twiz aka unagibento

I wish! I haven't been keeping up, and really found those by specifically searching for them. Good luck in finding some!

Yeah someone started translating it last year but it's only up to about 6 chapters. You can find it on several sites now. There's a lot of volumes so I'm skeptical they'll finish it at the rate they're going

Huh. I based the opinion on the styles in relation to other cdramas. Many dramas dedicate time to the subject matter, like cooking dramas. This is one doesn't apparently. My disappointment in that is valid. As a non-white person, I find the "white shit" comment super amusing, but it seems you're looking for a fight and I'm not the one. Keep it.

This is WILD. I could not look away. Really need to find the manga now

I'm watching this and I'm surprised at the relatively high rating as well. All elements of the plot are slow-burn, and while the couples are ok, I'm not expecting any fireworks for any of them. The focus on food is inconsistent, which is what frustrates me the most because I picked this up for the food. As linked below, definitely skim an article on the classic novel this references or the first few episodes will be confusing. This is a casual watch for me, not edge of my seat or binge, just get through a few episodes here and there.

I really enjoyed this, and the rating seems a bit low. Easy watch in 6ish hours, great chemistry, no extended misunderstanding, business elements didn't overwhelm the plot, no toxic rivalries overshadowing the romance, no fillers. The ML has a great presence and I hope to see him in more things soon. Apparently there's some complaints about the FL's acting but I didn't notice enough to think about it. Ended on just the right sweet note. I could definitely watch it again. I also see it's marked as Older Woman/Younger Man but is it? In the childhood flashbacks it look like they were about the same age unless something was lost in translation.

Whew that tonnngue :p

Was not expecting that sudden intensity, or who initiated it. But it was warm and sweet and nice.

Loved this. Funny, endearing and emotionally cathartic.

Oh also he's totally chasing her if that helps!

They start off as already seeing each other, but there's misunderstandings, but not the usual annoying kind. Tied to the plot. I think they're the better couple with good intimacy.

I'm most disappointed that the childhood secret was wasted. It could have really developed the main couple and let their relationship deepen during the story instead of at the very end. Pretty sure that's what kept me watching (I finished this in a day or so) - when will the past secret be confessed? But every time the main couple started warming up again, some new thing would be tossed like cold water and suddenly the FL is miserable again. That lack of a decent kiss was the next most frustrating - literally the last scene, the most fake, tilted head totally blocked kiss you can imagine. There's a good kiss with the second couple in this, so enjoy it because you'll never get another one. I also think all the intimacy went to the second couple. I just watched Li Jiu Lin in Who Rules the World so it was nice to see him as a romantic second lead with intense emotions and skinship.

I walked into the second season with a fairly open mind, just seeking more of the nice warm slow romance of the leads. At the halfway point is when I started feeling a bit fatigued. The romance stalls a little and the story seems determined to keep the FL as miserable as possible from the halfway point to the end. The pacing was lost too - a bunch of time wasted and then a big dump of stuff at the end, like the writers just dumped out a bucket of unresolved plot points and tied them all up in 3 scenes.

If you can tolerate the low-quality auto subs (about 6/10 on an iQiyi scale: reversed pronouns but also maybe some colloquialisms that didn't translate well), then it's a nice casual watch for the warm fuzzy vibes of the main couple. The 2nd half suffers from some pacing issues and wasted opportunities near the end that I'll comment on that page.

Yeah Li Jiu Lin and one of the FL's friends that's not listed on the cast.

Quick note: I was going through the pics and I would recommend not looking through them beforehand if you don't want major scene spoilers.

1st place: the kitchen...! I thought I would break my internet rewatching that so much. 2nd place: the bar. That collar/tie pulling? Indeed, which also means 3rd place is the final kiss - tie-pulling again. Honorable mention to the first drunk car make-out as well.

I finished this whole thing in 24 hours, and I only had to scream in frustration once near the end. I was so mad I had to get up and walk it off, lol. I really enjoyed the final episode. Also yes, the series is a bit heavy on positive messaging, but there's real issues at stake. I also applaud the deliberate public displays of affection and support in it.

and the main leads' kisses stay FIRE, y'all. let me rate them:

I'm only halfway through, but I must say the kisses in this are MOLTEN hot. It legit blows all my other steamy faves out the water with the make-out scenes between two episodes. And the scenes aren't short, they're like uncut behind the scenes long, 2 to 6 minutes of solid fire. My god. I felt like I should've been watching them in a tub of ice so I wouldn't combust.

A BL arranged marriage is damn refreshing. Also, this kind of cat-corners-mouse romantic dynamic is a standard trope in non-BL dramas, and it's always nice to see some BL try it on. It's a fun trope, and it's working for me. Could the story quality tank from here and ruin the rest of the drama? Definitely. But since it's already paid out its weight I'm happy to ride it down.

The main romance is left ambiguous, but I'll take it because that leaves the possibility that the second FL might end up with him. I'm not particularly picky on FLs in dramas, but man, the "main" FL was insufferable from the moment she arrived, from her personality to her appearance. The appearance irked me a lot, not because I'm superficial, but because she had such an oddly outdated look - she looked like she stepped out of a 90s drama, complete with bad perm and really heavy makeup. In a historical cdrama, it was a very weird choice and also seemed to break from the rest of the cast. She's not shown on the poster and I don't have enough info to add her to the cast.

Really enjoying this, the chemistry is wonderful and they're very well-matched. But the kisses in this are YES. The kind that make you wonder what you're doing with your own life, lol