konstantina

Beautiful, poetic, epic: a must watch

PROS: Amazing plot, exciting characters, beautiful production. Ren Ruyi is one of the best MCs I've ever witnessed, and her and Yuanzhou have managed to create the best TV couple I've ever had the blessing of experiencing in my 25 years of living. Great character development for everyone involved, main and support roles, strong depictions of women's struggles and patriarchal affects in society, and an ode to friendship, courage, responsibility, and, above all, love. The fighting scenes were exciting, the royal intrigues compelling. The soundtrack beautiful. I really have nothing else to add.

CONS: I won't say much, since that finale episode destroyed me. In an alternative world, Ruyi and Yuanzhou lived a long, beautiful life, had one or many children, Li Tongguang developed his frontal lobe and his (low) levels of emotional maturity faster, him and Chu Yue became a dynamic, badass couple*, without restricting her role as commander of her tribe, and Yangying managed to get married with someone she loves.

*Despite my adoration for Shisan, (and complete annoyance over Tongguang's constant toddler tantrums and treatment of people in his life), I was never sold into Yue's relationship with him - they had no chemistry, in my eyes, at least. But, unfortunately, if I may add, she had excellent chemistry with Tongguang every time they were on screen together and they became my guilty pleasure ship early on - combined with some notable character and behavioral similarities. She deserved someone better than him, though, and I would have wanted to see her in more scenes outside of love interests, but I was never sold for Shisan in particular.

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First omegaverse drama, yet boring plot. Justice for Gao Tu!

PROS: An actual omegaverse tv show, this is for the history books! Hilarious dialogue here and there, likeable characters, okay acting (can't blame them, the scenario isn't the best quality-wise). The second pairing of the show is much more interesting than the main one, and I only continued watching to see what would happen with them.

CONS: Boring scenario, to say the least. Hua Yong's enigma manipulations were intriguing to watch and I was very into Gao Tu's character (this man was suffering every single episode_ but, other than that, nothing really happens. The main couple is not that interesting, even though Sheng Shaoyou is very likeable as a person. Very obviously based on a fanfiction-like novel. Not enough attention to the second couple!

PLOT COMMENTARY: Gao Tu and Shen Wenlang were carrying this show on their limited screen time backs and yet they were not able to have a fulfilling ending or, at least, ONE proper conversation in the entire series.

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Underwhelming finale to a spectacular show

PROS: Good games (especially the last one), very good acting, higher budget, Usagi and Arisu are endgame, small reunion with other beloved characters.

CONS: This could've been an email. AIB could have ended in 2 seasons, without the Joker addition, and it would have been excellent. Heartbreaking, yes, but excellent. This unnecessary season undermined the series' legacy as a dystopian masterpiece. The alternative borderline between life and death (not the same level as the original) was not properly explored or explained, due to the pathetically small number of episodes. Usagi and Arisu ending up married with a child is the only positive outcome. It was great to see Ann and a small glimpse of other characters, but they were obviously added to please the audience with nostalgia boosts and not for any plot-significant reason. We didn't need to see Niragi again. The last scene hinting towards an American spinoff is even more unnecessary than the 3rd season altogether.

PLOT COMMENTARY: No sympathy for Ryuji, at least he managed to develop conscience at the end. Not only did he ruin one girl's life but he just had to destroy another woman in his path with no remorse or care for her personal wishes and life. Niragi should've died and I'm still mad he didn't.

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Excellent show, heartbreaking ending that didn't make much sense

PROS: Great plot, excellent acting, kept me hooked on the scenario and the characters. Park Changho had a very interesting character development, half of my hypotheses about Big Mouse and his team ended up being correct, other half were wrong, which only made the show even more enjoyable for me. Choi Doha is a decent (I guess?) enough villain for me to dislike him, Changho and Miho have a beautiful relationship, Big Mouse's grey morality passes by in a way that eventually makes you side with the team and genuinely get upset over Noh Park's death. I thoroughly enjoyed the series, despite its negative parts and I would recommend it to crime enjoyers.

CONS: Small plot holes here and there that made me side eye the writer for a bit. Gong Jihoon is the comic relief character but was too annoying for me to laugh at him. Not enough details on what was going on at the Lab section of Gucheon Hospital and what the "model inmates" were forced to work on. Doha's motive is simply not convincing enough, and both his and Miho's too fast death don't make much sense, medically speaking, but I'm not a doctor so I can't be certain for all the related mistakes of the scenario. We never see Chairman Kang' infamous serial killer son and his addition to the plot seemed like an easy way to explain Tak Kwangyeon's significance. Took me way too long to figure out Big Mouse and Big Mouth are written the same in Korean and that's where the wordplay was coming from. What was Choi Jungrak even doing?

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Beautiful show with interesting characters - if only it was more balanced!

Very interesting plot, nice acting, excellent cinematography, nice soundtrack, great recommendation for people who enjoy action scenes, female leads with strong personalities, and power couples. The dubbing quality is excellent and the child actors were adorable! Yet, a lot of the show's potential was left unfinished and some plot choices were questionable.

Changyu is a great protagonist and a lovable character. Although I had my doubts about the actress, not due to her acting abilities but due to the baby face, her appearance fits Changyu's lively spirit, playful and a bit naive personality. She looked her best during battle. Zheng is an ideal male lead - handsome, smart, compassionate, capable, and together they made an excellent power couple. Qianqian's character was intriguing and I would have loved to see more about her background and personality outside of her forced reality alongside Qi Min. Qi Shu and Yin Gongsun were adorable together, the background characters were interesting but a bit underdeveloped, and Wei Yan made a very good antagonist. The friendship between Changyu and Qianqian was one of the best dynamics of the show, combined with an overall strong female presence in the whole plot. The sociopolitical commentary was decent and the final results for certain characters were worthy of their actions, minus Qi Min who deserved worst.
The editing is superb in many scenes, the song choices are very good, and the alternative ending was a smart inclusion (although the original ages of the main leads do not add up, but I pretended they were both 27-ish anyway)

On the negative side, the political aspect of the plot was underutilized in favor of the romance, which is truly a shame. The show starts great, but slugs during the middle part exactly because one can not rely on the chemistry of the main characters alone in order to push the narrative - the show gains momentum once again when both Changyu and Zheng enter the Capital and the scenario starts moving. The makeup artists really did not hold back (not everyone has to look beautiful all the damn time) and the show had multiple unrealistic moments, like people surviving from injuries that would have normally end up in disability or death, and Zheng coughing blood multiple times without it harming him at all. Qi Min was unworthy of redemption, although I don't blame Qianqian for having confused emotions due to her apparent supernatural origins (?) and her traumatic life. Gongsun and Shu deserved more screen time, and we got no proper showcase of Beijue as a foreign power. The occasional fatphobic stereotypes were not absent.

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Nice romance-focused drama, female characters carry the show

Nice plot, interesting characters, good acting (minimum dub, which is spectacular), good humor, good cinematography, nice soundtracks.

Qiao Man is an excellent main character, I adored her and never blamed her for any decision, I will certainly cherish her as one of my favorite FMCs. Wei Shao is a good person and skilled general, but has the emotional intelligence of a teenage boy, partially understood due to his upbringing and PTSD, but it made half of the arguments between him and Manman being miscommunication and projection of his own fears and insecurities. They ended up being a happy couple, enjoyable to watch, but certainly irritating here and there, Manman had way more patience and understanding for his toddler tantrums than many other women in her position would've. Lady Yulou is an intriguing antagonist. The other two main couples were also lovely.

I would have liked to see more insight into Manman's family, since her father seemed to be a great person, but she'd rarely ever mention him and would only attribute her knowledge to her grandfather and uncle. We only got one nightmare of hers where she ever shows affection towards him, not a single other mention. The plot certainly follows some expected stereotypes and cliché, and the last two episodes were rushed. Lastly, this is a clear case of false advertising from the cdrama community - not proper enemies to lovers. The hatred only existed for Zhonglin and the Wein clan, not for Manman.

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Beautiful and irritating simultaneously

PROS: Unique idea, good acting, on point soundtrack, beautiful cinematography. Good recommendation for people who enjoy crying and suffering while watching. Kim Hae-sook and Oh Jung-se are a quality guarantee in the cast.

CONS: There are some parts of the story that irritated me. Why did Hae-jo automatically assume he inherited the disease from his father, and not his mother? Why was Jae-mi in the clinic to begin with? Menopause symptoms? She was acting as if she was pregnant already and even asked the doctor if there was any possibility for her to get pregnant in three days, although obvious she never intended to sleep with Heung to begin with. What happened to the bag filled with money that Jae-mi had? What's up with Jae-mi's life in general - does she have no friends? No job? No apartment? There is a time space between her break up with Hae-jo and her meeting Heung, what was she even doing during that time? How did Hae-jo find her biological mother?

Jae-mi and Hae-jo's relationship being a middle point between healthy and unhealthy is obvious and I don't think their bond is meant to be romanticized, but Ko Mun-young was also abusive towards Moon Gang-tae at IOTNBO so I guess the screenwriter has a type. Heung has the best character arc and, although I am not in favor of age-gap relationships and Jae-mi never truly loved him and would be unhappy at his house, he was the most sympathetic character and the one that grew more as a person.

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Intense, intriguing, touching: a murder mystery full of humanity's ugly and pretty.

PROS: Excellent plot, very good acting. A perfect combination of suspense, mystery, and sociopolitical commentary. Important emphasis on the topic of child abuse and sexual assault, abuse of power, and human selfishness, alongside compassion, empathy, and human altruism. Sungjoon is a great main character and one I sympathized with deeply. The thriller aspect of the story is also highly enjoyable: suspense in every episode, both the culprit and the mastermind greatly hinted throughout the series, and even openly shown at times, if the audience was paying attention. I can't think of a single plot hole! Eunki and Sungjoon had good romantic potential but I'm glad the screenwriter didn't attempt forcing a romance sub-plot that would deviate from the main theme and be unrealistic either way, given the circumstances the characters were under.

CONS: Copaganda, obviously. Not a single character hired a lawyer during the interrogation process, which is unrealistic. Kwon Kyungja's shaman "powers" were a bit off, given the fact that this is a modern drama that doesn't tackle on any supernatural/religious beliefs. That scene of her encountering Sungjoon and having visions doesn't make much sense from the moment his memories were false. She was getting chills from Yoonjae but not Baek Moonkang? Please. Charles was clearly in love with Yoonjae, a bit disappointed that we didn't get something more than just hints towards his feelings.

PLOT COMMENTARY: I don't blame Sunghoon for wanting to take revenge, not a bit. Moonkang, Sungjoon's father, and Yu Kinman, in particular, deserved everything that happened to them, and worse. I wouldn't blame him even if he were to personally kill all three. But my sympathy for him ends there. His treatment of Sungjoon was unjustifiable, he allowed Yoonjae to play Terrifier left and right, and only showed remorse towards the last minutes. Very good morally grey character! Those final scenes with him inside prison and Sungjoon with Eunki were among the best in the show. Very proud and happy to see such beautiful social work representation in the face of Eunki, although she was a bit too aloof at some moments and genuinely had me worried she'd end up killed.

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Thailand's first GL, and also mine: not as impressive as I wanted but still enjoyable!

Pros: I don’t like romcoms but I wanted to start watching more queer dramas so here we are! Beautiful shots, nice humor, good acting from Freen. Mon is a kind-hearted and lovable person, I deeply sympathized with her character, and Sam’s friend group definitely steal the show – I know they’re comedic relief characters but they were my favorites. Excellent chemistry between the main actresses and beautiful social commentary on LGBTQ+ rights in Thailand. I even forgave Kirk’s annoying ass at the end. Really good sensual scenes.

Cons: Never fully understood what Sam’s company was supposed to be about. Mon, although lovable, felt a bit one-dimensional; her entire character and personality seemed to be focused on her idol throughout her life, does she have no ambition of her own outside of Sam’s existence? I was pleased with her initial decision to leave for England after their breakup, it showed her taking agency outside of Sam for the first time. Didn’t buy grandmother’s “redemption arc” either – I understand that her character was supposed to represent the older generation struggling with conservative views but she never truly loved any of her grandchildren and didn’t deserve forgiveness.

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Chemistry so good, you almost forget the coercion. Almost.

Pros: Very enjoyable show, hilarious dialogue (despite the cringe moments), everyone is attractive. Although it was based on a novel of questionable quality (let's be honest, a low-quality Wattpad fanfic at best) it managed to actually have good results - everyone is more or less morally grey but you don't hold it against them. The second couple stole the show for me (Guo Chengyu, my beloved) and Chi Cheng's voice actor is spectacular. Last, but not least, China's first BL with explicit scenes and dialogues, so I had to watch no matter what.

Cons: I like morally grey characters but I draw the line at sexual assault - Chi Cheng is a borderline sex offender and both the audience and Wu Suowei are supposed to just accept it and roll with it. Casual sexist statements exist in almost every episode up until the middle of the season.

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