WingedBean

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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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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One of the Few Times Where the 2nd Season Beats the 1st

Unlike in the 1st season, where I felt the middle falter, this season kept my attention from start to finish. Nothing dragged, and the acting was much improved from the 1st season. The people behind this story have my respect because not only are the characters interesting and nuanced, but the overarching plot constantly holds your attention.

The stakes are bigger, the villains are worse and more powerful, the world is bigger and has more characters, the tension is more palpable than before, and yet, nothing falters. The pacing is great and the storytelling impeccable. Every arc, every character, every new twist adds to what this story is. It was utterly fantastic

The Characters
Win - I continue to find him wholly unlikeable. A genius, yes, but I would hate to call him a friend. Or have him as a boss, for that matter. But the story hinges on him and his past, so he's not going anywhere. The only thing I want from him is for him to open up a bit more.

So far, he's like a slow-blooming onion (if that makes any sense). We know he's angry, always brooding, and has an emotional support water bottle, but not much else. I want him to talk for once. Talk to his mother, and for the love of Christ, talk to Game. Their friendship is one of the most confusing situations I've ever come across. Does Win even like Game? Coz I don't think so

Game - In all fairness, I'd be afraid to have Game in my close circle of friends. Throughout the 1st season, I kept referring to him as 'the weak link' in my head. And now, 8 extra episodes later, that statement remains true. He walks through life with his emotions first, thoughts later. Quite the opposite of Win, actually. Perhaps this is why they clash so much.

I, however, would love to see his familial story explored a bit more. If the 3rd season were to happen, I wonder if his family would come into play. Not only are they rich as hell, but the game would now be played at a national level. I think it'd be interesting to use them.

Dear & Dol - I knew they would likely not go to the US, but I did not expect or anticipate the reason why...😭

In the 1st season, Dear always had one leg in the scamming and another out, trying to forge a life outside the mess with her 2 friends. I loved that we got a chance to see what her life would've been like if she had left them behind. Her ending was really heartbreaking, though. I know the good guys cannot always win without taking a loss or two, but this one.... This one hurt.

Dol, his senior monk, was right. The world outside monkhood is truly where all the temptations and crap lie. From realizing that he has zero skills to survive in the world, to getting scammed by his coworkers, having his hope about his love for and with Dear reignited, to finally losing her in the end. Bruh... the man has been through it. It is no wonder he went back to being a forest monk in the end.

It was lovely seeing these two together, though. The slow burn and subtle tension between them was delicious and a much-appreciated break from the mess that was Dear's two other friends. I do wonder, though - for the 1st season, Dol has always been connected to Dear. Now that she's gone, what are the chances of us seeing him in another installment?

Ae - I love an interesting villain. I appreciated that we got to see her backstory. She's no angel. Ae is a corrupt politician to the core. But getting to see her family life shed a light on why she's partially who she is today. Why she goes as far as she does. That man she unfortunately calls a father and her liability of a brother, both of whom never appreciated her, undermined her, and stole from her, really did push her to be who she was.
PS. I clapped when she shot her brother.

I do have questions about her, though
a. I believe she managed to leave the country. Will she return in the possible third season? I suspect she ordered the hit on Dear. Will she ever pay for that? The lawyer who conned the 3 in the 1st season went scot free, so part of me doubts she'll get what she deserves
b. Will the law manage to hold her father? There is overwhelming evidence against him, but if money can grease hands that much within religion, can we expect the already shitty, corrupt system to look the other way?

Ekkachai - He continues to prove that he's a snake and more dangerous than we think. The season ends with him finally getting the Abbot seat that he wanted. But things are not rosy. He's being bullied and blackmailed. However, rather than feel bad for him, I want to tell the other monks to watch their backs. He's slowly been gathering public support, and he's not afraid to kill.

We know he killed Father Kiw in the 1st season. I highly suspect he personally killed the woman who was trying to blackmail him, and had the deputy abbot who'd have taken his place killed. Now with his proximity to the unseen minister in the end credits, the hospital project likely proceeding in his name only, and his history, I believe he will be a lot worse in the 3rd season (if we ever get it). Those blackmailing and bossing him around will regret it

PS: I desperately wish I understood the meaning of the art we see at the beginning of the episodes

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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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Overpromised but Underdelivered

I remember binging the 1st 3 episodes and coming on here where I wrote a note that said in part, 'Great chemistry, pacing, and tension. Hope they keep it up till the end.' Clearly, I was thoroughly impressed by those episodes; unfortunately, the chemistry, pacing, and tension all but disappeared after that. We got some of that chemistry and tension back for a while in ep 6, but then it disappears again. Then, 2 episodes later, the show ends very anticlimactically.

Let's go back to those 1st 3 episodes coz this is where they overpromised - and show the multitudes(?) that are AE/Enaga. As AE, he is the walking, talking definition of debauchery. He's very sexy, not just in how he carries himself, but his face. The man is gorgeous. And also because he parties, drinks, and smokes, something that is foreign to Chiaki. I think AE even mentions at some point that he wants to 'ruin' Chiaki. Ruin that air of innocence that he has (I'm paraphrasing here). However, as Enaga, he's naturally clumsy, very shy around his design idol (who he eventually likes), slouches when he walks, and has this quiet sexiness, more like cuteness, about him.

I was very curious to see how these two sides of him would meld together. Especially when you remember that in ep 3, AE is jealous of himself when Chiaki tells him that he had fun with Enaga on a night out. How far was AE going to push Chiaki? He'd already gotten him to drink, party, and smoke, so... what else was there? Well... Nothing. There was nothing. Because after ep 3 AE basically ghosts Chiaki, and we spend the next episodes bouncing between Chiaki's & Enaga's heads/thoughts and prepping for the fashion show. The chemistry, pacing, and tension that I was very excited about are sacrificed for a series of inner monologues.

I guess you could argue that his realization of his lie (and feelings?) made him step back, but I feel like he sacrificed a part of himself. AE is Enaga and vice versa - two sides of the same coin, two halves of a whole. The side of him that loves partying and is very forward and flirtatious doesn't go away simply because he likes Chiaki. I'd have loved to see that side of him more. I think seeing that constant struggle happening in real time as he interacts with Chiaki would have shown a better light on this tentative IdolxFan relationship and his larger-than-life vs everyday clumsy classmate personas

🤘🏾Aside from that🤘🏾
🧷Music gets a 4 coz I don't like it when shows use the same song over and over again - not including the OST. Can't change that. I mean the songs within the episodes.
🧷If anyone were to twist my arm to rewatch, I'd stick to the 1st 3 episodes
🧷I didn't quite like how Sumiura was portrayed. I never like that wide-eyed, innocent, submissive look UNLESS it plays a part in the characters/relationship dynamic. E.g., underlying tones of a D/S relationship - My Beautiful Man and My Personal Weatherman are great examples of instances where I think this character portrayal works best

All in all, the show let me down, and the story feels unfinished. From what I've seen, the manga only has 1 volume, which would perhaps explain why this story is the way it is. I lowkey wish that those adapting this for TV had worked with the mangaka to expound this story to better fit a well-rounded TV storyline

Side Note:
If Mr. Kim Namjoon, my ult bias randomly showed up infront of me, I doubt I'd go wide-eyed, submissive, and clumsy like Sumiura did. Chances are that I'd run and hide like Soobin did when he met that babe from KARA😅

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So Cute I Keep Coming Back

One review I saw on here describes this show perfectly. It said "Reserved cool kid who must lean to communicate to keep the tiny disaster nugget he’s madly in love with." I couldn't describe it better. I genuinely love this show. It's cuteness personified.

A great exploration of first love - the excitement, uncertainty, jitters, and angst (due to overthinking) that come with it all. I love how these two get straight into a relationship and stay there, trying to figure things out. Best friend Katori is also the MVP here. Without him helping them communicate, this adorable pair would have ended up in flames.

I also love how utterly THIRSTY Takara is over Amagi. The man WANTS him, and it's hilarious. I appreciate the portrayal of him choosing to keep his desires at bay and wait for Amagi (his poor, blushing virgin) to be ready. Bare minimum, yes, but in the world of BLs, they tend to sometimes overlook consent & glamorize abuse. I appreciate the writers for this one

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I always come back

The 1st time I watched this was in April 2023, now in Oct 2025, I cannot count how many times I've rewatched this - which is a big deal in my world since I don't reread books and neither do I rewatch shows

What I love about this show (plus the 2nd season and the movie) is the complexity of the characters. What at 1st looks like a toxic bully romance, overtime (basically after ep 3) reveals itself to be more complex than that. It is a story about 2 layered characters. Both of them feel like they don't quite belong in their respective worlds and somehow fit in each others'.

Hira has been bullied for most of his life because of his stuttering. He also doesn't like or find anything beautiful, and also feels like he doesn't belong in the world, so he withdraws from it, hiding behind his camera. Till Kyoi casually strolls into his life and upends it. Makes him find the one beautiful thing in this life and want to be more than he's ever been. He doesn't know what do to with all that other than the fact that he wants to be near Kyoi, but also that being near Kyoi and trying to reach him hurts.

Kyoi, on the other hand, comes off as cold and dismissive, but that's because he felt rejected by his immediate family. Even the people/friends who flock to him always want to use him. He is beautiful, and people are drawn to beautiful things. That's until he meets Hira, and for once, he finds someone who seems to see him. He looks at him with this revelence he's never experienced before and somehow just wants him for him, and our Kyoi -who's always wanted that thus why he wanted to be a celebrity- has no idea what to do/make of that.

Now take these two characters, throw in a whole lot of ego, emotional immaturity, miscommunication, and time and you get this incredible story that draws you in - just like how they are drwan to each other depsite their best efforts. The pacing and acting are also top-notch, which is why I always and will always come back

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NC as a crutch for bad acting & horrendous pacing

I started this largely because I have a niche interest in stories that revolve around sex work and sex workers. See, 99% of the population engages in sex in some way or another. However, sex work, actually, sex itself is still, oddly, very taboo.

Because of that, I like to see how those who engage in sex work, especially publicly, deal with the repercussions of it. I wanna delve into their minds and see how their lives are. Who they are and their motivations, past the naked self that the population sees on some 18+ website. One of the books I've read on this is Insatiable by Asa Akira.

Going into this, I thought that that'd be the kind of story we'd be getting. A man who got into sex work because he wanted to get close to his favourite p🌽rn actor, and his life (as well as their love story), once the videos go live. I blame myself for not reading the synopsis in full, as clearly, the videos shall never go live. What I thought this story was is, in fact, not what it is.

My misplaced expectations aside, as the title says, so far, the acting and pacing have been utter shit. This is unfortunate, as you can see that there's a story here.

🎥Sasom is a popular mainstream celebrity who also does p🌽rn videos as a means of escape from his life. Specifically from the pressure of the image his fans expect and his bottom of the barel parents. He feels constricted, and publishing those videos helps him feel free.

🎥Po, on the other hand, also got the short end of the stick with his parents (read, his dad). You can see that motivations exist that push these two people into a very unconventional career path.

🎥There's also the story with Sasom's ex. So far, the teaser dialogue we've heard from him is him blaming Sasom for ruining his life. How did he do it? Was it because in the videos, Sasom's face is covered, but the exs' face was not, and someone found out? I am curious.

Regretably, the pacing of this plot and the acting —by honestly all the characters— do not help sell this plot. I find myself watching episodes in 1.5x & 2x speed (Episodes 1 and 3 were watched in 1.5x and episode 2 was watched in 2x speed). I find myself struggling to pay attention to the plot or care about the characters, their struggles, and their blooming love story.

The NC scenes are also unnecessary. OK, most of them, not all. Look at me calling smut unnecessary. Who even am I right now?😭😭.

From my perspective, they are used as filler to help further derail the plot. Of all the scenes we've seen so far, I think the only ones that were pertinent to the plot were
1. The 1st time that they met, with Sasom saying that he needed to 'taste' Po *insert weirderd out shiver here* — basically test drive him. I guess you could say he wanted to see if they meshed s3xually for the videos

2. After Sasom came from meeting his dad. That scene said a lot, notably about Sasom's relationship with his dad

Apart from these two, everything else has been useless filler. It's like they saw the success of 'My Stubborn' with it's never ending NC scenes and chose to run with that

I feel like continuing to watch this would be me putting myself through so much nonsense, filler, bad acting, and boredom JUST to pick out a crumb of plot per episode. I refuse. Life's too short for that. I've always been pro-DNFing books, and that'll not change with a TV show. Until next time...✌🏾

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Meh...??‍♀️

It's been almost 2 months since I started this, and I cannot seem to convince myself to watch past the 6th episode. I'm not sure what drama I was watching at the time that pushed me to look into more mystery C-dramas. Or was it revenge stories? Honestly, I forget.

What I know is I wanted a story that had a brilliant female lead and that paid a lot of attention to the mystery/revenge element, without letting it get overtaken by the romance. But now, not even quarter-way through, and I can tell this is not what I was looking for or promised. It's a lot more romantic than I thought

As for our main characters...,

The female lead feels wooden to me. They decided to make her smart and resolute in her ultimate goal, but forgot to give her a personality. Or facial expressions. It makes her uninteresting. Like watching paint dry. I know I should be rooting for her, but she's done nothing to make me want to walk with her and see her see her mission through.

The male lead of the other hand, is not quite convincing as this martial arts expert, military fellow. He's giving me pretty boy vibes. Lots of 'pretty boys' play military generals and martial arts experts in C-dramas. It's a known fact. But they have some aura about them to make it believable. He has no such thing. I see him as a pretty pampered prince.

Also, as per ep 6, he's already halfway in love with her, and I don't understand why. Because she's smart? Y'all met two seconds ago?!?! Like.. huh? I could understand if he was intrigued by her and that curiosity slowly developed into love (think Duke Su in 'The Double'). But this insta-love nonsense... Yeah, it does not work for me.

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