32
118
3
3
1
1
1
4
1
1
1
2
2
2
Failed at maintaining its steam
This BL is centred around Il Jo and JeongHan, cousins, engaged in a forbidden and toxic relationship. At first, I must admit I was invested in the story with its high level of toxicity, power imbalance in the relationship, and very hot scenes. The cocktail of "full-on overpowering toxic Chaebol" main lead and "Damsel in distress" main lead is quite a classic one but adding up that extra level of cousins forbidden love made it an entertaining mess !
However, past the halfway mark, the drama became more and more mundane with the story falling into the pit of many tropes and character archetype I usually dislike. Noble idiocy, miscommunication, one protagonist being a repulsive childish obsessive character, one being annoyingly meek...a lot of it ircked me and halfway point it got impossible for me to vibe with the romance. I also was disappointed in the lack of exploitation regarding the cousins aspect of their relationship. Instead of being a motor for angst and turmoil of feelings, it felt like a side gimmick. The characters were not acknowledging it in a way that made proper sense.
Acting-wise, it was a bit of a mixed bag. I was quite convinced by the chemistry but felt that the emotional scenes were lacking. Having said that, the actors were not helped by how caricatural the roles were written, so I will mainly blame the script for the moments that felt very flat to me.
Production-wise, it is very clear that budget was limited but it was good enough to convey the story. I enjoyed a lot the main opening/ending song of the soundtrack. It was emotional and raw, the beginning of the series was embodying it perfectly and I wish the scenario would have kept the relationship in this torturous zone, full of darkness and unhealthiness, instead of developing the romance in a very frustrating, run-of-the-mill way.
I would not necessarily recommend this to people because at the end, it just feel pretty mundane and frustrating to me. The way the characters behaved irked me too much to enjoy the relationship. However, I must admit if you are looking for a short steamy BL featuring a domineering bossy Chaebol, it is a good pick (at least in its first half that I found quite gripping). I guess I just was disappointed by how things turned out.
Was this review helpful to you?
Boring and empty BL story: could have been torrid but was torpid instead
This show was very disappointing on many aspects. Given its length (8 episodes of about 1 hour each), it was surprisingly boring and dragging. The first episode was quite fun (even-though non-sensical) and had some super hot scenes but the remaining of the drama felt totally flat and quite of a snore-fest. All the side plots were utterly annoying and I really cannot find any redeeming quality to the writing.I did not enjoy the chemistry between the 2 male leads. The acting was generic and average at best but the plot is to blame foremost for preventing any credible development in the relationship. Both main characters were unlikable: too much pouting from one and too much grovelling from the other...nothing was working for me. I also did not find believable at all the abrupt switch from enemies to lovers: it was impossible to understand how their feelings were developing so fast. I would have preferred them to go on a dark and more brutal path (especially given the "kinky-side" of the video) rather than this very vanilla romance which did not make sense in the context of the starting point of the show.
I would not recommend this to people, I have seen much better BL series and would advise to not waste too much time with this one.
Was this review helpful to you?
Frustrating BL story due to so much miscommunication but good chemistry & production
I'm quite ambivalent regarding my appreciation of this drama. I enjoyed the premise of the story...I really liked the submissive and dominant undertones and the imbalance of the relationship. It is not an healthy romance but it is for sure very compelling. However, I was also deeply annoyed by the stupidity of one of the character who is so dense that it gets very quickly ultra frustrating. I can find interesting tropes around miscommunication and I'm usually pretty receptive to jealousy plot but here I was really not convinced.I still enjoyed the series thanks mainly to the impressive performance of Higuchi Kouhei. He was the highlight of the show for me: each of his scenes were really believable, even when the scenario was at his lowest. Mashiko Atsuki was okay but not at the same level in terms of acting skills but to be fair, he played also the most frustrating character. Nevertheless, the chemistry between the two main actors was great overall and the sexy scenes were really super hot.
The quality of the production and making was pretty good with some lovely opening and ending sequences supported by a nice soundtrack. It was pop and romantic and I never skipped it.
I would recommend this to people that are looking for a BL series with cohabitation trope as well as lot of sexy moments and who do not mind toxicity / red flags in the romance. If you really dislike miscommunication issue and/or really dumb/dense hero(ine), you might get very frustrated as well but as it is very short and supported by good performance, I still think its entertaining qualities outweighs its flaws.
Was this review helpful to you?
Movie missed the mark on many aspects, wish it would have taken a much darker road!
The premise of the story is relatively bonker but is very interesting as well. The way the two main leads are bounded together as well as the mystery could have made an amazing story. Unfortunately, it failed on a lot of aspects making it very difficult for me to connect and be invested in what was happening to the characters.Acting-wise, I like a lot Zee and Nunew pairing. They are quite good in the more classical romantic moments and their chemistry is still very strong and believable. Sadly enough, I don't think they have the acting chops for some of the more "thrilling" scenes: they lacked quite a bit and it felt blank when it should have been super emotional or frightning. To be fair, they were really not helped by the scenario and the dialogs.
I enjoyed the soundtrack, there are really not a lot of songs but Nunew singing is always really beautiful and once again I truly enjoyed his voice in the movie. Regarding the filmmaking, it could have been much better. The horror factor is too limited, the overall vibe is not scary enough. The mansion is too luxurious and nice, it sets an atmosphere propice for the romance but it diminishes the fright the viewer might feel as the mystery unfolds. I wish they would have taken a very dark road rather than going for what felt as some very safe and run-of-the-mill filmmaking choices.
I would recommend this to people that are looking for a BL with some horrific elements. It could have been much scarier but it is at least different from usual BL stories. Scenario could as well have been better, the idea and concept is interesting (while a bit crazy in its starting point) but the way it develops and the ending felt flat. There are better BL movies out there but if you like Zee and Nunew, it might be worth your time to see them in a very different setting than their previous drama.
Was this review helpful to you?
What happened?! Post-production crew working drunk is the only explanation!
Seriously, what happened ??? With the star-studded cast they had, all the production crew and project decision-makers should make amend ! I raise serious question on the sanity of the people who validated the post-production work done on this drama... So much was wrong that I will not go through one by one but still list a few (un)honorable mentions...First, why make it so difficult to introduce characters and relationships ? Instead of laying out the story set up in the last episode, wouldn't those 5 minutes be more useful at the beginning of the show ?
Second, why bother speaking about 12 "angels" if the focus is on a unique protagonist : Taesan, chief tiger? Not even the most interesting character, you got around his personality in very little time and then it is only fights, grumbling, and being in leader mode but without any dialog with his team members.
Third, why are all of the fights scenes blurring together in a really uninteresting manner? The fighters have almost no specificity in their fighting style nor special power. The few elements that differentiate them are too little, very superficial and never explored in relation to the others...Snake cannot speak, Pig is hungry, Monkey is good willing idiot, Dog is people pleasing, Horse is a fighter... That's about it. How is the viewer supposed to care about any of those characters ?!
Fourth, why have a romance so bland and so late in the story that instead of being a motor for the emotion it feels totally devoid of meaning ? It lacked chemistry and it should have been set up much earlier to have any kind of pay-off.
Fifth, where did you use the budget? Certainly not on the writing team nor on the costume department. It was mediocre at best. It takes a very specifc kind of individual to manage to make Park Hyung Sik look bad...So congrats I guess for this "achievement"?! More seriously, there were a obvious lack of care on the costumes and styling department, with wigs that felt of very poor quality, white ghostly makeup not matching neck, and so on...I'm left to ponder if all the budget went on casting big names and publicity rather than anything else...
Unfortunately, casting cannot save by themselves a drama. Writing was bad but most of all the editing of the scenes, the fact that fights or emotional sequences were cut by other non-relevant scenes, the pacing and the way the story was organized : nothing worked !!! Even the acting of actors I like and find usually good was lacking and disappointing... Among the very unsatisfactory production and post-production, the saving grace was the soundtrack with the track Salvation that I enjoyed when played at the end of each episode, mostly because it is a good song but potentially also because hearing it meant the end of an episode...
I would definitely not recommend this. If you are looking for a great ensemble cast incarnating heroic characters and gripping villains, go watch Moving. Or even The Uncanny Counter. This is so full of flaws that I still cannot imagine how it was greenlighted as such !
Was this review helpful to you?
Very hot short BL : collecting debt was never so sexy
Let me get to the very obvious point : those two actors were so hot together than you could feel the chemistry and sex appeal ooze through the screen despite the obvious limited budget.The concept of this BL is so good with a young and almost innocent debt collector falling under the charm of his debtor in his sleazy appartment...Super original and intriguing but unfortunately the fact that it was such a short snipbit prevented the idea to be fully exploited. If it was 3-4 times longer, it would have been so good but that's probably me being very greedy.
I would recommend this to people that enjoy BL featuring cohabitation trope with great chemistry. It is super short and definitely worth a shot even if given its length and format it cannot go as deep as I would have wanted, it still pack a (hot) punch.
Was this review helpful to you?
Some amazing performances and discoveries among the cast, lost some steam towards the end
I loved the premise of this survival show with the objective to found a vocal boy group of only 4 members. It felt fresh and original as a concept. Unfortunately, it fell a bit short concept-wise: it almost looked that mid-way the producers changed their mind on the initial idea. They lost their concept on the way, with no real differentiation compared to other singing competition that I have seen. The way they organised and splitted the episodes / missions felt also quite strange, as well as the voting rules and principles. The episodes were quite short for such kind of program but I felt they could have spend a bit more time in building stories around the candidates. Indeed, maybe the episodes were too short to fully get attached to the more subdue candidates...While it felt short in story-telling and production, I must say that I found the cast quite good overall. No obvious bad / fillers singers, just talented individuals with of course some being shown more than others. Nothing outrageous, except maybe for some missions where I think they could have shown all performances rather than scratch off some with just a better editing and split of content between episodes.
Regarding the cast, I was truly happy to find back some very familiar faces met in others tv shows (such as Geonu, Jay, Lee Hwan Hee and Wumuti) and I felt I really made some interesting discoveries among individuals I did not know before (e.g. to name a few: Kim Min Seo, Choi Su Hwan, Jeon Woong (from AB6IX), Lee Kwang Suk, Park Je Up, Kim Seung Hun (from CIX), Seon You (from UP10TION), Bain (from Just B which is a group I like but did not know a lot about the members -except for Geonu), Bitsaeon (from M.O.N.T), Kim Seo Hyung, Jung Soo Min, Kang Ha Yoon, Park Joo Hee, Choi Haram and so much more...). I liked as well the MC and judges casting...I knew most of them, but again, episodes felt short to get attached to the ones I did not know from before.
In terms of rewatch value, I know that there are some performances that I will gladly rewatch (and already do) in the future...I will for sure rewatch again Dangerously, River, Bad News as well as honestly every interactions of Milky-up who were just so lovable and wholesome...Overall, I am happy with the results of the finale. The winning team was my favorite but honestly all the candidates were so good that there were no "bad" choice. However, I was disappointed by the finale production, it lacked strongly in entertainment value and felt draggy as well as super expected. The best performances of the show are all coming from the first third / half of the contest...It is a bit of a shame that the orginal songs did not grab as much my attention.
I would recommend this to people that are looking for a survival show with some great singers and performances. It is pretty entertaining with a good cast and the concept of forming a vocal group is quite fresh. It lost some steam along the way and production could have done a better job to spread out content and to make the finale more exciting.
Was this review helpful to you?
A very bingewatchable medical drama with a pace that will hook you for sure !
Full transparency, I'm not a huge fan of medical drama but this one hit all the right spots making it a very entertaining series. The relative short number of episodes and reasonable length (- 8 episodes of 45/50 minutes) is perfect for a binge watch.The gallery of characters is very well portrayed by seasoned actors (such as Ju Ji Hoon and Yoon Kyung Ho) as well as fresh faces (at least for me, like Choo Young Woo and Ha Young). The evolution of the dynamics between the quatuor of characters they played really made the drama flavorful. Even if most of the storylines were relatively expected (especially if you have seen your fair share of medical shows), it was perfectly executed and with a great pacing that made it very enjoyable. Even if I stayed relatively detached from a lot of the surgery scenes, some of the characters growth arcs really got to me.
I would recommend this to people that enjoy shows mixing genres: I feel it blends well action and medical aspects, keeping the medical cases different enough to not feel too repetitive and having some interesting global arc for the main characters. In addition to playing in a very believable way this impressive doctor,Ju Ji Hoon is super attractive in this, which is always a win and I truly had a lot of fun watching the series. I don't think a season 2 is needed but I will watch if for sure if they make a new one.
Was this review helpful to you?
A touching slice-of-life, more oriented towards friendship and growth than romance
I enjoyed this university BL centred around the encounter of hearing-impaired lonely Kohei and feisty Taichi. Story-wise, I found it very interesting, especially the way they introduced the characters. I loved a lot the slice-of-life aspect, the way the protagonists evolve and find their own paths thanks to each other.I wish the writing went deeper tough on the development of the romantic relationship. It was much more a friendship story than a romance: it is not a problem in itself because the story did not feel lacking but I wish they went further on many things and make the romantic questionning of the characters more convincing. In my opinion, the story could have been more profound with more time to develop better the romance while reinforcing all the personal growth the main leads went throughout the series.
I found the acting pretty good, especially Kobayashi Toranosuke who played Taichi. Nakazawa Motoki in the role of Kohei did a good job in the first half of the drama but I felt as the series progressed, he had less and less opportunities to show range while the scenario focused mainly on Taichi in the latter part. It is a bit strange to me that the script almost pushed Kohei aside in the latest episodes, with Taichi firmly taking center stage. I wish their storylines would have been better balanced in terms of narrative arc all throughout the show. Their chemistry was good but clearly more on the friendship side than on the attraction side, it was lukewarm in terms of passion but wholesome in terms of friendship.
The making was very good. The way the director filmed the actors eyes and expression was really beautiful. The introduction scene was pretty memorable and left me with a strong impression. The opening song of the series was very nice and fitting the the vibe of the drama.
I would recommend this to people looking for a tender slice-of-life japanese drama. Rather than a BL, it is a story about finding your path and opening yourself to others while seeing world in a different light. I sometimes found myself wishing that the writer either removed all the romantic aspects to spend more time on the healing and friendship parts of the story, either went all in on the romance and make it much more heart-fluttering. I liked it a lot but I would clearly not have minded to have more episodes to further expand on the future of the main characters.
Was this review helpful to you?
The scenario was such a disappointment for so many reasons !!!
I'm so disappointed with this series that I'm not sure where to start with this review...Given the title, poster, generic itself, I was expecting a BL romance with a lot of fantasy elements, even maybe some sci-fi trope... Instead, I was served a very classic university BL with friends being used as comical resort and trauma-induced by family members...Despite the drama not fulfilling any of my expectations, the biggest issue I have with it is the lack of plot and the slow pacing...It took more than half the series to get to somewhat a narrative direction...Then it introduced an interesting element toward the last quarter but it was done in such a superficial way, without digging into what could have been otherwise very interesting...It slightly raised back my expectations before crushing them even more...
The main actors Boss and Noeul have a great chemistry together, and they delivers fiery NSFW scenes in a credible way. I also think their acting overall has been improving since I saw them in "Love In The Air". Given the poverty and lack in the scenario they were playing with, I give them a lot of flowers for managing to do as well as they did even if it was far from perfect. I cannot say the same for some of the side characters : most of the antagonists ones were played in such a caricatural way that I was totally disconnected from their performances.
The strongest point of the series resides in its production value. I thought that the hot scenes were beautifully directed and the overall making was very good. I enjoyed a lot the opening generic as well as the background music. It was very cohesive with hint of sorrowness and longing that I found lovely. Honestly, what a waste to have the writing annihilating all those positive aspects.
I would not recommend this to people unless you are a huge fan of Boss and Noeul. I think they deserved a better scenario for sure. I liked the opening generic and its esthetic with the good overall production value. I wish that the whole series would have had that vibe...Unfortunately, it was a classic university Thai BL kind of show rather than a mysterious and dark fantastical story...In a nutshell, what a let down !!!
Was this review helpful to you?
Sometimes entertaining but missed the mark completely in terms of writing
Full transparency here, I had no clue what was "Omegaverse" when I decided to watch this series. And honestly, I'm still not sure after watching the series to fully understand what encompasses this new (to me at least) genre/concept. I thought at first it was wolf related as there is mention of alpha, then they lost me totally at enigma...I think I understood from what was hinted by the show (and also some comments) that men are able to be pregnant as well, but the logistic behind it went completely over my head. All of it was a bit disconcerting but the viewer needs to roll with it without a lot of support from the script.Therefore, my main complaint for the drama is really the lack of proper explanation regarding the lore of the universe. The power of the alphas are never really addressed in a way that make complete sense...My thought process behind that as a viewer, I should not feel the need to do extensive research on the supernatural elements that the shows try to explain to grasp what's really at stake behind the relationships between the characters. That honestly tempered my enjoyment of the watch.
The plot is totally bonkers and feels for its most part like a fanfic fever dream. There are some griping moments in the story and some hot scenes that are pretty good. But for the majority of the show, I oscillated between being entertained because it was so bad that it was good in a way...And then being totally over-it and frustrated because of the characters (often) stupid choices. None of their "plans" felt very prepared and there were a lot of undeserved / too quick forgiveness for some protagonists.
Casting-wise, the actors did an okay job...There were a lot of weaknesses (especially regarding the villains that felt super caricatural) but as none of the cast was helped by neither the scenario neither the production, I will not fault any of the actors for what was offered here. The best relationship was the secondary one but I still will be willing to watch another show featuring the main pairing Pooh - Pavel as their chemistry was pretty good. A lot of their scenes were super cringy and they went for it...That's an achievement in itself.
Production-wise, I wish the action scenes were better filmed and that the music was less basic. There were mainly one song repeating at nauseum when characters were having sex and I don't know, it set the mood with the jazzy beat but got very repetitive as well. Most of the soundtrack felt generic and not good. Product placement was not well done as well.
I would not recommend this to people unless you already know/like the "Omegaverse" genre/concept. It missed the mark for me because I don't know anything about it and even after watching the series, I'm still totally perplexed. I must admit though that there were some entertaining parts to the overall trainwreck provided by the series and I will probably try to watch season 2 by curiosity...Hoping for the writing, filmmaking, soundtrack and acting to be better now that they have soft-launched the "Omegaverse" in Thai dramas.
Was this review helpful to you?
Good last episode but same defaults as 1st part, boring with a lot of fillers and flashbacks.
The part 2 of this drama suffers from the same defaults as its part 1. There are some big issues again with the pacing of the show. The last episode is pretty great but it is honestly very boring to get there. Most of the episodes leading to the finale contain too much flashbacks as well as "false" tension. Indeed, each time that a big moment happens it is counterbalanced and slowed-down. The lack of script content and strange screenplay choices are clearly the culprits in the show being so dull and anti-climatic.It is a shame that the screenwriter and director chose to spend time on what feel as "fillers" narrative arcs and repetition of the same scenes from the past rather than moving the plot forward in the present and building and developing the mythology of this universe. For example, the various powers of the trio of characters are cool but would have benefited of more explanations to properly onboard the viewer when they were revealed.
It would also have been better to spend more time with the three main leads in order to deepen realistically the relationship between them. As in part 1, it was very difficult to be emotionally invested in those characters. I'm still not blaming the actors, they clearly do their best despite the lackluster and empty scenario.
Despite the strangely paced story and odd directing choices, I found the photography beautiful, the visual FX very good and the overall production value pretty high; the scenery, the clothes, the weapons, the props and decors: everything is clearly high quality.
I would not necessarily recommend this to people unless they have seen part 1 and like one of the main actors or the main actress (though the three of them have surprisingly what felt like little screen time).
Was this review helpful to you?
Did not live up to my expectations
I expected a lot more from this BL : hidden identity, punk fashion, design school, night life...There was so much that could have been better exploited. For example, I wish they would have developed more the fashion arc but it remained quite surface level. Instead of spending time on some random characters at the part time job of one of the lead, the script should have focused much more on fashion and the triangular relationship(s) between the two main leads. Indeed, I think the romance itself could have been better with maybe longer runtime of the series. Chemistry was really good at first but felt pretty tame by the end. It lacked attitude, life and passion, especially given the context of the drama.Even if some suspension of disbelief is required regarding the secret identity of one of the main lead, I found Fujibayashi Yasunari, quite good at portraying this dual role and creating two very credible characters (Enaga Ayumu / AE). It made the big secret of the series quite believable. Unfortuntaly, I was much less convinced by Nagano Ryota playing the other main lead Sumiura Chiaki. I did not vibe at all with the way he interpreted his role: trembling lips, scared doll eyes...I felt he wore the same expression most of the time facing AE. I must admit he was not helped at all by the script, the character being unbelievably naive...Still, would have appreciated to see more range in his acting.
I would not necessarily recommend this to people because I was disappointed by the end as the series lost its steam along the way. There are quite a bit to enjoy with its refreshing context for a BL and nice soundtrack very fitting for the theme. I think if the beginning did not made me raise my expectations quite high, I might have been less critical...But it is what it is.
Was this review helpful to you?
Sluggish plot saved by strong world building, production, characterization and my love for the cast.
Let's face it : this series is not without flaws : the main one being its lethargic pace. It felt so slow at times that I am pretty certain that putting the show in speed ×2 would make the dialogs seems to be at regular speed....The scenario is not dense enough for the duration of the drama and the story could have been covered in 8 episodes of 1 hour rather than 12 episodes of 1h10 to 2h. Despite me loving the main cast that I first encountered in DoMunDi Friendship reality show, I couldn't help feeling their acting was also a bit unequal depending on the individuals.Having said that, I LOVED the atmosphere, the world building, the soundtrack. This series has its own color with a real artistic vision. Its esthetics felt very cohesive and the various special effects, costumes and make-up were solid. It is really setting itself apart from other BLs I have seen and felt fresh. The overall story was really interesting even if slow-paced : for once, I felt that redemption when offered was deserved as it was the outcome of well-written ill-fated relationships. The karmic burden, the white and black magic, the previous lifes : it was captivating. The opening generic as well as the soundtrack were work of art in themselves, setting up perfectly the small traditional village and fantasy atmosphere.
The chemistry between the main couple Peem/Khem (played by Keng and Namping) as well as the secondary couple Chan/Jet (played by Tle and FirstOne) was also great, with the secondary couple being my fave of the series. I feel the characters of Charn and Jet were the heart of the drama, they were animated and charming : their bounds really made me swoon so much. I cannot wait to watch Tle and FirstOne as main leads in another work : both their chemistry and acting was super convincing ! Peem and Khem had also some very nice and hot moments but I was less invested in them than in the secondary couple. It is partially due to their characters being more closed off but also unfortunately to some less convincing acting, mainly by Namping. He felt sometimes bland here, which is a bit of shame because I expected more of him from the previous title I saw him in. It might be linked to the role/directing, so I will definitely keep an open mind for his future performances.
I would recommend this to people looking for a dark fantasy BL drama. While slow-paced, it takes the viewer into a well-rounded journey featuring characters with motivations that made sense. The romances were very well-built as well, with a lot of fiery chemistry, angsty slow-burn and butterflies inducing moments.
Was this review helpful to you?
Did not know a thing about MMA but was properly entertained!
This series was really fun as it follows the journey of misfit high schooler Suzuki Aoba as he develops an interest into MMA in order to defeat his long lasting childhood Nemesis, last champion of the MMA highschooler tournament. Main character is a clear underdog, learning various techniques, increasing in strenght as he faces various opponents...All those elements are clear characteristics of shonen manga genre from which this series is an adaptation. It is rather well done, with a good pacing...However, it lacks a proper ending and feel like just an arc of the journey of the main character was adapted leaving the viewer without a convincing closure.The acting was alright, a bit caricatural sometimes, especially for some of the most colourful opponents of the hero. But it is expected as it is an adaptation of a manga. I particularly enjoyed the bromance between the hero Suzuki Aoba and his first friend Iwase Sannosuke who bullied him at first and grew to admire and respect him as Aoba skills improved out of sheer will.
The production was okay : it is clearly low budget drama with not enough figurants to really amp up the fights during the tournament but the camera work while filming the fights make it not that noticeable. I truly enjoyed the fighting scenes : there was a lot of variety in the techniques showcased and it never felt repetitive despite the mecanics of the scenario remaining the same for most of the competition. I really enjoyed the opening song but the remainder of the soundtrack will not leave me a lasting memory.
I will recommend this to people that are looking for a shonen series. If you enjoy underdog story and misfit character growing through a journey, as well as fight scenes, this will be a good pick for you. I was a bit disappointed by the fact that the story does end on an open note rather than a fully satisfying conclusion, as it feels like the drama just addapted an arc of the manga rather than the complete story. However, I still found the series very entertaining and fun to follow despite its clear budget constraint and over the top acting.
Was this review helpful to you?
