For the story I would say it was okay. It was one of those shows that you basically knew what was gonna happen in the end so nothing was surprising yet since the episodes are short you quickly want to go to the next episode.
The music was good and the acting was good.
I would watch it again since it's short and because Astro is in it.
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Much better than part 1...
While "New" often directs the actors as childish and cringe (Earth has to be played as a toddler), "New" was this time in the second row just producing and executive producing. The new director did tune down the childish and cringe behaviours of the direction but there is still some unnecessary childish stuff left including the stupid sound effects.What me irked the most are the inconsistencies between season 1 and season 2. Johann bought a café in season 1 but it was not seen in season 2 at all - why is that? Of course we also did not see the bar which was also bought by Johann. This does not make much sense without any explaination. I have no idea if the novels have the same inconsistencies but for me it breaks the whole story arc. You may say it's nitpicking but for me it's a huge deal. The series does not feel in the same universe anymore.
They also broke with the story telling. In Part 1 all four couples were intertwined which made the story more dynamic. The forth couple in this case were Tonfah & Typhoon, not prominently featured but we knew there was something wrong, but we couldn't put a finger on it, till it was revealed in Part 2. But this interactions between all the couples is missed often in the last two parts. For themselves the parts with Arthit & Daotok and Suea & Dueannao are good, but they don't feel natural in the grand picture of the whole series.
The whole production was not thought through. Either tell the story in parts per couple or tell them together. The mish-mash did not help the series at all. It may be easier to follow but I don't feel a production should make it easy for the viewer. If you can't keep up with a story when it involves more than two people you need to concentrate more and such series always have a "previously" part, because that's what the US series did, because they can't be bothered to remember. For me it's a timewaster, I know what happened a week before and I don't want to know what will happen next week. For this series "Suea & Dueannao" should have been the beginning of Part 1 with their school time and then we could have had Hill & Ter and Johann & North. The Suea & Duennao arc could have been sprinkled in the Tonfah & Typhoon and Arthit & Daotok arc. But of course what do I know about story telling? 🤣
So overall even with all the problems it was a "good" show. It was not stellar, but it was entertaining for the most part. Arthit & Daotok did give us something different alone from the beginning but had flaws executing the story till the end and nobody liked Arthit turning into a red flag for two episodes. Tonfah & Typhoon was cuteness overload with a basic evil dad background. Thai scriptwriters always have a problem to alter the original work to make it better than the original. That is a strength of many JBLs where a medicore manga is turned into something different, for example "Our Youth" where 50% of the original was scrubbed and 50% was newly written for the series. But I suppose we can't have it all. Lazyness trumps the thai screenwriters and fangirls (and fanboys) don't care about the story anyways as we can see with all the 10 reviews here on MDL.
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That being said I do think the plot dragged a bit in the middle. I was bored halfway through the first month they went to training camp. It was understandable that Qian Rui needed to grow as a player, but it definitely could have been condensed into fewer episodes.
Overall though, I really really enjoyed this. I'd consider it a favorite of mine.
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Frustrated by a Plot Hole in Episode 2 but It was Good
I was enjoying but Episode 2 hit a snag. The main lead faces false surgery accusations, yet the show conveniently ignores what happened to the surgery recording. Did it disappear into thin air? No explanation. Realism matters, even in dramas. A simple line about the footage getting corrupted would've sufficed. I’m pretending that it’s just a live feed, not a recording and watching the show now. Annoying gap, hoping they patch it up in future episodes.
Continued after 2nd episode it was good but not that good. Some series make me drop in the middle but this was watchable. Sometimes I felt that the main leads could have been smarter. I don’t know how the law works on recording the surgery I continued watching considering that it’s was just a live feed.
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I found it fascinating the things I learned about the operations of a world class airport. The drama was peppered with a series of action/crime plot lines typical of American programming and some of these scenes were a bit clunky but they served only as a backdrop and did not deter me from enjoying the drama at all.
I was also intrigued by the secret agent, black ops theme. There is always something mysterious about such occupation and Lee Jung Jae was both charismatic and enigmatic in that role. Choi Ji Woo was right on as the confident professional brought in to run the airport. The only minor complaint I had was her language skills. Her character was supposed to be fluent in 5 languages but she clearly struggled with the English scripts.
The romance was my taste with the hate at first sight, misunderstood theme and the chemistry between the leads was icing on the cake. The human struggles also shone through. I could identify with the choices Ji Sung had to make between his duty, guilt for Myung Woo and his love for Do Kyung. And of course, there was a very deserving second lead to spice it up.
I won't give away the ending but I have to say it was one that still gives me goosebumps to this day.
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Not as frustrating as most lakorns
TL;DR coming straight from BPS with no experience with other lakorns, you'll be disappointed. However, it's actually pretty good.STORY:
TL;DR The love story's AWESOME, the plot is frustrating at best SPOILERS ONLY IN THIS SECTION OF THE REVIEW
The major issue I had with the story was the evil girl. *sigh* she was too much-- seriously... who acts like that??? Everyone in the drama is a serial cheater. They forgive the evil girl-- which is great, but how on earth could the leads allow her to LIVE WITH THEM???? Pope suspects she's trying to KILL Bella, so what does he do?? He "keeps a closer eye on the evil girl" Bruh. If your girlfriend's and unborn baby's LIVES might possibly be at stake, YOU KICK THE GIRL OUT. So yeah. Typical nang rai getting all up in everyone's business, with no one bothering to keep an eye on her.
That being said, I looovvveeed the love story! Min and Picha's characters were very well-rounded, especially for a lakorn. I loved how they showed Picha's difficulty in committing to another relationship (though it was a little frustrating). It's hard after a divorce! Especially a nasty one like hers! Any misunderstandings the couple had were resolved on the spot, which is something you NEVER EVER see in lakorns. They actually communicated with each other lol. Min was so patient and level-headed, but we also see that he's imperfect in his relationship with his dad. They're both so believable.
ACTING:
Pope and Bella have done it again! This drama made me realize something: not only do they have amazing chemistry, but their acting styles complement each other perfectly.
ALSO, REAL KISS SCENES. In which we see Pope, our favorite cinnamon roll, making use of his kissing skills-- another thing you NEVER EVER see in lakorns.
Everybody else was convincing and worked well together!
MUSIC:
I'm sorry Bella... but you need to stick to acting... amazing actress, terrible singer. Pope's passable at best.
The other songs were great, though!
REWATCH VALUE:
Only worth rewatching for Pope and Bella's scenes.
OVERALL:
A good lakorn-- not amazing, but good. Recommended for the avid Pope and Bella fan who has preferably seen a few lakorns before.
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A crazy Drama, novel , unique and GOOD
I had very little expectations from this one, though I have been keeping an eye on this.But man it blew me away.... Its a roller coster ride. This is the first time I understand the power of original script done well(hope it stays so till the end).
Everyone in the cast did a great job and should be proud to have this in their portfolio.
A really bold move from the leads to choose such script.
In short it has Value, nice social message, great acting and costume and Comedy .
Since its science fiction, not everyone's cup of tea, so beware before you click and then criticize.
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The other characters( Chen Shao Chong, Yang Yu and Prof Zhong) are also very adorable, meanwhile Prof.Xiu Min Qi is very irritating.
I always thought that Chinese are always a step behind Koreans in terms of MEDICAL DRAMA, but this series proved that Chinese are even better. It includes proper climax and most importantly, tragedies.
Though this series got many criticisms from medical perspective, this doesn’t deny the fact that it is a nice drama.
Li Xue( director of Nirvana in Fire, Disguiser and Battle of Changsha together with Kong shen) really didn’t disappoint me. I will always love and rememeber this series and the characters included.
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Dragged out and repetitive plot
I think Chinese romance dramas are just not my thing. I watched this after Ashes of Love and both are so bad. Both have a plot that's repetitive and repeats the same few gimmicks for over 50 episodes.The good: the acting. Mark Chao was really good at conveying intense emotions. He has such expressive eyes. Yang Mi was quite good too. She portrayed three very different characters.
The bad: literally everything. Where do I begin?
1) The characters are boring as hell. I have particular beef with Ye Hua. He lost all personality after meeting Susu. All he does is pine and angst. I suppose I am watching a romance, so I shouldn't complain so much, but while I enjoyed the acting, I was so done with his character. Can we have something new other than the rinse-and-repeat of pining, hoping, angsting, pining, hoping, angsting? Also, Si Yin, Su Su and Bai Qian don't even make sense as a continuous character. The three of them are the same person? Really? Why don't they have any common personality traits? I'm not talking about the behavioral traits that Ye Hua used to identify Bai Qian, but I'm talking about continuities in her personality. Su Su was a blank slate after her memories were removed. She should be what Si Yin and Bai Qian were like without the trappings of social class, power and wealth, but she was nothing like her other selves. It was so weird. I don't buy her repeated rebirths/transformations. Also, how come she just doesn't care about her kid?
2) The plot in the middle part was literally just misunderstandings and everyone missing the person they need to talk to by seconds. The drama needed to make sure that no one knew what was going on, so that the two main characters' hidden identities could stay hidden, but it was really dumb watching them all just walk pass the person they need to talk to.
3) Villains who are evil for the sake of it. I am swearing off Chinese romance dramas. If I see one more female villain who became a villain because of jealousy, I am going to lose it. They are so flat and hateful. Also, there was a lot of bitchy infighting among the women. Bai Qian was an ass to nearly all the female characters.
I started skipping episodes around episode 30. The only thing that saved the last arc was the side pairing of Feng Jiu/Di Jun, who were actually more interesting than the main pair. I feel like I just wasted all those hours of my life.
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There is life under the surface of dead brain comedy.
This show could have been a very good one and at moments it was.It strengthened my interest in Japanese social comedy past the annoying and ludicrous reactions in some scenes that usually hold me back. Actually, this jdrama landed not too far away from being a hidden gem. Here is why.
First the writer pulled off surprisingly realistic and deep character. Most of the characters have more layers to them than what is hinted at the beginning. Take the groom to be Keigo for example, The stainless charming prince turns into a double standard jerk and finally into a despicable coward. Each layer slips in a very natural way, in harmony with the story development, not forced at all. The same occurs with Hitomi's mother and sister who have much more to their characters than what their silly introduction lets on. You can catch a glimpse of the struggles and doubts the mother has come across even if just hinted. Finally the main lead Manabu is the finest example of these “layers” paradigm. His character is quite disappointing at first as a marriage wrecker (not that he does anything to be a marriage wrecker actually), so straightforward and dull. But as the story develops his inner layers appear and let on a mature, respectful and bright personality, who was just waiting for someone like Hitomi to come and shake his world.
In addition to good characters writing, the issues it deals with really hit home. First I thought I would never relate to the show. What is a young woman supposed to do : give up to a fling or be a sensible person who invests in her future? That kind of dilemma doesn't strike any chord with me and I was about to give up on the show when it took a different path. It's built around the idea that double standards and hypocrisy deeply shape our choices. Social status is obviously assumed as a major thing in Japanese culture and society (or at least that's what I understand from my limited knowledge), nothing new here. But this show succeeds in showing some of the powerfull social structure that leads to it. It does not come only on your personal choices, but on all your interactions and values. As a European I could perfectly relate to this analysis.
Unfortunately though, what the show misses is still crucial.
Mainly time and substance. To tell the mother and sister's character development, Manabu's change of heart. And above all to account for Hitomi's poor decision making which really doesn't make any sense with her character arc.
Last but not least, what a poor and rushed happy ending. This show deserved much better.
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Full of tropes, but in a good way!!
STORY: Seriously, if you want tropes, this has it in spades! Enemies to lovers, ex-girlfriend that comes back after years, expecting to pick up where she left off, amnesia, cold boss, illness, bullying, revenge - you name it, it's in here! The reason this show works so well is that it doesn't appear to take itself too seriously. It spends a lot of time being over-the-top and let me tell you, it's a blast! Physical comedy, revenge, strangely it all worked. Episodes 14-15 went a little awry, those episodes felt somewhat like they threw a bunch of stuff at the wall to see what would stick. Thankfully, it got back on track. I don't want to say anything else about the story, I think it's better if you don't know what to expect.ACTING/CAST: Kim Jae Wook as Noh Go Jin (I loved him in Her Private Life and was glad to see him again.) - Straight-laced, bitter, mean and any other word you want to use for unlikeable, but you could sense his loneliness and sadness. His transition from the beginning to the end of the show was lovely, a person redeemed. Krystal Jung as Lee Shin A (I loved to hate her in Heirs) - she looks completely different, I originally only recognized her by her voice. Her character was wonderful (not a doormat and not a b**ch). She was strong when she needed to be, but she saw the good in people, which was a good foil for the ML. Hu Joon as Oh Se Gi - I don't believe I've ever seen him in anything before, and his character was very understated, so you never quite knew what his deal was. Im Won Hee as Park Yang Tae - his characters are always cartoon-like, which fit well in this drama. Go Gyu Pil as Joo Jun Pal/"John" - he had a relatively small part, but I love watching him act, he's got a great sweetness about him. I also liked the woman that played the cleaning woman at work, and how she went from hating the ML to being his staunchest supporter.
MUSIC: I'll be honest, nothing stuck out to me, but maybe that's a good thing. There was nothing to distract from the story.
CHEMISTRY: I loved this couple!! Their hatred was palpable, but the progression to liking one another made sense. Once they finally did get together, they had a healthy respect for one another, and their relationship was mature, without stupid misunderstandings or time jumps (hallelujah!). They were so cute together, I probably had a stupid grin on my face as I watched them. I think the supposed second couple (her brother and her roommate) were somewhat wasted, but I was glad that they didn't take time away from the main couple.
HAPPY ENDING and a peek into their future.
I am so glad I watched this (it was recommended by someone here on MDL, thank you very much!), it really worked my emotions, as well as giving me all the feels. Which was an absolute relief, as my recent luck with romance shows has been like a vast, desert wasteland.
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Yes, there is romance as stated on the drama information page, but it is also about family and friendship. There is the Nagakura family – four siblings and the oldest brother’s daughter – who often argue and banter but love and care about each other deeply, and then Chiaki comes to live next door. Romance leads to friendship and friendship to romance, and there’s romantic friendship that leads nowhere; all this is sort of obvious from the first episode. What surprised me was not the romance theme, but rather the friendship and family themes, and the warmth and humor throughout it all. In the end, this drama is about family: The kind of family that you chose and create for yourself.
This is a drama about adults. The main characters are all between 35 and 50, so if you’re used to watching dramas about young love and high school kids, you might think that this is not for you. Well, personally I appreciate variation and I like watching dramas about people older than myself sometimes. I think this drama can be enjoyed by anybody no matter the age. Also, this is a drama without evil and scheming second leads. Well, there are second leads and some weirdo characters, but nothing that will make you want to scream with frustration.
The characters are all very likeable, even though they’re pretty odd. The older Nagakura brother cares a lot about appearances and always tries to think about what’s proper and responsible, but at the same time he also does things he doesn’t always quite understand, out of love. Also, he has a hard time saying “no” to things, he’s a nitpicker, and somehow he can’t seem to be near Chiaki without picking a fight with her. The twins are also nice people: Shinpei who is an “Angel”, because although he’s scared of commitment, he is very “helpful and generous” and aims to make as many women happy as possible (yes, if it’s sex they need, that’s what he helps them with, although it could just as well be some company). All this is done with a sort of innocence and naïveté – he doesn’t quite seem like the typical womanizer even if that’s sort of what he is – that probably only works so well because of the general atmosphere of this drama. Even though you like the characters and feel for them, you can’t take this too seriously.
This is especially true about the twin sister, Mariko. You’d barely recognize Uchida Yuki under all that hair and the crazy clothes… Mariko is… special. At first I thought she was mentally disabled, perhaps she is but she’s also smart and observant. She’s not a complete recluse but she’s scared of people sometimes, and she's very fidgety, with her smartphone glued to her fingers… I just don’t know what’s “wrong” with her, but I guess not even the drama writer knows that… ;) Sometimes I found her a little bit too much but I loved her. The fourth sister is also an important character, but her plotline is a bit more typical that Mariko’s: She’s the rebellious housewife who is tired of being taken for granted by her husband and son. What I like about this drama though is that all of these characters are important and all storylines are completed; you don’t lose interest for anyone just because someone else gets too much screentime.
(As for the other supporting characters, not all of them are fully developed, but that’s not to be expected I guess. Chiaki’s friends are just there as a background, because there needs to be scenes where she can talk about things that are happening…)
Chiaki is a drama producer and there are also scenes from her office. It is mildly amusing when characters in a drama talk about a drama and about things that should or should not happen in one…
Also, I have to give this drama a special gold star in my book for stating openly that yes, sometimes a woman can fall in love with another woman. This is not a huge thing, but it is there, and this is the first time I have seen anything even remotely like lesbian love in a j-drama. Well, it might be there just because of the “comedy” that comes out of it, but it’s still undeniably there.
As always, there’s not much I can say about the music, but at least I did notice it this time around. There were mostly just the same two or three songs that played, but they added to the atmosphere and I liked them, for what it’s worth.
To be honest, I started watching this drama as a first step of stalking Koyzumi Kyoko, but I really did enjoy it and not just because of her! Now I’m looking forward to the special, and then let’s just hope we’ll get subs for season two this spring! The ending made me want to know what’s going to happen next, or rather, I just don’t want to let go of the Nagakura family yet!
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Didn't Love: The student's homeroom teacher (played by Hasegawa Kyoko) can be annoying at times but she always has the student's best interests at heart. Like most high school doramas there is a whole bunch of anti-change teachers to irritate the viewer and an incompetent but well-meaning principal with a penchant for hats tops it off.
Dragon Zakura isn't just another high school dorama - it's unique, funny and focuses on encouraging the students to want to improve themselves and their lives, rather than just mass-producing exam bots who can't think for themselves. A feel good show with some wacky characters and teaching methods thrown in for good measure.
<< See more of my reviews at doramasan.wordpress.com >>
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A beautiful, intelligently written show
This series is so self-aware and intelligently written. All the way through there has been a realistic portrayal of love, and specifically queer love, and the acting and emotionality shown in combination with this makes it such a good show. It doesn't fall into the tropes we see constantly in other series, instead it's aware of these tropes and its navigation of them actually informs the story. It's also such a fascinating setting being in a BL show production and featuring a character whose job is to write BL novels - really cleverly done and subtly satirical/aware of itself and its setting.The main couple might have their communication problems but it doesn't make their story any less impactful and just lovely (pun not intended). Watching their relationship grow as they learn about themselves and grow in confidence and in love is beautiful, and I felt every emotion along with Gene, the main character.
It is one of my favourite shows ever and it will stay with me for a long time.
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Basically "Save Myself" plot but different in a pleasent way...
I am not a huge fan of Shen Hao Nan`s work since i find many of his dramas really lacking plot wise, but the man himself can act, kiss and just take my screen by storm by his gorgeous and deadly charisma! His co-star is absolutely lovely Wang Yun Yun (my first time seeing her on-screen) and these two really caught my laptop on fire with their quite steamy chemistry! I mean if looks could BURN,YUMMM!And i really enjoyed this story by the way, especially with the emotional depth it got near the end. It totally fed my romantic soul!'
It does start with our gorgeous ML witnessing a wedding, in this case he sees FL marrying another man. Her beauty does catch his eye, but alas she is a married lady now. Well until he stumbles upon her in the Hotel corridor and find her drunk in his embrace. SEDUCTION ON POINT, PEOPLE (Ah i live for this!!) Not only does he become her secret lover, but also her secret sword against her enemies who wants to steal her inheritance.
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