4
8
1
1
awesome chemistry with unnecessary 3rd character
Overall: the beginning was very enjoyable with a clear premise and chemistry; however, interjecting a third character ruined the momentum. 5 episodes about 8 minutes each. Aired on Secret of Us YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7BSona1dmx50GA_E5MncPccjZdoNfjLn&si=BRP6NYZqmq5PrXoz The production has also made: Trapped in Osaka and Infidelity, It's a Disease.What I Liked
- clear premise
- their dynamic/opposite personalities
- production value (for what I assume is a very indie company)
Room For Improvement
- the third character took up way too much screen time (and was also the wannabe wife cliche), I was supposed to believe the two leads were meant for each other but I didn't see enough of their relationship progression
- kind of noble idiot trope at the end, though it didn't seem to last long
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This review may contain spoilers
First Impression Kei X Yaku - BL or Bromance? I don't care, it's interesting
Overall: I started by being really confused because there are time jumps but things fell into place during the second part of the 1st episode. It has some pretty violent parts which are a lot to see over and over again* but I really want to see what happens.Content Warnings: violence, murder, attempted suicide?, past trauma
What I Liked
- a mafia boss and police officer is a less common plot (Trapped is the only other series that fits this)
- the two main actors have good chemistry
- good production value
- Shiro and Ichiro are using their brains, I like smart characters
- stomach growling and bonus slip at the end of ep 2 were funny
Room For Improvement
- I was very confused for the first chunk of the first episode, I hate when time jumps are not made clear and also when I can't tell their start/stop points
- kind of bummed there is a possible female love interest
- *too many flashbacks especially of the sister during that one scene, I think they showed it 5 times during the 1st two episodes and it's so disturbing to watch
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sports-themed coming of age short movie
Overall: this felt more of a coming of age story than romance which was fine but the romance aspect was very open ended/unfinished. Even with the main plot, I wanted a bit more resolution. 2 episodes totaled 20 minutes. Aired on Strongberry's YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNd7BhdAz80pH5c5ib0PlfpHzsJsRWJ9e&si=R-ij3z-BB34sNegX Strongberry has made several short movies. My favorites are: Some More, Step For You, My Pistachio and Hold Me.Was this review helpful to you?
a nice way to spend time
Overall: though I'm generally not a fan of manipulation, I was happy with how things progressed/ended. 29 episodes, about 2 minutes each. First 3 episodes are on YouTube here https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-UwHhkbex8oOO_F3qasjlzStoabjnG9-&si=DnorKiMj2k5f8O1I - rest of the episodes are on the BUMP app which is not available in all countries.Content Warnings: manipulation, trespassing, non con touching, victim blaming
What I Liked
- sweet moments
- the perspective switch
- that a character immediately apologized for victim blaming
Room For Improvement
- some odd music choices that didn't fit the vibe of the scene
- the cat blocked shot at the very end
- the BUMP app is not available in all countries but they haven't released the rest on any other official platform
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unique premise with disappointing plot
Overall: I gave this an indie bump but the manipulation made me not want the couple together. 27 minutes long. Purchased on Vimeo for $5USD https://vimeo.com/ondemand/latexContent Warning: manipulation
What I Liked
- the shaman character and a non stereotypical character
- the initial premise
Room For Improvement
- due to the manipulation, I wasn't happy with the end couple
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decent way to spend 20 minutes
Overall: I was put off by the title and how one character looked really young, but their ages were 20 and 30 and it was a decent story. This is one episode https://youtu.be/N36RyPrWRgE?si=qbCEznCpg4ybeo0B from Love Bites season 2 https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPcB0_P-Zlj6UzkFSEipwgaNxQraj-S_5Content Warning: vomiting
What I Liked
- easy to understand plot
- a character was sassy but also like a real person I could meet and not a stereotype
- cute moments
Room For Improvement
- voice over was unnecessary
- unclear on how much time passed, at the end that felt rushed for what he gave him but maybe it wasn't exactly what I thought it was or more time had passed than what I thought
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extremely well done
Overall: acting, tension and production were all stellar in this series. 6 episodes about 22 minutes each. Was available on Viki under the title "The Novelist", currently available on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/2189/pornographer-2018-e01Content Warnings: manipulation, dub con touching/kissing/and more, alcoholism, punch
What I Liked
- tension/chemistry
- some of the best intimate scenes ever (natural noises, facial expressions, body movements)
- acting (the silent screaming scene in episode 5 was amazing)
- production value (cinematography, music, attention to props like Kuzumi's shirt in ep 3)
Note: I normally struggle with manipulative leads in romances, but although Kijima is flawed, I still want him to work through his stuff and end up with Kuzumi. I think that is testament to strong writing and acting.
Room For Improvement
- the voice over
- could have shortened the story of the student and his teacher in ep 1
- multiple running scenes
- up to 2 minute recaps at the start of episodes
- in episode 6 I've never understood the "though I'm a liar, I'll keep my promise" as he doesn't in the morning, but perhaps it's the promise to do what Kuzumi asked him earlier in the episode
Franchise Watch Order
Pornographer aka The Novelist (2018)
Pornographer: Indigo Mood aka Mood Indigo (2019) (this is a prequel but should be watched after The Novelist)
Pornographer: Spring Life (2021)
Pornographer: Playback (2021)
Pornographer: Continued Spring Life (2021)
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sweet and fluffy moments from two couples of Coffee Melody
Overall: this is a follow up 1 year later of two couples from Coffee Melody the series. I rate the 1st episode 7 and 2nd 8 for an average of 7.5. Each episode is about 30 minutes long. Aired on YouTube.Content Warnings: none
What I Liked
- the fluffy, domestic bliss and sweet moments (and there were quite a few)
- the teaching moments in episode 2
- same sex marriage advocacy in both episodes
Room For Improvement
- in both of these it felt like their dialogue and physical affection is what we'd see at the start of dating, not after 1 year, episode 1 had more physical affection but they felt unnaturally shy about it
- particularly in episode 1, scenes jumped around and lacked a coherent story line, episode 2 was less jumpy
- the road noise was a bit loud over some of the talking scenes outside
- the intro has a bunch of characters that aren't in either episode which seems strange (they were characters from the full series)
- a bit too slow paced for me which is reminiscent of the series
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A sweet, slice of life high school story
Overall: a nice, short (35min) realistic movie about two high schoolers, one of whom is trying to figure out who he is and what he wantsContent Warning: homophobia (mainly from 1 teacher, bleh)
What I Liked
- the theme of being true to yourself and pursuing your dreams
- a confident, out gay guy (and his friends were fine with his sexual orientation)
- the pairing of a goofy extrovert and a quiet introvert (this reminds me of MODC)
- how both apologize for pushing each other (both physically and mentally)
Room For Improvement
- no sense of how much time passed when they were getting to know each other or after the incident
- the night scenes are too dark and need a bit more lighting
- the two female students were intrusive and were not being as supportive as they thought
- the female teacher telling him not to pursue art and then being terrible at classroom management
- the male teacher for being homophobic (slight redemption after the incident)
- the ending was fine, but it would have been nice to have a super short scene (or even pics) during/after the credits with them meeting up later
- having both small hard coded and soft coded English subs, they were actually a bit different but I couldn't tell which was better (watched on gagaoolala)
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This review may contain spoilers
pain and healing (watch suggestions)
Airing: note that this series and my review may have triggering content. With 9 more episodes my final review could go in either direction. 13 episodes about 1 hour each. Airing on iQIYI https://www.iq.com/play/the-love-never-sets-episode-1-2edr2dc2xxw?lang=en_usContent Warnings: past (rape shown 27-30 ep 1 and 29-34 episode 2 , grooming, drugging, non con video taking/sharing, miscarriage, blood, manipulation), current (beaten up/fight, held against will, slaps/punches, grooming, trauma/PTSD)
Watch Suggestions (to focus on sweet/happy)
- episode 2 watch 16:15-26:20 for cute backstory, 37:30-46:05 GL
- episode 3 watch 21-27:35 cute backstory
- episode 4 watch 23:10-26:10 maybe side couple, 32-38:20 GL, 55-58:45
What I Liked
- visuals
- sweet moments in the past/present
- the past miscommunication was a bit more realistic than similar situations in other series
- that Ice at times stands up for himself like telling Saint that he is two-faced
Room For Improvement
- exposition dump in ep 1
- very nervous they are going to do the trope "love heals all trauma"
- it seems that Saint knew what happened to Ice before reading the diary so him restraining Ice like that in episode 1 was awful
- the bullies felt very cookie cutter, bad redemption arc
- the GL escalated quickly and felt shoe-horned in
- the friend knew what happened to Ice yet put him in a situation she should have known would be triggering
- cheating
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dead inside
Overall: by the end I wasn't satisfied when the couple was together. 4 episodes about 6 minutes each. Aired on Queer deep YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkrefPXGX2ya2fvYODySdXnGenCnRLMTn&si=CHrlbmkwEwJxaTMeWhat I Liked
- visuals
- good kissing
Room For Improvement
- I didn't see why the two characters liked each other, one of them felt dead inside and I had no faith that he actually loved the other guy and that their relationship would last
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quirky series with some darker moments
Overall: I enjoyed the quirky aspect though something kept me from fully rooting for their relationship for awhile. This series was adapted from a manga "Doku Koi: Doku mo Sugireba Koi to Naru" by Makino Keisuke which I haven't read and I reviewed the series on its own merits. Partway through its release in Japan, it started airing on Netflix in some countries https://www.netflix.com/title/81766555 ; re-aired on Viki in April 2025 https://www.viki.com/tv/40968c-love-is-a-poisonContent Warning: manipulation, blackmail, beaten up, past murder, attempted murder, kidnapping, non con picture taking/sharing
What I Liked
- the opposite personality dynamic
- made me laugh a few times
- the friend
- good dreams
- the tie pull
- sweet/caring moments
- the plants/quirky humor moments
- a character stood up for their relationship
Room For Improvement
- it was difficult to root for their relationship because the writers weren't clear about a character/his motivations for a long time, they finally communicated in episode 11
- how a supposed super intelligent lawyer started asking questions at the end of episode 7
- the camera did an odd 360 rotation during a scene
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This review may contain spoilers
Overall: it has a promising start with an established relationship (though I'm not 100% sure if they were boyfriends or best friends). It looks like there will be some twists but I have some fundamental issues with the plot and am dropping it. Watched on YouTube.Content Warnings: drugging, non con BDSM/physical assault, non con touching/sexual assault?, murder
What I Liked
- the plot was decently cohesive
- acting was fine for what I'm assuming is a low budget productions
Room For Improvement
- really disliked the stereotypical evil trans woman and the murder of a trans woman, it's not to say that there aren't trans women who do terrible things but it is way over represented in media compared to reality
- his boyfriend/friend is an idiot, he ran away to not be a burden and immediately became a burden to someone else?
- BDSM portrayed as non consensual, I think the BDSM is thrown in for shock value - people would still watch if it was consensual, I'm just tired of seeing non consensual BDSM and people who engage as BDSM portrayed as monsters
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adorable past with a tangled mess in the present
Overall: the end of episode 3 made me lower this to 7, there is going to have to be some life/death reason for a character not talking to another character in the past, in between or present. 10 episodes about 50 minutes each. Airing on iQIYI https://www.iq.com/play/reloved-episode-1-1p5zs0832d8?lang=en_usContent Warnings: vomiting (ep 2 around 47 min); non con kissing turned consensual, blackmail/coercion, manipulation
What I Liked
- adults who are taking care of kids
- past intimacy and sweet moments
- visuals
Room For Improvement
- the sound effects don't make things funny
- the blackmail/coercion with the side couple was not appealing
- worried there was a silly miscommunication in the past (end of ep 3 and I'm fuming at a character)
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Love Triangles, part 2 (more triangles and a worse plot)
Overall: the writers thought that they didn't have enough characters/love triangles so they threw in another triangle and then made them into rectangles? Am I in geometry class? If you want to watch idiots and jerks totally mess up their love lives, then this is the show for you. I slogged thru ep 1, 2, 6 and 8 and cannot bring myself to watch the rest. Watched on Gagaoolala.What I Liked
- Valen's awkward attempts at moving their relationship forward in the beginning was kind of adorable
- overall production value was good, a few errors with the English subs but not bad
- the enjoyable OST is by Jeff Satur
- the kissing scene was fairly well done in ep 1, at least no dead fish lip press kiss
- I did appreciate that there was an apology from Mr. Goldfish Memory
Room For Improvement
- characters were really stupid and unlikable, I'm not even going to get into all the ways that they were awful
- a 16 minute recap of season 1 out of a 45min episode, 16 minutes! I like a short recap to center what happened before but this was way too long. And it wasn't clear where it ended. Weren't they lying in the sand/water at the end of season 1, that's where it should have started.
- a third love triangle, you've got to be kidding me (update they got even worse with even more characters added in to create love rectangles)
- Kaitoon is the stupidest protagonist, he has both the memory and brain of a gold fish. He can't figure out that either guy is romantically interested in him? And why can't they just tell him directly? Kaitoon and Valen stupidly started back at square 1 when I thought they were going to advance their relationship in season 2.
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