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The "best part" of the trilogy
It’s important to start by mentioning that Together With Me is far better than Bad Romance or Next Chapter. I decided to watch the “trilogy” chronologically, so Together With Me was the first one I watched.This series does have in it’s favor that most of the plots move forward in a good rhythm. The show has also a great set of characters, mixing the best of the other 2 parts. This is the Korn/Knock show, but the side characters have great stories and the acting is good. Single Yiwha is the best part of the show, because her story can focus on being a boss 100% of the time. Fai really shines in this series too. At first I was a bit annoyed by the Phubet/Kavitra romance, bit they grew on me. I was never on board of the Farm/Bright boat, but it was not the worst part of Together With Me.
Unfortunately, the worst part of the series is related to Korn and Knock. Firstly, we have many big inconsistencies about their story before the show, since they’re meant to have known each other from childhood. But the definite major problem is how their story does not evolve. There are 13 episodes of this show and they do dumb stuff in all 13. Everybody knows that Korn and Knock will end up together but this series likes to prove with each episode how stupid this characters are. The shrimp scene is a clear example (it takes 2 seconds to say "he's allergic"). They don’t talk and never trust each other, so I could not root for them. I mean, to be fair, it’s a Knock problem 90% for the time. Their stupid hook up/fight cycle combined with the devil girlfriend cliche kinda ruined the show overall for me.
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Not so easy to hate
Like many people, I imagine, I watched this series because of Jaemin. He actually surprised me with his acting. It’s not that I was expecting him to be bad, but he was better than I was hoping.This is a short series, so I was not expecting an incredibly developed and complex plot. And being a college students focused show, I knew that the romance would be very central do the story. I liked all the characters but felt like the conflicts were a bit too forced. But that how college aged young people act.
I’ve never watched anything else that has been adapted from a webtoon, nor am I familiar with the source material. So, I can understand how that can present a different set of challenges versus a novel, which is more detailed by nature.
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A great show from start to finish
The theme song from his show was on my playlist even before I finished the episodes. It’s probably my favorite BL theme.Enemies to lovers dramas are not usually my style because it usually feels like either since is very forced. With HIStory3: Trapped we get enough of a backstory to understand why they don’t like each other from episode 1. But they also don’t hate each other. Tang Yi is annoying by Shao Fei, who in turn suspects that Tang Yi is involved in bad stuff. I mean, the iconic gun scene from the poster is very much like their relationship in the beginning, just loud screams and not much action.
I feel like the way their relationship flows into romance happens at a good pace. It’s not sudden nor do I feel like it takes too much space in a show that’s not just about the romance. Trapped is as much about the mob stuff as it’s about the couple. We also get a secondary couple, with Li An and Jack, that works well as both a couple and a balanced comedy relief. I don’t know if I’d say Jake and Chris have amazing romantic chemistry, but I think they work very well together even in the more steamy scenes.
The whole dad reveal was obvious from a mile away, but it, at least, gave us a rare father in law - son in law scene in a BL. The side story with the annoying sister was very much forgettable.
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Bad is in the title
Bad Romance is basically 10 episodes of filler and not much consequence, and then we got the last 3 episodes with actual story development. I’m still surprised by how this show managed to get a prequel. It’s not like Korn and Knock worked well in this show. The biggest issue is that we can see from Together With Me that the actors are good and the characters have potential, the material they’re given is what’s Bad. The secondary plots on this show make no sense, specially the central one in the end, which brings everybody together.With all that being said, I have to admit that I like the giant bear scene.
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Pretty heavy themes
Let’s be fair, going back into your younger self’s body is not a super original story. But at least in this case, Kyung Hwi also goes back in time too, which makes it interesting. Minho proves that he’s got the role not just because he’s a famous idol, but because he can act.This show deals with some heavy subjects, like bullying and suicide. It’s not all the time, but it’s something that's always floating above every plot point, specially regarding Na Bi. I feel like I enjoyed the ending more because I’ve seen the “unreleased” extra scene, but it’s still an open ended story. But I can also see how someone might feel like the ending is not fulfilling enough.
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It could work in a different format
I feel like the concept of mini stories that are connected, but not that much, would only work with less episodes or 2 episodes a week. I personally was more interested from the start on the story of Hia, Masuk and Tir, so it’s easy to watch just the last 3 episodes and skip everything before that. But for people that like the first couples, they had to wait 10 weeks for the conclusion. With that in mind, this show is very easy to rewatch if you go directly to the 2 episodes that you like, but I cannot imagine rewatching everything unless you love every couple.Focusing on the couple +1, which I wholeheartedly enjoyed, 2 episodes was way to little for that type of story. It could have been a nice 8 episode series. Those episodes have a high cry potential.
We've seen a regular series with Talay+Perth (My Engineer) and a regular series with Talay+Yoon (YYY), so we now need a full on drama with the 3 of them together.
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I loved it! But you may hate it
This show is definitely a you love it or you hate it. For me, the YYY Special is everything that the original series lacked and more. It’s so cute and so funny to the perfect balanced amount. I feel like they incorporated the pandemic in an interesting way.This show might work for you if:
1. You understand that YYY was crazy and stablished that they don’t live our normal real world and that there are no limits.
2. You REALLY like the main couple and not have problem with cheesy scenes
If you keep that in mind from the very start of the first episode, you have a chance of loving YYY special.
My favorite moment is the washing hair scene with Princess Leia's towel hair and the pet names.
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A comedy that has BL and not a BL that has comedy
This is a comedy before being a BL series. So that’s very important before starting it. That might have been my problem, since I was expecting more of balance. Also, this show is weird and many things don’t have explanations. So you have to deal with that.The romance was sweet and the main characters had chemistry. It’s undeniable that Talay and Yoon work amazingly well together. But the comedy aspect and side characters really dragged this show down for me.
I know the ending is not super popular, but I enjoyed it.
YYY Special is a far better story in my opinion.
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A great drama, not just for EXO fans
I went into this show already knowing that Kyungsoo is an amazing actor, based on previous works. But I understand that a 16 episode drama is different from a movie.The main character with memory loss is nothing new, nor does this drama take it somewhere surprising. The cast was wonderfully picked. I can’t say anything bad about any of the actors. In special I’d highlight, besides Kyungsoo, Kim Seon Ho and Nam Ji Hyun.
I do feel like the story drags a bit around the halfway point, since it’s still to early for the prince to come back, but the show doesn’t exactly know what to do with the village plot. The "villains" work well in this show, specially in the palace.
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When the premise slows the story too much
Even though this is a short show, I'm a bit surprised with how little actually happened. The main concept is not super original, but it seemed like an interesting idea, considering the setting of the show and it being a BL.I feel like this show doesn't deliver romance, drama or twists. We spent too much time watching the annoying sister being annoying, and that doesn’t really give us anything more than the apple painting in the skirt. I understand that it was important to show that Ki Wan actually cared, but it took too long. A small portion of me kinda hoped that Ki Wan could give Tae Hyung a chance.
The ending is okay. With that being said, I have to say that the kissing scene in the end was beautifully shot.
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A cute story but many unanswered questions
For a second I thought this show would go into my most hated cliche, the “one half of the couple goes to another country in the last episode" route, but it thankfully didn't.At first I didn't feel much chemistry between the main actors, but it got better as the show went on. For a korean BL I feel like this series kinda pushes the limits a bit more than the usual shy 1 or 2 quick kisses. The main plot is simple but you can’t think too much about the details or it doesn’t make much sense. For example, where does the money come from for Shi On to live? Doesn’t he have to go to classes? Can Hong Seok’s just take 1 month off of work to do “nothing”?
This is a mini drama, and, just like the others, You Make Me Dance has some side plots that are not developed. But the non explanations here bug me more than normal. I understand that the mom abandoning him is important to the show, and we only know her from Shi On's eyes, but it's a weird plot point, since he got the money for her in the first place. Or did he actually got the money to live since she just left? Is the mom a terrible person and Shi On's just doesn't want to accept it in the beginning? She got married and left when She On tuned 20 (which apparently was the year prior), so she was a good mom for 20 years and then vanished? My impression is that Shi On is definitely not a reliable narrator.
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A simple sweet story
I feel like this show packs a lot in its short runtime. It's not exactly a enemies to lovers story, but the way the main characters start on the wrong foot and then slowly warm up to each other is nice. The chemistry between the main actors really makes his show work. Of the Viki BLs, I feel like To My Star is the one that looks the most like a movie, specially the first episode. I enjoyed the side characters and understand that they all had a purpose on the show.I don't feel like the whole "mystery" with In Woo is anything at all, nor do I feel like Seo Joon's problem is explained enough for it to make sense. Does he have PTSD with loud noises? Is it connected with being abandoned by his parents? I also feel like learning anything about Ji Woo’s backstory would be helpful to understand him as a characters.
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It’s not bad, but it’s not special either
This series had a very simple story, which I think would benefit a mini drama. But I still ended up bit disappointed with how the story ended up being so bland. I get the feeling that it would exactly the same thing if the show had 10 episodes of 40 minutes. There’s not much to be explored in this story. I also don’t get much chemistry between the leads, which also happened with the other Kang In Soo BL mini drama. The music is not bad but it also didn’t blow we away either, unfortunately.I kind of enjoyed the open ended aspect with, apparently, the boss and music producer quitting the company to help them. But the surprise “my dad is the CEO of a conglomerate and he doesn’t want me to be a musician’ doesn’t work in my opinion. I know it’s a cliche to cut off your musician son so he has to come back and give up music. But how did In Soo’s dad expect him to stop pursuing music while living in that apartment and apparently not having to work?
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It's sad, but it's also fun
I honestly skipped this show for some time because I knew it was always part of “saddest BLs” lists and I’m not particularly a big fan of ghosts as main characters.Yes, the show is sad, specially in the very beginning and towards the end. But “He’s Coming to Me” is also fun and happy in multiple occasions. The main actors work out amazingly well together. I feel like Ohm totally matched Singto’s acting ability. Chimon and Sing are great in this show. This series is a great example of how to do a female love interest in a BL. Everybody knows that Thun is not gonna end up with Praifah, so there’s no need to try to drag that romance until the very end. It’s also great how Praifah doesn’t become an insane villain just because she doesn’t get the guy. I also feel that this show did a great job balancing the time Thun spent with Med and with his school friends. The ghost friends are great too. The mom reveal at the end and the whole last goodbye almost wrecked me. Thun really showed Med how much he liked him by solving the mystery and allowing him to go onward. I doubt anybody watched the last episode without crying at least once.
Now, regarding the mystery. It’s not necessarily an amazing mystery nor a surprising reveal, so I’m glad it’s not brought up every 5 minutes. Like every show that has a secret at the center of the story, that’s the main reason this show is not super rewatchable from start to finish.
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Disappointing, even if you just want to watch for Frank and Drake
I came into this show without high hopes because I’ve never seen people praising it for its quality or plot. Overall, I wanted to like this show because they get some things right. It’s undeniable that Frank and Drake have amazing chemistry (but it's not romantic chemistry). Their best acting moments are opposite each other. Gord and Morn work out great as a pair and the actors are good.But, unfortunately, this series is a mess. The audio when the scenes are outside is terrible, specially in the bridge, which they visit every episode. Some plot lines either don’t make sense or just don’t go anywhere, like Bambie and her friend (?) or Tee’s dad. The story is not linear, it feels like the writers don’t know how to flow from one plot point to the next, so they just jump forward with no explanation. I don’t know if the writing is just bad or if they didn’t have money/time to make this show right. It’s very weird to see such a poor production quality from GMMTV.
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