Reviews

Sprite, the 'Trojan Horse' of the BL series or the debate around homosexuality in sports (I)

Sprite, the 'Trojan Horse' of the BL series or the debate around homosexuality in sports (I)

INTRODUCTION
Produced by Lovemedia Thailand, “Twins”, also known as “Two Bodies, One Heart”, was released on November 3, 2023 and consists of 12 episodes. Starring Sprite and First (a couple formed by actors Frame Ritchanon Sriprasitdacha and Ryan Panya Mcshane, respectively), the series shows a love relationship between two young high-performance athletes who mutually discover their homosexuality and accept it as such.
Although innovative in many ways, “Twins” is actually a fairly conventional love story. However, its strength lies in its elegant simplicity and in making visible topics rarely covered in BL series.
Siwasit Phondongnok and Ball Kanathorn Tabvilai came on board this time to direct the series. Both are renowned Thai directors, the former also a screenwriter and assistant director. His creations include “Night Dream”, “Red Wine in the Dark Night”, “Club Friday Season 8: True Love… or Bond”, “Eclipse”, “609 Bedtime Story”, and the two seasons of “Our Skyy” and “Love Area”, among others.
The progression of the story is spot on. The transition from the protagonist's initial fear and uncertainty as he is forced to leave his comfort zone to have to face an unexpected reality to personal improvement is measured. In the new scenario, the protagonist must quickly connect with strangers and with an unknown sports universe, very demanding and competitive because it is a collective and very popular sport, with a high presence in the media, such as volleyball.

RELATIONSHIP OF THE SERIES WITH OTHER AUDIOVISUALS

Since I read the synopsis, before its premiere, “Twins” reminded me of “Not Me”, the famous 2021 GMMTV series, starring White (Gun Atthaphan Poonsawas) and Sean (Off Jumpol Adulkittiporn). In this BL, the story revolves around White, who receives a call from Tod, a childhood friend, to inform him that his twin, Black, whom he has not seen in years, has been betrayed by one of his companions and He is torn between life and death after receiving a severe beating. This is why White will disguise himself as Black and infiltrate the group of friends to find out who the traitor is, while avoiding being discovered.
The main difference between both series is that “Not Me” includes a political background, the fight for human rights and against discrimination, which still exists, towards LGBT+ people in Thailand, and focuses more on suspense and action, while “Twins” has sports as a background and focuses on romance.

INTERESTING

The interesting thing about the series, in addition to the multiple romances, between these three homosexuals and one heterosexual, is the fact that the protagonist has a twin and will try to prevent anyone from discovering his true identity while he impersonates him.
On the other hand, the audiovisual highlights sports espionage, a very common practice today, when one of the volleyball players will spy for an opposing team by gathering sports strategy data for obvious motivations as old as sport and espionage themselves: information, competitiveness, money. “Twins” also shows the communication and interpersonal relationships between athletes and between them and coaches and managers.
It is also striking that the series aims to make visible harassment in sport, the use of violence, blackmail, threats, verbal and physical aggression between athletes, all favored by social pressure, rivalry between players and teams, emotional stability, the type of competition and its importance and the interests that are involved, topics that are rarely addressed in audiovisual productions, much less in BL.
“Twins” also takes an approach to a health issue with little, if not no, treatment in BL, such as the loss of autonomy and temporary disability, as well as the necessary rehabilitation after an accident. That is to say, the series aims to, and succeeds in, making visible problems that help us raise awareness and rethink these realities.
In my opinion, the most significant thing about the series is the possibility of reopening the debate around the secrecy surrounding homosexuality in sports and the fear of discrimination suffered by athletes from the LGBT+ community if they came out of the closet. Since the first athlete to declare herself homosexual, a woman, the French car racer Hélène Van Zuylen, publicly confirmed having a lesbian relationship with the English poet Renée Vivien, in 1898, many others have followed in her footsteps.
Although homosexuality is illegal in Thailand and homosexual athletes are afraid to identify as such for fear of discrimination and social exclusion, among the international elite there are more and more athletes who have declared their homosexuality after several years of hiding it. However, it is a reality that today the commercial image of those who decide to come out of the closet is revalued by becoming icons for the LGTB+ community and symbols of progress in sport as a stage for the visibility of the group.

PLOT

Zee and Sprite are identical twins who were separated in childhood after their parents divorced. Zee has become the star of a university volleyball team with the support of her mother, while Sprite, a brilliant fighter in a jiu jitsu club, has the support of his father. The unfriendly separation of their parents would lead to the siblings being raised separately, not having a good relationship and each one not knowing about the other's life. The story is told from Sprite's point of view.
The relevant sporting results achieved by Sprite arouse the envy of several of his colleagues in the fight club, who conspire to cause him harm and keep him away from active sports. To do this, they will hire some thugs. Unaware that Sprite has a twin, they confuse the brothers and beat up Zee thinking he is Sprite. Under these circumstances, feeling guilty for having caused collateral damage to his brother, who is in a coma in the hospital, and in response to a request from his mother, who perceives that Zee's life is threatened, Sprite is forced to impersonate his identity until he recovers his health and resumes his place.
His secret mission is to preserve Zee's starting position on the volleyball team with a view to becoming part of the Thai national team, and in the process solve the crime for which his brother's life hangs in the balance. Contributing to the deception will be Salmon (Mimi Ruethaiphat Phatthananapaphangkorn), the coach's assistant, a friend of the twins since childhood and Zee's future love interest.
Zee is a self-centered and antisocial character, lacking ties to others, including his own mother. Self-titled “the key to the team,” he despises everyone equally and is rude to his teammates. The arrival of Sprite, with a completely opposite personality, will initially generate friction. Sprite will immediately sense that his brother enjoys prestige for being a good player, but not popularity. Then, your priority will be to gain everyone's trust, while mastering a sport you have never practiced.
Your primary steps will be aimed at gaining First's friendship, since this is your roommate, and will be the person you will spend the most time with. Being friends with the relevant volleyball player and son of the coach would open the way for him to be friends with others. Also needing to master the dynamics of the game and the rules of volleyball, Sprite understands the need to have someone by his side to train with, but without raising suspicions that he has never actually hit volleyball. His life will change when he falls in love with First.
For his part, First, willing not to interact with an insensitive and arrogant person like Zee, whom he has known since when he was taken by his mother for the first time to a volleyball court, when they were both children, will raise a barrier around him that is difficult to overcome penetrate.

SENTIMENTAL HISTORY

As if it were surrendering a fortified city, in an undeclared war, Sprite would first lay siege to it and then launch all its firepower from the catapults and trebuchets until destroying the strong walls that it could not overcome with kindness and good intentions. Like the Achaean army at the siege of Troy, Sprite would employ battering rams and assault towers in a long-awaited attempt to take the besieged city.
Could the creators have intentionally conceived Sprite as the horse-shaped device used by the Achaeans to enter the Troy of the Homeric poems? I would like to think that they designed the character taking into consideration this mythical creation or, if it existed, the war machine transfigured by the chroniclers' fantasy, introducing an important variation in the myth for the conception of our hero: it would not be a destructive deception.
It would be Jack, Mike, Sam, Deddeaw, Tom, Ko and other talented athletes who would take the spirited wooden steed as a sign of their victory, introduce it inside the walls about to be demolished and take it to the volleyball courts without knowing that inside was hidden a boy willing to love another boy, without foreseeing that instead of a fierce warrior prepared to kill, a young man capable of dying of love would emerge from the hollow ambush.
Thus begins a sexy game of cat and mouse with increasing sexual tension. Sprite would never suspect that his feelings would soon change and that friendship would turn into love. In this way, the old and classic trope of “enemies to friends and friends to lovers” is gradually woven.
Sprite has to alternate volleyball training with his combat sport practices, which he does not give up. Exercising volleyball during the day and jiu jitsu at night exhausts him physically and mentally. On and off the field of play, Zee's coldness and arrogance are quickly overcome by Sprite's simplicity and sociability. Little by little the twin will create strong bonds of friendship, loyalty and camaraderie with the young athletes.
The best moment of each day for Sprite is when he arrives at his bedroom at night. Despite being tired after endless training sessions, he seeks to create a deep connection with First. He always receives a cordial and friendly “Zee” with suspicion. This will make him doubt why his roommate is acting so strange. “Has Zee gone crazy or have they changed people?” First would surely think on more than one occasion.
Step by step, Sprite will get closer to First, break the ice and end up falling in love with him. Both will discover love for the first time in their short lives. Although Sprite was always the one to initiate the flirting, it will be First who first confesses to being in love when he assures him that he didn't know when he started having feelings for him, but it bothered him when Sprite was around other people. “Is it jealousy? “Does this mean I like you?” he will ask you point-blank.
However, First will frequently be plagued by uncertainty as to whether Sprite really loves him or is playing with his feelings, since on several occasions he observes him in a romantic attitude with Salmon, unaware that the person who is interacting with the girl at that time is the real Zee. This will cause jealousy and misunderstandings, fueled by Sprite's inability to still recognize who he really is. Their relationship becomes tense, suffocating at times. The love between them will also be put to the test, towards the end, with the arrival of a friend of First, who has secretly been in love and intends to win him over.
Once Zee has recovered, Sprite will ask him to allow him to continue impersonating him for a while longer. When asked why, Sprite will confess to his brother and Salmon that the reason is having fallen in love with First and wanting to stay by her side to get to know each other better.
What many BL fans will like about the sexy series that doesn't shy away from showing passion and bare torsos, are the sizzling relationship scenes. You will be pleased to know that the two main actors, with well-sculpted bodies, have numerous passionate exchanges whether in the bedroom, on the volleyball court, the dining room or the hallways of the building, secretly, although in view of others.
Their kisses and looks are passionate; and their sexy interactions are highlighted with a refined cinematic style. Every time they kiss, look into each other's eyes, touch each other's bodies or make love, there is an elegant atmosphere that creates an intimate and pleasant atmosphere. The stage is not broken even in the moments of greatest hostility. The sexual tension that surrounds the boys is vivid, palpable, and demonstrates the chemistry between the characters.
These performers feel very comfortable with each other, immersing themselves in the physical relationship in a sensual and aggressive way. The artists do a convincing job and make their attraction seem authentic.
Frame does a plausible job of showing multiple emotions from the first to the last scene, from a contemplative look to one of surprise, from suppressed anguish to the euphoric cry of triumph, from hesitation to complete self-confidence, from a cute sulking to an expression of placidity, from the pose of an innocent person to that of an aggressive appearance, from the confusion of a frightened fawn to the attitude of a lion ready to devour its prey. That says a lot about his acting ability.
However, in my opinion, the character played by Ryan is the most adorable of all. Behind his taciturn, doubtful, desolate appearance most of the time, first because he cannot understand the behavior of the boy he believes is Zee, and then because he thinks that the person he loves is playing with his feelings, there is an immense honest human being, loving, hopeful, principled, true to himself and others, especially Zee.

OTHER HOMOSEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS

Sam (Team Tatchanon Thongpao), the team's libero, has been secretly in love with Zee for years. The Zee now before him disturbs and confuses him. He can't understand it. He will soon understand that he has no hope, as he is the only one to realize that Sprite loves First. Pursuing him, Sam will meet Thun (Pooh Phiangphor), Sprite's best friend and fight club partner. Thun will fall in love at first sight with Sam and his feelings will end up being reciprocated. Consoling Sam from his disappointment in love is the strategy used to get closer to him. The couple provides humor. Will the couple be able to reach port happily? Will Thurn manage to get out of the pedestrian accident? Will the traffic incident catch Sprite's attention and make him return to find his friends?
Another homosexual relationship is that of Jack and Mike (played by Tuss Thotsawat Sing-uppo and Ten Apivit Ueamahasopa, respectively). This is the only romantic couple on the team upon Sprite's arrival. The romance they live is not exploited to the fullest. There is constant tension between the two boys without the reason for this being clearly explained, and their characters lack development and time on screen. Their love affair is only shown in sporadic sexual dalliances. Will Jack's dreams of deepening the relationship come true or, on the contrary, will it remain the same as it has been until now, as Mike suggests?

AS AN EPILOGUE

Towards the conclusion of the series, the viewer's fatigue is noticeable due to the delay in Sprite revealing his true identity to First and putting an end to mistrust once and for all. The creators overlong the suspense caused by the crime and the resulting lie, since it is assumed that the deception will be revealed once it is discovered who hit Zee and the danger is then eliminated, but he fails to advance the investigation for much of the story. series, dedicated at the last minute to pursuing Salmon. She will be in charge of discovering how to unmask the culprits.
Perhaps two fewer episodes would have given the possibility of reaching the climax sooner and would have been useful to round out the story with more nuances, add depth to the events and the development of the characters.
However, I commend Sprite for sticking to his moral convictions and keeping the fraud a secret until the right time to reveal it. His character would have seemed pathetic if, out of love for First or a quick return to his favorite sport or fear of the ruse being discovered, he had unmasked himself when his mission was not yet finished. I'm glad Sprite stood up for his principles, even when it could ruin his love relationship and inner peace. I respect and admire the never-die spirit of his character.
The truth will cause the wall that previously separated the two to rise once again in front of Sprite and First, who were always positioned on the same side of the playing field.
Will Sprite manage to accomplish his secret mission? What will happen to Sprite and First's relationship when the latter discovers that the person he loves has cheated on him? Will the two be able to stand again on the same side of the volleyball field or will they have to content themselves with looking at each other, as rivals, each from the opposite area, through a rectangular mesh one meter wide by 9.50 meters long located 2 10 meters high? Will the 'Trojan Horse' manage to penetrate and conquer the fortified wall again?

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I love JiangHu brotherhood/friendship dramas and I thought everything about this show was quite good, except the romance between Xiao Se and Sikong Qianluo. All the other couples in the show have understandable reasons for pairing up, but XS and SQ seemingly just decided to like the other out of nowhere like the staff wanted to check off a box for them. It doesn't help that the actors have zero chemistry, even when they're next to each other and saying romantic dialogue, their body language is stiff as if they're resisting being too close together. This is even more striking if you directly compare how XS interacts with Wuxin (who is just a close friend) where his entire posture changes and face seems to brighten and open up, where with SQ he maintains that same guarded body language and expression, only his mouth is seemingly saying stuff that sounds sweet. Unfortunately they did spend some time trying to develop this (minor) subplot and it was annoying having to manually skip their scenes, which is why I mention it.

Some people were disappointed by the ending, but in my opinion it was very fitting. It was obvious what road XS was going take as the show reminds us repeatedly what kind of person he looked up to and what he had always wanted to do with his life. I feel like if he'd chosen differently it would've gone against the entire spirit of the show.

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a powerful journey for redemption

I started this show on a complete whim not knowing anything about it but it ended up taking my breath away. I could not stop watching it and ended up binging it for two days with very little sleep. But each episode left me wanting to see what happened next and on more than one occasion it left me in a puddle of my own tears. Such a well thought out drama about transmigration/ going back in time. Every character worked in this drama since they are all developed and multifaceted. Their motives and moves all make sense as the plot plunges forward. The pacing kept me from being able to turn it off with never a dull moment.

The two leads did a fantastic job and I could feel the chemistry between them. What really sent these two over the top is their emotive acting in their eyes. The story is by far more about redemption for the main character and the love line takes a side seat as you watch Hua Qian make different choices to change her fate. You see her become a kind and generous woman while remaining strong and stubborn.

The only thing that takes points away from this drama for me is the slower pacing in the last few episodes and the ending. It makes sense and worked in teaching a lesson to the viewer but also in a way it feels like it invalidates your emotions as the viewer having watched and been emotionally involved in storyline. It also fails to give enough explainations to satisy all of the 'whys' I have about it so the ending is not ver satisfactory. I almost feel like it would have ended better at episode 26. Still I will probably talk about this drama for a while for its mere impact it had on me emotionally. I love any drama that can bring out enough emotion in me to make me actually cry. Very well shot, produced, and acted. Two thumbs up. Just start watching it and I promise you wont be able to stop.

One note is on Mu Yua. I do not know if it was the actress or the way the character was written but she was the weakest performance. I never once understood how she could have been so well liked in the previous life nor did I feel any chemistry between her and YeLan. The story tells you that they love each other but is very weak in the reasonings and the lack of chemistry makes it hard to believe so I had a very hard time understanding why in the end her chose her and not Hua Qian.

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Not deep, just a good time.

This is a very enjoyable series if you're looking to turn your brain off and just have a good time, and I mean this in a positive way. I honestly enjoyed it a lot just vibing along and not taking the plot too seriously.

In terms of technical things like story/cinematography/script/editing/etc. it's extremely average (not terrible, I've definitely seen worse). If you're in here expecting something fresh or groundbreaking, you will be disappointed.

For me the enjoyment comes mainly from the 3 main characters (Yan Dan, Ying Yuan, Yu Mo). All 3 roles were well acted, I didn't find their characters annoying (yes, Yang Zi has played very similar roles before, but honestly she's quite good at it), and their interactions with each other are super fun to watch, especially when they are in the human realm and all kinds of shenanigans are happening. Even though both men are in love with the same woman they don't let that get in the way of working together or make things difficult for the FL. The FL also doesn't cause unnecessary drama that break up their 3-person team. It's clear by the end of the drama that their camaraderie is a core part of the drama that the writing team purposely kept intact to the very end.

As for the romance, the main romance (Ying Yuan and Yan Dan) is nothing to write home about story-wise, but very enjoyable because the actors are charismatic and good at what they do, and they look great doing it. I highly recommend fans of Yang Zi and/or Cheng Yi watch this because they're just a joy to watch (especially fans of Cheng Yi because it's fascinating seeing him play 3 characters in one show).

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The Slipperiest Time Slip!

This drama turned out to be a reverse harem in disguise. A handful of princes with varied flavors happened to meet a mentally handicapped girl to start their quest of hunting this wild female from a different timeline. All of these princes have the edgiest troubled teens behaviors with a mix of daddy/mommy issues. Out of all of them, the male lead took the edge in being the ultimate dark and mysterious bad boy, literally. Zooming out, all of this was done for a trail of pathetic emotional baits with no substance, they were begging the viewers for pity points. The moment the female lead knew about them, she approached every single one with the mentality of "I can fix him". While the princes were intentionally irrecoverably broken by the writer to serve a purpose for the female lead, she equally had her own set of problems. Within the span of a few episodes she became weirdly too attached to all of them and going even further to offer sacrifices, while neglecting her brief arrival and the fact that she was transferred to the past, but I guess shirtless bois are irresistible. The romantic entanglements in general were agonizing to tolerate, it kept you wishing the worse for all of them. Although it was bad as is, but why did they decide to make it worse with each passing episode in the second half? It's just too painful knowing the writer is making fun of us. At least the cinematography was okay and I watched it on BluRay.

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Under the Queen's Stares

The drama really needed a better introduction to establish itself properly, it took me a while before it captured my interest. Others may not have the patience. By the time the drama finished, I had no idea how many princes were there. Most of them barely got any screen time, yet had some small side stories. While the prominent ones didn't develop enough. Quality over quantity would've been the right approach. I found the ending to be too subdued, soft, and tame after spending 16 very long episodes of building tension through countless slow-mo shots, mean stares, and passive-aggressive empty threats. This was another area that was lacking, the drama needed more ways to build tension. The drama had some unjustifiable, unwarranted, and under-delivered preachy moments that yanked the viewers out and ruined the atmosphere. This seems to be a common trend with modern titles. Anyway, I see that "Comedy" is one of its listed genres, although it had relatively lighter moments every now and then but these didn't adhere to the comedy genre in any shape or form. I would remove the tag as it's misleading. Speaking of misleading, the synopsis's description of the queen's character was mostly wrong and didn't translate as such into the screen.

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The Loathful Emperor

It started off on a fast pace with big cuts, jumps and gaps. We were thrown right into it with little to no explanation or a breathing room. Sure thing that was attractive enough to hold onto the viewers' attention but that was only for a brief period before the drama hit the brakes at full force yanking the viewers from the realm of existence. Halting its momentum to an irrecoverable state which affected the set up we were given, negatively. Not only the momentum but the story as a whole took a shift for the worse. That shift happened to early to be forgiven, after 7-9 episodes I think? If the writers intent was to write Ta Hwan as an unbearably pathetic whimp then they have achieved an outstanding success! Upon a second look, there were too many males to count who were obsessed with the female lead, this drama was a complicated reverse harem in disguise. Some characters had cool story arcs, while others were just stuck being one-dimensional, making it hard to care about them while the drama kept giving them more screen time. Even worse, most of the characters that died were given a cheap death, even important ones. Anyway, the drama had an enjoyable start despite the chaos but it never managed to recover after slamming the brakes.

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Live Up to Your Shame

Things can get really muddy when talking about the science of acupuncture, although this is a fantasy but to try and push one narrative over the other this desperately is a tough sell in this scenario. I don't think the drama managed to navigate mixed medicine practices from a modern medicine point of view successfully. In fact, the entire thing was dropped very quickly a few episodes later without being brought up again. So why did they ever bother? The first 5 episodes were enjoyable without overbearing time-travel cliches. However, everything turned to worse with episode 6, that's where they introduced your typical mundane cheese of someone who traveled in time. At this exact point, there was a harsh shift in the story, everything slowed down, and a plethora of extreme suspension of disbelief elements in contrast to the world building they had established were thrown in. Although we got brief hints of the story at the beginning from her grandpa and that one prisoner but it felt like it won't address these points until the last few episodes and that turned out to be true. Although I enjoyed the first 5 episodes but the rest were just disappointing.

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The Lame Queen Seondeok

It would have been such a good show if they packaged it into 30 episodes. They had two subplots about Hwarang side quests that were a total waste of time, they paused the main story for them. While they might have served a small tiny purpose but the drama could've accomplished that without these easily. I read somewhere that the drama was extended from 50 to 62 episodes and I can't help but wonder if there was a direct correlation between extending the drama and introducing the character Kim Chun Chu at episode 36. Because both decisions were worse than one another. What made me more suspicious that this was the case was because it felt like someone has pushed the soft reset button on the story as a whole around episode 36 and everything took a big step backward. At this exact point I was about to mentally check out. Prior to episode 36, they had this Hwarang competition which was already the weakest checkpoint at this point so what came after only made things worse. Fast forward to the last chunk of episodes, all events post Lady Mi Shil involvement were clearly an unplanned afterthought which led to an underwhelming final climax. The is exactly at the extension gap between 50-62. Away from the poor pacing, the characters showed promise until they stopped. Guess what? It happened also after episode 36, the female lead who used to be a character full of characterization became a soulless blank of wood, boring, bland and dumb. There were many other examples of characters who went through the same downgraded transformation around the cursed episode 36.

The story had one major point of disconnect that the writer blatantly swept under the rug, it single-handedly broke the story apart. The female lead came from a hermit living in the woods into her position of power immediately without any regard to any other factors concerning anything. The only justification we were given is that she read books while growing up and was raised in the streets. Her parents had no role in the process despite being the king and queen, not even for emotional support. All I see is just poor storytelling. The background music mixing was trash. Every scene started with low-ish background music, got progressively louder and became unbearably loud and intense until the scene is cut. Repeat this 20 times every episode and endure the nausea. Around midway through I was thinking this is a good 7/10 drama despite the Hwarang nonsense but it turns out that this drama was the perfect example of a drama having a good 1st half and fumbling the 2nd half so hard. I wouldn't give it more than a pitiful 5.5/10.

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Good Story - had promise - have the fast forward button at the ready

Good story but, as is usual - they drag it out for far too long. This could have been finished in 16 episodes.

Character wise - good mix of nice cast but, the annoying characters are in far too many scenes. Have your finger on the fast forward button at all times. Xiao Mi is just awful and I can't stand anything she says or, does. Very immature. Self centered. And how on god's green earth did she ever make it into college? I would worry for her if she put her head in a paper bag.

I agree with many of the other reviews. As you learn more and more about the main characters - you will wish they WON'T get together. Really? Drag it out to the last episode?

I stuck with it. I agree with others - not enough time is spent when it comes to the actual fights/tournaments - it becomes a bad edit music video. Prepare for them to spend an eternity in prep for competition and then, the actual thing being over in just a few minutes because they want to spend 80 percent of the time on junk that means nothing. They REALLY take advantage of the stock footage they created of the school grounds. They are always exercising - always doing the same thing - always sunny and blue skies - always flipping the same tires in the same spots. Grinds my gears...

There are some WONDERFUL characters and the writers gave them some great material. That is why I stuck with every episode. Pick and choose - fast forward - and, you will get through this in half the time and still enjoy the overall story.

Want to be ready?
Lazy writing. Character gets abused and used by people with money but, there is NEVER any compensation.
There is a near death and AGAIN - no money - no compensation. Everything is handled under the table and the poor people get to stay happily poor. God forbid rich bad people get in trouble in a Chinese drama. That might give the common folk some dangerous ideas to society itself.
Grandfather stays pure evil until the very end. I kept yelling at the screen for him to have a heart attack or, something.
Xiao Mi - terrible. You can safely fast forward through everything she is in and not miss a single thing to the overall story. Her stubborn immaturity is a drag on the entire series.
Child actors - why couldn't they have been traumatized by something and not speak for 34 of the 37 episodes?
The on again off again of all the relationships REALLY shows the emotional immaturity of most of the cast (as written). College? Really?

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Ja Must Go

Well, I had a little higher than usual expectations from looking at the cast members but at least it didn't take too long to realize what it had in store for us. The drama kicked off to a bad start leaving an ominous bad impression. The first 1/3 of the drama was set in the past giving us a ridiculously boring and generic backstory of the leads, starting with their parents and moving on to their birth, early childhood, and teenage years. These kids turned out to be the worst part of the drama, totally unlikable – both the characters and the actors playing them. And it didn't get any better when we were introduced to their adult versions. The romance and love triangle were downright despicable, filled with self-pity, sappy motivations, and a bunch of whiny kids. A wild suggestion, why not take the drama from the beginning of episode 39 into a different direction? Extend it with another 20 episodes, remove the romance, have the FL be the empress of her nation, and conquer neighboring nations.

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BEST KDRAMA

I love True Beauty so much. I have rewatched it 5 times and i still havent gotten bored. Seojun deserved better but in the end he became an idol soo.. Honestly what Soojin did was NOT okay, But still lover her! The story and plot was literally so good. Acting was also great but my girl can be little cringe sometimes.. OST is still so good. Starlight and Love so fine are my favs for sure. Tae Hoon and Soo Ah on top for sure. Team Soo Ho and Team SeoJun because they were both so good for her but i literally cry everytime i watch episode 16. I dont get why people hate True Beauty, like just say you hate fun cutesy dramas 🙄

Cha Eunwoo so fine 😍

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This is a very good and entertaining drama. From here on, the rest of this review is full of SPOILERS! This drama is a television series derived from the Korean manhwa of the same name but, given that it is a spin off, it has its own plot. The drama is not about a showdown of powers that the water god Ha Baek (played by Nam Joo Hyuk) and the other involved gods have; it is a fantasy romantic comedy that focuses on the developing relationship between Ha Baek and his servant Yoon So Ah (played by Shin Sae Kyeong). Taken as a romantic drama between God and servant, and other insufferable gods, this drama was nicely done. The leading lady, Yoon So Ah, is a character that carries deep wounds from her dysfunctional parental upbringing and the water god, He Baek, comes to the human realm with a mission. Both leading characters clashed for been presumptuous and self serving given the nature of their backgrounds but, as they experience adversity, tantrums from Moo Ra/He Ra (played by Krystal Jung), a goddess from the Water Kingdom and Bi Ryum / Ahn Bin (played by Gong Myung) a wind god, jealousy, and their own misconceptions, they grow to understand each other and from then on, a steadfast and nice romance develops. Although there are too many stiffed facial expressions, a leading lady that spends most of the drama in tears, quirky characters to bring comedy forth, and a spoil brat that provides some antagonistic instances, at the end of the day, the leading couple has a happy ending and there is also a smart twist to one of the gods. As said before, the drama is entertaining, enjoy it!

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