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This review may contain spoilers
not a romance
Overall: this was not a romance in my view. 5 episodes about 11 minutes each. Aired on Secret of Us YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWkgQnmNfoss&si=-qbWVbgHYhdIacOeContent Warnings: blood (small amount), held against will, past murder, blood, drugging, manipulation, murder
What I Liked
- suspense vibe
- focused on two characters
Room For Improvement
- didn't work as a romance, but it wasn't enough horror/suspense for that to work for me either
- terrible to do that when the character was a child and did not have a direct hand in things
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The Scheming Subordinate Waits for the Night.
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way to a man's heart is through his stomach (vertical series)
Overall: I enjoyed the younger guy's personality and approach. 30 short episodes. Aired on GagaOOLala.What I Liked
- the scheming subordinate, liked how he didn't resort to blackmail
- age gap romance
- the coworker was not a cliche love rival
Room For Improvement
- could have used more than a forehead kiss in the finale
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past tutor/student short series
Overall: it was fine. It's a spin off from Winter Fever. Aired on YouTube https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkQFxcEhORR16XwTyqP2g42b9ae5iahbi&si=yUq5u6-zKBVDBwgeContent Warning: non con kiss
What I Liked
- the actors
- intimacy was done well
Room For Improvement
- I almost put harassment as a content warning
- although the younger guy was in university it was a bit of an ick factor that he fell in love when he was in high school and the non con kiss
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This review may contain spoilers
overcoming fear to love
Overall: I enjoyed their different personalities, but wish the tutor character had been handled differently. Based on the manga Contrast by itz which I haven't read and I reviewed the series based on its own merits. 8 episodes about 22 minutes each. Aired on GagOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/6368/contrast-2026 (not available in Korea or Japan) and FOD in Japan.Content Warnings: tutor/student, over 18/under 18, possible grooming, past bullying
Watch Suggestions (I think this takes out the creepy tutor and focused more on the 2 leads)
- watch episode 1
- episode 2 skip 3:30-4:20 and 20:45-end
- episode 3 start at 3:15
- episode 4 skip 7:30-12, and stop at 21:40
- episode 5 start at 15
- episode 5 stop at 21:45
- episode 6 start at 4:30
- episode 7 skip 3:45-8, sip 13:20-18:30 and 20:30-23:40
- episode 8 start at 1:20
What I Liked
- easy to understand premise
- different personalities
- layered characters
Room For Improvement
- felt the writing was saying it was okay what the tutor did, they mention a 5 year age gap and guessing they are now 18 & 23, they mentioned the tutoring started at the end of middle school which goes 3 years (and then high school 3 years) so the younger guy was likely 15 and the older guy was 20 which is super gross, the older guy knows it was wrong which is why he never told the brother
- multiple cliche running scenes
- rushed ending
- dead fish lip presses
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My Stepbrother Is My Favourite Novelist!?
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nicely done short series
Overall: I really enjoyed their different personalities and I gave this an indie rating bump. 4 episodes about 10 minutes each. Aired on Nooto YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmz1FNoG1zYHVHiX7zTnjlixJi5YmDE4RWhat I Liked
- how they were opposites in some ways (like messy vs. tidy)
- sweet moments
- a quirky character still felt in the realm of reality
Room For Improvement
- audible gulps
- the series was so short, I really wanted a bit more relationship development between them
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This review may contain spoilers
poignant short movie
Overall: this 19 minute movie is more of a slice of life; there is an established m/m couple but that's not where the focus is. I watched it on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/6001/colors-of-the-funeral-2022Content Warnings: discrimination, death
What I Liked
- established m/m couple
- character growth
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3 short episodes with 2 very explicit scenes
Overall: Flying Penguin (South Korea) seems to be similar to Japanese pink film productions, a thin plot with several very explicit scenes. Originally aired on Likey (I think), later aired on Shortime (each episode is 50 popcorn, see app info below) . 3 episodes about 7 minutes each.What I Liked
- good kissing
- interesting premise
Room For Improvement
- no chemistry between the leads
- nonsense that a character knew how to do some things but seemed clueless about others
Shortime Information (should be able to watch this series in a day for free)
- watch some free episodes first for 25 minutes to get the watch reward challenge popcorn (if you watch later you might accidentally use the popcorn you've accumulated) = 50 popcorn
- My invite link is https://playground.shortime.app/en/invite/NKNIWI - the code is NKNIWI (those are all capital letters, that's the capital letter i) and it should get you a bonus
- daily check in 5 popcorn (increases over 7 days)
- visit Amazon every hour to get 5 popcorn
- 3 always wins (most are 5 popcorn) = 15
- watch as many ads as you need to get to 150 popcorn
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This review may contain spoilers
took a turn in episode 3
Overall: I enjoyed the first 2 episodes (though the end of episode 2 seemed sudden), but things took a turn in episode 3 and the story tried to cover too much ground. 6 episodes about 10 minutes each. Aired on Secret of Us YouTube channel https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7BSona1dmx6MOq-2_V50NJrjuUGS-UjO&si=h06-k6G1Bz0RiX3kContent Warnings: dub/non con kiss, sexual assault, past deaths mentioned, manipulation
What I Liked
- vistas
- visuals
Room For Improvement
- started with a flash forward and then to the present
- one guy seemed completely non interested and then after the sexual assault in the tent they were suddenly soulmates???
- too many story threads, should not have introduced the mom/terminal illness
Ending Spoiler: they reunite but 1 guy appears to have a terminal illness
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This review may contain spoilers
a soap opera-y vertical series
Overall: I rated this against other vertical series. It has that overly dramatic plot vibe. 52 short episodes 1-2 minutes each. Aired on WeTV, episodes 1-9 are free, the rest need to be rented https://wetv.vip/en/play/f91rzffyi42pq6s/c4101s5m9xe-EP01%3A_Spoiled_by_My_Mafia_BossContent Warnings: past murder, current murders, torture, blood, violence, manipulation, sexual assault, held against will, near rape, sex trafficking
What I Liked
- visuals
- that Ramin had some agency and wasn't a total shrinking violet
- kissing
- a character used his brain and actually put something on
Room For Improvement
- noble idiot trope
- a guy was obsessed at first sight with another guy, nonsense bracelet
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This review may contain spoilers
a darker and confusing plot
Overall: originally aired on ShortReel, later aired on the Shortime app (more info below). My invite link is https://playground.shortime.app/en/invite/NKNIWI - the code is NKNIWI (those are all capital letters, that's the capital letter i) 42 short episodes, 1-6 were free.Content Warnings: torture, violence, held against will, deaths, manipulation
What I Liked
- actual kisses
- side couple
- visuals
Room For Improvement
- it was choppy and confusing
- the ending was confusing, it seemed that they never saw each other again and then the one guy died and then maybe the other guy died and they may reunite in the afterlife???
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This review may contain spoilers
past and present love
Overall: I was a bit confused how two actors played different characters in the past and present, but it was fine for what I think was a Japanese pink movie (i.e. several erotic scenes, those these were less explicit than some other pink films I've seen). Aired on GagaOOLala https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/5537/let-me-hear-your-voice-2024Content Warning: death
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surprising depth for what I assumed was a comedy
Overall: I ended up really enjoying this indie series. Originally aired on YouTube, unfortunately it appears videos are now gone https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3To3tqb3kw&list=PLSQPiMoYAX3iVDfDFhi_BI_paXO0T9GFG&index=3&ab_channel=%E5%93%88%E5%88%A9%E7%9A%84%E5%B0%8F%E5%89%A7%E5%9C%BAContent Warnings: non con video recording/sharing, past death, grief, non con touching
What I Liked
- sweet moments
- supportive friend
- good kissing
- made me laugh a few times
- poignant
Room For Improvement
- a cliche plot point of seeing something but it was resolved quickly
- cliche swimming and got a leg cramp
- continuity errors
- (neutral) comedy sound effects
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unique premise (same actors, different characters/stories)
Overall: this is not a reincarnation/time travel plot as all the stories happen in the present day. Instead, the actors play different characters in standalone plots (episodes 3 and 4 were 1 story, 5 and 6 were 1 story and then 7 and 8 tie everything together in a way). 8 episodes about 55 minutes each. Aired uncut on GagaOOLala (not Japan or South Korea) https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/4812/every-you-every-me-2024 & WeTVhttps://wetv.vip/play/296rso568y0ryfg/m4100yjgyjz?ptag=3_5.16.5.13870_copy ; airing cut version on YouTube https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvw0WLA6w9UQZrmUoifbNDO9S6yUS9ry7&si=JHVZI3-LAPw_9dev Note: watch after the initial end credits as some episodes have a separate plot
Episode 1 - I was a bit confused with the world building but then it made sense. I enjoyed the sweet moments, the friendship (potentially aromantic character as a bonus) and the intimate partner abuse felt realistic. Not a fan of the comedy sound effects and they could have made it a bit faster pacing-wise. Content warnings: intimate partner abuse/violence, manipulation, manhandling, past death
Episode 2 - typical cold CEO/nervous worker plot. That grandma way overstepped boundaries though her heart was in the right place. Enjoyed the sweet moments. Content Warnings: manipulation
Episodes 3 & 4 - I was going to rate this higher; however, I couldn't get into the moping/angst because they explained it much too late. Not a fan of silent simping for years and making a choice for someone without talking to them first. Liked the second couple and the supportive friends/family/coworkers. Content Warning: a major one but I'm keeping this spoiler free
Episodes 5 & 6 - there were peak visuals in this episode lol, I enjoyed the flirting and physical affection. I really disliked the invasion of privacy and the shoehorned plot with the female character. They spent too much time on the past in this episode as well. Content Warning: past death, manipulation
Episodes 7 & 8 - I'm trying to be spoiler free but I had the most issues with these episodes
Watch Suggestions
- end ep 5 at 45min
- watch ep 6 22-35:30
- skip ep 7
- watch ep 8 31 to the end)
What I Liked: I most enjoyed how the actors were able to play such different characters, the styling was great. The commentary on challenges of shipwork towards the end was also unique and interesting.
Room For Improvement: because I didn't see a key aspect of them as an established couple, it was difficult for me to root for them. The non linear storytelling at the end of episode 6 thru 8 made things needlessly confusing. They didn't actually show what didn't work, so I'm not convinced everything has been resolved and it won't happen again. The time jump felt like a cliche way to resolve the conflict.
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still a favorite
Overall: I originally watched this in 2020. Re-watched in 2024, I saw the areas of improvement but the two m/m couples stayed as two of my all time favorites. On YouTube as twenty 22 min episodes and Viki as ten 45 minute episodes.Note: Shao Fei's piece of hair was sticking up on purpose, I think they called it Fifi lol
Content Warnings: past murders, attempted murder, grief, manipulation, violence, blood, torture, held against will, suicide (off screen), drugging, beginning sexual assault, non con touching, manhandling, past child abuse
What I Liked
- dynamic of enemies to lovers/opposites attract
- Shao Fei & Li An's friendship
- Shao Fei wasn't completely inept, did have some fight and detective skills
- sweet moments
- a few funny moments (though some were too cringey)
- good intimacy
- second m/m couple (but not Jack saying Li An had to take responsibility for (unknowingly) attracting him)
- OST
Room For Improvement
- episode 1 was weird when the sister wore his shirt and acted flirty
- the het side couple didn't hook me, wish they had spent that screen time on the second m/m couple
- confused/zoned out with all the mafia intricacies/plot
- some camerawork had a low budget feel
- comedy sound effects
- unrealistic parts, i.e. the 2 coworkers handed Li An off to a known criminal
- some truly heinous suits
- wish something hadn't happened towards the end when they visited the grave, didn't deduct points
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excellent chemistry/tension
Overall: the leads really brought it in this university series. 6 episodes about 25 minutes each. Aired on WeTV https://wetv.vip/en/play/dy0tqsfvpl73f7f-No.1%20For%20You Also a special edition that has a few extra seconds for paid subscribers (did not see the difference in episode 1) https://wetv.vip/en/play/7isd6uuw6sdr6v0-No.1-For-You-Special-Edition/i0039ifao8c-EP1-No.1-For-You-Special-EditionContent Warnings: non con video recording, manipulation/blackmail, non con touching/kiss, homophobia
What I Liked
- sweet moments
- funny moments
- intimacy/chemistry
- that bridge scene was amazing
- supportive friends, the sassy cousin and the mom
- a non cliche female character
- attention to props (rainbow books in the library, the skeleton that changes positions)
- character styling
- music (the actor YU who played Zhou Shu Yi sang the OST "Blue Lover"; the bartender in episode 6 was Alex Chou who was a lead in My Tooth Your Love and also sang "Hard To Let Go" in We Best Love)
Room For Improvement
- stupid plan/approach
- tried to cram too many relationships/plot into a short runtime
- started with a voice over and flash forward
- nonsense cliche in the pool
- ep 4 manipulation and the non con
- gay for you trope
- lack of communication/happened to overhear something
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