Blkittykat

Well that deteriorated quickly..

Why is it that this happens every time some sort of plot is introduced?

For the initial half of the series, the entire plot was 'I have a toothache and my dentist is really cute', but when they decided to bring in the plot points they set up in these episodes into full force in the next seven, it felt incredibly forced and rushed.

Not developing those storylines would've been worse, I can admit to that, but cramming ten of them into seven episodes while also maintaining the romance between the leads is a difficult line to walk and this is proof. There was just way too much going on for any of them to have any real substance and it felt like the creators recognized that as well, because at one point they tried to revert back to the cute dentist and cute patient plot, but by then, they were in it too deep.

The biggest faux pas though, was this silly game of fill - in - the - blank the series played with the audience. We are left to our own devices to fill in dialogues, scenes and sometimes even storylines, which is okay if it's a series that's all romance. In fact, that requires some room for interpretation.
Doing it when the plot is plot heavy? You're just creating a recipe for chaos.

It's truly a pity though, because that first half was near perfection for me. It was reminiscent of so many other BLs like 2gether and Fish Upon The Sky, and I was just enjoying the banter, and the cuteness, the romance.
All of a sudden at the mid way point, plot came in and ruined the party. From that point it never really picked up for me.

I will say Ohm and Mark have good chemistry, they did manage to showcase it despite the glaring discrepancies in the way their characters behaved at times and that chemistry pretty much carried the plot that refused to plot. Their acting was good, their comedic timing was good for the most part.. or rather they did their best with the given story. I can appreciate their efforts.

The second couple/love triangle was completely unnecessary. I love Poon and View, but their characters added very little to the story and so did their strange and confusing arc.
And Captain.. my boy Jimmy deserved better writing for his character because what was that? Instigator of jealousy.. that's it.
Most of the supporting characters added no real substance to the story honestly and that is truly one of the most disappointing aspects of this.

Even with all that I thought they could've done better, this was a decent watch. I enjoyed it for the most part, but I can't help but think about just how much potential it had. To be a simple and sweet love story. It was just that, but also had so much more going on that it didn't need. And I would've gladly taken just a simple and sweet love story.

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A SHORT AND SWEET LOVE STORY

What do we expect when we start a series?
In accordance to the tags, or the trailer, or the review, we expect it to be a certain way.
So, in keeping with this theory, when you watch this series, you should swoon, feel the love and finish it in a small amount of time, and you will.
Honestly, you could finish the series in the time it takes you to read this review completely.
(Just kidding 😀. This will take 3 minutes at the most)

See You After Quarantine? may be an extremely short series, and I mean one that you could finish in one and a half hours short, but there is quite evidently no problem in the story telling or the acting. Even the production value seems high, considering the series was filmed entirely using a phone.

The series tells the story of Bo Chun and Itsuki Sato, who although from different countries, find common ground through an antique camera, leading them to form a friendship, that turns into a relationship.

This story of mistaken identities and love at first sight has been written in a way as to reflect not only the time of the pandemic, but in a way where it would be genuinely possible to happen at any and all times.

Ultimately, if you want to watch a series with literally no drama and just tons of cute moments, this is the one for you. So if you find yourself with a little time to spare, do give this a try.

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Humans are a lot of things.. most importantly, they are unpredictable

The entirety of season 3 was a big what if.
What if this character did that? Or what if they story went this way?
I guess all three seasons were that way in a sense, but we need to keep in mind that the clause of "what if" for this season held more stakes than before.

What tumbled out of the huge bundle of pressure created to live up to the hype while still delivering a good story, was somewhat of a mess.

Picking up on that very grim note they ended season 2 on, this season only gets grimmer, and it never stops. There was some sort of brutality to all the characters this time over, and I mean all of them. There's no room to debate if any of them had a reason to do all they did, because there will never be a good one. In displaying just how unpredictable, desperate and cruel humans can get, they did it, and how.

Episode by episode you watch the characters get more and more ruthless, balancing their own morals against their desires. There are heroes and villains in this story, but watching more and more you begin considering if your heroes are all that heroic.

It's.. yeah.. it's kind of depressing.

It was infuriating, sad and depressing, and these feelings only magnified after each episode. And the ending only helps to drive in that nail. It was truly one of the most unsatisfactory endings I've ever watched, but when I asked myself if any other ending would've made sense? It didn't. Didn't make me any less mad. It was such a depressing way to end something already on the decline, and the choice they made left me even more upset than I expected I would be.

I will say, the characters were written very well. The story may have been slightly unsatisfactory (a sentiment it shares with season 1), but the characters were amazing. The new set of characters, I somehow developed more of a connection with than the characters in the first season. I did think the characters in this arc did have more depth, even the returning characters were more fleshed out. Whether I liked all of them or not is a completely different story (see: you die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain), but they were more complex and deep than I expected them to be.

The acting, the cinematography, everything about it was amazing obviously, no doubts about that. Netflix should invest in writers though, because again, without spoiling anything, it just felt like a huge letdown after a half attempt at creating a buildup. And they did seem to be setting up for a sequel/spinoff/remake.. let's not. Let's finish the saga here.

I don't know if I like this, I'm having a huge quandary over that decision, and I genuinely do not know what the basis of my rating is, but I hope my review helped you decide whether or not you want to give this a try. If not, I'll try to sum it up in this sentence:
It's brutal, painful and depressing, but you can see a faint light at the end of the tunnel. Kinda.

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A wonderful story, and a better sequel

Don't we just love it when anything defies all expectations? I'm not a fan of sequels, that's the truth but every so often, there's a gem that gets me to change my tune and I am glad to report At 25 in Akasaka S2 is one of them.

Because we see, the problem with sequels is that they tend to fall into the same drumbeat we've come to expect - the relationship with no real progress even after ten years, the couple who just can't communicate despite promising to actually open their mouths and talk every second episode in the previous season, or the love (who doesn't incite any) interest who just refuses stay off screen - the options are endless.

But thank goodness they knew what to write. No awkward moments between Shirasaki and Hayama like they started dating yesterday, no unnecessary love triangles and rivals, and no misunderstandings that had anything to do with their relationship - actually, no misunderstandings. We need to recognise how precious that is in sequel land, we don't get this often!

The actual conflicts stemmed from the main focus (save Shirasaki and Hayama of course) of this season, something that actually made sense in the grander scheme of things. Their careers.
How do you balance a romantic relationship once you stop working together is a good base, but they developed that into dating as two very public figures, into how do you mediate the fact that you're actually rivals in love and turned up the heat by focusing on their personal struggles as actors besides just having to compete with each other!

It is inspired storytelling in a lot of ways, though the idea behind the conflicts are simple, they are layered in a way that escalates the tension with each episode. The reactions of both the leads were also in tune with their personalities we discovered back in S1, with a bit of change, which credit to actually writing them as characters who can grow. They're not perfect, they change and develop as actors and humans throughout the ten episodes, right up until the ending and it was great.

Coming to the characters, Shirasaki and Hayama were completely amazing. Though there were some choices they made that I specifically didn't agree with, they weren't anything huge, and most importantly - those choices made them more flawed, more human. There's no awkwardness in their relationship (thank you again), it felt mature and grounded, they talked to each other, understood each other, what more do I want.
I also enjoyed Sakuma and Yamase, they provided some great perspective to our leads and were part of some great relief scenes.
Rounding out the roster is an incredible new character - Kuroki Keita - who.. well, did wonders for the story plot wise and character wise.
I love the way this show kept surprising me.

My only real complaint would be that Shirasaki and Hayama got a lot of chances and room to grow as a couple, but not as many as I would've liked to just take in just how great a couple they already were. By that I mean I would've liked more scenes of their playful and flirty interactions.

I very much enjoyed this sequel, it was truly well done and if you loved S1 (I did), chances are you'll love this just as much or maybe even more! Totally recommend.

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"Hi"! - my (un)likely love

I'm just so happy to see Sea and Keen together on screen again.

"Hi" by my luck follows Err, our self proclaimed "race horse" and high achiever as he braces for life with new competition in the form of Mawin, our "dark horse". Both of them qualify for a highly competitive, high stakes math camp - and the payoff is a scholarship to a school of their choice. But plot twist! Err's confidence was also shaken with Mawin's appearance in his life, and he's been consulting an online fortune teller on the advice of his friend.

Err has gotten advice previously on how to pass a sports examination and the entrance test for math camp, and his newest query is how to get the scholarship. His fortune says - make Mawin fall for him. At least that's how he interprets it, because his fortune teller is kind of vague.

And while at the camp, he and Mawin get closer. They were classmates and they were roomates and Err doesn't feel comfortable following through with his interpretation of the reading the closer he gets to Mawin. Because despite himself, they've grown close, friends.. maybe even more.

Without going into too much detail, I'm glad the fortune teller aspect wasn't exactly what I thought it would be and not as influential in the plot as the premise made it out to be. Because it was wonderful to see the relationship between Win and Err grow ever so slowly before it suddenly bloomed, showing us both their personalities and exactly why they would be a good pair.

Sea and Keen were as wonderful, maybe even better, as I remember them in Only Boo, and their cute chemistry truly worked for this kind of story. It was a very 'enemies - to - lovers'/'first love' kind of story, and they were a perfect choice.

That being said, this is a perfect weekend watch for when you're looking for something short and sweet, and perfect re-watch while we all wait for Head 2 Head ♡

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If silly.. also cute..?

I was floored the minute I realized the best excuse the super secret spy was going to come up with all series was "cockroach!"
But the best part? The guy he was trying to fool fell for it EVERY SINGLE TIME

There's no other way to put this, I love this series.
The plot is one of silliest, nonsensical and unserious one I've ever seen but every single time the two leads came onto screen I had forgotten all about the plot that never existed because, my goodness, are they wonderfully cute together.

The story is utter nonsense yeah - one guy is a secret spy investigating the other guy, and pretty much everyone but the guy being investigated knows that he's been spied on because the spy? He's not very good!
Between all this they somehow develop a fake relationship amongst a story riddled with plotholes.. but forget all that.

Don't dwell on the story when you watch. Ignore all your instincts that point out all the silly mistakes (there are so many).
And focus on Da Hei and Xiao Bai.
They are it. The chemistry is so off the charts that I willingly ignored every other aspect of the series and just giggled through it all.
The way their relationship started.. absolute nonsense. The way it progressed according to the plot, also nonsense but gaah! They were just so cute together.

This review makes it seem like this series is just a silly plot and an insane amount of chemistry.. and it is. That's all it is.
All the stuff involving the service house, the second couple(?), the investigation agency, the grandpa and the grandma, I cannot explain the extent of silly even if I tried.
But I also cannot explain just how good the romance was, you just have to see it to understand.

So a series about a spy and a hitman falling in love set against an action backdrop? Not really
A series about a fake spy and a supposed hitman who is scared of cockroaches falling in love and having the best chemistry? Yes, yes, YES!!

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The true meaning of Home

Let me just preface this review by saying if you're here for the comedy, obviously you're in for a treat. And even if you aren't, you're in for a treat. The amount of levels in this show is actually astounding because I came from hilarity and chaos, but somehow ended up crying into a packet of tissues every episode. An incredible story, amazing characters, good character development, this show had it all!

Where do I even start then? The story? Brilliance. I absolutely love the dynamics of unconventional team coming together due to "circumstances", it's one of my favorite friendship tropes, and you put together four distinctly unique characters in a comedy - horror setting, and it's like you've already struck gold. This was one step ahead, adding emotion to the anthologies and gradually building up the backstories of the leads until it gets to the point where all of it just makes sense. All the plot twists, even the one I predicted, managed to surprise me because of how they were executed, rather than relying on just the simple shock factor. This is the kind of story that gets better and better every episode and when you're done with the finale all you can think is wow.

Now add to this incredible characters you can't help but love from the minute they're on screen. They need their character development but it says something about the writing when you're able to root for the leads even when they're supposed to be horrible people. Watching them grow into themselves and become good, interesting people was a highlight in a show where even the supporting characters were charismatic.

Like I mentioned, most of the series was on an episodic format, and the backstories of the leads were slowly revealed, but anthologies within a structured series can be hit and miss. Might be the first time they all hit just right for me. Each story was equally exciting and emotional on it's own, but getting to watch the leads get closer as a team and become actual friends by helping these people was the cherry on top.

Another thing I loved: the friendships, relationships, all of it. In the anthologies, with Home and his family, Peach and Pang Pang, the ghost hunting gang, and literally everyone with Pi Suradech. I could write an essay on how incredible Pi Suradech is but that's for another time. Just the way they all stood by each other through everything (which I mean, it's a spoiler, but they way they did even when..), it's one of my absolute favorite things to watch in a drama. Strangers becoming family.

And finally, how can I not talk about them? Tay and New. You can see how well they actually gel together because even in the scenes where they're supposed to be sworn enemies, it feels like they've been friends for years. Which actually played well into the story because Home and Peach are honestly soulmates and you can't convince me otherwise. Even the characters knew it!

This is an endless list of positives, and as much as I would like to say there's something negative, I don't think there is one. Maybe I'm biased but I just loved it so much, I even love the OST! And that's what I categorise as.. a perfect 10.

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The summer of youth.. and the midsommer night's dream

Haaah..
I needed to let it just stew for a while after that finale because the feels.. all the feels I'm feeling.. haaah..

Between the poetic vibe and the bright lens they used to tell the story, there's a ton of whiplash on what you think you're supposed to experience, but none of that matters, because watching this is an experience in itself. I was left contemplating the meaning behind their actions as they left them in a sad and vulnerable state, while experiencing joy beyond explanation just by watching two people become the entire world to each other.

I love those bonds, just pure love. Where you know what the other person is thinking, can anticipate what they're feeling, when you know them better than they know themselves on every sort of level. The melancholy and excitement, and the growing pains of being a teenager who is suddenly thrust into unfamiliar and uncomfortable environments only to end up finding the one person who is going to be their entire life was so incredibly moving to watch.

A lot of my words until now have been vague and philosophical, so let me just say this, they perfectly managed to encapsulate the feelings of being in a new environment and then discovering that it's more home than anywhere else. Budding friendships, familial ties, first love, and all the confusion, happiness and pain that comes with it.. just perfect.

This was more than just a romance, not only because that wasn't the only focus of the story, or because they weren't the only couple in the story, no. It was because, more than a romance, this was a story of love. A love I can't quite explain, so it's best to watch and experience it firsthand.

Where's my season 2 though :(

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The Girl Next Room series strikes again, this time with a story about forbidden love. This was admittedly not one of the most popular parts, but it certainly holds up well against the rest and might I even say better than some. It’s modest and funny and seems very likeable, but all of these virtues do not hold a light to the way the leads are written. View Wiwa seems conceited and airy, but that’s just a character she portrays. Underneath all that, she is just a simple and down to earth girl, quite evident from the very first episode. Faigun. Man, Fai is honestly the best character I’ve ever encountered. He’s funny, smart, handsome, hardworking, truthful and so much more, but his most endearing quality is that he’s real. This is a couple you can honestly root for and rightfully so.

THE STORY:
So, View is an up and coming actress who moves into the dorm. Fai is this down on his luck character, who gets the security job at View’s dorm after saving P’Jam from a burglar. He also saves View from predators and she starts falling in love with him, but there is this evident gap between the two, causing cracks in what seemed like a smooth journey. Jealousy, a gap in financial income and societal status accredit to some of their issues. What will become of their love? That’s the main theme followed.

THE ACTING:
I’ve seen Gigi in a few other series ( Yes I’m talking about Pam ), but this is the first series of Kao’s I’ve watched and I can already say I love him. He just portrays Fai in a way that nobody else could. Also how cute was his intro?! Kao is one of those actors who just seems to thrive in every role. He has the acting chops to carry out those happy scenes as well as those serious scenes. Neo as usual is awesome.

THE PRODUCTION:
In my review of Richy Rich, I said that it had the best production, oh boy was I wrong. This one is right up there. I think it’s mostly because of Kao and the way he portrays Fai. Fai has been written as this sweet and innocent guy with an unwitting genuinity. Kao portrays him exactly as such. That’s what’s so endearing about this production. You can actually see the hard work that went into this. Also that reference to Kao himself in episode 4? Golden.

THE OST:
Still pretty standard stuff. Nothing different from the rest.

THE NEGATIVE:
The way View is treated by her manager and everyone around, no wonder the only person she is herself around is Fai. She’s being spoken for and one of the worst things you can do to a person is toy with their individuality. At this point she is being treated as a mere sexual figure and nothing more. Honestly, how disgusting do you have to be to demand sex from someone as a favour ? So frustrating!

THE ENDING:
What a cute ending! Remember the grilled fish shop Fai wanted to open? Well he did, and he set it up just like View asked him to, with the karaoke and gumball machine. ( Also well played GMMTV, with the Off Gun reference ). So now that she’s well established and so is he, they get back together and all is well. The rap at the end though. So cute! It gave us an update on all the couples after a year and spoiler, they’re all still together. A great ending to a great series.

I know this has been turned into a Faigun fan page, but don’t let that take away from the fact that this series is worth checking out. The story is cute and quite drawing. I hope everyone gives this a try because it’s worth the watch. Thank You!

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The funniest horror movie I've watched

Oh my god this was hilarious even without comedy being one of the genres, because it was so bad! Towards the end I was in full on tears from laughing because what happened there?

Let's start with the positives, because the horror - was horrifying. Lots of jumpscares, a decent amount of gore, I'd say it was better than movie two as far as the scare factor goes.

Another thing which I've always appreciated about this series is the emotional bondage to the characters - which, once again, they nailed. Good on them, because if they hadn't done this properly, the movie would have literally no redeeming factor. The family and their extended family is what keeps the plot interesting even when it isn't.

Because the plot, wow, the plot - if the last part was two movies in one, this was like 10 in one. So much happening! Seriously, I was clutching my stomach reeling from laughter the more I watch, it wasn't even scary after that. Just for reference, the first film worked because it was set in a single location and focused entirely on their family, not despite. Granted, there was more interaction between the siblings in this one than the last, it was still not enough. You don't have to go on adventures every other movie to make things interesting.

One minute they're at home, the next a forest, abandoned village, horror cave, I don't get it. There are so many new "one-and-done" characters who add nothing to the plot, and the explanation I've been craving for three movies was laughable. Lady is out here haunting because she hates love?

The story was so incredibly weak, I couldn't explain how all over the place it was even if I tried. It's not a terrible movie by any means but watching the last two has given me newfound appreciation for part one. If you must watch for continuity purposes, you can do it, but I'm sure there are other scarier and more coherent horror movies you can watch. I've learned that horror movies are never completely logical or coherent, but I've got to say, there's definitely got to be ones better than this.

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The ghosts of the past

I'm not really sure if this is a recurring theme - and I don't really want to re-watch some of the last few parts to find out - but there seems to be some common connection between one part of MuTeLuv, and the part that came before it. In this case, it is - a love triangle adjacent and a lead who has some growing up to do.

Love Lock follows Phayu, who is constantly haunted by visions of his ex-girlfriend May after she broke up with him on their third anniversary. He believes the reason he's seeing her is because of an Ema plaque she dedicated to their love in Japan, and decides to go there to remove it from the shrine where she has tied it. Only problem? There are 90+ shrines, and one broken ankle, because as soon as he lands in Japan, he meets with an accident when Thai speaking Satsuki almost runs him over with her scooter. To make up for injuring him, she agrees to go around with him and help him find the Ema plaque, in exchange for him not reporting her to the police.

Love Lock is more about growth than it is about comedy or romance. And I really liked that about it. Yes it did have a few funny moments and was a story about romance, but the common link from the last part? It's a lead that needs some character development, and these four episodes follow his journey of realisation that he in fact does need some.

Bit by bit, we see Phayu recall his relationship with May as he searched for the elusive Ema plaque, and see just how he could have been a better boyfriend, and maybe just a better person. That is quite literally the entire story, with him moving on and gaining closure, and finding a new love interest, but it was quite heartfelt. I would not have minded if it had zero romance but I think I focused more upon Phayu and his journey than the romance so that may be why I feel that way.

As for the characters, even though we barely see much of her, May may have been my favourite. She was smart, kind and mature and she did make a great impression. Jamie played May very well and Kucci was also good as Satsuki. But I think I'm most impressed with Dew because Phayu was the character who carried this story, and he did so well. He's really grown as an actor and it was nice to see him in a more comedic role.

I really liked the major themes of this story, they were ones I always appreciate and they were done quite well in four episodes. The story was not the best, but the characters were likeable, the cinematography was really beautiful and it was, all in all, an enjoyable watch.

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A sequel that could've been solved in five minutes

I do not think Checkered Shirt needed a sequel. Finishing S1 I thought it was necessary, having finished S2, nope.

The main reason it needed more was because of the cliffhanger, but I just watched just over 60 minutes of footage for a resolution and conclusion that could have been handled with a phone call. I refuse to accept the story they gave us, because what do you mean "you couldn't see him and your phone broke"?

That is a terrible excuse and I do not accept it.

They used this story (it's them, five years later by the way), as a way of introducing angst and character development, which fine, but I really did not like the resolution that came with the excuse, it gave them character but felt like a last ditch attempt.

I guess what I'm trying say is, it was nice, but a misunderstanding is not plot and we need to stop using it that way. Anyway it was cute and kind of angsty and pretty short so not bad :)

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A decent horror that relies on jumpscares

I'm trying to dip my toes into the genre of "serious horror", aka, movies that will definitely give me nightmares, ensuring my sleep cycle is ruined. And Netflix has been on me about watching Death Whisperer and I said why not. I want to watch more horror movies despite the fact that they are evidently not great for me.

To the horror end - Death Whisperer is a very good movie. Tons of jumpscares, extremely scary looking ghosts and ghost adjacents, an incredible cast who've done a great job at pretending to being scared and actually scaring me. Plus, tons of gore (which I was not prepared for so that was a nice surprise!). It's a classic horror formula I've seen lots of times.

The story - is okay. I expected a bit more. I wanted a good setup and some decent explanations but going scare heavy, the plot was all over the place, and we got no real conclusion (rectified, hopefully, by the fact that there are three more movies in the series). I know it's based on a novel based on real events, but I can't but feel a little let down. This is an occult based story and I don't usually expect them to have a detailed backstory, but some would've been nice? We got, "it's been happening for centuries, now it's happening to you".

The characterization - that was the worst part. Again, I know it's a real event, but this is a fictional version, no matter how true to the original event it is, and I think they could have done a bit better there. Characters do things that are completely out of.. well character. And the explanation is that the evil spirit made them do it. There are more than 10 main characters here, which ensures that you can't really develop them as characters, which is okay. But I refuse to believe that in what should have been moments of desperation, these people were so cavalier about stuff?

Overall, this is a decent horror movie. I'm hoping to get more out of the sequels because the story here left much to desire - but I would recommend it if you're in the mood for something pretty scary.

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