Reviews

Great plot, too little time.

I jumped into this show completely blind, and boy did they take a completely different route compared to your usual K-BL Drama! In terms of the core storyline, I wasn't quite sure I would enjoy it. But to my surrpise it sailed through it brilliantly and had me hooked from the start. From the the game inspired notifications and glitches that occured throughout the series, to the more realistic scenarios. It was very cool & fresh to see them try something new!! I also found the production and cinematography to be quite good overall. It was the plot holes that would later appear that I was most diappointed with.

They may have gotten a little ahead of themselves with the plot.. There was so much they wanted to convey, but we're given too little time to properly execute most of it. Which led to a lot of unfinished storylines. Even though they had a longer run-time than most other KBLs, it seemed to me like they tried to cram a lot of stuff into a small timeframe.

On the positive side, Taevin's acting was really good! His acting really made the show worthwhile. His desire to try and make Yeowoon live a happy life and learn to love himself more was really sweet. But what about the side characters?? I feel like they became more & more forgotten as the story progressed. Kyunghoon for example, wasn't his whole purpose to become closer with them and form a bond? We got to know very little about his character. (Except the fact that he's in a long distance relationship with someone, somewhere...) As for Sangwon, his story was barely touched on as well. Initially, I assumed he would be a love rival! But he was also just shoved to the sidelines. They just existed, I guess.

I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy watching the show though! There were many aspects and things I liked, it just felt a little rushed towards the end and it's sad they couldn't reach their full potential. If it was a bit longer with more room for development in the side characters, I might have given a higher score. But it is still a show I would recommend others to watch ^^

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I love legal drama

2 eps were good. I had fun. I knew when they feel akward at each other there was a reason and it was because of some love story that would prolly be explained on a flashback. This deserves more eps like until 16. If this isnt on going i would prolly finish this in one sitting. 2 eps were good. I had fun. I knew when they feel akward at each other there was a reason and it was because of some love story that would prolly be explained on a flashback. This deserves more eps like until 16. If this isnt on going i would prolly finish this in one sitting.

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It's nice

Ok, not going to lie I 100% went looking for this show because of Gun. He did such a good job playing Techno in Love by Chance 1 & 2 that I wanted to see what else he had done. He did a really good nib playing the good not good looking guy that I wanted to see what he'd do with the handsome lead character. The show wasn't horrible. Like was it the worst BL I've watch not at all but it wasn't Until We Meet Again or Love in The Air good either or was a solid medium good. The love story is good, slow to start but a decent show all together. I feel like if they had 12 episodes instead of 8 the could have flushed out a few more things but I'm not feeling like I wasted my time watching it. I REALLY REALLY wanted the other lead to be Mark and still can't understand how they tried so hard to ship Mean & Plan and not Mark & Gun.

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The story is worth 9 points, but they messed it up, their acting skills were not up to par, and the battle scenes were very poor. I gave it 6 points, and the final adaptation added 1 point for a total score of 7。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。

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What on earth did I just endure?

Oh boy. Script writing a disaster. Most people are toxic, including FL bestie. This is not a slow burn. This is burnt out. 90% of the comments are people telling you “oh is this like One Spring Night?” No duh, if you somehow hadn’t known that your eyeballs will be falling out from reading that the whole way through.

Yes, there are some similarities but the writing here is terrible. Can you watch this and enjoy it, some people seem to. There is a huge gaping hole in chemistry building scenes, so there is no sizzle between the leads. Yes they share a romance, but it has no feels. Its so utterly depressing for most of the show, and you don’t get any fun until a couple minutes at the end. I can’t even say I enjoyed the friends, because everyone is either so manipulative incl her bestie or total doormats being used by the delulu 2 ML. There is something to be learned perhaps by women who are being controlled by men and then told what they should believe and behave from other controlling individuals but theres like no growth here or no lessons being taught in how to seek out healthy relationships. What is clear, is if you are exiting a harmful relationship you need therapy and time to heal before jumping in again. This needs a lot of help, which was a shame. I usually love this kind of drama and China can make them really good. This show needed better writing or cut in half.

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Couldn't stop watching

I have stumbled upon this one by coincidence and literally finished it in one sitting.

Overall I enjoyed this drama a lot, the plot is unique and it was executed really well. All of the characters were really enjoyable and personally I didn't mind the fact that Sang-won wasn't a 'real' thread for Myung-Ha's and Yeo-woon's relationship. However, I wish Sang-won, Kyung-hoon and Sia would have gotten more background story, especially for Yeo-won and how their relationship developed. A few things that bothered me in the series was how some scenes really just seemed to jump from one scene to another without making sense or some seemed to have no to little actual meaning for the continuous plot of the drama. And also Yeo-Wons sudden change from seemingly 'disliking' or hiding his feeling/being cold towards Myung-ha to kind of acting like a little puppy who cannot get enough love and attention from his owner. The Ending was good but imo I feel like the solution would've been so much easier. But, I guess they gotta make it more complicated and dramatic since it's a drama, right? :D

All in all I really loved the drama and didn't think I would binge-watch it, but I literally could not stop watching at all.
Although the 'gaming'-setting was obviously nothing realistic, the drama itself was still very much based on real-life situations and made realistic and relatable for its watchers, which I really enjoyed.

If you came this far, thank you for reading, I hoped it somewhat helped you and I hope you find your own happiness in this world. <3

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Surprising, original and touching

Omg this show has my whole heart. It's super original, surprises you with the direction, and at then end it has a message that makes the whole story even more worth it and powerful.

Story: While the story is original and a lot of fun to watch, I think either the script or the subtitles were doing it bad lol— parts of it got a bit confusing, but even that didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the show.

Acting: So good from all the cast, but Taevin was a standout. He's so good?? I'm definitely going to be watching him for future projects, I hope we'll get to see more of him.

Characters: I felt so refreshed by the characters in this show. They were different in small but important ways from typical BL characters. In particular, I think the friend Sangwon was a standout interesting character. (minor spoilers:) once a head bully— but even when he was a bully, it seems he was never one of the more malicious ones since kyungha wasn't particularly afraid of him— when he encounters Taeha, he changes. And even tho he doesn't get his way, he's vengeful or bitter, but instead is still a good friend to the whole group.

Overall such a fun drama, with a deeper purpose at the end that will make you feel all the more like it's worth the watch. I hope it goes to viki tbh so I can access it easier + in hopes that it gets better subs ;-;

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oh to be happy

um dos principais motivos que me fez começar a consumir BL's foi a variedade de conteúdo que era possível encontrar entre as séries. com o tempo, apesar de ainda perceber que existe uma grande variedade a gente consegue notar alguns padrões que são mais comuns do que aparentam entre as obras. então, eu fico muito feliz quando uma obra apresenta algo relativamente novo e faz isso de uma maneira boa. é exatamente o que acontece aqui, no segundo episódio eu já estava completamente obcecado com toda a história e conforme foi avançando, ela foi ficando melhor. eu fiquei muito surpreso do modo como o drama se desenvolveu pois eles acertaram na medida, foi uma surpresa pois escalou para um local que eu não estava esperando e eu fiquei totalmente envolvido com a história. o romance que se desenvolve é incrível, a disposição de entender que o amor é sacrifício e que a felicidade pode ser encontrada apesar das dificuldades tornam a obra uma das maiores produções do mundinho bl sul coreano.

ainda me incomoda o formato das séries serem curtas e com poucos episódios, mas fiquei feliz que essa daqui teve 30min por ep no mínimo e soube aproveitar bem os poucos episódios.

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An entertaining experience from beginning to end

In the beginning episodes I almost dropped because I thought it was childish, but putting that aside this was definitely worth every second. The pacing was amazing, the characters were enjoyable, and they didn't waste time or bore me with too much filler. While the romance wasn't the main focus, I was entertained enough just by the amazing friendship of the main trio and the mysteries surrounding their families and friends. Not to mention everyone had chemistry with each other, no ships were totally meritless.

Story: A group of friends go on a long adventure to discover the truth about their families and about themselves, finding love along the way.

As I said before, romance was not the main focus but instead individualism, plot, and friendship. Most of the romance only started near the end, so don’t expect tons of kiss scenes or romantic moments. That's not saying there wasn't romance, the main couple is definitely one of my favorites now. My biggest problem with the plot was that Lingsha was always getting harmed in the beginning, I didn’t find that fair with her character development. I also wish they focused a little more on Zi Ying’s backstory. It felt rushed and incomplete compared to the other main characters, although he also had less screen time than them in general. Lastly, China is definitely stepping up its game when it comes to cinematography and aesthetics. I was very impressed by the CGI and quality overall.

Acting/cast: I wasn’t too impressed with Chen Zhe Yuan in Hidden Love but this drama shed a new light on his acting for me. While this was my first Jing Yi drama, I am excited for her and She Yuan’s future works, all the hate was definitely uncalled for. The acting might not have been top tier, yet it wasn't unbearable and you get used to the playfulness of it after a couple episodes. For the most part I felt emotionally connected to everyone and that definitely makes me a little biased when it comes to the acting and everything else.

Other Pros:
- The Mystery aspect of the drama was entertaining and it was fun to watch the trio figure things out even if it was just filler from the main plot. Filler is not bad when used in the right way and Sword and Fairy did not disappoint. I loved watching everything piece together like a puzzle, almost everything had a purpose.
- The Ending. I was worried since there was a lot to wrap up in the last couple episodes, but they managed to do it nicely. The last episode was like a whole movie.

Others Cons:
- The story slowed down when they got to the sect, especially after the story was moving so quickly. I think they could have cut some things out and extended others.
- There were a couple things that were hard to follow when it comes to the story, mostly involving the stuff that happened in the past. That might be my fault for not being able to wrap my head around it although they could have simplified a couple things.

That being said, it was/is worth the watch. I usually cannot stay focused when watching longer dramas (I.e. most Chinese dramas) so if you're like that too, this was fast-paced enough that you won't get bored.

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NOT WORTH THE HYPE but watch and decide for yourself

Personally, I hated this drama. It came HIGHLY recommended to me and it fell so very flat and flopped so hard. Everyone was praising it like it was the best drama of 2023. Really?????? Not by a long shot when dramas like Destined with you, My Demon, Welcome to Samaldri, See you in my 19th life, Twinkling Watermelon etc exist.

Not going to lie, I watched this drama and I was hooked by the pilot episode. Despite usually avoiding Sung Hoon's dramas like the plague (MR ONE EXPRESSION), I really did like the main female lead and was willing to give the show a go. I feel like the first few episodes were semi-ok and piqued my interest but the acting of the Stepmother was so OVERDONE and CRINGE even for a makjang drama and then every single episode was torture to finish. Thankfully the drama is short so I pushed through it. The chemistry of the leads kept me going where the storyline was boring and predictable etc.

I guess I couldn't take the drama all that serious when they essentially did CONTROL COPY AND PASTE to the entire Love Ft Marriage Divorce cast into this drama. Seriously it was a joke.

It's a drama that I will never rewatch but it wasn't the worst kdrama that I've ever seen either. I just get really mad with people praising it like it was the bes thing ever. Watch and decide for yourself.

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Unique Plot and Amazing Actors

This plot was something I had never seen before which had me interested immediately. From the camera work during the game scenes, the amazing acting by the cast, and the little details, it blew me away.

The way that the game seemingly felt impossible to beat yet at its core, was showing Myungha how beautiful life is. To be loved and love. "I gave you my love and I got your heart in return". Both main characters leaned on eachother even though they both had their fair share of hardships.

How in the first in episode Myungha says, "I'm going to see my main". And in the last episode, Yeowoon says the same line. Because now Yeowoon wasn't the main character to make happy, he himself was.

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A decent martial arts drama marred by unlikeable characters and bad fight choreography.

"Sweet Combat" is loosely based on the South Korean Manwha "Girls of the Wild's". I would suggest reading it before the show to get the best experience. While I loved "Girls of the Wild's" for the most part, this show was somewhat of a step down due to a few unnecessary changes.

The biggest downiside to the show is the main female lead. Fang Yu or "Queen" is one of the worst female romance leads I've ever seen in a drama. If I were Ming Tian, the first time she wanted to break up I would have left and never went back to her. He had so many other choices, Zhengze University was all girls except for he and Sun Hao for God sakes. Fang Yu had a terrible personality, she always believed anyone, even her Aunt and Grandpa who were obviously scheming pieces of garbage. Would it never occur to her that all of this terrible news could be made up or a lie? Ming Tian couldn't control any of the reasons she broke up with him, yet she blamed him anyway. Xiaomi was clearly the more loving and attentive girl for Ming Tian but because "reasons" he ended up with Fang Yu time and time again.

The training and fight choreography in this show is abysmal as well. As a huge fan of MMA and combat sports in general it is laughable, especially if you're used to seeing professional fighters or even amateurs fight. If you're going to have a show about a martial arts college at least teach the actors proper form and how to throw punches, kicks, and engage in submissions correctly. You can tell during the "fights" they aren't even touching or pretending to touch each other at times.

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Really engaging plot!

I only watched this because I kept seeing it trending on Twitter and I figured since it was being talked about maybe i should give it a go.

I'm so glad I did.

This one managed to have really adorably cute bits, one really charismatic lead, and one adorable lead and a handful of really likable support characters. But despite being 'cute' the story is incredibly engaging and mysterious even. Not to mention at times even creepy.

As with the case for many Korean BLs, displays of physical affection are very tame so if you're hoping for a lot of that, this ain't it. But that being said, the chemistry between the two leads is enough and the story itself is so good that it's worth a watch even if you're not into BL.

Best bits:
The game layouts when there were missions and side quests and proximity notices popping up. Really made it feel like you were watching a gameplay. And the system errors by the end were creeping me out.

When the mission changes from 'Please Make Cha Yeowoon happy' to 'Please Make Tae Myungha happy', I'm not gonna lie, I did tear up. Especially when you saw how unhappy he was.

Other:
There were a few times where I was slightly confused as to what was going on but only momentarily and I think that fits with the idea that the 'game' is experiencing..difficulties.

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Never again. So many people hype it up giving it the attention it hasn't earned. The characters were unbearable, I skipped more than watching it. The interaction that Pat had with his colleague was the only bit I enjoyed as they got to be themselves with no expectations or worries. The ex was interesting as he seemed the silent type, never thought he would threaten Jeng but hey do we really know anyone? Don't fully understand why they broke up in the first place. The ending was so confusing as there was lack of communication making it so awkward to watch forced conversations

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