Reviews

I watched this on the plane and surprisingly it was really good. The story follows closely to the manga but still it's a movie so they have to cut some scenes. Honestly for me, the highlight of the movie is definitely the chemistry between the lead. Suda Masaki did a very great job in portraying Haru you can't help but fall for him. It is a very good coming age movie focusing more on the friendship between the students. I really like how this is not your typical shojo movie where the guy is a jerk and the girl is naive, this one actually holds the message to just be yourself. For music they mostly use Nishino Kana's songs because if I'm not wrong it's kind of some collaboration project? Definitely a rewatch I can totally swoon over Haru forever and please stay until the credit end scene.

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I really enjoyed this movie. I have watched both Korean and this version, in my opinion I think this is better. First, I think I enjoyed this more because the movie is new, and I really like that they use it to alert the people who we meet through phone apps and stuff. Also, this one tells more about the criminal, about his story.
The movie is good, got me hooked all the time. Lu Han acting was pretty good, I wasn't expecting it haha
The female lead also did a great job, I felt her emotions and pain.
You should watch because is a really nice thriller and action.

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Hail Hail! The Gang's All Here.

West Incheon’s favourite good cops Kang Do-chang (Son Hyun-joo and Oh Ji-hyeok (Jang Seung-jo) are back again for another season of murder, mayhem and manipulation with the rest of the lads from Team 2 who are much more of a cohesive fighting machine than once they were. They are still led by Team Leader Woo Bong-shik (Jo Hee-bong), a perpetual nervous wreck whose timidity regarding what they're up against is only equalled by his fear of his wife’s nagging and their chief, Moon Sang Beom (Son Jong-hak) who lives for that holy grail promotion that’s just around the corner.

In this series the team tangles first of all with a serial killer in their neighbourhood with a fetish for young women in white. When they finally get their man they play a rather protracted, elaborate game of cat and mouse with a family-run conglomerate, TJ Group who seem to be at the centre of domestic violence and possibly crimes of passion. At the start the patriarch (Song Yang-chang) of TJ Group is spending time behind bars for dubious business practices and the company is left to the devices of his contentious offspring Cheon Sang-woo (Choi Dae-hoon), Cheon Na-na (Kim Hyo-jin) and son-in-law Woo Tae-ho (Jung Moon-sung). The half siblings duke it out for supremacy while Woo Tae-ho, also head of the legal team, is caught between their ferocious rivalry. Their story is both high melodrama and a psychological battle of wits rolled into one.

The thing to note first of all about this franchise is that this never purports to be a police procedural about the nobility of the boys in blue. Far from it. Indeed it is a show about cops — warts and all. The official English title is somewhat misleading and would be better translated from the original as The Model Detective. That said Do-chang and Ji-hyeok aren’t perfect men (Ji-hyeok comes pretty close) but they are the closest thing to diligence and smarts as one might get from this rag tag bunch of investigators. The two men are as alike as chalk and cheese but in very significant ways define what this abstract model detective looks like. Do-chang is all heart and emotionally driven. He sympathizes deeply with the victims’ families which is evidenced by his relationship with his adopted daughter and their relationship with the victim's grandfather. Having lost his father to a cold blooded killing, Oh Ji-hyeok isn’t just intellectually committed to cracking every case, he is absolutely determined to catch every single perpetrator that comes his way. He is depicted as the consummate detective and he’s earned the respect of his colleagues to the extent that his intelligence guides the discourse in the office. The maknae of the team Shim Dong-wook shows plenty of promise except that his Achilles’ heel seems to be his ne’er do well brother Dong-il who seems to fall prey to all kinds of schemes concocted by those whose aim is to divide and conquer.

Unlike your garden variety police procedural, getting to the bottom of the mystery isn’t the main thing here. There aren’t any intractable mysteries or supervillains here. If that’s what you’re looking for, you might want to look elsewhere. Like many K crime shows, knowing who’s responsible isn’t the end of the story or sufficient cause for an arrest because proof is hard to come by. Meanwhile the perpetrators are protected by layers political clout or vested interests which reflects how any kind of business is done in that part of the world. Truth isn’t just a casualty, it’s barely relevant in such a context. In the end one might appeal to self-interest, financial incentives, threats, and political expediency but very seldom is righteous fervour or a well-developed sense of justice part of the equation. Within this dog eat dog ecosystem, detectives see themselves as a link in the food chain and they might want to negotiate for a better deal than what the public service can offer them. It isn’t just a case of survival of the fittest but a submission to the status quo — to the way things are. Jang Ki-jin which is this season’s corrupt cop alongside Choi Yong-geun an ex-cop now enjoying the benefits of being a stooge of TJ group represents a sample of what’s wrong with the public service: It is dominated by capable but ambitious individuals who use their previous service as a stepping stone to getting in bed with the rich and powerful.

Woo Tae-ho, who is another new face in the franchise, is a morally enigmatic figure. Without his inclusion in the mix, the TJ Group would be just another feuding chaebol family. He’s a mediator, a broker and the protector in a messy situation. Somewhere along the way the former prosecutor got mired in that family’s misdemeanours to the extent that he became the family’s lap dog cleaning up after them. His moral compass has gone awry in service of the woman he married. Perhaps that’s why he became attracted to the deceased Jung Hee-joo, a subordinate, who was something of a misfit in that environment. Tae-ho’s dynamic with his wife Cheon Na-na is tragically compounded by layers of irreparable misunderstandings. From an outsider’s perspective, it looks like they’re two people who may lingering feelings for each other but an insurmountable wall has sprung up between them with neither wanting to make the first move to repair matters. There’s little trust on her side and there’s plenty of guilt on his. Na-na whose mental state is fragile despite the bravado clearly frames herself as the victim in the Cheon family dysfunction. She teeters back and forth on the edge of the abyss between stylish poise and wretched madness. It’s a masterful performance by Kim Hyo-jin. Without a doubt her chemistry with Jung Moon-sung is one of the more arresting parts of the show. Jung Moon-sung is one of those truly underrated actors who has the versatility and the charisma to be a male lead but for some reason that status has eluded him thus far.

In the end “Why was Jung Hee-joo killed?” is perhaps a far more difficult question to answer than “Who killed Jung Hee-joo?” The answer to the first question is far more psychologically complex than one might think. But at the end of the day, it’s a question that’s much more of interest to a viewer like me than the conspirators who are trying to misdirect and impede the investigation. For those of us who were raised on the teat of western crime fiction, it might be something of an anticlimax that the answers that her grandfather seeks can only be found only after a series of negotiations, accommodation and political compromises. However, such is the reality of that world. At least the cops can console themselves with the belief that the dead woman’s family can get some closure.

In an ensemble such as this with veterans and well-regarded character actors, it’s pretty much a guarantee that the performances will be stellar across the board. The actors contribute in large part to making this viewing experience an immersive one. It is a male-centric story and one of my great delights is watching the Team 2 camaraderie at work. The banter between the leads and among their colleagues never fails to amuse. Each deliver a punchline with flair especially when it's not heard by the others. What began to flower in S1 has developed into a bit of an art in this series. The dialogue spiced with wit and irony is music to the ears. Despite the ribbing and backhanded serves of chastisement, these men do really care about each other — they can be relied upon to have each other’s backs when the chips are down. Often it is a testosterone filled space that they occupy but I relish every single moment that I spend with these men.

It’s no secret that I’m slightly in love with Oh Ji-hyeok partly because of Jang Seung-jo and he does play the character in a thoughtful understated way. Despite his superior skill set, Ji-hyeok is a team player and the running gags about his good looks and his wealth oddly enough never gets old. His double act with the grumpy but passionate Kang Do-chan (Son Hyun-soo) is more often than not comedy gold.

This show is a fine example of how to do core characters well — to imbue them with distinct personalities and give them character arcs that often test their mettle. I don’t think it’s too much of an exaggeration to note that many crime shows do such a good job with the antagonists that often the protagonists fade innocuously into the background. Not so here. The drama is clear on what its roots are and where its focus should ultimately be right to its humorous ending.

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I adored this film - the story was very well put together and I liked the plotline which was very different (and very welcome because of it). Much kudos has to go to Ikuta Toma who was wonderful as Rinko. He really was completely believable as a male to female transgender and I adored Rinko so much. Ikuta and Kiritani Kenta (who played Makio) worked really well together - they were a completely believable couple and had you rooting for them and Maiko's niece..

The music was okay; nothing special or memorable but not horrible either. But the rewatch value, for me at least, is very high. I liked it so much - just not the ending; I really wanted it to be just a slight little bit different to make it happier for everyone - but it still raised a smile. However, that's why it wasn't a 10 overall for me.

This are my scores -
Story - 9.5/10
Acting/Cast - 10/10 (especially Ikuta Toma, who wound the dial all the way to 11)
Music - 5/10
Rewatch Value - 10/10
Overall -- 9.5/10 (just because of the ending).

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ALL HURT & NO COMFORT

This series looks at love through rose-tinted glasses and calls it a day. Emotionally manipulative and angsty, this BL tries so hard to make you root for one of the main characters but fails hilariously.

STORY & CHARACTERS: There's nothing new or unique about this story. You've seen this shtick before in most breakup dramas. The common tropes of moving back to the childhood village, reuniting with the past lover, and having the main love interest chase the other stubbornly - have all been used before, but that's not the problem. These predictable tropes aren't really the story's downfall. It's the fact that the mystery of the break-up was recycled from the first season. The themes of insecurity and low self-esteem were already the major conflicts in S1.

Season 2 was basically the same thing, but with higher budget and more unnecessary characters that got more screentime than the two main characters.

There's no plot twist here, folks. One of the main characters (Ji Woo) is literally just the carbon copy of his S1 persona. He did not develop at all, but just regressed to a more selfish coward who spews hypocrisy and hate every time he opens his mouth. He verbally abuses Seo Joon, the other main character but asks for comfort from the latter ("please hug me"-ep 10) when he's the one who finally gets rejected.

This is endless angst with Ji Woo consistently hurting Seo Joon for 7 episodes:

First strike: JW knew that SJ has extreme emotional trauma from being abandoned by his parents, and yet he still abandoned SJ without a proper goodbye on his birthday.

Second strike: Every chance he gets or in all their interactions, JW sees it fit to hurl emotional abuse & insulting words to SJ. SJ did not do anything wrong in this relationship. Even with his his exhausting schedule, SJ still makes time to see JW. Sometimes, he only sleeps for two hours just so he can hang out with JW. SJ neglects his health and his own friends for JW.

Third strike: JW let SJ sleep in that brutally cold camper van for DAYS because he couldn't summon enough humanity to be kind to the person he proclaimed he loves.

Fourth strike (and the most hurtful): JW slept with SJ, and told SJ the morning after that they could continue this "fuckbuddy" relationship. That was the lowest blow, and you could really see the exact moment SJ's face falls at the implication.

TLDR: This series has no heart. It tries so hard to tell a deep, idealistic story by making everyone cry their heart out in the dark (seriously, the lighting is so bad. I can barely see anything), but it doesn't quite make it because it's hard to get past the baseless cruelty & hurt. There is NO justifiable excuse for JW's behavior- of him emotionally scarring someone just because he himself is feeling lonely & isolated.

JW's pain & chosen isolation are understandable. His mental instability is not his fault. Choosing to break off a relationship is not a sin nor should it be condemned. He has every freedom to do so, but nothing can ever excuse or justify every single hurtful word and behavior JW chose to throw at SJ.

FINALE: There's no comfort or genuine resolution in this story. It isn't realistic or even idealistic at all. Nobody would want to have this kind of relationship filled with inequality & insincerity. In the end, the writers will try to put a band-aid on all the emotional trauma & abuse, but it's simply not enough. Strong angst & decent acting, but not much else. This love story is as shallow and insincere as Ji Woo's love for Seo Joon. Truly a tearjerker but for all the wrong reasons. 5/10

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A Masterpiece of 2023

Best Chinese Drama of 2023.
I am hooked with the story, the chemistry, and the business cases.
Gong Jun as Xu Si and Zhong Chuxi as Jiang Hu are the best decision ever.

Running against the wind. Beginning with Jiang Hu.
When rising with the wind, Zhaoyang will be there for you.

My final points for this drama why I choose this drama as my #1 drama:
1) The drama is as realistic as it can be in C-drama world
2) All scenes are important, not even single scene is some kind of filler
3) The leads have their strengths and weaknesses and have great character development each other
4) The chemistry of the leads are great. Smart and Powerful Couple ever
5) Learning business cases by watching a drama
6) Xu Si is also NOT usual CEO-Type male lead. The finest grey flag man ever. Xu Si yaaaaaaaaa, you’re my top character male lead drama of all time now🔥💕
7) The OSTs are superb

Full playlist of this drama : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbaz30HW30w
Compilation of Xu Si and Jiang Hu Best Moments (Part 1) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRKwBU-J8_g

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A Well Made Thriller

Simply Awaken was a really good drama to watch. Not unfamiliar or a new different kind of a story narration but here it has a quite decent balance in both thrilling and emotional scenes which was very interesting to see. The genres were completely stick into mainly three Mystery, thriller and a bit of fantasy. and there were no unwanted or forced romance or anything like that.

In The past few years Nam Goong Min Made a big impact in drama industry he was particularly very selective for his works. Especially his last 2 works before this. He is one of the most promising actor we have now. And he has done it again here as well. His performance will be one of the main highlight of this whole show, Just awesome, Very smoothly handled a very complicated role which was outstanding.

Coming to the story and screenplay, by the way i don't want to look further into that part because you can read the synopsis and find the plot and all, but as i mentioned earlier they have a good balance in every aspects so its a kind of a very interesting screenplay also it makes logical.

Also one of the good thing that there was a very good finale Episode which so many other dramas failed to make, but here they done it brilliantly includes a very satisfying Climax also . Nothing more or less needed then that. Overall if you are a thriller fan awaken will be a best choice for you. I loved every bit of this drama without any boring. Try it

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PM: a jewel produced through the lens of art and aesthetics.

Shakespeare wouldn't feel embarrassed signing this brilliant series. Really Perfect!

Many have tried to reduce and drag PM into a small, unfounded discussion about misogyny, when what is really in scene are the dichotomies of human nature, light and darkness. What is most curious about this criticism is that it is an unequivocally matriarchal story in which men, naturally arrogant and oppressive as a reflection of the education and culture of the time, when they get married, they become docile husbands to their wives, all of whom are very strong-willed women. This transformation does not harm the dignity of men, but balances the forces between man and woman.

The series manages to bring together all human virtues, innocence, honor, compassion, generosity, in counterpoint with villainy, misunderstandings, family intrigues, compromising pasts, murders, revenge. I identify, in PM, traces of Shakespeare's comedies and tragedies. But if you ask me how similar these works are, the answer is simple. Shakespeare's work builds plots exploring virtues, human flaws, intrigues and surprising twists, whose stage is the intra-family and palace life, of society in all its shades. Perfect Match has the same atmosphere.

The plot has the merit of, from a single thread (the Li family), weaving an intricate network that begins at home and expands to other layers of society, until reaching the powerful.

The series is a light and very fun comedy, with a dynamic rhythm that unfolds in many twists. Like all comedy, it also has its space for tears, whether in lyrical scenes that address the sensitive side of human beings, or in scenes that bring out the painful side of life.

The PM scenes are constructed with theatrical logic, in small spaces and intimate actions, such as the garden, the rooms, the meals, even palatial and noble environments, is framed in a small spatial perspective, giving the feeling of proximity that we have in the theater. I also highlight the theatrical way of acting of three burlesque characters in particular: Madam Li (Ni Hong Jie), Le Shan (Huangyang Tian Tian) and Fan Liang Han (Huang Cheng Chi), with their facial and body expressions, vocalization, reactions, gestures, temperaments, performed with exaggeration, exacerbation, are theatrical concepts that enrich the characters' dynamics and color the narrative. The scene cuts resemble the curtain closing. This combination takes us into the scene, as a local spectator.

I could not fail to mention the first daughter Shou Hua in the context of the non-negotiable defense of woman's dignity. This character does not seem to be understood in her human greatness, and this incomprehension has made her the target of many unfair criticisms, since what some viewers consider to be resentment, grudge, inability to love is, in fact, the non-negotiable defense of woman's dgnity. Shou Hua has a monastic aura and deserves to be understood as a woman who asserts her dignity at a time when women were nullified and according to the law of the time, they were worth less than men. The ironic detail of this criticism made against Shou Hua is that precisely the women who accuse the series of misogeny are the ones who most criticize this character who gives stature and dignity to women. In my opinion, she is the best-crafted and most beautiful character in the series. It is very rare for series to portray women with this depth and delicacy.

The family is the microorganism that constitutes society, PM shows these entrails with mastery. PM is a precious mosaic of microstories that involve a sophisticated cocktail of successes and mistakes inherent to life that gain dimension and life of their own in the expansion of family ties. These microstories have no other theme than virtues and human miseries. In this complex cocktail, everything related to human behavior is on the screen.

In addition to PM having visual beauty, with photography that offers aesthetic pleasure, its narrative interweaves the best of Chinese literature (present not only in quotations from works, but in the deep and delicate universe of Chinese Poetry, recited throughout the series), painting, philosophy. This artistic conception amplifies the beauty of PM's messages.

PM portrays the daily lives of ordinary people, like us. The seesaw of the characters' human flaws and virtues oscillates, and this gives grace and life to the plot, but at the same time, it leaves open the possibility of everyone redeeming themselves.

Why should we be such strict judges? We all deserve this chance.

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A disappointing barely-BL.

The series is framed by a class about love, wherein the students in the class are paired off in heterosexual couples to do a bunch of love experiments. Two girls pair up, because one is in love with the professor, and the other has a stalker, so she's terrified of all men (except Jiwoo, who's too tiny to be scary).

That means that two boys have to pair off, and off we go.

This is a BL, and yet the class doesn't even attempt to address same-sex relationships, or anything not heteronormative. The most we get is that the professor allows the same sex pairings. To be frank, nobody should need his permission.

Because the stalked girl (Yuna) isn't afraid of Jiwoo, she allows him to escort her home, which draws him into the stalker mess.

This is a series that could have worked if it were twice as long. It simply had too much going on, a lot of it totally unnecessary, to cover in six brief episodes. Almost the entire story is about Jiwoo pursuing Yuna and dealing with her stalker. There almost no BL whatsoever.

Then, we skip all the processing it might take to go from identifying as straight and being in love with a girl to going gay. Jiwoo changes like a light switch being flipped, and Roa, who loves him, rejects him based on truly incomprehensible reasoning, then abandons his life and runs off to the sea. But we do have time for a silly girl's antics and pursuit of her professor and Roa's intrusive asshole roommate.

This story is so disjointed and lacking in any organic character or relationship development that I felt absolutlely nothing at the end.

The series doesn't fail because it's short, it fails because it's a long story that was crammed into a short space. For contrast, watch the 8-minute BL short Please Tell Me So on YouTube, also starring Han Hyun Jun - this does a much better storytelling job despite its brevity.

I'm often told that I should unconditionally support Korean BL because it's new there (It isn't. Long Time No See was made in 2017, less than a year after SOTUS) and operating in a homophobic environment (welcome to the continent of Asia). Why? I support good Korean BL like Semantic Error - I have no responsibility to support borderline gay-baiting like this, which is a cynical attempt to exploit a fashionable genre without having to commit to it. This is not a m/m romance, it's a story about stalking, with a shallow and cliched15-minunte BL stapled to the end of it.

Story: Since this is marketed as a BL, I have to rate the writing as a BL, so 3. I liked that Jiwoo's first hints of attraction to Roa was from seeing him shirtless rather than trip/catch/stare or accidetal kiss.

Acting: 7.5. Han Hyun Jun is more like a 9, most of the rest are fine, and Kim Tae Hwan is OK but a bit stiff.

Music: It's there.

Rewatch: 2 - I wouldn't watch it again, but I might revisit a couple of scenes that I liked.

Overall: 5. My overall opinion was that it was bad, but didn't look like it was bad. It's competently produced, but the story is just not interesting as a BL and skips too much that is important. I really hope someone puts Han Hyu Jun in something much better than this because he is talented and just adorable.

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Is it camp though? GAP and the messy politics of lesbian representation

We did it folks, Asia’s first full-length Girls Love. There is a lot to say about what GAP represents. As the name suggests, this was an earnest attempt to well, close the gap for lesbian representation in Thai cinema, which is mostly known for its variety of BL content. It's a groundbreaking drama that's breaking barriers for sure, but did it break the mold of mediocrity? This review will be a wild ride so let’s strap in (no pun intended!).

I’ve been advised to go easy on this drama and I will do my best. I fully recognize what GAP means and represents for Asian sapphics, and I also recognize that no one involved in this was going for art-house cinema. And I myself am also not immune to charming cheesy trash. But I can’t write this review without addressing GAP’s quality in some capacity.

Since I am trying my hardest not to lose my lesbian-license it might be a good idea to ease in with the good stuff:
GAP’s cinematography is a bit of a hot mess but it does have its more stylish moments. Surprisingly enough those ended up being the sex scenes. I genuinely felt like these were the visuals that the director put the most thought into (I will not comment on how I feel about that) and I appreciated that GAP didn’t feel the need to dial the steaminess down just because it featured two women instead of men. This was an aspect I had been largely worried about before GAP even aired. If BLs are produced primarily for a female audience, would that mean GAP would be produced for a male audience? The fact that the director/producer was male, didn’t ease my concerns. I feared that what I would be served was bound to be a product of sheer fetishization. But I also did not want GAP to feel sexless, just because it had female protagonists. Women having sexual desires is cool actually. Well, I am happy to report that I actually had no issue with how GAP portrayed lesbian sexuality. The male gaze might be impossible to escape but it was subtle enough that I, a bitter lesbian, could still get something out of those scenes.
I struggle with critiquing an actor’s performance, especially if it’s in a language I am not very familiar with, but I will say that Sam’s actress Freen brought a lot of charm and humor to her role. Sam is a bit of a bitch and while I don’t think that her character was executed brilliantly, I also recognize that a lot of measures were taken to make her more likable, which is an effort I can appreciate. One of those was making Sam sufficiently awkward, something that the actress embodied pretty well (maybe because she did feel a bit awkward, who’s to say). I appreciate this effort even more so, after I have been informed, that Sam actually behaves a lot worse in the source material. I think softening those edges was the right move for sure. But script changes aside, I thought that Freen’s characterization came across as charming either way. Charisma is a difficult thing to evaluate because it’s very subjective and also innate to a person, so it might be something that you can’t really praise someone for but I do think that Freen really did the absolute best with the material she was given.
I don’t want to imply that my favorite aspect of a lesbian love story was a male character but I do have to earnestly commend the show for Kirk. The show’s main antagonist is Sam’s grandma, someone so comically evil that all that’s missing is a big mustache she can twirl. Kirk is not that. In fact, Kirk is the guy that everyone at the office loves. Someone that at first glance might even seem like an ally. The guy your friends insist you should marry because he seems “like one of the good ones”. And Kirk is an absolute douchebag. This was a character that appeared likable, had solid motives for the way he behaved, genuinely believed he was doing the right thing, and he still managed to be a huge asshole in a way you had to build up to. Kirk didn’t “suddenly turn out to be evil” because he isn’t and he never has been. But his crime was entitlement. He believed he was entitled to the company as he believed he was entitled to Sam. It’s, dare I say, an attempt at social commentary, that managed to be both subtle and effective all in a show that tended to be painfully on the nose. Kirk as an antagonist amidst the mess was truly a breath of fresh air, I think the casting choice was also great. Choosing some BL-heartthrob to portray him was the right call.
I guess as far as representation goes, this is pretty solid. We obviously have two morally dubious sapphic disasters for our protagonists but we also have one trans woman who is not entirely played for laughs (and one that is….) and a butch/masc lesbian which is something you rarely see on TV these days. None of these characters are entirely “unproblematic“ representation but that is also such a boring standard to uphold so I can live with a little messiness if it means that we get a more diverse cast.
This is such a small thing and I am not sure if it even was intentional, but the OST when something 〜shady〜 was going on and when Sam and Mon were getting down to business were pretty much alike. This furthered the impression that their relationship was a bad and ominous thing that was happening. This might not have been what the show (that presumably is first and foremost trying to be a love story) was trying to imply, but since I have been blessed with both eyes and a brain, this was a conclusion I inevitably arrived at. The OST seemed to point at the concept that Sam’s and Mon’s inherent toxicity was supposed to be text instead of subtext, which I thought was neat at least.

The bad:
One fun fact about me is that I have severe scoliosis and awful posture which is why my physician ordered me to do extensive physical therapy for an entire year. This painful progress might have been erased entirely by sitting through this show as I had to watch it with my head permanently tilted. I am not exaggerating, nearly every second shot of GAP is a Dutch-angle (tilted picture). Sometimes this made sense. A Dutch-angle creates a certain uncomfortableness, an eeriness if you will. Also: Sam is in a higher position than Mon. The scales are tipped. But more often than not this was a creative decision that puzzled me. It’s obvious that the director just thought it looked cool so he decided to use it ALL THE GOD DAMN TIME WITH NO THOUGHT IN MIND. I thought about making a drinking game out of it but that would have been a genuine health hazard.
What is it that this company does? This is an office romance but I m not even sure what this office is ordered to do. Something something social media something something. I wouldn’t care about this if it didn’t play such a big role in the overall plot. Also: Sam wants to keep her company and we’re supposed to think that she is deserving of that but we never see her work ever. It is implied that she is harsh on her workers because their performance determines whether she can keep living her life or will be married off. Well girl, how about you do some work then? I get it, it’s inherent to the cruel nature of the exploitative capitalistic system that the CEO never does any actual work and only leeches of their employees so this is quite accurate to real life but GAP is a silly romance and I am supposed to root for the undeservedly rich. I can’t do that if I never see Sam actually achieve anything. Every little success is due to the work of someone else and it’s not because of her management style but despite of it. To a wage worker like me, this is quite the hard sell. And I actually kind of like Sam and for her to be a bitch and a bad boss at the start of this show is fine, but we never see the needed character development from her. Sure, she warms up a bit, but arguably not nearly enough to excuse her prior behavior.
Sam and Mon suck. Not nearly as much as individuals as they do as a couple. It’s not so much that they’re unhealthy, I think the show knew that to some extent and I don’t think all love stories in fiction need to represent what is desirable in real-life. It’s more that they were… annoying? Which is a weak criticism, I’ll admit. But their constant bickering never seemed worth what they were getting out of the relationship. I was never sold entirely on their love. They had chemistry, sure, but that is very little to build a relationship on. If this was supposed to be a fatal-attraction sort of deal where they cannot keep away from each other despite how unhappy they make each other, this drama also failed to address that in a productive way. I like messiness and flawed, dumb people (I myself belong to said demographic), but Sam and Mon only seemed to always reunite because the narrative needed them to. Not because they were good together or it seemed like something either of the characters would want.
The sound quality was pretty atrocious in a way that I can't explain how it even got like this. Some passages of dialog were completely fine while others sounded like they were recorded with a fork. But I am not a casual lakorn-watcher and I have been informed that for a production of this size and budget, this is quite normal so this is probably just something you have to get used to and I am willing to let this one go.
I want to address the plot but it’s difficult to critique something there is so little of. Which is fine, intricacy is not what anyone watched this for. I guess the story is best described by things happening. One thing happens and then another one. Are those events correlated? Who is to say. But things certainly kept happening, that’s for sure.

So, is GAP an amazing show? God no. Is it an okay show? Also no. Should you watch this? I don’t know, I honestly don’t. I don’t know if I am capable of celebrating something solely for what it might represent. And I can’t recommend this show no matter which framework I use to analyze it. But yet I find myself wanting to. I once wrote that there are two schools of thought when it comes to LGBT+ representation: Either “we want stories that represent our experience, even if painful at times” or “we want access to the same rom-com escapism that heterosexuals get”. And personally, I see value in both. The problem is that I don’t think that GAP managed to deliver either one though I can certainly see attempts in both. There are some hints of social commentary and there definitely is the over-the-top rom-com storyline. But GAP is not good, it simply isn’t.

Is it camp though?

Define “camp”, please. Well, camp describes “art or entertainment that deliberately does not follow traditional ideas about what is considered good in order to produce a humorous effect”. The two types of camp that exist today are purposeful camp and unintended camp. As the name implies, intentional camp refers to the purposeful use of camp in humor. Unintentional camp results from naïveté or poor quality or tastes. It’s “so bad it’s good”, it’s the love of the unnatural, artificiality and exaggeration. This sounds like an insult but truth is that camp and the LGBT+ community have been intertwined from the beginning. Being excluded from mainstream society and mainstream art meant that we had to create our own. And this is where we got our ability to celebrate the ugly and weird. Camp evaluates tasteless kitsch whereas the bourgeois feuilleton high culture scorns it. The camp's level of sensitivity ranges from intense adulation to sardonic, disinterested amusement. Therefore, the definition of kitsch and camp is mostly subjective. And in my subjective perspective, when I look at GAP and see the nonsensical plot, the questionable performances, the Dutch-angles, the fake crying, and the constant yelling, I see camp.
Is this too little of a basis to recommend something? That is up to you but this is the hill I choose to die on.

I understand why so many people needed this to be good. One of my first comments on here reads “If this show turns out to be bad, I will simply gaslight myself into thinking it’s good”. It’s not just the lesbian representation, it’s the longing for a story that is not dependent on men. And now that GAP failed to be even passable, there is the fear, that no one in Thailand’s entertainment industry will ever try again to produce a WLW-story. But truth be told, I think we will be fine. I have never been a BL-watcher but according to all sources, Asia’s first BL was absolute dogshit and yet the genre found its niche. More importantly, however, while successful representation is undeniably incredibly important, social progress comes first. Good LGBT shows, books, and movies have always followed social changes in the real world, not the other way around. As East Asia becomes more progressive, the entertainment they produce will inevitably diversify. But we shouldn’t put our hopes and dreams in these capitalistic constructs. Our liberation should not be dependent on how much money people can make off us. Instead of hoping that rich men in production companies tell our stories we need to get out there and fight for the rights and resources to tell them ourselves.

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Are you looking for a great plot?
Are you looking for a gripping adrenaline fest to watch on the edge of your seat?
Are you looking for a mature story line and brilliant characters?

THEN DON'T WATCH IT !!!!

 Not only that this is a huge snooze fest, The actors and the characters have absolutely spark and the story makes no sense. This was the biggest disappointment of 2017 after last year's uncontrollably fond. Not only they managed to completely destroy a beautiful story but they reached new heights of trying to make a fool out of the viewers. This whole drama was just pretty people declaring themselves as deities and acting like snobby little bastards and squabbling like high school kids. The story was long lost and there was almost no chemistry between the leads.

Genre : rom-com, supernatural, manwha

Story : This drama was inspired from the manwha series Bride of water god by Yoon Mi Kyung and then they went ahead to rip the story into shreds turning it into bullshit. If you're looking for a similar story as the manwha about sacrifice, love and grace and politics, then go watch something else because this has absolutely none of that shit. The so called god of water is a narcissistic asshole who's self-centered to the point you're annoyed. Yoon So Ah is a materialistic bitch who is way too involved in acting like the victim. The story makes no sense till a while and the characters that actually were exciting like the one of Im Joo Hwan and the nurse aren't developed further. At least Goblin developed all the characters well.

Actors : Shin se kyung is a bad actress and i don't think i am going to watch any of her other dramas. Nam Joo hyuk's acting was a wasted opportunity same as In joo Hwans story. There is almost no chemistry between the leads and the other side actors aren't that commendable. The only surprise in the package was Crystal who surprisingly was way better than the drama.

Will i watch it again... Hell No.

Will i recommend it to anyone?... I am doing a public service by advising you to go look for some other drama. Seriously there are tons of better ones out there.

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For being so short, these writers and actors pack a punch. I wouldn't recommend it to just anyone, because it has some emotional and physical domestic abuse (even if some of it is implied). I think it is interesting Le Jun Kai is actually hurting himself as much as he is Ye Zi while he is tormenting her. This was a great melodrama that ended just as I thought it would. I liked the artsy feel to it.

Peter Ho and Janine Chang are very good actors that had great chemistry together. They were intense which was what was needed for their characters.

The music is perfect. I have been trying to find the music on youtube and itunes, but so far no luck. If any of you out there know where I can find it then please let me know. :-)

It was quick to watch the first time, so I can see myself rewatching this in the future.

If you like melodrama, then this is definitely a drama to watch. It only takes about 2 1/2 hours.

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A gripping action-thriller that deserves more recognition!

If you’re one of those people that wants to find logic in every fictional drama or you’re a nitpicker, then I suggest you to skip this. However, if you’re someone who just enjoys the ride, likes to watch gripping and entertaining dramas with an amazing cast and well-written story, without searching for every little flaw in every episode, you should definitely check this one out!

Thankfully I’m in the latter category, that’s probably the reason why I could enjoy it to the fullest and became one of my favourite shows of all time. This drama has everything: action, suspense, crime, investigation, mystery, humour, teamwork, romance and is very informative, you can learn a thing or two. Everything is nicely balanced. What else could a viewer possibly wish for?

Acting:
The acting here is one of the best I’ve seen this year alongside with Reborn Rich. The definition of perfect casting, all characters have great chemistry with each other and everyone embodies their character smoothly, it just feels so natural. But I have to give an extra applause to Kim Rae Won as he plays this crazy mutt detective role so well, making him stand out from the rest of the cast. Not to mention he has this indescribable charm to him.

Story:
The story is fast-paced and intriguing. They’re showcasing different emergency codes with different cases in every episode, while there’s 1 main case slowly unfolding in the background, so the viewer doesn’t even have time to feel bored. Some cases might be very sad, but the comedic elements are present to balance out the mood. I was hooked from the beginning, every episode was an exciting watch and all the cases were interesting and unique. One of the reasons I absolutely adore this show, is the teamwork, how the fire crew and detectives work together to save people and solve cases. The first episode started off strong and remained like that for the rest of the season, the last episode ended with a cliffhanger, but we get a second season and I’m so excited for that!

Relationships:
The relationship between the main leads develop naturally and for the best throughout the series, the different cases and life threatening situations make them form a strong bond by the last episode. There’s also a little love triangle, but I wouldn’t even call it like that, because it is very obvious what’s one-sided and what’s mutual. The romance part isn’t forced, it’s depicted genuinely and developed slowly. No need to worry if you’re not into romance because, although there is a romantic undertone, it doesn’t overshadows the main plot.

The music is catchy and very nice, matching well with the scenes, paints a picture of the drama every time you listen to it, it’s not overused nor placed in scenes where it’s not needed.

Overall, it is an above average, great watch I would recommend to my fellow action-thriller lovers. I do wish to see more bromance moments between Hogae and Dojin after they sort things out, and my ship sailing in the next part.

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