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Not bad but too stretchy
I have to admit two things.First: I have yet to find a re-adaptation from another country that is better than the first adaptation of any source material be it a mange web toon ... Etc. especially if the first adaptation is done pretty well.
Second: I love Cherry magic Jap. ver. So freaking much and I only watched this ver. Because I love the cast and I saw many good reviews but tbh I know for sure it won't raise to the bar of the original but I'll not hold this against it by any means.
So long story short, despite knowing that it's lacking as a re-adaptation, I'll try to judge it as a drama by itself without comparing it to the original.
Now like most Thai dramas, the main problem I have with them is that they drag at the end, and this one is no exception, I enjoyed till about ep7... Maybe 8... Let's say 9 to be fair, but the last 3 ep were completely unnecessary for me, I was skipping a lot, and not because it's bad or anything, but the story got boring I loved some scenes but they weren't enough to entertain me for the last 3 eps. The only reason that kept me going was PaiRock and if the only reason I continue watching a BL is the straight couple in it, then something is wrong 😂
The main couple are gorgeous, I loved them together.. TayNew never disappoint, Jan and Sing were adorable too and I love Jan so much that I wanted to see her more and more here, Song's character Rock is also fun to watch, but sadly the second couple were too lame, I didn't like Jintha, not because of anything but I couldn't see why he fell in love with Min Like, what happened you blink and they are together, with no reason at all, also I didn't think he was "cute" or adorable with his nervous introverted personality. Also Mark did his best and I love him for that but by no means he fits the character IMO.
Now I like this drama generally and I loved TayNew ver. Of the characters but I wish it was a little shorter.
But to be completely honest, if I ever needed to suggest Cherry magic, I'd definitely go for the Japanese ver. Not this one.
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Great but slightly stretched
Now I haven't seen the korean Ver. Because I'm not a huge fan of the FL, so I didn't know much about the story except that it's a revenge story, and my review is based on this being the only version I've watched so no comparing or anything.The story was great, it's very simple with hardly any plot holes which is great if you have a mind like me who keep pointing out mistakes. I also liked that they didn't show many scenes with the FL having being bullied or hurt and only showed flashbacks of the moments to gain enough sympathy without getting us heated up ~
there is, however, one thing I didn't understand in the time sequence in the plot but I discarded it because it's not very important.
Characters were spectacular, I liked the evil characters here xD but I didn't understand why they keep mentioning Reina's past, as if I'm supposed to feel sorry for her, she needed help probably if it wasn't for the need of a replacement, I would like her to be locked in a mental hospital somewhere 😂
The chemistry between the two leads was fantastic, I loved them both despite being slightly irritated by Takeru's very low-pitched, slightly whispery and throaty voice xD don't get me wrong, he could just stand there and I would admire him immediately, but in some scene his voice was distracting me xD I mean that in the nicest way ~
What I didn't like was probably the last 3 episodes, everything was amazing and ended perfectly on ep7 or so, it was the perfect revenge plan I think the best revenge was to have the bad people facing eachother, but since things have to happen I understand why the kept the story going, still it could be solved in like 30 mins or so not 3 whole episodes ~
Overall very good, up till ep7 at least ~
Recommended for revenge lovers
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Average
It's a lovely movie, pretty average.The story is light, cast were great, I didn't think the chemistry between the two leads was great but they were convincing, I just couldn't picture them together despite being a for for both of them.
I can't call this a romcom because comedy is nonexistent, romance however was great, I'm glad I got to see Shi Yoon again.
There is nothing really to write home about, just if you have a couple of hours to waste with the mood for some light romance then this one is for you ~
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Fun but hard to follow
If you are familiar with Japanese humour you will enjoy it.But for me and after a very exhausting day I believe it's quite hard to follow.
I'm a chemist myself so it's kinda fun to watch some science-based drama which they have done pretty well.
The story is very simple and characters are easy to understand but for me I got tired trying to follow what is going on with all the characters change happening. The sketches are too many and not all of them are funny tbh.
Is it boring? No. For the suitable audience it's very entertaining.
But maybe I picked the wrong time for it.
I may watch it later and raise my rate as I enjoyed somehow although finishing it was quite a chore, had I watched it in a more fitting mood I think I'd have enjoyed it much more ~
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3 Shallow love stories but good enough to entertain
An introvert, an extrovert, and a crybaby ... It's not the beginning of a joke, it's the 3 main characters of our 3 love stories.3 juniors friends fall for their 3 seniors and somehow, magically, the 3 seniors love them back.
The FL isn't that tall nor her height is mentioned for the whole series except once in the elevator scene, and she didn't say anything about her "insecurities" as a tall woman, that's false advertising.
The love stories are too easy, nothing goes on, each character have their partner by the 3rd episode or so, and whatever happens next is just normal moments is a relationship, it's not bad, actually it's fine and light, no drama or heavy subjects are discussed, but that also made it flat and boring to some point.
On the other hand the cast, the Romance and the characters are all great and fun to watch.
So if you need to watch some light romance with nothing going on then this is for you ~
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Fifty shades of embarrassment
This is my second ( or third I can't remember) watch, which is why I have a lot to say about it.First I totally understand the hate the FL is getting because her character is a bit too much for sane people not to want to slap some sense to her.
Acting
It was on point from the two leads, everyone was great, all characters good and bad were great even side characters with small roles were good.
Eric shines in roles as a brooding silent guy who is heartbroken and rarely smiles, be that as it may his changes when he is in love is noticeable and I like him here, the FL carries the whole freakin drama on her shoulders, she gave us funny, she gave us sad, jealous, broken, hopeless, brave, idiot.... Everything.
Characters
The two leads characters were just too grey
We are used to good leads with great moral compass and badass characters while those two are very human with terrible decisions and questionable behaviour.
The FL is a hopeless romantic with a broken heart who is too weak to the least amount of kindness, pride? Non existent I know that would piss many people off, but I've seen people like her.
Have you ever seen a person making insane decision while being in love? I did, they are crazy but real.
Now I'm not defending her but I understand the character.
The ML too, the only bad thing he did was when he destroyed the wedding.
A mistake? Yes sure, a huge one, he deserves a slap, or two, maybe a few more for ruining someone's whole life for a year.
But I see no one looking at his childhood, upbringing, his trauma-driven cold behaviour, his remorse, his regrets, his broken heart. Yes he keep making one mistake after another but he always says the reason behind it, he is getting too many hate for being a real human being.
Now the story
It's kinda messy, if you don't like messy and surprising love stories with questionable characters' ethics just skip this, if you are in for the drama you will enjoy it.
Personally, I'm not a fan of melodramas but the comedic relief in this is spectacular, every single character has a funny moments, all of them gave us drama and comedy
The ML family, his sister, his brother with the crazy GF, his lawyer best friend, his working team, the FL parents, her co-workers, the FL herself ... Everyone was great 👍 and funny moments were great.
I may not laugh at all of them but I had some moments where I laughed.
It simply gave us a bit of everything, fun, drama, suspense, a tiny bit of fantasy, and that's why I like it.
Highly recommended ~
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Love it
It's been a while since I've watched a kdrama and gave it over 8 rating.And mostly I think it's because the old cast, not by age but by experience.
If you are an old kdrama fan, since 00s or so, it feels different to watch actors from that generation -the one that got famous in 00s or 2010s- like the two leads, you slightly feel nostalgic as if you are back to the time you first started watching kdramas.
Enough with this into now to get to the drama review.
Story is just flat normal enemies to lovers with nothing exceptional or unique, you have seen this story before and it's quite repetitive, but its 12eps only so if you started to get bored or anything because of the story at let's say ep9 or so you would only have to watch 3 more and that's it.
What I liked it that despite being repeated, the story is light, nothing to piss you off, even "bad" characters aren't that bad, either funny or just didn't appear much, it's all about the two leads which is the main reason this is hardly boring.
Cast was on point, I didn't think ji hoon would make me laugh like that, it's kinda odd as I always think of him as a serious actor who is too stiff but have a funny side, he surprised me here, and I can't love him more.
It's a very good drama if you want to get sucked back into mid to late 00s romcoms that depends mainly on funny leads with simple story ~~
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Love it
It's late here and I should be in bed but here I am writing this review.I loved the movie and it's been a while since I've seen my baby Raul on screen so i was I was a bit excited.
But what surprised me the most was Tao and Ano, tbh I didn't check the cast, I just saw Raul and I was instantly on board, but Tao was amazing, her character is my favourite and I wish she had some kind of happy end despite being a side character. As for Ano, just seeing her is enough for me to smile ❣️ she is the cutest ever.
Now the story is based on manga which is why we can't expect anything to make sense, nevertheless I found it interesting, it's always fun to watch Japanese highschool romance every now and then ~
The cast was so good!! A full list of young talents some of them are my favourites it was fun to watch them all together, some characters also were very funny, Raul's reactions and facial expressions were on point and very adorable, my cutie baby Raul is so grown up now still he is as cute and lovely as he ever was.
It's one of those very light, silly and totally crazy type of movies that you can watch after a heavy drama/movie to freshen up.
Just don't expect too much, just sit there and enjoy the ride.
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I wish I skipped it
I didn't like this one so if you liked this drama don't read.The basic thing in any crime mystery story is to have the least suspicious person as a criminal, not show him clearly in the very beginning of the first episode with a huge a$$ motive.
I know that the more you watch the more you'd suspect others and that's how the writer tried to be smart by giving too many motives for everyone then circle back to the first suspicious person.
But that didn't work out here ... At least for me.
I loved the acting here but not the characters themselves, yaya was amazing as always but Dalah was boring with her stone faced personality, also Pam was too bitchy to even sympathise with her and so on, so how can I like a drama if I hated every single character in it.
The atmosphere was great, the vibes were good and fitting but that didn't save the drama for me.
I would easily skip it, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone ~~
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Associate Professor Akira Takatsuki's Inference
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Underwhelming
This has been on my PTW list for so long and it promises mystery with supernatural element and folklore stories with curses and ghosts... Say no more I'm sold.Sadly this was so disappointing!
First, stories were so lame, nothing interesting or gripping about them, the mystery isn't really "mystering", each ep was tad too long than necessary in telling the whole story, it could be made a 30mins max per episode and you won't miss a thing.
2nd: acting was fine, nothing spectacular and the characters are barely fun to watch, they didn't even raise my curiosity about the lie-detecting mystery and the end proved my point, as it was the most anticlimactic end ever.
I don't really think its worth the rate, I don't even have anything on the positive side to say to sell it, it's just typical Japanese drama everything is so mediocre.
İt wasn't unwatchable, but maybe I had a little higher expectations than needed so probably keep your standards low and give it a go if you like this type of dramas.
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Anything but a bodyguard
I love Japanese light dramas and this one checks that box but after finishing it it was a huge let down.It has a nice story, good cast, a mystery and great villain and I'm not really picky with Jdramas, if it's enjoyable enough them I'm in.
But the final product is far away from this great combination I mentioned making me slightly unsatisfied.
Acting was nice, I like Hikaru but Shiraishi Mai here wasn't at her best, also I loved Junpei and Joichiro roles. The whole cast was nice Nevertheless none of them were very good, just average at max.
The story is a total mess, and I'm only talking about the parts they promised in the plot, the comedy part was non existent, the hate-to-love troupe was totally a miss and there is nothing memorable about the drama.
The whole bodyguard part lasted for the first 2 episodes maybe then it's all about the crime, they took so much time showing how endangered Rika is in the first episode, only to push her to be a side story, the rest of the drama was very very predictable, you don't even have to think about anything the mystery was solved right from the beginning.
The series as a whole was acceptable, slightly choppy and very random but watchable.
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The perfect closure
I really liked the first part, and the second is a very good continuation.Tbh at first I was bugged as why would they make two parts just to finish the story and now after finishing the 2 parts I don't think I'd manage to go through both of them as one drama without feeling bored.
Giving that I had some time between watching the first and the second part, i only had to rewatch the last ep of Tsuioku hen to remember everything about it which means it left some impact on my terrible goldfish memory.
I hated how many times Natsumi had her heart broken or saw her lover fades away, that was too much but again -and as in Tsuioku hen- the drama was light and didn't feel heavy at all, also -which surprised me a little- despite having a good closure and good end to the whole thing, it still got some loose ends, I can't seem to figure out why they ended it like that but I believe the drama has another sequel that would tie them up nicely, or at least i hope, although I'd be reluctant to watch it just to answer some question marks since the main story had a good and happy end so i don't know why would i watch any more of them, I already got my end.
So another sequel is probably not a great idea IMO.
That been said, I loved the two leads and enjoyed their interactions and good chemistry, the second part focus mainly on their relationship which is another reason to watch Koiji hen if you liked Tsuioku hen, aside from the closure we all needed.
Would I recommend it? Yes, absolutely, it's not the best but it's good enough.
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Good watch
It's really difficult to find a good fun drama that doesn't drag nor get boring in the middle, and despite being generally good and very enjoyable, it still lacks one thing or two to be the perfect drama.What I really liked was the cast, they were great and the second couple were amazing, tbh I continued with this despite the slow beginning just for them, and sadly they appeared after a while so you gotta stick with it till it gets better.
I liked the relationship between the 3 girls but sadly I couldn't feel much sismance between them, there is hardly any strong bond to be shown specially with Huiseong and the 2 FLs.
It was full of funny moments, GyuHyun family and secretary were scene stealers, even his creepy mother.
What I didn't like was parts the story, I don't know why they can't skip the stereotypes found in every single rom-com, also the cast the just appear to serve a purpose or just show something then Poof! disappear.
The end was vague and the whole Book family problem just wasn't solved, also I couldn't understand some characters behaviour in some scenes, specially the FL with the ML and also Huiseong character was completely removable, I don't even think her story was needed, it added nothing but very questionable moments.
Overall it's watchable and enjoyable even, but forgettable and I don't think I'd rewatch it, yet! I'm too excited to watch the spinoff with the 2Leads because they are the best thing about this drama.
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Adorable
I don't know why the Japanese have this fascination with BL and food, but I kinda like the genre born from mixing the two together.While Japanese BL are generally either too dark and deep or too light and fluffy, this drama falls in the second category.
What I liked about it is how light and cute it was, the relationship between everyone's good and healthy, no annoying characters whatsoever, and the two leads are so lovely, I also liked the friendship between Izumi and his colleagues, it was short, very enjoyable and have relaxing vibes, also the two leads fits together despite the age gap, you can't even notice it.
What I didn't like is the lack of proper romance, the relationship during the whole drama lies in the category of friendship therefore the interaction between the leads is so limited to eating and chatting about random things, also despite being relatively good, it's very forgettable drama because there is nothing unique or special about it, it's just like any other fluffy JBL.
Overall it's a good drama with many fluffy and adorable moments that worth watching for but nothing spectacular.
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I expected more
The boring version of school 2013
I'm sure many would hate me for this but seriously as much as I wanted to love this, compared to the original this was so lame, and after giving it a few chances, I decided that this version isn't for me.
Now I loved school 2013 (k.ver.) so I somehow unintentionally kept comparing the two in the back of my head, and sadly I couldn't rule out for this version.
The characters are so tuned down, the bullies looks so softie and the bullied characters didn't gain my sympathy, the main thing I was excited for was Foei because I loved his character in the original series and wanted to see his interpretation for the character and somehow he did well enough to keep me watching most of it.
Now, is it a bad drama? No.
Is it unwatchable? Still no, but i had a hard time watching it, what helped big deal was the acting, and the flow of the story, and the fast pace, it manages to help me watch longer than I thought I would.
Still, it failed to keep my attention for a long time, I found myself zooming out while watching and this is probably the worst thing that can happen to me.
Generally not a bad series, compared to the original it's worse, but still watchable, the actors delivered and I would recommend it for the cast, but personally, and judging the drama as a whole I didn't like it very much.
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