Reviews

Love Hurts

I love the Republican Era for the sets, fashion, and neon, but I wish they were less titillating and had better story lines. Maybe I just haven't found the right ones yet. This did offer a compelling couple with plenty of chemistry. I'd love to see them star together in something more substantial. Both lead actors suited their roles admirably.

Circle of Amnesia, er, I mean Love, put the FL through horrible memories, total amnesia, reverse amnesia, and then full memory again. Every time she got Whack-a-Mole'd, she'd have a different personality: sweet, young girl; hardened assassin; helpless victim who grew into a more confident woman; back to innocent, young girl again; and, finally, murderous avenger.

ML was shockingly cruel and violent, but his downfall was that he was a habitual liar. If just once, he'd sat the FL down and told her the truth, there might have been a different ending than the Circle of Bullets. And what the heck was that time skip after the ending about? I despise time skips, but this one was beyond weird and unnecessary. Know when to stop, director.

Watch if you want to watch two attractive people with chemistry, and your cringe level is high.

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How to train your husband

This drama's all about men and women learning to cohabitate together in marriage and not try to one up each other in a relationship. It starts rather fresh, without too obnoxious villains or usual political intrigues, but by the second couple's story (1st sister+scholar) it devolves into some sort of moronic circus, full of convoluted bs and very unnecessary decisions, like noble idiocy, for the sake of angst.
And by the second couple you can start seeing a certain plot pattern. The plot goes on a loop akin to this till the end:
- one of the sisters' gets yet another smug, unlikable guy in her crosshairs;
- they go round in circles until getting married through tricks;
- the guy mistreats that sister and threatens with divorce to a point of actual divorce;
- she goes crying to her family;
- the family concots schemes to turn things around and make the guy come crawling back converted into a docile husband material;
- in parallel, the family is also battling some stupid villains who are after their money, husbands or just to bully them.

I also didn't appreciate how women and marriage here were presented like selling and reselling cattle. No, I think people treated their cattle better than some of those women.

P.S. Also, why everybody slept here wearing their full get up - dresses, hairdos and accessories? It was very ridiculous 🤣.

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Noise over substance

The fictional universe of "Soul Mate" is, by deliberate contrivance, inhospitable to those affections which wander from the procreative norm. Here, gay characters are made to wither in silence. To them is denied the light of joy, or the warmth of intimacy. And such is the cost of upholding a doctrine that reckons human worth by the measure of offspring alone

Time, that most precious of commodities, ought not be squandered upon so homophobic a spectacle. It would be wiser to turn our eyes elsewhere, to a narrative that honours the full complexity of same-sex unions

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Awkward, Cute, and Surprisingly Addictive: Harutora Brings Light Into Sui’s World

Japanese culture is known for being formal and respectful, and having been to Japan 🇯🇵 myself, I have witnessed that firsthand. Japanese people are some of the most respectful people I have encountered, so when the series begins with the male leads bowing and even kneeling down, I saw it as part of Japanese culture rather than something strange.

This series is honestly so awkward and cute. Japanese dramas always seem to come up with the weirdest plots, but somehow they get you addicted every time. Sui is bullied for being gay, which leads him to hide behind a face mask and keep his emotions to himself. He can be really awkward, but I can understand where his behavior comes from. He has built walls around himself because he is afraid of getting too close to people. Then Harutora comes along with his straightforward and warm personality, slowly becoming a light in Sui's nightmare and helping him open up again. And we already got a first kiss!

I was also really happy to see Ishi Masaya from School Trip: Joined a Group I'm Not Close To get the main role of Harutora. He fits the character really well, and I was glad to see him take on another BL lead role. The poster is also incredibly cute and matches the sweet atmosphere of the series.

Overall, Hold on, Harutora-kun is a very light and fun BL to watch. The story is simple, the romance is cute, and the awkward moments make it entertaining. It may not be the strongest BL out there, but it is an easy and enjoyable watch if you are looking for something sweet, youthful, and uncomplicated.

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Finally something worth watching coming out of Thailand again!

I had all but given up on Thai BL's, but I am so happy I fave this one a chance! It has been a very long time since I have watched a BL out of Thailand that was this good. Were there flaws and missed opportunities? Yes, but it was still one of the best thought out, well written and original stories I've seen in a long time. It wasn't the same sloppy, clitche riddled formula that's been overtaking Thai BL's.

The story was a bit shallow at times, it definately could have dug it's heels in deeper. But since it was tackeling some new territory I can forgive that. This writer definately needs to give us more and hopefully will be even braver in the next one.

I don't fall down the hype rabbit hole so I really had no expectation going in. I see a lot of the reviews were dissappointed due to this. But from my perspective with no expectations I was extremley pleased.

Regardless of how much you know about this one before watching it is worth your time! You might want to have kleenexes handy for the last 2 episodes though!

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The Longdong Army

Yeah,the casting is always 10/10 for me bcuz it's a rare commodity to have them altogether in a show.

In S4, there are 4 world buildings (Dungeon Archive) and all the players enter the game worlds to find the truth and solve the cases.

The storyline for each episode is independent ,so you can watch any episode without order but I love the fact they sum up core storyline in final episode.

The backstory of each character is well- written and all the costumes are great.
I love this season explores more on sensitive social issues, AI technology ,mental well-being etc.

All the cast members and special guests have very good chemistry and all NPCs members are very good in acting.

And the props and machines walls are really impressive.

I love all the characters' names 🤣 and their slogan
"""The Longdong Army""".

The Case Number (Episode)---( Part 1/ Part 2)

1.The Heir Battle (Special guest: Wang Yu Wen)
2.Puppet Terror (S.G : Wang Yu Wen)

3.Love and Baristas ( S.G : Sun Qian)
4.The Scam Factory ( S.G : Sun Qian)

Dungeon Archive Bonus : Special Episodes - Reasoning Town 5 bugs

5. The Heroes' Manor (S.G : Yang Chaoyue)
6. The Death of Chancellor Tui ( S.G : Yang Chaoyue)
7. The Three Mischief Makers (S.G : Yang Chaoyue)

8. The Crazy Animal Party ( S.G : Zhang Rou Nan)
9. The Present- Day Visitor's time - travel murder
(S.G : Zhang Rou Nan)
10.The Escape from the Push the Door Game World
(S.G : Zhang Rou Nan)

Have a nice day, everyone.
Love you 🦋🤗🦋

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Pitched at right level

I highly recommend this drama,there are interesting multiple twist and turn in short phases which is pitched at just the right level, not too complicated nor draggy. Many reviewers think that only complicated story equal to "good"storyline -hello this is entertainment not exam

The acting is superb , especially He Yu who's not just handsome but has "attitude". He made the role funny and interesting, when the "chasing"could potentially be cheesy. The director and editors are very good too,in keeping it short without dragging or constant OST or memory fillers
All in all it's an enjoyable watch. Reviewers who complained about lack of romance hello romance can be in speech and interaction doesn't necessarily mean kisses and skinship,if you want those, historical drama is NOT for you,go watch low class porn

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Surprisingly well put together

The plot revolves around politics and border tensions between the Mongolia tribe's kingdom and empire in the central plains. To balance the power struggle the princess of one kingdom is betrothed in the other Kingdom in exchange for the king of that kingdom. But the FL takes the princess's place and gets married to the new king to spy on his kingdom and to find out the secret behind her father's unjustly death.

Despite the low budget this drama was enjoyable. The leads are average looking but they fit the characters like gloves. Their chemistry was good. The side cast was not the best .. pass-able. And even for being a low production project the wardrobe was surprisingly adorable.

the pace remains consistent and The story has almost no boring plot-holes ... Definitely worth a try.

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Crown to Coffin A Shakespearean Downfall: The Feudal Reality of Flawed Heroes

Set against the cruel backdrop of palace politics, *One and Only* suffers from deep moral hypocrisy. While it tries to sell a tragic romance, the reality is darker: a cornered, legitimate prince is emotionally starved by a passive-aggressive main couple who completely ignore feudal rules.

### 👑 Liu Zixing: The Psychological Masterpiece of a Rightful King
Passed over for the throne after his parents died because his toxic stepmother used his illness as an excuse, Zixing was the legitimate oldest son. Shiyi was his childhood fiancée through Imperial decree, becoming his ultimate life anchor and obsession. When her family selfishly called off the engagement the moment he lost the Crown Prince title, the devastating loss shattered his stability and directly forced him to escalate his brutal struggle for power. Trapped in a violent palace, a teenage Wang Xingyue—gives a masterclass performance. He uses devastating body language—shifting from an anxious abuse victim to a heavy, sad monarch—to show a prince hardening to survive and claim his birthright.

### 💔 Cui Shiyi: The Cruelty of Emotional Starvation
Shiyi belonged to a powerful noble household where her mother and aunt had already sacrificed their love lives for family duty. Yet, she acts with cold entitlement, treating the Prince's genuine love like baggage. The fact that she was never honest with her fiancé—unlike her own brother and his wife who were honest—is a massive blot on her character. By refusing to talk, she leaves Zixing completely blindfolded. Blindsided by his own devotion, he naively believed that once they married, his love would make her forget everything. Instead, he was left fighting a ghost, entirely unaware of her love for her master. Her cold rejections validate his deepest psychological scars, stripping away the warmth that could have kept him humane.

### 🏛️ The Paradox of Toxic Matriarchs & Arrogant Vows
The drama shows that internal greed, not outside invasion, destroys this empire. The Empress Dowager is a monster who uses Zixing as a public whipping boy while completely emptying the imperial coffers to live a lavish lifestyle. She leaves the running of the state to a violent, corrupt noble family—a disastrous reality both royal sons openly call out on at least two occasions. In contrast, the main couple acts with supreme arrogance. Zhou Shengchen vows lifelong celibacy, yet breaks all rules of propriety by carrying Shiyi piggyback in public and taking her to his bedroom at night. Their reckless behavior creates nationwide rumors of a military coup, forcing a fragile court into a lethal fight for survival.

### ⚔️ The Trapped Regent & The Macbethian Downfall
Zixing’s story is a classic Shakespearean tragedy. He orders a necessary political strike to stop a powerful military threat, but he underestimates the brutal violence of his ally, Jin Rong. His mind breaks the night he watches Jin Rong slaughter his own uncles; he immediately compromises to stop the bloodshed. Later when his ministers are slaughtered, though he wins the throne but seems to be losing his sanity. Even then, he shows humanity by letting Shiyi visit the temple, letting her mother meet her—a kindness she repays with a public suicide that leaves him to rot in total isolation.

⚖️ **P.S. On the "Villainous Rival" Misconception**
Labeling Liu Zixing as a basic "villain" ignores the harsh reality of feudal history. Eliminating an overly powerful army general who threatens central control has always been the standard, historical norm for monarchs all over the real world and in dramas alike. By medieval standards, Zixing is incredibly patient. In a world where nationwide rumors and breaking royal boundaries meant high treason, a proud prince would have executed Shiyi’s entire clan. Zixing was a deeply traumatized survivor who was punished, broken, and driven to madness for a crime he didn't even realize he had committed.

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Season 1 still tops!

The Shop For Killers season one still sits on the throne of one the best action thriller kdrama ever produced. The action scenes,the thrill,the background stories,the emotional attachment it had...every thing was top notch. I can't forget the absolute horror the little Jian witnessing Honda being killed and his hand haunting her for years....or that gut punching scene of her finding her mothers deadbody in the morgue and trying to find shelter by hugging that deadbody thinking that deadbody would save her....her bonding little by little with Jinman,Jinman finding her absolutely crushed after being locked in the school storehouse after calling out his name three times......the step by step revealation of Murthehelp and its backstory,Bale and his monstrosity, the absolute horror of him throwing grenade to room full of abducted women......and in the end of everything, Jinman coming back alive and the final relief in Jian's eyes. It was absolute cinema.

Believe me,nothing in this season could touch me the way season 1 did. I know second season of any popular drama almost always sucks. This one didn’t suck. It just didn’t had that attachment.

The things that bothered me in this season....

1. The nerfed down version of Jinman.. He suddenly became brainless. The person who made Murthehelp from scratch,without letting even Jian guess anything under the basement of the house she lives,went head to head fight with Babylon....suddenly he became inactive. He cant make any decision, he was out of the picture half the time. And an amature like Jian taking alll the decisions, not even someone like Minhye. I really dont get it. Yeah I know this season is to showcase Jian's growth as the CEO but hey,if we think realistically, Jian still has a looooooong way to go as to become a decision maker for something like Murthehelp. She didn’t even know its existence like few years ago,distanced herself from it. Going face to face war with something so massive like Babylon without Jinman,idk how is this even possible. They just kept Jinman out of picture out of the time when he should be the one guiding Jian in this season. I still don't understand why she sent Jinman to Babylon as an abducted when it could be a suicidal decision if they failed.

2. Bale's death. It was waaaayyyy too early. I admit Kusanagi is a very stratagic villain but she is also extremely narcissistic person. She has no personal animosity with any of Murthehelp. She's just doing her job and saving her a**. She thinks she's great in her job,but she couldn’t bring the absolute horror. But Bale was the first threat that started all of this chaoes. Bale HIMSELF is the chaoes. He doesn’t care if he lives or dies,he only wants Jinaman to rot in hell at any cause. And this sort of madness with personal animosity was really necessary to keep the things tight till the end. Bale and Jinaman both had worked together for years. They had background stories. They both were trained the same way. Its their morals that collided. Bale brought the monstrosity and Jinman brought the humanity. This story needed Bale. I believe Bale and Kusanagi together could be a very powerful villain duo.

3.Q. Her introduction was powerful ngl. But as the episode proceeds,it started to get evident, she doesn’t use her brain much except in action sequence. So many things happened,she is a skilled assassin,she knows kusanagi and her nature, she got to know Bale and the grudge between Bale and J,she also saw how Jinman saved both of their lives before,a whole bus of people from Babylon got burned down to death......but nothing made her think something is going on inside Babylon behind her??? And after she got to know the truth,she just went back to her country instead of going after Kusanagi??? Girly was literally after Jinaman to avenge her brother, then why not Kusanagi????

4.Pasin. Oh God what should I even say about this storyline.... What madness possessed the makers to make one of the most loveable characters of the series a betrayer??? And also why could pasin communicate through writing or anything before the hidde camera was installed? Also that camera was blinking red right before our eyes ffs. And again...why was pasin's son so out in the open that Babylon could get him so easily? We know Pasin is Jinmans right hand man. Babylon went all out to find Jian when she didn’t even know anything. Now when Pasin is actively working,what made them think Babylon wont go after Pasin's weakness too????


5. Killing almost all important characters. Idk if they ever gonna make season 3. But if they do, Murthehelp without Pasin,Brother,the detective and a villain like Bale....idk how are they gonna compensate that. Bring all new characters you want,but emptiness of the characters that started this journey can never be fully compensated.


As I said,this season was'nt all bad. But that attachment is definitely gone for me.

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Amazing!

I don’t normally like red/black flag type MLs in stories and won’t watch those types of dramas. But this one… this one I could help watching. I can give this nothing less than a full 10 star rating, and it is not even for the story itself!

The director has done an amazing work with this series. The cinematography, the transitions between the ‘reality’ and the ‘movie’ were just beautifully done. Superb acting from the leads. They portrayed the multilayered roles within the series so well, that it was clear who were Fang Chi/Gao Zhun and Zhen Xin/Zhang Zhun at all times

While the characters were distinctive, the emotions were not. The way the emotions and scenes between ‘reality’ and the ‘movie’ being made just blended into/mirrored each other and fed each other was just sooo well done. The actors were indeed too ‘deep in’ to it. And so was I. Every time the director within this drama said ‘cut,’ it felt like my attention, which had gone deep into the movie within, was being viserally pulled out. So well were both stories done. Both the plots were equally engaging.

In the initial episodes, the ‘movie being filmed’ mirrored the ‘real life’ so much. Then in the later episodes, it was the opposite. When the plot with Fang Chi/ Gao Zhun was filled with heartaches, we got sweetness from Zhen Xin/Zhang Zhun. And when things got intense with the Zhen Xin/Zhang Zhun, things were improving for Fang Chi/Gao Zhun. It has the right dose of angst and sweetness mixed. The director truly played with our feelings. And like a person under thrall, I went through all the emotions the director meant to convey. So many emotions within the short span of each episode, that by the time I was finished with each episode, no matter the actual story, I was left in awe at the masterfulness the director.

And the OSTs. They were just amazing! As someone who doesn’t listen to music much, even my attention was thoroughly pulled and hooked by these OSTs. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve listened to them!

This drama is not just a story. It is truly an amazing art. And I loved every aspect of it.

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I Didn't Expect to Get This Attached

I genuinely enjoyed Genius Girlfriend. I'm not going to pretend it was some perfect drama because it wasn't, but I got really attached to these characters and their relationships.

I'll be blunt though, I didn't really feel that much chemistry between Lin Zhixia and Jiang Yubai. I still like them together, and I was happy to see them end up together, but their romance just didn't give me the same feelings as some of the other couples. Maybe it's just me, but I found myself much more invested in the people around them.

But I also really liked Zhixia's character growth. She doesn't suddenly understand love or relationships overnight. She slowly starts figuring out what love actually means, not just romantically but in general. I loved watching her gradually become closer to the people around her, make friends, and actually learn to understand their feelings instead of only seeing things from her own perspective. That growth made her feel much more human to me, and honestly, I think it was one of the most satisfying parts of her character.
And I really liked Yubai's role in Zhixia's journey too. He was one of the first people to genuinely accept her as she was instead of trying to change her, and I loved that about him. He wanted to stand beside her and support her, even when understanding her wasn't always easy. Their relationship wasn't my favorite in terms of chemistry, but I really appreciated what Yubai represented for Zhixia—someone who saw her potential, respected her differences, and chose to stay by her side while she slowly learned how to understand love and other people.

Lin Zeqiu and Jin Baihui were easily my favorite couple. They gave me SO many emotions. Their relationship felt warm and genuine, and I loved how Zeqiu treated Baihui. And honestly, Zeqiu is such a huge green forest. He was genuinely one of my favorite characters, and I kept thinking how nice it was to see a male character like him.

I also really liked Duan Qiyan and Tian Tingting. Their playful bickering was so much fun to watch. They had that kind of dynamic where you can tell they genuinely enjoy annoying each other, and honestly, I lived for their little interactions.

Another thing I really loved was the friendship between everyone. It didn't feel like every relationship had to revolve around romance, and I really liked seeing them support each other and just be friends. My favorite friendship was probably Jiang Yubai and Shen Fuxuan. The fact that Fuxuan was honest with Yubai about liking Zhixia, but still genuinely supported Zhixia and Yubai being together, meant a lot to me. He obviously had his own feelings, but he didn't let that ruin their friendship or make him resent them, and I really respected that.

I also loved the sibling moments between Lin Zeqiu and Lin Zhixia. Their relationship felt so natural and believable, especially in the way they looked out for each other while still teasing and annoying each other like actual siblings. Those little moments weren't always about some huge emotional scene, but they added so much warmth to the drama. Honestly, I could've watched more of their sibling interactions because their bond was just really sweet.

And honestly, I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel sad for Shen Fuxuan and his patient.

Overall, Genius Girlfriend gave me a lot of emotions. I laughed, felt sad, got attached, and had plenty of moments where I was just genuinely happy watching everyone together. The main romance wasn't necessarily what sold the drama for me, but the friendships, side couples, and character relationships absolutely did.

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