RSB

A fun romance wrapped in a transmigration costume drama shell

Gemini is the gift that keeps on giving. I went in with typically low expectations for quality and high expectations for entertainment, as is my typical approach to costume mini-dramas. Gemini delivered on both fronts!

— The romance —

I’m all kinds of happy with the development of the main couple, which hits many of my favorite tropes, including role reversal with a self-possessed, powerful, stabby heroine and a down-bad ML. It was a little too fast-burn for my tastes, because I typically tend to lose interest after the leads get together, but not here.

— Zhou Jun Wei as our hero —

What can I say? Zhou Jun Wei delivered. His expressions, his presence, his little side-smirks… ahhhh I just love him. He absolutely killed it. It’s a crime that he hasn’t been the lead in more dramas, especially full-length dramas.

His character is a classic Wuxia hero in many ways. Badass, devoted, determined, a beast in battle. When with the people he loves, he becomes playful, earnest, and genuinely funny in some moments.

The ML’s inability to feel physical pain, due to some MacGuffin he swallowed in his childhood, makes him into a fascinating character. First off, because it turns him into something like a rabid dog in battle, willing to take hit after hit and keep moving. The villain character comments at one point that, when his sect leader (the FL) is not there to keep him in check, he is little more than a madman. Second, his lack of physical pain makes him feel emotional pain all the more acutely. Consistently, he is a man driven by grief and love, making everything else in his life secondary.

Could the writers have dug deeper into the juiciest parts of his character? Absolutely. Though this is a mini-drama, there was enough space to explore, and they didn’t always capitalize on the time they had to do proper character growth.

— Zhu Li Lan as our heroine —

It was my first time seeing her in a drama. The first few episodes, I had trouble focusing on what her character was up to because, um, she is SO beautiful. I was too busy staring at her face 🤣

She begins as the clueless wife of a villainous prince and, in a sequence of transmigration loosely reminiscent of A Familiar Stranger, becomes a duplicitous and violent woman bent on revenge. ZLL plays both roles well but I very much preferred her in the “villainess” role.

— The plot —

The plot relies on well-worn tropes such as body-switching and revenge, but not so heavily that things get boring. Crucially, when things seemed to slow down, the writers threw in a wonderful twist regarding the villain which brought me right back to full investment in the story.

— Overall —

A gem. No filler, beautiful actors, fun twisty plot, doesn’t take itself seriously except when it counts.


— TROPES —
- ML falls first (a “loved you all along” kind of arrangement)
- badass anti-heroine
- master/disciple
- childhood friends to lovers
- reincarnation, body switching, revenge plot
- medium burn (?) with several instances of spice throughout
- arranged marriage, royal family politics

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If “Love Between Fairy and Devil” & “Till the End of the Moon” had a low-budget baby…

…it would be this mini-series!

So if you like the premise of either but can’t commit to 30+ episodes for each show, then give this a try first. Yes, it’s a mess, but that’s characteristic for mini-series so I find it easy to overlook plot holes and wacky writing for the sake of a fast Xianxia fix.

The plot follows Zhao Lu, a fox spirit (?) played by Lin Jin Yi. She’s a fun character for the most part, mischievous and strong-willed with a bit of a mean streak. Her sect is eradicated by the Demon Lord Lin Fan Ying, so her master sends her back in time to kill the enemy before he becomes powerful enough to kill them. (Yes, just like TtEotM.) 300 years in the past, she meets the Demon Lord as Mu Ting, the young heir to his throne who has yet to turn evil. Through some magic mishaps they become tied together so that any pain or harm done to the FL is suffered by the ML instead. (Yes, just like LBFaD.)

I’m convinced they cast, dressed, and styled Jerome Deng, who plays Mu Ting/the Demon Lord, to resemble Dylan Wang in LBFaD as closely as possible. And while he’s very pretty, his acting was wooden and could have been stronger. Still, I enjoyed seeing his character on screen, and in the physical dimension, he had strong chemistry with the female lead.

I don’t know what to say about the plot…it meanders. It’s chaotic. It leaves no room whatsoever between big events to breathe. Such is the fate of a mini-series. For someone with an attention span as short as mine, it can be a blessing — there’s absolutely no room for filler. But that also means there’s no room for relationships and plotlines to develop in a natural, meaningful way.

TROPES, for those interested (light spoilers):
- ML falls first and quickly
- mischievous, strong-willed FL with a tiny bit of moral greyness
- jealous, possessive, clingy, totally whipped ML
- annoying SFLs
- love square… 3 men fall for the FL
- time travel, change of fate, fated connection

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Satisfying romantic comedy with a dash of plot

I love the villain romance trope and wow does this drama scratch that itch. This ML is underhanded, scheming, manipulative, violent, and unapologetic about all of the above. And once he falls in love? He stays all of those things, but also becomes devoted, sweet, protective, and loyal as all hell to the FL. Perfect. Xu Zhen Xuan does a wonderful job in the role, switching from sweet puppy-dog husband pretending to be weak to flirty playful bastard to cold vicious killer in the blink of an eye. *chef's kiss*

Yang Qi Ru as the FL was a bit stiff, but I enjoyed watching her on the screen nonetheless. She plays a down-to-earth, righteous general who doesn't care much for decorum or sugar-sweet politeness but has a kind, loyal heart.

If you enjoy gender role reversals where the FL appears in the nick of time to save the ML and bridal-carry him off to safety, this is your show. You also get some ML saving FL scenes, it's a great balance. They're both strong and competent in their own ways. Their chemistry was good and you get some great skinship all throughout the series.

The plot meandered somewhat and I wasn't super invested in the flashbacks to the FL's angsty past and the present timeline of the princes scheming for the throne. It wasn't bad, but also nothing new or particularly interesting.

The music slaps hard, particularly the intro theme.

TROPES: (light spoilers)
- ML falls first and harder
- enemies to lovers
- hidden identity
- jealous, possessive, clingy, deeply devoted ML
- physically and emotionally strong FL
- villain romance with hero FL and villain ML
- political court intrigue and succession scheming
- love triangle, but it's not a big part of the plot (kind of unclear whether the SML is romantically interested in the FL or if she's just a pivotal, fateful figure in his life)
- arranged/forced marriage
- HEA

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Terrible wigs, beautiful people | The duality of mini-dramas

If you can ignore the wigs and focus on the pretty faces, you’ve got a decent chance of enjoying this series.

Episode 1 kicks off with a wild, toxic, over-the-top dramatic sequence, wherein the ML demonstrates the tyrannical power he wields over the FL, his royal consort. She reincarnates, practically screaming with rage, and vows that she will pay back all the pain he’s caused her tenfold.

However, if you’re looking for a proper time regression revenge plot drama, look elsewhere. All the bite of the original premise fizzles out quickly.

To summarize their dynamic early on, imagine this:
You’re trying to get revenge on this guy you hate, so you bring him into your household as your servant. You treat him worse than the dirt under your foot—beating him up, ordering him around, literally walking all over him. But somehow he doesn’t seem cowed. With growing horror, it begins to dawn on you: he’s into it. Now, what to do with the kinky snake you’ve accidentally let into your house?

I’m a sucker for a stabby, mean, wrathful heroine. Tower of Whispers starts off strong in that respect, but the revenge plot loses its way quickly and the heroine loses all her fighting spirit as soon as she falls in love. No payoff, little to no consequences for his actions. Before we even hit the halfway point, the drama has shifted its focus to the ML, making him the main character for the remainder of the story.

It’s doubly disappointing because they actually wrote the leads with the opportunity for complexity. Their dynamic could have grown into something complicated, messy, and laden with toxic history, but the writers simply didn’t take advantage and expand what was already there, past the first few episodes.

Oh well. It was nice while it lasted.

He Lan Dou — for all the shortcomings of her character, I blame the writing team, not the actress. HLD delivered a strong performance of the script she was given. Particularly her anger and grief were believable. I loved to see her seething with cold rage in the early episodes.

Jerome Deng — I’ve seen him before in another mini-drama. His acting has improved, though he still doesn’t reach far beyond the range of the stoic action hero archetype. He’s very pretty, though, so there’s that. Not even the terrible wig could hide that.

Supporting Characters — Sang Li, the ML’s right hand, was my favorite character by far. Here, at least, we have an unapologetically mean, scheming woman who uses men to her own benefit and looks crazy hot doing it. Every scene with her was a joy to watch. I’ll be following the actress’s work from now on.

-- Overall --

A romance with some kinky appeal that could have been so much more than just entertaining, but fell flat in the plot dimension.

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The Untamed… but make it lesbians

Seriously, this could have been a side story in the Untamed. The vibes are very similar, and the main couple is basically WangXian but girls.

Let’s be clear, I am NOT complaining. I love The Untamed. Plus, in my humble opinion, GL > BL so finding this little sapphic adventure was a delightful experience.

Legend of Yunze obviously had a miniscule budget, but they stretched it far and didn’t try to be something they couldn’t without the proper funds. Though there are some mini-series goofs you just have to ignore to properly enjoy this (for instance, the clown music that plays whenever there’s a scene lighter in tone).

The story is a classic Wuxia mystery, with the cultivator leads coming to a town plagued by demonic energy and solving the mystery to save the townspeople. Simple but effective.

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Strong start, weak finish

I really enjoyed the first ten episodes or so. The show starts off at a lightning pace (it has to, being a mini-series -- that's what I love about mini-series) with the female lead dropping into a "Mary Sue" video game as the FL. At the beginning, the plot mostly focuses on parodying rom-com dramas with all the silly tropes and the almost inevitable trajectory that drama romance plots always go down. The writing is witty and these more comedic episodes were a joy to watch.

Also, the level of skinship was great. Kisses and touches all over the place.

Around the middle of the drama, things kind of fell apart for me... the writing got really choppy, the tone was all over the place. We went from a light comedy to a melodrama in an instant. Also, the romance didn't feel believable. The leads seemed to go from not caring about each other at all to being crazy for each other out of nowhere. There is limited time for things to build in a mini-series, and yet I've seen shorter mini-series that had more genuine heartfelt romances.

So, it's worth a watch if you like the transmigration/isekai trope and a good dose of silliness, and you're okay with rapid tone switches. The production value is good for a mini-series and I did have fun watching.

TROPES (light spoilers)
ML falls first, kind of...
FL chases SML first
transmigration - FL enters a video game
villain romance
change of fate
strong relationship between sisters
mischievous, playful FL
reserved, cunning ML

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CFT and DGZ never fail with their chemistry

I started this drama to get my Maid’s Revenge fix… Basically I wanted to see gorgeous Chen Fang Tong and hot Hot HOT Dai Gao Zheng make out a lot. I got what I was looking for and more.

Forever Love has a bit of a role reversal happening—the FL is more like the “chaebol” rich, spoiled, beautiful heiress while the ML is her poor, hardworking employee. It’s just enough role reversal to mix it up while still keeping the cliches that make dramas like this comforting. There’s got to be at least a few scenes of the ML rescuing the FL, pushing her up against the wall to kiss her, you know, the (slightly problematic) works.

Dao Gao Zheng does a great job. He’s got this role of the damaged but over-protective hero down pat. He does a ton of mini-dramas and it seems like he’s getting type-cast at this point. Well, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?

Chen Fang Tong seriously delivers in this drama. She plays the blind heiress who recently lost her father under mysterious circumstances and is trying to find his killer. She’s smart and careful, competent but not to Mary-Sue degrees, a damsel at times but not to irritating degrees. I loved the way she would order people (especially the ML) around haughtily, lifting her hand expectantly like “aren’t you going to help your mistress??” XD iconic

The plot mostly focuses on the FL solving her family mystery with the help of the ML, who’s also scheming behind the scenes to avenge his own family’s downfall and get justice. The romance progresses slowly (for a mini-series) but with lots of good kisses and intimacy. Once the leads get together, they mostly trust each other and act like reasonable, mature people. What a pleasant surprise.

Production value was another pleasant surprise —- you never know what you’re going to get with these mini-series. For instance, I just watched Dusk Love with Dai Gao Zheng, which felt like it had half the budget and a MUCH worse script compared to Forever Love.

TROPES (light spoilers)
- ML falls first & hard, ML chases first
- boss/employee relationship (FL is employer)
- murder mystery & business/shareholder politics
- fateful past encounter
- hidden/mistaken identity

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Another day, another CEO romance mini-series

Or that’s what I thought when I started watching this office rom-com. But it’s actually quite a unique little gem!

Bai Jing works as a secretary for a high-strung, conceited, demanding CEO. She hates his guts and would do anything to quit her job. He, of course, is secretly in love with his secretary. Because he has the emotional capacity of a toddler in a sandbox, he thinks that tormenting her at work will somehow lead her to reciprocate.

It’s so cliche that it feels intentionally hammy, like the writers are winking at the audience in episode 1. Because just when ep 1 ends, we get to the real premise of the drama: Secretary Bai becomes trapped in a time loop. She’s doomed to relive the same day over and over again, until she can successfully quit her job and leave her boss. Or so she thinks.

There are more than a few twists and turns in the story, and just when the leads think they’ve figured out what’s going on, they’re thrown for a new loop (pun intended). At first, since the FL is trying to quit and the ML is trying to keep her at all costs, so they are antagonists. Then as the circumstances of the time loop change, so does their relationship, and they start working together against the problem.

The romance therefore felt naturally developed, at least on the part of the FL. I was rooting for them eventually. There’s a dash of mystery involved as well which keeps the non-romance bits interesting.

For such a young actor (he was 20 when this was filmed!), Wang Zi Hao does a great job. He really takes to the role of the cliche CEO, who’s both self-obsessed and FL-obsessed. It was fun to watch him lose his mind trying to keep his secretary’s attention via pigtail-pulling. Han Le Yao holds her own as well. Their physical chemistry was fantastic especially in the later episodes.

TROPES
- Boss/employee relationship
- workplace romance
- time loop
- one-sided crush
- ML falls first and chases first

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Looks pretty but no substance

So this drama stars Dai Gao Zheng, or as PeachBlossomsGoddess so astutely calls him, “The Best-est of the Chest-est”… that’s probably the most positive thing I’ve got to say about the drama. Dai Gao Zheng is HOT, and look, the writers know it too. They take every possible opportunity to make him take off his shirt. Every side conversation he has, he’s either flexing his muscles in the gym or walking around half-naked. I’m pretty sure he spent more scenes with his shirt off than on in this drama.

The FL is gorgeous too. And she had great physical chemistry with the ML. There is lots and lots of skinship all across the drama (including some slap kisses, be warned) and the sparks do fly.

But other than that… the story was a huge mess. For some reason the writers chose to tell almost all of the story in the first ten or so episodes non-chronologically, with constant flashbacks and time jumps and “3 hrs earlier” and whatnot. SO unnecessarily confusing, especially for a plot that wasn’t all that solid in the first place. It was already riddled with plot holes before the timeline shenanigans.

So while there are individual scenes I enjoyed, I can’t say I liked the drama as a whole.

TROPES (light spoilers)
- ML falls first but FL chases first
- contract relationship
- cohabitation
- rich heir FL and ML who pretends to be poor but is also a CEO
- childhood friends to lovers
- amnesia due to car accident/trauma
- love triangle but the SML is evil

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Fantastic character development in a meaningful workplace romcom

Cunning Single Lady has its issues, and watching it now does make some of the storylines feel dated. BUT overall it’s a really great show with some of the best character writing in kdramas.

The lead actors do a fantastic job portraying the rocky relationship between the ML and the FL, and the ending really feels satisfying given all the struggles they go through to get there. Plus, both actors have impeccable comedic timing, leading to many laugh-out-loud moments.

I would recommend this drama to anyone looking for a romcom with some more mature leads and deeper storylines relatable to older viewers.

Tropes:
Workplace romance
CEO ML to working-class FL
Enemies to lovers
Pre-established relationship; leads start out divorced
ML falls first
Double love triangle with scheming second leads

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Kinda toxic sapphic fantasy romance… yay :)

This drama is pretty much everything I could ask for from a GL mini-series. It’s got star-crossed sapphic romance, sword fights, demons and immortals, and a good dose of comedy. Despite the melodramatic setup, the story doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Sheng Wei and Wang Xi Xue always always always deliver with their chemistry, including here. They are dressed beautifully and look gorgeous together. Whenever the two of them are involved, I will be watching, no questions asked. This drama even includes Yang Fu Yu to round out the lesbian polycule.

It’s about as explicitly gay as it can be, given that this is still a Chinese drama. There are no illusions about whether these girls are into each other, that’s for sure.

I recommend this one, it’s a gem among other historical GLs.

TROPES
lovers to enemies to lovers
amnesia
second chance romance
master/servant pairing

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Alien catboys from the Planet Meow... because why not

This may be the most unserious drama I've ever watched.

The ML and his sister are aliens in the shape of cats hailing from a planet called Meow. Sure. Whatever. They use actual cats for these scenes, which are extremely cute and a highlight of the drama. These aliens can take on human or housecat form, or a weird in-between where they're humans but with fuzzy white cat ears.

So our alien catboy owes the human FL a life debt, which he thinks he should repay by maneuvering her into a housemate relationship with him and his sister. (The FL at this point is homeless due to some egregious backstory trauma involving an abusive uncle and a dead mom.) From there, the FL begins to fall for the ML's advances, which involve sniffing her and saving her from mean girl bullies.

The acting from the leads was surprisingly decent. Within the realm of this insane world the drama has created, the FL actually acted with some reason and wasn't annoying. The ML character was.... interesting.... but he did a good job of acting out the very odd script he was given.

The story is a cliche-fest but with some wild curveballs thrown in. Basically it was both comforting, entertaining, and manic all at once. Perfect for when you need a dopamine-fest delivered in short bursts of 2-minute episodes. It's not a good drama, but if you put aside logic and standards, you can have a really fun time watching this. And if not, hey, you've lost less than an hour of your life.

TROPES (light spoilers)
- ML falls first & chases first
- cohabitation
- fateful past meeting (FL saves ML)
- high school setting
- abusive family members & death of a parent

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Bad first impression, but they managed to turn it around

Based on my experience watching episode 1, I really thought I would drop Perfect Marriage Revenge early on. The acting underwhelmed me, the scene-to-scene pacing felt off and slow, and a lot of my pet peeves were hit in the plot early on.

I can’t stand protagonists, especially heroines, who are presented as the ultimate victim of the world’s cruelty, a flawless do-gooder who only suffers due to external, black-and-white circumstances. I just find that boring and irritating. And this is essentially how the FL, Han Yi Joo, is introduced. All of ep 1 is just tragedy after tragedy being committed against our hapless heroine.

HOWEVER. I’m glad I stuck it out for a few more episodes because the writers really turned things around. The characters were rounded out and got more depth. The acting seemed to improve as the actors settled into their roles. Basically, the show turned from a badly produced makjang to a stronger, more nuanced but still guilty-pleasure-entertaining drama.

I loved how we got to explore all the main characters’ inner lives.

FL: Once Han Yi Joo time travels back in her life, she resolves to no longer be a victim. She plans her cold-blooded revenge, but she doesn’t easily take on that role. In stressful times, she reverts to that timid, helpless girl she was, and the writers give her appropriate time to grieve for everything she lost by not standing up for herself sooner.

ML: Sung Hoon as Seo Do Guk did a wonderful job playing Simp of the Year. He was so madly sweetly in love with the FL, he would just glow on the screen whenever he was looking at her. I’m usually not a fan of Sung Joon but this might be the first role I’ve ever seen him in that I loved.

SFL: The heroine’s adoptive sister, Han Yoo Ra, was to me the most interesting character in the drama. She begins as the classic makjang minor villain — a spoiled, hateful brat who lords her power over others and throws tantrums when she doesn’t get her way. Over the course of the plot, we see other sides of her, as well as the effect that being raised by her awful, evil mother has had. I love a mean girl character, and while the PMR writers don’t try to redeem her, they do try to make the audience empathize with her, which was brilliant.
They pulled off a similar arc with the SML, the FL’s original husband who betrays her, though I found him less interesting.

The only completely unapologetic, black-and-white character is the villain mother, Yoo Se Hyeok. And wow, was she evil. Whenever she was around, the makjang vibes returned in full force.

So, I’m glad I stuck it out and gave this surprisingly well-rounded drama a chance to hook me.

TROPES (light spoilers):
- ML falls first, fast, and hard
- transmigration: time travel, return to one’s own past
- contract marriage
- domestic abuse, emotional and physical
- chaebols, succession politics, business drama
- fast burn, good intimacy and great kisses between the leads
- third act breakup (but it’s brief and not a big part of the plot)

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Somehow made me love Seo In Guk even more

I’ve always loved Seo In Guk—Reply 1997 was one of the first Asian dramas I ever watched as a kid—-but this role is something else, seriously. His portrayal of a fundamentally damaged, terrifyingly cold man, who’s desperately seeking meaning in a world he doesn’t understand, was SO moving.

So, I cried my eyes out, will be needing about 50 hours of fluff dramas after completing this one.

TROPES (spoilers)
- anti-hero ML, cold man/warm woman
- murder mystery and some procedural vibes
- ML falls first and chases first
- affectionate lead couple
- fateful past connection
- amnesia from childhood trauma
- found family

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Come for the ML, stay for the ML

Plot was amusing. FL was funny at times (and sometimes irritating). The supporting cast was lovable and did their jobs well.

BUT.

Chen Zhe Yuan as the male lead absolutely stole the show.

If you’re looking for a drama with the sweetest, prettiest, most devoted man ever, this is for you. It’s a light-hearted Beauty and the Beast retelling with an intrepid princess as the FL and a part-time king, part-time monster boyfriend as the ML.

TROPES:
- ML falls first (long before the FL) and quickly
- royal leads
- fantasy, magic, portals, etc
- multiple secondary couples
- no love triangles, minimal skinship

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