inmyrare

what a toxic masterpiece!

one of the best gmmtv series i have seen. that too with a female ensemble cast.
the murder mysteries (and all the other ones) were so intriguing. i was never able to guess who it was going to be. the ending too truly shocked me. almost all the characters had a great storyline. the actors did a great job.
the show truly did something unique. a friend group which is not trustworthy or dependable at all but people are willing to risk their lives for it. the romances were also nicely brought up (and broken down)
Aye's ost too hit the right spots. those lyrics with those scenes?? chef's kiss.
they did their best to make things believable and have some logic, though occasionally u could see the lack of budget and plot holes. but those are ignorable
one change i would have liked is for the narrator to be the actual character. the narrator here was someone who was not part of the cast. it would have hit better if it was the character itself.

i hope gmmtv does more projects like this, especially with such a female centric cast. they have so many talented actresses under them, if they don't want to make gls at least cast the girls in shows like this

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Could have been good if more effort was put in

A very interesting idea but this needed a bigger budget to be good.
Some parts were weird and some were intriguing. They didn't know what to do with Mew's character. One second he is all over Erng and ignoring Fahsai, the next second its the other way around. The other characters were a bit boring too.
I lost interest in the alien thing way before, it didn't help that all of the alien stuff felt like props made in an art class. Its also definitely a choice to cast a dark skinned person and put them in braids to portray an alien. Could have made them green atleast.
Good acting by the cast.
I appreciate gmmtv for trying something different but come on, how will it be good if u don't invest in it
p.s: notice how this a space themed show and both the female leads ended up starring in gls which are also space themed 🤭🤭

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Hit so close to home

i had my eyes on this film ever since its announcement since my girl Tu is in it and all the acclaim it was getting making me even more excited to watch
i was engrossed the whole 2 hours of runtime, never once did i feel bored. the story moved well along and was told with so much love.
i had recently lost both of my grandmothers that too within a month of each other. both of them had become so sick for quite a while that they had become the shells of the people they used to be. this movie reminded me a lot of who they were, the loving and comforting people they were, always welcoming and waiting for my return. i hope they are resting well and i was able to give them back at least a bit of the comfort they had given me

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A short and sweet romance drama

I clicked on the 1st episode because i wanted to watch something short and i got hooked on the first episode onwards. Its a story told quickly yet briefly in 8 eps of two people reconnecting and falling in love. I liked the pacing very much. Since it was short they didn't pull all the annoying cliches. All the characters were so simple yet complex people. I loved the romance and even the angst we got from the ex-bf. Even the side characters were well done, they were fun to watch on their own and when they interacted with the leads. The only annoying thing would be the last conflict they put in but even then it felt a bit different from usual romance drama. The solution also felt good. There were no unnecessary misunderstandings or arguments, even the one argument they had became an opportunity for them to see each other's pov.
I'm glad i decided to watch this, I really enjoyed it. If you are looking for a short simple drama to make you smile I would recommend this to you

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I never thought I would be able to complete a 40-episode drama but here I am, thoroughly enjoying and loving all the episodes.
it is such a beautiful show and Hua Zhi is one of the best female characters I have ever seen. the story of a group of women abandoned in a conservative and misogynistic society but they trample it all and rise.
Hua Zhi was one of the least-liked members of the family but she proved reliable and led everyone to success. all the women in the family unlearning all the internalized misogyny and classism. zhi also remained kind to every person she met throughout the series. even certain male characters who are not 'heroes' are empowered. this a feminist show if u ask me.
the romance was nice between all the couples even though it was not a focal point of the show. some plotlines and couples were rushed at the last few episodes.
the only complaint i would have is that the main lead was a bit too expressionless. the show would have been way better and the romance could have hit harder if he was expressive at certain parts.
I'm very happy that in the end the women continued what they were doing before and didn't go back to their old ways. it's also quite sweet and smart how 'hua' means flower and its connection with the title

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i went in expecting it to be very bad but this is actually decent?
the only reason i watched this was for dew and i watched majority of this in 2x speed so i can't make a fair review on this
the first half is meh but the second half really picked it up.
they could have shown his condition more seriously. they made him a complete man child for quite a while instead of showing how he really struggles with his condition. the romance also felt a bit rushed. they could have taken some time to show them growing closer to each other. once they started dating it was fun to watch them.
a whole negative point for that makeover, she was so damn cute with her glasses and curly hair but they made her look like every other office extra. and the ad placements omg, so many of them every 5 mins, so many unnecessary scenes just to promote the same brand. if i eye rolled every time they did an ad placement my eyes would have fallen out the socket
the other plots were done well, the brother bond and the mother's finding were all done well. they even gave me a quick sip of a love triangle too. they also used an evil female character well here.
the last episode was so good, they wrapped up everything perfectly.
compared to many recent gmmtv series that i have seen, this seems well made, like a decent effort has been made (might be all the sponsorship money from the ads)

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the romcom was romcom-ing, until it didn't

the show began so well, with great characters and storylines but they lost everything in the middle.
this premise of the drama is fascinating, a rich boy trying to hide his sexuality seeks help from his best friend, they get into a fake marriage, his brother opposes and in his effort to stop the marriage he falls in love with his fake sis in-law.
first of all do-han didn't even feel like a main character, he was barely there on the screen and when he was there the same situations happened. they didn't dive into his issues and insecurities even though he is a major character. he also didn't feel like a-jung's best friend. for such great friends they barely hung out.
jihan and a-jung's chemistry in the first episodes were great, amazing i would say. they had great banter and good chemistry, a good combo for enemies to lovers and a forbidden love trope. even the angst was there. but once they got together, everything was lost. they became so lovey-dovey and didn't disagree on anything. the spark was lost. i still don't understand why they broke up after giving everything up.
there was a lot of lost funny moments. jihan finding out that dohan was gay could have been a really funny moment but they made it so dramatic. jihan could have been worrying so much abt the heartbreak a-jung will have if she found out- musters the courage to say it- and ajung being like 'yeah ik'. it would have been so fun given ajung idgaf attitude.
all the side plots were so boring and unnecessary, so much build-up for the mom's death for the big reveal to be the fact that the father is involved.
so this can be added to the list of dramas that could have been great

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a drama i will hold close to my heart

i cried at every episode and could not stop
what a story, truly heart breaking
a story abt women and their hardships, true love, a mother's love, the father's love, the dreams and aspirations we all are made of them
to think that aesun's mother's love and determination for her child led to the betterment of two whole generations of people
don't get me started on aesun and gwansik's story, two people giving up their dreams to be together, how they grew up in their love for each other, how they broke toxic cycles to let their children grow. to the very end they were amazing
i even loved geum myeong's story. a eldest daughter's guilt, responsibility, love and the ultimate urge to be your own person. her having enough love for herself so that she could prevent herself from falling into the dangerous cycle that her mother tried so hard to keep her away from, i cried for hours over this.
this drama reminded me so much abt how we all are just humans trying to survive life, trying to not be a burden, trying to give our loved ones our best. i feel like crying every time i think about it.
truly great

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Addicting but the last 2 episodes make it lose its spark

Binge worthy crime thriller

We have the suspense and solid plot points, good acting and cinematography to make someone sit and watch episode after episode but it loses all the suspense it builds up by simply revealing the culprits in the 11th episode. We didn't have a well planned reveal, it was like writers were like 'oh we are at the second last episode? let's reveal the killers and end it'. Making a random side character the real killer is getting boring now. I was suspecting the prison doctor at one point because how he was highlighted. I think we could have subtlety hinted at the real criminals.

Even the reasons also felt too dumb, killing someone cause they won't apologize? I get the message but for the buildup it had it was boring. Even the prosecutor's reason for being so fixated on An YunSu felt too simple.

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my style of drama

i love this!!!! give me 10 more!!!!

this is how u make a show about demons (all shade to my demon). she was truly demonic and did demonic deeds. the premise was also good. it was very satisfactory to see the criminals get punished. the gore was good too. sometimes the violence was too graphic but still it was good.
THE ROMANCE. this is what i want from dramas. the way do-an is slightly interested in her in the beginning then he hates her, to following her to expose her and in turn actually liking her and understanding her. bit-na becoming his source of comfort and her becoming so WEAK for him. perfect. the angst? amazing. wish we could have had more but still im happy.
park shin-hye absolutely rocked this role. her expressions and fits were amazing. 10/10 performance.
i don't know if a season 2 would work well though. one of the main reasons this was fun was because there were 2 chases happening, bit-na with the criminals and do-an trying to prove its bit-na whose doing it. it wouldn't be fun now that do-an will have to protect her instead of arresting her

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an insanely good show on an evil villain

what an insane show

(i don't condone or idolize ajin's actions, it was interesting and exciting to watch an unpredictable plot)

we get plenty of shows about sociopaths and all but this one so different and good.
we get baek ajin, a girl from an abused family who gets stuck with other abusers and bullies but she overcomes everything by manipulating people from a young age. a sociopath who uses people left and right. she was morally grey (imo) until the cafe owner part. after that she was the devil who was on a mission to get on the top.

i liked the excitement of finding out how she was going to move and get to the top. her plan to bring down her school bully, her plan to kill her father, her plan to reach the top as an actress, her plan to escape her psycho husband (this was a very interesting part, seeing how the psychopath and sociopath will one up each other). there were so many unpredictable moments. my jaw dropped when we learnt the truth abt ingang's grandmother.

baek ajin was a complex character with so much layers to her. some things which make u want to be on her side and other things which want u wish on her downfall.

i loved the dynamic of her and each of the men she used. my fave would be kim jaeoh. and of them were also fairly complex characters, each of them with their own weakness which she perfectly uses. joonseo might the most interesting one, his dependency on her and desire to be with ajin but ultimately he wants the ajin he created in head and not the reality in front of him

kim yoojung deserves all awards for this. give her all the oscars and emmys, her acting was insane. especially her eyes, so much emotions were conveyed through her eyes and we learnt so much abt ajin without saying anything out loud.

the outfits, the sets, everything about this was perfect. even the soundtrack and osts.

there were some inconsistences to me, like the deep relationship the manager had with ingang, his suicide, seunghui and her last actions etc but im willing to overlook them.
i felt like they tired to downplay her mother's abuse of her sometimes along with making the school bully and joonseo's mom look like the victim, which might the only thing i don't like. ajin is evil on her own, don't make me sympathize with her by victimizing her abusers.

the ending was very good. i don't know how i wanted it to end but i was shocked by the ending. even the last shots were amazing. there could have been a better ending. i don't think we need a s2, keep it as it is.

overall, one of the best dramas of the year, it gave us everything from acting to story and sets. amazing

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why create shows that u cannot develop beyond the initial idea

again, another gmmtv which could have substance but they could not commit to it. they had one line to prompt the entire series: what if 2 ppl born on leap day have their loved ones die. they did not build more upon this idea. why does leap day happen, why these people and how. nothing is answered. my biggest gripe is ozone's character. they went with the same way they have always represented an autistic person. and apparently ozone is the 'help' sent from someone to solve leap day. its like the team didn't have a answer to solve leap day so they created a character who does not fit the usual ways of society and make some stars communicate with him thus we solve leap day. we never know why ozone sees stars or gets messages. is it because he is autistic??? he doesn't even get a clear message from the stars so there was no point. ozone is not even day's actual brother so what does that whole plot do?
if u watch the first few episodes and then skip over to the last few u won't miss anything cause nothing of change happens. we through many years in the series but we can never differentiate . night and dream know each other since highschool but there are no changes. i assume night and day and the whole group meet each other at 2020 and become close over the years but we only see them become close in the 2nd last episode. even the solution at last doesn't feel proper, like there are no connections, just randomly came up with in the last few seconds. this series honestly felt like such a waste given that the they didn't care the develop it past its initial idea

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A good ensemble show

HR violations left and right yet so enjoyable
i really REALLY enjoyed this show from the beginning till episode 9 or something
a really well developed show with almost all of its characters having a proper character arc and growth
many people were disappointed with the show not being focused on the pair but i liked the way this show was. its more of an ensemble cast show rather than a bl
the team has taken a lot of care to show this story. the sets felt real, the characters had depth and continuity
one of the flaws in the writing was the whole judy-bamhee plot, it felt like someone who hated judy got into the writers room. the tae-bamhee ending was also a bit meh, they would have been better off as friends.
they should have also tried to add the jane & ryan stories consistently in all the episodes cause during the whole judy-bamhee-tae episodes there was barely anything about them and in the last few episodes we had a lot of new things pushed in
otherwise this was a good show with many well executed themes of finding yourself, working, being an adult, making mistakes in the workplace, finding your worth, women in the workplace, self-esteem, communication etc etc
i wish gmmtv makes more series like this with this effort instead of cheap remakes

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AHHHHHHHHHHH

I literally have no words to explain how amazing this show is and how much I love it. I usually take so much time to finish 12 ep series, let alone a 40 ep but I could not stop binging this one.

I'm a sucker for such unique characters falling in love in such unusual environments. We have an orphaned pig butcher Changyu who saves a man who turns out to be the Marquis of the nation. Both of them end up in a marriage of convivence and slowly fall for each other and then we are torn apart by war and fight for the people and for each other....how can I not be hooked on this?!?!?

Changyu is such an amazing character. Her strength and resilience, her kindness and willingness to learn were all were so amazing. Truly an amazing female lead. Her rise to the army general was a great plot, her witness of the violence of the war yet learning new lessons and deciding to fight for her people were such well done plot lines.
Xie Zheng, our male lead was also a well done character. He was a silent guy (compared to most mmcs I have seen) yet we could feel his affection and care for Changyu and everyone around.

What I loved the most about their relationship was how they both let each other grow and flourish. They did not hold each other back at any point and knew that they had to take their own paths. Both of were protective and possessive but they never stopped each other from their own missions, they never felt embarrassed or troubled by the power the other had. It was so refreshing to see that kind of love.

The side couples were also nice. We have a cute, green-flag couple and a toxic couple(?) Both of their stories were done well. The princess and Gongsun's meeting, the chess game, both of them driving each other jealous, THE PROPOSAL....all were so cute. The parallels between Gongsun and Xie Zheng with the way they loved their women was such a good detail.
Qian Qian and Qi Min....it would a disservice to call them a couple. He was a toxic and abusive monster but I don't exactly understand what Qian Qian thinks/and feels about him at certain points. She definitely hates him but it seems like she sympathizes with him at some points. This is mostly due to how much we know about Qi Min vs how little we know about Qian Qian.

Qian Qian is definitely an interesting character and I have a love-hate relationship with how much they showed to us about her. She is a transmigrator and that is very much obvious with the way she runs her life and the things she teaches. I was so confused when she first mentioned cavities. They had cleverly added all the hints about her not being from this era with stuff like pepper spray, cpr, rock-paper-scissors, her marketing ways etc. I wanted to know how, why and when she time travelled and a whole lot about her journey. Also about her conceiving Bao'Er, was she forced or did she actually like Qi Min at some point??
But at the same time I like the air of mystery around her and her story. It makes her an enigma of some sorts.

The villans here were so complex. Qi Min, Yuan Qing and prime minster Yan were all characters who were kind of forced to be the villains but they chose to stay on the wrong path that they reached a point of no return. The show showed them (and the war) with as much nuance as possible.

The whole plot of 'what happened 17 years' ago and Changyu's family's actual identity was built up and stretched for so long and the climax didn't pay off well. We don't really investigate and find out, we just have a bunch of characters narrate stuff and have a lukewarm fight to end things off. My one complaint is how much they underutilized Changyu in the final fights. It felt like Changyu and her relationships were sidelined in the last few episodes.

Another thing I feel like cdramas do well is creating a community for our main characters that feel real. The Lin’an town and its people felt so real. The pig butcher gang were such a wholesome addition to Changyu's family. Their massacre was such a heartbreaking segment.

The whole Lin’an arc was nice, the characters and their romance were developed nicely. This was many ppl's fave arc but my favourite arc was their time in the war before the whole past drama. Changyu finding her way in the army, Xie Zheng missing her and trying to protect her from far, the whole army trying to hide that he was the Marquis and her eventually finding out and the angst that follows....top tier. I feel like I will be rewatching those.

I'm so sad that this has ended, I wish they had more episodes and more of the Marquis and Marchioness. I would have been seated for more of the princess and Gongsun or even a spin off of Chang Ning and Bao Er.

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