them happens in glances and proximity rather than dialogue, and it reads as completely authentic. I believed the pull between them from early on and stayed invested throughout because of it. The melancholic, unhurried atmosphere suits that dynamic perfectly — this isn't a series that reaches for dramatic peaks, it lives in the quieter spaces, and that restraint pays off.
My frustration is with the ending, or more precisely with the ratio. The series takes its time building toward honesty between these two — carefully, patiently, earning every step — and then when they finally get there, the time we actually spend with them as something more than almost is over almost immediately. Not tragic, just not enough. After that much buildup the emotional payoff felt shorter than it deserved.

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Tae-hyun's trauma stays with you — the ending less so

The enemies-to-friends-to-something-more arc is handled with real care here, and that's the core of why this series works. Da-yeol and Tae-hyun earn every step of their dynamic shift — from deliberate provocation to grudging proximity to genuine trust — and Tae-hyun's backstory is drawn with enough specificity to land as something more than a plot device. The loneliness, the walls, the pushing people away before they can leave first — I believed all of it.
What stayed with me most, and I'll be honest that this comes from a professional place as much as a personal one, is the question of where the adults are in Tae-hyun's life. A teenager with that history, those behavioural patterns, living in those circumstances — in a functioning system there would be intervention. Youth protection services, mandatory reporting, someone looking at this situation and asking harder questions. The series doesn't engage with that absence, which is its right, but I found myself thinking about it in a way that slightly complicated my ability to simply feel the romance.
Da-yeol's decision to draw a boundary and step away is one of the strongest moments in the series — genuinely mature writing, and his parting words to Tae-hyun are quietly devastating. I don't fault him for it. But knowing that Tae-hyun's only real anchor then disappears for two years, and imagining what that period looked like for someone with his history — the series skips over exactly the part I would have most wanted to see.
The reunion and reconciliation felt rushed to me. The time jump is supposed to signal growth, but we don't witness that growth — we're asked to accept it, which is a different thing. I'm always skeptical of time jumps that do the character work off screen and then present the result as earned resolution.
I didn't manage to see the special episodes — if they fill in some of that two-year gap, I'd genuinely be curious to know.

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A deeper dive into the characters and the many troubles of teenagers

This season dived deeper into each characters life while highlighted many problems teenagers face but has no one to guide them. It shade light on the problems and also left a moral understanding which might be helpful for the teenagers struggling with something similar.

The story continued from where it left off. Now each episode covered each of the characters and how they overcame the struggles. It showed the social media and stalker issue, about dangerousness of illegal abortion, about a teen loosing their parent, conflict of career path choice, bad effects of substance uses, how feelings are uncontrollable, sexuality, anxiety, child-parent relationships and bad parenting problems, friendship, mental health, attention seeking and many more. And each of the issues were winded up with the character's daily lives making it more relatable for everyone.

Acting was amazing. The new characters also did great. Punpun's acting always stood out to me the most.

Direction wise it wasn't slow. It felt like watching them in real life.


I always say Hormones has at least one thing you will relate to, in their multiple struggles of teen lives. It's great to see a true teen-centric story that solely doesn't revolve around being a high schooler in love.

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