Reviews

This show is a masterpiece!

Okay, so this show is not for everyone, but please - if it's not your thing, don'y bash it. just step away kindly and let the unhinged ones enjoy their crazy. ty!

This show leans heavily into the absurd and if this is your thing, then I cannot recommend it enough.

The acting is excellent, the story is so much fun, and EVERY THING you see on screen is 100% planned and thought out. non of it is unintentional. The only issue I have is that not all the random mumbling is translated, so I hope it gets fixed because it is funny as hell (also quite easy to understand if you get basic Thai).

To sum up, this is not a 5.7 show.

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Simple. loses it way in the middle but finds it's way in the end.

Typical BL yes. Mediocre? probably especially when the writing was stale in the middle(eps 5-7) with all the miscommuication & misunderstandings but still pretty enjoyable imo. Honestly? I've seen way worse ones recently: Enchante, Rainbow Prince and Cutie Pie were horrible imo. Is this one of the best? No. But I still enjoyed it more than those 3. At least Star in My Mind had likable characters. And one thing I felt charming about this series is that it starts out fresh even if we've seen this story billions of times before it felt like something new. Both Dao and Kluen start this series with a lot of charm even if they are cookie cutters of other characters seen before. I was instantly drawn to them.

Dunk is a newbie but for the most part he pulls off what is needed of him. Yes there's still room for improvement but I see lots of potential especially since I felt he did good for his first majjor role. He could emote which is always a plus in my book. Joong hmm he wasn't horrible or anything and I do feel like he can act it's just that in some scenes he was wooden and that didn't do his character, Kluen, much favors when it should have. But for the most part he held his own and had great chemistry with Dunk. And the chemistry is what guided the series sometimes.

As for the story it could be considered mediocre in the middle but I thought that the beginning and end were pretty good. I especially liked how once the misunderstandings and miscommunication between Dao and Kluen was handled there was no more unnecessary drama thrown at them. They were allowed to be happy and cute the last two episodes which is way more than some BL couples get.

All in all I give this a 9.0 overall despite all it's flaws it's one of my favorites this year. Sky in Your Heart is next hopefully that one doesn't have the mistakes it's predecessor did.

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Love explicit scenes! i dislike when people bash these type of films for having Intense scenes assuming its gonna be porn of course bl films will try any chance to see if they can add a love scene this is there moment after all but they as well have a story to tell like i said its a moment to shine and enlighten what happens behind hidden glances and actions. now if a minor is watching this and the rating is not for minors thats on the minor. but that having said its a well put film like this because after all your watching a film of two males that are in love . They are showing there love the only way they believe it can be felt fully.

This film was good.
It was nicely done and i loved the story behind it .Very beautiful, the play in lighting, once again in bl films is striking. How love blossom even in the darkest of places and i love how the story changes from dark to light to dark and light once again. Showing the struggles of his love on both sides.The guys were hot so its a plus. it was a nice watch. had alot of symbolism at play, especially towards the end where im sure alot of people will start to get lost especially first time watchers i believe, since it starts becoming darker and brutal in terms of emotion and displaying that emotion.

The scene towards the end had alot of depth into it. how one can become blinded by love and the other still not able to express it correctly. and how the Title of this Film literally Takes a role in this movie. the ending scene although it was slightly over the top it showed that revenge is never the answer so much struggles were captured in this move, from love,social acceptance,revenge,hope, change. personally i liked this film i have seen far greater films but these types of films although underrated are probably the most beautiful because not everything is able to mesh but u see what is going on and again reminds me of society how we assume it should go well but sadily it doesnt not everything is as u believe it should be. would recommend if u are into capturing the depth of movies or if u have free time to kill.

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Brilliant acting, but goes around in circles

I started watching this series due to all the hype and awards. It's a psychological thriller (not a mystery) so you do need patience and the willingness to understand the motives, behaviour patterns and relationship connections for all the characters. It's a very intricately woven story, with a lot of nuance and some phenomenal acting from all the cast members.

However, I found the pace inconsitent from episode to episode, and it was annoying to have a lot of the story told with flashbacks ranging from months to years to days to hours! It also had a gimmicky approach towards some of the characters, making you suspect this character and the other character quite randomly, and then the story heading in a completely different direction. They could have done without these gimmicks.

Overall, it's a good, though slow, watch and worth it purely for the performances of all the cast members.

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Enemies to lovers finally done right

Rarely comment on dramas but after some serious ongoing withdrawal symptoms, I had to express how much I enjoyed this drama.

Definitely not a 'light rom com watch'. This was an intense, emotional roller-coaster with enemies to lovers done right. The political intrigue fits well into the plot without being overdone and needing to be fast forwarded (like most cdramas). The chemistry and the intensity between the leads and the fun banter between the second leads stole the show. The side characters all had some roles to play with their own quirks and personalities.

I am a sucker for happy endings so for the ML to gradually fall in love with the FL was a delight to watch. He has been through horrible trauma and lost loved ones due to broken promises by the FL's clan.

However, after they are married, he never mistreats her due to her family. He's closed off, cold and very suspicious of the FL which is of course, natural but he also appreciates and admires her (secretly and then openly later).

The FL is also no pushover, she fights and stands up for herself diplomatically. Her strength is in the steadfastness of her character, akin to flowing water eroding rocks over time. She has trust issues in the beginning too and tries to protect her clan from a waging war by the ML. This is a very reasonable reaction given how the ML first treated her and makes a promise to destroy her people. She later regrets her decision and reforms her thinking but I think this just humanises her character.

What made this drama different from other enemies to lovers is that you see the trauma, the hatred, the vengeance for revenge and gradually breaking down of walls, trust developing, the endless yearning for something forbidden and the care and attention they both show to each other in little gestures that they do later transforming to love. Drama aside, you want a partner in life, who just gets you without you having to spell everything out. You can share your deepest and darkest past and trauma and they will listen and never use that against you (confidant for life). They will help you heal and move past it. In the end, this is what happened to the ML. He was so helpless in front of the FL's care and love for everyone including him that he had no space for hatred and revenge in his heart. This doesn't mean he easily accepts her and let's her in, but rather he is too helpless to resist her. I loved, in particular, that despite what her grandfather did, he also accepted her family, visited her clan and people and wanted to understand why she was the way she was. To me, that was true selfless love.

If you've read this far, kudos to you. I just needed to get this off my chest so I can move past this drama without comparing all other dramas to this (as that would be unfair). This drama will take some time to leave my system and I can't say I hate that.

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Junior's Queen Energy Made the Show

What I loved most about this drama was how Sun, a carnivore, was constantly taming his instincts so he doesn't literally EAT Junior for lunch, but Junior tried whatever he could to tempt him. He even used catnip on the panther. Literally, that shameless penguin was born with no fear, cuz he was courting dead the whole series.

Listen, Caged Again was nothing to write home about. The premise of the show was quite unique, interesting and different from the same school based bls we always got. So although I was sceptical, I still tuned in for it. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectation, the execution and the plot was all over the place, and everything was frankly a mess. Some of the characters were dumb as rock, nonsense misunderstandings that could be resolved if they just spoke dragged the pace, how that whole kidnap thing ended was so stupid, I'm still asking myself 'who dafug wrote this?' and I have like a billion questions as to how the penguin and the panther integrated into society with no legal papers. That last villain vs heroes stand-off had me shaking my head in judgement, literally the eff was that?

Yes, so many things made no effing sense and was flat-out ridiculous, but I'll give them this, the two leads, although new, did well with their acting. Junior stole the show for me, that penguin was such a drama queen and I loved every time he was on screen. Not gonna lie, with how the whole plot was all over the place, I thought I'd end up disliking the series, but, I liked this show more than I thought I would. I had some good laughs. Sun and Junior had good chemistry and entertained me with their antics. Their two friends were an okay addition as well, although not really sure what was up with them, and I liked how meta the Goddess was too.

Scenes that made me went hihi:
- In the beginning when Sun saw Junior as food in all those fantasy tripping sequence. Lol, like damn, don't eat your classmate.
- Junior turning his ruined gym uniform into a tank top, and doing a runaway show in the school's hallway. Slay!
- When Junior tried to seduce Sun by wearing that penguin suit. And I can't believe it worked, cuz all he did was lift Sun's arm and put it back down. Sun, honey...stand up!
- That whole catnip scene had me going... boy, do you have no regards for your safety? That penguin was shameless.
- Sun wanting their baby to have the face of a penguin and the body of a panther. Like??? then he got disappointed they couldn't have any. I'm glad they got a fish, hopefully they take it to the zoo and it becomes a person too.
- Junior waiting a few months, then started planning his life of moving to Bangkok and marrying someone else. LMAO, that penguin's sass needs to be studied. Sun lucky he showed up in time, boy was ready to move on.
- How sassy, naive, adorable, innocent, honest and bold Junior was. I loved how he was always true to himself and was unapologetic. He did this whole human thing better than most of us.
- That temple fair date that ended with them in the gambling club, but Junior just went with the flow, putting his dancing and gambling skills to use. Like, children, does this place look like a temple to you?? also how Junior got that piggyback ride... such princess behaviour, I stan!
- Sun's future job where he was an actor/stunt-man. LOL, the part when he fell before they even hit him, then after he was so proud like he did such a good job. Boy???
- That obvious green-screen North Pole :((((
- I also like how deep Sun loved. He found Junior and made him his whole world. Those two truly deserved their happy ending.

All in all a fun show if you go in not expecting anything, matter of fact, don't even question stuff, just go with the flow. You'd like the penguin for sure. So, I'll recommend it if you are looking for something to watch, just to watch something. I look forward to more work from the two leads, Ben and Jay, really liked them here.

Happy New Year.

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Where do we even start?

TW// mentions of sexual harassment/getting outed also use of strong language

Disclaimer: i only heard of the Novel, i've never read it // also this is just me ranting

Well what a shitshow.
What were the producers and directors thinking? This had the potential to be a feel-good drama. They really could've made a drama where the main couple is just learning to love each other without the whole homophobic plotline. They did Tonhon so fucking dirty, made him look like this jerk who hates people that are not like him even tho in the novel - he's just not like that. They could've made Tonhon this man who is just figuring out his sexuality with and Chonlatee just being there by his side and be the beautiful boy he is. This is really frustrating because there just could've been so much more. Also the storyline with Amp? So toxic, just like in so many other dramas, making women look like crazy, mean and dumb girls that don't know what they're doing anyways. Her outing Ton to his parents like that just just the cherry on top.
It's sad because Tonhons and Chonlatees actors seem to be really good friends in real life that are genuine and i was looking forward for them to have a chance to make something cute and wholesome. I hope they will get another chance to act with each other.
By the way, how is that one dude that tried to drug and rape Chon not in fucking jail????? My dude, my guy, how did Chon just walk away from that like it never happened??? And the story with Tons dad? My guy, we already have enough people on this world,,, you treating your children like breeding machines is just not it. Who even thought that that would be a good storyline?? If you wanna make him homophobic, just make him homophobic! Ton and Chon could've just worked around that because after the dad has a crackin' stroke, Tonhon just doesn't seem to be that worried anyways. I loved Chons mum though but i wanted to see her fistfighting Tons dad so bad.
When Tonhon kissed Amp in that one club or bar they were sitting in, i just knew, nah my guy, you don't deserve a happy ending. And to be honest, after all that i would've been very okay with not having a happy ending because he just didn't deserve it. Are you really that fragile, my guy? Do you really have to prove your EX that you're still into girls? That you're are so unsure in your masculinity, that you just can't let people think that there is a possibility you could be gay? You, my dude, are the weakest link! If you guys ever meet someone like that, RUN, or you will feel your braincells just packing it together and fleeing to another country.
I don't think i will ever rewatch this and i hope there are people getting back into studying film and screenwriting because this just ain't it.
Please, don't take me too seriously. This is just me ranting on an empty stomach and posting it without reading over it.
If you haven't watched this series yet, don't waste your time with it. Go rewatch your favourite BLs or something.

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Much appreciation to Korean cable companies for not playing it safe.

STORY AND ACTING/CAST -
Want to see a heroine in a Korean drama who can kick butt and take names? Watch this drama.

Han Groo is impressive and charismatic as the female lead who was trained as an assassin once her mother is killed in front of her very eyes. She never acts cute or pretty or stupid (It's freaking refreshing).

The drama stands out to me because it is 3 episodes of slick fight sequences and good cinematography and devilish villains played to perfection.

LAST THOUGHTS
A great watch for those craving a short and gritty drama with tons of action.
And a word of caution: the drama does have a lot of violent and sexual sequences as well.

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I will try my best to mention everything without any spoilers, so I apologize that this is a tad bit long, but an excellent drama deserves a long review!

To start: I love this drama. How the story unfolds perfectly with each episode, to how the characters carry the story with their actions, this drama is perfect. For me, enjoyment is the main factor to determine if I like a drama or not. If there are a few inconsistencies but I ended up enjoying watching despite them, I will still like a drama. For Penthouse, there were a few things here and there that I think could have been done differently, but I didn't dislike the drama less because of it like I usually would for others. There were barely any inconsistencies that ended up enjoying every moment I watched enjoyable.

Story:
As long as a makjang drama is done right and makes sense, I don't mind how dramatic it comes off as. For Penthouse, it had the right blend of insanity with the plot and characters which made it work well (for me). What I love about this drama is how it's not predictable. Sometimes it comes off like you know what's going to happen, but then it throws you off-board by going down a path least respected. The overall flow of the drama was something I also really liked, as it never felt slow but at the same time it didn't feel like things were happening so fast. It had the perfect pacing, which helped keep me on board and made me enjoy the drama more. Another thing I really liked was how each prominent character gets focused on for a few sets of episodes instead of the story of each character getting told in the same episode. Because of this, each episode doesn't feel jam-packed and is able to properly tell the character's story without rushing anything. Overall, the plot was extremely enjoyable and constantly fascinated me which made me enjoy it more than I thought I would

Characters:
One of the bests things about this drama is no doubt its characters. Not just the three leading ladies (Soo Ryeon, Seo Jin, and Yoon Hee), but the leading men and the supporting characters are what make this drama spectacular. The acting is well done that sometimes I forget to separate the characters from the actors since the portrayal of each character felt so real. I also applaud the younger casts for how well they did with the intense script they were given. Penthouse gives you characters to like, characters to hate, and characters where you can choose whether you want to support or not. This balance makes the character ensemble interesting and enjoyable to watch, as you never know what will happen or what each will do.

Others:
Despite only getting to 3 OST's, both of them, especially Crown, was really good and fit the drama well. I also like the usage of classical music, which fits the overall drama extremely well. I also really like the design of Hera Palace, and even forgot a few times that It was completely made of for this drama.

One thing for sure is that this drama is not for everyone. If you're one that gets easily enraged or is sensitive then this drama might not be for you because of how intense and "dramatic" it is. However, I don't think because of that this drama should be labeled as "bad," since that is a preference.

Final Thoughts:
Penthouse will go down as not only one of the most intense dramas I've ever watched but also as one of my favorites of all time. The intense, unpredictable but fascinating plot captivated me and made me excited each week for new episodes. Penthouse was a drama that I didn't anticipate as much as others, but I ended up loving it more than the ones I anticipated.

I can't wait to see what happens next in season 2!

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Short but what a gem !

It's amazing to think that 16 minutes of movie has such a big impact on you. Final note 8.8 / 10

A first love story has that lightness that you feel when you are in a place where you feel safe.

There's a kind of shyness, a modesty, an awkwardness in the way they express themselves, whether it's in the dialogue or in their body language.

I like the way this film is anchored in reality and pushes us not to have regrets.

It's worth to watch, well written, well directed each gesture has a symbolism and well acted, the actors manage to share with us this relationship between these two friends.

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Disappointed

What to say about this ending? They romanticized a toxic and abusive relationship. They romanticized that a woman is indeed a repair shop for men. I feel shame and pity for Na-bi because in that conversation where they return their relationship, it is evident how emotionally dependent she is on him. She knew what he was like, what he put her through, and yet she threw herself into his arms again. I am disappointed! Fortunately the secondary couples - Sol and Jiwan, Bit-Na and Kyuhyun, Min Young and Kyung Jun - saved that story.
They could have made Na-bi discover female empowerment. They could have made her realize with Jae-eon that no one deserves to go through an abusive relationship. What about Jae-eon saying he fell in love with her at first sight? This was never a crush because if he really had fallen in love with her, he would have had intentions of getting into a serious relationship with her from the start. And not just after losing her. What starts wrong will never work. Except in Nevertheless, history made people think everything that happened was normal.

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Fun and cute Epilogue of the Main Story

Ok, as I already see ppl hating on this again, my rating will be a 10.

If you want to know more about the main story, pls check out my review on that. ♥

This special EP is internationally (except Japan) available on vimeo for 90 days and costs 10$.
My guess is, after those 90 days it will be available on iqiyi.

We are in World 4 (refers to my review of the main story), the world of a really shy Phu, that's secretly in love with Cir since their school days. This time he is the one 'stalking' Cir and even has a load of pictures stored on his cupboard. If you thought Stalker!Cir was creepy, this version of Phu really tops it. xD

Anyways, all in all it is a really cute and fun story to watch. I enjoyed it really much and it was a nice change to the main story. I thought it was a pity that they switched to the og pair at the end though. The story of World 4 ends with them kissing, also pls watch till after the credits, there will be a new ending scene which is also a cliffhanger and leaves the story open for a follow up.

Bossnoeul is delivering yet again in this one. Acting was good, nc was good, and tbh their bodies are a looker. lol

We saw a different side of the side couple too, I sure didnt expect them to make out.

Anyways, if you enjoyed Tbnw and are a Bossnoeul fan, this is a must watch.

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One of the Best well spent Movie I've seen in 2019. I laugh, cried, thrilled and feel for the character. It reach it's full potential in terms of emotional ride, and the most awsome is not forget to insert the little detail into the narrative, make the story become richer. The idea is pretty common, but the execution is mindlowing and full of heart. Imagine if you are in heroes situation when you hardly trying hard in everything you do and you complain every single little thing. But you seems no longer care that much, until you are put in a dangerous situation when your life is on the line Off course, the execution is bit convenient at times. Nevertheless. do Well deserved admission record.

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Excellent....

Going into this drama, honestly was kinda 60/40 but glad I did tune into it....
Luo Yunxi for me has been an actor very hit and miss....
Zhang Rounan, never understood why she has got such a big push....

Wow, did my perception of both these actors change just watching this drama.... Seriously what have I learnt?....
Luo Yunxi is indeed very good, some reason never really liked him alongside Bai Lu however with Zhang Rounan has been exceptional, she has really got the best out of Luo Yunxi for me, funny me saying this as he is a veteran actor....

Zhang Rounan, Ok right now I am watching dramas which feature Bai Lu, Wu Xuanyi, Jian Tian however with confidence can say Zhang Rounan is MVP.... She is the best actress right now.... Honestly this is a very basic script, if it was anyone else acting in it i think would have dropped this drama but Zhang Rounan has captivated me with her performance..... I have said it, actors like Xu Kai, Zhang Ling He & Wang Hedi need to seriously do everything they can to secure a drama with her, she is to perfect.... One they shouldn't let slip!....

Where to now?....

Luo Yunxi reminds me of guys like Jasper Lui & Gao Hanyu.... guys that can still turn on the charms.... just need really focus now at this point of their careers just sticking to their strengths and not get sucked into bad scripts....
Jasper and Luo Yunxi seem to know this and watching both latest dramas are doing this.... Hopefully Luo Yunxi replicates this, finds a Female Lead which growing momentum that can excite the viewers along with a script that keep us engaged and again, another success....

Zhang Rounan, simple keep doing what you are doing, Xu Kai & Wang Hedi agency will be calling soon....
Please dont do a rubbish script like Only for Love, think Wang Hedi has learnt his lesson there and will find nice script for both of you....

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