Completed
My Journey to You
8 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 9.5
Story 9.0
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 9.5

Highlights: The Women of Wufeng

Gorgeous actors, great acting, intriguing script that kept you guessing, luxurious costumes, beautiful sets, detailed choreography, this is one of the best produced drama I've seen. Even the fight scenes look so pleasing to the eyes.

MJTY has a dark theme to it, with black, red, gray color pallete with rarely a bright yellow scene with warm sunlight in it. The drama mostly takes place in the Gong Residence, and even with all the spies theme, it kinda feels sort of like a slice of life to me, but filled with lies and intrique, like a palace dynamic but make it wuxia. I liked it.

The story flows through the characters with ease, and i loved how the plot really depends on each characters and how it includes all of them in the story. This is thrilling, but also melancholic and filled with mind games.

For those who didn't mind a slow paced, a bit heavy story, with dark undertone, I think you'll like this one.

P.S: Personally the Wufeng women are the highlight of this show like they carry nearly all the plot it's amazing. Their dynamics?? Their backhanded interactions?? The best.

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Completed
Arthdal Chronicles: The Sword of Aramun
32 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
12 of 12 episodes seen
Completed 1
Overall 9.5
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 9.5
Rewatch Value 9.5

DON'T STOP

Eun Seom, Sa Ya, Ta Gon, Tanya, Taelha, You'll get blown away, with a set of more ruthless and ambitious characters, much deeper and intimate actors, there is no way you'd want to stop watching the show that might be the ultimate fantasy kdrama we have been waiting for all year and I'll give my reasons why.

After learning earlier this year that I had to say goodbye to Song and hello to Joon Gi, I can't say that I was disappointed so I spent much of my time stalking Joon Gi's Instagram where I couldn't get enough of the teasers, first looks and small scenes, lemme cut the long story short.

The execution of this drama this time round is something that I found very interesting and I have loved every bit of it, as our characters have become more mature, they have become complicated as well but don't get me wrong the story won't be confusing because I love complicated characters.

There's much more to tell.

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Completed
The Untamed
5 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
50 of 50 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 9.5
Acting/Cast 9.5
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10
This review may contain spoilers

World just need an Excuse to Make Someone Villain and only Know to Shift the Blame.

.........................................................
Thoughts before starting and after watching:
.........................................................

I wasn't sure before starting this, whether I should give it a try or not... Actually, I was new to Cdramas that time and was searching for good dramas and also not into BLs (many people titled it as BL and the novel itself is a BL).

I am glad that I watched it... I don't know how the original novel is, but this drama is not a BL for sure... It is more like a friendship drama to me.... As many fans state they feel something more than friendship between main leads... but honestly, in my country, this refers to friendship among people that one can go to this extent for his bosom friend. The main focus of drama is on the core of the story, that is very interesting and worth to be praised... So, from my perspective, it's not a BL but a friendship drama which holds so much to learn about life...to come clear, I believe, majority of fans that see it as BL are the book fans, but I respect others opinion.. so no hate to anyone...

..........................................................
Plot:
.........................................................

The pugilist world is ruled by the powerful Wen clan, which dominates over the smaller Lan, Jiang, Jin and Nie Clans...

Qishan Wen Clan, use fire-based techniques, dominating the land with its arrogance and might but secretly practice unorthodox methods of cultivation...Residence - Nightless City...

Gusu Lan Clan, the most righteous sect, specialized in music techniques, values etiquette, discipline and orthodoxy the most, and have more than 3000 family rules... Residence - Cloud Reassess...

Yunmeng Jiang Clan, skilled in water-related techniques, values passion and compassion... Residence - Lotus Pier...

Lanling Jin Clan, the richest clan.. But along with being rich, they are also equally arrogant... Residence - Golden Koi Tower...

Qinghe Nie Clan, specialized in sabre techniques... Residence - Unclean Realm...

Wei Ying, the first disciple of Jiang Clan and raised by Jiang Clan Leader, sent to Cloud Reassess along with Jiang Cheng and Jiang YanLi (children of Jiang Clan Leader) to take lessons from Lan Clan... The disciples from other clans also came to Cloud Reassess to take lessons...

While studying and training in Cloud Reassess, Wei Ying strikes up an unconventional friendship with Lan Zhan, the second son of Lan Clan Leader and one of "Twin Jades of Lan".... They accidentally discovered the secret of the Yin Metal and after following the clues, they discover that the head of the Wen clan is the evil mastermind behind a series of plots that would wreak havoc in the world. However, their attempt to foil the Wen Clan Leader's wicked plans go wrong. A series of disastrous events made Wei Ying to gave away his spiritual powers to Jiang Cheng and forced him to put his screws on "Demonic Cultivation" by practicing music, to protect himself and others...

His unmatched powers and unrestrained personality have caused almost everyone to view him as a threat and he was being ostracized to use unorthodox methods of cultivation and to protect the innocent remnants of the Wen Clan after its fall... Apart, Lan Zhan, no one was by his side at the end of the day...
And in a dramatic turn of events, Wei Ying died...

Sixteen years later, Wei Ying is revived and brought back to life by some demonic means by Mo Xuanyu... Wei Ying takes up the identity of his summoner and soon reunited with Lan Zhan and become involved in solving the mysteries of the present and finding the ultimate villain behind current conspiracies, his own death and treacherous schemes of past....

.........................................................
Introduction to Main Characters:
.........................................................

Wei Ying (Xiao Zhan): Courtesy name "WuXian".... The infamous "Yiling Patriarch", a free-spirited, friendly, clever, mischievous and straightforward young man. Has a fearless, unrestrained and compassionate personality... renowned for his excellent swordsmanship before but later for unrivalled demonic powers... His spritual sword and demonic flute named as "Suibian" and "Chen Qing" respectively...
.........................

Lan Zhan (Wang YiBo): Courtesy name "WangJi"..... Renowned as "Hanguang Jun", a cold and aloof person, but justice-loving, observant, clever and disciplined young man. A prodigy in both music and swordsmanship... He is the kind of person who doesn't attach himself to anyone easily, but once he does, he can go against everyone to protect his bosom friend... His spiritual sword and guqin named as "Bichen" and "Wangji" respectively...
..........................

Jiang Cheng (Wang Zhuo Cheng): Courtesy name "WanYin".... Competitive, strict and passionate... sometimes ruthless and arrogant but still care for his loved ones... and for an age, when young, Wei Ying's partner-in-crimes...
...........................

Wen Ning (Yu Bin): Courtesy name "Qiong Lin"... Well known as "Ghost General"... A grateful and loyal person... He is actually a very sweet and loving person but fate never do good to such type of people....
..........................

Jiang YanLi (Xuan Lu): Kind, elegant, gentle and loving person....
..........................

Lan Huan (Liu Hai Kuan): Courtesy name "XiChen" and addressed as "Zewu Jun", Calm, elegant and wise... A reasonable and kind person...
.........................

Jin Guang Yao (Zhu Zan Jin): Got a title of "Liangfang Zun" and also known as "Meng Yao". The illegitimate son of Clan Leader Jin.... Loving, kind and humble on surface but deep down equally manipulative, shrewd, cruel and scheming....
.........................

Nie Huai Sang (Ji Li): Second Young Master and later Leader of Nie Clan... Timid, carefree and fun-loving but truly slick, cunning and crafty from inside...
.........................

Wen Qing (Meng Zi Yi): A well-known physician of Wen Clan... a great friend and grateful person... Skilled in swordsmanship and her medical skills are unparalleled...
.........................

Some notable characters from seniors are Nie Ming Jue, Wen Chao, Xue Yang, Xiao Xing Chen and Song Zi Chen..... From juniors... Lan Si Zhui, Lan Jing Yi, Jin Ling and Ouyang Zi Zhen....

.........................................................
Acting:
.........................................................

The whole cast was new to me and I admit, the acting by the whole cast is just marvelous... Mostly artists had not much of acting experience that time, so took time to get into the characters but once they did, they gave remarkable performances... One can feel their development and improvement easily... and can't help but praising their excellent abilities from the bottom of heart....
I had never watched a drama with Xiao Zhan or Wang YiBo before this but now I am a fan of Zhan and YiBo and many of the actors worked in this drama.

.........................................................
My Verdict:
.........................................................

Wei Ying and Lan Zhan really got my heart and I have no words to explain how my much I loved these two characters. Opposite personality like fire and ice but best friends and loyal to each other.

When Wei Ying died, he regretted his decisions because at the end of the day, he couldn't save any of them he wanted to save and felt guilty and responsible for all those deaths....
On the other hand, Lan Zhan regretted his decisions to not support Wei Ying from very start and couldn't save him when he wanted to protect and support him....
But.. when life gave them another chance to make up for their regrets... they cherished each other 'cause Wei Ying didn't have anyone who trusted him except Lan Zhan... and Lan Zhan didn't have someone like Wei Ying who understood him the most...

Jiang Cheng , Wen Qing and Wen Ning were strong but really pitiful and I don't hate Jiang Cheng... he did everything for Wei Ying he could... despite not knowing his purpose/reason of choosing the demonic path, but gave up when he lost his whole family after the death of his sister....

Jin Guang Yao proved that villains are not born but made... I don't hate him for what he did to his father 'cause that serves him right but that does not give him right to make others' life miserable who have never hurted him...

Kinda feel bad for Lan XiChen... the person he trusted the most was scheming behind his back and manipulating everything to get his way to power....

I'm surprised to see Nie Huai Sang's real abilities....the way he managed to take his revenge, left the viewer in shock....

All the juniors SiZhui, JingYi, RuLan and others were pretty hilarious and amazing....

Xiao XingChen and Song ZiChen were like the shadows of Wei Ying and Lan Zhan, but life didn't give them another chance and I really hate Xue Yang for parting them... even though he regretted his actions, but now there was no use for it....

.........................................................
OSTs and Costumes:
.........................................................

OSTs are heavenly... the beautiful lyrics defines the characters' personality in a poetic way... Wei Ying's flute with Lan Zhan's guqin are such an unparalleled match... The ending theme "Unrestrained" is repeating on my playlist and I can't get enough of it...

"Brew a cup of life and death's joy and grief, to honour a young man;
The bright moon is still the same, so there is no need for sadness....
Why not soar high and free as a bird with the winds and waves;
And sing this one song together to the world....
And sing this one song to the world..."
~ Unrestrained

I loved the costumes... these all are done well....

.........................................................
Pace of Story and Life Lesson:
.........................................................

Its pace is slow in starting but it picks up after episode 8 really well and keep the viewer hooked to it till the very end...

The main lesson I learnt from this drama is "the world only knows to shift the blame no matter how much they wronged a person, they just found some good reasons and a common target to shift the blame from one to another and never feel sorry for anyone, so do whatever you want to do without concerning the world and be true to yourself."....

"Died at the Nightless City..
Who would believe that the young man told no lies?
For justice and for a promise I took up the flute and gave up the sword...
The rumours go ahead of me..
What's the point of arguing that my loyalty is still the same?
Everything in the world involves a thousand people, with a thousand opinions and a thousand faces....."
~ Song Ends with Chen Qing (Wei WuXian)

It's a 10 star drama for me without a doubt...

.........................................................
Recommendation:
.........................................................

I am totally satisfied with the ending but still wish for a season 2...

If you are not watching The Untamed, you are at loss buddy...you are missing a whole beautiful journey...and such a masterpiece...

.........................................................

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Completed
Green Mothers' Club
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 10
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 8.5
Green Mother’s Club (2022) - I watch this one because it’s filled with ahjummas and I like ahjumma dramas nowadays. Since most of the actors in the dramas are veterans, there acting is really on point. The children are also quite good in their roles.
Really looking forward to it at first, but got disappointed middle way because of how the drama unfolded the way I was not expecting it to be.
Still it’s one of the few kdramas that I wait for the release every week. It was more likely like a slow ride that I was surprised with the turn of events up until the ending. Though I had my disappointments, I still think this drama is worth the watch.

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Completed
Sh**ting Stars
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 6.5
Story 5.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 3.0
Shooting Stars (2022) - one of the kdramas of 2022 that is so famous in social media that’s why I watched it ongoing. It’s romcom and its fun. I think it got overhyped because of the cast and the never-ending cameos. I didn't really fall in love with the drama, it's fun but I'm not so hyped up by it, and the love story is really not my type. I think that the role of Taesung as the top star in the drama is not really well conveyed? I don’t know I think something is missing that I can't point out exactly. The revelations within the drama is what I like but I think after the revelations, I lost my interest towards the drama. I am happy with the couples that end up together in the drama but I think I'm too old for the this type of drama.

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Completed
Anna
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
6 of 6 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.5
Story 8.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 9.0
Rewatch Value 3.5
Anna (2022) - is one of the kdramas this year which I think is not yet done? I really thought its gonna be 8 episodes and so I waited for a week to the next 2 episodes and nothing. I just hoped for nothing and I think its because the ending was not satisfying at all. It does not justify the whole series. Some of the characters in the drama are not fully utilized, I don’t know. Though I must say Suzy really did great in the role. I think it is more like a passing drama that is nice overall but then I would forget the story after a while. Good premise and reminds me of Miss Ripley Korean drama.

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Ongoing 2/17
The Escape of the Seven: War for Survival
14 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
2 of 17 episodes seen
Ongoing 3
Overall 7.0
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 5.0
Rewatch Value 7.0

the 7 deadly sins

There's details, then there's lack of logic.

Having known that this is written by Penthouse's writer, Kim Soon Ok, I couldn't help but feel ecstatic. The trailer and preview looked intense, and there's an underlying wish for 7 Escape to be just as thrilling.

The downfall of Penthouse in my view, was the rushed progression for S2 and 3, despite the quality that S1 has offered. There was a sense of lack in preparation or simply wanting to release the seasons quickly to reduce the wait for the audience (striking while the iron is hot with ratings, which is understandable).

However, it's already announced there will be a S2 for 7 Escape, so there's high hopes to avoid this blunder.

After Ep1, this definitely has a lot of potential, and surprisingly I found it hard to gauge the primary theme of this drama (unlike Penthouse, which circulated around revenge). From the very start, Kim Soon Ok's distinctive style and intentions emerged through a rich tapestry of symbolic depictions, and this was established from the intro itself.

This exploration is far more in depth in comparison to Penthouse, with the statue of Hera, and I believe these would also serve as a catalyst for exciting theories regarding the plot progression.

In this case, we are seeing strong biblical connotations based from the title of 7 members that ultimately revolve around the naive and innocent girl - Da Mi.

The other key characters are yet to be known, and it would be very interesting to see if there would be variations regarding the representation for the 7 deadly sins, or references to stories associated with these traits that can serve the plotline. From personal observations, greed/gluttony, envy, pride and wrath have been spotted, all in connection to Da Mi herself. But it’s just a wild speculation at this stage.

As mentioned, Da Mi - who I believe will be the victim soon enough - has been roped into this cut throat world of elites. Her potential d3ath would be the basis for the entire drama, and without spoiling, could potentially have ties to the man who’s played by the prolific Uhm Ki Joon (Matthew Lee). This is the second biblical connotation, where I’ll talk more in detail. The characters associated with her will be plunged into a "Lord of the Flies" scenario where a game of survival is involved, and this also remains to be seen - how and why would they be in the same place all at once?

Matthew, according to the Bible, was a tax collector. It could suggest he’s there to “collect his dues” if you will. They are also said to be deceptive, which may be a highlight to his character. Perhaps if Matthew does have ties with Da Mi, the game would be very interesting to view from that perspective to determine his motives.

The third and final biblical connotation is in the intro, with the snake curling up a man’s arm. This is in association with Cherry Ent’s CEO (played by Yoon Jong Hoon), and also a self explanatory representative of “the enemy”/Satan.

Initially, this was meant to be a review. It turned into details that I hope provides enough reason to give it a watch. In regards to performances, the actress who played Mo Ne (Lee Yu Bi) has blown me away in particular. I have yet to dissect the connotations to using the name "Monet" for a character, but that ending segment in Episode 1 was not a coincidence. This exact scene also threw logic out of the window (without spoilers), and it's hard to overlook.

Yes, one might argue 7 Escape is a recycling of Penthouse tropes, similar OST and same high production style, but there’s potential depth that’s yet to be seen and it’s evident Kim Soon Ok has intended to take the symbolism idea much further than Penthouse had indicated, which I believe has made it unique and memorable in the first place.

A 7/10 in this early stage.

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Dropped 6/10
Boss-dol Mart
8 people found this review helpful
by ryoato
Sep 16, 2023
6 of 10 episodes seen
Dropped 0
Overall 5.0
Story 5.0
Acting/Cast 5.5
Music 5.5
Rewatch Value 6.0

Your closest grocery store is run by idols

I picked this up because of the idols in it. I really like EXO, so I am obligated to watch since Xiumin is in it. To me I found this drama a very nice surprise. I put it on for leisure, but had started really watching.

The whole vibe of this drama is one that isn't taking itself too seriously and has a star-studded cast that is doing a fine job so far. The roles they are in are all unique, with each of them being an idol in their disbanded group. The story itself is something you wouldn't get out of an every day situation, but it is made for a k-drama, and I like that. To me, the unrealistic story is good, and they explain pretty quickly why and how they own this mart.

The acting is pretty good, not amazing or anything, but serviceable. It is fun to watch since it is k-pop idols, and since it isn't too serious that makes it all the better. There are some emotional beats that most likely will happen (I won't explain since that could spoil), so there might be a little weak spot. So overall this drama is easy and doesn't feel lengthy because it isn't. The story and scenes flow nicely and it's pretty funny too. The romance if any is something I see happening naturally and is there to develop the characters. The setting is perfect for funny scenarios and I can see myself staying entertained the whole way.

So far so good! I couldn’t finish this simply because it’s nothing I see myself needing to watch. It’s not bad though, it’s just sort of background fluff.

It’s just so average but a little worse? I don’t know.. I watch for the idols but it got lost for me and I don’t see a need to finish. Good while I just had it on in the background

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Completed
My Journey to You
1 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

A story worth watching

It has good combination of
1) story
2)cast
3) world

Whole story has good flow, not like Korean drama where they make emotion intense at last five minutes , many advertisements (they are becoming annoying , and symbol of decline of Korean drama industry as they have to rely on that extra money)

For mandatory 500 words
Whole story has good flow, not like Korean drama where they make emotion intense at last five minutes , many advertisements (they are becoming annoying , and symbol of decline of Korean drama industry as they have to rely on that extra money)

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Ongoing 6/12
Only Friends
1 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
6 of 12 episodes seen
Ongoing 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 9.5
This review may contain spoilers

BEST SHOW EVER!

After watching the 6th episode, I can clearly state that this show is the most intense, drama-filled show I have watched.
I love all the acting, especially in episode 6, Book and Khaotung delivered on all aspects. I cannot wait to see how Mew will act in the next couple of episodes, with the truth finally coming out.

Moreover, the history between Top and Sand interests me so much! I cannot wait to see how their relationship is evolving with hopefully more information coming to light, and potentially an appearance of Sand`s ex.

The only negative about this show is that 12 episodes are not enough :)

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Completed
Destined
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
40 of 40 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 8.0
Story 8.5
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.5
Rewatch Value 7.5
This review may contain spoilers

Love that grows from strength to strength

A beautifully told tale of a love story that started out as an accident and evolved into a relationship of trust and genuine love. No unnecessary misunderstandings and jealousies to tear them apart was much appreciated. Instead their obstacles were the situations they were placed in.

A love triangle of sorts, the villain turned out to be victim of circumstances but the flashback sequences of him with the FL was sweet and gave you the usual “if only” wishes hoping he had it better growing up. The reveal during his end was not unexpected but good enough to tie up his storyline.

The star of this drama is the ML. Watching him grow from a carefree, playful person to one who sacrifices himself to fight for the good of the people was the highlight of this drama. Kudos to the scriptwriter for some of the most intelligent and interesting dialogue for this character. He delivers it so well and righteously in keeping with his character’s personality.

It was also nice to see the FL transform from originally resigning to her fate of just being a typical wife to having her own aspirations in business. However, this changes seem too jarring at times, one of which was when she went from crying on her wedding night to suddenly being extra gung-ho as she led men to the entertainment house to chase down the her husband. Brandishing a sword to get him was a nice humorous touch. However, her revealing all her marriage aspirations and how the ML ruined it in front of the many people in there felt so wrong. A normal person would have some reservations about sharing such private information in public, what more she had just spent years learning about a family’s code of conduct. Overly dramatic. (also found it strange she had no reaction when she saw her original target husband in the crowd there)

Watching her start her first business showed some smart moments but not fleshed out enough as she quickly turned things around after 2 weeks of slow sales. Not enough moments to make me believe she is this super business person especially when she was in the capital and when she was lying low during the 3 years.

One of my favourite parts would have to be in Wangdu and how the ML defended it with just 10,000 men against an army 10x bigger. I loved both his confrontations with his uncle here - perfect lines perfectly delivered!

Didn’t care much for the palace storyline with the new Emperor suddenly being sick all the time compared to when he was just a Commissioner. Liked the Empress Dowager and her daughter even less especially their senseless meddling. The twist here became too convenient and a few extra scenes on how it happened would have been better.

The ending was good enough, showing us what happened with all the main characters and how some of them still go on despite not having a spouse. A definite must watch if you are a fan of the ML as he was truly in his element in this drama.

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Completed
Stay with Me
0 people found this review helpful
Sep 16, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 10
Rewatch Value 10

Best C-drama for me

this is the best cdrama for mee!! the story is so beautiful and so cute, can't stop watching it TT when i thought the problem is solved, there's another problem arise but they have smooth transition, not feel out-of-place at all!! the ost also feel good, i always listened to it. And for me all the main/support character is so handsome & pretty!!

usually i feel some cdrama story flow kinds off. but this one is so good i feel like watching a new generation of drama. even thought it's more bromance than bl. but seriously, might as well become a bl cause their chemistry is so good.

if cuteness can kill i already died thousands times. Hope i can see s2, i reallyyy want to see them again!!

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Completed
Mysterious Lotus Casebook
2 people found this review helpful
by lvp
Sep 16, 2023
40 of 40 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 10
Story 10
Acting/Cast 10
Music 8.0
Rewatch Value 10

Excellent Drama!!

one of the best wuxia drama I have ever seen. Kudos to the team of MLC. I hope there will a season 2 ( fingers crossed?) even though i know it is a novel adapted series and it is rare to get another season when the novel itself is finished.

Dynamic trio ( Li lan hua, Fand dou bing, Dei fei shing) make the series complete. I must say the chemistry between all the characters are amazing but this trio will surpass even the word chemistry. The humor and seriousness of the drama is well balanced along with the character development. Investigation plots are well explained and like jigsaw puzzle. Some might find little plot holes in the case solving but its not that detectable. Fighting scenes (like sword fightings) are beautifully executed by all the characters in the drama.

To be honest I didnt like the ending much. its not because its open ending. li xiang yi suffered too much for others. he brought lot of people back to life while losing his inner power all the time. atleast he should have a chance to live a carefree life with his besties. since he himself missed his master and lost everything searching for his senior who at the end betrayed him, he should have consider the feelings of his disciple( fang duo bing) and besties who would do anything for him and is searching for him everywhere with a tinge of hope. it was irresponsible from his side to just leave like that without giving himself a second chance.

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Completed
Wanru's Journey
0 people found this review helpful
by K H-C
Sep 16, 2023
24 of 24 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 6.5
Story 7.0
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 4.0
This review may contain spoilers

Wanru’s Somewhat Rambling Journey

Using my personal rating system of "loved," "liked," "meh," & "nah," this started as a “liked” but ended up a “meh”.

Spoilers ahead b/c I didn't follow the rules of writing a review. :D

The deets:
Young woman with a mysterious past (with hints that she’s been transmigrated from our world into an alternate one) who lives on the streets and makes money by scamming people tries to scam the wrong person and ends up being forced to take on a false identity. She apparently is identical to a developmentally delayed daughter of a powerful pugilistic clan. The lady of the clan has decided to sacrifice the life of the developmentally delayed daughter—who is the daughter of a concubine—in exchange for healing son by blood. But since the lord of the clan really likes his daughter, she decides to replace her instead with our FL. Our ML notices right away that something is not right with his half-sister and quickly figures out she is fake (which helps with the ”ick” factor of him falling in love with his half-sister’s face and name; they were also raised separately so he didn’t grow up with her, either). The half-sister is betrothed from infancy to our SML (more costume/period dramas with Deng Chao Yuan please!) who turns out to be a very decent guy. All three meet up at a pugilistic academy for young people where about half the action takes place until the plot kind of falls apart and they spend a lot of time hiding out in luxurious bamboo houses in the woods while they fight the machinations of various powers-that-be in the pugilistic world.

Things I liked:
The story started out very interesting. It’s a short drama, ~30 minute episodes with a total of 24. For being relatively low budget, it kept me very interested basically until the end of the “academy” arc. The fight scenes were really well done. I didn’t have any objections to the way the three leads were written, they were all decent people, their motivations seemed solid.

Things I did not like so much:
This drama could not decide if it was a BL between our two male leads or a reverse-harem between all three leads. The most believable chemistry was between the two male leads and the chemistry between the ML and FL was a bit forced. The ML went from really disliking her to suddenly liking her and she went from crushing on the SML to suddenly falling in love with the ML. As if the script writers and director were suddenly like “oh crap, this is becoming a BL, we’d better put a beard in there STAT!” The storyline kind of fell apart after they left the academy to try and run their respective clans in the pugilistic world. It got draggy and asked one to suspend one’s disbelief A LOT! The FL supposedly had minimal martial arts yet could hold her own against trained killers whenever necessary—but only until the point it was time for a male lead to rescue her. Seriously, were the heroes live-streaming all their actions!? The evil guys ALWAYS knew what they were up to and yet the heroes were always relying on pigeons that magically found their target to matter where they were. And also, everyone could apparently travel huge distances in a couple hours. I get that in a wuxia you have to suspend your disbelief a little—all the flying round & stuff—but there’s a limit. The ending is happy but ambiguous as in the FL never really settles on her choice of male lead.

Should you watch it?
I found it free on YouTube. It’s relatively short. The male leads are easy to look at. The FL is sweet with a good heart and not a complete idiot. It was pretty decent at first and by the time it gets less interesting, you don’t have that much farther to go to get through it.

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Completed
The Uncanny Counter
0 people found this review helpful
by Anto
Sep 16, 2023
16 of 16 episodes seen
Completed 0
Overall 7.0
Story 6.0
Acting/Cast 9.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 5.0
Disclaimer: I'm typically a romance watcher and don't often stray from that genre. But maybe you're like me and looking to watch something different, so here's my take on the show:

Very solid first season. The acting from all the leads and supporting characters was astounding and the chemistry between the Counters was so natural. Plot-wise, an interesting idea, pretty well executed, except for some moments of dumbness where unreasonable decisions were forced for the plot's sake. Was it predictable? Yes. Was it still fun to watch? Also yes. I felt the serious topics were well blended with the funny bits, and I liked the "territory" light effects, even if some of the more practical bits look quite rough and fake (particularly the wire work). For the casual action-adventure watcher, I feel like this would be an entertaining show.

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