Reviews

Nothing Redeeming.

Had a soap opera feel. Multiple dishonest characters repeatedly making stupid decisions and a melodramatic plot that is also boring. Nine is a very pushy, lying, toxic ball of red flags. The first episode was actually decent and interesting and then the things characters did after that quickly made me not care about any of them.

I watched some snippets of later episodes on YouTube to determine if I wanted to keep watching after Ep 4 and I saw nothing redeeming. The dialogue is ridiculously contrived. People stay dead silent for long stretches instead of pleading their case or even verbally reacting to what another character says. It's SO unrealistic, awkward, frusterating, and inane.

The intimate scenes are okay but feel rather flat- I've definitely seen better elsewhere. They are certainly not special enough to put up with watching the whole show.

The actors are at a 7-7.5 out of 10. I want to give them the benefit of the doubt because they were given such a crappy screenplay to work with. It'd be hard for anyone to make those characters and that insipid dialogue empathetic or realistic. No one was really charismatic but they weren't bad either.

Though it's a complete waste of time it didn't leave any mental scars, so I gave it a 1.5/10.

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Reality...

Finally after many attempts I have completed this drama...it was in my watchlist for so long .
This is my one of the favourite drama♥️of 2023....this dramas tells us how can a person can go to any extent to achieve what they want even if it means to kill a little kid in a name of sacrifice ...
The cast was perfect ....every cast has given their ? to their role which leads to this perfect drama.....
I just recommend to every kdrama fan who loves horror, thriller genre ...plz do watch this drama atleast one time ....it is perfect to binge watch especially at night ?.......

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Frustrating

It was an okay drama. What I find weird is that they never have the FL say I love you to the ML even though he said it to her multiple times. Weird and not right. Or did I miss it, since I started fast-forwarding? Also, I would not forgive the SFL for feeding into the ML amnesia, hiding him, and keeping him to herself for 3 years. The ML was too nice and forgave her. The ML father is also a piece of work. Family is not only biological/blood-related. Some non-biological people make better families than the ones who are genetically related. The ML dad has never done anything good for him so I don't why they entertain this dude.
They portrayed the ML in the beginning as not being so forgiving especially when someone is trying to get between him and the FL. They softened him up at the end. I liked his attitude much better before the amnesia trope. In the beginning, they portrayed the ML as very stalkerish and obsessive about the FL. Truthfully I was side-eyeing him there a little but he grew on me, especially when the FL seemed/acted like such a trusting child to people.
Side Note: Is this the actress's first romantic drama? She does not know how to kiss. She was giving purse lips/fish kisses and the ML was doing all the work. Sheesh. It was very cringy and threw me out of those scenes.
A Chinese drama that does " siblings' grow up together and become lovers is " Exclusive Fairytale". And the kisses were fire. Also, the FL in Exclusive Fairytale has not done a lot of kiss scenes so I was surprised when she matched the ML with the passion. Great drama.

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A fun series to enjoy.

The series was over all was a fun series. I do love the two leading couples. The always have great chemistry. My favorite couple to see develop was Mingmueang and doctor, they were fun to watch. I wish they did a better job showing there storyline. The cast were cute and they had there lovey dovey moments, and it was a nice welcome to see the change and the comedy was good. The guest cast were nice to see and played there roles well. The bad guys were basically annoying to watch get away with stuff, but the the life of villains. They were mess ups to like when title kiss ashi when he was sick and the massage moment was not ok, and he should have done better job of stop both those moments from happening. I did like seeing the miss between pai and diao lol. Overall it was a fun series to watch. Loved the NC moments were sexy and hot to watch.

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Big Mouse

MDL be like:

-Get a drama with dumb writing, black and white characters, overpowered gary stu protag who has titanium plot armor, and an ending where all bad guys are punished regardless of their crimes and ml and fl live happy ever after: FUCKING MASTERPIECE SLAY GIRL!!!!!11

-Get a drama with clever writing, multidimensional characters, where protagonist struggles all the time to get what they want, and the ending is unhappy or bittersweet: REEEEEEEeeeeee *hellish screeching*

It so happens that Big Mouth (should be Big Mouse) is in this second category, and this explains any complaint or bad review you might have read of it. Really it's just MDL idiocy, the drama is great.

The only faults I could find are:
-The last episode felt rushed
-The ML can't act and was clearly chosen just for his looks. But it actually works in his favor here, somewhat, considering what kinda character he plays.

Extra credit to all the humorous and unintentionally humorous scenes that you might not expect from this kind of story and to acting of Yang Kyung Won who just dominated every scene he appeared in.

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The Tale of No-can-do

Initially, it stood out by highlighting a predominantly female perspective of resilient women thriving independently, offering a glimpse into a world of contentment among a backdrop of mostly antagonistic male characters. However, the typical romantic entanglement, took a central role in a heartbeat as it featured two inexplicably infatuated men competing for the affection of a seemingly unremarkable woman, creating an appalling surreal cycle of rejection and groveling. This toxic dynamic became overwhelming and off putting, tainting the entire drama. The drama stumbled when merging this with a weary political subplot that ended up being unnecessarily cluttered. On another note, the cross-dressing gimmick at the beginning was nothing but a waste of time and a blatant cash grab. At the very least, it should have served as an element to help the characters bond but it didn't. That only started to happen after the identity reveal, not before.

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The Drama Queen

While it may have had a gripping introduction and an attractive selection of cast, however, it couldn't maintain its momentum later on. It started off as a fully fledged political drama then added a mix of other genres and cliches with an overpowering flavor of Netflix-esque type of production. Within a few episodes, it quickly lost its creative edge and began to recycle and re-skin the same attacks and counter-attacks between the involved parties. It made the scoop of the drama quite limited for its +11 hours runtime. It's a female centered plot so naturally the spotlight was on them. Each received decent characterization, good introductions, showcased interesting dynamics, and donned fashionable attire. However, by the end of the drama, all of them blended into a bland and vexing mix, losing their initial allure. The drama may have been alright but it's not quite there. At least it didn't stretch for the typical 16 episodes so that's a small win. On another note, the superheroes slo-mo walking shots were cringe. And the brief teaser at the end for a potential 2nd season was tasteless.

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I like the actors and that's the only reason I watched to the end.

I was excited for this with Ohm, Poom, Prame and Guide casted but overall it was dry and unexciting and a big disappointment. Nothing in the episodes each week made me feel excited for the next weeks episode to air. As much as I like Ohm the character of Shin seemed to be kind of a mirror image in some ways of at least four of his others roles that I've seen him play. And just like I figured, the last episode of this show was rushed. I felt no different about Shin than I did on the first episode. That video that was put out for the customers was good for business but when it came to everyone at the shop it was just eye rolling. He should've been saying all that to everyone at the shop IN PERSON as well. Its not like he was unconscious somewhere. Guy really stepped up and made amends to everyone but with Shin, I'm sorry he never really sat Peach down and talked to him them getting back together required Shin to have a real CONVERSATION with the man. Even in the end to me JUST MY opinion is that Shin still came off as a cold person. Also the relationship between Peach and Shin just wasn't believable. I think there could've been some chemistry between the two characters but for me there just seemed to be something missing.
terrible script
terrible acting
terrible execution of story
The only thing I liked was the OST.

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Peasants

I despise, with every atom in my being, the loathsome trope of interrupted intimacy upon any physical approximation in a semi-romantic setting—of which this drama kept repeating endlessly and shamelessly for 14+ episodes before committing to what it was trying to do. Cringey levels of cringe! Despite attempting to address important themes of justice and societal issues, the drama struggled to properly address these subjects and instead turned them into a background noise to service their jokes. Why bother then? While the cast may have been fine but their characters remained uninteresting throughout the drama. Basic characterization, none of them stood out.

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Light and fluffy drama

This drama is perfect for those looking for a light drama with no miscommunications! It’s not a complex story, and from time to time it went beyond fluffy to cringey, but overall it was a pleasant show to casually watch. If you’re looking for a thrilling and captivating story, this is not it. But if you’re looking to take a breather from frustrating plots and couples who don’t communicate, this definitely fits the bill.

*a very light spoiler of a minor issue below*




Towards the end, I did get frustrated with how he seemed to make big decisions for her, but this really only affected the last episode or 2.

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A big surprise

Hey, did I watch the same "The Heirs" that everyone talks sh*ts about? I mean, I've heard some really bad things about this kdrama that made me skip this one for a longggg time, since I started watching kdrama. So I thought this one could be like "Boys over flowers" which I really hated, but, surprising The Heirs was way much better. Although I'm not into Collegial Romance anymore, this one got me. I really enjoyed watching every episode of it. But, I can't bring myself to give this show a review more than 7.0, Here are some some points of the story I liked:

1• Is the story good? > Yeah, it's, pretty enjoyable
2• Is the ML good? > Yeah, for a rich boy Kim Tan was a pretty good ML
3• Is the FL good? > Look, in my opinion she was the best collegial girl (in love) that I've met in a kdrama. Here's why: She's strong, cool, not dumb, and for a 17 years old she was kinda mature when it comes to make decisions. She wasn't the kinda collegial girl who was dumb all the time and be like [Oh! help me! I can't even make decisions by myself. I always need the ML!] She was able to defend herself and was fearless. I don't understand why ppl talks sh*t about this FL bc for me, she was amazing.
4• Do they have chemistry? > Yeah, I've seen Lee Min Ho with better actresses who looked better with him, but this one from this show was good too, as a collegial couple they had a good chemistry

Anyway, I enjoyed 98% of the story but I have my complains:

1• I like how Young Do was able to grow up and regret his actions, but still I can't understand how come he ended up falling for Chang Eun. Kim Tan and her had their moment back at Unided States but what about Young Do? I really don't like when a character doesn't have a reason at all to like other. Idk, for me it was kinda like this: "Oh we need another male lead to create conflict between the main couple so here you go Young Do, start to like her out nowhere"
Really, for me was very uncomfortable seeing Kim Tan and Young Do fighting over Chang Eun bc for me Kim Tan and Chang Eun were always the main couple, I was like: "Boy? What the f you doing? You don't even have the right!"
I don't understand why ppl wanted Chang Eun to be with Young Do at the end when Kim Tan was a really cool Male Lead right from the start?
Although I started to like Young Do, I never shipped him with our Female Lead, not even once, their scenes together would made me roll my eyes.
Anyway, there's stories where I wanted the FL to end up with the second ML, but in this case Young Do wasn't even a option from the start. Maybe if they'd made Kim Tan a boring and "not worth it" male lead than maybe I'd ship them but Kim Tan here was amazing as a man to her, so... Nhe.

2• The Older brother. I started watching this show bc I always curious about it and when I saw that Jin Hyuk would be at this kdrama I immediately started watching it since I love this actor, but wtf was this character of his? Omg! Even though I love him I couldn't stand his character at this show at all. He hated his brother for no reason at all (and I'm sorry but hating him just bc he's a son of another woman isn't a reason for me, I mean, that isn't even his fault!) I felt bad for Kim Tan, he loved his brother so much. Also, his decision at the end, he chooses the company over the woman he loves and he's gonna marry someone else that he doesn't love in order to continue as the boss of the company. Urgh! What a deception, not because he abandoned his girlfriend but bc he chose the same future as his father, living with a woman that he doesn't love. I hate how he chose marriage contract and decided to keep the company instead of leaving everything behind. I can't avoid to think about his future with a woman that he doesn't love while thinking about the other one, how dumb.
I wished that both Kim Tan and him would abandon that sick family and their stupid father.

3• Talking about their father... I NEVER HATED SO MUCH A CHARACTER AS I HATE HIM! He caused conflict between his son's, destroyed the life of THREE woman and all what he cared about was the f company! Omgggg you guys have no idea how much I hate this kinda character bc I know that ppl (sh*t parents) like this exists in real life. I'm glad I'll never see his face again bc I think I started to dislike the actor too! Hahahah. And ofc by the end he ends up sick at a hospital bed almost dying and suddenly everyone wants to forgive all the sh"t he made????? Suddenly just bc the fell sick he deserves to be forgiven for destroying others ppl life? Especially the life of his sons????? I hate this kinda thought, just bc someone is sick it doesn't me this person start to be a saint. I wish he had died at the end

5• And ofc... THAT KISS! I've see a lot of ppl taking about how horrifying was that first kiss of Kim Tan and Chang Eun but I didn't imagine that it was so so so so so BAD!!!!! What's wrong with the actress? What the f was that face of hers? The only one kiss that it felt like she wasn't disgusted to kiss Kim Tan was the last one of the last episode bc every kiss before that she seemed disgusted to kiss him. Oh! Poor girl, it's really a sad thing to kiss Lee Min Ho, I understand you girl :( poor you...

Anyway! There were some things I really enjoyed in the story but there were another things that makes me never want to watch it again, specially seeing how stupid Jin Hyuk's character was on this show.
But! The Heirs was a box of surprises for me, I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did. Hands down to my new favorite collegial kdrama.

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Friendship, Family, Realistic and Wholesome

I like the build up of their friendship and how they all grew up, slowly accepting and understanding each other. The father duo was super duper noisy that I sometimes wonder how did they even memorize and deliver those lines ahahaha but it was really great watching how they care for each other even with all the fighting and yelling around, like they have their own point, they just can't express it nicely, like father like son ahahahah. I agree with Gao Yang's Mother when she told his father that bringing Xiaowen is such a reliable decision because he become a bridge to the father duo and at some point to the mother, let's just say to their family to be somewhat at peace. I also liked the friendship of their circle of friends especially how they would always support each other, just wanting to see more of Da Wei's story. The relationship between Beibei and her family and how her character develops was also a touching scene, I think almost all the family relationships here turned out great by the end with Mi Jia and her aunt and also with the Music boy with his parents. I also liked the friendship between Gao Bin and his colleagues ahahhaha, imagine just yelling and arguing with the principal or president of the school and just getting away with it by the end ahahaha. It was wholesome and very realistic especially in the ending. At first, I was really hoping that Gao Yang will pass the exam and be with Xiaowen that year (Congratulations for passing Gao Yang's Friends especially Beibei and the Qing University Girl), but watching the ending is actually fulfilling, it was a realistic approach that adds to the meaning of the story. Thank you Gao Yang's mother for realizing what he actually wants and giving him a chance!

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Very entertaining

I watched this drama because of the hype surrounding the drama. I was not disappointed.

Zhang Li He's performance in this drama exceeds my expectation. Bai Lu's? She is a good actress and brings value to the drama she stars in.

The story is quite interesting: the main female lead gets a second chance to repent her sins. She seizes the opportunity by ensuring she follows the rules of the game of death closely. This time, she is one step ahead of her enemies or she thinks she is.

At the same time, there is another rival who wants her dead. Will the person succeed?

Will she survive in her second life? Watch it.

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Bloody horrendous hell! It can't be more disappointing and disgusting

A taxi driver expecting good luck picks up a mysterious passenger who offers him a an extra fare to drive him to the port. Eventually the taxi driver learns the man is a psycho on the run after committing murder.
!!! Trigger warning: it's very very disturbing and gruesome! Not for faint hearted!

I was intrigued by the cast but it is really underwhelming once I've seen the first few episodes. Plot progression is super slow, i think around 6 episodes are spent for backstories, with the present day timeline was just going through one night full of incidents. The fight scenes are annoying, felt like they're just showing off psychopacy.

Towards the middle it took a dark turn and every episode makes me feel sick. I just finished it because I was hoping for any satisfying redemption by the finale (+ so that I'm entitled to write my rant!), but it turns out to be a waste of time. The main conflict was resolved poorly and anticlimactic. Hands down one of the worst dramas I've ever seen!

PS: Sorry Yeo Yoon Seok, your acting is always top-notch, I want to remember you only as Gu Dong Mae, not Hyuk Soo. Wish to see you in better dramas next year!

Dec 2023, Yovita
Find me on Instagram: @kdramajudge

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