Reviews

If you think this is not exceptional, then it's just your bias!!

*Minor spoilers*

This has been a good assortment of situational comedy, comedy of errors, word-play. Kdrama-Land is filled workplace centred dramas. Comedic aspect of workplace is something which is used by most of them. This one takes it to next level. All throughout the first episode it made me laugh unceasingly. Comedy like this sometimes appear as over-acting. Lots of workplace comedy has failed that way. But, this one maintains itself, avoiding that pitfall.

I've always thought Kwak Dong Yeon has been underrated actor. He is particularly adept while doing pitiful emotional scenes like in Vincenzo, Big Mouth. Here also he is playing to his strength, an underachieving office worker. His scenes with Go Sung Hee are probably the second best thing about this show, after comedy. Let's hope writers exploit these two things well.

They have given sufficient attention to supporting cast too. Be it Jang Byung whose inter-domain love relationship with robot, or Sung Nam's overly affectionate attitude towards Ma Tan or Aziz's quirky behaviour. Every supporting actor has been given attention and given some of the funniest scenes to perform.

Give it a try. You might find yourself surprised at how much you will like it.

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The Ten Commandments of TBL

These are the commandments that have been handed down to us by the gods of Taiwanese BLs. They shall be the commandments by which any present and all future TBLs may be judged.

1. Thou shalt violate an apparent taboo. So it is that a stepbrother may lie in the Biblical sense with another stepbrother, or a stepfather with a stepson, or a teacher with a student. But a real taboo, thou shalt violate not. For it is a sin. Our purpose here is titillation, not transgression.

2. Thou shalt not utter the word ‘gay’. For it is a sin. Thou mayst love another man, but if anyone shall ask of thee if thou dost, thou mayst answer, “I like not men, I like only you.”

3. Thou shalt always include more than one same-sex couple. For it is the law. The number assigned to thee is two. One is too little, for it adheres too close to the earthly realm; three too much, for it adheres too close to the realm of Thai BL.

4. Employ thou a verily bright colour saturation in thy film, to mask the limitations of thy capital and thy cinematographer.

5. Apply thou, always, a verily thick, sweet, intrusive, and insistent music over thy graven images, to mask the limitations of thy talent and thy words. Drown out all the tender and vital moments of thy show with melodies made by AutoTune Pro, and lyrics conjured by Google Translate.

6. Remember thou that there exist only three acceptable settings for a TBL: a school, a university, and a criminal enterprise (the Lord doth favour the mafia). For these do encompass all of life. Thou mayst aim for complexity by leavening one of the first two settings with the third. Leviticus doth indeed condemn leavening, but it is not prohibited by the gods of BL.

7. Thou shalt have no balance. Remember thou that men must fall over and into each other at every step, puddle, path, street, game, instrument, opportunity, or obstacle in existence. This, and this alone, shall be the occasion for their first kiss. The said kiss may be accidental, forced, or incite a wide-eyed surprise. But a loving nor sensual kiss it may not be.

8. Thou shalt depict at least one instance of fornication in thy tale. Or two, if thou hast taken care enough to inscribe a story for the second(ary) couple. But the act shall not unfold until the penultimate chapter. Thou shalt tease thy viewers for ten long hours, and grant them gratification for ten short seconds, which to most shall be proof positive that Moses was heterosexual. Thou mayst inflict additional torture upon thy viewers by interrupting the said gratification with deafening music and wanton cuts.

9. Thou shalt choose from the following any number of ornaments to embellish thy tale: gentle wiping of the lips (for there is a general want of raiment in our kingdom), gentle forehead kiss, gentle lock-of-hair restoration, gentle somnolent confession, a gentle fever, a gentle towel bath for said fever, a gentle pour-over coffee, a gentle post-modern coffee-shop to house that coffee, and forget not thou, a not-so-gentle last-minute conflict, a forced separation, or a wandering to parts abroad wherein shall cease all modern communication. If imagination thou lackst, thou mayst construct a story from these elements alone.

10. Thou shalt by no means indicate homophobia in thy tale, unless it furthereth thy plot and our cynical purpose. Friends and family shall be universally supportive, unless it force a separation between thy characters. (Parents and spouses shall be left otherwise dead, be it from accident or ailment, to anoint the show with cheap sentiment.) Remember thou, always, that this is a world of pandering fantasy, not reality.

Biblical Proportions:
Commandments Broken: 8 (partly).
Commandments Obeyed: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (again and again and again), 9, 10.

Observations:
Well, this one is for the books. Every TBL commandment was kept to the letter, except, in small part, for the 8th, and that too only because the love scene between the teacher and student came so early. But then, that scene was so badly done that I wonder if the commandment was broken after all.
There is no writing in this show to speak of, no script, no real story-telling, no serious attempt at characterisation. Nothing. Just the loose outlines of an imaginary BL... The experience of watching this show is something akin to ordering a small package on Amazon. You order a simple toothbrush, and are shocked to find, the next day, a huge cardboard box sitting at your door step, only to realise that, when you open it, there are 7 smaller boxes inside, each stuffed with shredded paper and bubblewrap. By the time you get to the final box, you forget what you ordered, what has arrived, and what you were looking for. You just know there is a huge mess to clean up, and that a lot of trees have given up their lives for it.
The men are beautiful, two of them quite sexy, and for that reason, I gave 'casting' a 5. If any of the actors start *acting*, someone please let me know. I'll be sleeping in the back.
There will be, I imagine, a lot of hand-wringing and pearl-clutching about the teacher-student relationship. But, as the first commandment states, this is just an apparent taboo. No trust has been broken, no consent violated. The age gap is dimunitive, the "teaching" is more like tutoring (lasting a mere few weeks), and both men are above the age of consent. There are no interesting or troubling power dynamics at play here. Nothing to be outraged about. It's just dull.
Finally, for fucks' sake, just say it. It's not the fucking plague. And we are not in Florida.. So say it. Yu Xing is gay. Come, say it with me: "gay". See? The world didn't fall apart.

Verdict:
This is a dreadful show. It might even be one of the worst BLs to come out of Taiwan. Avoid it. Avoid it like radioactive waste.

Reader's Digest:
DO SAY: Blessed Art Thou, O Lord
DON'T SAY: That Don't Impress Me Much

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I, like most people, began watching because of the high ratings (9.1 atm) and the intriguing synopsis. MC in a comic book trying to fight against her fate? Sign me up! The first few episodes did pretty well in setting up the story and world-building. You have Dan Oh who is headstrong and determined to change her fight as a sick girl who has a crush on Baek Kyung, Baek Kyung who treats Dan Oh like trash, Haru who tries to help Dan Oh change her fate, Joo Da who is your typical helpless female lead in the comic, Nam Joo who is your typical rich male lead in the comic, and Do Hwa who is your typical sweet second-male lead. However, towards the middle of the story, Dan Oh's goal switches and she turns into the cliche girl whose life now centers around romance and being with Haru. Scenes become repetitive as characters lose their memories, scenes successfully manage to be changed only with slight tweaks, and Dan Oh continuously suffers from her sickness without being able to do anything about it. You're up to the last four episodes and you're thinking, what's progressed between Dan Oh and achieving her sickness goal? NOTHING! The only progress there has been in Dan Oh's life is in the romance department between her and Haru. And of course, the last four episodes rush everything and almost nothing is explained or satisfyingly resolved in the end. Who is the writer? Why do shadows exist in the first place? Why don't the characters just get skipped to the next important scene automatically? How do the changed scenes affect the writer's planning in real life? What's the point of this whole drama if the characters will face the same problem in the other works the author writes? What happens to the characters after a story is completed? Why does Haru sleep in school? Is he homeless? Where's his parents? Why don't we know anything about him after 30 episodes other than that he likes Dan Oh? Dan Oh's best friend is Ju Da's bully, yet why does Dan Oh never do anything about it?

Pros:
- Unique concept (even though a lot of potential is wasted)
- Charming and complex characters (especially Do Hwa and shadow Ju Da)
- Superb acting despite messy storyline (major props to Baek Kyung's actor)
- Great character developments (Baek Kyung)
- Mix of historical drama background

Cons:
- Turns into your typical romance story with a high school girl infatuated with a guy and prioritizing him over her own life
- Undeveloped characters (looking at you, Haru)
- Sends bad messages (romance vs. life, no free will, can't change your fate, bullying)
- TONS of plotholes
- Not a lot of questions answered
- Repetitive scenes
- Terrible and rushed ending

All in all, if you're looking for a romance drama with a bit of a "forbidden love" twist and angst in it, this is for you. Just don't look too deep into the whole character-being-unable-to-change-her-fate concept. If you're planning on watching it because the synopsis sounds interesting, brace yourself for the disappointment. The rushed ending leaving millions of questions unanswered will crush you.

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JUST WATCH IT

If you’re already into the omegaverse, this is a must-watch you’ll go feral in the best way. But even if you’re new to it, Desire offers a unique sci-fi twist that makes the world intriguing to step into, to the new ones It might get a little bizarre later (we all know what the genre holds 👀) but if you’re open mindu and looking for something different, you’ll probably end up just as hooked.
It's a well-built omegaverse that finally feels true to its genre and immersive. With the added rare Enigma, tiying the dynamics to a DNA altering virus is creative, sci-fi-ish, and refreshing it makes it feel more realistic(?)

The main couple? Electric. Hua Yong is a literal orchid jade beauty! and when jealousy hits, the Enigma in him switch to a whole new personality. Sheng keeps falling for all his schemes, and honestly, same lol.

Even the kiss scenes felt sweet and natural no secondhand embarrassment here, just unexpected giggles. The side couple also brings chaos with an omega disguised as a beta, and I’m all in for that drama.

Gao Tu’s acting stood out the most so far, and while it’s still in worldbuilding mode, the pacing feels right. Only the two characters are in focus, which makes it easy to follow. Production quality? Surprisingly high. Those billionaire villas alone deserve a shoutout. You can tell they invested in detailed sets and styling. Nothing looks cheap or rushed, and even the camera work is smooth and solid.

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I remember watching this movie and being really impressed by the characters. Or the writing of them. Each of our main characters really gets a voice and has a story to tell. Even the ones that aren't present get the chance. I feel like, in a lot of gay movies out there, there's a really strong focus on only the two gay characters, which is fine, but I guess this was refreshing in a way. I really liked the way the story reveals itself to our characters. It has really smooth transitions as well. I don't know. I found the story really touching. Each character is dynamic with their own struggles and their unique way of expressing themselves. I really liked it. Ah sorry if this isn't very helpful, but I thought it should be known it was a story worth watching.

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On aliens and alienation

I am sorry about the punny title but it was either this or "Out of this world" and I feel like this one causes less physical pain.

A lot can be said about Glitch but conventional sure isn’t the word that comes to mind. Watching this drama as soon as it came out while following the reactions online has been a wild ride indeed. This isn’t supposed to be about other people’s opinions, this is my review, my thoughts, but I was perplexed by how badly this K-drama bombed. Reading the initial impressions, it sometimes felt, like I was watching a different show entirely. Upon further consideration I am adding a very mild spoiler warning to my review here, I won't go into any detail about how this story progresses, but will talk about a few elements of this show that were not mentioned in the synopsis or tags. So here you go: VERY MILD SPOILERS AHEAD!

I think the one thing the majority of watchers can at least somewhat agree is on, is that the performances are the aspect where Glitch shines the most, though this was to be expected considering the stellar cast this show provides. Our two lead actresses are of course especially to be praised here. Their dynamic and chemistry might be what this drama thrives on and Nana and Jeon Yeo-been add charm and believability to their roles. But even less prominent roles, like Boras squad of conspiracy theorists or overwhelmed policeman Kim Byung-jo, had their moments. Even Hong Ji-hyo’s abducted boyfriend who had little to no presence, felt like a somewhat fleshed-out character all thanks to his actor’s performance.

But my personal favorite aspect of this drama might be Glitch’s distinctive look and style. It’s quite challenging to present yourself as a sleek-looking drama, while also featuring a ginormous blue alien in your first episode. I will not be too soft here, when it came to extraterrestrial beings, the CGI left something to be desired, but the drama was kind enough to not rely on their presence all too often. When we’re not subjected to computer-generated monstrosities, Glitch remains a surprisingly artistic show, especially at the times where it does get more experimental. Lighting and colors played one of the biggest parts here, switching between soft warm tones when we’re shown flashbacks of Bora’s and Jihyo’s past and the cold blue-and-green tones we’re used to from our sci-fi-flicks. I especially have to commend the usage of green-tinted lighting, whenever a situation was supposed to be uncomfortable or unnatural, it really generated the feeling the script needed. But shot composition, cut, and camera also stood out here. The hand-held camera shined in fast-paced action scenes and in general Glitch very rarely felt or looked static. If there is one thing I have to critique when it comes to the overall look and feel of this show it’s the (rare) moments of slow-motion that always felt entirely out of place to me and like a misguided attempt to stretch shots that might have been too short. But this might just be my personal preference.

This might be where agreements about Glitch end. The plot and script are where opinions tend to differ drastically.
Pacing is something this drama has been harshly critiqued for. While it is true, that Glitch’s start felt somewhat slow, it does pick up speed after four episodes. But I would actually go so far as claim that the show‘s arguably monotone beginning was needed, to create the atmosphere the drama relied on. That’s because we follow the story through Ji-hyo whose life also feels like it has come to halt. At thirty she works a monotone job she doesn’t seem to care about, still lives with her parents, and isn’t willing to take the next step in her long-term relationship. All she’s trying to be is normal, boring even, while she desperately attempts to ignore all the things that make her different, attempts to even ignore the side of her that wants to be different. Things accelerate drastically for her after she reconnects with Bora, so it’s natural that the same goes for the overall essence of the show. This might not be everyone’s cup of tea and it does take some commitment to give the show a chance and see where the plot takes you, but personally, I enjoyed that Glitch took its time.
That the viewer experiences this story through Ji-hyo’s eyes also means that we’re bound to be confused as the plot escalates. Glitch keeps its audience on its toes and toys with plausible deniability. What is hallucination, what are aliens, what is the cult? The viewer doesn't know anything more than the protagonist does. We feel lost because Ji-hyo does too.
This does not excuse the few plotholes Glitch sadly contains. I fully understand frustrations with the ending, a few too many knots were left untied for my taste. So I am not arguing that the plot’s structure is flawless, God no, but I do feel like the pacing of this show isn’t nearly as off as many claim. Some stories just take time and I’d rather be along for the ride than for a script to feel rushed.

“But this isn’t what I signed up for! I wanted sci-fi and aliens! This is too weird!”
Not trying to come across as condescending or pretentious but I am once again begging people to read between the lines when they consume media. Glitch isn’t the conventional alien tale it seems to be at first glance because it isn’t trying to be. And it also doesn’t have to be that in order to be good. Because what is hidden under layers of UFOs and religious symbolism is the story of Ji-hyo’s emancipation. It is a tale of a young woman trying to escape the norm and her passive role in society. It’s about feeling like you literally don’t belong on this planet, like you yourself might be alien because you do not fit the mold people are trying to force you in. And it’s about the role that religion plays especially for people that feel alienated, a tale that showcases how simple it is to persuade them to believe once you have earned their trust. How you can influence individuals to believe in a religion based on self-interest, force them to see UFOs, and make them question everything they thought they knew.
I thoroughly enjoyed this show, it’s rare to come across stories that are entirely female-centric without even the hint of romance (unless you count our two female leads who honestly had enough chemistry to go steady). I got a lot of joy from the portrayal of female friendship. Bora and Ji-hyo’s dynamic worked excellent. But I also just genuinely had fun with this plot and was fully invested in it. Yes it was strange, that’s what made it good. I can certainly say that this wasn’t anything I had seen before.

I shouldn't care what others think but I really really wish people would give Glitch a fair chance. “Too weird” should not be a valid critique, especially when a story is obviously more interested in being interpreted than literal. It’s frustrating because Asian cinema already very often relies on the suspension of our disbelief. How out there or downright Ludacris a plotline is, doesn’t seem to be relevant in romance dramas but as soon as a story requires some form of critical thinking, people shut the door on it. Others obviously are allowed to take away from this show whatever they want, I am not trying to imply that everyone who rated this low is a simpleton who just didn’t get it but I do think that there is a lot more to this story than what meets the eye. I am not trying to argue that Glitch was anything close to perfection, just a lot better than people gave it credit for.

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I enjoyed this drama. Firstly because the female lead is so different from what we are used to seeing in C-dramas. She is mature, smart, prepared, and funny (not in a cute way, but in a realistic and mature way). The male lead is the cold male lead, but also different, he cares about her image and about her feelings more than I've ever seen in a drama.

There's only one bad acting from a supporting character, so it didn't affect the story. I liked how realistic the business feels (although it's still a drama), and how the events happened. I wish the main couple got together sooner because at some point the FL rejects the ML because of some misunderstandings, but he made it clear he wanted her, so there was no point avoiding him. But if we ignore this tiny detail, it's an amazing drama.

We have many steamy kisses and affection, I was so happy about that. I loved the leads and loved their chemistry.

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Smart Demons + Stupid Humans = Extraordinary Mess

Watched this to see Xu Kai act but just like in a previous series of his; his and everyone else's acting was great but the story itself was a hot mess. Wish he or whomever chooses for him, chose better. The only reason this even got a 6.5 and not lower was because of the literally only 3 pros. Otherwise, it was like the mighty morphin power rangers and mortal kombat took LSD and spit this out.

Pros: Leads chemistry, the actors hard work which included great fight scenes, and costumes (except for the Halloween store costume lion for Uncle Tang), and good OSTs. No other pros.

Cons: Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for smart antagonists but not when the protagonists are so ridiculously idiotic. Just about everyone was led by the nose by the demons the ENTIRE show. Even when our ML told them otherwise, the Elders still chose to believe evil people. The amount of times the good guys failed to understand something very simple made you want to run your face into the wall. The entire series made a ton of no sense because the bad guys were running the show while the good guys were just walking around like zombies and talking in circles.

Did just about everyone really deserve to die; KYY's death in the last episode was pointless and meaningless. Some really did die as heroes but what made much of it senseless is that if they put two and two together sooner and made it 4 instead of 7, they could have made things happen sooner and survived. It made me feel like whoever the writer was, had no clue how to write a novel or one that's understandable or cohesive. Ji Rong staying alive and even her death at the hands of probably the show’s stupidest character, made me feel like I lost brain cells. DXY warned his brother and the two elders something was fishy about her from nearly the beginning and yet both uncles died because of her.

The sets and CGI looked very cheap. The words chucked up on the screen each time a new magic trick was used was eye roll worthy. Welcome to the 90s and not in a good way! Situ Hong's ruthlessness was completely ignored and his death and that of the weird random cultivator that at first clung to XY was completely pathetic. Both were sucked dry for big bad demon God that most of the time sounded like an alien cat that sucked in a helium balloon. We were all expecting a fight between him and XY but yeah, why bother?

Demon Ao Lan turned himself into a psychedelic Venus flytrap to try and kill XY in the last episode and it had me laughing. Little Shop of Horrors that was filmed in the 1970s had better CGI than this mess. I shed a tear for Shifu sacrificing himself at the end as out of all the guardians, he was the only one that infiltrated the demon clan and didn't do too poorly. Yes, happy ending for leads and the maybe 3 other living people but what did I watch for 40 episodes?

Would I recommend? No way. Even if you are a fan of the leads or anyone else, please find something else. Leads chemistry is not enough to hold this thing together.

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I have never watched a thai drama before and I absolutely loved this version of Full House :)
Story-10
The story was a definite 10 for me! I just loved the romance a lot and the love scenes were defiantly super cute!!! The chemistry between the two make me hope that they are a couple off-screen as well! In all honesty, this was defiantly better than the remake.....and the story affirmed that for me! The story has an equilibrium between the romance and comedy which is actually quite tricky to master...but they managed to pull it of exquisitely!
Acting/Cast-10
I absolutely loved the actors and actresses! They suited their roles perfectly! I absolutely loved the chemistry between the two! I will defiantly be watching more of their dramas in the future! The actress does a very good job at pulling off Aom-am's character and the actor also does a very good job when acting as Mike.
Ultimately, the acting was a great plus-it wasn't fake nor was it uninteresting! It seemed realistic and thats why i absolutely loved the show!
Music-9
The music was really good-the only thing i wanted was another song because the same song would of been played at least 2-3 times during a single episode.....however I liked the song and it was cute because the pair actually sang the song themselves :)
Overall-9.5
I loved this drama soooo much and it has been so long since I have encountered a really good rom/com!!! I highly recommend this to anyone in search of a good laugh and 'aww' moments!

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THE BEST LEGAL COURTROOM DRAMA EVER!

Are you a fan of the American legal thriller TV series HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER? Then, LAW SCHOOL is definitely for you. Not a remake, but the premise of the drama and the primary set-up is inspired by the said English series.

Law School had been one of the most anticipated drama of the year 2021, that too a rare legal courtroom thriller drama. And everyone can see how it has paid off to everyone's expectations. Kim Myung Min, Kim Bum and Ryu Hye Young are indeed the reason all of us were damn sure about the quality drama it'll be. What a powerful cast to begin with!

The very first scene of the very first episode of this drama; that one single scene where the writer and the director decided to show the faces of the cast for every major character and proved what the class and standard of their drama will be. That was so lovely of a scene to witness and made me feel woah. The production actually succeeded in dragging us into the drama.

Law School has a straicase plot development which means, it's neither steady storyline or a combination of connecting plots; rather a series of related events where everything is revealed in a step by step manner leading to the main climax in the end. I loved the way every character in it catched up to a new event that they were completely unaware of, resonated it on the individual level utilizing law that they study, gave it a trail for good and finally let it go.

Law School has the typical urban thriller editing but they keep the intense mood up all the time by running the screenplay at the apt speed, hence making it interesting and not boring.

To be honest, the first 2 episodes felt a bit dull and confusing. They keep going forward and backward in time, multiple times which didn't allow me to catch up to what exactly was happening. But it caught momentum from the 3rd episode and got better since then. And from the 6th episode, it actually became very interesting and I enjoyed watching.

Character development is a thing that's been shown for only limited characters among a huge number of cast but that's fruitful given how they changed from facile and one dimensional beings to stronger individuals with the drama's progression. Notably, the screentime distribution is even for all the characters, the lead trio being the ones to get slightly more duration; one of the handful dramas where both male and female characters are equally emphasised and well balanced. A major credit to the writer for that.

Kim Myung Min being the arrogant and most lawful man (in the entire world), might make your blood boil to the point that you might wanna smash him down but before you realize, he shall capture your heart with his badguy charisma (I've actually fallen for him :P). DO NOT expect to see much romance between Kim Bum and Hye Young because the drama ain't about that though Kim Bum sometimes love to flirt with Hye Young as he kind of admires her a lot. On the other side, Hye Young who is unaware of her fluttering heart for Kim Bum, is always annoyed by Kim Bum and herself is so annoying, haha. Her character development is notable for she grows to being a righteous law person from a girl, not good at studies.

Let's talk about the legal aspects. I have always felt that not many people watch pure legal dramas unless it has a major part of romance and melodrama but if we are talking about a courtroom drama or movie, it has to be like Law School. Some people might wanna give up because they keep blabbering about the criminal codes, constitutional laws, articles and sections at a rate that you have to pause many times to understand and channelise the things but trust me, that's what happenes in a real courtroom. They have included and discussed a lot of clauses but they also made sure to make us understand them with examples and elaborations even during the trials. They've also wisely introduced the shortcomings in the existing law & order, thus implying a need of change in them. This work is hence highly commendable.

It's done pretty well even if you judge it as a thriller. They kept increasing our urge & curiosity to know who the actual culprit is. Unlike many thrillers, you might hesitate to predict and make theories about this drama because everything is simultaneous and transparent and which is why I thought the revelation of the culprit will come as a huge shock, but not gonna lie, it was disappointing. It turned out to be an already very bad guy so I wasn't like woah. But I doesn't matter because it's primarily a courtroom drama and evem after the revelation, it didn't become boring or anything rather more cases were added on the same episide as compensation which never felt like getting dragged at all.

The background sound editing and screenplay is nice. The direction is amazing as well that kept people going, especially for viewers like me who are into binging. But I think this drama is a huge disadvantage for those who watch ongoing. It's not frustrating as there's nothing to predict or think about and honestly you won't have to wait for a week eagerly to watch the next episode.

Law School is indeed one of the best thrillers of 2021 and overally among all the thrillers too and let me call it the BEST LEGAL COURTROOM KDRAMA EVER PRODUCED.

P. S. I sometimes got the DEAD POETS SOCIETY vibes because of the way Prof. Yang gathered his students and they even had a hideout in the copy room. HAHAHA

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UNDOUBTEDLY THE BEST BL OF 2023!

When you cast the right actors and put them with the right director and writers, YOU WILL GET A MASTERPIECE!

Highly recommend this show if you are looking for the following:
• Impeccable Period Drama.
• Impressive characters development.
• All types of couple (Has BL, GL, and even Straight).
• Complex and unpredictable storyline.
• Excellent acting of the cast.
• Amazing chemistry of the three couples and the whole cast.
• Realistic and un-sugarcoated life during the 1920's.
• Angsty and heavy drama.
• Right amount and right timing of comedy.
• Excellent songs and background music that fits a period drama.

Anyone who loves BL and Period Drama should watch this show. Nonkul and Bright are both spectacular in giving life to their characters.

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"Don't judge the book by its cover"

First let me start this review with a mini rant

The only concern I see people having with this drama is that they said it normalize pedophilia. My defense on that matter is you would only consider a person a pedophile if he/she is occasionally attracted to children which in this case she's not because she was not attracted to him because he's a child. I know most will not agree with that argument but let's say you are correct and she's a pedophile. Does this drama normalize that psychiatric disorder? BIG NO. She's attracted to him but didn't take advantage in fact she was despised the whole time, the school, students and the society. The drama won't make you feel they are romanticizing that idea. As for the matter that it might affect the thinking of underage viewers. Do those kids have parents to guide them? Then what about stories like Robin Hood, mistress protagonist, serial killer etc. are those stories being normalize just because they were made? If you are inclined to call it a trash just by reading the synopsis then I am sorry but with that kind of logic I just couldn't help but think you are DUMB.

Chugakusei Nikki portrays the forbidden love between Hijiri, a middle school teacher and Akira, one of her students. The drama follows their story for the course of several years. There will be time skip in the middle of the drama, 3 years to be exact, when Akira is 18 years of age. The characters are well written, Hijiri was portrayed really well as an inexperienced teacher, adult yet not matured, and also Akira as rebellious and confused teenager. Side characters are interesting too especially Haraguchi and Shotaro, it's also interesting to see their love story develops. Their love is somewhat similar yet different. The plot is sensitive but the drama handled it tastefully, it is nowhere near as creepy as you might think. This show is also grounded to reality in that every emotion these characters portray is very relatable. What I also like is the pacing it's very balanced which makes every episode engaging. The drama also knows how to play with our emotions. The director is just so good on how to build tension and also how to end every episode. Expect roller coaster of emotions, it's highs is wonderfully high and it's lows is absolutely devastating, there's even couple of scenes where I was on the edge of my seat and to think this drama is not a thriller.

~ A good rain chooses the right time to fall and so it falls ~
~ When it comes to spring, the rain is certainly falling ~
~ It follows the wind and secretly enters the night ~
~ While the wind is blowing, the rain continues to fall until night ~
~ And moistens everything softly, without any sound ~
~ Silently, almost making no sounds at all, it makes everything wet ~

This poem in episode 1 summarizes the whole drama. It is a metaphor to the kind of love between Hijiri and Akira, a pure love similar to dramas such as Sekachu, Endless love series, Koizora, Be with you, Heavenly Forest etc. Pure love genre if you would know is what popularizes Asian drama. It basically portrays a couple that faced many obstacles. Pure love in sense that even after so many years they still long for each other. We haven't seen this genre for quite some time and I already see upcoming dramas with similar genre. This drama will trigger another pure love era.

Cinematography is just captivating. I love how they capture the green landscape on camera, the shot during sunset, falling rain drops, fireworks and that weird fish eye effect they always use. Those are not just gorgeous shots but also serve as a symbol to what these characters feel. That's beauty about Japanese drama, it is full of symbolism and just like what I always said, great cinematography is similar to great painting, it is not just beautiful but also captivates you, will make you move closer and examine the painting and not just say "oh this painting is beautiful". Music in this drama is just perfect, it underlines the mood and helps showing the emotions of each characters. It is a really great piece of background music. With great drama comes great ending song and "Prologue" by Uru is just like that. It's not just a great melody because if you read the lyrics it will make sense why they choose it as the ending song.

The acting is just brilliant but other than the acting, the casting needs more praise. They just casted right people for the roles, Arimura Kasumi for example, she has this cute, inexperienced image and if you watch the drama having that image made her portrayal of hijiri so effective. They also cast a rookie for the role of Akira, it a nice decision by them as it requires a certain rawness to the character. It doesn't mean Okada Kenshi is not a great actor though. He is indeed fantastic as he provides the intensity and angst to the role. They won't call him a super rookie is he is not. The side characters are also well casted, if you follow Japanese drama long enough you would be familiar with Yoshida you and Natsukawa Yui, they were both underrated actresses. Their characters played an important role to the story and they played them really well. Aside from Akira, it's the portrayal of those characters made this drama so much better.

Final episode will be tomorrow but I decided to make this review because what ever happen this drama will go down as one of the best Japanese drama I've ever seen and definitely my best Japanese drama this year. End game won't decide the rating this drama should get in my opinion because just like they said the journey is more important the than destination. More than just a drama but also an experience.

Edit
I've just watched the last episode and I don't want to spoil anything but it is indeed one of the best Jdrama ever!!!

Best Student-Teacher Romance Drama List
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This was a popular series, and deservedly so! As you can see, my ratings are all over the place, so I will explain why.

I loved the music. For me, Mew (Tharn) carried this show, with brilliant acting = A+. Mild (Techno) was great = A+. Gulf (Type) was really good, too = A. Kaownah (Lhong) was a great singer and a decent actor (although, with all the crying, some real tears would have been welcome) = A-.

The chemistry between Mew and Gulf was off the charts! (That ice cube kissing scene in the last episode was epic.)
Now, for my issues with the series (hence, some of my lower ratings):

Despite some great performances, THE STORY WAS SO BAD I nearly dropped it after about four episodes. Here's why:

1) THARN'S MOLESTATION OF TYPE, WHILE TYPE WAS SLEEPING (And yes, that's what it was.)
For someone who was supposed to be the "good guy," this was not cool, not funny, not appropriate. Can something like this be portrayed in a drama? Yes, of course it can. But it should be presented as what it is, a molestation. Not as something cute, that can just be dismissed as "oh well."

2) THE WAY TYPE'S CHILDHOOD RAPE STORY WAS HANDLED.
At first I was intrigued, because Type was obviously scarred, and his intense hatred of gays made sense. All good. Then, without any buildup, Type has no issue with getting a blow job from his hated gay roommate. Then, in the next episode, he comes out and asks Tharn for anal sex (with Type as receiver), just one time, to "get it over with, once and for all." Are you kidding me? This was a childhood rape victim? And, Tharn's going along with it was almost as incredulous.

I seriously think (and wish) that the author would have had a better story, had she simply made Type a bigoted homophobe who eventually came around. That in itself would have been dramatic enough. As written, the "rape victim suddenly turned gay" storyline was not only unbelievable, but incredibly insensitive and offensive to actual victims of childhood rape.

3) THE TIMELINE.
I was confused (and still am) about what the timeline was for this story. There was no "six months later" that I could see. So, even if we allow for some time lapses here and there, we saw absolutely zero development of Type's character. He went from understandably hating gays, to suddenly having sex with Tharn. So, how exactly did this happen? We got no explanation.

4) THE ACTUAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THARN/TYPE.
Not talking about the sexy hotness. That was there in spades, no question! But, it was never explained why Tharn was so taken with Type. Let's face it, Type was a hot mess on many levels. Did Tharn just think Type was hot? What in Type's personality attracted Tharn?

5) LHONG'S ENDING.
Why on Earth didn't Lhong end up in prison, or committed to a psych ward?????

The following were not dealbreakers, but I found them a little hard to swallow:

a) MEW PLAYING A 19 YEAR OLD. Sorry, not buying it. Mew is 28, and he looks 28. Don't get me wrong, 28 isn't exactly old, but it's nowhere near 19. Mew looks like a hot, sexy 28 year old. He looks like he should be a teacher in the college. (That said, I had no problem with Mew/Gulf. Gulf is 21 but could easily pass for 24-25. They look fine together.)

b) TAR LOOKED 14. (Apparently he's 25 or something, a few years older than Gulf. But that's not the point.) Tar looked completely juvenile and the idea of Tharn falling for him -- to the point of being destroyed when Tar left him -- was almost laughable to me. To go along with that...

c) THE BED SCENE WITH TAR/THARN WAS SILLY. Tharn was there begging for Tar to let him up when, in real life, I'm sure Mew could have thrown him off with almost no effort!

d) TYPE HITS THARN IN THE BALLS IN THE BAR BATHROOM. Why? Totally uncalled for.

e) LHONG/TYPE IN THE LAST EPISODE. Type looks like he could easily kick Lhong's ass, but he sat there being strangled, without fighting back even a little.

f) LHONG DROPPING THE GLASS. Really? It was dumb when Pete did it in LBC (especially since he and Ae had already slept together, but I digress... ) and it was dumb here. And then, Lhong uncomfortably makes an excuse and practically runs out of the room. Tharn and Type just shrug it off. Seriously? Was there anyone who didn't know right then and there that Lhong was hopelessly in love with Tharn?? Without the glass drop, Lhong's devious behavior would have been even more of a surprise.

g) THORN, THARN'S OLDER BROTHER. Not only does the actor who plays Thorn NOT look older than Mew, but he is actually younger in real life.

With all that said, I can't say I didn't enjoy the series. I did. There were really great moments. But, despite all the good, it had some real flaws.

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One For the Books

I can't explain how much I was moved by the series to the point where I stayed up at the ass crack of dawn to binge-watch. Then to be told that episode 8 would be another few hours hurt to hear, but I waited and waited, and finally, it came out, and my heart is overjoyed with something that I haven't felt for many Japanese BLs. Mr.Unlucky is an extraordinary series full of happiness, speculating luck, and a heartwarming romance.

Let's Dive In.

Mr. Unlucky Has No Choice But to Kiss is the story of Kota, a boy born unlucky who has unfortunate circumstances happen to him every day, from falling ceilings to stepping in dog shit, he has to endure it 24/7. Until he meets Naoya, a boy born lucky, who has the best things happen to him anytime he wants them. When Kota finds himself around Naoya, he sees how his bad luck fades away, and he can have a good time. Through a misunderstanding, they both become boyfriends and their lives are forever changed. What initially drew me in was this wacky synopsis that I was curious to see play out on screen. I was a little skeptical at first, going into this with only the synopsis and that's it, but this was a gem. A bright bright gem that I'm so thankful I ventured to. While most of this series was everything I needed and more, there was a key aspect that dimmed my overall joy, but for the most part, this series was as close to perfect as perfect can get.

One thing that Japanese series can do is either be extremely vulgar or super clean and from my understanding, there is no in-between. Even looking at Cherry Magic, a story based around a virgin, was as innocent as ever, and so was Kieta Hatsukoi, with neither shows even showing a kiss between leads, and yet, I still loved them to my fullest potential. Mr. Unlucky happens to fall in the super clean category. Part of me doesn't mind that intimacy doesn't play a big role here, because they were still able to evoke strong feelings out of me without that aspect, but gosh, does it suck not to see the climax of something the writers did so well at building up. Kota and Naoya have built such incredible sensual tension that it's almost infuriating with every passing second Kota avoids kissing Naoya or doing anything else. This series is so prude in itself that it draws back its own ability to be even greater than before, and it sucks. I wish there would've been a moment where Kota finally felt ready to kiss Naoya, and instead, we never get that. Besides a very chaste kiss in the beginning, we the audience are left to fend for our own and make up the rest of their story as it ends.

And while I do complain that intimacy should've played a bigger role here, I can't help but applaud how respectful and patient Naoya was. He kissed Kota in the beginning because that's what his past girlfriends had liked, but he realized Kota was different and was willing to wait to kiss him again until he was ready. Although that moment never happens, it's heartwarming to watch Naoya be so sensual and yet hold himself back for the one that matters to him the most. Consent was superb here, and I will deathly miss it.

Now, getting into their romance, of course, because of it being a misunderstanding, the connection isn't as strong in the beginning as it is in the end. But we get to watch with every passing moment it build and build until we're desperate for more. Getting to watch Kota be happy and do things that he normally keeps himself away from because of his bad luck is another level of rewarding. His smile, the way his eyes light up, his skips and jumps and cheers, it's all very gratifying to see. To see that Naoya is able to bring him something he hasn't had in years. Anytime they were together, my heart was aghast to watch them grow in chemistry and understanding. I was sure that Naoya would have a similar situation as Kota: using him so that his good luck isn't always there and people can stop relying on him. But nope, that's not the case. Naoya just loved Kota from the very second he saw him, and it only grew from there. That is fucking precious. I will miss seeing these two on my screen, only if it were for a day.

Onto the side characters, who were a lot less memorable, but they played helpful roles in getting the leads to where they needed to be. The two best friends were valuable attributes to Naoya who saw them as his real friends and not people needing him for his luck. I was more so intrigued with Miki's story who seemed as positive as ever about love, and Anna, who seemed very negative about love. I have my speculations that the bracelet Miki was wearing somehow stopped her from forming relationships instead of being in one, and once it broke, she seemingly started to realize her feelings for Anna, and it's quite an adventure to take part in. I wish they had more screen time after Miki subtly (but not so subtly) admits her feelings to Anna.

Ratings:

Story: 9 - It's the strongest aspect of the series. It was able to keep me entertained throughout without any skips or FF. The romance is well done, and so is the explanation and the play out of luck and sharing it. I'll only take a star off since I think the romance could've taken that one step further, and instead, the writers hold us back.

Acting: 9.5 - Great! Literally! Sota (Kota) does a fascinating job, playing up the extraness and expressional person that his character was. Sato I learned is a Japanese idol, and in some parts of his acting, it's not as strong as it could be, but still, he does a good job at getting the message of his character across. All the side characters did excellent as well.

Music: 7 - the theme song was good to me! Other than that, I didn't really pay too much attention to it.

Rewatch value: 6 - I could see myself rewatching this whenever I need my heart to flutter for whatever reason.

I don't usually ask for second seasons, cause it's unnecessary and not needed, but I severely hope this gets a second season to wrap up that endearing part of Kota and Noaya that we don't see. I still think there is a story there to tell, and I need it immediately. This had shot up to being my new all-time favorite Japanese BL, and not too far from making an appearance as my top 10 favorite BLs. I will cherish this for as long as I can. I heavily recommend this for anyone interested. If you can take yourself out of the real world and watch this fantastical series that will make you feel every emotion in the book, then give this one a shot.

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