Zii3

Love OffGun But Losing Brain Cells.

You should be able to tell if this show is for you within two episodes. You may enjoy this if you love Off/Gun, want something light and easy to watch with some sweet/cute moments, and are in the mood for simple/silly humor.

At Ep 9/12: My previous review of Ep 1-5 holds. I decided to give it a try again for OffGun's sake and watched Ep 6-9. Apparently the YouTube version is cut (in the USA). I switched to the uncut version via Telegram after Ep 5, but it didn't change my lack of enjoyment with the show.

Previous review: At Ep 5/12. This may not be a popular sentiment, but from my perspective, this show is a slog through simplistic boredom. Apart from Off & Gun's characters, most everyone else acts like middle-schoolers (around 11-13 years old) instead of university students. The 'humor' is extremely basic and simple. There's no cleverness in this screenplay at all. Most characters are more like caricatures and what little plot there is, is so far predictable.

I was so impressed with the series Not Me and Gun and Off were so fantastic in their roles. They acted with nuance, depth, and authentic emotions. The production of Cooking Crush is a huge downgrade for what their talent is capable of.

I'm watching the scenes with Off & Gun together at normal speed because they manage to elevate the generic material to bring some interest and depth to their interactions. For everything else I'm watching at 2x the speed to keep myself from dropping this show entirely.

I really want to support OffGun, but the screenplay is so shallow/simple/boring/predictable, and the secondary characters so annoying and often over-acted, that I really can't bring myself to rate this higher currently. If OffGun weren't a part of this show, I would have no qualms about rating it a 4 and dropping it.

Read More

Cleverish plot with humor and some romance and mystery.

(I rate vertically filmed micro dramas on their own sliding scale). General spoilers below. Made me chuckle or laugh out loud multiple times. Overall smartly written and quite enjoyable and satisfying; left me with a smile on my face. Gu Ming Han's facial expressions as the ML are fantastic and so fun to watch (a large part of the high rewatch value for me).

I loved the premise and thought the show did a good job with it. It was fun and interesting that the ML could hear all the FL's thoughts, and the audience gets to hear plenty of the ML's thoughts too. Because the FL gets reborn in the body of a girl that was lazy and desperate for attention, it takes her awhile to change people's opinion of her.
The mysteries of who was behind what schemes was pretty quickly obvious to the audience, yet the leads figured things out at a believable rate and in a logical way (especially the ML).

Though this has a higher rating on my personal sliding scale, my guess would be that the ML may turn some people off. Because the overall tone of the show stayed light, I enjoyed this despite the ML acting like more of a d*ck than he needed to (with his words) for about 2/3rds of it (not sadistic, though there are choke holds very early on before he starts believing the FL is a different person than before). He does start to redeem himself and I can imagine him fully redeeming himself over time (we just don't see their life past their wedding). His actions improve fairly early on as he gets over his suspicions of the FL and starts to like her, but his words send mixed signals as he tends to mask his intentions; he'll protect her, but then make light of it. Two things I appreciated about this character that many in vertical dramas don't do: 1) It's a process, but the ML is willing to question his perception of the SFL and starts to put his guard up around her even before he fully believes she's as bad as the FL's internal thoughts indicate. 2) Later on, he recognizes in his own thoughts that he has some work to do to win over the FL because of how he's previously acted (though his words still take a while to catch up).

There are a couple moments of sexual tension, a couple suggestive lines, and a satisfying lip press kiss near the end. The FL shows and has thoughts about desiring the ML too. Happy ending with their wedding and another brief lip press.

All actors were good and fit their parts well. The SFL and SML have some psychological issues and try to murder multiple people to get what they want, but they stay plausible and believable (did not turn into caricatures).

Watched with good English subtitles on licensed channel @RomanticDramaTV (浪漫短劇社RomanticDrama) in Nov 2024:
https://youtu.be/crwP_GO0OYo?si=kc8O7c1IK5OQ43RJ

Update: I rewatched in May 2025 and it made me laugh out loud multiple times again. I really enjoyed it and didn't fast-forward anything even though I remembered most of the big plot points. I'm pretty sure I'll even watch it again. So I've raised the rating in my list to 9.5 instead of 9. I wish there were just a few more sweet/romantic scenes, but I do appreciate that the story is tightly woven.

Watched with good English subtitles on an authorized channel:
https://youtu.be/x0aQ0braMxY?si=hw499vK8knUIuByG

Read More

Superhero-ish FL Gets Revenge While Finding Sweet Romance

A vertically filmed mini series (I rate these on their own sliding scale). Requires high suspension of disbelief but different and kind of fun with a great lead couple. The FL is rather badass and a genius. It was hard to be sure exactly because the subtitles weren't great, but I figured her late-blooming and wide range of abilities had something to do with her gene mutation, that was maybe triggered when she was institutionalized and given drugs. The story sort of feels like it's in the superhero or sci-fi categories in that regard. The romance is sweet with multiple cute moments and some good kisses. The ML is totally devoted and protective but respects the FL and her abilities so when she says she wants to take care of something herself, he steps back. There are terrible family members but also a lot of loving ones. The plot focuses on revenge and was a little hard to follow in spots, but I think that was mainly the fault of the poor translation. I was mostly able to shrug off any confusions because my main enjoyment of the show was watching the interactions of the lead couple anyway.

General Spoiler on the ending:

... ... ...

The ending is happy though rather abrupt.

... ... ...

Read More

Ep 1-5 are the strongest. Light & easy watch with great chemistry.

Ep 1-5 (and 9-10) were better than comments lead me to expect. The story is simple and not that memorable, but if you want an easy watch with sensual, realistic making-out, some sweetness, and decent acting, then you might enjoy this. Or at least parts of it.

Viewing recommendation: If you like jumping back to see the ML's point of view, watch Ep 9-10 after Ep 3; it integrates well with the story at that time. Then Eps 4-5 would have been a satisfying ending to me, so you could stop there. If you want to see the leads navigating their life choices at the end of college watch Ep 7-8. Skip Ep 6 altogether (I explain why in general terms below). Eps 6, 7, & 8 aren't very well written and aren't needed to have a satisfying conclusion.

The intimacy between the leads is both hot and sweet. The kisses contain emotions and are realistic. And there are a lot of them (in Ep 1-5, not so much after that). Very satisfying in that regard.

GENERAL SPOILERS below.

Notes for Ep 1-5:
The ML lead's revenge thing is short lived once he and the FL talk through their mutual misunderstandings from 4 years ago. They are uncertain of their footing but really sweet and do communicate (even if there are lags in communication it's not super drawn out or unresolved ).

I liked how the ML and FL never wavered in their affection, and really appreciated how the ML *didn't* get upset at the FL when he learned that the SML had forced a kiss on her. I was expecting all the usual unreasonable jealousy clichés, but the ML handled that whole scene/situation really well.

Kazuha (SML) and and Nina are horrible "friends" to Kaeda. Their one-sided feelings, for the FL and ML respectively, are obviously not reciprocated yet they do morally grey things because they can't accept that. They are the most annoying and trope-filled thing about this show.

Skip Ep 6 because almost the whole thing revolves around Nina being nasty in ridiculous ways. At the end she's given excuses and understanding and not only forgiven, but praised. I get the point they were trying to make, but she didn't deserve such consideration, and the writing was really ham-handed with it. It detracted from the story instead of adding value.

Ep 7-8 are full of telling vs showing and thus feel rushed, a bit empty, and not that satisfying (in my opinion). The writing is clunky and the time skips don't help.

I can see re-watching parts of Ep 1-5 (& 9-10) at some point, but I won't re-watch the rest.

Read More

Bizarre.

Bizarre. A 12min long film that's not worth the time except for a realistic kissing scene at 5min 40sec in. Or unless you want to laugh at the cringness! It's a string of WTF moments.

It felt like scenes were shot to compliment the dramatic classical music chosen, instead of the other way around. Kind of like mini music videos with not much connecting them together. The pacing is weird; more time is spent on the music video vignettes than on conversations or realistic/meaningful interactions.

There's not much dialogue, but what is there is awkward and overly dramatic, starting with a sob story that felt like over-sharing in that context. There's an immediate power imbalance with a director and a newbie actor and after their first meeting, the film jumps to them acting like a couple for awhile, then jumps ahead again. There's nothing to get emotionally invested in because we're not shown any of the progression in their connection/relationship.

I found this on YouTube in the USA.

Read More

Psychologically Intriguing. What Voids Can/Can't Be Filled?

Psychologically intriguing and emotionally haunting; a seemingly "happy" ending on the surface but in actuality very precarious as it was hollow. The story lingered in my mind and I really wish there was more of it.

21 minutes long. The script and directing/editing was smartly done and to-the-point. Acting, cinematography, and music supported the storytelling well.

The 11th SungKyu wants a nice home and family so much that he stands in to fill the voids the other family members have. But he is a shell of a person himself, can HIS void be filled? Maybe over time, but we don't get a clear-cut answer, and that's why my thoughts on this short film keep percolating and drive me to dissect it.

It's well done and good for one watch if you're in the right mood for it.

SPECIFIC SPOILERS below!
... ... ...

I can easily understand SungKyu learning how to interact, and puting effort into play-acting, with the mentally fragmented mother (who can't accept that one of her real sons is gone).

I feel sad at his decision to be physically intimate with the brother, SungWoo, though. Sad for both of them because it seemed the result of individual desperation. Maybe they both end up being what the other needs and have a healthy future together, but that seems a fragile hope. More realistically, SungWoo may develop feelings while SungKyu's interest would remain in question; does he really care, or is he trying to fill his own void, or is he just maintaining his place in the family?

And whatever drove SungKyu in that scene, it doesn't seem to have given him much. The next morning, SungWoo feels accepted and is noticeably lighter and happier but the smile that SungKyu returns slides off when he's not being looked at, and his eyes remain vacant throughout. SungKyu said he was "nobody" and seemed to remain empty himself even as he filled in what the other family members needed.

For me, it's really hard to leave the story at that moment because I crave more emotional resolution, so I likely won't re-watch. I am glad I saw it once though.

I found Bearr's MDL review good and insightful too.

Read More

Tongue-In-Cheek Clever-Silly And Romantic.

Lighthearted, fun, sweet, and cute with emotional depth that kind of sneaks up on you.
It's special because while it has many tropes/clichés that are often predictable, they're purposefully taken 1 to 2 steps further in unexpected ways. Because of this, the whole series is very humorous instead of cringworthy. They do it very well. Things are done/acted a little dramatically but earnestly at the same time. I was really impressed with the whole cast.

In real life the type of behavior Noey exhibits towards Thi is full of red flags and could lead to trauma bonding (unpredictable hot/cold, threatening/rewarding, etc). In this fictional tale however, I was able to enjoy the well done tropes of enemies-to-lovers, bully/nerd, and hard to others but soft to the love interest. It takes some time but Noey's character does mature and redeem himself beautifully.

FYI in the last episode keep watching because the epilogue continues through the credits and all the way to the end.

It was a little tricky for me to tell the grades and age difference of the main characters, especially at the beginning. I believe Noey starts the series about 16 yrs old and Thi is 5 years older as a junior in college, so about 21. Noey starting so young in the story works because he's young enough to act as immature as he starts out being.

The age difference was never made weird in this story, which I appreciated. Young people can fall in love too. And as MidwesternLibrarian says on Reddit, "I don't mind their fictional age gap because there is no way Thi is manipulating Noey. Noey is going to do what Noey wants to do." Truer words were never spoken, lol!

General Spoilers below.
There is a good amount of romantic attraction/tension that is tastefully done keeping the age of the characters and actors in mind, two interupted almost-kisses, and a very basic kiss at the end. (Which I was totally fine with, especially since Tar who played Noey would have been 17-18 at the time of filming.)

I loved how the miscommunications in the first few episodes lead them into falling for each other instead of falling out, lol.

There is some medium angst near the end but it is resolved and the ending is satisfying.

I likely won't watch again on my own but it could be fun to see with other people.

Read More

Epic Friendship More Than Romance

Overall I enjoyed it and I would recommend it, just know you'll be watching for an epic friendship more than a romance. As a story it's an 8, as a romance it's a 6. A good ensemble show.

The sci-fi element was really well thought through and there were no plot holes or threads left hanging. Everything stayed true to the "rules" that were set for this world. There were quite a few moments I laughed outloud and only a couple of spots I fast-forwarded (either because it felt slow or because the messages were repetitive to what I've seen in other shows).

All of the characters were written and acted like real people (no 2-dimensional caricatures), except for maybe the main character Kawai who was borderline a little shallow as a character. Kawi did have some character development but he was often annoying and rarely acted his age (both in how he was written and acted).

Krist and Fluke (Gawin) have best friend vibes but not romantic chemistry. Fluke was believable as a gay character who is somwhat attracted to Kawi and wishes for more, but it never feels truly reciprocated. Krist has difficulty acting attracted, and the writers and director didn't help by making his character freak out and avoid physical affection apart from a few kisses.

Even after they've been together for many years Kawi seems put-off by touching, teasing, and sweet words. This trend in BLs is so unrealistic, annoying, and frustrating to me. It's like disguised homophobia that is supposed to be viewed as "cute". It's not, and it negatively affects my satisfaction with the series.

There are a couple of catchy songs, one of which I added to my playlist.

Great for one watch but I probably won't see it again.

Read More

Cute & Sweet With Earnest & Thoughtful Characters.

Edit Jan 2024: increased my ratings after re-watching with proper subtitles after the international release. These two boys do actually put effort into communicating with each other, and keep trying even though they are interrupted at almost every turn. I think the only thing that didn't interrupt them was an animal, lol.

A simple but very well done childhood friends to lovers story with good acting, soft cinematography, and no unlikable characters. Lots of mutual uncertainty and sweetness. All angst is resolved by the end.

An easy watch with eight 20min episodes. Also known as "I Cannot Reach You".

In the USA, I first watched it in Nov 2023 with fan subtitles, which were obviously awkward but better than nothing. In Dec 2023 it was released internationally and became available on Neflix and I re-watched it. The proper subtitles made a big difference! It noticeably increased my enjoyment and satisfaction with the characters, their bond, and their efforts at navigating their complex feelings with each other. Though I tried to give the dialogue a pass in my initial review because of the circumstances, I have now raised my rating a full star (to 9/10). I will watch again.

Read More

Lead Actors Are Great, The Rest "Sucks".

Vampire BL. A General Spoiler on the ending only. Acting 8.5, Chemistry & kiss 10, Plot & script 3, Cinematography 5, Music 6, Rewatchability 2.
Pointlessly stupid choices by ALL of the characters at least once, and an unnecessarily sad ending. Left me with an incredulous and irritated "WTF, WHY???" feeling. Most of the contrived angst could have been so easily avoidable.

I can't recommend this unless you are a fan of the lead actors (as I am). Watch them in Roomates Of Poongduck 304 instead, which is a fun and better fleshed-out series. Then after that, maybe watch the kiss scene here as an extension of those characters in your mind. It's at the beginning of Episode 8. I would have found that immensely more satisfying than how I felt watching this whole series. I will say Kim Ji Woong's visuals really work well as a vampire though!

The two leads and their magnetic chemistry with each other are the best reason to watch this very short series. Seven 10min episodes and the eighth episode is 20min. It's obvious why they were cast in Roomates Of Poongduck 304 after this. Their kiss is realistic and full of passion and there's even a brief morning-after scene, which is uncommon in Korean BLs.

The story is very generic and the only surprises are how stupid and unrealistic character choices are. There are also an untenable amount of plot holes because the world building is so poorly done.

There's not enough time spent building up the connection between the lead characters to warrant the deep love they have. The "explanation" of the lead vampire's past, which drives all his current decisions, was barely touched on and left a lot of remaining questions. Like, what lead up to him being in that state in the first place? The female friend, and certainly the male vampire "friend", are arguably unnecessary. The time on them would have been better spent focusing on the emotional and relationship arc of the leads.

Also, MJ Koontz's review is absolutely hilarious:
https://kisskh.at/profile/soundinfinite/review/195237

Read More

Naito Shuichiro Makes It Watchable

Cute premise and starts out fairly strong then becomes less interesting for a couple of reasons. You might enjoy this if you're looking for something kind of cute, awkwardly funny, light & easy, and with one really good lead actor.

The most disappointing thing for me was that the sincerity of character attraction felt one-sided by the actors. Naito Shuichiro acted in-crush then in-love so convincingly. You could see the intensity and depth of emotions in his eyes and his face was full of nuanced reactions. Compared to him, Seto Toshiki felt miscast as the main character. He did okay at the beginning with the simplicity of being in awe of his idol and nervous, but his portrayal of deeper emotions fell flat. He became more and more of a disappointment to me as the series went on. (Also his bleached-orange hair didn't suit his timid/self-conscious character and was distracting; poor judgment on someone's part.)

The story itself became more boring as it started to rely on clichés to keep it going. If it wasn't for Naito I probably would have stopped watched sometime during episode 6 (out of 8).

There were more physical interactions to build tension than there were affectionate ones after the characters fell for each other. I might not have felt the lack of physical closeness as much had Seto been able to match the affection and desire Naito showed with his eyes.

I did think the end credits were very clever as they they showed a little bit more of the background scene with every episode.

There were multiple moments of second-hand embarrassment that made me cringe and want to fast-forward, but I am fairly susceptible to that. There were a few non-cringe comedic moments too.

Read More

Intriguing new plot, sweet & satisfying slow-burn romance

(I rate vertical dramas on their own sliding scale.) Awesome fresh story! Plot set-up explained below. Fantastic acting, very interesting plot (haven't seen the exact same set-up anywhere else yet, 7/11/25), and fully emotionally satisfying romance (slow-burn). Great to see the leads as two smart characters working together in the lawyer profession. A healthy relationship with major green flag ML, good messages throughout (some I found quite quotable with a good translation), no unnecessary plot shenanigans (like kidnappings or assaults), and even the second leads are human- they are not all bad in the end. Some good cinematography too.

This is mostly explained at the very beginning so I don’t consider it a spoiler: There's a system that gathers emotions through people in this world and picks a rare number of people to be players. The system offers the players one wish granted if they complete their objective. The FL's quest is to get the SML to fall in love with her, but if she's fully rejected, she goes through death as her current alias and her quest re-boots. I loved that when the FL died after failing her target mission, she would come back and continue where she left off in age (didn't go back in time and start from the beginning); so the same body, but with a different name. And that her previous existences weren't erased or forgotten, just that people's memory of how she looked became too blurred for recognition. It allowed for an intriguing story to be woven. The story starts at her 5th failure. The system re-boots her quest, but this time she's unlocked the option to switch her target! So she gives up on the SML and chooses the ML (his friend) instead.

The FL starts pursuing the ML for her survival and end goal, but ends up truly falling for him. The two leads had great chemistry, seemed fully comfortable with each other, and played off of each other well. There aren't that many kisses, but they are meaningful, and realistic from both actors. There is a good amount of hugs and skinship, and multiple sweet moments. A satisfying ending too.

The screenplay and editing did a good job of giving enough information to understand the basics of situations and characters and then filled in the gaps at a good pace throughout the show with flashbacks and some exposition. Full understanding of everything and everyone is achieved by the end; I so appreciated that it didn’t feel like any threads were left hanging.

I found it posted at 2 hrs 50 mins run time (I shared the link in general comments). If you come across a post that is shorter by more than a couple minutes (I saw a few), it may have snippets missing. A little difference in time can be explained by how the recorder/poster edits between episodes (either lets the 1-3 second transitions play or cuts them out).

Edit 8/16/25: Now on iQIYI, with really good subtitles and info in parentheses! Makes things so much easier to understand! :D

Read More

Gentle, sweet, and fluffy romance.

A vertically filmed micro drama (I rate these on their own sliding scale). The story focuses on the interactions between the main leads and how their relationship grows. There are no major interferences or crazy plot shenanigans. It's a gentle love story.

General Spoilers below. Expansion of synopsis that sets up the story at the bottom.

I would not consider this a steamy drama, though there are a couple moments of medium-high sexual tension, and a couple brief kisses with small to medium movements (where the lips touching are actually shown, unlike some of the other productions these two have done together that had none or were head-blocked). It is satisfying how the two characters look at each other, especially later on as the FL falls in love. Her smiles of joy and eyes filled with adoration were lovely and very believable. It was also fun to watch when she decided to woo her husband in return, and try to figure out how to entice him to take further steps with intimacy. The way she got a little embarrassed though nervously excited was adorable and also very realistic.

The ML is quietly steady and a little too perfect, lol, but the FL deserves it. He pampers the FL every single day, often with lots of gifts. He trusts, supports, and encourages the FL.

The actor of the SML deserves a special mention; he gives a fantastic performance! His character is not evil or sadistic, but he's not really likeable. He is a self-absorbed man and has been taking the attention of the FL for granted. While his temperament is not likeable and he is not good husband material, the acting and writing still manage to make him pitiable. It would be really easy to turn this character into a cartoonish caricature, but the actor is nuanced and believable in his delivery, and makes him feel like a real person.

A little more on the set-up synopsis (within the first 7 minutes):
The FL has been chasing the SML since highschool (10 years) and now works as one of his secretaries. They have an ambiguous relationship and one day the FL overhears him say, essentially, that he won't consider her for marriage because she's an adoptive daughter and not on the same level as his family. It's not shown how they meet, but the FL then drunkenly sleeps with the ML, who is another highschool classmate from a wealthy family that is now a CEO. Afterwards, the ML essentially asks her to "take responsibility" for him and marry to keep things above board in the public eye. He persuades her saying she can keep half his property after they divorce. A short while later, when explaining their quick marriage to another, the ML reveals that he has secretly loved the FL since highschool. The FL, however, believes he his just acting for show. Thus begins the story of the ML wooing his wife by showing his sincerity through actions.

Read More

Fun dynamic between leads as a fantasy (yellow flags IRL)

A vertically filmed micro drama (I rate these on their own sliding scale). General spoilers further down. I thoroughly enjoyed this, but it won't appeal to all. I'll definitely watch again.
The writing, acting, and directing presents everything in a slightly humorous way, which lightens things up and makes the interactions and reactions fun. Both lead actors are fantastic. The ML is extremely domineering and occasionally manhandles the FL but is not violent (no slapping, choking, sadism, etc). He does raise his voice and can have an imposing or threatening demeanor, and the FL is afraid of him in a flustered way. To me, both actors did it in a way that wasn't heavy and both had great comedic timing that played into the fantasy of it without making it feel uncomfortably real. There are some sweet moments between them too.

The FL is super clumsy and shy but earnest, cute, and a good worker, and the ML is sometimes exasperated/miffed yet drawn and attracted to her. He does ask her questions and gives her a chance to explain things in different situations before judging her, which is rare! He grows suspicious over time that she is keeping something from him but continues to give her the benefit of the doubt. He steps in to help and/or save her a couple of times.

This story does multiple things slightly differently than expected (in the micro drama genre).
One of them is that the ML continuously chooses to gives the FL the benefit of the doubt (as mentioned above).
Another is that no 3rd wheel wanna-be pretends to be the woman the ML slept with when drugged.
Another is how the FL acts when drugged; not only does she become aggressive with intimacy, she also gets more dominant with a hazy predator look in her eye (their starting scene is the first time I can remember seeing a FL grab a ML's throat in that way). The two leads have great chemistry and seem comfortable with each other (underneath how they act as their characters). There are multiple moments of sexual and/or romantic tension and a couple great, realistic kisses with small to medium movements.

General Spoilers below:

Expansion of synopsis that sets up the story:
The FL works as one of the ML's assistants and the two of them end up drugged and sleeping together one night. The FL wakes up first and sneaks away. She knows the ML hates women who try to seduce him, so she is comedically afraid that he will think this of her and run her out of town if he finds out. The next day the ML tasks the FL and his main male assistant to find the schemer who stayed with him in the hotel. He suspects that it was manipulated by his stepmother. The FL's best friend, who also works at the company, helps her cover up the evidence (surveillance and hotel workers). Over the course of the story the best friend continues to advise the FL to cover up the truth, afraid of retribution. Thus the lies get bigger and the FL gets more and more flustered, especially as she starts to like the ML.

There is also:
Family debt that the FL is trying to pay off, a contract relationship that slowly turns into more, an unexpected pregnancy (that the FL wants to keep), later in the story there's a 3rd wheel for a bit (the ML's girlfriend from the past who comes back to the country), drugging of the FL and attempted rape, and a kidnapping. Still, for a vertical drama, things don't feel overly crazy. The focus remains on the interactions between the leads.

The ending is sweet, ends with a kiss, and is satisfying enough; it's not long, but it didn't feel rushed either.

Read More