JayBird

I just mean that at this point in the drama, unless you're judging whether or not you personally are going to invest in the drama, you're being very premature. Very few dramas give you enough to actually make a value judgement this early on :)

With only 2 episodes out it doesn't 'deserve' any kind of rating.

Ngl, that bit where the FL's friend asked her if she was pregnant and the FL replied that that would never happen felt like foreshadowing. I know it's not, but it felt like it XD

The main issue is that, going by the summary, SGY shouldn't still be a sprinter by the time the drama starts and yet, for the first episode, he definitely was one. It's a small niggle but it changes a lot about the kind of story you can expect.

I really (really) enjoyed the first ep but currently the summary on MDL seems a little misleading?

Anyway, looking forward to getting to watch episode 2 today!

Indeed, I think in her case people just tend to focus more on her bad dramas than her good dramas (perhaps because her 'good' dramas a mainly historical)

Im Siwan is a phenomenal actor, imo. So far he's managed to deliver excellent performances even in dramas that are less that great (or at least based off the reviews I've seen for King In Love) and in well written material he's never disappointed me so far.

Shin Se Hyung seems to have chosen bad projects but I've seem her in 2 projects (I think) and she did well in both. I enjoyed her acting (or at least it didn't stand out as bad) and I think as long as the writing itself is good, she'll do just fine :)

A problematic ML who could fit into a drama like BOF ? Bleh, definitely not for me then XD

Ah that's a shame, it seemed so promising when it first aired...

Thank you so much for explaining! I'm probably not going to watch this anymore (for a number of reasons but mainly because of how heavily it seems to lean on the love triangle) but looking through the comments I'm glad KSH impressed people in his role :)

Hmmmm I suppose if you add up sloppy/forced writing and inconsistent leads then it makes sense for the rating so drop. Still, I've never seen quite such a big drop before, it took me by surprise 0.0

Oh so it's a change in the actual rating/scoring system? If it is then that's good because people trying to sway ratings up or down has been an issue for a while now and it's nice to know it's being addressed site-wide :)

Can someone tell me what happened to the ratings? I haven't watched the drama yet (I was waiting for it to wrap up/for the mood to strike) but the last time I checked the ratings were like 8.9/8.7 and now they're 8.1....

Aside from the love triangle stuff (which is what I've picked up from the comments), what happened????

Also feel free to reply with spoilers (just remember to tag them)

I'm dropping this drama but NOT because it's a bad drama so, before I go, I'm going to leave my opinion here (because too many people equate "I don't like it" to "it's a bad drama"):

From the 5 episodes I've watched, there's genuinely a lot to like about this drama; so far it's well shot, the characters are interesting (and a lot of fun), and the intrigue is, well... intriguing. Add to this some solid acting and you've got yourself a pretty decent drama. Yes, from what I've seen the flashbacks can feel a little messy, and yes, they can make things a little confusing but, honestly, they aren't all that bad judging from the episodes I've watched and my only real complaint is that Cha Joo Eun's wardrobe reminds me of the 00s in all the wrong ways (that was a dark time for fashion, I'm sorry).

Honestly, Private Lives actually reminds me a lot of a James Bond film, with all its plotting and shady deals. Now, for me, this is a problem because I don't like James Bond films and will fall asleep if I come within even a mile of a story that resembles one BUT if you're the kind of person who lives for James Bond-style thrillers (or even just enjoys them) I think Private Lives will be right up your street. Give it a go (or don't) but don't let anyone else decide for you!

Having watched the first episode, I'm looking forward to watching episode 2! The characters and set-up seem interesting and I'm curious to see how things develop (esp. the relationship dynamics between the four leads, that should be fun).

I agree that the writing got..... deeply iffy at points, but to me it didn't feel any different to any other short form drama I've watched (apart from WYEL but that was written and shot to be a film so it's a little different). The writing is always the weakest point of any webdrama tdh. But yeah, I can see why it would be disappointing and if I judged it like I judged longer form dramas I would have given it a much lower ranking. As it is though, I thought it was pretty good for what it was!

I can see what you mean but I'd say there's a few things to take into consideration before calling it an intentional and negative pattern, the first being the difference in how violence is presented in the dramas you mentioned.

In White Night and Long Time No See (both of which are earlier dramas), I would certainly agree that the violence is presented as being part of the "life-style". It is grittier, more graphic, and is a focal point of both dramas as well as the relationships in them. This isn't great BUT it is also fairly typical of early lgbtq+ media content as there seems to be a reluctance to show a completely happy and healthy gay couple without some violent consequences (in part, I would imagine, because that is part of the gay experience at the time the shows were made).

In Mr Heart and WYEL, on the other hand, whilst the violence is still there, it's much less of a focus and isn't necessarily tied to the characters' relationships or lifestyle. Rather, in both of these dramas it seems to be used to create dramatic tension and, as such, reminds me much more of how violence and conflict is used in more mainstream dramas; to add a little "excitement" to the story. In fact, neither of the "violent" storylines in WYEL or Mr Heart would be out of place in a lighthearted mainstream drama. To me, this is a positive sign, as it marks a step away from the normalisation of suffering as part of the gay experience (as in Long Time No See and White Night) and a step towards the normalisation of lgbtq+ stories within the mainstream narratives they used to be excluded from. The violence is still there, to a certain extent, but the tone of it has shifted and it's an incredibly important shift.

Idk if that makes sense but you brought up an interesting point and it got me thinking :P Also, if you want to see a gay narrative without any violence, I suggest Joan's Galaxy. It's an episode from SF8 and centers around a lesbian couple.

EDIT: also I'm so sorry I wrote an essay. This is probably the last thing you want to read XD

Well that was just gosh darn adorable!

On a more serious note, yes this series has its issues but I really do love how open both of them are with their affection and their sexuality. It really felt like a step forwards and I came away from this smiling. Definitely looking forward to the company's future projects!

I am afraid I'm going to have to start reporting some of the comments on this page. Regardless of whether you liked this drama or not, personal attacks are NEVER acceptable and I'm tired of coming here to find reviews only to find people throwing insults at each other instead. It's not helpful, it's not kind, and it make this space a deeply unpleasant and unfriendly place to be.

Say your piece about your drama, debate about it if you want, but can we all just please STOP insulting each other.

SF8 has a GL episode called Joan's Galaxy. It's more a short film than a drama but it's very cute. There's also Seonam Girls High School Investigators which I haven't watched but it is GL.