Reviews

A Heartwarming Reunion with a Nostalgic Charm

The Time of Fever (also known as When I Feel Your Warmth) is a tender, emotionally charged South Korean BL series that serves as a prequel to Unintentional Love Story, exploring the formative student years of Hotae and Donghee. The series captures the tension and complexity of their friendship, which begins to transform after years apart, as Hotae returns to his hometown to live with Donghee. What begins as a brotherly bond evolves into something deeper and more complicated, as both wrestle with newfound feelings.

The plot is straightforward, without unnecessary subplots, allowing the delicate dynamics between Hotae and Donghee to take center stage. The story is not new, but its fresh delivery gives it a refreshing charm. As a spin-off, it complements Unintentional Love Story beautifully by offering a glimpse into the backstory that led to the original drama’s events. Donghee’s quiet longing and Hotae’s gradual realisation of his own feelings are portrayed with an intimacy that feels raw and real.

The cinematography is stunning, with bright yet blurred colours, and the sound design is exceptional, often mimicking the heightened senses of the characters. The attention to detail—like Donghee noticing Hotae’s breath or the tactile tension of a hand on a shoulder—heightens the emotional weight of each scene. The music choices only serve to amplify this atmosphere, drawing viewers into the world of the two leads.

What stands out most is the chemistry between Won Tae-min and Do Woo, reprising their roles from Unintentional Love Story. Their interactions are packed with yearning gazes, subtle gestures, and a palpable connection that carries the show. It feels light and avoids unnecessary melodrama, giving it a natural, lived-in quality.

The tension between Hotae and Donghee is both heart-wrenching and electric. There’s a strong sense of longing, not only for each other but also for clarity in their emotions. The subtle chaos of their relationship—often conveyed through ambiguous dialogue—mirrors the uncertainty they feel internally. The series encapsulates the confusion, curiosity, and fear that often come with young queer love, making it incredibly relatable.

If there’s one thing I would have loved, it’s a final episode showing us what happens years later, after the events of Unintentional Love Story. But as it stands, The Time of Fever is a touching, beautifully told story that left me both satisfied and yearning for more.

The series is a must-watch for fans of the original, and it serves as an emotional prequel that adds new layers of meaning to the relationship between Hotae and Donghee. Rewatch value? Absolutely!

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Daily Dose of Sunshine: A Heartwarming Journey Through the World of Mental Health

"Daily Dose of Sunshine," a drama that's like a warm hug for your soul!

Not just entertaining but also incredibly important and heartwarming

Talk about Park Bo-young? This actress is a powerhouse, and she absolutely shines (pun totally intended) as Jung Da-eun, a nurse in the psychiatric ward. Her portrayal is so nuanced and heartfelt that I found myself laughing, crying, and cheering along with her every step of the way. The way she navigates the challenges of her job while dealing with her own personal growth? Absolutely brilliant!

First things first, can we talk about Park Bo-young? This actress is a powerhouse, and she absolutely shines (pun totally intended) as Jung Da-eun, a nurse in the psychiatric ward. Her portrayal is so nuanced and heartfelt that I found myself laughing, crying, and cheering along with her every step of the way. The way she navigates the challenges of her job while dealing with her own personal growth? Absolutely brilliant!

What really got me was how the show portrays the patients and staff. These aren't just "cases" or plot devices; they're fully realized characters with their own stories, quirks, and journeys. Every single character, no matter how small their role, has a story that touches your heart. I found myself getting invested in each of their stories, rooting for their recovery, and learning so much about different mental health conditions along the way. It's eye-opening without ever feeling preachy.

And can we talk about the staff dynamics? The way the nurses and doctors interact, support each other, and sometimes clash feels so authentic. It's like getting a behind-the-scenes look at the daily lives of these healthcare heroes. The camaraderie, the stress, the small victories – it's all there, and it's beautifully portrayed. The show really dives deep into the nurse work life, showing us the challenges, the rewards, and everything in between. The relationships between co-workers are so well-developed, you feel like you're part of the team!

The production value is top-notch too. The way they use lighting and color to set the mood is just beautiful. There are scenes in this drama that are going to stay with me for a long, long time. They manage to make even the sterile hospital environment feel warm and inviting.

I've got to say, "Daily Dose of Sunshine" isn't just a drama – it's an experience. It's changed the way I think about mental health, about healthcare workers, and honestly, about my own life. I've found myself being more empathetic, more patient, and more aware of the struggles people around me might be facing.

So, if you're in the mood for a drama that'll make you laugh, cry, think, and maybe even grow as a person, give "Daily Dose of Sunshine" a shot. It's like... well, a daily dose of sunshine for your heart and mind. Trust me, you won't regret it.

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Very overrated tv series drama of custom history !

I've finished watching it.... I'm disappointed, throughout 40 eps, the story is only to discuss fake marriage and how the main male hero must win back the heart of the main female.

Yes, even though it was successful & finally officially married towards the end of the story, but the socio-political intrigues & wars within the empire were cut completely.

There is also a very crucial 3-month time skip in the middle of the story, maybe because it was censored, banned because there were elements of a political & military coup against the legitimate ruler.

The ending is happy.

But the last 10 eps, seemed very rushed, especially the last 5 eps.

Too many characters appeared & were wasted throughout the story, because the total eps were only 40.

Moreover, the female protagonist, it is unclear why at the end of the story suddenly becomes a tough martial artist like her husband who is a famous warlord.

WTF.... Total score value is only 7 out of 10. Got a score of 7 more because the female protagonist is very beautiful, bro.

If she wasn't there, I would give a total score of only 5 out of 10.

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Sweet and rather innocent easy entertainment

This was rather sweet, with the innocence of youth but with a small element of “what happened”.
Lots of familiar plots and character-types we see in nearly every “young love” C-drama.
I would say it started off a bit stronger than it progressed. Kind of wished they had skipped a sub plot or two.
Good with short episodes, and even if I usually skipped intro and outro, the music was fitting.

This doesn’t really affect the rating, but it affected my viewing experience:
I watched this with subtitles on Youku, and some of the lines disappeared way too quick, and they often became very difficult to read on light background (white text no background/shading).

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LIFE

If you are looking for a feel good story with no drama this is it. It's simple and formulative. It doesn't surprise in any way and yes, the cook gets his man. Still it left me smiling, and anxiously waiting each week for approx 30 min of cuteness. Isumi and Amasawa delivered every week. Truth be told, it shouldn't take 9 episodes for this series, but I'm glad it did. At a relaxed pace, it showed the internal struggles of one sided love and the courage it took.

College student meets older policeman and ends up cooking for him. Along the journey, Isumi falls in love with Amasawa. Amasawa, not thinking beyond their friendship, doesn't realize until the confession. That's it. Yet, Isumi and Amasawa are a pleasure to watch as they match so well. Think Mitsuya's Planned Feeding with a younger cast. At least, Isumi got his kiss. The main actors are easy to believe in their roles which was a huge plus. No exaggerated interactions beside the usual misunderstandings but they always thought of each other's happiness.

I will miss them as it doesn't take much to fall in love over good food with a smile.

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Rushed, but still highly entertaining

Sep 2024
I love the Sweet Home trilogy and whilst S1 is still my favourite, the 3 combined make for gripping viewing.
As much blood and gore as in S1&2, but far fewer monsters, as this final instalment focuses on the main characters that survived S2, together with a slight twist to the story.
Song Kang is brilliant in this, to my mind. He doesn't overplay the part, but exudes a kind of power and always gave me the feeling there was something more to his monster side.
Further characters lost in S2 are swiftly replaced by the fast moving storyline... a little too fast at times.
There are several surprises, but a couple could get lost in clarity and importance, if not getting enough concentration.
Couple of totally bizarre storylines as well... one being the little boy from S1, which definitely had me scratching my head.
The final scenes were a bit weird and in one instance for me, slightly disappointing, but at the same time not without emotion.
I might give it a break and then watch the whole thing (S1-3) from start to finish.
I really hate these stupid season breaks Netflix and other Western production companies, inflict on us. Really spoils the flow and when the gap between is ridiculously long, the story definitely suffers. Cramming the story's conclusion into the final 2 episodes, doesn't help either.
Having said that, I loved the cast, the premise and with how my imagination carried the conclusion forward, what I perceive as the intention behind the ending too.

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Sweet B*thcy Life

A testament that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach!

Its a story of two guys, both living alone and finding comfort in ach other through good food. One is an awkward cutie college student and one is a suave police officer.

What i liked about it is it's sweet and slow-paced approach to the story. Both characters hinted of having a sad backstory, but that wasnt the focus of the story and was only slightly brushed upon, instead they decided to keep it light and palatable that unfortunately if you look closer may make you feel that the show lacked depth. The intention of the show is just to show life is better experienced with someone you love!

Of course it didnt hurt that they cast two very good looking leads and the Japanese robotic (that should have been patented by now) acting worked out great in its favor. To be perfectly honest, nothing much has been happening every episode and the whole series would have been perfectly ok in maybe 6 episodes but seeing both of the actors just being cute together is enough to keep me watching the show. I also liked Isumi's friends especially Yohei, who acted more like a fairy god BL mother in the story.

HOWEVER, in what feels like a big clickbait BL thirsttrap, I initially thought that they were spoiling the story in the credits sequence which showed a lot of scenes of Isumi and Kyosuke being sweet together and holding hands in public. The truth is those sequences wasnt even shown in the actual series (the same exact sequence and a just a tad more was just shown in the last few minutes as a closing montage of their time together). There was even a time around the middle episodes when i was even questioning whetherthis was in fact just a bromance show and a one-sided unrequited love and that Amasawa only really saw Isumi as a younger brother and Isumi was only misinterpreting Amasawa's actions. Every next episode preview would tease us that something sweet will be happening in the next episode only for it to turn out into nothing the next week. It only really paid off during the last few minutes of the finale and by that time you feel like you just havent seen enough of the two as a couple together.

With that consideration aside, i still feel like it is a good enough show that would even be better binged in a day or two seating. Will i recommend the show? Yes definitely. Will I rewatch? Maybe not entirely.

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Cultural shock

I don't throw around the word "masterpiece" a lot, but if there's one, it's this drama. Back in the day I remember I was watching, and enjoying, a certain American show about politics. Then I came about watching Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan and I could never look at that other show the same. The intrigues and politics within the imperial harem made the other work feel like it was targeted at school kids.

Now, I don't mean to trash that other show. it was objectively good in its own right. But the reaction I had to Legend of Concubine Zhen Huan was akin to a cultural shock. The script, the dialogues, the thoughts of characters, their motivations and actions were so intelligent in my eyes, I couldn't get over the fact that at the end of the day, it was just a piece of entertainment.

The show has an impressive number of 76 episodes, but there's not a dull moment. The epic story spanning over the years had me gripped, worried, angry, scared, cheering for love and in constant awe. The pacing is phenomenal, the acting really good, the writing is perfection.

I love that the show is not simply set in historical setting, but characters are acting according to times and their position within the society. Some historical dramas feel like they're simply using historical aesthetics for telling modern stories. Not in here. The main character is an extremely intelligent, well-educated woman, but she knows what is the appropriate behaviour expected of her.

Which leads me to my other point. This is a show about women, featuring a lot of great female characters. Some of whom are incredibly strong and formidable. But the way it's done is not through girl bossification, cardboard stick figure character portrayal, who's just as smart as dumb are her opponents. This is a story of truly wise women, who use their power smartly. And as this drama shows, not always is the loudest person the most formidable enemy and the most dangerous ones are the ones you don't see coming. Consort Hua and what happens to her being the case in point (I love her character to the bits, by the way).

This drama is a 10/10. Absolutely fantastic.

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Whatever you do, you can't change what is destined to happen!

A story of a lost soul who tries to make things right in the present after being in the future for 4 minutes. 

It had a grand start filled with thrills, naked white butts, and lots of anticipation of great content. Another BL with a time travel theme got me interested in watching. It was going very well; I understood what was going on and created a link in my mind. But soon after episode 4, things started going downhill. I lost track of what was going on and totally got confused with the storyline. If I were to name a drama as a show-off, then this is the shinning example of it. Wait, this is literally synonymous to BOC now!

Even though I understood what was happening at the last 4 minutes of EP 8, in general the story feels like a fever dream where you feel like you understand the situation but still can't figure out what and why that is happening. And after waking up, you completely forgot what it was all about. The storyline is so erratic that I lost interest in the middle. There were different storylines, and they wanted to give attention to every one of them, but while doing that, they lost the actual significance of the show. Maybe it's not that complicated, but sure, it is confusing. Still, I watched it because I wanted to reach the conclusion. So I can't really point out what I liked or disliked, as I feel like I'm in a daze to conclude anything. 

It had a big budget, great artists, and beautiful and aesthetic cinematography, but it fell short in terms of storytelling and binding the whole thing together. Again, it is proved that BOC failed to deliver a compelling story and tried to hide it with NC scenes and handsome faces. I had high expectations, but now I'm utterly disappointed. I can't rate this show high just because of its high content value. I do enjoy the complicated storylines, but I can't lose my brain cells over 8 episodes of content. Maybe I'm too dumb for this; it's not for me.

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Cross-cultural love

I'm a sucker for cross-culture love dramas. Usually they flopped because the leads couldn't understand each other. Particularly bad have been some Japan-China or Japan-Taiwan tie-ups. It was pretty clear the leads didn't understand each other.

Most recently there was another Japanese-Korean drama called Eye Love You which was great too because the leads understood each other. However, it soon became draggy and tried to achieve too many things, probably because it had more episodes than were needed.

In this drama, I read that FL learned Japanese for the role and it shows as both clearly understand each other and can react accordingly. This is a simple sweet and short love drama! Fast moving too. Loving it!

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