Gabriela

"Lies Hidden In My Garden" it's a suspense/thriller about two women, Sang Eun and Joo Ran. They have totally different lives, but in incident keeps pulling them together and that changes everything forever.

It was obvious that Jae Ho killed that girl and buried her in the garden, but the whole thing Sang Eun's husband, that was a surprise and a really good one, because the bastard needed to die by her hands. I also can't stay that I was impressive with the ending, since I always knew Jae Ho's true colors, you can see that he wasn't the man Joo Ran though, he even try to frame his own son for the his murder and used the same excuse, that he was protecting his "family".

I usually love Kim Tae Hee, but her character is pathetic. The scene where she sees her husband beating Sang Eun and she just do nothing, I couldn't believe someone could do that.

It's a good drama, but there's nothing to anticipate because you find out everything too easily, there's no element of surprise and that's the key point in a thriller, you need something to keep you on your toes. Also, the drama ended with loose ends, things that weren't explained.
When Jae Ho was speaking with Joo Ran about her sister's death, it gave me the feeling that he was involved somehow, that maybe he killed her sister to be able to control her completely, own her, since he did propose on the day of her sister's funeral. This would be a very interesting twist, if the writers thought to develop.

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"The Deal" is a suspense/thriller about two friends that kidnapped a former classmate for the ransom money.
Jun Seong and Jae Hyo are not leading good lives and one day, an opportunity arises. Min Woo is a rich friend of theirs and the two impulsively make a plan to keep him hostage and asks his family for money... the problem is, nothing works the way they planned.

Poor Jun Seong, he just got screwed, because he didn't knew anything about the kidnapping and fell in the situation, with no place to go and always trying to stop Jae Hyo from killing Min Woo. The ending is really shocking, after everything Jun Seong did, Jae Hyo's betrayal really hurt, he was going to let Jun Seong died and take the fall for everything. The twist is Jun Seong didn't kill Min Woo, he only pretended to, to make Jae Hyo gave up.
There's even a temptation in the end. After Jun Seong pays for his crimes, the ransom money is still there, but thankfully he doesn't take the money and chooses to start afresh.

It's an impressive drama, too bad stories like this don't gain popularity, like the drama "Bargain".
Yoo Seung Ho is just amazing, I have only seen him in romantic comedies, so this was a very big change in scenery, doing a more serious role.

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"Story of Kunning Palace" follows Xue Ning, a woman who wanted to be empress and did everything to achieve that. She ends up dying and wakes up in the past. Now, she wants to changes things, with this second chance in life.

The problem is, not matter how much she tries, things kept happening how it was before. Xue Ning was afraid of Xie Wei, because she knew what he could do if he has power, so she tried to stay away from him and that only made him more interested in her. Xue Ning have always been in love with Zhang Zhe and that didn't change after she goes into the past, but by spending time with Xie Wei, she gradually sees his love and falls madly in love with him. Their kiss scenes is amazing, really impressive.

Zhang Ling He is truly an incredible actor, in the same year he played two incredible roles, showing two opposing sides of his personality: in "My Journey To You" he was an honest, good and caring man, here in "Story of Kunning Palace" he is calculating, cold and can kill without mercy... but we fall in love the same way! HAHAHA'

The chemistry between him and Bai Lu is tangible, which is why it's a shame that the drama took too long to form the couple, it was disappointing to think about everything we could have seen of them together, but that didn't ruin the quality of the drama, it's a wonderful story.

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"18 Again" is a drama about Dae Young, a man that regrets his life's choices and makes a wish, to go back in time and unexpectedly that comes true, Dae Young wakes up being 18 years old again. He tries to do everything he couldn't with his youth, but realizes how much his family meant to him and that his old life is exactly what he really wants.

The romance of Dae Young and Da Jung is really good, they really shared everything in life, good and bad moments, sweetness and sorrow and it's been like this since they were teenagers, Dae Young only took a while to realize that. Initially his wish was granted because he regretted his life, of giving up basketball, he wanted to go back to being 18, to follow his dream, since Da Jung and the children were sort of a "mistake", put only after seeing his life with another eyes, Dae Young sees what he's missing.
The scene where he's crying in court, trying everything to go back to his body and nothing happened, it really hurt, to see his desperation. In that moment Dae Young runs to Da Jung and says he wants to be with her no matter what, that he didn't regret his decision to choose her and that was the purpose of the switch. This whole sequence is just perfect!

The second lead syndrome was really hard in this drama, since Ji Hoon is wonderful, how can someone not fall in love with this man? But this time I can't see that I root it for him, since Dae Young had already stole my heart. You can see that his words wasn't true, he was just frustrated with life, but his love for his family never changed.
I loved all the moments of jealousy of Dae Young, being with Da Jung or with Si Ah! HAHA'

Kim Ha Neul is really an spectacular actress. She has chemistry in scene with both Yoon Sang Hyun and Lee Do Hyun, that's really not an easy thing. The drama is amazing, the story is fun, light and easy to watch, but at the same time, has a very strong dramatic charge.

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"You Touched My Heart" follows Anne, a woman that always have been mistreated in her family, that's one of the reasons for her going to study overseas and not going back for a long time. When she finally returns, she meets Kuer and the two got entangled in each other's lives. Anne wants her revenge against her grandfather and to have power to help her mother.

I had high expectations for this drama and ended up being quite disappointed. The story and characters are shallow, there is no depth at all... it lacks the energy of a lakorn and the biggest problem lies with the main couple, who are too boring.

Anne appears to be a strong, independent woman, but she falls in love too easily and completely forgets the reason why she returned to her family, but at the same time, she doesn't believe in Kuer, she finds any reason to distrust him and Phim. Of course, since the two are ex-boyfriends, seeing them together in certain intimate moments generates normal distrust, but Un was exaggerating. Everyone thought that Phim was pregnant with Kuer, so he went looking for evidence and found it, making Un finally trust him, but then that changed when Un saw an earring on Phim, the same one she found in Kuer's apartment, before they even started dating... spare me, it seemed like she was looking for reasons to leave him.

Un and Kuer's relationship developed very quickly, they barely knew each other and were already dating. At first, they couldn't stay away from each other and I can't complain because the kissing scenes are great and intense, but then the pace changes and the two just fight the whole time.

Noot's death was one of the best developments in the drama, because at least it was something different and the bastard deserved an ending like that... I don't like Phim, but he was much worse than her!

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"The Worst of Evil" it's a drama about a cop named Joon Mo that goes undercover in a gangster organization, to find the drug rings and buyers. There he gets closer to their leader Gi Cheul and do basically everything to wins his trust. The problem is how deeper Joon Mo is willing to go and how much he's willing to lose to achieve his goal.

Joon Mo and Gi Cheul's relationship is the drama's strong point. Seeing their friendship grow and how Gi Cheul trusted Joon Mo, like a brother, his betrayal hits him harder when the learns the truth.

There is a single mistake in the drama for me and it consists of a woman. There was no need for the Eui Jeong's character or at least her involvement in the case, because besides not helping anything, all the problems happened because of her, her decisions. I would much prefer it to focus only on the relationship between Gi Cheul and Joon Mo, showing the bond they created, depending on each other. Eui Jeong only served to cause confusion, using Gi Cheul's feelings. Yes, Joon Mo used Hae Ryun's feelings too, but he never said he loved her, it didn't come to that, he wasn't that cruel. But in the end the plan backfired, as Gi Cheul actually took appropriate revenge, because when he died, it was clear that Eui Jeong liked him and this destroyed any chance of reconciliation between her and Joon Mo.

The story is very good, I love investigations involving gangsters, because there are always great action scenes that are intense, fast and bloody. Highlighting the bloodbath in episode 9, Joon Mo totally freaked out and I loved it. The way he moved, it was as if he was completely out of control, acting on instinct... incredible.

It couldn't be bad with Ji Chang Wook and Wi Ha Jun as the main characters <3

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"The Killing Vote" it's a drama about a killer named Gaetal, that makes a game when people vote to kill or not to kill criminals. Moo Chan and Joo Hyun are cops trying to find Gaetal's identity and stop him, but the more they find out about him, more their convictions are changing. Isn't really killing or is it justice?

The drama's theme is great, creative, intelligent, thought-provoking and each episode really pushes you to rethink your concepts. I can't say that I wouldn't vote for "Killing Vote", because justice doesn't work in all cases, in fact in most cases the guilty go unpunished and the victims' families continue to suffer, so why not take justice into your own hands?!

I didn't judge Seok Joo at any time, because for me his actions were justified, he lost his daughter and had to see the killers get free, as if nothing had happened, anyone would freak out in this situation, but he did make a mistake, which was putting Ji Hoon together in their plan. Seok Joo shouldn't have let Ji Hoon be part of this even if he wanted to, so in a way Ji Hoon's death is his fault.

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"The Tuxedo" it's a drama about a suit maker named Aiaoon. One day he meets Nawee and the two become entangled in each other's lives and fall in love.

The drama only has 8 episodes, so everything happens too quickly, even the relationship of Aiaoon and Nawee. The story had potential, but the development is shallow, there is no depth, neither in the story or in the characters. The main couple has great chemistry on scene, I fell in love with Nawee and Aiaoon, but I can't say that the drama is good, as it is flawed in several areas, the problem really lies in the story.

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"Ming Dynasty" it's a historical drama about Ruo Wei, who lost her family when she was just a little girl. She got separated from her sister, lived her life assuming another identity and living as a man. Ruo Wei crosses path with Zhan Ji, who's a prince. He becomes interested in her, but at the same time, thinks of her as a suspicious person. Ruo Wei ends up getting married to Zhan Ji, but with thoughts of getting her revenge.

The first part of the drama is lighter, with some fun moments, but when we enter the second part, the pace changes significantly, it becomes heavier and this kind of happened together with Ruo Wei herself, her personality accompanied.

I felt sorry for Shan Xiang, it wasn't her fault what she became. She was raised in the palace, with all those rules and being mistreated all the time, when she finally got some power, it went to her head. Her death scene is very beautiful, one of the best in the drama, specially because her sister Ruo Wei, was there with her.

The drama wasn't quite what I wanted, but it's an incredible production. What ended up disappointing me was the romance, in fact the lack of it. Ruo Wei never fell in love with Zhan Ji, I really thought that would happen at some point in the story, but she only stayed with him out of obligation, even her personality changed when entering the palace and that was one of the things I didn't like. It was as if Ruo Wei became another person, as if she had been tamed, I missed seeing her strength. Until the end, the only person she wanted was Xu Bin and I'm glad we have a little happy ending for both of them, even if it's late.

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"Ye Cheng" it's a drama portrays a world in which women have all positions of power in society, while men should only be a support for them, I found this incredible and it really was what captured me the most.

The romance between Shen Ye and Cheng is very good, they have a tangible chemistry, that's why I wish there were more scenes between them.
In the last two episodes, the intensity increased and I loved seeing this closeness between Shen Ye and Cheng, this passion.

The biggest problem lies in the story itself, in the way it was developed that ends up confusing you while watching. The whole time it felt like I should have seen something before, all the characters have a past and it felt like we should have known about it. Everything is very rushed, especially the ending. The entire central conflict happened in less than 10 minutes and it wasn't impressive at all, it was more confusing than anything else.

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"Doona" it's about a former idol named Doona. She left the entertainment industry and it's trying to live a normal life. She rents a room in a share house and there she meets Won Jun. Initially she thinks he's one of her crazy fans, but Won Jun doesn't even know who she is. That makes Doona more interested in him.

I always have high expectations for Suzy's dramas and really, my girl doesn't disappoint!
The chemistry between Donna and Won Jun is incredible, passionate, intense... we have a real romance, even though the story is about a celebrity and a normal person, everything that happens is very realistic and you can easily identify with it.

I particularly liked the ending, even though they didn't end up together, because I don't think that was the purpose of the drama. The two found each other and helped each other, Doona needed someone to show that she matters, that she deserves to be loved, to heal her wounds.
I have to admit that their scene in the last episode confused me a little, because it almost suggested that they "returned", but then the last scene clearly shows that they each went their own way. I think that was another moment, to show that their relationship was true, not a phase for either of them, to show how much it marked them.

The song "The Whispering Spell" is very addictive, I can't stop singing it <3

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"My Lovely Liar" follows a young woman named Sol Hee, that has an amazing ability, she can hear people's lies. She uses this gift to win money by pretending to be a fortune teller, but strangely her power doesn't work on one person and that's Do Ha, because he never lies. How she lives in a world surrounded by lies, Sol Hee is draw to him and eventually, the two fell in love.

This year featured two dramas with the title "My Lovely" and it's funny how they are complete opposites. “My Lovely Boxer” is interesting, exciting and funny, while “My Lovely Liar” is a dull drama and even though there is a murder in the narrative, it lacks tension and depth. The two main actors have no chemistry on screen, so romance is out of the question, at least something that is good.

Kim So Hyun was such a good actress as a child and in her early teens, but it seems that her acting didn't mature after that, it's too difficult to get caught up in her dramas now and here the same thing happened, but the problem isn't it was just her, Hwang Min Hyun also failed to capture my attention.

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"Meant To Be" it's a story about two women who's lives are switched.
Hae In lost her mother at a young age and lived in an orphanage. There she meets Jin Woo. Later she ends up living with Jeong Im, who is the secretary of Chi Hwan, the father of Hae In and she was friends with Hae In's mother. Jeong Im brought Hae In into that house keeping her identity a secret, because Chi Hwan is married and has a daughter named Se Na. The problem is that he learns the truth and tries to kill the two, to bury his secret forever. Jeong Im gets in an accident, but Hae In meets Yi Chang, an amazing person, that helps them. They become a family and Hae In leaves her past behind assuming a new name: Yoon Sol.

Here's the real twist, Yi Chang is actually the birth father of Se Na. Chi Hwan married Mi Kang without knowing she was already pregnant, so he raised Se Na as his daughter. The two girls fates were switched, but to be honest, Sol were lucky to not have Chi Hwan as her father, the man is a monster. A terrible thing happens and Yi Chang dies. Chi Hwan, along with Do Hyun and Se Na, frame Sol for the crime and she goes to prison. Sol then makes a plan for revenge, to make everyone that ruined her life pay for their crimes.

The romance between Sol and Jin Woo is sweet, but that's not the focus of the drama. Sol was set on getting her revenge for being unjustly imprisoned, for the death of her father Yi Chang and her biological mother. She also wanted to make Chi Hwan pay for his crimes. It was too much for one person to handle, so I understand that romance was the last thing she wanted as a distraction, but what the drama lacked to make it perfect was exactly that: cute moments between the couple, for distraction, for happiness.

Se Na initially seems to be the villain of the drama, but when you analyze the character, that's not quite the case. As the episodes go by, you realize who she really is and the ending ends up being a nice surprise. Se Na was a spoiled girl who helped frame Sol, but she was never a bad person, all she ever wanted in life was to be loved unconditionally and nothing was enough for her, living like that is sad, we should feel sorry for her, not hate her. She always loved Jin Woo and was never reciprocated, that's why she ended up choosing Do Hyun, who seemed to really love her, but it was a lie, he wanted to possess her, have control of her and her fortune. Thank goodness in the end she realized her mistakes and helped Sol and Jin Woo.

The drama started off really well, but it had some flaws during the development, but that's normal for a story with over 100 episodes. It's hard to maintain the same quality and pace, but the drama was great until the end. That year, I think it was one of the best productions of its kind.

Jeon Hye Yeon was an amazing surprise <3

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"Shining Just For You" it's a drama about Bai Lu, a young woman who has a gift of foresight. She's friends with the princess of Yebei, who's engaged to marry the emperor Xiu Ming, but the girl doesn't want to get married, so Bai Lu helps her escape.
Bai Lu goes to work in the astrology bureau and there she gets closer to Xiu Ming, eventually they become a couple.

I went to watch it mainly because of the two main actors: Peng Xiao Ran and Feng Shao Feng, but it turns out that the problem with the drama is exactly the total lack of chemistry between them.
Furthermore, the characters lack depth, their characterization is shallow, not enough to keep you hooked.

At some points, it gave me the impression that the drama wanted to copy "Goodbye, My Princess", the issue of tribes and the beginning, all the clothes, the setting. I think that maybe if there hadn't been the romance between Bai Lu and Xiu Ming, the drama would have been better, because it starts out of nowhere and didn't make much sense to me, especially because I really thought that Bai Lu was in love with Rui and Wu You was a wasted character, he was supposed to be the second lead and barely appears in the story, so it was difficult to root for him, since we didn't even know the character well.

It's something you'll watch and forget very easily.

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"The Wolf" follows Zhai Xing, a daughter of a general, that one day meets a boy in the forest that was raised by wolfs, she then names him Wolfie and goes everyday to play and talk to him. The two innocent young people just want to spend time together in the forest, but they are tragically separated and Wolfie grows up thinking that Zhai Xing betrayed him. Time passes and they meet again, but Wolfie has become Lord Bo, a cold and calculating man and Zhai Xing ends up falling in love with him again.

The romance of Zhai Xing and Lord Bo is really good, they have great chemistry in scene. When they reunite, Zhai Xing makes Lord Bo admit that he's Wolfie, the couple has some happy moments, until something separates them again. To protect her, Lord Bo lies that he was the person who killed her parents, so that Zhai Xing would wanted to take revenge on him, so that she would become stronger and kept provoking her so much to the point that she nearly killed him.
Almost at the end, Zhai Xing discovers the truth and again they have a little bit of happiness, which is completely destroyed when she dies in the end. I was really hoping for a happy ending for this two, It was sad to see they didn't have one.

It's a very engaging drama, I loved Darren Wang, it's my first drama with the actor and he's simply incredible, you can't take your eyes off him for even a second. The story is very good and I liked how well it follows the pace of the story.
The soundtrack is simply addictive <3

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