Reviews

For my totally uneventful weekend, I planned to spice things up with what I thought would be a breathtaking fantasy romance. I also love both leads from other dramas so I knew that they can act.

Here I am at 1am at the end of my weekend, and after a marathon of watching I have to say I was insanely disappointed.

Story:

The story is so insanely dramatic, if you are the hopeless romantic type (lets face it most of us are on MDL) you might forgive lapses here and there in certain dramas *cough*Boys over flowers*cough*, but here its too constant, that you feel your intelligence is insulted. Everyone is in love with the main lead and she is 2D throughout the drama and not at all relatable. Then the love triangle eventually morphs into a love octagon, which is too convoluted. If that wasn't bad enough, the love that they express and the decisions they make with that love in mind should have them in straightjackets! I think the whole cast could probably benefit from a reeducation on love, especially script writers.

Acting:

I like the main leads acting, I just wish the script hadn't let them down. I couldn't help but get annoyed at the fact that Bai Zi Hua didn't really get any character development until the last 5 episodes of the show. Also Hua Qian Gu was nicely portrayed but the character wasn't created with much depth. The rest of the cast were highly irritating from the forced constant laughs, repeated draggy scenes, unrealistic love portrayals and lack of emotional depth.

Music:

Music was probably my favourite it flowed well with the show.

Rewatch value:

Rewatch? I would rather tap dance on my kidneys!

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Hmm.. Good, but not drama-of-the-year-omg-i-wont-be-able-to-sleep-for-a-week-good.
Basically, there was a point after the 12th episode where I thought: "wait -- just where did those 12 hours go?" because the plot progresses so little despite many loooong scenes of veryveryvery fast action. In the first few eps, there was an accent on Je Ha's fighting abilities; he fought using systema, tae kwan do and all kinds of other martial arts, and it was quite interesting and impressive. But most of the action scenes after that were filmed in the dark and involved guns, and although you could see there was fighting involved, you couldn't really distinguish what was going on.

The beginning was promising - well, not the very beginning. The first episode [[this review contains no spoilers, i'll just explain how part of the summary is carried out in the first ep so that you get an idea of the pace]], the first episode is Anna running around town and wandering alone for an hour. She encounters Je Ha at the end and we're left with a cliffhanger. Yeah, that was one hour of her running in a dress and looking slightly out of it and full of despair. Too. long.

But I wanted to see what this mysterious 'K2' was all about. In the first few screen hours he was soo cool and mature.. But boom! suddenly he meets Anna and it's LOVE (get it?) Yes. Love. Love makes people blind, or in his case, pabo. Stupid. It was impressive -you had K2, the dude no one can beat for the serious stuff, and then there was the lighthearted (TOO lighthearted) moments of the drama, Je Ha was an incredible fool for Anna. Everyone knows an annoying couple who likes to display overly public display of attention. That's them basically.

About Anna: It's futile talking about her. She has 0 character development. Ah yeah, she goes from (stupid) girl who's been trapped for years and doesn't know anything about the world yet is seeking revenge --> cutesy little girl who still gives her trust easily and is nice to everyone (she's still stupid and still seeks revenge as a hobby) Also 0 involvement. Honestly, take Anna's physical presence out of the drama and it won't change a thing.

Choi Yoo Jin.. In the end, she deceived everyone. Although she tried to portray a strong and independent woman, she was really weak, weak at heart, weak for love. Somehow naïve, too. She's the only one who supported the drama when Je Ha got a little boring. Song Yoon Ah sure can act, her character was very interesting, although not immensely profound, and some typical facial expressions of hers were overdone, but she was still interesting.

Evil characters: Lee Jung Jin (Yoo Jin's brother) and Kim Kap Su (Park Kwan Soo) have a decent acting, but their mimics were even more overdone than Yoo Jin's. At some point it becomes annoying and not credible.


I don't know if I should really go on with this review, all has been said really. I felt like Je Ha's character was perfect at the very beginning and during action and serious scenes where he had to fight and take decisions and save everyone. His relationship with Anna was unrealistic and made his whole aura fall apart. Yoo Jin sorta balanced it out. The last two episodes however took an unexpected turn. It was filled with action and last minute decisions, unlike many dramas where you suddenly have a mysterious hasard make everything easy and possible for the hero, then happy ending and it's a wrap. Nope, not here. That was nice. But (there's always a but) THE VERY LAST (and expected, so I'm not spoiling anything here) happy ending scenes literally RUINED that previous action. Again, way.too.much PDA. It was both inappropriate and irrelevant.

This, like many other dramas, could've been so much better blah blah blah unfortunately it was carried the wrong way.

In a nutshell:
Don't watch this if you're looking for a a great action drama.
Do watch it if you're bored (that's actually what I started doing after I realized my expectations were too high, only watched when I was bored and didn't really look forward to it anymore.)

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I don't think I can put into words how good this drama is. This is probably my first time reviewing a drama that I genuinely thought was worth watching. Sure I have watched a lot of dramas that I enjoyed but my life wouldn't be missing anything if I hadn't watched them however it is a completely different story with Hirugao. This is not just enternainment. This is art.

The story starts out slow and I was kind of bored during the first half of the drama and that is why I didn't give this drama a perfect 10 even though, trust me, after the second half you won't even remember the one time you yawned at the start. While I didn't like that sometimes the writer was about to cross the line with melodramic tendencies but this is by no means a melodrama. It presents itself for the most part with a really realistic fashion. The writer is just telling a story, she's not justifying or judging anyone, just showing us the lifes of these people as they are. By presenting a story about affairs the drama inevitably touched upon so many subjects - the purity and cruelty of human selfishness, the judgemental society we live in, people's lack of empathy, the subjectivity of evil (which I have been thinking about a lot recently) even the meaning of life and so much more. Looking back on it, I can definitely see that they created some subplots and didn't really bother to progress and polish them, but honestly I am just nitpicking.

The characters were all so realistically flawed and I loved it so much. None of them are crazy, memorable, a few housewifes, a teacher, an artist - simple humans just like us yet they show so many colors. Love and lust, purity and selfishness and other contradicting emotions go hand in hand. The writers did an amazing job at portraying the animalistic nature of humans - egoism, lust, fury- while still not forgetting the emotions that make us different from animals - love, willfulness, compassion...There are no crazy events, that could only happen on the screen. Sure there were quiet a few "crazy" scenes but they are not really crazy in the actions but more in just pure emotions, more in the way the writers weren't afraid to show that "yes, humans are like that." In some RARE cases I thought that the events and the character's decisions had an unnatural flow but it just didn't bother me that much (and trust me, everything bothers me!)

The music is amazing. The tracks perfectly fit the mood of the show. The simple, non electronic songs have this old faschioned wibe that captures the longlasting and never changing human emotions really well. The song 'Never Again' and the way it was used just confirmed my thoughts that feelings can be just as thrilling as action sequences.

The drama leaves you wondering how it is going to end till the last episode, because the characters were built so realistically it felt like you were experiencing things just as they were and since they don't know where this sin will lead them neither do you. It is not like a rom-com where even though you don't really know how it is going to end you are still 100% sure that the girl will end up with the guy and everyone will live happily ever after. This drama doesn't present itself as just casual leisure time, this is a drama that will leave you with a heavy heart and you can feel it from the first minute. The story here doesn't really have an ending but the last minute left me with a smile on my face saying "yes, this is perfect".

You need to be empathetic and open minded to watch and fully understand Hirugao. If you thought this drama was immoral I am so sorry for you but if you're a person like me who likes to think about various topics then this is the drama for you.

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I loved this movie! I understand it won't appeal for everyone though. This isn't some sort of heroic story, nor doomed romance, nor about revolution. These themes are explored, but it's mainly and mostly about the state, the condition of the country at that point in time. It's about youth distortion and chaos.

The film opens with a peculiar scene. Masanosuke (Seto Koji) gets home and realizes his shoes are wet. He accidently stepped into something disgusting with an off-putting smell. The next morning, he doesn't notice anything, however in the evening he can smell it again. He realizes something is rotten deep inside the house he was passing by. He can't clearly identify it.

We then follow three young men. One is driven by the old ways of thinking. He can't accept the upcoming change, and dreams of this heroic life probably similar to samurai stories he grew up listening to. He believes in his own grandeur and nothing else will move him. The second is all about revolution, change and movements. His mind and words are big, yet fails to capture anyone's attention. Finally there's the one indifferent to the cause, just following the tied, until he finds himself in something he can't comprehend, and with not enough resolve to follow through.

When the country is going through a state of uncertainty and distrust, those three representing different ends of the spectrum of the people in those times. So while it does represent Japan at this important time in history, but the story definitely transcends beyond its setting.

The acting doesn't disappoint, to say the least. Of course Yuuya Yagira dominates the screen in his strong presence, but the others came through when needed. Really enjoyed Okayama Amane's acting here. I'm not too familiar with Seto Koji, but he was perfect for the character he plays here. Odagiri Joe plays a supporting role but his presence was notable (& beautiful). Finally Kadowaki Mugi with her minimal presence manages to distinguish herself.

I also loved the direction and camera work. The colours used in the scenes, mostly dim, at times disturbing red, or the desolating blue, were effective in representing the mood and feeling of the characters and events. The shots were poingnant and gives us a perfect idea of the place of the characters in the whole picture. It's more symbolic than anything. In any case, the combination results in this painting full of hope and anguish. It's relentlessly beautiful.

There is so much I appreciate about this movie, but it definitely isn't one easy to recommend. I'd say if you are interested in, not that period of Japanese history, but the mental state it was in, you'll definitely enjoy it. If you're looking for a movie about extravagant heroism, this isn’t the movie for you. If you are a fan of any of the main cast, chances are you'll enjoy the movie for the acting at least, just set your expectations right. Happy Watching :D

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The first couple of episodes pull you in, lots of action, intrigues and hint of romance.
Then the politics hits you and many many uninteresting side characters, no loyalty to anyone, you never know who is with who. then you start to loose interest but still the main story keeps you addicted so you don't want to drop it.
Basically I just FF the boring details and kept watching the parts I wanted. Still I hardly missed out on anything of the main story.
Ji Chang Wook is amazing, Yoona is ok, nothing special, but the main villain vamp is just too good. You hate her for all the horrible things she does, yet you pity and feel sorry for her at the same time.
What really annoyed me was the camera work, it was so shaky, literally making me dizzy at times.
overall: Revenge revenge revenge. Don't expect it to be like healer, then you are ok. Its addictive and the story keeps you interested but it has lots of boring details.

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Japanese drama do contain interesting ideas and stories. In fact, their music is quite unique and the very appealing, which gets audience's attention. This drama is incredibly interesting, with an idea of a freelance journalist and a young director Nodoka of a cosmetic surgery clinic.

Nodoka is saved and given her face through plastic surgery. She lives with the belief that she is his wife as a result of memory loss triggered by the shock of the accident. By the time she regains her memory, she has already fallen in love with the man who is another woman’s husband.

A bit of melodrama and a bit of a love story (romance) mixed and matched. It is terrific story.

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K2 is a revenge drama and I mean everyone is out for revenge...everyone. It has action, romance and secrets that would make you think it is awesome, but there is something missing. I'm not really sure what that something is, but I think part of the problem was the boring politics and the constant switching of sides. Plus, I don't know if all the extra characters were necessary. The upside is the characters are written with flaws and darkness. You are just waiting to see who is going to literally blow up the other first. LOL The best thing is the ending as everyone seems to get what they deserve.

Ji Chang Wook is good at playing action roles and doesn't fail as Kim Je Ha. He has a way of pulling you in to a character regardless of the story line. I was fully invested in his happiness. I like Yoona, but I didn't feel for Anna like I thought I would. I'm not sure if that was her acting or the writing. I was more worried for her through Je Ha's character. Song Yoon Ah as Choi Yoo Jin stole the show. I seriously didn't know if I loved her, pitied her or just hated her. She and Jo Sung Ha as Jang Se Joon are just excellent veteran actors.

The music is fine.

I won't rewatch this.

If you like revenge dramas, then this one is for you.

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JI is an unusual drama. The story is character driven and they are written in a delightfully fun but deep way. The writer uses comedy to lighten the deep issues in this drama such as breast cancer and asexuality. The fun of the drama is seeing the original view points of each character from the main leads to the women who were once married to the same man. I enjoyed the character's relationships with each other so much and they all had great chemistry with each other.

Jo Jung Suk's is seriously willing to do anything for his character and shows that as Lee Hwa Shin. I love him so much for playing this role. Gong Hyo Jin's niche is romantic comedy and she does not fail as Pyo Na Ri. I did get a little second male lead syndrome for Go Kyung Pyo. Go Jeong Won is so sweet and cute. All of the actors are good!!!

The music is good.

I probably won't rewatch this.

If you like romantic comedy, then you will like this drama.

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SKL is a wonderfully Korean cliche' drama reminiscent of Shining Inheritance. The story is fluffy but also has a depth of character that is engaging. The writer takes all the troupes of a Korean melodrama with out the melo. I enjoyed it like it was a brand new drama. It also had a lovely ending. It isn't my typical kind of drama as I am more into the melo, but I was pulled in from the very beginning. Even the ending is good.

Seo In Guk is such a beautiful soul as Louis. I enjoyed every special, silly and romantic moment of his relationship with Go Bok Shil (Nam Ji Hyun). Bok Shil is a smart, strong character who has a naivety that is cute rather than annoying. The other actors are good too.

I enjoyed the music.

I might rewatch this some day.

If you enjoy romance, then this is totally the drama for you. Love from beginning until the end.

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