kadie890

It could have been done in 25 episodes

Got so bored halfway through and had to force myself to finish it and only by skipping through more boring parts. They could have made it 10 episodes (1/3) shorter. I did really like the twists and turns with Jung Hyun Soo's story and the actor that played him did an incredible job. Really all the actresses and actors did a great job. They were able to convey so much feeling, gah, I mean Ji Chang Wook and Nam Ji Hyun were the main characters. That is all that need to be said. They were the reason why I came, and the reason why I stayed (and for Hyun Soo. Bad characters are even harder to act out). I particularly loved Na Ji Hae and Eun Bong Hee's relationship/interactions. and Eun Hyuk and Section Chief Bang.
Still, they could have 100% left the drama about their fathers out.

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Blown Away by Way

THIS REVIEW IS A SPOILER AT THE FIRST SENTENCE: Normally, I'd scream, "They killed their gays!" but in this story, it fit with the storyline. It wasn't about him being gay. It was a really creative well acted-out story, and you could have had a fascinating ending where P'Kim was always in her body alive. This still is a great story. And I wasn't surprised at how good Ohm/ Khet's acting was, we all know he's an incredible actor, but what stood out was how different this role was from all his other roles, and his acting was just as incredible (equally as incredible as he is in his current role in Best Buddy, simply because of how different this role is! It shows the depth and breadth of his acting skills.

First's acting was absolutely incredible. Please give him a standing ovation. But what truly blew me away (pun intended because the Angel of Death is my BFF and deserves her very own standing ovation) was P'Way/Fluke Pusit's acting. I definitely judged that book by its cover, his character's cover at that, but by the end of the show, he was the one who had me crying. Not anyone else. And I haven't cried for a show since going on meds.

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It had its positives and negatives

I was never more surprised to see so many 10s, so I wanted to add a counteropinion. There were good parts to this show; however, I wouldn’t have kept going if it wasn’t for my love of Hidden Love. It just didn’t start out well. The acting was stiff and San Yang (my favoritest of brothers) was an a**hole.

I was disappointed in their characterization of San Yang. They made him an emotionally immature, manipulative, lying man at the beginning. And I'm sure they made the excuse that “he was that way because of her.” But that is victim-blaming. It doesn't make him an appealing male lead or a green flag male lead when he acted that way towards her, no matter how devoted and sweet he was in the flashbacks. Yes, he was a beautiful, understanding, supportive boyfriend - a green-flag male lead throughout their relationship, but that doesn't excuse his behavior beforehand. He even had to make false excuses just to be nice to her. Prideful. That’s a good word. He hid when he helped her and he lied about what she did when she slept walked – and made her feel really bad about it too. I was hoping we were transitioning away from the mean, low EQ male leads, so I was really disappointed by this.

Also, their acting was bad in the beginning (or they were just playing wooden characters). I honestly only kept up with it because I loved Hidden Love so much. I did feel like their acting improved, their chemistry improved, and their characterizations overall improved. But I still can't get over his original toxic character and my original impression of their bad acting.

HOWEVER, I will say that they handled the abuse and harassment storyline very well, never victimizing her, with San Yang

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This = gaslighting and harassment. If in a similar position, it's ok to say no and be respected

It's sad to see again how people can find abuse, stalking and gaslighting cute. This is something called romantic harassment and abuse. The end results are the same. It's when someone keeps making advances, touching you and controlling you even after you say no over and over again and all the while you feel discomfort, you feel fear, you avoid places you normally go and it affects your ability to work and be comfortable in your own skin. These are the products of abuse, clear as day, so it hurts to see this idolized. Please don't view this drama and the actions of the "love interest" as ok.

This. is. not. ok.

Put yourself into the main character’s shoes, and imagine telling a pushy person to stop invading your personal space, but that person just wouldn’t stop touching you, getting into your way and stalking you. Wouldn’t you start to get annoyed, or even creeped out?

For those shouting, oh, it’s just fiction, don’t watch if you don’t like, I respond, no! That kind of disrespect should never be considered the basis of a healthy relationship.

The main character is virtually being gaslit into a romantic "situation " by the so called love interest and the whole team of oblivious and horrible coworkers.

This is not how good BLs should be. There are already quite a few really stellar series of that genre out there that clearly demonstrate how a good enemies/rivals to lovers story should be written.

Please stop normalising and romanticising abusive behaviour. It is neither cute nor should it set an example for anyone looking into getting into a relationship, or just living their lives, as this main character was.

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Two diametrically opposed characters

I will pre-cursor this by saying I only care the acting, characterization, and the overall storyline/plot progression. From these narrow areas of interest, I have come to two conclusions. First, Hu Yu was a god in this. He is the only reason I stayed. The love, compassion, devotion, and yearning pours from his eyes and from every motion of his being. It slowly fills up your soul and sets it alight.

On the other hand, Su Mu (using the character's name on purpose because it's not the actress's fault. I know her to be a good actress) is hands down the worst female character of her type I have ever seen. You say a 2 dementional character to describe a character that lacks depth. She was a 1 dimentional character. She was negative depth. There was no presence to even build depth off of. She was fluff if a piece of fluff had already been ingested and then regurgitated by an alley rat after a trip through the sewers. That's how the existence of her character made me feel. Truly gag-reflex-inspiring. The closest I could get to describing her character would be ditsy, but there was not enough of a presence to even build that claim off of. She would have had to carry out actions. She would have to move through space and create an effect on space and time, but space and time came across her and turned their noses up at her and gagged in disgust.

You read in the description that she became his navigator, but that's if you count 15 seconds of reading the directions off of google maps (or their equivalent). Some comments claim she was a metaphorical navigator, but you could have put a stick figure with her eyes across from him, and that wouldn't have changed the story one iota (actually, it might have been better). As long as he had something to direct his smolder, the show was heart-stopping. I wouldn't say she's the ultimate bad representation of womanhood because that would require her to represent something. But I did feel shame that she exists. And I am a woman.

It was such a conundrum because her character made me feel a combination of nausea and shame, and his character was compelling and mind-blowingly magnetic. But with that magnetism, you didn't need anything else. But it also meant that you didn't get anything else (character-wise).

I gave the story a 7.5 because the story was good, and it wasn't the story's fault she was negative presence. I gave acting 8 because she was just acting her character, and while she does often play annoying, ditsy characters, that doesn't mean she's a bad actress; it just means I don't like the characters she plays. Maybe, in fact, it means she's doing a great job because they annoy me so much.

Finally, I gave a 9 for rewatch value because I went back and replayed every time he looked at her. It wasn't just one type of emotion or look. They were endless. The depths his eyes held multitudes... and made up for her negative lack of presence! But in the end, her character brought the total down to a flat 7. Sorry, world! Hopefully, its popularity means He Yu is getting the accolades he deserves, while at the same time, no other producer ever considers a character like her again. It would be pretty hard, now that I think about it. She was certainly unique in that way.

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I'm sorry honey, but you just couldn't act

I'm sorry Ha Min, but acting is not for you. There were moments where you might have accidentally portrayed the correct emotion for a scene, but the rest of the time... stick to kpop. Thanks for the attempt. Actually, no. Next time, can you let someone else do it? We still love you!

Casting directors? I swear we're not watching BL because there's a chance a kpop star is in it. Actually, quite the opposite for me. I want good acting and good storylines, and I don't want to worry about the actors. I don't want to worry they were pressured into it, and I don't want to worry about any negative backlash from fans or non-fans - whether it's about their acting abilities or just for being in a BL at all. I just want them to be safe and happy.

It's sad because the rest of the cast's acting was really good! Especially the main character's. It looks like this was his first role, too (the reason why I didn't give acting a 1. Sorry again Ha Min).

The story could have been good also, but it was surprising how much Ha Min's lack of acting left me unsure of the plot. What reaction did __ provoke? Shouldn't he be jealous? Is that a smile or a frown? Is he friends with __ or is he not? Just the show's summary was enough to get me through the show. I knew what he should have been feeling there, and could add my own context if I stopped the show and thought about it at other points...(though the teacher made me feel slimy. You shouldn't touch a student that much OR INVITE HIM TO A CAFE even if he is your favorite student. It felt like he was encouraging or basking in the main character's affection.)

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Fantastic except how they treated talk of suicide and used gayness as slap-stick

I want to say that I loved this drama and watched it all in one sitting. I also had two holdbacks that kept slapping me across the face as the show went on because they never went away.
How they treated talk of suicide and used gayness as slap-stick.
Spoilers from here on.

Eun Yu travels back in time to literally kill herself. She tells Eun Gyeol multiple times, and NOT THING HAPPENS. HE BARELY REACTS AND BY EPISODE 12 IT'S LIKE SHE'S TALKING ABOUT THE WEATHER. IF THIS WAS NOT FICTION (AND EVEN IN FICTION), WHEN SOMEONE TELLS YOU THEY'RE GOING TO KILL THEMSELVES, COUNT YOURSELF LUCKY THEY TOLD YOU THIS TIME. I DON'T CARE IF THEY'RE JOKING, OR UNSURE, OR IT'S SPUR OF THE MOMENT.
THIS. IS. A. CRY. FOR. HELP.
I would give anything for him to have reacted appropriately once. To have acknowledged what she said, to have even checked in, "so, I hear you want to kill yourself. You serious?" Instead, by episode 12, she's holding full conversations about coming here to kill herself multiple times in an episode, and .... and.... HOW CAN THE CONVERSATION JUST CONTINUE. I'm sitting here, like, wait, dude, bro, like what? Are you at least going to ask her if she still plans to kill herself? She's talking in the present tense here and it's not the subtitles' fault.
If you were someone who has a suicidal friend or family member and saw this and even considered for a moment, "this is how people respond when someone tells you they're trying to kill themselves?" that's bad. If suicide isn't talked about in a community, and more media than not treats it as unreal, un-urgent, or even a joke... this will affect your view and behavior. You are also going to treat it that way. And if you, the reader are saying "media doesn't affect your behavior; no one's that stupid," have you seen the internet? Are you not here on this website? Have you heard of Hallyu? The Korean Government knows how much media affects people's beliefs and behaviours. They built their entire trillion-dollar economy on it.
If you are suicidal and see someone else's suicidal behavior talked about like this, you're going to be horrified. You're going to take this as more evidence that if you tell people they won't take you seriously. Also, this is Korea, one of the countries with the highest suicide rate in the world. If you think about it, it's absolutely f-cked up that they treat suicide like this. "Oh, suicide, it's a part of life. Let's pretend she didn't say anything. Everyone's a bit suicidal these days, etc."
For - using gayness as a joke was very off-putting. Each time someone accused the brother or father of being gay for the other, they both reacted like it was the end of the world (Maybe that's what the ultra-devout Christians want us to believe, so what, you want to forward their agenda) You couldn't just leave it at a friend being overprotective of a friend/family member they are afraid for? You had to say that that much affection and protectiveness between or shown by a man must mean he's gay!?!?! Wow. Just Wow. I know it's a plot device, but please. This is only a stairway landing up from killing the gays - yay, we made it into the 20th century, now let's just make fun of gay people and use them to excuse away too much male sentimentality. wow.

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So good in so many ways...

I loved this so much in almost every way. The storyline was realistic, but cute, full of life as well as surprisingly good sage life advice. But I really just want to talk about how realistic Togawa's reaction to his own confession was. I was punched in the gut in the best way possible because that would be how I would react if I had to confess to the one person I loved more than life even knowing that would almost certainly mean they'd leave your life forever. and possibly hate you for it. It was THE. BEST. CONFESSION. SCENE EVER. Fight me. we all have our own preferences, but this was just so real, it just hit home, and it resonated with my soul.

Ok now for the two negative points that were the only reason this show didn't get a 10/10
1. the acting. There I said it. Parts were great, they gut-punched me in the best way. but... other scenes were awkward to say the least. I think it was just being forced to laugh in a scene that wasn't funny or something, but if it's' getting in the way of my viewing experience enough that I have to include it in a review, it has to be pretty noticeable.
2. this thing with pretending to be girls. I'm mixed about this, because it could be an incredible social commentary on the strict gender roles in Japan, so strict that men can't even go out to eat desserts or take pictures together. And this may be true, but instead, it came off as if rather like they wanted to make it a titillating experience for the female viewers. So, in fact, it had the opposite effect. If you had just taken the "pretend to be girls" element out, and just say, "I want to be able to go out and eat pastries and take pictures which I can't do now that I'm old and a man" and then Togawa responds with something like "age doesn't matter (like that really good quote at the end where he compares it to being from two different districts in Japan - irrelevant) and gender is a social construct," it would have... left a different feeling. But please comment and tell me that I'm wrong. I really want it to be that first option.

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One really bad actor with a lot of really good actors

Apologies, Niihara Taisuke, but I would be hard-pressed to come up with a worse Be our actor. Add there are a fair number of subparbiel actors out there. What makes it painful, though it is how he's acting alongside a minimum of two extremely talented actors, and as one of the main characters, you see him half the time essentially. I literally had to push myself past any scenes with him in them. And I'd say I'm mostly happy I did. Komagine Kiita and Usa Takuma gave 2 extremely powerful performances, and everyone's acting as actors in their respective plays/shows was phenomenal. As the villain in the play, Usa Takuma was chef's kiss :* perfection, and Komagine Kiita almost moved me to tears with his performances throughout the show. I can't imagine what it would have been like if he had been acting across from someone of equal caliber.

(Slight spoiler coming up) I do have one caveat to Niihara Taisuke's acting in that I think he was actually pretty incredible in the play itself (all 3-5 minutes of it). It makes me wonder if he has experience in theater which would make sense, or if he had been receiving bad acting directions for Shirasaki Yuki's character. Whatever it is, he did an incredible job in the play, and I want to give him kudos for that while still wishing they had done anything else with Shirasaki Yuki's character - Whether by choosing a different actor or completely... I honestly don't know what kind of stage directions would have made the character he portrayed; even his smiles and his posture made me cringe.

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Good story, War deserves an Oscars

I was really impressed by:

They’re acting. I think War is one of the greatest actors of all time. And I taking into account actors from all the big-budget countries like the US, Korea, etc. I can’t even begin to express how talented he is. His level of acting isn’t something you can learn in school. It’s something innate, combined, I’m sure with insurmountable dedication and hard work, that stands above all else. I hope War can get international recognition and be allowed to branch out in genre and … co-stars. I know this is a thing in Thailand, and I’m not saying Yin’s a particularly bad actor. He’s just ok (and War’s acting is so good, he shines simply by being in its vicinity. Good acting helps other actors get into character and respond realistically to situations. War is definitely the type of actor who can lead his co-stars into the best performances of their lives.

Also, the fighting abilities of the two main actors. You could tell that they never (that I could see, and I looked) used stuntmen. They were the ones doing the high kicks and flips that take many people years to learn. I would even rewind and slow down some scenes, especially the one where they get cornered in an empty restaurant. And I’m not usually one who cares about fighting scenes.

It also takes a stab at corrupt people and the corruption of power, juxtaposing it with an uplifting, inspiring drive to make one’s community greater despite all odds and a past that has only shown you a future of more pain and suffering. I feel like Thai shows have been making a point of dealing with societal issues all while making some riveting romance dramas (I’m saluting you, Not Me) – something we don’t see from other countries. I love this about Thai dramas, and I think they are uniquely placed to bring up these issues and make international audiences reflect on issues they normally wouldn’t consider. Please keep up the good work.

The only thing that I didn’t like, surprisingly, was the forgiveness arc of Joke’s family. Joke’s father had treated Joke like $hit since the very first episode, and this obvious disgust towards his own son and how he was an absolute a$$hole towards his son was one of the main things that drove him to become the Joker. I would have had no hope of reconciliation. This demeaning and hateful behavior would have stoked a hatred and hopelessness that would overshadow the little boy’s desire for love and acceptance, as well as the belief that either could ever happen. So when characters started to say that Joke missed and wanted to go back and live with them/reunite them (the grandma when they were talking about letting Joke stay, and then again in the hospital a couple of times), I thought it was a mistake. There wasn’t an impetus, and Joke’s father’s absolute a$$holery made these comments feel baseless and like an invalidation of all that he had gone through at the hands of his father.

Along this line, based on his prior behavior, I felt totally unconvinced by the father’s sudden agreement to support Joke. There was no indication he loved Joke; if anything, he hated Joke with a burning passion for not only not fitting into the mold he wanted, but for going out of his way to be exactly what his father might hate most. The father had still been saying Joke wasn’t his son with absolute disdain up until this point, when suddenly others were saying things like “we can tell he loves you.” It rang so false to me. Were the directors hoping for us to believe this just due to the fact that he was a father?

All that to say, I did love how the magically post-a$$hole father accepted, embraced, and encouraged his son’s relationship (and with another man at that), and how, in fact, Joke’s choice of man was part of why he started thinking better of his son - and then the addition of the adopted daughter was just majestic. I love this found family narrative, and this depiction of his utter acceptance of, not only his son’s identity and his choice to live his life out loud as gay, but also his acceptance of someone he would have felt below his son’s status earlier in the show. It was so cute when he called their not-yet-but-soon-to-be adopted daughter his granddaughter without prompting and continued to do so even when Jack and Joke weren’t present – indicating his whole-hearted acceptance of this state of being. It was truly a world where homophobia had never seen the light of day.

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Actually really good

We come to watch BL to feel warm and happy inside. We come to watch BL because we want to see a beautiful and cute love story that perseveres against all odds, and we get that with FC Soldout.

I can't tell you how much I kept thinking there would be something cringe, but there never was really! It seemed to be very low-value production, and I kept expecting it to show in the filming or acting, but it never did! The actors carried it. Men probably in their twenties and thirties embraced roles with conviction, enthusiasm, and pizazz, and owned them! I'm so proud of them.

It was fluff, belief had to be suspended occasionally (did they actually play a soccer game?), but THAT's BL. Boys falling in love in a world where homophobia doesn't exist, or it's just a plot element that shows the strength of their love, and everyone else in the story accepts their love with enthusiasm. We're here to see a story about love that seems impossible or a long shot, but we know it works out in the end in an endearing way. We are here to see characters grow in love and self-worth. We're here to leave the depressing reality that is our life and be happy and smile, and I smiled this whole show.

Ji Woo being an avid fan boy was so cute, and it was so sweet to see how it helped him when he was at his lowest. Kang Jae's puppy love for Ji Woo was also cute, and the story of how it came about was compelling and sweet. I also enjoyed the side characters, especially Seon Bin, who was out and out gay (as in he literally said out loud that he dated boys), which is always refreshing. Also, I loved how Tae Yeong was beyond unfazed by Seon Bin's gayness, especially because you could tell that Seon Bin expected immediate rejection. Tae Yeong was daddy duck, and all of his players' happiness and health were his top priority. You could see that he could tell Seon Bin was suffering, and to him, gayness was just a blip; all that mattered was that his Seon Bin was sleeping well.

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It. Was. Good

"We are both people who want to change the result,
but the result
should be liberating other people
instead of controlling other people.
This is the true purpose of our existence."
- Shen Yi, episode 28, Under the Skin season two

I am happy I watched this. The acting is fantastic, the stories are unpredictable most of the time (as they should be), and I wasn't bored ever! I didn't skip scenes, I didn't fast forward. This is the first drama in a while that used up every second to be compelling. There were definitely cases that were more interesting than others, but each appeals to a different audience. And if Shen Yi can give us his mystifying smiles, smirks, or shake up a suspect or two like he has a whole other personality, I'm here to stay.

I want people to watch this who think they will in enjoy it, and people who don't, to not. Then we can all be happy.

Also, I didn't need this to be a bromance (and I love bromances as well as a good friendship btwn guys), and I loved the story the way it was without considering if there was a bromance or not, but they just HAD to go and give us a practical confession scene at the end of ep 28. Essentially, Shen Yi - What I love about the Beijiang Branch? You. - to Du Cheng. I almost felt queer baited here. I'm not complaining. I just hope it doesn't affect a season 3.

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Only one drawback

I'm sad that the trans/gender queer kid, Kirino. didn't get a happy ending. I was hoping they would be the Drag queen. It made me die a little inside to see it end that way for them. I know we could talk about the artistry of it all. The realism, but IDK, if our gay character (and pan character) get a happy ending, I think the trans/gender queer character didn't. You could say I'm selfish, you could say that the world has already given trans characters enough sad endings as it is. This was a safe place to give them a happy or partially happy one. IKids are great an all, but you could see it when they zoomed into Kirino's face at the end and zoomed in on their eye that they were dead inside.

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Zhao Lusi MADE this show

Skipped most of it. starting about 10 ep in I just watched parts with Tou Tou (Zhao Lusi), and then, after they got together, I just watched parts with Tou Tou and Tian Zhen. Zhao Lusi HELD THIS SHOW TOGETHER. There is no other way to put it and it can't be emphasized enough. Matched with Tian Zhen's actor's puppy dog eyes whenever he looked at Zhao Lusi, and I made it to ep 40. But only just. And only when he's looking at her. He's not the most compelling of actors. Though I want to know how he can do the splits! That part blew me away. And when he thought his father had torn Zhao Lusi away from him forever. That's it.

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So good! Compared to it's Chinese counterpart - I'd say better quality, but not more enjoyable

Loved it! It was better than the Chinese version in many ways, but I think I enjoyed them just about equally. Equal enjoyment doesn't equate equal quality. I think the overall story was better here. The found family was the best I've seen in a drama (besides Love is Science? but that is a different type of found family). In this version THERE WAS NO LOVE TRIANGLE. God that was so much of a blerg in the Chinese version especially when you compare it to the lack of one in the Korean version. The lack of the love triangle meant that they could do Hae Jun's character SO MUCH JUSTICE. I loved his character. I loved his acting. I never felt bad because he didn't get the girl and you could tell that he played an equally important role in the sister's and the family's life.
(We of course felt bad for him because of his "family situation" but not because he earned second place in his sister's affections - which became the case in the Chinese one. Then that made the relationship between San Ha's equivalent and the sister more central, overshadowing parts of the story that were better fleshed out in the Korean version.
Also, Hwang In Youp's acting was FAR superior to his counterpart. That, of course, is no surprise, because Hwang In Youp is a genius and we're all so so so so so so happy that he finally has his lead role that he deserves.
On the other hand. I will say that I didn't feel the chemistry as much. I felt his longing and love for Ju Won, but I never felt here's for him. It was almost like *snap* she's in love with him and it happened so fast and with nothing to support it and her character kind of felt flaky ever after. NOTE, I saw someone say they didn't like her character/the actress didn't do a great job. (This was before I watched it and why I held back from watching it for so long). I 100% disagree. I thought she did an excellent job. She was the glue that held the family together and she did a perfect job at it. It isn't her fault that they didn't do her justice in giving her the opportunity/reasons to fall in love with San Ha (besides the fact that his love is so apparent and genuine and all-encompassing, but having someone love you that much doesn't equate you loving them, and I just was never convinced. They fit together well and were a cute couple, there was just never the spark that got Ju Won there.)
On that note, while San Ha's counterpart's acting wasn't that good, I did think the couple from the original Chinese version had chemistry that their Korean counterpart lacked. Which is confusing. How can a poorer actor be in a couple that has better chemistry? I think it was directing/how the story played out. I still remember the scene where San Ha's counterpart says he's going to marry her early on... you just have to watch the whole thing.

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