While the original Gokusen had popular names such as Matsumoto Jun and Oguri Shun, Gokusen 2 has Kamenashi Kazuya, Akanishi Jin, Hayami Mokomichi, and Koike Teppei. For those who've seen the first Gokusen you'll find familiar faces also among the cast - and a return of Kuma! One of my favorites from the first season, I was happy to see him return in Gokusen 2!
The acting was great, I loved the entire cast!
The music wasn't anything special - the theme song changed from "Feel Your Breeze" to "No More Cry" at the end which wasn't a bad song. I loved Kamenashi Kazuya's "Kizuna" that was played during the drama, though (:
I can see myself rewatching this drama sometime, but probably not for a long time.
Overall - I enjoyed it just as much as the first season. For those of you who have seen the first season - you won't be disappointed with this one. For those who haven't seen any of the seasons yet but are curious because you like the cast - watch it! (:
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But for the drama I can say that the actors were really well picked. Itoh Atsushi was definitely my favorite character and he really portrayed it well, the normal otaku one would imagine. But what I liked the most about Yamada was the way he felt towards Hermes and how he expressed it. From the first time they met and especially when he had to reveal his true self. I just found it so cute.
Itoh Misaki was also great. At first I thought she was a bit stiff, but I guess that’s how the character is supposed to be and she kind of started to grew on me, since they actually made a really cute couple.
And, of course, all the user of the internet thread made the story a lot more interesting, I just loved their conversations, their unique ways to react and their sometimes laughable sometimes useful advice that went accordingly to their internet characters. There were times when I couldn’t stop laughing.
Definitely a must watch. : D
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I started watching it by accident, because I noticed Park Jung Min's name in the cast list. Since I'm an SS501 fan and I have a particular attachment to Jung Min... I started watching it JUST for him, but it wasn't long until I got hooked on the actual drama. Beware though, for the first few episodes you will have to put up with an overload of sweetness and some pretty bad acting from Jung Min. Since he was the only reason for watching at first, I didn't have high expectations at all and just wanted to see him, so of course I kept watching. But if you're not a crazy Jung Min fan and are easily turned off by overly sweet moments, don't drop the drama after the first few episodes! You won't know what you're missing! Jung Min's acting improves considerably over the next few episodes and they gradually lessen the sugar a little bit :P but you will probably get used to it anyway.
To sum it up in a few words, this show has a very sweet and comical kind of romance accentuated by the playful character of Jung Min, good chemistry between the leads, some amusing bits and even some controlled drama. With emphasis on CONTROLLED. It's truly controlled in this one. They don't go overboard with it. It's just enough to keep the story going. I admit I cried at one point during the show (exactly halfway through) but that was the most emotional bit of the entire drama. Nothing exceeds that intensity afterwards. What I particularly like about this one is that there's no evil witch interfering with the main leads! She's actually interfering in the wrong couple, the other side of the love triangle, which only pushes Mi En more towards Xi Huan (Jung Min), so in other words the evil witch in this show actually... somehow... helps the leads to get closer. Which would've been beyond my wildest dreams for Asian dramas *-*
I just can't keep it short, I'm sorry. I'm trying though... There's something else I need to add about it: it's a very soothing drama. I think that's the word that fits it best. More than it is romantic and more than it is humorous, it is soothing. I enjoyed every second of it. I was always eager to watch another episode knowing it will put me in a good mood, because I could expect nothing bad from it. It is that kind of light drama that you can actually connect to and get attached to without risking to stir up a tornado of emotions inside of you. I especially appreciate how they handled the ending. In all the dramas I've watched so far, the ending disappointed me, even if just a bit. But this show's ending was just perfect. I could not have asked for a better ending. And it's not just the ending actually, they managed to handle all the romantic moments brilliantly. Most of the time, dramas have a hard time portraying key moments like confessions, proposals, endings etc. Because for the sake of emphasising the romance and importance of the moment they end up diverting a bit too much from the characters' personality and make the moment overly-romantic and awkward. I'm happy to say Fondant Garden had absolutely no awkward moment like that. I'm very appreciative of the fact that they managed to make all the romantic moments and especially the ending, fit to their personalities.
Music: Very fitting for this drama's style. It complements the mood of every scene perfectly. There are a few songs that will forever be stuck in my head: The intro song, the one Jung Min sings (he's got a remarkable voice!) and So Good by Kimberly Chen which was my absolute favourite from the entire show.
Acting: As I said above, it is lacking in the beginning on Park Jung Min's character, but it gets a lot better as the show progresses. The rest of them impersonated their characters flawlessly. Though some may say Jian Man Shu wasn't very believable at first. To me she was ok, except on very few scenes, maybe.
Give this drama a go! You have nothing to lose. You will either fall in love with it or just end up not connecting to it if it's not your style. In any case, it's not a waste of time, at the very least there will be some sweet moments that will remain in your mind :)
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A dish best served... twice?
I first watched this drama last year as it aired, and even though some elements were a bit hard to follow at times, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I watched it with my sisters and we looked forward to it every day.Now, I'm currently watching it over again with my mom, and let me tell you... it's almost a completely different experience.
In a good way. When you know what's going to happen already, you can concentrate on the smaller details you didn't catch the first time that'll make you go "OHHH NOW I UNDERSTAND".
It makes you realize just how much hard work and attention to detail was no doubt put into this drama. Ad it'll be just as, if not more entertaining then the first time you watched it.
So trust me, if you've only seen this drama once, watch it again. This rewatch is a pleasant surprise.
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Glorious dreams, strong women and their 100/10 chemistry
A dream of splendor is adapted from the opera "Zhao Pan Er Feng Yue Jiu Feng Chen" (赵盼儿风月救风尘) written by Guan Han Qing.Characters and Plot —
The drama revolves around three ladies Zhao Pan'er, Sun Sunniang, Song Yinzhang and the "living devil" Gu Qianfan. Zhao Pan'er is the strong backbone of their friendship who is intelligent and good in tea art. She uses her dancing skills to serve tea and her wit and ways of creativity wonders everyone. Sanniang is her close friend whose cooking skills are inferior to none while Yinzhang is a talented girl who will be seen carrying a pipa around often. Her pipa music is as magical as Sunniang's pastries. And Gu Qianfan is the cruel yet nice commander of capital security office.
A Dream of Splendor radiates women empowerment, women teamwork, a woman's self respect and how women can excel in everything. Our leading ladies aren't easy to be fooled, they have their strengths/weaknesses and they go through thick and thin together. They have self respect and just because she was once a "pariah" doesn't mean she doesn't deserve respect and is not capable.
(Pariah – a low status of woman back in ancient China who were performers or prostitutes who were looked down on by everyone)
Their sisterhood is another delightful thing to watch here. I can't forget to mention Zhaodi, she entered late in the group but I like her supportive character. So, if I have to rate the female centered plot, it's 9.5/10, almost everything I expected.
Along with this we have a good political plot going on which is more like a side topic, not too complicated, rather light and less angsty. Of course except that one mean guy I wish I could kill him in the starting. He's just so despicable, absolutely selfish.
Their Chemistry —
Zhao Pan'er and Gu Qianfan together are like two people who will give up anything for each other. Their concept of using yellow flowers to express "I miss you", their eye gazes, their longing, their protection for each other and just them being is love is everything. Small moments between them fill you up like a scene where he is applying medicine on her face (even I felt like a third wheel between them let alone other characters xD)
Humour —
We have Chi Pan who is amusingly naughty with lame, childish acts but his words and expressions often bring fun in the drama. And he's such a cute crybaby haha.
Cast/Acting —
• Liu Yifei – I came to this drama for her as she was returning to dramas after a long time and I am still impressed with her acting. Also isn't she so gorgeous in every frame. Her eyes, body language and this aura is strong just like Zhao Pan'er.
• Chen Xiao – Gu Qianfan is a great character and Chen Xiao also looks great in this role. His styling or I don't know what but he often reminded me of Prince An (Wang Ziqi) in the Imperial Coroner.
• Ada Liu – Sun Sunniang is such a cheerful lady with strong hands. Ada Liu suits for this role. All her strong moments like throwing someone in the river or showing off some butcher skills came out perfectly.
• Jelly Lin – I never had a good experience with Lin's dramas, most of them are like dropped after some episodes but somehow I liked her here. When she played pipa as Yinzhang, she looked so cool and her cute dimples work for me!
• Dai Xu – Finally! Chi Pan is my second favorite character after Zhao Pan'er. Just the comedy he adds and Dai Xu's expressions are out of this world. Would love to see more of his works in future.
OSTs —
1. Jane Zhang (张靓颖) - ♪Spare No Time♪ (不惜时光) …a slow and sublime song that ends every episode beautifully.
2. Liu Yuning (刘宇宁) - ♪Meng Hua♪ (梦华) …with the spirit of fighting all the troubles together and Liu Yuning's voice makes this song more special.
3. Sunnee (杨芸晴) - ♪What Year Is Today♪ (今夕是何年)
4. Kiki Wei (魏奇奇) - ♪Nian Nian♪ (念念)
5. Rachel (银临) - ♪The Red Apricot Branch Is Full Of Spring♪ (红杏枝头春意闹) …the song representing their ups and downs and the longing for hope.
To conclude, what's worth watching the most in this drama —
⛧ character development of three ladies starting from scratch
⛧ strong female characters
⛧ the chemistry between Gu Qianfan and Zhao Pan'er
⛧ great supporting characters and friendship/sisterhood/companionship
⛧ Chi Pan (Dai Xu) as a comedy factor.
~ A Dream of Splendor is recommended!
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This review may contain spoilers
The first good point about the story, it's the fact that it really start at the first minute of the first episode. Don't say : "I'll watch the first 10 minutes now and then I'll watch the rest after work if I find it interesting", because you'll end up skipping work...Then, you get to know the characters, and each and every one of them have a real personality, so you can be sure you will be moved by at least one of them. All the characters are slowly evolving during the drama, in a quite subtle way. I gave the story a 9 because I felt it was sometimes a little too slow.
Personally, I was really impressed by the two lead's acting performance, as well as the second male lead (while the second female lead's acting was so average it made me drop a point in my review). Thanks to their acting, you really beleive in the story, and in the characters.
Finally, I'll talk about the music : I just love it. My special award is for the song "Gu Rae Do"(Nevertheless) by Soo Ji, and its instrumental version which were so beautiful and unique they became a real plus to the drama.
Oh and, no spoiler, but I love the ending. I won't say if it's a bad or good one, but I just think this story deserved that kind of ending.
This drama is really worth watching, and I hope you'll enjoy it too!
That's the end of my review, hope it's been helpful.^^
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Put the remote down and walk away...
First off, let me say that I LOVE Dilraba - she's probably my all-time favorite Chinese actress! This series was so tough for me to watch and stay interested. I lost interest half way though as the storyline became stale and blah. The 4.5 stars are mostly for the Jay Walk Studio actors. The chemistry between Dilraba and Vic Chou was horrific, and often times unbearable to watch - I think it may be due to the age difference (and Vic Chou is too old and too feminine to play a lead male role with younger cast - IMO). I'd take back the 50 hours spent watching this if I could.Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
WTF was that ending?
I feel bamboozled, I paid for the Iqiyi subscription to watch this show and I feel like they played with me.I feel like the story was building to something it never reached. During the story the Viewer is taken on a journey with the male lead who is trying to design a robot and the female lead is a streamer working towards a big competition. The issue is we never see them reach their goals. This show could've had 32 episodes so that the viewer could've seen the leads achieve their goals. Instead, they decided to abruptly end at episode 24 without any real conclusion. Yeah the leads are together but the story is unfinished, did the FL make it to the competition? Does the male lead ever reach his goal with the robot? All I can take from this drama is the leads were cute and had a healthy relationship there is no angst or drama just a cute story. Don't look for this story to have a resolution or complete ending because it doesn't, it's so weird.
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Once in a very long while, the stars align to create truly transcendent art on screen. "Goblin" is an example of this, as the maturation of talented writer Kim Eun-Sook blends with nuanced directing, breathtaking cinematography and the formidable acting skills of Gong Yoo and the rest of the stellar cast.
This is great art and great television, regardless of the country of origin. That is not to minimize the South Korean expertise that created it, but simply to avoid the sometimes- backhanded compliment of "great...for a KDrama." It's just great TV, full stop.
I've watched KDramas for about a decade, and this one is the best I've seen. Highly recommended, not just for drama fans, but for all fans of quality cinematic art around the world.
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Just feels right
Everyone is cute, (almost) everyone is nice, no horrible horrible angst, just a bunch of lovely and brave kids growing up and turning into adults. It's relaxing, the friendship is solid even when there is obvious romantic feelings budding and there is no awkward second hand embarrasment for us viewers. The acting feels natural, nothing over the top, and the main couple is just adorable. ML and SML have this weirdly nice husky voices that I enjoy a lot. The FML makes sense most of the time. The only thing I find annoying is when they switch Bull's Nikon camera to Canon.Was this review helpful to you?
Dethrones Love O2O and Put Your Head On My Shoulder as my favorite RomCom!
I almost didn't watch this drama based on some negative comments and also the first 2 episodes had a rocky start, but once episode 3 hit and our leads finally interact via the game I was hooked. This drama is one of the funniest ones I've watched in recent memory. I was cackling nearly every single episode. I loved Lu Jing's roommates. Not a single brain cell between them and I love them for it. The gaming scenes were my favorite. Great CGI and funny interactions between our two leads. It made me excited to see what would happen when Lu Jing realizes who he's been gaming with. One thing I did not expect going into this was our main cp's chemistry. When I tell you that it was SCORCHING HOLY SHIT. Lin Yi has such a baby face but he amped up the sexual tension once he and Liang Chen finally meet in person. WHO TAUGHT THIS XIAO DIDI HOW TO KISS LIKE THAT??? He looked like he wanted to gobble Liang Chen during every scene. I was literally hiding behind my hands and giggling because I couldn't handle how sensual it was. Their first kiss had me in hysterics. Their first time in bed had me on the floor. I would say this drama is a must watch based on the two lead's chemistry alone. It's well worth it. I loved most of the supporting characters. The only things I didn't like were Jia Yun and the Ma Shan Shan/Taro relationship. Jia Yun creeped me out. He wasn't crossing any boundaries but the way he would try and reign in Liang Chen at times just put me off. I wish the writer's had axed this love triangle because he is way too old for her. His style of dress and speaking doesn't help either. Ma Shan Shan I also had issues with. I get she suffers depression due to her past relationship but she was so damn boring. I fast forwarded through most her scenes. And don't even get me started on her relationship with Taro. He really creeped me out in the beginning, too. He never respected her boundaries, borderline stalking her, wouldn't take no for an answer, etc. I wasn't rooting for them at all. They did grow on me a smidge at the end, but I wasn't invested in them at all. Over all, this drama is simple, romantic, and makes you smile. The plot isn't complicated, the leads shine with every scene they're in, and it's hilarious. No miscommunications or petty breakups for drama in the relationship, which I appreciated. The drama has a slow start and some may find the constant near misses of Liang Chen and Lu Jing frustrating, but if you can look past that and just buckle up for a fun ride, then it's well worth the time to watch.Was this review helpful to you?
If you want to watch a historical drama with many funny moments and no tragedy then this is a good watch. I liked the dialogues in this movie, worth reflecting on.
Not many romantic scenes, but enough to keep you happy.
The whole cast did a great job! Lee Seungi was perfect as usual <3
I liked the interaction between Lee Seungi & the other astrologer lol it was hilarious
I especially liked the progress of the story, was well balanced. Even though I have watched many historical dramas I could enjoy it because of its interesting storyline.
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Single mothers, especially, are the stars of this drama. Our main female character is one. Our main male character was raised by one. And that’s just the start (to say more would be spoiling things). In fact, in this entire drama save for three characters, fathers and men largely take a backseat in the mainly female-driven story. The heartrending way the drama talks about mothers makes this a perfect watch for everyone. Maybe you grew up motherless, maybe your mother physically or emotionally traumatised you, maybe your mother was overbearing, maybe you loved your mother and lost her, maybe your mother is just a phone call away, maybe you used to be a mother, maybe you are about to become one, maybe you wish to be one... no matter who you are, I think this story will be healing, relatable, and ultimately empowering for the viewer.
It’s important to come into this not expecting it to be just one thing. Neither does it set out to establish itself as a “jack of all trades” type of drama. The characters are genuine, the story is honest, and everything unfolds rather mellowly. I would say there is some meandering in some parts, but let the characters grow on you, keep your judgement at the door. Immerse yourself and you’ll feel glad to be able to spend a bit more time with them.
Oh, and remember that no one is weak. We’re all just seeds, drifting and struggling to plant ourselves and take root, hoping to eventually flower and bloom. Give these characters the chance to do that, and give yourself the chance to too.
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In a word, Switch is exceptional and definitely the biggest surprise of 2018. I normally do not write reviews, but I want other K-drama fans to see this show so that it can get the attention and viewership that it deserves. The writing, acting, and cinematography are phenomenal. I would recommend this drama to everyone who enjoys an intelligent, exciting, and creative show that will keep you guessing until the very end.
But let’s start with what I didn’t like. You have to suspend your disbelief during certain parts, and a couple of the plot devices are not 100% airtight. Also, there seemed to be more names to keep track of than in most shows. That is about it for the negatives.
While no script is perfect, the highlight of this drama is the writing. The plot is like a fast-paced chess game. I love shows that are plot-driven and have great characters, and Switch does not disappoint. The plot is unpredictable, and deception abounds. I can tell that the writer is smart because the script is thoughtful and shows attention to detail. In fact, some of the plot twists and cons are simply brilliant. I typically expect dramas to begin to lag around episode 12 or so, but Switch had excellent pacing and never lost my interest. The ending was so good that it gave me chills.
The awesome and memorable cast of characters was another key part of this drama’s success. It was a joy to watch the interactions between the crafty Sa Do Chan and the upright, driven Prosecutor Oh Ha Ra. The protagonists were people I really wanted to root for, but the antagonists were also impressive thanks to their brains and resources. Heroes and villains were well-matched, and it was hard at times to know who had the upper hand. The con team deserves a special mention for being hilarious and providing lots of light moments throughout the show.
I was unfamiliar with most of the cast before starting Switch, but I was blown away by the acting. They got the facial expressions, demeanor, and emotions exactly right. Han Ye Ri is perfect for her part, as is Jung Woong In. Jung Woong In was great in I Hear Your Voice and My Sassy Girl, but Switch is his strongest performance. Jang Geun Seok similarly did very well in his demanding role, and he had excellent on-screen chemistry with Han Ye Ri.
As for the overall production, I liked the camerawork and editing. I have no idea how they shot some of the more complex scenes (you’ll see what I mean if you watch the show), but I was seriously impressed. The scoring is also perfect. The OST features a range of instrumental and vocal tracks, including some that would be right at home in a spy film. Switch is one of the few dramas where I would listen to the entire soundtrack on its own.
In short, a wonderful and endlessly entertaining show. Switch is a truly exceptional production that should not be missed.
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