Reviews

There is honestly no way for me to begin this review with any kind of adequate summation of the feelings that I'm Not A Robot put me through.  Somehow, this show made me fall in love with its lead female, cry for its lead male, and lose days of my life lost in mental soup of ennui and daydreams, imagining life as these characters and wanting more than anything to be at their side.  Although this fell just painfully shy of being my highest rated drama ever, I can safely say that no other drama has stayed with me for so long after I turn the television off.  I haven't written a full review of any drama for probably a year, but I'm Not A Robot deserves this effort.

STORY
While I do feel the need to point out that it's this category that keeps this from being a 10/10 (there are a few glaring plot holes), it is also this category that is going to get people into this drama.  Besides the few plot holes, the concept of this show is brilliant: a rich young man with an allergy to humans is interested in investing in a robotics lab that has a working android, thinking that android companionship could be the solution to his isolation.  Too bad the people who run the lab don't know about his allergy.  Their android breaks and they send a lookalike human in its place for him to "test"!  What could possibly go wrong, as these two attractive young people spend all their time together?
While you can tell just from that premise that this will be a show full of cuteness and hilarity (and it is), you will never imagine the emotional heights that this drama is able to achieve just from that simple plot.  I won't even try to describe it here, you just need to see it for yourself.  Kim Min Kyu and Jo Ji Ah are two of the best lead characters I have ever seen in any piece of fiction; a loneliness as deep as the ocean finally meets an incredible selflessness that might be able to fill it.  You will weep with Kim Min Kyu as he rails against his isolation and desperately searches for a glimmer of light in his life.  Your heart will shatter every time Jo Ji Ah denies herself happiness and chokes back her words and tears in order to protect the people that matter to her.  And when the two of them are together, you'll never want to see them apart.

ACTING/CAST
I'm going to actively try to avoid hyperbole here.  Suffice to say, I had real feelings for the characters.  And I don't mean just feelings.  I mean that I really felt like they were real people and I needed to be with them and help them.  That never happens to me.  Ever.  When I say I "fell in love" with Jo Ji Ah, that's honestly not too far from being literal.  Fortunately, I haven't completely gone off the deep end, but the point is that this cast brought these characters to life in the most beautiful and vibrant way.
First, relative newcomer Park Se Wan.  She is the definition of adorable.  Infinitely watchable, she's going on my list of actresses to follow across genres.
My boy, Kang Ki Young!  From his first moments onscreen in High School King of Savvy, I've loved this guy and am so happy to see his career continuing to gain traction.  He's never played a role quite like this one before but seems to have taken to it naturally.  There wasn't quite enough for his character to do, but KKY himself killed it, being able express a broad range in his role here.
Definitely want to mention brand new actress Yoon So Mi in her first ever Drama role as Jo Ji Ah's sister in law.  A lovely woman who comes out as a natural on screen.  Even my wife couldn't resist her charms, remarking multiple times how cute she was.
And of course, a young lady who has been hard at work in some truly excellent dramas in 2017: Lee Han Seo!  Little Han Seo knocks it out of the park here.  She steals every scene she's in and you'll only wish that she had even more lines by the time it's all over.
Now, our male lead, Yoo Seung Ho.  What a gravitational charisma.  He can literally make "annyeong" sound like it's full of meaning and emotion.  I admit he sometimes struggles a bit with some melo scenes, but only because of the impossible tightrope he's having to walk in many of them: balancing true, raw emotion with total awareness of the absurdity of his situation.  Despite this, during the melo climax at the halfway point of the show, expect YSH to completely destroy you.
And finally..... what can I say about Chae Soo Bin?  She has charms that can't quite be put into words.  The same way that a person just has to *see* Lee Min Jung to understand her beauty, and a person has to actually *watch* Jang Na Ra act to understand why she's quite as lovable as she is, Chae Soo Bin has to be experienced for yourself.  I will admit, on a personal note, when she has long straight brown hair and bangs, she may be the most beautiful woman in the world.  That's impactful enough on its own (in fact, distractingly so, since everyone around her should really always be tripping over her beauty, but aren't because it's fiction), but it goes far beyond just her looks.  Her tender depiction of a feisty but pure young woman who never loses her spark in the face of adversity is one of the most touching and impressive performances you're likely to see in this genre.  You owe it to yourself to watch CSB work, and to see her build Jo Ji Ah into a person we would all do well to emulate.

MUSIC
It doesn't disappoint!  While it lacks one huge standout track that acts as a hook, and maybe a theme or two is forgettable, in an OST of about 7 vocal tracks, I came away from it saving 4 of them to my Kdrama Playlist.  I can't say any other drama has hit that kind of success rate.
Additionally, a lot of the incidental and mood music is pretty well composed to; not exactly beautiful, but catchy and evocative, quirky and winsome.  No flies on this drama in the Music category.

REWATCH VALUE
This is the first 10 I've given in this category in any of my reviews.  The mind-bogglingly huge amount of amazing character moments, hearty laughs, and tender romance means that I'm Not A Robot can be watched, watched, and rewatched many times over and never get old.  Heck, if you're trying to convert anyone to kdrama, add this to the list of potential shows that can suck in someone who's never seen a kdrama in his or her life.  It's that good.  It really is that good.  It's never too melo, so no FFing needed there.  The villains are never too annoying, nor are there stupid love triangles to skip through.  There's no filler at all and never any wasted scenes. In fact, if anything, this show needed more episodes, because there were definitely parts of the story that got cut in order to keep up with the blistering pace, to its detriment.   There's literally not one minute of these 16 hours that anyone should ever need to FF through.  Not only WILL I watch this one again someday, I am EAGER to do so.

FINAL SCORE - 9.5/10
While a few unforgivable plot holes, a too-quick resolution, and not enough falling action (along with some rather lazy production work in the penultimate episode, randomly) prevent this from being a perfect 10, please please please do not sleep on I'm Not A Robot.  Easily a Top 5 All Time Drama, in my book, and perhaps my sentimental second-favorite, this will be 16 hours WELL spent for any drama lover.  Just sit back and let it shatter you, because when it pieces you all back together, you'll feel like you're better off for the experience.

Read More

I can't believe this drama only has 1 review. I have been a big fan of thai dramas and when i found out that Sunny, Davikah, Sky and Thanaerng were in it, i just had to watch it! I did enjoy the drama and binge-watched it all in 2 days. It made me laugh and cry along with the characters. The OST was on point and I do like the core of the plot, which is even with magic, a relationship requires both parties to work hard on it in order to keep it going.

**Spoilers ahead**

Cast - The cast was visually pleasing and I was in constant awe of Davikah's beauty. As for acting, Sunny and Davikah were on point. The scene where Peng had a complete meltdown in the ambulance, begging for his power to return just so he can save Thantawan. My gosh, that really broke me. Bank was an interesting choice for a villain. I'll admit I could not get over his baby face but he did do a fantastic job. Sky on the other hand, though I loved him in Hormones, he needed to brush up with his acting skills. I know he is stiff and it kind of worked for Chalan, but at times when he really needed to deliver, he just fell flat.

Characters - I loved that all the characters had their share of flaws. It made them more relatable. Peng was always putting work first and came across as cold to the person he loves, Chalan being very naive but also very positive about things, and Bamee being very fiesty and hot tempered but extremely straightforward. I do however wish Tantawan had more of a personal growth. Her life , for me, was kind of sad, as it was always centred around the person she loves.

OST - Pretty good tbh. Found myself feeling most of the songs, especially "you are my everything".

Ending - I'm teamPENG so the ending was a disappointment. I do get why she picked Chalan though. He was attentive towards her and she could truly be herself around him. She could cry and share her emotions with him. Peng on the other hand, was cold towards her and kept taking her for granted. Despite her voicing her unhappiness, he often brushed it aside. Come on, the things that he said to her whenever she cried was just downright hurtful. It was only when he found out her feelings were starting to fade, that was when he started working on it. By then, it was too late. All it took was a small interaction between Chalan and Tantawan to change everything.

I do like how Tantawan recapped her feeling for Peng at the end. I know some found it confusing and that they did not like it. But i do get it. Tantawan will always love Peng . But she knew that with him, 1 of them had to morph into someone else for the other to be happy. She didn't want to do that to him as she knew first-hand what it was like when she had to do so in their 15 year relationship. To compromise is one thing, to completely change oneself is another. With Peng, their connection will always be there regardless, hence he will always be "her ambulance".

Overall, i am very very happy with this drama and will gladly rewatch it again.

Read More

Surreal Food For Thought, Though Some Storylines Were More Striking Than Others...

Netflix’s Persona is a collection of four South Korean short films, all starring Lee Ji-Eun ( IU). Directed by acclaimed Korean filmmakers Lee Kyoung Mi, Yim Pil Sung, Jeon Go Woon and Kim Jong Kwan and partially produced by record- producer Yoon Jong Shin, each episode was inspired from elements of IU’s own personal life and career.

Although there is the initial thought of a vanity project for IU being the main star in each episode, there’s no denying that IU is a talented and versatile actress. Even in storylines which may deliver impactful plot revelations for viewers, IU seemed to add a necessary fair and uniqueness to stepping into the roles of her varied and different ‘’personas’’ in each storyline. Yet due to each episode being vividly different with a new director, story and theme, it is probably easier to assess each episode as a standalone piece before moving on to the overall interpretations of the ensemble.

‘’ Love Set”- Starting off the collection begins with director Lee Kyoung Mi’s strange and surreal storyline on a tennis court. In this fictionalised world, actress Bae Doona is ready to marry IU’s father. Naturally, IU is contemptuous about the matrimony and decides to issue a tennis battle with Bae Doona on the tennis court.
Using minimal dialogue, filmmaker Lee Kyoung Mi turns 19 minutes, into an eccentric , humorous and over-the-top battle of grunts and tennis balls being smacked back and forth in an odd competition of love, rivalry and hormones with a strangely sexual undertone . It is one of the most peculiar shorts in the series with an oddly anticlimactic and abrupt ending. Rather than viewers understanding the reason behind IU’s disagreement, passion and drive to stopping this rivalry, the undeniable relief of not having watch IU’s and Bae Doona’s unexplained and peculiar tennis match instead overcomes the watcher’s mind with just one thought. “ That was weird.”

“ Collector” - Yim Pil Sung‘s film and the second piece of the “ Persona” collection transitions into notably darker territory, with its focus upon an older man named Baek Jeong-u on a date with a notably younger woman, played by IU. As the date goes on, Baek becomes increasingly irked as the younger woman teases him and appears disconnected from their conversion. Pil Sung’s scenes then present the evident discomfort of Baek in a lonely, empty room as he attempts to prepare himself either to relax or to literally be killed by a woman’s subtle emotional jabs. Notably having a more prominent overarching storyline than “ Love Set”, “ Collector” initialises the reminiscent traits of the promiscuous Kumiho ( a nine- tailed fox in Korean mythology) as well as an intriguing critique upon stereotypes of women in South-Korean society. ( Which naturally IU herself has also been subject to in the wider media.) IU’s character is undeniably playful and manipulative with Baek, however, she never goes out of her way to seduce him as Baek practically throws himself at her feet. This subversion reversal of gender dynamics offered both the literal and metaphorical stereotype of the coquette’s ways of playing with a man’s heart. Still oddly surreal and taking time to interpret , the storyline was certainly subversive in this short piece .

“ Kiss Burn”-A clear critique to the oppressive natural of youths in rural Korea, the third entry of “ Persona” brings Jeon Go Woon’s focus on arguably the most ‘’lighthearted’’ short of the ensemble. IU plays a conniving schoolgirl named Han-na, who visits the rural house of her friend Hye-bok. Hye-bok’s father, a forest fire lookout, is strict with Hye-bok and greatly dislikes Han-na under the impression she’s a bad influence. Out of anger and revenge, Han-na helps Hye-bok pull various pranks, but naively ignites other unintended consequences. Go Woon’s filming- style is notably the most basic and simplistic out of his counterpart directors, yet the usage of screenwriting through approachable storytelling, pacing and jokes makes the story easier to follow than the last two predecessors of the collection. The one flaw of this piece is that whilst the storyline was easier to follow behind the reasoning of Ha-na and Hye-Bok’s vengeance, it is harder to truly define what made their characters original or intriguing.

“ Walking at Night”- Persona concludes with Kim Jong Kwan’s monochrome-filmed short tackling the most poignant segment of the entire ensemble. IU plays a deceased woman who appears in her former boyfriend’s dream. In that dream, the couple takes a walk at night, reminiscing about bygones and musing about the nature of love, life, and death.The scenery is kept simplistic with a simple interaction of walking and a succinct soundtrack . The only true uncertainty which may strike viewers as harrowing can be seen through the mysterious figure as the two characters walk into the night- something symbolising the unknown just behind them. Out of all the shorts, this final piece tackle arguably the most heartfelt and profound themes of the series with focuses upon existentialism as well as the social issue of suicide in South-Korean society, giving the piece a sense of deeper meaning and reflection for viewers.

Ultimately, IU is the main star of each storyline and plays each one of her roles with diverse brilliance and talent. Whilst each episode has its own flair, there’s no doubt that some shorts were a lot better than others. “Walking At Night” offered arguably the most touching, harrowing and profound themes of the shorts in literal black and white , closely followed by the surreal, yet social critique of women’s roles in ‘ Collector’. ‘ Kiss Burn’ pointed out an undeniably ironic and twisted ending, but lacked intrinsic character depth, whilst arguably the weakest of the series was ‘ Love Set’. Attempting to weave in too many sociocultural metaphors and messages into one short, the storyline was weakened by its lacking sense of purpose, context and ending.

Overall, the ‘ Persona’ collection was fairly entertaining- IU is a talented actress and the artistic licensing by different directors gave us a fresh feel to each episode. On the other hand, as a collection, the weaker storylines of the piece ultimately complicated episodes and character depth - ultimately not a bad show to binge watch out of boredom, but probably not worth committing time towards if you’re expecting to watch an ensemble of well-written and profound collection of shorts.

Read More

The inconsistencies & lack of continuity was intolerable for me

Review @ ep1-14
I actually do like this drama but I so wanted to love it for the sake of Zhou Ye, became a fan of hers after watching her in Word of Honor (I can’t rave enough about that series, special shoutout to the one and only Chief of the Ghost Valley, the philanthropist Wen Kexing) but I don’t love it so far. There are so many continuity fails but I will highlight two.
1). He had huge scars from Su Ying stabbing him in ep1 but all of a sudden the scars disappeared few episodes later
2). When he went to retrieve his sword the first time, the journey was so hard / tumultuous that’s why Yan Hui couldn’t go with him but when they went the second time, they just basically strolled into the place.
She keeps losing things just for the sake of furthering the plot which is out of character for someone who cherishes everything she has.
Also once again we have a female character Su Ying who is so obsessed with a man (the only difference this time is her obsession isn’t with the ML) she is extremely vile and vicious and willing to go to any and all length for him. This perpetual CDrama plot is getting so damn old. Especially the level at which they make this female characters reach. It’s beyond ridiculous and unrealistic. I personally don’t know any woman in my real life who behaves in those extreme ways.

Update @ep21
I am struggling so hard to continue this drama. It’s not terribly bad but it’s not great either. The acting from the ML is actually so bad. He’s had exactly one expression so far. He’s acting range is very limited IMO but he’s handsome so I guess that covers up for lack of acting abilities to some people. Whatever floats anyone’s boat….
The comedic parts of this drama just feels out of place for me.
One more thing I don’t care how handsome or beautiful someone is, or whatever reason they had to stab and almost kill me, nobody is falling in love with someone who literally stabbed them and left them for dead. The lovers of this series can try to justify it any which ways they like, “he has to save the kids” “he was going to return the protective heart thingy to her so he knew she won’t die” etc but to look someone you claim to love in the eyes and stab them for the 3rd time I might add is just beyond unacceptable. He could have asked for it but nah, let’s stab her and then she literally fell so badly, he didn’t even try to break her fall, he just left her there, but wait, he’s really so sorry and because he’s so sorry she has to understand and not only forgive him but let it go and continue the relationship after he couldn’t take 2mins to ask for it and just had to take it in the most cruel way possible. I am sure eventually she’s going to forgive him and they will live happily ever after but that’s a relationship I can never get behind so that arc of the drama has already left a bitter taste in my mouth.

Update @completion.
The production team for this drama really dropped the ball big time especially the editing department and script writers. So many inconsistencies and lack of continuity. The errors in the details was just way too much for me to ignore and tolerate. Marks appear and disappear in the same scene. The characters powers and strengths (with the exception of the dark lord aura guy) where so inconsistent and felt like it was based on what each scene needed. I can go on and on but I have already spent days watching this drama and that is enough time I’m willing to give this drama.
The only thing that was good for me in this drama was the costumes., they looked beautiful and rich.
I am obviously never going to rewatch this drama.
Rewatch value 1/10
Overall value 6/10 (i am being super generous with this rating)
I highly do not recommend but that’s my opinion, you are free to make yours.

Read More

I didn't give a full 10 cuz I found that the two main characters' scenes were limited. Though I find the other cast enjoyable, too much time was spent there. I know I didn't watch this for Min&Wan's story or for Pan&Fah, which I found even less interesting. These couples' time on screen could have been edited out shorter. I found that damn girl coach segment especially annoying too. If it's a BL, then make it a BL rather lump every other couples' problem as if it were the main story (ah but I'm reminded its GMM, and they tend to bait people). If I wanted an Everyone Drama, I'd stick to watching stuff like Hormones. So next time, production team, less dragging around and more focus on the driven source of the drama.

Casting: Earth and New's chemistry was on par. They did really good together. The kiss scene felt natural. A 10 for them and 8 for the rest of the cast.
Music: Love Pete Pol. A 10 Also.
Rewatch: Only when I'm bored. Even then I'll just watch Waii and Apo.
Overall: Narrative could have been better. A 7 here.

Read More

Spoilers for Ep 16

The way I interpreted what happened in episode 16, is that the ML was not in his right mind to communicate clearly with the FL. Even though so far their communication has been really open so far, it shows that he still had reservations in telling her everything, and this unfortunately created a misunderstanding that was later called out by the FL. I have seen comments lambasting her for the way she treated ML, but considering what he did to her I think it’s natural for her to be afraid of him even though she understands why he did it. Forgiveness took time, which I appreciate and even then she later realized how hurtful her words were. Her responses are flawed, and most importantly human and she acknowledges it eventually and apologises and that’s what really elevates this story for me. Including the ML, even though he is an immortal who has been around for some time when it comes to inter personal relationships he still has a learning curve and will make mistakes. Yes, they have established a relationship where they are open with one another but that does not necessarily mean either one will get it righ all the time, and it was later addressed. So, I do not think it was “out of character” or a plot hole but a demonstration of how flawed they are. However again that is my interpretation of it, but I think for anyone considering on dropping it because of that just know it does get addressed later on and is not a moment that happens and is forgotten about

Read More

I wish it is more culturally realistic, more mind-provoking, and more dramatic.

There is no doubt that this drama has excellent production quality. The settings, costumes, music, and characters are fitting and captivating. The main and supporting characters have distinctive personalities and are very entertaining. I love to see every interaction between them. I view this drama as successful at combining mystery, romance. and light comedy. However, even after finishing all episodes, there is still a big hole in my heart.

First, I'm not sure which aspects of this drama are real or fictional, especially when it comes to case-solving. This drama is excellent at incorporating elements of law and traditional medicine. It has the potential to be more intellectually engaging, but it is wasted. Repeatedly, during each case investigation and resolution, I compare the plots and storytelling to the legendary Jewel in the Palace (2003), from which I learned so much about Korean culture—its cuisine, medicine, traditional clothes, monarchy, and society. These cultural aspects are so believable, causing me to dig deeper into everything about Korea and the Koreans, and to watch more historical K-dramas.

This issue leads me to conclude that China is still far from creating a Hallyu-like wave despite its historical and cultural richness. I wonder if it is really that difficult for Chinese drama producers to incorporate authentic cultural elements into their works and help audiences become more knowledgeable and appreciative? Are the use of herbs, poison, and legal codes depicted in the drama grounded in reality, or are they merely fabricated to serve the plot? I mean, this drama is not a wuxia or xianxia where people can fly, and I know people cannot fly, so I shut by brain to enjoy it. This drama is somewhat "scientific" to serve the case investigation's believability. But things seem imaginary and heavily fictional.

Second, the cases are mostly felt rather strange to me. It is not about the incidents but how they are resolved. It is good to see how a coroner did forensic work to do an autopsy and collect evidence, and the empire's justice system works pretty well, too. They have a legal book as a reference, sufficient officers, and an investigation and testimony collection procedure. All of them should serve like pieces of a puzzle waiting for arrangement. However, the resolution often stems from mere deduction based on an insignificant, later-found hint or coincidence, throwing the previously collected pieces of information out of the window. After following one or two cases, I found that this show has the habit of spoiling the viewer by revealing the culprit through certain gestures and camera work. It makes the cases highly predictable and not enjoyable.

Third, this drama lacks emotional moments. Everything flows too smoothly, and the main characters are portrayed as perfectly capable, smart, and invincible. They never make a single mistake or show any meaningful weakness or vulnerability—traits that would make them feel more human. There are no moments of setbacks, deadlocks, or desperation, as well as moments of learning and reflecting on things beyond their control. No pivotal moments deserve rewatch. Nothing to worry about, and they bounce back far too easily. Even though people die horribly, they are safe and "protected". It is very atypical considering the world they live in. I mean, there should be a moment where efforts failed, the strong ones are injured, or get sick, and their lives are at stake. The cooperation between the main characters thus feels lacking something profound.

Fourth, the villains in this drama are disappointingly weak, lacking both intelligence and strategic cunning. The princes (Che and Qi) come across as foolish and impulsive, respectively. As antagonists, they feel too much like shallow tropes rather than compelling, formidable threats. The evil empress and consort are also the same; they are practically doing nothing throughout the episodes. There are no moments of good decision-making, considering pros and cons together, and implementing the plan into action. All of them are bad in character and thus, doomed to fail from the beginning.

This makes me compare them to antagonists in "Princess Gambit" (2025). There, we got antagonists who possess at least one admirable trait, and this makes us "love" them to be on screen. In Coroner's Diary, the problem-solving strategy of the antagonists is just killing, killing, and killing people, and leaving traces to be tracked by our leads. Had they used more political maneuvering by moving factions in court to help them, our main characters (the male lead is a military man and the female lead is a doctor) would be devastated. But it would result in a better challenge that pushes our leads to grow beyond their comfort zone of competence.

Despite its flaws, this drama is still enjoyable. However, I don’t think people would rewatch it often, as it cannot even hold a candle to the expectations of its own genre, “mystery.”

Read More

The Soap Opera Game

It wasn't cute when Jack and Rose did it in the Titanic, and it sure as hell wasn't cute when they did it here. First off, yes, there was plenty of room on that damn door, and here, I spent the whole finale going, 'there wasn't room in that car for him to get inside too?' Cuz, why the eff did Pheem stay behind? And no, no explanation would justify that nonsense. The Wicked Game took itself way too serious, and ended up falling into the predicable hole.

Listen, that brother Chet. What the hell was his problem? I felt like he personally hated me, cuz Mfker spent the entire series overreacting and throwing childish tantrums, instead of giving me what I wanted. The whole time, every time he was on screen saying whatever, and doing whatever the hell he was doing, I was busy staring from him to his bodyguard, you know that one dude who looked like the best regret. Like, whenever Chet opened his mouth, I kept going, 'Yeah, yeah, good for you, now kiss' Only for the mfker to up and die, and saying nonsense like, 'live your life and be happy, bodyguard.' Eff that happiness, what about me ,huh? Sure, bodyguard crooked two seconds later, still... they spent 10 episodes wasting all of that chemistry, and for what? This felt like a personal attack. Boooo!

Pheem and Than.
The drama wasn't called 'The Nice Game', so imma need all the people who keep being on Pheem's case to sit back down. Personally, I get him, he needed to be wicked to heal that child in him who was totally destroyed from how cruel the world treated him. Was he right in what he did to Than, hell no, but that ex-police officer knew Pheem was there for revenge and he still went all in with both eyes closed and heart wide open...only to immediately got shot, twice. LMAO, the eff he thought was gonna happening falling in love with a guy who hit him with a car on their first meeting?

Than is such a nice person it made him dumb. Like, come on officer, wake up a little. Dude got shot twice and spent 5mins looking real sad at the camera, and immediately went back and married the guy who literally dug a grave and shoved him in. Ain't no one that in love. May this level of in loveness-ness never locate me. Sure everyone think he's a dirty cop, but at least he got super rich, and has a not so dead husband, who loves running away, so, yaaay him.

Plot
The cartoonish shooting scenes. Literally, did they all aim at the air beside their targets or what? In the finale, I kept shaking my head, cuz what even are we doing at this point? Like all that shots and mfkers kept running around for like 10 more minutes, only for one to end up dead in a flashback... meh. The plot was also very predictable, cuz who among us believed for a second Than was dead, or that Pheem died? Both times I was like, stop wasting screen time and just show him already, I know his arse still alive, y'all won't even dare.

Characters.
The plot was okay, over the top in how it was directed and acted by some, but it did entertained me. Offroad's character was very interesting, and I liked him. I was actually rooting for Risa cuz the men were annoying. Please, I won't even start on the father, cuz that mfker doesn't even deserves me to waste pixels talking about his arsholeness-ness. I did like DaouOffroad, I always enjoy their work, so although this one wasn't the best they've done, I still enjoyed myself.

All-in-all, a watchable show, very soap opera-rly, so expect nonsense, over the top crap, cartoonish scenes. Apart from that, very decent, and I'll recommend it, especially for DaouOffroad fans. I look forward to their next work.

Read More

Interesting blend of thriller/mystery with fantasy plus romance

Disclaimer: I started to watch this drama because of the catchy title and the female lead being Park Shin Hye (whom have a lot popular works previously).

Story: was certainly an interesting blend of crime solving with fantasy elements. Each mini arcs were interesting, the criminals depicted in the drama were certainly rotten to the core (in my opinion) so it was super refreshing (for me) to see how the female lead take matters in her own hands to ensure the criminals gets what they deserved. I also thought the drama was quite nicely written to piece all the mini arcs into a bigger puzzle that focus on the female and male leads' choice and how their choices affect their lives. It was also great to see that this drama had some romance element as well, which makes the drama slightly more light-hearted to watch.

Cast: As always, Park Shin Hye delivers her character perfectly, and this time it was a demon (Kang Bit Na / Justitia). Her acting was amazing, whether it was action scenes or emotional scenes. I didn't expect she will not be able to deliver her character perfectly. It's my first time watching a drama from the male lead (Kim Jae Young) and I was quite impressed with his acting. I also thought the chemistry between Shin Hye and Jae Young was quite good. The acting of the supporting casts were good as well. In fact, their casting was really good (whether its the supporting casts or the guest roles)... In fact, I wasn't expecting Shin Sung Rok to take a guest role in this drama.

OST: I personally liked the most from Sunmi - Crossroad. I always felt a little emotional when the song appears during the drama (especially when its the emotional scenes between the male and female lead).

Read More

A softp0rn sold as BL...

I would have been happier if they did a real p0rn instead of that... It seems like they did it for real, they even blurred some things, they didn't want to show an erection. The story is as dumb as in p0rn. First, who let himself be taken into a stranger appartment and does not react when his pants with the underpants gets pulled down and that stranger is starting to give a blowie.

So, there is no story, there is bad acting from country boy, but at least two nice bodies. Production quality is quite ok. GagaOOLala is famous to take up any series, even the crappy ones and so they took this one too. If you enjoy softp0rn watch it, otherwise don't bother with it.

Read More

just confusing and terrible

I absolutely adore Becky and her previous works, i have no complaints about her acting as Nanno, but it just didn't hit the same as before. The acting was great from everyone but the story just wasn't it.

Each episode left me confused and bored. Half of the times i couldn't even understand why the characters deserved Nanno's punishment. For example the last episode.. The guy didn't even do anything wrong before Nanno came into the picture.

As for Sky, i really liked his character, but I feel like they could have done so much more with him. Really disappointed that they killed him off.

Overall this drama left me very confused and disappointed. I expected a lot more from it.

Read More

Great plot and the actors delivered comedy and hot scenes!

Two assassins in town are suspects of killing other criminals around, and also a young car-thief guy is looking for the police pardon to continue on his life. What about messing a infiltrator inside the assassins organization. Well, it started all well, with action and tense moments, but it went going more predictable and just fan service towards the ends of the show.

The series do is recommended, has good plot and it delivers comedy, action and cute love BL scenes. The last episodes are missing "something", but they got to deliver the lovely happy ending for the couples. Also, something very interesting, it's that the main couple should feel like the little brother and the police infiltrate, but the second main couple deliver triple more chemistry and more spicy moments on screen, so they make the series worth watching more about Joong Archen and Dunk Natachai.

In the last episode, they said "no more killing" but there was quite lot killing about other criminal guards. And also one couple gets to own a restaurant and a car retailer shop, and the other one just a international trip, seems so unfair and dispair after so many years.

A good series to watch one time, to understand all the spicy BL references inside, and all the marketing it got, but maybe just worth watching once.

Read More

Interesting Premise but the need for a sequel lets it down.

Where do I begin?
I started this show due to a reel. Admittedly I was also curious because I have watched different dramas of the Female Leads.
It started off well enough, had a cheating subplot that added some character struggle and ethical dilemma(more on this, the show had another brilliant dilemma that they washed under the rug).
But as another viewer pointed out, the "girl boss" drama was only girl boss for 33% of the time. The first two and the last two episodes. The middle? Had the Female leads run around in circles only saved by the Cop husband, the hacker guy, or the antihero fiancé. I was quite disappointed with it honestly. But minor issue I thought at the time.
Up until the major ethical dilemma arises, around episode 10, the story was great. It had issues, emotional struggle, the whole shebang associated with lawyer dramas. Episode 11 and 12 was when the story went for a toss. Maybe they wanted to resolve the ethical dilemma; maybe they wanted another season; maybe they realised that the drama was centred around women actually coming out on top. Whatever be the case, the ending was rushed. The minor ethical dilemma glossed over. Characters killed offscreen. Episode 12 made me skip several times because of how I disliked how it handled complex issues.
The actors were great, the visuals really nice, and pacing was decent too.
Honestly, there's several stuff in the drama that begs further questioning. Quite a bit of issues that we as a society need to think off. Regardless this drama is a one time watch. Hopefully any further seasons fixes how the first one ended.

Read More

every beginning, has an end

Wednesday 20:00, GMT +8, 20.11.2024

I just finished watching the last episode and the special/extra episodes (today's the last episode released without the VIP package on iQIYI).
 
Personally, it's quite understandable ending, even though it's not a clear HE). What matters more is that it's Zhao Yuanzhou’s choice, as he wishes to protect the mortal realm and the Wilderness. 
 
ZYZ has shouldered the guilt for so long that he doesn't wish to stay alive anymore. somehow, his meeting with his love and friends during the journey is actually a good memorable adventure for him. 

I bawled my eyes out the moment ZYZ exhaled his last breath. WX continues as the Baize Goddess, protecting the mortal realm and the Wilderness. She left her agreement with ZYZ that was stamped with ZYZ’s blood (his, isn't it? I vividly remember. I remember the ink used is another demon's blood). ZYC’s cloud light sword recognises the agreement letter, which signifies it's the last shred of ZYZ’s soul.

It's actually a good ending that ZYZ’s soul is found; this means ZYZ could be reborn (or he has to cultivate resurrect).

It's a good ending, but for me, I like it better if everyone stays alive (yes, I'm greedy).

“Every soul will taste death.”

Read More