A Shoulder to Cry On (2023)

Was cute!

I did genuinely enjoy this show- I thought the plot was decent and I loved the acting! The only issue that genuinely made me kinda iffy on the show was the time skip. It’s just my personal preference but I really do hate when shows do that so when I saw that „2 years later text“ it 100% knocked me from a 8 to a 7.

I decided to make it a 7.5 in the end because even though I did wish they didn’t do a time skip (even did it twice ㅠㅠ) I feel like they they got back together pretty quickly- which also could be said for the opposite argument- why time skip if they are just gonna get right back together? I hope you get what I mean 😅

But yeah it was a cute show- had me crying a few times but also had me questioning why everyone was doing what they were doing at times as well (like when Tae hyun called after he hit his head with the pot like he was dying but it literally was just a scratch???)

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Not fluffly but interesting

Ok so I have mixed feelings about this serie,I didn't hate it but I rather wasn't fond of it because of the character of Cho Tae Hyun. He's indeed a complex character but sometimes I also don't really understand the other one, Lee Da Yeol.

I have to admit, overall, the story was well done, I can't forget the behavior of Cho Taehyun at the begining (I hate bullying, in real life and even in fiction) so even if they tried to show us another side of him, it's a bit hard to forgive him on that part.

At the same time, I found it interesting to tackle this issue and to show this character and even their relationship throughout the episodes. It's litterally a serious / psychological (?) drama with a hint of a romantic relationship between Lee Dayeol and Cho Taehyun. Well, I didn't mind the lack of skinship and intimate scene but I also understand why people seem not to like and to feel being toyed / teased.

One thing that I appreciated was kind of the small journey of Lee Dayeol being an archery athelete (as I was interested way before to this kind of sport, I enjoyed these small moments).

The other issue that I have is what's going on with the last 2 episodes, But at the same time, I kind of understand the need of doing this? I'm not that sure, it still left me with mixed feelings. lol

But after all, both of them did a great job at portraying their characters, it was my first time seeing them and I've learnt they are both part of the same group (they are kind of underrated and sadly I only listen to one or two of their songs? But I'm glad, it makes me want to check more of their tracks and activities as artist).

For the OST, I wasn't hyped at the begining although it was nice to listen but after more episodes, it was easy to listen, I started to like it more. I have also learnt that it was one of them or both? who composed and write the lyrics of those songs? Surprisingly talented.

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I feel confused

When I first started watching it, I felt excited because I really enjoyed enemies to lovers and they were kinda silly which makes the chemistry more interesting but after some episodes I was losing interest in the story bc even if their chemistry is amazing I feel like something was off and that was their individual stories, it felt rushed or sometimes, out of nowhere. I'd say that there was a lot of potential to go deeper into Dayeol's archery history just like taehyun's.
The acting could have been better. I didn't like the angst, for me it didn't make sense and again, felt rushed.

I don't think it's really bad and not worth to watch it but to be honest, I don't think I'd ever watch this kbl again which is a shame bc the plot had a lot of potential.

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Intriguing start, lackluster ending.

The first half, and the middle of this show is really great and I was truly impressed by the talented actors, good cinematography and interesting characters. That being said, the ending did not really stick the landing for me. First off, we get a time skip in the middle of an episode, in the middle of a still ongoing conflict. This seriously really confused me, and it felt like they were trying really hard to stray away from the original plot of the show? The last half of the 6th episode and the enitrety og the 7th are really just random shenanigans that don't' try to explain what has happened during the time Taehyun and Dayeol spent away from each other. The last two episodes were simply rushed, and instead of focusing on a satisfying end to their story as high school students, they rather rushed them into student/college life with zero context and sent them on a random trip.
I think if they had really focused on working through the conflict they had at the end of ep 6, this series could really be perfect. Certain parts of this show soars, but the ending really doesn't do it any favours. I personally think they should've kept the standard 8-epsiode length of korean bls, while also focusing on the characters as highschoolers and their issues while being highschoolers, that never really get resolved. This would give Taehyun especially much more time to develop, evolve and reconsider his feelings and approach to Dayeol. This show is definetely worth watching, as long as you're prepared for what awaits you at the end, which is boring melodrama that is barely developed. All in all, Yechan and Jaehan are seriously good actors and you should definetely check out Omega X aswell <3

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A bromance?

This could have been so much more than it was! It started off as a cute high school romance between the popular school president Taehyun and the quiet archery team member Dayeol. The circumstances under which they originally meet set them up to be enemies, but they quickly start to get along instead.

Unfortunately, this one missed the mark a little bit. Every time their relationship should have taken off, something happened to stop them. And just when you think everything is going to work out, it still doesn't! It seemed like they were trying to get around the fact that this was a gay relationship by....not letting them have a real relationship. No kiss, no handholding, nothing! Just two bros with some tension and an unexplored relationship.

They're clearly gay so I won't call this queerbaiting, but it nearly was.

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Cute, yeah cute

I was able to binge watch this BL in one sitting. Not because it was really good or anything like that, but because I could. A shoulder to cry on had me hooked straight from the beginning. The chemistry between the leads is intoxicating and the cute moments littered throughout the show always put a smile on my face. The last couple of episodes felt really rushed though and I'm extremely disappointed that there wasn't even a single kiss scene within the series. But overall it was still really cute, especially in the last episode where the main leads are finally in a loving relationship together.

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the best k-bl to me for now

this show doesnt have a kiss scene and its still so much better than many other series that i watched ( so if you are hesitating because of no kiss scene i still highly recommend it to you because its worth it) , because its a gem when you find a good plot lately, they have good chemistry and i find the plot so interesting i watched until the end
im not into romanticizing bullying but we do see first resentment then we see character development and them facing their own issues and i found that interesting to watch and great ost too, i have to save those songs later
my only complaint is the last 2 eps as they are really rushed then it turned to only fluff, if i can change something about the last ep i will not make Da Yeol character forgive Tae Hyun easily, like make him beg more, they made him forgive him so easily then the last ep is only fluff nothing going on. Da Yeol forgive him easily because he loves him too much and missed him
overall i do see myself rewatching this serie again ,its that much good

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A pleasant surprise but not for everyone

Personally i quite enjoyed the whole series, but after reading other reviews there are definetely things that were lacking, but they don't realy bother me as much as they do some more knowledgeble viewers.

First, for the pluses i like that this wasn't an average cutesy, sweet story and had some dark/trauma elements to it. I think Tae Hyun's story was intresting and a good add on.

+i felt the actors acting was decent, it didn't wow me but they did decently and also had decent chemistry

+I like the length of the series yes it is 7 episodes but they're each 30-45 mins long which i very much apreciate.

+Good not too deep but not the most cliché thing, great for rewatching atleast for me.

+As much as episode 7 was kinda weird, the visuals were great! The actor who playe da yeol looked so good in ep 7.


Now onto the parts, which lacked and could have definetely been better.
-I also think that Tae Hyun's back story was very intresting but it all just felt very sudden, i wish they had explained or got atleast a little deeper into it.

-The first episode ALOT of people were NOT HAPPY with including me, since this is an enemies- lovers trope , most of the time it's mostly simple rivalry or teasing but what Tae hyun did was BULLYING.!
I legit, had to stop watching and went back to it after some time.

-Episode 7 felt just unnecesarry and kinda forced, i don't mind a short episode which shows the couples love after they get together/the story 'ends' , but it was kinda awkward, was surprised with there not being any real kiss scene but i don't mind that too much. I don't know what it is but it just didn't hit as hard.

-I didn't get as immersed in the story and it's backstory as I'd want to, and i still wished they expanded more on the psychological issues and Tae Hyun's back story so the 'climax' would have had more of an impact to me.

Plus a random thought of mine WHY DID TAE HYUN'S ACTOR LOOK SO PALE LIKE THEY LEGIT MADE HIM CASPER THE MF GHOST??? LIKE IS HE ACC THIS PALE IN REAL LIFE

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