HaveNoJams

This one wasn't on my radar, I saw some episodes released subbed and became interested because of the two leads. I feel like *most* modern CDrama rom-com's especially the 30+ ep ones have that same issue with becoming draggy in the middle. But the rating tanking so drastically goes to show that it didn't improve in the later eps. Which according to what I read about the end... yikes.

I ended up dropping My Journey to You, but I get you mean that even a BE or OE can leave you feeling satisfied with the final product. I could say the same for A Journey to Love finale. Heartbreaking? Absolutely. I loved that drama nevertheless.
Yikes... Then I can safely put this in my Not Interested list and move on, lol.

Not gonna lie I'm over the moon because of the two leads and my love of showbiz dramas. BUT my greedy little romantic heart can't help but wish this show had some romance... I mean it's a Gong Yoo & Song Hye Kyo main pairing come on!! xD

How bad does a ending have to be for people to be yelling fraud!? xD
I'm glad that I wait out dramas finishing before starting because I 100% would've given this a shot due to the leads.
Also, woooow to the 6.6 MDL rating was it really THAT bad?!

This guy is keeping booked and busy!! So here for more JCW content ~~~ :)

You guys I was cackling during the BI-BI-BI-Bibimbap song!! 🤣

So from the brief skimming I've done, this show went from YESSSS so excited to ughhh what even is this in 24 episodes...?
What happened? Is it still worth watching (as someone that's indifferent to the actors)? Or has the writing/story gone down the drain? There's A LOT of new dramas coming out of China in Oct/Nov, so I'm trying to weed out the duds in advance, lol.

If you're a fan of the original Spanish Money Heist this will (IMO) feel like the sparknotes version of that T.V. Series. Thankfully, I watched this first and enjoyed it. But now having started watching the original, I realize how superior in depth, characterization, and range of going-ons the original truly was. This version is a good! remake and I gave both Part 1 & 2 high ratings, but the original is better. This version has a better looking cast though, lol.

Honestly, this had no business being THAT good! This drama seriously BLEW past my expectations.

Any confirmations on a Season 2?!

If you want a Republic era rec, I'd suggest Fall in Love (2021). The leads (plus 2nd ML) are visually pleasing, and you won't fall victim to a cursed ending. It's a full length show so not one of those snapshot 10 min situations, lol. Though, as with any other Republic era CDrama there's some propaganda about the communist party, lmao. 🤷‍♀️
Girl! (? sorry for assuming if I'm wrong!) It looks like you've got a lot of greats that you've yet to watch out of China! Def give any of the top Xianxia's (my top 2 being Ashes of Love & Till the End of the Moon) a try! Love like the Galaxy is another great, *if you make it past the early handful of family episodes that WILL make you want to tear your hair out.
It sounds like you're not much of a historical fan, lol. I wasn't either, nor do I actively watch many Historical's still. BUT if you ever want to give a SK historical a shot, Mr. Sunshine & Scarlet Heart: Ryeo are A-tier! :)

Oooof 😰 don't even open that can of worms over Twitter (or x?) ARMY. They actually scare me, no joke. I'm praying for Jk's first confirmed gf cuz someone on twitter's prob gonna put a hit out on the poor girl. 🫣
Jin's post-army (heh) 1000 person hug-a-thon made me remember why I liked them so much. And I loved how everyone (sans 1 person) were normal and not harass-y about it!

I loved your NatGeo monkey analogy on the Hong family 🙊!! I learned ffing was a waste of time the hard way, when I was on like ep 2 of something and ALREADY skipping even the lead's scenes, lmao. #TeamDroppers over here welcome to the club. :)

I COMPLETELY agree!!! The NK side of CLOY was superior 10/10!!! I LOVED the comrades, the village ahjumma's, the amount of foiled escape attempts before FINALLY she made it over... etc. And the nail-biter of suspense surrounding her being discovered upped the intensity of it all. And of course their cohabitating!! The KDrama comrade who would "translate" for the rest of the gang when she did something that they deemed odd... the list goes on and on! Slight disagree on the ML being a normie however. Since, even though he didn't posture about like a peacock showing off his wealth, homie had hella backing with his dad being THAT high up in NK gov. 😂

Lee Se Young does melo well, so I'm not surprised by your "sad but in a very beautiful way" description, lmao. Having said that, I usually have to be in a specific mood before picking up a melo and that's just not it for me rn. Real talk, there's ZERO chance I'd start a melo before it's complete because my least favorite trope in a romance is the leads breaking up in the end (or in this case... again?). *cough* Record of Youth, 25/21 *cough* (another reason why I didn't really rec it to you, lol) Lowkey I'd rather have one of the leads straight up die, I know that sounds hella morbid. 💀

I audibly gasped. She's pretty perfect for the role. As someone that's senior-ish with the elegance to play Empress Navier. Now, I'm curious who the hell would play Trashta. *cough* I mean Rashta. 😅

There's an article that just came out on MDL for short-length Chinese dramas. I haven't watched all that many myself, but I didn't screenshot a couple off that article to maybe check out! Buuuut yeah steer clear of Republican era one's 99% of the time they end in tragedy, lol.

And just when I thought that this convo couldn't get any more riveting, I found out you're an ARMY as well!! 😁 Contrary to the user/pp I'm not a hardcore ARMY, lol. Back in 2017 when I made this account tho, lol. I still like what BTS represents, and I got used to this user sooo... prob not gonna change it.

Lmao rich weirdos is so on the nose for the mains in QoT! At over 1 hr 30+ every ep that's a lot of ffing to do, lol. *slow clapping* your determination to hold out until the end. 😅
Besides, I wasn't really feeling the "leads are already together yet hate each other" aspect of the show. I've found out that I like seeing the enemies to lovers/falling in love from the start of dramas. QoT... was just not it, lol.

UGHHHHH I can ramble away about CLOY endlessly! I LOVED that drama. Hell, it's my introductory rec for any new KDrama viewers! I've even got a friend hooked on KDramas off of CLOY, lol. The characters, the palpable chemistry, the comrades, the music, the intense episodes that ended on a cliff... aghhh the list goes on and on. Yes, there's some faults as well if one wants to nitpick, but this show is one that I've rewatched 3 times, yet the magic still holds up on EVERY rewatch! Having watched KDramas on and off for over 10 years now, this is top 5- if not top 10 all-time for me.
The only other one that comes to mind for North x South stories is King 2 Hearts, which I dropped for reasons that I can't even remember anymore, lol. Same story of romance between important figures in NK & SK. Though, a fair bit older than CLOY. (And with less impressive visuals in the leads IMO 🫣)

Exactly! I can't even list the amount of shows Asian or otherwise that I've said sayonara to for the EXACT reason of unlikable leads. Queen of Tears being just one of the more "surprising" one's considering it's popularity ig. 🤷‍♀️

Yeahh NGNL is no LR, but as a palate cleanser it'll do it's job, lol.
Wait... What Comes After Love is sad?!?😲 Shoot... I was so looking forward to watching given the visuals, premise, and the whole joint production between SK + Japan. Is it still worth checking out??

That's true. But if you watch it just for the "author falling into her book aspect" you get a complete (albeit open with regards to the loveline) ending for the characters.

Yes it's silly. Yes there's cringey cliche scenes. But as a short little 2 ep "drama" it was fun if you don't take it too seriously. :)

Honestly, this works just fine as a stand alone. As in, you don't need to have watched No Gain, No Love to understand/enjoy SUOL. There is just ONE scene that ties back to NG,NL and that's the scene where you see the younger version of the FL with her dad. As someone that finished NG,NL before watching, that scene managed to make me slightly teary-eyed because we know the background between these characters outside of book world, otherwise, it just looks like a sweet father & daughter interaction.

That's precisely what happens to me anytime I give those 10 min per episode Chinese dramas a chance. God forbid if they're Republic era because then I can't even count on a happy ending after all of that anguish, lmao.

Exactly! And if all else fails we'll do as our great leader's father did before, and simply kidnap back the director and stars to further our supreme leader's greatness inside of the regime! (coming from a history buff that just so happened to have watched a documentary on this recently lol)
Correcting your sentence: 'cause random humans *with good taste* can't possibly give this drama a 10/10 😂 you+me+my paid army are obviously out here to muddy the waters and hyper-inflate a subpar drama because we're toxic. Duh. 🙄

Why didn't I like QoT? Well for starters I went into it when it was being hyped up like crazy with the 20%+ viewership news. Also, it felt like everyone and their mother's were watching and adoring that drama on this site, lol. It was underwhelming plain and simple. (And this is coming from someone that was SO SO SO looking forward to another Park Ji Eun project, having loved CLOY and LotBS!) The episodes were each 1hr 30 min+ long, but without much happening to keep my attention throughout the entirety of said episode duration. That plus I disliked both the FL & ML, lol. Unlikable characters ESPECIALLY a main, 99% of the time leads to me dropping a show. QoT was no exception. Even if I wanted to give the ML the benefit of the doubt for as you put it being happy with the FL's terminal diagnosis... which ikr ick!? I wasn't really feeling their chemistry either... lowkey thinking back on all the cons I just listed I have no idea why I stuck around for 4 episodes lmao!
*I'm going to play see no evil hear no evil with the plagiarism allegations I like CLOY too much to want to deep dive any further on that, lol... 🙈🙉*

Seeing how I stopped mid-finale without any urgency to jump back into it, I think my overall feelings about No Gain, No Love speaks for itself. IMO that drama kinda fell off in the last few eps. Sucks because the first half was a hoot! Obviously I'll still finish (having come this far) but it definitely pales in comparison to LR. View it as a palate cleanser if you want to jump back into the world of rom-coms having just finished LR.

Heyyy fair enough! I've given some wacky dramas a 10/10 lol. You never know it might be exactly what you were looking for in that point in time. xD

No, they were right we're definitely bots! And to think that I grew out my hair to hide the big red reboot button on the back of my neck! 🥲
Pshhhh I NEVER comment and then the one time I do, I'm somehow the sole cause of a global catastrophe. I mean HOW DARE this drama be rated a 9.0 obviously you+me+my army of paid bots are responsible for this!!!

Haha that's what I was saying. 90% of the reason why BWS and others like him get away with some of these lines is because they're such stunners, lmao. If some rando on the street tried "I can't love you enough for this lifetime, I'll have to continue on in my next." Broooooo, there'd be ZERO chance for a second date. I mean... what kind of telenovela line are you feeding me?!? 🤣

Funny enough the line I mentioned above was a direct quote from Legend of the Blue Sea, haha. Cheesy one-liners aside, yes, do check it out! I just rewatched about a month ago after 4-5 years and the magic STILL held up. :)
I remember the line about the alien and mermaid, lmao! Park Ji Eun dramas are typically fun, though, Queen of Tears wasn't for me. 🫣 Feels sacrilege saying that out loud considering how popular that drama is.

Well then there you go! After the multi-dimensional Sun Jae a more papery-thin consistency Kim Ji-Uk is EXACTLY what the dr prescribed, lol. Having seen a bit more since we last spoke; mind you, I've changed my mind. It's good but not LR amazing.

Go for it in checking out his other works, but for what it's worth I was saying that Record of Youth was not for me, lol. Not even Park Bo Gum AND Byun Woo Seok could stop me from dropping, lol.

Oh I'm totally the same way!! The sheer amount of "iconic" dramas that I dropped because it just wasn't clicking... ooof. I usually give it like 3-ish eps MAX to see if I'll get invested in the story or not. But some shows lowkey reveal that they're not worth even that after just Ep 1, lmao.

I still don't know what happened below. The amount of negative labels like "toxic" and overgeneralizing by lumping me in with a supposed "you people" was kinda funny ngl. I even rechecked my original post it's just a bunch of emojis... 😅 🤷‍♀️

Now, back to LR! No, some of the lines would make me squirm if I had heard them said to me in real life, buuuut in THAT show with those two leads and their love story... it works. ✨✨
For instance: I recently rewatched The Legend of the Blue Sea, and even though I gave the drama a 10/10, ughhh some of the one-liners almost took me out, haha!

I haven't finished NG, NL just yet, but thus far it's been hilarious and a good watch! The FL is unlike any other that I've seen in dramas, in that she's empowered and unapologetically in-tune with her femininity and sexuality. I will say that the ML is a bit two-dimensional, but it's not horrible. IMO he's just not as fleshed out as Shin Min Ah's character. (having seen more than half of the drama) Happy bingeing whenever you get to this show!!

I still don't even know what I said that triggered this person, lmao. It hilarious for me that they're the embodiment of what my original comment claimed with the explosive OTT responses, lol. But the irony is probably lost on them. 😂