Reviews

Old time sexism on steroids aka PRINCESS FANTASY FOR LITTLE GIRLS AKA A GREAT BUSINESS SWINDLE

I was wondering - has Netflix really made something along the lines of a real kdrama... ??? Where was the catch... ? And sure enough LOL this is a smelly pile of script..

So the first part is mostly about virtual dating, where the princess girl gets a big house, lots of dresses, shoes, jewelry, and any guy she wants - and she wants pretty guys :) with nice bodies :) That's THE ONLY criteria :)
The FL actress is acting so well, she is confident enthusiastic hot girl going on dates with several virtual guys and having fun... FL is rather selfish and immature... but at least NATURAL... and ML actor is on screen just a tiny bit as her colleague in her real life.

THEN THE SECOND PART IS DATING IN REAL LIFE - and this lovely young lady goes into the 1950s mode of trash kdrama sexism - she is prudish, child-like clutz woman-child. OMG!!!! in year 2026!!!!! we see a grown, professional woman behave like a little school girl with boys.... Not even kids behave like that today... !!!!! And... she sticks with her virtual boyfriend too :)

AND THE DRAMA TAKES A NOSE DIVE AND BECOMES SUPER BORING **** C R I N G E **** Basically you get the Practical Guide to Love, FL and ML....

THIS SCRIPT IS TRASH!!!! and consequently, the acting of FL goes down the drain and for the second half of the drama, she is a mentally disabled dumbo and a very weak immature loser.. chick... A WOMAN-CHILD ... using men

INCREDIBLE!!! this is a real ... jester job... ENTIRE DRAMA IS ABOUT SHOPPING FOR PRETTY BOY TOYS AND GETTING A GREAT SERVICE
it is like ... going on dates with a bunch of escorts... who are all dying to take care of FL...

THIS IS TRULY ... A CON JOB.... and a very successful one, women are paying to see many men without a shirt on, and seducing, and kissing as# and doing whatever the woman says, and the woman can be as awful as she wants... or, to be more precise, as she IS.

WOW THIS IS CONSUMERISM TAKEN TO A NEW LEVEL... SHOPPING FOR A PRETTY BOY TOY!!!! and it is all planned!!!!! bc sooo many dramas have one chick trying zillion guys, or dating 2 at a time.... wooow...

So this is like female Epstein files, allowing women to do what men have always done and women complained about. Instead of becoming better people who are equal, this drama is along the lines of becoming equal in being murky selfish people and using each other.

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The first part is the satire of all the tropes that kdramas use to grab female audience. It is such a great ridicule, a great jester comedy!!!! The most fun and most sad part is that so many women will not realize that they are being made fun of, and they will be too busy admiring all the good looking guys... And the whole point is to show how immature women fall for those tropes.

I am sorry to male actors, their roles were so ridiculously simple and actually - demeaning - they had to act out some delulu immature chicks fantasy. Well - just like they do in real dramas :) too often.... I realized - the male roles are to be an ESCORT ....

I am glad I saw Undercover High School ML, he was so fun in that drama... This role was waaaay too simple for him in this drama.... he was like a robot escort... ... ML actor is also wasted, he is such a great actor and this role is super simple and dumb...

Then the 2nd part starts and ... gosh this is the classic old time sexist kdrama... AGAIN!!! where FL is this clutz immature weak woman-child... WHO WANTS HER AS@ KISSED AND GUYS WHO ARE ALWAYS THERE FOR HER... like robots .... And... her behavior with ML is just... CRINGE childish... she is portrayed as a total moron for personal life , sooo immature and weak... and such a consumer, eating up guys who dote on her... AND YET ANOTHER IDOL WORSHIPER OF PRETTY FACES ... gosh... such a dumb chick ...
So again, the drama makes fun of such women-children and again lures them in with a "pretty face guy"

AND ML CHARACTER PLAYS INTO THIS TROPE OF LOYAL DOTING GUY, he liked her for so long and didnt pick anyone else - although she never deserved his liking her. So that is the old sexist kdrama trope - this fully dedicated man although the woman is super flawed, stupid, childish, and very crude to him and in general... in general, just a dumb immature snowflake... .

So right now I am starting ep 6 and I SO BADLY WANT TO SEE REVIEW BY OPPA_ if that person wrote a review on this...
Bc I am suspecting there is a catch with this drama...

I like that FL actress is a great actress. IN THE FIRST PART ONLY. After ep 5 or 6, when the real guy steps in, the FL actress is clearly acting fake bc the script is trash cringe. She is having difficulty acting the immature cringe..... BC IT IS NOT A NATURAL BEHAVIOR to behave like an elementary school girl. YET THAT IS WHAT KIDRAMAS EXPECT. this is the classic classic kdrama sexism... !!!!! What FL did here, is EXACTLY how all those FLs behave ... Practical Guide to Love is an example of that ..... woooow....

That FL chick is totally undeserving of ML's attention, she always treated him badly, then he confessed and she avoids him and rejects him, non stop and he keeps coming back.. .... AND SHE IS AFRAID TO LOVE BC IT WILL END, SO SHE KEEPS REJECTING HIM AND DUMPING HIM.... ... omg what a loser coward ... and he keeps coming back ...... omg what a loser coward.

WOW this is the recipe for every trashy rom com.... YUCK!!!! how did a great actor like the ML end up doing this? Does Netflix pay very well... ???? I do hope he has better scripts to choose from..

THIS SCRIPT IS TRASH!!!! and consequently, the acting of FL goes down the drain and for one half of the drama, she is a mentally disabled dumbo and a very weak immature loser.. chick... A WOMAN-CHILD

WOOOOOOWWWWW THIS IS A SCAM!!!!! THIS DRAMA IS A SCAM!!!! THIS KIND OF SCTRPT SHOULD NOT BE HAPPENING IN YEAR 2026!
or ... it should be... ? bc there are so many lonely women with money who will pay to watch this smelly piece of script...

I really like that actors are not super skinny skeletons :) FL got nice legs :) ML also looks like a normal athletic guy. So at least the drama has a healthy look. I really like that ML has naror and slanted eyes, not plastic surgery big eyes.

I dislike that such a great actor like the ML actor is put into this overly simple role. But then... I realize... all typical male roles ARE this... omg... this is like seeing the whole mechanics of dramas... This is like seeing the swindling behind the scenes...

Wow who was it who thought of selling this idea of reverse polygamy and/or decadent lewd behaviors by women - basically everything rotten that men used to do? Great busines mind. So many - most? - new kdramas are based on such women.
Our Universe, Practical Guide to Love, Climax, A Graceful Liar, etc etc etc etc etc ...

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Predictable - Typical Disney Vibe

Finished eps 9 - don't can continue to watch.

Ep 7 and still remains the cringy typical Disney stuff. I only continue to watch this because it's the only Kdrama on the weekend right now. IU looks just like Ariel. So cute and pretty. The story relies on her popularity, looks, and acting. But the story itself is not very interesting. I needed to lower my score because the actors dress funny (especially ML).
There's no chemistry between the leads. The second ML is better fit for her.
OMG -they recreated the Titanic scene - can it get cheesier than this???

First of all: Please don't attack me for my review. You can add your perfect 10 on YOUR review and say whatever you like. If you attack me, you will be blocked- I have no time for avid fans - this is just a drama. My review is a personal opinion. You should not attack other people's perspectives and tell them what to do on their reviews. If you like the actor/actress, DON'T read reviews that are less than 10! There's going to be contrary views. Really, don't waste your time being negative about some random people's opinion, especially, I am not even a professional movie critic.

I am a huge fan of Byeon Woo Seok in Lovely Runner. For me, it's the best Kdrama that I have watched. He and Kim Hye Yoon had the best chemistry there- the story was fresh and felt authentic. IU is also one of my favorites- she was amazing in a lot dramas.

This drama isn't like that kind of creative endeavor. There's no feeling to it. It's just a fun story to watch.
Lovely Runner is filmed like vintage movie, the colors and everything is very nostalgic and retro.
The comedic moments are authentic and so funny that you can't help but laugh all the way until the end.

Perfect Crown is a Disneyish drama- everything is filmed like that genre - the hero on horseback, with backlit dreamy vibe. The heroine is a cinderella with lots of drama.

Is this a good vehicle for Byeon Woo Seok? Yes- it emphasizes his looks. But I hope he'll get better roles than these disneyish roles.

Entertaining? Yes
Funny: Sometimes

It feels contrived? Comic strip vibe.
It's not like Business Proposal, which is really funny and romantic at the same time.

What to expect:
A lot of made up persona - not too realistic FL. ML looks handsome, HIGHLY romanticized. The entire feeling is disneyish. Is it a disney drama? It feels like it. I just looked it up - OMG, it is a disney story! Even without knowing, I could guess it :-)

I will change my rating if the story improves - so far, there's no other options so I am just watching it because there's no other good choice and it is entertaining.

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A story that reaches out to awaken our hearts. Easily can be made a timeless classic!

This is a drama that mirror life-that most of us don't want to face-it tugs strings deep within our hearts. I'm describing it in a vague way for the audience to actually give it a try; from the simple storyline yet heartwarming one to the well-casted characters made this drama more than just another drama.

It's raw, grounded and almost real.

This is not your typical female-centric drama that it is usually marketed hence everyone seem to predict the story that focuses on a tragic past avenging the whole nation/ clan by war and politics- no no no!No grandiose setting: no well-thought dragged revenge schemes; no feisty - touchy romantic/intimate scenes for thirst traps; no grand battles and well-orchestrated fight scenes.

Xia Xiaolan was the main character, but the real ones are everyone around her. The people around her and their stories and for who they are is actually what made her as the Xia Xiaolan-she was not a perfect person but a real one-filled with weakness that she painstakingly worked hard to overcome. In this world where working smart and hard work is often laughed at but you know all of these and KINDNESS goes actually a long way. In this world where results are always what matters-this drama actually make us realize that end goals are important but the journey of who you are, who you were and who you are becoming while achieving goals is what this drama showed. This drama does not shy away in pointing out that whatever you want in life can be achieved in ways without having to cheat or trample on others.

Stay for the stories of the different people in her life-you would see how people cope and the character development of each that is why this is never boring-it's not always about her-for the shallow and jealous ones will think "everything goes her way-too unrealistic" but once you stay and watch it-you would actually realize it's more than just that impatient assumption especially during the start of the story. The drama unfolds in a such a way it gave ample time to show every character development.

It does not cater to entertain and escape life-it actually makes us realize that the very life we try to escape by de-stressing through entertainment and dramas- are actually the very inspiration these dramas were made for. It is unapologetically real-you can relate to every setbacks and success-laughter and pain. Embracing and braving this thing called life!

As I've said because of its refreshing story-it could easily be made as a timeless classic. I hope a spin-off or season 2 would be in the works!

It's how good it is, it gives such flexible concept that could still be explored in a lot of ways, not overly thought provoking and mind-boggling but it made such an impact that engages audience's own creativity to crave and explore more on the concept of the story!

SIDE NOTE: Special mention to the 2nd male lead-such a well written character also-well casted too the actor portrayed it well!!!

If you read most of the reviews in this mydramalist site, they actually perfectly described the drama! So happy to see people who appreciate and enjoy this gem; non-trending, low-key; BUT DEFINITELY AMAZING!!

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This drama doesn't get enough attention

Story
This was such a healing drama. The story and emotions were all brought out very well by the acting. I love the character development throughout the series and how the family members care so much about each other. The plot is not groundbreaking but it's easy to follow story and feel for the characters!

Acting
With seasoned actors leading the drama (apart from Secretary Yeon, whom I'd never watched on -screen before), you can be sure that the acting feels natural and believable.

Music
Gotta admit, the music doesn't leave an impression. I only remember that they're all instrumental and just help to enhance the emotions in scenes haha. This drama doesn't have the typical idol/singer type OST that steal the limelight.

Rewatch value
I rated it high because I really did enjoy this. It's peaceful, healing and easy to digest. :)

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It’s a very beautiful story. Both the artist 👩‍🎨 are awesome and did an amazing work.
All the 7 characters played by artists are awesome.
All the best for your future and hopefully we will see all of you in new series or anything together.
It’s a very beautiful story. Both the artist 👩‍🎨 are awesome and did an amazing work.
All the 7 characters played by artists are awesome.
All the best for your future and hopefully we will see all of you in new series or anything together.
It’s a very beautiful story. Both the artist 👩‍🎨 are awesome and did an amazing work.
All the 7 characters played by artists are awesome.
All the best for your future and hopefully we will see all of you in new series or anything together.

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Really such a shame...

Only five episodes in and the plot has been very intriguing so far. The cast is also quite good and I truly do want to keep watching it but the female lead has ruined another series for me once again.

I actually almost wanted to drop this at the first episode because of the female lead. While I understand her character is someone who grew up in the mountains and wouldn't understand the cultural aspect of the city, none of her actions through all five episodes made any sense. Trying to continually claim her to be someone who's blunt, free-spirited, and naive just doesn't cut it here at all.

-- She was raised by her "master" who is a cautious woman herself and had warned her to be careful with her actions when she left for the city. Yet the FL somehow loses her bag and she decides to sneak into a court official's house to steal food and leisurely climb a tree to drink stolen alcohol? Especially while knowing who's house it is and that an envoy is visiting? Fine. Let's pretend that she really is this naive.
-- Then while hanging out in the tree talking out loud to herself, an assassin drops down next to her because that's the location he needs for his target. He doesn't even kill her and just needs to stay quiet. But she decides she's such a smart cookie that she starts talking to him about who his target is? Fine. Let's pretend again that she's really oblivious. He gets annoyed and poisons her (she knows the poison apparently) and warns her again to stfu. But she decides AGAIN to ramble on as if this is all a joke and he stays true to his word and stabs her. For this level of ignorance, it was deserved.
-- Then she gets invited to a banquet with high officials. Is she nervous in this setting despite it likely being her first time hanging out with officials to begin with? No. But when some side characters start to complain about the entertainer, she thought it was a GREAT idea to start throwing fruits at them from across the room. Seriously? I don't care who the hell it is or how lacking common sense can be... who the hell would do this in her situation?
-- Then she gets blackmailed by the assassin who has repeatedly proven that he can find her and kill her at any time. He manages to find this lost bag of hers that would lead him to find her master. You would think that FINALLY, she would learn to be more cautious about actions and be more humble about her abilities. But no... she holds some petty grudge against being blackmailed and decides to give him false information? Not because she has some tactical reasoning for it. Simple because she wants to get back at him and she just thinks everyone is dumber than her.
-- Her "savior" comments on how she cares more about his life than hers. And her response to him was pretty much "well, I'm not worried about dying because my master says I'm so slippery that I can escape anything". Really?? After having been unsuccessful this many times already??? She still thinks of herself as being more competent than others? She's also implying that he would be less successful in escaping than she would be, despite the huge intellectual and physical abilities between the two.

So yea. I really tried to keep watching the series because the chess game the two MLs are playing with one another right now is actually quite interesting. But the FL has such a huge role in the story and my stomach is already full of irritation with her character's ridiculousness. With five episodes in, I can't see anything that would redeem this unless they plan to mention that she has mental issues later.

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Perfection

This is hands down one of the greatest if but greatest zombie flicks ever created. Real life and high school life combine for a fantastic drama. I cannot praise the realism dipicted and how it led to all sorts of decisions and kind shattering moments from the adults and the teens portrayed. Chemistry flowed like water down a river on all fronts. Music and makeup and the sounds immersed you as if you were front and center~
I've watched this 8x and there's very few who can compete with this piece as a drama. I love Zombies, I love horror, and I love when it's combined with full on eotw scenarios. Kingdom was a solid drama and thia smoked it~
I know S2 will not be able to live up to the 1st run but I'm still expecting another hit~

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Loved the movie until I saw the end. It's anticlimactic, it tanked hard for me

Why cut the landing and the quarantine scene? After all the rollercoaster ride, it instantly goes into a peaceful atmosphere. All the tension built only to fizzle out at the crucial moment.

It's all good until Park Jae Hyeok lands the airplane. Then it tanked so bad for me.

I was expecting people or rather the whole nation to thank the pilot, flight crew, on-board doctor and the detective (who got himself infected) for their continuous effort of bringing back everyone home safely even when they themselves were infected with virus.

I never expected any another country to allow their landing but not their home country leaving them hanging mid air because of people's protests at the air base.

The people in flight are your own fellow countrymen. They need help. I mean, I don't even want to consider the protestor's concern for infection as the whole staff on land was making the best efforts to get the antidotes.

They even found the source in middle east. But people still wanted to leave them hanging mid-air with less fuel and an ex-pilot with his own fears is traumatic and unfair to everyone who struggled.

That's a big betrayal from the home country, a huge back stab, an emotional damage to anyone affected by the disaster in air or land (family & friends)

This can actually become a very good reason for someone from family/friends to be enraged by whole nation and commit more crimes.

I am pissed and heartbroken at the same time. Abandoning them mid-air only to crash in any place is just a big no.

Now, logically speaking, pilot should have declared an emergency immediately when he knows there is a biohazard on the plane and passenger's health is at risk or when Ryu Jin Seok dies and controlling pilot couldn't operate. Like Choi Hyun Soo knew he has been affected too. He should have declared emergency right away instead of directly approaching Honolulu.

They should have done landing around 1.5 hours and then show the whole aftermath for 20-40 minutes.

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I really loved the beginning of this drama, but as it went on it got worse and worse. The ML is FULL of problems, but the drama focus mostly on how sad he has become after the FL left him, like: he can get over having his parents dying, his brother barely walking, his grandparents getting ultra sick, but his ex girlfriend leaving him? that's too much, my guy won't be coming back to normal after that, like ??? wth this is not how life works! I hate the fact that the FL basically only thinks about herself and she wants for the future and still keeps coming around to go after him, to get in his way and that she became his biggest reason for everything. I didn't like the acting of the FL in general, but I also didn't get why the character was written like "I never got over you, ML, but I've been dating this other person and I'll keep maintaining this person in my life even tho I lied about this person's existence for you" what's this about ??? who's acting like that in real life? please come to your senses, make it make sense!!! They keep making it seem super r
imposible for them to be together when they haven't even really tried anything, she just kept on leaving and he kept on giving up on his on desires. It is like they're two sides of a very ENORMOUSLY sad coin and both of them are living in extreme contexts, never having balance or real life human conversation to make things work, what's that ????? I swear to God that if they had ended up together this drama could be considered a crime.

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THIS is a happy ending?!?!?!

Except for a major flaw in the script, IMO, everything else was actually well done. The drama followed the versions theme with minor differences making for a decent product. We get a reason for that ugly indenture contract. Say you like your tea green? However... Except for being played by Wang Pei Yan, nothing was going to get me past the incredibly unlikable character he played. Which means he did some very nice work?

The prince let Luo Ning get bullied to the point of injury or imminent death before standing up for her. Repeatedly. He'd promised the queen he wouldn't marry for life. So the ML got a fake marriage and a slave indenture contract while the queen got to bully her and set her up for death. He supported that green tea's whims at Luo Ning's expense throughout until 'Queenie' was imprisoned for life. (How long until her pardon?). Even in the last confrontation, if She hadn't brought in the miracle doctor? If the empress dowager hadn't been successfully treated? If She didn't have the eunuch bring in the witness? Instant death penalty. Anybody notice he never got rid of that indenture contract until it had been fulfilled? Oh yeah, true love. Then he made her a queen, not his empress (could have been subs, but unlikely...). And best/worst yet, he told her she should see his behavior as a reflection or statement of loving her? She went with that!?!?!? Made me a little bit crazy. And sad.

Another FL that in the end, no matter that she got revenge, she still "settled". Kind of wouldn't mind if I'd missed this one. Sigh.... Yep, I'm blaming the script.

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Not my cup of tea!!

This drama is about the love between a mortal general, who had a rough past as an assasin and the Lord of Spirits who is 400year old.
Duan Xu, played by Arthur Chen is revealed to be the spell bearer of He Simu, played by Diliraba, who can get her five senses through him and hence starts a love story of a spirit and a mortal.
The first 10 episodes seemed quite interesting and though it started becoming less interesting, still I managed to watch it. But after the arc where Duan Xu, our male lead enters the spirit realm, I somehow completely lost interest. I didn't find any interesting elements that would make you stay or make you wait for the next episodes eagerly.
When it reached episodes 25-26, I felt myself completely bored.
With no solid storyline, no progress as it proceeds further, not so well developed romance track(which was not at all entertaining for me)., I think this drama has disappointed me.
The only saving graces are the beautifully designed costumes, especially for the people in the spirit realm and the lavish sets that are my only reason to watch this far.
The acting of the actors was perfect.
But the characters they play didnt make me stay.
Personally I couldn't bring myself to like He simu's actions or character and as for Duan Xu, his character went downhill after few episodes.
Personally, its not my cup of tea or maybe I failed to understand the dynamics, but I lost interest in it.
Anyways, the first 16 episodes were good, imho.
This review is purely my opinion.

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Very Cinematic and beautiful first half, sadly second was rushed

Firstly the good points. The actors did such an amazing, the chemistry especially for the second couple was insane. I loved the first half so much, the pacing, the story, their little life in Lin an. Every character was serving looks. Zhang linghe was indeed very beautiful, I recently watched his drama the kunning palace and I’m glad they found the right hairstyle for him. As Yan Zheng, he had this really nice softness around Changyu, but also this fierceness he showed other people. While the actor gave a strong performance, unfortunately the last battle scene failed to capture his aura as a general and fighter (but this is the fight choreography) I know they wanted to focus on Changyu’s growth. But this really took away from his character.
The 40 ep cap really affected the over flow of the story. Changyu became a General far too quickly. There should have been a montage or something of her training for years. And I feel like they cut out a lot of fighting scenes too, which I was quite sad about as an edit of Changyu fighting in the fire in Lin an was what sold me. Tian xiwei did amazingly in this role. Chemistry wise I did think the second couple won with this. But I was really touched with Changyu’s devotion to go to war for her husband. I know many people who love the romance genre really enjoyed this but for me personally, plot and the politic intrigue is very important which I felt was not a strong factor in this show, which is such a waste as there are many veterans in the show. I look forward to every one’s individual projects in the future.

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