This review may contain spoilers
Stellar concept with average chemistry
I watched this last week since i want to find non romance focused drama and i am already make the recap of this drama. I quite like this non-conventional drama that focused on action and superpower on Female-oriented drama. (This type of drama mostly found on Male-oriented drama).FL is possessing superpowers, transmigrates from a post-apocalyptic world to a new one. She has maxed-out skills and powerful abilities, making everyone except the minor villains a pushover. ML is a powerful but powerless figure who is curious about the FL early on and actively protects her. He adheres to the principle that one's status is determined by oneself, acting first and informing later, and manipulating FL to advance his career. The ending sees them getting married, but their romance doesn't progress much from the entire time.
The chemistry between Ma Lejie and Xiao Wenyu is average. FL's dim-witted family and fiancé are also quite annoying, appearing frequently. The main issue is that even after FL demonstrates her powerful abilities, they still constantly provoke her, which is illogical and generic formula from usual short drama. Personally for this genre, male-oriented drama stills win since I saw bullets and shells flying around, I knew the director had never handled guns before. And other details. The big boss appears but then disappears without a trace.
There is much things that unresolved on this drama and i still waiting for the season 2.
It's watchable, but not really recommended if you look for pure romance.
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PERFECTION
This is amazing! The depth of the characters and the many layers to the story is so good. This had me laughing, crying, gasping, rolling on my bed, shrieking over what was happening. It was exciting; the plot literally thickens along the way. Each twist and turn had me clutching my blanket, not knowing what was going to happen next. The pace and the ending was utterly satisfying (though if I’m being honest, I skipped or snoozed on a lot of Situ Ling scenes just because he was so unbearable, but no offense to the actor). Overall, it was so well-written, beautifully directed and executed. Chinese fantasy dramas are totally top tier.Was this review helpful to you?
One thing I can say for sure: this is a good drama.
I knew beforehand that the story wouldn’t have a happy ending, so it was actually quite difficult to finish. Still, I pushed myself to watch it until the end. In reality, I only fully watched up to episode 60, and I skipped quite a lot of the plot in the last 10 epsdEven though I skipped many parts near the end, I would still give the plot a high score. For the overall story, I’d probably rate it around an 8/9. The story is good, but for some reason I didn’t always feel excited while watching it. It took me a long time to finish this drama, especially the early episodes. Even around episode 50, it was still a bit difficult for me to keep watching, which shows that the story is quite heavy. There were also some conflicts that I didn’t fully understand. But again, it’s still a very good drama.
I really like the main characters and their dynamic and chemistry. At the beginning, I actually thought I wouldn’t like them, and I didn’t understand why people said their chemistry was good. But around episodes 30–50+, I finally understood why this couple works so well. I mean, I really like their character dynamics, the way they treat each other, and their love language.
However, toward the end of the story, I found myself liking Prince Helian more than Ning Yi. His love felt more sincere and honest, and I preferred his personality. It’s very unfortunate that his story ended tragically.
The acting and the way the characters are written are also very strong. Even from the beginning, I could see that the Emperor of Tiansheng wasn’t truly a wise man. All the prophecies and what eventually happened to him felt like karma. Personally, there wasn’t any character that disappointed me.
But if you’re looking for a romantic drama, I wouldn’t recommend watching The Rise of Phoenixes with that expectation.
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I was so disappointed
I am not writing this review to vent but to express my utter disappointment with this show. One of my all-time favourite dramas is Love to Hate You, also directed by Kim Jung Kwon. So I had been looking forward to this series for quite a while.But what is this? A story for kids? Fantasy? Sports? Romance? Serious tragedy? Horror? Light comedy? Bits and pieces of all this put together to create twelve episodes for Netflix?
The acting was not convincing either. I am sorry to say this because I really liked Kim Hye Yoon in Extraordinary You, and Lomon is very good-looking. The FL's voice was hard to bear and I kept telling myself the actress must think foxes would talk like this if they were human.
Plus: In nature foxes do not howl like wolves. They sort of bark which is spooky enough.
Why am I still watching this (on FFWD mostly)? Because I want to know how in the end this mess is sorted out. I wonder. While I am writing this there is only one episode left to bring it all to a (good?) ending. I will be glad when it is over.
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This review may contain spoilers
MAJOR SPOILERS - Complaints about each couple's storyline
How I wish story should've or shouldn't have been:(1) 1st Couple - It seems that Du Yanxi has been planning to take revenge on his dad for a long time. Maybe he didn't have a plan at that point but he could've given reasons to delay any marriage till he figured out a plot. If he happened to marry someone else instead and didn't fall in love with the wife, would he have allowed her to go through the same?
I don't dislike his character; he's flawed, but still a decent husband. He doesn't need to be the perfect ML. It's his whole plan I'm not a fan of. And why keep Shou Hua in the dark? Why not just tell her about your childhood trauma and plans so she can be better prepared? She might have actually helped you plot a better revenge plan that this coz she's so smart and cunning.
Also, a small point - they could've shown his reaction when he found out about the initial bride-switch that took place. That could've set a better context to his initial reaction to Shou Hua on their wedding night and not shown his character like an outright demon.
(2) 2nd Couple - Would've been nice to see some kind of quick backstory to how these 2 got married in the first place. It obviously seems to be arranged but how did the poor Li family from far away manage to even connect with the richer Fan family and arrange this? How come the Fan family even agreed to this marriage?
(3) 3rd Couple - I think the only thing I wasn't particularly happy about was the pretend-kidnapping stunt he pulled-off. It was cute but I felt like Kangning wasn't angry enough or scared enough about it coz imagining to be in her position of being picked up and sold off to traffickers is pretty frightening. Her sister Fuhui had a proper reaction of crying and relief. Any person would have this reaction even if it's your crush in front of you.
(4) 4th Couple - They're definitely my 2nd favourite couple in this show. But why go with the Amnesia trope? 😑 It felt lazy to me. Very Lazy. And it felt so odd to see a cold-hearted Hui Shao to be force-smiling. I thoroughly enjoyed the cases they solved together. But if they wanted a reason for the both to hang out and solve cases, they could've done so even without forcing Amnesia. Just a normal fracture or injury would do. And I definitely feel he should've told her at one point about his trauma with his sister (this was the most tragic plot in the show IMO).
This is what should've happened - Give him a fracture instead of Amnesia, make her take care of him. She starts noticing and reading through his cases and gives unsolicited opinions which he would start to appreciate gradually. Later he starts asking for her opinions upfront. Show the other 4 sister's involvement also when required. Definitely show the BIL Alliance. If she's not around, he would start to miss her in a friendly way. Along the way, he informs her about his past which makes her understand his behaviour. Now that he's opened up to her and feels vulnerable around her, slowly and steadily, make his heart melt for her.
(5) 5th Couple - I'm sure a lot of people agreed that this plot started well and ended in the garbage bin. Firstly, the violence was funny in the beginning, but it was starting to get a bit too unrealistic. It took me a while to understand that the dad had a concubine so I kept confusing her to be one of the sisters. I think her character should've been presented gradually or atleast make the audience aware that she's one of the evil ones. I get that they wanted character development for Yang Xian but it could've been done while they were rich too. The explanation of why the King Majesty decided to make his consorts poor was very weird. If they wanted to go with this plot, they could've atleast established a romantic relationship between Leshan and Yang Xian. We never got to see this till the very end. They had a chance to show affectionate scenes when he would visit her at her window but that didn't happen either. No hug, no kiss, only a stick to beat him with. (Even the 6th couple got a long hug)! It feels like they only wanted to show this as a funny couple but there was definitely chemistry brewing between the 2 that the writers SHOULD have exploited that but they never did and we all truly missed something good.
Oh, and that whole adopted sister of Yang Xian - completely UNNECESSARY. They didn't even use her for a Jealousy Trope.
(6) 6th Couple - Before getting into the plot, in my personal opinion, I find Qiongnu to be one of the most beautiful of the sisters. She has a combination of a pretty face, cuteness, sweetness, and elegance. Therefore, I feel the casting of She Cong was not the best. Their looks did not match at all. Forget everyone else for a moment, his looks did not even remotely match his own twin sister Kangning! Infact! The side actor who was casted as She Cong's right-hand man or his guard actually looked much better suited AND his sharp features could even match with Kangning's while complimenting Qiongnu's beauty.
Now getting to the plot, like someone rightly mentioned, we were truly robbed of a decent love story here. Only 1 singular uno scene. Realistically, if you knew each other before adolescence roughly 10-15 years ago, it's odd to suddenly have romantic feelings for each other. Even a single episode that was dedicated to this couple to establish some affection or atleast some respect would've worked.
They could've even showed a scene where he gets along with all his sisters and BILs but they only showed him hanging around Leshan for Yang Xian to feel jealous which also felt incomplete.
And why was it never mentioned that Qiongnu was promised to Madam Li's son when they were children? I just assumed she was an orphan who was rescued by him and so she was adopted by Madam Li due to pity and to honour her son's "death". This whole time, she was her to-be in-law. That changes the dynamic completely.
Now, aside from this, that whole plot about the case of 200 children and some priestess getting kidnapped, the whole scene with the King, She Cong and Shen Huishao (and what I'm assuming was the 4th consort who is now a priestess)...... I don't know why was this included nor did I understand how it impacted the story at all or for whom they had written it. It feels like this was part of a larger plotline that was cut out but because it was linked to Yang Xian and Leshan's scene, they left it I guess.
(7) There's no 7th couple and I know I'm asking too much now but I feel they could've done something small for Chun Lai. She was also quite pretty and cute.
I enjoyed this show alot, which is why I have so many complaints 😂
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1"It was a mad flood of frustration storming toward an outlet"
Watching “A Legend or Was It?” aka “Legend of a Duel to the Death” was the emotional equivalent of being dragged over railroad ties by a runaway train. Only eighty-three minutes long, every second rumbled with the pain of injustice, corruption, and mindless mob mentality. A thinly veiled criticism of Japan’s wartime atrocities and the mindset that led to it, this film was not for the faint of heart.The Sonobe family from Tokyo has been evacuated to a small northern village during the summer of 1945. The father and one son are MIA. The eldest, Hideyuki, has been medically released from military service. His sister Kieko is engaged to the mayor’s son, Goichi. When Hideyuki sees Goichi he recognizes him as the soldier he saw killing and raping Chinese women. No way was he going to let his sister marry the monster. Offended at the rejection, Goichi and his father begin framing the Sonobes for stealing and vandalism. The villagers already resent the outsiders and find it easy to blame them for any crime, indeed the failure of the military to succeed as well! When Goichi determines to re-enact his military crimes, the resulting actions cause the simmering village to explode.
The opening prologue was filmed in color displaying a beautiful mountainous area with friendly people laughing and helping each other out. In minutes, the color drained away and the narrator foretold, “Not a single person talks about what happened…these mountains still glow red under sunset clouds…Their souls feel quiet over the nightmares of bygone days.” Tragedy was creeping toward the Sonome family for no other reason than they were outsiders. That and the Takamori family ruled over the village like dictatorial medieval samurai lords. One did not tell them “no.” As events spiraled out of control, a gun wielding mob was enflamed by Takamori who burned down the rule of law and all reason.
The villagers had not had access to true war news and were fed what the government decided so when they heard how close Japan was to losing the war they were devastated. All the sacrifices in money, food, and sons, had been for nothing. Frustration, fear, and deep-rooted anger needed an outlet and more importantly…someone to blame. The alien Sonobe family was the perfect scapegoat for their hopelessness. “…the Japanese people woke up from the nightmare…They swore silence to their souls and would not speak of it.” Rather than justice or introspection, the villagers’ peace had been built on the blood of the innocent. All they had to do was shove the harsh truths down and pretend nothing happened. “One day, it will be told as a legend of a mountain demon.” After all, they were incapable of rape and murder and senseless actions. I’d say the film overexaggerated the mob mentality, but I’ve lived too long and know how it can crop up anywhere when sacrificial offerings are needed to calm the demons of fear and greed. Don’t think, don’t ask questions, just grab your weapon and kill the other. “A Legend or Was It?” was 83 tension filled minutes that were about as comfortable as a hair shirt, but also an important lesson. The loss of justice, reason, and compassion can cause people to carry out heinous actions against not only ‘the other’ but their own neighbors as well.
26 February 2026
Trigger warnings: Sexual assault, though nothing too graphic was shown.
Musical note: The film made use of a mouth harp during especially tense moments and it was quite effective.
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acting masterpiece about trauma and healing through love
While many Western viewers might get lost in
the surface-level "scandal" of its NC-17 rating,
Lust, Caution is a profound, soul-crushing
exploration of the human condition under the
weight of history.
As noted by prominent Chinese critics, Ang Lee
doesn't just adapt Eileen Chang's text; he
reconstructs it as a recurring trauma. This is a
film about the brutality of performance-where
acting isn't an art, but a desperate, animalistic
survival tactic.
Tony Leung delivers the performance of a
lifetime. He portrays a man who has suffered, a
collaborator whose cruelty is merely a thin veil
over a visceral, internal torment. You don't need
subtitles to understand him; his silence speaks
of a "killer's light" and a profound loneliness.
Opposite him, Tang Wei is mesmerizing as the
manipulated woman. She is a pawn who, in
trying to deceive her predator, ends up losing her
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The lead is awsm ... I loved it fr
I don't know why everyone is just so negative about this DRAMA . ..... I actually liked the drama ..... N tbh I've never watched any short drama ... This was my first one ... I literally watched all the episodes within a single day !! N i literally enjoyed this yrr !?... Like okay ... Wasn't something so special... But like it had a thrill and fun ofc to watch this personally... Idk what do ppl actually expect n why spreading so hatred for this drama ... Ik the ending could be better n a bit detailed... But can we just appreciate the cast ??.. like in my opinion i enjoyed the storyline fair enough to watch at least ... And like wu jiayi is just my fvrt soo❤️❤️✋and the main actor (yun zhan) .. loved him too 🖤Was this review helpful to you?
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not what I was hoping for
Overall: I was hoping for a fun mess like the first one, but even setting the first season aside I had struggles with the characters/plot. Viewers do not need to have watched the first season. 12 episodes about 45 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/6274/only-friends-dream-on-2026Content Warning: vomiting around 43 min of episode 1, non con recording/sharing, punches, blood, past alcoholism, intimate partner abuse/violence, victim blaming, non con touching that turned consensual
What I Liked
- so many GMMTV actors in one series
- different dynamics (exes, hookup, secret crush)
- sweet moments
- Raffy and Rome
Room For Improvement
- Jack should have apologized multiple times and Dean shouldn't have apologized multiple times, you can't have boyfriend expectations when the label has not been agreed upon (and even vehemently rejected)
- intimate partner abuse response was terribly handled. She said she was repeatedly physically abused and Jack's response was "Whoa that's not okay Dao. How did you put up with a cheater like that?"
- made no sense to set this during/at university, could have been a play production post-university age
- the non con hugging with Arnold and Tua was awkward to watch and not romantic
- the interviews/tried to be edgy like Real World but shied away from being edgy
- I don't normally take off for production value but GMMTV has money and years of experience, the slower background music clashed with another beat on top of it
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This review may contain spoilers
Such beautiful scenarios, and totally wasted.
Such a good cast, and I had high hopes for this one. It started off pretty good—funny and entertaining—but the storyline got more and more twisted. Like, he was just fine with her having a personality disorder, and I felt like they weren't happy for even half a chapter. The side couple gave me more joy than the lead couple. Even in the last chapter, they kept inventing more and more problems for them. It was like, chill, just give them the final happiness of a classic K-drama.Was this review helpful to you?
Story is good. Main Leads don't have chemistry
I know why the chemistry is not evident in the relationship of the main leads. It's the ML ,Sung Joon. The way he looks at the FL is not too authentic. He always has a reserved/sarcastic expression.The 2nd ML is better. He acts as if he likes her.
The FL actress also has no expression in her eyes. It's like "dead eyes". She's pretty though.
The story is decent.
Second leads act very well! Look at their eyes - very expressive and lively!
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The crazy @ss stunts that Jackie Chen does, he is fearless, & does not stray from danger, and crazy!
**This was SUPPOSED to be Jackie Chen's last Movie, and he was supposed to retire... Hahaha... L-I-A-R!!!***(I usually write with the 1st letter of all my words in capital letters, I have wrote like that practically my whole life, but I had one person, one person complaint that it was hard to read, as if they were a school teacher grading me, or as if I'm getting paid to write a review. Anyways since this is my next review, I'm going to trying and write this review this way!!!)
1st I want to say I use to Really Like, and respect Jackie Chen ALOT, because of his acting, and all the crazy insane stunts he does. I really ended up liking him, because he sang a song, and in it a verse he sing is this is not my world, this is not your world, this is our world. I don't know if he wrote the song, but it was a really nice song, and I liked it alot!!! Especially because of the meaning.
But about a year ago I found something out about him that I am very Disappointed in him about, it's about his Daughter... Reserch, and look it up, maybe you'll find the Story. Anyways all I have to say is no matter what, she is still his Daughter. I'm shocked An Actor, more like a comedian could be the way he is to his Daughter.
WE SAW THIS MOVIE ABOUT 14 YEARS AGO in 2012, so I might not have the greatest memorie of the movie anymore...
Now about the movie... Ha ha ha all I remember is my mom saying she wanted to go watch a Chinese movie the day we saw it, I wasn't really wanting to watch it, and she couldn't tell me what it was about, she didn't even tell me Jackie was in it. All I remember is she wanted to see it so badly, I forgot I had to work that day.
Anyways when we got to the movie thearter I saw a sign, and I saw Jackie in it, I told my Mom, and she said that's the Movie I want to see, I told her how come you didn't tell me Jackie was in it... She said she forgot, I told her I almost didn't want to come, because I didn't know who was in it or what it was about.
The movie itself was action packed, and the stunts were just Insanely crazy!!! It's about recovering the heads of the 12 Chinese Zodiacs. In the Movie they were Chinas most prise treasures, not sure in real life how true that is, because they looked like they were all made of bronze. Not even copper... I do have to say the stautes head of each one was really cool, and neat. The heads themselves were bigger, twice as big as a human head, maybe even 3 times bigger. Being bronze, I can imagine, they were quit heaving to carry or lug around.
Jackie was some type of undercover spy or like a person for hire I guess, and his job is to recover all 12 of the Chinese Zodiacs heads. It's not easy getting all 12. I remember the very last Chinese Zodiac head being the hardest to get back, I believe it was the Rat Zodiac head, but I could be wrong. I remember thinking to myself oops, and there goes Jackie character, he's going bye bye. The ending, and the last Zodiac Head he had to get was probably the most craziest thing I have ever seen anyone to ever do in a Movie or Drama. Let me just start by say this if this wasn't a Movie, but was real life, there's no way in h*ll Jackie would have servived or lived. NO WAY!!! NO HOW!!! All I can say is even though the ending stunts was awesome, I was terrified, and really scared for Jackie!!! And Seriously all I remember is the beginning, and the ending... You'll have to watch to find out what happens at the end.
All I can say is the stunts that Jackie Does are Insanely crazy... So about I mentioned the ending, I know going backwards. The very beginning was crazy too, and it just starts into this scene, there is no slow start!!! You see someone laying down on something that kind of looks like a bomountain, at a high rate of speed trying to keep up with a van q, mind you there way up in the mountains on a zip zapping road. While laying down in this bob slieghd thing this person is able to monouver it left, and right or around curve. Not only that... Changing in to one wheel skates while still going down the mountian, and catching up to the van, holding on to it.
Sorry, I really don't remember anything else... It's actually really funny I only remember the beginning, and the ending. That how good the stunts were in the beginning, and the end.
Oh, and by the way the end credits song is sung by Jackie Himself... He thanked all him fans for all there support though out the years at the end, it was a pretty heart gelt message to everyone, and sound like he was going to retire, but I guess not.
The question of the day, would I watch this again??? H*LL YEAH!!! Just for the stunts, and action packed Movie.
February 27th, 2026 @ 6:19 P.M.-8:00 P.M.
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good for the cooking scenes but it is a bit slow
At the start I laughed a lot with their scenes, but after some episodes it stopped being funny at all. The slow pace and the ML made me drop it.The cooking plotline is attractive and made me want to try the recipes. However the ML was not to my liking. Most of the characters are annoying...
Since this drama is pretty recent, the scenery, the production, the costumes and make up are sublime.
Some of the side dramatic plotlines are interesting and well done. The time travel accuracy was okay
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Very interesting and good
It took me alot of effort to start this series, especially the first 5 series. This is because I couldn't tolerate the Female Lead's - Wang Yu Wen - acting for the first 5 episodes where she literally (please in my PERSONAL OPINION) is a royal bit** and a pain in the ass. Do not misunderstand me, I love her shows but this one, for the first 5 episodes especially, was tremendously hard to go by. After the 5th episode, I gradually grew to finally like the female lead character again and managed to finish watching this series successfully.Overall, the show is very interesting, keeps you on edge, exciting and funny. It also shows how 5 students from different backgrounds, wealth etc managed to become bosom friends in their 4 years in school. It is also amazing how they trust each other and care for each other. It is definitely a good watch, not a very long series (only 24 episodes long) and if you want action and some mystery, this series has it too! I would say that this series has a good balance of seriousness and comedians - especially the part where a female enters an all male school. It is a good watch - for first timers - but rewatch would depend if you like the series in the end. For me, although I love the series, I can't do a rewatch unless I skip the first few episodes. =)
The songs paired to this series is very beautifully paired and nice. If you are a fan of chinese music, something worth searching for.
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