Reviews

Final feliz, mas deixou a desejar

Gostei bastante do início do drama, o romance é bem lento, demora a acontecer, passam anos e acho que isso torna mais crível a história.
Achei um pouco exagerado o número de interesses amorosos da FL, e todos muito obsessivos, até deu pra relevar, porque apenas 1 dos personagens foi realmente pro lado negro da força por causa dessa obsessão, mas o ponto que fez esse drama não ter nota melhor foi o episódio final.
O penúltimo episódio foi incrível, sofrido, doído e esperava um último episódio a altura, mas ele deixou muitas pontas soltas, e terminou feliz mas tão abruptamente que fiquei pensando: Ué, acabou?" - precisava ter um episódio extra pra realmente dar um final digno pra série.

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The worst ending I have ever watched in cdramas

This was the first drama I watched with this ML, so I was struggling to warm up to him at first. It would probably have been easier if he were portraying another type of character, but since Bai Jiusi is very mysterious and very wtf in the first few episodes, it was a hard start for me. In the end, I warmed up to him, so it's cool (pun intended).

Bai Lu carries this entire drama on her back, full stop. If Si Ling were portrayed by someone else, I would probably have hated her. But the pain Bai Lu brings while bringing her to life is exactly what we need for Si Ling to make sense.

Now... Story-wise. It is a beautiful story. I love angsty plots, so it was exactly what I was expecting. However, when we get to the ending, it feels like the story I came to love just doesn't matter anymore. I understand Si Ling changing some events in the past would not overwrite everything (since the villain was her karma), but it erased the most important details that made Bai Jiusi and Si Ling who they were. It changes everything, and it changes nothing at the same time. It makes it possible for Bai Jiusi to come back to life (and whoa, the number of times we think he's dead and comes back is insane, so it stops being something new), but it erases all the growth they had as individuals. Not as a couple, as individuals.

It also brings up the question: what about their son? When she went back in time, she fixed the miscommunication arc about the sealing of her powers and being pregnant. So where is he now?? It's such an important part of their journey together, and then we receive zero closure (it wouldn't have needed a closure if she hadn't gone back in time - yeah, I really hated the ending).

The side characters were forgettable, except for Ming Xianqian, who was amazing, and I wish we had more screen time for him.

Argh. I don't even know how to rate this drama at this point.

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Needed second season

The overall drama looks very good and the music reminds of old dramas which were top class

This drama needs season 2, as there are many unresolved chapters
The craftsmen got their old book and the drama has not clarified how will it be the crafts they build according to the secret book
The ML and FL are yet to unite. In the climax, it was shown that she will alight the boat. It can be shown how their life goes from there
It was shown who is the main person who created the seed of the tree, he told that FL will control the ML.
Also the clash between ML and FL with the person who created the seed needs to be shown
But how it happens is yet to be shown. Also the next steps of heavenly ladder needs to be shown. Will the ladder will be created or not. Also why did the war demons destroyed the ladder needs to be revealed
Also the cat which the FL always keeps with her needs to be shown. Her junior needs to be ascended.

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Such a fun watch that had me invested

Nearly perfect. The villains/antagonists were competent, the humor was fun, and the drama, when it hit, was well done. I like that the ghosts were actually very scary/creepy/unsettling, not a single one failed to leave me unsettled. I like that the characters were properly flawed and the story didn't pull punches when those flaws and wrongdoings arose. The relationships between all the leads was compelling and they were all distinct. There were a lot of great plot twists I didn't see coming, and the ones that I did see, unfolded in a way that felt still felt satisfying. Every twist made sense and deepened the plot in a way that felt really intentional.

Half a star off for occasional nonsense behavior from the characters which annoyed me specifically (signing a contract w/o reading, continuously moving your intended murder victim to a secondary location repeatedly when you have the chance to take them out right there, slowly circling your intended murder victim while they're incapacitated instead of taking them out right there), but those moments did not happen often. Most other times I thought the character would be dumb or make mistakes for plot convenience, they didn't which was always a pleasant surprise and caused interesting conflict for the main characters.

I've been in a slump lately where I haven't been able to finish more than one drama this year despite starting several, but I finished this one in 3 sittings across 3 days. Starting with the turn at the end of episode 5, I pretty much couldn't stop watching because when the things finally taken a dramatic turn, the drama had already done a good job at getting me attached to the characters and their relationships, so I was thoroughly invested in the outcome, something I have not gotten in other dramas I watched this year.

I'm really got around to sitting down and watching this one!

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A Good Dynasty Era Detective Story

First, I would say the casting in this one is top-notch, especially Liu Yong Xi, Zhao Ran and Yang Xing. The specific ally / enemy colleague-hood between Liu Yong Xi's Detective Tang and Yang Xing's Detective Sai is something rare: two female characters of similar martial disciplines who aren't 'catty' with each other but also aren't 'allies' in the common feminist western movie sense. Just two masters whose priorities in life diverged with one being the younger version of the other. I also like how the movie never feels the need to 'soften' Detective Sai.

On the CGI of shadow and light mirror play, I feel like people who are raised on the lexicon that CGI must be 'photoreal' (but it never is anyway) will receive this one awkwardly because the whole point is that the illusory entities should both be lethal AND look artificial, not creatures that look like they exist with solidity in the real world. Since I'm not in the 'CGI must always be photoreal in live-action' camp, I pretty much got what they were going for here.

Lastly, without any spoilers, I would say the action sequences are well-choreographed and elegant but also quite brutal and raw, and of course, bloody. It gives the feeling of a hybrid detective / wuxia underground story that I really find interesting.

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Ai, caramba... que delícia de BL!

Ai, caran, sério, que delícia de BL! 🥹❤️

A foto da capa já tinha chamado minha atenção, a sinopse também, então pensei: "vou só dar play e ver no que dá". E foi aí que eu caí direitinho na armadilha.

Toda aquela vibe contida (porque os sentimentos existem, mas raramente são escancarados), que só os BLs chineses conseguem criar me atraiu igual um mosquitinho indo em direção à lâmpada. Quando percebi, já estava completamente envolvido.

A ambientação dos anos 2000, mesmo sendo trabalhada de forma mais superficial do que eu gostaria, deixou tudo ainda mais gostosinho de assistir. Tem algo naquele clima de nostalgia, nas roupas, nos cenários e na forma como as relações acontecem que torna tudo beeem aconchegante.

Mas o que me ganhou mesmo foi aquilo que quase sempre me ganha nos BLs chineses, que é a construção do querer.

Aquela linha tênue entre amizade e o amor. A dúvida, o não dito, os olhares que parecem dizer mais do que qualquer declaração. A sensação de que os personagens estão tentando entender o que sentem ao mesmo tempo em que tentam entender o que são um para o outro. E, sinceramente? Poucos países fazem isso tão bem quanto a China.

E aqui fica aquele gostinho de quero mais, porque as vezes, o mais interessante não é quando os personagens finalmente descobrem que estão apaixonados. Mas sim, assistir ao momento exato em que eles começam a suspeitar disso.

Ai ai..

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To Dream or Not to Dream

Soundtrack #2 explores a couple who reunite years after an unresolved breakup. As they navigate renewed proximity—shaped by friends, a competing romantic possibility, and the demands of career and artistic ambition—they are forced to confront how their ideas of success, love, and self-worth changed during their separation. Through this pressure, both gradually move toward greater maturity and self-understanding, ultimately deciding whether their past relationship can be re-entered on different terms. I liked the treatment and the acting was very good. The resolution was compressed a lot and I felt that there was enough for another episode or two.

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“A Splendid Match” wasn’t quite what I expected. The series offers great acting and production values (particularly the beautiful costumes), but considering that the story is anchored by the courtship, marriage, and “power couple” dynamic of its main characters, the romance falls a little flat.

The story follows a feisty young woman, Gu Jin Zhao, from her coming-of-age ceremony at 15 through navigating marriage prospects and her relationship with Chen Yan Yun, a powerful man who will become her husband.

In many ways they’re opposites — Jin Zhao is headstrong and quick-tempered, and Yan Yun is often gentle and mild-mannered. Both are highly intelligent and have a strong sense of justice. But the tension and spark that one might expect from their contrasting personalities never materializes, and this lack of chemistry makes it hard to feel invested in their relationship.

Instead, the highlight for me was the character arc of Ye Xian, the second male lead. I felt his character was more complex and undergoes a more emotionally compelling journey of hardship and growth than that of the leads. He’s undoubtedly a flawed character — immature, prone to anger and even violence — but nevertheless sincere and unwavering in his feelings, even when he fails to express them in a healthy way. For a character to convincingly display both hateful behavior and heartbreaking grief, pain, and disappointment takes a talented actor, and Dong Si Cheng (“Winwin”) delivers the emotional intensity in spades. I was thoroughly impressed and drawn in by his memorable and layered performance as Ye Xian.

While I appreciated the healthy, mutually supportive relationship between the leads, their dynamic didn’t have as much impact and emotional resonance as some of the friendships and even rivalries depicted in the series — not exactly what I’m looking for in a romance drama. Aside from the lackluster chemistry of the main couple, hard-to-follow political plots and an abrupt ending made this historical drama a bit disappointing in its writing and execution.

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The Wonderfools delivered everything

This story has complex characters and relationships even though it's mostly comedy, and that's what makes it more enjoyable. No one is perfect, and I find the flawed characters more endearing. It's funny, intriguing... It has more romance than I expected and the chemistry between everyone is a 💯

The comedy timing is exquisite. It handles different tones of humor and never runs the same joke into the ground.

It's also interesting how they changed the intro's color, tone and music for ep 6 after the ending on ep 5 ☠️

Eun Chaeni, the main character, is completely adorable and incredibly brave. And watching her and her grandmother be exactly the same person is the sweetest thing. Chaeni is understanding like her grandma, she's magical. She died, her friends were about to throw her in a dumpster, she came back from the dead and didn't think for a moment to blame them. That's just who she is.

8 episodes feel short, and while the story does get a proper ending, it's wide open for a second season in the best way. I really hope they make it, though according to the director, nothing is planned.

Spoilers... I'm obsessed with the way Unjeong and Chaeni never confessed and kinda become essential to each other. His feelings for Chaeni were what made Unjeong change and confront the villain, so it's part of the main plot and core to the development of the story, not just a side romance. Park Eunbin and Cha Eunwoo did a great job making us understand how their characters feel and the core of their connection even without saying everything out loud. I was expecting a proper kiss between them, but they did a great job showing their connection in a few scenes that fed us forever.

I love the fact that Robin kept correcting Chaeni's words the whole time and she never cared. But when he corrected her on Unjeong's last name (because she kept saying Choi Unjeong instead of Lee Unjeong ) Chaeni got all flustered and embarrassed 🤭

The child actors are incredible, the casting is perfect because they represent their adult versions so well.

The Wonderfools has a thousand details that make it worth watching a thousand times.

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such a great start!

set in the 1990s, this is this story of Tonrak and Barth, “one that has lost all faith, one that is full of unwavering faith”.

I absolutely love the cinematography and color grading. so dark and gritty, so different from GMMTV’s usual style, and exactly what this story deserves. everything felt so artistic and poetic. that one scene where Tonrak and Barth stop the crucifix from falling and their hands touch, the sheer symbolism of that scene!!

Fourth’s acting was as amazing as always! while I usually found Gemini’s acting quite stiff in his past dramas, here his acting felt pretty expressive. I could feel his anger at God, and life in general . when he said “then one day I realized, your God never helped me at all”, I FELT THAT!!

one this that me and a lot of other people seem to be confused about (mild spoilers ahead …)
is that in the beginning the Father says “hard to believe it’s been almost 20 years” when present timeline is 2025 and past timeline starts from 1996.

later on they say something about the ordination being over 10 years away, (ep1 19:05). so I’m guessing maybe the past timeline will go up to 2006-07, and that’s when Father and Barth met for the last time until the time skip. hence, their current meeting in 2025 being almost 20 years since the last time they met. I wonder how all that can fit in just 6 episodes, I hope nothing feels rushed!

so far, this is off to a great start, and I feel like we’re about to witness something extraordinary. can’t wait to see how this unfolds!

PS. ep1 gave me major I Told Sunset About You vibes, and that’s one of my most favorite BLs of all time! I’m wishing that TTH turns out be a masterpiece just like ITSAY🥹

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Why did I start before it was finished?

Now I need to wait whole week for more episodes.
It’s refreshing to watch a funny kdrama because it was written to be funny and because actors can deliver the material. Although I can not tell you “why” I find it so laugh out loud funny, even if my life depended on it. The humour is often so on the nose and campy, thus I fully understand it is not for everyone.
Besides the humour, I love the “slow burn” romance of this series, I understand and more crucially, Believe the mutual care and love the main characters feel for each other. I am extremely grateful to the writers and actors for this tasty morsel.
To balance the review out, I also wish to share my one annoyance about the story: the plot progression relies too heavily on miscommunication. I believe it goes against Shin Seo Ri’s character to hide from Cha Se Gye his brothers' scheming and threats (which are also becoming repetitive with the aunt and fiancee).

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OFF TO A GREAT START!

I love revenge stories when they’re done right, and so far it seems like this will be done right.

this is the story of Min, a 25 year old guy with a troubled past. for years he had been blaming himself for the death of his family members, until one day he finds out the real culprit behind their deaths was someone else. then he sets out on a journey to get revenge.

this is my first time seeing any of these actors. and I’m blown away by how amazing Min’s acting is. I was ready to hate on his character when we started the drama with him holding a knife to an innocent child. but by the time the episode ended, I was rooting for him and ready to fight alongside him😂

Fuaiz as the villain was also amazing. I didn’t even realize at first that he was the same guy that had a past connection with Min until they showed a flashback. it’s safe to say that I will be HATING his character 😂

I absolutely loved the cinematography and the color grading. it’s so gritty and dark, very fitting for the stiry. I love the non linear story telling too, even though it might feel a bit confusing at first. I haven’t read the manhwa, but inwas able to follow the story along. (feel free to comment if you wanted me to explain!)

so far this is looking VERY PROMISING! idk how I’ll survive the wait for a whole week till the next episode drops!

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interesting idea, bad realisation

What I liked:

-an interesting idea and I really enjoyed seeing Park Bo -young in a different role away from the friendly, cuty, clean good girl image. I think she pulled the role surprisingly good and the strain of the story was quite etched in her features along the way.

-I did like her character and I understood perfectly well where she is coming from given her background.

-nice suspense building so it at least got me watching until the end

What I disliked

-HUGE plotholes from the very beginning. First mega stumble in the first episodes 17 minutes in. If there was a coffin with 100 pieces of 10kg gold bars they would weigh? Exactly, a 1000kg. The 5 lanky/older airport workers couldn't lift shit of this, as each of them would have to carry about 200kg plus the weight of the steel coffin. Also the mob guys wouldn't move this coffin one inch forward into the car in the next scene. Stuff like that REALLY annoys me because it kind of taints the whole plot altogether.

And that mistake has follow ups- the van the coffin is loaded in? When the boyfirend pulls the gun on the driver and tells him to take a sharp turn to the right? Id the driver did that with that much weight in the back The car would have gonem straight into the wall because the ton weight in the back would have accelerated with the speed of the car and the sudden motion. When the FL later is driving to get away from the mob guys? If you load such van, even am SUV with more that 1000kg of dense dead weight? the rear would probably scratch the bottom, the brakes wouldn't work, and she couldn't maneuvre the car in a hectic flight chase at all.
And other such mistakes followed through the show. ( the abuse 'uncle' getting his head bashed in witha golf club, bleeding liters of blood on the floor, any yet, he is well and alive in the hospital the next day with a small bandage around his head and so on...)


So, yes, nice to watch for a bit of suspense IF you are not a logic freak like me who can't overlook such major mistakes.

If you are interested in the main idea of people being intrigued by suddenly getting their hands on huge sums of illegal money? Go watch 'walking on thin ice' Much better delivery of the idea with a more realistic approach of the actual goods and how to make them into money. With the same basic plot idea, I enjoyed that show much more.

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It's enjoyable, but surely overrated!?

The Good:
✅ The top acting by almost* everyone (including the child actor, but seriously there are some amazing performances)
✅ The high budget of the show really shows, it's really a dazzling production.
✅ The romance is quite good (other than the noble idiocy bit, but even that is not the worst)
✅ Top tier bickering
✅ The super weak love triangle
✅ There is no forced separation or breakups.
✅ The setting is quite well thought out.
✅ The lack of in laws is refreshing.

The Average:
🟡 IU's acting.* (it's still good objectively, but not up to her usual very high standard, though I cannot really blame her for not taking this script too seriously.)
🟡 The secretary couple
🟡 The usual shy teenager act..

The Bad:
❌ The non-romantic plot is just awful.
❌ There are intelligence insulting contradictions too.
❌ While contract marriages are often a lot of fun, the guaranteed leak of the contract is the worst & most predictable cliche in this genre.
❌ Dad, QM & maybe even the FL got a full character rewrite near the end, jarringly so
❌ This is subjective, but I don't like the idea of abolishing the monarchy like this. It goes against the romance of the show, I mean in the classical sense, there is this whole semi-glamor concept & then they just flip the table, I never liked it when an extraordinary character dreams of or just becoming ordinary.

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