This review may contain spoilers
A Good Casual Watch
After several starts and drops of various historical dramas, this one was finally able to keep my attention long enough to become invested. The first couple of episodes may be slightly off-putting but it does evolve well and the layer of corniness is part of its charm.Positives:
- There's a good blend of serious moments and light-heartedness/comedy.
- Most of the actors did a good job with their roles.
- The mystery aspect was decent as well as the action scenes but nothing to write home about.
- Almost no romance.
- A good series if you need a break from heavy politics and melodrama.
Negatives:
- The biggest negative for me was the ML (Ding Yu Xi). His acting became increasingly not believable and he only seemed to utilize 3-4 different facial expressions throughout the series. Unfortunate because this really brought the series down a few notches. (And this is already overlooking the extreme corniness to his cat-human form).
- The story takes a somewhat convoluted turn somewhere in the middle, and the flow became messier. It's as if they spend the first half working on the build-up and then just decided to throw everything that was necessary for the plot all in at once, just to be able to complete it.
- While I may able to overlook things like poor villagers suddenly being able to build a hot air balloon in almost no time at all, it was difficult to overlook the reactions to character deaths. There is almost a zero grieving period or any needed emphasis on the deaths of even relevant support characters. Providing flashbacks that doesn't trigger any emotes doesn't cut it, and the almost instantaneous leap to laughing and having a good time shortly thereafter was just not okay.
However, it is a good series that one doesn't need to take seriously and is good for a casual watch. Despite some significant negatives, it still did provide some actual laugh out loud moments.
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You know the shows/movies where your eyes are glued to the set and you demand no interruptions? This one started off as such but then trails off a bit during the middle. The uniqueness of the plot is what really makes this one great but outside of it, it does still consist of the similar predictability you come across in many k-dramas. But also as with many k-dramas tropes, even while knowing the direction they're taking you in, you'll still give into the emotional roller-coaster.
In no way an expert in autism but the similar shortfalls found in the Good Doctor, was also evident here. While I love when anyone who is viewed as different in the world being celebrated for their differences and strengths, there feels to be a heavy hand in highlighting positives when convenient which causes inconsistencies through various scenarios. And maybe because it was only 10 episodes but the flow from switching focuses of your main characters didn't flow too naturally.
If you happen to be in emotional mood, prepare yourself with a tissue box. While it's not really as profound as it had the potential to have, it will still offer many viewers a good visualization of seeing things from a different perspective. It's worth the watch but hopefully they will follow up with a good continuation, particularly because of the ending where they tried to create some type of mystery but instead of creating anticipation, it felt out of place.
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The first few episodes were a bit lackluster as the tragedies were done in an over-simplified and overly dramatic way. But it does start to pick up in quality once the king comes into the picture. What makes this series a bit different from some in this genre is that although there are the usual politics, it doesn't feel quite as heavy. It helps that there are plenty of humorous characters and moments to help break up it up. There is also a unique incorporation of a women-only investigative team, so there is some "detective" aspect to it as well.
The majority of the actors does a great job in their respective roles. I want to list them all to emphasize this but there's just too many. Instead I'll discuss the only actor that was obviously mediocre, and she happens to be one the series is titled after.
The Dong Yi character stayed relatively flat even when her status changes and although I think this was intentional, it gets old. This may not have been as glaring if the actress was better with micro-expressions or was more versatile with them. She makes the same few expressions ALL the time no matter what the situation is and it becomes more and more noticeable. It didn't help when they used a freeze frame of her with her usual eyes wide opened at the end of most episodes. Why they thought this would be a good cliffhanger is beyond me.
The other aspects that are off is how no one ages appropriately and time skips are pretty abrupt. As an example, one minute someone stated they were pregnant and minutes later, the baby was in their arms. Some portions of the episodes are binge-worthy and sometimes there is a a bit of a drag but it does move along.
Don't let this deter you from giving this one a try though especially if the female lead doesn't bother you as much as it did for me. Although she was a bit mono-toned, she's surrounded by many interesting characters that make up for it.
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Is the script written so poorly at times that it is just corny? Yes.
Does many of the elements in the story make sense most of the time? No.
Does the special effects look super low-budget at times? Yes.
However, I surprisingly found myself continuing on to the next episode and the next without the thought of dropping it. Because despite having to shrug off the major flaws, it was still an enjoyable watch. I laughed at times, teared up ever so slightly at times, and rooted for the camaraderie within the team.
The bromance was sweet, using the undeniable formula of pairing opposite personalities. This was one of the obvious draws from the series but the rest of our "superhero" team was fun to watch as well, each one with their own supernatural or intelligence skill set. It should be noted however that although I still enjoyed Zhu Yi Long's acting here (more in The Story of Ming Lan), he really should have learned how to swing a prop sword better.
The mini-plots within the underlying one can feel a bit blotchy but the overall one still wraps up well enough. There was also just enough intrigue for me to follow through to the end. So if you're one who can overlook some of these issues and not ask too many questions, it was a fun one to sit through without having to use much brain power.
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Average but charming
It's a good series to watch if you aren't looking for anything that can cause lack of sleep due to wanting to get to the next episode. Having recently getting back into the Asian series mode, I was super excited to see a new Wuxia series with high ratings. However, the series has the same flaws as with many others. The acting of the main protagonists are just slightly less than average and the only saving grace is they have some chemistry with each other. It feels like actors these days are chosen based on looks and less on their ability to act and draw the audience in. The actions scenes were below average and it made me miss again the days when actors with some actual martial arts skills were chosen for these types of roles. The plot had potential but the transitions were choppy.I did appreciate that the historical costume and makeup weren't as ridiculous as some other series, and nothing was too overly dramatized. And despite it being an overall average, it was still entertaining enough to finish.
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As with many superhero stories, you go in knowing it will be more entertainment than realism. The concept is great, especially since I have a soft spot for vigilantes but the execution in this one wasn't done well. Because it revolves heavily around the taxi, it does have a hint of resemblance to Batman (which they reference themselves in the series). The first couple of stories were satisfying and the exaggerations went well with that dab of comedic undertone. However, it just felt more and more lame as they entered heavily into the cloud-based firm revenge. While the script being overly basic can be overlooked, when the characters themselves began to lose their flavor, that's when there's really not much else to look forward to.
- The prosecutor was irritating from the beginning and she could have been written out completely with minimal impact.
- They try to humanize your mains by incorporating some type of trigger that causes them to relive their traumas but the way it was executed just made them again, lame. For a team that is supposed to be superior and calmly collected, and who's been doing this for a while, a whistle from some traffic cop is going to cause your main dude to pass out? Then your female main who's seen that online video over and over again in the past, is suddenly so traumatized by coming across it again during a job that she just abandons ship and locks herself up? While trauma does impact someone for a lifetime, this was incredibly excessive.
- The sister's suicide. They paint her out to be a sweet, loving person. But anyone who has enough right mind to make a last meal for a loved one, tuck a blanket over them, and then decides to publicly jump off a building and plop herself horrifically in front of the same loved one, is just a selfish ass.
- Oh, how the flashbacks were misused much too often. Instead of adding anything to the plot, they were just fillers to prolong the minutes. I also didn't buy into the dramatic music that tried to convince the audience into thinking the scene was eventful.
If they had maintained the same pacing as with the first couple of stories or didn't reduce character developments, it would have been much more entertaining. Unfortunate.
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This review may contain spoilers
Okay, I really, really tried and wanted to finish this series. Accepted that this was the feel of a daytime soap opera where everything is dramatized and nothing really made sense or flowed well. They threw in as much dramatic effects as possible with car chases in miraculously empty highways, doppelgangers, coincidences that should only occur in a town with less than a hundred population, etc. It really did no justice for two of the mains portrayed by Ji Sung and Kim Min Jung, as they are the only ones to look forward to on screen. The rest of the mains were incredibly annoying and hypocritical and were a really poor balance to the "Devil Judge". They come off as arrogant and self-righteous fools who only create more problems than solve any. They whine, cry, criticize, and complain but have no abilities to do anything about the situations, and yet they end up relying on the same ones they continuously bash over and over again.
Even ignoring glaring issues like with the Park Jin Young character who is supposed to be a judge idol but yet, he can just casually go on his investigations without being recognized? Or the fact that while he apparently worked so hard to become a judge (even though it was handed to him), he gave attitude to his employer over and over right off the bat? And despite being overly vocal about being lawful and moral, he judges his boss pretty much immediately, plants a listening bug in his office, and then invades his privacy in his own home while he was being taken care of? Then there's his equally arrogant cop girlfriend who illegally provides him with information and equipment.
What finally made me throw my hands in the air in defeat was when that incompetent and useless cop girlfriend decided it was a fantastic idea to approach a mob of troublemakers by herself, leave the handicap niece in the car, and expect things will go smoothly just because she whipped out a gun? Then, when the guys come to their rescue, she turns around to point a gun at the uncle because he's pissed off and has the assailant by the neck? Then says she's going to arrest HIM instead? Furthermore, the niece also acts up like her usual prissy brat self even though she's the one who called him begging for help?
There's just too many annoying aspects to list and I can't stand characters who want to juice the hell out of their life traumas as if they are the only ones in the world who have them. The overall plot had good potential and Ji Sung and Kim Min Jung carried their roles well, but the annoyances from the others have become overwhelming and I'm done trying.
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Fun but could have been great
Foremost, the cast with the three main leads were great. The series jumped off strong with a fantastic blend of comedy and very heartfelt and relatable victim stories. But other reviewers were accurate in how they could have been more thorough with wrapping up each event. This can still be overlooked to a certain degree but I think they tried too hard to continually increase the scope of the stories to a point where it just loses that initial momentum. It went from wanting to pay attention to every dialogue to it being the first time I've dropped a series with only two episodes to go.It's honestly still worth watching though even for the stories less the last one, because those were mostly done really well and it provides a great insight on the corruption of corporations who avoid labor laws and safety (with more than one tearjerker moments).
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The narrative starts off pretty well but the overall plot declines steadily thereafter. The crime-solving aspect of the series is subpar and there's pretty much no character development. Based off the camera work, it has a low budget feel, which wouldn't matter as much if all else was done well. But it's as if they tried to take all the ingredients that are successful in other crime series and mashed it all together hoping for a well-done dish. All the characters remained one-noted and you don't get attached to any of them. I thought the concept of helping the dead would have been one of the highlights but they also don't have much value. Unfortunately, it didn't cut it in the entertainment or emotional triggering areas.
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Somehow Captivating
This review comes from a re-watch a couple of years after the first run. As with many of the newer historical dramas, it isn't without its common flaws. So why the higher score despite some shortcomings? Because it was fun to watch the first time and was still fun to watch the second time.- Even if the acting is slightly cringe at times, the chemistry still manages to work and you'll still laugh out loud, then shed a few tears, and go back to laughing again. Xiao Zhan also does a good job in keeping the momentum going.
- Even if there are some plot holes and inconsistencies, the story and twists were well-paced and interesting enough to keep you wanting to get to the next episode even when it's already past midnight.
- Even if the action scenes are flimsy at times, it's too late to care because you're already drawn in to the plot.
- Even if the dramatizations can get a bit much as usual, it actually works well here for the comedy relief which balances out the grimmer undertones.
Despite having dropped other series for less, this one just manages to blend itself well. For a fairly long drama, it surprisingly had minimal draggy moments because the plot usually shifts when it threatens to reach that point. The underlying morals Asian films usually try to incorporate, is actually much more realistically done in this one. And although I don't agree with the romantic censorship, it works out well for me personally because romantic subtleties are usually much more meaningful.
Overall, it is a memorable one and it makes me think the novel must really be great.
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Fun Camaraderie
It's a pretty simplistic series so keeping this super short and sweet. The best thing about this series is the camaraderie between our two main MLs, the hospital staff, and the spirits. While it has some basic serious undertones, it's overall appeal is the fun in watching the developments of various relationships. It's nice that it doesn't feel heavy-handed in either the medical, politics, or romance aspect in particular.The main negative is the feel of lag in the plot flow throughout most of the series. Each turning point or revelation felt almost circular. The female love interest is also very bland and if the entire relationship was cut out, it wouldn't have really made any impact.
Nevertheless, if you enjoy the hospital setting with a touch of some spirit action and fun brotherhood, it's worth checking out.
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Why is this series not more popular?
This series was impressive and exceeded my going-in expectations. One issue I consistently have with Chinese series these days is how unnatural the dialogues are but this one did a fantastic job. Also, many series with the legal theme tend to incorporate a substantial amount of bells and whistles or a "genius" character but this one didn't need it.Plot: This is one of the most well-rounded portrayals of legal cases I've come across so far. It follows some pretty heavy cases (and some lighter ones) involving minors and does a really good job with the follow-through. They aren't just presenting a case for the dramatics, fantastically punishing criminals, and just moving on. They actually do a deeper dive into the sensitivities around working with children and teens which I really appreciate.
Characters/Actors: They chose the perfect cast especially with our main FL and ML. I love that our FL isn't just some generic eye candy that is needed to overcome shortcomings of acting skills. Additionally, the individual development of the more major characters and the chemistry between them are believable and heart-warming.
There are some flaws with the series such as a sliver of corny in one particular section and the plot flow wasn't perfect. The cases initially are done with a lot of depth and the second half started to get more muddled and rushed. But honestly, this didn't stop me from binging as there was minimal lag scenes. This really should have been a 40+ episode series.
Note that while some of the cases pretty heavy, there is an abundance of just fun and natural slice-of-life humor. There is also thankfully no ridiculous romance here. I've gone a little back and forth on the score due to the aforementioned flaws but compared to other series in this genre, it is deserving of the higher score. Highly recommended- it made me laugh, hold my breath, cry, and raised eyebrows.
P.S. Not sure why this is tagged as a thriller.
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Charming
Really wasn't sure what vibe the movie was going to give off going in but was pleasantly surprised at the layer of light-heartedness that topped off a serious case. It did a great job with highlighting the concept of "beyond a reasonable doubt" and keeping the human aspect of jurors. Jurors from different backgrounds, those who are anxious to get to a resolution because of the time it's taking out of their own responsibilities, and a judge with good intentions but has also become more methodical from years of experience.For only less than two-hour session, it was well-paced and well-rounded.
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Heavy topic, average portrayal
It's hard to criticize anything that involves such a sensitive and heavy subject but this was done almost too idealistically and unrealistic. It's as if whoever wrote it or directed it doesn't really understand the complexity of severe abuse. Then again, one can argue that it is realistic as well because how many people really do.The actors weren't fantastic and sadly, the stepmother is probably the best actor in the movie. Then there are scenes that irked me such as when the lawyer had the kid continually deliver gifts to the victim. Did he not learn his lesson from the first monetary gift he gave to them? Why would anyone think it's a good idea to send anything to the victim's house when she still lives with her abuser? The plot flow overall was too idealistic in how it went from no one caring, to suddenly everyone caring.
Nonetheless, it is still heartbreaking because no matter how average the movie is, you know scenarios like this one or worse are existing all around us every day still. But if you're seeking a similar genre that has far more substance, I'd recommend Endless Protection.
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How to Make Millions before Grandma Dies
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Two words. Relevant and tearjerker.
This one really hits home for me particularly in the older generation Asian culture for multiple reasons.- The preference for sons has been so deeply ingrained in the system that no matter how despicable sons may have been to themselves and their families, they were always enabled and coddled. Not always out of malice, but because of the inability to remove this embedded and biased attachment. Many women from multiple generations, even in modern times, suffer from feeling lesser than, yet they often end up being the more empathetic ones.
- The older generations, constantly wishing for the younger generations to "live better" than they have, fail to understand that providing children with everything they need to the best of their abilities can also turn them into emotional and financial dependents. To make matters worse, younger generations often have little appreciation and sometimes even blame their elders for not being more successful.
- We all tend to get so caught up in the day-to-day expectations and pressures from multiple aspects of life that it becomes difficult to appreciate the people around us and the as-is situations we are in. And too often by the time we do, it is too late.
I really love the realism and details in the movie. They paid great attention to details and this always make it super special. If this hits home for you, be prepared for not only a moment or two of tears but almost an ongoing river of them.
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