scenophile

Adorable

The leads in this show were so adorable and I love them SO much. Yukiko is strong and independent, bright and insightful, and just such an interesting character to follow. And Kurokawa is such a golden retriever character — the "looks like they can kill you but is actually a cinnamon roll" is probably my favorite archetype and he absolutely embodies this. I love how earnestly he approaches things he doesn't understand, and the dynamic between him and Yukiko is so heart-warming because of it. Most of the side characters also lovable and I love that we get to see each of their family/friend groups.

Overall, I think the drama portrays visual impairment really well. I definitely learned a lot about amblyopia, which I had no idea about before. The show goes into different accessibility tools and their importance, and I really enjoyed the explainer cameos by comedian Hamada Yutaro. There are a few hiccups here are there; there's a frustrating second female lead type of character who treats the FL really horribly and while the FL is shown as someone who is kind-hearted and patient enough to sit down and explain...it's kind of frustrating that she had to and I wish we'd gone more into the ableism here. The other part that was kind of iffy to me was her work at the restaurant. Once again, it seems like the drama goes for the route that hypes up the female lead and shows her resilience, but I think there could've been more discussion about making workplaces accessible. Showing scenes of Yukiko burning herself and carrying on didn't really make me think "Wow, she is so strong" as much as "Damn, they really did not make this workplace safe for her."

I think the most frustrating thing about this drama was the very typical "break up for their own good" trope in the penultimate episode. I'd been so impressed with how well they communicated prior to this and I really think it would've been much more in line with their personalities to talk it out rather than going the noble idiocy route. I very rarely like time jumps and this was no different.

Ultimately, I still found this drama really light-hearted and fun. It's a really comforting watch and Kurokawa is probably one of my favorite male leads.

Read More

Carried by chemistry

Every other review is right: the cast is the best part of the show. I loved First and Khao's chemistry and the romance is just so goddamn adorable. The trope of the troublemaker x goody two-shoes is so fun to watch.

While I like the idea of a "school curse" hurting students and a school that has overly stringent and overbearing rules to stop students from speaking up, it just all stays so abstract that it feels like the writers didn't actually think through their themes.

Let's start with the protests. We see the kids who are protesting the rules, but it's really unclear what the rules even are and why it's such a problem. Some things that are briefly mentioned are school uniforms and phone use, but we never actually see how these rules negatively affect the students, and it makes the rules seem so mile it doesn't necessitate all the drama. I think the idea of "protesting for the right to protest" is very valid and interesting, but the setting needs to escalate it in a way that makes sense. It's likely that the protests started out from something small and then grew when the school tried to suppress it, but the show drops us right in the middle of the latter and never explains the history.

In terms of the curse, it's also unclear what it actually is. The students gossip about "the curse" and the teachers tell them to stop talking about it, but we don't know what it actually means other than "something bad happens to certain people." Random things happen and it's attributed to the curse, but I needed more characters to ask questions that people would ask in real life. Where did the curse come from? Is it supernatural or is it a person doing everything? Who does it target and why? This ties back into my issue with the protest concepts — none of the history is explained.

Throughout all this, there are moments where the show addresses homophobia, both internal and external. I actually enjoyed how the drama tackled these themes a lot, but once again it was kept quite abstract most of the time. It could've leaned into it much more and tied it into the curse and the school rules, and it would've solved both issues, by putting a clearer spotlight on the homophobia theme and adding more explanations to its other concepts.

Overall, the script just needed to be tightened and the ideas needed to be fleshed out. The romance is so good, but you really have to believe in stakes that aren't quite there.

Read More

Good vibes, mostly

I'm curious about what this drama could've been had it not been cut short, because I've watched plenty of shows that were much worse and much more deserving of being cut. Even if I didn't completely fall in love with this one the way I'd hoped to.

In terms of positive things, the best thing about this drama has to be the vibes. It feels like a classic melodrama but I really enjoyed how down-to-earth and comforting everything feels. The show takes its time in the quiet moments, when characters are just sitting next to each other or deep in thought.

With that being said, however, there was one big thing that always took me out of my immersion: anything related to the artificial intelligence device that imitates a real person's memories, feelings, personality, and voice. While I understand what they're trying to go for and I think we got some great emotional scenes out of it, ultimately I just couldn't suspend my disbelief every time they treated the device like the actual person. If this was a more upbeat and comedic drama like I Am Not A Robot (which I loved) it might have worked, but the outlandish nature of it just clashed with the vibes of everything else.

Other than that, I really only cared about the plot between Ha-won, Seo-woo, In-wook, and Ji-soo. I absolutely loved the backstory of HW and JS's friendship, how the secret affected JS and IW's marriage, and how IW grieves and HW has to learn to love again in the wake of her death. It was touching learning about their story through SW's eyes, especially considering her own tragic past.

Besides the A-plot, I admit I didn't really care much for anything else. I like the scenes of people at the boarding house growing closer, but I didn't really care for the characters who were dating or the new renter, who had a full episode dedicated to her that was a nice story but felt very much like a tangent. Maybe everything would have been paced more naturally if the drama wasn't chopped, but we'll never know.

I also did not like the other female lead, Soon-ho. She doesn't really have her own story and it just feels like she imposes her presence and opinions on the main story, constantly asking questions or interrupting in the wrong ways. To be honest, I think the show could've done without this character and used other ways to bring the characters together.

Overall, as much as I like the premise and the vibes, I think execution was a bit clunky. I felt very confused in the first few episodes and after doing some googling it seems like I'm not alone; we're missing a lot of context for character motivations. There is a desperate ask for the FL to record someone's voice — and she does it — and while we as watchers know that it's for the AI device, it's unclear how and why she actually does it. Nobody ever bats an eye at the AI device concept either, and I feel like that contributed to my lack of belief; I just needed some of the characters to ask more questions that i feel like people would in real life.

Read More

Great, except for one big thing

Folks, it has been quite a while since I've gotten second lead syndrome and even longer since it's been so bad that I've had to start my review out with it, but here we are. I think the thing that was so jarring about this one, though, is that I did not see it coming at all. Contrary to other dramas where you sit through 16 episodes of a SML pining for someone you know they'll never get, I sat through this drama with the continuous thought that this drama had one of my favorite tropes — the one where the main lead feels like the second lead but ends up getting the girl because they were the one that stood by her and laid out all their cards on their table while doing it (see Dream High). I was unfortunately, very wrong, and you cannot imagine the absolute whiplash I felt when Kaga, my favorite golden retriever who spent all six episodes unabashedly spending time with Ayumi and making her laugh...ended up being the second lead. It's not that I dislike Koshiro and in a way it makes sense, but the problem is that we, the viewers, didn't get to see any of it beyond the childhood flashback and a few speaking scenes — because we spent all this time seeing Kaga with Ayumi instead. I have a big soft spot for the storyline where Person A loves Person B but ends up falling in love with Person C because of a big life change (see Vampire Diaries) and thought this was going to be the case based on screentime alone. Long story short, my heart is SHATTERED.

Okay, with that out of the way, this drama actually had a lot going for it. It grabbed me right out of the gate and kept me on the edge of my seat. There's the more "fantasy" and "thriller" aspect where you have the leads trying to figure out how the body switch happened and how to deal with it, and there's also the more down-to-earth part of the drama where they just have to go about their day, attending classes, eating lunch, dealing with bullies and school events, etc. The balance between the two is done extremely well, and I was also really touched by the story.

The theme is common but really interesting. The drama does a good job of showing "pretty privilege" — not just in terms of your genes but also how wealthy you are, if you grew up in a good environment and with good parents and were able to take care of yourself, etc. But it also shows that sometimes people who are dealt a bad card let it define them forever and blame others for it to a fault. I was really happy to see Umine's redemption arc and loved that everyone became a friend group by the end, though it was a little fast.

Plot-wise, I do think the short length of this drama hampers the pacing somewhat. It feels really well-paced and fast at the start, but it starts to drag a little bit before it just completely speed-runs the ending. I'm not sure if the manga originally montaged through it or had more, but I wish we got more scenes about the "shuffle," had more time to develop Umine's redemption arc, and explained more about the lore and how switching worked. It felt like they introduced a researcher character who was supposed to have a lot of answers about the process, but ended up not really doing anything other than some lore dumping early on.

Ultimately, though, SLS aside, I still really enjoyed this one. In my heart of hearts Kaga will always be endgame, but even if he's not, I hope it doesn't deter anything from watching this.

Read More

Needed a bit more

The premise of this drama is super interesting but it was just missing something for me that made it not as exciting as it could've been.

Despite quite a lot actually happening and the main character traveling to the past multiple times, it feels like not a lot is actually happening. I think we needed to feel higher stakes for the main character. While I actually really liked seeing a selfish and greedy main lead — there's a lot of potential for character growth — I felt like the ML wanting to become rich by marrying the "10 billion girl" was not really a strong enough plot motivator.

The character of the FL was also kind of thin. The childhood connection and contrast of the FL being selfless and kind-hearted is nothing new, but next to the ML it felt like we needed a character who was righteous but just as headstrong. Our FL was so quiet that I didn't really feel her presence in the show, especially after she was revealed to be so normal after her ominous introduction.

With that being said, I like the concept of the romance but I'm not sure if I actually bought into it emotionally. I wish we'd gotten more scenes of them just spending time together or, once again, just having higher stakes that would push them closer and give us a sense of desperation and trust.

I actually liked Takauji for this reason (not just because Mackenyu plays him, although that certainly helped) but also because the character added an intensity to the plot that we really needed. I wish the drama had taken it a step further by giving him the tools to travel back in time as well. It would've made the "race" between the protagonist and antagonist SO interesting and added some much needed competition.

Overall, I still quite enjoyed the plot. Though it was a little rushed at the end, the character development works and everything is wrapped up nicely.

Read More

Definitely a tearjerker

I've already seen the Taiwanese movie, I said. I won't cry since I already know everything that happens, I said. Dear reader, I sobbed like a baby. Every. Single. Episode.

Cream/K's story is by far my favorite, which always really surprises me because it has a lot of tropes that I typically don't like. But it's done extremely well, you understand exactly why the characters are making their decisions, and when the ball finally drops, expecting it doesn't make it hurt any less.

I still enjoyed the modern plot too, but more so the family arc, and less so the copyright arc. For the former, I love that the parallels to Cream/K are there but not too in-your-face. I also have to give props to Bai Run Yin, the little boy who is casted to play An Ke Le. He plays the role absolutely perfectly, adding a such a layer of maturity that makes his story that much more raw. I understand that searching for the copyright is how the two stories are intertwined, but this part was definitely not as interesting to me, even though the final song, sung by A-Lin, was fantastic.

While I enjoyed both plots, I did feel like the transitions between them were a little rough sometimes. I'm not sure how this could be fixed because they definitely have to run in parallel, but when we jumped from one to the other I often wished we stayed for a little longer.

Overall, though, still such tear-jerker, and knowing the story beforehand doesn't change that. I'm all cried out.

Read More

Different from your typical cdrama

The best thing about this drama is hands down the pairing between young Li Qing Tong and Chen Jun He. They are individually very intriguing characters with great arcs, and also have really good chemistry and banter when together. At first glance LQT seems like the very common-in-cdrama FL — bad at school, with a crush on the class president. The difference, however, is that her life doesn't revolve around it at all; her relationship with her family is very heart-warming, and she's not afraid to be loud, sarcastic, and stand up for herself and her friends. After a generation of "cute but dumb" FLs, this is SO refreshing. And then our ML, CJH, takes it to the next level. He's actually not "the good guy who every girl has a crush on" (another tired drama archetype) but the also bad-at-school, bully who fights character that we more often see as a second lead. After finishing the drama, I actually think this is one of the best cases of "reformed bad boy" that I've seen in dramaland, and the way everything plays out makes sense.

Plot-wise, the pacing is a little rushed towards the end. Most of its episodes are in high school and then it skips around in college. This is a very common formula in youth dramas too, but I think for this drama in particular, where the biggest part of the plot happens in their college and adult days, there needed to be more time spent on those plot beats instead of some of the other youth drama tropes.

Honestly, however, I'm actually not completely sure about how time travel is used. It seems pretty necessary if the entire purpose is to have the daughter travel back in time to connect with her mother and discover the truth about her father, but once Li Jin Bu is actually in the past and has an established identity, it's really not used that much other than the occasional mysterious voice saying "It's almost time for you to go back" to LJB to give her some internal conflict about her relationship with Duan Xiao. Part of me actually wishes there wasn't any time travel at all because it added this weird, unexplained layer to the show, but I understand why it was a necessary premise.

Overall, I still had a lot of fun watching this! The emphasis on friendship and family is heart-warming, and the characters are surprisingly memorable.

Read More

Cute but so short

This is another drama that has so much potential, but it's hampered by short screentime. It really just needed more time for the characters to get to know each other — I felt like the characters became close friends five minutes after meeting each other for the first time, and throughout the drama it felt like they were skipping scenes and we had to fill in the blanks ourselves. We don't have nearly enough time to follow any story beats, whether it's Xu Qi-zhang trying to become school president for the scholarship, or his band. Some of these plots actually drop off completely, and the only one we do follow is Ye Guang's relationship with his parents, which is actually very powerful.

The best part of this drama, however, is definitely the OST, particularly the title song — I've had it on repeat the entire week.

Read More

A pure rom-com

As a romantic comedy this drama does the job; it's funny and light-hearted overall, but touching when it counts, and it manages to use common kdrama tropes without making them feel tired or too dramatic.

The first few episodes are done extremely well, setting up the story and giving the characters a good starting point. The leads are very convincing as exes, and I loved seeing how cute they were in the flashbacks of their relationship. The second lead couple has a slower start, but it's promising and it's fun once it gets started. Individually the ML and especially the FL are given really touching backstories, and I love that the drama paid just as much attention to the family theme as it did the romance.

As the drama goes on, however, it feels like it doesn't go much deeper than the initial set up. The push and pull between the leads continues in the same way without revealing much more depth to their relationship beyond them enjoying spending time together in their vacuum. The second ship is still fun though, which is all I really asked of them.

Ultimately, it's a fun drama, but even though it's just 12 episodes it still feels longer than necessary.

Read More

Peak friends-to-lovers

Guys. This drama is the pinnacle of friends-to-lovers and of the flipped trope — two of my absolute favorite things. The pining is immaculate.

The best thing about friends-to-lovers is the push and pull between two people who know each other so well and thus are so good at communicating, and two people who are so scared that feelings will change their relationship that they pull away from each other instead. This drama, once again, hit that spot absolutely perfectly, and the actors really sold every scene.

I also really appreciate how the side characters were incorporated. The closeness of the two families is really convincing, and I'm even more impressed that the two main leads had their own little friend groups. It adds a lot to the depth of their characters and their friendships by showing what their personalities are like outside of each other.

The only two little hiccups I would consider this drama to have would be:
1) The plot around Eiw's father. I understand why it's included — so that the story isn't just romance — and thematically it does kind of make sense with his character, but I just didn't find myself caring about it. I'm also not completely sure I agree with the final messaging of forgiveness in the end but this is partly my own worldview, and partly the fact that the drama just doesn't have enough time to really make it hit emotionally.

2) The second ship. It's not handled horribly but the age gap is still very very weird to me.

Overall though, this drama was 100% worth the watch for the main romance, and I hold every hug scene very close to my heart.

Read More

Hitting the ground running

I was highly anticipating this considering how glowing the reviews are, and yep, one episode in, I was intrigued.

The drama really jumps right in and never lets up. I'm really grateful this show has just fifteen episodes because it's just the right amount. For a time loop drama, it never got boring or repetitive, which is impressive. In ever loop we learned something new and we also got to see our main characters grow closer.

The acting is great across the board. The main leads' chemistry goes without saying, but I really want to give extra props to the main antagonist. The actress absolutely kills it and sends chills down my spine.

Maybe the only thing I would want is a little more time spent on the epilogue/aftermath. I liked seeing the side character arcs getting wrapped up, but wanted a little more of our main leads, whether it was seeing them return to their everyday lives and seeing how the time loop changed them, or reconnecting with the people on the bus, or even having a little fun with introducing a sudden relationship to their friends.

It also feels a little iffy to me that the final message of the show seems to go for a "and the police did their job and everyone got what they deserved" direction. While it somewhat makes sense, I wish there was just a little bit more nuance about social pressure, incompetent officers, and laws that need to be amended.

Overall, though, still a great watch. I understand why it's rated as high as it is.

Read More

A little slower

The comforting vibes from Part 1 definitely carry over into this season, and I enjoy how consistent it all is: the support between our main leads is still very strong, and we get to see the conclusion to all the romance arcs — particularly Iksong, which is the main one I'd been looking forward to from the beginning.

Story-wise, however, I did feel like this season was a little slower and more difficult to get through, for the simple fact that the side stories just aren't as strong or interesting. I'm not sure if there were too many subplots for one-off characters, but somehow the 2 hour runtime for each episode really felt long, whereas I felt like the pacing in Part 1 was perfect.

It's still a nice, comforting watch — it's refreshing that all our leads are competent and communicative — and I wouldn't miss out on this if you've watched Part 1 already, but it did just drag a teeny bit.

Read More

The tried and true kdrama formula

This drama is proof that you can take all the formulaic kdrama tropes — first love meet again, disapproving parent, ex returns — and still make an incredible show.

The first thing this drama got right was the vibes; it felt extremely cozy throughout and hit the right spot between being a melodrama and a rom-com.

I think the leads had amazing chemistry and I felt like both of them were given subtle but ample character development and backstory. It's interesting because this drama only had eight episodes, which I'd normally consider too little, but I felt like everything was paced perfectly and the short length actually worked to the shows favor. There wasn't time for misunderstandings to be drawn out or for traumatic backstories to drag everything down. Everything was just the right amount.

I'm also impressed with the friendships in the show. A lot of short dramas stumble into the pitfall of only having enough time for the main romance and not for any other characters or any friendship scenes, but this show didn't have that issue at all. We had the amazing main couple but we also got scenes of our main characters having heart-to-hearts with their friends and supporting each other. It really helped in making everyone feel well-rounded.

The only part I'm iffy on is the two side ships. They had some good moments but overall I just didn't care much for them. It's not too bothersome because they also don't take up a lot of screentime, so I would still fully recommend this drama for the main couple.

Read More