Drama Special Series Season 3: Adolescence Medley
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Before watching I already knew the this would be a sad story but at the same time I am confident that I would not cry, I am kind of immune to that since I've seen a lot of sad movies, and I am right, I didn't cry, but that doesn't mean the story is NOT sad cause it is, but I felt that that they made the ending bitter sweet because based on how people describe the anime it would have been a cry fest.
Now for the thing that I really like, the theme in the movie, I love how the movie conveys their connection thru music, I felt that it is so romantic like it is their love letter for each other, and just like the phrase they say to each other "will it reach you?". With that theme conveyed so well only made their performances so much better, technically they are already brilliant but with so much emotions attached to the performance made that scene EPIC.
Cinematography is beautiful, it is one of those colorful Japanese movies, seems to be the trend nowadays. Music is given to be excellent but what I am surprised is how well they play the instruments, one movie come to mind that could rival this in terms of the skills of playing the instruments in a movie and that is Jay Chou's "Secret". I like the ending song as well, I don't understand japanese but its melody captures the ambiance of the movie.
Great acting from both Kento and Suzu, you can tell that they come a long way especially Suzu but now I can say they are capable of portraying complicated characters. It is reported that they went intense training playing violin and piano for their respective roles and it paid off well as their performance is believable, which is important to be called a good adaptation and they nailed it in this department. Side characters are the issue here like I didn't feel them, probably lack of screen time I guess, such a shame though because I really want to see more of Anna Ishii, I felt that her talent was wasted in her role.
I feel that many guys will love this film like imagine one day you saw a beautiful girl under a cherry tree then from that moment your life change, happens to me (not under the cherry tree though).
Kaori: Did I find a place in your heart?
Arima: You step all over it.
-literally me
Check my Blog for other reviews & other JDramas stuffs. (｡◕‿‿◕｡)
https://thatjapanesedramaguy.blogspot.com/
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From the moment I saw Takahata Mitsuki's transcendent performance as Kahoko, it was love at first sight. From her multitude of expressions to her voice acting to so many intangibles, I have no words. Screen-caps and gifs alone don't do her justice. She made a flawed character like Kahoko feel real and lovable.
I also now have a soft spot for Takeuchi Ryoma, he's such a natural actor, and esp. gifted in comedy. His chemistry and comedic timing with Mitsuki was spot on. Their OTP was too darn adorable. This was such a funny, heart-warming show composed of all these talented actors, who all did such a great job.
Coming of age dramas are usually about school or career, but this is about family, which resonated all the more with me, with life truths that will stay with me long after the show is done. Some may have found Kahoko's childlike innocence and naivety off-putting. But that continuous hunger to persevere, grow and learn, and not lose that endless optimism and positivity for life is the perfect armor in this current world full of troubles. I'll always remember Kahoko fondly for being the beacon of happiness when I needed it the most.
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Not to say that this is a story wholly deprived of cliches. Of course, it does have a love triangle/square and some romantic conflicts between the main leads. Refreshingly, for a change the conflict between the leads comes from within themselves and not any external sources (which I usually hate).
What I liked was that the characters seemed realistic and relatable on a certain level. They are both very, very normal people trying to juggle their love lives and careers- like most of us do. So this drama has its relatable aspects to it like career, life, aging and love. But don't worry. It's not a boring drama and there are enough laughs and light moments to keep one entertained. :D
Anyway, it takes a long time for the characters to fall in love. So if you're like me who prefers a build-up before love, you'll definitely like this drama. It is nice to watch these two people become strangers to friends and then friends to lovers. After all, cohabitation between two people of the opposite gender has to lead somewhere, right? This IS dramaland we are talking about here. :D
The story on the whole seemed to me like a mixture of My Best Friend's Wedding and the Taiwanese drama In Time With You (I read somewhere that both shows have the same producers). At times, this story seemed to me like an alternative universe to In Time With You. There's even a reference to that drama in the first episode!
I have to say that I liked all the subplots in this drama. There are many sub-romances also which were all likable. The friends of Ji An Lei were hilarious (Tiffany!) and supportive. He Wei Ting was also a sweetheart for the majority of the show. I did have problems with the female lead's character at times but she grows later on so she kind of redeems herself. I also had doubts about the main pairing but they managed to have good chemistry throughout the show. Also, there is an age difference between them but it isn't so apparent.
I also liked the ending of the drama. Being a Taiwanese drama, it dragged more than required but it didn't get unbearable. Watch this drama if you're bored with usual cliches and are looking for a good story.
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Rebirth, Romance & a Hint of Existential Crisis
Ok y’all, this one’s… tough to review. Full disclosure: I pressed play purely for Quan Yi Lun, because my man has been stealing scenes (and my heart) ever since Blossom and Moonlight Mystique. The man’s got main lead energy, and I was ready to witness the glow-up era he rightfully deserves.Now, Echoes of the Self is sitting right there in my love/hate zone. You know that feeling when all the ingredients are right but somehow the cake still tastes like “hmm”? Yeah. That’s this drama for me.
🌸 What I liked (aka the reasons I didn’t rage-quit)
- Fresh spin on the rebirth trope — loved the concept of this a lot.
- Visually blessed cast. I mean… Quan Yi Lun. Enough said.
- Leads’ chemistry — starts off awkward like two coworkers forced to slow dance at the office party, but gradually evolves into genuine sparks.
- Crown Prince redemption arc — I live for a “former murderer turned ally” storyline. Therapy works, apparently.
⚠️ What made me yell at the screen (lovingly)
- Performances that lack dimension — the acting isn’t bad, but it often feels like something vital got lost between “action” and “cut.” It’s visually appealing yet emotionally hollow, like a beautifully wrapped gift box filled with air.
- Direction that forgot its own depth — the story wants to be textured and moving, but the execution feels oddly flat. Perhaps a symptom of its short runtime, perhaps a lack of directorial conviction.
- The rebirth logic gone astray — the FL’s “reborn self” spends the entire time trying to change fate yet barely acknowledges her younger self, effectively undoing the emotional purpose of her journey. The ML, meanwhile, seems mildly allergic to the concept of temporal continuity — sir, that is your wife, just… younger. Let’s connect the dots and don't treat her like the plague...
- The villain — underwhelming doesn’t even begin to describe it. That man got more screentime than emotional depth.
🌀 The Ending
Will it annoy people? Probably.
Did it annoy me? Not really — it’s a happy-ish ending, which in C-drama land is already a win.
💭 Final Verdict
8/10 — Cozy, romantic, and conceptually strong, but emotionally… echoing a bit too softly.
If you want something light, watchable, and sprinkled with a few swoon-worthy moments, go for it. Just don’t expect a masterpiece, but that is solely my own take on this and most probably because I had much higher expectations....
And Quan Yi Lun, if you’re reading this (you’re not, but still): you carried. As always. 🫶
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Pleasantly surprised gets 3/5 stars.
After rewatching the series, I decided to come back and edit my review on one of my favorite Taiwanese dramas.~
Story: There's food, there's love and there's a slice of life. I loved that this drama had more than romance. I'm used to dramas focusing on one or the other, so it's nice that we get to see a healthy blend between Kai Qi's career goals and her chance encounter at love with Zi Jie. It's also a bonus that the food was also very well shot, so my recommend is to not watch on an empty stomach!
One thing that I was critical about was the addition of the drama that was unecessary to the plot and only served the purpose of dragging the show further. Towards the end of the drama, the conflict started becoming overboard. Although, I love longer dramas and I love the opportunity to see cute moments in a drama, at some point, a drama needs to come to a appropriate close. I would've preferred the show wrapping up with less episodes than prolonging the show with over-the-top drama.
Acting/Cast: I felt that the main cast did fairly well in playing the roles they were cast with the exception of a few (i.e. ah jie's brother, du kai's mother, hao wei's sister). I love how affectionate the main characters were and how natural they became with each other. While watching this, I got to see maturity with the main couple, they don't pry into each others business and then get mad about it, which typically happens in many dramas. In addition, I love that the characters have the ability to put two and two together, instead of a long wait for the character to discover the truth about something. Lastly, the great thing about this drama is that there aren't really any despicable secondary characters or multiple love lines.
Music: The music was fantastic, it fit perfectly with the mood and it fit perfectly with the scenes. It also gave you clues to what was about to happen which I found a little cheesy but, It was perfectly fine.
Rewatch Value: Yes, I would watch this drama again through clips because of the excessive dragging.
Overall: I think you should give this drama a chance because it is a unique drama and It will make you laugh and put a smile on your face. Although there are moments where you just feel like WTF, but after those WTF moments you actually enjoy it even more to see through to the end.
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Art is beautiful....
China can do bl and do it well enough to capture the important aspects of good story telling. From the beginning it is obvious that it doesn't have the funds to produce it on a grander scale but this is easily overlooked by the quality of acting. Riveted by the story and its pacing, it is a beauty. The interactions of the entire cast flowed so well to make the audience believe in their characters.I was enthralled by the mains acting. The starkness of the environment aided in displaying how important each meeting was to the story. There is an anxious theme that permeates the story, informing the audience to enjoy each second of their love story, for in a moment this bubble could be broken and all will be lost. QL and QX embodied the intensity of their young love. QL's fiery determined confession matches well with QX's humble but intoxicating acceptance. The sacrifices they made for each other's happiness in the end would see them on different paths.
LMY and TY became a savior to each other. Ultimately, protecting and fighting for each other as real couples would. TY's round eyes and dedication to LMY would make him a favorite. Their responses to each other would make their age difference believe. TY's petulance and introspectiveness fought well against LMY's resistance and flawed thinking. Had this not been resolved, I could see TY waiting a lifetime for him.
The support cast did well also. Turtle, an early irritant, added to the spots of humor, making him a joy to watch at the end.
Production could have been better. With limited resources, the scenery and wardrobe became monotonous but overlooked. China's limits on BL physical interaction saw juvenile kisses but again forgiven due to the innocence of their relationships. The sudden appearances of characters and dissappearance added to some choppy scenes. The script in itself was brilliant (XQ's confession) and poor at times. The fillers used to lengthen the series was obvious.
The ending for each couple was beautiful. This is added to my list of series to rewatch as their confessions were charming and the piece that makes this shine.
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I fell for Chap eversince I saw him in Tharn Type2, and although i havent really noticed Green yet, here both are so lovely and if this is how theyre going to be in their proper series, then i cant wait for it.
P.S. Oooops, MDL wants a total of 500 words to post this review, maybe they should reconsider that rule somehow cause this will be longer to read than the series itself!
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The storyline is simple but fresh. The movie was fun, it addressed some serious issues, and it was somewhat lacking in the romance department. Exactly what you'd except from a Japanese movie...and that's not a bad thing. What really made this movie great were the characters, none of them were forgettable! This is mostly thanks to the actors who were just amazing. Both of the leads knew what they were doing, they were both new to me but Suda Masaki has plenty of projects under his belt ( he has like three movies coming up next year! wow ) and Nounen Rena is also quite talented ( Amachan anyone? ).
This is a feel-good movie, funny and light-hearted...and I honestly don't have any complaints about it. I'd definetly recommend this to anyone who wants a break from melodrama, anyone who likes fashion, and anyone looking for a good weekend movie.
PS. The soundtrack was so great!
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Love this series
Blank season 1 have set a new standard for me already but they really do it better in season 2. The acting have improved a lot though they were good already but they did look more comfortable with each other now. I also noticed the cinematic color also improve now look more colorful. The characters’s outfit and everything was just perfect. Story line also seem more interesting this season. I would give rewatching value 11/10 if I could since I never get bored and been rewatching same episode for a few time already. It was just this good.Was this review helpful to you?
Dating: What's It Like To Be In Love?
22 people found this review helpful
All of the actors were great. Anne Higashide was really cute as Yoriko. That duck face was too funny. She is so smart and despite appearance and her practical approach is very caring. When she upsets or hurts some one, it is obvious that she doesn't mean it. I would love to have a friend like Yoriko. At least I wouldn't have to second guess her motivation or friendship. Hiroki Hasegawa is also amazing. That funny strange smile Takumi has like he isn't used to smiling but is trying to express himself is perfect. I loved his character as some one that had a scar and like most of us are want to do we let it change our lives. I'm going to get a little personal here, because his character was most important to me on a personal level. As someone who has experience agoraphobia for months after I had a mental break down over a trauma, I can say that it can become a habit. Mostly because a person can become comfortable not facing a harsh world. I felt like my perspective of reality must be wrong and I was confused for a while between what was real and what wasn't. I thought that every one was lying to me and had other social anxiety issues. I went to counseling once a week for months until I could venture out into the world again. i don't know where I would be if I had not sought help. Maybe I would have been like Takumi. Anyway, I was totally invested in the main characters.
The music was good.
I will probably rewatch this at some point.
I recommend this drama to everyone. It isn't action, thriller, murder, mystery, amnesia, lost family member, etc. type drama. However, the writing, character development, and humor over the question "what is love to me?" is worth the watch.
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The starting song was not my cup of tea and the osts weren't memorable. The cast was pretty great and suitable for their roles. Rewatch value isn't too high because there wasn't a lot of content.
Overall this is a great show to watch if your in need of comedy and funny dramas.
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Watch for the outstanding romance just not between the leads
Before you decide to write off this drama due to the bad reviews, hear me out.This drama suffers from a case of split personalities. It is both very very good and absolutely awful at the same time. But do I regret watching it? Not at all.
The bad:
The drama started off decently with a best friends to lovers trope and it was engaging enough within the first half of the show. In the second half, the chemistry between the leads fizzled out. As a fan of Lee Da Hee, it pains me to say that her character was incredibly frustrating. Also it takes special talent to make someone as gorgeous as her look terrible, but this show managed to do it with the awful fashion choices. As for Choi Si Won, his character was too selfish. In short the leads were very unlikeable and over time I completely lost interest in them.
The good:
While the reality show aspect was fairly engaging, there was an unexpected couple that developed and they really stood out far more than anything else in the drama. Individually, these two characters showed the greatest growth and together their love story was swoon worthy. While they had limited screen time, their presence is what kept me obsessed and coming back for episodes week after week. Maybe the actors aren’t well known but they had great chemistry, engaging character development and an interesting background that could easily be expanded into a full series. I would give anything to have these two get a spin off show . If not that, then at least to see their crackling chemistry again as in Goblin/ Touch Your Heart.
To summarize, this show is mediocre at best if you consider the story of the leads, and most of the supporting characters. They show limited growth, and have few redeemable qualities. While they tried to tackle a lot of concepts, eating disorders, obesity, trauma, etc, I don’t think it was presented very well. Poor writing is ultimately the source of the show’s downfall.
This is also where the concept of split personalities come in. While the main story is so dull and poorly written, the story of the side pairing is so amazing that I would gladly fast forward through the rest just to watch them over and over again. Even if you’re not won over by how adorable they are together, you would still enjoy watching them. The two actors have a great screen presence and their characters evolve throughout the story. The male character ‘s arc in particular deserves special appreciation. To me these were the most interesting and fleshed out characters. It’s a shame the show didn’t give them enough screen time. Had they been the focus, the show could very well have ended up being a 10 for me. The writers have missed out on a brilliant opportunity to show something unique and special.
My parting thought is the following: give the show a chance and make your own opinions about it. There are few dramas where the romance has gotten me this excited in recent years. I really did enjoy the side pairing and will continue to rewatch their scenes whenever I feel the desire to watch some sweet romance. It was an unconventional pairing but absolutely delightful to watch. If you need one reason to watch this show, it is to watch these two characters as they grow and to see how their romance blooms. I promise you won’t regret it.
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The lead characters come from a place of great trauma and carry dark shadows within them, but the feel of the drama is far from gloomy or sad. It is the beauty of the characters that they find happiness and comforts even with a background of pain.
I really liked the character graphs of Chen Ling and Qi Lou. The actors too were perfect for the roles. Every other character in the drama too is well written and real. There are no fluffy or pointless characters.
The drama handles many serious issues in our society and characters with mental instabilities/psychological problems, and it does so with great sensitivity and care.
I liked the music, because I felt it was used appropriately and enhanced the beauty of the scenes. The happy moments had a track that made you feel the happiness, whereas in the more tense scenes, the background score completely stopped, adding to the intensity.
The first half does remind you of Devil Beside You- probably because of the character of the male lead and having been shot in the same campus, but MARS is definitely more intense and on a broader canvas than DBY.
I can't think of any drama that I've as completely appreciated as MARS. It took me in completely, and I will happily re-watch it any number of times.
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