Reviews

Slowburn at it's finest

I am a huge fan of the webtoon so obviously i wanted to watched the adaptation. I feel this was done beautifully. Although the webtoon is still ongoing i think i like how they took things in the drama. Sang Yan has been my crush since secret love webtoon. Yes we have Duan Jia Shu but Sang Yan was my bias. When i read the novel and got to know more about him. I was in love.

The entire drama is just beautiful. I don't think my words can express how deep, beautiful and peaceful their love is. It's like this soft warm hug. I cried a lot but I'm happy everyone is happy. Do watch it don't miss out on this.

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More propaganda to excuse male violence: But he said sorry and cried!

The good - The wardrobe and stage production quality, Shi-wok's hairstyle, and the soundtrack. The story had a lot of intriguing parts.

The bad - More propaganda to excuse male violence towards others, particularly women. Saying sorry and crying shouldn't be treated like some pivotal moment that redeems a male suspect. The initially promising story became disappointing in certain ways. There were so many disturbing parts that didn't add to the plot and were unnecessary;

- The psychological manipulation of the audience with these backstories aimed at creating sympathy for male characters and their depraved actions was insulting. Three examples;

1. The scene of Yoon Se-won tearfully apologizing to Park kyung-wan with the sad music was ridiculous. It's like he only forced himself to do so, because it was a man affected, who lost another man (his dad). Why didn't he apologize to Ga-Young too (not saying it would make what he did to her okay)? He even excused his actions of abducting and torturing a schoolgirl (Ga-young), saying she's just as bad as the corrupt men. He worded it as her "using her body", but in reality, it was her being used for her body. As if she victimized anybody, when in reality, she was the victim. Yoon's warped perception wasn't corrected at all in the show, which Yeo-jin could've done as a woman's advocate (or at least, she should be in that role). The complete disregard for women's lives really shines through here. Someone who did what Yoon did would be an actual psychopath, devoid of empathy, so these tearful moments that some audience members fell for is just conditioning to allow evil men to get away with even more crimes against women.

2. Why did the show portray sad and regretful reactions about the pathetic slap on the wrist sentence that kim woo-kyun got, as if it was too harsh? These guys acted like they shouldn't have done their jobs to protect trafficking victims who were minors. As if saying sorry and looking sad makes woo-kyun a good guy who should be let go.

3. The part when Lee Chang-Joon was shown in a patriotic light in the last episode, about the poet, as if he's some good guy gone bad because of "the corrupt system" that he couldn't help but partake in. Yet he even said he only regrets introducing Park Moo-sung to Hanjo Distribution, not about his role in anything that resulted in people dying or being tortured. Again, this backstory creates conditioning for "well maybe he wasn't that bad/maybe he had a good reason" coddling.

Yet this kind of dedication towards including a sympathetic backstory was denied to Ga-Young, who for some reason was portrayed as an ungrateful brat in the end. All this, despite:

- The inappropriate treatment toward Ga-young during her hospitalization. Her right to privacy wasn't respected, with all these investigators in her room, questioning her, sticking psychologically triggering images in her face. This could be viewed as further torment. Even then, she was still not even safe, and was shuffled around in some sort of switcheroo show on a rooftop to catch a suspect. It's unclear if Yoon Tae In was actually in on her attempted abduction, or he was playing along to catch the main suspect ordering this.

- The last episode's scene with Ga-young, her mom, and Yeo-jin. Why was Ga-Young's mom telling her to say nothing, and she wasn't questioned for this? Why was Ga-young even being interrogated, at this stage?

- Yeo-jin's psychologically abusive behavior toward Ga-young in the last episode, despite her being an under aged victim of s- trafficking, abduction, and torture. To nearly hit her like that, berate her, and tell her to be grateful that the culprit didn't murder her (as if abduction and torture is fine!), was disgraceful. For this, Yeo-jin should've been fired, not promoted.

- Anyone who went through what Ga-young did, esp at that age, would have severe psychological trauma and PTSD. Yet she's treated like an object or a means to an end in this series. Yeo-jin was never this aggressive toward the male interrogation suspects, many of whom did horrible things. When you think of it, Ga-young's mom wasn't there to protect her when she suffered those horrific things, so resentment of her mom's overbearing nature is understandable. All of Yeo-jin's berating was psychological abuse disguised as tough love, IMO. Why make it a point to shame Ga-young for wanting space from her questionable mom, when having boundaries keeps girls and women safe? Her mom's feelings aren't something she should feel guilty for. What about what Ga-Young went through? Any respect I had for Yeo-jin was lost. To add insult to injury, Ga-Young's mom shames her for what she's wearing, when it was literally just a t-shirt and jeans.

Also;

- Seo Dong-jae ended up being promoted by Shi-Wok, just so that an evil man could have his wish fulfilled right before he died by suicide. This, despite:

- Shi-Wok just stood by and watched Eun-Soo get strangled/almost killed, and didn't intervene, despite that being a crime (assault, attempted murder). It was almost implied like Seo Dong-jae stopped and look regretful, as if that made it fine for him to get away with it. It was also made out to be an uncontrollable fit of rage, a classic excuse that male abusers and murderers use (yet he's perfectly in control of himself towards his male colleagues, somehow). When in reality, it's still a choice he made, that should've been punished appropriately. Further, the writers had Eun-Soo apologize to Seo Dong-jae, after Seo guilted her, saying he couldn't get sleep that night he strangled her. If that wasn't an attempt to display what a narcissist or manipulative abuser is like, then is the message that women victims of male violence should apologize to their abusers, if the abusers were in any way disturbed by their own choice of actions? How wrong and insulting to normalize that garbage.

- The completely wrong conclusion of Eun-Soo that Seo Dong-jae must not be a murderer if he didn't also murder her (and if he did, she couldn't do anything about it, so why was that situation even part of the story?). At first I thought she was just saying that out of a survival mechanism, but no, it appears the show portrays her as actually believing that. I think it was irresponsible on the part of the writers/producers to not make a big deal about how wrong this conclusion is, given that DV and male violence against women is bad in Korea and exists in every country. Viewers should be informed that men who strangle women statistically have an extremely high chance of murdering, "Prior non-fatal strangulation was associated with greater than six-fold odds...of becoming an attempted homicide, and over seven-fold odds...of becoming a completed homicide. These results show non-fatal strangulation as an important risk factor for homicide of women, underscoring the need to screen for non-fatal strangulation when assessing abused women in emergency department settings." (Non-fatal strangulation is an important risk factor for homicide of women, NIH study 2009).

- Soon after Eun-soo was murdered, a male character said sorry that this happened so soon after his male boss' promotion. Woman murdered - man and his promotion most affected!

- It was so odd how Eun-soo was treated with coldness, contempt, and an odd suspicion about the motive behind her trying to catch the culprit. The attempt to portray a young woman as emotionally driven and less capable is so misogynist, because to even get her job, she would require certain qualifications and experience. Yet Seo dong-jae is emotionally driven (see: strangulation), but is not portrayed as lesser for this, and in fact gets promoted.

- Park Kyung-wan is a creep, who stalked and took pics of Ga-Young without her knowledge, then tried to delete the evidence, which is a crime. Due to this, the ones who "interrogated" him did nothing wrong and shouldn't have apologized. Him losing his dad is no excuse, either.

- Yoon Tae In's treatment of girls when he's interrogating them. He loses his temper, berates them, and threatens to hit them. This happened after the incident at the house where there were a bunch of "punks" hanging out, yet this treatment didn't happen to the male "punks" there. He even went to hit her, which is disgusting and cowardly. That would only make it more stressful and difficult for witnesses to recollect what happened. This behavior should've resulted in him being fired, not trusted to continue hampering interrogations.

- The slight pickme-ification of Yeo-jin was sad to see. It's like a strong female lead can't exist unless she gets turned into a pickme, is protective of a man, or in some cases, is stereotyped as a lesbian. If Yeo-jin was known as a woman who didn't wear makeup, it's weird that she put on lipstick after the creepy manlet Kim Jung-bon got her a gift, unprompted, disguised as congratulating her on her promotion. (Same thing applies if she hypothetically did wear makeup from the start, and he negged her to stop, then she stopped). I'm glad the male coworker pointed out that he didn't receive such a gift - a hint that this "gift" was just a way to get something from Yeo-jin. Subtly changing a woman over time is a male fantasy, it's like breaking her down, or having control over her identity. Why is Yeo-jin wasting time teaching a grown man (Shi-wok), who can't feel empathy and is a psychopath, things like how to smile? Does she want him to be better at fooling people, so he can manipulate them better? Why catch feelings for a psychopath that constantly disrespects her?

- Shi-wok lacking empathy or emotions is portrayed as a strength in solving cases, such as not bending to pressure. While this applies, it could also make him ruthlessly corrupt. The entire plot hinges on Shi-wok somehow having morals, despite technically being a psychopath, even if he didn't do anything heinous.

Shame on these writers/producers.

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Lighthearted with FL & her son providing the laughs

I was writing a reddit post about vertical drama actors aged 35 and above and had Sean Pai in mind. I had only watched 2 of his dramas before so I thought of watching another one and chose this title because of its availability on iQIYI. It was a good watch.

What I liked:
1. FL characterisation - She was smart, sassy & likeable.
2. Supporting characters - ML's son was sassy like his mother. He was quick with his words that always resulted in comedic moments. I also liked ML's older relatives & assistant.
3. Tone - Lighthearted with right doses of comedy.
4. Acting - Wang Zi Yi excelled in her role so was the child actor playing the son.
5. Treatment - Those treatment sessions were outrageous but funny and Sean Pai was shirtless most of the time.

What I disliked:
1. Antagonists - FL's family was terrible and condescending. Half-sister took credit for something she didn't do and was even willing to harm children.
2. Romance - Sadly underdeveloped. The first episode was set up to be spicy but the kissing was fake and the movements seemed mechanical / unnatural. Their kissing scenes mostly had one of the leads blocking the camera so you'd know the kissing was fake. Wonder if any of them had no real kissing clause.

Favourite scene
When the son scolded ML for being reliant on walking aids

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The cast gave me high expectations for this drama, but they were unfortunately shattered by an underwhelming plot. While the early episodes were exciting, the narrative grew weak over time, dragging on without offering a satisfying resolution. I was especially disappointed with one specific arc; it left me wondering why the ending lacked impact, considering the character involved was portrayed as being so powerful. As for the romance, it felt flat. Despite TSY and HMH’s strong acting skills, I felt their chemistry was lacking, making their romantic scenes feel quite awkward to watch. Plus, the two characters seemed to fall in love too quickly. I felt the connection lacked the emotional weight needed for me to root for them.

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Something wrong happened along the way

I know this will ruffle a few feathers among fans, but Veil of Shadows simply didn’t work for me and in more ways than one.

First, the storyline felt unnecessarily convoluted. Instead of building intrigue, it created confusion, with noticeable plot holes and repetitive scenes that added little value. I found myself trying to piece things together rather than being immersed in the narrative.

Second, the promotion of Joseph Zheng as a leading figure felt misleading. His role comes across more as supporting, which may leave viewers expecting a different kind of presence feeling disappointed.

Visually, the series leans heavily on CGI—so much so that it often distracts from the performances rather than enhancing them. Style seems to take precedence over substance, and not always to the show’s benefit.

And then there’s the cinematography choice: the constant close-ups paired with dramatically wind-swept, wavy hair. It’s a stylistic device that quickly becomes overused, losing its intended impact and turning almost into a visual cliché.

The stakes also feel diminished. Characters die, only to be revived through a recurring “magic stone” device and if all things fail there’s the qlubiquitous “everything-can-be-fix-with-time-travel”This cycle undercuts emotional weight so why invest in loss if it’s repeatedly undone?

It also raises a fundamental question: whose story is this, really? The narrative focus feels scattered, making it hard to connect deeply with any one character or relationship.

Finally, the inclusion of the “weasel demon” character while perhaps intended as quirky or compelling felt more distracting than engaging, especially as the role grew in prominence.

Overall, the show reminds me of the same issues I had with Fangs of Fortune: over-the-top dramatics, an overcrowded cast, and a storyline that struggles under its own ambition. There’s a distinct flair for spectacle, but without clarity and cohesion, it becomes difficult to stay invested.

Of course, this is just my perspective. If you enjoyed the series, that’s completely valid. But for me, it ultimately fell short of its potential.

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Episode 2 kissing scene - OMG

Yes, it is full of tropes. Yes, the production values could have been better. The flashbacks were over used. The music eventually got to be boring/too much. But if you want a fiery kissing/implied sex scene you owe it to yourself to watch episode 2. Episode 8 has a nice scene as well. I started re-watching because of those two scenes and found myself re-watching the whole thing. FL (Song Ji Eun) is cute and ML (Sung Hoon) is very handsome and his kissing, well let's just say I wouldn't turn him away if he tried to kiss me. Unlike most of the reviews I read, I was not impressed by the little boy who portrayed Dong Goo. If you want to see cute and delightful little boy you need to watch C-drama Unforgettable Love with Sun Lennon.

Many people also commented that they didn't understand why his mother left his father. Did they actually pay attention to his dad? What an overbearing piece of excrement. I would have left too. But, I would have taken my son with me.

I would call this a "snack" drama. Easy to binge, especially if you fast forward all the flash backs. Enjoy it for what it is, a light hearted rom-com.

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This movie should not be called an adaptation.

Absolute garbage of an adaptation. The fanfics writers can write a better adaptation script than whatever this production's writers did. I can list so many things that is wrong with this movie and English is not even my first language.

First of all - the adaptation itself. Rather than calling this an adaptation, this should be labelled as inspired by ORV. The characters are OOC and the world building isn't even the same. Where's the constellations? Where's my Uriel?! What's the point of the star stream with just dokkaebis and no sponsors?? The dokkaebis doesn't even appear much, minds you. I've read that someone said that this is literally alien train to Busan and I couldn't agree more.

Second of all - the actors itself. No shade for the actors but damn the lines sounds soulless. Maybe it's the problem from the script itself so that's not really their fault. But you can definitely see that most of the budgets went to hiring the cast instead. I rather they hire unknown actors to save the budgets and focus more on improving everything else when making this.

Lastly - the CGI. Oh my god, I thought it was AI at first. It was that bad. Though, I will blame it on the budget because I know that the VFX artists didn't get enough pay to do this shit. Although, if I don't know this is an adaptation, I would watch this garbage based on the action/fantasy/apocalypse genre alone. Yeah, I am that starved but you can see how much of a slop this adaptation is.

Well, that's all I can think of when writing this. I think I have more but as I write, the rage makes me forgot the contents that I want to add here. Thanks for reading my ranting and I think if you bothered to read all of this, maybe you should read the original ORV novel or manga instead of watching this movie. Unless you don't mind horrible storyline and massive amounts of plot holes (and all that I complained above) then it's your poison. hands-up.jpg

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Watching others’ suffering that stems from greedy desires gone too far proves delightful

Sometimes you just want a break from good&evil and want to be able to hate pretty much everyone on your screen or, to be more clear, like the most honest of the horrible humans on it! You know, the ones who don’t make whining excuses for being rotten but just delight in their own kind of success and work hard to do well at their particular version of very awful human existence.

This is that show. It starts with a steady family man who really wants to make enough money so his deaf daughter can undergo an operation… and thanks to a friend, opportunity DOES knock, and it knocks hard at his door and turns into hard knocks of his life.

Seeing pretty repugnant people spiral downward, seeing the empathy you thought you’d have for someone shatter because you find out the darker, murkier truths about them… it is not for most viewers, especially not sweet spring flowers like the majority on here who are precious babies when compared to the likes of me (okay, that would be most everyone, so I am a bad example).

This tickles the part of my brain that shouts, “ damn them all” and “kill it with fire!” You know what? I enjoyed letting that part of my brain delight in Shim Eun Kyung’s performance in particular, especially since she was honestly the main one I really wanted to see and initially was upset wasn’t a main role. That disappointment sure didn’t last. She was bloody FANTASTIC.
—Side note/sales pitch on her performance: Got someone who you occasionally wish to be anywhere from forcibly removed from within 1k km of you to unalived because they’re so horrible? (Muskrat Elon and his DumpTruck orange spray tanned idiot who traded porcelain thrones for gold potential ones on the big stage… your small stage equivalents could be anyone from local criminals to colleagues who spread malicious gossip to people who wear heavy perfume to work when signs say no fragrances bc, like, people with allergies are abundant there… or maybe they just talk about politics and lean toward nutjob conspiracies and pick fights… or they bash your favorite musician.)

Petty, serious, whatever it is, they may, when you see her in action, make you think of paying her very well to do what she thrives in and enjoys already. 🤌 I love her.

Anyway, this is a domino effect on a scale few dramas even dare to go because face it, when no one is very likable, even one of the two “innocent” ones for most of it, the audience will be limited to a much smaller, mostly older set who enjoy watching things that are both way darker than their day to day lives AND
reflecting their/their acquainted people’s daily humanity (or lack thereof). Not a casual watch that you can multitask or keep looking away/being distracted by if you want to actually enjoy it. The small moments are what matter, what snowball into the big ones… and like I said, both because it is uncomfortably relatable in how hard it is to consistently stay afloat and do both well and do right… and moreover because their suffering feels worse than my own day to day, it is truly satisfying.
9/10 from me, solid but with a thousand caveats to recommending!

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Who would think: Somewhat of a fresh take on relationships in dramas?

To address your concerns: if the whole concept freaks you out, you could also take this drama as some form of a fantasy drama with humanoid creatures with special effects....Rather than ABO and desire and whatever fanfiction worlds have invented...

Cos... I believe you should watch this one. I genuinely think it is a decent watch. The story introduced alpha beta and enigma plot in more of (d)evolution of human species rather than 'we are warewolves and we are horny all the time' trope. I thought they tackled that super well to not be weird or awkward about the genre. The pregnancy plot became only relevant in the last few episodes and it was non graphic and more a topic of discussion than anything.

There was some uncertainty and excitement as the leads float throughout the drama from dominant to submissive and so on. Their roles are not clearly defined, so I found that refreshing than the usual trope of dominant vs submissive. They played that beautifully in the whole ABO dynamic.

But to keep it real, it is easier to find a diamond on the street than a non-toxic character in this drama. Characterization was present, but not great or multilayered. Chemistry between Hua Yong and Shao Yu did feel natural and exciting. But it was obviously toxic and obsessive and insane. And while entertaining and exciting in a setting of a drama, it is indeed not a portrayal of anything that is admirable or some takeaway message about true love. May this one never find you (or me).

As for characters, Wen Lang, was my fave because he was hillarious; he spoke outloud whatever the audience was thinking. But then he could have been developed better as his behavior toward Gao Tu was truly not in the character. Then I thought Hua Yong's actor was the perfect casting for the duality in the drama, even though at times his acting felt one layered with same expressions over and over again. The drop in Gao Tu storyline was abrupt and loose. Kinda ruined the ending for me.

Strong beginning, relatively good acting, and strangely engaging despite cringe moments, and more random useless dramatic plot points. A decent watch and a recommendation.

thanks for reading!

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DUANG Really Said "TO BE CRINGE IS TO BE FREE"

Not The Best, but Still Good -->> Lives upto the novel's name.
To be honest, I had no hope in starting this series because I knew this would one of those cute-cute series again. But as someone who desperately wanted to see Por's acting onscreen again, i gave it a go. This series is mostly eye candy as the acting isn't that great to which I'm not blaming as they are new to industry. But they have somehow managed to bring emotions to it via
• Qin's past
• his traumas
• his complicated relationship with his parents • his reserved nature (to which I mostly resonate with)
• of how Qin views duang's family
Some scenes were jumpy, abrupt character development with reckless bits of story in between.
Hope to see more of NorthOtto (JamieMarvis) and ThiWave (TongPae). Overall lowkey my fav characters were Jamie , Tong and Pae. (& obvi, Duang's parents)

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Fluffy show, more of a popular Korean mukbang for foreigners to taste than a Jeju scenic trip

Note that I watched this on youtube on the MBC every1 channel with AI subtitle translation. I couldn't find official or fan translation.

This pop-up hotel show has the light humor you expect. It's very food-heavy, though mostly showing Korean comfort food and the guests' reaction to it. What's unique and charming about the show compared to other B&B/hotel shows is that the cast travels with the guests outside the hanok for events like walks, lunches and snacks at times like friendly tour guides.

Overall, the show isn't business oriented at all, so there's no stress other than making the guests feel welcome. The first episode has a different vibe than the rest, and each other episode feel more relaxed than the last. Most of the show is focused around mealtimes, with only a few parts about sightseeing (though one event with the first guests was canceled due to bad weather). My favorite parts to watch are the planning, prep, and work parts, but there's not many of these until the second guest group. I also enjoy the amount of cast interaction with the guests. The cast eats breakfast and dinner with the guests, and a few of them also stay with them for lunch, planned events, and snacks or desserts, adding in plenty of comfortable small talk. Aside from Go Doo Shim and Jeon Seong Gon, the cast speaks English impressively so their communication is great and they even try to communicate well with the few guests who don't speak English.

While the cast did a great job, I felt that the production/editing is a little lacking. It's possible the youtube cut is not the same as the original broadcast, but I have no clue. There are some events they show in flashbacks that they never show otherwise. The first guest group felt like something went wrong with the footage because it was not as good as the second half, but it feels too heavily edited as we don't see anything but the "big" stuff. Their formula is "introduce the guest and show them their room" into "here's lunch/dinner!" and then "here's snack/event!" and then "here's breakfast!" and the cycle repeats. It might have been interesting if we could also hear stories about either the guest's or the cast's itineraries and plans. When we follow the team that goes outside, we don't hear much about what the kitchen team is doing, at most, a small flashback during dinner about that dinner's preparation. The producer interviews the guests, but they only have a handful of soundbites from the cast at the end.

It's a bit closer to a lighter/shorter version of the Chinese variety show The Inn season 4 than other Korean B&B shows I've seen.

Not bad to watch if you want something relaxing or are fans of any of the cast. Lee Dae Hwi, Son Na Eun and
Lee Joo Young stood out for me.

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Characters That You Will Love to Love; Insane and Unnecessary Plot Point at the End

The best part of this show are the characters. The ML's character is finally a man who is honest all the time, never takes the easy way out by saying the fast and easy thing. SO REFRESHING! He is an example to all men and to all screenwriters. Add more characters who act like responsible adults, please!! The FL is emotion on a plate. This actress is known for conveying emotion extremely well. Her dewy eyes look at you like an 8-month old's and you want to give her everything she never had but deserves.

The romance between the ML/FL is like most of these Korean shows today: all longing and misunderstanding with little physical interaction until the end, much like the Chinese high-school-based dramas. The secondary characters are all great, including the secondary and unrequited romances. All people you love to love: fun, mature, reasonable, and inspiring.

SPOILER:
The story is complex and deals with mental health. Honestly, the description here in MDL makes absolutely no sense to me. As the FL's personality becomes more clear, it is a bit difficult. It takes a while to get used to her and figure out what is going on, but we have had other Korean dramas (quite a few) that include mental health struggles, so why be surprised when it is the female finally, and not the male? Are only men allowed to be complex?

BIG SPOILER:
The only thing that REALLY bothered me came at the very end of the show, so don't read on if you don't want to hear about this INSANE spoiler: Everything was smooth sailing into the sunset when we learn 50% through the final episode that the FL's parents are actually alive. WTF??? If she wasn't already crazy before this, how could finding out that your parents were alive and decided to leave you with the evil couple who hated you and disowned you at a young age not send you into a padded cell in the "nut house"? The real parents didn't love her enough to want to take care of her? Especially the father? WTF!!! It's not enough to have one set of evil step-parents, now she has a duplicate set? And then, the ML just agrees to let her go off to confront her father by herself and she comes back fine? She was barely holding it together up through episode 11 and now she can take on something like this? Just to fill up the last 20 minutes of screen time? PULEEZZE, screen writers, who up to this point have been pretty good, have some sense of pride in your work and don't kowtow to producers who feel that the ending "needs more drama." This plot twist is something that would take a full five episodes to overcome and is just way too much horror for one lead character to go through (outside of Chinese historical dramas, that is). Don't feel lovable? Well, now you have two sets of parents who don't love you. Deal with it--in less than 10 minutes with no further explanation and come home smiling. Unbelievable. Truly. The brown, swirly emoji on top of an otherwise tasty cupcake.

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