Chatriel

When you’re watching a drama and out of your mouth comes the words “We need a hero……!!!” you know you’re waaay too into the drama. ...

Ryu Su-Yeol is a renowned detective in the Anti-Corruption Department of his Korean police agency, known for his ability to solve cases and resolve matters to the satisfaction of the police commissioner. Due to trauma in his past, he unknowingly developed an alternate identity. This identity, named "K," has a hero complex and wants to punish the bad guy, regardless of the law. But K also acts as Su-Yeol's savior again and again, as Su-Yeol can't seem to keep himself out of trouble while chasing criminals. K also has a good instinct for identifying others who are noncorrupt, and pushes Su-Yeol to help keep those people safe. Su-Yeol faces his past, as well as the reason that K was born, when a psychopathic psychiatrist, a corrupt official, and a drug ring all tie together to create havoc in Su-Yeol's life. Su-Yeol and K work together to solve crimes and keep themselves and others alive.

While I never really understood how the drug ring tied into the psychiatrist except by chance, I can't be sure if that was because of plot holes or because of language barrier/translations. Regardless, I was a little confused by how everything tied together. Also, the level of physical violence and blood was unnecessary to the story. Although some violence was definitely required, it could have been toned down and still have told a good story. Still, it held my attention. I never had to skip through scenes.

My favorite scenes were the ones with K. He provided comedic relief and Wi Ha-Joon played this character amazingly. He and Lee Dong Wook had a very interesting chemistry (a true "Odd Couple") and played off of each other well. I don't think another actor could have effectively pulled off what Wi Ha-Joon did in this series. I would guess that Wi Ha-Joon improvised some scenes and reactions, as they seemed too good to be scripted. The rest of the actors were well cast also, and they worked hard to fulfill their roles.

While I liked this drama, I also think that it could have been shortened to a 6 or 8 part mini-series and still have been effective. Either that, or lengthened to 16 episodes to explain better some of the reasoning behind certain actions. The acting itself and the 'edge of your seat' situations will maintain a good rating from me.

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Within the world of a comic

This is a rom-com/drama about Dan Oh and her relationships with other characters of the high school comic that she finds herself a part of. She and a few others become self-aware and are able to realize that they are more than the setup that their writer established for them. In order to change the story to better reflect the self-aware characters' thoughts and wishes, they work together, or sometimes against each other, to make the needed adjustments.

The drama had a lot of potential, and, as is, would have been fine with half as many episodes. If it had to be 32 episodes, it would have been better with more story line. Instead, the same few scenes were played over and over as if the viewers needed certain points drilled into their heads. You could almost skip the entire middle of the story and not miss anything. Personally, I didn't mind too much, simply because Rowoon, Lee Tae Ri, and most of the others, are pretty to look at. But I did get tired of seeing the same scenes. Even within the story, Dan Oh was tired of it. And the brooding faces of a bunch of rich, angsty teens got tiresome as well. It was a breath of fresh air when the final episode moved them on to a new (university) comic with the same characters but a whole different vibe. I wouldn't have minded if there had been more university episodes and fewer high school episodes, just to see the cast play more of their new characters.

I did love the premise and the way the comic world was portrayed from the viewpoint of the characters. In between each "stage," it was like a director yelling "cut" and the self-aware characters would retreat from their setups, while the ones who were not self-aware would continue as their characters were written. I did not understand how the characters within the comic had access to a previous comic, but....plot holes within plot holes, I guess.

The OST from this drama is amazing in my opinion. These songs will stick with me longer than the drama will.

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And now for the unpopular opinion

I've said many times, and I'll say it again: I am very easy to please and can overlook a multitude of sins when watching a BL. Even still, there were definite problems with this series. It was almost as if it were a 'choose your own ending' story, but they forgot to put in the options. It seemed experimental. You never really knew if the ending of each episode was going to continue with the next, or was it going to be a completely new story. If parts of it were supposed to be imagination, they forgot to include the dreamy, cloudy edges in the scenes. Maybe the writers were waiting for opinions from viewers after each episode, and if the viewers didn't like it, the writers started over....?

However....most of the acting in this was pretty dang good. Jeff Satur (Sean) can act. Period. I'm glad he finally started to get better roles (ie KinnPorsche). Gun Tieosuwan (Valen) was extraordinary. Same for Ohm Napat Utsaha (King), at least if it's a dramatic crying scene (since he didn't get to do much else.) For the most part, the rest were also really good, and would have been better if they'd had better direction. The long pauses while talking, the extra-long stares into each other's eyes, the staring out at the ocean....I mean, all that can happen, but not as many times as they put these poor actors through. If you're filling up a time slot, that's not the best way to do it. The most naturally acting cast was the older generation, which is strangely surprising in my BL experience. (You would think those with more acting experience would be better actors, but rarely have I actually seen that in a BL.)

I watched it all and didn't skip, although there were a few times that I thought about it. I actually liked watching the acting. I actually liked most of the story. The actors did a great job portraying emotions. There were parts of the story where the reactions were more realistic, like when the characters refused to listen to explanations. (Lets be honest, when you're angry and hurt, you don't want to hear explanations.) There were legit, real kisses. There were believable touches and intimate moments. (I think it was in part 1 where it showed a flashback of Peat lounging against King's arm while reading a book that literally shocked me, because it was such a natural thing to do that you rarely see it on screen.) (And the scene where Valen is kissing Kaitoon before Atom started banging on the door....I wonder if they were still acting at that point....)

There is enough left unresolved that they could do another season, and I wouldn't mind watching more. I would ask that they clean up the direction and production a bit. But I can honestly say that those 2 scenes I mentioned are some of the most memorable that I've seen in all 150 or more BL's that I've watched. And the last scene, the last few seconds of the show, past the credits... many people didn't like. But it was everything to me.

And I love listening to Jeff Satur's voice on the soundtrack!

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Match+Mix+Ryu

My opinion, + mild spoilers

I can honestly say that this was the weirdest chemistry I've ever encountered in a BL. I know it's just acting, but onscreen, the 3 of them belonged together. The chemistry between just (any) 2 of them didn't really work. It was awkward. The 3 of them together, when they weren't competing, was amazing! I felt like I was watching friends who had grown up together and cared deeply for each other rather than people who had just met. There were jealous moments, but a lot of times when there should have been jealousy, it came across to me that they simply cared more about each other than they did themselves.

That being said, when Mix was feeling sorry for himself, I should have wanted to kick his butt. Somehow, instead, I just felt sympathy towards him. That says a lot about the acting in those scenes. As far as the rest of the acting, I think they would have done better with a better script. They were so limited, with everything literally being in-house, that it was a "make the most of it" script. To be honest, the best/most natural thing I saw in the entire drama was the initial kiss.

This is the first drama I've seen where, due to the chemistry of the characters, I was rooting for some type of poly relationship. After the first couple weeks of living together, they should have been looking for another place to live that didn't have a 2 person limitation. The happiness of the final scene and the possibilities ahead made the whole series worth watching. I assume there's not going to be a season 2, so in my head everything works out the way I wanted.

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Glad I persevered

I admit that I did a lot of fast-forwarding through the first half....ok, more than half of the show. The part with the teachers was unnecessary. The photography club was unnecessary. The side characters were just fillers. This could have been done with half as many episodes if they'd focused on the main characters. I read the comments before starting the show, and about 2 episodes in, I thought, "Ugh, I agree with the comments, this is bad." But I'm glad I persevered, because at some point I stopped fast-forwarding. By episode 9 or so, I was actually interested. Mind you, it shouldn't have taken that long to become interesting, but still....and even then, I had some negative thoughts, but the show resolved well in my opinion. The acting became much better. The story became much better.

The English subs never got better, and there were times it required some interpretation. For instance, the bar scene in the last episode was one of the best scenes in the drama, but the subs were so bad that I had to rewatch after I figured out what they were trying to say. That is very distracting when you are trying to enjoy interesting and pivotal scenes within the drama.

There were a few characters in the show that had some outstanding acting, especially with what they had to work with. And honestly, there really wasn't much chemistry between the leads. Despite this, I think they pushed hard to make it work the best they could.

Overall, I'm glad I watched this.

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Great story!

I had a hard time finding the movie. I ended up renting it from Amazon Prime, as it wasn't available anywhere else that I had access to. I have read comments and they say that the Season 2 is the movie with a few more scenes. I would have preferred to see the Season 2 over the movie, but couldn't find the full season anywhere. I will probably go back and watch the episodes that I actually do have access to, just to see any missed scenes.

As in Season 1, Pearl was a gem! (Pun intended haha.) Her love and support of the boys couldn't have been better. In my opinion, the boys other than Cai and Gav were just eye-candy, but who doesn't love a little candy??!! Gav and Cai were the main focus, and they had me smiling, giggling, and crying at various times. Poor Gav, dealing with his homophobic aunt....I seriously want to hurt people like that who spread their hate and misguided "concern." I'm so glad that the boys finally stood up to her. (I'm not violent, just angry that some people want to hide behind their religion in order to dictate how others should live.)

I saw someone write that they didn't think Gav's character should have broken down as he did, because he was so upbeat and happy other times. But this movie really showed the amount of pain that a lot of people went through because of the pandemic. You can only handle so much before you break, and with the real-world stresses on top of the pandemic stresses, it's a wonder that he didn't have a breakdown beforehand.

I loved the amount of love and happiness the two boys showed each other. I also saw that they didn't top and bottom each other, as you see in EVERY other BL out there. That was the most refreshing thing for me. I mean, it's not for everyone....some choose to be one or the other..... but the way it was handled in the movie did a good job in displaying the equality of their relationship.

I adored Season 1, and I loved the movie/Season 2. I hope they make a Season 3, but honestly, now that they've partnered with Japan on production, even if we have a Season 3 we international fans will probably not have access.

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Not laugh-out-loud, but amusing

As this is literally a spoof of BL manga and dramas, it was over-the-top acting with an over-the-top storyline. I'm not usually a fan of overacting and silly stuff, but this wasn't too bad for what it was, in my opinion. It was actually a little more serious than the first season, and had a bit more substance. It also had some character growth, which is always a good thing.

I was introduced to some new (characters) actors, and I am looking forward to seeing some of them act again. However, the one actor that stood out for me is Yutaro (the mob's brother.) I think he had the most natural acting of anyone. (That statement is a little suspect, since none of them were supposed to actually act 'natural' due to it being a spoof.) But I have seen him in a couple of other things, and he always seems to stand out as a good actor.

From the 'behind the scenes,' it seems that this director is good to work for, so he is able to get the actors to fulfill their roles appropriately. I appreciate that the actors seem respected and acknowledged for their hard work. Hopefully the rest of the staff are as well.

Overall, this was enjoyable, and if there is a third season, I will watch that also.

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We don't talk about Todd.

I am all about a good action show, but a lot of the action portions didn't do it for me for whatever reason. I did a lot of fast forwarding during the first few episodes of the show. I didn't drop it though, because even if this particular show wasn't my favorite, it was still a good story with some amazing acting. It felt full and well rounded, and the resolution, in my opinion, took about 3 episodes as opposed to everything being dumped into the last episode. So, while all the sneaking around and violence was necessary to the story, I didn't feel the need to pay attention to any part that didn't have dialogue.

I appreciate that, while LGBTQ+ rights were a part of the human rights that they were protesting for, it was in no way an issue for the guys to have romantic relationships with each other. Within the gang, there was no discussion whatsoever about it being taboo...they just accepted it and moved on. The only part that was really mentioned was the fact that Black and Sean didn't get along so it was surprising that they got together (even though it was finally revealed that Sean was with White, not Black.)

I want to reiterate that the acting was phenomenal.

Some of my favorite scenes:
--When Black beat up Sean and Sean didn't fight back
--The van rescue
--White saving Sean's life in the shootout
--Any scene with Gumpa....I just loved his character, and the smiles that he gave Sean and White showing his happiness for them. Such a parental unit for the gang.
--Any scene with Gram. He was just so good looking. I think it was his hair. Also...I did not really understand the relationship with Gram and Nuch. I think they tried to explain it, but it just confused me. But I loved how sincere Gram was in his affection towards them. And the scene where Gram blew Nuch a kiss was simply sweet.
--Dan's tears

Despite the fact that I wasn't interested in parts of the first few episodes, and various parts throughout, I think that it is worth a high rating.

And Todd......

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Great acting!

As it's now 2022, I'm a little late to the party. Still, the themes are relevant for a high school setting. Typical sex/drugs/rock 'n roll themes are used here. I'm not a huge fan of this much drama, but I wanted to write a review to say how good the acting was. These kids did an amazing job! At no point, in season 1 or 2, did I think about how a line should have been read or how something didn't look realistic, because the acting skills were terrific.

For someone who prefers to watch a fluffy series, I was actually disappointed that all the story lines got wrapped up neatly. That took quite a bit of the realism out of the story. I think Phai was my favorite character, and he got hit with some heavy storyline. There were other characters that I loved as well, but there were also ones that I hated and ended up skimming through. I have to say that I loved Tar's guitar playing.

Again, the acting was phenomenal for season 1 and 2. I am not planning to watch season 3 though, as there is only 1 character I liked enough to watch, and that's not enough for me to continue with such a heavy drama.

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I liked this

I just really liked this drama. In my opinion, it was so sweet and enjoyable. I laughed out loud a few times, I cried more than I expected to, and although I didn't think the male lead was overly handsome, I did swoon over his model pics a few times, 'cause sheesh! LOL. I appreciated that it didn't have a bunch, if any (for me), of cringe moments. I appreciated the support that the characters gave each other. There were moments that the plot line of some characters surprised me, and there were others that were predictable, and I was ok with them all.

This drama touched on some issues but it didn't shove them in your face, which I liked. Some issues got wrapped a little too neatly, but it's a drama, and if I wanted real life, I wouldn't bother watching a K-drama series.

I generally don't rewatch many dramas, but there is a definite possibility that I may actually rewatch this in the future.

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I have just finished the series. I have many thoughts, but I am specifically writing a review because of the actors. I am very forgiving when it comes to dramas, because they are just stories to entertain. Unlike real life, if you aren't entertained, you can simply quit watching. I, like another reviewer I saw, binged this drama in 2 days. It was a bit much, as I often had tears running down my face from about episode 28 through the finale. But I loved the acting so much, even if the story and characters were unrealistic.

Cheng Ran (Ran-Ran)--Ultimate good character. Most supportive best friend in the world. Best boyfriend/husband. My favorite character. Loved how he was attracted to Yan-Yan as opposed to being scared for her. Loved how he said he would do anything to prove his love, and did. (Tiptoeing to keep from crushing the eggs? Brilliant!) He had the best reactions to both Yan and Gu Chuan. I think he was most real to me. Liu Rui Lin understood the assignment.

Jiang Ling (Auntie)--my second favorite character. She was just cool. Bada$$ with her expressions. A side-eye from her would make anyone stop and think twice.

Xiao Ning--I saw a lot of reviewers calling her childish. I disagree, I would say "child-like." *shrug* Some people just are. It's in their nature to be child-like, naive, innocent. It's also the reason that people like that are firm in their beliefs, committed, only seeing the best in others. Plus, she was young and matured throughout the series.

Yan-Yan--Loved her. Loved how Cheng Ran couldn't fool her. Loved the process of her falling for Ran-Ran and then never letting go.

Gu Chuan--Just like Cheng Ran, I was happy every time I saw him on screen. I found it interesting how he portrayed emotion without portraying emotion. I think the directors did a fabulous job with him also.

Grandma--Zhu Ya Ying did a great job with the script. I thought her character was too easy-going though. Dementia patients will tend to be confused a lot, scared, and unreasonable, at least occasionally. Grandma was always firm in her beliefs (even if they were wrong) and way too calm.

I have more to say, but that just makes for an unreasonably long review. But oh....my fav scenes are Gu Chuan's confession scene and the League of Legends "First Blood" (etc.) reference. Had to mention those. :)

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Waste of potentially great actors

I wish that someone would have taken this cast and given them a script. The younger of the cast have great acting skills, but they had nothing to act on. I finished watching this series for the actors alone, not the story. The story was lame and disjointed in my opinion. Honestly, the behind-the-scenes was more entertaining. And I hate saying that, because I LOVE Boun and Prem, and wish them the best. I also enjoyed the other boys. The fathers seemed to be comedic relief without the comedy, and there was a lot of overacting that just came off as ridiculous. There was so much space that could have been filled with story....ANYONE'S story...none of them were complete. Instead, there was a lot of staring out over the ocean/river/sunset. It was a waste of a lot of talent. From day 1, it has seemed that this is just a little drama to keep Boun and Prem relevant until their next drama airs.

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Absolutely underrated

Just a quick review to add my 2 cents because I don't understand why people rate this drama so low

First: the music. I am rarely swayed by the music in a drama, but I absolutely loved the music in this one. I also love the fact that the singers in the band, both lead and backup, could actually sing. So many times, the directors (or producers or whoever) put someone up to singing a song when they really shouldn't. Not everyone is a born singer.

Second: I loved the characters.....pretty much all of them, especially by the end of the drama. Props to the side characters for carrying the leads to where they needed to be.

Third: I thought the storyline itself was unique. If one is looking for something really dramatic, this isn't it. But it was sweet and held my attention, and in the end you find out everyone's motives.

Please excuse the lower "rewatch" rating. I don't like to rewatch most dramas, It would have to be on the level of "Goblin" for me to want to rewatch. Not much measures up to that, at least in my opinion.

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An enjoyable drama

First: Other than Goblin (Guardian: The Lonely and Great God) I have rarely come across an OST that catches my attention. But during this drama, I was surprised to find myself thinking, "That's a great song to put there" or similar thoughts. I mention this first, because it's so rare that the music impresses me.

Second: Rowoon. He's a good actor, and I am fascinated by how good looking he is. I hate the scenes where they put too much makeup on him....maybe the makeup didn't change but the lighting did. Idk. But he didn't need as much as they put on him most of the time.

Third: I enjoy Asian dramas, whether they be Korean, Thai, Chinese, Japanese, Taiwanese, Vietnamese, etc. I like the good ones and the bad ones. I can confidently say that this was a good drama, because I've seen so many. It had a high production value, good acting, and decent chemistry among the cast. It had enough drama in it to be dramatic, but not so much that it was cringey. It was, over all, a feel-good drama, which is nice because dramas are an escape, and it's nice to fantasize that there are happy endings. I teared up a time or two, but I never had to break down sobbing for the characters, so that was nice. There's enough reason to sob irl.

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IMHO

I loved the acting of both leads, and they did what they were supposed to do in all the scenes. They did not seem to shy away from the intimate scenes, and they played their parts well. But can I ship them? No. I couldn't find the chemistry that others seem to think was there. I thought Shi Lei had better chemistry with Stone and the waitress than with Real.

Shi Lei's mom was GREAT! I loved how she supported him.

I liked this drama, but I would not rewatch it. Hank Wang, however, is cute as a button, so I'll be looking out for him in other productions.

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