The Best Cdrama I watched so far
Cdramas have tendency to have some toxic/red flag behaviors from some of its characters and I love how supportive and healthy all the relationships are. Hidden Love reminds me of what young first love feels like. The male lead was not only goodlooking but he also played his character well. Whenever he looked at the FL, it gave me butterflies. It was such a refreshing series that it totally on my re-watch list. Normally, with CDramas I start losing interest because of so many episodes and this is the first time that I wished it was longer.. I definitely recommend this drama!Was this review helpful to you?
Remake of Novel NOT Drama
FULL DISCLAIMER:Okay, first of all people need to know that this is a remake based on Zhao Qian Qian’s novel which is also clearly stated in the opening sequence so don’t come watching this thinking it’s gonna be a copy and past version of the Chinese drama. I’ve not read the novel so have no idea how close the drama is. My advise would be to lower your expectations, better still have none and don’t compare cos you will most likely be disappointed.
Secondly, whilst I did try the Chinese version I dropped it after one episode so I was kinda happy when I found out that there would be a Thai version especially one that’s not yet another Korean drama. I do love Thailand for remaking as many Korean dramas as they have but honestly, it’s so darn refreshing that they went with China.
As always, starting with the negatives which for me were the second leads. I tend not to like them if I’m being quite honest and this was no different. I found them both annoying until I didn’t anymore but I also didn’t like Pai’s so called friend Wawa. I found her to be selfish and her scenes always consisted of her moaning which resulted in my skipping most of her scenes unless she was with Pai or Pupaa.
STORY
This is pretty much the usual Cookie Cutter school love story for me, I’m not much of a School drama fan. Nothing really new to bring to the table but I guess for me, I found the fluff of it all refreshing….explained in my final thoughts. Also, whilst I did love the fact that the drama wasn’t just about the romance, I would’ve loved to get more light on the friendship between Ta and Pupaa. One thing I didn’t really like is how Pai always needed someone to come and solve her problems for her. Whilst the drama is made from China origin, I loved how they still managed to incorporate some Thai stuff into it to make it feel a bit more Thai. My favourite parts of the drama were definitely the Special Scenes.
ACTING/CAST
The acting isn’t anything groundbreaking but considering the actress playing Pai is a newbie, I personally think she did rather well. I enjoyed the main couple the most and what little friendship was used, I thought they had nice chemistry and fitted the characters well.
MUSIC
I only noticed the opening song which I loved. Oh and the lyric free background music.
REWATCH VALUE
For me, yes because I’ve probably enjoyed it more than I ever imagined I would.
I’m not usually into the overly fluffy romcoms but as far as Thai productions go, this is possibly the fluffiest I’ve ever seen which is a huge deal for me as most Thai I watch tend to come from Channels 3, 7 and One31 so you know there is a big difference. I didn’t feel out of my comfort zone which is strange as I previously mentioned, I’m not a fan of fluff or school and some scenes you could tell were a bit too cringey but somehow I didn’t cringe as much as I normally would from other countries. It’s been a nice experience watching a drama without fear of someone getting kidnapped, assaulted or stalked by some killer. This is a true romcom and I wish more were like this - danger free!
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The Chaser is a contrived, and manipulative story, which brings us to a clearer understanding of police bureaucracy and corruption. It is not the kind of film to enjoy with a sensible heart, but it will grip you and make you wish reality wouldn't be so grim.
No matter how I write this review, I know I will not make this film justice. There are so many things to address in this story, and I don't have the confidence to answer all questions without messing up my credibility as I go. I might be too mushy, or seemed too biased as I admire this film with all honesty. But I will do my best.
What to expect from The Chaser?: With a well written script, and a rookie director (Na Hong-jin), you will get drama at is best, mixed with suspense, and a dash of British humor.
The story is no doubt well writing. Its an act at manipulation, it will grab you and play with your conscience throughout the whole film. The writers have given the audience all the tools with which we can formulate our own idea of how the story should go, and what it seems reasonable that should happen given the situation the characters are thrown into. However, nothing happens like it should, and there seems to be good reasons why not.
You will find yourself immerse in Jung-ho's quest to find one of his missing girls, who he believes is being sold in the human market. With no lead on her whereabouts, and the cops putting importance on bureaucracy and the media, there is plenty of time for all sorts of ill-fated events to befall the call girl. Jung-ho at first seemed like an uncaring pimp, but gradually turns into the hero we all expect to see from him.
The attention put into character development is absolutely perfect. I believed every action taken, because it seemed genuine. Logic exist in this world, but we are not perfect.
The directing is simply stunning. Hong-jin takes you through the story with such conviction he will amaze you, that you are indeed stupefied.
There will be a chase, and there will be a climatic moment, also a conclusion. But none will have any of the superficiality we are exposed to so often we seemed to be ready for it. No embellished fight scenes, no overly acted deaths, and no open endings. No, there is no sequel to The Chaser. The story ends here! What there will be is a realism so hard to deal with, you might want to have a lighthearted comedy lined up.
All in all, The Chaser is not claimed to be one of Korea's number one film in recent years for no reason. If you are a true lover of suspense, this one is definitely a must watch for you.
All my ratings are 10 except for re-watch value, as it is a suspense, and it will not have the same effect again. For me, it does not matter; when a friend asks me for a recommendation, I know it's time to watch The Chaser.
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The story of this drama shows how the life of a normal family really is. You'll learn many things by watching this and it'll make you understand each situation of an individual in the family.
The actors really did a great job because they had shown their versatility as actors and actresses. This sitcom is long but you'll love every part of it because it'll really make you laugh and cry.
This drama is excellent and you'll never regret watching it.
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This review may contain spoilers
A story with great potential, that lost its spark along the way
I was really looking forward to this drama, it seemed like it would be fun and refreshing, and I have to say it was. I loved this drama so much during the first half. It was funny, the characters were all so real, and the drama was also able to deliver meaningful messages. The ost was cute, and I loved Eu Ddeum, he was such an adorable character. Hari and Yisang continuously made my heart flutter, and I would always look forward to their scenes. There was cute bromance as well. Oh My Baby was everything I had been looking for.However, the drama lost its spark for me at around episode 10. The characters suddenly became so immature. The angst really didn't suit this drama. Hari and Yisnag suddenly began acting like children, breaking up and getting back together again, not trying to face the problem. The episodes felt boring, and I started to watch them in 2x. I was expecting actual third lead syndrome from this, something new, but Jaeyoung and Eu Ddeum were practically useless. Jaeyoung was so frustrating. His character had such a unique setup: a man who had it all, a beautiful family and well paying job, who was now at the lowest point of his life, with a daughter to take care of. But we barley got to see his growth and he was just there to frustrate viewers. I was also disappointed with the use of Eu Ddeum's character, he was just there to add humor. For a drama that focused on an infertile couple, we hardly got to see their struggles. Instead we got unnecessary break up scenes. In the last episode, everything that had been empathized on, was suddenly no longer a problem.
The ending was cute, a little predictable but I still enjoyed it. Overall, it was an okay drama. I really wish it didn't lose its spark for me, because it could've become one of my top dramas.
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This review may contain spoilers
I have so many issues with this season I don't even know where to start.
Argh, this was frustrating.How can they tackle a story such as abuse of power, sexual abuse, and waste so much time on James and Ait's relationship? My problem isn't even that I find them boring or that Ait is annoying and immature. My problem is that they could have had something actually valuable to say and they bailed. The endless speech about James and Ait being in a relationship bore me to death. Even while acknowledging that shipping actors together is huge in the BL industry and makes sense to talk about (the way Lovely Writer also did), Tee's problematic behaviour comes last and is barely addressed. Honestly, I was more satisfied with the first season's ending... It felt open ended and optimistic whereas this one felt rushed and unresolved.
Now, don't get me wrong, I wanted to see Bas and Marco get together, but somehow when they do, it fixes all of Bas' issues? The depression, self-harm, suicidal ideation, the constant self-blame? I can even excuse that they picked the weirdest time to have sex, I can believe that would happen, but it was way too rough considering Bas' history which made me really uncomfortable. Oh, and that's without even mentioning it's mere hours after Marco confessed his love to James. Yikes...
I'm trying to remember positive aspects but the end got me so upset I think I forgot everything else. I mean, if you exclude what I said above, Marco and Bas kissing in front of the cameras is quite cute. Apart from that, Bas' struggles are very real and definitely what I wanted from this season, brilliantly acted by Michael as well. Everyone say thank you Michael for giving this season a reason to exist. He single-handedly raised all of the scores.
I wouldn't say don't watch it because Michael is amazing but... gosh it's flawed. If it was any longer, I would have said don't bother.
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Well, I love revenge dramas so i couldn't miss this one but even myself didn't expect this to be so good. The plot looks like some typical revenge drama: 40 years-old lady wants revenge against her best friend, who has always stealed her everything she hold dear, the final blow: stealing her man when they were 20. So, it seems she has endured this betrayals all this years in silence... but she has a plan.
CHARACTERS: this is the best of all drama. The characters are very complex and you can relate to them, even when they are despicable you can understand their actions because they look so human: with good and bad traits.
I loved Naomi, btw.
CASTING: perfect, all the actors nailed it.
PLOT: mindblowing
CHEMISTRY BETWEEN MAIN LEADS: they have a lot of chemistry, and I mean A LOT.
NEGATIVE POINTS: Ii don't consider this a 'negative point' but I think they could have reduced the number of flashbacks, although I loved them and focus in the present a little bit more.
(If I have some grammatical mistake, sorry, I am not native)
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
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Great acting, great plots, but should have been a series
I actually really liked this movie. A lot of people did not enjoy it because they found it confusing or peiced together weird, which I will say is true to an extent. I really liked all of the plot lines and how they connected, but it left me wanting more from each one. We got a snippet of each plotline basically. I definitely think it should have been a series rather than a movie, that way they could flesh everything out better, and make it a bit more cohesive. Overall I think it is well worth the watch, and will probably watch it again when it releases on Netflix with the official subtitles.Was this review helpful to you?
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This show easily became my No.1 Drama
First of all: I am deeply in love with this showit's funny, cute, mysterious, interessting and heartwarming.
I feel comfort warching this. It cheers me up.
Plot: The plot may seem easy at first but is very interessting and surprising as time goes on. The characters spend a lot of time discussing and theorizing so it is easy to follow and I felt like i was investigating right along side them, theorizing. The cases are interesting and memorable. I was never bored or skiped any scenes.
Cast: All of the actors portray their character amazingly. The chemestry between them all feels very close and they do act like a group of close friends or family. I am having a great time watching them interact and care for each other. The looks they give each other are hilarious.
Musik: The musik is not outstanding but they underline the scenes perfectly and set the tone. Be it funny, mysterious or emotional.
Rewatch Value: As previously stated, I love this drama. It is my comfort show and I will regulary rewatch it. A big part is the focus on the friendship here.
Overall: This drama is perfect.
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This movie was like watching a car crash in slow motion. You know it’s going to be bad, and yet you can’t seem to look away. It was one of those stories that there are no characters to route for, as everyone is horrible and severely flawed in their own way. Throughout, you keep hoping that someone will grow and develop but that never really happens. In the end you are left watching the credit screen think, “What the heck did I just watch?!?!?”
However, throughout, I must commend all the actors’ performances, which were extremely well done especially given such dark material. In addition, the soundtrack was fitting and enhanced the mood without detracting from the subtle and slow melodramatic pace and way of storytelling.
Overall, worth a watch if you want a more mature, VERY twisted melodrama. Or to see Lee Won Keun’s butt. Whichever.
Happy Drama Watching.
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This review may contain spoilers
A story of what if, chance, hope, and belief
In this story there are nods to Shakeapeare and Greek tragedies - if you enjoy those types of plays then you'd enjoy this.There IS a romance here, but it's old school. Lingering glances, touches, unsaid words and comfort. Tons, and tons of it. The show is very ASMR-y with its presence. Up until the last 5 episodes. That's when everything has been building meets the peak and the outcome of actions comes back to haunt people.
One could say this is a tragedy, a tragedy of love, a tragedy of 'what if' 'should I have', 'did I love enough' etc. But, the beautiful thing is the woman who thought of others instead of herself, broken, but given a chance to heal and fall in love again. A man who also thought of others, worked eight years with nothing but hope in his heart and regret, fell in love with someone who gave him that hope learned to heal.
That to me is the purest kind of love.
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For some people, a romance drama between people nearly 20 years different in age may be slightly off-putting but rest assure, you are not going to see anything dodgy. The relationship between all the characters are very interesting. I have never seen a drama with characters so well composed (well given the age... you would expect that they act adult-like) unlike the mainstream drama with divorce/cheating in it. This drama shows that broken relationships does not always end up with lots of crying, screaming, slapping, revenge etc. Despite the conflicts they faced, all the characters remained rational. They counselled each other, listened to each other and really thought about each other. I think this is much more realistic than those drama that just show characters lashing out at each other and trying to take revenge.
All that said, I think this is a great drama and well worth the time watching it.
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Realistic Portrayal of Anti-Trafficking Cases; No Sugar-Coating. Good Drama with a Shoddy Ending.
Originally wanted to watch for Reba stepping out of her comfort zone of pretty and taking a gritty role and it paid off. Also knew the ML and several supporting characters. This series was a heavy one but it was a very real portrayal of anti-trafficking cases, zilch sugarcoating. A good drama but sadly with a shoddy ending.Pros: For the first time in a long time it was the storyline and plots that took center stage not the actors themselves. Yes, they were important but they took a more sideline role here. The families, victims, the stories or abduction, captivity, abuse, sometimes torture, sometimes being sold more than once, release and reunion with family, which many a time took decades as the victims they focused on were children and women. You saw the absolute destruction of families when it happened, how they treated the anti-trafficking cops with panic and then rage which was very sad to see but understandable on both sides; families were frantic while the cops could only work when and if they got clues. Those didn't magically fall from the sky.
The FL or DY has childhood trauma of her own as she watched her best friend get kidnapped when she was no more than 8 years old. 24 some odd years later she still hasn't been found. That was why she joined the police force and eventually after getting successfully kidnapped on purpose and rescued, she was promoted to director of the anti-trafficking division. She also reconnected successfully with the mom of her kidnapped best friend who ran a simple noodle shop that doubled as a place where people with missing loved ones could come, pin their photos and write loving messages on the walls, they were also a community that held meetings where they branched out new ideas. As each case came along both sets joined in sorrow and gave the division something to work with. Turned out that they were essentially taking down a massive trafficking organization from the runner ants to finally the big boss (Cripple) himself at the end. It was he that kidnapped LR or DY's best friend and he had done it himself as his first time doing this.
Many were rescued or saved throughout but not without misery and sorrow. You really sometimes cried for these victims. Some were saved quickly, others not until decades later, and some were brought back no longer living but their families were still able to say their proper goodbyes. ML was a very enigmatic character who I'll speak more about in the cons but he did have his unfortunate realization that he lost his father who drowned saving a young boy who grew up to work as one of the middlemen for this trafficking organization. It took him a while but he finally was able to come to terms with it and decide that he in fact belonged following in his father's footsteps as a cop in this particular department. Sadly, we lost one officer and an elder on duty and that was a heavy hit for the department and viewers.
DY definitely was the brains but the team came together as a whole. There wasn't a time where they just sat there twirling their thumbs. Meanwhile the focus on the families was the most important and how they coped or didn't; divorce and even suicide was attempted, thankfully thwarted. Mom of LR was such an important part of the story and really the first case; she was the rallying force behind all families in the show. And her case was the last one solved. Every family and character, protagonist or antagonist were well portrayed; I can't think of one that was extra or unnecessary. The stories varied and many things felt unreal like even deaf and mute women were not off the table or because in poorer villages it seemed like they didn't know buying a human being was illegal. OSTs, small amount of makeup on everyone leads included made it more real. The twists in the story sometimes were pretty wild.
Cons: That ending made me pretty unhappy because DY and her friend's mom were the first case of this story and after everything they went through; the pain of 24 years of not knowing and than slowly inching closer, plus with the mom diagnosed with mid-stage Alzheimer's and starting to forget people and how she made her noodles causing one costumer to get sick because she put a cleaning solution in the noodles instead of what she thought was sugar. She even made the decision to go into a nursing home for proper care; so you would think once they found LR working in some field picking onions or greenery in some godforsaken village, they would have this amazing reunion; the three of them? Nope! DY called LR's name or nickname RanRan who picked up her head and smiled as she recognized the name and DY and than the camera panned away to a propaganda meeting where DY's division got an award and she made a speech where flashbacks of all the cases they solved and the families plus the officer they lost and her making some declaration about how they would keep working to bring more families back together. It was so unnecessary and made you feel cheated for the mom, DY, and LR! The entire show, there was barely any propaganda but now when it was the least needed, they packed it on and at the worst possible time. They could have had this wonderful reunion and than ended with a short ceremony in their office like they did the first time they got that award and then end out the show with flashbacks of everyone they saved with an OST. Why not? At least it would have done the three of them justice. This was just sad and inappropriate.
I had a problem with the ML; the man has virtually no expressions. He can be yelling or laughing and his face is frozen though his eyes do run around their sockets a lot. At first I thought when I saw him in Under the Skin that that's just his character but now I've noticed that nothing changes, even in real life when I saw him on an episode of Hi6. My assumption is that he's a high functioning autistic so these are the roles he takes. I do wish they had him practicing with the movement of his face more.
Felt the last few episodes were rushed as they were trying to get the rest of the rats caught in the net especially catching "Cripple" himself and his whole running for the border halfheartedly attempting to kidnap his supposed best friend's (whom he pushed off a building; dude lived, lord knows how) wife as he's obsessed with her, than holding her hostage at knifepoint and getting taken out by a SWAT sniper. Like what even? It was smooth going until those last few episodes, you could tell the pace picked up. It was still good up until this point and that BS ending.
Would I recommend it? Yes I would. Though the subject matter was heavy, it was also very hopeful. I'm proud of Reba here; she really played DY well and showed all of the proper emotions when needed. This was a realistic show and y'all should give it a shot.
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fantastic chemistry (need a spin off)
Overall: stellar chemistry, but too much plot for a short run time. This is based on the web novel "Ball Boy Tactics" by Ji Seung Hyeon which I have partially read but I tried to review the series based on its own merits. 8 episodes about 27 minutes each. Aired on GagaOOLala (not available in U.S, Canada, Mexico, Chile, Peru, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, U.K., Spain, Portugal, Japan, Korea) https://www.gagaoolala.com/en/videos/5418/ball-boy-tactics-2025-e01 ; iQIYI (assuming for the other countries) https://www.iq.com/play/o48rhx5yhw and Heavenly (South Korea).Content Warning: slap, past abuse
What I Liked
- opposite personalities (I'm normally not a fan of timid characters but I think his personality made sense based on his past and there were a few changes)
- chemistry/tension
- that a character recognized his feelings fairly quickly and was forthright about it (also stated his sexual orientation to his friends)
- the friends (supportive, funny)
- ongoing intimacy (might get a number of hugs award), episode 8 was very well done
- visuals
- production value
Room For Improvement
- not generally a fan of voice overs although it didn't bother me as much as it normally does
- the plot zoomed by too fast, many things took place off screen, felt choppy in places, 2 weeks supposedly passed but it felt like a couple of days
- seemed to be not drunk then the morning after said he didn't remember the night before (which he would have needed to be extremely drunk) and a character said he didn't take advantage but there was heavy kissing...
- a potential side couple had an open ending, would love to see a spin off with them
- (neutral) didn't really have time for episode 7 stuff and I generally hate this trope but it was much more realistic (better reasons for it) as well as the time frame felt like it could happen in the real world vs 10 years later nonsense
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