A Bold and Steamy Step for Korean BL
Tide of Love is our first Korean BL that leans into BDSM and while it is not as explicit as Thai or Japanese BLs, I still really enjoyed it. I already love both main leads from Sweetheart Service and Myeong continues to impress me with every role. He is tall, handsome and incredibly attractive which makes every scene with him even more captivating.The kiss scenes and the erotic moments are definitely the highlights. They are intimate, well shot and full of chemistry.
My only criticisms are the very weak plot and the editing issues. Some scenes feel mismatched with the audio and the pacing suffers because each episode is only around ten minutes. I wish it were longer because the potential is there.
Despite its flaws, Tide of Love is still a fun, hot and refreshing BL to watch and a bold step for Korean BL content.
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50-Minute Test of Patience, Free Time, and Emotional Endurance
Tide of Love is the kind of show you decide to watch purely out of free will during your free time thinking it will be a light and enjoyable experience. However, once it starts, you quickly realize that you are signing up for a full 50 minutes of emotional resilience training. And you just have to really endure it all trying to make sense out of that shitty storyline.The storytelling tries very hard to be romantic and heartfelt, but instead delivers an impressive amount of awkward moments that make you pause, sigh, and I just find my self laughing because what else to feel?
To its credit, Tide of Love does succeed in one thing: it keeps you watching, not because it is captivating, but because you want to see just how much more awkward it can become. It’s the type of show that works best if you enjoy cringe story with lots of cuts or need background entertainment while questioning your life choices.
Overall, Tide of Love is not something you casually recommend, but rather something you survive. A unique viewing experience, unintentionally funny, mildly exhausting, and strangely memorable.
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Kinky But Intensely Loving
I loved this gem of a BL that had so many viewers clutching their pearls and being disgusted by its content. That I found odd and a bit disingenuous. For most BL watchers, there are seemingly no issues with quite popular BLs that have blatant sexual abuse, often paired with strong emotional and physical abuse as well. Oh, sometimes it is subtly committed by stunningly handsome characters to make it palpable, or they are produced humorously, or even sweetly displayed, and yet somehow, all of that passes muster. In fact, there is a whole subgenre of Bl literally devoted to abuse with hardly a peep and is called ‘innovative’. Where this series fell is in its production value. The script was generally weak and the editing in place was atrocious. Sound was inconsistent in many places. Although I honestly thought the two actors had good screen chemistry, the direction on what to do and how to do it was graceless and appeared fumbly. If you are going to do a series related to a specific genre like BDSM, then study the subject matter and make it look like these guys like it, or hate it, or one was into or and the other was not, or were uncomfortable – anything that gave us more emotional reaction so we know how they are actually feeling. It seemed quixotic.Was this review helpful to you?
Difficult to get through for such a short series
This is the live action version of a M rated PWP fan-fiction, but with a BDSM tag from somewhere maybe just in case someone thought that’s what BDSM looks like?The audio is a little odd for what it is I found and honestly I think the official synopsis I read had more of the plot of the story than the series had.
I wouldn’t mind seeing the actors in a series with a bit more plot though cos at some points they touched on a dynamic that could have been good to explore
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A huge mess!
I have the feeling that a lot of people made a ghost ship with these to actors in Sweetheart service, so the company quickly made something to please all those shipping fans. But they failed miserably, the whole drama looks like they just shooted some random scenes and editted them together to make episodes. Only the last episode looked like it was a real complete episode.There were lots of editting mistakes made, as a example: a shirt is open and the next frame it is closed (ep 4) same in ep. 5
The music was ok, but cut off with a lot of scenes.
Then the kissing sounds, i never understand why bl's need to have extreme kissing sounds, but if you do it, please do it in sync with the kissing...
Best of this whole drama were the visuals..
Jung Myeong Cheol did an ok job acting, Kim Hyeon Seo not so. I don't know what it is, but there is something about his acting i don't like. It just doesn't feel....sincere?
There was some chemistry between them, but that was mostly to thank to Jung Myeong Cheol, he clearly knows how to create chemistry. Some kisses were good, but that was also thanx to him, he kissed great. But most of the time Kim Hyeon Seo didn't really kiss him back, he just kept his lips together and didn't even give a bit of a lips pouting to make it look as if he kissed back.
A big fail! I do not recommend watching, it is a real waste of time.
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This review may contain spoilers
An A for the effort of the concept... and that's it
DisclaimerWhat I am writing here are my views and thoughts about this series. Some of you may not like it. That does not give you the right to try to come at me with your opinions on why this series should get a higher or lower score and why it is better/worse than I think it is. You have your own opinions, and I have mine. Kindly respect that.
Now, you see, I'm giving an A for effort because when you read the synopsis, it sounds so interesting, and it draws you in to see how the storyline is going to be handled. And then...we get whatever this is that was given up to us. You hire somebody on a contract to do whatever the heck you want to do to him, and all you are offering him is bread and milk?!! Like, that's the majority of what Kim Hae Jun eats throughout this series. And what kind of art class is that where there are only two students?!!! And there's no teacher to supervise them?!!! And apparently people can enter the classroom all willy-nilly even though they are not students?!!! The sad thing here is that the first episode, when I watched it, was okay, and it did make sense with the storyline. It's just that after that...nope.
And to top it off – TO TOP IT OFF – why was there so much unbuttoning of a shirt in one of the episodes? I saw it buttoned; Han Jae Hun unbuttoned it – but in the next take it's buttoned BACK AGAIN with Han Jae Hun unbuttoning it AGAIN!! I also got annoyed when the first time we were so-called introduced to the arts classroom, we had Kim Hae Jun and the girl student drawing in silence!! Look, this series is already only 10 minutes per episode – we can't also have room for silence here!!
And let's talk about that ending – I'm sorry, but it made no sense to me. I mean, I know where they were trying to go with it, but it just didn't make sense to me, as these characters just weren't portrayed right. I felt like I wasted my time watching this series, and I am glad that it's over and I am done with it.
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Why? To torture myself. Since this is a BDSM themed but has nothing really to do with BDSM I thought someone has to get some pain, you know! Even if it's self inflicted.
Because believe me, the only Sadist here is whoever completed watching this, because there lies the real pain of watching this show.
I won't say anything about the actors, nor the story (or the lack of it) cause there is nothing good to say, and I believe the comments have said it all.
If I to describe it, it's a collection of weird but not entirely terrible nor disgusting pecks/kisses that are one sided, sorry but it's only one actor doing the kisses, the other is just there! If I can even call them kisses, they were on the chewing lips side, I can see the director's instructions clearly lol.
I believe SK has to watch some Japanese BDSM themed movies, just for reference xD some of these sh!t traumatized me for life~
Of course, it's not recommended.
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What the heck was that
I want to start off by saying--I know these two can act, so this has got to be a situation where the direction and script were at fault.I was so excited for this series before it came out--but it was sloppy and super disappointing. The story had promise, but the execution was all over the place and tbh really bad imo. I know both actors know how to do their job, but this was so insanely disappointing. The audio was off at times, the script was embarrassing and because of the direction it almost seemed like it was their first job. Some of the cuts were inconsistent and some episodes were just edited badly.
I can't wait to see them in other series, because they deserved better.
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TIDE OF LOVE S1 - REVIEW
Story: Tide of Love had an interesting premise but ultimately suffered from rushed storytelling and underdeveloped writing. The plot felt heavily compressed, with major character developments and emotional moments unfolding too quickly to leave any lasting impact. One of the biggest missed opportunities was Han Jaejun's BDSM storyline. The series never explored the reasons behind his involvement or provided any meaningful backstory, making it feel more like a plot device than a well-integrated part of his character. With proper development, it could have added emotional depth and complexity to the narrative.The technical execution also weakened the viewing experience. The editing often felt unpolished, with noticeable camera tilts and shaky shots that made certain scenes distracting rather than immersive. Combined with the rushed pacing and lack of narrative depth, the story ended up feeling incomplete and poorly thought out, preventing it from reaching its full potential.
Acting/Cast: The acting in Tide of Love was a mixed experience, resulting in a somewhat uneven dynamic between the leads. Jung Myeong Cheol deserves praise for his commitment to the role, fully embracing his character's domineering and controlling personality. His screen presence was strong, and he effectively conveyed intensity and emotional weight during key moments, making his performance one of the more memorable aspects of the series.
In contrast, Kim Hyeon So's portrayal felt noticeably restrained. While his performance suited the character's quieter nature to some extent, there were many scenes where he came across as emotionally disengaged or overly monotonous. As a result, some pivotal moments lacked the emotional reciprocity needed to elevate the narrative and character relationships.
Because of these contrasting performances, the overall acting quality felt polarized. One lead consistently delivered intensity and emotional conviction, while the other struggled to bring the same level of energy and expression, leaving the series with an imbalanced acting dynamic despite its moments of promise.
Music: The soundtrack in Tide of Love did a good job of establishing the mood and complementing the emotional tone of most scenes. The background music was effective in enhancing tension and intimacy, helping to reinforce the atmosphere the series aimed to create.
However, despite serving its purpose, the music wasn't particularly memorable. None of the tracks stood out or left a lasting impression after the series ended. There were also moments where the soundtrack felt unnecessary or overly prominent, becoming slightly distracting instead of allowing the performances and dialogue to carry the emotional weight. Overall, the music was solid and functional, but it lacked the distinctiveness and subtlety needed to make it a standout aspect of the series.
Rewatch Value: While Tide of Love has a few moments worth revisiting, it isn't a series I would rewatch from start to finish. Episode 1 stood out for its strong introduction and intriguing setup, while Episode 9 delivered some of the series' most engaging emotional moments, making both episodes the ones I'd be most likely to revisit.
Beyond those highlights, there are a handful of scenes that remain enjoyable enough to watch again, particularly those showcasing the stronger performances and key character interactions. However, the rushed storytelling, uneven execution, and inconsistent pacing make it difficult to justify a full rewatch. Overall, Tide of Love offers enough memorable moments to revisit selectively, but not enough to make the entire series a compelling repeat watch.
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kinda regret spending my time on this
started watching this series expecting it to be really bad judging by all these reviews.. oh they were rightthe only good thing about “tide of love” was probably the handsome actors
aside from that everything was terrible
the acting: i feel like we have to blame the director or smn else for that but not the actors cause i just KNOW they could’ve done better.. their acting was so unrealistic and unconvincing. they always looked like they were trying not to burst into laughter
the plot: there is not much to say about the plot because it simply is almost nonexistent. “tide of love” was supposed to be a korean version of “50 shades of grey” (i guess?) but it turned out to be some “50 loaves of bread” type of series because i just can’t understand why they were ALWAYS eating bread likee Jaehun is rich but the only food he has at home is bread? and they mentioned bread in their conversations really often
um anyway a short summary of the plot: haejun (a student) signs a contract with jaehun (his professor) and according to this contract he has to do everything his professor says? i don’t really remember but yeah and there is also this girl, let’s call her The apple girl, which is in love with haejun and tries to confess to him but jaehun gets jealous and doesn’t let her interact with his cookie. so boring and so cliche, i mean cliche is not a bad thing if it’s executed properly… but it is not executed properly here
the characters: there were only 3 characters btw and all of them are bland and unsympathetic.
haejun grunting and whimpering like he is in pain from every touch and jaehun looking like he belongs to mental ward. and the apple girl just being here.
there is also one particular thing i want to talk about and it’s the amount of mistakes and scenes that were probably supposed to be cut out but they couldn’t care less. like the plant moving by itself and the lav mic being visible and most importantly the sound not matching the character’s mouth movements.
at least i got a good laugh i guess…
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Updated After Season 2
Why did I watch season 2 after watching season 1? I think I was hoping they would have taken criticism from this season and made it better. They didn't. Season 1 can be summed up in 1 word. Kissing. That's the only plot there is at all. Jealousy for no reason, pseudo s&m, it was all just really really bad.Was this review helpful to you?
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Characterless, Aimless, and Pretty.
This is a nicely shot sizzle reel for the actors, and very little more. It’s overindulgent in the time it took to tell an incredibly thin story. It could have been done in three of these short episodes, or one full length one. I was skipping forwards more than I ever have watching any K-drama for the first time. I feel like they started filming while the script was incomplete, but the writer pulled out, so they just edited together what they had, and did some VO. There was zero plot, character arc, or depth to either of the protagonists. Two men meet under a business arrangement. They liked each other. They extend the arrangement and end up in love. The motivation for the sub was a sick mother. The dom’s a mystery, and a weird kisser. Watch it if you like naturally lit pot plants, and a bit of incredibly tame BDSM.Was this review helpful to you?
