WingedBean

*insert face-palming here*

Fort carried the show. It was quite fun to see him as a house husband from his role as playboy-rich kid-CEO in Love in the Air. I was surprised at how good he is at the emotional scenes as well. Big kudos to him.

Peat... well, as a tsundere black cat, he's pretty decent, but for the emotional scenes - Lord Jesus, no. The man cannot act in emotional scenes. Whenever it comes to scenes where he has to panic or worse, cry, everything goes straight to hell. He cannot do it. We saw it in Love in the Air, and it repeats itself here. I'm not one to support typecasting, but he needs to stick to the cold tsundere roles for now and enroll in classes to help with the more emotional scenes.

Side note - I'd like to see Fort in 2 other types of roles - As a mafia daddy (the man is hot when angry), and as the emotional, crybaby, golden retriever top. Not only does he do well in the emotional scenes as mentioned, but his smile is beautiful and would work perfectly in a golden retriever role.

The GL couple was a good addition, but they weren't consistent, especially with Mook. From the get-go, Vie was into her, but Mook wasn't presented as gay in the beginning - just as a bullied, confused, clueless, and overworked assistant. I think if they became an official GL couple, they'd do well with a better storyline. The girl who plays Vie is a good actress - the girl who plays Mook needs a different role for me to judge, but she's really cute. Loved how they dressed her.

Actually, everyone but Peat was dressed/styled really well. Whatever they were trying to do with Peat's styling didn't work, especially the tucked-in look at the beach. No. Just no

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Made me wish that I too, was in love

Did I start watching this because someone over on Reddit referred to it as 'School Trip over Flowers'? Yes, yes, I did. I've never watched 'Boys Over Flowers' and I never will, but I've heard about it — and that reference made me laugh so hard I decided to start Ep 1.

The story in this is nothing new or groundbreaking. It's a cliche we've seen hundreds of times before — two high school boys falling in love. One is hella popular, and the other is an awkward loner (kinda, Hioki isn't a loner per se, he just didn't have friends in this specific new class).

However, what makes this story stand out from the rest in this sea of high school BLs is how beautifully it's done. I thought I'd have to deal with miscommunication, or the utter lack of it, but that wasn't the case here. Sure, they (largely Hioki) get all up in their heads sometimes and overthink things, but they are promptly dealt with. That helps keep the story at such a great pace - it's also great for my blood pressure, but that's neither here nor there.

🚌Stand-out episodes for me were episodes 7 & 8🚌

Episode 7 - Here, we get Watarai's backstory of how he fell in love with Hioki and the confession scene. Watarai fell for Hioki in such a simple, slow, and pure way — simply because Hioki saw him as a regular dude, contrary to what he'd experienced most of his life. It was gratitude and curiosity about Hioki that eventually turned into love

I also appreciate Hioki's reaction to Watarai's confession. It's common to see the person confessed to in BLs be dumbfounded. They remain silent and will often avoid the other person as they try to make sense of the confession and their feelings towards the other person. Or even sweep the whole confession under the rug, pretending it didn't happen, till something eventually down the line pushes them to acknowledge it. I despise that trope. I 100% expected that this would be the case here.

To my surprise, it wasn't, and thank the Lord for that. Not only does Hioki acknowledge the confession, but he also tells Watarai that there's nothing wrong with him liking another boy. And that he'll genuinely take the time to consider Watarai's confession. That consideration was very heart-warming to see. Hioki is such a cinnamon roll - an easygoing and warm soul

Confessions are hard as it is. Confessing to someone of the same sex without knowing if they are of the same orientation in a society that's still very much against queer people..... Oi (I'm not pointing a finger at or highlighting Japan here, just the world in general. It isn't all that kind to queer people). The fact that Hioki rushed after Watarai to speak to him after the confession really stood out to me

Episode 8 - This made me fall even more in love with Watarai's friends. Not only did they accept that 'hey, our friend is bi', something they didn't know about before, but they also do their best to bring these two together when they sense that something's wrong.

Their teacher was right in that final episode. That friend group will probably last forever. They were so genuine not only to each other but to the new face in their group, and later to Hioki's friends. Hot, popular guys that don't fall into the asshole/bully/playboy tropes... Hallelujah. More of this, please!

🚌💐🚌💐🚌
All in all, this is a cute, long angst, low drama, slice of life story that's very easy to revisit and rewatch.

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So Darn Cute - A Review For The Re-Edited Version

The story is generic - a bit of 'enemies-to-lovers' with a bratty, entitled idol & a straight-by-the-book couldn't-care-about-idol's status stuntman. The episodes are short, and the overall vibe is very soft, slice of life. And that's the beauty of it. It's uncomplicated, sweet, and straight to the point. Very calming and cozy.

The main actors have good chemistry with their interactions and their banter, and the side characters also did a good job. I wouldn't say I saw any cringey acting in this one. I will say that the 1st episode was a little shaky for me. The editing was abrupt, but I think that's because this was in reel format before. However, after that, everything is done well, and the story follows beautifully.

Also, a side note, Lee Tae Hyung, the actor who plays Gu Jae Yeon in this show, his ears remind me of Wonho's ears

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Low stress and funny watch.

My fave couple was the youngest sister and her husband. Loved how she beat the shit out of him and his aunt. Unfortunately, I didn't like the forced angst in the end with the separation.

After that, the 2nd youngest sister and her husband. For once, the amnesia plot worked well for the plot and the relationship. Love that she was smart and helped deal with the court cases. Plus, they dealt with their issues with the quickness.

The story with the 3rd eldest sister was good, but they also got annoying at the end with the angst.

I shall not be talking about the eldest sister, coz she most certainly got the short end of the stick with her husband. Definitely my least favourite couple

Comic relief from the 2nd eldest sister and her husband was gold. We didn't get much from the daughter-in-law and the son who came back after they thought he was dead, but that's neither here nor there

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Loved Loved it.

💑1st Couple - loved the angst in the main couple. While their story was sad, it wasn't overdone or dragged out. The fact that the younger one - Hyun - was the pursuer and he kept being lively despite the older one, Kim A,n ignoring him at 1st helped not make the story too angsty/annoying. Their story with the stalker wasn't the best, but... What can we do?

💑2nd Couple - Maru & Minwoo - Another dose of angst. Had me out here wishing Minwoo would disappear and that someone would slap Maru upside the head. Thankfully, Minwoo's plan to pretend he had a gf worked in getting Maru's head out of his ass. Their kiss scenes - esp the one Maru initiated in... was it ep 7 or 8... That kiss was fire.

💑3rd Couple - Joo Hyuk & Sung Min - They were the highlight of the entire thing for me. They were absolutely hilarious, esp the 1st meeting after the 1 night stand n when Joo Hyuk was playing hard to get. Loved that the younger one was pursuing the older one. Also, his aggressive style of pursuing was funny. PS. their NC scenes - the one in ep 9 - Holy Jesus. That was so well done and shot. Perfection

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My 1st Chinese Drama

The cinematography in this was quite something. I loved their use of bright colours and the cozy decor in the houses, esp Sang Zi's room back home, her dorm room, and the eventual house she n JiaXu got.

JiaXu is honestly the greenest flag of all green flag men out there. His attitude and treatment of Sang Zi from when they 1st met till they started dating and after was just perfection. Aside from JiaXu, Sang Zis' brother was so cool n hilarious -also so hot. Their portrayal of the sibling relationship was so good. I envy them.

While I quite liked it, it's a slow cozy drama...which generally aren't my type, esp when they have this many eps. I'd lose interest if I tried binging it. Also, the angst in those last 3 eps... So slow, so boring. Did not enjoy it. That's why the plot gets an 8.5 - so, it's not them, it's me

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I genuinely do not understand the hate.

Pple complaining about cliches... It's a romantic comedy. What life-altering plot did you expect to pop out of it? Humans are wild. They claim to want throwback type romance, they get it, they are mad. Hard eye roll. Personally, I liked it.

The ML was such a green flag - very adorable consent king. The FL was also well written. Not overly dramatic and firm in her mind and choices. The couple was also very mature - and I don't mean the 1 million kisses, but in their interaction, communication, conflict management, etc.

What I wish was better was
(1) Eps 15 and esp 16 were boring as hell

(2) The love stories with her friends. I wish we got to see more of the budding romance btw the FLs friend and the younger guy. I think it'd have been really cute. As for the friend with the useless husband, I wish it had been done differently. She ended up looking like a tyrant to her stay-at-home husband. I wish she had
(a) Left him and her terrible in-laws or,
(b) The husband would have been shown enjoying being a stay-at-home husband. basically a role reversal without the subtle misogyny that "utakaliwa kama bibi yako is the breadwinner".

(3) Oh, also, not all family members should be forgiven. The sister was shit. N his mum, it should have taken more conversations

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Was it toxic? Yes. But was it extremely engaging? Also, yes.

I put this story in the same category as stories like The Novelist, My Personal Weatherman, My Beautiful Man, KinnPorshe, The End of the World With You & to an extent, Love Mechanics. They all have some level of toxicity (albeit in varying degrees) that absolutely no one should want IRL but they do make good plot.

IRL Joe should have completely disappeared and never let Ming back into his life, but as someone said, the heart wants what it wants. And Ming did get a redemption arc and changed for the better. My only gripe with the story is the Tong and Ming's parents' situation. Tong should have been kicked out of the family and lost his career, but they just gave him a slap on the wrist and paid off his debts for the sake of his kid. That was not ok.

Also for Ming's parents, the mum did the quickest turnaround ever after threatening to out his son. Also the Ming's dad threatening Joe with a gun... The explanation that he gave saying why he didn't want Joe and Ming to be together was kinda dumb.

So, yes, the last 2 episodes had some absurd bits and felt a little rushed, but overall, I really loved the story. I hope we get more interesting stories like these in the future. They don't always have to be toxic, but just, good and engaging plot

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I Tried. I Really Did

Dropped after 25 episodes. The story started going down for me after like 16 episodes, but I pushed on to see if I'd still like it.... I don't

I hate amnesia as a plot point. All it does is drag down the story and basically halt it. Instead of us dealing with new things, we are on pause n kinda go back a few steps.
Also, I read episode recaps from that 'Cho Na Writes' website, and they keep dying and going through the amnesia thing.

So far in ep 25, she's the one who supposedly dies, then he'd die next coz she'd accidentally kill him. Then she's immortal n meets his amnesiac reincarnated self in lik 16(19?) years. Then she dies, and they meet again in the modern world, and the show ends..

Aaai. Nani anataka kushinda hapo akizungushwa? Not me! ✌

I did like their chemistry, though. They were really cute together. He's a cute tsundere. N her lazy self was a fave. All she wanted to do was eat and sleep. N she got to do that n ended up with a hot, rich, powerful man who loved n indulged her... Dream life right there

If someone were to twist my arm to rewatch this, I'd only watch the 1st 14/15 episodes and stop there

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It's formulaic and predictable, which makes it boring.

Sure, they gave us an incredibly good-looking and talented cast, but forgot to match the plot to their looks and acting chops

Park Bo Gum's character is too moral and is the boy version of a Mary Sue. Also, that whole 'has a brain injury but won't go to the hospital, take care of himself, or tell anyone' thing pissed me off to no end.

I was curious to see Lee San Yi again after Bloodhounds, but his character is also boring. The jilted male lover who just won't leave or give up. They tried making his character interesting with his weird, mysterious family dynamic, but still... Meh.

Our female lead... she doesn't leave much of an impression. She's there to be the romantic interest, and that's all she majorly is. They don't use her to her full potential. I wanted to see that sharp shooting talent of hers put to good use, but as of ep 11, I think we only saw her use it once - in that episode with the break-in.

Oh Jung Se's character, I think I read an article here that said that he wanted to portray 'a grotesque monster with the most ordinary face'. That is actually what made me give this show a chance. However, all he is is a stupidly rich fellow who doesn't smile much.
They did good with that 'most ordinary face thing' - he's not a heartthrob type villain, he looks like a regular dude - but lost it with the whole 'grotesque monster' thing. I wanted him to get his hands dirty. Min Ju Yeong (Oh Jung Se's character) didn't scare me. He looked constipated, though.
I wish they had given me someone like Ok Taec Yeon's character in Vincenzo. Or the murderer guy from Beyond Evil. Then the word 'grotesque monster' could have fit perfectly

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Bored? Wanna laugh? Give it a go. Also, somebody call HR

Is the story good? Well... Have you ever come across those billionaire romance stories that are all smut and aggression? If so, then... That's the vibe here. Is the acting good? I mean..., I wouldn't tell anybody about them.
Are the music choices good? They are largely annoying and had me wondering about copyright laws

But.... I don't know the last time I laughed so hard watching something. This story is so absurd. Like it's so bad that it's good. IDK how to explain it, man. It keeps you engaged. You wanna find out what other random out-of-pocket thing they'll throw at you

PS. For anyone who cares, there's A LOT of kissing. Nothing that will go in anyone's slank bank, but their lips touch a whole lot

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Gracefully Bowing Out

I started this drama on 10th Oct 2025. It's now 5th Jan 2026, and I've only managed to watch a whopping....11 episodes😭. I had 2 main reasons to start this drama

1. The obscenely high ratings
2. The utter shamelessness of this couple

5 episodes later, I put the drama on hold as it wasn't pulling me in yet. Then I started watching the currently ongoing drama Glory. I rather like Hou Ming Hao's character in that story - so much so that it revived my interest in this show. I wanted to see him in a different setting.

However, after an extra 6 episodes, I'm throwing in the towel. This time, for good.

My biggest issue with this show is that nothing is holding this story together. I like how shameless they are (for their time period), and they flirt beautifully - but this is largely because they are both beautiful humans.
However, the main plot, the whole thing about the golden millet dream, we've had no progress so far. His revenge..., truthfully, they haven't done enough to make me care for it or be invested. It's a sad backstory, but like.. meh🤷🏾‍♀️

I find myself bored, and I no longer care to see how the rest of this story will pan out.

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If Only Life Had Been Kinder

I was right in my review for Part 1. This instalment did further break my heart, but it was also cathartic. The part of me that felt hopelessly and helplessly angry was soothed.

🦋What I Liked🦋

1. The actually made me cry (kinda). Basically, balancing tears were wiped several times - I rarely cry while watching a TV show. In fact, you'll never see me claim that I shed tears or was on the ground sobbing because of a movie/TV show. The fact that this show, specifically, the last half of the finale, had me out here fighting tears.... standing ovation to them. They wrecked me

2. The Romance - It's not a fairytale romance, but I'm happy that for a while, LJY and CHT got to be happy together. To be the loving couple that they could've been had all the crap not happened. Had life been just a little kinder to them. They were truly beautiful together

3. The revelation of CHT's DID - Listen, the face reveal in ep 5 was great. However, the montage(?) in episode 6...?!?!?! That was incredible. I loved seeing her running on the street, and you could see all her personalities reflected in the glass windows of the stores she passed. It shows you not only who she's been, but also how she's always been running and morphing to become someone else to get away from the trauma of that night.

PS. That scene also reminds me of the book 'The Girls I've Been', not the plot per se, but the title

4. The clock - I'm not sure if we see it in episode 9 or episode 10. But I loved them adding it. It not only shows you when her life basically stopped (in her mind), but also when it starts moving again. Like the broken clock, she'd been stuck in her trauma, in her childhood bedroom, for 10 years. And finally, finally she was able to start moving again. I shed a tear.

5. The BTS shots at the end of the finale - After how badly they broke my heart in the 2nd half of the finale, I was happy to see all the funny, happy, silly shots of the characters as they were filming. It soothed something in me and allowed me to go to bed with a lighter heart

6. How the villains' lives turned out - They thought they got away scot-free once that night was over and LJY & CHT left, but life said no. For example
a. Big K - Were it not for him going after high schooler LJY for his dad's debt, helping frame him for drugs, and actively stopping LJY that fateful night, maybe, just maybe, things would have turned out differently. Now, he had to walk around with a bum leg all his life. And he really hates that

b. Ouyang Ti - He was plagued by nightmares of LJY coming for him again. Nightmares so bad that he'd wake up screaming. But that shit wasn't as good as him peeing the bed. Every time I remember that, I laugh. For somebody with his ego.... oh that shit must have KILLED him inside

c. Ouyang Ti's mama - She raised and protected a demon that came to abuse her in its adulthood. I never felt bad anytime Ouyang Ti insulted or hit her. Those were just the consequences of her actions.

d. Wen Ling - Ordinarily, I wouldn't be happy hearing about a woman (or anyone really) being tricked into debt and forced into sex work. However, for her, she deserved it. Not only did she live CHT there that night, but she made things much worse when she actively spread rumors (with glee and spice) of how CHT apparently 'wanted it'. Her having to live with her videos all over the internet and a broken mind showing her the ghost of CHT by her side was a fitting ending IMO

e. Jung Tai - The thought of him working in a high school literally made me wanna puke. However, the knowledge that he had to struggle finding a job and him being exposed as a vile bully b4 his death made me very happy. A nod to this, it was sad to see how the principal would've been willing to protect him had those clips of him not gone viral. They gave him a job knowing his background, and would've kept him on and let the girl drown. This is how society constantly protects vile humans, allowing them to flourish and keep harming others

f. Chen Li - Funny thing, I hated him most of all. I literally sent my friends a 10-minute rant about this man. How one manages to be both selfish and a coward is truly beyond me. He was a bully who stood with the bullies but thought of himself as better than them because he never 'actively' bullied people. Because the others 'forced' him to do it. He deluded himself into thinking that he was just an innocent bystander. Boy, please🙄

He also never thought of CHT till his pregnant girlfriend pointed out the assaulted girl at the hospital. Then, his stupid ass decides to find CHT to apologize. In what world is that thought process normal? Not only was this incredibly thoughtless, but it also highlights his selfishness. He only wanted to apologize to dissuade his guilt. I'm glad he was bled out like a pig at slaughter, and I hope that pesticide turned his insides into a soup.

7. I do appreciate them highlighting how the law, society, and loved ones fail the victims of sexual assault. Like in CHT's life, everyone moved on, but she remained stuck in that prison in her mind. Unable to leave to face the world outside. Of course, not every victim ends up with DID as a coping mechanism. Some go to therapy or find positive coping mechanisms, while others cope in other harmful ways. But I think we can say that some parts of the victim's lives do remain, in some ways, stuck in that moment for a chunk, if not the rest of their lives. It is a sad and unfortunate reality

🦋What I Didn't Like/Didn't Quite Understand🦋

1. The villains should've suffered more - When I finished part one, I wanted to see the 6 (well, 8 really) suffer. I wanted them to die slowly and painfully. I wanted them to see death coming for them, but not quickly. I wanted them to face their death with fear and pain. Unfortunately, they died too quickly for my liking. Perhaps the showrunners (?) didn't want to paint LJY as some sadistic killer. But as a sadistic watcher who enjoys watching villains get what's coming to them, I'd have been more than fine with a little (a lot) torture. Refer to the murders in the second season of 'The Victims Game'. At the risk of sounding unhinged, they were beautiful

2. I don't quite understand why he killed that boy - From how I see it, I think the people working on the script wanted to show us how the murders and pain of his life had fucked up his brain. It was all too much that he eventually broke and killed the kid. However, I feel like this cheapened the character. LJY was never one to kill indiscriminately or for the joy of it. His purpose was to get rid of the people who actively harmed CHT. So his murder of the boy makes no sense.

You could also argue that he saw himself in the young boy. How his abuse at his parents' hands reminded him of his abuse and neglect at his parents' hands. And maybe he saw his killing of him as a way to save him from this cruel world. So he doesn't become another version of LJY. But still, that line of thinking just doesn't align with who we know LJY to be. I just.. IDK. No matter how much I try to spin this, I still don't like or understand why that had to be a part of this story.

3. LJY's smile - I hated how fake it always was in this installment. I know why it happened, but I hated it so much

4. The letter - I really wanted to know what it said

🦋Other Characters🦋

1. Fatty - His life was relatively good tbh. I mean, he did live partly in fear of Ouyang Ti, but that's neither here nor there. With that said, the violence of his death was perfect.

2. Fan Wei Ting - He happily remained and ass and r*pist all his life. Like with Fatty's case, my joy came from the violence of his death

3. Chien Yi (Chein Ya?) aka Lisa Mimi - I wanted her death highlighted too. I *think* they showed glimpses of it in the 1st part, but I'd have liked it here too

4. LJY's mother - My thoughts from my review of part 1 remain. She deserves a reserved spot in the hottest parts of hell. And that's all I have to say about that

All in all, despite the parts that I didn't like or understand, I do think that this was a nice conclusion to the series. It tied up everything pretty nicely. I am sad that they both died in the end, but I'm happy that they met again in the afterlife and finally got to celebrate Christmas together

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Funny, Touching & An Interesting Look Into Relationships

While I genuinely enjoyed watching all the couples, I think I enjoyed the BL couple the most - and not just because gay romance is a guilty pleasure of mine. Their love story was such a perfect opposites-attract trope. From the brother having to deal with the terrible ex, to having to work for his new man, and all the things that happened in btwn.. they were so good. Didn't like that the new man ended up in jail, but, character development, I guess.

The couple with the sister was such a high-tension couple - so much can be sorted with just more communication. Glad they went to therapy.

The main couple - I do wish we had more time with them together. I guess our main girl did need to find herself, face herself n grow enough to accept the MLs love and the ML needed to grow up n stand on his own without daddy's credit card, but still... I wish this had been sorted earlier so they could have more screentime together.

As for the mum and dad... I'm not a fan of the dad for sure. I guess it's a nod as to how older couples work things but still, he was a terrible communicator who let pride rule him and almost lost his wife over that. I'm not saying the mum was perfect either, esp with her pressuring older daughter to get kids but she deserved better from her husband

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It was nearly perfect

So close, but the messaging in the end ruined it. I was right in my skepticism of the message of this drama, and I was proved correct by the last episode, especially in those last 5 minutes. I'm not South Korean, so all I can do is read are statistics on the suicide rate. With that said, I think the message was skewed or maybe a little unsatisfying.

Yes, killing himself hurt his mum deeply, but did his coming back to life change his circumstances? Did things miraculously get better? Did he find a stable job, or did he end up finding satisfaction in being a part-time worker? Did he get back with the girlfriend that he dumped b4 deciding to off himself?

What about all the other lives that he lived? Did they end up dying as b4? Did their lives get better? Did the serial killer painter continue killing? Did the Taekang CEO get away with murdering his brother, getting high, and abusing his power while harbouring murderous thoughts? What about the high schooler? Is he back alive now and being bullied? The infant, what happened to him? How about the boxer? The assassin dude? What happened to all these lives?

I feel like they want us to dwell on his 'come to Jesus moment' and his realisation that suicide isn't the way, but there are just too many loopholes for me to be satisfied with that ending. Episodes 1 to 4 in part 1 were amazing. In part 2, episodes 5 and especially 6 were an absolute banger

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