Shinuhodo Aishite

just don’t

This show was shockingly bad. I completed it, thinking it was going to be an interesting show about love and death and it turned out to be ridiculous.

Mio has no backbone at all. no personality. no dreams. no desires. no wants. she’s a shell of a human and it’s weird how she’s supposed to be toe main character but has no drive at all whatsoever.

the ML has no charm, no charisma. I was left wondering why anyone would think he’s special. I don’t know why anyone would like him. there was no likable quality. he was controlling, he wasn’t all that attractive. he didn’t even have a personality. even the most villainous characters have a personality. it seemed like he was never home. He gave mio a shred of attention and she was willing to give her life up for him??? those drugs must’ve been EXTRA strong because I don’t know how anyone would fall for him at all.

the plot could’ve been so much better if instead of just seeing why/how he killed people, we also saw why mio loved him. there’s no emotional investment at all. but somehow women were going crazy for him???

not a good plot and the acting couldn’t make up for it.

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This drama is haunting, dramatic and psychologically intense!

Finished this drama in just 3 days—completely hooked!

I was blown away by the acting, especially from both main leads. Narimiya Hiroki delivers a powerful performance—what a phenomenal comeback after his long hiatus. You can really feel the depth and intensity he brings to his character.

One of the things I loved most is how the drama allows us to explore the story from both the protagonist’s and antagonist’s perspectives.
It’s not just a mystery.. it’s a deeply emotional, psychological, and tragic love story.

The title “Dead or Love” couldn’t be more fitting. While an alternate title, “Love Me to Death,” might suggest a romantic couple loving each other until the end, this drama tells a much darker and more twisted story. It’s not about mutual love—it's about obsession, control, and emotional desperation.

Masato wants Mio to fall so deeply in love with him that she would die for him.... literally. Meanwhile, Mio, in her loneliness and naivety, just wants Masato to stay by her side and love her until the end, no matter what.
It's a battle of egos masked as love, where each tries to own the other's heart completely with different goal.

[MORE SPOILER]
The male lead’s murderous intent is chilling, rooted in a traumatic childhood full of abuse and bullying. He grows into a cold, calculating psychopath, driven by a twisted sense of love and revenge.

He kills without hesitation, hiding behind a mask of charm, believing real love doesn’t exist.
And yet, his tragic motivation: to save his sister no matter what, while punishing those who “love” him.. adds painful complexity to his character.

His plan to manipulate and ultimately kill his wife, Mio, is heart-wrenching. But the ending takes a dramatic turn as Mio, lonely and desperate yet still full of hope, softly whispers to him, “Live.” Her love, though born from manipulation, never fully dies.

This drama is haunting, dramatic, and psychologically intense. It’s one of those stories that lingers with you. I really hope there's a second season—it deserves one!

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How can a woman possibly tell a man who is determined to kill her to live? Dead or Love fails to empower women or offer any meaningful insight on how to protect themselves from dangerous, predatory men. Instead, it portrays the female lead as soft, defenseless, and almost oblivious. Even after being rescued from near-death situations, her reaction is a dazed, "Am I dead or alive?"—as though she’s floating through the events without agency or awareness.
There’s no real moral takeaway from this series. The woman doesn’t grow, fight back, or show personal strength. Instead, she’s saved by others—completely reliant on third-party intervention with no notable effort or development on her part. It's a disappointing portrayal that misses the opportunity to show female resilience or survival instinct.

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Watch it for Narimiya Hiroki

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I will watch anything, literally anything with Narimiya Hiroki in it and I'll enjoy it!!
That's how much I LOVE him, I'm incapable of hating anything he is in it, I can't, I just can't.

Now I'll try to be honest here this drama isn't by any mean the best of it's kind, nor a fantastic drama that you must watch, it won't change your life or anything it's a plain psychological drama that you can totally skip and sleep well at night.

Acting was spectacular as expected, Hiroki shines in his role, this guy has been away from acting since about 2016 and HE STİLL HAS THE KNACK OF İT, now I can't really judge other characters since the drama is basically on Hiroki's shoulder but the reporter stands out, he was fantastic.

The story was nice, no mystery here, pretty predictable and nothing to look forward to. Nevertheless, it's not as boring as I've seen in the comments, it may need to be a little shorter like 6 episodes would have been perfect but 8 aren't considered bad since we needed a lot of backstory for literally all the characters and I believe if it was any shorter we might complain about the lack of backstory for some characters but all I'm saying is we can do without a few unnecessary scenes here and there ~

My overall rate is heavily influenced but that doesn't mean it was a bad drama, I would recommend it. I watched the whole thing without skipping while being on a drama slump so that means something, however, I understand if some found it boring or slow, it is to some extent but personally that wasn't enough to put me off.

Welcome back Hiroki San ❣️❣️

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Insane Meets Insane

Can’t lie, it gave me ice-cold chills at the end, even though it wrapped up with the most cliché Japanese drama ending and that classic cliché song. Like bro, we’ve seen it before, but somehow it still hit.

I almost fell for that pretty smile of the ML too, he had that soft, charming look that makes you wanna believe he’s the “good one”… until he went and cheated like it was a casual errand, then came home like it was just another Saturday night. Wild.

The FL’s character? Low-key disturbing. Sweet on the outside, but you could feel the emotional rot underneath. By the end I just sat there like, “Wow… such a fitting couple.” Tencere kapağını bulmuş, for real.

I did like how dark it got, those mid-episodes were deep in the shadows, no holding back. But then the ending? He just vanishes, and the police go, “He might be alive.” And I was like... seriously? That’s how we’re leaving it? Like a ghost in the wind with a tragic playlist on loop? Anyway. Drama was messy, toxic, and full of red flags and I ate it up.

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