I am upset because I was really excited for this drama, but it was a true disappointment... Same thing that happened to me with Love Sea. Just to make a small recap of the best and worst points: (there may be small spoilers ahead~)
Positive aspects - Boss and Noeul's chemistry is off the charts. Both their loving and intimate scenes are always right on point and feel believable. They gave a great example in LITA, and again did in this drama. - The inclusion of a different idea, such as the timelines and parallel worlds was pretty fresh in BL. I liked the inclusion of scenes of the different worlds. - The second couple was cute and did well. I hope I can see them in future dramas! - The after-credits scene in the last episode was a nice touch.
Negative aspects - Too much time was spent on Cir saying "Phuu... Phuuuu..." all over the place, while either worrying or looking at him with longing eyes. We get the gist, thank you. - The parallel world story got relegated to a second place, even though it was one of the most interesting aspects and the key of the whole series. It just didn't make sense for them to build the narrative around this particular point only to turn it into a "stalker-type" love story of Cir being in love (at first sight) with Phu for years. - The scene with Cir's family in the last episode was a literal Circus (pun intended). Truly bizarre, not understandable nor relatable at all. In what century are we living? Mum is worse than a mafia boss.
As a final comment, I just wish that both BossNoeul and FortPeat's next project is with a different writer or a different team, because I'd love to see them shine and, without a doubt, these two projects didn't do them justice.
This drama was simply delightful to watch! It had everything, from good acting, exquisite makeup and clothing, beautiful scenery and settings, entertaining stories...
Aside from some parts when it got too "soap-operish", it was really fun to watch and I easily got invested in every sister's story.
I loved that the main female characters, the Li sisters, were all unique in their own way and represented strong independent women who also loved deeply and had upright morals. On the other hand, the male suitors/husbands were gentlemen, not super possessive or controlling about them, despite all the ups and downs of the story. That couple balance was lovely throughout all characters, especially taking into account that there were multiple pairs. Back in the day, it wasn't probably the case in real life China, but it was great and refreshing to see in this series :)
I totally agree with everything you said! I am so in love with them together. I also was a little annoyed with…
Yep, Fujisawa's point of view was totally skewed, in my opinion. I know all humans are flawed and sometimes we are not rational, but he had more than enough time to process his emotions and come to the conclusion that Sei was not even nearly happy living that way. It was just a toxic relationship in every possible way. In the end, the lack of communication was the thing that killed both initial relationships (Sei-Fujisawa and Hagiwara-Kaori) and led them to that point of no return.
This was a waste of an otherwise very nice main couple. Their chemistry (both romantic and intimate) is there, their communication due to language barrier was really cute and realistic, and the series had potential with the initial story concept: Sangmin comes back to Thailand to see his childhood host family, falls in love with Dinneaw but he is hiding something.
However, they just ruined everything with cut-paste incoherent scenes, an unhinged caricature of a woman (lady Pony), one crazy couple (the absurd sex-crazy couple) and one that appeared out of thin air just for fanservice (the doctors). And don't get me started on the final episode with Sangmin and his parents and all that bs.
I really hope next time they give these nice actors a better series with better direction and script.
I loved this TV series, even though it has some room for improvement. (SPOILERS AHEAD) Positive aspects: - The leads were fantastic in their own characters with their own peculiarities, and their conversations were unique and interesting. - Loved the initial anonymous e-mails about personal life, gender roles and intimacy with a partner. - The final conversation between Hagiwara and her then girlfriend was very wholesome and I liked that he called her out on her continuous rejection to having intimate relations. It was absolutely necessary for them to talk about that and not only about his cheating. - The pictures and cinematography were really beautiful and the constant connection with the rain was a nice touch.
Negative aspects: - The fact that they left the assault scene in ep 6 in the air, so that many people thought Fujisawa didn't end up doing "anything" to Sei (well, apart from non-consent kissing and grabbing), was terrible. - The ending felt too well-wrapped regarding Fujisawa's explanation of his actions and his long-term abuse towards Sei. It was obvious since the beginning that he had been psychologically abusing Sei for years, isolating him from the rest of the world (eventually admitted by him) and controlling everything in his life. Sei just was living on autopilot in a pretty and luxurious cage. So I do not think that his apology and explanation, and Sei's further acceptance of all that, were enough or nearly believable. I was personally very upset at this whole conversation. - Episodes were just too short to squeeze all the potential this series had. The last episode was 2/3 of Sei-Fujisawa's conversation, and 1/3 split between office life and the final moment between the leads. It was not enough in any way.
Let me start with, I LOVED this drama<3 It was a sweet love story and the leads truly delivered.
For positive aspects I would like to first mention the actors and their chemistry, it was just fantastic! They seem to get along super well in and behind the scenes and their interactions look very natural. The addition of sign language and a deaf main character was a wonderful move towards inclusiveness, and Jin Yun definitely did it justice with his acting. I just loved the development of their relationship and how it progressed.
As for the negative points, I would say definitely time. The episodes felt too short, not only in the sense that I wanted more of them lol, but they also left some things "unexplained" or in the air. Overall, you can understand the story, but there are certain points that were just never clarified. Some examples of this are the last murder attempt that Zi Xiang suffered (in which he was miraculously unscathed), Zi Xiang's father who never appeared until last min last ep, Xin Jia's gang that never came back after him... I feel like with some more time in each episode, these little things could have been put together a bit better.
However, overall it was a great show! I would definitely recommend it and most likely will rewatch at some point :) "Left me wanting more" would be the right expression to use for this one!
How is episode 3 the same show I watched in ep 1 and 2...? The first two episodes were sweet with some comedy and some spice, but ep 3 was truly a hot mess :/ I hope they don't continue ruining the show from now on with the "over-heated" third couple and the crazy Pony lady, for the sake of everyone.
On another note, the male leads are reaaally cute, with nice chemistry and acting :)
The whole hospital scene had me on a chokehold. Both the sad emotional part and the cute little scene after... I almost melted. Gotta give it to the actors for being soooo good on their roles!
I kinda regret not having waited until it was all out, because waiting for my tiny 24 minutes of episode each week is literal torture. I cannot deal lol
back again to say how much I dislike Pond and Sand (I love sand character I mean the couple). Like at first it…
The fact that the actor who plays Pond looks expressionless most of the time doesn't help either... I could never feel if he was happy, sad, angry or anything in between :/ I didn't like the couple that much either, although Sand was super adorable!
For real... I keep thinking while watching that if a man approached my in that manner, the last thing I would do would be falling for them... The possessiveness, the ordering Arm around without explanation, the way he talks to him... it screams disrespect to me. It doesn't matter that he supposedly worries about him or cares "in secret". (spoiler ep 4 ahead) The thing about him going and beating the guy that picked a fight with Arm and then him not letting ARM'S BEST FRIENDS stay with him in the hospital and him just snatching Arm to his house, that is just possessiveness and toxic masculinity for me. They weren't even boyfriends at that point.
To be honest, I wish they gave Force other types of roles, different from the cold bad boy that I have seen him play in the shows I've watched.
I don't know if it's the character or the actor portraying the character, but is it me, or did Dunk look a bit…
I agree! For me it doesn't make a lot of sense from the point of view of the story, since Style is supposed to be head over heels for Fadel. So, even though internally he could be disappointed that Fadel gave in so soon, externally he should be at least pretending to fully enjoy it to make it more believable to Fadel (idk if I am explaining myself properly here lol)
"Dunk's acting in The Heart Killers deserves those praises very well. "I disagree, his acting is very bad, perhaps…
I don't think Dunk is such a good actor either. I understand his character is meant to be annoying but in my opinion he is doing it in a very basic, caricature type of way and it doesn't convince me at all. This could also be the director's fault, if they told him to act that way, of course, but still. Even though his characters are 100% opposites, I can't see any improvement in his acting since Hidden Agenda. He falls really short, especially next to Joong.
Also, the kisses on the NC scene in ep 3 looked really dry to me, it seemed as if Style/Dunk was not even invested in the "action". HE is the one who supposedly LIKES Fadel, but he doesn't even look like he is enjoying it that much. He had literally the same expression throughout the whole scene.
I don't know, for some reason he just keeps making me feel disconnected from their side of the story and, to be honest, I am not enjoying the FadelStyle couple that much because of that, even though their dynamics could be super fun and thrilling.
(Disclaimer: this is not meant to be an attack to the actor as a person or anything like that, I am just trying to share my opinion as constructive criticism. I don't hate Dunk as a human being nor am I trying to critisize him mindlessly.)
Thanks to the limited live stream I've finally finished watching this series! (thanks again to the user @Eva who informed me about it in the comments below).
I think this series had real potential to be a full-time BL and, if it had been, it would have felt a lot more emotional and rounded. The storyline isn't anything novel, but the actors did it justice. I wish they had had more time to showcase their talents and develop the characters and their stories.
(minimum spoiler) The highlight for me was the kiss scene, for sure. Being so short and all, it managed to spark emotions with its atmosphere of contained passion and longing. Again, I just wish they had spent a couple more minutes on that scene, because the cut to the next one felt a bit rushed and Parang didn't end up explaining to Taemin why he felt pity for himself.
I'm proud to say this is the 3rd forcebook lead show I've given a chance (Enchante, A Boss and Babe) and this…
I am also getting tired of them acting the same characters all over again... Especially Force, his characters just limit themselves to arching eyebrows, some over-the-shoulder looks, then some pity party to fit the bad boy with a soft heart concept and boom! That's it. It's getting tiresome at this point... Looking forward to PerthSanta and the other couples, to be honest.
Just to make a small recap of the best and worst points:
(there may be small spoilers ahead~)
Positive aspects
- Boss and Noeul's chemistry is off the charts. Both their loving and intimate scenes are always right on point and feel believable. They gave a great example in LITA, and again did in this drama.
- The inclusion of a different idea, such as the timelines and parallel worlds was pretty fresh in BL. I liked the inclusion of scenes of the different worlds.
- The second couple was cute and did well. I hope I can see them in future dramas!
- The after-credits scene in the last episode was a nice touch.
Negative aspects
- Too much time was spent on Cir saying "Phuu... Phuuuu..." all over the place, while either worrying or looking at him with longing eyes. We get the gist, thank you.
- The parallel world story got relegated to a second place, even though it was one of the most interesting aspects and the key of the whole series. It just didn't make sense for them to build the narrative around this particular point only to turn it into a "stalker-type" love story of Cir being in love (at first sight) with Phu for years.
- The scene with Cir's family in the last episode was a literal Circus (pun intended). Truly bizarre, not understandable nor relatable at all. In what century are we living? Mum is worse than a mafia boss.
As a final comment, I just wish that both BossNoeul and FortPeat's next project is with a different writer or a different team, because I'd love to see them shine and, without a doubt, these two projects didn't do them justice.
Aside from some parts when it got too "soap-operish", it was really fun to watch and I easily got invested in every sister's story.
I loved that the main female characters, the Li sisters, were all unique in their own way and represented strong independent women who also loved deeply and had upright morals. On the other hand, the male suitors/husbands were gentlemen, not super possessive or controlling about them, despite all the ups and downs of the story. That couple balance was lovely throughout all characters, especially taking into account that there were multiple pairs. Back in the day, it wasn't probably the case in real life China, but it was great and refreshing to see in this series :)
In the end, the lack of communication was the thing that killed both initial relationships (Sei-Fujisawa and Hagiwara-Kaori) and led them to that point of no return.
However, they just ruined everything with cut-paste incoherent scenes, an unhinged caricature of a woman (lady Pony), one crazy couple (the absurd sex-crazy couple) and one that appeared out of thin air just for fanservice (the doctors). And don't get me started on the final episode with Sangmin and his parents and all that bs.
I really hope next time they give these nice actors a better series with better direction and script.
(SPOILERS AHEAD)
Positive aspects:
- The leads were fantastic in their own characters with their own peculiarities, and their conversations were unique and interesting.
- Loved the initial anonymous e-mails about personal life, gender roles and intimacy with a partner.
- The final conversation between Hagiwara and her then girlfriend was very wholesome and I liked that he called her out on her continuous rejection to having intimate relations. It was absolutely necessary for them to talk about that and not only about his cheating.
- The pictures and cinematography were really beautiful and the constant connection with the rain was a nice touch.
Negative aspects:
- The fact that they left the assault scene in ep 6 in the air, so that many people thought Fujisawa didn't end up doing "anything" to Sei (well, apart from non-consent kissing and grabbing), was terrible.
- The ending felt too well-wrapped regarding Fujisawa's explanation of his actions and his long-term abuse towards Sei. It was obvious since the beginning that he had been psychologically abusing Sei for years, isolating him from the rest of the world (eventually admitted by him) and controlling everything in his life. Sei just was living on autopilot in a pretty and luxurious cage. So I do not think that his apology and explanation, and Sei's further acceptance of all that, were enough or nearly believable. I was personally very upset at this whole conversation.
- Episodes were just too short to squeeze all the potential this series had. The last episode was 2/3 of Sei-Fujisawa's conversation, and 1/3 split between office life and the final moment between the leads. It was not enough in any way.
For positive aspects I would like to first mention the actors and their chemistry, it was just fantastic! They seem to get along super well in and behind the scenes and their interactions look very natural. The addition of sign language and a deaf main character was a wonderful move towards inclusiveness, and Jin Yun definitely did it justice with his acting. I just loved the development of their relationship and how it progressed.
As for the negative points, I would say definitely time. The episodes felt too short, not only in the sense that I wanted more of them lol, but they also left some things "unexplained" or in the air. Overall, you can understand the story, but there are certain points that were just never clarified. Some examples of this are the last murder attempt that Zi Xiang suffered (in which he was miraculously unscathed), Zi Xiang's father who never appeared until last min last ep, Xin Jia's gang that never came back after him... I feel like with some more time in each episode, these little things could have been put together a bit better.
However, overall it was a great show! I would definitely recommend it and most likely will rewatch at some point :)
"Left me wanting more" would be the right expression to use for this one!
I hope they don't continue ruining the show from now on with the "over-heated" third couple and the crazy Pony lady, for the sake of everyone.
On another note, the male leads are reaaally cute, with nice chemistry and acting :)
I kinda regret not having waited until it was all out, because waiting for my tiny 24 minutes of episode each week is literal torture. I cannot deal lol
I didn't like the couple that much either, although Sand was super adorable!
The possessiveness, the ordering Arm around without explanation, the way he talks to him... it screams disrespect to me. It doesn't matter that he supposedly worries about him or cares "in secret".
(spoiler ep 4 ahead) The thing about him going and beating the guy that picked a fight with Arm and then him not letting ARM'S BEST FRIENDS stay with him in the hospital and him just snatching Arm to his house, that is just possessiveness and toxic masculinity for me. They weren't even boyfriends at that point.
To be honest, I wish they gave Force other types of roles, different from the cold bad boy that I have seen him play in the shows I've watched.
Also, the kisses on the NC scene in ep 3 looked really dry to me, it seemed as if Style/Dunk was not even invested in the "action". HE is the one who supposedly LIKES Fadel, but he doesn't even look like he is enjoying it that much. He had literally the same expression throughout the whole scene.
I don't know, for some reason he just keeps making me feel disconnected from their side of the story and, to be honest, I am not enjoying the FadelStyle couple that much because of that, even though their dynamics could be super fun and thrilling.
(Disclaimer: this is not meant to be an attack to the actor as a person or anything like that, I am just trying to share my opinion as constructive criticism. I don't hate Dunk as a human being nor am I trying to critisize him mindlessly.)
I think this series had real potential to be a full-time BL and, if it had been, it would have felt a lot more emotional and rounded.
The storyline isn't anything novel, but the actors did it justice. I wish they had had more time to showcase their talents and develop the characters and their stories.
(minimum spoiler) The highlight for me was the kiss scene, for sure. Being so short and all, it managed to spark emotions with its atmosphere of contained passion and longing. Again, I just wish they had spent a couple more minutes on that scene, because the cut to the next one felt a bit rushed and Parang didn't end up explaining to Taemin why he felt pity for himself.
Looking forward to PerthSanta and the other couples, to be honest.