Let Free the Curse of Taekwondo (2024)

We all need Ju Yeong

Ju Yeong made me believe. Smiling bright eyes coupled with an open smile, he made me believe in love. Real unapologetic love. Imperfect love. Ride or die, no matter what, I'm never going to leave you kind of love. The - I will wait patiently in my hurt, while I fight to save you from your hurt - kind of love. From the moment, he bared his soul on the opposite side of the wall, freely letting Do Hoe know, "I like you." I knew he was the real deal. Without fear, he spoke. When he hugged him after sparing and and giddly exploded "Yes, I'm crazy. I live with the person I like and always train together". Blissfully happy just to be with him, no matter the circumstances. He was the one. He would do it all just to be with him.

Do Hoe lived in pain. Abusive muted pain that pressed against him, no matter the direction he took. He breathed in hate and let out despair. In his solitude, his only solace was that he would leave. Though, with the arrival of Ju Yeong his dream began to change. They would leave together. In their dream, they would create acceptance and warmth in each other's arms. Do Hoe for a brief moment dared to believe in his dream beyond the pain and loved Ju Yeong deeply.

But the pain wouldn't let him go. It held on, railing at any given opportunity to remind him that he was useless. The pain squeezed tightly to extinguish any flicker of hope to be better than his surrounding and ultimately better than himself. On the final day, the day of exams, the pain won. Traumatized by the frantic beating Ju Yeong endured because he dared to defend him, he failed his exams. Pride and a need to feel worthy, he lies. A lie that would trap him for 12 years in a different type of pain. Self loathing. Hyeon Ho, the only person who knew and he could depend on, became an ally. Only an ally. In Do Hoe's heart of hearts only one could exhist. Unknowingly, a death would bring back the past, a reckoning to survive and the truth to lay bare for all to see. Do Hoe looks over at Ju Yeong and keeps repeating, "Shin Ju Yeong, Why do you keep crying?" He knows. Sometimes, everything has to burn to ash for clarity to occur and the dream to take root and grow. Hyeon Ho, forever on the outside looking in, craved what he lost 12 years ago. He has also existed within his pain.

Every titbit of storytelling was beautifully and artistically laid out leaving the viewer both satisfied and aware. Satisfied that all that needed to be told, was captured and skillfully portrayed by excellent actors. Even the ones that were hated were eventually understood. Aware that if perchance a love like this fortunately enters your life, hold on and fight for it. Ju Yeong will make you believe.

Must see. Rewatch every chance you get.

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To My Star (Taekwondo Version)

Hwang Da Seul is undoubtedly one of the best directors of BL series. And here is yet another proof of her competence and talent in creating such captivating stories with impeccable production, acting and cinematography.

However, I feel that this is a series that ends up repeating many of the arcs and narratives used in To My Star (also directed by her). It is the story of a witty, lively man who refuses to succumb to his problems and ends up moving in with a serious, bad-tempered and cold man. Little by little, he manages to break down the walls of this cold man and they fall in love. Until this man disappears without much explanation and years later they meet again because the cheerful man never forgot or stopped loving the cold man who begins to treat him in an indifferent and cruel way.

And that is where the problem lies. I feel like the first 3 episodes are perfect and contain such a unique and well-constructed narrative about two abandoned, lonely, and pain-filled boys who build a friendship and love that can withstand the pain and give hope about a better future.

That's the best part of the series. But they decide to do a 12-year time jump and the reason why it happens is the worst possible. I would understand if Ju Yeong had killed DoHoe's father and spent that time in prison. Or if they had met in college and the story focused on DoHoe trying to get into college and having to maintain a lie so that Ju Yeong wouldn't feel guilty.

But the story of their adult life is so weak and even boring. The dialogues are excellent, the acting is very good, but all this drama and DoHoe's distant and cruel behavior simply hurts the narrative much more.

I understand that the series tries to create this more complex, adult and conflict-filled plot, but the reality is that none of these conflicts really work. The whole issue of DoHoe forging his diploma or the problem with his mother who mistreated her son has little impact on the story.

The ending fixes a lot of things and manages to bring a resolution that warms the heart. But the series is too confined in the same space, repeating the same fights and this ends up greatly impacting what could be one of the best BL series of 2024.

It's an excellent series and gives a show in the technical aspects, but I really wish they had kept and explored the story of these characters' adolescence. The formula for a perfect story was all there.

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Life

First of all, let me say that the acting and the story itself are at the highest level, the actors did an excellent job. I really enjoy watching the series exactly when someone is telling their life story.

we have a life story between two completely different characters. A do ho who is unhappy is somewhat negative and endures everything only to one day disappear from an unhappy environment.
Yeong, who has a dysfunctional family, but is always positive, willing to help everyone. he always looks at everything around him with a big smile.
Do Hoa just needed someone like Yeong. To give him some joy and positivity of a track of hope in the blackness in which he found himself. and Yeong succeeded. Do hoe finally got the light he needed in his life with someone he can rely on who is there for him whenever he needs it. Until the day he had the exam to get revenge for Yeon, he thought of hurting his father. Yeon was picked up by his family and no matter how hard he tried to get to Do hoe, he couldn't. Do Hoa left him. Yeong came back not only to take care of the coach but because he was waiting for Do Hoe to come back the whole time. 12 years later I know they still love each other but to leave someone for so long without a word. to hurt a person who has never hurt you. I know they still have feelings for each other, but I can't get over it. In all of this we have the proud and arrogant Hyeon who was either in love with Do hoe who bullied him throughout high school and you become friends with him. Do Hoe is a bird with broken wings and Yeong is a bird whose wings have been broken. Do Hoa said that he is finally free, maybe he is free, but he still has a noose around his neck.
you can't run away from problems and the past, they will catch up with you when then. I think that when Do Ho arrived, he couldn't believe that Yeon had been waiting for him in the same place for 12 years.that he took care of his father. not only that Yeong lost his love, his coach, but he also lost a home and a job. I honestly don't know how the story will unfold, but honestly I couldn't get over everything. if I don't know what was in the story, one sorry is not enough

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it's so warming

It was a total Rollercoaster like the starting got me giggling and kicking air - the innocemt romance and their playfullness made my heart flutter too
and then after timeskip i was like pissed at mc and their poor communication it'd have been great if they got together back quickly
- but then it got bit emotional and I had a good cry. The ml was such a good character I smiled whenever his face was up and cried with him.
i really liked his acting.
the ending was so warm I really love how shin communicates so well. the ending was satisfying I really loved the couple.
truly the masterpiece I'm sad that it's underrated.
I'd surely rewatch it again though I'm sure Noone will read this but eh the ml ,I forgot the name , the shin guy - he's my type I want him so bad imma cry after looking him up on Google and discovering the drastic age gap.

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Dont mind me gushing and rambling

First of all, I’m a big fan of the intro. It feels comforting and nostalgic. Cinematically speaking. I also really like it, it feels light and soothing.
About the characters. I adore them and their personalities. The ML seems so sweet and caring. But I also love how the MC opens up and becomes happier.
The first few episodes take place in the past and therefore there are different social norms and expectations. I think this drama incorporates this very well (TW).

In general, this BL seems so realistic. In the beginning, their kisses and romantic interactions seem so innocent and you can feel the awkwardness between them, because it probably is their first interaction with a man. But they do look out and care for each other and I love the both of them.
Due to the actors' amazing acting, they genuinely seem like lovers/friends.
After the 4th EP, there is a time skip and the MLs mood changes and you can see the look of hurt in their eyes. Their interactions hurt (but in a good way). You can feel the pain, but also their longing for each other and you can just feel it tickling in the air between them.
It’s painful to watch the differences in their behavior in the past and the present.
In my opinion, the topics in this BL were rather unique but so real at the same time. The characters were complex and I think it has one of the best ending scenes. This BL also reminded me of why I love KBLs so much.

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The reality of love when everything isn't sunshine and rainbows

Had I been a true film head and done my research on the director before watching this show, I would have been comforted knowing even though I was heading in blind (there was literally no advertising I saw for this series, it just popped up on one of my IQIYI searches) I would have my heart broken regardless. Hwang Da Seul is the screenwriter and director of this series, and is the same to "Bleuming," "To My Star" 1 & 2, and "Where Your Eyes Linger." These are all OG BL's that were not only some of the most well-wrote content of their time but remain what I would dare call this generation's KBL classics (minus "Where Your Eyes Linger of course.) I left this show feeling how I felt after watching "The Eighth Sense"; my heart mended in a way that made it different from who I was before, and knowing this would be a comfort show sad overtones or not.

Hwang seems to constantly be pushing societal boundaries as well, with there being more affection in this series than I expected, even some barely fade-to-black moments that had me wide-eyed wondering how far was she gonna let this go. I applaud her for consistently providing top-quality media and ensuring length is not a minimizing factor that dumbs down a story. Originally a film released through Bucheon's International Film Festival, I hope to God she got the acknowledgment this series deserved.

On a personal note, this show broke me in all the right and wrong ways. From the jump, the lighting, music, scenery, shot-blocking and angles, intonation, EVERYTHING told me this show was going to be very good and also extremely sad. Do-hoe and Ju-yeong's storyline is the epitome of making the best of what life hands you as a child when there are so many things out of your control, but also how impactful one's family can be when it comes to the grand scheme of the what makes up the fibers of our being. There were a lot of tear-jerking moments where I felt like my heart was just being squeezed in pain. The ending is positive and not bittersweet at all but still had me in tears because of how emotional of an experience this series was to witness.

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This story moved me in many ways. I felt like crying at several points. It touches on very real topics such as: physical and emotional abuse from parents, teachers, and friends, as well as the pressures of life, like graduating from a prestigious university just to be valued ,that it’s heartbreaking to live in a society that becomes more demanding every day, where your worth is measured by your degrees and connections, and without them, you are seen as nothing and how people try to normalize physical abuse by disguising it as love, which is truly tragic.

I also loved how the characters developed. Ju Yeong and Do Heo’s story has such a beautiful beginning—how little by little, Ju Yeong becomes the only happiness in Do Heo’s life, like a ray of sunshine in a dark room. It’s so touching how Ju Yeong expresses his love from the very start and how Do Heo slowly softens. And when they reunite, that love is still present, especially from Ju Yeong’s side, and despite all the hardships, they loved each other until the end.

I didn't dislike nothing at all the only thing Is that it can be a little dificult to understand well some points of the story so you would need to watch again those parts for a better understanding (in my case) but i felt that makes it more interesting so it was fine for me.

Oh and I also loved the actors, especially the two main leads (i love Ju Yeong, he Is so Lively). They did an amazing job—they made everything feel so real and heartfelt. I could talk endlessly about all the incredible details, but there are so many that I’m too tired to keep writing. I just wanted to share this because it was such a great story that i liked a lot—deep, with very real themes, incredible actors who make you feel a deep connection and love for them and their characters, and a well-crafted drama and romance.

In short—cinema.

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