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Story:
From reading the plot summary, I couldn't help myself but trying to watch this. The plot seemed unique to me. I'm glad I checked it out! What really drove the story the most though were the characters developing and their chemestry.
Acting:
I didn't start watching it for the actors at first but the table turned quickly. Ryu Joon Yeol and Hwang Jung Eum made me fall in love with them quickly. I read in the comments for this drama that some people were bashing Ryu Joon Yeol because he "wasn't handsome enough" for them... Let me tell you, while watching this he was the most handsome man in the world for me because of his CHARISMA! His acting, the character he played... I fell so hard for him. The chemistry between the leads was awkward but cute and lovely and I definetly laughed my ass off more than a few times while watching this.
Music:
Not much to say; Good for the athmosphere and fitting depending on the situations.
Rewatch value:
Already watched it twice and would go for a third time.
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Story:
The writing, how the plot was playing out and how they made a construct of problems and obstacles only to make the character's find a solution which is even more amaizing, surprising and especially: clever!; is what made me being glued to the screen.
Acting:
The actors... don't make me start on them! They did an amaizing job! The acting, especially from Nam Goong Min, captivated me to the extend that I forgot everything around me. Nam Goong Min did an amaizing job of delivering the comedy through facial expressions, way of talking and simple body movements (I have a folder on my computer which is Nam Goong Min's facial expressions only, I swear)
Music:
I don't remember the music that much but I remember that the athmosphere was captivating and on point throughout the drama. The music plays a huge role in that aspect and that's why there is nothing to complain about ^^
Rewatch value:
I can 100% see myself watching this drama again to enjoy the cleverness, unique acting and the overall feel it has!
Thanks for that drama!
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It's really awkward how Japan is the first to develop the genre of BL through whole Asia, but they are way behind despite the number of fans there are. These films are not broadcasted in any major theater, and it also doesn't have that much production costs (lol) so you know, it becomes hard.
One thing, its also awkward (srry for using this word again) when this story is developed through 2 continuous films (mon?thurs and this one) but all the "omg I'm in love with him what should I do" thing happens in the last 30 mins.
I guess James got the hang of his character, and his acting shows that. Although, the actor who played Touji doesn't stand out to me, and his acting is not in line with James. Also, I gave music a weird number because I literally don't remember it at all (even though I watched it 2 times), and that means its not disturbing nor enhancing the story in any way.
Although, I gave it a rewatch value of 7.5 because I did rewatch it myself.
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First of all, I'll like to say that the overall concept of the culture of hazing in SOTUS is very well developed and portrayed. Some people say that they didn't find it to be a BL series until after the first few chapters, but I think that is what makes it so good. The transition from junior-senior relation hardships to the love affair seems very natural and the story treasures the portrayal of senior-junior relationship until the end. The fact that it centers on the SOTUS system was a great success and left many emotions on the viewer. I guess these are the main reasons why many international fans actually watched all the episodes on one night (including me), just because the storyline is very well developed and so sweet.
Of course, the success of the series can be well explained by the writing, which is very well done by Bittersweet. It might have been very hard for her to transform a novel into a drama script, but everything was just on the point and I feel that she has full control of all the characters. All the side-characters are also very fun and interesting, because each of them have distinct characteristics, which is often hard to achieve because BL works often just focus on the main couple.
There were some criticisms and quarrels regarding the casting, but they all did a great job at the end. A novel adaption always have those criticisms on how the actors don't really represent the character well (like Krist not looking like Arthit). Although, in the end, there are so many fans attracted to their chemistry and if it was not these two, SOTUS wouldn't have been highly rated as it is now (and vice versa, SingtoKrist wouldn't have been this popular if it wasn't for SOTUS). That's why I gave it a 9.5 for both ratings (the leftover 0.5 is left for my high expectations for SOTUS S).
About the music, it was GREAT. I usually don't really mind about the music used for dramas (unless it sucks as much as it disturbs the story), but is was the best-fit for this series. The song, "Soh Sut Soh Say" performed by Keng Thachaya, was recurring through the episodes, which is actually really risky because if the music is too catchy, it might disturb the actual scenes. Although, for this case, it enhanced the story so much. Its catchiness was a success, and it also made a good fit into the a bit scary hazing SOTUS atmosphere as well.
Moreover, I love Gun Achi's voice, and the song, "A Secret in Our Hearts", is very dramatic and fits into SOTUS so well.
At some scenes, the song is very LOUD, but its SO GOOD. For the climax scenes, the acapella version was played, and it portrays Arthit's feelings really really well (although I didn't understand the lyrics at first sight). I've downloaded the song right after I finished the series, and am listening to it everyday, literally everyday.
(I just imagined if it wasn't Gun, it might have been disturbing haha)
The instrumental versions were nicely incorporated too; the editing was nicely done with successful cuts and fade aways which did not hinder any of the scenes at all. I think this recurring use of the same song lead to the success as it is ingrained in the viewer's minds (in mine too), and could recall the series as soon as that upbeat music starts playing.
Well, all this leads to a rewatch value of 10, because...you know. I rewatched it for a hundred times like crazy.
If I would suggest an improvement for this series, maybe there could have been an additional episode (or one episode could have been used) for Arthit trying to find out his feelings more, because it was kind of sudden for him to speak to P'Tum and make up his mind.
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One main complain I have about this that I was looking for more romance but it was kind of absent throughout the whole drama? If you are looking for a rom-com to watch then this isn't it. the acting and cast was pretty okay. There are many cute actors. XD The music wasn't really memorable except for the opening song? The rewatch value is really low because there was honestly not much plot to begin with and there isn't enough cute scenes to make me want to rewatch the drama. Hence, I would recommend this drama to people who are looking for a light-hearted drama to kill time with.
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Allow me to expand on some of the specifics of why Goblin was life changing. If you know me you know that I am obsessed with character and character development. This drama is chock-full of amazingly written characters and all go through massive transformations. The stagnation in the Goblin and Grim Reaper's lives disappears when they meet their soul mates. As a plot device this use of love and lovers is refreshing as it is definitely the men who change for their love (instead of the usual over-accommodating woman who plagues dramaland). Aside from character there is the aesthetic. Goblin had a massive budget and it is clearly seen in every facet of the drama. The cinematography deserves unending praise, the acting is of the highest quality, the plotline is refreshingly unique. Their sets, wardrobes, worlds are immersive in the utmost. The atmosphere these minor details create lends itself perfectly to the story and makes the mood created by the actors and writers to be all the more real. Goblin's melancholy, something that so many dramas try and fail to achieve, was breathtaking. As I have said before I love sad dramas. This drama made me cry every episode, and not because it was ridiculously melodramatic. Most of the time it was the side stories I cried over (the Grim Reaper's side plots). These stories, so superfluous to the main plot, show the exacting attention to detail that was used in this drama. They were moving, beautiful, heartbreaking stories and they left you feeling both empty and full. Full of life and a love for humanity. Goblin's greatest achievement, in my opinion, is empathy. Every character (or at least every character we don't necessarily hate) can be empathized with. Every episode you can change who you most identify with and yet never feel disconnected from any other character. This is a feat so difficult to accomplish that I have only ever encountered it in Anna Karenina before.
I know this review wasn't the most informative but I feel that the emotional response to Goblin that I and so many others felt is the best possible recommendation and review I can give.
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This was by no means a perfect work of art and I get the distinct impression that the writer kind of lost her way when it got to the end of it. However, I liked this drama and I'm not sure if it's because I've gotten soft when it comes to dramas or if I'm being blinded by my new love of Min-Hyuk. As someone who always scrutinizes stories and will drop a drama in a millisecond if I'm displeased, I never once felt the urge to drop this drama even though there were quite a few "are you fxkjncvkkj serious?" and "fx!!k this crap" moments. I even fell behind and usually when I fall behind on episodes is when I realize I don't miss them and drop, but I still managed to get caught up with this one.
I think Ha Ji-won did an excellent job at portraying her role of Dr. Song Eun-Jae.. She was especially good when it was the emotional scenes because I thought that was when we got to see the strength of her acting. Kang Min-hyuk surprised me a lot. I have never seen anything with him in it before (i never made it long enough with The Heirs to even notice he was in that.) I think Min-hyuk did a pretty good job at portraying the Dr. Kwak Hyun.. I enjoyed how .. for lack of a better word.. "sweet" Hyun was. He always was genuine in whatever he did and I felt the sincerity every time. A lot of people have complained that he is the weakest part of the drama and I wholeheartedly disagree. Min-hyuk may not have been playing some revolutionary character, but he definitely got the job done. This brings me to the people who said there was a lack of chemistry.. I truly believe chemistry is subjective because I can tell you that I did not feel an ounce of chemistry between a certain kdrama couple that everyone and their mama loves which have a similar age gap that I thought was painfully noticeable. I guess when its top stars yall have different standards. Truthfully, I wasn't even aware that there was a 13 year age gap until I tried to find out who Min-hyuk was.
Another thing I liked about the drama was the moments where we got to see the Hospital Ship really shine as a family. I felt as though those scenes were far and few in between and would've been more impactful if they were more frequent. Nonetheless, the cast worked well together and the few things that I found to be amiss were generally the points where everything felt overly saturated with nonsense. Like the dentist was listed as a main (on wiki), but I literally cannot tell you a darn thing about him. I also felt some of the plot lines existed for no reason and feel kind of half done? The last two episodes felt like a bit of a "we forgot to really sell the romance, lets do bullcrap." /I/ would've done this a different way but I am not Yoon Sun-Ho so I mean whatever.
Is it the best medical drama out there? No. Is it the best storyline ever? No. However, I think Hospital ship was a quite pleasant drama.
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That was until the last couple of episodes happened. It felt like the writer of this show just had a sudden idea at the end of making this story and they wanted to insert it no matter what, or just had the idea all along and couldn't mix it well with the rest of the plot. Either way, it is didn't work out and they were a lot of plot holes and unanswered questions. Also, the relationship between the princess and the other man bothered me.
But I'm going to look over all that since I'd enjoyed almost everything about this drama and don't want to ruin the experience. Besides, episode 20 went back to original funny vibes of the show and it was really entertaining. I'd love to see more about Ji Man and Da Xi.
Recommended if you want to watch a (mostly) lighthearted drama with a lot of funny moments.
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Getting into the details, I would have to say that this season is inferior to the first one, but it's certainly not disappointing.
The story and subplots were solid, but none were particularly as outstanding as the ones in the first season. It did get melodramatic at times, but maintained a good slice-of-life balance, as it was realistic in depicting how life gets tough and dark, yet life goes on. The first episode was definitely the best; it was a great and dramatic return to the belle epoque we know and love. Jiwon's development arc was amazing, as she gained a bigger focus this season, Yeeun's arc was a bit stilted, but it did fine in articulating a sensitive topic of trauma. It was also awesome seeing our loving motherly Jinmyung finally paving her path in the world, and since season 1 was her success story, she played more of a supporting role in the plots of others, which was still great to see. The addition of Joeun was great as well; she has a relatable subplot, and the actress is completely charming and adorable. Unfortunately, I personally found Eunjae's arc to be highly unsatisfying and unconvincing. It was mostly due to the writing and partially to do with the recasting. I'm not going to blame the actress because her hands were really tied by the fact that Park Hyesoo had defined Eunjae too well as her own character and the writers not being more adventurous with her development.
As always, the music is fun and sets the mood really nicely throughout the drama. The girls are hilarious and this slice-of-life is totally rewatchable. The acting of all the girls was great; I wasn't particularly impressed by the male actors except for Kwon Hochang's actor, becuase that was a tough portrayal.
Overall, this is still an amazing follow-up drama, but I wouldn't say it has the strength to stand apart from it's explosively well received predecessor. Give it a watch!
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The ending was the best part of the whole movie, but actually I enjoyed
the chemistry between the girl and her two boys. Overall the story
wasn't that bad, though it wasn't something you haven't watched before.
At least, it was cute and sweet, though it did move a bit fast. The
acting was nice as well, simple and not too over the top that manga
based movies usually tend to have. So 6 out of 10.
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This review may contain spoilers
Misaeng is my favorite drama of all time. I think it's one of the most important Korean dramas to have ever been made. So it's saying something when I say that Age of Youth 1 and 2 rival my love for Misaeng. I love these dramas.Season 2 manages to do what most sequels can't do, and that's be just as good as the first season. Even three cast changes can't stop this drama from hitting it out of the park. There's no one in this drama you hate, no one you can't relate to in some way. The story tackles a number of heavy topics with deft hands and a gentle gaze. And just like season 1, you find yourself wishing you could be part of this group of girls, because you'll never find better friends than them.
This is a ten-star drama, and you need to watch it.
FUTURE EDIT: I need to add a caveat here that I didn't in my initial review for reasons I don't know anymore, but there is one thing about this drama that disappoints, and that is the lack of conclusion to what was the most anticipated romance in both seasons to date. But I temper that disappointment with the reckless faith that that simply means we will be getting a season 3 where the romance will come to fruition and all will be well and happy and beautiful with the world. (FUTURE FUTURE EDIT: Ah, sweet, naïve, innocent me, thinking there could ever possibly be a season 3.)
Also, I rebuke that episode 7 urn epilogue in the name of Jesus Christ. Get behind me Satan.
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