Kate

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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The cast did well, the characters were entertaining, villains not that bad, production value was obviously high... so why didn't it work out? Not enough brain power was used in writing the plot.

Fantasy set in modern times should explore the unexplained, but never go against what we actually know and contradict the reality. When they dropped the "I got resurrected in a new body, but my DNA stayed the same" I was extremely close to dropping it again. Honestly, I did not think it could go any more illogical.

Sadly, the lack of logic was a prominent part of the plot. Characters, depending on the given situation, turned either smart or dumb. The show used exactly the same plot lines over and over again. How many times can I watch Hee Jin's mom being kidnapped? Or Se Yun being in the same type of danger?

The ridiculousness of the script made it entertaining though. There is one secret child, and then there is another... and third. Cross-dressing Cha Min DEAD BODY and putting a wig on it, so the killer can bring him back to life... And the weird plot twist in the end with god (?) showing up, just to give us that sweet forced happy ending.

I'm sorry, but when Cha Min started disappearing Thanos style I laughed like crazy. How nice of the Abyss to start from the bottom to the top, so he had these few seconds to say goodbye. The rules of Abyss make no sense; that's the conclusion.

Also, at some point I wanted to (┛ಠ_ಠ)┛彡┻━┻ after hearing all the "Se Yun is not as pretty now, she looks average" jokes and comments. It was laughable with how beautiful Park Bo Young is.

So, did I like anything? Yes. I'd say the cast did an amazing job portraying the characters and the chemistry between the leads was truly great. The thing that caught my attention was how natural the skinship was.

Overall, I kind of enjoyed the experience of watching, simply because my expectations were as low as possible. My forehead hurts from facepalming.

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Underutilized everything but the chemistry.

I’m just kind of underwhelmed by everything I witnessed - the last episode just made me crave for me. Why center your plot around such an interesting concept to barely use it at all? What’s the point?

Starting from the good - the chemistry between Pond and Peterpan was amazing. Fireworks on screen, literally and metaphorically. The tension was there, the desire, love, fear and hope. I did believe every emotion that was presented in the context of their relationship. Especially from Thada. Yes, I do believe Armin loved Thada, but Thada LOVED Armin - all caps. The devotion this man presents. I am sorry, but he deserves better than Armin - I said it and I’ll stand by it. Both actors delivered amazing performances though.

Then we have the true MVP, easily my favorite character Veynai. What a comedic timing this man had. There was not one bad scene of him. He often delivered just one or two lines, but they were so on point we did not need more. Also, shoutout to Janine who was the best pro manager ever. I wish they actually did more than vague hints that maybe one day there might be something between them. What an unstoppable duo they would be.

From the good I’d also give props to music and aesthetics. So many songs were such bangers, and even if the night sky at times gave me AI generated vibes, the drama was still visually stunning.

Onto the bad - everything else.

The plot was so mid it’s actually sad. At least they could have made it ridiculously entertaining. The villain was both tragically cartoonish, and painfully boring. The whole mystery was non-existing, we know from the start who is behind everything and it’s just frustrating for the leads to do NOTHING to eliminate the issue from the start. The “reincarnation/waking up in old body” aspect is barely used too. This could have brought so much more angst and tension, but instead we had like “I’m old” jokes every 2 episodes. And then there is the whole issue of the last “accident” which I rant about in the comment under spoiler. That thing though, almost broke my brain, I was so frustrated.

Overall, yes for the chemistry, no for the plot.

Side note, around half way through the drama I was chatting with a friend how whenever someone says Tada, I always repeat after them with the ‘ta-da” intonation and I’ve sent this gif: https://media.tenor.com/8pLlGDVzPRYAAAAM/muppet-family-christmas-muppets.gif and then… till the end of the show I had that muppet in my brain whenever someone said ML’s name.

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Too much and too little - a chaotic mess I cannot comprehend.

I am honestly still processing what I have seen. They gave me so much, maybe too much. But also so little about the important aspects…

Let’s start with what was supposed to be the core of the drama - the relationship between a hearing and deaf person and potential issues they might face. For me, there was a lot of virtue signaling, and not much actually substance. Even the opening scene was honestly laughable. He failed the job interview not because he is deaf, but because he literally sat there with big eyes confused, refusing to answer any question. Valid questions can I add? They honestly completely failed at showing he was discriminated against, because of his disability, because for me he just seemed incompetent, putting his disability completely aside. And it was a recurring theme - stating a real issue, giving a bad example of it.

Not to mention that literally one sentence about how gay relationships are still not accepted around the world, even if the progress was made, when the lgbtq rights and equality was not part of the plot nor conversation even once before the last episode.

There was a lot of work I had to put in to shut down my brain as I was watching, since many times they put feelings and vibes above logic and reasoning. Not Zi Xiang learning sign language in 2 business days… My guy was fluent in a week. Then we had so many random over the top plotlines thrown here and there - the sweet home Alabama vibes with the cousin, the mafia shenanigans, the playboy secretary that basically lives double life and his mentally teen playtoy. The fiancee showed up stirring some issues, but also hinting she might be hitting it off with Shao Peng’s bestie, who was also in love with Shao Peng. Why was there so much shit happening, but so little thought actually put into presenting even one plotline of that whole mess? I don’t even want to talk about how the drama literally concluded on “emotionally abusing someone can be a sign of love” as a way to give closure to a problematic relationship between Zi Xiang and his dad.

Was the relationship between Zi Xiang and Shao Peng adorable? Yes. And that’s what frustrates me the most. Why the fuck was the show not just that? Two people with their own internal and external struggles based on their disability and past traumas finding ways to communicate with each other as their feelings grow? How great of a drama it would be.

Truth to be told, the best thing about See Your Love were the performances. Jin Yun did so well, I actually had to check if he he deaf and potentially mute (and then I saw he is a singer, well then). The way he was able to communicate so much without using any spoken words was impressive.

While I cannot comment on how accurate the sign language was, it looked fluent - there was no awkwardness in the movements, it basically looked natural.

To conclude, you know what, good for deaf community. That's equality. Hearing or not hearing, we all deserve trash dramas that represent us. Chaotic mess of a fluff drama with over the top plot that makes no sense the more you think about it, but it’s also weirdly entertaining - yes, all communities deserve to have silly fun things like that.

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Simplicity with a twist that will keep you engaged.

Technically speaking it’s a really simple story with a simplistic presentation of complex issues, and yet it works so well and it does not feel boring thanks to the refreshing and fun characters.

What you think you’ll get is a shy nerd who does not care for romance and a confident playboy who will try to win him over. What you get is a confident and at times sassy nerd and socially awkward “playboy” psycho who cannot say no. These two gave me some of the most enjoyable and unexpected chemistry.

Personally I loved Kim Jin Woo from the start, but Jung Ki Sub is a sneaky one, slowly making me fall for the character more and more. There was something irresistible about this character, it does not matter how annoying he might have felt, you kind of craved more of his screen time.

While I understand the appeal of the supporting couple (who does not like some angst in their lives?), I was not quite sold on their journey. I really like Balgeum, I did not care much about In Ho. That said, even if I was not that into them, the couple did deliver one of my favorite scenes in the whole show.

Plot wise - simple is the best. Were the issues at times presented in a comically simple way? Yes. The message was clear though, the story was not confusing and all the aspects got a closure. With short dramas like that, I could not ask for more. I appreciate the introduction of the topics like unintentional neglect, trying to please people and losing yourself in the process, being scared of your own feelings/not understanding your own feelings. The shame one can feel about their economic situation and how it can affect all aspects of a person's life.

The acting… I’m definitely a can of both Kim Sung Hyun and Nam Shi An now. Kim Sung Hyun did great with presenting both being rather cheeky and confident, and completely vulnerable with his feelings. Nam Shi An just… what an emotional journey we witnessed with the character he was presenting and how he slowly put away the positive mask and started to show more and more real emotions - that progression was perfect.

What’s more? The ost is just amazing. Silent goes straight to my playlist and I’m gonna play it on repeat for quite some time. Do It Over? Fun song perfect to start your day on a good note. I Will delivers great vocals and Isolation the best melancholic vibe.

Overall, I kind of want to rewatch it right away. It was sweet, fun and really entertaining. The characters were great and I would not mind either second season or a longer version (with the same cast, obviously).

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I’m here for pity fights and family drama.

Not many dramas can make a certified clown out of me, but this one did, and I kind of appreciate that. Countless rants in the first half, but at the end I became speechless - the twist did its thing.

What got me to start the show was the premise of the female spy assassins arc. What made me stay were the family drama and pity senseless fights when the focus should have been on the enemy. The dynamics between all the siblings were extremely entertaining to watch. While I still believe some of the motivations were… not the smartest, I don’t think it’s the case of characters being poorly written - it was intentional. Because the reasoning was flawed at times, it made the characters more relatable, even if the setting of the drama itself was something none of us could relate to.

Did I care about any of the romances? No. Funny, because that was also one of the things I actually wanted to watch this drama for. The puppy love was too puppy, the “toxic” romance did not get enough highlight to be well developed, the comedy crush was too much. Personally I would prefer if they switched the pairings around a bit - get the puppy with the cunning one, and the cold and heartless with the good natured one.

What the drama did perfectly though were all the visual aspects of the production - from set design, costumes, make up, accessories to the way it was all shot. The fighting scenes? Perfection. This is how you use slow motion to highlight the sequences and certain moves, instead of overusing it to hide bad choreography and lack of skills. Each fighting sequence deserves to be watched at least two or three times to fully appreciate it.

The acting was great. I was kind of traumatized by Yu Shu Xin in Love Between Fairy and Devil and her toddler character, and I’m glad to see how well she does in more mature roles. Personally, I think they fit her better. Zhang Ling He was fine. I do believe Gong Zi Yu’s character was the most boring, so I never truly focused so much on him… My favorite performance goes to Lu Yu Xiao - easy choice. Ad for Ryan Cheng, let’s say I get why everyone got so obsessed with him in that role.

On the bad side - I hated the line delivery of most of the main cast. Separately, they were great. The issue is: they all spoke with exactly the same whisper, slow mannerism, it became exhausting. Any dialogue heavy scenes between Yun Wei Shan and Shangguan Qian? Close your eyes and it’s impossible to tell which one is speaking - they sounded the same. I get it, they are all mysterious spies, but that does not mean they have to speak in the same way.

At the end of the day, it’s a great show. The middle part is the slowest and probably the reason why someone might drop it (I was close to dropping it too), but it picks up later when a lot of things get slowly revealed and explained.

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Ever changing layers of happiness and sadness, pain and survival.

I went into this drama with a lot of trust and hope. Hwang Jin Young amazed me once with Rebel: Thief Who Stole the People, and I was ready to be amazed again - and she did not disappoint.

Set around the year 1636 during the Qing invasion of Joseon, the story centers around the themes of social structures and expectations put on different social classes, inequality of genders, women solidarity, the role of the royal family, all mixed with a beautiful, well paced romance that keeps breaking your heart and mending it back together - the sweetness and the angst perfectly balanced.

The story opens with what one could describe as open ended closure - showing us the future, but just a direction of where it all went, vague frame of the characters’ fates, while leaving enough uncertainty to keep you curious and striving to make your own interpretations and theories.

The core of the show are its characters. Yoo Gil Chae is exactly what I always wanted to see from a strong female lead - realistic depiction of pure survival based on wits and determination instead of unrealistic superhero like skills. She is introduced as a naive, egocentric and slightly delusional young woman, who thinks the whole world centers around her. Her bold attitude and cunning nature is truly refreshing, even if at times cheesy.

As the drama progresses, she shows an enormous amount of emotional strength and wits. The same cunning nature she used to seduce men, she then used to keep others alive. Even though her whole behavior and demeanor changes in a matter of days, it feels organic, believable and right - all the development happens on top of already existing traits she had.

And then we have Lee Jang Hyun introduced as a resourceful casanova dressed in a veil of mystery, surprising everyone with his skills, insightful understanding of politics and unconventional takes on matters of loyalty, patriotism, marriage and love. A man who seems too perfect to ever exist. A man who can make viewers' hearts flutter with sweet teasing and playful flirting, but also sincere confessions and yearning gazes he gives Gil Chae. A man who is willing to try to stop the war for the woman he cherishes.

Compared to Gil Chae and Jang Hyun, who present this opposition to accepted social norms and values, we have Nam Yeon Jun and Kyung Eun Ae, whom I would describe as prisoners of their upbringing and expectations put on them.

Yeon Jun, the loyal subject with an idealistic idea of protecting the royal family when needed. Eun Ae, the perfect pure woman who protects her chastity. His worth lies in his devotion to the king, her worth lies in her purity that should be given only to her husband. Both characters were truly sad to watch and fascinating to analyze.

What more has the drama to offer? First of all, the amazing, and at times painful to watch social commentary, often presented in the format of contrasting scenes intertwined with each other. Patriotic moments put against complete defeat, happy celebration in contrast to upcoming invaders, inconvenience of the royal family opposed to dying subjects. Sometimes just seconds, passing moments that stay with you long after you finish watching.

What adds to the gripping storytelling is the more realistic depiction of war and how gruesome it can truly be for commoners. All the scenes of the invaders attacking villages, killing all the men, the horrifying fate of the women, struggles of the slaves and pain of the ones thought to be the enemies of the Qing. People trying to survive, people trying to get back to normal, even if the peace was not fully obtained.

Everything created ever changing layers of happiness and sadness, pain and survival. How the tragedy hits us harder thanks to the happiness we previously witnessed, and how we appreciate the joyful moments, remembering the pain the characters went through.

All that emotional impact was possible thanks to the phenomenal performances from the cast. While watching Namgoong Min in this drama, I accepted that I will stay single for the rest of my life. My standards in men reached unobtainable levels all thanks to his portrayal of Jang Hyun. You wish to be in mortal danger so he can save you, while also making you want to protect him. The perfect balance of confidence and vulnerability, playful nature and sincere love, bravery against the enemy and the fear of losing people he cares about.

Ahn Eun Jin was the perfect choice for Yoo Gil Chae. An actress skilled enough to present the pure innocence, cunning nature and mature strength in a way that it never felt contradictory. I ended up adoring the character’s little schemes, feeling the pain she was feeling and rooting for her with all my heart in times of hardships and danger.

Lee Hak Joo and Lee Da In had an extremely hard job of presenting characters whose usually praised traits became their flaws. A delivery that at times makes you feel a whole ra(n)ge of emotions. Love them or hate them, but you for sure will not be indifferent.

From the production standpoint, I cannot describe how happy I was with the styling of the characters during the turbulent times. The raw perfection of the imperfections. No porcelain like white skin. The blemishes, imperfections, dirt and sweat - all adding to the realism of the story.

And then we have the touching soundtrack. Only With Heart full of feelings of hope, the innocence of pure love hidden in Road To You, The Painted On The Moonlight filled with longing and the desperation in Unforgettable Love.

Realistically speaking, words cannot describe how much I love this drama. It took complete possession of my brain, heart and soul. It gives you sweet moments that will make you grin from ear to ear and scream into the pillow. It breaks your heart times and times again, and yet you will feel grateful for every tear it made you shed. It introduces uncomfortable topics and scenarios that will make you contemplate your own beliefs and ideas. It served me everything and I could not ask for more.

Is the show flawless? No show is. But if you ask me to name any flaws, I would struggle, because all the tiny issues I might have had seem so miniscule and insignificant it would truly feel like looking for something to criticize just for the sake of finding any negativity. One thing that bothered me slightly in the later episodes: there were some unclear time passage issues, the contextual hints of how much time passed were not always clear and it affected the understanding of the characters, their motivations and emotions. It was not extremely hard to figure out, but it did require a bit more analysis and thinking.

(Some additional analysis and thoughts about the ending of part 1 in comment below under spoiler).

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Started for the romance, stayed for the friendship.

When I start any BL, I am in for romance. I am not expecting an amazing plot, complex characters and any meaningful, well built relations between all the characters. So imagine my surprise, when half way through the show, I cared more about all the friendships, than the main romance.

Does it mean the romance was bad? No. For me, it was just really basic. It got me with “aww, that’s cute” a few times, but overall, I was not that invested. Maybe because there were no real stakes, and all the problems and conflicts were similar to each other, but I barely felt anything.

On the other hand, I adored every scene between Aoki and Hashimoto. I wish the focus of the show was on them building their friendship that started from a misunderstanding, and the romance was more of a side plot. Watching them support each other was delightful. That duo is probably the best thing that happened in BLs in a long time.

I even cared more about Hashimoto and Aida more than the main couple, thanks to Hashimoto’s bubbly, but also brave personality, which made their scenes that much more interesting.

The cast did an amazing job portraying the characters. Michieda Shunsuke aced the over the top, but still somehow realistic reactions Aoki had. Meguro Ren portrayed the gradual change in Ida’s feelings, and initial unsureness in an excellent manner. Fukumoto Riko made Hashimoto the fun real life version of “looks like cinnamon roll, is a cinnamon roll, but could still kill you” character and Suzuki Jin made Aida fun, even if at times frustrating character to watch.

Overall, it was a fun watch. I do believe it would be more entertaining as a binge watch type of deal, since it did not have the plot that made me anticipate each new episode every week. It’s just a fun, cute high school romance that will make you feel happy, but might not amaze you.

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We need to learn how to listen, not just hear.

What a great surprise this show was. Not gonna lie, I am a bit tired of the “child/teen/young people with a variety of issues/illnesses/disorders/etc being taken care of by irresponsible new guardians just so the guardian can have pretty character development” - these stories simply often feel exploitative. Using one main character just to give another change of heart does not sit well with me. How happy can I be when this show is not that. Cho Sang Gu is not this extremely selfish asshole, Han Geu Roo does not get mistreated, it's just two people who slowly learn how to cooperate and live with each other.

What the drama excelled at was telling different stories related to death, grief, regret, fear, abandonment, reflection on the past and what it means for the future. The separate cases presented in each episode were amazing and tacked a true variety of situations: lack of protection for people with disabilities, abandonment of elderly parents with cognitive issues, stalking and the psychological effects it might have on the victim, lgbtq, self-inflicted euthanasia, bullying, guardianship, searching for your own place and your family. Only 10 episodes, yet so many touching stories.

At the same time, I did feel like the main characters were rather stagnant. I did like all of them, especially Han Geu Roo, but it’s also the fact that the development that happened to some of them was really subtle, so subtle one could argue they started and ended up on the same note. The story was mostly about things that happened to them and around them, and not within them. And the few things that did lead to certain reflections were mostly opening and closing acts, and were not that impactful to everything in the middle (Geu Roo dealing with loss and Sang Gu finding out the truth and accepting his new family).

One thing I especially appreciated was the fact Geu Roo’s ASD never felt like the center of the story. It was not a story of an autistic young man learning how to deal with loss, it was a story of Geu Roo dealing with loss and learning how to live with all the changes happening around him. I don’t know how to explain it, but the presentation was just more sensible? His character was not just ASD, he was fun, and determining, curious, caring, striving to improve, respectable and responsible. It was not a story about Geu Roo having ASD, it just happened that Geu Roo who was the main character also had ASD. While it was obviously an integral part of the story, it never felt overwhelming.

Performance wise - amazing. I don’t think anyone would argue that Tang Jun Sang as Geu Roo was the start of the show. I can only imagine how much research he must have done to deliver such a believable and emotionally rich performance. Lee Je Hoon is always great, but I am a bit tired of him playing quite similar characters lately. Great performance, but I feel like I already saw it. I have nothing to complain about Hong Seung Hee as Yoo Na Mu, but since her character was the least developed, there is not that much to praise. I am impressed with the long list of amazing actors who participated in the production just for the guest roles. I can see that many people with experience valued what the show is and wanted to be a part of it.

I barely ever have anything to say about the production value in Korean dramas because they usually have similar standards. It’s high, but not memorable. Everything works perfectly, but nothing truly stands out. Here I had a similar issue. One thing I did enjoy was the way they visually presented Geu Roo’s analytical mind and how he connected the information he acquired.

Overall, an amazing show with great stories. I did think it was just slightly too positive in separate cases - wish we had seen some leaning more towards “failure” and see how the characters react to it.

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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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We are patterns seeking creatures.

And when you mix that with religious fanaticism driven by guilt and fear, you are on a highway to hell.

Revelation for sure falls stronger on psychological thriller than supernatural horror. It’s not the scares, but the mystery that is the focus point of the movie. How far will Min Chan go? What will be his next action? And who will suffer the consequences.

The movie shows how religious belief can literally alter your perception and find patterns in places they don't exist. The way Min Chan saw Jesus literally everywhere from mountains to altars, angels in the sky - all to unconsciously convince himself he is on the right path and everything that happens is the god's will. Just to take the responsibility off of his back.

While I appreciated the fact we witnessed how easy it is to slip into religious fanaticism, I wish the introduction to the main character was a bit more elaborate and detailed. Not everyone spirals so bad when faced with the situation he was facing - what made him go so far? What internal and external factors led to that outcome? It’s something this story did not explore enough.

Surprisingly, what I enjoyed a lot was the fact that Seong Min Chan was actually not the smarter guy, I would even call him dumb. I mean… googling about the potential legal consequences of the crime you just committed is literally helping the police and prosecution with the investigation. And that was just one of many idiotic decisions and actions he made.

Acting wise - great. What else to expect from this cast. Obviously the most spotlight fell on Ryu Jun Yeol and og boy he delivered. The psychological change his character went through from beginning till the end and so well portrayed I wish this was a short drama and not just a movie. On the other hand, some of the supporting actors kind of missed the mark, especially Moon Joo Yeon as Min Chan’s wife.

As much as I liked the production, somehow I wished the “holy images” he saw in random things were just slightly more vague. At the same time, I feel like they kept being more clear the more obsessed and delusional he became. Maybe it was just a visual way to present how much his perception is being affected by his mental state.

Overall, it was a weirdly light watch? Taking into consideration how serious the crimes of the criminal were, how far into delulu Min Chan went, I did not really feel that tense - more on the side of curious and entertained.

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Everyone needs a break from responsibilities.

A cute and well paced romance between actor Shibuya Taikai and kindergarten teacher Aota Aika, focused on finding happiness.

This drama is pure sweetness sprinkled with good old misunderstandings and noble idiocy. Far less infuriating than other titles with similar tropes, sadly it does make you roll your eyes with some of the plot progression.

Shibuya Taikai, even though a popular actor, is an awkward, focused on his family man who seeks little interactions with other people. Taking the role of the head of the family and to some extent a parenting role for his sister. And then he meets Aota Aika and slowly, but surely she puts a smile on his face and makes him want more from his life than just dealing with responsibilities the best he can.

What I found a bit disappointing is how we can truly see the depth of internal struggles Shibuya Taikai is facing only close to the end of the drama. One specific scene makes you understand all the previous choices that he made, but it feels a little too late.

What’s more, I actually have little to nothing to say about Aota Aika. She was cute and fun, but I don’t think she was interesting as an individual character.

The acting was great. Kyomoto Taiga presents a whole variety of different roles playing as Shibuya Taikai. The highlight of his performance was the crying scenes. He did master them, they were both heartbreaking and beautiful, because they were never exaggerated. Just well timed tears - all the expressions kept in the eyes alone.

Overall, a fun watch, probably better as a binge. Could have been a bit shorter, removing some layers of miscommunication.

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The best as the support.

I honestly fail to understand how the weakest of the actors and the most basic of the plot were picked to lead the show, instead of showcasing a great, but uncomfortable to witness story of the supporting couple… make it make sense.

Don’t get me wrong, I did enjoy Tae Yi and Se Heon, but I also could not stop myself from feeling like it’s basically The Eighth Sense 2.0 with no improvement that would validate its existence in my eyes. Their story was unnecessarily complicated and too simplistically presented.

On the other hand, even though with criminally little screen time, I totally bought everything going on between Do Yoon and Joo Ha and if given more chance and focus, this could have been quite a refreshing concept to see in BL.

I’d love a story of how the one that protected becomes a bully and how it creates conflicted feelings in the leads. How it would be hard for Do Yoon to forget the warmth he felt when he first met Joo Ha - the hope that what he first saw is still in him. The internal conflict - for how long and how much he should put up with to keep that hope alive? When to give up?

How one magic kiss does not cure your internalized homophobia. I loved the locker scene. I loved how Seo Do Yoon said: I won't confess nor kiss you, let's just stay like that in a hug for a little bit. And that was as much as Joo Ha was conformable with at the moment, and it was fine. Relationships are almost never 50/50 all the time. There are times when one gives 80 and the other 20, and then other times when one gives 30 and the other 70. And I think they could have had something real good with this side couple. Would it be uncomfortable to watch? For sure, but some of the best stories are the ones that make you face some unpleasant feelings.

What’s more? Realistically speaking, Tae Yi was far more violent towards Se Heon, but somehow people don’;t really have as much issue with him. Poor boy was slammed across various surfaces quite a number of times.

Acting wise… it had its ups and downs. Ji Ho Geun and Kim Jin Kwon did great with lighter scenes, but the more emotional ones did not really reach me. Song Han Gyeom aced everything. It’s a fact. Kim Jung Ha surprised me with the more vulnerable scenes, especially since most of what the character presented was being a douche.

Visually speaking it was good. Each year we can clearly see improvement in the quality of production, filing and editing in Korean bls.

Overall, perfect for a binge watch, but made me crave a full story of the side couple and I will be forever salty if I won’t get it.

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“I didn’t come to Love Village to find romance. I came to find the final partner of my life”

And that quote presents both the best and the worst aspect of the show.

I found it interesting how vastly different were the motivations of contestants in this show compared to all the dating shows with young people. Romance and thrills were almost never the priority. With how almost all dating shows are focused on the initial attraction, Love Village shines with something different.

At the same time, the production team was not quite on the same page. From participants' side we saw how they were looking for someone to be their partner, but not necessarily lover. Which is fine, but there was a disconnect on how the production team was presenting it. They kept making it seem as if these people had true romantic feelings for each other, when their interactions and conversations painted a different picture.

Some other flaws were how little interactions we actually saw - the real time progression completely did not match the episode's pacing, so when a couple started to have feelings for each other, I often questioned when they even got close to each other, when we saw them talk maybe three times. What’s more - adding contestants close to the end was questionable at best. It was obvious they won’t have a chance to even get to know others, not to mention find a partner, so what’s the point?

On the other hand, I loved Anchovy. This guy is an unintentional comedic genius. He lived in delulu land, misunderstanding every interaction he had with any women. Gold quality of content.

Also, Minane is such a kind and thoughtful woman. I do think she should start thinking about herself more, but I’m also truly impressed how she can see different situations from different perspectives. I have a lot of respect for her and how she presented herself in the show.

Overall, the show was a bit too condensed for my liking. I would love to see more meaningful interactions - slower pacing by either adding more episodes or making them longer.

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Oversaturated plot with underdeveloped relationships.

I’m quite conflicted about how I feel right now. Honestly speaking, the things that made me curious were not explored enough or did not happen at all. The few elements I loved were just a part of the overall messy plot that tried to include too many side characters and stories.

What I enjoyed? Exploration of motherhood presented through Yu Ri, Min Jung and Eun Sook. What does it mean to be a mother? How much is a mother willing to sacrifice for her child? What makes a mother - giving birth to a child or having a bond with them? The show presented in a beautiful way the connection that moms have with their kids. That was the true heart of the show.

Going against the stereotypical depictions - in this case: stepmothers. I’m a sucker for fresh takes on the overused themes. We have seen enough evil stepmothers in the media, it’s amazing to see good examples once in a while.

The few scenes of sismance and female friendship and Oh Min Jung’s character. Min Jung was simply the best and most interesting part of the whole show, with real stakes and proper conflicts - both internal and external. Somehow, her journey was more heartbreaking, but also motivating and uplifting than anything the female lead presented.

Lee Kyu Hyung - he is an acting monster. What a performance he delivered. I rewatched quite a few of his scenes. He aced both the subtle and the exaggerated. I am even tempted to say, this was his strongest performance I have ever seen.

What I disliked or was disappointed about? My biggest issue was the dynamic between Yu Ri, Kang Hwa and Min Jung - or rather the fact they kept telling me what these characters feel for each other, but it was never really presented so I did not believe a word they said. You can tell me even a hundred times how much Kang Hwa loves Min Jung, but if you don’t actually show it, I see it as a big, fat lie. For me, the emotional connections were poorly presented and explained. I might understand what the writer and director wanted to depict, but it was not actually there in the final product.

Cha Yu Ri - both with how the character was written and portrayed. Is it me, or is Kim Tae Hee getting worse in acting with each new project? I did not buy the majority of her scenes. There was something really… fake about her delivery. The character itself also offered little to nothing. It’s the first time when I felt like the main character is nothing more, but a plot device…

Too many useless characters - wasted screen time. Did we need so many ghosts and their stories? No. At the end of the day, they were there to present the regret and the longing for life. Not to mention the new exorcist by the end that served exactly zero purpose. The same plot could have been told with the use of the already established characters.

The production was good. Your typical mainstream kdrama. They tried to solve a lot of storytelling problems with flashbacks and compilations of scenes, and while they looked nice, they also made the plot feel more empty, as nothing was truly established.

Overall, a decent watch, but not something I would recommend.

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