A disappointing show
Basically almost everything is subpar in this series, if not downright bad. The cinematography is standard, neither good nor bad, and so is the editing. Some sound effect/music choices during the episodes are confusing but I love the ost and all the songs produced for this show - Joong and Dunk are both really enjoyable singers.Writing-wise, the premise is pretty simple - a boy requests a friend's help to hit on his crush and ends up falling (requitedly) for his friend instead - but the writing fails at carrying it out properly. Starting from ep 5 onwards, the « plot » abounds with fillers, and there’s no sense of direction. The story does attempt to tackle complex themes such as family relationships in its last episodes, but their handling and resolution ends up oversimplified.
The secondary characters are either entirely functional (Pat, the other friend), or criminally underused (Pok, Jeng, Nita), which is mind-boggling considering all the time dedicated to fillers in this show, which could instead have been used to develop them and their storylines. Joke and Zo’s relationship, despite being the main focus of this series, still needs work by the end of the 12 episodes, and I could never fully engage with Joke and Zo as characters (in Joke’s case, because he’s too pushy and too entirely defined by his love for Zo - and in Zo’s case, because I didn’t understand what he was thinking half the time, which is both a writing and an acting issue).
I like Joong’s acting but I felt like he was at 50% his capacity half the time. Dunk's acting, while slightly improved since SIMM, still needs a lot of work.
Still, some moments managed to capture my heart in the few occurrences when good writing and acting came together to deliver beautiful scenes (most of ep 3 and 4 for Joke/Zo, ep 7 and 9 for Jeng/Pok). Joong and Dunk’s chemistry is also amazing and the kiss scenes were all brillant.
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This was not good...like at all.
It was bad guys. Like I'm surprised how bad it was.The sad part is that I wanted so much better for them that this but this was horrible.
I blame the storyline the most because it was basically absent. Like there was not overarching theme that tied the events that occurred together. I mean if you're not going to make the relationship the forefront of the story, you gotta BRING IT. There was nothing captivating, riveting, or fun about this drama. It was honestly just so poor.
The acting needs to be criticized as well, because come on. There were no moments of me connecting with a scene or character because there really didn't seem to be any real emotion present. I think they were attempting to give the MC a TharnType type of relationship (one character blindly in love, other character being ambivalent/nonchalant but secretly loving it). However with MewGulf you could FEEL the passion from both of them. Although there were moments where I felt it from Joong (I appreciated his commitment) I often wondered if Dunk's character even liked Joke.
I want everyone involved in this production to reflect, because it was just horrible.
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The only thing hidden in this show was the plot
How should I start... let's say that the couple with the most potential here was actually WaveTrin (PodGuy) which was included completely out of blue at the end and wasn't even properly solved. I stayed mainly for AouBoom because the lack of their scenes in Vice Versa made me want more but it wasn't actually any better... And the main couple JokeZo... it was hell watching them at the start cuz I could not even imagine how could they get together with Zo's personality but it got better when they started dating.And wtf was that debate club?? I would expect they'd talk about serious and controversial themes with lots of opinions and trying to find solution to it but those topics were completely random and the contest is also pretty unfair when you are on the side where you can't say much about it.
And the hidden agenda?? Was it just that Joke did not want to help Zo get Nita but to date him?? That ended in like ep 3 or 4 and then it was pretty random.
I'm actually glad they added a serious theme like stalking into it but making it a cover for Nita's and Joke's relationship was pretty lame I'd say. And poor Nita... she was so plain and treated like a doll there. At first she was Zo's prey without even knowing, then a victim of stalking and sexual harassment and in the end she felt bad for winning scholarship which wanted Zo but his speech was so poor he did not even deserve it. I'd say wasted potential on side characters.
I also wonder why JoongDunk has much more chemistry irl and iconic moment on LOL fanfest but their characters' chemistry is below zero. Idk what show could make JoongDunk shine but SIMM and HA are not the ones.
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This review may contain spoilers
Disappointing...
Started and held out for the main actors but other than them it was meh.Lacklustre school setting, boring story and just generally disappointing.
I mean the debate plot was so flat and fake notmany things could've been worse.
Watched 8 episodes, about 5 normally then the rest on 2x speed, got halfway through ep 9 and realised i genuinely didn't care what happened so dropped it.
It was cute and while bad bearable at the beginning it didn't offer alot to warrant sticking around for 12 eps.
Hope the actors can star in something better.
Don't recommend, not even if you like the actors.
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JoongDunk deserves better
I adore JoongDunk to death but this series was horribly written, most of it was just contrived drama thrown in, then solved within 10 minutes. At a certain point I didn’t even know what the overarching plot was. It lost the plot completely and just turned into glimpses of JoongDunk fanservice (which was the best part of the show). Again I love them so much but my baby Dunk needs an acting coach or acting lessons because his mediocre acting was really highlighted in this show.I’m begging gmmtv to give JoongDunk a good script with a good director for their next series. Because SIMM and Hidden Agenda don’t show anything the two are capable of, especially Joong.
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....meh...
The story was good. I liked the plot.Two college classmates. Boy 1 has a crush on Boy 2. Boy 2 has a crush on Boy 1's ex-girlfriend. Boy 2 is a shy, awkward mess. His friends convince him to approach Boy 1 for help in winning over his crush, to whom he can't speak two words without stuttering. Sensing an opening to win his own crush, boy 1 agrees to help boy 2 and does his best to win his affections. In the end he does, and they live happily ever after.
The music was forgettable.
My maine gripe is the acting, which completely ruined this show for me.
Joong was great. Dunk was awful. I'm sorry to be so blunt, but it's the pure truth. His facial expressions were gawd-awful and actively broke scenes and moods for me. The personality of the character was ruined. The entire story was ruined. I'm majorly angry at whoever directed/coached this cast and allowed the show to be released as is. GGMTV has some great works, and I expected better from them. (Tho I will note that the chemistry between Joong and Dunk was good, and they pulled off both emotional and physical intimacy well. But that's limited to touch/chemistry. Not the other part of acting--dialogue, expressions, etc.)
It's a good story if you can get past the acting.
Along with a sweet romance, the show tackles issues of family expectations, the pressure to succeed, and "in the closet" relationships--all very well done.
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One of the highly disappointing dramas of 2023
I had low anticipation about the drama after watching the trailer, and this drama is a huge failure in 2023. But when I started to watch the drama, the first half was okay and passable, and I wouldn't drop because it's too late, so I watched the whole thing. Before anything else, kudos to Dunk for improving his acting skills. Idk why GMMTV is wasting resources, time, and their actors. Why can't they use the full potential of these actors? And aren't there any writers to write a different plot? It's like copying and pasting the star in my mind with a little twist and a sloppy climax. I hope that in the future they will do their best.Was this review helpful to you?
Would’ve Been A Favorite In 2016
Incredibly boring. I sat through four episodes wondering when it would get better but it never did.I tried to give it a chance but the acting is very bad and I don’t mind cliche when it’s done right, but it is definitely not done right.
I have been following Joong for a while and he is a very decent actor. I cannot say the same about Dunk. For some reason I can’t bring myself to watch the two of them, I tried watching their other show Star In My Mind, but again, it was lackluster and boring. Their chemistry is extremely off and definitely not swoon worthy.
I would only recommend if you’re looking for something to pass time. Or if you’re a big fan of Jamie (Nita), she’s gorgeous.
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We should stick with JoongDunk's YouTube compilations at this point...
Can we stop with these plots that starts with one of the leads pursuing a girl that he has NO connection with? Like, is so overused and boring, it doesn't add ANYTHING useful and interesting to the characters depths and story. But even with that, the beginning was the most interesting and fun part with Joke pursing Zo. Most parts were skippable, and the show was too long for what they had.The acting was not terrible but not good enough to save it. I could see Dunk falling behind sometimes and losing some opportunities when it comes to showcasing Zo's emotions, and Joong was actually fine and had some really beautiful moments. Aou and Boom didn't have many interesting moments, but I really enjoyed this pairing, and I actually wanted to see more of them. Between other support characters, Nita (Jamie) and Pat (Louis) had more impact in the story, and I was particularly happy seeing Jamie in a completely different role right after Home School.
So that's it, if you want to watch just for JoongDunk, as I said in the headline, you should stick with the YouTube compilations, they are far more entertaining.
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Honestly Not Bad, Just Not Good Enough to Finish
From the get-go, I knew that this concept could be told in about 8 episodes, and low and behold, it was happily ever after by the end of episode 8. So because I was already only getting by by the skin of my teeth, I've decided that episode 8 is where this shall end for me.Let's Dive In.
I immediately knew where this was headed as Joong and Dunk being the leads -- Boring Boulevard. Needless to say, I fell asleep through episodes 1-4 and had to keep going back to see what the hell had gone on, only to have missed absolutely nothing but a bunch of talking and talking and talking. Yes, the plot is simple, but gosh darn it something about this was so freaking aggravatingly dull that I just couldn't do it. The only reason I didn't drop this by episode 4 is because there is one thing that these boys do great at and that's affection. So am I shallow for staying for the physicality and skipping through the rest? Maybe. But oh well.
Joong and Dunk's chemistry (outside of being physical) isn't bad persay -- but there's just something missing. I can't quite put my tongue on it, but for whatever reason, it's so hard for me to believe their chemistry even though it doesn't look necessarily bad on camera. I've said it before and I'll say it here too, I want Joong to be given another on-screen partner. Dunk is great but he just doesn't sell it for me. However, again, 10/10 in everything physical. I mean some really good kissing.
The side couple was cute, and they also weren't so bad at kissing, but they didn't do enough for me.
Some nit-picking, but because it's GMMTV, I expect better: so so SO many continuity errors that I almost gauged my eyes out. Some glaring ones were hand placements not being the same, and the ceramic that was supposed to be broken just so happened to not be broken seconds before. This is what also adds to the cheap feeling of the show cause it's obvious that it was rushed and wasn't given much thought to detail. It was so lazy for a company like GMMTV to produce crap like this that it's genuinely upsetting.
And like I said, it's happily ever after at the end of episode 8, so looking at the preview I just knew I was fine with not finishing the rest as I know it's nothing but added-on nonsense so they could fill their 12-episode agenda.
Ratings:
Story: 4/10 - Yes the plot is simplistic, but that's no reason for a terrible script. Bunch of nothingness until they do cliches and some kissing -- then I like it. Production value also brings the score down for it's terrible lack of detail.
Acting: 8/10 - Both have never been given a very strong plot to really show off their acting abilities, so this is as best as I've always seen them do. I really could care less for this couple, but if they're paired again I hope they're given a heavier plot in terms of story.
music 5/10: Joong sang too much so, yeah.
Recommendation Value: 3/10 - Honestly, this series isn't bad so I'm not giving it a low score cause it's terrible, I'm just giving it a low score because out of all the BLs going on right now, this is the least entertaining one to watch. But this might be a good one to watch for someone's first BL so, a 3/10 it is.
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It's not a 10 but...
Well for sure it isn't a 10 rated BL series, but it's not a 3. Truth being that for me, as long as Joong smiles a few times an episode I'm satisfied! Also if he raises his eyebrows' and goes shirtless once an episode that really can forgive a lot of script weakness.Yes the "Hidden Agenda" was not hidden for very long nor was it hidden very well at all. Therefore, this is for sure a "B" BL series...similar to B Movie. All the other stuff was acceptable, music was kind of generic for me. (yeah minus Joong singing.) Story was generic. School stuff Generic. Family was uneventful.
Joong was a good cast for Joke but I can't say the same for Dunk as Zo. I'll leave it at that. NIta and the Grandmother were good female characters.
My only other cast issues is what happened to Pat? Pok and Jeng are fine but Louis as Pat is the next most interesting actor in the entire series. It's like he fell off of the screen. (Did I forget something)
The Finale could have had a more secondary character involvement and I didn't really get Zo or the the fathers moment of realization: "oh I'm being a wanker and I should stop!" Not done well at all!
Yes it's watchable and yes it had some good entertaining spots, but yes it's time for Joong and DunK to grow up. No more school series for them please!
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