Reviews

all we need is a dose of heart-fluttering romance and eye candy

"King The Land" had me counting down the days for its release, thanks to the presence of the charismatic Lee Jun Ho. His charm and screen presence were undeniable, and they were the driving force behind my excitement. While the drama may not have been a groundbreaking masterpiece, it certainly delivered a heartwarming and delightful experience.

The plot may have followed a predictable path, laden with romantic escapades and sweet moments, but it was the chemistry between the leads that truly carried the show. Lee Jun Ho and Im Yoon Ah performances were stellar, injecting life into their characters and adding depth to an otherwise straightforward narrative.

The story revolved around the blossoming love between a dedicated career woman and a hotel heir seeking change within his family's business. While the lack of intense business conflicts and dramatic twists might seem mundane, there's a certain charm in the simplicity of their journey. This drama offered a pleasant respite from the intense narratives we often encounter in the world of K-dramas.

The drama's focus on the romance was unabashedly evident, with adorable moments and captivating kisses that kept the audience engaged. In an era where complex storylines often dominate, this drama served as a reminder that sometimes, all we need is a dose of heart-fluttering romance and eye candy.

In a landscape of heart-wrenching dramas, this series provided a soothing balm for viewers seeking light-hearted enjoyment. It embraced the idea that not every story needs to be layered with intricate plots or tumultuous conflicts to be entertaining. The absence of unnecessary drama and the steady progression of the leads' relationship were like a breath of fresh air.

In the end, it might not have pushed the boundaries of storytelling, but it achieved what it set out to do - bring joy and happiness to its audience. Its success lay in the smiles it elicited and the warm, fuzzy feelings it left behind. Sometimes, a drama's true value lies in the sheer pleasure it provides, and on that count, this drama undoubtedly succeeded.

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Interesting Time Traveling but just an OK watch

Subjective Gut Rating: 7.75

Time-traveling is usually not my thing but I read good reviews and thought I would try it out. Overall, it's an OK drama and I might not love it as much as others. A few quick thoughts:

1. I do like the time-traveling as it's an interesting take on how to go back-and-forth. I would probably be like Kwai and wanted to check a couple times to see if I am getting the desired outcome.
2. I like Krist's acting and his role is so different than when I last saw him in "Good Old Days". His acting is so good that I find Kawi quite an annoying character. LOL
3. I do not enjoy Fluke's acting. He did not impress me in "Not Me" and also not in "Be My Favorite". I don't find him particularly attractive so not being able to act matters more.
4. As mentioned, I find Kawi annoying. It's hard for me to root for him as he's quite selfish and wants it all. The girl, the boy, and everything to go his way.
5. Pisaeng is a very sweet character, despite Fluke's bland acting. I think Pisaeng is too good for Kawi.
6. For once we have students NOT in Engineering!
7. Product placement is actually on the light side. That's a pleasant surprise.
8. Too much cakey makeup on the guys - young and old.
9. I was more interested in the beginning and end of the drama. The middle dragged and I didn't care for Pearmai's mommy issues. At least we don't have an evil 2FL. I like the ending when Pisaeng get's to 'do' that as well. But then those last 1.5 episodes are soooo slow. Not much really happened.
10. I wanted to see more of Kawi and Pisaeng after they got together and not just a montage. I want more time when they are a couple.

Overall, it's an easy watch. If you like the leads and time travel, I'll recommend this. Otherwise, it's an OK watch.


Completed: 8/15/2023 - Review #340

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With tighter writing and better focus, the drama could have truly shone

"Heartbeats" promised an intriguing twist on the vampire-human narrative, but sadly fell short of its potential due to questionable writing choices. The central premise of Seon Woo Hyul's struggle to become human after 100 years of slumber held great promise. However, the execution stumbled as the drama progressed.

The cast, led by Seon Woo Hyul and Joo In Hae, initially showcased engaging dynamics. Seon Woo Hyul's transformation into a half-human added depth to his character, while In Hae's pragmatic survival instincts added a refreshing touch. Unfortunately, the promising start was marred by an overload of supporting characters and unnecessary plotlines that diluted the focus.

Despite being positioned as a comedy, the series lost its humorous touch as it advanced. The trio of vampires, a potential source of comic relief, was woefully underutilized, leaving viewers yearning for more screen time for this quirky ensemble.

The drama's message about change and growth was present, yet the pacing and character development faltered midway. The middle episodes suffered from uneven writing, leading to characters feeling inconsistent and the narrative losing its grip. It was during this phase that the potential of the drama started to wane.

The climax and ultimate demise of Seon Woo Hyul, while poignant, felt somewhat anti-climactic and rushed. His evolution from vampire to half-human was well-portrayed, but the middle section's character inconsistencies diminished the impact of his final transformation.

In conclusion, "Heartbeats" had a fascinating premise that unfortunately crumbled under the weight of unnecessary subplots and uneven character development. Despite its potential, the comedy aspect was overshadowed by lackluster execution. The impactful ending couldn't entirely redeem the drama from its mid-series slump. While the core message was commendable, it was muddled by shaky storytelling. With tighter writing and better focus, the drama could have truly shone.

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A disturbing watch but an eye-opening one: "It takes an entire village to raise a child"

This was a truly heavy and disturbing watch, but a much-needed and eye-opening one. I remember, as a 16 yo when I started my K-drama journey , thinking of South Korea as the safe heaven, I realized later that as any country in the world, it has its own set of problems. As a 23 yo, still this drama still shook me in many instances, especially with the type of crimes it tackles. I didn't know much about the teen runaway gangs, young offenders using the law to commit horrible crimes and avoid the consequences, the heinous world of teen prostitution, the fragility of life, or how anyone can be a victim yet the court can't take a firm stance... The last scene truly resonated with me: "It takes an entire village to raise a child. In other words, a child's life could be ruined if the entire village neglects the child". As someone who questions, "How am I supposed to bring a child and raise them well in a messed up world?" this watch was scary and haunting and makes me dig even deeper and re-think that over.

Technically, it was a well-made show. The pace was on point, each episode is poignant and impactful without dragging. Maybe the 10 eps format is the best for this genre instead of dragging it for no reason. The casting was stellar across the board, with a standing ovation for the veterans Kim Hye Soo and Lee Sung Min and Lee Yeon from the kids (kudos for portraying a 11 yo guy for a 28 yo woman...lol even the math isn't mathing, but she was impeccably believable). The background music was haunting, and the ending score was calming esp after each scary episode. Character-wise, Shim Eun Seok will def go to my fav female characters: she was poised, extremely intelligent, capable, and competent for her job without losing her humanity. The scenes where she said: "No matter how many young offenders cases I take, I never get used to them," and when her co-worker was telling her to give up on the case to not be disciplined, she went on: "Is that what scares you. The type of adult these young offenders will turn into if we don't deal with them rightfully is what scares me," pierced through my heart. I wish we had more screentime with Kang Won Jung instead of just being an ill-tempered boss and ending his character arc prematurely. His journey to change "the juvenile act" would be a great sequel to this. Cha Tae Joo's character fell flat, like someone with no substance other than a supporting lead with a fitting melodramatic background, but he didn't add much for being the friendly judge bc Sim Eun Soak was already a morally sound and humane character at heart, him being there just to balance her was not needed. Honestly, I didn't understand Na Guen Hee or her character arc or her motives. She was like any bureaucrat wanting to end things fast, but a little character building would've let me understood her better.

Overall, a well-paced, well-written, and well-acted show with a serious topic that was eye-opening for me, but I won't rewatch it or recommend it unless I know the viewer can handle and be invested in it well: 8.5/10

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Don't expect too much if you're looking for horror

To be honest, I didn't find the movie as bad as the other reviews, but this is definitely not a horror.
Don't expect frightening scenes or zombies, or very elaborate characters. Those things don't exist here. It's just a few characters trying to survive, in a way that's almost comical.
Honestly, I saw it as a comedy movie, the kind we watch to pass the time, when we don't want to think too much or get agitated... it works. It's almost what you expect when you go to see "Zumbilândia" for the first time. It's good to pass the time.
If you want to watch it, don't wait for a movie like "Train to Busan" or "Alive", because it's not. It's not even intended to make you terrified, let alone the claustrophobic or desperate feeling of regular zombie movies. It got me more laughs than anything, although it scared me once or twice.

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Murder, Evil Masterplans, and Warmhearted Camaraderie

Excuse me as I lie in a puddle of my love for these three dorks.

The best part of this drama is undoubtedly the three MLs and their friendship/relationships with each other. They are the essence of the drama and why it’s so enjoyable. Li Lianhua, the clever, seemingly apathetic pathological liar (liarhua. Okay sorry) who would rather plant vegetables than return to his previous glory. Fang Duobing, the hotheaded, endearingly loyal young detective who never knows what’s going on. Di Feisheng, the arrogant, snarky enemy-turned-frenemy who is seemingly both selfish and selfless.

It’s their chaotic fights and witty banters and Fang Duobing being constantly tricked that define this drama and make it so comforting. But Li Lianhua also forms such precious relationships with the other two MLs: friendship with Fang Duobing and vague friendship/frenemyship with Di Feisheng. Fang Duobing and Di Feisheng are both so in love with Li Lianhua, and I mean, same. But all jokes aside, this drama served me exactly what I had been looking for—beautiful platonic relationships that go just as deep as romantic ones do.

Only (personal) complaint in regards to the character dynamics is that I wish Di Feisheng got more time with the other MLs. The drama was more focused on Li Lianhua and Fang Duobing’s friendship, so DFS spent a lot of time away from them, and I would’ve enjoyed some more trio moments.

Cheng Yi is also a joy to watch in this. This is my first drama of his, but I’ve still heard lots about and seen lots of his acting ability. From the casual nose-scratching to Li Xiangyi’s pompous demeanor to pain-filled eyes to witty remarks, Cheng Yi nailed Li Lianhua and Li Xiangyi alike.

As for the plot, the cases were interesting! Each case usually gets about 2-3 episodes, with occasional episodes in between dedicated toward moving the overall plot forward. It’s fun to watch Li Lianhua crack open each case (however unrealistic they may be) and string the clues together. The overarching plot, however, was rather weak. This drama fails to draw the watcher into the main plot with 1 dimensional, classic maniacally cackling villains and an unsophisticated world domination conflict. It felt crude and unoriginal. I think it would’ve done much better as a drama about solving cases and growing personally along the way.

One thing I did appreciate about the plot was Li Lianhua/Li Xiangyi’s arc. He did feel overly righteous and self-sacrificing at times, but I enjoyed seeing how he dealt with his past and how he moved on. I do wish there was a bit more self-forgiveness involved (which is why I would’ve preferred a plot more focused on the characters’ personal journeys rather than whatever dumb outside conflict they created).

Highly recommend if you’re looking for lovable characters, lots of chuckles and smiles, and some interesting murder cases! Plus some mean sword dances. Cheng Yi really danced like he had bills to pay.

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They had a good start and they threw that away

when I started heart beat I was really excited because the first few episodes had me hooked and laughing sometimes but along the line when I kind of expected the romance between the leads to start it was still no where to be seen the ml was still in love with his past lover (kinda I think) and she was still bent on not being able to fall in love ( until she kinda accepted that she did). I also feel like they placed too much emphasis on the past lady. To cut all this rambling short because I don’t even know what to say anymore they had a good story and they executed it very bad (in my opinion) especially towards the ending. The romance wasn’t doing it for me heck even when they confirmed their feelings towards each other it was still meh and let’s not even talk about that ending after watching ep15 I kinda saw where they were going although I hoped they wouldn’t but they did. Needless to say it’s still a decent watch and I enjoyed it at least to a point the actors did a good job and the music was my best part.

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Beautiful Story / Bad Ending - TOTALLY DISAPPOINTING!

I don't normally watch K-dramas until they're finished because I'm the type who binge watch. This drama though got me hooked and made me wait for weekly uploads. The actors were very good especially Ok Taec Yon, I truly admire him and his charisma is so strong and overpowering. However, when I watched the ending, I kept waiting for a twist that there was a way for Song Woo-hyeol (Ok Taec Yon) to become human despite all odds. He deserves to live and love because he felt the it and he said and showed his true feelings to Joo In-hae. Whoever wrote and decided the ending to be so ugly must be out of his/her mind and a really cruel person. I don't consider it an open-ended ending because Song Woo-hyeol died! It was only in Joo In-hae's imagination and memories that he lives. Of course, as human beings we remember our loved ones who passed away as such, same thing. Overall, the ending is utterly disappointing!

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The ending SUCKED! (and that's not a pun)

Don't be tricked. This is NOT a dang rom-com. And that ending had to be one of the most disappointing ones I've seen in years.

To be perfectly honest, the first third to around the halfway point of the show was good. The leads were awesome, their chemistry was quiet but comfortable and beautiful, and they developed one of the healthiest, most honest, most grown-up relationships I've seen in any k-drama. But, the main idea this was written around wasn't complex enough to develop a whole 16 episodes around it, and that meant that the show got really draggy and empty of plot progression in the last few episodes. The last two were particularly barren. They were two hours of nothing happening and then a shitty ending.

I'm angry right now at how the writers threw the whole show into the garbage bin with that horrible, uninspired, unimaginative ending. Watch the drama and skip eps 15 and 16. I'll tell you what happened to the gold if you're curious about it.

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Everyone is crazy

A little slow and confusing at the beginning (around 30 min) but after that it's a fast paced ride till the end.

I would lie if I said I liked this movie for the plot, it's interesting, it's fun but it's predictable. The heart thing, the son thing, I saw them coming early on. The real plot twist would be that the Nobleman is the real son but from what we saw, he is not (it was not shown or said).

Marco is your basic main character, he has no clue what's happening and he is just trying to survive. He has a sad backstory, he is strong, etc. Mostly, he is there to be chased and to move the plot forward.

The evil brother is crazy and evil. I first thought he wanted to kill the father (he probably would if he could) but he needed him for inheritance. He didn't really have much character depth except greed and craziness.

The Nobleman and my favorite character. He is doing things because he can. He is an expert (his words). He is a character with the most depth which is weird since he is the craziest of them all. Also, I like his smile even though it looks creepy as hell.

The action is top tier. Especially the scene at the end, the grand finale was extremely grand which is cool.

For such a dark and bloody movie, the ending was funny.

I hope they make a second movie but with the same vibe as the first one.

I would recommend this movie, it's pure action which is hard to find these days, nothing complicated, just fun.

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Taecyeon fans, RUN!!

Lawwdd I’m upset. Even Taecyeon couldn’t save this drama, and I watched solely for him.

Heartbeat is a drama about a vampire who’d slept in a coffin almost for 100 years, then it got opened by a average (well not so average) girl a day early, and now he is half vampire, half human. The two share the manison and open a guest house along the way. The plot might sound interesting, but trust me it is not worth it.

Firstly, I have to talk about the second leads. I think Haewon (SFL) might be the most annoying yet. Haewon is in love with Woohyeol (ML) because he mistakes her for his past and first lover, Haesun. Haewon acts like a brat that’s in a high school drama, which she would’ve fit in perfectly if i’m being honest. While Dosik, (SML) does not. Although he is more tolerable than Haewon, (in my opinion) he still is delusional. He insists that he is protecting Inhae from Woohyeol, (FL) even though she directly TELLS him that she is safe and needs no protection!! Overall, they’re both overbearing to watch, im even confused how they got so much screentime. They’re so inlove with the main leads so early into the show even though they’ve had few interactions.

Secondly, the rules play a part in this drama. There is this cat-man that tells Woohyeol these rules about the coffin he slept in to become human. Because apparently, no regular human can open the coffin, so he’s implying that Inhae is irregular. Basically what you have to understand is that Cat-man makes these dumb rules along the series that make me even more confused because he never mentions it before.

Thirdly, the guest house is SOO UNNECESSARY. They spend around 2-3 episodes mainly on the guest house for no reason! Just for a couple of guest to show up, and they don’t really even matter.

This isn’t really a problem but, main lead’s aren’t really doing it for me. I mostly think this is because they got no screentime as a couple or just liking eachother, half was spent on the guesthouse and the other was Inhae hating or being scared of Woohyeol. There characters don’t seem much in love, they give me a friend dynamic more than a romantic one. I think they have their cute mom though so, that’s something.

Overall, I made this review to just rant on how annoying the Second Leads were, and to tell Taecyeon fans that this is So Not Worth it, at all.

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The Cost of Love

I normally don’t like love triangles but this one was a little different. This drama shows the cost of love when good friends are involved. You meet a man who captures your imagination only to find out that he’s the fiancée of your good friend. What do you do? The normal response would be to ignore him from that point forward and tell your friend, but love and destiny are unpredictable. One-night changes the lives of three people and a fourth one that is yet to be born. This is not a happy story where everybody rides off into the sunset, but it is an interesting story. The acting is fantastic. The story is gripping and hard to take at times.

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Strong beginning; Weak ending

What the description on Netflix and MDL, even the move itself, fail to note is this is loosely based on events during a 2003 SARS outbreak in Taiwan. Unfortunately, this is one of those movies that grabs your attention within the first few minutes and then just leaves you with a very abrupt ending. It just leaves you with too many loose ends and no overall resolution to events. This is sad considering the actors were wonderful portraying their characters. Even with the sudden ending, it had great cinematography and pacing. However, the editing can make viewers uncomfortable which I think was the purpose.

Random Note:
It felt like the writers did not want to fully commit to a sad ending or that they lost steam at the end and gave up.

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There have been so many time-travel movies and TV shows in recent decades, and that has made the subject matter feel exhausted and sometimes downright boring. It is so hard to recycle an idea and present in a way that is creative and does not fall into the traps of all the previous cliched plot lines. This one is a gem. The storyline is well thought-out so that it doesn't have some silly plot holes. The cinematography is lovely, as is the set is magical. The best part is the acting by both young and old actors. Shin Eun-Soo and Lee Hyo-Je were so natural, esp. in the scenes where it might even make adults act awkwardly. Later on, Kang Dong-Wan and Shin Eun-Soo acted with such ease around one another, as if they really had known each other all their lives. It's a moving story about friendship, loyalty and having faith in people. I re-watch this movie once every couple of years just to relive the magic.

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