Reviews

i came back after almost 3 years

i remember watching this series when it was airing but i dropped it back then because I didn't really had much time.

now after so much time i came back because i wanted to see more of First acting (i actually became his fan because of this series) and god was it my mistake.

until 11th episode i was so happy and loved it but oh my frickin god how i hate bad endings. i never liked stories that had soul exchange as a plot but i really wanted to give this another try (and in some twisted way it was worth it and i love firsts acting so much).

this is honestly the first series that made go on ao3 and look for another ending stories because im fuckin in shambles, crying mess.

but if you like angst then go for it!! the acting is good and even thought its sometimes a bit second hand embarrassment worth i still think that its a good series, its just that the ending (and main point of the story to be honest) is not for me.

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Beautiful relationships, costumes, cinematography, music

Beautiful cinematography, outstanding OST, loving, romantic relationships (both main couple and secondary couple), and the shorter format makes it well edited and easy/fast to watch. In the latter half, the relationship between the big bad Marquis and his wife is surprisingly entertaining. There are also cameos from couples from the director's other short dramas, and now I have to go search for them. The voices of the main and secondary couples are also soft and lovely to listen to.

Highly recommended. I rarely watch any c-drama all the way through, but this drama was utterly charming and beautiful. The only downside was the lighting/makeup on very close kissing closeups.

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Finally! A Story with Substance.

I admit, I choose dramas with hot eye candy leads and a whole lot of romance. I have only recently started watching modern day dramas, preferring the historical costume dramas instead. All the Way to the Sun made me happy I have crossed over.

It was very satisfying to see characters with such depth. It was even more satisfying to see female characters who were not silly, petulant, helpless ninnies swooning and fighting over men. Landy Li and Naomi Wang were superb in their roles of Li Mu Jia and Tian Rong. Very worthy of mention was Yuan Ran's performance as the lady boss. What a strong, classy woman! Wang Yang was swoonworthy as the older, wiser, more reserved leading man. Loved his expressions and the way they showed his emotions even when there was no dialog to go with it. Xu Shao Ying's portrayal of Wan Bing was so down-to-earth and sincere too.

The writer did a wonderful job bringing this story to the screen, and the director guided the actors to make the characters real and relatable. The OST was very appropriate and beautiful, enhancing the scenes and situations. All around, this production was so well done. I hope to watch more dramas by all of these players.

Dramas like these touch on so many relevant themes - family, culture, human flaws and weaknesses, relationships, romance (I would have loved a little more of that). These stories draw us in and make us feel like we know the characters or perhaps even have experienced some of these situations ourselves. I really enjoyed watching this, and did relatively very little fast-forwarding and anticipated every episode.

I will very likely rewatch some time when I want something that is not only satisfying, but doesn't rely on silly tropes and a lot of overdone dramatics.

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The most healthy relationship ever!!!!!!!

I’ve been watching BL’s a little while now and this is the first time i’ve seen such a good and healthy relationship between the main couple. It’s sincerely and honestly one of the best dramas i’ve watched. The friends to lovers story is hilarious and cute and sweet and so so so healthy. The characters development, the way the always talk and try to work things out in the most respectful way possible is sincerely amazing. Their friends are so damn supportive and they stay with them until the end, without ever questioning anything, without being such asssh8les. Pat’s sister is the most adorable person ever, the friendship between Wai and Pran is so supportive, so important, so beautiful. Koran’s character surprised me soooo much, he really is the best friend Pat could ever ask for, just like Wai is for Pran. Ink’s character is so important and amazing too, I loved and admired her so much. Overall everyone should watch Bad Buddies Series because is honestly one of the best BL’S out there. The actors who played the main couple have such a cute chemistry and they are frankly adorable. Everyone one in this show is cute tbh. LOVED IT.

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loses itself in cheap writing

I genuinely hate to say this, but any and all hopes for jafirst getting a good series were gone within the first episodes. the acting was fine. in fact, I thought bosston did incredible for finally giving us a gay role. the issue is the writing and I feel like a broken record, but Thailand really is losing in this aspect of the industry.

this series came off so terrible, I couldn’t stop thinking it was just pulled off some 13yr olds wattpad. there were moments where punn gave us some seriousness and showed real maturity, there was also some growth for some characters, but it was all so minimal it doesn’t help the series. also, the doctor and ming?? their scenes would’ve been better if they didn’t follow every nasty trope. they were set up for failure and it sucks because I liked their chemistry.

the managers constantly going at each other was what ruined the show for me too. there were scenes about the exploitation some actors face, but genuinely, why?? it was just thrown into the mix for what felt like no reason.

anyway, I finished this just to finish it. jafirst, I love them to death, but this series is one of the worst this year. it managed to not only hold back their chemistry, but also their talents. I can only hope we get them in another series that’s written by people that know what they’re doing with one of the best chemistry pairings that are genuinely not afraid to go above and beyond.

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Sweet and slightly addictive.

This is one of those dramas you watch firstly for the friendship and secondly for the romance. As this Japanese combination of Dawsons Creek meets Cinderella with something more in between offers us a whole lot of broken dreams, beautiful friendships as well as some pretty interesting characters and some decent lines.

"Isn't it pointless to be together if we are all the same"

One thing was very clear in this drama, the characters were definitely not the same, while some were more lovable than others. I will admit there was something in this group of people that had me hooked from the first episode all the way to the end .I also found myself falling in love not only with the character Natsumi with her extremely bright smile but also with the name Natsumi.

Besides the lovely friendships, the drama also offers some really nice gestures and depictions of silent longing. The gaze in the male lead looks like he is constantly longing and about to break out in tears, offers great contrast to the female lead who seems to be able to smile though pretty much anything... Her family is overly kind one may wonder how they could survive in this world. And there are some twists that felt a bit off Ok very off so off that I felt secound hand emberrresed and felt oh come on not that trope... . However the overall feel to this is nice and cozy...

So what can I say it was a good watch, not perfect but pleasingly awkward with a hint of nostalgia...

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I liked this drama.
I was hooked to the drama because it was actress Kim so hyun's comeback drama after 2 years.
I think it was a good drama the story got a little boring towards a end. but I enjoyed it.
I was a little disappointed when guy story line came. I really have no problem with it but it really did not suit the storyline in my opinion, it maybe because I was expecting a bit of more crazy reason for the death of doha's ex. I felt a bit emptiness towards the end.
I really liked the behind the scene videos of the cast. The casting of the drama was fabulous just the story line that was a bit disappointing.
they really should have put a little more focus on thriller and mystery part of the drama.

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Emotional Rollercoaster

I would rank this as one of the top Jdrama I have watch so far as I am a sucker for tragedies. Plus, I relate to the story a lot because like the classmates, I also lost a dear friend of mine when I am around their age because of an accident. So, it is even more heart wrenching when I watched this. The only part I would probably hate is when the FL was being so dumb by wanting to abandon the chance to hang out with the deceased ML who miraculously resurrect because of some comments by the ML. Makes me so angry because I would want to talk to my late friend so badly. The drama became really meaningful after the ML's mother arc. That scene really broke me with the ML's breakdown...

Acting wise, I think Sano Hayato did a phenomenal job because I can totally feel the age differences between him and his friends. His emotional scene was great too. But I think the main highlight to this drama is really the OSTs. They are really memorable especially the one from Ace Collection. I get so emotional every time I hear that song even though I don't understand most of the lyrics. The two Maco songs were also great. I highly recommend this to everyone if you want a drama to cry for.

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the story ages well through the episodes

I didn't really want to continue after the first episode but a few days later I was bored and decided to give it a go. it's not bad if you want to watch a drama that's not really serious plus has got good comic moments between the leads. the spells and curses genre kinda doesn't fit me so I skip over those scenes but otherwise not bad. the FL's co-workers are mad annoying I try my best not to yell when they appear lol. sometimes jo bo ah's cutesy tone of talking also gets too much.
rowoon's doing a good job so far. I'm waiting to know more of Jang Shin Yu and Lee Hong Jo's past life story.
some scenes like them going on a vacation when they barely know e/o and her randomly letting him into her house at the beginning don't seem believable; she trusts him too much for being a stranger lol.

edit: 10 eps in, the story keeps getting better every episode. definitely worth a try for some good comic relief. though I'm kinda tired of the SFL.

to summerise, if you're looking for some light plotted drama with some nice comedy you can watch it in between a heavy drama for a change. if you feel like, you can skip over some scenes (as you'll still understand the story) instead of dropping it!

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Commendable Attempt to Adapt

Flowers for Algernon was actually one of my favourite novel during my teenage years as I was given this novel to dissect for my literature class. I remembered the story was very thought provoking though I forgot a lot of details as I have lost the book. But this was a commendable attempt to adapt the literature text as the ML did justice to his role. I really felt for him in all his struggles from someone who has lower IQ to become a top genius.

However, my issue with the adaptation is that a lot of the side character development got neglected. But I guess I understand its hard to develop these characters as the original text was very protagonist driven too as it was written in a first person account. I think its not an issue if its a novel but for a drama, I wish there were more development for the side characters. Also, I feel that the turning point for ML from being cold hearted when he first became a genius to realising his inner warmth felt very abrupt too. Perhaps, the drama would benefit from a longer episode span. I was kinda meh with Haruka's acting too, felt that the actress is having issues with embodying and relating to her character.

The choice of OST was really good, I think it fits the story and a nod to nostalgia since the original text is pretty old. But like many Jdrama, I wish they would have more OSTs for a drama.

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This series is a 10

I like plots like this, realistic ones. When I watch Yoh I understand when sometimes he can’t speak up and say the things he wants to say. I relate much to Yoh so I love him. I just have to say how hot they are! They look so handsome and cute at the same time. I saw the behind the scenes and they’re so cute together! Mizuki getting jealous is the cutest! I love this series and I hope you will too. It’s a shame it’ll only get a few episodes and we’re nearing the end but I pray for season 2!! I don’t know why the rating is messed up but this series is a 10 for me <3

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An okay romance with a dull mystery

This is the kind of drama that would be much better as a pure romcom, as the mystery just drags it down. It's hard to balance these two genres, and this drama didn't have either the writing or the acting to pull it off. Some of this is to be expected - it's hard to write a mystery show when you give the FL the ability to tell if people are lying. That just makes solving problems way too easy.

The main reason I watched this in the first place was because I was curious to see how MinHyun's character would be, it seemed it would be different from his previous shows with a darker element. But it's more of the same, he's a nice, somewhat bland lead, and the FL is more of the same. Here it makes the mystery part of the show even more dull to watch. Neither of them seemed to be able to show passion in general.

The positive is that some of the side characters grew on me. I liked the other characters who work with the FL, and I found the characters in the ML's life generally interesting as well. All of them just seemed more lively/interesting than either of the leads. It's not exactly good when you finish a show and wish you could replace both the leads with the side characters instead.

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Straightforward Romance Drama

I have to admit that I did not watch the original Korean drama, so I am reviewing this work independently. I think its an enjoyable romantic drama with a straightforward plot where the FL who lacks confidence works her way up and finding a goal to what she wants to do. Nothing special.

I think the problem I have with the plot is when the 2FL got into a love triangle with the main leads and there was one whole episode where the FL just kinda not talk to the ML because she felt bad for the 2FL who is her best friend. The lack of anger was quite weird to me as the 2FL was seeing the ML being her back. I would feel kinda piss tbh if that happens to me as I would have expect the best friend to be truthful to me at least. The ML not finding out the 2FL real identity after so many hints also doesn't make sense too. But I do like the 2ML a lot and felt bad for him when FL didn't have feelings for him. But the chemistry between FL and ML is still good and thank goodness he was only mean to her for like the first few episodes. I don't think I will rate so highly if I seen more episodes of ML verbally abusing the FL... And I was also kinda skeptical of the ending for 2ML, I don't think he really needs to quit the company because he reviewed that he is a famous ghostwriter.

Beyond these plotholes, I think he was a nice watch. But some of the acting was a miss to me especially the FL and 2FL. I can't relate emotionally in their crying scenes which I normally can since I cry very easily. The music was also quite forgettable and a wasted opportunity to have a good and touching OST song. I would rewatch this though as it's a feel good show overall.

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Fluffy romance but thriller part was quite disappointing

The drama is a decent watch if you like fluffy romance. The ML and FL are cute and very complementary in their personalities. They meet again and start to learn about each other, trust each other and the dating stage drags to arrive but there is obviously something between them. SML is not too clingy, and he has his priorities. SFL is childish so no worries from this side. There are also 3 secondary romances that were not so interesting for me, but I believe that some others will enjoy them.

The thriller part is interesting and intriguing at first. Because there are little infos and the mystery has huge consequences on the ML. But when the truth starts to unveil, the victim gained little sympathy but more pity from me. The final twist is surprising because it follows an unexpected and unusual path for kdramas but it also looks cheap and lazy writing. To put all this on one sided feelings and accidents…

The drama suffered from the characterization of the ML. He was way to nice always saying sorry and full of good intentions… to the point he looked bland to me. He also had little good impact on the others and he barely contributed to the solving of the mystery. I loved the FL. She brought light and fun to the drama with a great personality dealing with ML, SML, clients, her parents, employees, rival… SML Is my fav ML. I liked how he dealt with his personal issue and how he did his job despite the uneasy situation. The culprit was also a complex and interesting character with good intentions and very bad actions.

Overall, it was ok but wish the ML was stronger or maybe it was the lead male actor. His acting was below par compared to the other lead actors and especially the SM lead actor. It showed. But I wish him the best like to the others. 7.5/10

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