This review may contain spoilers
The worst BL after KinnPorsche to gain such huge ratings when it's so poorly written.
rewatch value ? none.first watch value? same.
coming from a fan of all genres who actually has a sense of morality :).
this show (and YES I watched it till the end and no it doesn't "get better/alright") only softens or glamorizes acts such as r*pe, gangr*pe, various abuses, coercions, addictions,. NO, the male leads both being red flags doesn't flatten this AT ALL.
I have rarely watched such a bad serie. acting wasn't half bad, but I couldn't feel anything for the characters, cinematography was rather ugly (was this filmed ten years ago or what? little budget doesn't excuses bad script or poor camera movements, and that's coming from a filmmaking graduate!), musics were boring, storyline was full of holes...
not only is it bringing shade to the queer community and the representation of gays in general in the cinema industry (trust me, my studies were solely on that so put your brain back in and avoid this show) but this show is also ruining the male representation in bls specifically : violences is NORMAL, manipulation is ROMANTIC, rape is SEXY.
here's your 2025 bingo.
such shows should have never seen the day as they're only ruining whatever we queer people had of hopes in how the filming industry would portray us.
and NO the mafia/red flag setting isn't a magic wand making everything alright because it's "fiction".
now adressing the "fans" of this show who may come here and defend this trash:
YOU people are the problem for liking such an ass of a show because you ERASE the moral code of the story to keep only the fantasms of the scenes you watched. and oh, unsurprinsingly, you people are mostly females since, no joke, bl industry is for women and only portrays clichés and fetichisms <3
(and said moral code is already hard to grasp, but the pretty privilege of handsome actors isn't an excuse. what you're doing, rewatching those rapes scenes is only VOYEURISM because we all know yall did not watch the show for the dialogues, but only for the abuse scenes)
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This review may contain spoilers
Dare I say the best ennemies-to-lovers in which they're actually at each other's throat?
The hostility between Yixiao and Suige is visceral and this is exactly what we want when there's talk about "ennemies" in any show old or new. Now I iht the "this review contains spoilers button" but the only spoilers mentionned reach about episodes 5 I think?Let's get down to business with what I already named my third favorite drama this year (behind Footprints of Change & Coroner's Diary, no less :p).
He orders his men to whip her? She gives back EVERY. SINGLE. HIT.
She bites him until he bleeds? He bites back, and a nasty one at that!
An ennemies-to-lovers where the ennemies part goes on until at least episode 15 out of 38? I'm down.
After AJourney To Love, Princess Agents & Legend of The Female General, we are terribly close to the best portrayal of the best "female general" and I'm not even kidding.
Brains? IQ? Strenght? Devotion? Loyalty?
She has it ALL.
And he's all the same if not better, honestly.
Mature adults, with their flaws and qualities, swimming through life together only to find out they can truly rely on one another and that only makes even even more powerful. Late lovers comes back? Mam' doesn't give two shits. And ML? He only has eyes for her and his sister, that dummy so no divorce trope to put the cherry on the top.
I mean, what else can be said? Storyline went crazy, acting was extraordinary, ost were awesome... Second lead couple went crazy but hey, they NEED they're own serie at this point, chemistry was CRAZY and we could have got so much of them...
We truly need more "mature" couple representation and less childish ones (some are great, but it's like there's only that... give a girl some brains, damn even historical settings they don't have to be dumb and constantly waiting to be saved to no when to run away...).
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Dare I say one of the best serie of 2025?
I wanted to start this review by clarifying my personal tastes when it comes to dramas (and really any kind of film) because I don’t think our opinions are ever fully objective.I’ve always been drawn to plot-driven stories. Acting is obviously crucial, and elements like music, cinematography, and set design matter a lot too. But what truly carries a drama, for me, is the strength and consistency of its narrative and it's the cinema graduate in me talking lol. Before being on screen, any good series is but letters on a piece of paper. And in that sense, Coroner’s Diary was exactly the kind of drama I love because its core was especially good.
It's drama that forces you to use your brain when you watch it and that's exactly what I like.
What surprised me even more than the well-written script, though, was the acting. I had only recently discovered Jelly Lin, and her performance here was outstanding. It was honestly refreshing to watch such a firm, serious female lead for once, where others tend to be childish and well... I'm no longer twenty so I find them boring. After finishing the drama, I even checked out a couple of her other projects to see whether this performance was just a one-time success—but it definitely wasn’t. Her consistency as an actress really impressed me.
Then there’s Ao Rui Peng. He was fantastic as well. And honestly, it felt so satisfying to finally see a true green-flag male lead—someone supportive, loyal, and quietly yearning??? I had also only discovered him recently, though ironically I initially started the drama purely because the plot sounded promising.
As I mentioned earlier, I usually prioritize plot over romance and even over acting, and Coroner’s Diary still managed to meet all my expectations. One thing that often makes me drop dramas is when the romance begins to overshadow the story’s core motivation. That didn’t happen here. Shen Wan’s quest for justice remained the driving force throughout the series, and she never wavered from her goal—even after the male lead discovered the truth. The romance never hijacked the narrative; if anything, it complemented it and made the story stronger.
The investigative arcs and side plots were also incredibly enjoyable. Each case was engaging and well-paced—never dragging on, yet always leaving me wanting more. And seriously… what do you mean we didn’t get more Cai He?? Gimme more of Cai He, please... And I was also soooo into the camera angles and choices of coloring???? It's rare when a drama feels that 'good' visually (like LLTG, The Double, FoF, MJTY, TTEOTM)
All in all, if you enjoy investigation dramas, striking visuals (let’s be honest the leads are serving), strong character dynamics, a satisfying relationship arc, and a happy ending, then Coroner’s Diary is absolutely worth watching.
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This review may contain spoilers
When BL becomes a subplot to the highlight of human trafficking in Thailand
Now I watched this back in 2020 but a rewatch was needed because damn!This show's pushes the genre far beyond its usual soft, school-age romances to go for a world shaped by violence, corruption and moral ambiguity which was, well, rather new back in 2020.
The chemistry between the leads is so funny rewatching it knowing what happens next and YET we are on for ride with one of most crazy depiction of "love at first sight". They're only two adults, pulled together not by coincidence but by shared anger for the death of their friend (ep1) & distrust (honestly Bunn thinking Tan killed Jane is so funny).
Now again: two mature people, no sex scenes (one is heavily "suggered" and that's actually the only one where it's made "clear" in the show), and a damn good plot driving them and the story. They don't start as friends, or lovers (well, on Bunn's side at least lol) but as mere partners searching for the truth.
But now let's go with what this rewatch really brought up even more: the story leans into noir—rural crime, political rot, and a community complicit in silence. No, the police isn't on your side, dear, they know and they're accomplice.
> Through its thriller narrative, the drama doesn’t just use darkness for shock value; it actively denounces the systems that enable human trafficking in Thailand and specifically on minors for sex trafficking. And honestly thanks for that, especially to have it done back in 2020 when BL was just on the rise (mind you, Manner Of Death came out BEFORE Bad Buddy set the mood so it is revolutionary in a way).
Besides, there's like... No plot hole, nice acting, sweet music and I just like so much the way it was filmed?? Like damn, for a 2020 drama, some camera movements were far better than lots of drama who came out this year lol. Sure, the fact that it was a "new" way to film bl helps A LOT but honestly this was a damn good show.
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