Reviews

A beautiful drama about family that failed to deliver what it should.

This is my first review ever, so if you are reading this, I hope this review is helpful to you in any way.

"Family by choice" is a drama about 3 families that face different hardships but find a way to face them and solve them together, by forming a family of their own. I am well aware that this drama is a remake, however I haven't watched the original, so this review will be based solely on the Korean version.

I think the most beautiful thing about this drama is the portrayal of a family formed from scratches. We have 3 families facing completely different situations, but somehow they all come together, form a new family and help each other. For the family dynamic alone I think this drama is worth watching. It was beautiful and comforting seeing how, even tho they were not all bonded by blood, they cared very deeply about each other. This was what enchanted me.
The acting was phenomenal, everyone did a really good job portraying their characters and their emotions.

But, of course, there are a lot of problems with this drama that took value from it.
I watched the first 10 episodes quite fast, since I was hooked and wanted to see more and more. Nonetheless, it took me more than a week to watch the last 6 episodes. With the pass of time, I started realising a lot of different problems with the way this show was written, and those problems made it difficult for me to fully enjoy the last episodes. .

1. Sanha's mom.
At the beginning, I could understand what was her purpose on the show and what her stance was. But, even after 20 years passed, she was spitting the same things over and over again, causing more problems without actually having any character development and without contributing to the show at all.
She was purely there to cause the viewer rage for her character, that's it. After 20 years, she never onces changed her speech, never once had any other actual reason for being the way she was, and this became too annoying to watch in the later episodes. Her characters had no depth. She was making her son's life miserable without once having any kind of development or purpose on the series.
Also, are you seriously telling me that in 20 years you never once thought you were literally torturing your son? Sanha begged in front of a close door, crying on his knees and that was what did it for you? Her "redemption" made no sense and lacked sense. She just decided to leave the country, without ever saying sorry or showing an ounce of remorse or guilt for having mistreated his innocent son for two decades. I hated the "closure" they gave to Sanha and his mom.

2. Sanha's dad.
The mom was trash, but the dad was useless. He never once did anything to help his son. He was a grown adult that couldn't even stop his ex-wife from making his son's life absolutely miserable. Every time he had a talk with his ex-wife, he never actually contributed to solving anything and couldn't even protect his son from his clearly sick mother.
He lacked purpose as well. He was there only to complete the family and to serve as another adult in this scenario, but he had no goal and never did anything. His son spent 10 years living a trashy life with his mom and he just let that happen. He never once visited his son, never once tried to help him.
He felt more like a friend of Jeongjae, than like Sanha's dad.

3. Haejoon and his mom.
So, she abandons her son for 20 years, refusing to see him despite actually being able to, and after ONE chat, it was all resolved? Haejoon's mom issue was dragged during the entire serie, but somehow one chat was enough to solve It all and bring his mom back to his life again.
The whole murder and prison thing felt forced. They didnt give us enough details, despite being literally the main reason behind Haejoon's problems during the entire drama. This was such an important event in the drama, yet it felt brushed and ignored. They all made such huge fuss about Haejoon and his mom, only for them to have ONE talk and suddenly be perfectly fine and happy. Sanha's mom and Haejoon's mom issues were the main reason for their misery, yet the closure it was given to both was fast paced and it lacked depth.
This point brings me to the 4th problem.

4. Haejoon's mom and Juwon's dad relationship.
This just came out of nowhere. They saw each other like what? 5 times? And the next thing you know is they are getting married. This relationship made no sense.

5. Sanha and Juwon's romance.
Contrary to a lot of people, I was really looking forward to this romance. It never felt like incest to me, because the writers made it clear the difference between Sanha and Haejoon. Haejoon always had this sibling vide, while Sanha was different.
The thing that bother me the most about the romance was how fast peaced it was.
In the first episodes, you get glimpses of Sanha's feelings towards Juwon, but it's not the main focused and Juwon always thought of him as a brother. Having this in mind, I thought that, for this romance to actually happen, we would get Sanha trying and winning Juwon's heart and seducing her, but that never happened.
In one episode, Sanha confessed to Juwon, she rejected him 2 or 3 times, and then all of a sudden we got a kiss and the start of a relationship. Juwon never thought of him as anything more than a brother, so the fact that it took too little time for her to suddenly change her view of him ruined their romance for me.
I was expecting at least 3 episodes of Sanha flirting with her and she realising slowly that she doesn't hate the idea of dating him and slowly changing the way she saw him. The romance was too rushed, and it started without previous setup.

6. Haejoon's view of his family.
Last but not least, this was something that bothered me a lot while watching the drama. Haejoon never really seemed to consider Jeongjae, Sanha's dad, Sanha and Juwon as his family. He was always looking for more, always wanting his blood-bond relatives.
And of course, this makes sense in his teenage years, since during adolescence one is on their path to discovering themselves. But even after 20 years, he was still saying things like "being the odd one", "being the one left out", even tho he was NEVER considered something other than a member of the family. He never really seemed to actually think "this people, even tho we are not related by blood, is my family and they are enough for me". He was always separating himself from them.
For me, the fact that he never came into terms with his situation kinda ruined the whole message of the show. This was supposed to portray that family Is not only the people related to you, but those who love you and care for you unconditionally, but Haejoon failed to deliver this.
One thing was Sanha, since he had his father with him. But Haejoon was literally adopted by Jeongjae, but he didnt seem to be satisfied with this family.
Also, the fact that Jeongjae and Haejoon's mom married and they became a legal family took away the whole "family by choice" concept.

I enjoyed this show during the first episodes, but I found myself skipping a lot of parts in the later episodes.
Even after saying all of this, I still think this show is worth watching. However, it pains me the poor job of the writers at some moments.

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Overall sweet and watchable, but some big flaws

The story is about the unlucky Kota and lucky Naoya, both seniors at a university, perhaps majoring in psychology. Many small disasters are shown to plague poor Kota in the beginning, and he decides to hang around with the always-lucky Naoya for a cure. Naoya misunderstands Kota's reason for approaching him, and the two start to "date", although they don't go public nor do they have any sexual activity, even proper kissing. The relationship ends not very far from where it started actually, but the characters more open and trusting of each other.

Cons:
1. The shyness of Kota was a pain after a while. For God's sake, all that drama just for a kiss?! They do say that he has never been kissed before, which might be the explanation for the reluctance, but it is still annoying.
2. That weird and unnecessary sub-plot with the hostage taker.
3. Friends not dealt with properly, perhaps because of the shortness of the series (8 episodes x 25 min).
4. Roka's overacting a bit cringey.
5. Relationship doesn't move much, in spite of all sorts of inner revelations they both have. At the end, Roka is still acting frightened + secretly horny, even when he is in the same bed as his professed love.
6. Too much time wasted on flash-backs. But the FF button exists for that.

Pros:
1. Naoya was very charming, especially when he smiles. He was frank about his lust.
2. No toxic exes, temporary breakups, and long drawn-out misunderstandings that are actually resolvable with a short talk.
3. No hint of them living in a society with homophobia. Some of Roka's behavior might stem from internal homophobia, but that was not a given.
4. The psychology lectures were very interesting. Now I want to read the professor's books!
5. The complexity of the concepts of lucky and unlucky handled well. We are reminded how unlucky things can sometimes have very lucky effects also.
6. Pretty much everyone was good-looking.

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What was the point of this remake?

I don't know if I have the words to describe my thoughts during this experience. As someone who adores the original I was looking forward to seeing how this adaption would play out. I regret watching this so much.

They condensed 10, hour long episodes into 8, 26 minute episodes and you can tell it was rushed and poorly done. They skipped over so many plot points, chemistry scenes, and just important scenes to the story in general. This adaption was all over the place and not in a good way. I did not care for the acting at all, the actor for Phayu had a tendency to overact and I think that was because the actor for Rain had the tendency to underact. I didn't care for what these writers did so such beloved characters and the changes they made in terms of storyline, and characters.

If you want a good, thought-out, romantic, drama show with good acting and a good storyline stick with the Thai version of Love in the Air.

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A piece of jewelry rom-com. If you like Korean rom-coms, you'll love this!

I started without too many expectations. Of course, the lead female is sweet and really beautiful, but there was no chemistry with my style. Slowly I got into the atmosphere, but what really motivated me is the genuinity of the characters. They behave as they should behave. I didn't expect that In-na will be like her the entire series, but she is!! There are no shenanigans, no Deus Ex Machina scenes, she, who looks like a pretty minimum intelligence failed actress, will not solve the mystery of the universe or whatever, but she is sweet, candid, feelings smart (this is s one of the most important of the ten types of intelligence), and very very consistent. The same for the lead actor. The ending is also very pleasant, straightforward and consistent. Oh well, k-dramas (comedies) must have clowns, that, of course, are present here as well, however Yoo In-na and Lee Dong-wook offered me a great time. I strongly recommend it!! If you loved it, please try True to Love, which is also a piece of jewelry.

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Definitely recommend

So far I'm enjoying it very much. I actually had no idea whats the drama about and i just randomly started watching it. It really kept me hooked and now im jusy binge watching it!! I really like the story line. It's a bit different from the usual rom-coms. It has a bit of everything. I like how it has alot of episodes as well, it keeps me busy..
I believe it should be rated much higher. I love the casting. Choi Tae-joon has always been my favourite! Kim Jung-hyun played the role soo good. I love him since his he played his role in welcome to waikiki. I would definitely recommend for watching!!👌🏻👌🏻 It's a very good show.

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Strong FL and ML with a Happy Ending story

Read carefully before you start watching:

- If you don’t like a strong FL, then don’t watch. The FL is capable and can stand alongside the ML. If a strong, independent FL who refuses to be bound by society’s rules triggers or threatens you, it’s best to skip this one.

- If you like Mary Sue characters, then don’t watch. The FL is capable but not flawless- she still has her moments of vulnerability and powerlessness.

- If you’re not into political intrigue, then don’t watch because the main plot revolves around it.

- If you like instant karma and want to see the FL and ML take out villains immediately or always want them to die, then don’t watch. In this drama, the FL and ML's main goal is to bring the villains to justice, expose their crimes, and make sure their wrongdoings are recorded in history. Whether they die or not in the end isn’t very important for them.

- If you prefer harmonious family dynamics, then don’t watch, as it could trigger past traumas for you.

- If you’re looking for an ideal, wise emperor, then don’t watch. The emperor in this drama is portrayed more realistically, just like actual historical Chinese emperors, none of them were perfect.

- If you’re only watching for lovey-dovey moments or hot kissing scenes, this drama might not be for you, as not every episode focuses on romance.

- If you’re a die-hard fan of the novel and can’t handle changes to the storyline, then don’t watch, as there are significant changes.

- If you hate the FL and ML or find them to look ugly, then don't watch.

It's not worth forcing yourself to watch something you're not into just to leave a low rating or trashy comments on this page.

But if none of the above apply to you, then you’ve found a great drama for 2024!
This is an A-grade project with an S+ result.

- The storytelling is captivating, even though some parts could have been executed better. But overall, it keeps you hooked and curious about what will happen next.
This drama tells you that:
- You can always try to change your life for the better.
- Don’t waste your time trying to change a rotten person - it’s not worth it, and you might end up paying with your life.
- As long as you have a moral sense and want to have a better life, you will get a second chance.
- Karma doesn't always hit instantly. Living with guilt and atoning for your sins can be more painful than death itself.
- Sometimes, there's always another story of the villains.

- The visuals and camera direction are excellent. No weird lighting, odd camera movement or scene transition, fake CGI and jarring backgrounds. The makeup and filters are not overdone (except for Miao Ansu’s character, whose makeup is a bit too white for me).

- The costumes are so beautiful, and the craftsmanship is beyond the project level. Kudos to the costume designer!

- The fight scenes are awesome, and they’re done without using stunts or too many slow-mo effects. It really convinced me that the ML (Li Yun Rui) knows martial arts, though he indeed did train for six months for his role in Fengshen. Kudos to the art director!

- They also use real horses, and I could say a drama will be good if they put in the effort to use real props. A lot of dramas these days try to show the leads are great at riding but end up using fake horses with obvious, poorly done editing.

- No fake princess hugs from the ML here.
It really annoys me when a perfectly romantic princess hug in some dramas turns out to be using a prop, leading to awkward moments for the FL, who might constantly worry that she’s too heavy for the ML to lift, even though most of them weigh less than 50kg.
But in this drama, our strong ML lifts the FL with ease.

- The chemistry between the leads feels very natural and real. Even a small eye movement or just the two of them standing together is enough to show their chemistry.

- Lastly, the drama ends with a Happy Ending, the kind everyone wants but often gets betrayed by the scriptwriters.

- Of course, like any drama, it’s not totally perfect. There are some small details that are missed, and a few scenes could have been cut better. But given the budget, this drama truly deserves the attention it’s getting.

During a live broadcast, the actors also mentioned that they filmed late into the night, often until 2-3 a.m., while co-director Guo Feng worked until 5 a.m. and still managed to smile happily. Can’t add the co-director to the list of the crew, but I hope people will recognize his work in the future.

This is a drama created by a dedicated team focused on providing the best viewing experience for the audience, not on selling the director’s big name or the lead actors. They just worked hard to make it happen. A big applause for them!

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Expecting more from Japanese Love in the air

the Thai version. I’ve seen the Thai version first and I was hoping that they’ll add a new atmosphere for this.
Trying to be objective this series is not easy to be executed, because we need to feel
• the characters connection ( imo the Japanese BL’s do it just great with a few episodes,there’re objective,on the other side Thai BL focus on crescendo, it takes longer but we get that connection)
•Characters chemistry ( Arashi/Rei was ok , Fuma/Kai could be better, it missed the emotional tone
I’m actually surprised because normally on Japanese series they have this ability to capture the essence of the story.
For me … I wasn’t expecting a copy paste of the Thai series but an adaptation having in consideration the Japanese culture.
They started out well on the 2nd episode I had the impression that they’ve focused on the keys points , I liked how they demonstrated Kai emotional state,it was so well made…but somewhere they lost focus.
I hope that they could see constructives comments and next time leave us speechless.

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=> Excellent isekai series , with a great Ding Yu Xi

PLOT: The FL, faithful reader of a novelist (the ML) falls into the novel / video game, in which she must complete quests to return in the real world. In the game, she is FL2, meets a group of demon hunters (ML and his sister, ML3) and helps them face demons, conspirations, romantic rivalries, ... and the Great Villain.

+++ a great cast, with Ding Yu Xi & Esther Yu and a bunch of excellent actors
+++ super quality CGI (the Chinese are the only ones who can do this kind of effects at this top level)
+++ epic, cute OSTs that fit perfectly with the emotions.
+++ The cinematography is TOP: costumes, make-up, framing, fight scenes, etc.

### The storyline is a little chaotic sometimes. In addition, the impromptu passages in the game system prevent you from fully investing in the story because you put yourself in the position of an observer.
### The ending is a little abrupt, I would have liked to see the meeting of the two characters inthe real world.
### The romance is very cute, with great chemistry, but there is no kissing or skinship,... Too bad!

=> Excellent isekai, with a great Ding Yu Xi
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Isekai avec Ding Yu Xi & Esther Yu

PLOT: La FL, fidèle lectrice d'un romancier (le ML) tombe dans le roman / jeu vidéo, dans lequel elle doit accomplir des quests pr retrouver le monde réel. Ds le jeu, elle est la FL2, rencontre des chasseurs de démons (ML et sa sœur, ML3) et les aide à affronter les démons, les complots, les rivalités amoureuses, ... et la Great Villain.

+++ un great cast, avec Ding Yu Xi & Esther Yu et bcp d'autres excellents acteurs
+++ des CGI de super qualité (les chinois sont les seuls à pouvoir faire ce genre de choses à ce top niveau)
+++ des OST épiques, cute, qui s'accordent parfaitement aux émotions.
+++ La cinématographie est TOP : costumes, make-up, cadrages,scènes de fight, etc.

### La storyline est un peu chaotique par moments. De plus, les passages impromptus dans le système de jeu, empêchent de s'investir complètement dans l'histoire car on se met en posture d'observateur.
### La ending est un peu abrupte, j'aurai aimé voir la rencontre des 2 personnages dans la réalité.
### La romance est très cute, avec une belle alchimie, mais il n'y a ni kiss ni skinship, ... Dommage !

=> Excellent isekai, avec un grand Ding Yu Xi

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my remaining bit of innocence is gone lmao-

I had pretty high expectations from this show and I was certainly not disappointed. It was one of those shows that the plot was so over the place that it made me wanna watch more. I couldn’t not finish it.
Although the plot was a little questionable, like almost too abstract, it was still very good. I was never bored.
Bible is also a very good actor and I think all of them did a good job portraying their characters.
I must say though, the amount of red flags throughout this series was crazy. Literally, not a single character was even remotely nice. I’m not complaining though!
I swear though, almost every episode had an explicit scene. I felt as if I shouldn’t be watching it, if u know what I mean lmao- Like why did Tonkla always want it raw 😭😭😭?! This was one of those shows that I made sure to watch at night. The amount of questionable scenes would be too risky to watch out in broad daylight.
Anyways, I quite enjoyed this series. I have some opinions about the ending, but other than that it was pretty decent!

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Wow, such an incredible show

Not much needs to be said about this show, it is one of the best dramas I have ever seen. The cast was incredible which is to be expected of Chung yi he is just so good. I enjoyed how powerful the women were. Qiao Wan Mian, Shi Shui, Su Xiao Yong, He Xiao Hui and Princess Zhao Ling. Were some of my favorites and Fan Duo Bings mother was hilarious. The script was expertly written, including Li Lian hua’s humor. I think Li Xiang Yi is one of my favorite heroes of all time now. His character development was incredible and the way he grew compassionate and humble was endearing to see. It’s incredible how much Dei Fei Sheng connected to him, he saw him as a contemporary. They had an unspoken bond that transcended their differences. It was odd at times and yet impressive. The cases added to the shows overall enjoyment. It is a must watch!!!

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Bland characters and underwhelming execution of story

This was my first high school cdrama. And I can't say I'm impressed. Although most people will disagree with me, it surely won't stop me from expressing my opinion.

As far as I've noticed, the main reason why so many people love this is nostalgia. Nostalgia is a strong emotion. Speaking from experience, I agree that it can make you very much attached to things that may not be that impressive. However, I'm not connected to this drama in that way.

The only thing that saved this drama (more precisely helped me remain patient before deciding to drop) was the actors. Even while acting out extremely bland characters and bland script, their expressions and deliery proved their talent. High school is a very potential premise. You could show so much, there's so much that could happen in a school, in a student's everyday life, etc. It could become a medium of life lessons, struggles and finding hope while navigating life as a teenager and then growing up. Why make the school life all about a stupid crush where you can't see anyone besides that guy? A guy who cannot even stop being rude and insensitive. The male lead has trauma I get it, why not show him develop then? It doesn't make sense for him to be like that in almost all of the episodes (as told by some other reviewers). Why not show his struggle to understand emotions? There's too little plot, idk what the hell happened in the 9 episodes I watched. Then there's the guy who cannot stop doing so many things out of his way when even he lives under difficult conditions.

I have only watched 9 episodes. But I tried so hard to be patient and continue. To actually like it. I sacrificed my sleep for an empty script with empty characters. I cannot like a show, no matter how cute or lovey dovey it might be, if it does not portray strong characters. If characters are not strong and are bland and flat, the whole show feels flat to me. Oh, there's also no chemistry between any of them. Anyway, that's the end.

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