Tharr

It ended, finally

It's not updated yet but I'll assume this drama is completed and just post the review.
For those who don't wanna read it all: this drama is sht. Plot contrivances and plot holes one after another, to keep the story going, when in fact a lot of stuff would've been resolved faster. More so because the characters are students that do exactly that: resolve problems using logic...
I'll keep it simple, because I don't wanna waste even more time on it. Also, I'll say this here, because I must say it again and again. I'll talk about the drama's quality, not the enjoyment factor. Those are NOT the same. You can enjoy bad media, and thats ok (aka "my guilty pleasure"). Just make sure you know it is bad. Yes, you can find it funny (dunno why), to each its own, but do know it is bad and it should be rated as such. And why this drama? Wouldn't it be better to watch a different one, or re-watch something that you already know it is good? Just sayin'...

Before starting the real review, I wanna address an "interesting" fact. I was talking to someone and that person kept bringing politics into the talk about this drama's quality. "No, no. I like it 'cause its different." "Yes, but the script is bad." "Yes, but the lgbt (yes, only those 4 letters were used, so I'll do the same) community..." "Wait, what? I'm talking about this drama and its writing..." "Yes, I understand, but here in the States, lgbt..." And thats when it hit me. Most people that regarded this drama as amazing were praising the fact that it uses a different formula and/or they praised the comedy (neither true, btw). And the funny thing about that? This drama goes meta: in its universe, the FL takes a job as a rom-com screenwriter consultant, for a script regarding a rom-com in a science campus backdrop, (just like this drama), and the writers wanting to use the usual tropes (like this drama), and the FL basically drops the job because she realises the show is gonna be sht (just like this drama). So: WE got a drama that is different (supposedly), that in fact it is full of the usual tropes, that it looks bland, with its setting in a bland location. Our FL dropped the job because she realised the story had no future. And yet, WE, the viewers are supposed to like this drama that uses the same formula.... The irony is strong with this one. And no, using meta commentary doesn't make it better if the flaws remain unresolved. Btw that meta thing keeps going and going and going.... If the ending is real-life inspired it would make sense why I hated that character (maybe self-inserted).

And now, back to our main program. Visuals. Drab. Everything looks bad. The location, the colour palette, the cinematography. Oh, the costumes (because I also talked about that with said person). Everything looks cheap.
Audio. Kinda decent, I guess. Nothing special, but the tracks used are on par with the scenes, and the mixing was done at appropriate levels. The less than meh part was the over-usage of the "disk scratch" sound effect, but I guess thats because it was coerced by the script, always going for the "cue music, aaaand now sudden stop 'cause the scene abruptly changed, and now pls laugh" trope. Also here, I could add that the OST used were usually ok. I don't remember any of the songs, but maybe thats because I don't listen to that genre. Dunno.
World-building. Meh. Supposedly its about young people and their struggle, with half-talking english,... all the "cool, modern" stuff. You get a very very basic setting and thats it. Ofc, you don't need more, because nothing is really happening, but oh well. The pacing was meh. This drama is more a slice-of-life kind of thing. Every episode feels like an every day stuff. And no, its not really and "every day" because time passes and the characters tell us that its a different week/month, to help us. Lucky us... Character development. Don't make me laugh.... The is an attempt for some (one) of the supporting cast, barely the beginning, but you can't truly call it a character development.
And all the drama is basically a big manipulative editing trope. Every aspect, every bit of drama, of stakes, are in fact events edited and lated re-edited to show you a "different side". Basically they lie to you and then they go " no no, its ok, see? Actually it all happened this way". So, your investment is null. And next time you won't even bother to care, because they'll change the scene and show you a different result anyway. Yes, great drama... You'll definitely enjoy it....
So, what we have here is a low production value ...thing. It looks cheap, it feels cheap. Heck, it is cheap.

And now the "good" parts. Lets start with a mid one. The comedy. The so-called comedy is in fact a series of cringe scenes and/or dialogues. You know those jokes that made you laugh very loudly even when you never really got then, when you were 13yo? Thats what we have here. Or some extremely cringe moments that are played for laughs. For full minutes. Ghostbusters 2016 levels of cringe.
The romance. Its not really a romance. It is supposed to, yes, but the execution... Oof. You know how the "normal" trope is to have the characters meet, hate each other, warm a little, fall in love hard and use the second half of the season to show just useless fluff, apart from the last two episodes when some fake drama occurs, but they get over it and then live happily ever after? Well, thanks to this new, innovative formula, nothing happens for 2/3 of the season, then we have fake drama, for us, the viewers, because in-universe there was never one but the ambiguous, manipulative editing made it look like something was going on. Oh, the last episodes were truly horrible (especially the last one, especially the ending... pfff). I had to pause after 5 minutes, to get over the cringe scenes. And 5 minutes later, I've paused again. And again, 10 minutes later. Yes, I checked my watch every time. The fking skit kept going and going and going. *sigh* It was a looooong watch...... I started finding increasingly new reasons to pause the video.
After all this the warm-up I think we're ready for the main stuff. The writing is horrendous. What people praise is in fact all sht. The story, the comedy, the characters, everything. Full of tropes but done in all the wrong ways. From that discussion I've mentioned, "I like that we have a reverse trope, how we have a smart FL and a dumb ML". Yes, this is the first usage of such trope. Thank God we got this drama to represent! We have the dumb friend, "with heart" (I hated her so much!), that smiles and doesn't "read the room", always in the couple's way. And ten seconds later that fact becomes a source of comedy, ofc. Sure, the couple itself is always in its own way, but lets move on. People talking half-sentences out-loud, and continuing in inner monologues, so that misunderstandings occur. Also, talking out-loud "by yourself" trope. Also, 5 minutes of "bad-luck" scenes, one after another so that the plot can illogically be pushed forward. And so on, and so on, and so on.
I guess this a good point to talk about that specific stuff. The script is full of plot devices, plot contrivances and plot holes. Some examples. An important one, where the FL is hooked by an umbrella of a guy walking by, so that she is dragged a couple of meters, so that she interacts with our ML. You're supposed to forget that logic and physics exist, in a science-based drama. You know, gravity, the force needed to drag a person, the force to keep the umbrella from bending or not ripping the backpack it was strapped to, the fact that the guy keeps walking and drags her, that he never falls down because of the change in momentum. OK. Another physics-related one, where a heavy flying (thrown) object reacts as a paper plane, flying in a slow-mo that even Snyder would be envious of, and people having time to react to said object by dodging/deviating its trajectory and such. For the laughs, ofc. Again, its an important scene because it influences the FL's future. Or a "normal" one where our main group tries going somewhere but all kinds of obstacles keep getting in the way, or people physically stopping her to talk. Like I said, all the sh***y tropes that make this drama "innovative and new".
The characters. Or more exactly the inconsistency of it. From the annoying FL, to the kind-hearted dumb friend. Sorry, aloof friend. The air-headed ML that suddenly becomes very insightful in the last 3-4 episodes... Yeah, no. You won't care about anyone. Or shouldn't.
The acting. Well, the dialogue is sht, so that didn't help, but the acting also wasn't great. The casting used B-list (maybe) actors. Or at least it felt like it. There was no "natural" chemistry. Most "acting" was bland or it even felt fake. Yes, we get a couple of nice scenes, but just a couple?? Also a fun fact (for me anyway) that made me chuckle: the actress in the wheelchair, moving her hips and legs. Yeah, she's cute and her general acting wasn't bad, but also showing that she didn't care THAT much about immersion :))))))) Oh, another "funny" thing for me. In the episode 14 (question mark? I might've been the end of the 13th one, dunno, don't care enough to check) a new character gets together with the group. I was thinking that you might swap the males around and it would feel the same drama. Again, amazing casting :)))
To sum all this up: sht script, with sht dialogue, story full of plot holes and contrivances one after another, after another, after another, after another, so that the story happens in the only way the author intends it to. And I'm not exaggerating or something, having "bad luck" 6 times in a row? Wtf?? Can't you write a better scene?

Ok, the drama also has some nice things. Like.. uh... sometimes is trying setting up some stuff that pays-off in a decent matter. Example: the ML makes a joke about a name and why it would be funny, and that exact situation does indeed happens. yes, there are a couple (maybe even a lot) of stuff like that, so tis not bad from start to finish. Another thing: the FL acts decent enough at times. Another one, Some of the supporting cast were more than good actors/actresses, also with a sliver of shadows of a character development. There. Some positive things. Who are we kidding? Dropping a pinch of salt in a bowl of sht and calling it decent? :)))

FFS! I failed at keeping it simple... You must understand, its a drama with episodes of 30ish minutes. Even watching at 2x speed, it still wouldn't end fast enough. It gets a rating of 3. The high note is for the audio and those aforementioned decent supporting cast. Low production drama about stuff, trying to be something else and failing at everything. Entertainment value? Maybe, if you like that kind of comedy, I don't judge... Re-watching value? Not really, not even by the ones that praise it. After the hype will be gone, they'll forget all about it, until they see the title by mistake and go "Oh, yeah, I've watched that, I liked it. I hope it gets a new season". And forgetting about it, again.
Anyway, thats all I've got for today. Have a lovely evening.

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It started ok, but...

So. The idea might be interesting, yes, but the execution...... Well, a lot of plot contrivances going on. I really "love" it when people can't speak a full sentence without interruptions or getting cold feet. And then they don't wanna listen to each other, don't wanna talk it out. This cringy, forced drama is always "the best". And yes, I'm talking about that lousy episode 8 (also leaking into episode 9, obviously). The last episode was dumb with the "plot twist", and the so-called endings to different stories. I was going "c'mon, just end already" since mid episode. Not that the other episodes are so much better. And the logic.... Geez, the logic... Its like the screenwriter forgot what he wrote earlier. Aka, plot hole.
Yes, there are some good things around, like the chemistry between actors, the acting (beside some meh moments, like her trying to be sad/crying, it was pretty good for all of them), some of the (silly) funny parts (like in ep 10: "if you don't mind me asking, which high school did you go to?"), but thats it. Ok, maybe some of the soundtrack too. But the directing is bleh, the cinematography is ok only if the scene really needs it to be. The pacing is a little weird, sometimes going full power for no real reason. But the worst parts are all about the script. Plot holes, plot contrivances, some subplots that make you think there are more things going on but actually they are a dead-end. And so on, and so on, and so on.
So. It started kinda ok, but it turned more meh along the way. I'm rating it a 4 just for the acting, some landscape shots and some food stuff (I was hoping for more details about recipes, but... oh well...). Return value? I don't think so.
Have a lovely evening.

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Nope

I've almost forgot to review it. Here it is: this drama is sht. I'll try to keep it short.
The actors have charisma and some of them did good acting. The cinematography was good, with some really excellent shots. And.. thats all there is to say about the "good" stuff.
Everything else about this drama is sht. The story is supposed to be about some cops that won medals at the Olympic Games. Thats supposed to mean they are kinda good at something. And yet, they suck. They are useless just until the script needs them to win. Oh, about the fight choreography. Our heroes must be some kind of superhumans. Getting hit with a baseball bat or a metal pipe? Thats oki, they still up. And I'm talking about 20-40 hits. But some other scene? Same bat or pipe brings them down in one hit. No consistency. I wont even bother about punching people with bike helmet on and they fall...... Same for the shooting (wide missing when people are somewhat close, but near missing, as in 5 cm) if they are behind a wall or something), fencing (isn't he supposed to have quick reflexes, more so because he also has taekwondo training?). The other 2 I wont even mention because they were useless until the last episode. Anyway, back to the script. Because it needed to have 16 episodes, the script is full of plot holes, plot contrivances and plot devices. Everything is set to happen in a certain way because the writer needs it to, logic be damned. It gets worse as episodes go by. Oh right, episode 15 is pure garbage. And because of this messed up story, the pacing is also weird. It feels like stuff is always happening.
Moving on. The visuals are ok. Sometimes weird vfx (especially regarding blood splatter), but it gets the job done. I assume the budget for that wasn't a priority anyway. And like I said, the cinematography was good (almost always).
Audio. The opening sequence has a good piece. Also a couple of nice songs throughout the season (I don't remember them now, but I know I wasn't bothered). Also a decent level mixing.
What else? High production value. Cmon, what else. I've got focused on the script and forgot everything else... Oh, the comedy is meh, the usual stuff. The romance is also meh unfortunately. The actors have chemistry and the little bits that they gave us were decent, but it is clear that the main focus was on the "story", the romance was always supposed to be just a thing in the background. Oh yes, about character development. Yeah, right..... :))))
So, stuff happens. You can enjoy the ride by looking at the shiny, nice, cute things on the screen but don't try to follow the story. Everything happens because the writer made it so, if people would've made smart/logic decisions the drama would've been over in 4 episodes. I'm giving it a rating of 4 based mostly on the good cinematography, the casting and the general acting. No return value, obviously...
Have a nice evening.

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Don't bother. Horrible pacing and script.

Other people made this up to be some kind of a rare gem. Its not. I'll go even further and say its not even mid-tier. This k-drama is for the simple people who can be entertained with cheap tricks.
Here it goes. The script. The idea for the story might be interesting, but thats all there is to it. We got something full of plotholes and plot devices. Especially in the later half. It is almost too cringe to watch, every stuff happening: because "fate". I'm not joking. Red string and all that bulls**t. And apparently that thing can mind-control people. Again, I'm not joking. Inner monologue: "I must be strong, I can't do that, I don't wanna do that". Glowing string, chimes stock sound-effect. "Why is my heart fluttering?" ..... Yeah, that bad. Filler episodes with stuff happening only because that string, because misunderstandings, because fked up "friends" and family keep interfering and the FL can't set it up straight. Yes, that bad. The dialogue is not completely broken but also not that good either. The directing is meh, nothing really bad, nothing really great. I guess here comes the first positive, the cinematography. That person did a great job. Moving on, the chemistry is not there. I mean they might make it work, but if you don't know what this story is all about and you'd watch 5 minutes of it, you'd think there's only a normal scene with 2 people in a room. And that is because of the casting. FL is supposed to be a firecracker and they got someone who could do that. She did all the heavy-lifting. Every scene with her was in fact ok, pretty decent acting, might even go and say "good". As long as you don't have a sad scene where you need her to cry. Cause she can't do it. And there are a couple of those scenes..... Next, ML. Well, I'll just say that we already got a great fox-like character in some other k-drama and this is not it. The actor is not great, the script is not helping him, the directing is lacking... And I'll stop here. The supporting cast did what they could, but again, failed script. They are more for the comical relief, or more like cringe moments, but whatever. The pacing is horrible. I'm not even go about the character arc. The soundtrack is headache-inducing. Its supposed to be quirky, I know, but when coupled with the horrible scenes unfolding on screen, it becomes too much. Because the main selling point of this drama is based on how the FL reacts to stuff happening around her. And it must be full of "funny" stuff + sound effects + quirky music + her facial expressions etc. At least for the first episodes, when they needed to make people keep coming back watching it. Sure, it has its nice moments, but too few. And then, halfway, the quality dropped heavily. For the last 2 episodes I was more than ready for all of this to end. Really, really bad drama. I guessed some of the endings, pure by luck, aka guessing. "Let me guess, this will go like this, those two will become a couple, and those, and those, and that will go like this etc".
Now, to sum it up: a not so great drama, with meh moments, but mostly filler episodes, cringe stuff and horrible pacing. Do you have a favorite actor? Watch some of their other works, this one is a fail.
Have a nice evening.

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No, ty.

This wont be a full review, there's no need for that. And with that, I'll start the first point by saying the synopsis is a bit wrong. She's not a social butterfly (unless the definition changed), they are not building solid friendships (they already are good friends).
Next. This is not about law, or even romance. Its more like a slice-of-life thing. Lots of eating, some legal jargon, some fake drama and problems, and thats it.
Ok, now to point a fake-decent thing. The moral problems. Some good questions there. It feels like that was the main point of this show, raising awareness (as if no one knew about that) and some story-like around. Empty episodes, full of fluff (thats what I call the stuff thats there only to help an episode reach the target time length), flashbacks (even from 5 minutes earlier?, wtf) and such. Every episode (or two) have a problem to talk about so a lawyer happens to get cases that focus only on those aspects. Or different problems resulting from not talking (otherwise the episode would end too quickly, I know).
But what I meant by fake-decent is the fact that what started as an interesting thing, quickly changed to "even though you have more experience and raised some good points in the first episodes, let me teach you stuff about the law and ethics and morality". Coincidentally, that was also when I started wishing for this series to end already. Especially the last 2 episodes were a drag. Most of the endings were easy to guess and I kept checking the time, nothing on the screen made me care anymore. In fact, I even started being critical over every spoken word. "blah blah blah, because someone listened to her". "wait, what? Wasn't she the one who said she doesn't wanna talk? That she's guilty and wants to get punished? Since when people never wanted to listen to what she had to say?? WTF?!" Or "Hello, its been a while." "Oh, hey. Omg. And congratulations!" "Wait, what?? You're her coleague but you never visited?? WTF?!" Yeah, I hit some lows, I'm ashamed... OK, not really.
Anyway, thats all there is to it. Eating, fake drama, eating, moral things, eating. I wont bother with the plot, script, character development, soundtrack and such... It gets a rating of 4, for the (sometimes) decent acting, some decent cinematography, and sometimes decent dialogue.
Have a lovely evening.

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Kinda mid, but good acting

I'll keep it simple. It is a very mid/plain k-drama. Not really a procedural TV series (in a hospital), not a rom-com (in a hospital), not a sad teary-eyes drama (in a hospital), just a kinda all-around one. A slice of life if you will. And there's nothing wrong with that. When it is good, ofc. Same every-day drama formula: some background where the stuff happens, you put the characters in different situations, make them choose one or the other to set them on a character arc, and thats all there is to it. Some series do it better, some don't....
So lets begin. The script is... complicated. It is nicely put together, mostly, but it feels like 2 writers went on it. You have the general, anything daily, aspect and you have the "here we must crank up the drama" cuts. And thats the low point of this TV series. Every time they need something particular to happen, it becomes cringy. Very cringy. Besides the cringy aspect, they also kinda ruin the character's development. Because if that person knows that doing x stuff is bad but still does it, well.... Even if 10 minutes later will say "i'm sorry", the "damage" is done. Thats not how you do character development. Or you do so with kids, not future medics...... Anyway, next. Beside writing and directing, everything else is kinda good. The acting (full with microexpressions) is very good, but thats because of the cast. The pacing is decent, the production value is ok, the cinematography is mid (with some nice moments reserved for the "special" moments), the soundtrack is ok, I guess. But all the good/nice aspects are destroyed by all those extra cringy moments, so....
I think one of the selling points for this drama were the cameos, 'cause its full of them. I won't spoil it. But, like I said, its a mid-tier k-drama so it has nothing special to keep you hooked. It is a perfect drama to watch when chillin', or doing something around the house, you don't need to pay particular attention to it. Because if you do, all those cringy moments will start to pile up and add to the discomfort. Will I watch a 2nd season? If I don't have anything else on my list, sure. Would I re-watch this one? I don't think so. Even if there's nothing (nothing at allllll) on the list, I'd rather re-watch a "good" one, or check a new series from a different country. Yeah, thats the answer: no re-watching value. Its ok watching it once, but it would feel like wasting time by watching it again, you know? Well, its up to you. Have a nice day.
PS: expect a lot of yawning. On screen, yes, but that will make you yawn also :)))

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it had potential, but...

Well, the story had potential. If you disregard the utter sht of the 2nd "half", and if you get rid of all that useless stuff (thats almost half of it :) ) from the rest.... maybe. So basically good idea, poor execution. The first couple of episodes really looked like something ok, but then : plot devices, plot contrivances, plot holes. Yeah, yeah, its a drama, I shouldn't expect much. I didn't and it still disappointed. Even the fact that the character has inner monologues got replaced with the annoying trope of talking outloud for themselves. Actually there are lots of tropes (even the one where the dying characters get a 1min "last breath" so that they hate time to say something "meaningful". *sigh*
Moving on, the acting is meh. Yeah, sure, there's chemistry between some of the characters and thats making it feel more "real", but most of the times is just meh. Also, the continuously expo-dump didn't help in making them more "natural".
Long story short: its a meh drama. You might enjoy it for a bit, but it is overly long when it didn't needed to be. And it feels even longer because of the non-sense fluff inserted. And then it gets boring.
It gets a rating of 4 for the tiny pieces of good story, some good acting, some decent cinematography.
Have a nice evening.

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Luckily, only 30min/episode

I've watched a couple a k-dramas over the last weeks and apparently I've forgot to say something about them.
So, about this one. I've watched this drama 2 days ago. Thank (insert deity here) you get 30 min per episode. It went by in no time.
I'll start by saying it's something like a reality show, so that sucks. Even if the acting and the chemistry and the jokes were mostly fine, or even good, by making the actors look into the camera and say things, you get a low level drama.
Yes, the acting was good. The Main Lead Actor is very skillful, his range is quite good. I've seen him before (as did most of you, I'm sure) and he delivers, as usual. Maybe even more. The other actors were also good.
The cinematography and mixing are good to excellent. They did a good job. The director had some interesting ideas. Good ones. The soundtrack had a couple on decent, catchy songs. Most of them you'll enjoy.
The only downside of this drama is the story. The writer did a meh job. You need a whole season to get to some conclusion, because the Main Female Lead is made dumb just to get the story going. But as there are only 30min/episode, you get to the end in about 9 hours or so.
And that's it. You can watch it for the visuals and some nice acting. Have a lovely evening.

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Trauma =/= good drama

I've watched a couple a k-dramas over the last weeks and apparently I've forgot to say something about them.
So, about this one. I've watched this drama 7 days ago I think and I've already forgot a lot about it but here it goes.
One of the few dramas with a consistent plot. Usually you get a story that can happen no matter the background story. Here, it kinda needs this particular one, so that's a big plus. For the most part, obviously. A couple of things don't make sense and exist only to add drama and such.
Next, the acting. Amazing acting for the Male Lead. At the opposite pole, Female Lead sucks big time. Thinking a bit more, almost any other actress did a decent to phenomenal job, except the Lead one. The fact that she got maybe 2 scenes done ok, doesn't mean she's good. Yeah, sometimes (only sometimes) she looks kinda cute, but I prefer acting over looks.
Lets see, what next? Soundtrack. I don't remember exactly but I think it was something lousy/annoying.
I don't know what more to say. This drama will try and hit you at the feels. Its about trauma, how someone is affected and how they deal with it. Some reviewers think that trauma = carte blanche and they praise it and gave it top notes. I don't do that. I'm interested in the story and the acting, as one should be, no matter the subject. But I will say that you can go for this one. Mostly because the main Lead Actor carries this whose drama by itself as he's charismatic and his acting skills are quite good. Plus the second lead and a couple of supporting ones. Next to them, some of the ladies. Except for the Main Lead Actress.
I guess thats it. Have a lovely evening.

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Bad. Just bad.

Keeping it mostly spoiler free, this drama is a sht show.
I don't understand how this drama has such a high score. I know people usually are rating kdramas based on actors' beauty, but that shouldn't work here.
So: the plot is dumb and full of holes, the acting is meh at best, the directing and the cinematography are boring, the soundtrack is annoying, the production value seems cheap.
Since the first episode I was annoyed by how the events proceeded. And I mean that in the sense of "FFS!! How much longer until it ends??" But I did went for the second episode, trying to give it a chance. It never got better. The ML is supposed to be the cutest thing ever and he isn't. But thats subjective so I'll let it pass. Unfortunately, the chemistry between our leads is missing.
Then the so called plot. This revolves around an "alien marble" that can resurrect people and transform their appearance based on their soul's "beauty". That gets out the window when a "evil person" is not revived like a thing from a horror movie. In the same episode (2nd), the marble revives some flowers, by itself. Seeing that, shouldn't the marble keep reviving things? Chicken in stores/ in restaurants for example? I have nothing against introducing a lousy plot device (this said marble), but the writer should've made sure to address all these problems.
The characters seem retarded, then they are not, then go retarded again, and so on. To push the story in the needed direction, he author kept making coincidences happen. Or the characters go the "lets keep this info for myself, wouldn't want to end this story too soon" route. In short, the story must go from A to B and the author keeps changing how a character is supposed to act, based solely on "moving forward the plot". Even the "comedy" part is meh.
So: do you like a specific actor/actress? Check out some of their other works. Their potential was better used there (it can't be worse than here)....

PS: I got a headache thinking about what stuff happened in this drama for this review :)))

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It was a hoax all along

On theme with its theme (haha, I'm so funny *sigh*), from the start this drama manipulates its viewers. From the official promoters of the drama and the so-called "media influencers", to the vast majority of easily swayed users on websites such as this. Users that think that just because they can, they SHOULD post their thoughts about how they feel, but nothing about a media's quality. And I must address this again and again, because those are NOT the same. You can enjoy bad media, and thats ok (aka "my guilty pleasure"). Just make sure you know it is bad.
For those who don't wanna read it all: this drama is sht. Full of plot devices, plot holes and plot contrivances, to make the story move forward. People might say that some aspects are interesting, but don't bother. EVEN if you like a certain actor/actress, you're better off watching some of their other works. Also no, there was no wasted potential from the start. Even the acting was done wrong.
I'll try to keep it short, and this time I might even succeed, because I won't even bother with my usual format, taking apart every aspect every piece of what goes into making a piece of media.

Here I go. Visuals. This is the part where I talk about colour grading, cinematography and such. Well, even though this drama actually deserves praises in this particular section, I won't go out of my way, and I'll explain later why. Yes, some extremely nice cinematography. I was really impressed with some shots. Moving on.

Next I'd usually talk about audio, the pacing, world-building, acting, character development, fight choreography (when there is one), production value and so on and so forth. This time, I wont, I'll go directly at its core problem. The script is sht. Period. Every aspect of it.
I'll start with its most basic aspects. A psychopath kid is first and foremost exactly that: a kid. You can't write him/her with traits of an adult when they have no life experience. Being cold, calculated and such, has nothing to do with knowing what piece of information is important, and why that is, to use for leverage. And from that "simple" aspect, everything goes downhill. Why? Because the rest of the story follows the same flawed logic, the scenes happening in the only way to make the story happen, dismissing logic or probability.
And this is mostly in regards of the "moving parts". Add to that the sht dialogue, with half sentences, not talking like a normal human being, to incur misunderstandings (so the usual dialogue in a k-drama :)) )...
Also, manipulating people happens all around, not just regarding males. You might say she was alluring them with her body, except, no she wasn't. Most of the times it was emotional manipulation, playing on aspects regarding her or her "victim", what was working best, case by case. "I suffered great wrongdoings. Your parent hates you. You and I are the same". Stuff like that. Anything that would help bewitch the victim. Even changing tactics mid-way if needed. (she hugs him, to stop him from talking because the verbal aspect was not working). So, this aspect was also wrong.
And on top of allllll of that, the acting wasn't great either. The viewers are easily swayed, I know, mostly so when its about these dramas, but thats not good acting. Or maybe its the directing... Well, I'll gladly compromise and say "it might be both". And I will give an example. Anthony Hopkins in "The Silence of the Lambs". When you threaten someone or you let them take a peak behind your mask, what they see must be reflected in their fear, their realisation that they are prey. You know, inner alarms going off, dry mouth, the fly instinct kicking off... Because thats the main hype for a psychopath, isn't it? Showing your full might and make the victim know its "insect value" while they draw their last breath. Or something like that, I don't know, I'm not one *sweats nervously*...
What we got here is the usual portraying of a deranged individual in a k-drama. Over-the-top, of even cringe, acting that consists in extreme smiling with a blank face, void looks, like thats supposed to show a "cold/no emotions" aspect.

So, using fewer words: this drama felt fake from the start because of the script and acting. Simple as that. I never understood the hype and I hope this drama will get buried fast.

And now, to sum it up. Is it good? Hell, no. You might enjoy it? No. Not even to pass time? Nope. The only praise I can address is about some visuals and some acting of the supporting cast. Watching it just for SOME nice scenes, sounds insane, especially because you don't know then there will be one. The same for the acting. If you like someone from the cast, watch them in something else. Or, you might watch this drama in the future, when you'll see the child actor in a different drama and check previous works. "Wait, it played in that drama? Hmm, bad reviews. But I like this person so I'll give it a go". Something like that, I don't know. (Yes, the child was good btw).

When a movie has good writing, people will like it even 50 years later (I won't even bother with an example, there are lots). People enjoy "bad" media because of certain aspects, even if the writing is not that good. You might like it for the visuals (the first Avatar), or the IP (the first Mortal Kombat). Or, it is so sht that you actually start having fun watching the low bar (Madame Web, Gal Gadot acting/singing in Snow White). Well, this drama is not it. It has none of those.
It gets a rating of 2 (I've already mentioned its good parts). Enjoyment factor? Re-watching value? LOL.
Have a lovely day.

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Don't bother

Ok, this is an easy one. Based on the synopsis, I was reluctant to watch it. And I had the "great" idea to check the reviews.
Well, the movie is meh at best. Lots of plotholes. I can't say much 'cause I don't wanna spoil anything, but when the movie ends you will (or should) start asking questions as to why the events happened that way because, knowing what we know about her, she could've taken more easier and more logical moves.
Besides that, the acting is mostly meh, with some cringe moments when they are trying to portray "madness". Besides the "Bond villain" exposition dump, the script was barely ok (plus those plotholes, so maybe not that ok), and by that I mean not so broken as the usual k-drama. The pacing is ok, the slow pacing is needed to build stuff. Character development, no. You get the characters, they do stuff, thats it. Low/medium production value. Not that great vfx for the impact scenes, but the fighting ones are ok. The soundtrack is ok, I guess. It tries a couple of times to guide you in believing some scenes will happen, but mostly you won't be bothered by it. The cinematography is boring, nothing interesting.
Oh, don't believe the other reviewers. Unless you have a medical problem about seeing blood, its safe to watch. No gore involved, the bloody scenes look cheap. On this movie's page, between the "Cast" and the "Reviews" sections you can see the "Photos" one. The bloody shots appearing there? Thats what you'll get. The usual amount. So if you don't get sick from seeing a paper cut, you'll be fine.
It gets a 6 (barely) from me. Nothing special to hook you in. Definitely, no return value. Have a lovely evening.

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Huh, unexpected

For those who don't wanna read it all: not as bad as I would've thought. You can see it once and forget about it. I've seen some critics as to why this one is worse than the first part, but thats wrong and I'll talk about that too, at the end. People got super-hyped by the "cameos" of all the known characters (no matter how sht the story itself was) and now they are sad for different motives. Basically, they went from "oh, wow, I know this one. And this one. And this one!" to "wait, what? I don't know this story, it seems new. I don't like new..." :))
After the sht-show that was Part 1, I wasn't expecting much. But its a lot better. Still not "good", but better. And I'll say this here, because I must say it again and again. I'll talk about the movie's quality, not the enjoyment factor. Those are NOT the same. You can enjoy bad media, and thats ok (aka "my guilty pleasure"). Just make sure you know it is bad.

So. Visuals. Meh. That weird filter is gone, but now its just passable. The colour palette is a bit better. The cinematography is a bit better. VFX are meh. So, basically, those 3 (ok, maybe a couple more) super amazing shots and effects from the first movie are gone, but now we get a lot more mid stuff. Don't get me wrong, still lot of sht/meh, but the ratio is a bit better. Oh, still here, the fight choreography is meh, still lots of dumb techniques and clearly wire-moves. Because I forgot to say that it was sht in my Part 1 review :))
Audio. Meh/decent. Definitely an upgrade. Because now there is one. Also a couple of decent songs.
World-building still sht. New characters appear and you must acknowledge them, no matter what their backstory is. Period. The pacing is a bit better. It feels like a proper story. The production value seems high, again.

And now the main stuff. The script is meh. A lot better, for sure, but it is meh. At least now a couple more stuff makes sense. Yes, still some plot devices, plot contrivances and plot holes, but fewer. Also, some plot points were predictable, you can see what they'll try to do from the first 10-20 minutes. The same for the ending. Being an Chinese movie, I was expecting it. But a very big surprise: there is character development. Yes, I was shocked. And they tried to do it for more than one character. Are they amazing, or even good? No, not really. But at least there is something to be working with. Basically, the story got a tiny bit better, the storytelling got a tiny bit better and some execution got a bit better. But is it good? Still, no. You could call it not boring. If you're watching it right after the Part 1 with and all that "all glitter, no substance" approach, its at least enjoyable. Yes, the Part 1 had 1 extra amazing acting and VFX, for the same one, but the rest was just fluff, whereas now we got a somewhat "decent", if you will, movie.

Lets talk about something for a minute. A lot of criticism is that this movie is not the same as the source. Well, I haven't read the source and I can't say, but: the source and the new format can't and shouldn't be the same. What works in a book, it might be difficult to render in animation. What works in animation, might look silly in live-action. Every format has its pro and cons. A good (I won't even say "great") storyteller (producer/director/screenwriter) should be capable of such feat.
And I'll give some examples for easier tracking. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings. The director (that also had a part in rewriting it) made some changes. Two chapters became an whole arc, the ending got axed, complete character make-over, and so on and so forth. Jurassic Parc. The movie is completely different than the movie, because the director used character development. You would've assumed that the visuals would've been the most important part, but the director understood that a great story must also make us care about its characters. Another example: any movie adaptation of books by Stephen King. It is known the the author hates at least one movie, said they changed his book. Guess what? He make a TV show, the way he wanted to, and it was sht. His way of writing is very difficult to put in a movie as is. Because as I said earlier, what works in a book, it might not be doable for a movie.
And back to this movie. Was a lot changed? I don't know, it could be. Does it matter? No, not really. Sure, a point could be made that if you're gonna change it that much and not resemble the original work, you could just NOT do it at all.

So, to wrap it up. It gets a rating of 5. Kinda meh all-over. Re-watching? No, not really? Enjoyment value? I don't think so. The "fans" will hate it because it was changed, the "normal" viewers won't care enough. So it really is up to you.
Have a lovely day.

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Fluff, no content

For those who don't wanna read it all: this movie is sht.
I'll keep it simple, because I don't wanna waste more time on it, and spoiler free, so you can still watch it ofc. And I'll say this here, because I must say it again and again. I'll talk about the movie's quality, not the enjoyment factor. Those are NOT the same. You can enjoy bad media, and thats ok (aka "my guilty pleasure"). Just make sure you know it is bad.

Visuals. Meh, or yuck. Like a kid who just discovered the "Contrast" slider, overusing it on everything, not knowing that "less is more". The story happens in a couple of places, all look kinda the same, as setting, same filter plastered everywhere. The colour palette is meh. The cinematography is also meh, when there is any. Just a couple of interesting shots and great visuals. The VFX are meh. Extremely good just for one thing, the rest it resembles what you might've seen in the late 2000s.
Audio. Nothing special, or at least it didn't bother, so maybe thats a plus??
The world-building is meh at best, mostly there isn't one. You're supposed to come with basic knowledge, I guess. The pacing is rushed. Stuff keeps happening. I'm sorry, I meant "no context" stuff keeps happening. Scene after scene, lets go, lets go. Its not a short film by any means, and yet it felt like some scenes were cut, thats how janky the story was. Again, you're supposed to know the myth and fill in the blanks yourself. Character development? Yeah, right. Overall, kinda high production value.

And now the good stuff. The script is sht. OKi, I'm sorry, I should give it the benefit of the doubt. Either the script is sht, either the Chinese people are re****ed. Because thats how the script is portraying them. Oh, thats how it really happened in the old stories? Then the screenwriter should've made a better job! Just to make it clear, you knowing the basic knowledge and filling in the blanks, assuming how the story will end, its bad writing. Period. The dialogue is also horrendous, same as before, banking on the fact that you already know the story.
The acting. Fking amazing for ONE character. Just one. Even with my very very veeery basic knowledge about the myths, when that character started "acting", I was "oh, is that supposed to be X character? Oh, wow". And across the movie, you'll really believe it. The way it talks, the mannerism, everything. Apart from that, one other good actor. And maybe another, but it appears for just a few scenes (sadly, only two scenes, plus a previous one where it just is). And thats all, everything else is sht. Over-the-top acting or just purely sht. From an entire cast, just two (or three) people.....
And now..... Like I mentioned earlier, the script is sht. Plot devices, plot holes and plot contrivances everywhere. Everything is "it just so happens that, it just so happens that, it just so happens that". Why is the story happening like that? Why are the characters reacting in one way or another? "Because thats how we wrote this, don't ask questions. Don't you know how the story is supposed to go? Why are you here?" *sigh* Even just talking about it drains the life out of me, that bad it was...

Lets finish it here. It gets a rating of 4. Barely. For some amazing performances, some visuals, and... thats all(?). Wow... Might you enjoy it? Could be. The re-watching value is low. Skipping scenes, fishing the ones where the acting is good? No, ty.
Have a lovely day.

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