Kate

Went into it for a sweet romance and it’s mostly what I’ve got. Natural development of feelings between the leads and beautiful friendships were for sure the highlights. The issue was the second half of the show and all the overdramatic plotlines added. It worked the best as a chill slice of life, why add more?

The first half of the show is everything one might want from high school romance: playful, smart, caring male lead. Smart, positive and driven female lead. Friends with good comedic timing delivering a fun side romance. Plot touching on internal struggles like not knowing what you want to do in your life, wanting to both please your family, but also do what feels right for you. The chemistry between all the cast was amazing, the innocent jealousy, the bickering - butterflies in the stomach mode on.

But then something happened in the second half that made me lose a bit of my interest. The plot surrounding Zhou Si Yue’s family and how it made him hesitate and take a step back was literally enough to fill all the remaining episodes. Why add more to it? Why focus on the 2nd male lead after such a long time? Why add the whole “crime and business” related aspects? A lot of random plotlines were introduced and concluded in 2-3 episodes, so why even bother making them happen if they did not plan to develop them in a proper manner?

All that considered, I still enjoyed Our Secret for fluffy romance, heartwarming friendships and great performance from the cast. Honestly, can we talk about Chen Zhe Yuan? Because he aced the role. I am completely in love with this man right now. He was so natural in his performance. He made me want to go back to my high school days, and that was for sure not the best and most exciting part of my life…

Meng Jie Xu also did a great job with the presentation of Ding Xian. I wish some of her emotional scenes were a bit more… emotional? I don’t think the character was written in a way she would try to restrain her feelings, but that’s the vibe I’ve got a few times.

Overall, a high end of the decent high school romances. Surprisingly not cheesy, not leaving you with second hand embarrassment.

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Would I be able to see the person behind the crime?

It took me 3 days to finish this movie, it simply made me uncomfortable - not because of the content presented, but rather my thoughts, ideas and values. It made me think about a lot of issues and reexamine some of my opinions.

Many of us like to pretend the rehabilitation of the criminals is the goal, that the justice system should strive to make sure they can reenter society and live normal lives. At the same time, we don’t really treat said people in the way that would support what we think. The punishment for their crimes does not really end with their release from prison - they only face obstacles after obstacles even after regaining even partial freedom. How can they start living like humans, when they are not treated as such?

And that’s what the movie focuses on. What is more important - punishment or rehabilitation? How long should criminals pay for their crimes? Agawa Kayo tries to see the best in people, she believes people deserve 2nd chances and that they need support to live an honest life. And that’s what she strives to do working as a probation officer - be that one person support system. We observe her interaction with different parolees, how these interactions change both her and the people around her.

Arimura Kasumi and Morita Go delivered amazing performances that could break one's heart. The amount of pain, fear, but also hope - all so natural and clearly visible through their acting.

Overall, it’s not an easy watch if you watch it while reflecting on your ideas and values.

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No one told me it was a boring comedy.

0.0MHz had neither the atmosphere, nor the scares, nor the visuals. It did not have interesting characters nor the plot…. So what did it have? Snapshot filters and killing hair. Even the 0.0MHz from the titles was barely relevant and the whole movie could do without it, changing more or less nothing.

It was honestly, simply boring. The kids had either zero personality or awful one - I did not care if anyone survived. All the conflicts were not set up in any proper way. Truth to be told, they were not set up in an awful way either - they just dropped it all in random dialogues at random times.

Best aspect of the movie? Eunji cursing the demon ghost - the whole final face off was so ridiculous I could not stop laughing.

I can’t even talk about the performances, because the writing and directing was so bad, I am not sure how much of the mediocre delivery really is on the actor, and how much on the other people involved in the production.

Overall, don’t waste your time.

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Was it a nice romance show with bits of slice of life? Yes. It had some awesome characters, even pacing, good messages and fun moments - it was just not tight enough.

I have no idea why writers still like to pretend shows like that can be 40 episodes long and it makes sense - especially if the episodic elements of the plot ain’t that good to carry the show in-between the main plot moving forward.

I greatly liked the relationship between Mika and Ke Lei - before and after they got together. It’s rare to see a couple in a drama actually act like a couple, being silly, joking around, all the great and fun domestic business. The show did lose some spark after they officially started dating, but that’s because the writers kept keeping them apart. All the scenes they actually shared were great.

That said, do I think Mika and Ke Lei are good as individual characters? Not really. Mika is a saint - the good, moral, hard working, forgiving, flawless. I truly cannot think of one bad trait she had that would allow for some nice character development. She was truly boringly perfect.

Ke Lei was a bit better in that aspect. Still ridiculously good, but at least he showed lack of assertiveness when dealing with people he knew… a few times.

On the other hand, I had exactly the opposite issue with the second and third couple - they did not work that well together, but they were more interesting individually. Qing Xia was fun and a little bit spoiled, Wen Bo was an honest and reliable guy, also clueless af. Ke Yao and Dr. Shao felt the most realistic out of all the characters, but their interactions together were also the most boring.

Truth to be told 2 duos I like the best to watch were Ke Lei and Ke Yao, and Mika and Dr. Shao. Positive family relations and uplifting mentor-mentee pairs are some of my favorite aspects of the shows.

There were also some annoying side characters that deserve no redemption, and yet it was given.

For the plot, except for the romances blooming left and right and some nice slice of life elements, the show does not really offer that much. Majority of the work related plots and scenes were either boring, or poorly developed - sadly they took quite a bit of the screen time.

Everyone delivered in terms of acting. I did question some crying scenes from Ma Si Chun, but it was not bad enough to complain about. Wang Yang was my favorite - I am biased though, I love this man so much. He is just natural and he makes every role he plays a worthy performance.

Production value was nice - surprisingly many aesthetically pleasing shows. Editing was also nice. Liked the set design, even if at times it felt ridiculous how these people can afford the places they are staying at. For the soundtrack, I honestly do not remember one song from the show.

Overall, it’s a decent show. Nothing amazing, but serves as a good chill after work watch.

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This was a crazy ride full of messy characters, ridiculous plotlines and scenes, but somehow I loved it. I also lost too many brain cells watching (not good, since I didn't have that much left to begin with) . I don't even know what my opinion is about the show. I loved and hated it at the same time. I was obsessed but also questioned my choices for watching.

Is this a good show? No. Quite honestly and objectively speaking. Characters at times make no sense, they randomly turn "gaynes and romance" from 1 to 10 between episodes, actions of most characters have no true consequences, and some ladies are just crazy. BUT it's entertaining and I enjoyed every second of it.

I planned to watch one episode, to just see why so many people are so obsessed, and ended up watching 11 episodes in one sitting. Once you start, you won't even know when you'll be on the last episode.

One of the things that for sure got people hooked was the chemistry between the main characters. The things they did... Hide the kids. Fire on screen. Overall the characters were fun to watch. Kim is my girl and the best female character I have seen in BL so far.

I don't have much to say about the plot, since it was never important in the drama itself. It's definitely driven by the relationships and interactions between the characters. The writers could completely change the setting of the show, and not many changes would have to be made.

But then there is Moira, who is basically a female version of Lhong. Throw her into the trash please.

I found the last episode a bit too over the top, even for such an over the top show. But it made me laugh and had some heartwarming moments, so I shouldn't really complain right?

Overall, as many before me said, it's a perfect guilty pleasure. Give it a shot and dive into the craze.

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The greatest mystery - who is Santa?

Are you done with watching incompetent cops trying to solve a mystery and catch the criminal? Do you find it funny, when shows try to hide who the killer is, even though it’s more than obvious to the audience? Did you have enough of female characters being there just to support the male leads? If yes, this show is for you.

There are no cops to be seen, so you don’t have to deal with their incompetence. We know who the killer is since day one and the whole plot centers around the amazing cast of female characters. Want a hero? Want a complex gray character? Want a chaotic villain? You will get it all here.

Inspector Koo is a whacky, bizarre and surreal crime comedy that presents an exciting cat and mouse chase, with a lot of traps hidden for all the characters. The show introduces a number of plot lines that, by the end, get fitting conclusions.

We follow three different sets of characters, having their own motivations, goals and ways of dealing with piling up issues - Kyung Yi and her team, K, and Chief Yong Sook. Each of them trying to be on top and outsmart the others.

Inspector Koo presents a refreshing take on the heroine trope. Koo Kyung Yi is not exactly the type of person you would admire and try to look up to. Struggling with basic daily activities, she gets absorbed into the investigation, getting close to an obsession.

Luckily, she has on her side Na Je Hee, who is able to keep the team operating, Oh Kyung Soo being the voice of a real reason and Santa, the innocent helper who cares for Inspector Koo deeply, while hiding his true identity. Who is Santa? That’s the mystery of the show.

On the other hand, we have Song Yi Kyung, who is the “righteous” serial killer hidden under the name “K”. With her wits and daring behavior, she was able to commit murders undetected. Her reasoning and personal moral code make her an interesting character to observe.

The third party involved in the plot is Chief Yong Sook and her subordinates, who team up with Koo Kyung Yi in attempts to catch “K”, serving a role of a behind the scenes power, while hiding their own motives.

The three groups present amazing dynamics and never ending scheming that kept me as a viewer at the edge of my seat. Not only that, the drama presents viewers with conflicting emotions - you know you should not be rooting for the killer, but somehow… it’s hard to be completely against their actions.

Inspector Koo is a perfect blend of crime, investigation and dark comedy. It never takes itself too seriously by trying to have a depth of the Mariana Trench, when it’s more of a puddle. It’s not here for you to break your brain trying to understand convoluted plot lines and morally gray dilemmas and issues. It gives you thrills, fun, action and an entertaining set of characters that work together in the most amusing way.

On several occasions we can witness the clever writing, when jokes or solutions are set up in the previous episodes. Some seemingly off topic and insignificant comments made by the characters are used to set a playoff in the scenes later on.

The production team committed to the bizarre characterization of the drama, elevating it by unusual, at times over the top editing and gaming elements - making the whole plot seem less realistic and surreal. Adding the perfection that the soundtrack for this show is - we’ve got ourselves quite a cinematic treat.

Overall, one of the biggest surprises of 2021. Fitting and funny comedy, amazing thrills, likable characters, unusual mystery and romance found in surprising places, scheming and wits that take you on the peculiar journey.

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If you are in the mood for a light, cute and sweet romantic comedy with a nice female lead who knows what she wants and smart not-an-asshole male lead, this is for you. While the plot was truly simple daily life and there was no main plotline except for the blooming romance between Si Tu Mo and u Wei Yi, nor huge hardships the main characters had to overcome, it was still interesting and enjoyable to watch.

It might seem like a drama with many usual tropes of rom-coms, but most of them are introduced in an interesting and fresh way. The love triangle is not as frustrating as it tends to be in this genre and gets resolved in a realistic way. The second lead female is almost non existing and does not affect the main couple in a negative way. Even the accidental kiss happened in a realistic setting.

Don’t let the tags fool you, neither is the female lead naive nor the main lead cold. She is strong willed and tries to fulfill her dreams in an industry she likes while staying positive and mature. Gu Wei Yi is a nice and truly caring guy. He might not be the best communicator and lacks the know-how in romantic relationships, but rather than being cold, it makes him look sweet and innocent.

All the characters were extremely likable, with Lin Zhi Cun being a background MVP who instead of being turned into a pushy guy that goes after a girl ignoring her own feelings, was written as a good person who is willing to help others in his smart and funny ways.

It’s a good drama for an evening when you don’t want to feel burdened with complex plots and many tragic and sad scenes. There are no weird plot twists and no moments that will make your blood boil.

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I have not seen any of the previous dramas about Pete and Kao so I will be judging this as a solo act/drama - keep that in mind while reading my review.

I believe this drama shows in quite simple and realistic way what happens when someone openly gay dates a person who is still in the closet and not ready to come out. Most of the problems Pete and Kao faced were the result of Kao not admitting he is dating Pete to his friends and family.

That said, we cannot place all the blame on Kao only. We should take into consideration his situation too - the fear of his mom not accepting him, the possibility of losing his job because some parents might not want a gay person to tutor their children. Pete was in an extremely privileged situation - did not have to worry about money, his dad was as accepting as it was possible. Because of that, it was hard for him to understand Kao's struggle and how, for him, there was no good way out of this situation. No matter what choice he will make, there will be negative consequences.

I also like what they did with Non's character, no matter how annoying he was. The drama clearly showed how bad parenting can influence a kid. Giving us the glimpse of what Non has to put up with at home makes it easier to understand the character, but the drama makes sure to not use it as an excuse for his bad behavior. Being a victim does not mean you yourself can create more victims.

Overall, I believe this drama addresses the important topic of coming out and how it should always be decided by the person themselves, when and how they want to do it. It should not be forced on them, expected from them. It's not an easy decision and everyone's circumstances are different. To quote the drama: "It's my choice to tell or not tell anyone. I should get to decide.".

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Constant state of pain and agony, washed with the holy waves of never-ending angst…

and yet, somehow… Part two made me feel far less than part one did. By the end of the drama I felt like the writer loved their story and all the characters too much to give some aspects up. Too many things were not set up and developed enough, too many plotlines felt rushed, luckily the closure was solid.

Don’t get me wrong though, I still enjoyed the show a lot, but the progression of the story and the lack of focus just lost me a bit. The politics and war were mostly the context in which the characters operated and explored their beliefs, personalities, morality and relationships in part one. It was great. We had many powerful scenes showing the contract between the royal family and the common people. Not knowing any real details was not an issue, because these royal idiots were never main characters in the first place.

Sadly, this whole royal drama gets more attention in part 2. It takes away precious time from the main characters. Where even was Eun Ae? Why did most of Yeon Jun's character development happen between the scenes? He took a couple of 180 in terms of his morality, but we never got enough reason for it to even happen. And it's not like the screen time they took away from these characters was even enough to truly develop and explore the palace storyline. It felt like I needed to do a lot of work myself to fill the gaps of the plot in my mind based on vague ideas and shallow set ups. It's like they tried to turn a character driven show into a plot driven one half way through...

All that said, the drama is still dear to my heart and even if I enjoyed part two less, I still enjoyed it a lot. We've got more of the exploration of different themes relating to morality, justice, duty, honor. Many scenes connecting to events in part one in a smooth and eye opening manner - adding to already intriguing commentary on social standards and gender roles.

Undoubtedly, the best gem, the true treasure of My Dearest was Gil Chae. Easily my favorite female character in 2023, probably top 3 from all the dramas I have ever seen. The masterfully crafted character development, the realistic flaws, the strength that was inspiring. The depth of emotional performance given by Ahn Eun Jin. There are no words that can truly describe how much I adore this character. The drama shows, you can have a female lead that is feminine, compassionate and good, without making her a stupid pushover. Gil Chae was smart, cunning, witty, and resourceful, but also stubborn. At times shortsighted and blind by her perception and understanding of the situation. Her character was beautifully complex and for her existence I am grateful.

Did I love Jang Hyun while watching? Of course I did. Do I want one in my life? Yes. Did I think he was not as developed as Gil Chae and I wished they explored his character more? Also yes. Since the past story did not really lead to anything significant and it felt more like a cheat and easy fix for some plot developments, I could not stop myself from feeling disappointed. The set up for the mystery of his background was perfect, the conclusion answered all the questions, but the overall picture created by that opening and ending felt a bit lacking. With little to no background for the character in part one, I thought they would explore him more in part two, but this did not really happen. From start to finish he was badass, smart, driven, caring (even if he kept denying it) and madly in love with Gil Chae.

What’s more to love? A strong set of diverse supporting characters that felt so real and humane with their, at times questionable ideas and actions. Ryang Eum with whom I went from friends, to lovers, to enemies to lovers trope, with how my feelings changed towards him. Jong Jong who was a loyal friend and support for Gil Chae, even if on the surface it felt like it was mostly Gil Chae protecting her. Gu Jam who always provided a solid dose of entertainment with his sharp comments and badass actions. Yang Chun, who truly shows that good people can have backwards ideas. Even Prince So Hyun and Crown Princess Kang’s scenes had many meaningful and touching moments.

Still adore the production and the attention to details in terms of how the characters are presented. You know how in many historical shows, as long as the female character is part of the main cast, they will have make up worthy of the royal family, looking like Crown Princesses themselves? Not here. From episode 1 till the end of episode 21 of the whole series, there was a lot of care put into making the looks realistic and fitting the context and hardships the characters went through.

Overall, I loved it, but maybe I loved it a bit too much, so it made me expect more. I wish the whole story was more simple, with less side characters and plot lines. Wished the plot focused on the common people more and kept the palace drama and the war as the context and background the story is happening in, rather than the focus of the plot. From the start, I loved this drama for its characters and countless social commentaries and powerful scenes, and it was never truly about the plot for me. While the conclusion was amazing, giving proper closure to it all, I wished the journey itself was either more detailed, or more simple…

That said, once you sell your soul to this drama, there is no coming back, so while I might have had some complaints, they were delivered through tears of both sadness and happiness, and complete devotion I had to the main characters and their journey.

Review for pt1: https://kisskh.at/profile/Shini/review/300809

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The greatest cast delivered us the greatest medical show up to date.

Let's be grateful for the perfection this drama is. No power struggle plot lines, no over the top unrealistic medical cases, no flawless doctors with such amazing skills they could be called superpowers. What we’ve got is a realistic representation of a hospital as a workplace with a brilliantly written set of original characters and smart comedy with depth and heart intertwined. I could not ask for more.

Some might argue that the characters were too perfect, but if anything, they were perfectly written. They still had their flaws, but I wasn’t slapped across the face with them. They were insecure at times, scared, and didn't know how to communicate with others. Their small struggles and mistakes they made never annoyed the viewers, because they were realistic and made sense. Rather than frustrating everyone, it made the characters extremely relatable.

The acting was A+... I truly don’t think we need to discuss that. With that cast you can expect outstanding performance and still be surprised with how good the end result is.

Is there anything that could be considered a flaw in it?
Yes and No. I think it depends on what you are expecting to see. There is no one leading plot line. It’s simply the daily life of the characters. Each one of them has something going on, but except for their friendship, there isn’t any big conspiracy linking them together. One could say it’s a slow paced drama, but with shows like that, talking about pace doesn’t make much sense. Since the plot does not progress in a typical sense (from point A to point B), we can’t talk about its pacing. It’s for sure character driven, and I myself love it.

What’s more, the cast of characters is huge and it might feel overwhelming at first - trying to remember who is who and how they are all connected. I have an advice for you: just watch. Do not try to remember and recognize every intern, student, doctor, nurse or patient. It’s not necessary. You don’t need to remember with great detail who said certain lines. There is no mystery to be solved, no puzzles to create a perfect picture. You can treat it as if you just started interacting with a new group of friends - as the drama progresses, you will slowly learn the names, personalities and motivations of these people. There is no need to stress yourself about being confused at first.

For me this drama was perfect. I’m sad that some of my ships did not sail, but it also makes sense that they did not go with the most obvious choice. A clean 10/10. I just finished it, and yet I want to rewatch it right away.

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How to fail your main characters…

By making them the most boring part of the show. Quite honestly I found every aspect of the show more interesting than the leads, their individual stories and their romance.

As always, the biggest issue is the fact nothing was truly well established for them. We barely know who they are before their journey starts, they fall in love with each other out of the blue with no real reasoning either. They don’t have any real flaws they need to overcome, there is nothing to improve, nothing to change. They were painfully stagnant.

On the other hand, there were quite a lot of supporting characters with more interesting personalities and plots. Yu Shi San with his playboy, but good nature persona mixing goofy and surprisingly mature takes in an excellent manner. Yuan Lu, the loyal boy whom you just love and care for - the only one who had well established real stakes that made you worried. Li Tong Guang with his unhinged psycho motivations, who had to learn how to control his feelings and desire and mature for the role he was supposed to take. Even the Empress Wu and Prince Danyang who had barely any scenes were more interesting than the lead couple.

And then we have the true queen and main characters of the story - Princess Yang Ying. This is how you are supposed to write your characters! Having a lot of strengths and good points, but also flaws that need to be worked on. A character that develops with the plot, whose motivation changes as they gather more information. One that slowly establishes their goals and needs to fight many different setbacks and accept sacrifices to reach them.

Putting aside poorly written leads, the second crime this drama committed was not doing a good job presenting the danger and the stakes. Even when shit started to hit the fan by the end of the show, I felt nothing. Everyone miraculously survived too many times, now I actually just wanted everyone to die. You cannot make the drama feel like there are no real threats and then expect me to care when something actually goes wrong. They filled the show with fluffy flirty dates of Ru Yi and Ning Yuan Zhou instead of putting some effort into adding more details to the story and the characters.

The acting was good. I don’t think Liu Yu Ning is the strongest actor out there and putting that with mediocre character, it’s a fail for me. Liu Shi Shi is amazing and extremely beautiful, acing the role for both the badass and the vulnerable scenes. At the end of the day though, He Lan Dou did steal the show in all aspects. The character was cute, funny, moving, badass, desperate, motivated, devastated, brave, scared, angry, sad, happy - you name it and she gave it.

The production quality was fine. I did enjoy a lot of fighting scenes, I enjoyed less at times excessive slow motion. The editing in the first few episodes was trash though - I felt borderline motion sickness, but it did get better as the drama progressed. I don’t remember one song - nothing memorable I guess.

Overall, at least 50% of the drama was a whole bunch of nothing that felt like filler scenes. I wish they spent more screen time on the Wu court plot, because the final shenanigans just felt flat. Less cute bickering and flirting, more character development. They had 40 episodes and they did not use them wisely.

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This drama is like a baby taking its first steps…

a bit wobbly and can hardly be called walking, but it’s such a big achievement it’s worth celebrating.

A straightforward criticism of the capitalistic world and social structures that exclude everyone not willing to act according to unfair rules. While some scenes might have felt preachy, the message was loud and clear, and sometimes this is exactly what is needed. You could feel the passion of youth in this project.

What the drama does phenomenally is making you care for this bunch of young people. Realistically speaking they should have been either dead or arrested by episode 4 at best, but against all logic, you just want to see them succeed and get out of it alive.

The acting! GMM truly decided to cast their best in this one. We all know Gun and Off have natural chemistry, but it was great to see them shine next to each other as individual characters, rather than just a couple. First was so good, at times I felt like he was too good for this script, or too good for this small part of Thai entertainment industry.

Production wise I loved quite a few shots. The use of different sources of light made some scenes extremely beautiful. Shots of two Guns were well edited - yes, if you know the actor well, you can see how the double used for some scene is different, but one has to be really nitpicky to make it an actual flaw.

All that said, the whole show was so serious and unserious at the same time, I’m not sure how I’m supposed to feel about it. Motivated to make a change and tackle social issues? Rolling on the floor laughing about poorly executed fighting scenes? How unrealistic the production was took away from how realistic and serious the issues they tried to present. How am I supposed to see baby faced Gun take down a few professionally trained highly specialized security guards of the millionaire villain? Him boxing once a week with his teen buddies must have been enough for training I guess.

Not to mention the frequent PPLs. I know the drama needs founding, but taking into consideration the anti-capitalistic themes in the show, it just stood out in a painfully negative way.

Then we have the flying parkour, Sing being completely miscast, the lack of closure - no, this is not how you are supposed to do an open ending or any ending. The power imbalance between the good and the bad guys that I was supposed to just accept as realistic, when it made little to no sense…

Overall, it’s hard not to like it. It gives all the right messages, delivers great entertainment, a variety of characters and point of views. Leaves enough space for the viewers to make their own mind. The acting was amazing, visually it was pleasant to the eye. It just did not feel polished enough - the passion should have been used a little bit for the good old planning, practice and production. Maybe some script rewrites here and there too.

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That was an exciting and at times sad journey with talented trainees chasing their dreams.

⇢ Cast aka the contestants
Chuang 2021 is probably the most culturally diverse survival show I have seen so far. Not only were there trainees from many different counties, but they also were on the run for the place in the debut team - they weren't there just to fill the spot and get international attention.

There were quite a few professionals in their field, bringing many amazing performances that left me speechless. I could see many trainees grow, not only in terms of music related skills, but also maturity, perspective and personalities. I must say, this is my favorite part of these shows.

⇢ Music aka the the performances
Sadly, I have to say that not all performances were good. Some were even bad, but that's kind of how these shows go. Few I loved, one I am obsessed with and watch daily. The biggest disappointment were the vocal performances of Vocal Group A during the finale. Most of the solo stages were of questionable quality. Lucky, the dance stages that followed brought back the hype and good quality.

⇢ Story aka the production
I have my criticism on this part. Because the show was quite short (only 10 episodes), the production felt rushed and not polished. I feel like we never got enough time to watch the trainees actually practice the songs and interact with mentors.

As for the mentors, sad but true some of them were pretty useless, at least in terms of skill they were supposed to mentor trainees in. I love Amber and she is a GREAT performer, but she is not a professional dancer, dancing is not her specialty and she is not known for it. There were too many trainees far better than her in the field. It was evident she was not much of help in terms of dancing, when all her mentor classes were about the feels and emotional delivery and not actually dancing.

Then we have Vin Zhou... again, a talented guy, but he does not have enough rapping experience to be mentoring other trainees.
I have no idea what Ning Jing's purpose in the show was. All she did was react to performances exactly like the normal audience did. None of her comments were insightful and it was stuff a random fangirl would say: "you looked so handsome on stage" or "you improved so much"... How about giving some helpful advice?

God bless Charlie Zhou, since he was the only person who truly tried to help the trainees improve. His vocal classes were full of useful tips and exercises. He was able to "diagnose" the problems contestants had and help fix them.
Overall, I feel like the trainees were left to figure out most things alone, and not much mentoring was going on.

Another small thing that could be improved and would make a huge difference for the international audience is adding in the subtitles the name of the person who is currently talking. They did that in editing for the Chinese subs, but not for English. It's harder for international fans to remember the names, so I see no logic in not adding the names to the subs.

There were some technical aspects during the finale that I was not impressed with: the backing tracks were way too loud, so at times it was hard to actually hear the trainees' singing and rapping. The audio quality overall was not the best.

One last thing I want to talk about was Lelush. Poor boy. People love to talk about how cruel these types of shows are, but then the same people pull a stunt like they did with Lelush up till finale. Many people who voted for him gave some ridiculous excuses, but at the end of the day they simply did not respect his wishes and treated him like a child who needed to have his life dictated by fans.

Overall, it was a fun watch. I am curious about some trainees and their future project, will be checking out INTO1 works. The best part of the show were trainees, the worst: fans and the production. I'm not completely happy with the top 11, but that's how the shows roll, it's impossible to make everyone happy.

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Killing the innocence, dehumanizing humanity.

Dark portrayals of greed, low self value and distorted view of reality based on the twisted social standards that are rooted in the obsession over money that takes away all the joy of life - all wrapped in a completely unrealistic scenario sprinkled with dark comedy tone, that emphasizes the absurdity of the characters’ choices and behaviors.

The childlike locations and games present a drastic contract to the brutality of the scenarios the characters are facing. The game creators put themselves in the position of innocent keepers of the rules, and any tragic deaths are the fault of the participants for breaking them. No one is forced to participate - you signed your death certificate yourself.

Survival in the game and survival in daily life serve as another good contrast - the physical brutality versus the emotional and existential dread. It’s more than survival games drama, the true horror is the reality of these people outside of the games and what they can do in the given situation to change it.

The aspect of Squid Game I definitely appreciated was the different perspective we were able to witness - we weren’t only following the players. The behind the scenes gave this unrealistic scenario more down to earth feel - witnessing the pink umpa lumpas with some despicable, but human qualities were for me a good writing choice. The whole mystery of the workers was a small part of the plot, yet so interesting. Sadly, it did not really lead anywhere.

Here’s the thing though - I kind of wanted the majority of the people to die at the beginning. They were really painfully unlikable, and not in the “he annoyed me a bit”, but rather “kind of a trash human being” type of way. Luckily, as the drama progressed and we started to understand their backgrounds, I was able to empathize with some, and even if I disagreed with many of their choices, I still felt bad for what may happen and how they might end.

Blood and murder are this show’s best friends - be aware of that before watching. Realistically speaking, this is not some new higher level of gruesome scenes, but they don’t shy away from showcasing deaths and accidents.

The acting from all the adults was truly amazing. Like in any drama, some roles had more depth and were more demanding than others, but none of the characters felt like an empty placeholder to fill the scene.

But then we had the group of foreign actors with such an exaggerated line delivery, I was thinking I’d rather mute the screen. Not one of them did a good job. All sounded like licence free sound bites.

Any flaws or complaints?

Depends on what you are looking for. Do not expect any elaborate death traps and clever tricks - it’s far more simple. It is pure survival with technically simple rules and games. You won’t wreck your brain trying to understand what is going on, since the plot is rather straightforward with no unexpected plot twists that turn the whole plot upside down.

You might want to sit down and analyze the message of the show and what might be the meaning behind. Depending on the viewer it could be a decent kill count watch with a bit of excitement, or a depressing portrayal of collapsing morals and society, as the money sucks all the joy out of our lives.

EPILEPSY WARNING IN EPISODE 4 - not a complaint, but something viewers for sure should know before starting it. This is the type of filming I cannot enjoy. I lose interest when I can’t really see what is going on. I know, it was done on purpose. I know, the chaotic atmosphere was the point. I still don’t like it.

There has also been a random sex scene, and I don’t think we needed that “final” nail in the coffin - it was clear even without it that people would do anything for survival and money.

Some details make exactly zero sense, and I truly mean zero. If you are lucky, you will not notice them at all, since they are less than minor. Squid Game is not exactly free from plot holes, but none of them have a big impact on the story. Some plot lines do hit the dead end though.

The reasoning behind the games? Kind of weak. I was hoping for them to give some unexpected twist, but in the end, they went with exactly what I expected them to show. The more they explained, the less I liked it. The last few episodes started to take away from the message of the show, which lowered the quality of the watch quite a bit. It was going so well… and then it didn’t.

Overall, it was a brutal drama, yet somehow I found myself laughing at quite a number of scenes. The dark comedy, calling out the hypocrisy - all that was truly amazing. 2/3 of the show was a solid 9.5, and I’m a bit frustrated with where the show went after that. Still, quite an enjoyable watch, with interesting set designs, well written characters and some solid thrills. They were able to get me attached to the characters and feel their desperation and pain. One of the episodes truly broke me, and I was thankful for that.

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Rediscovering your relationship as you move from friends to lovers.

Well this was wholesome and adorable. Just the right amount of sweet pinning, unsure feelings and hesitation to build the tension.

You know what’s the best part of both enemies to lovers and friends to lovers? The pinning era. The time when they are both unsure how the other is feeling, not sure how they are feeling and they are just dancing around the possibility not willing to take that risk and step forwards. This drama delivered in that aspect: Ohara Yamato with his repressed love and Ashiya Kakeru struggling with understanding his changing feelings.

While the lead characters were obviously the stars, I have to say my heart was also stolen by Hosaka Yui played by Matsumoto Leo and Ohara Mikoto played by Konno Ayaka. There was something really unique about these characters and I appreciated how both were rather bold, but different flavour.

The drama mixes all the typical tropes and themes associated with the genre and delivers them in a fun way. You have your favorite pinning against various surfaces, jealousy over each other, the bestie who understands everyone’s feelings better than they can themselves, pushing the boundaries, creating the boundaries, 5 stages of grief when your friendship moves into more romantic territories.

Performance wise it was good, but nothing truly noteworthy. Standard good quality. I did like how expressive Kashiwagi Haru was without making it unnatural and over the top.

Overall, it was a perfect afternoon chill watch.

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