Reviews

Where is this hot and toxic?

There were so much reviews Like " oh wow, toxic hot powerful, Drama" - so i gave it a try.

And it was...
Quite average.
The main leads chemistry
was just not there, felt flat.
Doona was like "a baddie", but not really, if you watch the show you know what i mean.
The love story... I don't know- was just not something that blew my mind away, with acting, connection or originality.

The kpop thing was cool, but the potential was quite wasted, as the relationships between the characters, this topic was not shown in depth.

The ending was okay. I think it suited the flat relationship of the main characters and it is the most realistic ending, under this circumstances i guess.

The visuals and doona were pretty, music was okay.
Side couples were mediocre.

All in all - pretty average, would not watch again.

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Excellent if you like great female leads

I enjoy this drama thoroughly. The story is, if not totally realistic then at least very beliavable while at the same time keeping the historical romance frame intact.
There are at least 3 strong female characters, 1st one warrior/strategist, 2nd army medic and the 3rd concubine who decided to fight the enemy from within. Not much hate in the harem; female characters have friends and colleagues and they mutualy support each other.
The love story is sweet and enjoyable; I loved the war of wits between the main couple that starts from the 1st episode. Their love grows naturaly and is not forced like in some dramas where you ask youself till the end why the heck does s/he love her/him. The setbacks are reasonable depicted and you feel that portrayed reasons would work for us, too.
Politics and the war are the big part of the story but for me, not overly complicated so they are easy to follow. There are even some traces of social issues (disappointed veterans-turn-bandits). The overall situation of multiple forces fighting for the ultimate power and ever changing loyalties are a faithful representation of the historical period.
Acting is great, not sure whether I enjoy more young couples' lively nteractions or the low-key, full of danger and deceit elder couple of chancellor and his lady.
Looking forward to 24 more episodes and how our main couple with develop and grow in such dangerous times.

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My opinion on the BL

I did'nt have much expectations for this BL but woah. Korean BL's really never dissapoint me, especially this one. It was super cute and the actors did a good job. Everything was really good in my opinion and it has probably become my comfort BL. I definetly recommend you to watch it because the story is amazing and wouldn't get you bored, atleast I did'nt get bored. Since I have to write 500 words I'll say one thing I did'nt like. The one thing that I did'nt like is that there were only 8 episodes and I got kind of sad when it ended. It's perfect for people that love binge watching series or don't have that much time. The main thing I liked in this series must be the camera work and the scenes (And of course the story). It was beautiful how they standed in the rain and everything.
Apologies if this is a bad review because it's my first time writing a review on this app and I really enjoyed the series so I don't have anything bad to point out.
I hope you decide to watch it, enjoy.

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A bit too much political drama, a bit too little romance - only slight hints at spoilers

I was slightly disappointed with Part 2 of this amazing series. After finishing Part 1, I immediately jumped on Part 2, hoping to get a bit more fluff from the main leads' relationship. But unfortunately, I did not get such satisfaction.

The plot of the series remains to be spectacular, with numerous twists, and exploring difficult themes such as death and betrayal. And the political bit of the series was captivating, with ML seeking revenge, and the involvement of many other high-ranking officials as well. I love how the King, Queen and Royal Consort, always remains to be supporters of LingBuYi and ChengShaoShang, especially loving CSS's relationship with the Queen. I was missing scenes of CSS with her family, as she mainly stays in the palace for training, but this was redeemed with the Queen acting as her mother.

While ML and FL do have their sweet moments, they have always lacked communication. And this issue was never resolved, even until the end of the series. I felt that the ending of the series was too shocking, and let me down quite a bit, as I did not expect such a thing to happen, nor did I want to see such a short reconciliation. Both leads had ideals and beliefs that were too conflicting, even basically opposites, and this conflict was never resolved between them, with neither of them seen to reach a compromise. This leads to a worrying question - if a similar situation arises, won't that mean a certain break-off of their relationship?

While binging all 56eps have certainly kept me on my toes, and I did not feel bored even after finishing the series. I thought the sweetness of the romance was quite lacking. Although romance may not have been the only main focus, it should've been more elevated. And communication should've been established between ML and FL, with mutual trust, which was sadly sorely lacking in their relationship.

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it’s creative and somewhat realistic

and what I mean when I say realistic is that I feel like this could actually happen, ther’s actual people in the world that are gay while married to a woman for society’s standards, also with people saying he cheated, yes I agree, to some degree, because yes he kissed him and fell in love with another person but it ended up never bieng more atleast not before him and her divorced, there have also been a lot of people saying he was selfish, but she was the one that told him the student could stay with them, and she was the one staying with him because she still loved him while he started loving another, and he couldn’t do anything about that obviously but she could’ve immediately divorced, but overall I feel like they where all a little selfish

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Very unique plot

Starting off, I'll just say that I've never watched a series where FL actually associates so closely to another guy - LuoYao. It was a very very adorable relationship and I even got confused momentarily to whom the ML was. But it was interesting how this prior relationship actually means something to the plot, and not just a simple stepping stone to FL and ML's relationship.

I love the exploration of family dynamics. Mostly seen through the family interaction of FL with her long-lost parents, it's interesting how its often a lot more difficult to maintain a good relationship within a family, but even so, they still love each other greatly. Family interaction is less seen in part 2, with more of the politics going on, so I quite treasure the scenes which explore FL's relationship with her family members.

Another thing I really liked, was how this was one of the rare series where the Monarchy wasn't trashy and stupid. The King was incredibly wise, and took care of his children, and especially so for LingBuYi. The Queen and the Royal Consort are both noble women, and they do not act stupidly like many royalties in other series like to. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said by the prince and princess, but then again, it wouldn't make sense if all the royalties had really acted as their noble title suggests.

FL and ML's relationship develops more in the latter half, as FL used to harbour suspicion towards ML, and did not like him due to his nature of being a war general. Personally, I did not think they're relationship got off to a great start, with both ML and FL having quite conflicting personalities. But I look forward to its development in Part 2.

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Better than the series

This special episode seemed to be the perfect setup for the series. The story got a good start and the actors showed great chemistry. You can believe that Nine and Daonuea, both trying to get away from something, were instantly attracted to one another. As the episode ends, you certainly want to know what happens to them in the future. Nine and Daonuea would seem to be a perfect couple.
Chahub and Best are excellent and deserve more opportunities together and separately. Unfortunately, the series that followed was not very good and the script was trash. Even the performances of these two guys could not save the muddled series storylines. I just hope the series did not hurt their chances for more together.
Watch the special episode and skip the rest.

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Good but confusing

This was really good but I spent too much time trying to figure out who was who. Beautiful love story and it turned into two. So happy with the ending.

I’m a huge Ahn Hyo Seop fan. Loved him in Business Proposal (my first K-drama ever) and also Dr Romantic 2 & 3. That guy never disappoints!

Kang Hoon was just the sweetest and cutest guy and his story was heartbreaking. Will look for more series with him.

Jeon Yeo-been did a fantastic job in the dual roles. So much so that I had to look it up to make that was her. Very talented.

I would recommend this series if you like time travel but don’t try to figure it out logically. That nearly made me crazy and literally kept me up one night.

Would love to see Ahn Hyo Seop and Rowoon together again! ❤️❤️❤️

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The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

Like a puzzle or a rich tapestry, the individual pieces may not be exquisite when viewed individually. Put together, they create a stunning picture. General and I is one of these masterpieces where the whole is greater than the sum of the individual parts.
Yes, it has flaws. Angelababy's acting, especially the opposite of Sun Yizhou's, is lackluster, and a dead fish could emit more EQ or facial expressions than Angelababy. When paired with Wallace Chung, she can shine like the luminous jade hairpin she wears. The production quality suffered for the CGI budget (which was mediocre at best). The story left something to be desired (especially when it comes to the female cast being suicidal or depressed over misunderstandings or that falling in love with someone you grew up with was the primary way to fall in love in this world). Weave all these imperfect pieces together, and the whole became greater than the sum of its parts.

Wallace Chung (Chu Beijie) shines in every scene he is in. The other actors around him become the scenery to complement him. His ability to shine the spotlight on the other actor or actress when needed makes him one of the acting gods of Chinese filmography.

The Story between Bai Pingting and He Xia at the beginning felt flat. He Xia's feelings for her felt insincere and fleeting at best. His refusal to let go of the past, accept change he doesn't like, and disregard for the feelings of others makes him a perfect villain to Chu Beijie. Add to that Bai Pingting's self-doubt and Beijie's willingness to accept blame for any event that goes wrong, and you have two people who love each other deeply but spend too much of the show separated.

The plots within plots within plots and one-sided love interest stories add to the misunderstandings between the two. The plot arc between Shisan (Thirteenth Lady) and Beijie/PingTing felt unnecessary, especially given that Beijie was more than upfront with her on many occasions, letting her know that she had no chance to weasel her way into his heart and that he would only ever see her as a colleague and friend. Her selfishness cost him several episodes of extra estrangement from the person he loved, and while she eventually rights her wrongs, the story arc could have been that of friendship, not only with Beijie but with PingTing as well. It would have made her actions in episode 61 more meaningful to the story.

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Best C-drama 2023

2018 Ever night
2019 Joy of Life
2020 Romance of Tiger and Rose
2021 Sword Snow Stride
2022 The Blood Of Youth
2023 My Journey to You

I added this drama on my list, best c-drama of the year. This is very recommenced for all people, love wathing or not, the story is good for man and normal people who can't watch over drama and too much romance.

The story is briliant
Theme is refreshing
Location is enjoyful to watch
Acting is good

Maybe the ending mad we litle upset, but this is the consequence for made the end of drama is epic, and we can hope season 2 for this drama.
10/10
This drama is entrance for you join to love watching C-drama

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A drama like no other

It's a drama like no other. It's unique and it's fast paced. You certainly don't get bored and the story is extremely unpredictable. That is both its greatest strength and weakness. It really keeps you on your toes but since it's constantly fast-paced, it also tires you out. I needed several breaks - not because it's bad but because there was so much happening that I needed to recharge. Also heads up, because this drama will also require some brainpower for you to understand why and what is happening, so it's not something you should watch on the side. I saw many people being confused and dropping/disliking the drama because of that. Many perceived "plot holes" actually make sense when you pay enough attention. Not to say that there are no plot holes whatsoever, but it's not nearly as bad as some people claim.
I'm extremely conflicted on the romance. It happened extremely fast (and I honestly didn't understand why he fell that hard) and these romantic moments seemed quite unfitting in certain moments. The ending also left me feeling conflicted.
But overall, it's so unique and different from any other drama that it's definitely worth a watch.

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Finding life’s meaning through a sport

I am not interested in Go. But I love a good sport centric or solid character development story.

And Hikaru no Go nails it - essence of what makes for a great sport / competition centric story.

True to good Japanese sports animes’ spirit, Hikaru no Go has well fitted cast which brings out the characters on screen, solid storyline which makes us care for the characters’ growth and journey, and lovely relationship dynamics - be it mentor-mentee, rivals or friends.

1. Acting and cast
First things first, what drew me in first was young Shi Guang played by Lucas Lu. What made me stayed after was older Shi Guang played by Hu Xian Xu. Shi Guang is one of the typical leads of “hidden talent who started late” troupe in sports story. They both nail this character well and manage to maintain the consistency even when it’s played by 2 different people. They piqued my interest and made me care for Shi Guang’s journey and development with Go. From not knowing what it is, to tolerating it because of Chu Ying, to learning about it and then to taking it seriously.

Both of them also had great chemistry with Chu Ying, played by Zhang Cao. This is important because it’s the story’s backbone and spirit. Chu Ying was a spirit who can only interact with Shi Guang throughout and the one who introduced the latter to Go. If this mentor-mentee dynamic didn’t work out, it means Shi Guang’s connection to Go won’t be as believable. Kudos to all 3 actors and their dynamics.

Other actors and actresses were also well casted, which adds to the enjoyment of this live adaptation.

2. Storyline and character development
Next, the pacing of storyline was done well.

I hadn’t read the manga before, so it probably helped considering I didn’t have any biased lens watching this.

The show first started with young Shi Guang playing Go reluctantly because of Chu Ying. Thereafter, he picked up Go again during high school because of an incident with his school mates. I enjoyed how the show took time to tease this part out and to establish this context for Shi Guang. I may not know or interested in Go. But I cared for Shi Guang, which then extends to the thing that Shi Guang came to love - Go.

Thus, I got invested in his improvement after he found his own motivation and interest in Go - not because of Chu Ying, not because of extra pocket money, not because of his ego, not because of his friends.

Every improvement and a small win by Shi Guang gave me a smile.

3. Relationship dynamic
Great sports stories are made up by characters who have a devotion and dedication to said sports as our main lead dived deeper into it. In Hikaru no Go, we see characters’ relationship with each other and with Go.

How lovely, to understand the characters motivation and to follow their discovery / learning of themselves through the game of Go and with each other. I still know nothing of Go after watching this (because I kinda zoned out whenever they got too much into the technicalities of it), but it never hindered my understanding of the characters’ motivation or traits or quirks.

I particularly loved Chu Ying’s battle with Yu Xiao Yang - on their 领悟 (learnings) from their inevitable face off. It stands to show how learning is boundless and everyone has their own unique journey / lesson on mastering an art.

While Yu Liang was supposedly the rival of Shi Guang, I somehow can’t seem to connect much to their dynamics. Not that the storyline or the actors’ chemistry were bad. Just other things - be it moments, characters or friendships- seem to drew me in more.

Ultimately, my favorite dynamic remains Chu Ying and Shi Guang.

Nevertheless, I rated Hikaru no Go at 8.5 because the story and cast didn’t managed to draw me in completely to the Go world. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think one requires to know Go to enjoy this story - just like I did. While it’s barely hit the mark for me, it might for you.

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