Reviews

The Main Couple Is Really a Splendid Match

A Splendid Match is an engaging drama with a great pace. Taking a chance on a show where I didn’t recognize a single face in the main cast was a gamble, but it turns out I really enjoyed watching this drama.

This is perfect for fans of family conflict dramas. The story heavily revolves around conflicts between the legal wife and concubine, sibling rivalries, and strategic matchmaking. Gu Jin Zhao is a smart and strong-willed female character. Armed with elite business skills, she is not easily bullied and is able to effortlessly handle greedy family members. Chen Yan Yun, on the other hand, is a strategic, composed, and mature male character. Together, they share a wonderfully straightforward relationship.

What I love the most from this drama is the great chemistry between the main leads. It also features one of the best weddings in C-drama, treating the audience to a proper marriage proposal, a grand wedding procession, and gorgeous traditional costumes. Combined with the brilliant acting—especially from a tragic, lunatic marquis's son who experiences the most profound character growth—it makes the entire visual experience a total feast for the eyes.

While the ending wasn't great, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be—I've seen far worse endings in other dramas. There's a war at the end of the story, and several characters die. At least the main couple survives the turmoil and remains firmly together. As long as you adjust your expectations for the final episodes, you can still enjoy this drama as much as I did.

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The Devil wears sensible shoes

I'm going to be honest with you. The first couple of eps did not vibe with me. I was confused about the direction of the series. Is it business satire? Slapstick comedy? Office romance? It seems to dip its toes in many puddles.

What caught me off guard is the calibre of the cast. I'm not aware any of them being certified comedians, but hat off to the FL. Her timing is excellent and she is ably assisted by others. After just completed her The Art of Sarah starrer, this is a 180° change.

Even with that in mind, this show just doesn't give off that type of vibe. While they did lean heavily into broad stroke comedy early on, it didn't feel organic.

Sure enough, the show changed tack and became darker and more serious well before the half way mark. Playing dirty is the one true way in a chaebol family.

This doesn't make it a bad series. It is very watchable, but I am disappointed. This drama passed up a golden opportunity to be more than a same-same office romance.

That lack of focus translated into a stream of random worker's right stories, swoon-y office romance, unrequited love, woman scorned, business shenanigans and the good old chaebol succession bum fight. Our plate overfloweth with tropes.

As if to emphasise this, it is not the A-plot that is the throughline but the FL's character. It is her acting and the OTP's romance that kept me watching. When the OTP's romance is firing, it is piping hot. The rest are a lot more hit and miss.

For instance, the 2ML is old school handsome. I still remember him playing opposite PMY in Her Private Life. They had smoking chemistry in that show. Now, he is a sad and broken second lead who can't win a trick. Of course, he has his redemption arc later on and so does the 2FL who shafted everyone because of spite.

That is a shame as it has a superior ensemble cast and solid production value. It could have been more. As it stands, it added little to the dramaverse.

In the end, I was perplexed when the A-plot largely ended in the opening minutes of EP.12. What now? We still have almost an hour to fill.

We are presented with a grab bag of relationship issues and office hijinks plus bonus time skip. It is a bit sappy and draggy. The momentum has largely dissipated by then. The show must go on, damnit!

All's well that ends well. One-time watch for me. Peace.

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excellent romcom

Though it's quite a long drama, i hardly ever found it boring, maybe just slow enough to grab a coffee now and then. There are multiple couples, and all so good-looking, so natural, dressed so pretty and walking around such nice places or art galleries , that you can forget abt the plot... And still the plot is there! The friendship is to die for, the assistant is perfect, the ML' s devotion is unshaken from the first time he sets his eyes on the FL. The 3 couples are so innocent in their own ways, the villains are tragical, the funny scenes are really funny. If you like this kind of drama, it's certainly perfect.
As a side note, i'm still to say that many leads in asian dramas dont look asian... but white - caucasian. I guess they produce these dramas mostly for export.
Abt the logic... dont bother too much.

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PEAK

Omd please watch this series, i relate to barth and also tanrak at the same time all of them deserves love, this series deserves tons of awards… peak everything this plot is so perfect, it really tells the struggle of queer people in a religious environment or even household. Their acting is so perfect like, their eyes plays a lot here, i dont think anyone can potray eyes acting well, theyre just sooo professional, n having p’aof as their director oml, theyre really comfortable working with each other, the chemistry goes beyond the stars, i love their dedication, everything really… truly series of the year…

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ML never did any wooing and I hated him and his possessiveness

I noticed this drama last year and while I am a fan of Wang Yi Ran, I was never compelled to watch until recently. I started writing a column about two drama adaptations from the same source so I thought of tackling this drama. Oh boy, I have a lot to say about this drama.

What I liked:
1. Dialogue - I liked FL's quips towards ML's pursuer. That's clever snapback.
2. Supporting characters - I liked ML's friend a lot. He was respectful of boundaries.
3. FL characterisation - I actually liked her despite being bullied by ML. She knew where to draw the line when it came to her delicate situation with ML. I just didn't like that she believed the other woman's claims so easily.
4. Kissing - While the romance was forced, the kissing scenes were done well. Yeah ML was crazy and possessive but I always enjoy Wang Yi Ran's kissing scenes.
5. Pairing - I liked the height differences between them two. Wang Yi Ran and Lan Lan had good chemistry.

What I disliked:
1. ML characterisation - He was a neanderthal. So aggressive about his love for FL.
2. Romance - It was toxic - ML never wooed her, she was forced to accept his love. I hated that she was coerced into having sex.
3. Parents - ML's mother and FL's father never cared about their kids' feelings. Very old-fashioned - they were more concerned about what others might think of FL-ML romantic relationship.
4. FL's friend - She was out of line when she wanted to find out the reason for FL's visit to the gynaecologist. The friend was nosy despite being a doctor.

Favourite scene
When FL snapped back at ML's pursuer

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Of trust and forgiveness in the end

I tried to finish this drama to see how it ends.

Initially I find Dam Ye Jin so annoying. She can be persistent, yet her ways did not show respect to Michael. She will try everything she can in order to get what she wants without even knowing the history behind the resistance. At one point I thought she is bipolar. Why? When she calls her mom's number, she didn't even remember that when she comes back to her perky day. She may be workaholic to a point that she has forgotten how to take care of herself. This is something that people today should see that no amount of success should be traded for our own health (body and mind).

As for Michael or Mechoori, many say he is a dull character and all because of his past. One must understand that his past troubles led him to hide from the world. Though he may be back in experimenting again, his guard is up so as not to make the same mistake. It is good that he has a community who cared for him and helped him to the very end. As we see a glimmer of hope to re-establish his passion in the cosmetic industry, another conflict arose, but this time he tried not to hide from it - now that he has many people trusting and helping him.

I don't like Mr. Seo. All smiles when he sees Dam Ye Jin is so annoying. He acted like a teenager whenever he is around Ye Jin. I don't know if it is the hairstyle or the look in his face that I find not right for his position. But his sister did well as one who is hungry for power and control. She did well as a villain.

Product endorsements are difficult. And we have seen in this drama how fake reviews can destroy not just a product but a career and a person who worked hard for it. Though the drama is not as promising as we hoped for, still there are lessons to learn from it:
1. When trust is compromised, it breaks a friendship - this is what happened to Mechoori and one of his colleagues
2. There are still people who may seem ignorant, yet their hearts are pure. This is what Mechoori has that Ye Jin didn't in the city - a group of people ready to defend and help him when someone tries to hurt him.
3. Forgiveness - this is what Ye Jin, his mom and dad really needed. And I am glad they learned to forgive one another.

I like the village people, the simplicity of their thinking and life. They all know each other and know how to resolve things around them.

Honestly, I don't think it is worth rewatching.

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Of Office Politics and Love

I just finished this drama. The 12 episodes are just enough to capture what's going on in Haemu - the office politics, your average employees, strict boss and even a love story. The pacing of the story, how they end each episode kept me waiting for the next and see how Haemu's story and also the characters' story transform.

Thank you for casting Shin Hae Sun and Gong Myung who had delivered their parts very well. The focus on the leads gave us a closer look at how relationships in the office and outside of it transformed. Shin Hae Sun gave us that confident boss who had a facade of one that cannot be brought down. In-Ah's reputation had preceded her, so many of her subordinates had been tiptoeing around her. She can be ruthless but reasonable. She learned what teamwork means later and became their 'fortress' later when she learned what work means to them. I think this is quite a transformation for In-Ah, especially when she fell in love with Ki-Jun. Ki-Jun's perspective had made her re-think her choices and learned to let in other people into her life.

Ki-Jun may be a very by-the-books guy when it comes to his work. He felt he should be promoted but when transferred to another team felt demoted. He did not see what In-Ah saw. Instead of investigating outside, his role becomes important to cleaning house. Ki-Jun can be idealistic, but that what sets him apart from the rest of the Audit Department - he wants to make things right even if it cost him his own job.

The VP may look like leaning only on the influence his wife has but eventually learned to stand on his own principles to help the employees of Haemu. Sometimes we need the upper management to look into the concerns of the people and not just making money which his half-brother is only after. His EA may have misplaced allegiance, but later on suffered the consequences of her choices. I like that the characters are not unforgiving, that they learned to accept their mistakes and later on knew when to reach out and be of help to others.

I love Team Three - how they worked well together, supporting each other like a family. I think this is what transformed In-Ah to care for them. Though Team Three is not excellent when it comes to work, their care for each other is what made them work together and later on support In-Ah.

The other supporting actors did well to create this drama meaningful. I am glad this drama ended in a positive note.

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I wish they write 39 and 40 episodes, not 38.

I am going to tell you about three womens in the show, and i wish they were writing more episodes than 38th episode, do you know why?


1. Yan Ying and Fang Wei Gang.

Yan Ying and Fang Wei Gang are still married couple, and they are happier couple, but it is fucking Fang's ego and weathy. i know he only loves Yan Ying. Unfortunately his mother is so annoying and nagging about wants to have grandchild. One day Tian FeiFei is looking for a weathy and status, she is gold digger. She decide to take a trap into Fang Wei Gang's nest. Fang Wei Gang slept with her and got her pregnant by mistake. AND Yan is 3 month pregnant at same time. she found out about his affair with her and shes pregnant. Yan decide to divorce him. She did not tell him that she was 3 month pregant. BUT, i wish she should not confronation the mistress and Fang's mother. Somehow Tian Feifei purposes pushed her and her arm hits her belly to cause her to miscarriage in tragic. What is the fuck wrong with Fang's mother begs her to forgave Tian Fei Fei because she is pregnant at Yan's home. It is digusuts me for Fang's mothers behavior. Yan got pissed off at Fang's mother, and to tell them to get out of her place. Tian Feifei use a pregnant trap, and manipulation led to destroyed Fang and Ya's marriage.
Fang Wei Gang realized. that Shes the one loyal and loves him only for him, not his money. Tian FeiFei birthed a daughter Little Moon. She never take care of her daughter, and she hired nanny to take care of their baby for all the time. Tian is lazy ass, and only thinks of money and luxury, go out all the time. One day his mother passed away and guilt because she feels destroyed Yan's desire for child. I don't feel sorry for Fang's mother. Anyways Tian's greed and deceived all the time to Fang's mother and Fang Wei Gang. Tian decided to leave her daugther to Yan's house, and Yan found the baby front of her house. Yan called Fang, and angry at him. she decided to take care of little moon for awhile and Fang realized Yan is a good mother and loyal he lost everything at once.
Tian is back and took little moon and get back at fang's house, and Fang told her to getting divorce. Tian and her daughter go out at the mall, she did not pay attention to her own daughter, and think of another luxxy stuff, until someone else kidnapped Little moon. Tian is starting worried and panic. called Fang and Yan. involved in the police and everything. Tian started to notice and realized Yan is a good mother and fit in everything, and Tian realized that she is not type of person to be mother, and unfit mother. Tian decide to ask her to be mother to little moon. I feel bad for Yan, because Tian and Fang and his mother are type of moron people to deprived Yan's life and desires to be mother of her own one day. they destroyed of it.

Fang wants to get back together with Yan and he knows his heart belongs to Yan. Tian realized Fang never loves her and she only love the money Fang provide. Tian decided to told him that she don't want to be mother and don't want to stay with him,

Otherwise, Yan is engaged to Kang Di, and ready to move on. Tian found out and rush to stop her to get married in the room, not at the wedding. Tian begs her to not married and she wants her to be with Fang because she knows Yan is good mother to her little Moon and Tian gave up for her parental rights to give her for her daugther. Yan don't want anything from Tian, and decided to continue to get married.
Fortunately, so annoying, Fang and his daughter Little moon disturbed the wedding and begs Yan , not getting married to Kang because Fang really loves her and he make the mistakes in many ways to hurt her, and Fang really wants to get back with Yan and to be with her and his daughter together.

So impressive that Kang understands about the life Yan and Fang between history and love. He took Yan's hang to hold Fang's hands during Wedding cemenory so annoying. anyways Lets them to remarry and become mother to Tian and Fang's daughter.

I wish there's more episodes that i want to see that Yan will pregnant again in future with Fang and little moon needs half siblings. That is not FAIR for 38th episode. i want 39 or 40th. episodes show that it is should be Yan is going to be pregnant again and start a family with Fang. COME ON.

2. Lin duo Ya and Han Bin.

They are married couple and cute. It makes me sad to see their lack communication and misuderstanding in the beginning. Han bin cheated on her with female worker, Yuan Zi Dan, shes 100 percent gold digger, and she did destroyed their marriage. she is pathetic person. Lin Duo Ya and Han Bin struggles with a lack of communication and differenring career paths, they are also plagued by the interference of Han Bin's assistant Yuan Zi Dan aggressily pursues him, because she wants him and his status and weathy. That is so mess a marriage.
Han Bin finally realized his mistakes and works to earn Lin Duo Ya's forgiveness with the help of their elders and a new found a mutual understanding, the two reconcile, that they decide tp give their relationship another chance, but this time on more equal footing where both value communication and emotional support that they need to build for their lives and relationship that they needs at each other.

Come on, i need more story of this, that is not end for 38th episode, come on. i want them to getting married and expand to have family. that is simple.

3. Jin qin and Wu Mo

Oh gosh, Wu Mo's mother is controlled mother and she is the one to destroyed Jin Qin's life and marriage to Wu Mo. She is the one to set up his son's cheating on her to be with Luo Mei Zhen that Wu's mom expected that. it is turned out Wu's mother was wrong and suffering in many things. Let me to tell you that.

Jin Qin always to be housewife and mother to their son, and she always clean the house and do chores. Jin Qin's marriage to Wu Mo was shifted by her domineering mother in law, which eventually led to their divorce, after the split, Jin Qin faces numerous hardships including struggling to stay connected to her son Duan Duan.

Wu remarried to Luo Mei Zhen, their lives turned nightmare. Wu's mother is suffering and cleaned the chores and everything because Luo Mei Zhen is a bully and bitch, and yelling around, and abuse. Luo is not typical of wife and controlled everything she wanted to do. Wu's mother realized that her life turned nightmare. She realized Jin Qin is very patience and good woman, and good wife. her fault and her guilty. it is effect her back is pain, and exhausted. No one helped her. Wu helped her because she is mother of him. Luo is not helping NOTHING.

Wu started to realized that he still have feelings for Jin Qin and started to build strenthgh and stand up for himself, and backbone. Wu and his mother talked about many things in the room and he decided to divorce Luo, but she refused to leave. Finally His mother told her to divorce and leave. she will give her a money and divide property, because she told Luo that she make mistake to destroyed their first marriage in the first place. she realized and learned lesson. His mother passed away.

Jin Qin gave respect visit to funeral, and met Wu Mo, and gave flowers on the tombstone. Wu told her that he transfer to another job and he will come back and will give a chance to win her back. Jin Qin smiled at him back. Jin Qin is very strong and strength, and independence of herself.

In the ending, she is owner to the store, and proud of herself, to gathering hardships. Jin Qin's focused on her personal amd professional independence. She successfully transitions from a stay at home mother to a respected career woman, she finds her value as "businesswoman" and gains the strength to stand up for herself while the show hints at her potentially finding her life, her primary victory is her self transformation and the ability to provide a better life for her son.

I wish more story about Jin Qin, because i want to see her to be businesswoman and give it at the second chance to pick two men which she wants to be with, and if she picked Wu Or another man, to remarry and expand family again that Duan needs siblings to protect at each other, and shes successfully businesswoman, and show that she can handle family and whom she with for her own happiness.

COME ON, I want to sees Yan gonna be pregnant again in future for her blood and fresh one or two children. Little is moon is her not fresh and blood, not fair. it is deprived her desires to have children. Fang is very selfish person.

Cmoe on., i want to see Lin duo ya and Han Bin to getting married and have childre in ending scene. come on...

umm sighs, Ji Qin's good character, but it needs more to show that whom she pick to be with and give her a emotional support and independene, and their son Duan needs a more sibling because they need to protect each other. come on

I want to see 39th or 40th episodes that better than 38th. COME ON.

The starter wife is the series that i seen all episodes, until the end that its ok. i want to see it more better than 38th.

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Great Fantasy Adventure with a Splash of Romance

Seven Relics of Ill Omen is a fantasy adventure that follows five ordinary young people who form an accidental alliance called the Phoenix Squad to hunt down seven evil ancient artifacts before they trigger a catastrophe of apocalyptic size. It's a wonderful show that explores human nature, inner demons, true friendship, and what it takes for broken people to become something extraordinary together.

I wanted to watch it when it first came out, but I kept putting this one off. The poster is dark, the title gives you ominous vibes, and the trailer is full of creepy moments. I'm not the kind of person who enjoys overly dark dramas or heavy horror elements, and that's exactly what the marketing fed me. But I’ve been on a Song Weilong binge for some strange reason lately LOL, so I figured I'd give it a shot and drop it if it got too scary. Surprisingly, it's not nearly as dark as you'd expect. The first stretch of episodes leans a little heavier into some creepy elements, but most of the show is actually shot with nice, bright colors and solid camera work. So if you've been avoiding it for the same reason — don't.

As far as entertainment goes, this drama kept me on my toes. I wanted to keep watching even when it was well past my bedtime. I don't usually enjoy large ensemble casts, but this one earned it. Each character has their own backstory, their own inner demons, and the drama gives every single one of them room to shine. We get genuine insight into their backgrounds and get to watch how, despite everything, they all develop into wonderful human beings. That's the heart of this show, and it's what kept me invested far more than any plot twist could.

Song Weilong is great as Luo Ren — fiercely protective, intense, and he gets to showcase some impressive fighting skills. Liu Haocun as Mu Dai goes through several transformations throughout the drama, making her one of the most dynamic characters to watch. I wouldn’t say she’s a stellar actress. She does have a long way to go to get to the point where she can get very nuanced with her facial expressions, but she worked for this role because this was adventure and action driven drama. Ao Ruipeng as Thirteen-Thousand and Zhang Yichi as Chubby bring a lot of comedic relief that's smartly written with genuinely witty lines. And comedy doesn't disappear in the second half of the drama like it usually does a lot of C-dramas as things get a lot more tense. Thirteen Thousand and Chubby continue making us laugh until the end. I actually quite enjoyed Ao Ruipeng's performance in this drama. And Yan Hongsha? An absolute badass. She works perfectly as an addition to the group a few episodes in.

The pacing is excellent. There was not a single boring episode. No filler scenes, no draggy unnecessary moments, no urge to fast-forward even once. Scenes with dialogue or slower, more mellow moments are all beautifully done and meaningful. The script is tightly written, and while there are some things left unexplored that I would have liked to see explained better at the end, I didn't care much because what I cared about most was these characters conquering their trauma and inner demons along with the defeating the evil, and the show delivered on that front completely.

Production-wise, the CGI is decent. I wouldn't call it amazing — I've definitely seen better — but it's solid quality work that doesn't feel cheap at all and never takes away from the enjoyment, instead, it enhances it. The fight scenes are well done, particularly between Mu Dai and Luo Ren. I don't usually watch contemporary dramas with martial arts, but I enjoyed seeing it in this setting. Their fight choreography together also adds a little extra chemistry to their romance, which is a nice bonus.

Now, to the loaded question — is there any romance? I’m sure a lot of you want to know.

Yes. It's not the main plot, because the main plot is five people hunting relics to prevent the apocalypse, but the romance between Mu Dai and Luo Ren is set up from the very first minutes of the first episode and it’s obvious. It's not the kind of romance you'd see in a romantic drama — it's very sweet, non-toxic, and doesn't take forever to develop. They become a couple less than halfway through, but they go through several hurdles that add real depth to their relationship. Since this is an adventure show for all audiences, don't expect skinship beyond hugging — but it's still satisfying to watch them fight for each other and for their future. There's also a secondary romantic subplot set up between Yan Hongsha and Thirteen-Thousand, though it doesn't fully develop until the very end. It's still fun to watch these two bicker throughout the drama and aggressively ignore the fact that they like each other. I think whether you like romance or prefer your adventure dramas without it, you will still enjoy The Seven Relics of Ill Omen because the romantic subplot and the actual main plot are intertwined very well and don’t take anything away from each other.

Overall, Seven Relics of Ill Omen is a very well-done character-driven fantasy adventure with a great cast, great pacing, and a story that will make you feel things you didn't sign up for. I recommend it to anyone who likes any of the actors, anyone who enjoys fantasy adventure, or anyone who just wants something different. This show definitely deserves a higher rating—go in with an open mind and let it surprise you.

P.S. Special award goes to Chubby’s fated pheasant. Oh, and the soundtrack is great.

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MASTERPIECE

I've been putting off watching this movie for quite some time but it's the best movie of my life. I've seen several similar films, but none have affected me this much.
But this movie is a masterpiece, it's more than just a masterpiece.
Every second of this movie was perfect😭❤️
The actors were incredible too. These roles suit them very well.
Their love is simply unbeatable, it was so cute and charming!🥹
I love it so much but I'm not sure I'm gonna to rewatch it someday because I'll cry even harder🥲💔
I want to erase my memory and watch it again.😭

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Not A Another Office-Romance

I looked up the Directors works before this, turns out i rewatch her drama more than once (find me in your memory is still my fav), she's soooo goood. The story also refreshing, its office romance but not between chaebol & his/her employee, but between office worker who could get fired anytime, eventho In-ah is her supervisor, but still she didnt have any authority who stays and who leave, even on eps 11, she got demoted.

The character is interesting, Ki-jun was so naturally funny, and In-a characters was consistent until last eps. Both the leads characters are not flawless, Ki-jun was calm & righteous, but his childish acts came out when he jealous. In-ah strong character who always choose to do the right thing stumble out of loyalty and choose to cover her ex case. The Audit Team 3 are also entertaining, they're all pull off these weird characters, so funny also. The 2nd leads, arrgghhhhhhhhh i pissed at them, which means they're that good playing these characters. Both are not ordinary "good turns bad", I feel they're still have conscious even when they got greedy. I think thats why i love this drama so much, the characters are all relatable, i believe we saw a lot of these type of people in reality.

I really love how these characters are all straightforward, the scenes are not cheesy. Ki-jun confession scene on eps 6, they walked in sunset OMG. The words he said came out was so goooooooooooodddd. It feels like He let her know his feeling and he's not intimidated by her past or her positions in the office, and didnt push any answer. Best confession scene eveeeeeeerrrrrrrrrrr.

And the Outfit, OMG. they fit these characters perfectly. In-ah was strict but kind, her outfit always oversize but nicely tailored (kinda want to steals her outfits). Ki-jun was easy going but always take his job seriously, his style was so different in & out of office, it feels like they want to show that he knows how to sort his mind. 2nd leads outfit, and support characters outfit also portray their personalities.

For me the most important things in Kdrama is the ending. Sometimes good rom-com kdrama have cheesy, a wedding, or open ending (the worst) . This drama was consistent till the end. They walked between buildings after their work meeting, this is totally the best ending scene in office-romance drama, i will be pissed if their ending scene is "walking under the cherry blossoms trees".

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Happy times for 11 episodes, immense depression for the conclusion

Boy does this show take a hard turn in its last episode. Couldn't have seen that coming.

Beach Boys is a perfect analogy for how all good things must end, because that's what makes them good.

The bonds between the characters is very strong and heartwarming to watch. All of the actors give the perofmaces of their lifetime. Makoto in particular, because I kind of think that when that actress got older, her roles became flatter and she showed less emotion, namely in Key of Life and Departures.

I entered this show expecting a peaceful dream of a narrative that would showcase a life that everyone would want to experience at some point. But the main theme of the show seemed to be how one can't escape reality, as parts of your old self keep coming to drag you back. It was a little disheartening to see the characters decisions at the end. I can't say I didn't expect that they would make the choices they did, but it still feels hollow.

This show really went beyond my expectations, and had powerful lasting messages about finding one's own purpose in life. Everyone has a beach out there, so don't settle for someone else's.

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