Reviews

OH, WOW!

As someone who avoids Wuxia and Historical genre in chinese dramas, I was truly amazed by how amazing Love In The Clouds was.

I had previously watched Love Between Lines, and one of the main reasons I loved that drama was the female lead: funny, charming, and smart all at once. Thankfully, LITC delivers a similarly engaging heroine. She’s witty without being over-the-top, emotionally strong without losing her softness, and her comedic timing adds a refreshing lightness to a genre that can sometimes feel overly serious or heavy.

The plot itself balances fantasy, romance, and drama quite well. While it follows some familiar tropes of the genre such as immortal realms, fate, misunderstandings and, well, spitting blood, it manages to keep things interesting with good pacing and emotional stakes. I especially appreciated that it didn’t drag unnecessarily, and each arc felt purposeful in building both the story and the characters.

Now, the chemistry between the leads? Easily one of the strongest aspects of the drama. Their dynamic feels natural and evolves beautifully over time. There’s tension, tenderness, and just enough playful interaction to make their relationship believable and enjoyable to watch. You really feel invested in their journey together.

And then there’s the second male lead who is completely, obsessively devoted. While that trope can sometimes feel repetitive, here it was portrayed in a way that made him memorable rather than annoying. His intensity added emotional depth and conflict, and honestly, I found myself both frustrated with and fascinated by him.

One of the biggest surprises for me was the ending. As a HEA lover, the endings in historical and wuxia/xianxia dramas that often lean toward tragic or bittersweet conclusions, is mostly the main reason why I dislike that genre, so getting a happy ending felt incredibly satisfying. It tied everything together nicely and left me with a sense of closure rather than emotional devastation.

Overall, I’d rate it an 8/10. It’s a well-rounded drama with lovable characters, strong chemistry, an engaging plot, and a rewarding ending. Even if you’re not usually into wuxia, this one is definitely worth a try.

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An entertaining conclusion to the series

I was skeptical going into this season even though I read the webtoon because I didn't know how they would interpret it for the small screen and if the main leads will have good chemistry. Safe to say that some of my expectations were met while some were left in the dust.

Let's start with the positives:
1. The humor- I'm a very dry person but even I laughed out loud by the comedy. The jokes and humor landed for me and is the main reason I enjoyed this show
2. The cell animation and dialogue- I really enjoyed the cells and their dialogue within themselves. They were written very well and were distinct.
3. The doubts in love- One thing I appreciated a lot in this season was the doubts before the start of a relationship. Even starting a relationship can be confusing and emotionally draining so I'm glad they touched on this subject.
4. Perfect portrayal of introverts- As a fellow extreme introvert, I was happy by how well they explained the functioning of an introvert. All my life, I've been misunderstood and misrepresented but I was very happy by how they showed Soon Rok's inner workings

Lets move onto the negatives:
1. The forced plot points- Since they show the inner workings of each individual, it just easy to sense when a plot point doesn't make sense. Some scenes felt really forced, like the writer was pushing their ideas onto us instead of it flowing naturally in the story.
2. The chemistry- This is subjective but I couldn't feel the chemistry between the leads. They were just work colleagues who had a slightly awkward work dynamic but then suddenly one of the starts liking the other. So I couldn't feel their emotional connection or attraction they felt for each other
3. The inconsistency in writing- I get that a person can change but it doesn't happen overnight and definitely not drastically. It just felt like lazy writing, like the writer couldn't bother to connect them so they wrote it in for the sake of it.
4. The acting- Again this is subjective, but I feel like the main lead's acting could've been better or we got a different male lead. He had the most complicated character in this season but his portrayal of his different personas felt too much like they were two different people and not just a single person.

Overall, I had a good time and that's whats important. Some parts could've been much better but I still enjoyed myself. 7/10 stars.

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a skip for me

Update: Dropped

I just can’t. I just can’t. See the cons below. That’s all I got.


Initial Review at Episode 3:

So far, so good. I’m not a huge fan of J-Dramas, but I needed something to pass the time this afternoon and gave it a try. It’s not amazing or new, but it’s been a cute watch so far. Here’s my initial breakdown. I’ll update later.

Pros:
• Our ML is a green flag and a half. He is head over heels already, and he treats her with so much kindness and warmth my heart can’t take it. Just wish they’d do his hair different (but I swear this is me with every Japanese show).
• Didn’t drag out her telling him and them communicating. This is something I usually hate so I appreciated it.


Cons:
• As a fast burn girly, I never thought I’d say this in my life… but slow down. Them saying “I love you” on episode 3 is WILD. How come we got that but still no visible kiss (even though she is literally pregnant)?
• The ex. The ex. The ex. He is at the same time despicable, irritating, badly written, badly acted, and infuriating.
• I get the complaints about the FL being another “lower your head and don’t make eye contact” Mary Sue. I get her trauma too, but still.

We will see how it progresses. Right now, it’s a 7 out of 10.

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Where to start...

Should this series have multiple trigger warnings? Yes. Rape, violence, all the bad stuff. Does it have about the cheesiest, cliche story parts? Yes. Do some of the actors need to brush up on their skills? Yes. Did I still enjoy it? Yes. Honestly, the Tammy character got me the most. Far too over the top, especially with the high pitched voice. My ears were screaming. Redemption from all that Pakin did might should have been impossible, but Venus made that choice. Overall, it was cheesy and kind of painful to watch, but I did like it. The actor playing Saturn/Venus was utterly adorable in the Venus role and did one of the better acting jobs portraying him.

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Pretty good lakorn, I'd absolutely watch again!

I'm feeling extra so I'm just gonna write a review based off of every aspect:

STORY:
I loved the story. I like how they didn't try to make Busaba look pretty and focused on the aspect of "beauty comes from the inside", and how being kind and genuine always works out. The humor was also funny and the ending also felt very fitting and I finished the lakorn feeling pretty satisfied. The only problems I had was that the plot felt predictable. I managed to predict multiple things and I wasn't shocked when I was right. I also wasn't surprised when I learned this lakorn was based off of a k-drama, as many of the tropes were very familiar. There were also too many episodes because of the amount of antagonists that were trying to get in the way of the Saran & Busaba's love, or Busaba's career. It just got repetitive and I skipped most of Cherin's and Thipp's scenes. At times, it also felt like too many storylines and plots were going on at the same time. Now I know it's supposed to replicate real life, but from Saran's mother's hospitalization to Cherin, to Anna being able to speak, to Busaba trying to figure out whether she should go to Paris or not, to Kim teaming up with Thipp, to the hotel and Pao & Noei's love story, it was certainly a lot to comprehend. There was a lot to unpack, though, so I understand.

ACTING:
The acting felt very real, even though sometimes it felt awkward. Thipp's acting felt scripted and was sort of bad. Other than that, the whole cast was casted perfectly. I originally started watching because I love Bee Namthip, but I stayed because the acting was great! You get to find a way to love every single character (even the antagonists) and their character developments were suffice.

MUSIC:
The music was very cute and quirky-like. It was very prominent in every single one of the episodes and it sometimes got repetitive. Some of the music is pretty loud and it got in the way of what the characters were saying, but it's fine. Overall, the music sounded very k-drama-like and it pretty fine. I always loved the emotional-sounding tracks.

WOULD I REWATCH?:
Yes. I think it's a great, mood-lifting lakorn. I especially love the cooking aspects (when they don't try to shove their Maggi advertising down your throat) and the Superchef competition left my heart racing. This lakorn also left me questioning who was better, Kim or Saran, and I'd say at the beginning, I was 45% Kim and 55% Saran, but at the end it was more so 35% Kim and 65% Saran (because I hated how Kim was working with others maliciously). One more thing, I love how it highlights the importance of family on both sides. My mom was watching and she cried multiple times throughout the lakorn.

Overall, it's not as bad as some of the reviews I saw under this lakorn. It's very cute and the whole plot is nice. If you're new to lakorns this is definitely a must.

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Dear.M: 03/12/2026 ~ 4/20/2026

Though it seems like it took me a long time to finish this show I actually really enjoyed it, the only probably was that I was busy with school. I liked all the relationships that were formed, my only issue is that at times they felt a little immature. I think this would have been better in a high school setting, as it could explain why certain things happened compared to it being in a college setting. Though I get why it couldn't cause that would change the main plot point a lot. Also, the plot twist at the end really surprised me, I would never have guessed that even though it made so much sense. Honestly the best outcome and really good show.

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I didn't expect it to be this good

At first, I thought this series would be strange because the unusual theme. After watching one episode, I was really interested in watching the next one. Many people felt the same way about the mental issues it addressed. I read a lot of other people's reviews, and it turns out many people experienced the similar thing. I cried the first time during the "sponge bath" scene, it truly broke my heart, and I cried in every episode after that. Now that I've finished watching episode 8, oh man, this episode really shook me to my core. I'm also very relieved about how the director directed this series. We can see that he loves his work, he did a lot of research, and so on.

LYT is a masterpiece, give it a try. Everything is perfect: the story, the cinematography, the acting. It's a shame it only has 10 episodes. Overall, it's a very enjoyable series and worth watching.

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drop

this a comment section paragraph I post here to save your time because all reviewers skipped what happened -What didn’t work was how the FL suddenly regressed. She turned her back on the ML over a single comment. Sure, it’s totally reasonable to get upset or demand an apology, but to essentially break up with him over something so minor? It felt forced and nonsensical. Then came the emotional whiplash. The ML tries to win her back, she refuses, then they make out, and then she rejects him again. It became an exhausting up-and-down that never felt earned. If they wanted a breakup, at least give it a believable reason. Instead, it just felt like they were ticking off a plot requirement.



here I write - so everyone saying its weird at last I feel off so I directly check last episode it's absolute nonsense , glad my time is saved I didn't watch longer than 2 eps , I'm here for romance not unnecessary drama

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Duang with You: 4/27/2026 ~ 4/30/2026

Am I heavily biased writing this review? Oh, for sure, but who cares. This is the first BL that I have finished, and I loved everything about it. Everything within the show felt natural and there were no scenes where I felt awkward or had to pause due to secondhand embarrassment. Everything was perfect in this show. The friendships were amazing and so cute to see how much they cared for each other. I also love how the story progressed naturally and actually allowed the characters to build a relationship. It wasn't rushed but something that made sense given the two characters, I also love how easily misunderstanding were resolved. That doesn't mean there wasn't conflict but there weren't unnecessary fights that lead to nowhere. Lastly, I love the side couple and from what I had seen on TikTok they have their own book, so I really hope they make that into a show as well since I would really love to see that.

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WHAT HAPPENED IN HERE??

Note: I had already watched it while it was still airing. The review's late.

Had been waiting for it since Season 1 was so so good. Not to mention, even the build-up until the last episode was fantastic.
But bro,
WHAT'S WITH THAT ENDING?? YOU DON'T EVEN CLARIFY ANYTHING, AND CONCLUDE THAT HAN FEI DREAMT IT ALL?? DOES THAT EVEN MAKE ANY SENSE???
WHAT ABOUT JING HAO'S STUDIES? DOES HE BECOME A DOCTOR JUST AFTER WAKING UP FROM THAT COMA? WTF ARE YOU ON ABOUT??

Seriously, Season 1 alone is far better than this. It actually explains everything. Gives reasons to everything.

Dearest director,
Please let me be in-charge of this. Discard this season. I'll remake it and I promise you it will be far far better than this one.
All hopes quashed in the very last scene: what were you doing😭😭

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No one is here for the story

There is absolutely no point in paying attention to the story. Seriously, just skip most of those bits. We are all here for the chemistry, and it is INTENSE.

You have a toxic, obsessive dom who seems almost resentful of how much of a kinkster he really is at heart, and a sub with major daddy issues who is terrifyingly into all the horrible stuff inflicted on him - up to a point. Kudos to the actors for really selling the messed up BDSM relationship, because they got it very right and the series fails in entirely different ways unrelated to that.

So take this for what it’s worth: the story makes no goddamn sense sometimes, and the characters’ actions will have you scratching your heads, but get through it and the intimate scenes will set your screen on fire. For all its flaws, it’s worth checking out, and it has made it onto my rewatch list.

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Dreams, Detours, and the Kind of Love That Grows with Time

Love Story in the 1970s follows a group of young people coming of age during a transformative time, as they chase education, stability, and a better future despite constant obstacles. At the heart of the story is a determined female lead and her evolving relationship with the male lead, as both navigate family expectations, societal limitations, and the unpredictable path toward their dreams.

This drama hit me in a very personal way. I really enjoyed how it brought back old memories of myself striving to attend college.... pushing through setbacks, facing unexpected twists, and constantly having to reroute my plans just to keep moving forward.

Just like in the drama, things didn’t always go the way I expected in my own journey, but somehow everything still aligned in the end. That emotional connection made this story feel even more meaningful, and it’s honestly what stayed with me the most after finishing it.

That being said, while I loved the storyline, the romance didn’t fully hit for me. It felt a bit restrained, likely due to censorship or maybe just the writer’s intention, but I couldn’t help noticing that the male lead’s sister had a much more passionate and expressive love story once she got married, while our main couple stayed mostly in that soft, subtle lane with light pecks and sexual innuendos.

Story — 9/10
The storyline is easily the strongest part of the drama, filled with emotional depth and relatable struggles. It beautifully captures the resilience it takes to chase your dreams when the path isn’t straightforward.

Acting — 8.5/10
The performances feel grounded and sincere, especially in the more emotional and reflective scenes. The cast does a great job bringing authenticity to characters who are navigating difficult life choices. I found myself really despising the villains and completely enraptured with the intimate dynamic between the family members.

Romance — 7/10
While the romance is present, it feels quite restrained and understated throughout most of the drama. There are sweet moments between the leads, but it leans heavily on subtle gestures and light affection rather than deep, passionate connection.

OST — 8/10
The soundtrack complements the nostalgic tone of the drama really well. It enhances the emotional weight of key scenes without ever overpowering them.

Overall Vibe — 9/10
There’s a strong sense of nostalgia and emotional warmth that runs through the entire series. It feels reflective, inspiring, and quietly powerful in the way it tells its story.

Love Story in the 1970s is more than just a romance, it’s a story about perseverance, growth, and finding your way even when life keeps changing the route. If you connect with stories about chasing dreams, overcoming setbacks, and looking back on how far you’ve come, this one will resonate deeply...even if the romance leaves you wanting just a little more.

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A happy lie is still a lie.

⚠️Warning: This review is divided into 2 sections: one with spoilers just enough to write my regular reviews and another that dives deeper. The latter involves theories & evidence about everything that unraveled in the drama, including specific twists I never mentioned in the first part of this review.

⚠️ If you are just planning to start the drama, reading the second part of this review may ruin your first experience. I won't recommend reading it yet, but if that's the type of review that'll convince or dissuade you to watch, then read at your own risk.

Also, this review is coming from someone who has not seen the original UK version, so rather than comparisons, everything here is based purely on how this particular story unfolded on its own.

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[Just enough (I guess) spoilers]

Early on, I thought that the drama felt pretty straightforward with a clear direction. It's a familiar premise of a crime + fantasy drama: a detective chasing a serial killer, an accident happens, and then suddenly waking up in a different timeline with no clear explanation why.

There was a clear objective: solve cases, find answers to questions, and return to the present. It checked a lot of familiar boxes for crime dramas, even down to the team dynamics. Above all, it fit the style of Jung Kyungho's dramas. It got bits of humor and bits of exaggeration and absurdity mixed into serious situations.

There was a point where I almost dropped it because of how frustrating the squad was at the start, especially with how casually they leaned into violence. I hated those scenes, but it was also clear why it was that way. There was no clear law to treat the criminals as human beings, and the Miranda rights did not even exist yet. Even sexism was evident by how they were dismissing female officers as lesser ranks.

The main character, Tae Joo, stands in contrast to that environment. He relies on data, procedure, and evidence, which puts him at odds with the team, so we see conflicts between modern logic and old-school policing. Even forensic science is still an unpopular field, so his knowledge is also reduced to weirdness. This setting showed a rougher system rather than nostalgia, where instinct and force often replaced the proper procedure, and this clash shaped the tone of the story ...initially.

But then, it stops being all that. Sure, we get reminded from time to time along with Tae Joo that the 1988 world is a world he's not supposed to be in. But as the story moves forward, the focus shifts. The cases are still there, and the question of returning to the present does not disappear, but the weight starts to center on Tae Joo himself. The psychological aspect grows from his perspective so much that even after the biggest reveal of the case, I was more bothered by how unsettling the tone still was. It made me understand how the present-world accident, his childhood, and his life in this world caused a mental toll on Tae Joo.

It's one hell of a ride for me and saying this is a great drama is an understatement. Tae Joo himself, rather than the story, kept me on my toes until the very end. If the drama already felt overwhelming as a viewer, it makes you wonder how much heavier it was for Tae Joo to live through it.

For the first time in a while, I got goosebumps for that last episode. I think it was the most decisive choice Tae Joo ever made. He gave me closure, but that freaking made this freaking experience even wilder and heavier.

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[🛑 Spoilers that might ruin your first-watch experience, if you haven't yet 🛑]

By the time it reaches the end, it is no longer about finding the correct answer. Tae Joo already resolved the questions tied to his life before the accident. He caught the person he was chasing and uncovered the truth behind the case. Yet the drama does not end with that resolution, because his real conflict remains. It becomes a matter of choosing which version of life he wants to hold on to.

And he chose the past, where he was important, needed, and most importantly, happier.

Still, I do not think he believed that world was real. The drama showed lots of evidence, experienced by Tae Joo himself. He's such a smart guy to not figure this out.

Let's go back to when Tae Joo just woke up in the past. He wakes up in a small town in 1988. He's in Insung, which he had no memories of. If this was "real", then he should be a child in this timeline, or as an unknown stranger in a familiar world as an adult. Instead, he wakes up with the same name and a position that already fits him. He knows nobody, except for clues that he might be following something related to the case in the present. The fact that he has his own identity is as if he'd been long been in this world. It feels constructed, almost too convenient.

There are two pieces of evidence I find the most non-refutable. First is the constant interruptions from the present, which proves his time in the past was all a dream. The things he hear are not random, but specific to people talking to him: the medical staff and his visitors in the hospital. And even Tae Joo was well aware everything was an illusion, he hears voices on radio and faces on TV nobody else does. But, he can't really do anything as he does not know what he's supposed to do in Insung, why that team, and why those cases, yet.

Second is the answers to these whys. When he woke up in the present, it was eventually found out that before the accident, Tae Joo had actually read cases similar to what he was investigating. All these people he met, places he went, and happenings he experienced were all his subconscious playing out and materializing these cases which he had read before the accident. These cases even helped him uncover the truth about his father by remembering his forgotten childhood during his stay in the past.

My take on why the last villain of the past and his present surgeon had the same name and face is because realistically, you can go between consciousness and unconsciousness during surgery, which means he could have seen his face unknowngly, and his subconscious used him to fill this gap in the case.

When he returned to the present while trying to save his colleagues, it felt like an unfinished mission. But we get the reveal that he was brought back not because he actually completed his purpose there, but because that was the end of the case he had read in the past. In reality, those colleagues died.

One notable difference between this drama and the other time-travel crime dramas that I realized after he woke up in the present, is the fact that his actions in the past had no effect in the present. Or it might be more accurate to say that, none of what happened in the present was ever prevented nor solved in the past. It was only like as if he acted as intented, like how a fixed script would play out. The revelation that he had already read about these cases made this make sense.

So, the ending did not feel vague to me. It was a very decisive decision.

In the real world, Tae Joo jumped and attempted suicide. It's a happy ending for him, and a devastation for everybody around him: his mom, aunt, ex-girlfriend, and probably even his doctors who did a lot to save him. But, the reason why we see him back in the past is that he's actually still alive, most probably in a coma. It made me feel heavy about knowing he can still hear traces of the present, yet chooses to stay where he feels whole. I believe he is aware he's living in a dream, and is choosing to ignore it.

This time, the past is no longer bound to the cases he read. He's fully living in his own delusion now. He saves his colleagues we know are long gone and lives in a version of life that only exists in his mind.

The drama ends on an upbeat, but it still reminded us that he's not in a real world. Tae Joo's decision was enough closure for me, but it also left me questions like a rhetoric.

Will he keep shutting down the real world's attempt to bring him back to reality? If so, will his happiness actually last?

My conclusion leans toward this: He will keep choosing that world until his real body can no longer hold on.

So for me, this was one heck of a tragedy story, even for him. His tragedy is his refusal to accept that the world he's desperate to live are just all in his imagination.

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