I watched this mainly for the beauty that is Kitamura Kazuki who played Seiya, the King and rival to the main guy. He never disappoints. It was an interesting dip into the escort culture of Japan. But ultimately, as many J-dramas do, it became too preachy, trying to rationalize and promote an illicit career choice to be seen as honorable.
I enjoyed this because I loved the lead actors, they saved it. Normally I find Taiwanese dramas a big drag stuffed with filler. And I don't mind ridiculous plots if the leads can endear me.
I'm a big fan of crime and mystery Kdramas, I like certain degrees of angst, and twisty darkness more than many of the Kdrama fans I've come to know over the years. But I've noticed a trend in the amount of gory "violence for the sake of violence." I first really noticed it in "Black", then "Voice," and 'Ghost Detective." OCN is really a crime channel, and I love the dramas like Signal and Tunnel. But now, crime shows are becoming pure torture porn. Since Netflix has been broadcasting these dramas exclusively, I get the feeling SK is upping the violence quota, believing that's all American's want to see. You hear it in the dialogue when some of the cops balked at carrying guns, one of them remarked, "What is this, America?" I'm reading all the spoilers and I can't believe it! Did the writer get possessed themself? I'm already on ep. 14 but I think I'll just skip to the end.
I've never read the book so I can't make that comparison. I was just happy to see Chris Wu looking and acting wonderfully on my screen. I loved his role. The last few times I saw him he looked extremely thin. But I've been away from Asian dramas for a long time and have recently come back to watching.
I read in other reviews that Erl Lang in the book was far more powerful, it's a shame we didn't get to see this. However, this being Netflix, they always push "female empowerment" so the decision to "weaken" his character and make Li Lan more involved and stronger (If she's not already in the book) is not a coincidence. I wouldn't have known either way and didn't seem him as a weakling.
I'm not a big fan of having anachronistic music/costuming, etc in historical productions, but this was a fantasy. The music was pretty lit and I hope I can find the soundtrack.
This drama went in directions I didn't think it would. I expected a typical love square between the three male leads and the FL. In a way, there was, but it subverted expectations. The drama did well in making me suspect the two male leads of killing Tian Ching. And of course all the women, but for some reason, not the actual killer! I wish it didn't end on that cliffhanger, but COVID changed everything so who knows when the next segment will come out.
This movie was very similar to the first American one, except that it took place in Japan with a brother and sister instead of a couple, and it threw in a few more sinister twists. It was refreshing to finally watch a Japanese horror that doesn't have a vengeful female ghost with long black hair and a white dress. The invisible presence acted much the same way as the first film (just like the devil, why change his tactics when they always work?) Just when I thought this movie was simply a Japanese version of the first one, they created a unique tie-in to both films to let you know it's a continuation. Clearly trying to escape doesn't help. I believe the sister was already gone once it started controlling her limbs.
Is there going to be romance between the two leads?
That'd be cool, but OCN tends to avoid romances, or they just slightly hint at it. They might not considering how they take the age gap more seriously and Jang Hyuk's character is still a grieving widower.
IKR! Though he was the star of Signal in my eyes, he's not the reason it got subbed!
I absolutely loved him in Signal. I was over the moon when I heard he was playing the Detective because i loved the Korean version so much and it was the best role.
I have 2 theories: 1. That little scene was a flashback to the past and Mon was reincarnated. Mon was the girl he'd loved and wrote letters to in his past. So it ties them together forever and she knows she'll definitely see him again soon.
Or it's the other way around She's having a vision that he's been reincarnated and she'll meet him again, and he will know and sense it's her at that time, which is why he looked up from his letter writing.
2. When Mon is at the photo store, she's having a flash-forward and we are seeing her in the afterlife meeting Senior, who's been waiting for her. It doesn't mean she'll die young or anything, but it just means she's meeting the love of her life again. That's why she smiles at the photo and says she'll see him around.
I enjoyed this, I liked the mystery and the relationship between Mon and Senior. They are a cute couple. Someone said this movie reminded them of the 90's. I'd say yes, horror-comedies like The Frighteners or Cemetery Man. This wasn't too kiddie and had serious themes woven within.
This post is ME in a nutshell! I feel all of this. Innocent man was my gateway drama too. Right after I saw "A Werewolf Boy" in theaters, I came home looking for more movies with Song Joong Ki and found Drama Fever. I finished it by January 1st 2013. I was hooked and addicted. But now I feel exactly as you do. The spark and my attention span is gone. It could be a lot of big factors along with burnout. Family issues and obligations, a giant move across the country. Maybe it was my age too. I was already 33 when I saw my first Kdrama, now I'm 39. Sometimes I can barely keep my eyes open through the 2nd episode. (But that could be health related too. I get fatigued very fast these days.)
I feel like the dramas landscape has changed a lot. It's hard to put my finger on it. Kdramas have their own cultural flavor, but I feel like the more they adapt Western attitudes and concepts the tone's changed. Of course it's not all negative, and a lot of these Drama changes reflect a real society that is improving in how they treat women and work relations, etc. But I still look for those older dramas with all their common tropes. They've dropped tons of those now. Again, it's not bad, but I miss them. I love the early dramas up until the 2016 or so. After that I became more choosy. Plus I'd already branched out to Japanese, Hong Kong, Chinese, and Taiwanese dramas. My favorite Kdramas are often Dramas like Innocent Man, dark melos and crime genres. Some fantasy, etc. I never cared for the full blown cotton candy stuff. The Rom Com has to have a very intriguing story to get me interested.
Lately I haven't tuned in to much of anything. I recently finished "Big Issue" with Han Ye Seul which I really liked. But I can't seem to keep my focus much, whereas in the early days I could be watching 3 dramas at the same time or 4-6 eps in one night if I had the opportunity.
I found it through youtube on different channels. Here's a channel with 3 clips from it. But if you search the title on youtube you'll find all the others.
I read in other reviews that Erl Lang in the book was far more powerful, it's a shame we didn't get to see this. However, this being Netflix, they always push "female empowerment" so the decision to "weaken" his character and make Li Lan more involved and stronger (If she's not already in the book) is not a coincidence. I wouldn't have known either way and didn't seem him as a weakling.
I'm not a big fan of having anachronistic music/costuming, etc in historical productions, but this was a fantasy. The music was pretty lit and I hope I can find the soundtrack.
This drama went in directions I didn't think it would. I expected a typical love square between the three male leads and the FL. In a way, there was, but it subverted expectations. The drama did well in making me suspect the two male leads of killing Tian Ching. And of course all the women, but for some reason, not the actual killer! I wish it didn't end on that cliffhanger, but COVID changed everything so who knows when the next segment will come out.
1. That little scene was a flashback to the past and Mon was reincarnated. Mon was the girl he'd loved and wrote letters to in his past. So it ties them together forever and she knows she'll definitely see him again soon.
Or it's the other way around She's having a vision that he's been reincarnated and she'll meet him again, and he will know and sense it's her at that time, which is why he looked up from his letter writing.
2. When Mon is at the photo store, she's having a flash-forward and we are seeing her in the afterlife meeting Senior, who's been waiting for her. It doesn't mean she'll die young or anything, but it just means she's meeting the love of her life again. That's why she smiles at the photo and says she'll see him around.
I feel like the dramas landscape has changed a lot. It's hard to put my finger on it. Kdramas have their own cultural flavor, but I feel like the more they adapt Western attitudes and concepts the tone's changed. Of course it's not all negative, and a lot of these Drama changes reflect a real society that is improving in how they treat women and work relations, etc. But I still look for those older dramas with all their common tropes. They've dropped tons of those now. Again, it's not bad, but I miss them. I love the early dramas up until the 2016 or so. After that I became more choosy. Plus I'd already branched out to Japanese, Hong Kong, Chinese, and Taiwanese dramas. My favorite Kdramas are often Dramas like Innocent Man, dark melos and crime genres. Some fantasy, etc. I never cared for the full blown cotton candy stuff. The Rom Com has to have a very intriguing story to get me interested.
Lately I haven't tuned in to much of anything. I recently finished "Big Issue" with Han Ye Seul which I really liked. But I can't seem to keep my focus much, whereas in the early days I could be watching 3 dramas at the same time or 4-6 eps in one night if I had the opportunity.
https://www.youtube.com/user/PS4Danny/videos